#this ties into the four humours too but that's a longer post

[postsforposting]

He's a lil bitch, which is why he's gonna make fun of anyone who does the same things he does. This is in fact a reference to all the X-Men naming themselves after their most obvious trait, the thing that gets them persecuted. Cyclops? Ice man? Angel? Cmon. Wheels was spot on. If anything, "Blind Al" in that context is downright reverential. This Logan is still making fun of the naming scheme. He should have suggested she be called Echo, but I don't think audiences would have gotten the racy joke about "pride in your differences being a super power" and "reclaiming" names.

Logan's defining name in the movie would have been Mr Pissy, in four senses: drunk, angry, the "pissing" sense of yellow bellied coward, and the derogatory personal attack sense of being "pissed on". He wasn't proud of that and resented being known for it, forced into that role, in his own world. That's why he's contemptuous of the naming scheme and why he needed to blow off his extremely yellow suit. He didn't like what that suit meant. He never wore it until it was what he thought he deserved.

Why did Deadpool not care about Logan's past, and why did he want this specific Logan?

Deadpool has an infamous piss kink. Logan was the infamous Mr Pissy, in so many ways.

The mask wasn't blown off with his top: Logan saves the "good stuff" for Wade.

"you call her blind al??" BITCHASS YOU CALLED XAVIER WHEELS IN THE FIRST MOVIE

[the-ice-sculpture]

Reflecting on the Loki show

Hurray – fewer instances of cringey humour in Episode 2 than Episode 1!

Shame about there not being a single scene in the entire episode in Episode 2 where Loki felt in character

If this wasn’t a Loki show, I’d probably be enjoying it at the same level as a casual viewer of any other TV show. The plot’s interesting with a different take on time travel that I’ve seen, and there are no boring moments. But I can’t get past the lack of MCU Loki here. I just... Ugh. It’s so frustrating. No other media could get away with the main character suddenly having a personality transplant, but because it’s Marvel people are... fine with it, for some reason?

I can live with the tone and plot being different to what I’d do with it if I’d had the choice. I’ve said multiple times in the past that just because the show probably won’t give me what I want from it doesn’t mean that the show can’t be good in its own right. But what I didn’t anticipate before any of the trailers started coming out was that the Loki here might not feel like MCU Loki at all. I can forgive a lot of things, but I just can’t wrap my head around the sheer number of people who must have given the green light to all the decisions made about his characterisation. Those kinds of things can’t just be blamed on one person, it’d be a combination of the writers, directors, actors, producers...

I never thought that Loki finally getting to be the main character on screen (how many years have I wanted that to happen? 7? 8?) would be the thing to cause me to have my first ever thoughts about quitting this fandom.

I’m not having fun. I’m used to being more than a bit disappointed. I even stayed in the fandom after Thor: Ragnarok came about without much complaining, despite not being a fan of a fair amount of elements in it. I even stayed after Infinity War and Endgame came out with very little complaining either, despite how many things there were that I didn’t like in them. I even rewatched Game of Thrones after being just as unsatisfied with how it was tied up as everyone else was, and I still love the first four seasons and some scenes from later on (yes, even including Season 8).

But I’m not used to being this level of disappointed. The past month I’ve gone from having 5 different Loki WIPs I wanted to write to suddenly not being sure if I want to finish any of them at all. I mean, at least two of them will be finished because they’re oneshots for an event and I’ve already done most of the work so I might as well, but the contrast with my motivation is huge.

I don’t want to leave this fandom. I still have things I (hypothetically) want to write. I have over 100,000 words of various unpublished Loki fanfics that I’ve been working on. I don’t want them to go to waste. I want to finish what I started. It’s not like the enthusiasm for the idea of the stories has gone, it’s just... I don’t know, the overarching disappointment and not having fun in a fandom space anymore? How strongly Loki is associated with me feeling bitter and miserable now? How the show and the experience outside of it is doing the opposite of inspiring me?

I don’t to be that person either. You know, the one who has an entire blog dedicated to moaning about something. The one who seems determined to interpret everything in the worst possible light, regardless of rationalism. The one who seems like they’d never be satisfied unless something was made 100% their way, and if it wasn’t then of course it’s Problematic and that’s why it’s Just Plain Bad, and it’s nothing to do with personal taste and a certain amount of projection. The one who starts getting positive reinforcement about hating something, so it becomes a habit and before they know it, it’s part of their daily routine, and they’re still regularly doing it years later. The one who goes on about how ‘if you’re a true fan of [x] and really understood [x], this would bother you’, or worse, starts making it personal with the real people involved in the creation of the show.

But the experience of not liking the show is a lonely one. There are other people who don’t agree on his characterisation either, I know. But when the vast majority of people who watch it seem not to find the changes in his entire character jarring? When people are going around saying that it’s not until now that the writers have finally understood Loki? When you get people acting like anyone who voices any criticism whatsoever is ridiculous and shouldn’t be in the fandom and behaves like they might catch the Taint of Negativity if they were to associate with them? When any criticisms are dismissed as ‘people who just want to hate the show’?

Believe me, I don’t want to hate the show. I’d love to be happy with the show. But I'm not. This Loki doesn’t feel like MCU Loki. The only time he did feel like himself to me was during the scene towards the end of Episode 1 where he was watching parts of his life on screen. That’s it. Over one and a half hours into the series so far, 1/3 of the entire show. Out of all that, only one scene.

And now every time I see people being happy about the show it makes me feel resentful. And, no, I’m not going to add anything negative to their posts or say anything to them. If the show is what it is and there’s no changing it then it’s better at least some people get to enjoy it rather than it bringing about universal misery. I don’t want to take away anyone else’s happiness. I just to feel happy too, but I don’t, and I’m painfully aware of it.

I don’t know where I’m going with this, I think I’m just venting. 

I don’t know what the solution is either. Space from fandom for a bit? I mean, I’ve been doing this a bit already recently (not full commitment, just more than usual), but I like being able to use tumblr as an escape. Unfollow people/leave Discord groups? But there are people who I’ve had plenty of positive interactions with, and I don’t want to lose those connections.

It’s really dumb, but I like my fandom corner. I like knowing that if I post a fic, there’ll be a certain small group of people who’ll probably read it, and a smaller chunk of those who’ll comment on it, even all these years later. And there are still so many stories I want to tell with Loki, so many things I haven’t done yet, but... 

Yeah, I don’t know if my motivation will come back or not (I’m leaning towards maybe not). Or how much the fandom will change as a result of the show. I’d expect a wave newcomers, but if a lot of new fics being written are largely based on the show characterisation (and if reader expectation of Loki’s characterisation lies with that too), then I have little to no interest in it.

Oh, and another thing to add to my list of things I don’t want to be: I don’t want to be that person who is all ‘I’ve been here longer and know better and am therefore more of a real fan than any of you new people’. So there’s that.

Ultimately, I think I’m eventually going to have to choose between staying and trying to squash/somehow extinguish any bitter feelings, or leaving. I don’t like either of those options very much. It might be premature of me to post this before the show has ended because my feelings might change, but, unsurprisingly, writing is a good way of processing feelings and I’ve been having a lot of them that need processing.

In case anyone’s actually read this obscene amount of rambling, I’m okay, I’m not, like, weeping over this as I write or anything. But it’s still not a great feeling to have a place that was once my favourite place for escapism and creativity to make me feel like I might not be welcome or like I might not want to be there. And it’s not like I can easily just switch over to another fandom to write for, because there are no other characters who have inspired me to write anywhere near much as Loki has. So, yes, I’m feeling a little sorry for myself. All over a fictional TV show. I repeat: it’s dumb.

[casually-inlove]

(I hope your computer issues are getting better btw) I have seen a lot of posts about how tragic it will be for xixi when Jian xi disappears. But in the initial chapters before the flashbacks, that really doesn’t transpire. Do you have any theories on how that is going to work? I mean there is that hint in the first panel where going to the same uni is mentioned but

Hello there! I’m sorry for being so late with my response — I’ve been physically overwhelmed with stuff IRL. Also, thank you for asking. Yes, it’s much better now, and I got off easy (nothing work-related lost) but it was a close call.

Truthfully, I’ve been thinking about writing about it on my own, so your question happens to have excellent timing. No doubt some of it was spurred by the latest official illustration of Zhan Zheng Xi. 

I've seen quite a few people (on and off Tumblr) discuss the possibility of the picture itself being linked to Jian Yi's disappearance, so it's no wonder we ended up thinking about the earlier chapters. 

I have a few thoughts on the matter, but I'll try to be as brief here as possible here. Is Jian Yi's disappearance going to be tragic for Zhan Zheng Xi? 

In theory? Absolutely yes. 

Imagine someone you're seeing disappears one day without prior notice and keeps radio silence for years, only to appear one day at your doorstep and act like nothing truly happened. Or even worse, attempts to feed you an unlikely story of being stranded on an island after being kidnapped by a parent they allegedly never had. Imagine how you'd feel. Tricked? Yeah. Betrayed? Surely. Angry? Quite possibly. Kept in the dark and essentially swindled? Without a doubt. It's not a situation you'd take lightly, particularly if you had been romantically involved the said person. That's what they call "ghosting someone". What is Zhan Zheng Xi to think during Jian Yi's absence? In the best-case scenario that the latter decided to cut ties with him. In the worst-case scenario that he's come to physical harm. 

You see, there's a particular leitmotif going on for Zhanyi. XiXi has always taken it upon himself to be Jian Yi's knight in shining armour, the one who saves him from whatever trouble he gets into. During elementary school, XiXi would protect JY from the bullies. During middle school, he tried to protect him from Mo's gang and He Cheng's men. Failing to do so caused XiXi visible distress to the point where even Jian Yi noticed and commented on it. So being the shield that protects Jian Yi from harm is directly linked to ZZX's image of himself. His self-worth, if you will. Failing to do so would inevitably tell on his self-esteem even if ZZX won't show it to the outside world due to his stoic nature.

There's also a matter "emotional hurdles", something that thematically unites all the other characters in the manhua save for ZZX. JY, MGS, HT have faced traumatic events in their past which shaped them into who they are now. ZZX had none of that (yet). Perhaps OX plans to keep it that way, although it's also possible OX plans to have ZZX face personal hell later on. It's not too unthinkable, and I believe that's the reason why many people believe that JY's disappearance will be "tragic" — to fit in with the running subtheme.

Naturally, the initial chapters don't show us any of that simply because those take place three or four years after Jian Yi's disappearance. It figures the bulk of the emotional turmoil ZZX's must have gone through is well in the past. Time heals, as they say. By time JY comes back, ZZX has been living without him for years; deep inside he might have embraced the idea that he'll never see him again. That's why his reaction may seem a lot tamer than one could imagine.

Still, if you pay attention to their future interactions, it becomes clear that their bond took considerable damage. Within the present canon storyline, they have essentially admitted mutual feelings for each other and even shared a bed several times (nothing sexual of course). In other words, they do share a great deal of intimacy. In future-set issues, when they are attending the same college, XiXi appears to have reservations about as little as letting drunk JY lean on him. Naturally, a huge chunk of it could be attributed to the comedic nature of the episodes (OX needed to make it funny), but it’s still something to ponder on. 

Regarding the illustration OX posted -- I don't believe it hints at Jian Yi being presumed to be dead during his MIA period; I don't believe it's directly linked to JY at all for that matter. Had Jian Yi been presumed to be dead, you'd think ZZX would have shown a stronger reaction upon seeing him "alive", but that's not the case. Then again, OX may yet change it when we get to that point.

Lastly, if you recall, I did say that Jian Yi's disappearance is tragic "in theory". The reason why I say that resides in the very manner of OX's writing. If you peel away layers of slapstick comedy and occasional crude humour, you'd find that many things OX touches upon are no laughing matters. Absentee parents, alienation, peer pressure, social isolation, ostracism, street gangs, youth cruelty, dysfunctional families, criminal legacy, emotional abuse, neglect, being impoverished, having to deal with family debts, being threatened with prostitution, etc... You wouldn't be laughing at any of that had you been watching it on TV or reading in a newspaper. Many authors would find it to be an elephant in the room, yet more often than not OX doesn't address those issues directly. Instead, those get glossed over and covered up with situational comedy. While I absolutely appreciate the necessity of humour, I still believe there are topics out there making the light of which is simply unethical, regardless of comedic genre. Kidnapping someone for whatever reason and having to deal with someone's disappearance/loss is one such thing. That said, there's no guarantee that OX will make any of ZZX's internal struggle obvious and explicit. It might stay between the lines as something that we all know should be there — simply because we can put ourselves in ZZX's shoes. While I wouldn't want OX to play Jian Yi's kidnapping completely for the laughs, I still don't exclude a comedic outcome. 

Now, I truly wouldn't want to be making any grand guesses regarding HOW exactly it might transpire. It's peculiar that Jian Yi ostensibly didn't recognize the men who kidnapped him. What's so odd about it is that we know that Qiu and He Cheng are assigned to the duty of looking after Jian Yi. It's mostly Qiu who picks him up and drives around. Could that mean that things shifted and Qiu & Cheng are no longer trusted with his life or are absent for some reason? Or, perhaps, those men lied and, in fact, weren't working for Mr Jian after all? Instead, might they be the ones Mr Jian tried to protect his son from? It could truly be a fascinating plot-twist.

All in all, I'd say that the tragedy of Jian Yi's disappearance is something implicit. Whether OX would go into detail here is uncertain though; likewise, it's uncertain whether they would address the matter seriously. I would love to see ZZX go through something that would break his perpetual pokerface (as harsh as it might sound), but I also realize that's not everyone's cup of tea and may be completely irrelevant to OX's grand plans. 

[gofancyninjaworld]

OPM Manga Chapter 113 Review: ‘Terrible Luck’

When I said it’d be a couple of days before I could get round to reviewing Chapter 113, I didn’t realise it’d be nearly a week.  Ah well, better late than never. 

This may be a shortish chapter that webcomic readers expect they know allll about, but there’s still value added here that’s great to see. 

Gallows humour

It must surprise many readers (and viewers) who get sold on One-Punch Man as a comedy that pokes fun at shonen tropes that it’s actually a dark and serious fantasy that finds reasons for us to laugh anyway. And I do mean for ‘us’ to laugh.  The characters almost never laugh.  Homeless Emperor obliges with a story that would be outrageous if it weren’t painfully close to what all to many people have experienced for real.  Being so desperate for work that one will do anything. Unfair dismissal. Homelessness. Suicidal ideation.  The streets have no pull: rather, it is ‘home’ that has given one the push. 

Yet, even in this, the story finds humour. What are the chances of a ‘person’ who for all intents and purposes looks and talks like a mentally ill homeless man convinced about the reality of a deity who has invested him with a divine purpose actually being a homeless man who really has had a conversation with a deity that has left him vested with a divine purpose -- and the firepower to match?  One of society’s most powerless and overlooked... with the power to end society itself.  It is a joke as black and as bitter as the carbonised bits of sausage scraped off a barbecue grill.  I put ‘person’ in inverted commas because Homeless Emperor’s repudiation of mankind and commitment to the destruction of humanity is monstrous to its very core, even if his outward form is yet to follow.

It’s also not every day that you find the hero disappointed that the villain doesn’t monologue for long enough -- bad luck, Zombieman. 

On the other side of the story, we have another hero coming face to face with a monster who believes himself a hapless victim of circumstance.  Amai Mask may be nobody’s idea of a nice guy (even if he doesn’t exactly agree with that assessment), but that monster is still monstrous.  The beheaded monster begging to be killed rather than listen to any more of Amai Mask explaining how inconvenienced he was by the extension of the mission is a very nice touch.

there’s thinking highly of yourself and then there’s this 

Fuhrer Ugly’s problem is that the world is a lookist one.  He might not have been able to help the way he was born.  Changing the reality that society treats beauty as virtue,  out of his control too.  We can feel sympathy for him on that too.  But the response, to be so consumed with resentment as to lose all humanity, that was entirely within his control.  And utterly reprehensible.   

Then again, ugly versus uglier (in character, not looks) is the sort of mudfight you get popcorn out for.  I quite understand anyone who does just that.

Come to think about it, one thing that ties all four characters together is how they’ve responded to circumstances not entirely of their making.  Zombieman never asked to be an undead creature, and while he was angry about it (still is), he’s nevertheless made enough peace with it to lead a socially beneficial life and even allow Dr Genus to live.  Under the skin, Amai Mask is not pretty and he really is wearing a mask for he has a huge complex about it.  Still, even as he doesn’t endear himself to us, he is like a wasp, unpleasant but still a beneficial creature on the whole.

Conversely, Homeless Emperor and Fuhrer Ugly have abandoned any notion of humanity and feel themselves empowered to destroy the world of men for having the temerity to not treat them in the way they ought to have been. Which is nonsense. 

If you want to take over the world, you need scale up

Standards are so low in the megalomaniacal villain world that any time I see a bad guy give thought to how to scale up activities to meet the challenge, I feel like giving them a prize.  Well, I feel like giving the author a prize for remembering that the world is actually a big place. 

Of course, Gyoro-Gyoro doesn’t want to take over the world: just kill all the people in it.  Which is much less admin. 

Even if each monster can kill hundreds of people, you still need millions of monsters to efficiently kill billions of people, particularly as people are as a whole resourceful and adaptive and will absolutely learn to fight back quickly if not utterly overwhelmed.   Just killing off the strongest heroes and smashing the Hero Association will not be enough to wipe out humanity.  

The manga has taken the time to show us two very important things.  First, pro-heroes are just a small subsection of all the really strong people out there; even with heroes gone, there will be a lot of people able to oppose heroes by force of arms (to say nothing of our ability to force multiply with weapons technology). Second, while the S Class may number fewer than 20 individuals (counting both Amai Mask and Saitama), the vast majority of monsters can be killed by the vast majority of heroes.   If Gyoro-Gyoro wants to succeed, the monsters need serious and rapid force multiplication of their own.

So the tanks for nurturing and multiplying the monster cells Orochi produced is absolutely necessary.   Looking at the size of the tanks compared to Amai Mask, there are tens of millions of the cells to use. Not every person will knowingly and willingly eat a monster cell, but enough will that they can kill off those who won’t.

This is a big change from the webcomic.  In the webcomic, in keeping with the heroes accidentally stumbling on an unprepared Monster Association, Psykos (the real person behind Gyoro-Gyoro) had no credible way to carry out her ambition of wiping out humanity.  In the manga, she does. 

Yup, that ought to do it.  The power of science augmenting the power of monsters

Good on Amai Mask for destroying the facilities and good on Murata for doing a good job of showing how thorough Amai Mask was.   With Orochi also dead, what could have been a much nastier version of a zombie apocalypse is now averted.    It’s not impossible that there’s still some monster out there with a few monster cells yet to be handed out, but monster cells as a ready source of monsterisation, that’s no longer an issue. 

As I said in an earlier post, it’s good to see that the competing theories as to why so many monsters in City Z that Spring Mustachio enumerated all the way back in Chapter 20 were all correct, being parts of a bigger whole.    It’s also very interesting to see that when Phoenixman spoke of the Monster Association having scientists, he didn’t only mean G5 and its strange fixation on the Metal Knight.

I love it when stories tie plot ends together when the time is right for them.

The only actual bit played for laughs.

Ahh, if only you knew, Saitama.    It’s bad luck for you too, but good luck for everyone else that you’re stumbling around the place.

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Hello, what's the most recent fanfiction you've read?

HAHAHAH OKAY SO. I was legit just going to do “Last XX Bookmarked Fics”, but then I checked when I last did this list and it was in November 2017. I usually wait until people ask me this very question before I post them up. After some deliberation… WE’RE DOING ALL the bookmarks I’ve saved since my last one over a year ago! I’ve been reading longer fics lately and RE-READING some faves because I have this thing where if I read ONE fic I don’t enjoy, I go on this huge spree where I re-read a lot of my bookmarks to counter it, hence why I’ve only under 100 bookmarks in over 1 year, LOL. Anyway, enjoy, in word-count order as per usual! These are ALL fantastic reads, so check them all out!!

I-J’s LAST 86 BOOKMARKED FICS (Nov. 2017 to Jan. 2019)

John Will Never Forget by gelos (bia_mpinto) (NR, 244 w. || Fluff, First Time, Love Confessions) – John will never forget Sherlock’s everything.

New World, Old Words by thedeafwriter (G, 641 w. || Deaf Sherlock, Sherlock Whump, Pining Sherlock, Marriage Proposal, Fluff, Always John) – It was disconcerting to experience. One second, he was laying on the table, breathing in the gas that would make him sleep, the next, he was dragging his eyes open to look around the bright room, trying to wake up.

New Year, New Beginning by DaisyFairy (T, 810 w. || New Year’s Eve, John POV, Post S4, Friends to Lovers) – New Year at a crime scene and John makes a decision.

Bands by dragonQuill907 (T, 1,017 w. || Established Relationship, POV Sherlock, Anxious Sherlock) – “Her wedding ring. Ten years old at least. The rest of her jewelry has been regularly cleaned, but not her wedding ring. State of her marriage right there. The inside of the ring is shinier than the outside – that means it’s regularly removed. The only polishing it gets is when she works it off her finger.”

The First Night by TheForerunner (NR, 1,043 w. || First Time, Fluff, Non-Explicit, Prose, ACD Canon) – When all was over, Sherlock reached to dress again and John reached to stop him. They sat at opposite ends of the bed and one set of eyes surveyed the other’s set of limbs, and they were quiet in the downbeat, melody suspended. Sherlock was sheepish, and this confused John, who now smelled of his companion and felt they were part of one another.

Secrets by 796116311389 (G, 1,084 w. || Drunk Sherlock, Drunk Confessions, Angst, Fluff, Happy Ending, Pining Sherlock) – “He is the best person in the world and sometimes I get sad because I’m not. Not his best person.”

I love you, I say by khoshekhskitten (G, 1,576 w. || Pre & Post TRF, Hurt / Comfort, First Kiss, Love Confessions) – “I love you” is a phrase that follows John Watson through his life with Sherlock Holmes.

Lost and Found by jaradel (G, 1,750 w. || Post-HLV, John Whump, Est. Rel., Hurt/Comfort) – He’s honestly not sure what’s worse, right now - being where he is, the beaten kidnap victim, or being where Sherlock is, trying to rescue him before it’s too late. Unwillingly his mind offers up the image of Sherlock in a video message, tied to a chair, bruised and bloodied. John squeezes his eyes shut to hold back tears. No, he decides. That would be so much worse.

Like Euphoria and Scotch by FinAmour (M, 1,856 w. || TSo3 Fix It, Five and Ones, Drinking, Pining, Second Person POV Sherlock, Armchair Sex, Cracky and Fluff, Sherlock’s Imagination, Happy Ending) – 5 different ways it all could have gone + the one way it actually works itself out.

Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil by PipMer (T, 1,895 w. || Deaf John, Mute Sherlock, Friends to Lovers, Romance, Fluff and Angst, Character Study, Morse Code, Love Confessions) – John is deaf. Sherlock is mute. There are no two people more suited for each other.

The Lie-In by KendylGirl (M, 2,000 w. || POV Sherlock,  Bed Sharing, Fluff, True Love, Introspection) – Five months after his return, John and Sherlock spend a day in bed. Part 2 of When to Let Go

Husband by jinglebell (E, 2,003 w. || Est. Rel., PWP, Anal, Multiple Orgasms, Fluff) – Sherlock orgasms when John refers to him as ‘husband’.

Hell or High water by bluefire301175 (E, 2,250 w. || PWP, Frottage, Alley Sex, First Person POV John, Case-ish Fic, Mutual Pining, Bed Sharing) – John wants. Sherlock wants. Plain and simple.

A Study in Lace by KarlyAnne (E, 2,320 w. || Est. Rel., Crafty Sherlock, Tiny Lace Panties / Lingerie, Domestics, Experiments, Oral, Masturbation) – “Why do you suppose he was doing that?” “Why do I suppose who was doing what?” “The room. The lace. The secrecy. He was playing with fire in everything he did, and didn’t care one bit. But he had a secret chamber, carefully concealed, solely for the purpose of making lace lingerie. Obviously for personal use. Why?“ Part 1 of The Unintentional Crafts of Sherlock Holmes

Thief by KendylGirl (M, 2,430 w. || Rev. Reich., Heavy Angst, Regret, Grief / Mourning, Pining Sherlock, Implied Drug Use, Self-Flagellation) – John has been gone for four months, and Sherlock is not dealing well with it. When he finds a personal item of John’s, the situation reaches a crisis. Part 3 of When to Let Go

Undercurrents by entanglednow (E, 2,996 w. || Disturbing Things, Crime Scene Fetish, Pseudo-Necrophilia, PWP, Masturbation) – “There, that’s it, perfect, shut your eyes and don’t move - and don’t speak.”

Untouched by KittieHill (E, 3,239 w. || Kissing, Frottage, Virgin Sherlock, Body Worship, Sherlock’s Scars Mentioned, Masturbation, PWP, Rimming, Multiple Orgasms) – Sherlock leaked a lot. John had never needed lubricant. John loved watching it, had once spent an entire afternoon edging Sherlock so he could watch as the thick precome drip, drip, dripped onto Sherlock’s belly.

Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down by standbygo (M, 3,282 w. || Post-S4, Five Plus One, Missing Scenes, Parenthood, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Cuddling & Snuggling, Hurt/Comfort, Declarations of Love, Fluff, Food, John Whump) – Five times when Sherlock and John ate together, and one time they didn’t. A history of the boys, in food.

The Bee Charmer by dreadpiratewatson (M, 3,314 w. || Est. Rel., Captain / Soldier John, Idiots in Love, Domestics, John in the Army) – Greg goes to 221B to check up on Sherlock after a strange phone call pulls him away from an important case, and is stunned to find himself in front of a gun brandishing soldier with a sleeping Sherlock on his chest. John Watson is a doctor, a war hero, a husband, and the only one in the world who can soften Sherlock’s heart.

Apodyopsis by QuinnAnderson (E, 3,347 w. || PWP, Rough Sex, Table Sex, Anal, Sexual Tension) – Apodyopsis: (æpəʊdaɪˈɒpsɪs) noun. the act of mentally undressing someone. Part 2 of Undressed

Paranoia by Ewebie (M, 3,789 w. || Humour, Drinking Games, Scotland Yard Gang, Jealous / Posessive Sherlock, Inappropriate Questions, Embarrassed John, Matchmakers) – John and Sherlock join the gang of Scotland Yard for a night of drinking, and it gets a bit personal and revealing.

Coldness/Heat by agirlsname (E, 3,790 w. || Cuddling & Snuggling, Body Heat, New Year’s Eve, PWP, Bedsharing, Frottage) – The inn is booked up on New Year’s Eve. The train home is cancelled because of the snow. The only option is to sleep in the non-heated guest room of a client, and John and Sherlock are freezing.You know where this is going. Part 1 of New Year’s Kiss

Jukebox by standbygo (T, 3,990 w. || Fluff, Singing/Music, Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Hurt/Comfort, Humour, Friends to Lovers, First Kiss) – After the music halls of Sherlock’s mind palace get damaged by accident, John learns that Sherlock never forgets a song. Even the ones he’d rather forget. But the random singalong brings some unexpected benefits.

Tree Topper by May_Shepard (E, 4,017 w. || Christmas Tree, Christmas Fluff, Drunken Shenanigans, Smut, First Time, Friends to Lovers) – Sherlock and John are celebrating Christmas the best way they know how–alone together, with booze. They’ve almost finished decorating their tree, but John is determined to find the best way to top it.

Things That You Can’t Say Tomorrow Day by PsychGirl (T, 4,022 w. || Post S4, POV John, Cuddling / Snuggling, Hypothermia, Snowed In, Angst, Romance, First Kiss/Time) – Things go horribly wrong while John and Sherlock are on a mission for Mycroft. Now they’re out in the woods in the middle of winter with no coats and no shelter. However will they stay warm?

Lingerie by Sexxica (E, 4,135 w. || Valentine’s Day, Lingerie / Women’s Underwear, Mildly Public Masturbation, Picture Texting / Sexting, Bottomlock, Body Worship, Anal Sex / Fingering, Rimming, Orgasm Delay / Denial, Est. Rel.) – It’s Valentines Day and Sherlock is taking John to Angelo’s for dinner. Sherlock also happens to be wearing a garter belt, stockings and a rather small pair of women’s underwear under his clothes. There’s no dessert at Angelo’s because John needs to get Sherlock home just as quickly as he can before they both lose their minds entirely.

If He Knows by shamelessmash (M, 4,513 w. || TSo3 Fic, Pining Sherlock, Bed Sharing, Angst, Sherlock POV, Texting, Internal Monologue, Blanket Forts) – I imagine mornings: John handing me a cup of tea, hair sticking out at odd angles. How he would bend down to kiss me, smiling fondly as he pulls away. The way his skin crinkles at the corner of his eyes, the way his skin looks in the morning light. The soft sigh as he sits in his chair with the morning paper, the way his toes curl in the carpet, the way he rolls his shoulders before sinking deeper into his seat. I watch him, how he is when he is content, as it should be. As he deserves. Happy. With me.

Captain John Watson, Genetics, and Other Crazy Things by cyerus (M, 5,581 w. || Torchwood Crossover ||  Humour / Crack, Jealous Sherlock, Sexual Magnet John, Captain John, UST / RST, Three Continents Watson) – The explanation for John “Three Continents” Watson? Jack Harkness is his father. Sherlock doesn’t know whether he’s going to die from jealousy or sexual frustration first.

Times Two by WhimsicalEthnographies (E, 5,595 w. || Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Victorian John, Modern John, Sherlock has a Good Imagination, PWP, Bottomlock, Spitroasting) – “But you’re not that John…”“Of course I am,” John’s lips and mustache brush against Sherlock’s mouth as he talks. “All us Johns are that John, now. That John is in every room in your Palace.” He leans in for another messy kiss, tongue swirling all around the inside of Sherlock’s mouth. “In fact,” he moves to suck on the sensitive skin underneath Sherlock’s ear. “I think I hear him coming right now.”

The Only Available Transportation by blueink3 (T, 5,379 w. || Post S4, Fluff and Angst, Insecure Sherlock, Caring John, Parentlock, Sherlock’s Birthday, Family, Misunderstandings) – It’s possibly the desperation that’s seeped into his voice despite his best intentions, or perhaps it’s just a mother’s intuition, but she knows that whatever he’s calling about is Serious, hangover be damned. “What’s happened?” she asks, tone soft and as comforting as a hot cup of tea on a cold winter’s night. “Mummy,” he begins, voice catching. “I think John may be moving out.”

Talk by illwick (E, 6,364 w. || Dirty Talk, John’s Giant Junk, PWP, Light BDSM, Size Kink, Oral / Anal, Rough Sex, Dirty Talk, Established Rel.) – Sherlock was never much for dirty talk… until an unexpected visit yields unexpected results. Part 20 of Unwind

5687 (Approximately) by prettysailorsoldier (T, 6,771 w. || Est. Rel., Alternate Canon, Christmas, Pining, Fluff, Soldier John) – When John’s leave request for Christmas is denied, Sherlock is nothing short of devastated, not that he’s letting it show. The holiday season now something he’s just waiting to end, Sherlock doesn’t think anything can possibly make it worse. That is, until he realizes no one in his life believes his army “boyfriend” is even real, but, luckily, everyone is in for a surprise. Part 13 of 25 Days of Johnlock

A Kiss and a Cuddle should be Sufficient by Evenlodes_Friend (E, 6,853 w. || Gay Sex Club, Fake Relationship, PWP, Orgies, Rimming, BJ’s, Violence, Case Fic, Voyeurism) – Going undercover, Sherlock and John pursue a vicious killer to a gay group sex party. Not unexpectedly, things get a little out of hand. Set after Baskerville, but before the Fall.

Full Disclosure by Itsallfine (E, 7,032 w. || Bars & Pubs, Fake Relationship, First Kiss / Time, Love Confessions, John’s Army Mates, Three Continents Watson, Semi-Public Sex) – John’s army mates get together for the first time post-discharge and invite John “Three Continents” Watson to join them. If John shows up alone, he knows he’ll be the object of non-stop ridicule all night. Sherlock plays along. John tests the waters.

where the good things grow by anchors (M, 7,066 w. || Tea Shop AU || Alternate First Meeting, Magical Realism, Gardens, Tea, Friends to Lovers) – “I have a magic garden.” As come-ons go, John’s heard worse.

Speak My Language by Itsallfine (T, 7,479 w. || Thanksgiving, Love Languages, Love Confessions, First Kiss, John Experiments in Sherlock) – When Mrs. Hudson introduces John and Sherlock to the concept of the five love languages, Sherlock descends into a dark mood and John’s curiosity gets the better of him. What is Sherlock’s love language, and why does the whole concept set him so on edge? Part 1 of A Holiday Triptych

The doctor is in by PlainJane (E, 7,581 w. || Omegaverse || Sex Therapist, Anal, Hand Jobs, Frottage, Virgin Sherlock) – Sherlock is a young alpha with an aversion to his cycle. John is a gender medicine specialist. Nothing could possibly go wrong… Part 1 of Doctors and detectives

On Favors and Keeping Score by Ewebie (G, 7,622 w. || Hurt/Comfort, Sick Fic, Fluff, John Whump) –  John woke up to the horribly unpleasant sound of his clock alarm. Which meant he’d slept through his phone’s alarm. And for a moment he glared blearily at the noisemaker before smacking at it with his palm. Ugh, he felt like rubbish. The back of his throat was burning with the irritation that heralded a proper dose, his nose was threatening to drip every few seconds, and he had the uncomfortable flush that normally suggested a fever. Nothing high, just uncomfortable. Nothing deadly, just irritating. Nothing worth calling in sick with, just a full day of discomfort in the face of other people’s discomfort. It was going to be a day where he was forced to bite his tongue from telling people off. “You’re not as sick as I am, so off you pop.” Part 7 of Tumblr Shorts

On the Steadfast Approach of an Oncoming Darkness by 2bee (T, 7,772 w. || Apocalypse, Minor Character Death, Sort of Parentlock) – The world is ending. Not fast, but slowly, like falling asleep with a fever.

Caves in the Mountains Are Seldom Unoccupied by starrysummernights & TheMadKatter13 (E, 7,925 w. || Were-Creatures, Werebear John, Pseudo Bestiality, Rimming, Dub Con, Rough Sex, Come Inflation / Eating, Size Kink, PWP, Bratty Sherlock, Rutting) – “This isn’t something to play at, Sherlock,” he snapped. “If it doesn’t work out- what you’re asking of me- we can’t shrug and say ‘oh well, at least we tried’. If we do this… I could seriously hurt you. Do you understand? I could lose control. I could… I could kill you.” (This one is… REALLY REALLY kinky, heavy dub-con warning)

Every Night I Look for You by destinationtoast (E, 8,377 w. || POV John, Post-TRF, Angst, Mystery, Unsafe Sex, BAMF John) – Every night, John looks for familiar hints of Sherlock in the men he meets in bars, and he does with them all the things he wishes he’d done before. Eventually, he stumbles into a situation that Sherlock would know how to handle, and John must decide whether he can handle it without him.

Galapogos by anchors (E, 8,460 w. || Hurt/Comfort, Angst, 5 and 1, John Whump) – Somewhere in the depths of the universe, and somewhere in the middle of Sherlock’s chest, a star goes into supernova.

He’s Not Paid Enough to Deal with This Shit by janonny (T, 9,828 w. || Personal Assistant AU || Humour, First Meetings, Snarky John) – One of the first things John did was to write up step-by-step instructions on how to conduct a proper job interview before handing it over to Mycroft for his perusal. There were no kidnapping, deserted car parks or stolen therapy notes anywhere on that list. (Or the one where John returned from the war and ended up working for Mycroft as his personal assistant slash doctor on retainer. Everything was fine, until he was sent to post bail for one Sherlock Holmes.)

How To Give Your Boyfriend Who Doesn’t Know He’s Your Boyfriend the Best Valentine’s Day Ever by unicornpoe (T, 9,832 w. || Valentine’s Day, Fluff and Crack, Soft Sherlock, POV Sherlock) – Sherlock is pretty sure that John Watson is his boyfriend. He’s also pretty sure that John doesn’t know it. But with a little help from a magazine, some friends, three crepes, five dates, one awesome CD, and a stalker van, John is bound to realize just in time for Valentine’s Day.

Rainbow Hearts Retreat by PajamaSecrets (E, 11,638 w. || Fake Relationship, Case Fic, Undercover, Fluff and Smut, Bed-Sharing, Therapy, Humour/Crack, First Time) – “It’s a same-sex couples retreat. For those experiencing troubles in their relationship. Consists of group and couples therapy as well as encouraging socialization between the couples. It’s all in their incredibly dull brochure.” “Rainbow Hearts Retreat,” John read. “Sounds… quite gay.”

And Here We Are by J_Baillier (T, 12,416 w. || ASiP Fic, Alternating First Person POV, Drama, Friendship, Mild Case Fic, Autism Spectrum Sherlock, Insecure Sherlock, Protective John, Pining, Homophobia, Loneliness, Angst, Humour, Domestics, Morbid Fluff, Kidnapping) – All the little things we never got to see when an army doctor and a consulting detective were adjusting to sharing a flat. And a life.

Fucking Cake by Random_Nexus (E, 12,965 w. || Pre-Slash, Humour/Crack, Inanimate Object Smut, Frottage, “For a Case” / “Experiment”, PWP / Kinky, Mutual Pining, Fluff) – Sherlock brings home a chocolate cake, John finds him about to have sex with said cake, then exceedingly weird hijinx ensue. Part 1 of “Fucking Baked Goods” - Sherlock BBC

The Nutcracker by Odamaki (T, 13,758 w. || Nutcracker AU ||  Christmas, Dark Magic, Dolls) – Sherlock is unimpressed with Uncle Rudy’s present. A doll? What does he want with a doll?

I Will Take Care Of You by SailorChibi (T, 16,664 w. || Hurt/Comfort, Sick Sherlock, BAMF John, BAMF Lestrade, Reunion Fic) – Two years after Sherlock’s death, John comes to find him on the sofa. Wounded and ill, Sherlock is convinced he’s hallucinating and refuses to share any details about Moran or the fact that Mycroft has been compromised. That doesn’t stop John from stepping up and taking care of the last of Moriarty’s web, BAMF-style.

Software Malfunction by tiger_in_the_flightdeck (E, 16,679 w. || Android Sherlock, Love Story, Unhappy Ending, Angst) – “You think I can’t love you? Just because you’re made with metal, and detailed programming?” The doctor propped himself on his elbow, and looked down at it. “I am nothing but blood and bone, and tissue. Things just managed get mashed together in a manner that made me like this. Just like you were put together to make you how you are. When I kiss you-” he did so, briefly, to prove his point. Then more deeply, and lingering, because he could. “When I touch you, or smile at you, does it make you feel different from when others have done it in the past?”

Best of Three by SilentAuror (E, 17,473 w. || POV John, 3G Moment, Porn with Feels, Post HLV, Rimming, Denial, Anal) – “You want to have sex with me,” Sherlock announces one evening about a year after John’s divorce. John’s vigorous denial sparks a three-day wager wherein Sherlock is determined to prove his point, and John is determined to hold onto his heterosexuality. Set well after HLV. (Canon-compliant). PORN. With feels.

Between Friends by SilentAuror (E, 18,036 w. || Post S3, Alternating POV, Friends to Lovers, John in Denial, Abduction, Awkward Situations / Miscommunications, Porn With Feels, Blowjobs, Pining, Unrequited, Angst With Happy Ending) – Sherlock gets abducted. As John discovers him tied up naked in an empty storage facility and comes to rescue him, Sherlock’s body has an unfortunate reaction which triggers a series of events. John is convinced that everything will be fine as long as they never discuss it. Sherlock isn’t as sure…

Uncharted Territory by J_Baillier (T, 19,603 w. || Dystopian Future / Black Mirror AU || Alternate First Meeting, Angst, Drama, Homophobia, Bisexuality, Technology, Humour, Romance, Near Future, Happy Ending) – The System puts people through a series of assigned relationships in order to determine who their Perfect Match is. John believes that it works; Sherlock really, really doesn’t. One of them is probably going to be wrong.

whiskies neat by Ellipsical (E, 20,660 w. || Alternate First Meeting, POV Second Person Sherlock, Slow Burn, One Night Stand, Rimming, Blow Jobs, Anal, Soldier John, Crying, Emotional Lovemaking, Switchlock) – Home and hearth and whiskies neat, or, alternatively, Sherlock Holmes falls in love.

When to Let Go by KendylGirl (M, 22,109 w. || Friends to Lovers, Reverse Reichenbach, Sacrifice, Forgiveness, Angst, Love, Implied Drug Use) – What if it were John who had to die to thwart Moriarty’s plans? John’s supposed death shatters Sherlock, and when he returns, it will challenge the pair to forge a path of forgiveness, to peace, and to find a way back to each other. Part 1 of When to Let Go

Dropping the Act by jadztone (T, 27,258 w. || Parentlock, Fake Relationship, Mary’s Family, Post-S4, Cuddling & Snuggling, Bed Sharing, Pining, Christmas) – Sherlock and John are quite happy living together with Rosie in Baker St. They might be even happier if they didn’t act towards each other like their love is only platonic. Mycroft brings troubling news in the form of Mary’s parents wanting to know just what their grandchild’s home life is like. The boys decide to spend Christmas pretending like they are in love in order to seem more like a “normal” family. It’s easy enough to pretend when all you’re doing is dropping the act.

Another Auld Lang Syne by DiscordantWords (M, 30,234 w. || Post S4, Mutual Pining, Alternating POV, Introspection, Parentlock, Christmas, New Year’s, First Kiss, Past Drug Use, Angst with Happy Ending, Drinking, Sherlock Whump) – There had been years of missed chances.

Love or What You Will by miss_frankenstein (T, 31,987 w. || College/Uni AU || Professor John, Ph.D Student Sherlock, Pining John, Poetry, Falling in Love / Slow Burn, Light Angst, Happy Ending) – John is an English professor who specializes in War and Post-War Literature and Sherlock is the brilliant yet impossible Ph.D. student assigned to be his TA because no one in the Chemistry Department is willing to put up with him. And - somewhere between Waugh and Plath, e-mails and takeaway, novels and villanelles - they fall in love.

Chaperones by MissDavis (T, 34,114 w. || 11 Years Post-S4, Fake Relationship, Parentlock, Disney World, Bed / Room Sharing, Friends to Lovers, Fluff, First Kiss, Obsessive Sherlock, Insecure John) – Right. Of course. Everyone assumed they were a couple and no one would question it. John put his elbows up on the table so he could rest his head in his hands. “You want to pretend to be a couple so we can chaperone a trip to Disney World with Rosie’s class and you won’t have to share a room with a stranger?” “Exactly.” Sherlock beamed at him. “Don’t worry about the cost. The Birmingham case last month paid more than enough to cover expenses for all three of us.”

Malediction by MapleleafCameo (M, 36,680 w. || Ladyhawke AU || Magical Realism, Romance, Curses, Eventual Happy Ending) – Cursed to a half-life, John and Sherlock must fight the forces of evil to be reunited once again.

The Unfinished Letters by SilentAuror (E, 37,391 w. || Post S3 / S3 / HLV Fix it, Angst with Happy Ending, Romance, Infidelity, Depression, Case Fic, POV Third Person Sherlock, Love Confessions, Pining Sherlock, Letters) – A fire at Baker Street leads John to read something he was never intended to see: a notebook of half-written, unfinished letters Sherlock wrote during his time away…

Nothing to Make a Song About by emmagrant01 (E, 36,833 w. || Post-TRF, First Time, Reunion, Jealous John, Pining Sherlock, Romance, Angst with Happy Ending) – When Sherlock returned from his faked death, John could not forgive him for the deception and broke off their friendship. Ten years later, John returns to London in search of yet another new beginning. Sherlock, not surprisingly, is waiting.

Set in Stone by SilentAuror (E, 39,309 w. || Romance, Wedding, Therapy, Fluff and Angst) – Sherlock and John are back from Ravine Valley and planning their wedding. However, as they move past the trial of the human traffickers, Sherlock can’t help but wonder if he’s imagining that John is becoming a little distant. Surely he isn’t getting cold feet about the wedding… Part 2 of The Ravine Valley series

In the Still of the Night by SilentAuror (E, 42,234 w. || S4 Fix It / Post-S4, Sherlock POV, Angst, Drama, Romance, Virgin Sherlock, Awkwardness, Misunderstandings / Miscommunications, Case Fic, Travelling, Pining) – As locals on the Northeastern coast begin to report UFO sightings, life at Baker Street becomes significantly awkward as John brings up his desire for more than friendship and Sherlock refuses him. They embark on the investigation from the confines of the tiny cottage Mycroft has rented for them, attempting to navigate both the clues of the case as well as their own inability to communicate…

Bloody But Unbowed by BeautifulFiction (E, 43,211 w. || Abduction, John Whump, Mild Torture, Background Case Fic, Friends to Lovers, Post-TRF / S3 Rewrite, Hurt/Comfort) – When a familiar argument threatens to destroy the last remnants of John and Sherlock’s failing friendship, both men are left questioning their worth to one another. Before either of them has the chance to make amends, circumstance intervenes. John is left at the mercy of his abductors, and this time, he’s not sure Sherlock will bother coming to his rescue.

Lost Without My Blogger by starrysummernights (E, 52,155 w. || Rev. Reich, PTSD, Hurt / Comfort, Fluff / Angst, Psychological Torture, Reunion Fic, Friends to Lovers) – John is abducted and declared dead. How will Sherlock cope without his blogger? How will he react when John comes back from the “dead?” Drama and angst with a healthy dose of romance. Part 1 of I’d Be Lost Without My Blogger

floating through a dark blue sky by Lediona (M, 58,966 w. || Notting Hilll AU || POV John, Celebrity Sherlock, First Date / Time / Kiss, Past Drug Addiction, Angst with a Happy Ending) – Of course, I’d seen his films and always thought he was, well, brilliant – but, you know, a million miles from the world I live in. Or, when John is the owner of a travel book shop and the famous Sherlock Holmes stops in one day.

The Book of Silence by SilentAuror (E, 60,056 w. || S4 Fix It / Post S4, Virgin Sherlock, Rosie / Parentlock, Domesticity, Fluff, Praise Kink, Sex Toys, First Person POV) – As spring blooms in London, John and Sherlock begin to take new cases and cautiously negotiate this new phase of life with John living at Baker Street again. Despite how well it’s all going, John struggles to forgive himself for the way he treated Sherlock following Mary’s death as well as trying to figure out how to finally put his long-time feelings for Sherlock into words. Part 1 of The Book of Silence/Rosa Felicia

Scars by SilentAuror (E, 60,493 w. || Rape / Non-Con / Abuse, Gaslighting, Manipulation, Dub Con Elements, Homophobia, Angst With Happy Ending, Mary is Not Nice) – S3 rewrite, showing Mary’s manipulation of John as he realizes his love for Sherlock. Mary is not having it.

Summit Fever by J_Baillier (M, 78,802 w. || Mountain Climber AU || POV John, Angst, Tragedy, Suicidal Ideation, The Himalayas, Mountain Guide / Doctor John, Mount Climber Sherlock, Loneliness, Drama, Suspense, Slow Burn, Injured Sherlock / Sherlock Whump, Pining John) – After graduating from medical school, John Watson followed his heart to the Himalayas. Ten years later, he’s a haunted cynic working for his ex-lover’s trekking and mountaineering company. Will leading an expedition to Annapurna I—the most lethal of all the world’s highest mountains—shake John out of his reverie, and who is the mystery client added to the group at the last minute?

Uphill by scullyseviltwin (E, 84,945 w. || Olympics AU || Sherlock POV, Skier!Sherlock / Medic!John, Rivalry, 2014 Olympics, Happy Ending) – Sherlock Holmes is striving for gold in this, his fourth and final Olympics as a downhill Alpine racer.

31_Days_of_Porn_Challenge_2017 Series by distantstarlight (E, 96,540 w. across 31 stories || Prompt Ficlets, Assorted Kinks, PWP) – A collection in response to the 31 Days of Porn Challenge issued by AtlinMerrik! Thanks for doing that because this has been buttload of fun (that joke never gets old). All stories will be brief stand-alone one-shots.

The Baker Street Nativity by SwissMiss (E, 99,662 w. || Nativity! AU || Teacher Sherlock / TA John, Pining, Sherlock POV, UST, Angst, Christmas, Music/Song Fic, Anal / BJ’s, First Kiss / Time) – Fusion between Sherlock (BBC) and Nativity! (2009 movie starring Martin Freeman). Sherlock is a primary school teacher and John is assigned to be his classroom assistant. Together, they are charged with putting on the school’s Nativity play. What could possibly go wrong? Part 1 of The Baker Street Nativity Verse

The Wedding Garments by cwb (E, 105,390 w. || Alternate Future AU || , Alternate First Meeting, Dating / Arranged Marriages, Romance, First Kiss/Time, Heavy Petting, Cuddles, POV Sherlock, Virgin Sherlock, Idiots in Love, Slow Burn / Falling in Love / Dev. Rel., Nervous/Anxious Sherlock, Jealous/Cranky, Hiking, Vacation Homes / Honeymoon, Sherlock’s Family, Horny John/Sherlock, Patient John, Massages, Hand Jobs, Assassination Plots, Hand Jobs / Oral Sex) – This is the story of a young consulting detective who wants nothing to do with marriage and an army doctor who wants to find true love. It’s 2020 post-Brexit England and the British government is encouraging arranged marriages. Candidates meet through state-run agencies and date in hopes of finding love (and tax benefits). Sherlock doesn’t need or want a spouse, at least not until John Watson shows up. Hesitant to give in to his more carnal urges because of the way they derail his mind, how will Sherlock progress toward the more intimate aspects of a relationship? The answer lies in a very special wedding gift. (I’m about a ¾ done this fic and I already know I will be bookmarking it, so here we are! Additional tags will be added to subsequent recs of this fic

Maintenance and Repair by patternofdefiance (E, 106,650 w. || FutureAU, Augmentation || Augmented John, Depression, Body Modification, Slow Burn, Worldbuilding, Sci-Fi, Self-Care, Body Dysmorphia) – John wants to explain the rush of sensation and data, which is just another form of sensation (or is it the other way around?). John wants to say:Augmentation circuits report temperature, pressure, various forms of quantitative input. Sudden changes are reported as pain, since sudden changes are dangerous, and pain is the quickest way to encourage reflexive extraction. But all John can manage is, “Nng.” Because this sudden touch is not reporting as pain. Part 2 of STATIC

A Study in Winning by Jupiter_Ash (E, 106,658 w. || Tennis AU || John POV, Dirty Talk, Mutual Pining, Misunderstandings, Happy Ending, Sherlock Speaks French, Switchlock, Wimbledon) – John and Sherlock are professional tennis players and it’s Wimbledon. One is a broken almost was at the end of his career, the other an arrogant rising star tipped for greatness. It should have been a straightforward tournament. It really should have been. How were they to know that a chance encounter would change everything? Part 1 of Tennis

Eyes Up, Heels Down by CodenameMeretricious (E, 107,845 w. || Sports Equestrian AU || Fluff, Angst, Humour, Rider!Sherlock, Groomer!John, Show Jumping, Slow Burn, Happy Ending) – Sherlock is a top eventing rider currently training at Baker Farms. John is the new groom who’s been told to steer clear of the surly rider and his horses. Part 1 of Baker Farms

The Burning Heart by May_Shepard (M, 119,150 w. || Canon Divergence, Post-TRF, John’s Sexuality, S3 Rewrite, Pining, Angst with a Happy Ending, POV John Watson, John’s Gay) – When Sherlock dies, John Watson feels like his life is over too. He’s completely shut down, until Mark Morstan, a new nurse at John’s medical clinic, catches his attention, and helps him uncover the long buried truth of his attraction to men. Although he’s certain he’ll never get over Sherlock, John plans to move on, and build a new life with Mark, unaware that Sherlock is not quite as dead as he appears, and that Mark is hiding secrets of his own.

The Swan Triad by Pennin_Ink (T, 121,660 w. across 3 works || Swan Lake AU || Magical / Fairy Tale AU, Romance, Falling in Love, Pining, Psychological Torture, Transformation) – Sherlock and John grow up spending every summer together. Their mothers’ attempts to play matchmaker only fuel their mutual resentment and scorn. But then, one summer.

The Horse and his Doctor by khorazir (T, 129,003 w. || Horse / Vet AU || Magical Realism, Horses, Vet John, Horse Sherlock, Implied Alcoholism) – Invalided after a run in with a poacher in Siberia, veterinary surgeon John Watson finds it difficult to acclimatise to the mundanity of London life. Things change when a friend invites him along to a local animal shelter and he meets their latest acquisition, a trouble-making Frisian with the strangest eyes and even stranger quirks John has ever encountered in a horse.

Colors by Quesarasara (E, 140,537 w. || Pleasantville-Inspired AU || Soulmates, Colour Bonds, Alternating POV, Angst, Fluff, Pining, Case Fic, Medical Procedures) – Everyone on earth is born with eyes that see in black, white, and an endless series of greys. When you meet your soulmate, you finally see the world in color. We’re all searching for the person who brings color to our lives. John and Sherlock are no exception. Part 1 of The Colors 'Verse

How to Build a Heart out of Ashes by Teumessian (E, 144,931 w. || Changling AU || Slow Burn, Drug Use, Mentions of Child Abuse / Bullying, Mentions of Student/Teacher Relations, Uni-Age) – In an AU where a small number of the population become Changelings at a young age, at 17 John Watson believes he’s destined for Normal life but then the Change takes him and he is sent to the Baker Institute. There he meets Sherlock Holmes.

Gimme Shelter by SinceWhenDoYouCallMe_John (E, 159,368 w. || 70′s Surfer AU || Period Typical Homophobia, Hawaii, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Professional Surfers, Gay John / Sherlock, Angst with Happy Ending, John was a Sailor, Misunderstandings) – All John Watson wants is the feeling of a freshly waxed surfboard under his feet and the hot California sun baking down onto his back. To finally go pro in the newly formed world of professional surfing and leave the dark memories of his past behind him as he rips across the face of a towering blue barrel. To lounge beside the beach bonfire every evening with an ice cold beer tucked into the cool sand beside him and listen to Pink Floyd and the Doors while the saltwater dries in his sun bleached hair. That’s all he wants, that is, until the hot young phenom taking Oahu and the Hawaiian shores by storm steps up next to him in the sand in the second round of the 1976 International Surf Competition.

Mise en Place by azriona (M, 161,004 w. || Restaurant (Kitchen Nightmares) AU || Sherlock is Gordon Ramsay / Celebrity Sherlock, Restauranteur John, Harry Plays Prominent Role, Alternating POV, Mutual Pining, Cranky Sherlock, Bed Sharing, Slow Burn) – John Watson had no intentions of taking over the family business, but when he returns from Afghanistan, battered and bruised, and discovers that his sister Harry has run their restaurant into the ground, he doesn’t have much choice. There’s only one thing that can save the Empire from closing for good – the celebrity star of the BBC series Restaurant Reconstructed, Chef Sherlock Holmes. Part 1 of Mise en Place

Sketchy by serpentynka (E, 184,053 w. || Post-TRF, Post-Mary, John Whump, Slow Burn Love Story, Case Fic, Art, Porn With Feelings, Switchlock, Travelling, Career Change, Family Secrets, Illness / Health) – What (and who) will be left when nobody cares about your Work? A slow-burn fic with cases, places, mistaken identities, unfair choices, essential changes, violent feels, blatant lies, fearless portraiture, family secrets, high-risk bespoke gifts, durable friendships, bedtime stories, foreign travel and tongues, sickness (and health), and the significance of things which are slow to unfurl – but cannot be ignored. Oh, and…porn. Part 1: Sherlock takes on an obvious case (barely a 4) and meets someone who will force him to re-examine what it means to see. Part 1 of Sketchy

The Gilded Cage by BeautifulFiction (E, 326,887 w. || Omegaverse || Omega Sherlock / Alpha John, Friends to Lovers, Dub Con, Reproductive Rights) – In a world where Omegas are the property of the elite Alphas, locked away and treasured by those wealthy enough to buy them, John never questioned his flatmate’s secondary gender. Sherlock Holmes was an Alpha through-and through. Wasn’t he? A chance discovery turns the world on its head, and John is left grappling to come to terms with Sherlock’s past as events conspire to threaten their future. 

[hisband]

guys... i’m really starting to think that pha.se 5 will be The Game Changer that canon desperately needed. after seeing those new images of stu and muds that debuted at the latest show tonight, i actually... feel more optimistic about gor.illaz than i have in a long time, and here’s why.

gor.illaz has been doing tons of throwbacks to old phases already, in that first video alone (with stu doing one of mur.doc’s dance moves from r.ock the house, noo.dle sporting stu’s he.llo ki.nky shirt, the pazuzu reference; all things from pha.se 1). nostalgia’s already been confirmed by both dam.on and jam.ie to be a huge theme in pha.se 5, which makes me feel like everything is finally coming to a head. 

i know den.holm claimed on instagram that stu isn’t possessed - that his eyes turned white due to intense happiness and nothing supernatural - but i just don’t buy that. even if stu’s eyes were white in the past (see: pha.se 3) due to intense emotions, and even if some of his happiness is genuine (and fully deserved)... there’s definitely something else going on with him. he hasn’t just been more confident; according to the interview that was just released, he’s been cocky. one could say he’s being kind of obnoxious. while we could initially write that off as stu finally regaining his confidence, much like he did after he and mur.doc severed ties in pha.se 2... things still aren’t adding up. if you look at the recent character interview, there’s a notable scene between russ and stu right at the very beginning. stu is described to be in a trance-like state, and doesn’t come out of it until russ removes his earphones. some fans are also pointing out how the changes in his wardrobe are starting to mirror mur.doc’s, such a striped sweater similar to the one muds wore in saturn.z bar.z. on top of that strangeness, this post was made on the official gorill.az instagram. like, guys... that’s a creepy picture. straight up. you can’t deny it. not to mention the fact one of the songs on the new album is called ‘tran.z’... which might very well means trance.

i think russ.el may be starting to reach a point where he’s worried about stu. he’s very supportive in the interview, sure, but in the video itself? something had bothered him enough to trip stu, which snapped stu out of his white-eyed, euphoric state. what was up with that? does russ think stu is getting out of control somehow (even if his rollerblading seems pretty harmless)? does he feel like he created a monster by trying to offer stu the guidance that he did, or is he starting to catch on that something’s just... wrong? russ has handled stu roughly in the past, sure, but something about the encounter felt very strange and ambiguous.

another picture was posted earlier tonight, this time by den.holm - one of stu wearing a cap that looks like it could belong to muds. russ stands next to him, which could be either completely coincidental, or it could represent the fact russ is worried about him, and will be spending a lot of time with stu throughout the phase - trying to reason with him, but ultimately feeling like whatever’s going on with stu is beyond his control. also... what’s up with the cut on stu’s cheek here?

and then... we have mur.doc himself. there are... a lot of things to mull over. number one? the expression on his face. he looks exhausted. he looks deeply angry. this is a far cry from the muds who was drawn throughout pha.se 4, who was typically depicted as very mischievous or playful-looking, or the frightened, flustered muds in the video shown at the BR.IT awards. though given his situation, who can blame him? the one time he didn’t do something wrong, he gets framed and thrown back into prison, then replaced within his own band (something he seems to have accepted, albeit begrudgingly, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t sting). his red eye is back for the first time since pha.se 1. his hair’s grown so it covers his eyebrows again, making him look more like his younger self, and he’s grown whiskers on his chin. he looks scruffy and unkempt. he looks fed up.

but what really catches my attention is mur.doc’s bruised, bloodshot eye. that’s a detail that didn’t have to be here, but it is. you know how nostalgia is going to be a theme throughout this phase? well... which other major character was pushed into the background of the narrative for a while, only to return a very changed person with a damaged eye? you guessed it - noo.dle, back in pha.se 3. like i said, loose ends are being tied. callbacks are being made. in the interview, mur.doc isn’t seem different from his usual self at first glance, but - much like with stu - you get the sense something is off about him. he still says and does ridiculous things, as he’s prone to do, but he’s less receptive to humour than usual (i.e. the interviewer making a joke and muds failing to laugh). he’s learned that showing weakness in prison leads to victimization, and so he refuses to do it anymore. but you also get the sense that under his bravado, he’s steadily being worn down; he’s even described as having bloodshot eyes when he walks into the room.

as much as i hate that mur.doc is back in a place that traumatized him, and that he’s being held unfairly... this... might actually be the kick in the ass he needs to actually start bettering himself. both fans of gor.illaz who love mur.doc and fans who hate mur.doc have been putting pressure on jam.ie to do something about his character, especially within the past year or so. i’ve only been in the fandom for 6 - 7 months, but i don’t doubt people have been wanting some sort of redemption for him far longer than that. (i do have some theories about potential redemption stories that were written and then scrapped, but that’s a whole other story.) they would never write him out permanently because he’s far too popular (and jam.ie clearly likes him a lot), but with the way the world going? assuming they hadn’t been planning to redeem mur.doc for a long time and just never got around to it, they’ve probably (hopefully) realized it isn’t a good idea to have one of your protagonists (arguably your main protagonist) be someone who repeatedly does abusive and shitty things to people, especially his friends. it isn’t funny anymore, and it was in bad taste to begin with. surely jam.ie has either realized by now that there’s only so much bad shit mur.doc can pull before his character starts driving audience members away, or that he’s eventually going to get tired of writing the same scenarios over and over again. another theme of this phase appears to be growth and evolution. what better way to depict that than by mur.doc finally getting a reality check and realizing he can’t keep going on like this - especially if it’s tied in with some symbolism via throwback to another phase (re: the damaged eye)?

let’s also consider that mur.doc is the one who permanently damaged stu’s eyes, and that getting one of his own eyes all fucked up (whether temporarily or permanently) might force him to truly look and think about what he’s done to stu. and if stu continues going down this path he’s going down and gets progressively worse over the phase, and mur.doc returns in time to see what his (former?) best friend has become? that might be the thing that truly wakes him up. he’ll finally realize, much too late, the extent of the damage he’s caused to an innocent person. that he’s turned stu into himself - and that by doing such a thing, he’s also mirroring his abusive father. it’ll be a horrible, devastating realization to come to, but you know the old saying. things usually get worse before they get better, and you know for a damn fact they’ll find a way to bring the old stu back. they wouldn’t dare keep him like that forever. somehow, things are gonna work out. in order for this band continuing existing with the presence of these four characters, things have to work out.

to make a very, very long and convoluted story short? no matter what’s going on and how the story is going to be spun, something is going to change with the characters of mur.doc and stu, and their relationship. realistically, it has to. from a storytelling perspective, you’d be doing your audience a terrible disservice to have all this development happen (the development is already starting, after all!) and then revert things to the way they used to be. i truly don’t believe anything or anyone will be the same by the end pha.se 5 - and i really want to believe that mur.doc, stu, nood.le and russ.el will be better off because of it, and that the events that transpire will bring them all back together.

[poeticandvaguelysweet]

Til Kingdom Come

Jurassic World

Summary: Claire and Owen celebrate a wedding anniversary  

Part: 9/12

Words: 3,358

Two in one week it’s almost like I found my groove again!

Thank you for being so patient when I wasn’t writing. I am really appreciative of that respect to my downtime, you guys didn’t make me feel rushed or like I had to come back to finish posting for you. 

AO3

TIL KINGDOM COME - PART NINE

‘East Court will replace the livestock you lost.’ Claire announced, civilian standing a few feet from the throne she occupied. Owen kept his distance, knowing the loss of livestock had been his fault. More accurately, blame lingered over the heads of the four beasts that followed him. ‘And I promise, if my husband’s wolves cause you any more grief, I will see to it myself that they are punished.’ He had not announced himself or made a noise, regardless, Claire’s eyes found his in the room, gaze unforgiving in just the way she had promised.

She could be kind and cruel. She wanted the opportunity to prove it and Owen was pleased to see her sat in East Court, throne supporting her as Grady subjects trusted Claire to pass the right judgement. Two of the wolves she promised to end had their skirmishes continued sat on either side of her throne. They were unbothered by the words she said, the threat of their lives only causing a slight twitch in their ears as they sat tall beside his wife.

He loved watching her. Claire commanded the room with a power he had never seen. Theon never had the patience for the civilian court, to hear out civil debates and keep the grounds peaceful. Anyone who came to Owen with complaints of a threat to their livestock or land was seen to personally. He took too long to solve issues because he refused to send someone else. Owen thought himself wholly responsible for the people that lived off his father’s land.

‘You’re blind to those beasts.’ Claire hummed, East Court closed for the rest of the afternoon as she left the throne and crossed the room to join him. Owen shrugged with a wide grin. ‘I understand that you love them but they are wild animals and they are being destructive.’

‘I’ll feed them more.’ He was dismissive. ‘You don’t know that it was the girls.’ Claire crossed her arms over her chest, her disgruntled stance resting atop the large swell of her belly. He wanted to chuckle, share his mirth in how humorous she looked, trying to be mad whilst heavily pregnant. But, Owen knew her anger was scornful. She would hurt him if she felt it was well deserved. ‘There are wolves in the woods you know.’

‘The farmers say the wolves in the woods don’t approach the properties.’

‘And you’ll believe the farmers over my word?’ He was defensive, a little annoyed and trying not to allow the temper to bother him. Owen didn’t show up in court to start an argument, he came to seek her out, knowing they were closing the doors a few minutes before he arrived.

Claire readjusted her stance, shoulders rolling as she peered around his side. ‘Where are Blue and Charlie?’ She felt that statement would prove her point. Owen liked to boast the domestication of his animals but he wasn’t in complete control. His two head girls were missing from his side, her husband answering that he didn’t want them in court with civilians.

‘I ain’t here to argue with you, Princess.’ His hand found the back of her elbow, squeezing softly as he tried to direct her outdoors. The truth of the matter was, Owen had occasions where he didn’t know where the girls were. He respected their space and they were never gone for long. He didn’t own them, considered them to be wild but trusted that they had his and Claire’s wellbeing at heart.

Claire sighed, falling into step beside him as they left Grey Castle’s court. ‘I’m just saying, your father cannot afford to replace every chicken, sheep or cow that gets devoured in the night. We live off what they farm too.’ Owen hummed, humouring her. ‘You know, this is how empires fall.’ She was trying to be helpful and he loved that she was aware of these issues, concerned about the livelihood of his people, but these were his animals that were at blame and Owen couldn’t sit there and take it. ‘It’s okay to admit that you don’t know where they are sometimes.’

Owen shook his head. ‘They never go too far.’ Was all he told her as he beamed, sun greeting their faces, castle breaking away from their backs. Blue and Charlie were sitting outside, lying really, Blue with her head on Charlie’s back. Echo and Delta picked up their step, no longer trailing behind their masters as they moved to join their sisters.

‘Where are we going?’ Claire asked, spotting her horse saddled up and tied beside Owen’s. Her husband shrugged, grin climbing across his cheeks as he took her hand. ‘Are you finally going to share whatever it is you have been doing in secret?’ She teased, interest getting the better of her as his glee squeezed her hand.

‘Are you going to be okay to ride?’ He asked, caution suddenly dawning on him.

Claire propped a hand on her hip. ‘I’m pregnant, not confined to my bed.’ He could argue that she was a few months earlier, pregnancy sickness keeping her tucked between the sheets of their bed as she hid for days on end, willing the dizzying headaches to go away. She was mobile again, her churning stomach turned solid as she went about her duties in East Court or continued to pester Owen for a real sword between small hunting trips.

That was when she could find her husband. He had been mysteriously busy, promising he had something planned for her but unwilling to share in what exactly. Claire was sure he just didn’t want to be bothered, the man growing impatient with a lack of space between them as her activities were restricted.

She pushed up on her toes to kiss his cheek fondly, her hand tight on his shoulder. She appreciated his worry, no matter the capacity or how he expressed it. He was right to be concerned, Claire was sure, with her belly as round as it was, that she should not be mounting a horse. Despite all that, Claire was going to follow no matter where he was taking her.

Owen watched her for a second, internally accessing whether it was right to potentially put his pregnant wife in harm's way. She only stood in front of him with her arms crossed over her swelling belly, face defiant as she stared him down.

[…]

It was a nice day for a ride. The perfect kind where the sun shone, warmth broke by a slight breeze as the trees whistled above their heads. Owen kept the pace excruciatingly slow despite Claire’s complaints that she could walk faster.

He was being cautious and if she took a minute to breathe rather than being annoyed by his care, Claire would be in awe. It was refreshing to know her husband wanted her safe and sound, secure and comfortable which had been a promise long before their child made an appearance in her womb. Claire felt settled in the security of his watch, comforted that he had her back despite the threats of his father looming over her head. It could easily have gone the other way, boy standing by the man who raised him no matter the risk it would take on other lives.

She was trying not to think about it too much. Instead, Claire wanted to focus on the cool air on the bare skin of her neck, how she wished it could blow right through the dress she wore to caress her hot skin. She listened to the movement in the woods, the rattle of leaves and the crunch of twigs underfoot. If she was quiet and her focus was drawn just so she could hear the scurry of little animals or the chirp of small birds.

She knew where they were going before the journey was over. They had been out there a few times in the last handful of months and even though Claire had not ventured out there recently, she recognised the path he was taking.

It wasn’t long before the cliffs broke out in front of her, wide expanse of the ocean stretching before her eyes as she soaked it all in. Claire felt settled, every fibre of her being relaxing in the open grass and wild waters.

Her eyes teared, husband beside her helping Claire down from her horse as he kissed her cheek. ‘I have missed this place.’ She told him softly, breathless as she inched closer to the view, Echo bumping against her leg as the wolf followed her closely. His beasts had been weaving in and out of the horses’ way the whole ride, causing amuck as they hunted down rabbits along the path. For the most part, they stuck by Claire and Allegra.

Owen had made good on his promise. A small cottage stood tall and proud just before the woods stretched into tall trees. It was set back from the cliffs, almost hidden at the end of the clearing but noticeable to Claire’s watery eyes. Her husband had to turn her towards it before she realised.

She gasped, surprise catching in the back of her throat as her hands clung to his arm, squeezing tight as she turned her face to gape at him. ‘I promised.’ He told her, leaning in to kiss her again. ‘And, it’s our wedding anniversary. I thought you deserved something of your own.’

‘I — Owen.’ She wanted to blame her tears on the baby, her head in the wrong place as she stared at the thatched roof and the shutters, every small detail making it look more and more like a cottage from the edge of town. ‘How did you?’ It explained why he kept disappearing on her, his men conveniently unaware of their Lord as Bart tried to distract her for an afternoon or two.

Her husband shrugged, arm enlaced with hers. ‘Called in a lot of favours to have it finished quickly. You deserve it, Princess. You deserve the world.’ He kissed her again, this time capturing her chin with his thumb and forefinger as he directed his mouth to hers. She gave in without a fight, kissing him back with gusto as her disbelief transferred itself to her lips.

‘I don’t even know where to begin in thanking you.’

He shook his head. ‘You’re giving me a son, that is thanks enough.’

It was perfect. Enough to make her forget they were the heirs of a throne for a few days or a few hours. Claire could think herself and Owen as simple folk with no worries as their son slept peacefully in the fresh air away from the cold and hostile stone of the castle.

It was exactly the escape she had dreamed of.

‘Here, I want to show you something.’ He took her hand, pulling Claire towards the cottage and leading her inside.

The place was spacious and fully functioning as a home. They had a kitchen and a table to eat at, a warm fire to sit in front of and cosy chairs to hold them captive. The cottage only had one room, sitting on the second floor with full view of their living space. The bed was wide, Claire was sure it was a little bigger than the one they had in their cambers, this one designed to fit themselves and their toddler son, who would hopefully still be eager for a cuddle. Owen wouldn’t admit it out loud and Claire would pretend the idea hadn’t entered her mind but there was space for all four of their girls to climb up and nap with them if they so chose.

That wasn’t what Owen was trying to show her. He wanted Claire to be wooed by the whole cottage but the surprise came in something smaller. She noticed it when he helped her climb the stairs, instructing her to sit on the edge of the bed as he gallantly gestured towards a crib pressed against the wall.

Claire praised the piece of furniture, getting up to touch it as she ran her fingers along the engravings, touch inspecting the make as she stood in awe. ‘I made it.’ Owen told her, shyly. ‘It’s where I’ve been — out here, overseeing the cottage and chippin’ away at this.’ Claire caught and imperfection here and there, the wood bowing, something not quite linear but the crib was lovely, darling, the exact sort of thing she wanted her baby to sleep in. It was only better that her husband had made it.

‘I know I haven’t been the best husband.’ Owen announced, voice soft as he took a place on the edge of the bed, eyes not quite watching his wife with the crib he had made. Claire opened her mouth to protest. He had been nothing but kind and patient. He treated her to such lovely things, new clothes and a sparring partner worthy of her time. He built her a cottage and made a crib for their child. Claire would not hesitate in announcing he made her extremely happy.

Owen shook his head. ‘I have not been able to protect you from my father.’ She wanted to argue that Theon had not touched her. Beyond his words and her personal fears, she was safe from the man. ‘I should be doing something about him, Claire, I should —-‘

‘You know that it is treason.’ She warned. ‘You’re a smart man, Owen, you would not put me in danger like that.’

‘But I have hurt you and I have let you be hurt.’

Claire frowned, arms crossed over her chest as she watched him, waiting for the man to spit his words out. ‘You have done no such thing.’ She was stern.

Owen nodded. ‘Our wedding night.’ His words were so soft she barely heard him, Claire blinking as she watched his drooping shoulders.

‘Was our wedding night and despite it being less than pleasant it had to happen.’ Owen shook his head. ‘Owen, look at me.’ She waited for a beat, watching as the man dragged his eyes to hers. ‘You knew what your father would do. What he is capable of. If we did not consummate our marriage vows he would have been done with the both of us. We would have been over before we even had a chance. You knew that. Don’t you dare act like there wasn’t anything at risk.’ The lines on his face were angry and thick, the man nodding as he looked towards the window above their bed. ‘We were married a year ago. What was done is done and it is long behind us. I wish you would stop bringing it up just to torture yourself and to frustrate me.’ He nodded, grunting at her softly. ‘I did not want to fight with you today.’ It had been their third argument since waking.

‘The crib is beautiful, so is the house. Thank you for this life even when you think it isn’t perfect. I am happy, Owen.’ They had started off on the wrong foot a year ago but they had quickly realigned their path, the two of them caught on each other. ‘You need to worry less, everything will work out fine.’

She sat beside him. The bed dipped under her weight as Claire sighed. A damper had been put on the mood and she suddenly found herself lost in the situation. Claire shuffled to the middle of the bed, legs crossed as she watched the side of her husband’s face. ‘You know, he doesn’t have a name.’ She told him, a hand rubbing across her swollen middle.

‘We haven’t talked about that, have we?’ He turned to her, half mirroring her position as a single leg dangled off the side of the bed. Claire shook her head. They had not discussed the prospect of names for their child.

'I always thought I would name my sons after my brothers but given recent circumstances, I do not want to see my sons follow their footsteps.’ Claire had once admired her brothers, Merrick and Henry were everything to her as a girl. They had power and persuasion, everyone looked to them for an opinion and advice no matter the problem. Her brothers were confident, controlled and destined for greatness. She considered them role models, her heroes until Merrick shipped her off and neither Henry nor her father put in a good word to keep their sister and daughter around. ‘They are nothing to me now and if my sons dare to do what Merrick did, they will have to face my wrath.’

She was still trying to put her finger on the pulse of her betrayal. Owen had turned out to be the best match for her but Claire was not ever going to forgive the cold and ruthless way Merrick had shoved her out. She was lucky that Owen was good and kind. Her brothers were lucky that Owen was good and kind, they would not have seen their sisters wrath coming if they had sent her to a wicked man. They were not entirely in the clear. If Theon harmed her baby, not only would she tear the man apart but she would seek out Merrick and make him pay for it to.

Owen shook his head. ‘Our child should have his own name. Something strong like James or Adam.’ His wife crinkled her nose, displeasure colouring her cheeks. ‘What?’

‘They’re not very good.’

Owen laughed, the sound a bark as Echo jumped up on the bed between them. ‘You are ridiculous.’ He grinned at her, rolling his eyes as her hand found Echo’s soft fur.

‘I want to name him Humphrey.’ She told him, watching the same dissatisfied crinkle appear in the lines on his nose. ‘It means peaceful warrior. I thought you might find that fitting.’ She could see that he still didn’t like it but was trying to come around to the idea.

Owen’s grin was sly, slow as it crawled across his face. ‘Whatever makes you happy, Princess.’ He was sure that he could find a name to call his son when his wife wasn’t listening. She grinned, copying the sly quirk of his lip like she could read his thoughts.

‘Why so agreeable?’ She asked, smile climbing up her cheeks as she watched a fire start in his eyes.

Owen lent in without a word, only another quirk of his lip as he kissed her softly. ‘I love you, Princess.’ She met him for another kiss, their lips touching gracefully as her smile relaxed to something akin to peace. ‘It scares the shit out of me, but by the Gods, I love you.’

She watched him through lidded blue eyes, lashes kissing her cheeks as she blinked. He frustrated her beyond means on occasion, but he also did crazy wonderful things. He had a cottage built for her, secluded in a place she loved. He built a crib for their baby with incredible detail. He put her needs before his own and ensured she felt safe even when the odds were stacked against them. ‘Well, I love you.’ She told him, hand reaching out to wrap her fingers around his. ‘You insufferable man.’ She giggled, pulling back as the lovely look on his face melted away to realisation.

Owen laughed, lunging at his wife despite the small gap between them as her back hit the mattress with the aid of his hands lowering her down. She squealed with glee, Echo jumping to a stand as she growled at Owen, in the protective mode before she realised they were playing.

‘You insufferable woman.’ Owen teased, rolling them so Claire was straddling him, back bending as she lent down to press her lips to his. ‘Happy anniversary, my love.’ He pulled himself up, half sitting as he met her for another kiss, one hand supporting the curve of her stomach, his fingers splayed across the width of their growing child.

‘We are going to conquer the worlds.’ She told him ever so quietly, her words a whisper and a promise that he almost missed.

[love-with-you-i-have-everything]

all I want for christmas 19/24

So I found a series of Christmas prompts posted by @justablobfish and decided I wanted to give it a go. The post has 24 prompts, so there should be one every day until Christmas Eve!

Also found on Ao3 here.

19th ~ Off For The Holidays

A/N:  The prompt for the 19th was the last day of work for the year, so I wrote this cliche, innocent little bit of an AU. Enjoy!

Emma

As far as bad bosses go, Emma had never really had any nightmares. Regina would have been the worst, back when she worked for a town’s sheriff department. She wasn’t evil, but had liked to make life more difficult than it needed to be.

Neal was just a pig. He was the spokesperson for a client she’d worked for a few years back, and between the endless stream of unwanted flirting and advances, had driven Emma up the wall.

Now, she sat in a happy middle with Graham. Their banter was safe and friendly, without being uncomfortable. They got work done, and if she said so herself, made quite the team.

Plus, he gave her very adequate time off for Christmas, so that was a plus.

It was two weeks until the holiday, and for the first time in years, she had the time off. The day had dragged on in the beginning, as any last day did. It picked up as the hours went on however, and soon enough, she was wishing to be in the office sorting through paper work rather than chasing down petty thieves.

Killian

Killian really hated his boss. The editor-in-chief was known for his reputation as a hard ass, but Killian hadn’t really understood the rumours. From the minute Mr. Gold had walked into the office space, it seemed as though he had been picked out as the scapegoat. He’d played back the morning countless times, and yet there was no reason for it.

So clearly, they hadn’t gotten off to a good start. It would probably get better, he’d thought.

He was wrong. So wrong.

As the weeks went on, Killian had been a constant target. Any task simple and basic enough, he was given, meaning he did very little actual writing and editing work.

To make matters worse, Gold had asked him to work right up until Christmas. God only knew why; no one sends in manuscripts in December. But still, there he sat.

“Jones, get in here.” It was the voice he had come to hate over the months calling to him now. Groaning, rolling his eyes at his work mate across from him, he stood up abruptly and trudged into his boss’s office.

“Shut the door, Jones. And take a seat.” Gold said, eyes cold and benevolent. Killian truly thought he was an evil man. How he’d managed to be so successful in this line of work, he could barely imagine.

Emma

“Officer Swan, come in here.” Graham yelled across the room. Rising from her desk, she made her way towards the office and stood leaning against the frame in the doorway.

“What’s up?” she asked casually. The longer she could stretch this conversation out, the longer she could get away with less work. She was all for that.

Graham stood up and walked towards her, “Today’s your last day, correct?” He crossed his arms across his chest and stood opposite her. Dreading the possibility of more work, her stomach dropped.

She nodded slowly, “Um, yeah it is. Why’s that?” She really didn’t want the answer. Graham looked back towards his desk. Emma’s eyes followed his and landed on a relatively small stack of paperwork in the ‘in’ tray.

“Not much.” he replied, “It’s just that I pretty much have this covered, so,” he looked across at her, “if you want to head off early feel free.”

Emma, celebrating silently in her head, played it off like nothing. But she happily took the early day. Wishing him a merry Christmas, she hurried out the door and onto the busy New York street.

Killian

“What do you need now?” Killian asked, sitting down roughly in the chair across from Gold, “More coffee? Something printed?”

Mr. Gold laughed, no real humour in the sound. Killian saw stacks of manuscripts lying on the floor around the desk and cringed. He could be looking through those, should be, really. That was his job. Not being the lackey of a power-hungry boss.

“No, no. I need you to pick up a new lot of manuscripts from the PO box.” He replied.

Killian scoffed and gestured around the room, “You sure you don’t want to finish with these first?” Mr Gold rose from his seat and set his eyes on him.

“How I run this business is up to me, I don’t appreciate people questioning it.”

“Well, I’m not an errand boy, so get someone else.” Killian shot back, not wasting a second. A voice inside his head told him to stop before he got into something messy. He needed this job, loved the work he did…or should be doing. Letting out a sigh, he rubbed at his brow, “Where’s the box?”

Gold smiled triumphantly, “About four blocks down the road on the left.”

Not saying another word, Killian stomped out of the office, jolting down the stairs and onto the street.

Emma

She saw him first when he stormed past her right outside the office. A blur of black leather, she nearly crashed into him as she stepped out onto the sidewalk.

”Hey, watch it!” she yelled after him. To her surprise, he actually turned around. Emma had to catch her breath when she looked at him, blue eyes meeting her green ones. His black hair was sprinkled with white, a light splattering of snow covering the pavement beneath their feet. He stopped just as she did when they locked eyes.

“Apologies, lass.” he replied, walking towards her with an outstretched hand, “Killian Jones.”

Killian

“Emma Swan.” she answered, taking the offered hand, “Happy to be off work too?” Killian laughed darkly and rolled his eyes, “I wish.” he said, “Bloody boss wants more papers, and I’m the lucky one who gets to ‘fetch’ them.”

The woman in front of him nodded. Emma. She was beautiful, blonde hair tied back in a ponytail, green eyes shining in the bright reflections from the snow.

“Well,” she began, eyes meeting his once more, “must be nearly done for the year then?”

Again, Killian chuckled. And it wasn’t a sarcastic, forced laugh, but real genuine happiness. Not at the prospect of working another two weeks, but at Emma’s hopeful attitude and the fact that she had deemed him worthy of it.

“Afraid not. Working right up to the 25th.” he replied, her eyes widening before she sobered up once again.

“Bad boss, yeah?” she asked. He simply nodded, and a mischievous look arose on her face, “Skip the rest of the day.” she said suddenly, “With me. You’ve got to have some fun during the holidays. Ditch the bad boss.” He watched as this time, she held out her hand between the two of them.

Killian had a thousand reasons not to go with her jumbling around his head. But he had one to do it.

Why not? So he took her hand.

--

That day, they had wandered around New York City, stopping in cafes and coffee shops, enjoying the crisp, chilly weather. They parted ways with each other’s phone numbers and smiles on their faces.

Three years later, spending their first Christmas as a married couple, they went back to the street where they first met. Safe to say, they didn’t work over Christmas ever again.

[pendragonfics]

Shiver

Paring: Matt Murdock/Reader

Tags: female reader, canon compliant, blind date, blind humour, bed sharing, fluff, angst and a happy ending bc why not

Summary: "And Matt, this is ________, practically my keeper and non-biological sister, and you are each other's blind date. More-so for Matt."

Foggy sets his two BFFs up, and Matt's life gets in the way of romance.

Word Count: 2,241

Posting Date:  2017-03-18

Current Date: 2017-06-11

"The last time this happened, he set me up with the non-English speaking son of his landlady, said, 'Have a good night, children', and ran off into the night." You laugh at the memory, and how you spent the whole time walking around the city repeating what little English words the guy had known. "And, ever since I moved here, Foggy has not been off my case about being single in a city like this. Says I need protection, but I've got pepper spray and a can of whoop-ass in my fist." You sigh, looking at yourself in the mirror, playing with the stubborn hair that keeps falling into your eyes. "Don't say whoop-ass on the first date. One a blind date."

It was common knowledge that Franklin 'Foggy' Nelson was best friends with you since birth. Everyone knew it. It was like a word association game; always together. In fact, your mothers had been friends, and you two had been friends, and if it ever came to it, your children would be friends too, and so on. The Nelson family and the ______'s had known each other for eons, and would always do. And that was why you followed him to this side of the city, to the only place you knew.

Of course, thankfully, you had a job, and a dinky apartment that used to be someone's basement underneath a gym, and the same guy trying to get you out in the dating world and find someone to hook up with. But that was what best friends were for, right? Getting people out of their own little ruts and out into the world where the sun shone through the skyscrapers and warmth came from disposable coffee cups.

But there was ten minutes to go until the date (meeting place: a street corner near a park and a bar) and you were still trying to figure out what to do with your hair when you heard a text alert come through your phone. But checking it, it was none other than Foggy, sending you a picture of someone's shoe (attached to somebody's leg, thank goodness) and the words don't leave matty standing around under it.

Rolling your eyes, you fluff your hair the way it normally is for everyday life, and grabbing a scarf, rush out the door. It doesn't take long to get to where the meeting place is, and once you're there, you can't help but laugh. After knowing him all of those years, and tying ties for all of yours, you swear you'd taught him how to not to tie it backwards. And the suit? You'd need to take him out around town for another - he looked like a used-car salesman.

"I'd know that laugh anywhere, even if I was in a room of ________ doppelgangers all laughing," Foggy grins, crossing the distance away from you, smothering your outfit and you in a crushing hug. "Glad you could make it."

"I'm getting the feeling that there was no choice between making it, or not," you whisper back, and add, "Being single isn't a curse, Fog."

From your peripherals, you notice a guy, wearing a suit, but unlike Foggy who looks somewhat like a child invading his uncle's old raggedy clothes pile from the spare room, this guy makes the suit look like he's on-loan from Armani for the weekend. And without really planning to, you feel yourself get flustered at the sight of him without even speaking a damn word to the guy.

"Ah. _______, this is Matty-Matt-Matt, BFF and lawyer friend-slash-partner in our business," he motions to the guy. "And Matt, this is ________, practically my keeper and non-biological sister, and you are each other's blind date. More-so for Matt."

It's only then you link the white cane and the glasses on the edge of his nose.

"He's always joking about it, don't you worry," he extends a hand to you, and like something like a magical Disney prince, he's linked his arm in yours, and your heart is racing a million miles a minute because the freaking hot blind guy has treated you like a goddamned Disney princess and you're sure you've forgotten to brush your teeth or something dumb. Leaving Foggy behind, he muses, "So, he told me you've moved?"

You nod, and realising your mistake, add, "Um, yeah. Grew up in the place beside the Nelson's, but there's nothing really left for me there. I mean, new job. I'm a typist for a clinic downtown." You tell him.

Matt grins. "I'm good with my hands too, what with all the Braille," he jokes, and adds, "Please, relax, I can take a joke, and Foggy knows that way too well." He pauses, "If you like, we can play that game where you ask a question, and then I do." You can't help but smirk, because all this time, with his cane out, he's been navigating around people and the bustle of the city and somehow managed to lead you toward a park bench in the park across the road. "You start."

Taking a seat, you hum, and chewing on your lip, deliberate on what to ask Matty-Matt-Matt, Foggy's lawyer friend-slash-partner. "Okay. Have you always been ... blind?" you ask.

He shakes his head. "Got into an accident. Saved an old man, but lost my eyes." He replies, folding his cane up, sitting the stick on his lap. "What made you become a typist?"

You blink. "I - I don't know. I remember being six and watching my grandmother on her old typewriter ... I've always had a thing for the way the keys clack. Okay, that sounds really dumb." You feel a roaring blush coat your cheeks.

"No, no, not dumb," Matt places a hand on yours, "It's better than why I became a lawyer."

You cock an eyebrow, and use up your next question on that, and go back and forward in the game until the sun seems to be fading into the distance behind the skyscrapers of Hell's Kitchen and you're feeling less than strangers with the handsome man beside you. As you shiver in the evening air, he seems to come out of a charm from your voice, and spell unbroken, he proposes moving toward a place with reservations for the pair of you. Before you know it, the night is over, and he's walked you back to your place, and you've added your number into his talking phone and his to yours, and vowed to go out again next Thursday after his rota of clients for the day.

It's like this every week until almost a year later you wake up beside him in his bed, and turn to him in the midnight air. In the darkness that isn't quiet, you see the shadow of his form in the sheets, the way his hair falls every which-way, his lips parted ever so slightly to take in the night air. But your eyes see the haunting linger of bruises and battered ribs and the blister on his hand, how they become increasingly calloused as the days pass by.

Your boyfriend calls them his accidents, but you know inside you don't believe him. You've been with him for very nearly twelve months, and you know what Matt Murdock, the guy who kisses you goodbye on his way to work, and forgets his lunch in the fridge in the apartment and asked you to move in with him only eight months after knowing him, and had the freaking Punisher as a client.

The Matt you know would never just let himself 'fall down the stairs' or 'trip over the sidewalk' and, your personal favourite, 'walk into a door'. No. The Matt you knew, the Matt you met when you first went on that date, walked proficiently around people like his blindness was only a defined term to some and not a complete concept for him. The Matt you knew would never just let a guy step off the curb too early, almost like he could sense what was happening, would never do the same for himself.

He was lying, and it was simple.

Slipping a foot from the bed, you pad over to the main living area as quiet as you can be, and curl in on yourself on the couch. It's been months since you left your apartment and assimilated into his, and longer still since you've seen your family or the dog face to face, or on Skype. Perhaps it's the fact you're wondering if Matt is either into hardcore BDSM and cheating on you or the vigilante Daredevil (which is nigh impossible) and perhaps it's that which is making you shiver on the lounge, or that you've been such an adult for so long and need to feel the arms of someone you love around you to tell you that it'll all be okay.

"________?" His voice is groggy, tantalising to hear, and you can practically picture his face as he realises you're not in the bed beside him. "I can hear crying, is that you?"

It isn't until he says this you realise that yes, it is you, and you're giving Alice from Wonderland a run for her money, as your nightshirt is soaking. You shakily give a breathy yes and hear his feet hit the hardwood, making their way toward to you on the sofa. "Matt, please, you need sleep, you've got a court date tomorrow with the Frank Castle case," you protest, but he's taking you into his arms, to his chest, cradling you like you're goddamned four years old and just had a nightmare. "Why are you so hard to understand, Matthew?"

He's still for a moment. "Do you remember that date, the one Foggy set up?" He asks you, like there's any possibility you could have forgotten meeting the best guy you'd ever come to be with. "Do you want to play that game where you ask a question, and then I do?"

"Are you cheating on me?" your voice is barely a whisper, but you know he hears you.

Matt shakes his head. "No – no, I'm not." he whispers back, his fingers combing the hair from your eyes, from your face. "Why couldn't you sleep?"

You take a breath before answering. "I just...I don't know. Mid-midlife crisis." You can't see, but hear the puff of laughter that comes from his smirk. "Why don't you trust me?" you ask. It's truly a silent night after the words leave your lips; Matt stills behind you, his big spoon to your little one is almost a statue, the flashing lights beyond the apartment of the billboard orchestrate the passing of time. "You never tell me where you go when you just disappear, and come back beaten and battered all over. I met a girl named Clare on the stairs one day, and she knew your middle name. Which, I learned, from her, Mr. Matthew Michael Murdock," you murmur your defences to the lawyer, backing up your facts, "Foggy calls a lot, and we're basically the founding members of the What Is Up With Matt club, and on top of it all, you don't tell me a damn thing!" you sit up, leaving the arms of Matt empty on his side of the lounge.

"________ -,"

You shake your head. "I'm a typist who if was better at school could be a damn court stenotype, and if you can't tell me what you've been hiding since I met you, then I'm sure that I can be out of here by the sunrise, Matt. I swear, there's nothing worse than knowing there's something going on and you can't do a thing to help." Your voice chokes up, arms tight around yourself.

"It's not that I don't trust you, _______," he starts. "I just want to protect you."

You wipe your tears on the back of your wrist, and knowing well enough it's not your turn to ask, you implore, "From what? Truth? Isn't that a fundamental thing about being a lawyer, an American?" You sniff. "I'm the same age as you. I kicked the ass of the last guy who tried to mug me. I know how to do taxes and I know there's shitty things in this world that happen for shitty reasons, but out of all of that, you're still defending your motive that you're protecting me?" You swallow. "From what, Matt?"

He lowers his head, wiping a hand over his face. "Please, I know you're upset, and I never intended you to be. But ... I have, uh, abilities. I can hear really well, and smell, and feel. I'm also the son of Jack Murdock, and I can't just step down from a fight.

You're not sure you like where this is going, but you sit there, silent, waiting for the next part to come.

"I - I'm Daredevil. I'm the Devil of Hell's Kitchen, and I just want you to know that I don't go out to do it for fun. I do it because I love you, _________. And I want to make the city safer for you."

A silence settles between you, and slowly, you reach out, and cradle his cheeks in your palms, cupping them to raise his head to face your own. "Matt, you idiot..." you whisper, gazing into his eyes.

He gives a wan smile. "But I'm your idiot?"

You nod. "Yeah. You're my idiot."

[saecris]

REN’S SEMBLANCE: EMOTIONAL MANIPULATION / EMPATHY

general information on empathy.

listen, i jump on semblances pretty quickly. i cannot remember when i first came up for mana manipulation with ren when i took him up properly eons ago, but it was after volume two or something. so i understand that a lot of my theories are liable to be eventually proven wrong and i do end up altering them accordingly. dudebroski, it does not really affect me a ton when i’m wrong, i either keep or don’t keep the fact, like i did with the assumption that ren was his given name and just kept it, because it doesn’t make a ton of sense to me to change it now. anyway—

grimm rely on negative emotions (more specifically fear) to sense other living beings, it’s hard for me to determine whether they go for animals because the only interaction i’ve seen might have been ooblek launching zwei at them through a rocket propelled thermos (don’t quote me on that, it might have just been white fang). in volume four we see that the shroud ren places over himself and is capable of throwing over other people makes them invisible to grimm (and confirming nora’s v3 allusions of his ninjaness/ which were further developed through his fucking naruto shoes). the effects washing over himself and others comes with it a notably more calm visage and the ability to function better under pressure. my automatic assumption when seeing this had to be some kind of empathic thing. it only came to me so fast because i’ve,, made an oc with the same ability when i was far younger but this made a lot of sense to me and i found it appealing?

i mean these posts are permanent things, a lot about ren is subject to change as i mish mash him with canon facts.

ren negates negative emotions.

in addition to this ren can also sense people through heavy emotions (tyrian’s bloodlust). he can also negate positive emotions, and push negative and positive emotions onto other people. also, in a non-combatative state, he absorbs and reflects the emotions surrounding him (ha, like a mirror, when will my reflection show who i am inside). i think about how lively and sassy ren was prior to the attack on kuroyuri and headcanon that his guarded and expressionless (volume 1 and 2 showing very little differentiation in his facial expressions/ i often joke that i can count how many times ren has smiled on one hand) expressions are due not only to trauma but the activation of his semblance. he is naturally good at keeping his composure, the ability to negate negative emotions also works passively, and has bled into his reactions and personality making him more calm and collected over time. it has also had a negative effect, making expressions of love and happiness very hard. because he can read emotions, even when he is not actively using his semblance he has a very accute bullshit detector, which made it very hard for him to trust jaune prior to volume two.

ren is afraid that he doesn’t have enough of a personality to avoid a kind of psychopathic nature, as he has at one point shown a lot of these traits, common even in small degrees. changing yourself to appease others is something he hates in himself.

it is a part of his personality to want to reflect and alter part of his image to either appease or better suit the situation at hand, or the person he’s communicating with. it stems from a subconscious need for harmony, or at the very least balance, which ties in with the thematics of ying and yang applied to his characterisation. ren was raised in such a way that he had to reflect an image to better suit the differing opinions and personalities surrounding him, making him flaky, and without a solid sense of self. he has been working on this prior to beacon, having nothing to hold him back anymore his notable lack of response is cautionary, he takes too long to figure out how to react to a situation and by the time he does it’s too late to do so. it frustrates him greatly, especially considering his father’s advice was to ‘act’. over time ren does develop the habit of replacing words with actions, built it into himself that he shouldn’t waste breath when not needed.

but ren struggles to tell how much of him is his semblance, and how much of his personality is actually his own. he has a lot of trouble locating a sense of self, and having a semblance like this one, which basically reads, reflects, and deflects the personalities and emotions (through absorption and active deflection of feeling) of those he surrounds himself with, making it difficult for ren to find and define himself. it gets easier the longer he stays in beacon and finds himself surrounded with people that will accept him regardless of his nature, which explains the gradual increase of expression over the course of the seasons (he’s even regaining his sass and sense of humour to the point of making jokes (A FUCKING PUN IN GRIMM ECLIPSE/ ROASTING JAUNE ABOUT HIS HOODIE IN V4). his lack of a personality during the beginning of beacon was as much a journey for him as it was for me trying to establish him.

my first post about the empathy semblance, as speculated immediately after kuroyuri was released.

skype convo speaking about the moral ambiguity concerning the dangers of ren’s emotional manipulation semblance.

because of this semblance, ren’s emotional intelligence has been skewed and altered. there are five parts to emotional intelligence:

SELF AWARENESS. “recognising internal feelings.” i’ve said this before but ren hates introspection so much. he actively avoids self reflection for fear or spiralling into doubt, anxiety, and depression.

MANAGING EMOTIONS. “finding ways to handle emotions that are appropriate for the situation.” ren used to reflect what people thought would be best of him, this has lead to (prior to beacon) the response to shut down his emotions instead of sorting through them like ordinary people would. it’s incredibly unhealthy. he doesn’t talk about his problems. ruby and jaune still aren’t aware why destroying the nuckelavee was so important to him because he just doesn’t talk.

MOTIVATION. “using self-control to channel emotions towards a goal.” this he does relatively well actually.

EMPATHY. “understanding the emotional perspective of other people.” ren finds it easier to focus on other people instead of his own relationships, which makes it hard to be an introvert and need occasional alone time, when alone time also makes him unhappy if indulged in for too long.

HANDLING RELATIONSHIPS. “using personal information and information about others to handle social relationships and to develop interpersonal skills.” he’s working on it.

a conversation i was having with joxxy that prompted me to write this post.

[10/04/2017 4:13:34 pm] NINΞ: he tries [10/04/2017 4:14:00 pm] NINΞ: at least i think he is [10/04/2017 4:14:31 pm] Joxxy: I mean it looks like he's trying [10/04/2017 4:15:25 pm] NINΞ: because by now he also has a good grasp on what is socially acceptable and accepted and what might be expected of a normal person [10/04/2017 4:15:37 pm] NINΞ: that empathy talk the other night really fucked me up too man

[10/04/2017 4:16:32 pm] NINΞ: i feel like some level of me doesn’t know my muse anymore [10/04/2017 4:16:58 pm] Joxxy: Hey maybe that's a good thing [10/04/2017 4:17:04 pm] Joxxy: It gives you more stuff to discover [10/04/2017 4:17:20 pm] Joxxy: Omg Ren purposely turning off his emotions and doing something totally dark [10/04/2017 4:17:27 pm] Joxxy: While his friends look on in shock [10/04/2017 4:17:43 pm] Joxxy: "You looked really freakin' terrifying just now. What happened???"

[11/04/2017 9:20:32 am] NINΞ: and i didn’t see that at first, but yeah, i am a fan of the idea of ren turning his emotions off and doing something dark [11/04/2017 9:21:34 am] Joxxy: I can see it getting to a point where Ren can't tell if his lack of emotions during a certain situation are under his control or if it's his semblance taking over [11/04/2017 9:23:29 am] NINΞ: yeah, and it can get out of control in the opposite way too, if he’s surrounded by a lot of people who are panicking, because he works as an emotional sponge as well, when he’s not actively using his semblance [11/04/2017 9:24:09 am] NINΞ: he can’t do it yet, but another layer to this semblance is that he can force more of an emotion onto someone else too [11/04/2017 9:26:09 am] Joxxy: Maybe he doesn't discover it at first because he thinks it's because of his dragon Faunus heritage smoke properties [11/04/2017 9:26:33 am] NINΞ: oh yeah [11/04/2017 9:26:49 am] NINΞ: i really need to cement the emotions for the smoke, they keep changing [11/04/2017 9:27:09 am] NINΞ: at the moment there’s four: happy, furious, nervous, aroused [11/04/2017 9:27:15 am] Joxxy: You could say it amplifies emotions where adrenaline or passion is involved [11/04/2017 9:27:26 am] NINΞ: ooooo nice [11/04/2017 9:28:39 am] Joxxy: Yeah scientifically speaking, adrenaline can correlate with emotions that have rapid heartbeats or a flushed face [11/04/2017 9:28:48 am] Joxxy: So anger could definitely be on there [11/04/2017 9:29:05 am] Joxxy: For happiness I guess it would be endorphins [11/04/2017 9:29:11 am] NINΞ: yeah, anger never leaves, because that was the primary reason i wanted the smoke

[kuriquinn]

Fic Prompt / Request: More Hokage Troubles

Anonymous said:

Hey Kurin! I just finished reading Anbu Team 7 and I stumble upon something that makes me curious, at this part when sakura 'aka' lioness said “Well, actually –” and kakashi then quickly interrupt, what does it actually means?

Masterlist & Disclaimer

Summary: Kakashi is just one in a long line of Hokage that can't keep his friends and students in line. A romp through the history of Konoha, with cameos from Kage past.

Warning: Very crackish.

Canon/Fanon Compliance: AU ‘verse. Sasuke left Konoha, but he came back right away or right after training or something. Team 7 went on to become ANBU

Kakashi looks at the three of them in turn, and then lets his head fall into his hands. “None of the other Hokage had to deal with this.”

“Well, actually—”

“Don’t, Lioness, just don’t,” Kakashi groans, straightening up. 

一

“Madara,” Hashirama Senju starts quietly—calmly, he thinks—and then promptly forgets what to say.

His best friend lifts an eyebrow in irritating, mocking challenge that makes him want to punch him in his smug Uchiha face, and sits back, arms folded in front of him.

Hashirama exhales through his nose, counts to ten, and begins again.

“Madara, you cannot set people on fire just because they say something you don’t like.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Bullshit.”

“Whatever he said happened is a lie. You know he has it out for me.”

“And I know you would like nothing more than to bash his head in with your gunbai.”

“Well, you said it, not me,” Madara shrugs, looking bored.

“If the other nations see this infighting amongst us, they’re going to think we’re not united. We can’t have anymore—”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah…”

“You know you need to apologise.”

“I don’t know anything of the sort.”

“If you don’t apologise, I’m telling Mito.”

“…Fine,” he grumbles after several seconds. “The next time I see him.”

“Good.”

“When I get back from Iwagakure.”

There’s a knock at the door of Hashirama’s chambers, and he smirks at Madara. “I wonder who that could be—come in!”

His best friend glowers. “You’re an ass.”

The door slides open and Tobirama Senju enters, sporting several bandages and a face painted almost completely with burn cream. His eyes twitch at the sight of Madara, but he then turns to his brother and bows. “Lord Hokage.”

“Oh, knock it off with the protocol,” Hashirama waves impatiently. “Madara has something he wants to say to you.”

“I very much doubt that.” The Hokage narrows his eyes and his brother clenches his jaw. “Fine. I will listen. What does the scumbag want this time?”

“Isn’t there a rule about speaking to your elders more respectfully?” Madara sniffs.

“Isn’t there a rule about keeping you away from sane people?”

“Tobirama…”

“Hm, five seconds. The last time it took you a good deal longer to get annoyed enough to insult me,” Madara muses, examining his nails. “I’m disappointed. It seems your tolerance is wearing.”

“Did you have something of value to share, or did you just want to give me a seminar on my habits?”

“I have no doubt you could use one…”

“…Madara!”

“You have something to say to me, Uchiha?”

“I have something to say about your mother.”

“A­-hem,” Hashirama interjects pointedly.

His best friend considers him, and in a grudging voice mumbles, “…What a nice, honorable lady.”

“Nice save, asshole. You’re lucky I don’t teleport you to the middle of an ocean to drow,” Tobirama growls.

“Bring it, you little—!”

“Children,” Hashirama mumbles to himself. “Grown men—warriors!—and they’re like children. The world is doomed if either one of you ever ends up in a position of power…”

二

“What happened to the bridge?”

Tobirama keeps his voice carefully level, trying to ignore the throbbing in his temple and the need to flex his fingers. Possibly around his students’ necks.

 “Uh…it was an accident?”

“Hiruzen, missing a target is an accident. That bridge looks like a tornado hit it. And I don’t use the word tornado lightly.”

“I told him not to do it,” Koharu says. “The idiot wouldn’t listen.”

“Hey, it wasn’t my fault! Homura distracted me while I was trying to take aim.”

“I sneezed.”

“It was distracting!”

“A shinobi should be able to focus around even the most inconvenient disruptions,” Koharu recites dutifully.

“A shinobi should also inform her teacher when her teammates are about to alert the enemy to their position and get them all killed,” Tobirama lectures.

“Well, I didn’t actually think he’d miss.”

“And Homura couldn’t?”

“He was asleep,” Hiruzen snorts. “Hence why I was surprised when he sneezed.”

“You three do realise we’re in the middle of a war, yes?” Tobirama asks through clenched teeth. “The enemy will be here within minutes because now they know our—”

Thwack!

He is cut off by an arrow lodging itself in his shoulder.

The four of them stare up the mountain incline at the wall of dozens of shinobi headed their way.

“…position,” Tobirama finishes, yanking the arrow out.

“That’s…a lot of Amenin,” Hiruzen murmurs.

“If we live through this, I’m going to make the rest of your life miserable,” Koharu informs him primly.

If any of you live through this, Konoha is doomed, Tobirama thinks, taking a guard position and preparing to meet a slew of angry Amenin head-on.

三

Hiruzen and his team are tied to four posts, baking in the sun several dozen miles from Suna. The desert sand rustles around them, and his mouth is already dry.

“Explain it to me again,” he says slowly. So that I can possibly find a way to salvage this trip and keep us out of another war.

“Hearing it again won’t change the outcome,” Orochimaru points out, looking disgustingly unruffled against his post.

“Jiraiya hit the Kazekage.”

“Of course he did,” Hiruzen groans, craning his neck to glare over at the only individual in their group to remain unconscious. Jiraiya is sagging against his post, a line of drool dangling from his mouth.

“It was either incredibly stupid, or incredibly brave and stupid all rolled into one,” Tsunade goes on. “I mean, the other guy was talking about sacrificing half of our people on something that might work. I don’t care how good a strategist he is, that’s crap. And of course, I couldn’t hit him, because then he’s be dead…”

“How nice of you to show some restraint…”

“You do have a lot of anger bottled up inside you,” Orochimaru points out. “I recommend a good bit of therapy. Of course, activities that involve sharp objects or fire might be more to your preference.”

“Would you shut up and do your creepy, bending thing so that we can get out of here?” Tsunade snaps.

“I would, except the same chakra suppressors keeping you from using your strength or keeping Sarutobi-sensei from using a simple Nawanuke are currently binding me. It seems we’re destined to die here.”

“Don’t sound so happy about that!”

“On the contrary, I’m quite bothered. My constitution is better than all of yours, so I’ll not only have to watch you all die, but I’ll be stuck here with the smell of your rotting corpses long before I too succumb to heat stroke and starvation.” He pauses, and then offers Hiruzen an approximation of an apologetic look. “My apologises, sensei. If it makes you feel any better, if I do get free after you all perish, I’ll eat Jiraiya first.”

Tsunade’s turns green beneath her sunburn.

“No one’s eating Jiraiya!” Hiruzen snaps. Even though he knows that Orochimaru is just being a little shit and would never actually do something so disgusting (he’s about eighty-seven percent sure, anyhow), he isn’t in the mood for the young man’s particular brand of humour.

“Mmm…Tsunade can eat Jiraiya,” the white-haired youth mumbles in his sleep.

The three others freeze for a moment. This time it’s Orochimaru who looks disgusted, while Tsunade’s eye twitches. Hiruzen suspects that now, even if they get out of this predicament, only three of them will be returning home.

Hiruzen groans in frustration.

This is the last time. From now on, no Hokage is allowed to appoint their former genin squad as escorts, no matter how talented their ANBU commanders say they are. He’s going to make a fucking public ordinance about it.

四

Minato stares up at his only surviving student, trying to figure out exactly what to say at this point. Kakashi is sitting in the upper branch of a tree, eyes rivetted on the orange book in his hand.

“About that mission to Kiri—”

“Keep walking, sensei,” Kakashi says without looking up, idly turning a page.

Well…I tried, Minato thinks with a sigh and continues on his way back home.

五

“What the hell is going on?!”

“I…I don’t know!”

“What happened!” Tsunade barks, stalking into the laboratory, where Shizune is scrubbing at a goopy green mess. The lab is an utter mess of scorch marks and still smoking furniture.

“I don’t know! I didn’t do anything!”

“None of the ingredients are flammable! How could this happen?!”

“I don’t know, Lady Tsunade, one minute everything was fine, and the next—whoosh!”

“Oink!” Tonton agrees fearfully.

“Where’s Sakura?” she demands.

“Behind you,” a familiar voice says, and Tsunade whirls around. Her second student is leaning calmly in the doorway.

“Why weren’t you here to help her? You know this is a tricky antidote. I told you both it was a difficult one!”

“I had an errand to run,” Sakura says apologetically.

“And what errand is more important than listening to your master’s instructions?!”

“Making sure the village is running smoothly, of course,” Sakura beams. “Shizune said you were behind on your paperwork. And it’s possible you’ve been distracted by a certain something lately.”

From behind her back she removes a familiar looking, hard-won bottle of aged whiskey.

Tsunade winces.

Damn it, I thought I hid that better!

“Sakura, put that down,” she orders.

“Maybe I will,” the young woman says seriously, and then adopt a curious look. “But first, you have to tell me what the difference is between putting something down, and dropping it.”

“If you drop it, I will break your bones into millions of pieces.”

“But shishou, if you do that, you can’t hear my words of wisdom—and you know, you really want to listen to me.”

“About as much as I’d like to move to Tetsu and learn kabuki.”

“I hear Tetsu is very beautiful this time of year. They have ice castles.”

“Oink!”

“Is this the wrong time to mention I think this thing might developing sentience?” Shizune asks nervously.

She now appears to be battling some kind of goopy green chakra monster.

Tsunade looks between her two apprentices, and then lets her forehead fall into her hands. “That’s it. I’m breaking the world now.”

終わり

Comments and constructive criticism are always welcome, but if you feel like keeping me caffeinated out of the goodness of your heart, it certainly would be appreciated! I’m also starting to post original works to my patreon.

I’m only able to keep writing as I do thanks to the support of readers like you, so every bit helps!

栗

[milesgonzalomorales]

all of them

gwen what

chocolate: when was your first kiss?

My first what?

french vanilla: how old are you?

18

cotton candy: three places you want to travel to?

Yokohama, Australia and I’d like to go to India again, but for sightseeing this time

strawberry: a language you wish you could speak?

Japanese (not because I want to watch anime without subtitles)

coffee: favorite cosmetic brands?

I don’t wear makeup

mint chocolate chip: indoors or outdoors?

Indoors

cookie dough: do you play any instruments?

Already answered

rocky road: favorite songs at the moment?

Fighter by Bump of Chicken, Yuri on Ice, The Battle of Concepts, Hikare Are

butter pecan: favorite songs for life?

Sugar Song to Bitter Step, anything from the znt or ylia OST, Regrets of the Dead from Death Parade and Bruno Mars Marry You

cheesecake: what's your zodiac sign?

pisces

toasted coconut: the beach or the pool?

Pool, I HATE the feeling of sand in between my toes

chocolate chip: what's your most popular post?

It’s an Attack on Ti/tan post, that’s all I know. 

bubblegum: books or movies?

Books

pistachio: manga or anime?

It honestly depends? I’ve seen some amazing anime, but the manga didn’t do the series justice (i.e Kill la Kill, Your Lie in April, Steins;Gate, there are probably more) and vice versa, there are manga that have been phenomenal but have had awful anime adaptations *glances at s2 of bs/d*

salted caramel: favorite movies?

The Three Idiots, Bhagam Bhag, Coraline, Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic, Om Shanti Om and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai

birthday cake: favorite books?

TOO MANY TO COUNT, but a few that come to mind are Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, George Eliot’s Middlemarch, Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, Osamu Dazai’s No Longer Human, Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events (The Austere Academy or The Ersatz Elevator is my favourite) and Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere. 

moose tracks: favorites for manga?

Bungou Stray Dogs, Death Note, One Punch Man, A SILENT VOICE, Pandora Hearts, No. 6 and anything by Inio Asano. 

orange sherbet: favorites for anime?

This list would be pretty long if I listed all my favourites, but a few really good ones that come to mind are Bungou Stray Dogs, Flip Flappers, Mob Psycho 100, Zankyou no Terror, Gekkan Shojo Nozaki-kun, Yuri on Ice, Orange (both the anime and the manga are amazing), Osomatsu-san and Steins;Gate. Also, Haikyuu. I know people might write it off as just another sports anime, but it’s really managed to touch me. 

peanut butter: favorite academic subject?

Either English, History or Political Science 

black raspberry: do you have any pets?

No, I wish I did. 

mango: when and why did you start your blog?

I started it to kind of keep fandom stuff in one place, but that didn’t work out too well. 

mocha: ideal weather conditions?

Spring weather, so there will be a chill in the air, but no snow on the ground. 

black cherry: four words that describe you?

Stupid, ugly, loser, trash

neapolitan: things that stress you out?

Public transit, the future of America, in class exams, the United States leaving the UN, Kunikida Doppo not getting the happiness he deserves 

raspberry truffle: favorite kind of music?

anime osts basically 

chocolate marshmallow: favorite brands of candy?

Dairy Milk, Lindt, Hershey, and I also love Skittles. Except for purple skittles. They taste gross. 

toffee: a card game that you're good at?

There was that one card game, I think it was called President. I was pretty good at that. 

lemon custard: do you eat breakfast?

Yeah, don’t skip breakfast kids. 

dark chocolate: turn ons?

A good sense of humour, willing to listen to me talk even if you don’t know what I’m talking about, generally being a down to earth person. 

fudge: turn offs?

I really hate rude people??? The ones who shit on other people’s excitement??? Also people who can’t empathize with other people and also people who use words like gay with a negative connotation. Hate them. 

peach: how do you relax?

Usually I relax by just doodling, reading, taking warm baths, listening to music and talking with my sisters. 

praline: a popular book you haven't read yet?

Throne of Glass by Sarah J Mass, @rhyesand keeps telling me that I NEED to read it, but I have no time to read for fun now. Also I need to finish Crooked Kingdom, I’m only a page in. 

superman: do you like sweaters?

YES

cherry: do you drink tea or coffee?

None

dulce de leche: an instrument you wish you could play?

I’ve always wanted to learn to play the piano or violin. 

blackberry: have you ever laughed so hard you cried?

Did you mean the Nanalan video?

ginger: a new feature you wish tumblr could have?

A feature that lets you punch a Nazi

blueberry lemon: favorite blogs?

In no particular order, @pengwenno, @acetrainergalaxy, @moneera-87,  @johayna-the-memer, @empathique

almond: favorite mean girls quote?

You go Glen Coco!

butterscotch: what color are your nails right now?

Not wearing nail polish, I don’t like it

cinnamon: have you ever been confessed to?

Yeah? Kind of? It’s like those jokes where people are like “Oh you should confess to the ugliest girl” and surprise surprise, that was me. 

blue moon: have you ever had a crush on someone?

Yup. 

cappuccino crunch: do you take naps?

Unless I’m sick, no.

mint: the most embarrassing thing you've ever done?

*inhales* bOI

brownie batter: do you like sushi?

I like Atsushi (but I’ve never tried sushi)

key lime: where do you want to be right now?

ngl, I kind of want to be on campus at uni, it’s become a second home for mered velvet: do you wear prescription glasses?

Yup. 

green tea: favorite flavors of ice cream?

Chocolate Peanut Butter, Mint Chocolate Chip, Butterscotch Sundae, Cotton Candy, but a lot of the asks sound interesting 

[wolfypuppypiles]

Holà ! Great your fanfictions ! I would like to see a fanfiction with Isabelle and clary arguing over something even if they are best friends and alec decide to interviene only when jace is being mean to Isabelle and taking clary's side please !

Gracias! I’m so glad you like them! 

Here you go I hope you like it!

Isabelle shook her head, winding her whip up and hookingthe coils onto her belt as she argued with Clary.

“You don’t know what you’re getting into. This isn’t someregular demon hunt, Clary.”

“I know that, and it’s not like you and the others won’tbe there.”

Izzy sighed and turned to her best friend. She was tryingto explain why she couldn’t come battle an Achaieral demon untrained but theyoung shadowhunter wouldn’t have it.

“You haven’t been trained for this! Do you even know whatthey are? They cover the night in darkness, taking away any light that thestars and moon provide, they’re huge and fast and very dangerous.”

Clary was being as stubborn as ever, crossing her armsand planting her feet in the armoury.

“We’ve handled big demons before.”

Izzy spun to her, groaning. She and Clary may have beenclose but this was infuriating.

“Not like this one! The last time they attacked it tookan army of shadowhunters working with downworlders to take them down. Simon,Meliorn, Mangus and Luke are coming with us so you can stay here where it’ssafe.”

Clary still didn’t want to listen, adamant that she couldhandle herself in the battlefield.

“Simon is going? He doesn’t know anything about demons?Why is he going?”

Isabelle refused to look at Clary now, too mad at her arguingto properly focus on her task of drawing runes. Her voice was hard andimpatient.

“Because he’s fast and strong and he won’t get killed ifhe’s thrown around a couple of times.”

“I can handle myself!”

“No, you can’t! You aren’t going! You have no idea whatto do against this demon! You don’t even know whether to avoid the teeth or thetalons! Or the wings which IT HAS BY THE WAY.”

“So, I’ll read up on them or just tell me what to expect,I can-“

“I learnt about these demons when I was twelve, Clary.You don’t know anything, you’ve been a shadowhunter for three months, come backwhen you’ve been doing it more than a year.”

Jace came in then and quickly put his hands between thetwo, now shouting girls. Alec was behind him but kept quiet, uninterested insorting out their bickering.

“Hey, what’s going on? What’s with all the yelling?”

Clary pointed an accusing finger at Isabelle.

“Izzy doesn’t want me going on the mission.”

The brunette laughed without humour and shook her head,giving Clary a hard look.

“I didn’t say I didn’t want you to go. I said you couldn’t.You’re staying here.”

Jace frowned and started picking weapons off the rack,handing one to Clary with a shrug.

“Why not? We could always use more fighters; these demonsare known to be tricky.”

Izzy looked at him incredulously, swiping the seraphblade from Clary’s hand before she could protest.

“That’s why we’re bringing the downworlders. It’s toodangerous for her.”

“Who says?”

Izzy threw her hands up, eyebrows furrowing in anger.

“I did! She’s my best friend, I’m not having her go runningin blind because she can’t listen to someone who knows better than her.”

Jace crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow at Izzy.

“Are you sure you don’t just want the credit of the huntfor yourself?”

“What?”

“Come on, I know you want mom to be proud of you andsure, this is one way to do it but you can’t stop Clary from going just becauseyou want to be the hero.”

Izzy shook her head, shocked that her brother wouldaccuse her of such a thing. Alec came towards them now, no longer interested instaying out of it if Jace was going to be so cruel.

“I can’t believe you’d say that. This isn’t about me thisis about keeping Clary safe.”

Jace shook his head and pursed his lips, obviously not believingher.

“Okay, so that’s why you want her to stay away? Becauseyou think you matter more than her?”

Alec stepped between his siblings and placed a hand onJace’s chest.

“That’s enough. Izzy’s right; Clary is untrained andwould only be a liability to this mission. This is about Clary’s safety as muchas it is about the safety of the rest of the team and the mundane’s that willget hurt if the demon escapes. Clary stays here, that’s an order. You can workon your rune studies.”

Clary stormed off, clearly upset and Izzy turned back toher runes. Alec grabbed Jace’s arm as he turned to follow her. He spoke softlybut his tone was hard with disappointment and anger.

“Apologize to Izzy. You were out of line.”

Jace looked behind Alec, over to their sister, and shookhis head.

“I don’t agree with either of you. How is Clary going tolearn to be a shadowhunter if we don’t let her fight?”

“The same way we did. Through training in controlled environments.She can read up on the classifications of demons and other downworlders andkeep learning about runes. Knowledge is just as important to being shadowhunteras fighting is.”

Jace shook his hand off and walked away.

“Whatever.”

Alec rolled his eyes at his brothers behavior and turnedto Izzy where she was angrily pulling at the straps of her armor.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, thanks for taking my side.”

Alec just shrugged and helped her tighten a piece on herside where she couldn’t reach.

“You’re right, they’re being reckless and trigger-happy.We need to be smart about this hunt. That’s why you’re coming after all.” Hesmiled at her and her anger melted away. She smiled too and helped him with hisown armor.

The hunt was difficult, the demon being far stronger thanfirst anticipated, and it would have failed completely if everyone hadn’t done their jobs so perfectly.

Alec had been working on injuring the thing from afarwhile keeping an eye on everyone and covering them when they got knocked down.The downworlder’s did their best to weaken the beast with constant, hardattacks as Jace and Izzy went in for the kill.

But Jace got knocked down when he got too close and waspushed back enough that he would lose his window of opportunity if the demon flewup out of their reach again.

Izzy had always been good at distractions, so she leaptin front of the demon and flicked her whip towards it, wrapping the leatheraround its wings to keep it grounded. The demon was so strong it took both herhands to keep hold of it and although she knew this would leave her vulnerable,she held fast anyway so that Jace could kill it.

Jace did kill the demon, with a scream of rage he swunghis seraph blade, slicing through the meat of its neck, and cutting off itshead before stabbing it through the heart.

It fell to the ground, raining ash as it disintegrated,leaving the smell of brunt rot in the air.

The demon was deadbut not without a fight. Jace cleaned the ichor off his blade, unaware of Izzy’sinjury until he heard Alec screaming her name.

She was on the ground, groaning as she clutched her side.The demon hadn’t liked having its wings tied and picked her up, throwing herinto a wall before it died.

Alec rushed over with Jace hot on his heels, kneelingbeside his sister and running his hands over her, checking for injuries.

“Izzy, where does it hurt?”

Her breath was strained through her clenched teeth andremoved her hand from her chest so that Alec could press careful fingers to herribs.

“Four of them are broken and I think your shoulder’s dislocated.”

He started drawing runes, calling Magnus over to help herwith the pain before gently taking her arm.

“I’m sorry, Iz, this is going to hurt.” He winced in sympathyas he pulled the joint back into place, the bone snapping back audibly in the quietnight. She groaned but refrained from screaming as her body protested the harshtreatment.

Alec turned his furious expression on Jace.

“Does this look like she wanted the attention to you? Whowas the hero in this scenario, Jace? The one that killed the demon or the onethat was willing to die so that you could do it.”

Jace didn’t know what to say. So, he said nothing,watching as Magnus helped Alec get Izzy through a portal back to the institute.

Once Izzy had been mostly healed and placed in a bed inthe infirmary, Jace and Clary came to see her. Both had their heads hung low inshame and Clary took her best friends hand in hers.

“I’m so sorry I didn’t trust you, Izzy. I just want to belike you guys so bad and I felt like I knew enough to help. I shouldn’t havesaid those things, I’m sorry.”

Jace nodded and looked at her, guilt growing heavier witheach bruise he saw on her skin.

“I shouldn’t have said those things either. I don’t haveany other excuse except that I’m a dick and I was being selfish. I’m reallysorry, Iz.”

Isabelle was too tired for any arguing and just looked atthe two with a frown.

“I forgive you. But if either of you pull that crap againI’ll kick both your asses and you guys can stay in the infirmary while I dealwith the demons on my own. Agreed?”

Jace and Clary nodded. Izzy sighed and closed her eyes asshe lent back in her pillows.

“Good, cause I love you guys and I hate fighting. Now, goget me some food please, this selfless hero is hungry.”

 (Thanks for the prompt! I hope this is what you wanted. I will post this on ao3 and fanfiction.net as “Picking sides.” and you can find my accounts by using the same author name as my url on here. Keep the prompts coming I love them!)

[donald-clemons]

10 Effective Video Ideas for Any B2B Business (with Tips and Examples)

Video is a must for brands. It’s everywhere. From social media to YouTube, the world can’t get enough of video, and that includes B2B buyers. 73% of marketers say video has positively impacted marketing results.

But as much as anyone is able to pick up a camera and hit record, producing effective video is no simple feat. Often, B2B brands struggle to find their voice. They also find creating concepts and messaging that really engages buyers challenging.

  In this blog post, I’ll share three important elements that B2B videos should include to be effective. We’ll look at the importance of creating messages that are specific to your audience, how to identify the right emotional states, your buyers’ experience, and what a relevant message looks like.

I’ll also walk you through 10 examples of effective B2B videos. With them, you’ll be able to take to your drawing board and produce your own collection of effective videos.

  Three elements every B2B video must have

Video marketing may seem daunting, especially if you’ve found it a tough medium to use. But video, like all things marketing, can be distilled. Creating an effective B2B video is as simple as including three critical elements. And when they come together, any brand can quickly engage an audience and make an impact.

Here’s what the three important elements are, along with an example of how they work together to make a successful video.

  Be relatable

Create videos that your buyers can relate to. Whether B2B or B2C, or if your product is a live streaming site or accounting software, your buyers are still people. Marketing products and services effectively means showing how your solution fits into the life of your buyer. If they can’t relate to your message, it won’t stick.

Coschedule tackles an issue all marketing teams struggle with today: being productive while trying to juggle single-function tools to get the job done, a highly-relatable issue for their buyers.

  Video URL

  Evoke emotion

Emotion has been proven to influence action. And when it comes to B2B videos, don’t miss out on the opportunity to connect with your viewers on an emotional level. Just because you’re selling to businesses, that doesn’t mean B2B buyers aren’t people.

Make your videos and message strong by identifying two emotions to share with your audience. First, one that’s tied to their problem. Second, one that’s tied to the successful application of your solution and a positive outcome.

If you find it hard to identify what your buyer’s emotional states might be, consider using DigitalMarketer’s before and after states grid. It’s an elegant solution to identifying what challenges and emotional states your buyer is in before and after coming into contact with your brand. It works perfectly for video, too.

  Image: Digital Marketer

  At 24 seconds, Coschedule identifies key pain points marketing teams have: using multiple tools leads to frustration, duplicated effort, and worse, wasted time.

  Share a relevant message

While you have the chance to be creative, be sure to have a clear and relevant message. Share your value proposition to drive your message home and impress how your brand is right for buyers.

As you share your value proposition, connect the dots. If you’ve identified any pain points at the start of your video, provide solutions, and explain how they benefit your viewer. By connecting the dots for your audience, your message is strengthened. You close any open loops and address any objections they may have.

At 1:10, Coschedule knocks their value proposition out of the park by addressing every issue identified at the start. What’s more, the video shows how perfectly their solution works to empower marketing teams. With Coschedule, teams get to focus on producing great content instead of wasting precious time organizing it.

  10 great B2B video ideas

Now that you know the three elements required to make an engaging B2B video, here are 10 great examples to get your creative juices flowing.

  1. IBM educates their audience about hybrid clouds

Cloud computing is a big business. Gartner forecasts it to become a $226 billion industry in 2020. But with this much opportunity comes complexity. Businesses considering the cloud are faced with various applications, security, data privacy, and scalability concerns. To help, IBM created a short video to explain what a hybrid cloud is.

The video, presented by Sai Venamm, a developer advocate at IBM, Venamm does an excellent job of breaking down what a hybrid cloud is. It also touches on four key features businesses moving to hybrid cloud infrastructure must look for.

     Takeaway

Complex solutions require more education. And when it comes to B2B technology or products, take the time to lean into educating your audience. Identify knowledge gaps they have, misconceptions about your technology, and simplify it all as much as possible.

  2. HubSpot attracts marketers with a personal message

While inbound marketing isn’t a new concept, many brands struggle to make the switch and stick to it. There’s a misconception around the true benefits of attracting buyers using valuable content, and helping them solve problems instead of forcing the hard-sell.

HubSpot understands that its core audience, marketers, deal with this problem daily. They often have to advocate for the customer internally, selling the concept of inbound and how powerful it can be as a short- and long-term solution.

In their video, HubSpot takes a bold step and appeals to its buyers’ innate sense of delivering value. By identifying with the challenges marketers have, HubSpot shows that it’s okay to care about helping customers and winning them over without resorting to old-school and less desirable tactics.

    Takeaway

People want to work with brands that understand them. Appealing to a buyer’s values can result in a stronger association with your brand. But be sure to really dig deep and understand who your target personas are and what matters most to them or you could miss the mark with poorly aligned messaging.

  3. Monday.com uses humour to show how to use their platform

Very little is exciting about project management software. While it can be effective, it’s often complex, and not something employees look forward to using. To showcase just how easy it is to use Monday.com, the brand turned to humor.

With the use of smart comedic timing woven into a walk-through of important features every business can easily use, Monday.com was able to make project management software look cool.

    Takeaway

Humor, when well-executed, can be effective. It helps lighten the mood around issues your audience may feel apprehensive about, allowing them to let their guard down and receive your message.

  4. DigitalMarketer shares little-known marketing secrets

Marketing launches aren’t the easiest to pull off and Co-founder of DigitalMarketer, Ryan Deiss, has a solution. In his video, Deiss explains why traditional and funnel-based launches are not long-term solutions.

What does work? A blitz launch. Deiss explains what a blitz launch is, why it works so well, and also shares a little-known secret that you should be running one every month.

    Takeaway

Share insider knowledge or unknown but highly-effective tactics that can help buyers achieve massive results. Buyers are always looking for quick wins and knowledge that can propel them forward. If you can offer both, you’ll win their attention.

  5. Moz offers daily educational videos

SEO can be technical and complex. And when it comes to spam links, understanding which domains linked to yours fall into the spam category isn’t always clear. Luckily, Moz‘s Spam Score metric helps. To illustrate how, their video shows how to identify spam links, and offers resources to help you deal with them.

    Takeaway

Share tips on how to improve customer performance using your product. The easier it is for customers to use your solution, the longer they’ll invest in it.

  6. Seige Media shows thought leadership using industry expert interviews

Standing out online isn’t what it used to be. Today, to generate brand awareness and PR, and to convert more customers, you must produce content that’s leaps and bounds ahead of your competition.

How?

Seige Media interviews CXL Institute CEO Peep Laja. In this interview, Laja shares keen insights born in firsthand experience. He covers how brands can use unique research as a competitive tool, and why it’s important to constantly test new ideas on the road to finding one that works.

    Takeaway

Showing expertise and thought leadership through interviews with industry experts is powerful. It provides your audience with the footage they would otherwise have not had access to. The more rare your content, the more valuable it is.

  7. Dropbox shares powerful testimonials

Running one of Australia’s largest and fastest-growing private construction groups is a huge undertaking. It requires attention to detail and all hands on deck. It also wouldn’t be possible without the right technology.

Dropbox does more than just store files for Built, it also acts as an integral connector between project management and other applications that otherwise wouldn’t be able to communicate.

The result? Built is able to run like a well-oiled machine.

    Takeaway

Testimonials that explore the intricate details of a customer’s business matter. By going deep and identifying challenges and tying them back to tangible positive outcomes, you present a powerful case for your product and brand.

  8. Quickbooks introduces a new product

Everyone knows that maintaining your books is a critical aspect of running a business. But often, that’s easier said than done. QuickBooks created a short video to share their new service, QuickBooks Live, and how it can help.

The video is 30-seconds long, focuses on how easy it is to use QuickBooks Live, and highlights the efficiency of the new product.

    Takeaway

Showcase new products by placing them in environments similar to your buyer’s. This simple tactic makes your solution seem more accessible and realistic.

  9. Ahrefs shares valuable in-depth tutorials

YouTube keyword research is a hotly-contested topic. There are different schools of thought on how to determine which tools to use, how accurate they are, and how to interpret publicly available YouTube information.

Ahrefs realized this problem and set out to help its audience solve it. In an in-depth tutorial, Ahrefs shows how they’ve been able to find the right keywords to rank high in search results and get more views consistently.

    Takeaway

Tutorials are gold. When performed with your product, they give buyers a better look and what your solution has to offer. They also showcase thought leadership, helping you stay top-of-mind for when buyers are ready to take action.

  10. Pat Flynn demos ConvertKit email marketing software

Finding the right email marketing software can be a little overwhelming. It’s a huge market filled with tons of brands and loads of features you may not know you need.

To make their product more accessible, ConvertKit turned to well-known influencer Pat Flynn to host a free online webinar. In it, he demoed ConvertKit, showing how he uses the tool to run his growing online business, and how viewers could easily do so, too.

    Takeaway

Influencer marketing can help you attract more of your ideal audience. But have your influencers do more than share recommendations. By going the extra mile and unpacking your solution, viewers get to appreciate how powerful your product can be, and move closer to realizing those benefits.

  What will you create?

Video is an amazing tool. It can help position brands perfectly in the eyes of buyers and help you promote anything from exclusive membership sites to professional services and software. But for your videos to be impactful, they must be effective. Remember to make them relatable, draw an emotional connection, and keep your message relevant.

  __________________________ About the Author:

Amir is the digital marketing manager at Uscreen, an all-in-one video monetization and OTT platform provider that empowers video entrepreneurs and creators to monetize their content and build thriving businesses around their videos.

  The post 10 Effective Video Ideas for Any B2B Business (with Tips and Examples) appeared first on The 2Checkout Blog| Articles on eCommerce, Payments, CRO and more.

10 Effective Video Ideas for Any B2B Business (with Tips and Examples) published first on https://yousweetluxury.weebly.com/

[its-lifestyle]

Blustery winds blew Queen B through the lobby doors recently, leaving her wings askew.

Queen B – Mary Stommel – took a moment in the foyer of Virginia Oncology Associates’ Norfolk office to smooth out the day’s look: a glittery, gold crown. Gold-coloured lipstick. A gold-and-black striped dress billowing over shiny gold leggings that capped gold flat shoes.“Nice costume,” murmured a woman entering behind Queen B.

Michelle Englar, the practice administrator, smiled when she saw Stommel. Everyone in the building looks forward to Stommel’s weekly visits and her costumes.

“You look beautiful, as always,” Englar said, giving Stommel a hug.

Stommel has been a patient for two years following her ovarian cancer diagnosis.

On this particular day, she was scheduled to have her routine chemotherapy infusion, but she learned the week before that the meds weren’t stopping the tumours that were now in her abdomen.

She wasn’t going to have any more chemotherapy, Stommel told Englar. She was going to rely on another option.

“I’m not here to say goodbye,” Stommel said, with a smile and an adjustment of her wings. “I’m here to say my ‘see-you-laters’.”

Mary Stommel, dressed as a Queen B, says “see you later” and “thanks” to her nurse, Jan Jinright, at her doctor’s office at Virginia Oncology Associates in Norfolk, Virginia, the United States.

To raise her spirits and those around her, after the diagnosis two years ago, she wore various costumes and spread positive messages while getting treatment. She recently found out her cancer is no longer responding to the chemotherapy, and she will no longer be receiving treatment. Stommel remains positive and is guided by her faith.

Stommel, 69, calls herself the shiest person on the planet except when it comes to her faith and her humour. Those are two things cancer hasn’t taken away.

She grew up in the middle of a close but large family and felt she had to be funny to stick out. She liked laughing at herself, too.

Soon after one of her sisters, Kathy, died in 2015, Stommel was looking for a pick-me-up when she took her walks through her Virginia Beach neighbourhood. She turned to a closet bulging with Halloween costumes that she’d collected during years of trick-or-treating with her grandkids.

Stommel strolled as princesses, cats and dogs. People smiled, waved and stopped her to take photos.

One time she put on a wig, white button-down shirt, necktie and sweater to dress as everybody’s favourite neighbour, Mister Rogers. Other walkers thought her a little too weird and crossed the road.

“Even the dogs ran,” said her husband, John. Stommel still doubles over in laughter when she thinks about it.

Two of her daughters, Brandi Zenzel and Chastin Scharfe, said they were stunned as they saw their introverted mother willingly become the centre of attention.

“I thought, ‘Who is this woman?’” Scharfe said. She added: “I’m just glad that she started it after we graduated from high school.”

But both see it as an extension of their mother’s quiet but vibrant spirit, a colourful personification of her faith. “She is amazing,” Zenzel said.

The cancer diagnosis in spring 2017 would be a longer, scarier walk but one with others who would also be losing their hair, retching after chemo, people who Lord knows could use a laugh.

“If I had to go somewhere depressing,” Stommel said recently at home, “why not make it fun?”

Supergirl was the first costume that Mary Stommel wore to treatment in 2017.

For her first treatment that April, Stommel dressed as Supergirl – a blue dress with the red “S” splayed across her chest, blue Supergirl knee socks and red-and-white sneakers.

She posed for a photo on her porch with a Bible in her hand. She started posting photos on Facebook, updating family and friends, with an inspirational message tied to her costume.

In late July, she put on the black, red and yellow costume of The Incredibles, a Disney cartoon superhero family.

On Facebook she wrote: “I have only four chemo treatments left and while this is definitely not the path I would have chosen, it has been ‘incredible’ because of God’s grace and your support.”

In February 2018, she wore her favourite ensemble, a black and red gown for Alice In Wonderland’s Queen of Hearts. Stommel walked around denouncing her cancer with cries of, “Off with the Devil’s head!”

People started sending her costumes. She got friend requests from strangers.

“People have friended me for my positivity,” Stommel said. “I couldn’t believe it.”

By November 2018, her body scans were clear and showing no signs of cancer.

Mary Stommel surrounded by flowers, at her home in Virginia Beach.

In January this year, she wore a fuzzy, snowflake hairband, snowflake glasses, snowflake-patterned tights and a poofy, sparkling skirt that left glitter on the doctor’s examination table. She wrote to her Facebook followers: “No two snowflakes are alike, they are unique. God said in Psalms 139:14, ‘I am fearfully and wonderfully made’.

“The doctor said that I don’t need scans again for six months. I’m pretty sure he thinks I am a flake.”

By the summer, however, she dressed up as a ladybug with red and black antennae, a ladybug T-shirt and a red skirt with black polka dots.

“Well, I wanted to find out what was bugging me and unfortunately the pet scans showed cancerous tumours in my belly,” she wrote.

On Oct 1, she was a shimmering pink and blue mermaid when she got the prognosis she didn’t want to hear.

“This course of chemo has not exactly gone swimmingly,” she wrote.

The news was freeing, though, Stommel said recently at her home, a few days before her last appointment.

She is left with allowing faith to heal her. Without the chemicals in her body, she feels better. Her appetite is coming back; she gained three pounds in a week. Her prognosis gives her two to six months, yet she is certain she will be dancing on a beach in Mexico on Jan 3, her 50th wedding anniversary, surrounded by family.

“I tell people that I’m in faith because God has a better plan. You have to have hope,” she said. “You lose nothing by having hope.”

Queen B – meaning believer, bold and brave – walked into the second-floor infusion room on a recent Tuesday morning and immediately attracted a swarm of admirers. Medical assistant Jennifer Weddle was the first to snag her into a hug.

“Look at you!” she gasped. “That’s the best costume ever!”

Nurse Jan Jinright rounded a corner of reclining chairs expecting Stommel to plop into one for her chemotherapy.

Stommel took her hands and smiled. It wasn’t an option anymore, she told her. Stommel assured her she was happy with relying on prayer.

The two embraced tightly for several long moments. Weddle, who sat at her nearby desk, dabbed a tissue to her eyes.

A patient walked by, smiling at Stommel, and said, “She looks like a beautiful butterfly.”

Jinright reminded her that she needed to come in within a month to have the infusion port in her chest flushed.

Word circulated among the office that Queen B was there. Several people came out for a peek. One averted her tear-filled eyes as Stommel told her why she wasn’t staying.

“You all are going to be shocked when I come back in here, and I am,” Stommel said out loud, flexing her thin arms, “so buff.”

After a few minutes, Stommel was ready to go. She stopped and chatted with another patient who had just arrived and was admiring her costume.

Stommel asked the patient for her name. Stommel said she would include it in her daily prayers.

Then, Queen B turned to leave, wings now lopsided from all of the hugs, and declared: “I’m gonna buzz outta here!” – Tribune News Service/The Virginian-Pilot

from Family – Star2.com https://ift.tt/2WiD4P9

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Any random fics you would recommend?

Hi Nonny!

I’m actually in the process of writing a lists upon lists of fic recs, but I think I’m overdue for another fic rec list to tide y’all over! How about, in the same style of my last “random fic rec list”, a list of the last 50 fics I just recently bookmarked? Listed in word count order, because it’s the easiest way for me to organize these :D Enjoy!

(As a side note, this was only supposed to be “Top 10″, then 20, then 25, and now it’s 50. I had to stop or I would have just done all my bookmarks, LOL)

I-J’S LAST 50 BOOKMARKED FICS ||  JUNE 2017

Tied by beejohnlocked (E, 1,029 w. || PWP, Bottomlock, Bondage) – Sherlock ties John up and rides him.

A Christmas Holiday by consultinggalpals (sansa_undergrind) (G, 1,076 w. || Tooth Rotting Fluff, Christmas, Honeymoon) – "Come on, Sherlock. Just take the picture already.”

Giveaway fic #1 by ConsultingPurplePants (E, 1,170 w. || John’s Belly, Coming Untouched, BJ’s) – John doesn’t like his belly. Sherlock does. Part 1 of 500 Tumblr Followers Giveaway Fics

Of Small and Unexpected Things by wearitcounts (Sher_locked_up) (T, 1,239 w. || Love Confessions, Scars, Implied Abuse, Fluff & Angst) – It’s by accident, the first time John sees them.

The Pigeon’s deplorable nesting place by SlothfulSlytherin (G, 1,482 w. || Alternate First Meeting, Humour, Fluff) – Upon returning to London, John Watson took up residence in a mouldy little flat on Baker Street. The flat itself wasn’t all that special or interesting, his new neighbour on the other hand…

Want by siennna (T, 1,806 w. || Fluff, Pining, First Kiss, POV Sherlock, Requited, Second Person POV) – When John speaks, you hear more than words. You hear the rise and fall of his tone, the comfortable quake of his laughter, the warm pauses of silence in between. When John laughs, there are stars glittering on his tongue and galaxies resting just behind his teeth, and you wish you could press your lips there and burrow into the warm sound. Part 6 of sienna’s favorites

Biggest and Best by Sexxica (E, 1,815 w. || Dildos, Sherlock’s Size Kink, John’s Giant Junk) – John Watson has a huge cock. Sherlock wants it inside him. Part 2 of Tumblr Ficlets Gone Wild

In Which John is Attractive and Sherlock is Angry by kim47 (T, 2.382 w. || Fluff, Est. Rel., Jealous Sherlock) – Sherlock’s reaction to finding out that everyone wants HIS John, and how he told them to piss off and get their own Watson.

Perfect Solo by Itsallfine (E, 2,384 w. || PWP, Solo Kink, Fantasy, Pining, Dirty Talk, Sex Toys) – Sherlock couldn’t decide how he wanted to have John that night. (The one where Sherlock uses his box of sex toys to take himself apart in every way John might have him.)

Green Carnation by glenien (T, 2,616 w. || Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Meta-Fic, Angst and Fluff, Communication, Post-TAB) – John takes Sherlock home. Part 1 of It’s No Longer Eighteen Ninety-Five

It Was All Right There In Front of Him (A Five Times Plus One Story) by bees_stories (T, 3,191 w. || 5+1, Protective Idiots, Grooming, Bed Sharing, Lestrade POV) – DI Greg Lestrade is a good detective. But sometimes he doesn’t trust the evidence in front of him, until there’s a compelling reason to do so.

it’s in the details by kimbiablue (T, 3,272 w. || Fluff, First Kiss, Pining Idiots) – Sherlock and John meet with a forensic artist to determine how capable they are able to describe each other. In which John struggles to adequately describe Sherlock Holmes, and also thinks about his lips a lot.

Posh Boy by panickedbee (M, 3,622 w. || Kinks, RST, Pining, Sexual Frustation) – In his head he greets him with hey, handsome in the morning, calls him genius when he is being too clever again, calls him pretty man and silly git and sweetheart and, of course, posh boy. Part 5 of Sherlock Holmes Is A Very Lucky Man

All That I Have by the_arc5 (M, 3,721 w. || Post-TGG Canon Divergence, Pining Sherlock, John Whump, Anxious / Worried Sherlock, Light Angst) – In the aftermath of the Great Game, Sherlock finds himself with a new weakness. John is both the cause and the cure.

Let me be the wallpaper that papers up your room by Teatrolley (NR, 3,966 w. || Est. Rel., Two Idiots in Love, Fluff, Domestics) – Four seasons in the life of Sherlock and John, really.

Someone Else’s Heart by thisprettywren (E, 4,188 w. || First Time, H/C, POV Sherlock, Caretaking John, Pining Idiots) – A crime scene, a rainstorm, and something they both should have known all along.

Practical Johnkeeping by what_alchemy (M, 4,330 w. || Beekeeping, Aging, Gladstone, Tooth Rotting Fluff) – Sherlock predicts nectar flow the same way he deduces a murder, but he harvests the honey like John coddles the dog.

Atrium by kali_asleep (T, 3,460 w. || 5+1, Valentines Day, Fluff & Schmoop, First Kiss) – Five times Sherlock gave John his heart, and the one time Sherlock got a heart in return (literally)

You Can’t Always Get What You Want by hubblegleeflower (E, 4,804 w. || Sex, First Time, Pining John) – John wants. He always has, but now that he’s living with Sherlock again, it’s all he can do to hold it back. And Sherlock isn’t helping…

How Will I Know? by eragon19 (E, 4,895 w. || Pining, Love Confessions, POV Sherlock, Fluff, Sherlock’s Imagination, Papa Lestrade) – Here was the problem: Sherlock Holmes was completely and irrevocably in love with John Watson, and he had absolutely no idea how to tell him.

Linger by queenoftrivia (E, 4,908 w. || Lingerielock, Fluff and Smut, BJ / HJ, Bottomlock, Dirty Talk) – Sherlock decides to surprise John after a somewhat stressful day at work.

Wasted Hours by songlin (E, 4,973 w. || Omegaverse || O!John/A!Sherlock, Pining, UST, Angst & Porn) – John is respectful. John keeps his distance. He doesn’t look at Sherlock when Sherlock decides trousers are for dull people. He doesn’t breathe in and savor it when Sherlock flings himself onto the couch first thing in the morning, wafting alpha scent, dressing gown settling around him in a cloud of blue silk. He doesn’t linger when he’s piecing Sherlock back together after a fight, even though he’s half-dressed and beautiful and right there. He can ignore it. He can control it.

Sociopathy and Other Fibs by kinklock (M, 5,314 w. || 5+1, Miscommunication, Humour, Friends to Lovers, Post S3, Love Confessions) – Five times John called Sherlock out, and one time Sherlock returned the favour.

a very soft epilogue (my love) by darcylindbergh (E, 5,395 w. || Retirement, Domestic Fluff, Dancing, Dogs, Grumpy Old Men) – Across the pillows, Sherlock shifts and hums, the creases of his face deepening and then smoothing before settling. John watches him wake up, his chest swelling with affection and fondness, and thinks he’ll never get tired of Sherlock in the mornings, sleepy and soft. It’s been some forty-odd years, and John hasn’t gotten tired of it yet. Part 5 of things fairy tales are made of

Thirty Three Hours Without John Watson by Bookaholic, mybrotherharry (M, 6,232 w. || First Kiss / Time, Pining Idiots, BG Mystrade, Crackish) – Sherlock can SO TOTALLY survive without John Watson. It should be a piece of cake.AKA the time when Sherlock braved grocery store lines for milk, purchased and gave away a box of tampons and figured out what the X-Factor is. Greg and Mycroft didn’t sign up for this shit. Next time, they are going to the Bahamas. 

once upon a time by darcylindbergh (M, 6,501 w. || Fluff and Angst, First Kiss / Time, Love Declarations, Christmas) – It starts with a wish. In the beginning, John comes home. Part 1 of things fairy tales are made of

The Effect of Memory by testosterone_tea (E, 6,430 || Praise Kink, First Kiss / Time, Fluff, Smut, Virgin Sherlock, Love Confessions, Confused Sherlock) – John has temporary amnesia coming off of anaesthesia after an operation and not only does he not recognize Sherlock, he starts flirting with him! After John recovers, he doesn’t remember the incident at all. But Sherlock does. Confusion ensues.

Sherlock’s Laboratory, Episode 1: Romance by berlynn_wohl (E, 6,900 w. || Clones, Sci-Fi AU, Clone Sex, Foursome, Double Penetration) – “John, this isn’t one of your science fiction programmes. This is reality.“ Part 1 of Sherlock’s Laboratory

Onomatopoeia by aquabelacqua (M, 6,904 w. || First Time/Kiss, Frottage, Dirty Talk, Domestics, Word Kink) – Something is the matter with John. Sherlock is determined to figure out what it is. Mark his words.

Drawstring by May_Shepard (E, 7,412 w. || Friends to Lovers, UST/RST, Fluff and Smut, Post-TAB, John POV) – John is bothered by Sherlock’s slowly-falling jim-jams… as in hot and bothered and he is trying to deal with a sexy dishevelled Sherlock while also keeping his pining in check.

Six Dates by avawtsn (E, 7,421 w. || 5+1, First Time / Kiss, Post S4-Compliant, POV John) – A rather accidental 5+1 written for the prompt “is this a date?” Hint: it is.

Christmas by WhimsicalEthnographies (E, 7,673  w. || Worried Sherlock, PWP, Drunkeness, Christmas, Est. Relationship) – John feels a lump rise in his throat, and it hits him, again, that this beautiful, infuriating creature is his. Completely, one-hundred percent his.

I’d be Lost Without my Blogger by shadenc (T, 8,057 w. || Rev. TRF, H/C, Angst) –  "There are several snipers with their guns pointed at your head this very moment. Now, if you look up you’ll see John and myself on the rooftop of Bart’s. Understand the game yet?“ “Shoot me. Let him go and shoot me.” “Noble now, are we? Unfortunately, you are not the one who will make that decision.”

To Quote Malcolm Tucker; or, Get The Fuck In or Fuck The Fuck Off by kim47 (T, 8,484 w. || Jealous Sherlock, Flirting, Cockblocking) – Sherlock is cockblocker and a prick tease and John is not amused.

A Lifetime Together by LondonGypsy (M, 8,886 w. || Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Falling in Love, Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, Pining Idiots, Alternating POVs, Domestics, Retirement) – John and Sherlock falling in love.

The Devil You Know by PipMer (T, 9,300 w. || Friends to Lovers, Romance, Holmes Brothers, Jealous Sherlock) – The Holmes brothers are behaving oddly. John is dazed and confused. In other words, it’s business as usual at 221B Baker Street. Except when it’s not.

Out of the Darkness by Irrevocably_Sherlocked (M, 12,165 w+ (WIP) || Death, Overdose, Heavy Angst, Whump, Mary is Not Nice, Post S3/TAB Compliant) – John Watson has long assumed Sherlock Holmes is immune to sentiment, “doesn’t feel things that way.” Sherlock, however, would do anything for the person he loves most in the world, including putting himself in danger while keeping John in the dark in hopes of keeping him safe. Tired of being left behind, John is running a strategy of his own. Unfortunately things do not go as planned for either of them. And as John lays bleeding, Sherlock finally allows himself to say the things he’s always meant to… This is the story of love, forgiveness and finally making right all the wrongs in these two men’s lives.

Anytime by SilentAuror (E, 17,995 w. || UST, Porn With Feels, POV Sherlock, Romance, UST/URT, Happy Ending, Drunken Endeavors) – Sherlock blinks and attempts to focus. There is a little too much vodka in his veins at the moment and it’s having an unfortunate effect on his brain and retinas both. There are two Johns sitting across from him, and both of them are frowning at him.“You’re drunk,” the Johns tell him. Sherlock blinks some more. “Says the man with Mrs Hudson’s doily on his head.”

Just a Kiss by emmagrant01 (E, 19,695 w. || 5+1, Case Fic) – Five times John and Sherlock kissed because of a case and one time they kissed for real.

Achieving the Together-Coloured Instant by teahigh (E, 20,776 w. || Est. Rel, PTSD, Codependency, Fluff & Angst, H/C, Smut, Demisexual Sherlock, Experiments) – John wonders if this is how it’s going to be: A life speaking in code, because they’re both too stupid to figure out how to say, “I love you.”

Once Upon a Beast Becoming by antietamfalls (T, 24,042 w. || Beauty and the Beast AU || Magical Realism, Folklore, Celtic Mythology) – An act of pride, a druid’s curse, an enchanted leaf; Sherlock’s torment has lasted an age. Hope arrives in the form of one John Watson, a man uniquely suited to break the spell. But with a single night to win his affections, Sherlock finds his carefully laid plans disrupted by a monstrous killer whose sights are set on the only thing he has left to lose: John.

Don’t Leave Anything Out by lookupkate (E, 27,422w. || Epistolary, Falling in Love, Misunderstandings, Alternate First Meeting) – The first letter John writes home from Afghanistan is meant to go to a woman he went on only one date with. How it ends up in Sherlock’s hands is completely innocent. What happens next is not. What do you do when you find out the person you’re in love with has been lying about something as monumental as who they are? What do you do when you’re the one who lied? How on earth do you put the pieces back together?

“finally kiss the bloody idiot” by Salambo06 (E, 29,812 w. || Mutual Pining, Fake Relationship, First Kiss / Time, Angst, Misunderstandings, Fantasies POV John) – Inspired by a fic idea on tumblr : “John and Sherlock know the Yard has a pool going for when they’re finally going to get together. It’s been running forever, and it’s worth thousands of pounds. It’s all fun and games, hahaha, until they find out Lestrade is in dire financial straits (dog needs emergency surgery, he’s putting his kid through gymnastics training, I don’t know, something), and they decide to fake a relationship to win the pool for him. Sherlock figures out the day and way that Lestrade thinks it’s going to happen, and they act it out. It’s all for a good cause, fake relationship style, until it’s not.” Part 1 of The Pool

A Promise Made to Be Broken by PlantsAreNeat (E, 37,018 w. || Fake Relationship, Pining, Slow Burn, RST, Eventual Relationship, POV Sherlock) – A young John makes an ‘if we’re still single at 40, we’ll get together’ pledge to a woman who ends up all wrong for him. She keeps reminding him of the promise, and won’t let go of it. John asks Sherlock to pose as his boyfriend at a family wedding, so as to dash her hopes permanently. Sherlock, who has at last acknowledged his feelings for John, reluctantly agrees despite knowing how painful it will be to ‘have’ John, but not keep him.

Resistivity and Relative Charge by liriodendron (E, 41,750 w. || Synesthesia, Angst, Case Fic, Romance, Est. Rel., Homophobia, Religious Content, Victor Trevor, Mild Jealous John, Mild John Whump) – In which Sherlock Holmes meets an old acquaintance, John Watson doesn’t enjoy a trip to the country quite as much as he thought he would, and the past absolutely refuses to stay where it belongs. Part 3 of Conductivity

Fan Mail by scullyseviltwin (E, 53,942 w. || Stalking, Obsessive Fans, Angst) – “WatsonChick143 has been rather maniacal in her commenting as of late… she’s left comments on everything you’ve posted John, something so obvious can’t have escaped even your attention.“

A Cure For Boredom by emmagrant01 (E, 81,665 w. || Dirty Talk, Threesomes, Light Dom/Sub, Sex Club, Experiments, Anal, Mildly Dubious Consent) – They’d never talked about sex in the year they’d known each other. Well, that wasn’t quite correct: Sherlock had never said a word about sex; John had bemoaned his personal dearth of it on many occasions.

The Stars Move Still by BeautifulFiction (E, 96,022 w. || Magical Realism, Demons, Slash to Pre-Slash, AU, Happy Ending) – "What could I want so desperately that would make me sell my soul? What could possibly compel me to surrender the part of myself that makes me who I am: the source of my magic, my self-control, everything?”

The Heart In The Whole by verityburns (E, 101,650 || Post-TGG Canon Divergence, Drama & Angst, H/C, First Time) – Events after ‘The Great Game’ leave Sherlock dependent on his best friend and colleague. But John has a secret of his own…

between each beat are words unsaid by darcylindbergh, hudders-and-hiddles (T, 107,998 w. || Epistolary, Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Angst, Happy Ending) – On their wedding night, John and Sherlock gift each other with the things they each said when the other could not hear, the things they each put down where the other could not see: a collection of writings that illustrate the way their love for one another has grown over the years. Part 1 of between each beat