#which honestly i just kind of do my own thing with like soulmates with some extra sprinkles on top

[heystovepipeboys]

WIP game! ->In Haguenau, Ron starts to spiral

ty for another ask!!! I think I may have talked about this one before a while back. this is a sort of follow up to a different WIP (How to Guide Tertius) because it felt like a slightly different vibe to what I want that full story to be, but it's a Sentinel/Guide AU thing where Lip is learning what Ron being tired and overwhelmed looks like. Not exactly sure where this one is going except the patrol and Lip getting sick will obviously not help the situation.

The time is now, apparently, here in the showers, with senior NCOs and officers taking their turns to finally get clean. A shower, new uniforms, it should be heavenly. The hot water clears Lip’s head when he first gets under it. But something about it must have rubbed up against a raw nerve for the Sentinel. Lip can feel how the beating drum of the water droplets on Ron’s skin is distracting him, mesmerising him, pulling him into a deep undertow as easily as the water spirals over the tiles and into the drains. Lip can sense it, so clearly it almost takes his breath away. It feels like it's sucking him down too, the open mouth of a yawning sinkhole, and the sensation of the water running in rivulets down his own skin amplifies to match it, feeding back and getting louder, louder, harder to ignore – It’s instinct and not training that takes over. Lip shakes himself and steps quickly to the officer’s side. He pitches his voice low.  “Ron.” No last names, no rank, not for this. His hand comes up to curl around his Sentinel’s wrist. The touch is electric, a jolt of energy surging between them, and Ron takes a breath that’s almost a gasp. It's not loud, but the drawing in of his breath is rough, a harsh noise that grates at Lip's emotions. Convulsively, Ron jerks his head up, staring at Lip for a long moment with blank eyes, as if he doesn't recognise him. Lip keeps steady, and calm, tries to project the same thing through the warm tingling spot where their bodies touch, skin on skin.  “Easy, sir. That’s it.”

[suzukiblu]

WIP guessing game: help

"I know about Billy, Marvel," Batman says, and Billy . . . blinks.

"You know?!" he sputters. Okay, so apparently his secret identity was just . . . literally never a secret at all, then. Which, well–Batman, so that just figures, really. So actually this is kind of a relief and might even mean that he's fine with–

"Yes," Batman confirms with a nod. "So I understand your current reservations about parenthood."

. . . wait what.

"Huh?" Billy says, blinking stupidly at him.

"I don't know how much of you is still C.C. Batson or what you do or don't remember about being him," Batman says. "But the resemblance is undeniable, if nothing else. Certainly your and your wife's deaths were . . . well, suspicious. And you're hardly the first archeologists to dig up a god or six."

Oh, okay. Well.

This is apparently what Billy gets for his personal mental image of a "hero" being his dad, then, isn't it.

Crap.

"To be honest I've been looking for Billy for a while now, I just didn't want to bring it up before I found him," Batman admits, looking dissatisfied with himself. "My most recent reliable intel puts him in Fawcett City, but I assume you're aware of that, given your evident attachment to the place."

"You're looking for Billy?" Billy asks incredulously. "Why?"

"Because he's your son," Batman says. "And because he's a homeless child who's been abused and neglected and needs help. I honestly don't know where you go when you're not being Captain Marvel–frankly I'm not sure if you even exist when you're not being Captain Marvel, given what little I actually know about your powers and your death and your role as the Champion of Magic and just how damn impossible you are to find when you're off-duty–but I'm assuming that wherever it happens to be is not necessarily conducive to providing a stable home environment and being legally dead certainly can't be helping with that, so my original intention was to find the boy and help you arrange some manner of care for and visitation with him. And given the revelation of your relation to Robin, well . . . I'd like to take Billy in myself, if you'd both be comfortable with that. It seems . . . appropriate, under the circumstances."

"You want to foster Billy because I'm Robin's soulmate?" Billy says, absolutely positive that he's misunderstood literally every single word that just came out of Batman's mouth. There is no possible way that he did not.

"It's not exactly out of my wheelhouse," Batman replies wryly. "Although I'll be keeping this one out of the tights, ideally. Though I make no long-term promises about that because quite frankly at this point I'm spoiled for soulmates who insist on wearing capes and I wouldn't really be surprised to turn up another one, especially given that Robin is yours and your own involvement in the superhero community."

Billy stares at him.

"Wait, are all the Gotham vigilantes your soulkids?" he blurts unthinkingly.

"Not all," Batman says. "But, well . . . probably more of them than you'd expect."

"Oh my god," Billy says in disbelief. "And you're just telling me that?! You don't tell people things, you're Batman!"

"I haven't always been the father I should have been," Batman says, and then he pulls down his cowl. Billy chokes, and then chokes again because apparently Batman is Bruce freaking Wayne and his brain just . . . just needs a moment to process that fact, like there is literally any way whatsoever that he could ever actually process that fact. He would've been less surprised to see a Kardashian under that mask, he's pretty sure. At least they've got athletes in the family, technically! "So I'm not going to make things difficult for you with Robin. Clearly he needs more than I'm capable of providing, and I'm perfectly willing to be transparent and to co-parent with you as much as possible. I want Robin to be safe and content and grow up well, and frankly put, Batson, you've proven yourself to be a good man time and again and I trust you to do what's best by our son."

Okay, well, now Billy just feels like dirt.

"You do know what happened to Billy, don't you?" he asks just a little bit desperately, because there is literally no way that this conversation is a real and actual thing that's really and actually happening. "Like, just–everything that happened there? There's a reason he's not in school or the system or with a relative or anything like that."

"What happened to Billy wasn't your fault," Batman tells him, meeting his eyes all quiet and intent and sincere. "And I will do everything in my power to help you make it right."

"Oh no, you're actually like . . . just genuinely a really good person, aren't you," Billy says despairingly, staring at him all over again and really, really wishing he could swear right now.

Maybe he'll just go throw himself into the sun. Maybe that's what he'll just go and do.

The corner of Batman's mouth quirks up wryly. His eyes even crinkle a little, which Billy can see on account of his total lack of cowl right now, oh god.

Billy despairs.

"I mean it," Batman says gently. "It wasn't your fault, and it doesn't mean you can't be a good father now."

"I need to talk to Robin," Billy says, because he definitely, definitely needs to talk to Robin. Batman inclines his head in an accepting nod, because Batman is probably under the impression that Billy wants to go give Robin a good ol' traditional "I know I'm not your biodad but I'm here for you, champ!" kind of speech, and Billy just . . . really cannot explain the real situation to him right now. Or ever.

Can he just lie to Batman for the rest of their lives, maybe? He can just pretend to be his own dad for the Justice League and keep dodging whatever Bat-surveillance happens to be in Fawcett and parent his older-than-he-is soulmate, right? That's a thing that he can do?

That's probably not a thing that he can do.

Although he might be willing to try, at this point.

[sunny-ssunset]

Pretty In Pink!

Yandere South Park x Girly! Fem! Reader! Headcanons!

Headers by Pinterest

♡I'M BACK! I'm so sorry for my little break, my confidence is back on track now and I'll be out with new chapters for both Pretty in pink and Choose your soulmate 💖

TW: Kenny being Kenny lmao

TAGLIST: @wowowpx @the-official-memester

Y/n showers Kenny!

Fluff with a little bit of spice!

♡It was the first time Kenny came over to your house

♡Its obvious he was enamoured by everything you owned

♡How big your living room was

♡How you had an entire floor for a bedroom

♡It was clear your parents spoilt you

♡I mean how could they not?

♡You are the epitome of perfection

♡How kind of you to allow someone like him to go to your house

♡Now you had only really invited him over for one thing

♡To give Kenny a makeover!

♡"Kenny darling... Can I give you a makeover?" Y/n looked up at him with her big puppy dog eyes, How could he say no to that?

♡He was confused at first but you explained he had true himbo potential

♡Kenny sat on your sink counter as you ran him a bath, picking up random shower products and asking what they are

♡You picked up the pink bubble bath and added TONS.

♡Thats just the popular girl way to do it!

♡You told Kenny you wouldn't watch him get undressed and into the bath but you couldnt help but take a little peek 😉

♡Once he got in, Kenny was covered by the bubbles so you couldnt really see much of him

♡You pulled out the cherry flavoured shampoo and rubbed it into Kenny's blonde locks, He leaned into your touch as you did so

♡He insisted you do it because he wasn't used to this stuff and he didn't know what he was doing

♡But really he just wanted your soft hands all over him

♡Kenny almost fell asleep to the head massage you were giving him but was woken up when you asked him to wash the shampoo out

♡He questioned you when you told him he needs to wash his hair twice but he didnt question it

♡Anything to be touched by you...

♡You then pulled out another product which Kenny obviously questioned to find it was conditioner

♡"Whats that..?" Kenny stared at Y/n blankly "Cherry conditioner baby! Makes your hair fluffy and soft!" Y/n chirped.

♡After yet another head massage, You handed him a strawberry scented shower gel and told him you were gonna go grab a hair dryer

♡After rummaging in your draws you found your hair dryer

♡You were startled by Kenny leaning on the door frame, And god you were right

♡A towel wrapped around his waist and some bubbles still on his skinny frame

♡A small smirk appeared on his face as he noticed you admiring him

♡"Like what you see?" Kenny joked as he walked over to Y/n, a smirk still on his face. Y/n brushed his wet hair out of his face. "I told you you had potential Ken!" Y/n giggled as she tosses the hair dryer on her bed.

Y/n wrapped her hands around Kenny's neck, to which Kenny's hands joined at her waist. "You can be the Ken to my Barbie now!" Y/n chuckled inching her face closer to his. Kenny's hands brushed up and down her back, sending shivers down her spine.

Y/n closed the gap between the two, Kenny almost fainted honestly, HE was kissing Y/n. KENNY was kissing THE Y/n L/n. He had to be dreaming at this point.

Their tongues danced in union, it felt like pure bliss. Only pulling back to catch their breath, Y/n smiled slightly looking down, Then looking at Kenny in pure shock.

Kenny had gotten a *bit* excited, could you blame him? He just made out with the most popular girl in south park. "EW KENNY!" Y/n stepped back, she couldn't help but laugh at the situation. "WHAT!! Can you blame me Y/n? You are gorgeous" Kenny smirked, he wasn't actually that embarrassed suprisingly, to which Y/n rolled her eyes playfully.

Dividers by @k1ssyoursister

[zykamiliah]

what about bingqiu?

this is my response to this post. i didn't want to reply in the same post because it's going to get really long, and i disagree with almost everything, so this way i may avoid the discourse. haha. anyway, i'm gonna try to answer each of op's points.

-why bingqiu are a couple:

♦ because despite everything, they've chosen each other. not because they're soulmates (though mxtx did pull the string of fate thing), but because they genuinely want to spend time together

it's very subtle but they do share some values and similarities: they both repay kindness with kindness and believe that one should pay back those who hurt you twofold/tenfold. furthermore, they are both petty bitches. as @fireandgrimstone pointed out here, they're both busybodies: they get restless if they aren't doing something.

on that note: self-preservation is not a core value they share. sqq is terrible at self-preservation. from the first moment, instead of minding his own business, he risked losing points (which would terminate his account and kill him) just to protect binghe when he was being bullied by ming fan and co. sqq couldn't stand by watching someone being bullied. then during the demon invasion, he was ready to risk his own life to protect all the cqm disciples. he was willing to self-destruct to take out sha hualing.

the thing is that sqq likes to lie about himself and say everything he does is out of self-preservation, but it isn't true.

so, if it wasn't out of self preservation, why did sqq pushed binghe into the endless abyss? yes, it needed to happen, but he didn't do it to save himself. he can't hurt binghe just to protect himself. he did it because he brainwashed himself into believing this was the best for binghe, that binghe needed to in order to become strong and achieve his fate.

(chapter 4: conference)

♦ because they give each other what they need. consistent love, support and understanding was something lbh really needed, and those 2-3 years before the immortal alliance conference did wonders for binghe to allow himself to feel vulnerable and be more in touch with his own feelings. this will get screwed up post-endless abyss but sqq does encourage him in the extras to express his feelings and talk about what he thinks and feels.

now, what lbh gives to sqq may not seem obvious (thank you for the help, luuny!♥), since sqq's layered narration is tricky to deconstruct, but by the end of the novel lbh can get past sqq's tsundere/savin face bullshit. sqq has all his toxic masculinity ideas and internalized homophobia that he keeps dragging everywhere he goes, and his relationship with lbh, who was supposed to be the epitome of masculinity, has allowed him to shed off some of it. but not all. thus, lbh knows when sqq needs to be pushed or coaxed into doing something he already wants to do but thinks he shouldn't want and doesn't know how to justify (sex for example). lbh also gives sqq the whole domestic package: someone to dote on, someone that does the chores and takes care of him, because frankly sqq is good at many things but he fails at self-care.

♦ domesticity and companionship. for bingqiu it wasn't like other couples who were first attracted to each other from one reason or another and from then on the relationship developed. the first period of their relationship is mostly platonic (poor binghe is suffering the teenage hormones), and was based on the easy domesticity and companionship they shared. and honestly that's such a simple yet beautiful kind of love. they genuinely like spending time together, living together, talking to each other. they never get bored of being together or of each other, which brings me to

♦ the obsession. like, it's honestly hilarious how obsessed they are with each other. sy was already obsessed with pidw protagonist bingge, but in svsss he got to love and get obsessed all over again with his own binghe aka bingmei. and from lbh's pov it's more or less the same: he had a complicated relationship with original sqq, which was the start of it all, but the person he loves is not the cold shizun from the past who he needs to prove himself to, but the one that's always trying to protect him, even if it's from himself. in both cases, their relationship started with distance, with the shadow of the other version of each other they'd known before. but what made them fall in love weren't those ghosts from the past, but the person they could see underneath it all: the hardworking boy that just wanted to be loved, and the closeted man who wants to give love and help others and have a purpose and belong to something (binghe understands that sqq would be unhappy if he couldn't visit cqm, qjp and his sect siblings). this relates to the fact that

♦ they understand each other better than anyone else. it takes them time, but that's the point of their journey and by the time we read about their relationship in the extras, we can see that despite everything, they not only understand each other very well but actively try to understand each other better. they already made the mistake of making too many assumptions, and they're not doing that again.

________________

another point that op got wrong:

off the top of my head an example would be how bingge (he-with-no-shen-yuan) took a harem of beauties so he could control xin mo but bingmei (he-with-shen-yuan) decided to just... cripple people's cultivation (...) what i'm getting at is that binghe was willing to pay other people's lives just so he didn't have to be intimate with anyone except shen yuan.

bingge too was cripping other cultivators to get ride of the excess of demonic qi, it's just that after he captured the three nuns from tianyi overlook they taught him how to achieve the same result using dual cultivation. (thanking @stardust-falling for their notes on this topic!)

(chapter 9: borderlands)

[pancho-pinto]

Night Two - Obsessions

7 Holy Nights of Jeremy

Characters: Etho/Joel Words: 1,226 Misc: Teen+. No Warning. Suggestive Themes. Summary: Etho jealous + Neck kisses + Making out

Etho is a tall guy. Taller than Joel, which makes him abnormally tall since he is perfectly average. But, and this is something Joel has learnt during their time together in Double Life, Etho has quite the ability to make himself shrink. Or, well, more than shrink, the ability to look pathetic as he hunches over. 

He can see him, quite directly too. Just at the end of the street, standing in the middle of the road, looking at him with quite pitiful eyes. His fox ears are flat on his head, tail wrapped around his leg, fur between his fingers. Hunched over, clearly wanting to approach. 

Joel places a hand on his hip as he turns to fully face him, tilting his head and Etho looks almost hopeful. 

“You are such a weirdo,” he starts, and Etho shrinks again. He sighs, rolling his neck before bouncing a step as he walks to him. “What do you want, Eefo? I am a very busy guy. Can’t spend every second enlightening your life with my presence.”

Up close, Etho looks even more pathetic. And it almost, almost, tugs at Joel’s heartstrings. 

“You didn’t want a statue of me,” Etho whines. 

Joel blinks a couple times, taken aback. “What?”

“You said you didn’t want statues of me. And then you got statues of Lizzie and Jimmy! That’s not fair!”

He blinks again, in quick succession, before defensiveness takes over. “Of course I bloomin’ have statues of them! I don’t see them every day!”

“You don’t see me every day!”

“We are in the same server! And I kept the me-statues. You are so obsessed, honestly. I can’t have my life revolve around you, you know? We have other friends. Gosh, Eeefo, Lizzie is my wife! You and no one is competing against my wife!”

Etho has the audacity to frown, rolling his eyes too. Joel storms into his personal space, ready to throw hands or something typical of himself, but Etho surprises him, also going on the defensive. 

Sassy, even. 

“You could’ve kept the statue either way,” he says, crossing his arms and huffing like Joel made a mistake in tearing the Etho-statues down. “At least one. Like a, uh, bouncer!”

“A what? A bouncer?! Are you–”

“You could have both statues. You and me. Why not, huh? Do you hate me that much? Are you still salty about that kill from Limited Life?”

Joel’s mouth falls open, staring up at him with wide eyes and disbelief. 

How dare Etho!

“It’s just statues!”

“Then build mine back.”

“I– No! I’m not going to!”

“So you hate me.”

“Wha– No, I– Don’t turn this back on me!” Joel takes another step, raising a hand to shove his shoulder. Etho looks down at him, and how he hates their stupid height difference. “You have problems, you know? There– Just because I live rent-free in your head doesn’t mean you have to live in mine.”

Etho frowns again, rolling his eyes away from Joel, even leaning back to put distance between them. 

“I’m not building the stupid statue back,” he hisses through gritted teeth, squinting his eyes in a glare that has Etho looking back. They stare at each other, through glares and side-eyes, and time passes without them. 

The tick, tick, tick is loud in the back of Joel’s head, louder are the plans he should be completing right now, yet here he is, in a stare-off with his former soulmate and current obsessor. Some days he thinks they have changed. But days like these remind him how stubborn they both are, over the dumbest things too. 

But he will not yield. 

That is simply not the kind of person Joel is. 

Not Joel Etho knows. Knew.

“The shirt,” Etho says lowly, their argument for only them and no possible eavesdropper, “do you—”

Joel grabs a handful of Etho’s shirt, the zipper scratching the back of his hand, and yanks him down until their faces are less than an inch away. Their noses bump, Etho towering over him. And it is hot between their bodies, a too familiar fire sparkling alight. 

Etho’s left hand finds its way around his hip, yanking him twice as close until they feel the growing fire around them. Joel’s lips twist into an almost dark smirk, a red glow in his eyes. 

“Burnt it,” Joel whispers against the mask covering his lips, tauntingly close. His fingers tighten on the shirt until he can feel his nails digging right back on his palm, delirious with the closeness and the small doses of pain. “What are you going to do about it, huh?”

He huffs as the wind is pushed out of his lungs, his back flushed against the wall as the building’s shadow falls over them. He breaths in and out, blowing right into Etho’s face with smugness. There is heat between them, hot air against exposed skin as their clothes cover the sweat on their bodies. 

Etho’s eyes flicker further down from Joel’s eyes, they sharpen. And up close, Joel has the benefit of seeing every move and every change. And up close, this close, Joel has the benefit of seeing this side of him. Wilder, reckless, this side of him he is too slow to mask away. Joel enjoys every second of it, of his attention and piercing eyes, adoring it more than he cares to admit though they both know. 

Of course they know. Nothing has changed since Double Life. 

“You’re pathetic,” Joel breathes out when Etho corners his neck, nestled between his cheek and shoulder. He can feel the fabric of his mask gliding on his cheek, then he shudders when Etho pulls on his shirt, exposing more skin to his burning breath. 

He snakes his hand under his right arm, grabbing fistfuls of his sleeve from the back when Etho’s lips finally make contact. Chapped lips itch on his skin, bouncing down until his breath hitches, a strip of scorching wetness drawn from the base of his neck up to the underside of his jaw. He retaliates by digging his nails into his shoulder this time, knowing it is a puny attempt with the layers of clothes in between. 

Wild images flash, searing themselves in his mind. Hands like claws, tearing through the fabric until sensible muscle is exposed. Ready for his taking, dragging nails and watching red lines color pale skin. Teeth piercing skin, trails of crimson raining down, iron on his lips, on his tongue to satiate the thirst. 

“Calm down,” Etho mocks against the base of his neck, teeth grazing and teasing with a wicked smile. 

Joel gasps when he feels canines making promises on his neck, and he closes his eyes to sink in the feeling, suffocating in the heat between them. Still, his words come out sharp, the red of a predator in every word, “You’re one to talk.”

Etho inches up to his jaw, moving down his chin, lips nipping muscle lightly until he finds them, the other pair of lips. Parted and wet, and Etho kisses the corners of them, drawing a growl. 

Joel licks the smirk on his lips when he digs his hand into the hairs on his nap, pushing him down and taking what he wants. Lips clash as Etho pushes down.

More. More. More. 

Until they can satiate their obsession. 

[staytinyville]

The Thoughts of a Lover

↣ Summary: You meet your soulmates at one of their concerts. From there you guys decide to wait for their tour to finish before meeting up with each other to start the rest of your lives together. However, that didn’t stop you from doing things while overseas. 

↣ Characters/Pairing: Yunho x Mingi x reader

↣ Genre: Mature/Smut (MDNI)

↣ AU/Trope info: Soulmate!au (You can see/hear your soulmate’s thoughts)

↣ Word Count: 5.8k

↣ Warnings: dom!Yunho, sub!Mingi, phone sex, mxm, oral (m receiving), threesome,

↣ A/N: BETA READER @mariana-mmtz Honestly I didn't know I had this in me. I was heckin proud. I was kicking my feet and giggling the whole time. This is my first post to the networks I've joined and I'm so happy about it!

At a certain age–usually around puberty–people get what is known as The Thoughts of a Lover in their head. It’s a terrible name really, but it’s what philosophers from Roman time decided to call it. Those Romans were clearly very passionate people.

It was meant to signify that somewhere in the world someone was connected to your spiritual essence. It was the will of the universe, knowing exactly what it was doing when it created humans. They knew their creations needed to be procreated somehow, so what better way to do that than by making a destined person for you personally.

Times changed, of course, people didn’t feel the need to fall in love with their destined person much. They realized that while there would always be someone there who was like their other half, people knew that they had free will. It wasn’t common though, to go about without finding your destined soulmate. The universe knew what it was doing every time it pulled apart a soul to place down on Earth.

Sometimes though, the universe would pull it apart more than once.

The myth goes; the creators pull apart a soul to create two and then toss them into a bucket. Another creator then grabs one and throws it down to earth. Every few years or so, there can be a creator who forgets they had already split a soul apart and ends up doing it again. Thus creating more than one soulmate.

Multiple soulmates were rare, but not unheard of. The most a soul was considered to be pulled apart was 4 times with a total of 5 soulmates. And that was at millennia ago. Now, at most, someone had four soulmates.

You had considered yourself special when you had turned 14 and suddenly heard not one but two voices in your head. Their random thoughts often surprised you but still somehow brought a smile to your face to know they were real and out there for you to find.

You were the kind of person who believed in destiny and staying with your soulmate. It was a bit intimidating to know that you had two–worry frequently creeped into your head when you thought about how you could possibly manage the two, but if their souls were just a separation from yours, you knew they too were meant to be together.

The day you met your own soulmates was the day you went to their concert. You attended their soundcheck and tried to get them to notice you from the floor. The universe, however, only allowed certain thoughts that didn’t involve speaking to them directly to pass through the bond. So you had to speak as though you weren’t actually talking to them.

Yunho had been the one to spot you first after you had started to think about rock, paper, scissors and play it out with him. They were overjoyed at the discovery, getting you to meet them at their hotel, where you spent the night with them.

It hadn’t been that long ago, only four months having passed since then. It gave you time to get your life together for when the boys would come back. There was a lot of texting and calling over the phone, which left you happy enough. All three of you would always express how much you miss each other, but it wouldn’t be long before you saw them again.

You had been going over some assignments, Yunho on the phone telling you all about their concert of the night. You would laugh at the things he would tell you, enjoying his voice over the speakerphone. As you began to type out some response to an email, one of the boy’s thoughts drifted over to your head.

I wonder if her thighs are soft. They felt soft last time. Mingi’s voice resounded.

Your eyebrows furrowed as you looked over at your phone. “Where’s Mingi?” You asked Yunho.

“He’s in the shower.” The man answered you.

You hummed to yourself, looking over at your computer screen.

I want to be smothered in them. Really I do. His thoughts once again penetrated your mind.

You shut your laptop closed, picking up your phone and moving from the computer. You felt a shiver go down your spine as dirty images seemed to pop up in your head. Your eyes went wide, making quick work to reach your bedroom and lay down.

“Angel, are you okay?” Yunho asked, shuffling around in the hotel room.

“Yeah. I’m fine.” You told him, sitting on your bed.

“Mingi!” You heard Yunho shout. “Hurry up.”

“Don’t lie to me. I saw them too.” The man sighed over the phone.

An unbearing heat crept over your body, your muscles twitching at the revelation Yunho had just told you. Of course, he had heard Mingi too.

“It’s nothing I’m not used to.” You told him quietly.

Yunho snorted. “I’m realizing how terrible that must have been. We’re so sorry you had to witness those things.” He laughed.

“I mean, I had needs too. You weren’t the only one I would assume.” You giggled.

“You are in fact right. Choi Minho? I see.” Yunho laughed out loud.

“Yunho!” Your face turned hot.

You fell back onto your bed, phone pressed to your ear. As you heard Mingi step out of the shower and get scolded by Yunho, the only thing that was brought to your mind was the amount of times you would scold yourself for thinking filthy things, knowing your soulmates were probably seeing them as well.

Was Mingi really thinking about me that way? You asked yourself.

You subconsciously began to rub at your thighs, lightly skimming your fingers over the tops of them and up to your hips. The shirt you wore to bed raised up with your hands, allowing the air in the room to cool your skin.

They are in fact soft. Thank you for noticing. You giggled in your head.

Just as your fingers were about to slip under your panties to touch your hip bone, Yunho called out for you over the phone.

“Angel?” He spoke quietly.

“Yes?” You spoke quickly, dropping your hand from your hips and sitting up.

“Everything okay over there?” He asked breathlessly.

“Yes. I’m fine.” You moved along the bed, wanting to get comfortable.

“We beg to differ.” Mingi’s voice was heard over the phone, closer to the speaker.

“Don’t stop on our account.” He told you.

Your eyebrows furrowed. “Finish what?”

“Angel, we saw everything.” Yunho laughed. He took a deep breath, speaking closer to the phone in a breathless whisper. “What else you want to think about? We want to see more.”

Your breath got caught in your throat, huffing out air, which made the boys sigh as they heard you. You sighed deeply, suddenly thinking about how the boys might be waiting for your response on the other end. Their excited wide eyes, mouth hung open at the imagines you could be sending them.

You took one glance at your phone before quickly taking off your shirt. You had always enjoyed the feeling of something brushing along your skin. So your soft fingers drifting over your torso and legs only made you think about all the things that you wanted the boys to see.

You thought about their own hands drifting along your skin. Yunho’s hands softly glide over your rib cage and past the slope of your breasts–skipping over your nipples. His nails would lightly scratch you, causing shivers to wrack through your body. His touch would burn trails as he went along, leaving your skin cold the more he traveled further down your body.

Mingi would use his entire palm, giving a message of sorts. He would allow his palm to grip over your neck, not knowing how to be light with his touches. His warm hand would allow itself to settle over one of your breasts, rolling your nipple over between his fingers. He would be mesmerized by it, mouth wide open as he thought about taking it into his mouth.

“Please let me.” You opened your eyes at Mingi’s whimper.

You gasped, having forgotten they were on the phone listening in. Your hand had drifted down to feel rub at your hips, the band snapping back as you pulled your hand out.

“Mingi?” You questioned, pulling the phone closer.

“Please. Can I suck on your tits?” He moaned out, huffing into the mic of the phone.

“Mingi.” Yunho whined, shuffling on the other side. “Come here.”

You could only think about the older boy pulling Mingi into his arms, softly rubbing at his back to calm him down.

“Please, Mingi.” You huffed.

You closed your eyes when all of a sudden the image of Mingi’s hot mouth on your breast filled your head. The boy was suckling softly, allowing his mouth to fill with your skin. One of his hands would squeeze at it, messaging. He moved it towards the valley between them, gripping onto the other one. Your back arched, blissful sighs slipping past your mouth.

Your fingers moved in between your thighs, finally slipping further down. You dug your fingers further, knees jerking when they felt the warm, wet skin. You withered on the bed, a moan slipping out and into the phone at your side.

“Angel,” Yunho breathed out. “Are you touching yourself?” He asked you quietly.

You could hear Mingi’s whimpers on the other end, wondering what it was they were doing.

“Angel, I’m speaking to you.” Yunho growled quietly.

Mingi’s cry made you flinch, but you answered Yunho anyway. “Yes.” You whispered.

“I would hope so.” He chuckled. “Keep going. Mingi wants more.”

“What about you?” You asked quietly.

“You think I’m not enjoying myself? I have to keep my pretty babies happy first.”

Your breath got caught in your throat from the way he was speaking. It was clear he was someone who took charge of things. He knew how to talk to people and get them to do what he wanted. And if you weren’t about to listen, you would force yourself to.

Your head began to come up with scenarios where you were at Yunho’s mercy, Mingi going along with it all. He would move to the end of the bed, kneeled between your legs as Mingi kept your breasts in his mouth but turned, so he could watch Yunho.

The image was wiped out as Yunho’s thoughts quickly overpowered your own. You moaned out loudly when Yunho was suddenly leaned down between your thighs, face pressed tightly to your core. His large hands held your hips down tightly, keeping you from moving too much. You could only imagine what his tongue must have felt like in real life.

Your hips bucked up as your fingers moved faster. You withered on the bed, clenching the muscles in your thighs as you panted over the image. Mingi cried out again, hearing your whimpered moan.

“Yunho.” He cried out, rutting his hips into the older man’s hand.

You whined along with him, wanting to know what it was they were up to. “Please, tell me what you’re doing.”

Instead, you only got an image. Mingi was sprawled out on top of Yunho, while the older bot moved his hand up and down on Mingi’s shaft. Mingi was a moaning mess, allowing himself to submit to Yunho’s grasps. He kept rutting his hips up and down, cheek pressed to Yunho’s chest.

You moaned out again, finally reaching where you needed the most attention. You could feel the wetness that was slowly seeping out, rubbing it around to add more slick to your clit.

You flinched, whimpering from the stimulation.

“Doll, please. I want more.” Mingi huffed.

“You heard him, Angel.” Yunho chuckled, squeezing at the man’s base.

You allowed yourself to fall prey to the thoughts of being filled by them. The moment you allowed your fingers to slip into your hole, was the moment you started to think about Yunho pounding into you.

He had taken your ankles in his hands, holding your legs up as his mouth hung open from the feeling of your walls tightening around him. Mingi was holding your face as his lips moved over yours, fingers pressing into your neck. You had your hand wrapped around him, giving him pumps every once in a while.

Mingi suddenly let out a loud moan when your thoughts came into his head. Yunho laughed, rutting his hips into Mingi’s torso that was covering him. At the man’s movements, Mingi was quick to move down and place Yunho’s tip into his mouth. This caused the man to grunt.

“Angel, you're so good.” Yunho huffed, patting Mingi’s head as he spoke to you over the phone. “You’re such a good boy.” He turned to Mingi, dragging his fingers through the boy's hair.

Yunho allowed the image to be engraved into his head, giving you a sneak peek at what was going on. Mingi had his nose pressed to Yunho’s hips, cheeks hollowed out. His head bobbed up and down, hands jerking off the parts that were out of his mouth.

You cried out, causing Yunho to laugh. “Be a good girl, keep sending us your dirty thoughts.”

With the image of Mingi over Yunho’s cock, you began to think about how they could do that with you there. Your first deduction would be you on top of Mingi, moving your hips up and down along his shaft, causing him to whine out from the pressure. He would be loud, or at least try to be.

Yunho was over him, rutting his hips into the boy’s mouth. He would have Mingi’s head hanging off the edge of the bed, enjoying the view of you swiveling your hips. As Yunho would hold back, he moans and grunts, his hand reaching over to your clit, moving his fingers quickly.

You cried out, head falling back as your nails scraped against Mingi’s chest. With Yunho’s fingers stimulating you and Mingi’s cock hitting that perfect spot every time, you found yourself quickly reaching the point of no return.

Just as the “you” in your vision reached her climax, you cried out into the phone, legs tightening up from the stimulation. Yunho let out a loud groan, shoving his hips deeper into Mingi’s mouth from hearing you climax.

“Come here, sweet boy.” He quickly pulled Mingi up to his knees, leaning down to suck Mingi off.

The boy was already overstimulated, so it didn’t take long for him to cum with a cry. You moaned loudly along with him, whining at the sound that came from his throat. Yunho swiped his tongue along his lip, licking up the mess. As he leaned back into the pillow, Mingi was quick to take Yunho again, wanting him to reach his orgasm as well.

Yunho didn’t hold back this time, using Mingi’s mouth as he pleased. He held the boy’s head down, trying to reach his high, just as you and Mingi had. His eyes rolled to the back of his head when a new image turned up.

Both you and Mingi leaned over his cock, tongues swiping over the length of it. You both looked up at him with glossy eyes, waiting for him to cum. It was when he saw you both open your mouths that his eyes closed and he shoved Mingi’s head down.

His loud moan made you twitch from over stimulation, having continued touching yourself until you knew they both had come. You clenched your legs, fingers keeping still inside yourself. You could feel the throb going through your cunt, which only made you hum at the sensation.

“Angel, are you okay?” Yunho asked you from the phone.

“Is Mingi okay?” You asked back.

Yunho looked down at the boy who had licked his lips cleaned as he had, slumped over to the side as he cuddled into Yunho. The older man laughed lightly, rubbing fingers through Mingi’s hair.

“He’s perfect.” He told you.

“Then I’m perfect, too.” You lazily smiled.

“A month until we go home.” Yunho told you.

Your eyes were drifting shut, as your body tried to come down from the high you had experienced. “I can’t wait to see you.” You softly told him.

“We can’t either.”

NETWORKS:

@cultofdionysusnet @pirateeznet @sandsofire

[bethanyactually]

some Nancy/Ace things about the Nancy Drew series finale that I think are great*

Nancy trying to apologize to Ace IMMEDIATELY when he walks into the HistSo

Nancy being visibly uncomfortable at the idea of Tristan being her soulmate

jealous!Ace being so very done

Nancy being totally nonplussed about Tristan talking to and touching her

Ace trying to instruct Tristan in how amazing Nancy is, and how to be a good maybe-soulmate to her

Ace volunteering to be the lifeguard

Nancy being like 'Tristan and I have to be on the verge of death? Sure sounds like a regular Tuesday' and also like 'No, Ace, a dying mind is dangerous, you can't take the risk!'

the curse being A VISIBLE CONNECTION between Nancy and Ace in the mindweave that will always let them find each other (shoutout to @stuckonaglacierwithmacgyver's tags on this post of @thereigning-lorelai's which I am always low-key thinking about)

"Your decision to call to the Sin Eater on my behalf was an act of love."

"Because I forgive you. Nancy, with everything I have, I forgive you."

"I'm not leaving you!"

Ace holding onto Nancy almost the whole time they were exiting the burning HistSo

Ace processing shit on his own, without anyone having to nag him into it! Saying goodbye to Alice! PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE and wanting Nancy to know about it!

Ace not being a dick about Nancy having her own plans! (feels like a very ‘the bar is on the floor’ kind of thing, but still.)

basically a proposal, and a joyful acceptance

a HUG

Nancy affectionately pushing Ace’s hair out of his face while Ace holds onto her elbows

Nancy and Ace honestly admitting they’re scared but want to do this anyway 

A BIG GODDAMN KISS, initiated by Nancy grabbing Ace's face and yanking him into it

a joke in the middle of a kiss

Laughter! Relief! Giddiness!! ANOTHER HUG

Nancy and Ace being basically the same with the Crew they always have been (exchanging glances, nonverbal conversations)

with bonus hand-holding

Nancy kissing Ace’s hand and him barely reacting because it’s no big deal, this is just the way they are

Snuggles with the entire Crew, in which Nancy and Ace are having their own kind of moment yet Ace’s other arm is around Bess and Nancy’s other arm is around George

After four seasons of Ace often looking like he wants to hug Nancy but isn't sure if a hug would be welcomed, Ace initiates a hug--without hesitation! with a smile on his face!!!--and Nancy immediately reciprocates

*I've seen some interesting takes about s4, and the finale specifically, and while of course everyone's entitled to their opinion, it got me thinking about what I loved about the finale. So I wrote a list.

[tommyssupercoolblog]

lmao bc u keep putting it on my dash (/aff) can u pls explain the d&p stuff to me?

Dan and Phil are vlog YouTubers (although they did start a gaming channel) who were REALLY famous in the 2010s and then started popping off again recently.

They became online friends first, ✨ through the magic of the internet ✨ and then at some point in 2009 Dan boarded a train to come see Phil, and then just kind of...never left? He went to college but it was near Phil's house and he spent more time at Phil's house than his dorm, with most of his stuff there. It started as him coming by regularly to "do his laundry" in Phil's washing machine but then he just kinda. Latched onto him like moss

According to a more recent video when Dan went on his we're all doomed tour, the longest that had been apart before then, SONCE 2009, was like a week. Girl.

Anyways they started doing videos together and eventually became one of the BIG YouTube channels , and also started getting shipped under the shipname "Phan". Far from being repulsed by this, they went out of their way to stalk Tumblr tags and read fanfiction in their videos, even featuring well done fanart. Even outside of Phan, like, they had a thing where for a bit every video would feature a drawing where someone drew Phil naked and they called it "today's draw Phil naked". That being said they regularly claimed to like women and be straight.

There was also some truthing and harassment with some of the more disrespectful Phan shippers who didn't follow the rules of RPF, because a lot of people didn't really know how to go about it back then and also there were some genuine assholes. So that was less fun then the normal shipping.

They launched a gaming channel at some point in I think 2016? And also released a book and a tour, which is available on DVD also.

Then they went on hiatus, and it was radio silence for YEARS .....UNTIL ......

THEY BOTH RELEASE COMING OUT VIDEOS AND COME OUT AS GAY.

Dan also talked about how it was "obvious that we're more than just friends" and everyone knew it, because. Yeah. And says that they're also more than romantic- SOULMATES, destined to be together, put on this earth so they could meet online and become Dan and Phil. Okay girl

They regularly make references to loving each other but refuse to specifically, in plain terms, tell the press they are dating, because of privacy reasons. Some people think it's a "we only want the people who get it to get it" situation, some people think their relationship is actually queerplatonic or something, but regardless there's something queer going on and they aren't hiding that anymore, nor the fact that they are life partners, but wether or not they apply a traditional "boyfriend" label to it is something they refuse to answer. Which is honestly ICONIC???

They designed a house together, had it built, and now live there together in their lovely phouse, and have also started adding the prefix "ph" to things to denote that they're Dan and Phil or Phandom related, something the Phans have also picked up. The regularly make jokes about Phan and also about not just having sex, but even their specific dynamic? Phil is apparently a pillow princess who Dan doms. Like. Okay.

They're notoriously co-dependent, they go everywhere together, if one person opens their phone the other will also look because everything they own is shared and they just use apps together like that? Like. Phil will get a text or vice versa and they'll BOTH LOOK and respond. They also tag all their posts on Instagram as shared like, basically ever since that's been a feature.

They bicker a lot and it's so silly,,, poggers

They ALSO are well known for dropping massive bombshells on their fanbase or being chaotic to them for fun. Tormenting them back for the phanfiction, as it were.

Anyway. In 2015 there was a famous Tumblr heritage post called "but seriously imagine it" where someone said this

Today marks the 15th anniversary of Dan and Phil's first meetup, that fateful day when Dan got off that train and first saw Phil in person....but it ALSO is, wildly, a day where later tonight in American Time (so most people farther up will be asleep), all of the bands in this post are performing on the same stage.

Dan and Phil have REFERENCED THIS POST recently in the leadup to this and even brought a cardboard cutout of Gerard Way out at one of their shows, so the phandom is BUZZING because of the possibility of some stunt related to the post, AND the fact it's also ON THEIR PHANIVERSARY.

this has kicked off the Phantoberfest/Pharmageddon where everyone has the same profile picture, and also lots of edits celebrating 15 years, lots of memes, and general shit posting and panic as everyone anticipates whatever shit these guys are about to get up to next.

[hellonerf]

endless insanity incoherent shit about ame and love and family(featuring england and cana a bit specifically sorry france i actually do have thoughts about that there but i'm lazy and tired and this is incoherent already)(it didn't start off like that this is honestly like some stream of thought shit hence the incoherence)

some shit when i think about. sorry. colonial ame extremely upset tantrums theres no way england didnt hit him or spank him which would just upset ame more. ame would sulk and wish for england to drop dead because theres not much else he can say or do about the frustration. cana goody two shoes kid would be like why do you have to act out like that so much... ame immediate rage. probably hits cana like GO CRY ABOUT IT!!! and cana cries and then england walks in like America!!! and it just gets worse. but in the end when england has to leave again ame still clings and cries after england is saying his goodbyes. england does feel that he cares about ame deeply, so he does try to show his affection. theres some gap here between the care he shows and his "responsibility as a caretaker" if you will... and he's like a teen dad at this point? with his own shitload of baggage and ideas on responsibility from that baggage. man this family can be so interesting. i love tension

of course. this is just my crazythinking that in situations where, you could say, england's parenting was abusive of sorts, specifically in the physical way, to punish tantrums or etc... i think cana would be inclined to try to play polite kid to avoid punishment. and so he would feel maybe more vindicated? that he's the good example. in this it creates kind of a chasm between england/cana and ame. (why i think mapletea would just drive ame crazy wall smashing head insane, besides that ame already feels jealous/insecure like that anyways no matter what) this feeling is pushed by the revolution where ame and england are Like That, and here again cana sides with england(he's not Fully in it but he does technically side with england, and ame definitely views it like that). to him this is proof... of what you ask? i don't know..... that period where he was on decidedly bad terms with both of them, i always think he's like teenage-losing it about it. won't show it or at least will try not to of course, but it's genuinely something that eats at him so hard. (ame voice Nobody loves me. Everyone should love me. i could probably make that happen.) and ame decides things like that first and foremost with personal relations. this is specific, but im like, i think it's a mental testing he does on people. example, completely without their knowledge, someone's random act can register in his brain as an opposition to him, because his mind decided that's what it means.(somewhere subconscious). so for some time i'd imagine in his mind, that cana and england hated him, or looked down on him, or expected him to wind up dead anyways. ame is never not looking for approval and this fuels that sooooo much. it's like spite and anger and crying and stomping on the ground and in a way grieving. he's staring at the sky like it's unfair. they don't want me in their life. because i'm better than them. i hate them so much.(he wouldn't say it like this to other people, hate is a strong word, and i wouldn't say he hates them here either)

despite his bravado of "whaat? everyone likes me right?" the mental cogs are stuck here no matter what he says. cana loves him, even if it's so frustrating to, cana cares about him deeply. it fucks with ame's brain but he knows this deep down, that cana does love and care about him. at some point too he knows the same for england. but i also think he's like, specifically with cana too when he's specifically being really cynical about relations is like, "oh and he's only around... cause he has to be..." and ame wouldn't entirely be wrong there. and cana would argue so what! do you need a cosmic soulmate love to prove something? and ame is like (yeah i kinda do....). love can't just exist for you right here right now?! cana's love is "invalidated" in this sense. and also it hurts his brain too much to really think about the complexities in his relationship to both england and cana. that they really did care about him, but it's not easy. (hurts his brain... like why is interaction so stressful? why is it complicated? why can't people just go i love you and the end?). ame is not a romantic person but i think his view on love can get so fantastical like this. (he wants to be the one proposed to awwww omg you guysss...) at the same time it's a very simple view on love. he doesn't want to end up humiliated and is willing to humiliate others to avoid it. if love is true then there is One True Love... For him... JK! NOT FOR HIM!(slurps soda) who needs that shyit!!!(eats burger). a lot of things he can't/really doesn't want to accept. this is why i'd say anytime he ever felt feelings significant enough that even he would call it love it was mindnumbingly overwhelming. putting his eggs in one basket... don't fail me now!!! (and i always think none of his relationships are stable. duh. so). i like fics where ame is made to be like a crazy ex girlfriend. because he would. rather than love as a constant thing to do it sometimes feels more like an achievement or endpoint for him. something that happens at the end of movies lol... if love was happening REALTIME it'd be surreal for him to process. and like true genuine love not his fake idea of what love looks like

[jadeylovesmarvelxo]

Steve harrington x reader

Steve won the poll last time so this is a Steve fic :) ❤️

Part one

You and Steve grow closer after he saved you from the monstrous bats, you begin to spend the night with him, no sex just comfort.

It doesn't take long for feelings to deepen between the two of you.

18+ minors go away.

❤️

The first night once Eddie left was horrendous, you were exhausted and hurting all over. After taking some pain meds you still couldn't sleep.

Every position hurt like a bitch, when you closed your eyes all you saw was those vicious bats, heard that shriek that would haunt you for months on end.

You could have died. If Steve hadn't turned up you would have and that thought has anxiety choking you, clawing at your throat and making it hard to breathe.

This continues the next night as well which leaves you and into the next. By the time it's Monday you're cranky, sleep deprived and in no mood for Eddie's continued annoyance at your moment with Steve.

"For goodness sake Eddie, would you cut this shit out. He saved my life, he's a good guy. Just drop it" Eddie quietens but still drums his fingers on the table, a habit of his when he's annoyed.

"Wow, someone is bitchy today" Stacy snipes and Eddie glares at her exasperated. Dustin said they had some kind of argument on Friday but you don't know about what, honestly you're sick of the drama from her.

"Sorry of lack of sleep from nearly being bat chow and finding a dead body is making me a little out of sorts" usually you ignore her itchiness but you aren't putting up with it today.

By the end of the day you're eager just to get home, have a shower and head to bed and attempt to relax, you're head is pounding and the wounds are still hurting from time to time.

You can't head home though because Hellfire has an extra meeting today and it's past five before it finishes. You're suprised to see Steve but remember he will be picking up Dustin, Lucas and Mike.

He walks over to you looking concerned, gently touching your shoulder.

"You okay? How are your wounds healing?" the way he cares about you, even though he barely knows you makes you feel all warm and happy.

"I'm okay, they still hurt but they are healing, are you okay?" he nods and shrugs like it's no big deal.

"I've had worse, it's the nightmares... He shudders, it's better now than it used to be but they can come back out of nowhere" you definitely can sympathise with him and find yourself telling him about your own nightmares.

As you do his frown grows increasingly and he runs his hand through his perfectly styled hair, he opens his mouth then pauses before speaking.

"If you want you could come to mine, my parents are never around and it gets lonely. We could watch movies, just hang out for a while. I don't want you to be alone in this sweetheart" you brighten at this and nod.

"I'd like that"

❤️

It was like a weight had been lifted of you when you were with Steve. Mostly you just talked and set up a den of sorts in his lounge. Blankets, snacks and movies.

Robin joins you and Steve for a little while and watching their affection for each other fills your heart with joy. You're pretty sure they are platonic soulmates or something.

You find yourself opening up more to Steve about your complicated feelings for Eddie, he confides in you about Nancy and it feels good to get a lot of things of your chest, things you could never say to Eddie in fear of ruining your friendship.

"The burden of unrequited love. Shit, we're hopeless aren't we" Steve jokes and you snort, you really were.

When you head upstairs with Steve to his room you're struck by how bare his room is, there's not many personal touches at all. It hurts your heart that his parents don't seem to care about him one bit, only sending home the latest fashion and pushing Steve to be like them.

He could never be like that, he was too warm, full of love. You're just getting to know him and you can see that, plus Dustin, Lucas and Mike worship him.

"Uh, I can sleep on the floor, you take the bed" Steve offers. As he makes up a bed on the floor you tug his hand gently.

"There's plenty of room, can you sleep beside me just for tonight" The minute you look at Steve with a pleading puppy eyed gaze he's putty in your hands.

"Sure" he slips in beside you and you just talk for a little bit, talk until you're both struggling to stay awake and Steve's voice is thick with sleep.

Your eyes grow heavier and you fall asleep, to your surprise it's peaceful and when you wake in the morning nightmare free you feel so full of relief.

Steve's arm is slung around your waist and pulling you close to him. It feels nice, really nice and you're happy to fall back into a deep slumber.

❤️

You don't know when it was suddenly decided that you would spend every night at Steve's. At first it was because Steve's parents were never around, he was lonely and craved company, while you craved comfort and you helped each other.

It's so you both didn't feel so alone in dealing with all this monsters and shit that were in Hawkins. There was no way those bats weren't from some sort of hell dimension, they weren't normal that was for sure.

When you were around Steve the nightmares weren't so vivid and frightening, you'd wake up beside Steve and his arms would instinctively wrap around you, holding you close and whispering that you were okay.

One time you sleep so well with Steve, that you wake up late for classes and you're in a rush to get to school.

Steve drives you and Robin, who woke the two of you up, the little smile she had on her face, seeing you and Steve entwined leaves no doubt she will be grilling Steve about it.

Steve who look pink cheeked and didn't notice, when you stole one of his grey hoodies to wear because it was freezing outside.

He's not the only one who notices, Eddie was curious why you were late and at lunch Dustin looks at you wide eyed and points to the hoodie. ''Hey, that's Steve's"

The whole of Hellfire turn to look at you with varying expressions. Jeff and Gareth uses it as ammo to tease the shit out of you, Eddie is stunned and the rest are more interested in the campaign to care.

"Wait so you're dating Steve now?" Mike asks confused and you shake your head, though the thought of dating Steve gives you butterflies, which you ignore. No way are you entertaining what that means.

So yeah Robin knows, and now Dustin and the rest of Hellfire are aware that you and Steve are close.

"So you sleep together but not actually together?" Eddie asks looking confused and a little suspicious when you explain that you're spending the night at Steve's again.

"I can't explain it Eddie, it's just really nice and comforting, he's turning into a great friend" you say and Eddie grumbles and slams his locker shut.

"You have me, you can confide in me. We used to have sleepovers and shit all the time" he points out and you stifle a smile.

"Eddie we were kids then and besides you have a girlfriend who wouldn't he happy with that" he sighs and shakes his head, the look in his eyes concerns you. Did something happen with Stacy?

"We broke up, she was just too jealous and possessive. Last I heard she's dating some dude from the swim team now. Anyway, can we get back to you and Harrington"

You sigh and know that no matter what you say it's just going to cause him to be annoyed because he can't see that Steve is a decent dude.

He gets distracted by Gareth asking questions about the campaign but his reaction to Steve and news about his break up with Stacy is in your head all day, strangely it doesn't fill you with the happiness you thought it would.

Steve comments on your head being in the clouds later that night while he's making dinner and you shrug apologetically and let him know what's happened.

"Eddie broke up with Stacy" he stops chopping vegetables and his stance is suddenly tense, his jaw clenched.

"Oh, yeah? I guess that makes you happy, I mean maybe the two of you might end up together" his voice turns quiet and you want to know why he's suddenly went so... well moody judging by the way he's acting.

"I thought that's what I wanted but now I'm not so sure" Steve turns to face you and he looks less tense this time.

"Thought Munson was your dream guy?" he teases and you really don't know what that is anymore. So when the image of Steve as that guy enters your mind it throws you for a loop.

Well fuck.

A few days later you lay beside Steve, very sleepy and keen to ignore the beeping of his alarm. Steve is awake and absentmindedly tracing your arm with his thumb.

He looks lost in thought and you gently nudge him wondering what's going on in his head.

"Are your scars healing well?" you nod and narrow your eyes at him, you know very well he will look after everyone else first and himself last.

"Are yours?" he nods and you pin him with your best stern gaze that makes him laugh.

"Yes. I promise sweetheart. Shit, Nance gave me a telling off last time when I didn't" this makes you bite back a laugh but you know Nancy takes no prisoners so Steve will have been well and truly chastised.

He tugs off his shirt to show you and you pause as you remember the last time you and Steve were like this. That kiss...

The kiss that was so chaste and lasted only a few seconds but made you eager for more, kinda punch drunk and giddy whenever you remember it.

You focus on his wound thats completely healed and left only a tiny scar. Ever so gently you trace over it and your heart beats faster when you hear Steve exhale, then you kiss the scar tenderly, a soft sweet kiss.

"All better" you murmur and scarper out of bed when you hear Robin downstairs. Pink blooms up Steve's cheek and there's an ache inside you that wants nothing more than to bridge the distance between you and Steve, kiss him again.

You really were screwed.

❤️

Steve had a date. The words ring in your ears and you try to hide your reaction from Robin but from the way she's staring at you, it's obvious she knows something.

You had shower up at Family Video eager to see Steve and discuss plans for tonight, maybe Robin could stay over and the three of you could make a night of it?

However when you bring this up to Steve he suddenly went really quiet and a strange pit filled your stomach.

"Uh, I can't tonight honey. I have a date, you know the blonde who comes in here every Thursday for 60's movies, well she asked me out"

The pit in your stomach intensifies and you nod feeling incredibly foolish.

"I can cancel, I mean if you think there's a reason why I shouldn't go" he says to you and you shake your head. No, you can't be selfish and want to have him all to yourself. Maybe he really liked this girl and she could make him happy.

"Don't be silly. Go and have fun. Don't worry about me" you force a smile onto your face, you wouldn't ruin his opportunity for happiness just so he could comfort you. You needed to deal with this yourself.

Was it just your imagination or did he look disappointed when you said that?

Before you can figure out why that is, the girl comes in and she's gorgeous. Tall, blonde and bubbly with killer blue eyes. There's a full ache in your heart as you greet her and find out she's called Emily and works at the arcades.

Quietly you slip out and leave Steve and Emily to bond. All the way home you feel sick to your stomach, the realisation that you've fallen hard for Steve sinks in.

And he doesn't feel the same way.

❤️

It's getting pretty late once you finish watching one of the films you've rented. Its past midnight and you're eyes grow heavy sleep beckoning.

The doorbell rings and you jump, it's unexpected and you never have visitors at this time.

When you find Steve waiting outside you're definitely surprised.

"Steve? How was your date?" he shakes his head and you worry that it hasn't went well.

"What happened?" you motion for him to come inside and he shrugs off his jacket, then turns to you his smile tender, his soft gaze makes your heart skip a beat.

"She was great, she's sweet, pretty" of course she was perfect. Perfect for Steve, you smile brightly even if you don't feel so chirpy.

"That's great Steve" his hazel eyes capture yours and he shrugs, the intensity in his gaze is making you feel all fuzzy.

"Really? Doesn't feel that great, I should be happy but I wasn't because all I can think about is you"

Hope blooms as you take in his words and move closer to him. His knuckles graze gently across your cheek, you lean into his touch and he looks at you with complete adoration.

"You're amazing, you're beautiful and kind, I can't stop thinking about you" He pulls your closer to him and kisses you, elated you kiss him back and run your hands through his hair.

Soft moans issue from your throat and he pulls back smiling, then presses a gentle kiss to your forehead.

"You wanna be my girl?" he asks you and there's a shyness in his tone which is very endearing.

"I'd love to Steve"

Fin 💕

[steddieunderdogfics]

This week’s writer spotlight feature is:  @alwaysurvalentine! alwaysurvalentine has 11 fics in the Stranger Things fandom on AO3 and all of them are in the Steddie tag!

@dame-zoom-a-lot recommends the following works by @alwaysurvalentine:

bad days were meant to be shared

three strikes and you're out!

aquariums and sweethearts

"If I had to put an image to their fics… I'd say a warm blanket and a piece of cake.

Their slices of life fics get cooked with so much care and thought. A lot of them are my go-to when I'm feeling kind of off or lonely. They approach conflict with so much empathy and realism. No one's just shitty out of the blue with zero reason, and characters talk things out in a way that feels like how real people would talk. There's rarely clear villains or clean-cut forever happy-ending type resolutions in real life, and their fics shine at showing the beauty of that." -- @dame-zoom-a-lot

Below the cut, @alwaysurvalentine answered some questions about their writing process and some of their recommended work!

Why do you write Steddie?

Honestly, I just really vibe with both of them as characters. It’s easy to draw some of my own parallels with how Eddie sees the world and Steve’s fall from grace within my personal life - so it’s nice to play around with characters who I can understand. Plus I love taking the “protectors” from the narrative and forcing them to allow others to care for them.

What’s your favorite trope to READ?

I’m a sucker for any type of soulmate au, the ones with soulmarks are my guilty pleasures. Just something about knowing there’s someone out there destined to care about you makes me feel all warm and fuzzy

What’s your favorite trope to WRITE?

Anything slice of life or found family - I just love getting to give characters all the love and care they deserve. Especially when canon has put them through the ringer!!

What’s your favorite Steddie fic?

With no cross to bear (these words just come out) by hitlikehammers https://archiveofourown.org/works/45052120/chapters/113340064 I come back to this fic again and again. Love their Eddie POV and all of the reactions from the party feel authentic and I just love a fic that really shows how much everyone cares about Steve (even if he doesn’t see it).

Is there a trope you’re excited to explore in a future work but haven’t yet?

I’ve had a big idea about a possession type fic starring Eddie. It’s gonna be a big project though so it may be workshopped and shelved for another time while I work on some other stuff!

What is your writing process like?

Music is my biggest inspiration and I listen to Spotify all of the time (my spotify wrapped is about to be WILD), but usually I’ll get a spark of an idea from a song, scribble down a quick interaction I can see, and then once I get home it’s getting it all out on a doc. It usually takes me a few days to a week for me to get a fic where I want it, especially when the characters take things into their own hands for the narrative (I’m looking at Eddie and Robin here)

Do you have any writing quirks?

I actually write everything in red text until I decide I like the section. I have so many documents that have different colored text based on how I feel about it. Black means it’s ready to be proofread/don’t change, purple or blue for things I want to rewrite, and then red for what I’ve gotten down but isn’t edited/reviewed yet. Besides that I also go in thinking I’m going to keep it short and sweet and then I blink and we’re 2k in - but it’s been fun nonetheless!

Do you prefer posting when you’ve finished writing or on a schedule?

If I’m doing a prompt challenge usually it’s as soon as I’m done (totally not because I finish the day of…totally not that) but other than that I have a personal schedule to have certain things done by, otherwise I’ll nitpick forever.

Which fic are you most proud of?

Three Strikes and You’re Out! It was super fun to play around with connecting baseball terms to DnD in a way that still made sense and wasn’t just a block of info text.

How did you get the idea for aquariums and sweethearts?

It was actually a little followup I did for another fic, where Eddie visited the aquarium with Uncle Wayne but wasn’t able to get the souvenir he wanted. And I wanted Steve to kinda complete that circle, plus I wanted them to have a moment where they could kinda be kids again.

When writing aquariums and sweethearts, what was something you didn’t expect?

I honestly didn’t expect it to be so long, I was just going to write a tiny follow up but got carried away with my own aquarium memories and research so I just kept wanting to add more and more

What inspired three strikes and you're out!?

I feel like I’ve seen a lot of fics where Steve meets Eddie halfway with his interests and I wanted to see the opposite. Like it’s one thing for Eddie to concede that being a jock isn’t so bad, but it’s another for him to go out and learn about a sport/something that doesn’t interest him at all, ya know?

What was your favorite part to write from three strikes and you're out!?

Oooh! Such a hard question, for me it’s a tie between the conversation Eddie has with Lucas and his conversation with Uncle Wayne. I just liked putting Eddie in a situation where he was the one learning, instead of being the one in charge/control.

How do/did you feel writing bad days were meant to be shared?

It was a little hard starting out, I knew a couple things I wanted to happen but besides that I really went in kinda blind. Once I got into the groove though, it felt like it just wrote itself. Steve knew what he was feeling and just guided me along.

What was the most difficult part of writing bad days were meant to be shared?

So fun fact, I actually wrote the first draft completely from Eddie's point of view. I was trying to find his voice (still feel like I’m working on this but progress is progress) but it just wasn’t flowing right and Dame-Zoom-A-Lot actually helped beta for me. They’re the one who suggested the point of view switch and it worked so well!!

Do you have a favorite scene and/or line from any of your fics?

A favorite scene I’ve written has to be in aquariums and sweethearts when Eddie and the Mime gang up on Steve to poke fun at him, it just felt like something Eddie would play along with and enjoy.  These couple of lines from Three Strikes and You’re Out! Make me really happy, like sent my friends a dorky screenshot because I liked them so much: “Eddie’s world narrows to the smell of Steve’s cologne, something that smells like rain on freshly cut grass and a hint of vanilla. Just as soon as Steve leaned in, he leans away, the sun painting orange and pink highlights in his hair when he tilts his head grinning.”

Do you have any upcoming projects or fics you’d like to share/promote?

I’m working on a Steve Harrington ‘character study’ from Hopper’s point of view currently and might be starting on an Anastasia AU starring Chrissy as Anya and Robin as Dimitri - super stoked for both of these!

Outside of these questions, Is there anything YOU would like to add?

Endless thanks to my nominator!! I just started posting for Steddie this August and it’s been unreal. So thankful for all of my new friends and can’t wait to share some more of my little ideas and chat with other people about their art and stories! <3

Thank you to our author, @alwaysurvalentine, and our nominator, @dame-zoom-a-lot ! See more of alwaysurvalentine's works featured on our page throughout the day!

Writer’s Spotlight is every Wednesday! Want to nominate an author? You can nominate them here!

[odetodilfs]

A work of art

A/N: This is honestly the cutest thing I've wrote in a while, happy pride month and enjoy this! Happy pride month btw!!

Pairing: ftm!Din Djarin x gender neutral!reader

CWs: Nothing but mentions of reader having scars (any kind)

Summary: Din doesn't like his chest, his top surgery scars specifically, and in a warm night where getting shirtless is the best option, you decide to comfort your man and reassure him that you love him.

Takes place probably in his little hut in Nevarro.

PLEASE REBLOG AS IT MOTIVATES ME TO KEEP WRITING!

Din’s body.. a piece of art, nothing short of an intervention from the gods. Such a broad back, beautiful muscles on his arms that made you feel safe in them. Some muscle on his neck and a good stomach that was perfect to lay on and kiss. His face as well, beautiful brown hair and eyes, an arched nose that you loved to feel nuzzling your neck, pouty lips that you yearned to kiss every second of the day as well as his mustache. Hands that always wanted to be on you, and you let him, you loved his hands as much as he loved using them to touch you.

But Din didn’t think the same about himself. One main thing held him back: his top surgery scars, he found them so ugly, he thought they ruined his body, that line running across his chest, he just couldn’t look at it for too long, it made him hate his own body. You were kind of aware of this, and this was why he hated warm nights, which was what tonight happened to be. 

“Din, seriously, take off your shirt” you pleaded, the man was becoming a human ocean next to you, “I’m fine” he said, obviously not

“You’re not, please, do it for me..” you pleaded with puppy eyes, his insecurities clashed against your requests. “But I’m so ugly without it, I wouldn’t want you to sleep on-” “Din, I genuinely don’t care about your scar, it’s part of who you are, the beautiful cluster of things you are…” you said, taking off his shirt and revealing his slightly toned body, the white line across his chest, “How can you not hate this?” “I don’t see any issue, we all have our things on our skin, I’m not scarless either, you know?” you chuckled, laying him on your bed and putting your head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

He had a deep blush all over his face, did you.. did you seriously not care about his scars? You were laying your head on them, not caring at all, just enjoying him with all the love you had for him. He felt light kisses on his chest, “You’re so beautiful..” you muttered on his chest, “A work of art..” you kept complimenting, kissing along the line on his torso, 

“Ah- y/n-” Din blurted out in shock, you loved him this much? “I’m telling you, I don’t care, you’re beautiful, you’re my soulmate and I’ll take everything that comes with you… you’re not ugly, you’re the most handsome man I’ve ever seen..” you lovingly told him, massaging his hair as you leaned in to kiss his lips. 

“Let’s sleep now, okay?” you asked, he just nodded, feeling too happy to speak, you laid your head on his chest, taking in the sight of his biceps, “I love you..” a faint voice came from above you,

“I love you too..” you whispered as you went to sleep on his chest, Din definitely grew more confident after that.

[dappy-dappernette]

I mean. Im not going to do anything about it, i kind of just thought that it was the general consensus. Can i ask you why you dont think hre is germany? You dont have to, im just curious.

-@secret-side-hetalia-blog

I sorta have a lot of reasons so I'll just list it out for cohesion, of course ppl are allowed to have their HCs but I personally just dislike the "HRE = Germany" thing:

The Amnesia HC is Boring:

I personally find the "Germany's just an amnesiac HRE" HC fairly boring and sort of uninteresting? It just feels like, kind of a cheap explanation and I'm not the biggest fan of the trope unless we have a really good reason for it (like in the game Witch's Heart).

I honestly find the concept of HRE and Germany being two different souls in the same body (or even just looking alike) far more interesting than the whole "Oooh Germany is HRE and someday all his memories will come back ooooh".

A friend also brought up the idea of like, Germany being HRE but due to the amnesia, he is pretty much a different person and will never be the same again. HRE is 100% gone, and won't even be back as a ghost, cause his whole personality and memories have been overwritten by Germany's. Which is, honestly A LOT more interesting as a way to use the amnesia HC that creates more interesting scenarios.

It Feels Like Germany Isn't Allowed to be His Own Character:

I know Hetalia isn't like, the most character heavy and cultured media out there, but I honestly feel like when people just go "Germany's just HRE with amnesia" his own character kind of just reduces to that in that regard??? Like, in that instance he feels more like a prop that isn't allowed to exist outside of the chibitalia storyline. And ngl some people do kinda treat it that way, as if Germany can't have a personality outside of "amnesiac/reincarnated HRE" and any characterization that isn't basically that is heresy.

Personal Fandom Reasons:

Back in the day I used to like this HC a lot more but didn't always 100% commit to it. I didn't start actively disliking it as much as I did until people started to treat it as 100% fact and started to get super toxic about it, acting as though if you dared to think otherwise you were the worst person on the planet.

It also didn't really help because people (usually if not always Gerita shippers) would use it as fodder and "proof" to attack anyone who dared to ship Germany with anyone and I mean ANYONE else other than Italy. Because "Oh but Italy and Germany are soulmates! You're stupid for shipping Germany with anyone else because he only has feelings for Italy because he's actually HRE!" to the point where I just like- Began to hate the HC and ship entirely.

This also ties in with the whole "Germany isn't allowed to exist outside of this HC" thing because people did treat it like that, that Germany was literally only allowed to exist as Italy's "amnesiac childhood sweetheart boyfriend with nothing else to his character or relationship" and that you were only allowed to accept that HC because "It's semi-canon uwu".

I'm also 99% that's one of the reasons as to why some of my friends in this fandom have left it because people can get really toxic about this subject.

[its-ashehausen]

ships thing for Bleach (which I know nothing about, but let's go!)

Otp: Ulquihime (although the storyline is a bit controversial for reasons) but they have a lot chemistry in my opinion, and just fit together in their own way. Plus the fanart and fanfics are incredible

Favorite Canon Pairing: Ginran (I don't know if I can really consider it canon since it wasn't specified if they were a couple or not) however I believe that they were some point in their lives. Basically Gin and Rangiku were friends when they were children, and he witnessed her get injured by the main villain of the series Aizen, he then makes a plan to join him and ultimately kill him when he seeks the moment of opportunity, so that Rangiku wouldn't have to cry anymore. In my opinion him and her, had one of the best relationships in bleach

Worst Pairing: Aizen & Momo (they don't have a ship name that I know of, and I plan to keep it that way since their relationship was very peculiar) Their relationship was a respectful one in the beginning, like a captain and a subordinate type relationship. However, Momo seemed to have stronger feelings past that point and Aizen used them against her many times, Momo would always find a way to defend his actions which would turn her against her friend Toshiro, she always saw good in Aizen but he never cared about her, she was just a tool to be manipulated so that he could further his plans. #MomoDeservedBetter

Guilty Pleasure Ship: Ishihime, they're basically friends to lovers but without getting together, they've been friends ever since High School and it's been obvious from the 2nd Arc that he kind of has a crush on her and I just think their friendship is so wholesome, I would've preferred them to be endgame.

The Pairing Everyone Likes but you're like: "lol no" that spot goes to Ichihime, yes they're cute, they have the whole friends to lovers, soulmates thing, but I honestly found them boring together and their relationship has always been one sided until like the last arc. She has been in love with him for so long and he always seemed to view her as one of his good friends. Plus every other ship I've seen them with, they just had better romantic chemistry with those people. I have no hate for the ship and people who ship it but I just never cared for it

Favorite Non-Canon Pairing; Ichiruki for obvious reasons (if you ever get the chance the watch it.) Their platonic relationship is honestly my favourite thing about this anime, and is one of the reasons I got into Bleach in the first place. (Although I do ship them too, I'm fine with them not ending up together)

A Pairing I wanted to see more of: Hitsukarin so their friendship was kind of short-lived plus all their interactions were never Canon. Which makes me sad, even though I shipped it, I was fine with them just being friends. Much like Ichiruki, I just wish their interactions were canon and we could've seen more of them.

[nixie-deangel]

Author love!!!! What are the 5 favourite fics you’ve ever written and why?

💚💙💜💚💙💜 Nonnie, know I am laying the gentlest of kisses upon your forehead and hugging you tightly.

Honestly though Nonnie, I enjoyed writing all of these for a variety of reasons. Each piece I've written holds a special place to me. Also please know Nonnie I cried when I got thise because i've been feeling a little blah about my writing but I went back and reread these and remembered why I loved them while I was trying to figure out which of my works i would add to this because damn it was HARD narrowing it down to five once I started rereading my stuff. So you know what people you should take the time every now and again to reread your own stuff!

In no particular order, here are my favorites I've written:

You Make Me Bold, You Make Me Strong: DCEU, Clois, NSFW.

Perhaps, she thinks, maybe she’ll get him to come once more for her. Though, she muses as she tilts her head, watches the way he pants, the way he’s gripping the sheets — doing his level best not to tear or damage them — she could probably squeeze two more out of him. Before calling it a night and letting him rest. Yes, she decides and shifts, widening her knees, getting herself more balanced, she’ll get two more out of him before letting him float without flying. 

Why: Because Clark absolutely DESERVES to be railed by his petite wife and her collection of stap-ons! Like, come on! He's a good boy! He deserves to be rawed and turned into a crying, whiney, blubbering, over stimulated mess.

Didn't Know I Was Lost: Star Wars, Obikin, Modern AU.

No, no, he thinks and shakes his head before pinching himself harshly on his cheek. “Ouch,” he muttered to himself, opening his eyes as he ignored the sting. Swallowing, around the lump once again forming in his throat, he simply stares. Because Obi-wan was still there. Still wrapped up in a perfectly tailored suit and his long beige coat, sitting with no bag in front of his front door. Or both Obi-wan and Anakin both try to make a grand gesture, but only one of them succeeds at it. Also feelings are discussed.

Why: This was honestly a delight to write, despite the angsty bits of it. It kind of just poured out of me and was like my hands were possessed as the story just flowed onto the doc. Was also beyond fun to play around and pack in so much emotion to the only one bed prompt.

The Malfunction: The Flash, Coldflash, Modern/Model AU.

Because of course Iris had mentioned at the last family dinner that she had been asked to cover one of the hottest stories in Central. Barry just wishes he’d bothered to actually ask her which one because standing not ten feet from him is Leonard Snart, Barry’s ultimate celebrity crush and a personal hero of his. *AU where Len is a model and he meets awkward Barry, a tech at a photo shoot.

Why: I wrote this when I was dealing with some feelings about my body issues and this is what came out as a result of me just deciding to not give a fuck about other's opinions and being comfortable with myself! I specifically wrote it as coldflash though, because of Wentworth Miller, who's own statements about people commenting about his body, also helped me with mine.

I'll Be Your Guard Heart: TGM, Hangster, Shifter AU.

Jake only loses control when it comes to Bradley Bradshaw and he was okay with that.

Why: Because I needed Jake to be an absolutely petty, feral, over protective, possessive bitch that's hidden under a veneer of cocky asshole! Really though, it was fun to write. Fun to come up with. And it's been fun expanding upon! (because I am planning to add more to this universe eventually!) Plus it is my favorite thing I've written so far this year.

Uncovering the Meaning: The Flash, Coldflash, Soulmate AU.

“It doesn’t matter, Leo. The little freak wouldn’t love you anyway. No one could love you, boy!” Lewis taunted cruelly. Len felt himself flinch from the memory of his father’s voice from the nightmare that’d woken him up. He brought his left hand to rub at the deep scar on the left side of his chest, but after a moment, he simply laid his palm flat against it.

Why: This was the first thing I'd written in years that was longer than 2k, so it holds a special place in my heart. Plus I met my bestie @asexual-fandom-queen through writing this!

[aninkwellofnectar]

Author Questionnaire Tag Game

Tagged by @tryingtimi and figured I'd give this gauntlet a go, lol.

About Me

When did you start writing?

Very, very young. I'd say about 6. I used to get on the computer and type out storylines similar to the animated movies I was watching (some mixture of Disney stuff lol) so they were kind of fairytale-oriented then I later moved into Neopets territory and then outright fanfic. I started writing seriously in my late teens to early 20s. Before that it was exclusively something I did for fun.

Are there genres/themes you enjoy reading different to the ones you write?

I used to read a lot of contemporary fiction though I've started reading a lot more fantasy in order to write it better. But my background in reading is very heavily oriented towards contemporary fiction and classics. It's weird now because I find I can't... get into contemp as much anymore. Part of that might be to do with how much I feel alienated and disenchanted with the real world, idk. Indie has gotten me into more things I otherwise wouldn't have touched like romance and horror (the latter I'm not opposed to on principle it's just not something I would pick up on its own) and I'm grateful for the expansion.

Is there an author you want to emulate, or one to whom you're often compared?

Before I read Patricia McKillip I would say no but she absolutely has what I want in one package. I admire her greatly. I wouldn't say I've ever been compared to an author but I'm open to comparisons if anyone has any.

Can you tell me a little about your writing space?

I do a lot of my writing at my desk with my desktop or on my laptop in my bed. I also write on my phone (blasphemy) but I suppose my desk is my "writing space" as it were and it's very cluttered ever since I start publishing with an array of stuff I use to run a business out of my bedroom.

What's your most effective way to muster up some muse?

Reading excerpts of books that have inspired me or re-watching scenes on Youtube of dialogue and characterisation that strikes the mood I want to bring to my own scenes. I find this helps overcome the "empathy gap" because I'm not a very emotive person. I'm very rational and what some people call "repressed".

Did the place(s) you grew up in influence the people and places you write about?

I suppose the family dynamics I write but I never really considered it until other people started talking about it in terms of "oh, it'd be nice if some families weren't dysfunctional" to me it's the normal families that are weird, even growing up with my childhood friends it was very abnormal for anyone to have like a stable two-parent dynamic. Perhaps this is just a class/background kind of thing but I write what feels emotionally true and familiar to me.

Are there any recurring themes of your writing, and if so, do they surprise you at all?

Self vs society, power vs love, escaping the constraints of a toxic community to seek liberation. And it's not really a surprise why that would crop up continually because it relates to things that I've continually had to grapple with in my own life.

My Characters

Would you please tell me about your current favourite character?

Laila Rose. She's the protagonist of my fantasy series and I love her to pieces. We've been through a lot together and even when I eventually stop writing her I will probably always love her the best and the most and want to continue her journey. Working up the courage to say goodbye to her has been immensely difficult, more than I anticipated. It's like trying to part ways with my soulmate. I feel like I've spoken at length on why I love her and I don't really want to repeat myself so please read The Essence of the Equinox and I hope you'll come to love her too.

Which of your characters do you think you'd be friends with in real life?

I'd definitely befriend Lyra, she'd be a riot honestly. Laila I'd be too intimidated by in real life to even think of approaching. Maybe I'd befriend Sabina as well, I could fix her, but not many of the others.

Which of your characters would you dislike most if you met them?

Dominus. He's pretty much like... everything I hate rolled into one package.

Tell me more about the process of coming up with your characters.

I often get inspired by favourites in media and I pluck pieces of them and fit them together like a little puzzle until it becomes one definable template and then I sort of keep expanding that puzzle piece by adding little bits here and there. Dialogue, voice, ways of moving and emoting, until they become real to me.

Do you notice any recurring themes/traits among your characters?

A lot of them are not very "likeable" people. They're not underdogs. They're not bastions of purity and goodness. They fuck up a lot. They hurt people, even and including those they love, they can have unchecked bigotry, they lie and cheat and scheme. But they're all very real and human in a way that, again, feels true to me. For me a character is defined more by their flaws than by their virtues.

How do you picture your characters?

Some are more vivid than others but once I get a face claim something clicks in my mind and it's like I'm seeing them even clearer than before.

My Writing

What's your reason for writing?

It's just a part of me. It's like asking me why I eat or sleep. It's a compulsion and it makes me feel useful, accomplished, grounded. The fact that all of my current friendships stem from me writing doesn't feel like a coincidence because it connects me to the world in a way I wouldn't bother indulging if I didn't write.

Is there any specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating coming from your readers?

I don't get many comments from readers but my closest friends reached that level by showing that they spent a lot of time truly thinking and dissecting and ruminating on what I write and why I choose to write it that way. When I get a lengthy comment from them showing that they've truly turned something over in their head or pointed out themes or little hints I've tried to pepper through... it makes me feel seen and appreciated.

How do you want to be thought of by those who read your work?

I want to be seen as talented, of course, I want to be seen as someone who is skilled in my craft and meticulous with detail. I want to be seen as an accomplished wordsmith. And I work very hard to try and attain that standard for myself.

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

I think it's being very visually-oriented. I really feel like I can paint a scene with my words in a small amount of them, especially when I discover that right combination.

What have you been frequently told by others is your greatest strength as a writer?

People have said it's crafting immersive imagery, whether that's with food or settings or even when it comes to eroticism and sex. I'm very sensory-driven as a writer and I want to really transport you somewhere else when you read.

How do you feel about your own writing?

I think that I'm good but that I can be much better and that's always the mindset that I carry into my work. I internalise criticism a lot although I'm also very good at pushing back against it if I don't fully agree but whenever I sit down to write something I always think "how can I make this much better than the last piece I've written" and I do think I've accomplished that.

If you were the last person on earth and knew your writing would never be read by another human, would you still write?

Yes, because honestly my writing isn't nearly so dependent on external validation as I thought it was. I used to think the thing I wanted most to be read and adored and while I do long for recognition it's more about being awarded for merit and being acclaimed for hard work, talent, and vision. I do sometimes get sad when people don't love my work and I took it quite hard when I first published When the Stars Alight, I will admit that. But I've found that I've come to terms with being constantly at odds with the world, having less popular tastes and interests and viewpoints, and I feel like my writing is just an extension of that. So rejection was not only to be expected but accepted. I myself will still always love my stories deeply and think that they're great stories worth being shared with the world regardless of what anyone else thinks.

When you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, or do you write purely what you enjoy? if it’s a mix of the two, which holds the most influence?

Before I published? Absolutely not. But as a businesswoman I have to be a bit more shrewd. I never write entirely to market tastes because it'll stifle my authentic voice and I don't really think I could do a paint-by-numbers job without my lack of passion showing. But I do weigh up a lot of my ideas based on what I've seen work commercially a lot more than I did before going indie. At the end of the day I'm a pragmatic creature who will do what needs to be done.

tagging: @laufire @words-after-midnight @pinespittinink @ladyniniane @rose-bookblood @i-m-p-a-v-i-d-u-s @sometimesraven @jazmine-here @zmwrites