#universe development: canon

[ghostly-cabbage]

We need to talk about the worst thing about making AUs....

The fact that then when you inevitably think about crossovers you don't want the crossover with the canon you want it with your specific AU. Your brain worms, your circus, but THEN WHAT?

Oh, yeah, to understand this crossover you need to go read this entirely different fic/series? Girl help 😭 you can't do that

[xia0ming56]

Hated that last episode so i drew this to convince myself i liked it

[autobotmedic]

[ ive reached a point i am genuinely contemplating giving tf.one verse its own sideblog just, dash only, no theme, etc because he's. he's certainly developing in a way. i dont know what im cooking but he's built different. hmmm...

[chemzee]

More Perfumer!AU babies! Now featuring the character it was named after and Warrington twins :]

Kept these 3 a secret bc their stories are one of my most fav (and most tragic I'd say lol)

Kind of funny how this all started because I got and really like the wheel outfit that made me go "haha Melly is such a Vera Nair kinnie" and now we're here. Full on AU with it's own separate plot. Over an outfit on account I lost access to. Rip 💔

Part 1 (Daniel, Morgan and Lottie + explanation behind this AU)

Elma Carroll is a mysterious new shop keeper on Diagon Alley, who sells unique perfumes, capable of magically changing their scent. Some claim to have known her back at Hogwarts, seeing her walk through the hallways on occasions, but her past still remains a mystery. A secret she never discloses.

Truth is, she's a metamorphmagus who used I to go by Melly Anscombe. After realizing she can't keep on living as Melly, yet not wanting to become her real self (Willow Varian)again, she takes an opportunity to fake her death to run away once again to live as brand new identity, hoping that this time, things will be ok.

Ivy Warrington is an amnesiac young baker, still youthful and fun in her behavior, despite looking older than her age. Once a talented spellcaster, right before she graduated, her memory was almost fully wiped, now not remembering anything from her past, unaware of why people around her look at her with such sorrow.

However, there's still something deep inside her that can recall some faint memories from her past. She feels safe and around her family, her redheaded healer, an artistic journalist, her sister's coworker and the fancy looking, nice smelling lady who comes to her humble bakery every single day.

Winifred Warrington is a guarded auror, working alongside Cassandra Vole. Incredibly talented at charms, her emotions get better of her sometimes, especially whenever she recalls the terrible experiences of her past.

After her final conversation with Ivy in Year 4, she decided to cut all ties with her family the moment she graduates, staying by Cassandra's side to stay away from family that she no longer felt like she belonged to or felt safe with. However, after Ivy lost her memories completely, a part of her feels guilty for not being there to be the one to protect her, for not giving her a second chance. She stays with Ivy sometimes, trying to make up for all the lost moments, now that she understands that what happened between them wasn't Ivy's fault.

[justsalpals]

getting obsessed with RosaWatts again has finally confirmed for me, it's not that I only seem to ship gay relationships

it's that I mainly get into that intense slow burn unacknowledged by canon as everything unspoken winds into a tragedy and romance with such overwhelming emotion it assaults you in the parking lot

[thesevenwondersofawitch]

I Like You Better Here | Tiffany Valentine x Nica Pierce (Chucky Series AU)

Takes place after s3 of Chucky, tw: blood, threat of violence, mention of torture/murder, past torture/violence, toxic relationship, sexual themes

Also available on AO3:

Background: Tiffany inevitably possesses a human body again and decides to use this as a chance to try and win Nica over since Nica won't recognize her now. So, Tiffany finds a coffee shop Nica frequents, and just so happens to be in the same place as her. Tiffany starts off slowly, quietly waiting in line behind Nica(and memorizing her order), or getting a coffee and observing her out of the corner of her eye from a table, having a laptop or pad of paper in front of her as if she's working

Eventually, after the machine used to make Nica's coffee breaks (Tiffany of course had nothing to do with it breaking mysteriously, nothing at all) and Tiffany uses this moment to slide up next to Nica under the pretense of her waiting in line for her own coffee to be made, and makes a offhanded joke about how of all the days, today is the one where the machine breaks or something similar in an attempt to get Nica to laugh(it doesn't work, but Nica does glance at her with a small tilt of her lips and giving some sort of sarcastic reply) before Tiffany can say anything else, her name(or a false name belonging to the body she inhabits) is called as her coffee is ready. Tiffany wants to continue to talk to Nica, find some kind of excuse to stay around her, but she holds herself back, reminding herself to be patient and not press the younger woman, so that it isn't suspicious.

This eventually leads to Nica acknowledging Tiffany more when she sees her in her usual spot, normally with a polite smile or a small nod of greeting before she wheels herself out of the shop, each time Tiffany smiles flirtatiously, and each time wants to go after Nica, but she holds herself back, telling herself to behave

Finally, after a few months of this, Nica rolls up to where Tiffany is reading on her computer (or pretending to read), Tiffany gives herself a moment to get into character before looking up, a welcoming smile on her lips as she greets Nica.

Nica asks about what Tiffany is working on as she seems to always be at the coffee shop, and Tiffany gives a small laugh as her eyes sparkle, jokingly inquiring if Nica has been stalking her. Nica shrugs and doesn't confirm nor deny it, and gestures to Tiffany's laptop, asking again what she's working on. Tiffany, having been waiting for this for months, explains that she's been reading about criminal law (because after she was sent to prison there was no way she'd take the risk of being caught again) or something else, and then the two start talking a bit more before Nica says she has to leave. In the following weeks, Nica would start to stop by Tiffany's table more, eventually they would end up spending hours talking about things aside from whatever Tiffany is reading, and Tiffany really starts to learn more about what Nica's interests are and what she's been up to in the years since the Jennifer Tilly kidnapping/murder spree, and Tiffany sinks into a comfortable routine

Eventually, Nica asks Tiffany out to dinner, and Tiffany offers to cook for them, which after some careful thinking, Nica agrees to. Nica has Tiffany meet her at her apartment (Nica doesn't mention that this is because she has weapons hidden all over the place in case somehow Chucky comes back to mess with her).

Tiffany shows up with the required foods needed for her recipe and gets to cooking, she compliments Nica's outfit or something, and can't help but look at Nica often as she works, she doesn't mind that Nica lingers in the kitchen as Tiffany talks about random things, Nica watching her intently when she's working with the knives, nor does she notice the slight crease in Nica's brows when Tiffany moves in a way that is too like herself and not the person she's pretending to be.

When the food is in the oven, Nica offers Tiffany something to drink, which Tiffany accepts with a bright smile and a joke as Nica watches her with a predatory focus as Tiffany takes the glass of wine. "Do I make you nervous Nica?"

Nica, who hadn't realized that her eyes had slipped down to stare at Tiffany's fingers as they wrapped around the stem of the glass, quickly glanced up to meet Tiffany's eyes, she settled back in her wheelchair, trying to appear cool and collected as she answered with a small shake of the head. "No."

Tiffany's lips tug up at the corners as she leans back against the counter, her arms crossing so her chest is pushed up a bit, with her glass in one hand she watches as Nica's eyes follow her movement.

Tiffany's stare is intense, and Nica quickly takes a drink and looks elsewhere as she realizes that she was caught staring at Tiffany.

"Thirsty, maybe?" Tiffany can't resist teasing Nica, who suddenly feels a laugh bubble out of her.

Tiffany smiles triumphantly, and when Nica meets her eyes, there's a fire in them, and suddenly it feels very warm in the room as the sound of the oven fades and the two women are left at opposite ends of the room, locked in a stare that neither one can bring themselves to break.

Tiffany feels warmer than she does in a bath, or even when she's been burned alive, the burn she feels is a pleasant one, one that can only be tempered by the woman across from her, and suddenly, Tiffany's self restraint snaps; she wants to touch Nica, hold her, make her fall apart so she can put the pieces back together.

She doesn't remember putting her glass down and crossing the room, but suddenly she is standing in front of Nica's chair, almost afraid to blink as she sees the same fire she feels is reflecting in Nica's eyes. Tiffany opens her lips, her mouth feeling very dry all of the sudden, and means to ask Nica if she can kiss her, but she only manages "Nica-" before the woman in question roughly grabs Tiffany by the neck and pulls her down to her level in a kiss that leaves Tiffany breathless.

Nica's prosthetic hands are cold as one fists in Tiffany's hair and the other - which had dropped her wine glass or set it aside (Tiffany wasn't paying much attention nor did she care) - gripped Tiffany's hip roughly. Tiffany's own hands quickly move to frame Nica's face, - whether to ground herself or prevent Nica from leaving, Tiffany isn't sure, - and gasps against Nica's mouth as Nica pulls her roughly into her lap.

It isn't a comfortable way to sit, as it is very cramped and Tiffany has to keep stopping herself from panicking mentally over whether she may be too heavy on top of Nica, but as Nica swallows Tiffany's gasps and uses that as an opportunity to slip her tongue into Tiffany's mouth, Tiffany feels all the worry leave her body as she melts against the younger woman.

Nica's kisses are bruising and far from gentle, she kisses like a woman starved and kissing Tiffany is the only way to sate that hunger. Tiffany isn't complaining, and gives as good as she gets, biting just shy of drawing blood and moves to fist her hands in Nica's curly hair, tugging her as close as possible, as if trying to get Nica to become one with her soul.

She had dreamed about this - admittedly in a different setting - more times than she could count, and still she was unprepared for how much she'd become addicted to it, to Nica. Tiffany knew now that choosing to come back into Nica's life as somebody else was the best decision, and she knew that nothing could keep them apart now, not even Chucky. She just wishes that Nica could know that it was Tiffany in her lap, Tiffany who had cooked her food and listened to her stories all these months, that Tiffany had changed for Nica.

It's ridiculous. Nica thinks, this woman is capable of murder, has murdered, hell, even framed Nica for her and her husband's crimes. And yet, something draws her to Tiffany, it was toxic and twisted, but there was a part of her that loved the woman, even despite all her crimes. She should kill Tiffany for everything she's done, right now while her guard is down, it had been her plan after all, ever since she figured out two months ago that this woman was really the murderess who kidnapped her, but now that the opportunity presented itself, Nica couldn't bring herself to do it.

Tiffany was capable of compassion, she had a conscience, she cared deeply for those she loved even if it was a tad obsessive, she may be impulsive and a bit of a sociopath, but she was human too. And before my brain fully caught up with her, Nica had pulled Tiffany down into her lap and was kissing her in a way she had never kissed anyone.

Tiffany was very receptive in her lap, Nica would become more harsh and Tiffany immediately moaned her approval and responded eagerly, leading to the younger woman quickly figuring out what Tiffany liked.

The pair separated for a much needed air break, neither knew how long had passed since Nica pulled Tiffany in, but both women's heads were spinning from lack of oxygen.

Nica kept her eyes closed, not sure if she'd back out of this, whatever it was, if she saw Tiffany, and truthfully she was much too bothered to deny herself what she wanted. And right now, what she wanted was Tiffany.

Tiffany on the other hand had her eyes open as she remained only a few inches away from Nica, her eyes hungrily taking in the image in front of her, as if she was about to wake up from a dream and Nica would be gone. Thoughts and worries getting stronger in her head, Tiffany shifted in Nica's lap, her hands combing gently through her hair, Tiffany dropped one hand to cup the back of Nica's neck, fingers playing with the hair at the base of her skull.

Nica's arm tightened around Tiffany's waist, and Tiffany couldn't hold back a low growl-like moan. Tiffany adjusted herself in Nica's lap again, gasping as Nica dug her nails into the fabric of Tiffany's dress.

"Nica, please, please love, please," Tiffany breathed out.

Nica held back her smirk, and moved to push Tiffany's hips down harder in her lap. "Nicaaaa," whinnied Tiffany as Nica refused to let her move. Nica smirked and opened her eyes as she leaned in closer to Tiffany, whose eyes had fallen shut.

"What? What do you want? Tell me."

Tiffany bit her bottom lip, eyes still shut as her face twitched, Nica watched it all, taking a keen interest in her small tells.

"I want you, please Nica, touch me, please." Tiffany whispered breathlessly.

Nica couldn't help but lick her lips as her mouth became dry with Tiffany's words, the older woman had her eyes shut and was breathing heavily. Nica was quickly debating her options, but the way that Tiffany spoke in a begging manner, that it was Tiffany who sat on her lap covered in small bruises and bites, Nica realized that she felt so powerful in this moment, and boy was she screwed because there was something addicting about it.

"Please." Tiffany whispered one last time, so quiet Nica almost didn't hear it. She could see that Tiffany was starting to doubt herself, and so she made a decision that she would probably curse herself for later. Moving her right hand, Nica lightly ran her fingers down Tiffany's side, causing the woman to shiver.

Leaning forward to the whisker in Tiffany's ear, Nica felt Tiffany twitch as her breath brushed against the shell of Tiffany's ear. "Well, since you asked so nicely."

Tiffany was starting to get excited, but Nica had to keep her guard up, and really, she should take advantage of this moment and just kill Tiffany, but her hands have other plans, as one moves to grip Tiffany's wrist, her thumb swiping the inside of it before her hand slowly drags upwards.

Their faces are close enough to touch, and each feels the others breath on their face as their eyes meet. Tiffany's mouth parts, her breathing slightly shaky and before she can say anything, Nica suddenly surges forward and crashes their mouths together in a bruising kiss.

She swallows Tiffany's gasp as Nica's hand on her arm brushes the strap of her dress off her shoulder, while Nica's other hand creeps around Tiffany's neck and grabs a fistful of hair and pulls.

Tiffany gasps as the kiss breaks and moans as her head is forced back, one of her own hands quickly moving to grab onto the back of Nica's neck, as if to ground herself as Nica lunges to attack Tiffany's neck with her mouth.

Nica really does attack Tiffany's neck, as she sucks and bites Tiffany's fair skin hard enough to bruise, not that Tiffany is complaining, quite the opposite actually. She is a mess in the younger woman's lap, her hand at the base of Nica's skull, her fingers gently running through the hair there as she closes her eyes. This continues on for several minutes, until Tiffany can't take it anymore and whimpers the younger woman's name, the hand not on Nica's neck moving up between them, towards her chest.

"Please Nica, please," Nica's name is a whisper on her lips, and Nica smirks into her neck.

"Please what, Tiffany? Show me what you want." Nica purrs into Tiffany's ear as she uses her grip on the woman's hair to force her to look her in the face. Tiffany with glazed eyes doesn't acknowledge that Nica used her real name, or maybe she just didn't catch that part, too wrapped up in herself to pay attention.

Immediately Tiffany's hand that had crept up between them moves to grab Nica's right hand, gently she slides it over a small tattoo on her breast, and Nica pushes her prosthetic hand to cover the older woman's own, and then she squeezes.

Tiffany's lips part with a gasp, her eyes boring into Nica's as Nica moves her hand gently over the tattoo, Tiffany's hand trapped between her own body and the smooth skin of Nica's prosthetic.

Nica tries to keep her head about her, tries once more to get herself to go back to her plan, but as Tiffany stares at her like she's the best thing she had ever laid eyes on, Nica feels the small part of her brain, the one that had been trying to hold onto reason, falter. She knew she should hate this woman, truly she did, and she wanted to, but she couldn't, and she makes a decision that seals her fate: she lets herself let it all go, just for this moment. Just once (for now), she would let the past be in the past, and she would let herself be in this moment with the murderess, let herself feel something other than loneliness or guilt, and as soon as that switch flipped in her brain, Nica stopped holding herself back.

She ceased all her previous actions, making Tiffany whine as Nica dropped her hands so she had use of them again. Tiffany was very confused, unsure if she had done something wrong and quickly felt panic and anger at herself for pushing too soon. But before she could speak, she fell forward against Nica's chest, catching herself with her hands on the back of Nica's chair: she quickly realized that Nica was wheeling them somewhere else in the house, and both excitement and slight fear choked her, preventing her from speaking.

Nica wheeled them quickly with the skill of someone who had years of upper arm strength through the kitchen into the hall, and then to a room at the end with its door open. It was slightly difficult with Tiffany's combined weight straining the chair, and Tiffany pressed against Nica, but Nica managed to make it to the room and proceeded to go right up to the foot of her bed.

Confused, but starting to realize what Nica was planning, Tiffany let Nica push her off her lap and then back onto the bed. "Lay down." Nica commanded and Tiffany felt a rush of excitement and quickly shuffled back on the bed until she hit Nica's pillows. She wanted to offer to help the younger woman, but refrained, instead watching open mouthed as Nica expertly lifted herself out of her chair and onto the bed.

Nica never once looked away from Tiffany as she pulled herself up to where Tiffany was laying by the pillows, and she couldn't help but feel like she was Nica's prey as Nica stared her down, holding herself back as Nica came to sit on Tiffany's hips. For a few moments, neither moved nor spoke, she desperately wanted Nica to touch her, or kiss her, or even hurt her, and she could tell that Nica was well aware of this, but she kept Tiffany trapped, frozen in place and completely at her mercy, while Nica remained calm above her, seemingly content to torment her.

"Nica -" Tiffany began, her voice shaky, only to be stopped by Nica who placed a finger to Tiffany's lips. "Shhhhh," Nica whispered, voice rough as she still stared deep into Tiffany's eyes. Tiffany immediately shut her mouth, watching in wonder as Nica gave her a small smile before moving to lift her shirt over her head. Tiffany felt her mouth go dry as more of Nica's skin was revealed to her, sure, she had seen it before, many times in fact, especially when Chucky controlled Nica's body, but this was the first time that it was Nica who was showing herself to her, unabashedly and with confidence.

When Nica tossed her shirt aside and looked back at Tiffany, she started to fidget under the woman's piercing gaze, and for a moment, Nica thought she could see green shining through the grown eyes of the woman below her. She wasn't sure why she was suddenly feeling self conscious (okay maybe she did know why, but still she would rather not remember those moments from her past right now, thank you very much), but all worries disappeared as Tiffany spoke.

"You're so beautiful." Tiffany said in awe, daring to move her hands to rest on Nica's waist, half expecting Nica to shove her away. But Nica didn't shy away from Tiffany's touch, and seemed to melt beneath it as her face turned scarlet, giving Tiffany a burst of confidence. She let one of her hands slowly move up over Nica's ribs and over the sides of her blue lace bra, with the goal being to cradle Nica's neck and pull her down for a kiss. Before she could do that however, Nica grabbed both of Tiffany's hands and raised them above her on the pillows, a grin lighting up her face in an almost manic way, making Tiffany's heart race faster.

"Not so fast Ms Valentine," Nica's eyes glittered dangerously, and Tiffany, who had been holding her breath under Nica's intense stare, felt herself freeze as her brain finally caught the name Nica used.

Suddenly, Tiffany's mind was abuzz with panic as she realized that not only had Nica used her real last name, but she had also called her by her first name more than once, and Tiffany had been too distracted by the comfortable weight of Nica's body on top of hers to notice.

Nica noticed the change in Tiffany's eyes, and her grip on Tiffany's hands tightened, feeling a sense of power and delight at the small glimmer of fear that flashed in Tiffany's eyes at the action.

"How did you figure it out?" Tiffany whispered.

Nica raised her eyebrows, as if amused that that's what Tiffany is asking in that moment. "You called me Sweetface. No one but you had ever said that."

"Nica-" Tiffany began but Nica cut her off. "Wanna hear a secret Tiffany?" Moving slowly, Tiffany shakily nodded, "s-sure."

Nica shifted on top of Tiffany, leaning down to whisper in Tiffany's ear, "I'm not gonna kill you."

Tiffany's lip trembled, "you're not?" Her question came out in a breathy whisper and a small glimmer of hope sparked in her eyes.

"No." Nica said, leaning back to look Tiffany in the face, "I think I'm gonna keep you right here."

Tiffany knew she should still feel fear, especially given everything she and Chucky had put Nica- through, but instead she felt a thrill at Nica's words, warmth spreading from her cheeks to her toes.

"Why?" The words slip past her lips before she can stop them.

Nica smiled. "Because, I Like You Better here than if you were dead." She used her other hand to gently brush Tiffany's cheek.

"I admit that at first, when I realized that it was you, I had it all planned out. I was gonna lure you here," Nica released Tiffany's hands and used the hand that had been holding them to pull herself prop herself up so she could hover over Tiffany's face. "I was gonna torture you, slowly, and just before you would lose consciousness, I would stop. This would repeat everyday for however long I wanted, making you wish death would finally free you from me." She continued conversationally.

Tiffany was flushed as she listened to Nica, a fire burning deep in the pit of her belly as Nica told her all the ways she would've tortured and killed her. Nica licked her lips and smirked as Tiffany's eyes followed the motion, not seeing the look of self satisfaction in Nica's eyes as she watched Tiffany lick her own lips subconsciously.

Settling herself fully on top of Tiffany, feeling the silky fabric of Tiffany's dress against her exposed stomach, Nica brushed her thumb over Tiffany's bottom lip as she continued speaking. "When you finally accepted that this was your life now, that's when I would finally kill you, in the most painful way I could think of." Tiffany's lips parted, her eyes burning into Nica's as she moved her head slightly so Nica's finger slipped into her mouth.

Nica felt the smirk fall from her lips as the heat that pooled inside her lit up like a live wire. Time seemed to slow as the two women stared at one another, and then sped into overdrive as Tiffany, who had not moved her hands from their position over her head despite Nica releasing her, grabbed onto Nica and in one swift movement flipped them as she crashed her lips against Nica's.

She swallowed Nica's gasp of surprise, using the opportunity to slip her tongue into her mouth, hands moving to cradle Nica's face in a far more gentle way than the aggressive nature of their kiss. "Take this off." Nica growled as they separated briefly, her hands moving to tug at the bottom of Tiffany's dress. Tiffany was all too happy to do so, quickly pulling the offending fabric up her body before tossing it somewhere to the side as Nica recaptured her lips.

Despite all the horrors that surrounded their past together, Nica and Tiffany had a whole future ahead of them, admittedly most of it would be spent in Nica's apartment, but neither seemed to mind.

[science-lings]

I don’t really get the need to make Phoenix (or any dad coded characters) bad at domestic tasks? As if this guy hasn’t been the equivalent of a single dad for ten years, he can’t afford to go out for burgers or noodles for every meal, let this man know how to cook and sew and braid hair because it costs too much to be lazy about those things.

He literally doesn’t make enough money to get his daughter a custom made magicians outfit as she grows, or to live off of frozen burritos. As if he wouldn’t put his whole pussy into raising his daughter right even in some pretty terrible circumstances.

My guy goes to his work as a shitty pianist with nails painted different colors every week and he spends those first few years growing his hair out long enough for her to play with it.

Everyone just sees a cluttered living space and a clearly depressed man and decides that he must suck as a parent as if he wouldn’t do literally anything for her.

[aftgficrec]

hii how are you??

im looking for a kevjean fic where jean is already a trojan and he is pseudo dating (?) the brother of one of his team mates and is exploring his sexuality very safely with the fratmates of his pseudo boyfriend

ah! jean is also bi

thank you!!!

I’m pretty certain that this is the fic you’re looking for! If it isn't, it's still a fantastic read. It caused a bit of a stir, as this was the author’s only fic on ao3 at the time and nobody knew who they were.  They dropped this amazing fic and vanished. - S

(they can be found on tumblr: @hourafterhour)

The Later Parade by hourafterhour [Rated M, 41153 Words, Complete, AFTG Then and Now, 2023]

No such thing as a bad pass to Kevin Day.

tw: implied/referenced abuse, tw: implied/referenced rape/noncon

[apricusapollo]

i have this thing where if i love an actor, i try to squish the personalities and the stories of their different characters into one specific character so. any idea how i can make legolas a pirate.

[askbensolo]

Journal Entry #52: don’t fall in love with boys who write, ‘cause they edit and edit till the story’s just right

I turned and slammed my fist into the wall. And then I yelled as loud as I could, and did it again even harder. And if that sounds like something I had already learned not to do in front of her, well—let’s just say I’m a slow learner.

“Ben,” she murmured from her place on the white stone bench, fiddling quietly with her fingers in her lap.

I tried to catch my breath, then slumped my back hard against the stucco wall and started picking off the scraped skin from the side of my hand. It stung, but I kind of liked it—it’s hard to explain. “Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. I just—I just wasn’t expecting to hear you to say that. Sorry.”

And what had she said, the reader may ask? Well—you might recall what she had said in that voice recording from earlier: that she wanted me, she needed me, she couldn’t live without me whether or not anyone else thought it was a good idea—all that stuff that made my ego go brrrrr—

Well, I come all the way to Ryloth and track her down, and she takes me into the depths of her father’s courtyard gardens where everything looks like a fairy tale, and tells me that: actually? She’s now considering a life of solitude, like the Jedi of old.

WHAT.

“I was in a really bad place when I sent you that message,” Fannie said quietly. “I…had just received some very difficult news, and I was feeling very alone, and I didn’t know why you weren’t talking to me…” She looked up at me, then, with the distrust of one scrutinizing a stranger. “To be honest, Ben, I don’t even know why you’re here right now.”

“Why else?” I asked, sinking down to the ground and matching the intensity of her gaze. “‘Cause I love you.”

It used to be difficult to say. But now, it was just like stating a fact. Water is blue. Space is black. Sand is coarse, rough and irritating. I love you.

But the words that had once made her light up and blush and giggle and look up at me with big sparkling eyes had no effect, this time, and her face, normally sweet and open, looked tired and closed-off. ���Ben, you haven’t spoken to me for weeks. And it was certainly not for my lack of trying. But…it was actually rather helpful for me, because it gave me just what I needed in order to come to the conclusion that…that this probably isn’t right for us. Luke thought so, too. I went to visit him, a few weeks ago, and…”

“Yeah, I know you did,” I cut in quickly, to stop her from re-summarizing that whole saga all over again. “I was there. I overheard.”

She looked stunned. “You were—there?”

“Yeah, I was there,” I said, and it felt kind of good to say so, as if by doing so I was winning some kind of argument—I don’t know what, though. “I just so happened to be visiting the exact same weekend, and I was going over to his office to meet him, and then I overheard you talking to him, and I heard everything the two of you said. Or…most things. I heard what he said to you, anyway.”

Fannie frowned. “…So that’s why you weren’t talking to me,” she said stiffly, then cast her gaze down to her lap. “Well…I hadn’t decided yet, at that point. Not completely. I had decided mostly, but I still wanted to talk to you, first. That’s why I was asking you if we could talk—so that we could figure it out, together. But then, you kept on ignoring me, and left me to decide on my own—so, I was forced to come to my own decision, and perhaps it’s a good thing that I did, because—”

“Wait,” I interrupted, because I needed to know. “Did…did Luke tell you about what happened? Between me and him?”

Fannie looked at me and squinted, a little bit. “No. Why? Did something happen?”

Oh. So she didn’t know. A surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one.

Well, that was perfect, I thought to myself. Because—that meant she could hear it from me, instead of from Luke. It meant I could tell the story my way, and, maybe, make myself look a little less bad—

And then, I had a sudden thought:

Maybe it meant I didn’t need to tell the story at all.

Ooh.

Ooooooh.

Snoke? Snoke, was that you?

But, it wasn’t Snoke, and I knew it.

It was Ben. Pure, unadulterated Ben.

“Ben,” Fannie said, breaking through my thoughts, sounding sort of serious and sort of alarmed. “You’re…you’re frightening me. What happened between you and Luke?”

“Well…I talked to him,” I said slowly. “After you left. I didn’t want to freak you out, so I waited for you to leave, and then…then I went, and I talked to Luke.”

I stopped there, trying to figure out what to say next.

“…Yes?” Fannie urged, her eyes boring through me. “And then what happened?”

Well, I didn’t have any time to think. I decided to just roll with whatever started coming out of my mouth first.

“…And then I said, ‘Uncle Luke, I heard what you said to Fannie, and it kinda hurts my feelings, but it totally makes sense, and I really, really respect you for looking out for her.’” I pressed my lips together and looked at her to see how she’d react.

Oh, man. That was such a hot steaming load, even I couldn’t buy it.

Fannie blinked a couple of times, processing this information. (Disinformation?)

“…Okay,” she said slowly. “…And then?”

She…she bought it??

Well, I was really in it now. I couldn’t go back. I could only keep going forward.

“And then,” I went on, floundering for my next words, “he…he told me not to talk to you anymore, and—well—see—that’s why I haven’t been texting you all this time.”

Oh! Okay. Okay. So…not only are we not telling her the story…we are actually telling her a completely new one that we just made up right now. Okay. Okay! Cool cool cool.

“Luke…told you…not to talk to me?” Fannie echoed, looking sort of shocked. “That…doesn’t sound like something he’d do at all.”

Yeah, and there’s actually a really great explanation for that, I thought to myself dryly.

But, I just shrugged. “Yeah, well—he told me he thought you were too attached to me. That you’d be too tempted to start things up with me again. It didn’t really seem right to me, either, but—hey, he’s the Jedi Master, isn’t he? I just…figured he knew best.”

Fannie didn’t say anything back. But, I had her rapt attention, and her big brown eyes looked very big, and very sad.

“It was…really hard not to talk to you,” I continued, looking at her sincerely. (Except, not actually, because that would have required me to, you know, not be lying.) “I really wanted to talk to you. I missed you. A lot. I saw your voice message come in, but I didn’t open it. And then I couldn’t take it anymore, and I finally did open it—like, today, actually—and I heard how awful you sounded, and I couldn’t take it, and I had to come see you.”

You know what’s funny? It didn’t feel like lying. The more drawn-out this whole thing became, the more I actually started to…believe my own version of events. I mean…well…yeah! A lot of the emotions behind it were real, anyway—I really did feel like Luke had wronged us by meddling in our relationship and I really did miss her and I really was glad to see her right now. I sure liked this version of events better than the real version. So…why shouldn’t this version be the real one, instead? And by just…feeding it to her, I could make it true.

For the first time in a long time, I began to feel like everything between me and Fannie was gonna be…okay.

Huh. Who knew? The power to alter reality wasn’t exclusive to an occult Dathomirian magic, or hidden in some secret Sith holocron. No—the power to alter reality lived in my very tongue. And I sealed my new reality into existence with one final little lie:

“Ben…sorry, forgive me, but…are you…are you telling the truth right now?”

I paused, and licked my lips, and said the magic word.

“Yes.”

I could almost imagine a deep, resonant chime, like a deafening gong, rumbling out of my false confession and rippling out and forever altering the entire fabric of the universe and making it all, suddenly, true—

Except, no. It wasn’t that easy. I would have to keep chasing after and mending the tears myself, to keep the fabric of my new little universe from falling apart.

Fannie shook her head like she had a headache. “I…I should talk to Luke.”

“No,” I told her quickly, ready with my needle and thread. “I—well—I don’t want him to know I talked to you. I promised him I wouldn’t. I don’t want him to find out.”

Miraculously, she nodded. But, not as one who was fully awake—she nodded as if she were in a dreamlike trance. I don’t think I was really all that convincing. I think she was just too overwhelmed to really think critically.

That, and I had probably built up enough trust with her by now that she didn’t think I’d just lie to her face.

“This…yes, this changes a lot,” she said, knitting an imaginary scarf with her fingers. “I…Ben, I’m sorry. I misjudged you. I thought—well, I assumed—you’ve had trouble replying to my messages before, so I jumped to conclusions, and—no, I’m sorry. Why would Luke—? I still don’t understand, but—no, this—this changes a lot of things.”

I stood up. Slowly.

And approached her.

And sat down next to her on the bench.

And held my hand out toward hers.

And looked her in the big brown eyes.

She looked at me, and hesitated, then placed her hand in mine.

W-o-w. It had been weeks since we’d last talked. But since we’d been on different worlds since the start of September, we hadn’t touched in months (well, two of ‘em, I guess—but two still counts). Touching her was like touching a live wire. I started—well…feeling things. Things I’d never felt my whole life up until sometime this summer. My heart started pounding—but this was the good kind of heart rate increase.

I think she started feeling things, too.

We looked at each other.

I put my free hand under her chin, and tilted her face up a little, and didn’t look away from her eyes, and brought my face reeeal close to hers till we were breathing each other’s breath, and nuzzled her cheek with my nose, and pressed my lips to her jawline, and drew back and looked her in the eyes again. Just to see what would happen.

Well…we started swappin’ cooties, that’s what happened. And I’m not in the business of writing that kind of stuff, so I’ll just tell you we kept all our clothes on and we still didn’t kiss on the mouth exactly and we never hit any bases but just messed around on the infield like five feet out from the batter’s box and you’ve probably seen worse on middle school campuses anyway—but I’m still skipping ahead regardless.

“No, wait, stop,” she mumbled, muffled by my hair. This was about twenty minutes later. (Maybe? It’s always so hard to tell.) “I—I don’t want to be doing this. I just told you that I don’t want to be with anyone—that I want to dedicate myself to the Force—at least for now.”

I got up off of her and knelt down in the grass and grinned and wiped off my mouth on my sleeve, because I was all slobbery (see, I told ya—I don’t write romance flimsibacks). “With all due respect, Fan? You’re not cut out for celibacy.”

She glared at me as she wiped my spit off her cheek. “I really think that’s my call to make, not yours.”

“Hey, I’m just repeating what you said, sister.”

“What did I say? And when?”

“That whole time I was kissin’ up your neck just now. You were going ‘I’m not cut out for celibacy I’m not cut out for celibacy’ under your breath. I could hear you.” I laughed at her, and she flushed.

“I…I didn’t know you could hear.”

“Well—your mouth was right next to my ear, sweetheart, of course I could hear!”

“Oh.”

I laughed again and kissed her on the cheek. She giggled, embarrassed, and let me do it.

Things almost felt like they used to.

But…they weren’t. Not yet, anyway.

“…No. No.” She detangled herself from me and sat up against the wall and buried her face in her hands. “I…can’t let myself change my mind, just because you’re here. Even if it wasn’t your fault that you weren’t talking to me. No—I made up my mind. I can’t be in a relationship right now. Not with everything going on with Pennie—I’m too vulnerable to unhealthy attachments.”

“Wait—what’s going on with Pennie?” I asked, shuffling over on my knees and sitting next to her. “Besides what you told me last spring?”

When she had told me last spring about her youngest sister’s…relationship with their father, it had taken a long time for her to spit it out, and she had done so amidst heavy sobs. This time, it came out as easily as a breath, and her eyes were dry and hollow.

“Well, Ben: Pentarra has offered to make my sister one of his wives.”

I stared. He had already made her one of his dancers. But…one of his wives?

Ew.

“But…she’s his daughter.”

Fannie nodded.

“That’s…disgusting.”

She nodded again, and nearly smiled—the kind of smile one smiles when life has become so cruel as to be almost humorous. And for a second, I felt horrible that I was—maybe—I don’t know—taking advantage of her current vulnerable state to try to get her to stay with me and be mine—

But then, I reframed it in my head, and felt…not so bad. I wasn’t taking advantage of anything. She needed me—now more than ever. She’d said so herself, in that voice recording. She’d been in a rough place when she recorded it, sure—but, isn’t that when people are at their most honest?

“I am the only one in my family who has been willing to say out loud that this is wrong,” Fannie went on. “Not everyone approves, necessarily—but no one else will speak out against it. My sister hates me, because she feels I don’t think I can make her own decisions. She sees this as her wedding. Everyone is preparing for it as if it were a wedding. Well, it’s no wedding to me—it is merely a perverse charade, and I will not—cannot—honor their false union. I have felt very alone, and I know that right now I am very susceptible to developing an unhealthy attachment—so, I’m sorry, Ben, even if we did share the same beliefs about the Force…now’s just not a good time for me.”

“What is an unhealthy attachment, anyway?” I asked, then.

“An attachment that would cause me to place my trust and hope in it, rather than in the Force,” Fannie explained, almost mechanically. “And I cannot afford distraction at such a crucial time in my life.”

I looked her in the eyes. “But…at such a crucial time in your life, you’d still be alone,” I told her.

She looked out into the distance. “The Force is all I need, Ben. I must remind myself of that.”

“No,” I argued, and reached over and turned her face to look at me. “No. I may not believe all your beliefs, Fan—not with the same level of conviction that you do, anyway—but I do know your beliefs and I know what the Jedi teach. I’ve heard you say so yourself: the Force isn’t a person. It’s an impersonal energy. You could be as close to the Force as Master Yoda himself, and you’d still be all alone, and have no one. The Force doesn’t love you. The Force doesn’t know you. The Force doesn’t give a crap about you—it can’t. When you’re staring at the ceiling and crying your eyes dry in the middle of the night till your ribcage aches and your fingers go numb, the Force will not feel a damn—darn—thing for you. It’s a power you can draw from, a source of supernatural energy, whatever—but at the end of the day? It doesn’t freaking care. Because it can’t. It’s just a thing. Midichlorians, or whatever the frick. You’re gonna place your trust and hope in that? You’d still be alone. All alone.”

She looked like she was about to say something—to pose an argument, or something—but she stopped short. Her eyes widened in a swell of panicked horror and filled with tears, and her hands started to tremble. Her breathing became kind of short and ragged. I could feel her heart opening up and splitting like a huge, raw wound.

Ooh. I’d gotten her good.

And so what if it came at the expense of shaking the very foundations of her most deeply-held religious beliefs? If something couldn’t hold up to a good shaking, was it even worth believing in?

I saw doubt in her eyes. Tasted it in the air all around her. Wondered what Uncle Luke would think of that.

Maybe Luke had been right about me, after all: Ben Solo, corrupter of Jedi.

…Or maybe of just one Jedi in particular.

I reached out, and held both her hands tight in mine to still her trembling. Pulled her a little closer to me.

“Fannie. I’m a person,” I told her slowly, stamping out each word in durasteel. “I know you, and I love you. I could be with you, in all of this. I want to be there for you, and with you.” I laid a gentle kiss on top of her tear-stained cheek. “The Force is great and all, and if you wanna build your life around it, cool—but it’s not a person, it’s a thing. You need a someone, Fannie, not a something. So, all I’m saying is…” I kissed her other cheek, and then her nose. “Let me be your someone. Please.”

She whimpered. I felt it again—the splintering of her heart.

“I…I want to say yes, Ben, I just…don’t know…”

“Fan. Please. I’m not saying this for me. I’m saying this for you.” (This was something I said because it sounded good, not because it was actually true.)

But she shook her head and blinked out some more tears, and I spent several more minutes persuading and a few more minutes cajoling and I even threw in a little begging for fun—still, I couldn’t get her to say yes, and my patience, which you will be surprised to learn I’ve never had in high reserves anyway, began to wear thin.

“Well…think about it,” I said finally, maybe a little rougher than I meant to, turning out from her again and sitting back against the wall. “And—think about it quickly, if you can. I need to get back to Naboo tonight. Tomorrow morning, latest. I just spent the weekend on Kashyyyk with Amalia—”

“You were with Amalia all weekend?” Fannie interrupted suddenly, like she was waking up, her eyes wide. Her lower lip sucked in a little bit.

I blinked at her, trying to figure out what was going on (I’m a little slow like that sometimes), and I was about to go “oh, chill out, it wasn’t anything weird, we just went as friends”—

But…then it occurred to me. That…keeping my mouth shut? Kind of maybe swayed things in my favor.

So…I shrugged a little, kept my cards to myself, and looked at her to see what she’d do.

“…Are you…interested in dating people now?” Fannie asked finally. She bit her lip. “Because, you said before that you weren’t…that you weren’t interested in dating. Just interested in me.”

Oh, so now she was paying attention!

She was right. I had said that. After I’d decided to fall in love with her (because that’s how it had happened for me; I didn’t just fall in love, I had to decide to do it), part of me wondered if it would change how I saw other girls. But, it didn’t. I looked around me and nothing magical had happened and whenever I looked at women I still just saw people. And whenever I looked at Amalia, I almost saw a dude (except in certain select low-light conditions, apparently).

But Fannie didn’t need to know that.

“Weeell…” I said slowly, as if I were thinking through it, when in reality it was already thought out. “Being with you kinda made me realize…that it’s actually sort of nice to have someone around.” Which was true. “And, that I maybe would like to have a partner after all.” Which was true. “And…I don’t know. Amalia and I do get along pretty well.” Which was true.

I looked at her, and shrugged, and checked my metaphorical hand under the metaphorical table, and watched for her next move.

And, oh, wait—there was an ace in here! I whipped that out and laid it down.

“But…if I was gonna be with anyone…I’d really like it to be you…Fa’nakhra,” I whispered, stroking the back of my index finger against her cheek. And I totally butchered her name, I’m sure, but—you know? It’s the thought that counts.

And with all my cards out now, I ended my turn, and waited to see what she’d do.

Well…she folded, that’s what she did. My bluff worked, and the ace clinched it. She folded, and she folded in half, and she laid down in my lap and clasped her arms around my waist and cried and said she didn’t want to be alone—she wanted to be my girlfriend. My girlfriend! So I could finally stop with the whole “girlfriend-not-really-my-girlfriend” thing and just call her my girlfriend now. And yeah, it kinda sucks that she had to come to that decision after the really manipulate-y “what if I dated someone who wasn’t you?” instead of the slightly-less-manipulate-y “let me be your person,” but—hey—I got what I wanted, and that was the important thing to me.

Oh yeah and also getting to be there for her during this trying time—that was important to me, too, of course. Just for the record.

But…I felt like crap for lying to her about me and Luke. And, I felt like crap for kind of goading her into this position. And, I thought to myself, no—wait—if I let this go on, it’s just gonna keep getting worse and worse—I have to nip this in the bud now, or I’m gonna ruin both our lives—so…even though it hurt like hell, I gritted my teeth and pulled her up and looked her in the eyes and said, wait, no, Fan, wait…I’m sorry…this is all just a huge mess…I’ve really screwed things up…I haven’t been fair to you…and I came clean to her about everything—

Except…no, I didn’t, because that whole last paragraph was a giant freaking lie, and I just lied to you exactly like how I lied to her. What I really did was I held her in my arms and I grinned all sweet and I wiped off her tears as she was still crying and said, okay, Fan, it’s official then: you’re my girlfriend! And then I kissed her—not on the mouth, but close enough that the corners of our lips brushed, and guess what, your boi has a girlfriend now, officially.

But—didn’t you wish that it was true? Didn’t you feel happier when you thought it was? Didn’t you like me better two paragraphs ago? Don’t you hate me more now that I told you I lied? Wasn’t that a much more satisfying draft, and wasn’t I a much more likable character?

…Exactly.

See?

I should’ve just let you believe the lie.

[darthbloodorange]

Steve retires and gets a farm. It's hard work, made even harder by his neighbor. It's not like the guy is malicious. He's only ever been kind. But the man works the land in a way that appears effortless. His farm is essentially a food forest. He's frustratingly attractive too.

For the: ✦ @thundershieldbingo 2024 Mini Bingo - Neighbors [Card #2 "Alternate Universe"]

Word count: N/a - Moodboard Title: New Leaf Turned Rating: Gen Universe: Marvel Cinematic Universe Pairings: Steve Rogers/Thor Characters: Steve Rogers, Thor Warnings: None Major Tags: Canon Divergence AU, Neighbors AU, Farm/Ranch AU, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, First Meetings, Developing Relationship, Mutual Pining, Gardens & Gardening, Food, Retired Steve Rogers, Farmer Steve Rogers, Tired Steve Rogers, Farmer Thor, Fertility God Thor ~ Summery: Steve retires and gets a farm. It's hard work, made even harder by his neighbor. It's not like the guy is malicious. He's only ever been kind. But the man works the land in a way that appears effortless. His farm is essentially a food forest. He's frustratingly attractive too.

~

I've kind of got an idea of this that basically results in Thor, God of Fertility, accidentally (with the aid of the Super Soldier Serum) turning Steve into what is essentially an Omega in a non-A/B/O world.

[1very1fancy1doilies1]

I love being absolutely delusional about eremin

[fromxxthexxashes]

Chapters: 7/7 Fandom: 9-1-1 (TV) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Athena Grant/Bobby Nash, Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Evan "Buck" Buckley & Bobby Nash Characters: Evan "Buck" Buckley, Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Bobby Nash, Howie "Chimney" Han, Henrietta "Hen" Wilson, Athena Grant, Christopher Diaz (9-1-1 TV) Additional Tags: Miscommunication, Firehouse 118 Crew as Family (9-1-1 TV), Protective Bobby Nash, Bobby Nash is Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parent, Developing Relationship, Fluff and Humor, Athena Grant and Bobby Nash are Evan "Buck" Buckley's Parents, Christopher Diaz Has Two Dads, Evan "Buck" Buckley is Christopher Diaz's Parent, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Light Angst, Mild Hurt/Comfort Series: Part 1 of The ordeal of dating your captain's (adopted) son Summary:

The thing was, the 118 was full of gossips. Eddie had been at the station less than a week before Hen and Chim wrangled details about his “hot young thing” from him (“Buck is only 4 years younger than me, he is not a ‘hot young thing’!” Eddie complained.) And Bobby was open about his worries for his son’s lack of direction and the secrets he appears to be keeping (“I just wish I could help Evan find the thing that gives him purpose,” Bobby lamented.) It just made it all the more ridiculous (and horrifying) when Eddie realizes he’s been dating his Captain’s son this whole time (“Defiling his baby,” Chimney cackled, because he clearly wanted Eddie murdered.) -- Or, the AU where miscommunication abounds as Eddie seeks advice about his new relationship, Bobby despairs over his adopted son's career prospects and his refusal to talk about it, and Evan Buckley-Nash juggles training at the fire academy, building a family with his new boyfriend, and trying to work out how to tell his overprotective dad that he's already chosen the life he wants, actually. It takes a goddamn tsunami, of all things, to get the story straight.

Notes: This is such a heart healing series of fics. Don’t get me wrong there is angst, but having Buck I grow up with Bobby as his father made me so happy. Not to mention the family dynamic between Buck, Eddie, and Christopher is so sweet. 

[cottoncandysprite]

Yall ever get mentally ill over an AU version of an already gut wrenching scene bc the context of the AU makes it So Much Worse?

Cause like. Ok. That scene in the Steven Universe movie where Amethyst shifts into Rose to jog Pearl's memory is already A Lot for such a short sequence.

But then you put it in my Colin Universe AU. There is no Amethyst, so Nandor takes that role. But he's the Rose Quartz stand-in, so instead of pretending to be Rose he shifts back into his Diamond form, which is a reminder of the past he's finally moved on from. And all this to bring back Guillermo, who is back to being in Servant Mode but this time for Sean. So not only is Nandor extremely jealous (I imagine he and Guillermo would have finally gotten together by the movie or at least were on their way), but he's deciding to bring back the Guillermo that disobeys him because he knows it's better for them both. He's choosing Guillermo over himself and struggling to bring back a lover that doesn't remember him. I'M GOING TO CRY OVER A SCENE THAT DOESN'T EVEN EXIST.

[destiny-in-the-universe]

I finished two of the picrews! I’m not finished with all of them, but meet Daisuke and Ayumi!

Daisuke (He/Him) - undetermined age (young adult). He’s the eldest of his siblings; Daisuke is a very disciplined young man, follows orders without question. He cares a lot for his siblings but he doesn’t show a lot of emotion very easily. He was brought up to respect his elders. His father can be extremely strict and harsh- (though there are reasons for this) while his mother is the quiet stay-at-home caretaker.

And then there’s Ayumi!

Ayumi (She/Her) - undetermined age. Ayumi is the second oldest- unlike her older brother, she’s more emotive with her approaches and was technically told she had to carry the family name, but of course she’s also a strong, fierce, and independent woman. She has a difficult relationship with their father given his behavior toward her siblings. Ayumi is tough, and she doesn’t let anything hurt her siblings.

I’m going to leave this up to poll if anyone’s interested but it’s entirely optional! I’m trying to link the picrew- except tumblr is being a butthead so I might have to upload that separately!

[youngroyals-hc]

(Part 1/3)

Wille decided that he can use the society to stop August from blackmailing Simon with the pill bottle and runs to Henry's room to get him to start gathering everyone. He bursts through the door and finds Henry curled up in Walter's arms and they're watching a movie. They jump apart and clearly look absolutely terrified and Wille immediately says "I'm so sorry I should've knocked" and the boys just sit they're looking scared and Wille closes the door and says "you know I'd never tell anyone right? No matter what is or isn't going on here is none of my business and to be honest, I've had my fair share of gossip for a lifetime." Walter starts trying to comfort Henry who is still totally on edge and quietly says "you'd have every right to tell everyone after what I did with you and Felice" and just looks so upset. Wille replies "look, I get it. If I walked in on the crown prince... And I wasn't me... I get it. We're fine and I'd never do that to you." Henry finally relaxes a little and clutches Walt's hand, breathing out and saying "thank you Wille. You are a good person." And Wille just smiles his tight lipped smile and says "yeah well we'll see what you say in an hour. I'm sorry, we've gotta have an emergency society meeting. Can you help me round up the boys?" Henry nods stiffly and Wille leaves the room to give him and Walter time to talk. He has a little smile to himself before hurrying off to gather the others.

For @sflow-er ❤️

Part 2 | Part 3