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its-in-the-woods · 4 months ago

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Coyote Head - Part 6 - Postcard Perfect

master list

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

Pairing: Cooper Howard x Lucy Maclean

Includes many other characters from Fallout

Synopsis: So much can happen in one morning. A picture perfect moment, and meeting with a ex.

MINOR GET OUT. Rating/Warning: Animal/people death,, Alternative Universe, Slow Burn, Death, Aging, Family Feuding, Older Man/Younger Woman

Note: that I will not be spoiling any of the reading. So you have been warned. I will keep my tags relevant without spoiling what is happening in the story.

*Actually pretty fluffy... for now.. enjoy

The next three days go by fast, cow checks happen every four hours, every day, like clockwork. Morning, afternoon, dinner, and then two overnight. Cooper handles the ones during daylight hours, his brother Mark handles the night ones. Lucy was grateful for that, not that she slept much, between nightmares and random knocks on the house. She’d kept most of that to herself, but Cooper had noticed, he noticed a lot of things. He'd even offered to do the first shift so she could sleep in, but she, of course, refused. The routine meant she got a moment out of the house, it also meant she got to hang out with the kids.

Matthias still wasn’t her biggest friend, but his guard was lowering slowly. On Friday, when Cooper brought the kids over after school, he had handed Lucy a drawing. For being twelve he was pretty talented. He’d taken the time to draw a field, cows, and calves with the sun setting in the background. Lucy had thanked him and promptly put it up on the fridge which granted her, her first real smile from him. She’d do anything to hug him, but for now, she’d take the picture. She knew what it felt like to be young and not understand why a parent was gone. To not understand why things had changed suddenly. Lucy was just grateful that he had Cooper, what she would have done to have had at least one parent with her. Even though she loved her Grandparents, it was never the same without either of her parents.

Janey was a whole different story, she loved to tell stories, and read stories. When she had discovered that she could read from Lucy’s bookshelves she was over the moon. Lucy doing her best to persuade her from anything too adult-themed. Settling on a classic, Hobbit. Cooper had shrugged in agreement, mentioning that she had always loved to read as soon as she learned. So Lucy let the copy go, the little girl was immediately taken by it.

Lucy woke up Saturday morning having finally slept, she actually felt somewhat refreshed. Her mind was always wandering to Cooper. The more time she spent with him, the more she wanted to spend time with him. Even though they were nearly living out of each other's pockets, she couldn't help herself. Mind wandering to what kissing him would feel like, how his hands would hold her. Lucy flushed and finished getting herself dressed in comfortable clothes and made her way to make a pot of coffee. Feeling her feet get wet as she walked into the water.

“What the-” Lucy cussed, as she lifts her foot to inspect a large pool of water. “Dang-nabbit.”

She runs back to her room digging out a handful of towels and toeing off her socks before running back to the kitchen. Lucy lays out the towels on the floor, scrambling to open up the under-sink cupboards. The various detergents and cleaners are thrown out as she tries to see what’s leaking. The space emptied, so she could see that the pipes had been split.

“My goodness, why!” Lucy grumbles, realizing that the pipes had split just on the other side of the shut-off valves.

She gets up too quickly and bangs her head on the underside of the sink. More words fall out of her mouth as she rubs the bump. Moving swiftly to the door she unlocks it and walks out, stepping around the rocks and stones as she goes to the side of the house. Swinging open the crawl space door she ducks in, happy that the water shut-off valve was inside. Lucy turns it off, her feet covered in the black mud as she stomps back into her house. Lucy closes her eyes for a moment to collect herself, before she starts to mop up the water that’s left on the floor.

“Lucy?” Cooper’s voice comes in from the doorway.

“Just in the kitchen,” Lucy replies, happy that help has finally arrived.

“What’s goin’ on?” Cooper says, placing his hat on a nob by the front door. Walking into the room to observe the mess that was spread out onto the floor.

Lucy sighs, as she drops the last towel into the sink. “The pipes under the sink burst, split just on the wrong side of the shut-off too.”

Cooper crouches right beside her, the smell of cigarettes and coffee wafting off of him. Lucy shuffled over so that he could see what they were working on.

“Well that’s weird,” Cooper squints, leaning forward to kneel on a rolled-up towel. “Never seen that happen before. Unless it froze, which would be odd for the beginnin’ of April.”

Lucy sighs, rubbing at her head, “Everything is insulated, and the heat tape is still on it. Plus it would have burst other pipes too.”

“Move’er, sweetheart,” Cooper murmurs, Lucy shifts over, as Cooper crawls into the cupboard pulling a pocket knife out of his pants.

Lucy swallowed as his shirt rode up a sliver of tanned skin being exposed. Lucy feeling like she was fourteen seeing a boy shirtless for the first time, averting her eyes she chooses to stand up. Looking around trying to figure out how to hide the flush that was now staining her cheeks as the man fiddled around under the sink.

“Do you want coffee?” Lucy asked moving over to the cupboard to dig out cups. “I got a spare to-go mug.”

“Yeah, s’good.” Cooper said, voice echoing from below her. “Do ya’know if you got some spare PEX pipe hanging around?”

A knock on the door, had Lucy spilling coffee on her hand, Cooper banged his head under the sink. A whole slew of curse words spilling out of both of them, Lucy moves to the door. Completely forgetting with the mess that Dane was coming over to work on the tractors.

“Lucy,” Dane says, a smile fading from their face as she takes in Lucy. “Oh, shit. Are you okay?”

Lucy tries to smile which turns into more of a frown, “Pipe burst. My kitchen is a mess, but I have coffee?”

Dane chuckles, looking into the kitchen Cooper standing with a pieces of Pex in his hand, his other hand rubbing at his head. The two of them give awkward smiles at each other.

“Oh! This is Cooper.” Lucy said, wandering back into the kitchen to pour three cups of coffee. “Cooper, this is Dane, they have come over to work on Tim’s old tractors.”

Cooper nodded, reaching a hand out to shake Dane’s, “Nice to meet you Dane, please excuse the mess, pipes seem t'have burst.”

“Not a problem, at least there is always coffee.” Dane nods, happily accepting the coffee Lucy hands over.

“There is sugar in the gnome on the counter, cream is in the fridge.” Lucy says, handing Copper his mug of coffee.

Cooper took a few sips, before helping Lucy place things in somewhat order on the counter. Lucy takes all the sopping wet towels into the laundry room hucking them into the washing machine.

“We do have calf check, but I can show you where the tractors are. There is pretty much any tool you could need, along with an arrangement of parts.” Lucy chatters, as the trio make their way to the door.

Across the yard the three go to the big green and grey barn, Cooper helps slide the heavy wood doors open, Lucy had worked hard to get the place functional. It hadn’t had many animals in it, Tim had turned it into a workshop, engine hoist, and a large tool bench. The two tractors are slotted side by side.

“This is perfect!” Dane beams, coming over to inspect the two beasts. “They look brand new! I bet I'll have them running by end of the day.”

“Thank you so much, Dane.” Lucy smiles, “I'll leave the house open, help yourself to whatever you need. We'll be about an hour or so barring any problems. You can always text me.”

Cooper was digging around on some shelving, grabbing some PEX pipe, fitting, and a few tools. “These should fix'd problem, I will drop’em off inside before we head out.”

Dane and Lucy stand there watching Cooper walk away. Lucy’s cheeks flush as she admires the man. Dane looks at Lucy, rubbing at the side of their face.

“So are you two,” Dane makes a gesture between Cooper and Lucy, “A thing? Or?”

Lucy feels her face go even more red, she looks away for a moment, before looking back at her friend. “Umm, no. We are friends, neighbors. Helping each other out and whatnot.”

Dane chuckles as they go over to the closer tractor, “I am not one to judge,” Lucy watches them opening up one of the tractor’s bonnet. “Has he told you what happened to his wife?”

Tilting her head to the side Lucy raises her eyebrows. “I know he is a widower. But I haven’t pushed any further than that.”

Dane nods, already starting to fiddle with different parts, “I’d ask him about it. Especially if you’re -ah- interested.”

A pool of anxiety fills Lucy’s stomach at the words, “Yeah, I will ask him.”

“We ready to go?” Cooper asks, Lucy nearly jumping at his voice having not heard him come up behind her.

Lucy puts on a smile, reminding Dane again to call if there is any issue before leaving with Cooper. The man moving at a good clip to the already running truck. He opens the door for Lucy, she smiles and slides into the seat. It was hard not to let her mind run over Dane’s words. She needed to ask him, or she was going to explode. She wasn't good with secrets, or not asking questions she wanted answers to.

“Umm,” Lucy fiddles with the gloves in her pocket as they roll down the gravel road. “Can I ask you a question?”

Cooper’s brows are raised as he turns to her, “Yeah, I am an open book Luc.”

Lucy licks her lips, staring at the newly leafing trees, “Can I ask what happened to your wife?”

Oh good Lucy, just straight to the point. No tack, for this poor guy who lost his wife, whose kids are still emotionally wrecked from it, Lucy thought to herself. Wishing she'd learn more tack as an adult.

Cooper shifts, sliding in his chair a little as he looks out the window. Lucy half expected him not to answer, or tell her that it was something he didn’t want to talk about. He gripped the steering wheel tight, knuckles white against the black leather. Eyes focus on the gravel road ahead of them as he searches for the words.

“I was outta town, helpin’ my brother-in-inlaw move cows to summer pasture. I got a call around four from Barb’s parents, sayin’ she hadn’t come to pick up the kids. They’d gone to the house and she wasn’t t’either. Barb was a champion rider, Thunder, was’er ride. Big beautiful deep black stallion, she rode’im three times a day. Mornin' after droppin’ the kids off, afternoon before the kids came home, and evenin’ after dinner.” Cooper rolled his shoulders as they drove into the field. Lucy jumping out to open the gate, climbing back in once he was through and the gate was closed.

“I went’ome, drove way faster than I shoulda. But Barb. Barb was never late, the woman was punctual to a fault. So we searched, and searched, called the police. More searchin’. We had about forty acres mostly forest’d that Barb rode. That entire area scavenged, the house turn’d upside down, the barn gone through. They picked apart everythin’.” Cooper’s voice was shaking as they drove towards the herd. His eyes are glassy, as he rubs the back of his hand over his nose.

“They tried-” His voice shook as his eyes continued to scan the horizon. “They tried’t blame her disappearance on me.”

Lucy felt her heart clench in her chest at the words, the thought that he’d been accused of his wife’s disappearance made her stomach turn.

“But I was in another county, my brother-in-law, thankfully, vouchin for me.” Cooper points at a fresh calf, the two working with practice ease to tag the little thing.

Cooper sat in the truck for a moment, eyes flickering, “Then we found Thunder.” Cooper works his lip into his mouth for a moment. “He’s on the side of the highway, inna ditch. Over a hour drive away from t’farm. Looked like he had been dumped. It made no sense, wasn't any sign of how the animal had pasted either, just restarted’eir investigation into me.”

“Cooper,” Lucy said quietly, her hand finding his hand on the bench seat and squeezing it.

Cooper nods his head but continues, squeezing her hand back. “They wouldn’t lay off, I did everythin’ to cooperate. Then after the third time of them tossin’ my house I blew up. I gotta lawyer, I told’em not to come back t’my property.” Another tag, and Lucy feels dizzy by the foggy emotions flooding the truck as she sits back down.

“They’d everythin’ to turn everyone against me.” Cooper blinks a few times, “My in-laws stood beside me, pushin for the police to look anywhere. But nothin’ came of it. Just no answers, nothin', just gone.”

Lucy brushed her own tears out of her eyes, so many questions bubbling under the surface. His hands gripping the steering wheel as he parked the truck on top of the hill looking out towards the valley.

“T’was too hard to stay, the whole town won’t look at me.” Cooper swallows, “It won’t hav’been so bad if it has just been me, but they came after the kids too. Mathias was gettin’ picked on. That was the final straw, sold everything and left. They never figured out what happen’d to Barb. I think about her every day. Wondering what I could've done different.”

The silence in the vehicle was deafening, the two of them watching the cattle move along the lower field. Lucy’s heartbreaking hearing how Cooper had lost so much with no answers.

“Thank you for telling me,” Lucy said quietly, her hand finding his again. “I can’t imagine how hard this must have been for you. To have to leave everything the two of you built.”

Cooper nods, his fingers lacing with Lucy’s, “t’was hard, I keep waitin’ for it to get easier. For there to be answers.” Cooper turns looking at Lucy, hazel eyes looking over her face. “I am goin’ to be forward here.” Lucy nods her head, willing to hear whatever he had to say to her. “You’ve been a bright spot for me, I look forward to this.”

He gestures at the pasture, the sun hanging in the sky, clouds drifting in. Cows mooing for their calves, as the calves chased each other through the freshly growing green grass. It was so serene, postcard-worthy her Granddad would have said.

“I look forward to spending time with you, Lucy,” Cooper states, eyes watching her closely, as the sunrises into the truck cab.

Lucy took her shot and slid across the bench seat, Cooper looking at her eyes wide as she leans in. Her hand gently touches the side of his face, the beard stubble rubbing under her fingertips as she presses her lips against his. Lucy going to lean away, when Cooper doesn't respond, Cooper immediately moves after her. Something has snapped in the truck, Cooper easily pulling Lucy onto his lap. She pushes his hat up so she can kiss him deeper, her hands moving up into his hair as he pulls Lucy against his chest. Lucy sucking his tongue into her mouth, the taste of coffee and cigarettes flooding in. His large hands come to rest against her hips, fingers running along the top of her jeans.

Cooper breaks the kiss, Lucy wanting to chase after it, scared that if they stop it won’t continue. The smile crossing his face has her pausing, Lucy worrying her lip into her mouth. Copper’s fingers pushing under her shirt to feel her skin. A shiver running over Lucy’s skin at the feel of his calloused warm hands.

“This isn’t how I imagined it,” Cooper hushes, his tongue running over his bottom lip as he looks at her.

Lucy raises her eyebrows, “Oh? What did you imagine? Would it be weird if I said I was thinking about you too?”

Cooper’s smile gets bigger, “Was going to invite ya to the spring dance. Felt a little, ahh, school crush, but I want’d a reason for-” Cooper swallows, “A reason for us t’go somewhere nice.”

She can feel her cheeks red at the statement, “I’d go with you. If you still want to go.”

Cooper leans in and kisses her gently, “I’d like that Lucy.”

***

Dane is covered in grease, a smile on their face as the larger of the two tractors starts up. Black smoke pumps out as the machine stutters to life, Dane doing a fist pump and jig as it roars. Lucy grins as Dane hops up and takes it for a spin around the yard, before parking it just outside the barn.

“Well, that one is running well. Have to get the attachments dug out, make sure the PTO is working the way it should be.” Dane beams, walking over to Lucy who has a sandwich on a plate for them.

“I cannot thank you enough for getting it running again Dane,” Lucy replies, “I think the smaller shed has some attachments if you’re up for taking them out.”

“Yeah, I am gonna let this one run for a bit, I think I am going to need to source a few parts for the second one,” Dane says walking into the barn, holding up the pieces of what was supposed to be a part. “I’d normally make something, but this has to be calibrated properly.”

Lucy nodded, “Get what you need, I am not too surprised there are parts that need to be replaced. Whatever is needed, got to get’em running properly.”

Dane nodded, washing her hands with the hose before grabbing the sandwich, “I will keep at it, thank you for the food by the way.”

“Of course, and make sure you invoice me for everything, k?” Lucy states, Dane nodding as they continue to eat the food.

Lucy walks back towards the house, head-turning up when she hears a car coming down the drive. A small blue Nissan rolling down the gravel, Lucy stopping in the middle of her drive to see who the hell it was. The car stops door opening up as Max steps out; average height, with tight black hair, dark skin, and equally dark eyes.

“Max?” Lucy asks as if she isn’t looking right at the man. He stands there awkwardly, not really smiling but not frowning either. He straightens himself up and closes the door walking towards her.

“Hey Lucy,” Max grimaces awkwardly, rubbing a hand over the tight black curls on his head, “Sorry, it’s taking so long to get here.”

Crossing her arms, Lucy narrows her eyes at him. “What are you talking about?”

Max stops a few feet away from her, arms resting against his slides, “I wanted to come see you, it’s been a few months since we spoke.”

Lucy walks forward, anger pooling in the pit of her stomach, jaw clenching as she stares down her ex. “Yeah, 'cause we broke up. You didn’t want me moving back up here. Actually, I am pretty sure you said if I left not to bother contacting you. Seemed pretty cut and dry to me.”

Max opens his mouth several times before closing it, gritting his teeth and looking away. “I didn’t think you’d actually stop contacting me. We’d been together for almost a year.”

“You’re kidding, right?” Lucy huffs, her voice shaking, their relationship hadn’t been great. They’d met at the imaging clinic, Max was shy and a little awkward but charming. They’d hit it off over lunch one day, which led to him inviting her out to go with him for dinner. He was the opposite of what she had grown up around, it had been appealing at the time. Over time the charm had faded, and the sicker her Granddad got the worse their relationship got. It ended up with Max telling her that if she moved away they were done.

“Lucy, sweety,” Max goes to move to touch her and Lucy backs away. Max’s face falling, his mouth set in a thin line.

Throat clearing has both of them turning, Cooper stood on the front porch shirtless staring down Max like he was going to blow his head off with a glare. Lucy’s mouth opening slightly at the tan skin exposed before her, trying to get herself to focus on what was happening.

“Not sure the lady here,” Cooper states walking down the steps towards them, “Is interested in your company.”

Max looks equally as flustered as Cooper steps beside Lucy, eyes downcast as his cheeks flush.

“I just wanted some closure.” Max swallows, looking away from the two of them. “Maybe change Lucy’s mind.”

Lucy let out a sigh, moving towards Max, carefully putting a hand on his shoulder. “Max, you’re a good guy, but we both know this wasn’t going to work out. You hate the outdoors and bugs, and you’re allergic to hay.”

Cooper had taken a few steps back, well-muscled arms crossed his chest as he watched the two of them. Dane had made their way down the hill, brows furrowing at the clear standoff happening. Max’s shoulders were tight as he listened to Lucy’s words.

“Is this what you want?” Max said finally turning back to her, his eyes glazing at the words. “Like to be here? On the farm.”

A tight-lipped smile graces Lucy’s face. “Yes Max, I think you knew that though. Knew it won’t work out between us.”

Max looks at the company in front of him, his hands fiddling with the pockets of his pants. Head ducked down like he was trying to make himself smaller. He nods his head several times.

“Well, I guess that settles that,” He twitches his nose, looking out towards the forest. “I am staying in town for a few days, just visiting family. You got my number still?”

Lucy nods her head, desperately wanting to make things right, but knowing that it wasn’t worth it. Things needed to end between them, and if he needed to drive three hours to figure that out then so be it.

“Goodbye, Max,” Lucy said quietly, Max nodding as he got back into his car to drive out. Her stomach turning, the thought that this wouldn’t be the last time she saw him gnawing at her mind.

Part Seven

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Tag list: @toogaytofunctiondangit

*I can't believe we are 6 chapters in, this one is slow, but hold onto your hats for chapter 7!

**As always likes, comments, shares are soooo appreciated, you can find me Ao3 as well

** Want to be on the tag list let me know

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pastel-peach-writes · 9 months ago

Note

Hi I really love your writing!!

I have an Adora x Fem R request in which reader is a very shy and tiny but also an incredibly talented musician (she can play guitar and sing really well) who tends to isolate herself to play alone when she’s stressed out.

She is part of the best friend squad and she has a huge crush on adora but she’s a stuttering mess around her, and adora thinks she’s adorable and teases her to see her reactions.

One day Adora finds the reader playing and singing a love song (that she wrote for Adora) alone and she’s fascinated by seeing her so confident and in her element, so when r finishes Adora compliments her and asked her who the song was dedicated to and reader freaks out but then it all ends with a confession and a kiss.

Sorry if it’s dumb, you can just ignore the request if you want😅😅

I hope you have a great day!!✨

ummm a year late and i havent wrote adora in such a long time so i am more than happy to do this for ya anon!

The Guide To Confidence (You Must Have a Guitar) | Adora x Reader

╰┈➤ PLOT: It was a long day fighting for Etheria. You and Glimmer were at each other's necks and on top of that, Catra nearly pummeled you to the ground while you were distracted. After a much-needed shower, it was time to destress and the only way you could do that was in a corner of your room with your guitar.

╰┈➤ WARNINGS: Not Proofread, She/Her Pronouns, No Use of Y/n

⍣ ೋ Enjoy!⍣ ೋ

You let your tired bones and sore body sink into your oversized beanbag chair. The fuzziness of the beanbag brushed against your calloused skin. Who knew accepting Glimmer's invitation to be a part of the best friend squad in grade school would cause you to fight the world with a princess, her best friend, and an ex-Horde officer? You sure didn't.

You grabbed your guitar from the side of the beanbag. This was often the place you resided in to play guitar, so instead of putting it up where it belonged, you laid it beside your chair for an easy pickup.

With one hand wrapped around its neck and the other around the belly, you warmed up by plucking and strumming the six-string instrument.

When you first started playing guitar, you didn't care to warm up. But as your skill advanced and your days were filled with fighting the enemy, you found that warming up was a great way to remind your body of your skill and to unwind faster.

As you pluck, strumemed, and occasionally tuned your intrustment to make sure you had the right sound, an idea popped into your head: Hey, why not flip through my songbook and sing the first one I land on?

It's been awhile since you sang a song from your book. Hell, it's been even longer since you wrote a song, but it would be fun to reflect back onto your memories.

After fifteen minutes of searching for the blue journal, you finally found it, sat back in your beanbag, and flipped through. The song you landed was a newer one. One you wrote maybe a couple of weeks ago.

You plopped the book open and onto the floor before strumming and singing along to the lyrics.

Oh, man. Adora whined as she scrubbed a towel on her head. The princess had just come from the showers where she needed not one, but three servants and guards to help get the gunk and goo out of her hair.

When did Catra have the time to curate a sticky slime that hardens just moments after it attacks its victim, Adora didn't know but dang, it's as effective as it is annoying.

Only in her leggings, top, and socks, Adora shuffled her feet down the hall. She continued to scrub and whine. Although her helpers did a superb job of getting the slime out of her hair, Adora felt as if it was still there and buzzing on her scalp.

Oh, no... what if Catra put a tracking device into it?! What if she's tracking me right now and planning her attack?! What if-- oh! What is that sound?

Adora's steps softened as she tiptoed up to your open room door. You were shy when it came to Adora, which first upset her seeing how you interact with Bow and Glimmer, but after careful observation, she figured it was because you had a crush on her.

At least, that was what she thought. She could be wrong, she tends to be egotistical sometimes, but you were always stuttering around her and looking up at her with those doe eyes of yours.

Adora wanted to squeeze you, wrap her arms around you, and twirl you around like her own personal doll. She even referred to you as her doll when talking to other people.

After figuring out, or blinding wishing, about your crush on her, Adora teased you a lot. She called you cute and adorable, got really close to you when she didn't have to be, and smirked down at you a lot all to see your flustered face and to hear your stutters.

Honestly, Adora didn't have to do anything to get you to stutter. You stuttered on your own around her. It kinda boosted her ego, just a little bit.

Because she's rarely heard you not stutter, she was amazed to hear how powerful and bold your voice is when it came to singing.

You're taking ownership of your musical talent with confident strums and notes. You're loud, but not too loud to annoy. Just loud enough to own the stage, as if you were on one.

Adora peeked her head inside of your room to see you engulfed by your beanbag and guitar. Your small fingers moved expertly on the frets of the guitar and the part by the hole. Adora never knew what that part was called. Does that part even have a name? Adora made a note to ask you about it later.

Obviously, the song meant something to you. You were singing with emotion and passion. It was similar to how you fought sometimes. You're strong and precise in your fighting style and you're just as strong and precise here too. It was like you made sure to go above and beyond in certain parts of the song.

Adora didn't know what came over her when you finished the song. All she knew was one second she was peeking her head into your room to be nosey and the next she was standing in the middle of your room clapping and cheering.

"Whoa!" she giggled. She continued to clap despite your efforts to shush her or usher her out of the room. "You're really good at singing and playing the guitar! Who would've known?" she continued to giggle and laugh.

Your heart was in your stomach when she clapped you out of your music trance. Your eyes must've been closed because you didn't even notice her come in. Let's just hope she wasn't listening too closely to the song.

"Th-Thank you! Goodnight now, Adora!" you exclaim, pushing her on her back. Adora wasn't moving at all. Maybe it was her stubbornness or maybe she was just stronger than you thought, but your pushes didn't even make her budge.

She was wearing socks! She should be sliding around the tiled floor like soft butter on a hot roll!

"Oh, wait now," Adora laughed. She turned around to face you and grabbed your hands. "You have to tell me what song that is! It's so beautiful and your guitar playing literally touched my soul. I didn't even know that was possible until right now."

Her childlike wonder about your song made it very hard for you to kick her out of your room. Who could say no to those blue eyes and blonde hair that just goes past her shoulders?

With a sigh, you look to the floor. "I... m-made it," you told her at a barely audible volume.

Adora's eyes bulged out of her head, and her jaw sank to the floor. "You made that?" she exclaimed. "No way! So, like, if you made that song which was obviously a love song, who was that song about?"

Despite having a hunch on who your crush is, Adora was still oblivious to the fact that was song was about her.

Come on, Adora. The song was literally an acrostic, (a name poem), about you!

"Uh," you stammered over your words. Your gaze was no longer on your floor but instead dashing to every nook and cranny of your room. You would look at anything, literally anything, to avoid her gaze right now.

With every movement of your eyes, Adora moved her head to meet your gaze. Maybe your stare would somehow reveal who the song was about. Perfuma? Entrapta? Oh! Maybe it was Glimmer! Or Bow?

"Come on," she whined. She squeezed your hands. Oh, yeah. You're still holding hands, by the way. "Can you tell me? I won't tell a soul. Shera's honor."

You met her gaze with a heavy sigh. You didn't believe that she wouldn't tell a soul; Adora can't keep a secret to save her life but those puppy eyes and pout were very convincing.

Adora could feel it. She could feel that you were about to spill her guts to her and it's all because she's holding your hands and pleading like a kid in a sword shop-- oh, update that phrase. Glimmer told Adora the right phrase was a kid in a candy shop. Not sword. (Thanks, Horde).

"The s-song may or may not be ab-about–" Oh, come on. You're so close! Just one more syllable. "you?"

Adora hummed. She took her hands out of yours and stroked her chin. Her? The song was about her? Meaning you actually do have a crush on her and she wasn't being delusional. Her lesbian crush on you was reciprocated and you liked her so badly that you had to write a song about her.

While her mind was spinning with different ways how to tease you about this, you stood in front of her sweating bullets. Did she not like that you wrote about her? What if your gaydar was wrong and she actually wasn't into girls? One, that would be a total loss for the gays and theys and two, would that mean the best friend squad finally had a straight person in the friend group? Interesting.

Moments of silence later and Adora was still stroking her chin with an unrecognizable look of her face. Sweating out your armpits and soon the back of your shirt, you decided you couldn't take it anymore.

"I-I'm sorry if that made you uncomfortable!" you yelped to her. Adora murmured a "huh?" but you were too in your own world to hear it. "If you want me to destroy the song, I will! I-I'll take the book, rip-rip the pages out, and then throw it in-into the dumpster and light it on fire! I swear! I'd do that!"

Your tangent of accidentally offending Adora and destroying your song threw Adora for a loop. Why would she be upset? Why would she want you to destroy the song?

Adora hasn't heard much music in her life, but your song was the best thing she's ever heard. Destroying that would deny the world of art and Adora was one for the arts.

The blonde tried calling your name and speaking to you to snap you out of your tangent, but you were in too deep, nothing would be able to pull you out.

Out of words to say to get you out of it, Adora took matters into her own hands. Literally. She cupped your warm cheeks and pulled you in close to her body.

Your breath hitched and shook as she caught you by surprise. Her breath was warm yet cool, thanks to the minty freshness of her toothpaste and mouthwash. She was a winter mint person. You took note of that.

Just centimeters apart and your eyes staring into each other's, you were surprised you were the first one to speak. "Why'd y-you do that?"

Adora shrugged. Her eyes danced between yours. "I don't know," she whispered. "I just need a way to shut you up." You went to pout, but the sound of Adora's chuckle stopped you from doing so. "No, I don't mean it like that. I mean that I want to tell you something but in order for you to hear what I gotta say, you gotta stop talking first. You think you can do that for me?"

No words came out of your mouth as you hummed and nodded.

Adora smiled endearingly, her eyes slimming and her cheeks puffing up. "I like you too," she whispered. "Have for a while. I like the song and I'm not offended or weirded out or even grossed out by you writing about me. I think it's cute. You put what you want to say into a song. You're in touch with your emotions and music and I think that's beautiful."

Were you dreaming? You had to be. Your biggest crush of all time had your face in her hands and was telling you that she had a crush on you. You! The stuttering girl who could only say what she wanted through song. She liked you. She really liked you.

"If... If you like me... then why didn't you kiss me?"

"Huh?" a soft chuckle escaped past her lips.

"I mean, if you like me, you should've kissed me to get me to stop talking. Not just grab my face."

Adora smirked, tilting her head to the side. "Oh, yeah? Is that how this is supposed to go?" You gave her a little chuckle and nod. "Okay, well, if you must know, I didn't kiss you because I wasn't even sure if you wanted to be kissed by me. You know, consent?"

You grinned. You put your hands on top of hers. "If kissing me is the only way to shut me up, then you have the consent to shut me up anytime."

Adora's smirk only grew. Her blue eyes shined and sparkled in the lighting of your room. The moment she's been dreaming of ever since she laid her eyes on you was finally coming true.

She leaned in and you met her in the middle to have your lips touch. Both lips were soft on each other. While hers tasted like mint, she thought yours tasted like caramel. You were always sneaking into the kitchen to get late-night candies.

A day that was full of fighting and disputes ended with a night full of songs and confessions.

WC: 2,002

#pastel-peach-writes #pastel peach writes #lesbian #adora x reader #adora fanfic #spop adora #smug adora #she ra adora #shera fanfic #shera x reader #she ra spop #shera and the princesses of power #adora x fem!reader #fem!reader #reader insert

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bloopitynoot · 1 month ago

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Reading SVSSS: Chapter 19

For those who don't know, I am reading SVSSS for the first time and sharing my thoughts!

If you have not read it, there will be spoilers! Consider this a warning.

Also- if you want to follow along, I am aiming to post updates daily. You can find all the posts in the tag bloopitynoot reads SVSSS. You can also check out the intro post for context on my read.

Good morning!

Weird time for me to post this as I normally post at night- I know, but I am off work today. The reason for no tea, no work, and only water this morning is because I am getting tattooed this afternoon!

I'm getting a full sleeve in parts; today we are outlining half of the sleeve. I will for sure for sure post photos in my next chapter! I'm so stoked. Oh I did not mention it, but It's a sleeve dedicated to tea so really tea in spirit with today's chapter :P

Let's get into Shen Jiu:

oh god. He went from one dream realm to another dream realm! p205

Oh shit; meng mo really saved his soul from being torn up in that other dream. p205

Honestly SQQ, I too would want to immediately see LBH after that experience. If anything, I would just want to make sure he was still the nice LBH and not the horror show I had just experienced in there. p206

ah! Meng Mo did interfere with Qiu Haitang in the mausoleum. I was wondering what all was happening with her hysterics in there; but dang that was dark showing her SJ's memories. Poor girl had her entire worldview switched p208

I am not emotionally ready to know what SJ went through. Ugh, here we go anyways.

Okay but I kind of really feel bad for Qiu Haitang- the girl really didnt know what was happening. her own brother from the very first day hid the mistreatment. SJ was really treated so fucking awfully. :( p213

Not his name being the number of him being trafficked :(((((( p213

Damn. I was really hoping we would find out who SJ's friend was. Though I do feel like it is someone we know already. I feel like it's Liu Qingge (don't actually tell me though!) -> we will find out later I suspect. p217

The way I exhaled at "You don't even count as human, and you want to be an immortal?" p219

I felt so bad during that "murder scene". Like fuck, I don't even blame SJ, when it all started. He finally killed the guy after almost a decade of abuse and he was once again trying to protect himself from harm. p221-222

Well. The bloodbath after his initial escape and slew of murders was a little unhinged LOL. p223

ooof. "no more waiting". p225

LOL this memory just turned into the plot of holes there. A bunch of children digging holes without end. Is this where SJ finds luo Binghe??? p227

Okay yes he did find him here and he was already peak master at this point (not for long but still). p228

I am glad that the generational naming convention was explained! Similar to MDZS jin's, the Cang Qiong Mountain sect names generationally. I was really wondering why everyone had "Qing". yay for explanation. p229

What the heck. Liu Qingge is rude as fuck: Shen Jiu said mildly, "Good talent doesn't guarantee success." Liu Qingge didn't even grace him with a sideways glance. "But certainly more success than a nobody who only began proper cultivation at age sixteen." p230

I'm having complicated feelings about OG SJ. Like -> his story is fucked and he was very badly damaged as a child, HOWEVER him treating Luo Binghe the way he did and just creating a cycle of violence is not okay. :( p234

My HEART! Luo Binghe's baby tears :(( p235. also him only crying the first day being 'punished' and when he had to bury his mom himself. what the fuck.

Bro that's so awkward for SQQ; waking up to find out he was crying and calling for LBH in his unconscious state and everyone knowing about it. p237

LOL SQQ not upset that LBH is manhandling him but that LBH said his eyelashes were long XD p239

That last page! AAAAAAH. Him admitting he really missed LBH while hugging uuuugh.

#bloopitynoot reads svsss #mxtx svsss #svsss #svsss spoilers #scum villans self saving system #scum villain #shen jiu my guy #what a horrible experience

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astreinomane · 17 days ago

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Heyy this is @agalychnisspranneusroseus do you wanna tell me about your take on what would happen if Sasha defeated Anne at the gates of Newtopia? I won't be reading any fanfic until I'm done with this one exam on friday but I couldn't wait to know what you're thinking about!

Hi, my friend!

Thank you for the ask, I'm SO honored to see you of all people curious about my story!!!

So, about my version of the Toad Victory AU...

Well, in my take, after defeating Anne, Sasha drags her uncoscious body somewhere and ties her to make sure she doesn't escape.

The toads invade all of Newtopia, forcing Marcy, the Plantars, Olivia, Yunan and some other newt to escape from the capital. Unfortunately, in all the chaos, neither Marcy or the Plantars have the chance to search for Anne, so they are forced to leave her behind.

Sasha and Grime takes control of Amphibia, Andrias gets imprisoned, and so does Anne.

Sasha visites Anne in her cell everyday, always trying to reach to her, to convince her she had no other choice. She saved Anne, Marcy and everyone else in Amphibia. She did this for her and Marcy. She is sorry, really sorry, but she had to do it. Anne and Marcy are safe, that's all that matters to Sasha.

But obviously, Anne is too mad to listen to her. She either ignores Sasha or yells at her. She trusted Sasha, she thought she wanted to make amends for real, and Sasha stabbed her in the back again, using her as a tool to invade Newtopia. She doesn't want anything to do with Sasha anymore, she wants her out of her life forever.

And Sasha is heartbroken at this. She can't believe Anne wants to cut her out like this, to erase all their good memories together like nothing.

Sasha just can't accept this, she can't accept Anne getting rid of her like this. She loves Anne, so SO much, why can't Anne sees this?

Sasha gets really sad. Being the ruler of Amphibia doesn't make her feel any better. She does her best to put on a happy face in front of the toads. But inside her, she can't bring herself to be happy, not when Anne hates her.

Grime is the only one to notice her sadnees. He does his best to be there for her, to cheer her up and confort her, like the good toad dad he is.

And while Sasha is glad to have Grime with her, she can't stop thinking about Anne.

She can't lose Anne, her best friend, the girl she loves, the girl that is everything to her.

She won't lose Anne.

So, she keeps trying, and trying, and trying.

And at every try, she becomes more and more persistent.

And by becoming more persistent, she may start to cross some boundaries with Anne.

Like kissing Anne suddenly, without her consent.

Anne immediately pushes her away violently, disgusted and with even more hate than before towards Sasha.

But Sasha, despite being shocked and ashamed to have come to this point, still doesn't stop.

She keeps trying.

Meanwhile, Marcy, the Plantars, Olivia, Yunan and their little group run away to Wartwood and begin a resistance against the toads, with the intent to take back Amphibia and Anne.

So basically, in this AU the Wartwood Resistance is leaded by Marcy and the Plantars, and their enemy is not Andrias (at least, not for now) but the toads.

Dang, this is one of the longest posts I ever wrote.

Sorry if this all sounds messy, I'm shit at explaining things.

I surely will never have your talent with whump and angst, but I still wanted to try this idea.

Hope you liked this answer.

#amphibia #anne boonchuy #sasha waybright #sashanne #toxic yuri #captain grime #marcy wu #sprig plantar #polly plantar #hop pop plantar #frobo plantar #lady olivia #general yunan #amphibia au #my wip fic #my fic #ask

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murfpersonalblog · 6 months ago

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IWTV S2 - Exclusive Special Preview Breakdown

I literally just got home and am speedrunning frame by frame through ANOTHER huge trailer that dropped while IRL had me in a chokehold today--AMC, y'all are tryna put me in the hospital, ISTG! We're EATING SO WELL in the fandom!

That's the SECOND MOFO to shoulder-check my daughter--DEATH to all of them!

past!Lesmand in Les Innocents I assume.

This is spiiiiiiiiiicy, cuz it directly links up with what they show later about Claudia's diaries:

I BET! You choke-slammed me like my a-hole father-uncle-brother did, and refused to toss his desanguinated husk in the incinerator with his 9-fingered sidepiece! DISHONOUR!

DRAG HIM, Claudia!

(Why even bother touching it, ew.) I love how JA's voice over is explaining how Lou & Claud have experienced true horror, and they show some dried out skeleton from Eastern Europe, knowing good & well some corpse is LIGHT, compared to the mess they've been through.

this is FERAL.

HD footage of the infamous too-effing-dark-and-blurry Loustat kiss. At long last.

omg Lestat is a TROLLLLLLLLLLLL 😅

I'm getting the impression that there's barely a scene WITHOUT Lestat haunting Louis, even when his new boo's right there! Poor Armand never stood a chance. U_U

Assad said "Armand cannot help but feel Lestat's presence--" you mean like LITERALLY? With the Mind Gift? So Armand KNOWS Louis is hallucinating Lestat the whole time!? 😱

DANG, Louis needs Lestat as a scapegoat to blame when things go wrong, but he also needs Lestat to be his guilty conscious helping him make the "right" decisions.

What's WILD is that SamStat's so dang good at being this p.o.s. we (via Louis' POV) are supposed to hate--but this isn't even Lestat! It's a literal figment of Louis' traumatized imagination, even moreso than the descriptions Louis gave to Daniel in 1973. It is so much clearer here WHY Louis went off on Lestat in SanFran, cuz he'd been dealing with a fake Lestat for possibly decades by then, driving him nuts, that Louis then raged against in the first interview. I really like that AMC is showing us this--it hits so much better than just getting a couple lines in the book, and next to zero references in the movie.

TELL IT, JACOB! Y'all know those friends/family that just LOVE a bad boy--someone toxic AF that no one in their right mind would seriously consider, cuz they're addicted to the high that DRAMA gives them. They don't feel like they're really living/loving if everything's not a freaking rollercoaster. Which is why REBOUNDS are often a bad idea! They never process their damage before jumping to the next inevitable disaster--Louis LITERALLY carrying his past baggage with him. U_U

"Die, Claudia." 😒

LOUMAND'S BEDROOM AT LONG LAST! 😭 It's so cool! (My nerdy The Sims gamer heart is having palpitations; it's nothing like I expected. ❤️ MORE jail/cage bars.)

Not a shocker--I bet these are the ones about Paris (neatly sliced out), not the ones about Bruce (torn out). The agreement part is interesting though, cuz Louis has to ask Armand's permission to see his daughter's diaries, which means Armand's the one keeping them away--the question is WHY? Cuz we know Louis' memorized her diaries. So I'm wondering if it's cuz Daniel's been poking so many holes that Louis' starting to doubt his memories about what happened, and needs to see them for verification? OR, Lou has no memories of what happened and what was on those pages, and Armand's like "We REMOVE the Damage So We FORGET The Damage."

Chile, you been knew Louis' cuckoo bananas--the REAL mystery is Armand.

Yeah, we been knew Ben Daniels was gonna out-Lestat Lestat, the man's oozing Charisma Uniqueness Nerve and Talent.

Meanwhile Louis looks beyond disgusted.

RIP to all the Meat being butchered on stage.

"Dare I say it's a much gorier season." PERFECT. I really wanna see them BE VAMPS, not just the Theatre. LFG! ^0^

#interview with the vampire #the hype is real #must see tv #loustat #loumand #justice for claudia #iwtv tvc metas

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kooktrash · 7 months ago

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am i tripping or isn’t this your storyline of „guys my - age“ https://www.tumblr.com/living4thefame/746463675795308544/be-my-daddy

like ikyfl the storyline is exactly like yours, they only changed a little to not make it obvious in which they clearly failed at because when i clicked on it i thought it was an update of your fic (didn’t pay attention at the @) but then i saw the username and was completely shocked. i just wanted to let you know bc your are one of the BEST writes on this app and you always take your time to come up with really cool story’s that nobody tried out before and even if you always have a different approach to it so that’s why i instantly got irritated bc wtf this is clearly stealing ….anyways i hope we can do smth about this!

stay safe, love u 💗

imma be honest friend I gave it a read and yeahhhhhh I do think they’re very similar 😭idk what to do in this situation though bc yes I can spot a lot of similarities in our work which is a bit strange bc they seem to be a talented writer but from the summary, the intro, the dang pizza for dinner on the first night 🥹it reads the same but idk what to do

thank u for bringing this to my attention and thank u for your nice words about my work <3 I love feedback good or bad and I love when readers look out for me and my work, means a lot to me 🫶🏽

on another note, [literally completely random bc idk how to respond to these sort of things aside from avoid until it’s a bigger issue 💀]

I am currently working on a new fic one might say is a love child between Romantic Dreams and Fighting Heart 🫣

here’s an insight on the playlist

#‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ inbox ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙𖤐 #guys my age

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thegingerwrites · 15 days ago

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trope selection tag game

Thanks for tagging me @ragnarlothcat !

enemies to lovers or friends to lovers - I really love it in fanfic but I haven't really found a good example in original fiction. I feel like the stakes are often lacking in original fiction. It's either, dang you guys are mean to each other, you should not be in a relationship (especially het couples) or you guys don't really have any reason to hate each other (I just read You're The Problem It's You and was frustrated by it the entire time). But fanfiction enemies to lovers? 10/10

coffee shop au or flower shop au - I knew flower shop aus were a thing, same with bakery aus or tattoo shop aus, but I don't think I've ever really read one? But I've read some very good coffee shop aus. They're good for a meet cute 🥰 Although writing this, I'm also thinking about travellingcircus 's a dark alley, a bad idea which starts out as a coffee shop au and takes a thriller turn which isn't exactly a meet cute but is extremely good

hurt/comfort or there was only one bed - ugh, these are both very good! And there was only one bed is such a classic for a reason BUT hurt/comfort is so adaptable and I love angst

found family or partners in crime - I love a found family. It always hurts when a piece of media brings a group of people together throughout the story and then they go their separate ways at the end, it sometimes feels like it devalues the character development they made together throughout the story. I'm a huge fan of finding love in multiple and unexpected forms

canon compliant or canon divergent - I don't think I can choose between these two especially with star wars and obikin. There is so much talent involved in creating a satisfying canon compliant fic where the love is there, it just doesn't change anything (and in fact, makes everything feel a bit worse). If there's a theme here, it's that I really do love a bit of angst. I'm thinking about @thedunesea 's The Labyrinth Song here. I read it months ago at this point and it absolutely wrecked me, an incredibly satisfying read. But I also love canon divergence. I love carving out a space where things could have gone different in canon

fluff or angst with a happy ending - This is another one where I was like, don't make me choose! But I'll go with angst here (and not just because a theme is developing) but because they specify angst with a happy ending which feels like the best of both worlds

1st person pov or 3rd person pov - I'm going with Lemon and Rag here. I don't really read any first person fic. I'm alright with it when it comes to original fiction but I still don't read very much of it.

soulmates or forbidden love - I've read a few good soulmate fics (which makes me think of Twin Suns by MmeIrene (I'm not sure if they have a tumblr!) which was very good) but I feel like I read more forbidden love (especially if we consider being forbidden by the Jedi Code or the Council or in original fiction we talk about things like class or homophobia forbidding people from being together)

roommates or fake dating - I absolutely agree with Rag, a lot of original fiction especially doesn't really give a good enough reason for why they're fake dating? Where as roommates allows for a lot of great pining 💕 And I could not answer this one without thinking of @darthwillies fic Roommates which is just soooo good

slow burn or meet-cute - I love and respect the power of a good slow burn. I'm not sure to what extent I'm capable of writing it but it owns my entire heart.

love triangle or polyamorous relationship - my answer to a love triangle is so often polyamory. I never read much of it until ofmd and steddyhands a few years ago and I love some obianidala. I don't know if I could ever write it to my satisfaction though, there's just so many moving parts 😅

royalty au or magic au - I feel like I haven't really encountered too many of either of these? Although I'm loving Rag's If the Shoe Fits which is maybe more of a Cinderalla au than a royalty au but Prince Obi-Wan is just too good in that fic. Put them in pretty outfits, give me some court intrigue, that sounds great!

high school/college au or neighbours au - This one was really hard! I like and dislike both of these. I don't really seek out modern aus in general tbh but I think I've read more high school/college aus. Though honorable mention goes to Heartbeat Drives You Mad by @renlyslittlerose an excellent neighbors au!

mutual pining or idiots to lovers - This one comes back to the angst with a happy ending possibilities. I agree with Rag, I think idiots to lovers can be a kind of mutual pining, maybe with more miscommunication and misunderstandings, but that idiots to lovers isn't a tag I would seek out or one that would intrigue me

I couldn't help but turn this into a bit of an obikin fic rec list for some of my favorite tropes 😅 No pressure tags in addition to the ones scattered about the answers: @usakostar @betweensaintsandmonsters @grapenehifics @unspuncreature @samstree

#tag game #obikin fic rec

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clonedchaos · 3 months ago

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Machine Memories- Day 1: Nostalgia

Acknowledgements:

Well, here we are! Sorry I’m late to this event! Dang, it's been ages since I've written for Bendy content on any of my socials... So, I wanted to preface this fic by saying that Eclipse and A Small Bit of Kindness aren't going anywhere, I promise. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, feel free to skip to the next paragraph or first chapter below the cut) There has been a lot going on these past few months and I'll talk more about it once those stories update. I'm not done with Bendy content-- far from it actually! I just have a bit of a hard time focusing on one specific story for too long or I get burnt out. So, as an apology, I'm doing Ink Demonth from Tumblr to try and get the gears turning again. Nothing too long or too big, just short little snippets-- that is of course unless I get super invested on a prompt and get carried away. Given my track record, I'm definitely not promising this will be done in one month; I'd be lucky to get it done in two!

And, as an added note, I'm dedicating Machine Memories to my best online friend @mister-magic. Thanks for sticking around so long, especially given how bad I am at updating things and have a habit of bouncing back and forth through fandoms. It really means a lot that you think I'm a good writer, even if most days I don't feel like I am. Taking the time to chat with me or let me ramble about my interests even if for a few moments has done a lot for me. So, thank you. (And go check out his work if you haven't, he's very talented!) :3

And I'm also dedicating it to those that know me from my other Batim fics and are still curious to know what comes next despite another unforeseen hiatus on new chapters. The support really does mean the world to me and keeps pushing me forward, and I wish so much that I could keep up with updating. I feel awful for not updating things for like 5-6 months...

Anyhow enough with the rambling, I hope you enjoy! I'm excited to see all the Ink Demonth has to offer! And go check out halfusek on Tumblr, they're hosting this event! <3

Summary:

Audrey takes a break from the hustle and bustle of work to unwind at her local park. Familiar sights and smells just might dredge up a few recollections of her past...

Rating: G/PG

A park bench in the sun was the perfect place for Audrey to stretch her legs. She had gotten out of bed bright and early and eager to start the day, unaware of what disaster awaited her the moment she stepped into Archgate.

“Audrey, did you send those panels to Richard? He’s been on my case all morning” this, “Audrey, would you be a dear and take this to the writer’s department?” that. Audrey didn’t quite understand why these multitude of tasks were being thrust upon her— unless it stemmed from her desire to help her coworkers. She had been in a jam on more than one occasion, whether that be due to art block or struggling with looking at a scene through a different perspective. The least she could do was return the favor to aid her department.

She hadn’t realized how exhausted she was until she quite literally collapsed into her chair. The magnitude of leftover panels she had to complete by the deadline formed a miniature mountain on her desk. Audrey sighed a weary exhale. Well, she’d better get to work.

To her utter surprise Nathan Arch popped his head in thirty minutes later, claiming he was checking up on how the new episode was coming along. All bright eyed with a warm smile, that’s how he always greeted his employees.

Audrey stiffened— she had barely gotten through a fourth of her work! Nathan scrutinized her menial pile, then glanced to her flushed cheeks and slumped shoulders. Was he going to be disappointed in her presumed lack of work ethic?

Mr. Arch just guffawed with a rosy cheeked smile. “My, Audrey. You seem like you could use a breather.”

And that’s how Audrey had ended up lounging on a park bench during work hours. The sunshine warmed her skin, coupled with a pleasant breeze that tickled her cheeks. She sneezed. The flowers were in full bloom this time of the season, which irritatingly meant pollen was out in full force.

A small group of kids ran past her, kicking a soccer ball between themselves. It was a whirlwind of chatter, rapid movements, and lots of excitement.

Audrey’s gaze slowly observed the scenery before her, absorbing all its sights and sounds. A couple a few feet away stood with arms linked as they observed the rows of flowers lining the sidewalk. The man plucked a vibrant daisy and set it in his lover's blonde hair. A squirrel skittered up a tree, bushy tail twitching to and fro as it searched for nearby predators.

"Mommy! Mommy look! A birdie!"

Audrey hypnotically turned her head, her mind not quite meeting with reality. A few feet away a woman was holding hands with a young girl. The child was adamantly tugging her mother towards the creature in question. With a terrified squawk, the raven beat its jet black wings and lifted into the sky.

The child was left distraught with tears welling up at the corners of her eyes. Her mother frowned sympathetically, reached down, and raised the girl up to sit on her hip. “Oh, honey. You have to be gentle…” Her soft voice faded as she strolled out of earshot.

Audrey could hear faint giggling as reality seemed to fall away before her. A faint inkling of a memory began to worm its way into the limelight.

She was here many years ago. She‘d walked this same path… with her father. Audrey closed her eyes. The sight was so vivid and palpable, as if she could reach out and touch the past.

”What’s that, papa?” She had asked, enraptured by a small cluster of drooping blue petals. Her heart had been alight with wonder— it was the first time she had been to a park before! So many new smells, faces, activities, and sights just waiting for her in such a small corner of the city.

”Ah. That’s a bluebell. Beautiful, isn’t it?” Her father rumbled as he crouched down in front of the patch. He lifted one of the flowers with a finger. "Don't worry, it's healthy. This is just how they grow."

"Blue is my favorite color!" Audrey had bounced up and down on the balls of her feet. In the present, she wished things were as simple as they were back then-- when the only troubles she had were trying to pick a favorite color without "making the other colors jealous".

Now... Now things were different. Her father-- if she could even call him that anymore-- wasn't the man she thought she had known throughout her childhood. Audrey wrung her hands in her lap as she moved her gaze to stare at the concrete below. Her heart ached with longing for the simpler times. Her life was more than a mess, it was quite literally a disaster.

She missed their occasional walks in the park. She missed their daily breakfast collaboration-- Audrey had once accidentally got a pancake stuck on the ceiling one morning, prompting her father to let her stick to mixing the batter. When storms brewed outside and lightning sent her scrambling out of bed in a panic, she had always found solace with her father. Even though she knew she shouldn't... she missed him.

Audrey looked up at a small flock of birds winging south. A gentle breeze brushed her cheeks again. Despite the bittersweet recollections, Audrey wasn't despondent over the present. Though she had lost her father, she had gained a new family; one that was seeming to grow more and more every time she stepped into the Ink realm.

Henry was always a good level-headed friend she could vent her problems out to; reliable too. Allison was adept at making her way through the labyrinth of hallways and was always up for a good sparring match to sharpen Audrey's skills. Tom was a bit brash and gruff, but she knew the wolf meant well. Heidi and Porter were always a delight to see, and they loved pulling Audrey into various shenanigans and pranks they wanted to set up around the studio.

But the one person whom she felt she made the most progress with so far was the Ink Demon himself. He had taken to rooming with Audrey in her apartment whenever he grew tired of the Ink Realm. The demon wasn't exactly the easiest roommate, nor was he always friendly-- he kind of reminded Audrey of a stray cat learning to grow accustomed to the indoors. But he had certainly come a long way; he wasn't trying to kill her for starters.

They were both made by Joey Drew via the Ink Machine. So in a way, that meant they were kin. She had lost her father but gained a brother.

Hmm…

Perhaps the Ink Demon would appreciate a scene like this, whether he would admit to it or not. The memories she held of her father, as tainted as they might be now, it was part of her history. It helped make her into the young woman she was today; one that was adamant on looking towards a brighter future.

Maybe it was finally time to make some new memories...

#the ink demonth #Ink Demonth #bendy and the dark revival #bendy and the ink machine #Audrey Drew #Nostalgia #Reflection #Fluff #batim #batdr #Joey Drew mention #Machine Memories #Day 1: Nostalgia #bendy #fanfiction #one shot #AO3 #Cloned’s Bendy fics

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istadris · 1 year ago

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lm3 seducer luigi au? 👀

@brendathepeep you're to blame for half of the ideas here.

This is going to be a LONG one, so brace yourself!

First Luigi's Mansion : E.Gadd met Luigi by pure luck, and he was willing to go through the house and capture ghosts while looking for his brother. Everybody wins ! But as he monitors Luigi, he notices that the guy isn't just a good ghost hunter. He draws ghosts ! In a very specific way, dare he say.

Dark Moon : the Evershade Valley is a good place to study ghosts and even obtain answers from them, and that's where E.Gadd starts to realize, oh. oh. Ghosts don't just want to scare Luigi, they're attracted to him. He's basically a walking aphrodisiac. So when the ghosts escape, E.Gadd doesn't hesitate : ghosts are less agressive when horny (usually), and Luigi is a good enough ghostbuster to justify calling him.

E.Gadd intended to tell Luigi about it ! He absolutely did ! But how do you explain to your assistant "oh there is an explanation to why ghosts always harass you" ?

Especially when he's running for his life! And he kept forgetting once the menace was dealt with.

He still tried to harness (or even just figure out) that weird power Luigi has but accidentally made a goo clone. Alas, while Gooigi does attract ghosts, he's not sturdy enough for further examination. After Gooigi reforms from a ghost spilling fluids (not necessarily their own) on him : "dang it, it seems I will need Luigi's consent on this matter after all"

Luigi's Mansion 3 : when Helen invites E.Gadd, she asks him a lot of questions,and some of then are about his assistant. " My, how brave of him to face such dangerous ghosts, how did the poor man survive ?" "Why, I shouldn't probably talk too much about this, but I trust you to not gossip. You see, my dear boy Luigi has quite the surprising talent ..."

(Suggestive content + spoilers for Luigi's Mansin 3 under the read more, you have been warned)

Helen's plan to capture Luigi totally involved to seduce him and lure him away from his family, but our boy's too oblivious for that and fell asleep right after getting to his room. Helen, after waiting for an hour and realizing her sultry pose and hints didn't work, decided to fall back on a simple "grab the rest of the posse and hide"

LM3 starts like in the game with Luigi falling asleep and waking up to things going apeshit, with Helen ans King Boo showing up, and King Boo chasing after Luigi and cornering him at the end of the corridor. Luigi is terrified of course...but fear and arousal have always crossed wires in his brain. Especially with ghosts. Oh, they terrify him, and yet when King Boo presses down on him, he's also hard as a brick, awfully aroused...which KB notices in his aura (and then the tent in his overalls). And he can now attest that the rumours about Luigi's aura being very attractive are true.

KB is very, very amused and tests further this inclination, and smut ensues...and because he wants to make the chase last and to drive Luigi to his limits, afterwards, King Boo all but pushes Luigi down the laundry chute while challenging him to come and get his friends back, but only if each of the floor's main ghosts find Luigi to their liking. And of course he'll spread the word about that human with a kink for ghosts...

Instead of the wanted posters with money for reward, it's a pin up picture with a number to call.

Through the entire night, between floors, Luigi gets harassed here and there by various ghosts and Boos who want a taste of the delicious human, but King Boo also gave clear instructions so the Boss Ghosts get dibs on him.

Stewart, Chambrea and Kruller are pretty easy to satisfy : they're all overworked and stressed out by their jobs, and once Luigi shows up with his delicious, enticing aura, it doesn't take much to convince them to sit back and relax. A head/handjob (well, the equivalent for ghosts as they don't have the same anatomy as humans anymore) and some fondling and kisses, and they're spent and content.

Chef Soulfflé and Amadeus Wolfgeist are Luigi's first obstacles : they're both "artists" whose energy expresses through their art, and so it's less about physical sex : they find release in making their "victim" experiment actual Food/music porn. Luigi never thought he would be able to come just from a concert.

King MacFrights : Ooooh these dungeons and torture contraptions are going to come in handy. The joust still happens though, with the victor gaining the favours of the crowd...a very enthusiastic crowd...

Garden Suites : Like mentioned before, if Dr Potter doesn't get physical himself, his beloved plants, on the other hand...between the very long and grabby vines, sex pollen all over the place, and toothy carnivorous plants, Luigi spends a LOT of time on this floor.

T-Rex + Ug : Gooigi comes in VERY handy there, because Luigi would NOT have survived T Rex vore with his own body. Sharing his consciousness with a pile of good helps for very interesting sensations.

Morty is the sweetest of all ghosts, and gives Luigi a well earned reprieve by letting him rest for a while and pampering his new star the whole time.

He's the first ghost where Luigi is actually the one to make the first move sincerely. However, he also insists on filming everything (and not necessarily taking part himself), puts Luigi through different roles and scenarios...He keeps up the praise all the while, which is an enormous boost to Luigi's confidence (and he realises he has a praise kink).

Boiler room : let's say Clem ain't keeping these rubber duckies just for decoration. At least lying down on a giant rubber duckie floatie in a pool the whole time is kinda relaxing.

Serpci ; listen even in the canon of the game, I thought when I first saw her "what is it with ghost ladies making Luigi sneeze while making seductive poses ? Is this how you manifest your interest?"

Anyway look at her. She would demand worship and praise from Luigi (thankfully he picked up some tips from Morty) and gosh just look at her ❤️

Captain Fishook and Johnny Deepend: look, if you can't see the sex appeal in a hunk shark pirate on his ship and a buff life guard, I can't do anything for you. Luigi even gets to get drunk in the grotto lounge afterwards, turns out pirate ghosts know how to party

Triplets of the Twisted Suites : oh boy, this one is gonna be a wild ride. Three magician girls with a streak for mischief in a floor full of tricks and traps ? It's a miracle he makes it out alive.

Disco floor : Luigi canonically loves dancing, especially in the Luigi's Mansion games. He's killing it on the dance floor. Going clubbing has never been his style, but now he gets the full experience, including the grinding and groping.

Ironically Helen is the only ghost in the hotel who doesn't manage to get a go at Luigi: he passes out in the Master suite for a while (he needs to regain some energy before King Boo) and when she tries to stop him, he claims he played with her pussy and holds up Polterkitty. She's furious but she appreciates that he did look after her precious cat.

Now Luigi arrives to the top of the hotel, armed with all the knowledge he acquired through the night on ghost pleasure, still "smelling" like the most delicious thing to spectres, and facing a blue-balled King Boo who has been watching Luigi's progress the whole time.

Mario when Luigi frees him : "Oh Luigi, you look exhausted, these ghosts must have kept you up all night!"

Luigi : "haha...yeah you could say that."

Who will win ? YOU DECIDE !!

#super mario bros #luigi's mansion #booigi #miscellaneous mario madness #long post #answers #anon ask #Anon I hope you'll enjoy this given how much time it took to find my old notes #ghost seducer Luigi AU

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nabateaprodigy · 10 months ago

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Mahiru with a Male S/O that's the ultimate boxer, he is also incredibly strong as well as big, buff, and intimidating, but he's extremely pacifistic and kind, he only boxes because he likes to entertain people and see them happy, unfortunately because of his fame people challenge him to fights a lot to try and steal his spotlight (which he really don't give two dangs 'bout) and because S/O doesn't know/never learned how to hold back his strength, he normally ends up sending the people who challenge him to the E.R. on a daily basis, and because of this he thinks of himself as lucky to have a girlfriend like Mahiru, he also thinks of himself as a monster, a monster who's just better than anyone else at crushing people. (If you get the reference from the ultimate talent, and the quote at the end, you got good taste) have a good day/evening/night

Deserved to be Loved

Series: Danganronpa.

Character: Mahiru.

Genre: Angst/Comfort.

Proofread: Yes.

Reader: Male.

An Ultimate Talent something that everyone wishes to have and you were one of those lucky few. You are M/N the Ultimate Boxer and to have this Ultimate Talent was something you were extremely proud of. To be recognized for your efforts and to be known as an Ultimate was something that made you happy.

But now? It's something you hate something that you regret. 'What's the point of being an Ultimate anymore?' Thoughts like this often crossed. Other than being recognized for your efforts of becoming an Ultimate.

Happiness is what you want to bring people more than happiness and entertainment that's what meant to be a boxer to you. To see people smile to see their excitement at an upcoming match that's what you wanted most. However, even at the very start, this seemed to be difficult.

Days, months, years, this is how long you had devoted to training. But in the end, you wonder if it was even worth it. You're much taller than most students and have extraordinary muscles. To many students around school, they viewed you as scary and unapproachable.

You wanted nothing more than to make friends and make those friends through your love of boxing. But even then this didn't seem to work out well for you either. You would make rivals through boxing but they weren't the friendly type.

Challenging you challenging your title as the Ultimate Boxer is what these rivals wanted. However, each match ended the same way for you nothing but a bittersweet victory. Victories came too easily for you at first you loved but grew to hate.

Where was the challenge? How could you grow as a boxer? As you were now it didn't seem like you would get any of those.

However even with all this what you've been through all this despair...you had one spark of hope and this hope was your girlfriend Mahiru. You remember the day well when Mahiru approached you.

"Excuse me do you mind if I sit here?" Mahiru spoke as she held her tray of food. You look at her surprised anyone would approach you let alone ask to sit with you. "No, I don't mind." You replied softly.

Mahiru sat down across from you putting down her tray of food in front of her. "Honestly it's so busy in here today. You would think anyone would want to sit at a mostly empty table." Mahiru spoke causally although slightly annoyed.

"No one is sitting here because of me because of my appearance." You spoke softly playing with your food. "Is that so? I have a classmate who has a lot of muscles just like you. And unlike him, you look like you have some sense."

Mahiru spoke once more and you well you couldn't help but laugh at her response. She wasn't sure why you were laughing but she didn't care she loved your laugh. Soon after that a friendship began and sometime after that, a relationship blossomed.

Now here both of you were sitting on a bench in a park with the lovely sunny weather. It was great weather so Mahiru wanted to go out to take pictures and you were more than happy to go with her. But now you were just sitting side by side eating ice cream and you couldn't be happier.

#request #fanfic #fic request #fanfiction #x reader #angst #comfort #angst/comfort #danganronpa #danganronpa imagines #danganronpa x reader #mahiru koizumi #mahiru x reader #mahiru koizumi x reader #x male y/n #x male reader #danganronpa 2 goodbye despair

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ruina-031 · 1 year ago

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I'd like to go on a little rant to thank everybody :)

Oh dang-it I might be too tired.

The company I work for faces a bit of economic downturn, that results in me having a workload of 3 people in one position and one pay. To combat inflation, and to support myself and my best friend, I regularly take in Tarot card clients. I never studied art before, I have no art teacher, and my background is foreign languages and English literature (and I sucked at school). I am quite surprised by the support and comments I get on Tumblr, because I don't think I am that good. Thank you all. :)

The reason I got into art was My best friend. She is a history professor, her specialty is in WWII and military/technological systems comparisons between the Germany and the Soviet bloc. She has been a visiting scholar to the University of Moscow. Since the war went down, her grants all dried up, and she has to pay out of her own pockets to continue such researches. That's part of the reason why we have no savings whatsoever.

She got me interested in WWII a few years ago and I attempted to sketch wartime personalities. Here I have Marshal Zhukov, Vasilevskiy and Walter Model. I realized I could capture faces pretty decently, with struggles, of course.

Still everyday I draw is a struggle; my anatomy knowledge sucks, my perspectives are crooked, I use an old ass Photoshop CS2 to do everything because sb gave me that program for free. I don't know how to install brushes on that so it's terrible. I use a second hand year 2000-ish digital tablet because sb sold it for cheap. I am grateful of every like and reblog and my friend who "discovered" my talent (or lack thereof).

OK long rant over~~~

#art rant #wwii

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danpuff-ao3 · 2 years ago

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ATTENTION EVERYONE: PLEASE PAUSE TO ADMIRE THIS PERFECTION:

(perfection drawn by the ever sweet and skillful @inarticulateimbecile)

Look at that perfect, ugly man who I adore with my whole entire heart.

But also, admire THIS perfection:

My BOYS 😭 😭 🥰

Scenes from my beloved story Contempt. And gifted to me by such a lovely friend. 🥺 (I'm crying, don't worry about it.)

Extra tidbits: the first time I ever talked to inarticulateimbecile was me popping into their inbox all awkward and anxiety-ridden to squeal about their art 😂 The second time was them coming to me to chat about Contempt! We definitely talked about how deliciously ugly Severus is. (Please don't @ me, I don't wanna hear it, let me swoon for his ugly face damn it.) (Remember how SpongeBob said "I'm ugly and I'm proud"???? Get with the program, people.)

ANYWAY. So. I sobbed upon seeing these, of course. I still feel like I haven't appropriately blubbered at them over how wonderful they are and how much they mean to me.

Image 1: look at the ball of light!! That glow!! The shadows on Severus' face!! The lank head hair, the sparse chest hair; the concavity of his chest!! (Very important detail, very important!) And his frown! How he's so sharp and grim and afraid and reserved!!

Image 2: My boys all cuddled close together, as they belong! Harry all snuggled into Severus' chest. 🥺 The way Severus holds him! 🥺 They way they hold each other. How even in sleep they're not quite at peace, not quite happy, but stealing and savoring the moment they have while they have it!! I'm living and dying in my feelings right now, no big deal.

And now!!!! They get to live in my fic cuz friend is so good to me!! 🥰 Also: why are my friends so talented??? Like dang. Mind = blown. Also: why are my friends so friggin' SWEET??? Again. Mind = blown. Please go shower all of inarticulateimbecile's everything with love because they deserve it. Also please go admire their art at the end of Contempt if you don't mind because it gives extra life and character to the fic!!!! Also...!!!!! idk. I feel like I should keep talking because I'm excited. So idk have some exclamation points instead: !!!!!!!!!!!!!

#snarry #fandom friends #inarticulateimbecile #contempt #fanart #i'm not crying you're crying #just kidding it's definitely me crying #but also like ????? mind your business #danni's having a meltdown of love it's fine it's fine i'm fine

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thewhumpcaretaker · 5 months ago

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What r ur thoughts on HopelesslyDevoted(Chidi x Vincent)? :3 they’re sooo doomed bodyguard x boss yaoi

I HAVE. SO MANY. THOUGHTS.

Once again you poisoned my brain, thank you. Ever since that gorgeous fic...dang. Well, now I can yap about it!

TW: mentions of drug use and an abusive family, and NSFW stuff

Okay so first of all, let's think about the nature of a personal bodyguard in the JW universe. This is not just anyone who has the necessary qualifications. This has to be someone who is willing to die for you and who absolutely will not betray. (I believe Gianna picked Cassian for that reason but that's another story). So Chidi did something for Vincent that proved he would be loyal to the death.

What did he do? I think he was a Myrmadon who was serving under Vincent's father, back when Vincent was younger (around college-age). So they've known each other for a long time - it's actually sort of a friends-to-lovers situation. He was around Vincent, but not allowed to speak to him most of the time - or at least, it would have been awkward to do so. He just watched him from afar and became very fond of him, and they talked occasionally. At some point, perhaps during an attack by a rival family, Chidi was ordered to focus on defending property or another De Gramont family member but he disobeyed and saved Vincent's life instead. You could even go so far as to say that he saved Vincent's life instead of his father's - that would be a lot of drama. In any case, he expected to be executed for what he did, but instead, Vincent made him his personal bodyguard.

Why is Chidi so in love loyal? Because he's thoroughly charmed by Vincent. He admires him in every way. Here is a man who's breathtakingly beautiful, wildly charismatic, intelligent, talented...don't get him started on it honestly, because he could praise Vincent forever. Vincent is also more social than Chidi could ever be (this is very much an extrovert-adopts-an-introvert situation). He sees Vincent's more potentially negative characteristics too, such as his pride and arrogance, but doesn't see them as flaws. He's also one of the few people who has really seen what Vincent has been through on a personal level. They don't often talk about it, but he witnessed Vincent being mistreated by his family pretty frequently and it made him massively protective. He gets why his bien-aimé is like this.

How did Vincent fall in love? Initially, Vincent mistreated Chidi a lot. He saw someone who was hopelessly devoted to him and thought, "What a fool. Well, at least I can use him." He never did anything really awful, but he was generally rude and mocking, didn't give Chidi any breaks when working, exploded at him in anger, that kind of thing. But over time, little moments of vulnerability happened that a bodyguard inevitably sees. Being tired after a long day. Getting sick. Breaking down after an argument. And Chidi always went out of his way to make sure Vincent was comfortable in moments like that. Vincent slowly started to notice. He also noticed things that he admired about Chidi - his calmness, his determination, his emotional intelligence, his skills with not just fighting, but also cooking and even sewing (idk why but I think he likes to sew and sewed a button back on for Vincent during a fashion emergency at some point). Eventually Vincent started to wonder and secretly hope that there could be something between them, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything - it would mean too much to him to have someone who genuinely cares for him. He didn't dare to confess his feelings and test whether it was true.

So instead he started fucking him, oops! Just casually. For fun. Because they're both hot. Definitely nothing more than that...next thing you know, they're married.

Miscellaneous Things:

They’re both good at fencing and sometimes they spar together. Chidi always lets Vincent win.

Chidi always reminds Vincent that it’s his job to take care of his health in all ways, including mentally and in terms of keeping him clean from drugs.

Chidi service top!!!!

Their relationship is part of the reason why the High Table is so queer accepting - Vincent is the most influential member other than the Elder himself, and he wasn’t going to put up with any nonsense about him and Chidi being together - happy pride!!

#hoplesslydevoted #chidi x marquis de gramont #john wick headcanons #john wick ships #wickblr

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sailor-artemis · 4 days ago

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The Seconds Waiting

After the craziness of XIV write, I picked myself up and dusted myself off to write a little something for @bloodbywinter for this go-around of the FFXIV Swap, plus a couple GPose "illustrations" to go along with it! I'm pretty dang happy with how it all turned out, so I figured why not share it? Big thanks to the Swap discord for putting this together and to @bloodbywinter for sharing Asmundur with me; you can find the story below here or in a Google doc!

“They tell me about you, you know.” Koana unceremoniously broke the silence.

Asmundur looked over to the Hhetsarro as they sat and waited for news from Thancred, furrowed brow and skewed ears completing a quizzical sort of look.

“Thancred, and Urianger. Mostly Urianger, to be truthful.” Koana pulled his knees up to his chest, his worry for his sister clearly affecting him. “To say you've been busy would be a vast understatement, if even half of their tales are to be believed.”

Asmundur idly rubbed his arm as he waited for Koana to continue, sensing that Koana was speaking more to occupy his mind and fill the dead air than to try and glean some sort of advantage in the contest for the throne.

“I strive to be the person they seem to think I can be, but… I'm not sure even my best efforts will suffice. Having glimpsed the possibilities that Sharlayan technology holds, it's a challenge to return and not immediately see it as the solution to any given problem before me. To my eye, that isle seems like a paradise worth aspiring to, and yet… the further along in the contest we progress, the more I find myself wondering if I have the right of things.”

Asmundur remembered that feeling of frustration, early on in his studies. That moment when you've gained just enough knowledge to comprehend all the world's problems, but not enough wisdom to understand that the obvious solution often isn't the best one. It was something Urianger himself had done his best to instill in the Viera with their lessons, to varying degrees of success.

“It comes with time,” Asmundur said in a soft yet deliberate tone. “Knowing your own shortcomings is a good sign. It means Urianger is getting through to you, even just a little.”

Koana looked a bit surprised, his expression quickly changing into an embarrassed smile. “He must've taught you well, then, for you to have accomplished all you've done.”

“He is quite the teacher,” Asmundur replied, fixing his gaze on the part of his gauntlet that he was currently fiddling with. “Even if I wasn't always the best student. He was patient, and thoughtful, and…”

Koana let the silence that followed hang in the air for a moment, perhaps sensing that there was some history between Asmundur and Urianger that he was not privy to.

“...And I am fortunate enough to still count him as a friend.”

—

“Thine arrival is timely as ever.” Urianger turned around, finally ‘noticing’ Asmundur following him out of Bestways Burrow. The Viera gave him a look that laid feelings bare without speaking a word, daring him to try and weave another elaborate lie.

“‘Twas not mine intent to move in shadow, that I can promise you. It seems, however, that my capacity for deceit and duplicity hath caught the ears of our lunar compatriots, and…” Urianger heaved a sigh. “Most days I can put the deceptions of the past from my mind, but I struggle to think of aught else when my apparent talent for subterfuge seems to be the impression that comes to any stranger upon first meeting.”

“So the memories haunt us both, then,” Asmundur replied, filling the empty air. Urianger turned to look Asmundur in the eye for a moment, then fixed his gaze on a distant star above.

“Aye. The Exarch’s scheme backfired, for a mercy, but… thoughts of Moenbryda and Minfilia oft leave me pondering whether I had done them wrong by remaining silent, by not seeking any alternate course. By pushing them ahead on their paths of noble sacrifice. Would they have chosen another way, had one been offered them?”

“Much as I wish it weren’t so, I cannot imagine a scenario in which Minfilia would’ve chosen differently, given the circumstances.” It was Asmundur’s turn to sigh. “The thought has stuck with me these intervening years, wondering if maybe there was a way she could’ve survived, but… I think it was who she was, as a person, that made that decision before she’d ever been presented with it.”

“It seems thou hast the right of it.” Another deep exhale. “We struggle each new day, bearing the burden of those lost who still haunt us, and fighting to save those who remain, but… what of those who cannot be saved? How do we make peace with the dreadful algebra of necessity?”

“Sometimes there’s no right answer. The only wrong answer is to stop trying altogether, I think.” Asmundur crossed his arms, as if trying to somehow keep the rest of his thoughts from escaping into the air.

“I only speak for mine own experience, but… it would not come as a shock if all of us Scions had experienced moments where we began to doubt our own ability to affect change and help those in need, becoming trapped in the throes of malaise and indifference. ‘Twould not be difficult for me to recall examples of mine own personal difficulty with that very thing.”

“I certainly couldn't say I haven't had that exact thought,” Asmundur replied in commiseration. “Sometimes I… I worry that such inaction on my part may have struck wounds in those around me, wounds deeper than I could ever manage to heal on my own.”

“Mayhap the only salve for such an injury is the passing of the years.” Urianger offered a small smile to Asmundur, an olive branch of sorts.

“Maybe so.”

—

“I don't wish to pry, but… was there something between the two of you?” Koana inquired, curiosity winning out over decorum.

“No– well, sort of, but… not really.” Asmundur stumbled over his words, trying to navigate the unexpected line of questioning. After a breath, he continued. “Perhaps we could've been, had things been different. Had I been different. I don't know exactly how much of my past they've told you, but… we've lost many allies on the road to this moment. Sacrifices that were ultimately necessary for the maintenance of the peace we now take for granted, but…”

“That a sacrifice is necessary does not make it easier to swallow,” Koana filled in.

“Aye. And those sacrifices very nearly swallowed me. For many days and nights I was more or less lost in grief; a grief that manifested as a burning rage. It made me an effective weapon, but not so much a welcome companion. And once we’d been called to the First, the gap in the time that had passed between us made things… uncomfortable, for lack of a better word.”

Koana nodded in understanding, prompting Asmundur to continue.

“Calamities don't wait for your relationships to sort themselves out, so the urgency pushed us all back together soon enough, and with enough time, things smoothed out, you could say.” Asmundur shifted his weight slightly. “Enough to the point where I can count him among my friends once more, as I said before.”

“I… Thank you, Asmundur. For your honesty. It's not often I can simply speak my mind and receive a reply from the heart.” Koana adjusted his glasses, a nervous habit. “Lamaty’i, she… she's an open book, but always to a happy page, it seems. There are things I wish to tell her, concerns about our brother, about our homeland, about… me, but it feels like I would only weigh her down if I did.”

“I’m reminded just now of something Urianger told me, many moons ago. What I imagine he might say, were he here.”

“And what might that be?”

—

Another moment of silence lingered as they both gazed out over the moon’s surreal landscape.

“I suppose in all of my words mayhap I have neglected to say it plain. I will consider the Loporrits’ proposition with care, and I plan to keep you all apprised of any developments. ‘Twould be to our mutual benefit if we could converse more openly with our aspiring caretakers, something I should be glad to address on the Scions’ behalf.” Asmundur’s posture relaxed slightly, as did Urianger’s in turn. “I can scarce remember the last time we last spoke like this, and so candidly. For all my supposed skill with words, I oft find it difficult to express such private thoughts, so I offer thee my sincere thanks.”

“I appreciate your candor,” Asmundur replied. “It reminds me of the way we used to talk, long ago.”

“It does feel like a bygone ritual, does it not?” Urianger let out a tiny chuckle, defusing the tension. “One we used to partake in more often, to my memory.” Asmundur nodded in fond remembrance.

—

“To dispense with all pretense and bare one's heart to another is a frightening thing indeed. But we cannot move forward ere we take that bold first step.” Asmundur answered Koana, quoting Urianger’s words faithfully from amidst the memory.

—

“‘Tis a lesson I have learned many times before...and again today, ‘twould seem.” Urianger continued, after a momentary pause.

“One we’ve both learned,” Asmundur corrected.

“One we’ve both learned, then,” Urianger repeated. “In truth, my reason for traveling hither was to effect a plan of mine own. A plan which may pave a way forward for us all. I had rather intended to bear its burden of success or failure alone, but… ‘twould be remiss of me to not extend my scheme to encompass us both, should thou wish to take part. So, wouldst thou join in mine endeavor?”

Asmundur uncrossed his arms, letting his hands subconsciously find pockets to rest in. “So what’s this plan, then?”

—

“Perhaps I will have to put your– rather, Urianger's words into practice, then. Speak my thoughts to Lamaty'i, in spite of my apprehension,” Koana replied, after a moment's consideration.

“If there's one thing my limited experience with your sister has shown, it's that she's a great listener.”

Right on cue, Koana’s linkpearl chimed, and he turned his focus to what was likely Thancred on the other end, calling with news of Wuk Lamat’s captors. Asmundur silently turned his focus to the waters of the nearby river, simply watching it flow by as he awaited the next move in their rescue effort. As he stood up from the grassy bank to follow behind an already-in-motion Koana, he made a mental note to check in with Urianger the next time their paths crossed.

#ffxiv #ffxiv swap #not my wol #asmundur #koana #urianger #dawntrail #if you're wondering what my thought process was while writing this it was basically that George lucas quote about rhymes in cinema on repea #it's all about the parallels #bit aside i love writing other folks' characters #it's a challenge but it feels rewarding #sometimes you kinda take shortcuts with your own characters when you control the canon #so it forces you to put a bit more thought in when that's not the case #gpose #gposers #dawntrail spoilers #(only up through lv 92 msq)

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