#you can find it if u search thru this tag ->

[skywerse]

I designed finch's dad!!!!

[archie-sunshine]

hello archie!! i’ve crashed headfirst into knightformers and i feel like a kid in a candy store so much good shit everywhere i look AAA i was wondering if you had a design/vibe in mind for rumble? i haven’t been thru the whole tag so u can yell at me if he’s in there X]

from vileknight (ofc i love KF LMAO)

OMG HI KNIGHT!!! YES i do have a rumble design but its been AGES since I drew it so don't go looking for him he looks like ass.

here i drew you a better doodle of him!! go my scarab

also, ive drawn such little art of rumble you could probably find him just by searching my rumble tag!!

[webdiggerxxx]

How do u find cool stuff on flickr ;_;

i search keywords that im interested in go to advanced search and use their "date taken" feature to narrow down the most recent date posted, i usually go for 2013-2014 at the highest but it rly depends on what u want and what ur looking for! i open like 20 tabs (lol) of all the pics in the search results that i like and then see if the pics are in any groups or galleries (galleries are more lucrative tbh!) and then check out the posters page, their likes, if they've made any galleries, sometimes who they follow if i rly like their work. then i follow accounts ive already gone through which makes the posting process easier cus i can tell if i've already seen something after 3,000 posts on here lol BUT its also super useful for the search function cus a "from people you follow" option will come up where the pics from ur followed have all been tagged with the keyword in some way, its amazing how much stuff i miss (and some flickr accounts have like 80 pages and i just cant be bothered to look at all of them). but thru all this i truly never ever run out of cool stuff to find it's genuinely a problem at this point i have dozens on dozens of flickr tabs open and my computer is going to flip me off and die any day now 🫢

hope this helps!!! ｡･::･ﾟ★,｡･::･ﾟ☆

[starry-sophrosyne]

highkey considering going thru and deleting the tag #party-crashers-rpf off of every single one of my posts tagged with it bc im just realizing that like ALL of my fucking posts pull up when i search up just the tag #party crashers, i think in part to that tag... (i think thats how tags work atleast?)

i'm saying this as a genuine warning too but i think that every blog that uses the #party-crashers-rpf tag should switch over to just using #pc-rpf instead, idk im not telling u to go back and delete the #party-crashers-rpf tag off all yalls posts like i plan to do but idk at this point, swizard's reblog has me confused on whats going bc i saw something else from spookypartycrit's post(??) and im just scared in general, i dont know what genuinely happened and how openly exposed the rpf community is to the crashers now; as a VERY active rpf blog, i just want to do what i can to make sure im not openly out there even if this is a whole other acc of mine (under the premise that the boys for some reason decide to go on tumblr.. bc if somebody brings them on here im gonna genuinely jump.) i fear there's little bits and pieces abt myself that ppl with enough patience could uncover and use to rat me out but that's also my general anxiety talking-

ALSO to credit @second-best-daisy but for the love of FUCKING god please do not main tag y'alls posts, ive seen stuff under the premise of "not maintagging is for pussies" but now that it's come down to this, you sure you wanna be the first thing they see if they ever find us out here? Like Crashing said, more of us = a greater chance to be found out, and there's certainly more of us than there were a few months ago. I genuinely don't know what the chances are that the crashers pull up to tumblr/someone decides to expose us all but i'm not about to sit here and let it happen, i'm pulling out all the stops if nothing but for my own sake.

sigh... would've never had to think about all of this if we weren't all scared for our lives but god knows ppl have to be fucking stupid..

[codntmc]

Older bf könig

(Very much older were talking 40-50 and 20s, fem reader, nsfw)

Older bf könig: who would throw out all sorts of sex toys or just put Them out of your reach, call him Old fashioned but he wants to be the only thing pleasureing you, showing you how a real man fucks you and not some scrawny College teen, his head rolled back against the pillow as his hand lazily guide your hip, his other hand over his eyes as he groans

I feel like he would be so much more gentle with you than any other person especially doing intimacy because of the undeniable size difference between the two of you

Older bf könig: who would guide you thru everything especially if your a Virgin, taking his sweet time getting you relaxed, and loosend up using toung and fingers before he gives you the night of your life

Older bf könig: who feels that hes in charge because he has Way more expirience under his belt than you, and he’s not shy to brag about how much experience he has either

Older bf könig: who’s no less than a gentleman weather its Holding the door, massaging your sore and aching feet after wearing heels all Day, cooking, buying flowers you name it

And honestly I feel like he’s the type to cook for you almost every night as well, because his little doll deserves the best <3

-

(I took inspo from another creator, but cant remember their acc name if u find em please tag Them so i Can credit!! <3 )

-

Finally found the author thanks to you wonderfull people thank you for helping me in my search

@konigsblog thank you for the inspiration - truly a great writer <3

[not-poignant]

u seem like the kinda person who'd know about this? apologies if u dont want these sorta asks, my sole source of fan stuff is ao3 and this specific page but i will totally understand if u dont wanna answer !

u know the trope where like. little evil guy goes thru horrific traumatising event and/or everyone discovers they previously went thru horrific traumatising event and then everyone feels sorry for them and, yknow, feels and redemption and whatnot (kinda like falling falling stars except im not expecting anything else to be as good as that <3<3<3<3)... is there an ao3 tag for that? and/or like... a collection (honestly not sure how collections work)?

sadly ao3 has not yet learned to read my mind and scrolling thru every fic tagged with 'angst' has been Not Fruitful. sincerest thanks if u do decide to answer!! and have a good day/night regardless!

Hi anon!

So, the term is probably closest to something like 'woobification' or turning a villain into a woobie (terrible things happen to them, everyone feels sorry for them, and they get accepted etc.)

However, this tag is often viewed negatively in fandom so almost no one tags with it. It's very hard to find these kinds of fics and you'll be much better off actually targeting specific villains in fandoms and then looking via tags like angst and hurt/comfort.

For example, these sorts of fics have happened a lot with Loki. You'd be looking for long wordcount Loki angst fics with hurt/comfort as a tag. And then having to weed out specific ones. You might want to start with Lise's series re: Loki and Steve Rogers here, called Remember This Cold. This is nearly a million words long, so it's a good place to start. Loki goes through many traumatising events, and it's nice watching everyone slowly come around to him (some faster than others).

Unfortunately there's no universal tag though, along the way people got shamed for doing this to villains, and so at best you might be able to search for 'redemption arc' but that's not really going to give you the kind of woobification you're probably looking for. I know it happened to Loki a lot, if you go into my bookmarks and search via Thor + Marvel fandoms specifically for longer fics re: Loki, most of them will be like this though.

There are other villains people love to do this to, but none are immediately coming to mind for me. Other folks can add them in the tags! Some villains are more appealing for this than others, so often targeting a character is more fruitful than searching like...all fics for this phenomenon. It's important that the fics be generally longer than about 20,000 words, because that's long enough to establish a decent turnaround redemption narrative. And you'll probably want the hurt/comfort tag as well (though not everyone will have used it.)

Also, Lise does this with other villains too! So that's an author I think you can find a ton of great fics out of if you like her style! (if living can be this, is also very good).

It might not always be villains you know well, but the stories are often very worth it regardless of how familiar you are with the fandom!

It's one of my favourite genres to read (and write), so I appreciate how frustrating it can be to find them!

[d1gnan]

I absolutely love the jewelry you make and I’ve been saving to buy some of your bracelets for a little while now.

I hope this isn’t bothering you or anything right now but I wanna ask if you have any tips when it comes to outsourcing beads, chains, and charms etc. I really admire how a lot of the items you use to make to make your stuff is like thrifted and upcycled. Unfortunately none of this yard sale stuff is near me so I’m wondering if you know any alternative ways to get similar styled beads/charms that you have. Or just general tips like what tools you use to make jewelry and what the process is like for you.

Again, sorry if this is too much! I’ve just been so inspired by your lovely work it’s motivating me to make my own little trinkets recently. Lots of love <3

HELLO thank u so much for this sweet message❤️🍀🐬

its an honor to be a source of inspiration for u i really appreciate u taking the time to reach out.

as far as my process + sourcing my best advice is to ALWAYS keep your eyes peeled. anything and everything has potential

i will say tho if youre striking out at places local to U, ebay and mercari are good online sources. be imaginative with your searches , some of my fav search terms r

- keychains - metal scrap/key lots - crackerjack / vintage prize charms - deadstock costume jewelry lot - watch faces - drilled dice

ask your friends if theyre getting rid of jewelry, ask your grandparents if u can go thru their junk drawer, let people know about ur mission to repurpose shit and most of the time they'll want to be included. lowkey people just bring stuff to me at this point

also, antique malls and Estate sales!!! estate sales are where ive found a TON of my beads, you can find estate sales on craigslist and u can specify in the search that you're looking for old jewelry.

also, i would invest in a dremel if you don't have one. obv b careful cuz its a power tool but its come in handy for me so many times to turn random shit into beads, for example i drilled all the dice for my the strokes inspired jewelry myself

last idea is u can also get metal stamping supplies for pretty cheap. then any random piece of metal can become a charm, i got a whole tub of washers and dog tags for free cuz i asked about it that ive been 4 stamping lyrics/words into

hope this helps u . thanks for the luv 💚☮️

[scentedpeachlandcreator]

hi i love the new theme and i just want to say something, almost every time i see your posts on my feed it's always you answering asks and the asks are just so infuriating. please some of you anons need to read thru her posts before asking. time and time again eli has said "yes you can manifest anything" or "you manifest thru deciding affirming/imagining and persisting" but there's still plenty of boneheads asking the same questions. there are plenty of posts under the loa tags and such but y'all don't even take time to read them. it's just so frustrating seeing u having to deal with such people. like u manifest for yourself, open your damn eyes and realize that anything is possible and stop asking stupid questions. you can go thru all the asks she has answered and you'll see that it's just the same questions over and over again. before you send an ask think thru your own question yourself if you can't find an answer then search it up on loablr or shiftblr and then u can ask or skip all of that and just assume that your problem doesn't exist.

eli i'm sorry for this rant but seeing you answering the same questions time and time again is just so frustrating. you're one of my fave bloggers on here and i don't want you to get burned out by it. one assumption i have about u is that u have brown hair idk why.

btw sorry for this messy ask i don't really have the time nor energy to read thru it and make it sound coherent bye and take care of yourself eli<333

OMG i just came from taking my last exam and saw your Ask and girl you made my day!😭💗

Yeah you're right i'm just so done with answering those stupid asks, like i said all the answer on my posts but like they don't understand, it like i'm talking to the wall🗿.

And they Ask the same question over and over again, like are you stupid??😐

And like all my informations are understandable it not like i'm talking in chinese or Korean, i'm talking in english sirr😮‍💨.

Anyway, i won't answer stupid Ask cause i'm done.

And THANK YOU FOR MAKING MY DAY!😭🎀

Oh and i ate it with the New theme didn't i?😏💅🏻

And for your assumption i think you're close, my hair is light brown hair, i don't even know how it called but people Say that i'll consider a part of the blondies, i don't know it like you'll see some yellow hair in my hair.

And i liked your rant it good to see people that think like me😌

Have a good day dear!

Xoxo, Eli

[pixlpxie]

can we know what u search for on soundgasm for the best sounds? 🖤

I don't have specific tags that i go for as I tend to pick my sounds based on how good they sound, so for me voice acting is more important than the script and i don't know if that's something you can find thru tags😭 also i navigate using this site and the tags are already there so i usually pick one that fits my mood at that time🧎🏻‍♂��just make sure you list the top ones to get the better(?) ones but honestly im not an avid user of soundgasm so im open to suggestions🫶🏻

[explosivelywuisa]

Hey ur post blew up n got on my dashboard and like I wanna say it’s crazy how it’s become so important to everybody screaming and arguing 😭 like dude I totally totally feel u sometimes u need comfort (and ofc we can write it ourselves and we’re not ordering anyone to) but it’s so nice to find another persons way of comforting through their writing if that makes sense?? Like the words and tone they’d use to comfort someone.

And also like ppl in the comments are like “block nsfw then” like I read it I like it I’m just actively searching for comfort and ppl are so insane they will tag ANYTHING to get attention. Like I’ll be looking for comfort and i find unrelated life update, introducing a blog, smut, angst that will *eventually* be comfort, masterlists, future work outline, and ALWAYS the WORST TAGGED TRIGGER WARNINGS.

Ok this got long my point is like I feel u and I’m so sorry ppl r going batshit insane over a silly little joke meant to bring us all together??? Like going thru the comments is insane everyone needs to relax and chill like babe it’s not so serious you gotta be a total ass. Like let’s all start just scrolling when it makes you angry, it has worked wonders for me. I say “not interested” or block them and then I find some good shit. So um idk. Good shit be upon you ✌🏻let’s all be cool n nice it’s great

Thanks for the nice things🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️, that was the point, that people felt united or said "fr", or something good idk, but almost everyone got offended like🤨🤨🤨 that was never my point when i did the post😦

[no-goodbyes-no-regrets]

U know,I'm enjoying the Buck, Tommy and Eddie did in the show, but I'm confused why the romantic throuple stuff is always tagged with bvddie and bvckt0mmy as well, it's just like inviting more discourse in.

I don't like seeing that side in the bucktommy tag just like I don't like seeing bvddie stuff in there (IMO actual shipping stuff should stay in its own tag rather than infiltrate other tags).

In ur vast tumblr wisdom, do you know why it's just seems to be acceptable to do that? It's a bit tiring often having to spend a while scrolling thru the bucktommy tag, past posts tagged with bvddie, bvddietommy, 911 discourse, and having to hunt for actual bucktommy stuff in the bucktommy tag.

Or is it just my own profiles problem? I'm genuinely exhausted (& started to get resentful seeing so much Eddie), I just wanna see Buck and Tommy being cute without having to search in their own tag for it 😭😓🥺😢

(I do block people as well,but it seems endless!!)

(u don't have to answer this if you don't want to, but it (and toxic shippers) are actually driving me away from tumblr and I love it here usually! It just seems to be getting really bad since the last episode)

My vast tumblr wisdom?? Lmao I know I live here but I'm not an expert anon!

But I do get what you mean. There are a lot of reaction post to insane takes from buddie fans (are they even really buddie fans? All they seem to do is hate on bucktommy/Tommy/Lou) in the bucktommy tag. I guess people just want to vent and know they will at least find like-minded people in the bucktommy tag. Though I think most people do use some kind of discourse tag - so you can blacklist those. I follow a few buddie fans who just enjoy their ship and don't harass Lou or tag Oliver in erotic art of him and Ryan or stuff like that, and I just blacklist buddie and some other tags they use for their ship posts and that's that.

If you're on web a lot you should get xkit (or xkit rewritten as it's called these days) by the way, it has all kinds of great features - including completely hiding posts that contain words or tags you have blacklisted.

As for the throuple posts, I guess because it's all still kind of new - and starting to pick up more the past week or so - that people aren't really sure what tags to use? And people who like bucktommy (might) like Buck/Tommy/Eddie romantically too.

I made a couple of posts (that I plan to turn into actual fics eventually) focusing on Tommy and Eddie as friends and tagged them eddietommy - and I think people use that tag for Eddie/Tommy romantically too, and that's why I tagged it bucktommy too.

I guess it would be easier if we all used the AO3 format for fic tagging - character/character for romance and character & character for friendship or family...

But I guess all you can do is blacklist tags and block people or blacklist their usernames if you don't want to block. This is the curate your own experience website after all.

[st-hedge]

Is there any reason you don’t use a tag for all your art? I would love to scroll through all your art at once

because this account is an archive of the stuff i make. i very rarely if ever reblog things cuz i dont actually use tumblr besides to archive my stuff so this is essentially an art blog u can scroll thru to see everything

90% of the time i use this account to post loz doodles so u can very easily just find the vast majority of the stuff ive drawn by searching either loz/legend of zelda. if i didnt tag something it's probably cuz i dont want it to be searchable. if u dont want to see messages i respond to u can mute 'ask hedge', if u dont want to see duplicate self reblogs u can mute 'boop'. i just dont see the point of an art tag when i only use this account to post art

[neopuppy]

What ao3 authors do you rec for nct dark fics? If not search keys, love ur works btw🤍

thank youuuu💚

so yeah I don’t read nct fics on ao3 bc the fandom is just not fandoming and the ships mostly repulse me in neocity. not an area I visit often but heres some of my tips for navigating ao3:

as for tags to search these are essential for darker works-

especially DD: DNE, you can type those into the search and the group you’re interested in reading for

or you can type in a kink/sexual preference-

for example, and from there I’d recommend to filter the search like this-

I typically sort by ‘kudos’ and if u go thru the ‘fandom’ options the most popular ones with the most works including those tags will appear BUT its mostly harry potter/anime/marvel etc, so you’re not going to find kpop like that, you will have to type the groups name especially nct bc like I said fandom is not fandoming

😬 hope that helps! lots of great fics out there, be careful in the dead dove tags ofc bc it gets very dark, so make sure you READ. THOSE. TAGS.!!!!!!!!

[tchouameninga]

I read some stonedias. It was enjoyable. I need more. Can you recommend a good primer please to bring me up to date with these two? Can’t find much of them even talking to eachother let alone pictured together but what I do I like!!!

okay so these two don’t interact a lot. no even that is too nice, these two barely interact at all 😭 but when they do it’s sweet, rúben is soft and possessive and john looks like he wants to be dominated by him always. the two holy grail clips as i mentioned before are the rúben podcast vid where he just blabs on about how much he loves john like a weirdo and that vid of rúben slamming his cock straight into his ass

there are also other clips like when they looked at each other on stage and smiled and the bus parade thing where john was drunk on wine or prosecco and was just staring up at rúben. also any clip of them hugging and celebrating……. not normal

all i can recommend you is just go on tiktok and search for stonesdias edits cuz some of them are really good and will catch u in your feelings 😭 and you can also scroll thru my stonesdias tag. there’s a lot of stuff on there that’s basically nothing lol but ive posted and reblogged some gifs videos pictures and all that

i can’t go off for stonesdias lore cuz there’s a lot and it’s all messy with no timeline so that’s the best i can do for you 🥲 but i promised it’s worth it john and rúben are everything they have the perfect dynamics they look fucking good together (and individually) they’re hot and sexy and a bit silly

[ordistemple]

y'all can ignore this it's just meant to be a small post that can be found thru the search function if anyone goes like "i really wonder wtf is up with that guy" :) + subject to frequent changes

HOW I TAG STUFF (for spoilers and blacklisting purposes):

spoilers are usually tagged as "#warframe (quest name or acronym) spoilers". for example, i tag 1999 spoilers as #warframe 1999 spoilers. if a spoiler potentially includes multiple aspects of the story, it'll be simply tagged as #warframe spoilers. to be completely transparent, if you are trying to avoid endgame spoilers, following me might not be the best way of avoiding those. no offense taken if you don't follow back or anything cause i totally get it!

i do not tag content as spoilers if only the characters are figuring in the post, but i try to tag anything that does spoil the actual story as you're meant to learn it kinda. for example, a post about the hex members will not be tagged as spoilers if it doesn't contain spoilers of the backstory itself.

most common acronyms i use for tagging:

TNW (the new war)

COH (chains of harrow)

TSD (the second dream)

WITW (whispers in the walls)

the sacrifice is just the sacrifice lol

duviri is just duviri

1999 is just 1999

etc etc etc

about me (in-game):

Misachips#180

LG1 (actively playing since summer 2022 ish)

hit me up if i can help you with anything in game, it would be a pleasure to! i can pretty much solo anything up to netracells, so it's no big deal for me to invite you on a node to farm specific stuff or parts, and i got plenty of relics to open :) i SUCK at modding though, please don't ask me how the modding order mechanics work cause holy shit bro i still have no idea 😭

about me (irl):

u can call me misa! (pronounced mee-SAH)

gyre main, but ex-equinox main (ily bby)

26 years old from montreal

i speak English and French :)

my gender is none with left beef (whatever pronouns idc)

im aro/ace, but making sex jokes is fucking funny, sue me

i can't choose 1 favorite character but my faves include ticker, ordis, cavalero, alad V, the cavia, and others (more recently Quincy and Amir help)

teshin can suck my dick.

my main struggles in life stem from a couple neurodivergencies (and following mental illnesses due to a lack of support for said neurodivergencies, including complex developmental trauma)

ive struggled with mental health my whole life, and its likely that i will have to deal with it forever. 🤷 warframe is a game that makes it a little less scary to accept this.

it's hard to pinpoint 1 reason out of them all as to why this game is my current favorite (outside its usual hack/slash crowd nuking quick paced in-game mechanics), but the (accurate and non-stigmatising) representation of mental health and healing across widely different people is definitely at the top.

outside warframe, im a massive entomology nerd (this extends to other small critters outside the arthropod group, such as small molluscs and arachnids) and psych nerd (special interest for neurodivergencies and trauma related disorders) but you're probably not gonna find me directly talking about that much on here! it may still explain why some wf concepts and aspects stick to my brain more than others lol

[starkeymeow]

chrysanthemums ₍₂₎

drew starkey x reader zombie apocalypse au

— “you’re the gun in my lips that will blow my brains out.”

content: zombies, weapons, violence, reader lowk opening up more to drew, short little filler but it introduces the journey theyll go on together !

authors note: guys i started tvd n omggg. anyway if u arent part of the tag list, feel free to lmk thru replies, dms, anons, or reblogs !!

previous

the next few days pass in a blur of footsteps, scavenging, and silence. you, drew, and the dog—who you’ve officially named dog because of his lack of collar and your shared inability to come up with something better—keep moving. drew joked that dog might just be a stray wandering the ruins, but it leaves the uncomfortable question hanging between you two: could animals get zombified too? you’ve been leaning toward no, but the thought lingers, a constant what-if.

meanwhile, drew’s been keeping his distance sometimes, falling into a quiet rhythm that matches your pace without crowding you. it’s a small mercy, really, that he knows when to leave you alone.

you’re not trying to be cruel, but attachments feel pointless these days. they don’t lead to anything good. someone always ends up bitten, or worse, you run into people who think survival means stepping on others. either way, someone gets left behind.

so what’s the point in getting close?

you pull your jacket tighter against the chilly air as you enter another building. it’s small, half-collapsed, with broken windows and a roof that looks like it might give out if the wind hits just right. dog pads in first, sniffing the ground like he owns the place. you follow, stepping carefully over shattered glass, while drew lingers near the doorway, his hand brushing against the baseball bat strapped to his pack.

he asks casually, like it doesn’t mean much, “have you been headed anywhere specific?”

you ignore him at first, your focus on a shelf in the corner. a dusty can catches your eye, and you pick it up, squinting at the label. it’s dented, the writing smudged. it’s empty though. you flip it out of your hand onto the table with a clatter, then sigh as you look away.

dog is sniffing something near the far wall, his tail wagging just enough to show he’s entertained. you watch him for a second, then pull your hair back, twisting it into place and clipping it up. crouching down, you start searching through the bottom racks.

when drew doesn’t get an answer, he moves. his footsteps are slow but deliberate, and when he swings around the doorframe into your space, you know he’s not going to drop it.

“you going to tell me?” he asks again, his voice softer but still persistent.

you can feel his eyes on you as you sift through the mess on the floor. papers, broken glass, an empty bottle. nothing useful.

your hand pauses, brushing against the knife strapped to your belt. it’s instinctive now, keeping it close, even when drew’s around. especially when he’s around.

finally, you clear your throat, tucking a loose strand of hair behind your ear before rubbing the back of your neck. the words come slower than you want them to. “i’ve heard rumors. about a place.”

he raises an eyebrow. “a place? what kind of place?”

you push yourself to stand, reaching for his hand to steady yourself as you rise. “clarenora beck,” you say, watching his face for any sign of recognition.

nothing.

“who the hell is that?”

you scoff, dropping his hand and dusting off your palms. “it’s not a person, dipshit. it’s a settlement.” you turn and start moving again, still in talking distance as you scan a half-broken cabinet.

“it’s supposed to be a safe haven for survivors,” you explain, pulling open a drawer and frowning at the empty contents. “not the biggest, but the safest apparently. they say it’s guarded, got crops, animals, people who actually give a damn. a home.”

he follows, a few feet behind, picking through the debris on a nearby counter. “and you’re trying to find it?”

“trying to see if it’s real,” you admit, your voice quieter. “no one really knows where it is, not exactly. part of me thinks it’s just a rumor. but if it’s real . . .” you trail off, shaking your head.

he stops, leaning against the counter, studying you. “where’s it supposed to be?”

you hesitate, your hand hovering over a dusty jar before moving on. “far,” you say at first, hoping he’ll let it go.

he doesn’t.

eventually, you sigh, turning to face him. “vermont.”

he freezes, staring at you like you’ve just sprouted another head. “you’re joking.”

“nope.”

“vermont.” he repeats it slowly, like he’s trying to process. “do you know how far that is?”

you shrug, already turning back to your search into another room. “not like i’ve got anywhere better to be.”

drew follows you through, his footsteps softer now, trying not to trip over dog as he tails you. dog pauses at the edge of a room, sniffing at the base of a crumbling wall, and drew nearly stumbles right into him because he’s too busy watching you instead of where he’s going. you don’t notice—or you pretend not to—and he mutters something under his breath, stepping over dog and catching up with you.

"and you don’t even know exactly where it is?” his voice cuts through the quiet. “what, are you just gonna explore ten thousand miles ‘til you find it?”

you pause, jaw tightening as you pull a can off a shelf and turn it over in your hands, examining it for any dents or signs of damage. he’s waiting for an answer you don’t feel like giving. you toss the can onto the table with a hollow thud and move to crouch by the lower shelves, brushing dust off a few boxes.

he doesn’t stop, leaning casually against a doorframe and fiddling with a blade he pulled from his pocket. “seriously, what else do you even know about this place?”

you sigh. “i’ve had leads,” you say finally, your voice quieter. “a month or two back, i ran into these two people passing through. one of them told me about it—clarenora. said it was worth looking for.”

drew raises a brow, his interest caught now. “and you believed them?”

“not at first,” you admit, straightening up and wiping your hands on your jeans. “i didn’t even think about it again ‘til later. but they told me something . . . something people who are looking for clarenora pass along.”

he’s watching you now, his fidgeting with the blade slowing. “what’d they say?”

you hesitate, knowing how ridiculous it’ll sound once it’s out in the open. “they said . . . ‘strike c-4 in the heart of daisy.’”

there’s a beat of silence, the faint shuffle of dog nosing through debris the only sound. drew stares at you like you’ve just spoken in another language.

“okay,” he says slowly, his tone dripping with skepticism. “what the hell does that even mean?”

“i don’t know,” you reply, voice clipped. “and if you’re gonna complain about it, save it. i told you, i didn’t have anywhere better to be.”

he doesn’t say anything, just keeps watching you with that same unreadable expression. you turn away, already regretting telling him, already bracing for the inevitable whining and questions. but instead, he leans back against the doorframe, slipping the blade back into his pocket.

“‘strike c-4 in the heart of daisy,’ huh?” he murmurs, almost to himself. “we’ll figure it out.”

you glance at him over your shoulder, surprised but unwilling to let it show. instead, you turn your attention back to the shelves, ignoring the way his words linger in the air.

you approach another table in the corner, its surface layered with dust and scattered with useless junk. broken pencils, faded wrappers, and scraps of paper clutter the space, but you push through it all, your hand rattling noisily across the debris.

something catches your eye further down the table. you reach for it, leaning in slightly, when a decayed hand shoots out from a gaping hole in the broken wall behind the table.

you yelp, the sound sharp and instinctive, and it alerts drew who whips around. before you can think, your hand is on the knife at your belt, pulling it free and slamming it down into the rotting hand. the knife crunches through bone, pinning the thing in place as you stumble back a step, your heart racing.

you back up into drew, your hand immediately reaching out to gesture dog closer. he obeys without hesitation, slipping to your side.

drew pulls his baseball bat from where it hangs across his back, gripping it firmly. its head is littered with nails and screws, jagged and sharp, and he seems almost grateful for the added weight. you tighten your hold on your knife, your gaze snapping to the doorway as an empty lumbers in, drawn by the noise.

without hesitating, you dart forward, slashing the blade across its temple. the thing crumples, but another two stumble through from drew’s side.

he purses his lips, muttering a quiet, “here we go,” before he kicks one in the chest, sending it staggering back. with a quick swing, his bat arcs through the air, landing with a sickening crunch in the nearest empty’s skull. blood splatters across his shirt, but he doesn’t stop. he yanks the bat free, twisting it with a grunt, and swings again.

the second stiff collapses under the weight of the strike, but drew’s already glancing over his shoulder to check on you.

your knife is buried deep in the forehead of the first empty, and you wrench it free with a sharp tug. you pause only long enough to glance back at drew, your chest heaving.

“you good?” he asks, but his eyes are already scanning the room, taking in the stiffs on the ground. he whistles sharply, catching dog’s attention, and waves him forward. “let’s go,” he says.

you fall into step behind him without question as he leads you out of the building. your pulse is still pounding in your ears, but you don’t look back. there’s no point.

as you head back to the car, drew moves ahead and opens the backseat door for dog, who hops in with a quick wag of his tail. you circle to the driver’s side, sliding into the seat without a word, and the moment you pull the door shut, drew’s voice cuts through the tense silence.

“how’s your leg?” he asks.

you grit your teeth and glance at him briefly. “‘s fine. doesn’t hurt anymore,” you reply curtly, your tone leaving no room for argument.

drew hesitates, narrowing his eyes slightly as if trying to gauge the truth of your answer, but you don’t give him time to press further. he sighs, shuts the back door, and makes his way around the car.

as he does, you swipe a fingertip across your face, pulling away a streak of drying blood. it’s dark against your skin, and your gaze drops to your leg. shifting your foot slightly, you look at the spot he’s so concerned about. the fabric of your pants clings awkwardly to the wound underneath, stiff with dried blood, but you force your focus forward as drew opens the passenger door and climbs in.

before he can even settle in his seat, you ask, “where’d you learn medical care, anyway?”

he pauses, then grins, leaning back and shutting the door with an exaggerated sigh. “you mean wrapping a booboo so it doesn’t get infected?” he quips, his tone light and teasing.

your jaw clenches, and you sigh sharply through your nose, staring straight ahead as you start the car. the engine hums to life, and for a moment, the tension hangs heavy between you.

drew glances at you out of the corner of his eye, then leans his head back with a chuckle. “jean,” he says after a beat. “she was part of this group i met a while ago. taught me a lot about survival stuff. said medical care was essential in a world like this.”

you flick your eyes toward him briefly, your grip tightening on the steering wheel. “why’s that?”

“‘cause if you don’t have someone who knows the difference between a heatstroke and dehydration,” he says, mimicking jean’s sharp tone, “you’re as good as dead.”

the car falls quiet for a moment after that. your jaw relaxes slightly, but you don’t say anything, just keep your eyes fixed on the road ahead. drew shifts in his seat, and out of the corner of your eye, you catch the faintest trace of a satisfied grin.

“thanks,” you murmur, so soft you’re not even sure he catches it.

drew stiffens in his seat, his hand stilling on the hem of his jacket. he doesn’t say anything at first, but you can feel his gaze burning into the side of your face. when you glance over, he’s squinting at you like he’s trying to figure out if he’s hearing things right.

you bite back a smirk and shake your head, eyes back on the road. “don’t look at me like that.”

“like what?” his tone is teasing, but there’s a genuine curiosity underneath it.

you finally let the smirk slip, a small, fleeting smile that you know he catches. “like you’re confused.”

“i am confused,” he says, his voice light but his stare lingering.

you exhale a laugh and shake your head again. “look, now that you’re in on this whole clarenora thing, we’ve got bigger things to worry about.”

he raises an eyebrow, leaning back in his seat with an exaggerated sigh. “like what?”

you glance at him briefly, your smile faint but persistent. “like solving a riddle. ‘strike c-4 in the heart of daisy.’”

drew furrows his brow, repeating the phrase under his breath. then he turns back to you, his expression all mock incredulity. “so you’re dragging me into this, and now i have to just solve riddles with you?”

you shrug, the smile growing wider as you press the accelerator. “what else do we have to do?”

he groans dramatically, but the faint grin tugging at the corners of his mouth betrays him.

tags: @iissza @lotuslovers @obsessionsarenotfortheweak @yootvi @skyslowalking @hoelesslyt @ariiwritess @beebeerockknot @0-tatiana-0 @beabafreakbee @spiderstyles04 @jeyramarie @loves0phelia @writtenbyhollywood @cl4uus @wumblewee