#while I only have 46 'works' on AO3

[mytardisisparked]

20 Writer Questions

Was tagged by @emilie786!

1. How many works do you have on Ao3?

I currently have 46! I have a couple sittin' in the crockpot tho hehe.

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count?

164,375

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Historically, I have written for Star Wars and Star Trek. Right now I am writing for The X-Files :)

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

My top 5 are all older fics of mine: "When Sunrise Comes Early," "From the Depths of My Two Brain Cells," "The Voyager Bunch," "Ex Equis Scientia," "I'll Always be Around, Wherever Life Takes You"

5. Do you respond to comments?

Absolutely.

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

Hmmmmm hard to say because I tend to end even my angstiest fics on a hopeful note.... I guess maybe "Night Visions?" Or, I'm sure there's a one-shot back in Ye Olde Star Wars collections somewhere that was extra angsty, but I am not going back to read those right now because I have neither the time nor fortitude.

However, I will be publishing something during Merry Month of Cohen that is p angsty so keep an eye out for that he he :)

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

Again, hard to say because I end almost all of my fics on a happy/hopeful note. I feel like maybe "Blessed Be The Man?" I really liked the way that one ended.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not really. I've had some... aggressive? comments before that bordered on rude, but they never seemed to be coming from a place of hate. Usually, it's just people who enjoyed the story but made the presumption of telling me an element they had wished was different in a way that was not very politely worded. I don't take a lot of offense to it. I'm not popular or controversial enough to get actual hate comments lol.

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

Nah bro. I get giggly and weird when writing a kiss scene; what the characters do beyond that is none of my business lol.

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

Not really? I tried writing a Star Trek Voyager/Star Wars crossover once but never finished it because it was not clicking. Other than that,,,,,,,, I guess @well-and-true and I keep having our Treksonas do holodeck programs based on The X-Files, which hasn't really been ficced (yet) but it's fun to imagine! Lots of shenanigans.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not in the manner that this question is asking, but I do consider the AI scrapping stuff to be theft and I'm not cool about it.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? 

Nope.

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

Yes! With @emilie786.

I've also done a LOT of idea bouncing with @baylardo @jellybeansarecool @elephant-in-the-pride-parade @maliciousalice @well-and-true and, while it hasn't turned into official co-writing (yet :]), their ideas and conversations and artwork have all been *deeply* valuable acts of collaboration. It's not co-writing in the official AO3 sense, but their words of encouragement and ideas are inseparably woven into almost all of my works from the last couple years.

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

I am very much impacted by the ole Hyperfixations so my favorite ship will almost always be whatever I am currently obsessed with. I never stop loving ships though. They are always lurking in the back of my mind. And sometimes they cycle back to the front. (right now I am DEEP in the MSR pit hehehe)

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

Ummmmmm I outlined an extremely ambitious fic based on the Threshold!AU that would be multichap to the extreme and I LOVE it a whole lot but I am not sure I will ever have the fortitude or attention span to actually write the whole thing. I want to so bad.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I like the way I write movement and nonverbal comm. I also like my dialogue, once I get a good understanding of the way a character talks (it can take a bit).

Aside from that, I like my comedy. I love love love writing comedy. I love the beat of it, I love the nitty-gritty of correctly timing it, I love that it can be dry or slapstick or subtle or witty, I love that it can be situational. I'm not a perfect comedy writer, but it's a shoe that fits me well and, IMO, I continue to fit better and better as I learn and practice.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

HOO BOY well,,,, lately I feel like I have been struggling with "show don't tell." IDK why. I also hate how often I start sentences with "He" or "She" and I wrestle with finding more interesting ways of beginning sentences. I mostly write short-form fics, but I am working on a multi-chap fic right now and I have discovered that longform plots can be difficult to wrangle. I just wanna skip the "plot" and get to the good stuff (the significant character scenes).

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

If I could I would.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Way back in Yonder Years of fanfiction.net, I wrote for Marvel. Specifically, Captain America and Agent Carter. You will never find them.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

And Still, The Sea is Salt. I wrote it 2 years ago and it is still, IMO, my best work. It's a little more.... niche? of a ship and fandom (Pike/Una, Star Trek SNW) but I liked the story I told and the way I told it. And the poem I incorporated into it.

I also really liked my very first Star Trek: Enterprise fic, "Parent-Teacher Association," because I felt like I nailed the characterization and (as prev mentioned) I LOVE writing comedy.

This was fun! Tagging: @singeart, @elephant-in-the-pride-parade @jellybeansarecool @gaitwae @more-better-words @jenksel and anyone else who wants to

[chillinglyadventurous]

Taking advantage of the fact that it's Halloween month >:D

Ford with a scientist friend who is very reserved, just work and friendship.

Then Bill Cipher arrives and his main plan was to have a deal with the Scientist!Reader , but the reader is not stupid, so it ends with Bill making the deal with Ford, Bill puts Ford in a complicated situation by making the Reader give in to the deal, but deep down the reader knows he has nothing to fear.

My idea is that the reader, having knowledge of the bizarre things of Gravity Falls, will have a very disturbed head, with the worst things (like the episode that goes into Stan's head but is terrifying) but what could be so terrifying to make Bill back down 🤨

Well give me your opinion on this 😋 have a nice day

So, I’ve had a kind of similar idea before! I just didn’t know how to write it. Still don’t, if I’m being honest.

So, I’m a Chilling Adventures of Sabrina fan. I think mid season 2, I started writing a little fanfiction that happened after the season was over and before season 3 came out. I won’t get into the details because that work has since been deleted along with the AO3 account it was published under.

Anyways, the basic premise was that my OC eventually had more powers than Lucifer, stemming from a deal with God. OC was basically a god herself. Couldn’t die. Died a couple times. Came back from the dead. Super messed up stuff.

Well, I think something similar would translate well into this request. So, basically, you would be this sort of all-powerful being, but you would just want a ‘normal’ life, basically. With the same intentions Bill had lied about having, you knew Ford was a great mind. You had sought him out to teach him the mysteries of the universe. You work well with Stanford. When he eventually brings Fiddleford around, you work well with him too.

You look human. Nothing about you seems odd. Even if you did do something odd, it was Gravity Falls. No one would have noticed.

After Ford made his deal, he didn’t tell you, but you knew. You could just tell it was Bill. There had been a prophecy, the same one Ford had found and used to summon Bill. You see, either the entire zodiac could defeat Bill or you could. Ford was the six fingered hand and you, being all powerful as you were, knew that. Not that it wasn’t obvious to begin with.

The only way he could beat you, destroy the prophecy, was if you made a deal with him. If you did that, he wouldn’t need the portal or the rift to take over dimension 46’/. His deal would give him his physical form, but you were too smart for that.

However, one night after Fiddleford had gone home/was asleep, Bill would come in, dressed in Ford’s skin. He would threaten to kill Ford, your now good friend. You would panic because Bill was more than capable. You wouldn’t let that happen. So, you shake his hand, but, somehow, the deal isn’t complete.

He enters your mind. At first, once he’s in there, it’s a bit darker than he had expected. Nothing seems too off and he thought it would be easy. He shuffles through your mind only to find what he thinks he’s looking for. Behind a door covered in chains, he sees it. You had orchestrated the whole thing. You were the one who had controlled him to make him destroy his own dimension in an attempt to weaken him.

The master of mind games had been manipulated. You were too powerful for him and, unlike Ford, you couldn’t be tricked so easy. You’d kill him. It was only a matter of time.

After all of this is where it could either become some sort of AU or keep with canon. If the story verged into AU territory, that could be it. There could be some grand showdown in the mindscape. Anything is possible, obviously.

On the flip side, it could keep with canon. The journals/Book of Bill which I still haven’t read because it’s been sold out where I am said Bill left for a while. Ford wondered where he was. Bill could have backed down for a little bit, hoping to keep off your radar. Does could still get sucked into the multiverse. Maybe it’s you who shows him the truth about Bill. The possibilities are endless.

All in all, I think this is an amazing idea! Apart from what I’ve gotten into here, there’s a million ways this could go. There’s a possibility of so many twists and turns!

[roseonne]

next time

Mephistopheles attempts to ask you out on White Day.

a mephisto x mc / reader for white day ! ( ao3 link )

︶︶︶︶︶︶︶༉‧₊˚

"Alright. Class dismissed."

Finally.

Mephistopheles lets out the mental groan he's been holding onto since the beginning of class, around three eons ago. (He's exaggerating, obviously, but three hours did feel an awful lot longer today, for some reason.) Normally, being stuck to his chair with his ears almost hurting from hearing the significance of magical potions and their hazards, not only to humans but to angels and demons as well, over and over again, is a tolerable occurrence for him. So now, seeing that he's seemingly over everything that's had happened to him within the span of just one day, irritates the life out of him.

Hastily, and with a hint of recklessness, the RAD Newspaper Club (former) president wastes not a moment in gathering up his things and taking his leave.

Oh, thus he realizes, whilst on his way out.

Maybe that's what's keeping him so preoccupied? The piled-up articles he still has to proofread and publish; the photos in his camera that he's to edit first, then upload to the official RAD Website; and a terrifyingly long list of all the other deadlines he ought to catch up to, academic and personal matters combined.

A sigh of distress escapes the noble demon's lips. Without much thought, he fetches his D.D.D. out of his pocket and the screen immediately comes to life.

03/14/XXXX 4:46 P.M. Today's Daily Reminder: "Don't forget to celebrate White Day in your own, special way!" -Lord Diavolo

Well. That explains it.

Troubled, Mephistopheles runs his fingers through his hair, tousling the locks he made sure to keep as neat and tidy as possible. As much as he desires to fulfill Lord Diavolo's honorable (although sometimes questionable) requests, just how in the Devildom is he to juggle all his tasks and duties at once? He has his work cut out for him today, and for the rest of the week. Such a poor demon he's become. And to make things even more complicated on his end, apparently, he isn't getting any of his listed items done right on schedule. Unfortunately so.

For as if in response to his already-raging psychological turmoil, the universe provides him with the biggest, most troublesome distraction he's yet to learn to ignore and conquer...

Mephistopheles sees you.

"MC!" he calls out from the top of his lungs suddenly, surprising both you and himself as his voice appears to have acted against his will. And the fact that he rushes to your side upon instinct truly isn't helping him in the slightest. "Fancy bumping into you now of all times."

"Mephisto!" You greet him with a smile, and right away, he feels the warmth of you emanating from the center of his chest. "Good work today!"

"Likewise." Mephistopheles places a hand over his heart and bows at you slightly. "Are you heading home now?"

Your polite nod in confirmation to his query earns a rather sharp click of the demon's tongue. 

"Isn't it too early for that?" Mephistopheles raises an eyebrow. "Why don't I do you the honor of inviting you out with me for dinner, perhaps? Of course, on behalf of Lord Diavolo and the rest of RAD, we're grateful for your efforts in keeping the exchange program alive!"

The noble demon senses you feeling a little taken aback; and he understands. He figures you're probably aware of how busy he is, considering how tedious it is being the main individual manning the RAD Newspaper Club. Again, even he is growing more and more perplexed at how his body's acting. Doesn't he have so many things to do? How is he able to make it seem like he's got so much time to spare while keeping a straight face? Oh, Diavolo. He no longer recognizes himself at all.

"Uhm..." you find yourself stuttering, evidently unsure as to the kind of answer you'll provide your current pursuer. 

"If you're wondering how we'll meet, I'll pick you up at the House of Lamentation by seven." But Mephistopheles is more than ready to hush each and every one of your possible concerns. 

Shifting a little of your weight over to your other foot, you hum quite a playful, "Well..." 

Crossing his arms, but raising his index finger in the air, the demon proudly declares, "It'll be my treat, MC. Don't worry. I got you."

And you've made up your mind; Mephistopheles recognizes the familiar light in your eyes the moment your gazes briefly met and locked. 

"MC, there you are!"

But what perfect timing. In the midst of his persuasion, here comes the residents of Purgatory Hall. And the brothers of the House of Lamentation. And well, basically everyone else you hold very close to your heart.

Clearing his throat in a slight panic, Mephistopheles tries to regain your attention, "MC, please. If you would justー"

He's too late.

"I'm so sorry, Mephisto." It's the sincerest, most bittersweet apology he's been told so far. "Maybe next time!" you add quickly, as you at last get dragged farther and farther away from him.

Down the drain, goes his infrequent chance with you, yet again. Mephistopheles squeezes his eyes closed and chews on his lower lip; his mind all blank, save for the resentfulness looming heavily over him. Forget about his deadlines; his tasks; his duties; his role in the future of Devildom. Is it too much for him to ask a mere moment of your time? Is he never really going to learn more about you at this point?

Mephistopheles doesn't see it as a fair game anymore. He's one of the first few demons who's heard of your name the very day you arrived at the Devildom; and yet at least a minute of decent, proper conversation between the two of you, alone, still remains beyond his reach. 

Seeing you share the smile that he is able to somehow find comfort in with everyone else, except him... He admits, it causes a twinge of pain to swell across his chest.

How many next time's have you promised him by now, anyway? He bets you won't remember, either.

But since he isn't the type to just sit in a corner and cry; maybe he just has to keep trying, then? Like the lessons in class, over and over. He must push forward, until hopefully one day, you'll learn to look at him from a perspective different from the one you have of him at present.

...Great.

Looks like he's added yet another questionable thing up his list; which he normally would've called a pain in the rear, but it's you he's thinking of so... You're the exception. His exception. You always are, and always have been. 

Guess I'll have to try something harder than initiating conversations, Mephistopheles brings his eyes to the sky and promises; to you and to himself. Next time. 

And once he succeeds in this mission of forever, only then can he say...

That he's indeed made the progress he so longs for. With you. 

[ilgaksu]

i will now be referring to this situation as weimargate, because i must laugh or i will dissolve into the void.

aka i have had a VERY weird experience of it in fandom lately, and it has escalated to memes in lieu of interpretative dance*, but also i want to talk about it because i think, in more general terms, it's relevant for discussion about how fandom is evolving.

(*as illustrated by @difeisheng because i am personally intimidated by photoshop. interpretative dance would've only had me to blame.)

so. hi! if you don't know me, i am an ao3 writer who goes by the pen name ilgaksu. i have 179 fics on my ao3 account, and of those, 46 of these are for DMBJ or grave robber's chronicles. i've been writing in this fandom for roughly three years, which means according to the laws of mathematics and my own inability to stop posting about my favourite blorbos, that's a new fic every 3.39 weeks. i have not counted chapter updates in this count, but given several have multiple chapters, i think we can see there's....a lot. one ongoing series is currently sitting at about 200k, word-count wise. i like to write, overall, about disability, reclamation, legacy and memory. i also overuse semi-colons.

i am also a very private person at this point in my fandom career. this will be the first post i've made in a while talking about myself where i have allowed there to be reblogs on it. this isn't intended as an affront to anyone else in fandom. my ask box is open, sans anon, and in the last few years, i chose to reply to every comment i could to make sure i still get to engage about the characters i love without compromising my own desire for privacy about my personal life. i choose to work under an explicit persona - because we all do on the internet but i have made mine obvious and enunciated and almost a brand - because i think there is something freeing about allowing myself that experience. it's allowed me to write work that i relate to deeply without having to divulge my life to be analysed by strangers on the internet. generally, i like to post my silly little stories, talk to people about them, and then go about my day offline.

anyway, so this week, i seriously considered walking away wholesale from my current fandom, and i'd actually like to talk about why, and talk about me as a person as opposed to the narrative of persona that i've crafted.

because the reality of a persona is that a real, living person is required to animate it. if i am the person who is small and human and anxious to even speak about this, then i am also the reason the operation is running. it's a one-man show. as much as i want my work to speak for itself without my need to justify its meaning or worth, without my experiences, research and choices about my time, the work would not exist. that's just fact. it's fact for every writer and artist and podficcer and person who labours out of love you see. i also deliberately consider myself a writer as opposed to a content creator, because i believe that label mimics a wider culture i have no interest in - that of someone creating a consumable, ownable object. my fanfiction is a hobby. it cannot be owned by other people. unlike my original work, where it can be bought, there is no formal, explicit contract between me and the reader. there is, however, in fandom, an implicit social contract of equality and collaboration, where we are all equals. i am fundamentally no better than someone who never writes fic and never wants to and never will. i reject the idea of superiority among fans because i do not engage in subculture to mimic the dominant culture, the one that tells me stories are something only certain people are allowed to see themselves in, or even tell to others; that production is the only means of social capital and intrinsic worth.

i am aware, also, that by being private the way i am, i end up sacrificing some experiences that i could have by being more accessible, but i want to reiterate that i have never gone out of my way to conceal my tumblr, nor ignored people who contacted me directly to talk about my fic. in fact, if you show up to talk about my fic, i will probably be so thrilled i'll never let you leave - especially since, when it comes to a majority of it - i spend a lot of time on research, something i enjoy, and deliberately cite my research in the notes because i want to share it as part of the experience of my writing. clearly, i want ideas i have come up with to be enjoyed and loved and shared, because otherwise why would i take the risk of putting them out online, where i then cannot control how they're received or transformed?

however, since about a year ago, i've maintained a policy of works based on my own that i've had outlined clearly in my profile on ao3 here:

as someone who is playing in someone else's sandbox for free myself, my only request is if when you use an idea, usually a headcanon, which is one i created, which you can as much and in whatever way you want because that is the nature of collaborative fandom and the reason i love it so much, you cite that i was the originator of the idea. and secondly, that you let me know. this is a personal request based on how writing can be a very lonely project, even in fandom. you put your work out into the world, with no sense of who it will reach and if it will mean anything to them, and you have to work on the faith that even if it doesn't, the work itself was worthwhile. but you hope it will, because everyone hopes it will.

all of this is outlining so it's understandable to people that read this how i was completely off my face bewildered when i found out a headcanon of mine had reached the level of fanon popularity where it's been mistaken for canon, and has been for over a year at the very least, and i had literally no idea this had happened.

which, frankly, was both hilarious, in a very bizarre way, and completely, deeply sucked.

i know this is my idea because of how distinctive it is, and how much it contravenes canon - namely, that a character, hei xiazi, was a medical student in berlin during the weimar republic. i know it's mine because the timeline with the canon we're told by the actual writer of the source material doesn't match up, which i was aware of and chose to retcon. it was designed and fitted to a personal interpretation of canon material i had been working on for years, and involved a lot of time and research and intense love for the era, the character, and the ways a story about being alone in a foreign country had intertwined with my own personal life. ever since i wrote it, i assumed that the one or two people who had used it with credit were the only ones who had, and because they had honoured my request i was honestly completely thrilled. i still am that those fics exist. that's because it was collaborative.

i want to be clear: nothing about the situation as it stands has been collaborative. a writer being the last to know about the commonality of their own idea in a small fandom is not collaborative. and while it might not bother everyone, it's bothered me to the point i've had serious consideration for several days about whether i should walk away from the fandom.

but ilgaksu, surely you should be flattered that people liked the idea so much?

yes. this was never about the use of the idea. it's about the way this idea has been isolated and used with an assumption that i would have no interest in knowing, or that i would even need to know. i'm not sure what has caused this - whether the persona element of my work has led people to believe i would not have any emotions about finding this out, but i am not, actually, a persona. i am the person who uses it. and as the person who uses it, this is how it felt to find this out. it felt, and still feels uncomfortable, hurtful and isolating to find out your idea has been so beloved but that nobody considered whether you would like to know. it feels like the collaborative element of fandom has been severed from you, specifically, and that your fanwork has been treated as entirely other from you as a fan. i hope nobody else making work feels like this, and i've been told this situation is so strange as to ensure that's hopefully not the case, but i think this is an ongoing issue more widely - the idea that writers are separate from fan culture, and their works are products as opposed to the shared results of a hobby.

do i think this was deliberate? not at all. do i think this was intended to be hurtful? not even in the slightest. but i want to be clear how personal this feels.

i don't have an answer for this situation. the cat is out of the bag, ilgaksu knows about the fanon, and hei xiazi is, despite all canon, going to medical school in 1920s germany. expressing my discomfort with how this has gone down feels important to me anyway, and it's also important to me that i do it in this very detailed way so that people who were unaware do not feel personally at fault, or feel like by me expressing this i am taking this idea back from them. i always wanted this idea to be loved and to be shared.

i also always hoped this idea would find people who wanted and needed a story about someone a long way from home following an ambition, and how much fear and hope and desire goes into the decision to do something like that, and what it means to be a disabled person in a foreign country, and what it means to be queer in a foreign country, and overall what it means to be a stranger in a strange land. i want to be clear that while i wrote this for me, i also wrote it for everyone who has also lived that. i want my work to feel like someone is holding your hand, not that they're at a distance and disregarding you, the reader, and the relationship we have together during the time you read my work.

i hope in future that if you use my headcanons and are aware of that being the case, you let me know. i don't have to read the work itself if you find that intimidating. i will not go out of my way to find it. whatever you've done with the idea, i will fundamentally see it as a compliment and evidence of an exchange between us as a fandom. but i want to know because otherwise, all i see is you taking something i loved and wanted to share and enjoying it with a door firmly shut between us. i am too old to care if i'm not invited to a party, but if the party is themed around a concept i put so much thought and love - for the source material, the people who were going to read it and myself - i can't help but care. it's hard to feel like a vending machine, even if the process of making the fic is so joyful for me that i won't stop until the joy is gone. it hasn't gone yet, but this week it's been dented a bit.

anyway - if you got to the end of this, thank you. please be considerate of how much this has taken for me to express, regardless of your own feelings on it, and how unusual it is for me to make a post that is able to be shared. if you use the idea in future, you do so with my blessing, which was always there. if you want primary sources, places to start, or anything like that - fashion, language, visuals - i want to be clear you can ask me and i will be beyond thrilled to help. i always have been and i'm concerned that because of this that hasn't been clear. but i also feel like if i don't state this experience in this way at this time, and how it was experienced by me, odds are i will now forever look over my shoulder and wonder if this will happen again, and i love writing for this fandom so much that i will not allow something like that to dim that love. i know you love these characters so much too - it's why you're here. i actually used to make a lot more meta posts like this, about fan culture, and i've been considering if i will again - just less personal and less anxiety-inducing to post next time. until and beyond then, i just hope we can all consider things like this in future - that i can treat you with the same grace - and understand the pressures and anxieties of writers in fandom at this point in time especially. a lot of us have hearts far more made of glass about the things we love, like our work, than can be immediately apparent.

anyway, i'm going back into hiding now.

your friendly local cryptid fanwriter,

ao3 user ilgaksu <3

[castrian-amore]

Bitter had the Heart

Dead Tired(Tim Drake x Danny Fenton), Tim Drake-centric, unfinished, the author is plotting, temporary character death, please check out ao3 for full tags list

3/46 Chapters | Chapter Length: 3584 words

Chapter 3: We are Not Translating Fanfiction

Tim didn’t understand why he had even picked this class for this particular credit. He technically didn’t need it. Then again it seemed more interesting than the other classes and Tim had been hoping for a challenge for once. The teacher was big on working as team and while, yeah Tim could do it. He preferred to work alone on his topics and thankfully there was an odd amount of people in his class so when he requested to do the group assignments he allowed it. 

Until today. 

One Daniel “Danny” Nightingale, was a late transfer into the class for unknown reason. It was also the mysterious kid in the alley. He looked a little better in person but the vote was that he was definitely sick, whether just right now or long term had yet to be determined. He leaned heavily on a cane at the moment walking with a heavy limp.

Tim could point out his handsome features though. The higher cheekbones. The stunning raven hair, his piercing blue eyes. The kid definitely wasn’t immune to the streets. The way he held himself on the verge of running. The sunken wary eyes. This kid was far too comfortable with living in fight or flight mode. If he even knew anything else it would be surprising. 

The teacher pointed to Tim giving him the spot right next to him advising sitting next to the person he would be partnered with. It wasn’t required by any means but it certainly was an option, and he did. 

“So, now that that’s out of the way, where was I? Oh yes the IPA. The International Phonetic Alphabet.” Professor Kaivan began his speech as Danny pulled out a piece of notebook paper and pencil sitting next to Tim. 

“Uh, hi, I’m Danny,”The kid held out his hand and Tim shook it. A cold chill going up his spine from how cold he was, damn. 

“Tim Drake-Wayne,”he introduced with ease, expecting the man to back away or at least move seats because of his name. The Wayne name caught most people off guard but Danny seemed unfazed by it all. In fact he didn’t even flinch or stutter or reel at who he was talking to even. 

“Nice to meet you Tim,”Danny gave him a bright smile. “Apologies for having you stuck with partnering for me after I’m already a late transfer.”

“No issue. Can I ask why you had to transfer?”Tim raised an eyebrow at the man. Their words quiet as the professor droned on. 

“I was in Latin, and I can fluently speak and read latin. The professor kept getting things wrong and I kept correcting them. They kept insisting because they’re the ‘professor’ but I kept insisting I was right, which I was. She didn’t like that so she kicked me out. She got so annoyed she refused to teach me. Thus leaving me with about to loose my credit I really needed this semester so I asked if I could late transfer into another language based class.” 

“And here you are?” 

“Here I am. Only teacher that was willing to give me a chance.” 

Tim snorts a little. Tim had only almost been kicked out of a class one, and that was one of his law classes. Tim kept correcting the professor over and over and over again, and it kept pissing off the professor so bad. Tim had a sneaking suspicion he was going to like this guy. He just hoped the guy was as intelligent as he seemed. 

Being fluent in a dead language was no easy task. None of the bats were fluent in a lot of dead languages but they all knew several spoken languages and a little of a few dead ones. Tim more than others. Books were always his specialty. He preferred to spend the house researching alone in his room or the bat cave. It was part of the reason the other claimed he had a coffee addiction. He did not by the way. He didn’t know what Dick was even talking about. 

“Professor Kaivan is pretty relaxed about that kind of stuff. He assigns minimal homework and prefers to do the group projects over everything else.” 

“Yeah his rate-my-professor score is pretty high.” 

“Sounds about right,”Tim agrees, turning back to the topic at hand for the moment. 

“Now, learning the International Phonetic Alphabet is not for the faint of heart. Having someone to listen and assist when learning this is vital. One of the many reasons everyone in this room has a partner. Learning it is vital for the rest of your success in this class. Breaking down specific sounds a language makes and making it easy for everyone to read any language in this format.” 

Professor Kaivan was an interesting man. Until four and a half years ago he had some of the worst rate your professor scores, but it was rumored that after the death of his partner he sobered up and wanted to help people. Since then, he has been a great teacher. Using his partner method to teach people, becoming a caring professor, giving students days in class to study and work on whatever work needed to be done. He wasn’t a super hard professor to have. 

His hair was graying as the man was into his late 40s going on 50s. Sideburns and his beard graying though. He dressed pretty chill too, half the time coming into class wearing a casual cardigan and a beanie. He was an accomplished guy with a full on doctorate in linguistics. Masters in Psychology and bachelors in the study of Italian. Most of his focus seemed to be on the intricacies of the Italian language but Tim was fluent in Italian and didn’t care to take any of his italian classes. Not that the man had many. 

“I know the 107 letters can be difficult and if you don’t know what to listen for they can sound similar to each other, but that’s why this whole unit is just on breaking down the IPA, and making sure all of us can read, and understand it. Okay?” 

Mummers of okays and yesses echoed through the lecture hall. Tim opened his phone, scrolling to Dick’s phone number and clicking on it. 

Timmy Boi: Guess who just walked into my Linguistics class as a late transfer?

Dickie Bird: Who? 

Timmie Boi: Alley kid

Dickie Bird: No fucking way. Is he that rude in person?

Timmie Boi: No not yet at least. We’re partnered up for the semester though, so plenty of time for me to find out heh. Dude’s got a cane. 

Dickie Bird: So not our so-called mystery vigilante Jason wants us to meet?

Timmie Boi:  Unlikely, He also looks sick as a mother fucker Dick. Like it’s bad. 

Dickie Bird: Damn, so still no leads until Friday? 

Timmie Boi: Unfortunately not. Cams still distorted as fuck with those symbols?

Dickie Bird: Just like all the others. Only copies we have are hand drawn references. No one can get a clear pic. 

Timmie Boi: Anyluck on the Distortion dude? Anything on him?

Dickie Bird: Uhh, he showed up 3 years ago? Works for Jason mostly. Started as a runner, then became body guard and personal protection for a lot of the shipments going in and out of Jason’s domain. That was only after bribing over 15 inmates too. 

Timmie Boi: How the fuck did Jason keep someone, a meta namely, from us for so long? 

Dickie Bird: Who knows. One guy said something about protecting a child. The child is Jason’s guard dog. Brutal when he needs to be. Maybe he’s scarier than he looks? People kept quiet over fear? 

Timmie Boi: You’re the people person, but even then if people are scared we would have heard something else. I just think we have something else in the picture here that we’re missing it all. 

Dickie Bird: Well, any cameras he passed by that night went to static. I had Barb check it out for us. 

Timmie Boi: So his gift can mess with cameras? Only mildly concerning. 

Dickie Boi: Wait, why are we having this conversation right now Tim? You’re in class?!?!?! I’m leaving you alone. Pay attention, and don’t fall asleep, and DRINK WATER FOR ONE IN YOUR CAFFEINE ADDICTED LIFE. 

Timmie Boi: YOU CAN’T STOP ME DICK. I’M GETTING COFFEE RIGHT AFTER THIS. 

Speaking of coffee, he could probably get mystery-dude’s phone number for their homework and stuff. Maybe he could even get coffee with him and help him with his classes. And maybe find out more about that night in the alley. 

“What are you doing after class?”Tim spoke up to look over at the man. Danny wasn’t even paying attention to the lecture. He was… drawing? Way better than anything Tim could draw that was for sure. Maybe he would get along with Damian? Tim liked the easier stuff, taking pictures. He could draw but he didn’t like it nearly as much as being able to get behind a camera and take some beautiful photos. Man, he should get back into that again. Dick was always pressing him to get back into a hobby outside of crime solving. He liked to stick with what he was good at though. 

“Oh? Uh nothing really, just contemplating existence. Why what’s up?”Danny gave a soft shy smile. Oh no. His smile was cute. Also wait, contemplating existence?

“Well, I figured if we’re gonna be stuck together all semester we could get coffee and talk about the project and get to know each other a little better.” Tim could watch a wave of anxiety slip over the man. 

“Well, I don’t know maybe,”a small shrug then a quiet moment of contemplation. “Actually, sure that’d be nice!”  

“Great!”

“Wait, we already have a project?”Danny’s eyes widened looking from his doodle of something? Tim couldn’t make it out but it was pretty? Looked like a pool of swirling water sketched in a gray scale. Who knows. This guy must have been so distracted he didn’t hear the teacher’s words about their project. Rewriting a speech in a non-english language into the phonetic alphabet. 

Tim couldn't help but laugh a little at him. 

This caught a small look from the teacher and Tim stifled his laughter a little even as Danny began to fight his own laughter as the two looked at each other. That was so dumb. Why was he even laughing at that?

“I’ll explain after class.” 

“Sounds good to me, I’m just sitting here… doodlin’.” 

“I see that..” Tim gave him a smile as Danny chuckled himself turning back to his drawing. The man stretching his arms upwards turned to actually pay attention to the teacher. A small frown coming across his face noticing the thin spindly scars edging up the side of his neck across the back of his neck. What the fuck was that? He shook his head. 

Tim stayed mostly alert the rest of the hour long class. Kaivan had started going through the various letters of the IPA and their origins and why they were chosen. It was interesting to say the least. He had learned a lot and the class was definitely different than what he was used too. Danny on the other hand. 

Fuck Tim hoped the dopey smiles and spaced out stared was how he payed attention or their partnership was going to be a lot more strenuous than he originally thought. He swore he saw him falling asleep a couple times there before jerking himself awake. Not that Tim could blame him. He averaged only about 3 hours a night if he was lucky. Then again, Tim didn’t exactly play the whole “catch up on sleep” game. 

It did take a gentle nudge from Tim to get the man away and on their way to the coffee shop. He was slow as he walked with the cane but Tim didn’t say anything about it. Everyone had their little quirks and issues. Lord knows Tim had his. 

The cold autumn air in Gotham was settling around them. 

“What’s your major?” It was Danny who spoke up with a quiet smile. 

“Oh, business. I plan to take over my father’s company,”Tim replied. 

“Wow, impressive.” Danny looked up at the sky with a small chuckle as Tim raised an eyebrow at him. 

���Thanks, what’s yours?”

“Engineering, I was going to do Astronomy but we’ll the Gotham Skies aren’t exactly the clearest.” Danny chuckled softly as Tim gave a nod. 

“The smog helps no one. Glad you found a major you like though.” There was a silence settling between them but it didn’t lessen the mood in fact it almost felt welcomed in a quiet way. 

“Same to you!” Danny looked up at the crows stopping the duo in their tracks. There were almost 10 crows just watching them. Tim, had never seen that. All them staring at Danny. “Boo.” The man whispered and with a small chuckled, all 10 flew off the branches and into the air leaving Tim to watch and then follow. Missing how the birds simply landed up ahead. 

Tim was sort of lost in thought about the revelations they could possibly have about the whole Distortion situation. 

“Heyo, Timmy,”Danny’s voice dragged him from his thoughts and his slow pace holding the door open. “Don’t hurry up and you’ll be soaked.” He hadn’t even noticed a slow drizzle starting to fall from the sky. He held his hand out before running to meet the man. 

Tim joined the man into the warm coffee shop. The scent of pumpkin spice filling their noses as they moved to get in line. 

“Didn’t get too wet did you?”Danny asked concern surprising Tim. 

“Ah, no, don’t worry about me though.  I might be more concerned for when we leave here though.” 

“I’m not too worried.” The man gave a nonchalant shrug. “Can’t kill me worse than I already have been.” Was that a death joke? 

“Oh?”Tim gave a smirk. He wasn’t normally one for puns, those were Dick’s thing but also… Dick wasn’t here. “Did it have you rolling in your grave?” Dick could never find out about this but then Danny’s shit eating grin only widened across his face. 

“Oh, for sure it was to die for after all.” 

“I can’t I’m sorry,”Tim laughed with a smile. “What’re you getting? I’ll pay since I invited you out.” 

“Oh, I might scare you with my order.” 

“I promise you won’t. Mine is insane myself.” 

“One of those extra large pumpkin spice lattes with 10 shots of espresso.” 

“Extra large americano with 8 shots of espresso,”Tim quipped. “I see you’re a man just as insane as I am.” 

“Oh, for sure. I’ve never met someone with an order just as bad as mine,”he admitted as he stared up at the menu. “How are the sandwiches here? Are they pretty dead-licious?”

“Oh god..” 

“Or I don’t know, pretty frightful?” 

“Please Danny.” 

“I bet they’re boo-mbastic.” 

“Who ever uses that word anymore.” 

Okay Halloween was coming up admittedly. Yes there were halloween and fall decorations coming but, but god dammit Danny. It was like having another Dick around. 

“You decided to fuel this.” 

“I did not decide to fuel anything!”Tim complained just as they got to the counter ordering their coffees. It was a barista Tim was familiar with. A kind girl named Sarah who seemed to be all too familiar with the two of them. 

“Oh! Can I also get the mac and cheese please!”Danny offered another charming smile putting some money in the tip jar. “I can pay you back Tim.” 

“No worries.” Tim gave a shrug. 

“Alrighty and here you are Tim.” Sarah handed him his card back with the receipt as he himself put some money in the jar. 

“Damn, she knows your name?”

“I know you too Danny, Mr. 10 shots of espresso at midnight last week. You also fucking work here.” 

“Love you guysssss, and I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Danny practically purred out with an innocent smile. 

“You two together, scare me,”the barista motioned between the two of them. “But honestly, we were waiting for you two to meet.” 

“I’m innocent,”Tim vouched.”Also wait, what?” 

“I watched you order an extra large cup with only espresso shots in it for Finals last semester.” Sarrah refused to answer the apparent group that had been waiting for Tim and Danny to meet each other. 

“I was busy!” 

“You weren’t sleeping!” 

“Anyways I’m going to go over there,”Danny pointed to an empty table by the window. 

“Yeah, Tim. How about you go over there. With your little Date,”She emphasized the word as Danny was already over sitting down unpacking his backpack onto the table. 

“He’s not my date! We literally just met!” 

“Yet. Next in line please!” 

“Sarah-- no-- I swear to--”Tim could have sworn he saw an exchanging of cash behind the counters. Were they betting on something. What the fuck were they betting on?!? He hissed and moved to join Danny in the opposite seat. 

“So did you even catch what the group project is? How much have you studied of the Linguistics 101 class anyways?” Tim pulled out his laptop setting it in front of him. He logged in giving a small smile of the silly chaotic and group picture they had gotten last year at Christmas. Bruce stood on the far right and Jason on the far left Dick’s arm wrapped around his shoulder. Damian was trying to stab Tim again who was moving to dodge it. Steph chaotically cheering the gremlin on. Cass quietly wondering if she should intervene in the middle. Duke full on panicked at what was going on as it was his first Christmas with the family. Barb covering her mouth in laughter in front of Bruce. He wanted to make sure she was included. It was his favorite photo of him and his siblings. 

Fuck. Danny had been talking to him. 

“Earth to Timmy.” A wave of a hand in front of his face. 

“Please just Tim,”he laughs. “Sorry, yes?”

“I was asking about the IPA. Are you familiar with it? I have no idea on anything about it.” 

“I know like half of it? I’ll have to learn the other half,”he admits. “But yes, the project.” 

“Fuck, yeah okay what’s this project?” 

“It involves reading.” 

“No! WHY!” 

“In another language.. That neither of us speak.” 

“Oh god.” 

“Yeah, so we’re supposed to write down a 1,000 minimum word speech, or chapter from a book or whatever and put it into the International Phonetic Alphabet.” 

“I don’t know about you but I speak a lot, like A lot of languages.” 

“Yeah.. I feel the same way.” 

“What do you speak?” Danny playfully pushed Tim’s computer screen down from booting up the program the professor had given them to use to type out the phonetic alphabet. It was still apparently a nightmare program, but he had decided to type it so he wouldn't be deciphering shitty handwriting. 

“Mandarin, Chinese, Italian, German, French, russian, Japanese, tagalog, spanish, I think that’s all of them?” 

“You speak Tagalog too!” Danny’s words switched with ease to the language. 

“No fuckin’ way,” Tim had to laugh at that one. “What else do you speak?” 

“Same things are you but, Esperanto, Swahili, Cantonese, javanese, Sardo(technically a dialect but you know same difference),  Ukrainian, I think that’s all?” 

“I thought I was the Polyglot. Oh! I also speak ASL and BSL.” 

“I know bits and pieces of ASL, definitely no BSL though,”he laughs softly. “But wait what other languages does that leave?”

“Well, a lot but I mean. We could always pick an easy one we both know.” 

“Italian?” 

“Yeah, please. I do not want translate someone in a non-latin based alphabet. It registers funny in my brain.” 

“I gotta ask though Danny… Esperanto?” 

“Okay, leave me alone! I had a friend who spoke it and taught me it so we could shit about others.”  

“That’s fuckin’ hilarious though,”he smirked. “But what should we translate?” 

Danny looked like he was about to burst out laughing. “What if we just fucking translated the Divine Comedy.” 

“Danny Nightingale, are you telling me we should rewrite one of the most famous works of Italian writing, ever. That is also notoriously translated, a lot? And is--- you know.”

“Ma Divine Commedia,”Danny laughed. Tim could not with him right now. “E la fanfiction Tim.” 

“YEAH I KNOW, that’s why I can’t believe you’re suggesting it.” 

“COMMEDIA.” Danny proclaimed with a snort. Fuck that was cute. Thank god his name was called to grab their stuff. He could ignore the small twinge in his chest as he brought them their coffee and the food for Danny. 

“Let’s get this over with I guess.” 

“YES!” Danny threw his first into the air in excitement. “This is the start a beautiful friendship Tim, I promise.” 

“Are we about to be nightmares to our poor professor?” 

“What? Nooooo.” 

“Oh yes we fucking are,”Tim rolled his eyes and smiled as he sipped his drink pulling up the original document. They were so fucked, but at least it would be funny. If Danny was his new partner for his class maybe Friday would come sooner than he thought. 

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

[a-killer-obsession]

🔞 Minors DNI 🔞

A search for a rumored Vegapunk weapon leads the Kid Pirates to an unexpected new crewmate, with a bloodlust that rivals their own and an incredible power.

CW: Please check AO3 for all current warnings, but general warning for smut, slow burn, serious gore, and really dark themes. AFAB reader, she/her pronouns.

Masterlist || AO3 || Chapter 1

Chapter 46 - Plans and Disguises

Unsure of what to do now that you're in Wano, you make a deal to get some help.

Word Count: ~3.5k

“Give me a hand, will you?” Law coughed, a dribble of blood running from the corner of his mouth, “they got me with a fucking seastone nail.”

“What makes you think I'm gonna help you?” You scowled, “I ain't your friend.”

“Because I know who you are, Shockwave Yin,” Law smirked, “and I know why you're in Wano. Help me out, and I can help you out.”

“You can heal yourself once I get the nail out?” You questioned. You knew a little of his devil fruit abilities, Killer made sure you were well educated on all of the Worst Generation and Emperors. Only a fool would sail the Grandline without some knowledge on the biggest players in the game.

“Yes, just fuckin’ get it out,” he grumbled, pulling the sleeve of his kimono out of the way, revealing the tattoos on his arm and the entry wound. “You don't know this place. You and your baby won't survive here unless I tell you what I know.”

You grumbled but knew you weren't in the position to refuse any information you could get. He was right, you knew shit all about this land, you didn't even know how big it was or what direction to go in to find your friends. You pulled your dagger from your thigh holster, giving him one last look of confirmation. He nodded, and you dug the blade into his skin, making the opening large enough to get your thin fingers inside; since it was seastone, you couldn't use your powers to dislodge the nail. You pushed two digits into the wound as Law groaned and grinded his teeth, fishing around for the seastone nail, a little rougher than you needed to be just out of principle. You knew you'd found it when you felt your abilities shut down, your visor now giving your vision a purple tint instead of its usual invisible filter. You pulled the nail from his wound, throwing it into the grass nearby.

Immediately, Law summoned a Room and removed the bacteria from his wound, closing it with a sigh before dismissing the blue aura. You cleaned off your knife against his already dirty clothing, much to his annoyance, reshealthing the blade and wiping your hands clean on some damp grass. You stood before him impatiently, waiting for him to hold up his side of the deal.

“Alright, alright,” Law rolled his eyes, using the tree to stand back upright, a little unstable on his feet. “I'll give you the import info. Kaido's weapon factories have poisoned this land, the water and food here, even the animals, aren't safe to consume. The only safe food comes from his farms. If you want to survive here, you need to either steal from his farms directly, or from the Flower Capital where he ships the safe food to the rich.”

“God fucking damn it,” you growled, annoyed at the extra work. You were no better off than you had been on the alliance island. How were you going to keep up with stealing enough food to sustain your milk, care for your baby, and find your crew? Law saw the way you grit your teeth in frustration, and saw an opportunity he could take advantage of.

“Your devil fruit is quite strong, yeah?” He asked. You squinted at him suspiciously, choosing not to dignify him with an answer. He rolled his eyes at your hostility. “Look, I'm guessing the baby is throwing a spanner in the works for you. Kaido took your crew, yeah? My crew have heard rumours about it, but since it doesn't concern me I haven't looked into where they're being held. I'll make you a deal though. We keep baby supplies on the ship for distributing on poorer islands, so make a deal with me. My crew will babysit, while you go look for your crew. In exchange, you lend us your power in the battle against Kaido.”

“Why should I trust you?” You growled, holding Dawn close protectively.

“Because we have a mutual enemy,” he said plainly, leaning on his long sword for support, weak from bloodloss and use of his power, “and because right now, I know you don't have any other options.”

You made an annoyed grumble, but conceded that you didn't have a better option right now. The Straw Hats trusted him, they'd already fought together several times, he seemed reliable to them at least. You trusted the Straw Hats, they'd helped you without question, and had been more than accommodating, so maybe you could extend that trust to Law, given their alliance. It was a difficult ask though, given your current experience with pirate alliances. You looked down at a sleeping Dawn nestled against your chest, not a care in the world. You couldn't keep doing this on your own, you needed to find her dads and the rest of your crew. You owed it to Kid at least, after everything he'd done for you.

“Fine, you have a deal,” you finally agreed, not seeing any better path. Law held out his hand and you made an exasperated sigh at the shit eating grin he gave you as you shook it. You felt like you'd just made a deal with the devil, but what choice did you have?

The bushes behind you rustles, and you quickly turned on your heel and drew your weapon as you sensed several people rushing at you at once. You stilled your heart and your hand though when matching branded kimono appeared through the trees. You let out a heavy breath as you resheathed your sword, you were getting really fucking sick of people jumping out of bushes today.

“Captainnnnn!” A large polar bear mink shouted in a surprisingly high pitch as he ran at Law. He scooped the tall man up like he weighed nothing, Law clearly used to this sort of treatment as the mink hugged him like a ragdoll. “You're okay!”

“Bepo, put me down,” Law complained. The bear quickly dropped him, bowing his head and apologising repeatedly. “What's your report?”

“The ruins are entirely destroyed,” a man with ginger hair sticking out from under a whale-shaped hat spoke, “but no lives were lost, thanks to Shinobu and Chopper. The group is retreating back to location B.”

“Good,” Law replied, “and Straw Hat-ya?”

“Captured,” the one with a cap with a small stuffed bird on top spoke, “unconscious, but alive we think. Looked like they were taking him to Udon.”

“Dammit,” Law growled, “five fucking minutes he's been here and he's already starting shit. Now Kaido knows our crews are here,” Law tsked. You were thankful to hear that Luffy didn't drown, but he wasn't your Monkey, and this wasn't your circus. The others looked at you questioningly, Law waving his hand nonchalantly at you as he answered their wordless questions. “This is Yin-ya, from the Kid Pirates. She'll be coming with us. Let's get moving, the Beast Pirates know I'm around now and it won't be long before they come looking to see where I went.”

“Aye aye captain!” The three subordinates spoke, giving a salute before Bepo took Law's sword for him to carry it, and the other two offered Law a shoulder each to help him walk.

You followed the four of them back through the forest to a small town, where the buildings looked run down and abandoned. There were hardly any people on the street, seemingly most of the residents had deserted the decrepit town, or perhaps died. Those left didn't look far from the grave either, hunched over in doorways, begging bowls in their hands and clothes that were practically rags at this point to cover their bodies. The town stunk of death, the air thick with it. You saw many ghosts along the way, all looking just as depressed as the living, and you had no doubt Kaido was responsible for this town's misery. ‘Location B’ turned out to be a run down looking hall that looked like it used to be used for performances. The largest building in the town by far, though the west side was entirely collapsed, and you worried about the structural integrity of the rest of the building. It had plenty of space for several small crews though, with a large foyer, a decent performance hall, and several offshoot rooms that would have been dressing rooms and the like when the building was still in use.

On the way Law explained more about Wano to you, and a little of the plans to take down Kaido. Wano was an enslaved land, with the poor being forced to work in weapon factories while Kaido built an army of artificial devil fruit users. The production of the fruit had been stopped by Law and the Straw Hats, but Kaido already had a large force, made up of strange human-animal hybrids with none of the shifting abilities of a usual zoan fruit user. The fruit had a high failure rate though, such was the risk of duplicating something as wildly difficult to replicate as devil fruits, but Kaido had accepted the risks when he shipped in crate after crate of the marred fruits. Those who the fruit successfully worked for were known as Gifters, while those who the fruit had failed for were known as Pleasures, named as such because the fruit left them with the inability to show any emotion other than joy, only ever able to laugh and smile for the rest of their life, no matter how angry or sad or scared they were. The permanent smile was also how the fake fruits received their name, known as SMILEs.

Kaido's crew, the Beast Pirates, controlled the entire island, and many residents were either dying in the factories, or starving from lack of safe food. Kaido was in league with the shogun, essentially the king of Wano, after the previous shogun had been murdered twenty years ago during a conspiracy Kaido had aided. Unbeknownst to Kaido, the son of the murdered shogun, as well as several of his retainers, had been sent to the future (or rather, the present) and the plan now was to defeat Kaido and the false shogun, and retake control with the old shogun's son back in his rightful place of power. Both the On-Air and Hawkins Pirates had joined forces with Kaido, and now patrolled alongside the Beast Pirates. Law and Luffy were part of what was know as the Ninja-Pirate-Mink-Samurai alliance, who were currently working on recruiting allies and gaining information on Kaido in the build up to a raid, planned to take place in two weeks during a local festival.

The island also had a unique climate, being a large enough landmass to split up into multiple seasonal weather patterns. Currently, you were in the summer section of the island, while the Flower Capital, where most of the Straw Hats were currently under cover, was located in the Spring area. The entire country had been cut off from the outside world for hundreds of years, with its own den-den system, newspapers, fashion, currency and culture. Hence the kimono Law's crew were wearing, and why Law's crew and the rest of the Straw Hats had been unable to contact Luffy. You could see as you entered the hall that the Straw Hats you'd travelled with also sported kimono now, ready to head off to their own undercover assignments.

Dawn had started to wake up as you arrived, and you pulled her out of the carrier so she could stretch out better and look around. She squealed excitedly as she noticed Hakugan, and Law raised a curious brow at the baby's reaction. You sighed as you struggled to contain the excited baby, “I think it's the mask,” you explained, “I think she's mistaking him for her dad.”

“Massacre Soldier is her father?” Law asked. It seemed obvious to him now, seeing the blonde hair.

“Ah, one of them,” you replied awkwardly, “it's complicated.”

“You… don't know who her father is?” He asked. He sounded a little judgmental and you tried not to take offence.

“I have two lovers, but neither is her birth father,” you replied with a scowl, expecting a pirate to be a little more open with things like sexuality, “neither am I her birth mother. She's adopted.”

“O-oh,” Law replied, “but… you're breastfeeding?”

“I lost a baby,” you sighed. Law quickly regretted this whole line of questioning, it was clear by your expression that he'd hit a sore spot. He made a mental note to himself to explain Dawn's parentage to his crew, so that nobody would ask you the same questions.

“Sorry,” he quickly said, promptly looking to change the subject after that, “Hakugan, come here.”

The masked man came jogging over, much to Dawn's delight as she reached for him. “You're on babysitting duty,” Law told him, “have someone retrieve supplies from the ship, you're going to be looking after Yin-ya's baby while she looks for her crew.”

“What?!” Hakugan groaned, “Why me?!”

“Because she's taken a liking to you,” Law said plainly, but there was a hint of amusement to his tone, “have someone help you if you must, but you're responsible for this baby while Yin-ya is busy, that's an order. We have a deal with her.”

“Fine,” Hakugan grumbled, holding his hands out for Dawn who all but jumped into his arms. You handed him the duffle bag of what supplies you had, and gave him the rundown of what she likes and needs. It wasn't a proper goodbye yet, but Law needed your attention to get you set-up so you could begin searching for your crew as soon as possible. The Straw Hats gathered here were already on their way out, along with several Heart Pirates, to find their assigned undercover posts or return to the city for more scouting, and you waved them all goodbye.

You followed Law up to what would have been the stage before this hall was abandoned, where he introduced you to the future shogun, Momonosuke, as well as his retainers. He was just a kid, you couldn't fathom how they were going to make this kid a leader, but it didn't matter to you as long as you got your crew back. One of the retainers, Kin'emon, put a leaf on your head, and with a puff of pink smoke your outfit was changed. They assured you your jacket and mask were fine, just disguised temporarily. You now wore a yellow kimono, with a gradient that shifted the base to pink at the bottom, decorated with white and periwinkle flowers. Around your waist was a sash decorated in white and teal vertical stripes, a periwinkle peek of fabric at its top edge and a pink ribbon around the centre. Under the kimono was a matching periwinkle layer, which peeked out at the neckline, and your sleeves had been conveniently tied out of the way by white threads, in a similar style to one of the retainers, Kiku. Your mask was now disguised as a headdress, the visor now a sheer purple fabric, the earpieces now large yellow chrysanthemums, a thick white braid running over your head to connect them all. By fiddling with the petals you were able to adjust the mask, the sheer fabric changing colour with the setting, and you were impressed with the way the devil fruit power adapted to the changes.

Carrying weapons was forbidden in Wano unless you were one of Kaido's subordinates, so you stashed your katana with Law's crew, keeping your hidden knife under your dress. You didn't really need your katana anyway, you just liked to have it with you in case of seastone bullets. The retainers also gave you the cover name Mienai and a backstory as a florist in the Flower Capital, in case anyone asked questions. Did you know anything about being a florist? Not a fucking lick, but you didn't plan on getting close enough to any of the locals to need your cover story. The name was useful though, Kaido's people were no doubt keeping an eye out for you, the one rogue member of Kid's crew and a valuable potential asset. If anyone got wind of a ‘Yin' in Wano, you would have a lot more travel getting around, even with your invisibility. You weren't immune to good observation haki, and if Kaido caught wind you were here, you had no doubt he would have people with good haki guarding your crew as a trap for you.

Your plan was to sneak into the capital to begin searching for holding cells, or to try and catch some whispers of where your crew might be. Being able to make yourself invisible would no doubt be your most useful ability in Wano, and now that Dawn was taken care of you would be able to travel quickly and unhindered. Though your new shoes were taking some getting used to. Gone were your usual practical boots, replaced by sandal like shoes called geta, with black lacquered bases and pink straps, worn over white socks that had a separation to account for the shoe straps. They were awkwardly heavy, with a curve at the front that meant your toes were basically hovering over nothing, and you ate shit at least five times before you got the hang of them, or at least got the hang of using your devil fruit to manipulate the air and right yourself.

You took one last chance to breastfeed Dawn for the evening, not knowing when you would be back to the base, memorising the shape of her face and the way her soft hair fluffed up at the top of her head and the way her tiny little hands reached for things. You hated having to leave her behind, but you had to remind yourself that she was too small to remember this when she's older, but she would certainly remember being raised without her dads if you didn't find them. You didn't want that for her, you wanted her to have all the love in the world, to always be surrounded by it. And you wanted that protection for her, so she would never suffer like you had.

You ate dinner with the Law's crew - he'd been stealing food from Kaido's farms, where the crops and animals weren't poisoned by his factories. Law had already informed you that the food in the capital would be safe, so you had no need to pack significant rations, you could steal what you needed once you were there. You packed enough food to tide you over though until you got there, repurposing your duffle bag which until now mostly only held things for Dawn. Law had offered you medication to dry up your milk supply to make your mission easier, but you refused it. It felt like a betrayal to Dawn's birth mother to just give up on your milk like that, when her mother had struggled so much to keep it going. She'd had no choice when her supply dried up, but you did, and hell would freeze over before you gave up on it, especially not for a little thing like convenience. Instead, you packed your hand crank manual pump. You would have no way to preserve the milk and would have to dump it, but keeping up the draining of your breasts regularly would stop your body from thinking you no longer had a baby to feed, until your mission was complete and you could go back to how things should be. You still planned to return to this base whenever possible anyway, to see Dawn and feed her yourself whenever the opportunity arose. You also packed a hand drawn map provided by the retainers, a few bottles of safe water, and one of the local den-den, which was conical in shape. You could use it to contact Law if anything happened, but you hoped you wouldn't need to use it.

The retainers told you what they could about the capital, to help you blend in once you got there. Once the sun went down you set out to begin your journey. The capital was located in the centre of the island, and you would have to pass through an area called Kibi to get there. There was a town you could stop in on the way called Okobore, where you intended to hide during the day until you could move at night again. It was safer that way, since some of the Gifters had the ability to fly, they would spot a random woman travelling through essential desert from a mile away, and you couldn't just stay invisible the whole time. By traveling at night you had the vision advantage, and would see enemies long before they saw you, allowing you to cloak yourself. Once you made it to the capital you would blend in, but until then your clothes were far to nice for those on the outskirts, you'd stick right out.

With a deep breath you took one last look at Dawn, sleeping soundly in Bepo's arms (he had taken quite a liking to her), and took the first determined step towards finding your family.

[NEXT CHAPTER]

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Taglist: @h0n3y-l3m0n05 @tremendoushorsepatrolgoth @iggy5055 @eyes-ofhell @luvnisstuff

[bupia]

30, 46 with Copia please! 🙏🏻

SEX TOYS

“It’s not scary at all. Let me show you.” "Does it feels good?"

There's a smut under the cut, +18 only, please.

(this is about Copia with a Transmasc!reader)

Available on AO3

Day 6 | Day 8

"So, what do you say?" Copia asked, his eyes filled with warmth.

"I... I don't know," you replied nervously, uncertainty in your voice.

"I won't pressure you if you're not comfortable, amore," he reassured you with a gentle smile.

"It's not that I don't want to," you began, hesitating. "It's just that I'd rather have you instead of... a toy."

Copia chuckled softly and leaned in, placing a tender kiss on your forehead. "You're absolutely adorable. You'll have me; this is just a little... warm-up. So you can get used to it."

"I know," you pouted.

"Don't make that face, amore mio," he said, leaning in to give you a gentle peck on the lips. "So, what do you say? Are you up for it?"

You nodded, and Copia responded with a wicked grin. He reached for the toy on the bedside table next to his bed, along with a bottle of lube. He opened the bottle and poured some into his hand, applying it on the toy before reaching over to between your legs.

"I think we can get started without any more delay," he said, his voice husky with arousal. "It's not scary at all. Let me show you, amore."

You let out a soft gasp as he rubbed the slippery liquid on your entrance. "I... I think so, Papa."

He gently placed the tip of the vibrator at your entrance, and began to rub it back and forth, teasing you with its touch. You let out a soft moan as he pushed the toy inside you, and you arched your back pushing your hips toward him, but Copia pulled it out.

Copia gazed at your eyes. "How was it, caro? Troppo male o troppo bene?" he asked as he caressed your thigh gently.

"Please," you begged.

"Please what, amore?" he asked.

Copia merely smiled and he turned on the vibrator, you could hear the soft sound of it. You moaned quietly as you felt the vibrations teasing your clit.

"Please what, amore mio?" he repeated. "What do you want from your, Papa?" Copia smiled devilishly as he continued the ministrations. continuing to work the toy against your clit.

"Please put it inside," you cried out.

"Oh, now you want it inside?" Copia inquired, teasingly.

"Don't tease me, Copia," you replied. "Just fuck me."

Copia laughed, then began to push the vibrator inside of you. You moaned as he pushed it all the way into you. You could feel him moving it inside you, and you were so wet from your own arousal that the toy were sliding easily. Copia began to move the vibrator in and out of you, slowly, but soon picking up speed. It felt incredible, and you couldn't help but let out a small moan. Copia chuckled, and began to move the vibrator faster and harder, pushing it deeper and deeper inside of you.

"Oh, Satan," you moaned. "Please, C-Oh-opia, more! more!" you moaned louder, begging.

"Sì, sì, caro mio, moan for me, beg for more," he said with a grin on his lips. "Does it feels good?"

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Papa, more, more!" you whimpered. "Please, don't stop."

Copia lowered his face to between your legs and began to suck your clit while he pumped the vibrator inside you. You grabbed onto the sheets, your hips bucking wildly against his face.

"C-Ooh-pi-Aah!" you moaned his name in a very thin voice, arching your back. "Fuck me, Copia!"

You pushed your hips toward him, and Copia complemented, thrusting the vibrator deep inside of you and rubbing your clit with his tongue. The sensation of his tongue on your clit and the vibrator inside you were too much for you to handle, you felt your legs shaking and your body tensing up. But then, Copia stopped his ministrations, replacing the vibrator with his mouth, purring into your entrance.

"Mmm, you taste so good, caro," he whispered, lapping at your juices. "Cazzo, you taste so sweet here, mio ragazzo."

You groaned in response to his words, rolling your eyes to the back of your head. He went back to your clit with his mouth, sucking it hard into his mouth, flickering his tongue. You felt your body shudder as Copia enjoyed himself immensely between your legs. Copia released your clit from his mouth, and turned his face to your direction, locking his eyes with yours.

"Do you want me to fuck you, caro?" he whispered, darting his tongue out licking your clit, slowly. "Tell me, amore. Tell me how much you want me to fuck you."

"I- I want you to fuck me, Copia-Ah!" you cried out. "Please, fuck me."

"Say it again," Copia demanded.

"Please, fuck me! Fuck me!" you were practically screaming, begging for him.

"Not yet," he said, going back with the vibrator inside you.

"Oh-Ah!" your eyes widened. "T-That's not fair!"

Copia slid it in and out of you, you arched your back, pressing your hips against his hand. You wanted more, but at the same time it was too overwhelming, you could feel your mind going blank. You were bucking your hips, trying to get away from the vibrator, but Copia held you down and continued to thrust into you.

"You're not going anywhere until you cum," he said.

"If you keep go-Oh-ing like this, I- I might..."

"Molto bene, I want to see you satisfied. Cum for me, amore, give me the pleasure to make you cum," he said encouraging you.

You were so wet, and you could feel your juices running down your thighs. Copia continued his pace inside you, making you scream. Copia growled pounding the vibrator in and out of you, going as deep inside of you as he could. He pulled the vibrator almost completely out of you, allowing you to catch your breath before plunging it back in.

"Copia, I'm... I'm going to... Yes, yes, Ah-! Oh, Satan!" you gasped, your words filled with ecstasy as pleasure washed over you.

He went even harder and your body tensed. You came hard around the toy screaming his name. Copia removed the toy from inside you, lowering his face once again, lapping on your juice, drinking it, savoring it. You moaned softly as he did so, spasming with the sensation of his warm mouth against your entrance. You felt him move up your body, reaching for your lips, kissing you gently. He kissed you deeply and you kissed him back passionately, wrapping your arms around his neck.

"You taste even sweeter when you cum, caro," he whispered huskily against your lips, breaking the passionate kiss as his fingers traced tantalizing patterns on your skin.

"T-Thank you..."

"Prego," he replied warmly, his lust evident in his eyes.

"I have to admit, this was really good," you said, your voice tinged with a hint of shyness.

"Indeed, it was, caro," Copia replied with a smile.

Copia lowered his body, kneeling between your legs. He grabbed your thighs, spreading them wider than before, pulling you closer to him.

"W-What are you doing, Papa?"

"Did you already forget what you said? You'd rather have me than a toy, sì?" he said with a smirk. "This was just a warm-up; we're just getting started."

[startrekfangirl2233-writes]

Star! For the Write a Kiss prompt...

Hangman/reader, No. 46 😈

Hi Jay! I had an absolute blast writing this one! It's sweet with a hint of spice. I hope you enjoy Hangman x Reader in Kiss #46 ... out of Envy or Jealousy.

A Kiss Out of Jealousy

You and Jake Seresin have been teetering on the edge of something for a very long time. He flirts unendingly with you. While at first, you were horribly flustered by him, eventually, you realized that the only way to deal with him was to flirt back. As you're on the other side of his comms pretty much all day, the two of you quickly drive everyone on base crazy with your banter. If you were a betting girl (which you're not), you'd bet good money that there was a pool for when you and Jake would figure your shit out.

The truth is, you're not sure that either of you will figure your shit out. You’re somewhere between besotted and pining where Jake is concerned. He’s a bit harder to read. He flirts with you and any other woman he gets his eyes on and takes them home, too. The one date you’ve been on since you came to North Island was crashed by Jake. You’ve tried everything to catch Jake’s attention. All you can do now is make him jealous.

It’s a breezy summer night when you walk into the Hard Deck with heels on and a gorgeous flowy Hawaiian print dress. Your back is bare, and your lips are crimson as you saunter toward the Daggers near the pool tables.

“Hi, Roo.” Your voice is a hushed purr that has a blush rising on his cheeks. “Dance with me?” His hands are hot on your skin as he puts his hands on your waist and spins you around on the dance floor.

“Baby,” The prickle of his mustache against your cheek is just as addictive a sensation as the eyes searing into your skin. “Not that I mind dancing with you, but Hangman’s glaring at me like he wants to murder me. What’re you up to, pretty girl?”

“Nothing, Roo.” Your smile is gentle as he pulls you in closer, close enough that you can feel the heat of his breath across your face and smell the whiskey on his tongue.

“You’re making him jealous, aren’t you?” You shrug, the skirts of your dress swishing around your knees as you stand on tiptoes and peck Bradley on the cheek as the final notes of the song peter out.

The night air is cool on your flushed cheeks as you stagger out from the crowded bar and onto the back porch. It's finally time to see if your play with Rooster had the right effect on the right audience. If not, you might just have to throw in the towel.

The hands that turn you around have heat rising in your blood for a wholly different reason. It's Jake, his hair in disarray, looking at you like you're something special he's just seeing for the first time. You part your lips, trying to say something, but you don't get to.

The kiss Jake presses to your lips could be called a kiss only as a technicality. It's all teeth and wet with saliva. He sucks your lips into his mouth, bites at them, and sucks on your tongue. It's a fight for dominance. When he pulls away, your chest is heaving. Your lipstick is smeared across Jake's face and your mouth, too.

"That was to prove to Bradshaw that you're mine. We clear on that, Honey?" At Jake's growl, you slide your panties off, carefully retrieving them from the decking and press them into his front jeans pocket.

"Crystal." If the light breeze reveals a bit of your bare ass to Jake, well then he should consider that an incentive to take you home.

Want to request a Kiss and a pair for me to write? Guidelines are here.

Want to see other Kisses I've written? Here's the full Masterlist.

I DO NOT CONSENT TO HAVE MY WORK POSTED, TRANSLATED, OR PUBLISHED ON ANY SITES OTHER THAN HERE OR ON AO3 BY ME. IF YOU SEE MY WORKS ANYWHERE OTHER THAN HERE OR AO3, THEN THEY HAVE BEEN POSTED WITHOUT MY PERMISSION AND I WILL BE WORKING TO TAKE THEM DOWN.

[thegrimreaperisanerd]

hi :) binge read your de fic that you have posted on ao3 last night and really enjoyed all of it! excited to see any updates. was wondering if you have any rec for other fic youve read and enjoyed-- i am not god's bravest soldier and do not enjoy trudging through tags and was wondering if you had read anything yourself that you really enjoyed lolol

Hey, thanks so much!!! Sorry it's taken a couple days to answer this, I'm poor as shit and have two jobs now wah... capitilism...

I'm working on the next 46' chapter, It's about 70% complete and I generally let it sit for an evening once it's done then re-read it the next day to catch the vast majority of mistakes (I edit everything myself) so I'd say expect that in the coming days.

I have some thoughts! I... Have never been asked for fic recs before so I'm gonna list a bunch in no particular order that I enjoyed, and reasons why. I will note that I tend to enjoy meaty plot-based works over fluff, so that's what I'll be recommending. Anyway!

Paddling Out (THE REPEATER CORPSE CONUNDRUM) - @transhitman - So this is the first DE fic I read and it set the bar pretty fucking high. YOU'VE GOT: a very cool and insular setting (don't get me wrong I like fics where they travel around Revachol too, but there's something to be said for building a set and living in it for a while) YOU'VE GOT: extremely harrowing tension and pale-fuckery YOU'VE GOT: some genuinely beautiful, heartfelt moments (I don't want to spoil anything but "people don't need your permission to care about you" kinda undid me) YOU'VE ALSO GOT: Amazing art?! Always a bonus, I wish I could draw people lol

Have You Heard The News That You're Dead? - Wizardlover - Time Loop shenanigans hell yeah! Basic premise: Kim is *unable* to save Harry's life after he's shot at the tribunal, each time he dies he Reawakens in Martinaise on the first day and desperately has to try and find a way to either prevent the Tribunal entirely, or survive it. I think the major draw to this one is how well it's characterised and how well that lends to the major source of tension: trying to convince THE WORLD'S BIGGEST SKEPTIC that you *a man he 'has only just met'* is actually stuck in a time loop. Juicy shit.

The Case Of The Man Who Two-Thirds Wasn't There - @glisteningceruleaneyes - We got another case fic here, gang. This is one of those "they travel around Revachol" numbers I previously mentioned. A lot to love about this fic; the minor OCs are all loveable (or at least well-written, looking at you Mr. Bigot-All-Rounder), the elements of writing in the game's style (particularly use of Harry's 'to do' list that you find in the ledger, you don't see that as often!) are all fantastic. Also without spoiling too much I'm a sucker for hurt/ comfort :) I like when bad things happen to our specialist guy :) ALSO! alternating chapters, Kim vs Harry's perspectives contrast REALLY well! Just a super enjoyable read. - On that note I also wanna include a special mention: there's a podfic for this one and since I mentioned my two jobs, I've been listening to audiobooks at work (I'm a cleaner. It's very boring) and that was a fun change of pace!

The Emergent Causeway - hal_incandenza - Now you KNOW this one is good because it's the only *unfinished* fic I'm recommending. Again, We've got art! We've got a brand new (non-Revachol!) setting that still feels excellently Elysium! We got that excellent balance of humour and misery from the get go! EXCELLENT murder mystery so far, I am intrigued AND also there's a fucking puppy. Hell yeah. This one's from Kim's perspective and does a really good job of it, nothing like a man being begrudgingly sent on holiday and being somewhat relieved to have a corpse to deal with.

A Spilled Kaleidoscope - @spilledkaleidoscope - I'm actually recommending a series here. Real definition of "came for the art, stayed for the writing" I mostly have a soft spot because I got to watch a few "haha, what if-?" musing text posts become a series of written chapters and INCREDIBLE DRAWINGS HOLY SHIT. Like, you really just draw hands for fun, huh? This person made a pact with some sort of devil beasts to draw hands very good, at the bare minimum we can read their fiction.

Nothing To Lose But Our Chains - Lepak - I almost forgot this one and I honestly can't believe it because this is one of these ones that you need a cigarette afterwards. Good fucking god. This is probably the best fic I've ever read in terms of not shying away from the heavy themes that make Disco Elysium such a beautiful, moving game. It tackles a racism in many forms, particularly how people like Kim (in working for the RCM) and immigration laws do their part in upholding racist systems, despite the way it hurts him too. Of course, it's also excellently written with tense scenes and some real funny moments. A real good'un here.

The Catacomb Killer - SupposedToBeWriting - Give Harry more memory loss. Make him convinced he killed a kid. Make *Kim* convinced he killed a kid... Then the plot thickens. I won't lie I can't remember fuck all about this one because I was mostly drunk when I read it, but if it was good enough that I kept reading instead of smoking a spliff or something then it must have been excellent... I will re-read it when I have the time, lmao.

MURDER ON THE AIRWAVES - @randomisedmongoose - I'm just a really big fan of murder mysteries and gore. You show me somebody with brain matter pouring from their earholes and I'm like "yum yum, more of that please." I am a sucker for curious methods of murder and this one's good for that. Lots of trekking back and forth like in the game again. More ACAB - always good.

I did not mean to include this many...........................

Oh well. Here's my list, there are plenty of others I've enjoyed but these are just the ones that came to mind! Thanks again for reading my fic! Always makes me happy when people let me know they enjoy my writing :3

[theplotdemandsit]

Takes place at the end of 1x01 of The Umbrella Academy

Five isn’t used to being cared for.

The first time he suffered a serious injury was 46 days (back then, he was still counting by days) after he got stranded in the future. He doesn’t remember it as vividly as he used to, but the fear is still visceral.

That day, it only took one wrong move over the rubble of a gas station to send him crashing to the rocks. He immediately knew something was wrong when he saw the blood gush from under his forearm and the bloody rebar beneath it.

He was lucky it hadn’t nicked the radial artery, but the cut went deep enough it could have. Five doesn’t remember it vividly, but he remembers how his arms wouldn’t stop shaking as he grabbed the wound, instinctively trying to stop the bleeding. He remembers screaming and crying in that gas station for way too long before recalling that no one could hear him. No one would be coming to help.

Even after managing to patch himself up (poorly—he didn’t know how to do stitches on himself back then so the scar was incredible) the infection that came after left him delirious and practically immobile. Except he could move because he had to. He had to find antibiotics or that would be it. He would die like everyone else.

There was no one to console him anymore, no brothers to congratulate him on survival and idiocy, no mother to tell him which medications to take, no sisters to sneak him junk food in the infirmary. It was just him.

Five isn’t used to being cared for, so when Vanya stares at the minor cut on his arm that he’s already wrapped up—albeit crudely—he feels oddly disconnected. He came to talk, so why did she seem so distracted by the blood on his clothes?

Though…he hasn’t exactly talked to ordinary people he wasn’t planning to kill for a while now. A literal lifetime ago.

Because you’ll listen.

Vanya suddenly stands exiting the room without a word, and for a moment Five thinks that’s it. She’s done with him. But then she’s rounding the corner again, hands full of cheap medical supplies.

My arm, he realizes. She wants to bandage my arm.

His mind is working sluggishly, exhaustion worming its way into his bones and dimming his sense of fight and flight instincts. It would be easy to repeat himself, tell her he was fine and that she didn’t need to waste her first aid kit on him; but his body moves anyway, and he finds himself pulling back the sleeve of his bloodied uniform.

And while her eyes are fixed on his scratch, his are fixed on her.

She winces as she inspects his arm, using gauze to wipe away the blood. She focuses seriously as she works—so serious to the point where Five might have laughed if he’d had the energy. Man, he really wishes he could have gotten that cup of coffee.

While in the Commission, people had seen him bloodied and injured before. Civilians got a glimpse of a graze every now and then, the doctors back at Headquarters would fix him up on the rare occasion he hurt himself beyond his own doctoring capabilities, the Handler would wash her eyes over him every time they met.

But those eyes were different. Pitying eyes, sympathizing eyes, indifferent eyes, and whatever disturbing look the Handler always seemed to have in hers. Not like what he’s seeing now. Not…this.

There is a softness to her face as she cleaned the cut. A gentleness foreign to him. Pain has long since been forgotten. He can’t take his eyes off her.

But…then again. She had barely met him in the eyes at all every time they talked today. Maybe she was just using his injury to distract her from actually facing him.

Yeah, that was it. After all, how could anyone care for someone they hadn’t seen in 17 years?

Just me still dealing with S4. This is fine. Crossposted on Ao3 under the same handle. I'm thinking I'll do another 4 of these. Cause why not. I'm sure I'll still be obsessed with this fandom by the time I finish.

[bourbon-ontherocks]

20 questions for writers

I was tagged by @pia-writes-things (ty!!! ❤️)

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

46!

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

703,271. Which is, um, a lot.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Good Girls (formerly), HPI (formerly), and l'Art du Crime. There's also a random bit for les Combattantes, and one GG fic has a shared universe with Graceland. I'm very mono-fandom lol.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Take A Dip

It's All Coming Back To Me

It Hurts When I See You Struggle

Love And War

We're Living In A Powder Keg And Giving Off Sparks

Unsurprisingly, these are all GG fics, although I don't think my kudos ranking is accurate because most of these were impacted by the great kudos-bombing gate from 2020 so it's hard to tell what's actually my most kudo-ed fic.

5. Do you respond to comments?

Absolutely. My secret goal is to keep the conversation going back and forth for the longest possible time because I love the opportunity for a good ramble about my writing 😈

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

I wanna say Ad vitam æternam (L'art du crime)? I mean, it's literally an MCD fic, so, not that merry... Also if I remember correctly, Always lost in the sea (HPI) doesn't end on a very hopeful note either.

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

I don't know? All of them? None? I generally tend to go for happy open endings with that extra bit of bittersweet so I really couldn't tell. But hey, maybe the ending to that thing I'm currently writing actually is the happiest of it all, because oh boy, things do get cheesy at some point 🥺

8. Do you get hate on fics?

No at all! Unless you count that one person who commented on several chapters of whichever long GG fic I wrote just to point blank hate on Beth character lol

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

Of course I do (in English only), I like my porn toxic and desperate and angsty with just the right amount of power play and mutual hatred. Basically, I write hatefuck 😂

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

Not really, no... I've tried a couple of times, but I think I'm better at/more interested in mimicking existing interactions than inventing a dynamic between characters who never met canonically (and also, boy the kind of SETUP you need to justify some characters crossing paths... it's just too much work). I'm more of a cameo/easter egg kind of writer, so once in a while I'll allow a character from another fandom to pop up in a fic and say hi, but it's really a blink-and-you'll-miss-it kind of encounter.

I guess my craziest attempt would be that Crazy Ex-Girlfriend / Good Girls crossover that I never finished though, cause like, super different moods?

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I'm aware of but I don't really attempt to know

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes! By myself lol. I once posted a fic in two languages before acknowledging it was a hell of an additional work 😭

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

Kinda? We never finished nor even posted it but at some point we shared a quite unhinged co-writing story with @whiskeyjack and @00gangfriend00 and it was a lot of fun 🥰

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

You... you guys have that? You don't just live by your Ship of the Moment just to instantly forget about it and hop on the Next Ship when it shows up? I'm sorry but I don't think I have one of those.

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

What a trap question!!! 😂

It's All Coming Back To Me, obviously. Look, I really really want to finish it, not even for me at this point, but for the 120-something people who subscribed to it, for the faithful readers who still leave me comments every now and then hoping for closure. I know how it ends. I have it partially written. I just don't seem to know how to write for Good Girls anymore, and getting my head back into it feels like such an insurmountable load of work, I just- I'm trying, ok?

But like, if someone's interested in helping, or even writing that ending based on my notes (and getting full and proper credits for it obvi), just let me know! I'm really open to it 🥲

16. What are your writing strengths?

Probably dialogues? I've been told many times that my dialogues feel very close to the original, and the thing is, I write about TV shows and I have a very good ear so I think I catch quite easily the actors' voices and tones and mannerisms in my head, so every time I write down a line, I play it several times in my mind with the character's voice to determine whether they would say it like that or not. Looks like it's not working so bad.

Also I *think* I'm not too bad at stream-of-consciousness inner monologues. At least it's one of my favourite things to write so there's that.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Action scenes (that includes sex lol). Filling the gaps between the important parts. Descriptions. Setting up the scene.

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

Like, featuring two different languages inside the same fic, or writing in different languages? I'm not sure I've ever really written the first one? I guess I find it a bit clunky, occasionally I've written scenes that included a character whose native language wasn't the one of the fic, and I'd give them a line or two if that's relevant to the plot (for instance, if characters are lost somewhere in another country, I can add a line/dialogue in another language for comedic effect. Or it can be a way for a character to whisper something for themselves), but the logistics are quite nightmarish, you gotta either assume your audience knows the second language, or translate the lines in the author's note, or have another character translate it in a way that doesn't sound too articifial, that's really really tedious haha

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Good Girls.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

You think I know that? Out of FOURTY-SIX??? Lol. Get out.

Tagging: @sdktrs12 @joeyjoeylee if you're around @riosnecktattoo @humanbra @hemerae-ramblings @sothischickshe @asteraceae-blue

[mellybaggins]

Fanfic Master Post

My fics are now locked to A03 members only

Please send me an ask if you would like to continue reading and you don't have an account.

About the Author Q&A post

Oathbreaker

angst. self discovery. trauma healing.

November 1, 2024 - I am on a one month hiatus from updating this fic to celebrate the 1 year aniversary of beginning to write it. I will update Chapter 67 on December 1, 2024

Act 1 - Chapters 1-12 - Complete

Morwen vowed she'd never lead anyone again after the disastrous mission that led to breaking her oath. But the gods laugh while you make plans, and her abduction by mind flayers and a concerning brush with the devil is forcing her to face her fears. In her search for a cure, she gathers a disparate group of other infected and reluctantly leads them on a journey towards their unknown fates.

Act 2 - Chapters 13-51 - Complete

As the group enter the Shadow Cursed Lands, Raphael returns and forces Morwen to make a choice. In seeming retaliation for her refusal, he breaks the mental blocks keeping the memories of her past from her, forcing her to confront the darkness she thought had been locked away forever.

Act 3 - Chapters 52-? - in progress

With her memories fully restored, Morwen prepares to enter Baldur's Gate, not only to disrupt and dismantle the evil plot of the Dead Three, but also to force a reckoning with her own past. If the darkness doesn't consume her first.

This is an ongoing fic about betrayal, redemption, religious trauma, abuse, and why good people do bad things. She also has romances along the way because despite everything she has never lost her capacity to love.

This fic contains smut, drama, violence (there is also dead dove content especially in the middle-late act 2 and beyond) and is probably the work I'm the most proud of.

I try to update every Monday, but sometimes life gets in the way.

Character Profile - Morwen (Idril)

Character Word Association Game

Oathbreaker on Ao3

Oathbreaker Chapter 1 tumblr post / more photos

Early Game Photo Dump

Bite scene photo dump

Late Act 2 Photo Dump

Fantasy Casting for Original Characters

Morwen recast

Act 1 Chapters:

Chapter 5 - Freefall (First meeting with Raphael)

Act 2 Chapters:

Chapter 41 - Rainy Day (Gauntlet of Shar)

Chapter 42 - This Too Shall Pass

Chapter 43 - Frozen Angels

Chapter 44 - Numb (Backstory Chapter)

Chapter 45 - Fire Burning (the Battle of Moonrise Towers)

Chapter 46 - Make Yourself (Oathbreak Chapter)

Chapter 47 - Thunderstruck

Chapter 48 - Way Down We Go

Chapter 49 - Losing My Religion (Ain't No Rest For The Wicked)

Chapter 50 - Roads

Chapter 51 - Hunter (End of Act 2)

Act 3 Chapters

Chapter 52 - Porcelain (Sweet Dreams)

Chapter 53 - Clandestino (Decaparecido)

Chapter 54 - I'm A Wanted Man (Kryptonite)

Chapter 55 - It's Been A While

Chapter 56 - Come With Me Now (Disappear)

Chapter 57 - Entertainers

Chapter 58 - Cold Blood

Chapter 59 - Angel

Chapter 60 - Mercy

Chapter 61 - Savage Daughter

Chapter 62 - Dance, Monkey

Chapter 63 - Hold On

Chapter 64 - Beso

Chapter 65 - Vampiros

Chapter 66 - Scars

One Shots:

This Protector (Act 2, Reithwin Tollhouse)

Come Undone (Act 1, Gale/Shadowheart scene)

Laileth of Waterdeep

fluff. romance. two worlds one heart.

This is Laileth. She is a forest elf who hails from Suldanessellar inside the forest of Wealdalth/Tethir, as far south of Baldur's Gate as Waterdeep is north. I've unconsciously been treating her like a Tolkien Silvan elf, so finally decided (though not stated in the fics themselves) that by some magic a group of elves from Mirkwood found themselves transplanted into Faerûn and therefore they were extremely reclusive and rarely dealt with outsiders except to trade. This is her first time meeting people of other races except at the bargaining table and she's fallen in love with Faerûn and it's people. She's also quite young, comparatively, and full of wonder and love of life and eagerness to learn and explore.

One person in particular though, Gale of Waterdeep. I've created a Series on Ao3 to keep all of her various drabbles together. They're all one-shots and her story will (mostly) be at the mercy of the prompts from the BG3 Writers Discord server. Many contain smut, and Laileth and Gale are into dom/sub play.

Character Profile - Laileth

Laileth of Waterdeep Posts on Tumblr:

(in story timeline order)

Helvegen on Tumblr

Kvitravn on Tumblr

Odal on Tumblr

Grá post on Tumblr

Synkverv on Tumblr

Solringen post on Tumblr

[emryses]

20 questions for fic writers

tagged by @mustlovesteve tysm!! i checked, and turns out i did this last november, too, so this will be a fun little comparison!

1. How many works do you have an AO3? 46!

2. What's your total AO3 word count? 512,645!!!!!

3. What fandoms do you write for?

main ones are dead boy detectives & stranger things (specifically steddie lbr) rn!

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

you looking at me, looking at you

run your fingers through my hair

you will never be unloved by me (you are too well tangled in my soul) -- i know this one is new!! dead boys ily.

eat me alive

when the party's over

5. Do you respond to comments?

yes! i try my very very best to respond to all of them, especially on newer fics. i usually fall behind on older fics/don't prioritize responding as much, but if there's one that is really kind/really touches me i always make a note to respond.

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

i've written a lot of depressing shit for the merlin fandom. i think winter always turns to spring might be one of the saddest all around, though.

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

my hairdresser!steve fics are the happiest/fluffiest things i've ever written. but most of my fics have a happy ending! i think maybe memoria has one of the happiest tho?

8. Do you get hate on fics?

not really. i got One troll comment on a fic a few months ago that i just deleted and blocked lol.

9. Do you write smut?

every once in a while! i don't feel i'm very good at it, so it takes me a loooong time to write it when i do.

10. Do you write crossovers?

not in the traditional sense of combining fandoms, but if my btvs au counts as a crossover then yes?

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not to my knowledge!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

yes! winter always turns to spring was translated into portuguese!

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

no but i've thrown around the idea with friends before (pax....mona....if u see this....hiiiiiii)

14. What's your all time favorite ship?

this is such a rude question tbqh !!!!!!!!!!!!!! i'm going to default back and say merthur, because they were the one and only and a constant in my life for so long. (steddie and payneland make me so fucking crazy tho)

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

there is a steddie wip called "tightly hidden fists" i started in LITERALLY july 2022. it's still sitting in my google docs at 20k+ and i'm starting to doubt if i'll ever finish it. i keep considering signing up for a round of a steddie bang or something but i'm scared to do that to myself again lmfao.

16. What are your writing strengths?

i think i'm very good at dialogue, and getting The Voice of the character down. those things are usually what come to me first when i'm writing.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

for lack of a better word...filler? transitionary bits of fic. i overuse phrases/words like a madman, i also think i am a victim of trying to be too flowery when i can just, like, tone it the fuck down. are those weaknesses????

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

if it's easily translatable sentences (short and sweet, nothing too complicated) i put in the language in italics. (like, bonjour.) but frankly, i tend to avoid putting other languages in my fics. i don't often need to, and since i don't speak any language other than english i don't want to butcher anything if i can help it.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

probably the peter pan self insert i wrote many times between the ages of like 8-12.

20. Favorite fics you've written?

fields of gold mention. my love letter to bbcm. i'm also very proud of memoria, my 2023 steddie bang.

low pressure tags for @queerofthedagger @insane-ohwhyfandoms @wolfiery @babyseraphim

[atla-confessions]

This is fair and i'm well aware of the zutara/zuko fan overlap and I should have probably included a disclaimer in hindsight but my statement still stands. Most zuko stans tend to be zk fans as well. While most katara fans tend to either be multishippers (generally ship both ka and zk/less popular pairings) or kataang fans.

Okay, so statistically this isn't true.

Let's look at AO3 (disclaimer, I don't have an account so cannot view all fics)

27,668 works in Zuko with 6432 of those being Zutara. That's 23.2%. Quite a lot.

However there are 19,376 works in the Katara tag with 6402 of those being Zutara. This is 33.0% of fics in the Katara tag.

Now, let's talk second highest ships. Zuko's second highest ship is Zukka which has 6100 works which is 22.0% of works. Katara's second highest ship is Kataang which has 4175 works which is 21.5% of works. So the difference in percentage between Zukka and Zutara in Zuko works is 1.2% and the difference between Kataang and Zutara in Katara is 11.5%.

However, we can't be sure the Katara fics are not all just about Zuko, so let's check the centric tags.

Zuko-Centric contains 1,368 works. 118 of which are Zutara (and 307 Zukka). That makes Zutara make up 8.6% of Zuko centric works (at least tagged ones.

Katara-Centric contains only 186 works :( (fandom, please, this is so sad). 80 of which are Zutara (and 46 Kataang). That makes Zutara make up 43.0% of Katara Centric works.

So statistically speaking . . . you're wrong. Katara stans seem to be more majorly Zutara. While Zuko stans almost match in number Zutara and Zukka. Although, I will say, neither seem to be the majority of the fandom (at least not over 50%).

This does make sense because according to many surveys Zutara stans are mostly women. However, your statement on Zutaras making up the majority of Zuko stans is clearly false. Zuko just has a lot of stans in general and you likely like Katara more and hence associate it with Zuko as opposed to Katara. However Zutarians make up a larger proportion of Katara's stans than Zuko's.

X

[the-tmnt-ficfinder]

Ficfinder finds: Down With The Stockholm

Rottmnt Fanfic Summary: Leonardo is captured and experimented on until he is turned exactly into what they want him to be. Some things cannot be undone. Meanwhile, mutants and yokai are in hiding, fearful of this powerful entity.

Down With The Stockholm: Appraisal and Ratings

(Don't know what fanfic "Appraisal and Ratings" means? Check out my explanation on my Main Masterpost! Looking for a different fanfic to read? Head on over to my Fanfic List Masterpost!)

Disclaimer: This fanfic is unfinished, and as such, this post will be updated as fanfic updates. This fanfic is written by @devotedtosadpoetry, who is an amazing person, so go show them some love and support!! ^^

The fanfic ratings are not based on quality, favoritism, or how good I think it is, but rather, how intense a subject may be. Like a movie review, or the tags on Ao3, letting the readers know what to expect.

Plot: 💛💛💛💛🖤

"Plot is four out of five!! The plot for Down With The Stockholm starts out simple enough, then expands way way out into something wildly complicated!! This plot is intense, stressful, triggering, disturbing, and oh so very enjoyable to read!!"

Suspense/Mystery: 💛💛💛💛💛

"Suspense/Mystery is five out of five!! The suspense starts out moderate, then only gets more and more and more intense as the story goes on!! As the chapters progress, mystery begins to weave itself into the plotline, and lemme tell you, its a good mystery!!"

Angst/Hurt: 💛💛💛💛💛

"Angst/Hurt is five out of five!! Augh oh gosh, the hurt, the angst in this fic!! Its so intense!! Seriously, there is so much suffering, its crazy!! For all those who enjoy angst, this fanfic is FILLED with it!!!"

Fluff/Comfort: 💛🖤🖤🖤🖤

"Fluff/Comfort is one out of five!! There is very minimal comfort, and no fluff whatsoever!! Down With The Stockholm is made to hurt, and hurt it indeed does!! Some comfort comes later on in the story, but in the beginning, don't expect any comfort."

Emotions Conveyed: 💛💛💛💛🖤

"Emotions Conveyed is four out of five!! This fanfic I'd say really leans heavily into being disturbing. More than once, it got intense and even a bit overwhelming with how much was going on. Down With The Stockholm, rather than preying on average emotions, really delves into fear, and apprehension, confusion, and desperation. Would absolutely recommend!!"

Drama/Tension Level:💛💛💛💛💛

"Drama/Tension Level is five out of five!! This fic has got so much tension and drama!! Every moment you're going to be wondering what's going on, and if everything is going to be ok."

Triggers: 💛💛💛💛💛

"Triggers are five out of five!! Down With The Stockholm is definitely one of the more intense fanfics I've read, and it has a lot of triggers in it. Make sure to read the tags before reading the fic to stay safe!! ^^"

Legibility (Reading): 💛💛💛💛🖤

"Legibility (Reading) is four out of five!! The writing style for this fanfic is wonderful and smooth!! Very poetic, especially with the poetry mixed in every so often."

Legibility (Audio): 💛💛💛💛💛

"Legibility (Audio) is five out of five!! Absolutely a joy to listen to!! With how wildly intense this fic is, it makes for a great listen while doing something to keep active. Also, just the way the fic is written, reads in audio book for so smoothly!! Would recommend!!"

Length: 💛💛💛💛🖤

"Length is four out of five!! The chapter length varies from long to short throughout the story, and as of right now, Down With The Stockholm is set to have 46 chapters."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Down With The Stockholm: Chapter List

(Chapters will be added as I rate and appraise them ^^)

(Yet to be added)

[latteseungs]

moth to a flame : seungmin

moth to a flame : ksm

pairing: seungmin x f!reader (ft. lee know) genre: heavy angst, smut, there's not a speck of fluff in this, non-idol au word count: 4.4k warnings: 18+ minors please do not interact. cheating (please do not read if you are uncomfy with themes like this and for the love of god please don't cheat), name calling (babe, baby, love), explicit sexual content, desperate / jealous / possessive unprotected sex, fingering, creampie, choking, use of foul language, drinking, masturbation (m), oral (f. receiving), no happy ending, god this is a lot wow

✦ 。description: you loved seungmin out of convenience. but he was almost everything you ever wished for. the only thing missing was he wasn't minho.

📓 .✦𓂃 masterlist | AO3 | reblogs are very much appreciated <3

author's note: be mindful of the timestamps. hihi. this fic is inspired by moth to a flame by swedish house mafia ft. the weeknd, illicit affairs by taylor swift, and a few hints of high infidelity by taylor swift too. i highly recommend giving moth to a flame a listen while you read <3 an additional warning that i hate y/n here. i really do. lmAO. also, would really really appreciate some feedback because this was kinda out of my comfort zone when it comes to writing. anw, thanks for being here!!

april 2023 7:46 pm

“Hi baby, how was your day?”

You felt a pang in your chest once you heard your fiancé’s voice. He was in the kitchen as usual, drinking his favorite homemade coffee as he watched kdramas on his phone, even if you have a fully functioning large tv in the living area.

“It was alright,” an outright lie.

Work was shit. Co-workers were shit. But even if everything in your work life is slowly coming into flames and you have no choice but to face some of the shittiest people ever as your clients, you can’t believe that the shittiest out of all of them was still you.

Seungmin seemed suspicious of how you answered, probably sensing that you were lying right through your teeth. How he knows you like the back of his hand was absolutely endearing. But sometimes, all it felt like were a ton of bricks on your back.

“You sure about that, babe?” He asked, starting to put down his phone on the table. “Do you wanna talk about it?”

You hate him.

You hate how so damn perfect he is. You hate how much he loves you.

But you hate yourself more for not loving him the same way.

5:15 pm that day

“You should have told them that it wasn’t possible then?”

“It was possible, but not with the time frame they gave me!” You exclaimed exhaustively as you crashed on the couch. You pulled Minho’s button down tightly around your body, finding comfort in his scent.

“And don’t you dare tell me that I should have told them too because you, of all people, know how much I need this deal closed.”

Minho scoffed, “Shouldn’t your fiancé know about this too?”

You abruptly fixed how you sat on Minho’s couch, pushing a hand through your bed-ruined hair. Seungmin knows about the deal you have been trying to secure for almost six months now, but he doesn’t know as much as Minho does.

And that’s on you.

“Please, he also knows about this,” you were defensive, holding up your arms to your chest as you tried not to overthink.

“Then you wouldn’t be here ranting about it again for probably the third time this week alone,” he petted Soonie on his lap as he gulped the rest of his beer. His eyes never landed on yours as he talked about your fiancé.

“He’s a lawyer, for god’s sake. He would have probably closed this deal of yours months ago.”

Minho was right. He always was. Even if he was one of the most outstanding chief marketing officers out there, you sure as hell needed a good lawyer to back you too. But your fucking pride and independent mentality are in the way. You knew Seungmin could have helped you ever since you talked about the terms and conditions of the contract. You knew that Seungmin could have easily discussed how you could have agreed with better terms. You knew that Seungmin could have lessened the stress that you were going through now. But you didn’t even share a peep with him, only the tip of the iceberg.

“You know me and my tendencies to not ask for help.”

“Yeah, I know,” he grimaced. “But I can’t help but think you have a different purpose; why you didn’t ask your Seungmin to rescue you.”

He sounded cocky and bitter, but you pushed that thought to the back of your mind. You didn’t ask your oh-so-perfect fiancé because you didn’t want to seem like a damsel in distress. You didn’t want to look like you were using his career to boost yours. This was your work, your business, so why the hell would you cry out to be saved?

“Care to enlighten me?” You poked, knowing damn well that Minho wouldn’t dare explain his thoughts.

“You did it to have reason to be constantly here, using my job as a cover-up, and not make it look like you’re cheating on your soon-to-be husband.”

december 2022

“Don’t be stupid,” Chan throws you a judging stare. “And don’t you dare look at me like that because I know you came to me for a reality check and not some advice you want to hear.”

You kept your mouth shut. Thinking about leaving your perfectly good boyfriend to get back with a borderline-toxic ex might be one of your stupidest thoughts to date. Chan, being one of your closest friends for the longest time, is verbalizing it because you can never admit it to yourself.

He sighed, plopping down beside you as he handed you the beer you requested. “Cheers,” he mumbled, raising his bottle of energy drink.

“It’s stupid, no?” You groaned. “Even the thought of it is stupid.”

“Yes, it is, and I’m glad to know that you actually recognize that.”

“But—”

“But, what?” He immediately cut you off, probably knowing what you’ll say next. “It doesn’t feel the same way with Seungmin? There’s no thrill? There’s no rush?”

Shame. You were the one who would judge people for leaving their partners just for a speck of thrill before. And now you’re the one being judged. You can’t lie to yourself because you know for a fact that you deserve it.

“People would kill to be in a relationship you’re currently in, y/n. That peace you’re feeling with Seungmin? Some people crave that because they know that ‘peace’ in a relationship is what you call home. It makes them realize they’re finally with the one they’re meant for.”

But it doesn’t feel that way with Seungmin.

It was smooth sailing with Seungmin. It was actually a breeze with him—safe. He treated you like royalty. You don’t even want to think about how he looks at you because you would feel guilty even contemplating leaving him. He would hold you in his eyes like you had the entire universe. And in his world, maybe you did.

“Look,” Chan cleared his throat. “I am in no place to say this, but you need to hear it.”

You took a gulp of your beer before looking at him, prepared to hear the most heart-wrenching speech that would finally wake you up to reality and stop with your fantasy land.

But the words that came out of Chan’s mouth were something you would have never expected. Not at least for another two or three years.

“What do you mean he’s going to propose?” You gasped. It wasn’t impossible, considering the two of you have been dating for at least three years. The both of you had a stable job, your family adores him, and you’re both living together… it made sense. It would be more unusual if he wasn’t thinking about it. But to you, it felt too soon, like you were rushing into it.

“I’m not that kind of person who wants to put words in other people’s mouths, but just hear me out, okay?” he squeezed his hand on top of yours.

“Say yes. Accept it. Nothing gets better after Kim Seungmin. Trust me. Minho gave you nothing but heartbreak.”

7:58 pm

“No, baby, it’s okay, really. I’m just tired from work,” you said, kissing Seungmin on the cheek.

He sighed as he got a whiff of Minho’s perfume off of his fiancée. He wasn’t sure how many times he got to smell it that week, but he stopped counting right after knowing that this would be a regular thing for you.

You were being distant again. You always were right after being with Minho. Even if you try your best to hide that you were with him that day, a scent always lingers. Seungmin honestly doesn’t know if you were sleeping with your ex or doing anything physical with him; the fact that you would rather be with someone else hurts the same way.

Seungmin tried. He really did. But it seems like he was never really enough for you. Seungmin wasn’t dumb. He knows you were still madly in love with your ex-boyfriend even after you said yes to his proposal. He knew what he was getting into when he first started dating you, but he thought that over time, he could finally replace Minho in your heart. So maybe he is a little stupid, thinking you could get over the love of your life.

“Do you want me to run you a bath, babe?” Seungmin asked as he entered the bedroom. You were a little startled because you were in the middle of changing, but you immediately settled down when you turned to see him.

“Thanks, baby, but I’ll just cha—”

Seungmin interrupted you with kisses trailing down your neck from behind. His hands swiftly made their way to your bare waist as he gently pulled your back to him. He made sure that you felt the growing bulge from his pants.

He wanted to see if some part of you still belonged to him.

A soft moan escaped your lips, but you held Seungmin on the nape, making him halt his ministrations to your skin. “I’m not in much of a mood today, Seung.” You whispered apologetically.

That felt like a gunshot to Seungmin’s chest. He rested his head on your shoulder in defeat.

“We haven’t had sex in almost a month, y/n,” He breathed, honestly ready to raise a white flag. The way he said your name was so full of emotion and pent-up exhaustion.

He wasn’t trying to force you to do anything with him. He wasn’t some sex-deprived maniac. He can keep his dick in his pants. He doesn’t even mind if you both don’t fuck for more than a month. What worries him is that you don’t want to do it with him. This was one of the things that Seungmin was holding on to, one of the things to see if you were still even slightly attracted to him, whether it may be purely physical, he’d accept it.

It was a desperate move. But Seungmin was desperate.

You stiffened in his hold after you heard him. Twisting in his linked arms, you circled your own on his neck. “Has it really been that long?”

Seungmin didn’t even try to look at you, his eyes locked on the floor.

“I’m sorry, Seung,” you rested your palm on his cheek, turning his head in your direction, getting him to look at you. “I’ve just been so busy with the deal.” You sounded so guilty, and of course, as always, Seungmin ate it up. He always drops down his walls whenever he feels even an ounce of love from you.

“Let me make it up to you,” you started to go down to your knees, but Seungmin immediately pulled you up.

“Baby, you don’t have to do that,” he said, holding onto your arms.

“But I want to,” you dragged, starting to pepper his face with kisses.

And that was it. Seungmin folded. You have him wrapped around your fingers once again. At least he knows he was not entirely out of the picture yet.

“If you want to make it up to me, let’s do it properly,” Seungmin grumbled before kissing you fervently. He tried to kiss you with so much passion; maybe there, he could make you feel all the raw love he has for you.

Even if you don’t feel the same way.

He laid you gently on your bed, a soft moan escaping your lips when his knees came in contact with your center. Seungmin did it again and applied some pressure, making you squirm under him.

“Seung,” you moaned out, hands lifting his shirt. Your hand ran through the expanse of his torso as Seungmin shivered lightly with the way you traced his toned stomach.

He made his way down to your legs, two of his fingers tracing your clothed, wet core. He placed kisses on the inside of your thighs before pushing your underwear to the side. He tentatively placed his tongue on your clit, and you covered your mouth to stop yourself from letting out a loud groan.

He ran a stripe of his tongue on your sex, making you hold onto his hair with greater force than you intended. Seungmin felt his pants restrict even more with every sound you make, with every pull of his hair that you do. But even if he started to feel uncomfortable with how his cock went hard, he continued to lap you, making sure that no one else would make you feel the way he was making you feel right now.

“Fuck, Seungmin!” You let out, not stopping yourself anymore.

With the scream that left your lips, Seungmin couldn’t help himself. He took out his cock from his pants and pumped himself off as he continued to push his tongue in you, his other hand circling your clit.

“Yes, baby. Don’t stop. That’s so hot,” you were panting, feeling your release coming to a close when you saw Seungmin getting himself off with his hand while he ate you out.

When you started to feel the buildup in your lower stomach, Seungmin stopped altogether. You almost complained before you felt him enter you with no warning. He bottomed out immediately with how wet you were. You could instantly feel his cock in parts of you that only felt like heaven.

Seungmin tried to muffle his groan by kissing your chest, but his voice still resonated. He undid your bra quickly as he started to thrust into you. He palmed your breast, the other being sucked into his mouth while he slammed his hips into you.

“Oh my fucking god, Seungmin!” You practically screamed.

His hands on your tits were now placed around your neck, adding a little pleasure you always liked.

“You’re mine, right?” Seungmin suddenly asked.

“Yes.”

“Say it.”

You can feel your release starting to build up again on your lower stomach as you continue to take your fiancé’s cock in you. He was hitting all the right spots, and you were starting to see stars.

“Say it!” Seungmin demanded again.

“I’m yours, Seungmin!” He felt you come around him, your constraining walls feeling perfectly around his throbbing dick, your moans filling the bedroom.

“You’re mine,” he mumbled, his thrusts starting to feel erratic as he came too close to release. “I’m the only one who gets to come inside you.”

Seungmin was surprised by the words that left his mouth. He was never this possessive. Not even during sex. But maybe all the feelings that he’s been trying to bottle up were slowly spilling.

“I’m yours, Seung.” You whispered again before feeling Seungmin shoot his hot cum around your walls.

1:43 am

“Do you hate me that much to call me at this hour? Are you for real right now?” Minho grumbled from the other end.

“Then why did you answer, you dipshit?”

“Because I have no self-control when it comes to you.”

A silence enveloped the two of you. All you could hear was rustling and maybe one of the cats trying to lay beside Minho in bed.

You snuck outside your bedroom just to go out the balcony so you could call him in peace, ensuring that Seungmin was sleeping soundly in bed. After what happened with Seungmin earlier, it made you wonder if you were really not paying that much attention to him anymore. He rarely showed that vulnerable side of himself to you because he was always so composed and put together. Seeing him somewhat defeated earlier made your chest hurt.

You admit you’re unfaithful, but it doesn’t mean you don’t love him even, if that sounds so messed up.

“C’mon, what do you want? I have to leave early for work later, and Doongie is getting real chatty.”

You chuckled after hearing the constant meowing from the background; Doongie was probably grumpy that you woke him up too.

“It’s nothing. I just…” You sighed, not even remembering why you called Minho. Now you have to think of something important because he would probably not let you hear the end of it the next time you see him. If there is a next time, at least.

Thoughts started to leave your mind as your heart calmed at just hearing the sound of Minho’s breathing. No matter what others say about him or what he did to you when you were together, nothing would amount to how he makes you feel. Who would have thought that breathing through a call would calm you down? He didn’t even need to say anything.

“If I… if I break it off with Seungmin… Would you take me back?”

The question suddenly came out of you. It wasn’t even what you were planning to say. But the long pause that Minho gave as a response was already an answer.

When you were about to say you would hang up, Minho cleared his throat.

“Would you leave Seungmin?”

one week later 7:50 pm

“Aren’t you supposed to be rich?”

You scoffed at Minho’s snarky comment, but you continued to stir the pot in front of you.

After the little call that you made with Minho last week, it really shook something inside you. But you, being the coward that you are, ignored it. You promised yourself that you would start coming to Minho for business-related purposes only. Still, here you are again, cooking a meal for the both of you instead of doing it for your boyfriend.

“You probably have a personal chef at your beck and call in your huge penthouse, so why the hell would you ransack my barely stocked cupboard and refrigerator for food? You do know that I have three cats to feed, right?”

“Shut up, that’s nonsense.”

“How dare you call my cats nonsense? Look at those little devils enjoying their playground that’s worth at least a month of my sala—”

“Idiot!” you playfully hit Minho’s arm after he misunderstood what you said. “I was talking about having a personal chef; that was nonsense. I’m not rich.”

“Yeah, say all you want. But your fiancé is probably swimming in money.”

There he goes again. You sighed, turned off the stove, and removed your apron as you entered his living room.

Minho has been quite vocal about you being with Seungmin lately. It was like an unspoken rule between the both of you to rarely talk about him when you two were together. Seungmin doesn’t exist when it’s just the two of you. But recently, he keeps pointing out how you were with someone else.

You heard his footsteps follow you to the sofa, but you didn’t even want to look at him. He called out your name, but you didn’t respond. When his voice went stern, you finally glanced in his direction. He stood a few feet away from you, hands bawled into fists.

“Leave him,” Minho’s voice was barely above a whisper, but you heard him clearly. So loud that you felt like it echoed throughout the whole apartment.

“What?” You feel breathless, feeling like you were underwater; your body suddenly doesn’t want to move to gasp for air.

“Be with me.”

Minho was determined. He was finally tired of hiding. He was tired of pretending he was okay when you didn’t stay the night or hurry home before the two of you get caught. He was so sick of trying to meet you in secret or only seeing you when there was no sun outside.

He wanted to hold your hand, grab you by the waist, kiss you on your forehead. He wanted all those things back. He loved you and wanted everyone to know how much he did. He may have fucked up before, but he swore he would do better when you decide to be with him instead.

He was sick of all the sneaking around and all the lies he needed to remember. He doesn’t think he has the stomach to hold it all together much longer.

“Choose me.”

Tears were pricking your eyes, and your vision blurred with the image of Minho waiting for your answer. All you could do was open your mouth, but no words came out. You weren’t sure of the answer the day he asked if you would leave Seungmin for him. You thought that some part of you could do it and finally be with Minho. He was your greatest love and you thought you could drop everything just to be with him. But right now, with Minho almost begging you to be with him, leaving Seungmin suddenly became a clear-cut picture in your head.

You couldn’t do it.

Seungmin was too perfect. His love for you was so pure. You know that you can never return the amount of love he has for you, but you know for sure that you love him enough to stay.

And you don’t love Minho enough to choose him.

“I—”

A single tear fell from Minho’s eye. He knows.

“No, don’t,” he sighed. “you don’t need to say it. He’s good for you.”

8:06 pm

The silence between you and Minho was ear-piercing. Even after deciding that you’re not leaving your boyfriend over him, you can’t believe he still has the heart to lead you outside his apartment and volunteer to take you to your car because of how dark the streets get.

It would have been pitch dark outside if not for the dimly lit street lights and the flashlight on Minho’s phone guiding your steps on the pavement as you looked for your car. You were so used to leaving Minho’s apartment at this time that the darkness didn’t even bother you anymore.

Not until a voice so familiar called out your name from a distance.

“What’s this?”

Your heart dropped to your feet.

“Seungmin—”

“Is that Minho with you?”

Minho was suddenly in front of you, his body covering yours as Seungmin stepped closer to the both of you.

“What the hell are you doing with my fiancée?” Seungmin’s voice was raised, a voice you had never come out from him through all the years that you were together. He doesn’t look like himself. His eyes were blazing with mixed feelings, anger, hurt, betrayal, and it was all because of you.

You pushed Minho away from in front of you and ran towards Seungmin, tears overflowing in your eyes as you tried to reach for your boyfriend’s hand.

“Seungmin, I can explain, I promise!” You sounded hysterical, trying to get a hold of Seungmin, but his eyes were zeroed in on the man behind you.

“Seungmin!” Grabbing his face in your hands, you tried to get him to look at you instead. “Listen to me. This isn’t his fault. It’s me, all me, okay?”

“No,” He removed your hold from him, the voice he let out seeming like broken glass but unwavering. “You listen to me.”

A strained whimper came out from your lips, not knowing what to do. It felt like your whole world was falling apart slowly and painfully right in front of your eyes with every tear that fell from Seungmin’s eyes.

It was you who did this.

“You know what? All this time that you’ve been sneaking around with him,” there was so much venom in the way he spoke as he pointed at Minho, but he remained quiet and still, letting all the anger fall on him.

“I know about it. I’m not naive! But I told myself that one day, one day, you’re gonna stop,” Seungmin tried his best to hold in his sob, but it was too much for him. “One day, you’ll finally feel that you belong with me.”

He tried his best to remember all the times he did you wrong. He tried to think if everything he did was too big of a mistake that you have the need to cheat on him. Did he not treat you right? What was missing from him that you found in Minho instead?

He ran a hand through his hair, furiously wiping the salty tears that kept falling. “Every fucking time I smell his perfume off of you, I told myself that I would turn a blind eye to it as long as you don’t get yourself caught. As long as I’m the one you come home to.”

The pain you were feeling right now would never amount to the pain that Seungmin was feeling. All the time he kept it all in, it finally pierced through his chest, that it felt like he was physically bleeding from the pain.

“Do I love you too much to do that?”

You sob, unable to bear how much hurt you’re putting him through right now. You tried reaching for him again, but he immediately stepped away. He looked at you like he saw a completely different person was before him, not someone he asked to marry.

“Seungmin, please. I stopped. I promise I did. I already cut things off with him to stay with you,” at that point, you didn’t care. What you said was so wretched and cruel for both of the people there with you, but you couldn’t possibly see your future without Seungmin. It was too late for you to realize that, but you’re taking all your chances here just to be able to stay with him.

He scoffed. He couldn’t honestly believe that you thought you would win him back with that. “Is that supposed to make me happy? Is that supposed to redeem yourself?” He questioned incredulously. “Do you think that you finally leaving Minho after all these months, I would forgive you?”

Minho remained quiet behind you. He just stood there, taking all of it in. He deserved it. In fact, he thought he deserved more than the words coming out of Seungmin. He probably deserved a hit in the face or a few curses and vile words from your fiancé, but Seungmin wasn’t like that. That’s how nice he was; he wouldn’t even curse the man you had illicit affairs with.

While you, on the other hand, can’t do anything but cry. It was pathetic of you, but you know there was no escape from this. This was the end of the line, and you knew there was no one to blame except you and your selfishness.

Seungmin covered his tear-stricken face as he let out a choked laugh, “It’s fucking bullshit that I still don’t hate you after all of this.”

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