#which makes things like writing drabbles... very hard... because you can't really fall back on that lmao. maybe i'll get it one day!!

[shirogane-oushirou]

me: "ehehheee i can't write out anything poetic about my f/os hhghhh still killing the cringe awhhfhg 😳😳😳 i wish i was better at writing fiction, but emotional writing is hard and uncomfortable!!! i prefer making drawn art!!! 😫😫😫"

also me: shits out 1100 words in a quasi "school essay" tone in like 30mins just to vent.

[havendance]

20 Questions for Fic Writers Tag Game

Thanks to @androxys for the tag!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

81! A fair number of those are drabbles, but still. Writing fic for (checks notes) 8 years really adds up.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

335,515

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Currently, I am very invested in writing for DC comics and not doing much else, but in the past I've flitted from fandom to fandom, writing for various cartoons/tv shows and video games mainly.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

v) #Justice4Gotham -- My NML epistulary/blog fic. I think this one has the advantage of being a social media AU of sorts, but I really am quite happy that one of my No Man's Land fics made it into the top five. I still think this one is very fun.

vi) You Can't Spell Kuzon without Zuko -- My Zuko and Aang are childhood friends fic. I do like this fic and I'm glad that I was finally able to finish it after sitting blocked on it for nearly two years, but I honestly don't consider it one of my top fics in terms of response. It clearly has picked up a good number of kudos, but it felt like commenters were more interested what potentially happened next rather than the Aang and Zuko of what I'd put on the page that was what compelled me to write it in the first place.

iii) One Scar to Find Them -- This was my AtlA platonic soulmate AU where the entire gaang shares scars. I really liked soulmate AUs when I was younger, mainly because I liked all the various mechanics and I think this was the last hurrah of that. And also I thought it would be wild if everyone had Zuko's scar. I remember writing this all out in my notebook in bright pink pen and then letting it sit there for ages before I finally cleaned it up.

ii) Let's Steal a Fire Prince -- My Leverage x AtLA crossover. This was the first multi-chapter fic I actually finished so I am proud of it for that, even if looking back I can see some of my growing pains. I was really glad that other people loved this crossover idea as much as I did and I would've loved to come back to this universe more if I a) could actually write heists and b) didn't get sucked into other fandoms 😅

i) Former Hopes and Future Scars -- Another AtLA fic. I'm not surprised that this is my top fic since it's a) focused on Zuko, b) features Time Travel, and c) is a contained one-shot under 2k .

All but one of these are for Avatar: the Last Airbender which I think is a reflection of me writing during the pandemic-era AtLA renaissance and it also just being more broadly approachable compared to my comics stuff.

5. Do you respond to comments?

Yep! I wasn't always super consistent with it, but I try and respond to every comment now.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Oh, this one's a hard one, there are so many good contenders! Probably You Will Live Forever (the dragonslayer!Willow fic I co-wrote with my bro Baz for the Owl House), but I would also like to give an honorable mention to I just keep falling now that you're gone the angsty next generation Miraculous Ladybug fic I wrote early in my fanfic writing career in which Adrien becomes the next Hawkmoth and his and Marinette's kids have to go up against him.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Probably some supremely fluffy fic I wrote for a ship event back when I was doing those. Other than that, maybe Robins Don't Make Great Roommates or Top 10 Secret Identity Fails? I don't think I really write super fluffy/happy endings.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I've never really gotten hate per se on the fics themselves. I did get a review on a fic I posted to fanfiction.net once that was complaining that I had rated it K but used like, a single swear word I think. I also got a couple of anons on tumblr that were really didn't like the premise of one of my fics, but I just thought it was kind of silly that they were that upset about it.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Not my thing.

10. Do you write crossovers?

Yes. I have written so many crossovers. I'm honestly a little surprised the crossover bug hasn't bitten me for my comics fic more. I've done a couple Batman/Sandman crossover fics, but it feels different with them both being comics and also both published by DC.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of fortunately!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I have written several Owl House fics with my beloved bro and co-conspirator @horatiocomehome. I'd love to cowrite something with him again some time but we are sadly currently obsessed with different fandoms. I'm also not opposed to trying co-writing with someone new!

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

I'm not super into shipping so this one's kind of tricky. If I had to choose maybe Ireneides from the Queen's Thief series or Celes/Locke from FFVI. I was also deeply committed to Sakura/Kaze from Fire Emblem: Fates, when I was younger, but the secret super AU version with a ton of lore from the elaborate AUs I daydreamed up.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

For wips I have published, I'm either confident in my ability to finish them, or else have just excepted that I won't. In terms of wips that haven't made it to the light of day: Black Queen. I started writing this and got stuck but oh, it would be so fun.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think coming up with AUs. I like playing with all the pieces and figuring out how things ripple and change.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I don't think I've done much with this, but if I did I'd probably use dialogue tags so like "'My name is john," John said in Chinese' if the narrator knew the language and "John said something in Chinese' if they didn't.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Fire Emblem: Fates, baby

20. Favourite fic you've written?

Picking favorites is so hard ;; It would be a lie to say I love all my fics equally, but I do think I can say that I do love them all, even the very first ones I wrote. I guess for purposes of this game, I'll go with World Gone MAD because I am still very satisfied with how it turned out, but because I can't just pick one, I'd also like to give a shout out to Neither Heir nor Spare (The Sole Survivor) for being the fic that I think is pretty up there in terms of ones I reread the most and Turnabout Traitor! for being a very fun She Ra x Ace Attorney crossover.

Tagging, uhhh, @horatiocomehome, @acediscowlng, @dustorange and if anyone else is interested, consider yourselves tagged in spirit!

[fourteentrout]

Hello and howdy! Secret Santa back again!

I hope you’re getting excited the closer we get to December! I’ve got something special in the works for you and the elves are going to ensure that your gift really shines! In the meantime, I have a few more little questions for you!

When you think of Tamsand, what kind of things do you think of? Pretend this is like one of those “taste, see, touch, hear” games. Is there a color you associate with them? A line of dialogue? Symbols of their relationship (canon or otherwise)? What song would you listen to while thinking about them?

How affectionate do you see them being together? Is Tamlin reserved or happy to hold hands, nudge shoulders? Does Rhysand brush fingers and put a hand on the waist, or does he save his affection for pet names? How do you like the imagine them being affectionate with each other?

Hello my friend!! What a pleasant Monday surprise!

I am indeed getting very excited and this ask has increased that by a SIGNIFICANT amount let me tell you. I'm sure whatever you come up with will be absolutely fantastic, just getting any sort of gift is truly such an honor. Tbh you could literally write like a 100 word drabble and i'd still be like OH MY GOD THANK YOU SO MUCH I CANT BELIEVE THIS IS FOR ME.

Ah. So yeah. Clearly I am getting hyped😅😅

Let's see, when I think of tamsand, I definitely think of like...tension. Even when they were friends, to me there would always be this undercurrent of like "we can't be caught", and obviously after their Big Breakup, there's just bucketloads of tension resulting from. Everything. I always think about like, a build and release. There's always something so charged about their interactions, it really grabs the interest.

Ha I don't know about a color, but I certainly think of many scenes/lines!

Recently what's been plaguing me has been the exchange from the first book where Rhys shows up in the dining room the day after I think...the Summer Solstice festival.

"Rhysand smiled--heartbreaking in its beauty--and put a hand on his chest. 'Rhysand? Come now, Tamlin. I don't see you for forty-nine years and you start calling me Rhysand? Only my prisoners and my enemies call me that.'"

What gets me about this line (which by itself gives enough to make me feel Insane) is that Tamlin LISTENS. He exclusively uses "Rhys" instead of "Rhysand" for the REST OF THE SCENE. Later in the series he goes back to using Rhysand for obvious reasons, but in this instance it makes me think like. What was going through his mind? Was that a conscious choice or was he just falling back into habit? Did he have some underlying, undying hope that things between them could be changed for the better one day? Was it too hard for him to think of himself as Rhysand's enemy, even though Rhys had, for all intents and purposes, only acted like his enemy this whole time? I don't know! I don't know. It makes me lose it.

Symbols of the relationship. Instantly think of the knives and bandolier, and also what has come to be known as Tamsand Steak among friends (as represented by the 🥩 emoji).

OUGH a SONG. There's so many lol. I've been listening to a lot of The Doors lately. "Break on Through (To The Other Side)" is my favorite by them and I think because of that it's the one I connect to tamsand (with a slight Feylin flair during the bridge) the most. But like if you look at the lyrics I feel like it does make sense.

EDIT: I FORGOT ABOUT MITSKI. "First Love/Late Spring". Ohhhh. Oughhh.

I picture them being VERY affectionate when there's no one watching. Full on possessiveness. Not to be crude I imagine a lot of Tam Tam titty grabbing on Rhys' part. And id imagine him doing a lot of hair touching. Also other indications of possessiveness. Touching his jaw, his throat, shoulders, etc. For Tamlin I actually picture him being more of a waist and hip grabber. Being unexpectedly sexy about it. That's part of what I like about Tamlin--that his sensuality is sort of slowly revealed. But once it's there you're like whoa there buddy where did THAT come from. So yeah I like to think when they're alone and not on bad terms they are Very touchy. I also imagine this coming into play with Rhys whole "Who do you think taught your beloved Tamlin the finer aspects of swords and females?" thing. Like yeah bud I bet u did.

But yes overall I am Pro tamsand physical affection.

Lol I hope this was sufficient, I know I can get kind of off track at times! Thank you for dropping in! Also I just realized I'd been tagging all my ask answers with acotar secret santa 2025 which is. Obviously wrong. So I'm gonna try to change that from now on!

[midnightstargazer]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thanks for the tag, @celestemagnoliathewriter

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

42

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

336,066

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Harry Potter

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Toujours Vivant (457 kudos)

The Enemy of My Enemy (308 kudos)

Reborn from the Ashes (203 kudos)

May These Memories Break Our Fall (117 kudos)

The Disowned Heir (86 kudos)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Sometimes. I try to, but a lot of the time I don't get around to it or can't think of what to say. I do always respond if someone asks a question, though.

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I've written a lot of angst, but probably Midnight Rain or The Auror's Wife. Both are canon compliant Alice Longbottom fics, and it's hard to get angstier than that.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Probably Something Borrowed. It's ... not unambiguously happy: it's in the middle of the war, Lily's parents are dead, her relationship with Petunia is not in a great place, and canonically she and James will both be dead in another couple of years. But it's mostly a fluffy wedding fic, and it ends on a very sweet and happy note.

(I would say I'd Marry You With Paper Rings, but that's a 96 word drabble and more of a snapshot of a single moment than a story with an ending).

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not yet, thankfully

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

No. I've done a couple of fade to black and waking up in bed together type scenes, but that's the closest I've gotten.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I'm pretty sure I did a long time ago, but not recently/under this pen name

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I'm aware of

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No

13. Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

No

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

My favorite HP ships are Tedromeda and Jily, but I'm not sure if I'd call either of them my all-time favorites. I'm coming up blank on what else I've shipped. You know how, when someone asks you what you want for Christmas, all of a sudden you can't think of a single thing? It's like that.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

I've got an outline and some notes for a multi-chapter Dorlene-centric fic that takes place toward the end of the first war. I'd like to write it at some point, but it's really not a priority right now. I like the ship and the characters, but I probably don't love them enough to carry me through a longer fic, and I have too many other ideas that I'm more excited about.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think I'm pretty good at capturing emotions and character motivations in my writing.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Getting distracted by shiny new ideas at the expense of my current WIPs. Also, I usually struggle to describe the setting.

18. Thought on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I've used small bits of French, which is the only other language I know well enough to write in. I would be hesitant to use something like Google Translate for a language I'm not familiar with, because it does make mistakes that I wouldn't be able to catch, which could be distracting for someone who actually speaks the language. I have looked up Latin words for new spells, though.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

I don't even know. As a kid, I used to make up new stories about shows and books I liked all the time, without even knowing what fanfic was. And then I went through a period of writing stuff down, but not showing it to anyone else or sharing it anywhere. So even if I still had the FFN account I used as a teenager (which I don't), looking at that wouldn't even tell me where I really started.

20. Favorite fic you've ever written?

Toujours Vivant. This is the idea I couldn't get out of my head that pulled me back from my "I'm an adult, I don't do fandom anymore" phase, and I love it for that.

Open tag for anyone who wants to do this!

[jjustcallmejuliett]

Answer those questions while being as honest as possible, you can skip a question if it’s really too hard for you to answer, then tag three people to answer this list as well ! :)

Which of your fics you wish had more kudos/comments/bookmarks ?

Which of your fics do you feel is overrated ?

What is the fic that took you the most time to write ?

What do you think is the best fic you ever wrote (until today) ?

What do you think is the worst fic you ever wrote (until today) ?

What is the saddest thing that happened to you related to a fic (may it be success, a draft that erased itself and so on…) ?

What is/are the comment(s) you received that you can never forget even now (negative and positive) ?

A fic you’d dream to write even if you know it wouldn’t get much readers/feedback ?

Coming back to the last question, did the fact that a fic wouldn’t get many readers (rare ship/different dynamic and so on) already stopped you from writing it ?

Which of your fics represent you the best ?

What is your main source of ideas ?

Is there an author that inspired you ?

Is there a fic you wish people to read, because it left a big impression on you ?

What is your favorite topic to read ? And to write ?

What motivated you to make your works public ?

A word you’d like to say to people who pass by / who follow you / who read your fics ?

 SELF LOVE QUESTIONS YAAAAY

Which of your fics you wish had more kudos/comments/bookmarks ?

-That ... that would be the case of my previous Halloween special and my Angels and Demons AU. Two long very difficult to write fics who didn't reach the interest I expected.

Which of your fics do you feel is overrated ?

Do you like me? Oh great! was a drabble that I posted literally just to keep my regularity, and which half of it it's the transcription of a few questions from the press conference. I mean, yea it's soft to read and emotionally reliable, but the fact that it has three times more kudos in three days than my best quality works... Just... Overrated.

What is the fic that took you the most time to write ?

The drivers' Great Dating Manual took 15-20 days, and Your hand fits in mine around a month.

What do you think is the best fic you ever wrote (until today) ?

haha can't choose between my babies.

What do you think is the worst fic you ever wrote (until today) ?

Because I love you so much (I fall to Pieces), probably. It's the worst ending I could give to a very delicate and emotional story, without even mention the misspelling and plotholes I didn't even bother to correct. This is old, and doesn't really represent the writer I'm today.

What is the saddest thing that happened to you related to a fic (may it be success, a draft that erased itself and so on…) ?

Once I deleted a fic because of a comment asking me to do so , after claiming what I wrote was disgusting, disrespectful and inmoral.

It's a sad story, but it's not happening again. I'm pretty much confident about my works and whoever doesn't like them, well... move on and read something else. It's not my problem.

What is/are the comment(s) you received that you can never forget even now (negative and positive) ?

Iwas lucky enough to receive positive reviews from my favourite fic writers , things that motivated me and keep motivating me to write and share my imagination here with y'all. So, a special shoutout to @laeana, @wolfsbanesbite and @someone-worth-racing-for for making this girl proud of her writing.

A fic you’d dream to write even if you know it wouldn’t get much readers/feedback ? did the fact that a fic wouldn’t get many readers (rare ship/different dynamic and so on) already stopped you from writing it ?

Nope, I always write independently of the feed and the views it might get. So luckily for me, I write for pure joy.

Which of your fics represent you the best ?

Smart is the new Sexy  and  This is me. The fics and the characters are fully based in my actions, experiences and personality.

Your main source of ideas ?

GPs material, photos, songs, and asks/requests. Oh and ofc I love to write seasonal themed fics.

Is there an author that inspired you ?

YES, and the list is endless.

What is your favorite topic to read ? And to write ?

-I love to read hurt/confort and sexual dynamics that are new for the characters (fisrt time topping or kinking), unusual (ABO or another AUs) Or unpopular in the fandom.

As to write, I love fluff and humor, and fics where I can express my knowledge on something through the plot or a character. I also love to write Anticlichés, or those fics that you start reading like “I’ve seen this before” but then there’s a plotwist or something that blows your mind.

If you like that too, I’ll recommend you to check Treason and my Vamire AU

What motivated you to make your works public ?

-Many factors. A few friends who encouraged me, the wish of being part of the beautiful fanfic world and have works of mine and readers to interact with, and the yearning of being able to make public something I’m not only good at, but also that I really love to do.

A word you’d like to say to people who pass by / who follow you / who read your fics ?

A very special thank you for being there, for waisting time in reading my fics or tumblr posts, and I really hope that I -at least- manage to make it worth it, by causing a smile, an entertainment or just a mere feeling with the product of my imagination. Love, Julie.

Now, with tag... @wolfsbanesbite @getalittlebitsuburban @redpaint @kyoukai-kanata, @mahixa (pretty please♥)

[moon-mirage]

uhhh I don't know how many prompts I get for your cresswell drabble thing, but it's exam season so how about an "I know we've literally never spoken but my roommate has their partner over and I have an exam tomorrow and i CAN'T focus when they're around so please can I hang out with you until then?" AU 👀

You can enter as many prompts as you like. :) It would be good to have just one word because then I can maybe manage to write a drabble only. But only maybe. 

But since you gave me more than a word, you’ll also get more words back ... 2,7k actually. :P I hope you have some time to spare. ;)

---

It was one thing to see her crush from far away, maybe even in a group of shared friends.

It was a whole different matter if he actually walked around her little apartment as if he owned the place even though he had never been here before.

"You like Vietnamese food, right?" He asked over his shoulder as he looked though the little kitchenette for some cutlery. Scarlet had organised the place well, so he easily found it. "You know Wolf, so there shouldn't be any cilantro in any of the dishes. Not sure what his deal with cilantro is since he usually eats everything that can be chewed. Weird if you ask me," he told her with a shrug.

"I do," Cress piped up. "Like Vietnamese food, I mean," she added lamely. After he said it was weird, she didn't want to reveal that she didn't like cilantro either.

Why oh why, couldn't have Scarlet warned her?

Although what could have prepared her for the sight of Carswell Thorne in her open door with two big bags of takeout, asking her if he could come in?

A devilish smile, a wink and Cress lost her ability to speak. Or behave like a normal human being.

She wanted to hide in her bedroom, change into something pretty and practice a conversation. She would like to be smart and witty and maybe a little bit sexy so he wouldn't know what hit him. He should be impressed by her, fall in love with her but instead she hardly could say a word.

He gave her his best smile. "Great." He hummed a few notes as he arranged the dishes on her counter, and she saw him glance at the pictures at the wall.

Oh stars!

It's not that she was particularly embarrassed by the fun pictures with her friends, when they had dressed up for a Disney-themed party (although with quite some booze which was hardly Disney-approved). But she certainly was now that her crush saw her in a full-blown Rapunzel costume, including the braided wig!

She cleared her throat, relieved when he turned his attention on her instead.

Well, that relief was short-lived now that he looked at her.

With those dreamy eyes that haunted her since her first college party.

Since then, Carswell Thorne had crossed her path more than once though she had to to speak with him more than ten words.

"What are you doing here?" She blurted out.

"Um." For the first time since he entered her apartment, Thorne looked sheepish. "Right. So, Scarlet is at our place."

Cress nodded. That wasn't anything new. Since Scarlet and Wolf got together, they had been almost inseparable. Wolf had come by their apartment a few times but tall as he was, he always looked caged in their small apartment, almost afraid to move and accidentally break something. Even sitting on their couch had been a sight. Cress and Scarlet fit snuggly into it but when Wolf sat on it, he used the whole space for himself. He had tried to make himself look smaller - an unsuccessful endeavour.

So, Scarlet was usually at his place that he shared with Thorne.

Which still didn't answer why Thorne was here.

In her apartment! With takeout!

Rubbing his neck, he seemed surprised that his reply hadn't answered her question. "So, Scarlet and Wolf are at our place ... together." When she didn't say anything, he gave an exasperated sigh. "I mean, together-together." He gave her a pointed look before folding a few napkins. "And I could hear everything. I mean, my bedroom is next to Wolf's so they know that I can hear them. They just didn't care."

Cress blushed furiously. Scarlet had been considerate enough not to bring Wolf to her place to be, as Thorne had put it, together-together but it had never occurred to Cress that they would go to Wolf's place instead since he also didn't live alone.

"But um, don't you also bring... girlfriends over?" The words were difficult to say with ease and she hoped he didn't notice. Thorne was many things - a charmer, very smart, good-looking and fun - but also, to her detriment, quite popular among the female students for all the reasons she just listed. She knew he went out with Shan from one of her classes for a while, Scarlet's friend Émilie had also talked about dating Thorne during their first semester and she had  seen him with Elia from Cress's dancing class as well. And those were just the ones she knew about.

Maybe if he flirted with her, if she at least got the chance for a date ... She never wanted to be another girl for Thorne, she wanted to be the girl for Thorne but he never extended his excessive flirting to her. More often than not, she had wondered if he even knew who she was despite sometimes hanging out together with Scarlet, Wolf, Cinder and Kai and Iko.

He gave a short laugh. "We usually have a kind of understanding ... or a schedule." A wink. "And I'm more discreet. I tell you, Scarlet brings out the wolf in Wolf," he said with a snicker. "Dinner is served!"

With flourish, he revealed the counter where he had strategically placed all the dishes, the rice, the sauces and even some candles she recognised as the ones they usually placed on the little shelf next to the door.

When she didn't say anything, he faltered for a second, his proud smile turning into a frown. "Oh wait." He looked through one of his pockets until he found a lighter and proceeded to lit the candles. "What do you say?"

Cress's heart was beating hard in her chest. "It's beautiful," the told him truthfully.

He preened at her compliment. "Well, the stuff you have is quite nice. The table pretty much set itself." Reaching for her, Cress felt his warm hands on her shoulder as he led her to the counter and helped her sit on one of the barstools.

This wasn't happening. Was she really eating dinner with Thorne?

When he looked expectantly at her, she reached for a summer roll, dipped in one of the sauces and hoped she wouldn't spill the whole content on her shirt as she bit into it. It was delicious and she hummed in pleasure.

"I take it tastes good?"

She opened her eyes, trying her best not to blush. "Amazing. Where is it from?"

"It's a few blocks from our place. Next time you come over, we can order from there again. Although there is also this great Indian restaurant you've got to try."

Cress munched on her roll, trying to figure out if he had indeed invited her to his apartment. Probably along with their other friends but still. She had only seen his place once not too long ago when he and Wolf had a little housewarming party.

A thought occurred to her. "Wait. If you, Scarlet and Wolf ordered it ... and you brought it here ... did you steal their food?"

He gave her an innocent look that could fool nobody. "I wouldn't say steal. I told you, they were otherwise occupied. Food is the last thing on their minds right now. And why let it go to waste?" He dug into one of the rice dishes, chewing thoughtfully.

They ate in silence but somehow, it wasn't awkward. At least, Cress didn't feel it was. But she was usually silent, so maybe it was awkward for Thorne?

Gathering all her courage, she asked him about his classes. An easy and safe topic for her and though he answered, he was more monosyllabic than she was used from him. He must have noticed himself because he gave her an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, Cress, it's just ... I'm doing okay but I'm no match for the golden child from campus. I doubt I could tell you anything you don't know already."

"That's not true." They shared a literature class together and he had eloquently interpreted a piece of fiction with ease. His view on the book had impressed her, despite having read on it and knowing the many ways to interpret the book. But he had made it his own and expressed his opinion, while Cress was usually too shy to raise her hand and join the discussion.

When she told him, he laughed warmly. "Ah, that pulp fiction story, I remember. Honestly, Cress, I was just bullshitting. I haven't even read the book."

"But then it's even more impressive."

There was a short silence during which she carefully evaded his gaze and focused on some fried vegetable. "That's sweet of you to say. But still, you're the genius who is acing pretty much every test without trying from what I've heard. I'm jealous," he said with a conspiratorial wink.

She blushed but didn't deny it. She wanted to let him know that it wasn't anything special, that learning was easy for her and that studying had been the only thing she had ever been good at - but no, it would come off as haughty or patronising. "I would like to be more like you," she confessed before she could stop herself.

"Sure you do. Who wouldn't?" He meant it as a joke but Cress didn't miss that there was a sombre tone to it.

She shrugged, trying to find the right words. "I'm good at tests, so I do well at college that's true but I'm not ... one day, we'll have our degree and then those grades won't matter much. I suck at personal interviews and my soft skills are really bad. I freeze up when I'm asked questions even though I know the answer. I'm not someone you remember among all those other college students aside from my grades."

"I remember you," he said without missing a beat. Cress blushed furiously at that and had no answer. Before the silence stretched on for too long, Thorne spoke again. "I'm actually relieved. I always saw you and heard the way people talked about you and thought, wow, there's someone who doesn't have to worry about life after college."

"I wish."

He nodded. "I actually excel at interviews. I can bullshit my way through them. Hey, I could teach you!" His eyes glinted with honest pride. "It's all about confidence."

"I don't have much of that," she murmured.

He waved her concerns away. "Just pretend you do then. Believe me, if you go into an interview, thinking you deserve the job and they have to convince you to take it, you'll automatically act all confident. It's easy, I'll show you how." He tipped at his temple, as if an idea had just occurred to him. "And in return you help me studying for my tests, deal?"

Thorne was all smiles and Cress couldn't help but grin back at him. He was so genuine and kind, in ways she was never able to discern from away. It just made her heart ache more. "Deal."

From that moment on, their conversation flowed more easily and Cress learned more about Thorne, his dreams and ambitions she had ever thought possible. Shy at first, she was nevertheless gaining some confidence as she talked to him and wasn't embarrassed when he pointed to the picture of her, Scarlet and Cinder in their Disney dresses.

"Please, let me borrow it. I need to make fun of Cinder, please, Cress? You can't deny me that one chance to one-up Cinder."

"She would so kill me."

"But Cress, she's wearing a dress. A poufy one, with glitter! And a tiara! An ugly one but still. Maybe I should take her shopping for a new one. See, I need that picture to help Cinder. That's me being a great friend."

"How selfless of you."

He nodded earnestly. "Selfless is my middle name. Right after suave and daring."

Cress giggled as she finished the last bit of her rice pudding dessert. With some sadness, she realised their nice evening together would be soon over. She didn't want it to be but takeout was what he came here for and now nothing was left.

Even Thorne was quiet, as he looked at all the empty boxes, cleaning a few specks on the counter with a napkin.

Cress wondered where he would go now. It was unlikely that Scarlet would return tonight or that she and Wolf would not take advantage of the empty apartment.

As if he read her mind, Thorne asked. "Would you mind if I crashed here for tonight?"

Cress stuttered. He wanted to stay the night? Here? At her place? Where she was?

"Or not!" He laughed. "Sorry, I didn't want to make you uncomfortable. I just assumed Scarlet's room is empty and since it's already late... I'm sorry, Cress." Reaching for her hand, he squeezed it lightly. His usually mischievous grin was replaced by something more soft and sweet and she knew he would leave if she asked him to.

Cress had never invited a guy into her apartment. She wasn't prepared. The bathroom was a cluttered mess and she desperately tried to remember if she left her underwear somewhere he could see. Or the braces she wore during the night. Aces, he would see her in her spaceship pyjamas! Her cute flowery ones were in the laundry. She was just not prepared for Carswell Thorne staying the night.

And still... "I-it's fine. I'm sure Scarlet won't mind." From the stories she heard, they had already shared a tent when they went hiking with Cinder and Iko. Cinder had absolutely refused to share the tent with Thorne but Scarlet and Iko didn't have the same issues (though for different reasons, she remembered).

His smile was soft but there was a touch of nervousness that was so unlike the Thorne she knew that she felt flustered and busied herself with cleaning up the dishes. "Thank you, Cress. I promise to-"

She didn't let him finish. "Is that why you came here?" She had actually wondered about that. Thorne could have went anywhere after leaving his apartment. Iko and Cinder's apartment was much closer to his place than hers, and Kai's place was really fancy. It was the apartment they would hang out the most since it was the most spacious one and had lots of anemities. For a group of ever-poor students, it was a dream come true.

The silence went on a heartbeat too long. "Yes. Right. Scarlet's empty room. I mean it makes sense right?" His laugh was a touch too loud before he helped her cleaning up the counter. "I promise you won't even notice I'm here."

Somehow she doubted that.

---

"I can't believe you actually thought I randomly came by with dinner."

"How could I think you were not? You were at my door with takeout, I didn't think ..."

Thorne tugged playfully at one of her locks. "- I wouldn't come by under pretense just to spend a bit of time with the girl I had a crush on?" He finished for her. "Come on, Cress. You are supposed to be the smart one in this relationship."

"But you were so convincing!"

His finger tips ghosted over her cheek and she leaned into her touch. "Just as I told you then ... I pretended to be confident. And apparently, it worked."

The kiss that followed still made her heart race. She laced her hands behind his neck, drawing him closer, his taste now so familiar to her.

It stopped way too soon. She looked up him questioningly, her eyebrows furrowed when she saw his mischivious grin. "What?"

Leaning closer, he whispered into her ear. "You want to know another secret?" She knew he would feel her nod. "Scarlet and Wolf had left for the weekend to visit Scarlet's grandma. I didn't see - or hear - them for two whole days."

She gasped and he bit his lips playfully. "You planned this?"

"Yes." He drew her in for another kiss. "And I'm glad I did."

Her heart warmed at his confession. "Me too."

---

Don’t ask me why but I feel this oneshot pretty much wrote itself (during working hours but no one needs to know that). It’s actually my first AU oneshot and it was a fun challenge. I hope you enjoyed reading it. Thank you again for the prompt. :)

[randomcactaceae]

damie promp aut: Flora spends all day talking to Jamie how beautiful the new au pair is. She literally takes Jamie by her hand to introduce her to Dani. Jamie is like "Flora, c'mon, someone can't be that pretty". And when they met Flora is just "You told me someone can't be that pretty, but she is, isn't she?". Jamie ends up "Fuck, indeed girl". Fluffy and Dani blushing like crazy

I’m very sorry for taking way too long to write this, I had many things in mind and I couldn’t properly finish any fic, so I left them all undone for a while.

Anyways, here is it, hope you like it, and this will be the very first drabble from the drabble collection I’m starting on AO3 ( Here it is!!)

****************************************************************

Someone can’t be that pretty

Flora came running into the garden as soon as she finished greeting the new au pair and showing her around. She was excited to have someone new around the manor, as things have felt a little lonely and gloomy since Rebecca left. Over the past weeks, she and Miles had been quiet, with no glimpse of excitement apart from Owen’s casually cheerful comments. Until now. This new girl seemed as nice as Rebecca was. She greeted Flora with a warm smile the moment she got out of the cab. She was friendly and listened carefully to every single detail Flora explained to her. And Flora just found her perfect.

She couldn’t wait to tell Jamie about the new girl, so she went bursting with excitement to the greenhouse, where Jamie was working. She saw the glass door open and came in.

“Hi Jamie” she said, catching her breath from the run. 

Jamie turned around to see her. It was rare that they were looking for her, at least at that time of the day.

“What brings you here, young lady?” she asked, puzzled.

“Have you met Miss Clayton?” Flora asked excitedly, as she showed a large smile across her face. Jamie raised an eyebrow, not sure about what was she talking about. She knew a new au pair was going to come and take Rebecca’s place, but she wasn’t aware of when she was arriving. And she didn’t care much about it.

“Who’s that?” 

“She’s the new au pair. She’ll be taking care of me and Miles, just as Miss Jessel did” Flora said, lowering her gaze to the floor when she pronounced Rebecca’s name. 

“Oh really?” Jamie asked back, trying to seem excited. She knew how hard it was for the kids to have lost Rebecca.

“Yeah, you need to know her, she already told me she will teach me how to bake cookies and everything. And she is very pretty. She has golden hair and big blue eyes….”

Flora started. She described Dani as if she was ethereal. Jamie found it funny, because kids, especially Flora, tended to exaggerate things whenever they got excited.

“So she’s pretty, huh?” she asked with a smug smile.

“Yes! And her skirt is pretty. And her voice is too” Flora replied in excitement. Jamie chuckled a bit. Flora was sometimes a little too corny.

“You should come and see her” she said. Jamie did an eye roll at the suggestion. she wasn’t in the mood of meeting new people.

“Nah kid” she said as she kept on watering the roses, “I’m okay. Plus, someone can’t be that pretty, y’know?” 

“But she is! Please, Jamie, she’ll be glad to meet you” Flora insisted. Jamie let the watering can on the floor and rolled her sleeves.

“Okay okay, let’s go then” she replied, finally giving in. She knew it would make Flora happy if she did and besides, it meant she didn’t have to properly introduce herself to the au pair later on.

Flora took her by the hand as they crossed the garden. Jamie adjusted her pace to Flora’s, hoping the moment that was about to happen when they arrived wasn’t too awkward or too boring. She never liked introducing herself, not because of discourtesy, but because she found it useless. She thought it was just a waste of time introducing yourself to someone who was temporary; someone who would never stay. 

Flora let go of her hand when they reached the door and ran frantically towards the library, where the au pair was. Jamie followed behind, walking cautiously. She looked at the library from afar and saw that new woman Flora had told her about. She was standing facing the bookshelves, with her long golden hair falling into place. She was wearing a long, olive skirt and a denim jacket. Jamie couldn’t see her face, but she seemed like she could be pretty.

Flora went back to Jamie and took her hand again, leading her to the library. As soon as they entered the room, Flora stopped and gestured for Jamie to lean so she could whisper something to her. 

“Isn’t she pretty?” she asked in an attempt of a whisper, which made the au pair turn around to face them.

Jamie took a second and glanced at the au pair, which stood only a few meters apart from them. She was beautiful. She had some delicate features, and she looked happy and genuine. Jamie smiled briefly at her before answering Flora.

“Damn. Indeed, girl” Jamie replied with a smirk as she then glanced at her again. The au pair smiled back, sheepishly, as a trace of pink flushed through her cheeks. Flora then ran towards her as Jamie stood up again.

“Look, Miss Clayton, she’s Jamie, she’s the gardener” she said as she introduced both women. Jamie smiled, leaning towards the door frame, trying not to make it all uncomfortable.

“Oh, thanks for the introduction Flora” the au pair said as she smiled. Jamie then took a few steps to get closer to them both.

“As this young lady said, I’m Jamie. I work here” she told the au pair as she put her hands in the pockets of her dungarees. The au pair stared into her eyes and smiled shyly.

“Nice to meet you, Jamie. I’ll be taking care of Miles and Flora for a while” the au pair said in a very polite tone. Jamie smiled nervously.

“It’s gonna be quite a wild ride in the process. They’re like little demons” she replied sarcastically.

“No we’re not!” Flora added, a little pissed at the comment. Jamie just chuckled as she looked back at the au pair, who giggled as well.

“Are you sure?” Jamie asked Flora, raising an eyebrow at her. Flora laughed at the question, understanding she was just kidding.

There was a pause in the conversation, leading to an awkward silence between the women. The au pair stared at Jamie and quickly looked down, but Jamie noticed. She put her hands in her pockets again and decided it was better to leave before the constant staring between the two became uncomfortable.

 “Uh, well, I gotta head back to the garden, but it was nice to meet you, Miss Clayton” she said in a low tone, looking sheepishly into the au pair’s eyes.

“Just call me Dani” she said with a  big warm smile. 

“Well, it was nice to meet you, Dani” she replied as she nervously placed a hand on the back of her own neck. 

“Nice to meet you too. See you around” Dani replied, smiling sheepishly.

Jamie grinned at her as she slowly turned around to head back to the garden. She walked quickly, making sure no one was seeing her, trying to hide the foolish smile that spread across her face.

[strongsassysexysloane]

Twelfth day of Twelve - A Finale Worth Waiting For.

A/N - well. I made it. >.< Thank you for all the likes and love. I really did enjoy writing these no matter how tired I have been ( I just slept 11hrs) I hope you enjoy it as much I just did writing it.

Happy Holidays! However you celebrate it or not 😊

Click below for previous days

Gif by @regal-roni

. . . .

The day had finally come and to say you'd woken up with a bounce in your step was an understatement. Regrettably and something you wouldn't share with anyone if they asked was that you ran to your front door when your eyes popped open at 0710.

Nothing was there of course but a thin layer of snow dusting your front porch. You'd even gone to your regular coffee shop this morning just in case they dropped it off there or ordered you something but Sharon didn't have anything for you but a knowing smile. So you order a cup to go and a freshly baked muffin to fill you up.

You'd stayed home all day other than the coffee run, never mind the things you needed at the shops you wanted to catch the person of they dropped something off. It was day 12, finale, so where was the surprise?

All your hopes and prayers were on it being Jacqueline, to no one's surprise, but there was massive doubt that it was actually her. She had an outstanding poker face, spending so much time with her last night, she gave nothing away even when you hinted towards it and there was no way she could be pulled it off unless she had help. Help in the form of the team and no one was that good at hiding secrets other than Gibbs. There was no way he would be in on it.

You thought about all the gifts, all the time it took for this person to go to so much effort, not just to get them, but to plan and organise it all so it was a secret.

It was getting late, the hope for the twelfth day was fading as the sun went down bit you pottered around your place, tidying up at bit as.youd neglected your home from working so much.

There was a sound that came from your front door and you sprung to check but there was nothing. Only footprints on the snow of a bird landing there and taking off again. You'd checked your front door more times than you'd like to admit today. Even Ellie had messaged twice, once at lunch and then an hour ago even though you assured her you would let her know when you found out. Your gut was telling you she knew something and was busting at the seems to tell you. If today was a work day you knew the secret would be out by now.

The sun was almost gone on another chilly December day and you were thinking about dinner. There was hardly anything in the fridge or pantry, you really shouldve done a quick shop while you were out for coffee. The only thing left that resembled some kind of dinner was a frozen cheese pizza so you turned on your oven, not wanting to go out for takeout and not wanting to spend the money on delivery. The snow had started to fall about an hour ago and you knew delivery would take longer, patience was lost around 0900 this morning.

You were about to unwrap the plastic from the pizza when the door bell rang. Your stomach dropped but your heartrate tripled and you couldn't move. The thought that it was just another delivery with no clue had crossed your mind but would the person be that sneakily cruel?

Yes.

They'd clearly been close enough the past 12 days to hear one or more of your conversations so...There was that hope again.

The knocker thumped three more times and your legs managed to skip to the front door in a calm manor unlike the pace of your heart right now. Taking a deep breath, you plastered a on smile your very nervous face and twisted the door handle.

The door cracked open a few inches and there was silence. A million things running through your mind all stilled when you finally got your answer.

"I was going to get Ellie to rock up and video your reaction but I thought, best not." She waited for you to say something, do something but you were searching for the right words. "Well, you going to let me in?" She shivered, looking around nervously as the snow started to pour down again.

You were shocked. The moment you'd been waiting for for twelve days was here and you had no words. Well, you had one. "Why?"

"Why should you let me in? Well the food is getting cold as I got your favourite from the little Italian place across town and it's been a traffic filled drive because no one in DC knows how to drive in snow so I took some back streets to get to your place so-"

"No, Jack. Why?" You were gripping onto your solid wooden door for life. She was nervous too, you could tell by her avoidance of eye contact and rambling. You couldn't tell if her cheeks were pink because of the chill or the situation.

Covering her mouth and clearing her throat, she looked up at you then. The first actual solid eye contact since you opened the door. "As good as I am at reading people and figuring out what to say at work. When it comes to this-" She gestured with her spare hand between you both. "- I fall awfully short." She paused, looking down again and you opened the door. "Thank you." She smiled, walking past you but you grabbed her hand to stop her in the doorway.

"You didn't need to buy me gifts to tell me you..." You didn't know how to finish that sentence. To date you? lo- no.

"I've always enjoyed buying gifts for people and receiving them, of course, but seeing your face, albeit frustrated sometimes, it was worth the surprise tonight." She shook off the cold and some snow fell to the floor.

"Jack!" You tugged her, closing the door and grabbing the bag of takeout from her and putting it on your small entry table. You laced your fingers together and brought your other hand up to cup her face, her eyes finally meeting yours. "Please."

She smiled, a soft curve to her lips and the best gift of happened, she was kissing you. Your eyes took a second to fall shut at the sudden soft contact. You melted into each other, her hand gripping your waist, grounding you while the soft kiss turned heated.

She pulled apart just far enough to catch her breath, your laced hands falling away as you picked up the takeout and lead her into your lounge room. The kiss had ignited something in you, you felt invincible and the nerves suddenly vanished. Nothing was said while you unpacked the meals she brought, you were about you hop up to get cutlery because the wooden ones they'd given you just wouldn't do but her hand squeezed your thigh stopping you in your tracks.

Your heart rate picked up again, not from nerves but from her touch. You hadn't looked at her since the kiss, although you felt like you could do anything right now, you couldn't look at her and see regret in her eyes. Unsure why you suddenly felt that way was a shock but -

"Y/n.." She breathed, her hand moving in soft circles over your thigh.

The low tone, almost a whisper, made you swallow hard. Her hand came up to cup your cheek and guide you this time to look into her eyes.

"Y/n -"

"Jack, please stop saying my name like that. I need dinner before I can do the things that that voice makes me want to do..." You rolled your eyes at how bad that sounded but relief came when her lips curved into a sultry smirk. Your avoidance of emotions wasn't lost on her but for now it would have to do.

"Fine. Dinner then dessert."

"Oh my god you didn't bring dessert did you?" She kissed you instead of replying, the answer on her tongue as she explored your mouth once more. "Right.. Shut up." You poked your tongue at her cheeky expression before turning back to dinner.

Surprisingly you managed to eat all the dinner before the make out session returned. At this point you were unsure if the dinner or her was the twelfth gift.

"What are you laughing at?" Her hand came up to cup the side of your face as her other ran down the side of your body, slipping under your shirt, again.

You were both stretched out on your sofa, Jack slipped in between you and the back of the sofa. You couldn't stop looking at her. "I wasn't laughing."

Her lips came down and ghosted over yours. "Your eyes were." She murmured before kissing you hard and fast.

You swallowed when she broke free, such a tease. "Was wondering what my day 12 gift actually was?" You smirked and squirmed under her ticklish feather light touch. You'd get her back for it later.

"In other words me or the dinner?" She said with a raised brow.

This time you did laugh.

"Think I got the best gift..." It was almost a whisper and you immediately stopped laughing and saw how serious she was.

You rolled onto you side so you were face to face. Your fingers tucking a few strands of hair that had fallen over her face, behind her ear. "Think we have different opinions there." You bumped your nose against hers, lightening the mood.

You were rewarded with a cute curve to her lips. "Don't fight me on this. You'll lose."

"I'm sure to lose many things that will come up in the next few months but my feelings for you. You can't win." You heart picked up, the feelings you just have away were much more than you planned in revealing.

She brushed her nose against yours, placing a gentle kiss to your lips which you tried so hard to extend but you pushed back with a laugh. "As much as I want to kiss you til the sun comes back up on Monday morning. I need to say something."

"Of course you do." You smirked at the light shove you got but you didn't care what she did to you. Right now Jacqueline Sloane was on your couch, in the middle of make out sessions. If you died tomorrow you'd be a happiest person in the world.

"I'm definitely going to win all the arguments over the next many years."

With that there was nothing else to say, the past twelve days had been fun and exciting with all the gifts you'd received but nothing compared to day twelve.

. . . .

I tried so hard. SO hard to not make who the gift giver was so obvious but like... You all know what stories I write. If Jack Sloane isn't the centre of the story then why am I writing it??

Drop a comment, I'd love to hear from all of you :)

[tonystarktogo]

Hey so I can't reblog your drabble about Morgan and Tony because I'm keeping my blog spoiler free for a while longer, but can I just say it's AMAZING!!! I really love your writing voice as Morgan! I hope you extend that story because I'd love to read more of it :)

No problem, I totally get that (and I’m sure your followers appreciate it! I just didn’t have the patience, I needed to get me feelings on this movie out there lol) Anyways, I’m glad you like it cause I really enjoy writing Morgan. So here are a few more snippets from that ‘verse: 

[still contains spoilers for Avengers: Endgame, character death and suicide in a fashion]

Morgan Stark is nine years old the first time she visits her dad on purpose.

(It’s not actually that hard because humans are soft, squishy things, just like Mr Hulk told her once before Mom hastily ushered her away to have a chat with him. She takes care not to make a mess – Mom always panics when Morgan wakes up covered in blood, even if it isn’t her fault. And she really doesn’t want to worry Mom. So she swallows lots of sleeping pills instead. Morgan doesn’t like that at all. Makes her brain go all fuzzy and real slow and her body feel heavy until she’s almost sinking, even though there isn’t any water anywhere near her and Morgan hates it.

She wakes up with cotton in her mouth and a pounding behind her temples and covered in throw-up. So not doing that again, even if Dad hadn’t made her promise to never come visit him again on purpose.

Can dead people suffer a heart attack?)

*

Morgan Stark is nine and three-quarters years old the first time she spends Christmas with her dad again.

(She doesn’t do it on purpose, not really. Because Dad made her promise and Morgan takes her promises very seriously – and she’s never seen her Dad, who isn’t afraid of anything, not even Thanos, so panicked.

But it’s a bad day and Christmas isn’t supposed to be bad. Christmas is supposed to be a family holiday. Morgan wakes up in a terrible mood because it’s Christmas and her dad isn’t gonna be there and it’s not his fault but that doesn’t make it fair. It doesn’t help that she hasn’t seen him in forever because of that stupid promise.

She gets into an argument with Mom who’s trying, trying, trying, but Morgan can’t talk about this with her and it’s so much easier to start yelling about which dress to wear for the big party Morgan doesn’t want to attend. Then she’s running out of the door, doesn’t look back, world blurry and unfocused, and Morgan doesn’t hear the blaring car horn until it’s too late.)

[Dad is that weird mixture of happy and sad when he sees her. Morgan swears that it was an accident, that she’s keeping her promise, but he just hugs her until she stops trembling, then asks her which car she’d like to take apart.

The workshop is bigger than Morgan remembers it being, bathed in a humming, pulsing blue light that soothes her and makes Dad tip his head back and forth rhythmically. They spend Christmas Eve like that, taking an old engine apart, her Dad walking her through the different steps and adding little stories of what he did with the various cars around them while they’re working. They’re covered in oil and dirt by the end of it, and Morgan feels light enough to float away.]

Morgan races back home as quickly as she can and pulls her Mom into a big hug, mumbling “Sorry, sorry, sorry,” until Mom presses a kiss to her forehead and tells her all is forgiven. It’s a good thing there wasn’t much blood this time or Morgan would’ve completely ruined her dress. And if Mom notices the engine oil under her finger nails, she doesn’t say a word.

The party isn’t as bad as Morgan thought it would be either.

(That night, she falls asleep with her Dad’s old arc reactor on her pillow, bathing her room in blue light.)

*

Morgan Stark is ten years old the first time her dad isn’t alone when she stops by.

(Supervillains have become a thing again in the last two years, once the world recovered from the shock of having the lost ones returned, or so Mom tells her. Morgan hadn’t really cared beyond watching the occasional fight on TV. That gets a whole lot harder when some stupid guy in a bloated, black and yellow suit that makes him look like an oddly-deformed bumblebee almost blows up her school.

One moment, Morgan is racing through equations that are way too obvious, the next she’s sent flying. It’s not instant, this time. And not painless either. That’s what happens when you get a wall dropped onto you, crushing your arms and legs but somehow missing your head.

From afar, Morgan hears shouts and yells and sirens, but she’s too happy to finally trip to care.)

[There’s a woman sitting in a chair in Dad’s workshop. She’s sipping on some fancy drink with a lot of fruits on top of it that Morgan eyes curiously, her feet resting on the table. Her hair is an odd red-and-white-blonde color and Morgan gets the brief impression of a couple of strangers showing up at their home, of chatting with Dad until he’s angry, of Dad leaving and not coming back.

Abstractly, Morgan knows Natasha Romanoff. She knows everyone who didn’t survive that last fight against Thanos – mostly because the list is a whole lot shorter than the one after the first battle.

For some reason, even though she knows Miss Natasha used to be a friend of Mom and Dad, Morgan hadn’t expected to run into her here. Miss Natasha watches her through narrowed eyes, not unfriendly exactly, but thoughtful. Dad sweeps her into a hug, then introduces them and if it wasn’t for the meaningful way in which Miss Natasha says, “Tony,” it would have been like any other time Mom drags her along to meet her friends.

Dad shrugs and shakes his hand – there’s a lot exchanged there that Morgan doesn’t really understand – and then Morgan starts rambling about her grades and Mom’s date and the stupid attack on her school while Dad shows her how to fix her arc reactor nightlight and Miss Natasha sips on her drink and watches.

“Do you know Clint Barton?” Miss Natasha suddenly asks, interrupting Dad in a list of acceptable responses to stupid teachers who can’t admit when they’re wrong.

Morgan frowns. Runs through the many people she’s met at some point or another, some at Dad’s funeral, some in front of his grave, some outside of all that. Nods.

Miss Natasha smiles. It’s an evil expression Morgan can’t wait to learn.]

Spiderman is the one to frantically push the rubble aside until he finds Morgan coughing up a storm from all the dust. She can hear his heavy sigh of relief and squeezes his hand in wordless comfort.

“Thank god!” he says emphatically. “It’s a freaking miracle you didn’t get squashed, kiddo!”

Morgan’s too busy coughing to respond.

*

Morgan Stark is fifteen years old the first time she builds herself a suit.

It makes Mom cry and Dad make her promise to be safe and be smart and leave the hero-stuff to the old smartasses like Captain America – Dad calls him Cap 2.0 – before he sits her down and talks programming and welding with her. Really, it’s not like she wants to fight anyways. Morgan just wants to fly.

It falls apart before she even gets to the testing stage. Not that it stops her. She’ll just have to make the next one better.

[randomnessunicorn-imagine]

Hi there! I was hoping I could request a little writing/drabble from you where the female reader and Dukat are in a bit of a sudden argument over something and in the heat of everything, the reader accidentaly confesses that they have romantic feelings for him and...he's actually kind of surprised because he feels the same way about them. If you're not interested or you can't think of anything good, that's quite alright! Thank you~~

{ Uhm, interesting.

I took the liberty of using oneof the bad things happen prompts, because I really want to use them.

Then I have something specific inmind and, honestly, with Dukat I don’t imagine anything good, romantic orhappy, so this story doesn’t have an happy ending.

Here the reader is a Bajoranwoman named Laha Herjea, you can also see her as an OC. It takes place during the occupation of Bajor. Herethe station is still called Terok Nor.

I’m satisfied of this fanfictionand I took several hours to end it so I hope you guys will read and like it. Ihad fun writing it and I needed some angst. Yes, there is a lot of angst here! }

ASK FOR OTHER PROMPTS

Don’t forget to tell me your opinion about and leave a like or share if you liked it, it would make the writer very happy.

Prompt: Grief / Mourning

Challenge by @badthingshappenbingo

Words Count: 4171

Fandom: Star Trek DS9

Pairing: Dukat x Female! Bajoran Reader / Bajoran OC!

Triggers: Cardassian Oppressors, occupation of Bajor, angst, death, suicidal gesture, prisoner. But Dukat acts strangely nice.

– The beauty and the Reptile

~ PART 1 ;

A terrible fate fell on Bajor; afate of terror, destruction and desolation because Bajor wasn’t the planet of atime anymore but something else. It was infected by a virus, it was justdestroyed and usurped like the population who lived here. They had been treatedas slaves, strangers of their own land by the invaders of another planet, theirunexpected oppressors.

Cold-hearted aliens had stolentheir home, plundered their fields, killed their children and abducted theirwomen for their own pleasure, because they just felt superior. The Cardassian,their slavers, felt like real gods, they had even desecrated their temples anddishonoured their Prophets, but the Prophets were still there for Bajor,because nobody would have been able to stole their faith, it was immortal,immense and warm. This was the only thing the Bajoran people possessed, theirfaith in the Prophets.

The end of Bajor seemed near butthere were still people who fought for its liberation, who fought for what theybelieved, for their freedom and faith. Faith for prophets, for life and hope.Things the Bajoran cared a lot, things that had been stolen from them. Someday,they would have taken them back, no matter how hard and painful it could be,they would have won. Someday.

Laha Herjea was one of thosewomen who had been brought to Terok Nor, the space station of the Cardassians,to become the lady-in-waiting of one of them.

Actually, entire groups ofBajoran women had been stolen from their family and conducted there for thesame reason.

She didn’t even want to thinkabout her fate because it didn’t appear bright or worthy to be lived, it seemedterrifying and all the women around her were crying, were lost and scared andsome of them would have wanted to die rather than face this terrible destiny.

Laha didn’t live a long life, shewas only 19 years old when she was taken and brought to Terok Nor.

She lived with her father and herbrothers in a little town in the South of Bajor. Her mother Zaha died when shewas 15 years old because of an illness, while her father Janal was a farmer,just like her big brother Nika. Her other brother Paarya was a professor ofBajoran history and this was the subject she would have desired to study, thepath she would have liked to follow, because she estimated a lot her brotherand she wanted to spread her culture all over the universe. This was her dreambut it had been broken before it could even start.

“What do they want to do withus?” a woman said, looking around.

Laha didn’t know either of thesewomen but she could perceive their fear and preoccupation because she felt thesame feelings but she didn’t say a thing because the question of the woman wasabout to be answered.

A group of Cardassian soldierscame in, their looks were curious, they started scrutinizing the Bajoran womenas predators who were chasing after their prey.

Laha tried not to be scared bythese reptile men and she just looked at the void in front of her, but she wasable to hear the deep breaths of her companions, the way they trembled andsighed.

Some of the Cardassians laughedseeing the young women so terrified and vulnerable until a voice scolded them.

“Sirs, get a hold of yourself!”and then all the Cardassian soldiers became serious, standing at attention,“Can’t you see? These poor ladies are completely uncomfortable. They shouldfeel like home here.”

Another Cardassian man walkedinto the room, he was the possessor of the voice, that rough and severe voicewho was able to stop their laughing.

The man grinned, tall and fierce,admiring the line of women and studying them as if they were kinds of pieces ofart.

Laha supposed he was their bossbecause all the other Cardassians looked at this man with respect and fear,even she felt intimidated from this sinister character.

There was something in his eyesshe could not define, maybe it was lust, a malicious curiosity, or maybe it waspride, the kind of hubris of someone who felt better than anyone else, maybe hetruly felt superior, perhaps even more superior than the other Cardassians,this was the first impression she had of this man.

Soon, she even learnt his name,“I’m Gul Dukat, nice to meet you, my gentle ladies. I’m the one who controls this Station, you can consider me as your mentor, your new family because thisstation will be your new home.” He smiled, “Terok Nor is very big andlonely, and your job is to keep it warm and lively. Don’t see yourself as mereslaves, you’re more than that. You’re guests.”

Yes, guests that had beenkidnapped from their land and given to these malicious and merciless reptiles,she thought, it could not be defined as a gentle act of courtesy.

Dukat appeared veryself-confident, austere but kind in his strange ways but she didn’t trusthim.

Nobody trusted him.

Then he placed his glance on her,Laha didn’t look in the other direction, she just stared, serious and cold. Herlast desire was to lose her integrity and honour because of some Cardassian.

Dukat smiled, and then spoke,still looking in her eyes, “Let’s get to know each other better.”

He still didn’t take his eyes offof Laha, it seemed he was speaking with her and maybe he had already taken hisdecision and in that moment, when Dukat spoke to her, she understood she was inserious trouble.

“What’s your name?” he asked witha soft tone of voice.

“Laha Herjea.” She answered, coldbut polite.

“Oh, such an adorable name.You’re very young.” Then he got closer and raised her chin with his thinfingers, “And very beautiful.”

Dukat caressed her cheek, histouch was cold but soft, and then he moved a lock of her light brown hairbehind her ear.

His grin made her shivering as ifsuddenly the temperature got lower, it was not a pleasant feeling but shenodded, trying to stay calm and do not lose her mind.

Dukat still smiled, something ofhis smile frightened her but also made her wondering what was hidden behindthat mask of charm and self-confidence.

The meeting with the Cardassianslasted ten minutes and everyone left after they all chose their lady-in-waitingand ordered to their Bajoran counsellor –a traitor, she would say- to dress thewomen up in a more decent and delightful way, as if they were real dolls, just little toys that had to satisfyevery kind of fantasy of their oppressors.  

Then Laha’s fate was clearer thanbefore, her preoccupation became reality and she just could not escape from thissituation. The only thing she could do was hoping, hoping the Prophets wouldhave given to her the strength not to fall apart.

 ~ PART 2 ;

Laha had been chosen as Dukat’smaid, he said it was the greatest honour and she was lucky. She had privilegesall the other Bajoran maids didn’t have. She wondered which privileges theywere.

It was her first day of work as maid, she was in his office, he was reading some documents without paying herany attention, and maybe he didn’t even know she was there and that she wouldlike to be somewhere else.

“Oh, sorry, my dear. I was sodistracted by these bureaucracy documents, it’s so boring but job must bedone.” He said, placing his papers on his table, hands joined and his usualconfident smile on his face. Laha found all of this disgusting but she didn’treply.

“I’m such a bad host, I haven’teven offered you a proper meal, you must be hungry.” Then he stood up, reachingthe replicators, “What would you like to eat? Some typical Bajoran plate?Unluckily, I’m not an expert but I could ask to our chef to prepare something specialand real. I don’t really appreciate these food simulacrums. It doesn’t do anyjustice to the original flavours of our dishes.”

Dukat kept speaking, he was agreat talker, and his tone was always so courteous and soft, Laha asked herselfif he was really the person he appeared to be. She didn’t know enough about himyet.

“So, dear Laha, what’s youranswer?” he asked again and then he looked at her, getting closer.

“Honestly, I’m not hungry, atall.” It was a lie but it wasn’t, too. Because her hunger went away the moment shecrossed the door, it vanished and she only was confused and mad. Even if on herface any emotion could be read.

“Are you sure?” he asked,suspicious.

Laha just nodded.

He didn’t appear angry and heseemed understanding, then he asked to his Bajoran Counsellor to accompany Lahato his quarters where she should have prepared herself and waited for him tohave dinner together since it was still morning and he had a lot of work to do.

Laha didn’t like this idea but,at least, he didn’t insist and left her alone.

Dukat’s quarters were very big,comfortable and elegant, they had the typical Cardassian décor but she didn’tcare a lot about it. She still found her out of place.

Then she admired the space out ofthe window and she observed Bajor, her home planet, how beautiful it was fromup there, she thought, and she could not reach it. She could not break thisglass and jump there. Warm tears crossed her cheeks as she contemplated herhome, she sighed, sad and alone. Then she fell on her knees and prayed theProphets to look after her family, to help her people and herself to believe.Help her to be strong and do not give up.

Then she put herself on the couchand she fell asleep.

Laha stood alone there, asleepand annihilated, for the rest of the day.

 ***

Dukat found Laha still sleeping,traces of tears still wet her face.

His expression was mortified, buthe didn’t wake her up but he just relaxed himself, reading a book and observinghis sleeping guest.

Laha was not tall but not evenshort, she was about 1.7 metres tall, but she looked so delicate, thin andinnocent there.

After some minutes, she moved andshe woke up.

“Oh, welcome back in reality,dear Laha.” He said, his tone seemed ironical, because this was not the realityshe wanted to live.

She had had a very beautifuldream, she dreamt of her family, she was gardening with her father, it was asunny day and Bajor was luxuriant, free from every oppressor but it was only adream.

Then Dukat stood up and seatednext to her, caressing her cheeks and realized, she had cried.

“You haven’t cried because youmissed me, haven’t you?” he asked, whispering and she blushed, she hatedherself for it.

Laha didn’t answer because it wasa stupid question, she had thousands of reasons to cry.

“You’re not so talkative, I’msorry, I’m just impatient to know you better.” He said, smiling, “But you don’thave to worry about your family.” And she opened her eyes wide.

“Oh, I’ve caught your attention.”He grinned, “By the way, they’re fine, I don’t want you to be sad, they’ve notbeen hurt.” His voice was gentle but Laha didn’t smile back.

How could she trust the man whohad abducted her and forced her to live in this station?

“Should I believe you?” sheasked, serious and wary.

“Oh, finally, you’re speaking.”He seemed satisfied, “I’m telling the truth and, since I don’t want you tomistrust me, I’ll permit you to speak to them and ask them in person how dothey feel.”

Dukat’s words surprised her, shewould have never expected such a proposal.

“Really? Can I see my father?”she asked.

“Yes, you can… But then you haveto stay and enjoy your permanence.”

It sounded more like a threatthan a gift, even if Laha didn’t have any choice, she had to stay here, she waslike a prisoner, so she just nodded because if she would have the chance to seeher father, how could she refuse.

“Now that you feel morereassured, can we have dinner?” he asked, smirking.

Laha forgot about her hunger, andshe felt a little better after his promise.

She guessed, he could havechanged his mind if she would have refused his invitation and it was only a dinner.

In fact, it was just a dinner andLaha was surprised how good he behaved. Dukat didn’t make her uncomfortable ortouch her, he just spoke a lot, he spoke so much but she didn’t care and shejust nodded, faking smiles and filled her stomach.

This man was kinder than shethought for being a Cardassian and maybe she had judged him too fast.

 ***

Several days passed and Laha wasable to speak with her father. He was fine and her brothers as well.

The Cardassians didn’t hurt themand this was a miracle because she heard so many bad stories about otherfamilies she knew. Maybe she was truly lucky. These were the privileges Dukat hadtalked about.

“Are you ok, dear?” her fatherasked.

“Yes, I’m fine, they didn’t hurtme, they give me food, a bed to sleep…” She smiled at her father.

“It would be better if you wouldbe here.” he said and then the signal started freaking out until the video communicatorblacked out.

“Dad! Dad, what happened?” shespoke to the black monitor and she sighed.

At least, she had the chance tosee him, for some minutes but she was glad he was fine. Now she had to keep herpromise too and just appreciate her forced permanence on Terok Nor.

 ***

 “Have you seen your father?”Dukat asked.

“Yes, but not for a long time, thevideo blocked at a certain point.” She explicated.

“Oh, I’m sorry, you’ll try againanother time.” he smiled and then he took her hands, delicately.

His skin was so cold, it wasstrange, she could not define this feeling.

Somehow, she found it pleasant,different from the first time she met him. She wasn’t afraid anymore.

Since now, he had only treatedher as a special friend, a real guest, with respect, kindness and a sort ofdevotion as if he was afraid of offending her.

Dukat always had that sinistersmile on his face, the one that hid something, but she learnt to ignore it andjust appreciate his company. Laha would lie to herself if she said she feltuncomfortable with him.

Then Dukat got closer and hetouched her cheek and kissed her lips gently, so delicate, chaste, she barelyperceived it, Laha didn’t move and the Bajoran let him to get further. His kissbecame more passionate until she was unable to resist and Laha just kissed himback, her senses were completely lost, and her mind possessed by her lustingemotions.

He embraced her in a strong hug,even if his skin was cold, she could perceive warmth and her entire body washeating up.

Everything happened so naturally,with no pressure, no excuse and she felt good, loved and satisfied.

She had to trust him, she had noreason to misbelieving and she was glad, if any prisoner could feel fine in itsprison but she didn’t feel as a prisoner anymore.  

Laha had found her new home hereon Terok Nor, here in Dukat’s arms.

 ~ PART 3 ;

A month passed and Laha evenforgot about her previous issues.

She still missed her home and so Dukatpromised her they would have visited Bajor but this promise had not been kept yetbut she knew he had a lot of work to do.

Despite her beautiful days, thesituation on Bajor was still hard because people still died of hunger, childrenwere still killed, cities were destroyed and nothing really changed. Bajorbecame a hell and the Cardassians were the demons who ruled it.

Laha was used to spend her daysin Dukat’s quarters reading, writing or sewing clothes but some other times shewas even able to take walks through the promenade or talk with the Constable Odo.Laha didn’t go so far because she didn’t want to meet other Cardassians, shecould trust Odo but walking with all those Cardassians around made her veryuncomfortable.

During one of these walks, sherealized an awful truth, the truth she had ignored until now. The reality sheleft behind, the agony every Bajoran was living. She forgot everything and afeeling of doom and guilt took possession of his mind and heart. Because shefelt like a traitor, like an enemy.

She was living carefree, safe andsound in Dukat’s quarters, while her people were fighting and dying for theirplanet.

A peculiar fact had opened her eyes,because that day took place a riot in the middle of the promenade. Some Bajoranworkers revolted against the Cardassians, it seemed, it was an organizedassault. They were three members of the resistance of Bajor but they had beencaught and executed.

Laha was there, on the top of thepromenade and she observed the scene from above as the men screamed, fought andthen fell on the cold ground as dead weights but they were not dead yet. Thiswas not the end they deserved, it would have been too gentle for theCardassians.

Those men had been hanged infront of everyone, their last words had been prayers dedicated to the Prophets.

Laha saw, she saw all of it andshe was left speechless as the men died, but they didn’t cry, they were proudand even glad to die for their people. They didn’t lose this battle becausethey became martyrs.

Then she understood. Lahaunderstood it was unfair, she lost her mind, her dignity. She was just anobject, a little toy, she lived in a golden cage and those people, the peoplewho had killed her compatriots, had put her in that cage. She could not be gladof it anymore. Could not be blind anymore.

Laha started crying and then sherun away to her quarters, she could not stand it anymore.

She wanted to forget the terriblescene she had already seen and just disappear and sleep forever.

 ***

 Dukat tried to comfort her but hefailed

“I didn’t want you to see that,it was awful…” he said, “I’m sorry, dear.” He spoke, kissing her wet cheeks, sogentle, so mortified.

“What did they do?” she asked,sighing.

“They have injured a Cardassian guard andtry to escape.” He said, his tone was neutral and it seemed, it was a logicalreason to execute someone.

“Why kill them?” she asked andher tone was harsher, because she could not still accept it. She could notunderstand it.

Dukat seemed confused and thatquestion was strange because it was the normal procedure. Killing Bajorans wasnormal for any Cardassian. Especially for him.

“Who gave the order? Who hasdecided the execution?” she asked and Dukat’s face freeze.

Laha understood, it was soobvious and she felt stupid, naïve and scared because she was facing the personwho had condemned those men. The person who had killed so many Bajorans and shehad even loved that person. She felt dirty, outraged and she stood up, shaking.

“No, it’s not me, they haveassaulted a group of Cardassians, they were dangerous. They were members of theresistance.” Dukat explained as if it was not a real problem.

“No, they were not dangerous.They were slaves, all we Bajorans are slaves for you. I’m just a slave foryou.” Laha burst into tears.

“No, dear, you’re not a slave.Believe me, you have nothing to do with that. You should have not stayed thereand seen that scene.” Dukat seemed anxious but he didn’t lose his temperament.

“No, you have lied to me untilnow. How could I be so blind? So stupid?” Laha didn’t want to listen to hislies any longer.

“No, Laha, it’s not truth, I’venever lied to you. I truly love you.” Dukat said and she could not understandif those words were lies or maybe he truly felt something for her.

Only echoes were crossing hermind, the voices of those Bajoran men who hung on the promenade, their prayersand the cries of all the Bajoran who were dying.

Then she just hid inside her roomand there she stayed for several days, before she took a decision.

If Terok Nor was her new home, itwould have been her grave, too.

 ***

Laha spent three days locked inher room and Dukat was very worried about her

He didn’t pressure her or forcedher to invite him to enter, he also called his Bajoran counsellor but it was useless.Laha didn’t want to talk with anybody.

The execution of those men hadshocked her so much that she became even unable to fall asleep without hearingtheir screams, the words of hatred the Cardassians told to them as they hang tothe rope. She could not save them, she could not do anything, she just watched themdying.

The next day, Laha decided to goout of her room, she took a sonic shower and then she kneeled and she prayedthe Prophets for her people, for Bajor and for herself. She asked to theProphets to forgive her because she had betrayed her compatriots and she feltas if she deluded the Prophets, too. She didn’t feel as a true Bajoran no more.

“Oh, dear, finally you came outof there. How are you?” Dukat asked, he seemed truly worried.

For once, his voice appearedsincere and even his grin was not sinister or lascivious. He didn’t even smile.

“I’m fine.” She said, withoutlooking at him, she just observed the space in front of the window.

“What are you doing?” he asked,he was not used to see her like that.

“I’m talking with the Prophets.”Laha said.

Since she knew Dukat, she hadstopped praying so often and she hadn’t realized it at first. Staying in thisplace made her forget about her true values. What she was before had stopped existingthe moment she fell in love with him. It was true, an awful truth.

Dukat didn’t answer and he lether pray, totally unaware of the world she had inside, of the thoughts she washaving that moment.

Laha understood. The moment hadcome.

  ***

 Laha stood up, leaving herquarters and then she kept walking through the promanade.

She stood there, in the sameplace where those men died, where their bodies were hanging and she still feltsad for them but nothing else. She just felt anything at all.

The young Bajoran placed herhands on the handrail and she climbed it, it was a sort of ledge, she couldobserve the Cardassian guards who walked under her.

She stood up on the handrail andshe closed her eyes.

No sounds could be heard, no morevoices of desperation or cries, but only the warm embrace of the Prophets, ifthey would have ever forgiven her, was waiting for her on the other side.

Then she jumped, her body aslight as a feather but her mind so heavy, full of thoughts and worries.

Everything just disappeared.

May the Prophets forgive hersins.

 ***

 Everything happened so fast,nobody realized it at first.

Some Cardassian guards hadpointed to her and other Bajorans that were there started screaming.

Surprisingly, the most shocked onewas Dukat, he was not there when it happened and he just saw the corpse of thewoman he loved in the sickbay, lifeless, cold and broken.

He should have known, maybe he hadsuspected it but he just ignored the signals because he was still too selfishto care about somebody else.

That same day, Dukat made Lahacorpse transported to her home on Bajor, giving Laha’s body to her father.

That was the place where sheshould have been, where she should have returned.

Dukat hoped he would haveaccompanied her there, and maybe even the occupation would have stopped and anew era would have come but reality was different from his dreams.

He was not welcome in in thathouse, nowhere on Bajor, but he felt glad he had been able to love someone likeher. Maybe she saw something good in him, not everyone was able of this, butnow everything was over and he could only mourn the death of a person he trulyloved. Because it was not a lie, not an illusion or a Cardassian trick. It waslove and it was dead, it was resting with her, in her grave.

It was more than that.

It was the love of a marthyr.