#you see this shit neb

[garbagechocolate]

MONARCH IS A WOMEN???

NO!! MONARCH IS NB!!

[teatitty]

This is the most insane part of this mini run. Gambit comparing Logan to his ex-lover

And following that up with whatever this "straight out of a gay romance/drama" convo is

[kandisheek]

FIC REC WEEK 26 – ROM-COM

Cat's Out of the Bag by FestiveFerret

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 10,814 Tags: Cat Sitter Tony, Identity Porn, Falling In Love

Summary: This was just supposed to be a once-in-a-while cat sitting gig to get Tony back on his feet. It wasn't supposed to be weeks on end at an amazing apartment, it wasn't supposed to be mysterious locked rooms, it wasn't supposed to be masked men in the middle of the night. And it definitely wasn't supposed to be falling head over heels in love.

Reasons why I love it: This fic is so goddamn sweet, my god. I love Charlie the cat, she's the cutest, and Steve and Tony flirting like crazy while remaining utterly oblivious to the others' feelings is fantastic. Definitely check this one out if you haven't, it's a joy to read!

Acting in Love by BladeoftheNebula

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 6,400 Tags: Actor AU, Mutual Pining, Christmas

Summary: Tony and Steve are co-stars on a new romantic comedy set in the quaint and cosy town of Marvel. Will weeks of filming in the frozen North end in tears, or will real romance bloom onscreen and off?

Reasons why I love it: Yeees, give me that Hallmark movie realness! I don't know what it is about Actor AUs that just makes me so happy, but this one definitely gives me those warm fuzzies. Neb proves once again that she's a fantastic writer, and the way Tony and Steve's relationship develops is amazing. I love this one so much, you absolutely have to read it!

If You Lived Here, You'd Be Home Now by vorkosigan

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 12,953 Tags: Hitchhiking, Canon Divergence, Fluff and Angst

Summary: "Hold that thought," Tony said into his phone. "I apparently just got hit by a hitchhiker." "You hit a hitchhiker?" Happy sounded horrified. "What? Am I talking to a wall? I got hit by a hitchhiker." Having just broken up with Pepper, Tony is driving to California on Christmas Eve. When he picks up a hitchhiker, he hardly expects him to be the former Captain America, defrosted and on the run from SHIELD.

Reasons why I love it: I didn't mean to have two Christmas related fics in this list, but they're both so good, I couldn't help myself. The dialogue in this is so fricking good, it makes the whole thing feel like a movie. The identity porn is great, and oh my god, Tony getting jealous is the cutest thing ever. I love everything about this fic, and you should definitely read it!

Here Comes The Sun by lazywriter7

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 7,947 Tags: Blind Date, Steve Rogers and the 21st Century, Mutual Pining

Summary: For the prompt: “you’re supposed to be on a blind date with someone but you sat down at the wrong table and i haven’t been able to get a word in edgewise to tell you that and it’s been thirty minutes” au “Cap, I think there’s been a-” I, Steve clamped down on his miserable anxiety with characteristic anger, am not going to fuck this up. “My favourite colour is blue.” Steve interjected, because screw charm and suaveness and everything else, he was going to do this on the power of sheer determination.

Reasons why I love it: If I were a teacher, I would give this fic full marks for everything. Dialogue, pacing, plot, characterization – it's all perfect. A lot of times when it comes to misunderstandings you have to suspend a lot of disbelief, but here it feels so natural that I completely bought it. This fic is amazing, and if you haven't already, I hope you give it a shot!

Growth Spurt by FestiveFerret

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 2,785 Tags: Post-High School, Steve's Beard, Flirting

Summary: Tony: Remember that guy I had the hots for in high school that I was telling you about? Rhodey: The Steve guy? Yeah. Tony: He's here. Rhodey: Oh shit. Tony: He grew a beard. Rhodey: … Rhodey: You're fucked. Tony: IKR.

Reasons why I love it: I could totally see this happen in real life. Someone needs to turn this into a movie, because it's absolutely perfect for it. And as a major member of the Steve's-Beard-Appreciation-Club, I love that Tony is on our team. This fic is wonderful, and you should definitely read it!

[capn-atlas]

HI

it's come to my attention, that, besides my first post on this blog, I haven't actually introduced myself. So here we are.

(EDIT Y'ALL WHO ARE SEEING THIS AGAIN AND ARE LIKE "hey whys ur name different" IM GOING THROUGH A NAME CRISIS AND IDFK WHAT MY NAME IS SO CALL ME FEE OR KINNY OR KIN OR WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU WANT I DONT CARE)

Hi! My name is Fee/Kinny/Kin/Finny/Fisk. (see above)

My pronouns are: any neopronouns/nounself pronouns. Oh, and I'm also fine with they/them. My fav neos include, but are not limited to:

Deer/deer/deers/deerself

Ne/nym/nis/nymself

Neb/neb/nebs/nebself

Fey/feym/feyr/feyrself

Cae/caer/caers/caerself

Rat/rat/rats/ratself

Kie/kir/kirs/kirself

I am agender, asexual, and aromantic. All the As!! I also identify as genderqueer.

I'm a deer/wolf therian and also a cat therian. I'm REALLY bad at quads even though I love doing them, and some of my friends are trying to teach me to get better at them.

!!!!!!I AM A MINOR!!!!!!

I am also an artist, and I'll be posting mostly art, shitposts, therian stuff, and queer shit.

My favourites are:

Food: Pizza w/ pineapples & mushrooms (don't knock it till you've tried it)

Songs: Requiem from Dear Evan Hansen, Defying Gravity from Wicked, Fat Funny Friend by Maddie Zahm and People Watching by Conan Gray

Thing to draw: People!

Novels: Solitaire & the City Spies series

Graphic novel: The Deep Dark by Molly Knox Ostertag

DNI: queerphobes (e.g. homophobes, transphobes, biphobes, etc., etc.,) TERFS, anti-therians/anti-alterhumans, any blogs NSFW, Zo0phil3s

I'm Canadian!

I love to write, read, draw & act. I'll also be posting some poem I write on this blog

THANK YOU FOR READING!!! HAVE A GOOD DAY/NIGHT!! <3 <3

[midnightmayhem13]

Hey May- Mayhem? Midnight? Do you have a preference? Let me know I wanna respect whichever you go by. 🩵 But either way I’ve been enjoying your headcanons so much!! And if you’re taking prompts, if not you can ignore this, I’d love to read some domestic grocery trips with all of the women or a fic with one you’d like to write. I think Carol and Nebula would be an interesting experience to take them with you lmao honestly all of them would be but something abt them makes me think they’d be all grumpy until they pass, aka stop at, the toys section and grab one

On the counter was a cardboard box

love this❕ and call me whatever one you feel like!! thank youuu

carol danvers

danvers hasn't been to a store in a while, and it definitely changed since the last time she when grocery shopping. why is everything so expensive? but she'd be willing to go but she wouldn't be so excited. she didn't like going in the 60's she probably wouldn't like it now. but if she's with you it's okay. she'll b a whiney baby and just like "babeeee when are we going home?". when you can't reach something she'll reach over you or literally lift you to it. then she'll be like "here you go baby". she'll be riding the cart around too, like a child on the loose. but if you buy her twinkies everything is okay.

sharon carter

sharon would actually be helpful omg. she'd hold you're hand the whole time and even make a list. if you ask for her opinion she'll state why one is better. and if you disagree she'll be like sweet and get that one for you. home girl is eyeing the whiskey the whole time judging the crappy ones they have on display, then giving you a full rundown of why to never get that one. she'd definitely offer to pay for you and you gotta fight her with to just not. it's not that it's not nice to have someone pay for you but you got money.

darcy lewis

dr would be so fun to shop with. she'd jam out to the playlist theyre playing over the speakers. she'd take random pictures of you too. and she deff would jump on your back and make you carry her around the store. you two get into arguments about cereal and shes a firm cheerios hater. she's also an almond milk girlie. and as if it were a ritual you two cheek the sweets section. if she seems smt over priced she'll be like "we can literally make that at home babe". then if you guys go past the tots section you definitely get a kick out of them. you guys spend more time in the toys section then the adult section. she also has a very strong opinion on specific pads. darcy definitely gives you puppy eyes if she sees a fuzzy blanket you two could add to your collection.

nebula

nebs is completely lost😭 she's never been to anything that wasn't some sort of space market. and you have to repeatedly tell her she can't just open a bag of snacks or punch a mannequin because they were "provoking her". she'd also be holding on to you super duper tight. to assert dominance over you of course. and she'll glare daggers if anyone looks at you. and if any workers offer assistance she'll be a little mean. you gotta love your blue meanie tho. when she passes by the toy or baby section. how could a thing be so adorable. she's never say anything tho. and she'll only calm down if you buy her a plushie. she'll even smile if you buy her one. if anyone even looks at her blueness you literally jump them.

maria hill

maria's gotta get shit done. so she doesn't really like spending time doing or looking at useless things. so when you drag her to the store she's not very happy. but you try you're best to cheer her up, her pout is so cute tho. you say it'll be a fun couple bonding experience, so she feels bad acting so annoying. she'd definitely geek out in the pen aisle. but if you're stuck between to cereals shes no help. she just says "i don't know love, you chose" she'll watch you in adoration as you pick out stuff and smile when you see something cute. she'll offer to hold the basket or shopping cart. she also loves dark chocolate and always checks out the stores coffee selection.

kate bishop

katie is like a child in the store. she kinda stays glued to you if they're too many people around but if it's rather empty she'll be touching everything. you two spend a while discussing in the snack lane. she also likes to sit in the shopping cart when you've been theyre "way too long". she'll be trying to convince you to by little things like you wouldn't do anything for her. kate also grabs little toys kids have left around after their mom said no. and if she accidentally pokes a toy and the package breaks she'll make her cute little face nd put it back silently.

a/n sorry if maria's and kate's are a little sloppy, i usually run outta ideas when i get to them but gotta do them justice❕❕

[junespriince]

Rating the inside jokes and things we've said out of context I have with Nebby ( @nebulous-shatin )

"so, do you agree." -100/10 BECAUSE MY LOYALTY IS TAKEN FOR GRANTED AND I FALL FOR IT EVERY SINGLE TIME I HATE IT RHDHDHDB NEBBY OS WRONG!

Bargain bin boy💕 8/10, I love him and his atrocious fits

Praise oia, 100/10, oia is life, oia is love.

Praise the Eldridge god upon Nebby's wardrobe, 10/10 bless neb sib for that duck too since it neb sib's duck lol will ask neb sib once there is I can hold it once, just once

Oh it grandpa! 4/10 BECAUSE I DON'T SEE GRAMPA AS OFTEN IT'S A CRIME!!!!

Thoughts? And prayers. 1/10, Nebby made me better at giving feedback BUT AT WHAT COST (tho 'FEEDBACK!? 😭" meme 10/10)

You slug! ∞/10 I was already obsessed with slugs and neb unlocked my true potential, I wouldn't be Sluggy wouldn't Nebby, most importantly timeline stuff

Vc? 8/10, I mean I get she too lazy to type shit because same and I love Nebby voice, it's very soothing for me!

Knee caps, now. 10/10 Nebby lost that one knee cap privileges.

Huggles, 9/10, Nebby just A HATER EXCUSE THIS IS PEAK WORD SMASHING.

Ew, German. -5/10, that's me being a hater but learning German is hard okay, I barely speak English well tf

*us shit talking so badly people ask are we actually fighting* 10/10, we just get bored, and being little shits it funny, if we finally have that real fight please let it be over something stupid it be so funny.

I want to strangle you 3/10, I told you I suck at platforms and you choose a platform puzzle game, that's on you lol

Horny jail 2/10, LISTEN NOT MY FAULT OKAY I LOVE 2D PEOPLE IDK WHAT TO TELL YOU

Found through birdflash, was writing about drawing birdflash, knew I love birdflash, sends her oc Dilly "Hi. Im nervous as it is." 200/10, that never be so funny to me and it branded on my brain, I ain't even written out the entire message but it up here.

Dragging me everywhere like a doll, 6/10 but I don't mind I follow Nebby to the end of the earth because why not.

Where was we? 1/10, our brain mush, we so forgetful

Peepaw and knight doomed old man yoai divorce arc, 8/10, was a funny moment playing with Nebby

I liked bullying him 10/10 Nebby gets me and my love for Cove

"I'll miss you're cute voice" 1/10 SHUT THE FUCK UP OH MY GOD I HATE UUUUUU NOBODY LOOK AT ME

Starlight, 8/10 nickname, I gotta bring it back the og nickname

Nebby, 9,000/10, just,,, don't take a drink every time I say Nebby you will die for alcohol poisoning

German goddess, 7/10, just when she use our shared brain cells to help me it is praise thee, but never used outside of joking.

Flirt 10/10 def Wally's favorite.

Ally, 9/10, shorting of my name! I adore!!

Lovebug 10/10, I is her bug, I bug her, and she loves me

Want to read that I got so far? 10/10, any fans for Nebby's work starve but I'm fed every single time, bestie privileges, sucks to sucks

Dream Nebby, 1/10 how dare you eat onions on pizza, have a TV in ya bathroom, and saying you don't like your kitty children get out of here evil Nebby,,, YebbN lol

Last one,

The first abomination child, 6/10 he haunts me. Truly worthy of being called a mistake.

I have so much more I'm realizing but I mean that's what you get for talking to someone every single day for 5yrs lol, god five years and it feels like a lifetime I've known ya nebs jeez

[lonewolflupe]

aLoF ch9 | Troubling Tension

Yesss here's another Lone Wolf Squad chapter for you! There's action, fun, shenanigans, some innocent bantering and - tension. Let's see how that affects the squad.. I hope you enjoy this chapter (:

Summary: words spoken - and unspoken - cause a tension that affects the squad during their mission Rating: Teen and up Tags: canon-typical violence, swearing (usage of slang; kriff/kriffing = fuck/fucking, kark = shit), miscommunication Words: 9.434k Characters: Lupe (OC), Trooper Ragnar (OC), Trooper Claw (OC), Trooper Fang (OC), Trooper Twist (OC), Mace Windu, CC-1010 Commander Fox, Commander Thorn, Gra Neb (OC), unidentified Commerce Guild members, ARC-5555 Fives (cameo) aLoF masterlist | AO3 ch8 < | ↓ | > ch10

20 BBY, Coruscant | Jedi Temple, High Council Chamber

(Within a few rotations after the events of chapter 8)

“A civvie pick-up? In neutral territories?”

Lupe's words weren't intended to undermine the Jedi Council; she was merely surprised by the mission's objective. Her arms already crossed, she raised a brow. Master Windu shot her an unamused smile. “And we trust you to complete this mission delicately,” he added to the briefing.

“Understood. But I can tell you, a squad of clones accompanied by a Jedi will stand out,” she replied, a smirk on her face as she found amusement in the necessity to state the obvious. The seasoned Jedi Master sighed before picking up the datapad at his side. “Then it's of the highest importance to make yourselves not stand out. We're sure you'll think of a solution,” he concluded, before handing her the device with the mission’s details.

Lupe nodded towards Master Windu as she accepted the datapad, before positioning herself in the middle of the room again. “Thank you, Masters,” she said, whilst respectfully bowing before them. When dismissed, she turned around and walked out of the Chamber, finding her way towards the GAR barracks. Well, this was going to get interesting.

---

Coruscant | GAR Barracks

“A civvie pick-up? In neutral territories?” Fang shot at her after she finished summarising her briefing in front of the squad. Lupe snorted in response; those had been her exact same words. “Yeah, and we're supposed to handle this delicately; since it's a neutral planet, no one can find out the Republic is interfering,” she explained, adding some heaviness to her words, hoping they would pick up on the importance of it.

“And sending a Jedi with a clone squad is supposed to be discreet?” Claw added with a raised brow. Lupe smiled and shook her head; she loved how these clones were on the same page as her. “Yeah, they trust me to be creative enough to figure something out.”

Ragnar had been standing at the back of the squad during Lupe's recap, silently taking in both her words and those of his brothers as he gently stroked the little beard on his chin. He looked up at Lupe's last remark, and finally moved himself forward to claim her attention. “And have you figured something out?” he asked her, his usual seriousness to his voice.

Her lips slid into a confident smirk when she faced the sergeant. “My dear Sergeant, of course I have. Haven't we been on enough missions together by now for you to trust me with this?” She gestured to them to follow her when she walked away. “Now follow me; we're going shopping.”

---

Coruscant | Republic Centre for Military Operations

“And you have direct orders?” Commander Fox, standing stiff as a statue, was facing her through his visor from the other side of the transparisteel window that separated them. His arms crossed in front of his chest, he seemed unimpressed by her request.

“Do indirect orders work for you?” Lupe asked, a sheepish grin on her face. Maker, this guy is unyielding. She thought it had been his attitude towards her when she was brought in drunk, after evoking a fist fight among the GAR’s troops; but apparently, he was always like this. “C’mon, we'll return the gear once we've finished the mission. I'll bring you a caf too,” she tried charming him, accompanied by an innocent smile.

Fox leaned forward, his helmet just centimetres away from the window. His voice was low and almost threatening when he spoke. “Is that bribery?” Lupe’s eyes widened in shock and she showed her hands in a gesture of innocence. “What? No, I- Kriff, I just thought you could use some,” she replied, starting to get slightly annoyed.

She thought he might budge by now, but the only thing that ensued was an intimidating silence. Lupe sighed at last, before moving closer to the window. Her voice was low and soft, making sure these words were between her and Fox only. She subtly gestured towards her squad, located at the back of the room as they patiently awaited their General's negotiating.

“Look, it's a delicate mission and our orders are that they can't stand out as clones, but I'm NOT dragging them into any mission without them wearing some proper armour. I need them to be safe.”

Another moment of silence. She couldn't see the Commander's expression through his visor, and she was totally lost on whatever went on in his head. Fox was definitely a hard one to read. It seemed like he was chronically done with everything and everyone, and that vibe made it hard for her to feel any other emotions. Maybe she would bring him that caf after all.

She could hear the deep sigh through his built-in voice regulator, before his posture relaxed - but only slightly. There was only so much room for Commander Fox to relax. “Alright, but I'm gonna have to report this,” he said at last, slowly shaking his head. “Fine by me,” Lupe bit back in a whisper, as the Commander turned around to fetch them a chaperone from the guard station.

The red laser barrier got disabled, granting them entrance into the facility. Fox was followed by another Coruscant Guard, meeting Lupe at the entrance. “Thorn will accompany you. Don't make me regret this,” Fox sighed, before heading back into the guard post. Lupe shot him a quick ‘yessir'; Fox strongly reminded her of Wolffe, but it seemed this Commander was even more tired and done than the Wolfpack's leader.

After nodding a quick greeting towards Thorn, Lupe started following him, her squad quickly following them behind. When they gained some comfortable distance from the guard post, Lupe cleared her throat. “Is, er- is he always like that?” she asked cautiously, her curiosity taking the better of her.

Thorn chuckled softly. “Commander Fox? Ah, he's just tired. We get to see a lot of kark on a daily basis. And the paperwork pushes you over the edge sometimes.” Lupe, walking at his side by now, shot him a wry smile. “Sorry for adding to your pile,” she said softly, starting to feel slightly bad about it. Thorn granted her a quick nod before replying: “Don't worry sir, we're used to it.”

After rounding a few corners, they found themselves in front of a solid door. Thorn entered a security code on the appurtenant control panel, and the door slid open. The room behind it was filled to the brim with confiscated and abandoned goods. “Alright, there we are. Remember, you can't take any GAR equipment; it's against military protocol. But I'm sure we have something useful in that corner,” Thorn elaborated, whilst pointing towards a spot less blinding from white plastoid armour pieces.

Lupe and the boys slowly walked into the room, in awe of everything they laid their eyes on. This was like walking into a candy store. Fang reached for a BT X-42 heavy flamethrower, laying on a rack at eye level, but Claw whacked his brother's hands away before he could touch it, shooting a stern look at his twin. Thorn followed them from a little distance, an amused smile below his helmet.

When they reached the spot, Lupe started shuffling through the gear. It clearly wasn't anything the GAR was using, so she wondered what it was doing at the military facility. But she wasn't going to complain; this was perfectly usable to execute her plan. After she approved the goods, she turned towards her squad, a content look on her face. “Dig in, boys,” she said, before they started rummaging through the gear.

It didn't take them too long to compile their outfits, pleased by what they encountered. Armoured pieces were ornate with leathery parts and wrapped in rags. Some colours adorned their new looks, something different from all the white and flint grey they were used to. Lupe had joined them in disguising herself; she couldn't look like a Jedi as much as the boys couldn't look like clones.

“Well, at least you achieved the mercenary look,” Thorn remarked with an amused chuckle, as soon as they had finished dressing themselves. “I'm nailing this look,” Fang gasped, admiring his new outfit. Ragnar looked at him, his lips pressed into a serious, thin line. “Well, don't get used to it,” he said at last, before putting on a customised bounty hunter helmet.

When they exited the hallway and walked past the guard post, Fox shot them a disapproving look from under his helmet, before shaking his head. “Don't forget to put that away,” he shot at Lupe, pointing towards the lightsaber's hilt, still dangling from her belt. “Will do. Thanks for your compliance, Commander,” she said with a grin, before turning towards Thorn and giving him a quick, thankful nod. She and her squad left the facility.

As soon as the door slid shut behind them, Thorn started laughing, placing a comforting hand on Fox’s shoulder. “She was a Padawan with the 104th? She must have been a pain in Wolffe's ass,” he snickered. Fox sighed and took off his helmet, stroking his hand through his greying hair. “She's changed since the start of the war; grown too feral, if you'd ask me. Rex’s ARC trooper has a bad influence on her,” he replied, only increasing Thorn's amusement. “Well, you can't make me believe this was all Fives’ doing,” he chuckled, before walking off to pour them a fresh mug of caf.

---

Coruscant | GAR Barracks' Hangar

The Lone Wolves’ new looks granted them some glances, filled with mixed feelings. Lupe was quite amused by it, as she felt the staring clones’ reactions shift between awe, bewilderment and disapproval. She didn't care about it, as long as they would successfully complete this mission - and as long as the temporary outfits’ armour would keep her troops safe.

When they reached their shuttle, the boys made it to their usual spots at once; Claw in the pilot seat with Fang at his side, Twist at the ship's control panel and Ragnar and Lupe just behind them, to overlook the whole operation. “Alright, boys, let’s go. Claw, get this ship in the air. Fang, set out coordinates to the Kessel System. Twist, we need some codes scrambled,” Lupe shot at them, before sharing a look with her sergeant. As Claw piloted the ship out of the hangar, Lupe's gaze returned to their view, and she added in a mutter: “We're heading for uncharted territories.”

---

Outer Rim | Kessel System | Space

Technically, the Kessel System in the Outer Rim was far from uncharted. It contained the troublous planets of Kessel and Oba Diah, both very well known to the Republic - mostly for alarming reasons. But since both planets remained neutral during the war, the Republic wasn't particularly welcome to check in on their situations.

Their current mission led them to Kepler, located within the same system. Kepler was an ecumenopolis; like Coruscant, although not comparable in size, the planet's complete surface was covered in one, big city. With slightly less interference from Kessel’s spice mining and Oba Diah’s Pyke Syndicate, it was the perfect spot for shifty businesses and shady deal making. That didn't make the planet less dangerous than the much bigger ones accompanying it in this system.

When the shuttle reverted into realspace and Claw started piloting it towards Kepler’s spaceport nearest to their objective, Lupe sat down at the back of the ship, patiently awaiting their arrival. Her mind wandered off as she recalled memories from the last few rotations, when she had been on Naboo with Fives. She had dragged him along in hopes she could ease his mind after losing Echo, but so much more had happened during those rotations. Her lips slipped into a smile when she thought about their moments at the lake, how their relationship had changed since then, how their bond had strengthened.

But her smile disappeared when her worries took over. She wasn’t supposed to be in such a relationship, especially not with a clone, a soldier of the Republic. But she couldn’t deny those feelings; she couldn’t push them aside. They made her feel more alive, they made her senses sharper, they made her feel more connected to the Force. But it also made place for new feelings, such as concern over Fives’ well-being and even dread, as she knew so many clones did not return from the battlefield.

When she noticed Ragnar walking over towards her, she tried to swallow those feelings of anguish away; there was no need to bother him with them. He sat down opposite her; it reminded her of their moment during their first mission together, where she had let down her emotional walls. She had to keep them up, but it was becoming harder now that she had started to bond with her sergeant. They had gotten to know each other better, and that meant he was getting better at reading her.

“You’re upset. Did something happen when you were away? Did he- Did he hurt you?” Ragnar asked her in a low, quiet voice, making sure the boys wouldn’t pick up on the conversation. “No, he didn’t,” she replied immediately, offering him a comforting smile to help him ease his mind, before continuing: “I’m just worrying about him.” Ragnar’s eyes darted around, not meeting hers, as he searched for words. Lupe was aware of Ragnar’s mistrust in Fives, and thus trying to shift the subject away from the ARC trooper, she added: “I worry about all you guys.” Ragnar’s gaze shot to hers instantly, his eyes steady now.

His eyes were always so serious, but also full of concern, especially when they were sharing a private conversation. And he always seemed to find the time and space to check in on her, when the boys were occupied with something else. He seemed to care for her so much. Yes, of course she deeply cared for the clones in her squad as well, and with every mission, their bond strengthened. But it almost seemed like Ragnar had granted her his everlasting loyalty from the very first moment they had met.

“You’re better at hiding that,” he softly replied to her remark about worrying over them. Lupe couldn’t help but chuckle as she leaned forward in her seat, getting closer to Ragnar. “I know you and I share a lot, but there are still things I keep to myself,” she told him, an amused tone to her voice and a flicker in her eyes. But his eyes were as serious as ever. “Some thoughts and feelings transcend shared words,” he stated cryptically.

She wasn’t sure what he meant with that, but she just assumed it had to do with her current taste in men. “Ragnar, look, I know you’re not very fond of Fives, but he’s- he’s good to me. He cares about me,” she said cautiously. She didn’t feel the need to deny her relationship with Fives anymore; not towards her squad. They knew her so well by now; they wouldn’t believe her if she denied it, anyway.

Although they still showed concern, Ragnar’s eyes softened at her words. She started to reach for him with her hand, but simultaneously, he slid back into his seat, leaning backwards and thus unintentionally avoiding her touch. A shiver ran through him when he realised it, but it was too late; Lupe had withdrawn her hand by now, afraid she had scared him off. She turned into herself again, putting her arms around her stomach. Ragnar knew she always did this when she felt the need to protect herself, even if she didn’t realise it herself. He knew their moment was gone, and after taking a deep breath, he got to his feet to return to the boys in the cockpit. “I’m just- I’m just not sure about his intentions. Be careful around him,” he said at last, before walking off.

He cursed himself. Those weren’t the words he wanted to tell her; he had wanted to tell her the squad cared about her too - he cared about her. But the only thing he could muster, was a warning for some outsider clone he didn’t trust, whose intentions were unclear to him, afraid he would hurt her over time. Because Ragnar himself cared so much.

---

Outer Rim | Kessel System | Kepler

Lupe was snapped from her thoughts when the shuttle hit the surface. She scolded herself for letting this get to her the way it did, when she clearly needed to focus on the mission ahead. With a sigh, she pulled herself together, adjusting her outfit when she got to her feet. The boys were already wearing their helmets. She expected Ragnar to check in on her a last time before they headed out, but he didn’t; not this time. Get your kark together, she thought as she put on her own helmet before getting off the shuttle.

It felt strange; she didn’t like it. She was used to wearing as little as possible, to move around freely and unbothered. As a Padawan, she had quickly gotten rid of her Jedi cloak, and as the war had started and progressed, she only wore minimum armour. But never a helmet. Instantly, she had trouble with reading her surroundings, with using her senses. It felt like the helmet blocked them. Her skin couldn’t feel the air, her mouth wasn’t able to taste the atmosphere and her eyes didn’t have a clear vision. Or wasn’t it the helmet?

“Kriff,” she sighed out loud, her voice subdued within the helmet. Immediately, a static sound erupted, before she heard Fang’s voice: “Problem, sir?” Kark. She had forgotten they had aligned the built-in comm devices of their helmets, so they could communicate with each other at all times, as long as they were wearing them. The clones were used to this, of course, but Lupe definitely wasn’t. At least due to the helmet, they couldn’t see her blushing right now.

“I, er- I’m not really used to wearing this much.. Equipment,” she regained herself, and she wasn’t lying. She heard several of them chuckling over the comm device, feeling a heavy hand from Claw on her shoulder. Before any of them could shoot her some witty remark, she added herself: “Yeah yeah, I know, you know.” She briefly glanced over towards Twist, who replied to her with a quick shrug.

They found their way through Kepler’s streets on foot, taking in their surroundings as they advanced towards their objective’s location. It looked nothing like Coruscant; at least not like the higher levels. Here in the Outer Rim, everything seemed seedy. At least they didn’t stand out with their adjusted outfits.

“Alright, remember,” Lupe started to remind the squad over their built-in comm devices, “We have the coordinates to the objective’s residence, but he’s probably being watched by the Seppies - or the Commerce Guild - or the Pykes - or anyone else, for what I care. We have to do some recon ourselves, and we have to find an opportunity to meet up with him - without any involvement from any of those parties.” Some affirmative sounds from the boys, before Ragnar’s voice spoke out.

“Are we sure about this objective’s intentions? Does he really want this Republic pick-up?” Lupe was used to Ragnar’s seriousness, and she knew he always held the squad’s best interests at heart; this time he meant it no differently. But because of their earlier conversation, she couldn’t help but take his words the wrong way. “Are we ever sure about anyone’s intentions,” Lupe muttered, slightly irritated, forgetting they could all hear her.

None of the clones replied, but because of the uncomfortable silence, she felt something was off. And then she realised. KRIFF. She was never going to wear a helmet again after this mission. “I don’t know, I only have the intel the Council provided us. We’ll have to see and do what we’re good at; improvise.” Exactly what she was doing right now to divert the attention from her unsubtle remark. She heard some more sounds of affirmation, but none were as clear and confident as before.

The remainder of their walk was rather uncomfortable. None of them spoke another word, as it was clear there was some tension surrounding them. Lupe sighed in relief - but not too loud - when Twist informed them they were getting close to the objective. Time to skip into her General-mode again. “Gotta wait until dark, then we’ll find ourselves a spot on one of the nearby roofs,” she said somewhat cautiously, afraid she would share too much of her thoughts with them again. “We’ll draw too much attention as a group if we keep lingering around together, so I propose we scatter and meet back here at sunset.” It was a good strategy considering their situation, but being alone after her screw up was an additional benefit to this plan.

Fang was the first one to speak up. “Can’t we sit in a bar and get ourselves some drinks while we wait?” he suggested, partly because he thought some booze would lift the tension between them. Which was a considerate thought of him, but he didn’t think his plan through. Claw crossed his arms and tilted his helmeted head sideways as he addressed his brother. “You want to drink from a kriffing straw? We’re not supposed to take our helmets off,” he shot at his twin, resulting in a huff from Fang. “That goes for food as well?” he retried, resulting in a whack on his helmet this time, as Claw shot out: “How are you gonna eat with your helmet on?”

Normally, Lupe would be amused by the twins’ bickering, but she couldn’t get herself to even smile this time. “Remember, this place at sunset,” she reminded them in all seriousness, before she intended to walk off. But again, it was Fang’s voice that stopped her from doing so. “How are we going to remember this place as our rendezvous point? All these streets and intersections look the same to me,” he shot out worriedly. Lupe gave their surroundings a quick look, and spotted a signboard on one of the nearby buildings. The board depicted a very underdressed Twi’lek female, her scanty underwear revealing much of her orange skin and lush curves. Perfect. Lupe pointed towards the signboard, and said flatly: “I’m sure you’ll remember her. See you at sunset. Keep your emergency channels open.” With those words, she turned around and walked away.

Fang received another whack on his helmet as his gaze wandered over the signboard for a bit too long, before Claw dragged him away from the place, to find some distraction until sunset. Twist was ready to walk into a different direction, but remained at the spot when he noticed Ragnar was frozen to the ground. The sergeant just stood there, looking at their general as she disappeared into the distance. “S-Sarge, are you a-alright?” Twist cautiously asked, after changing to a more private comm channel.

Ragnar snapped out of his thoughts and turned towards Twist. He wanted to say he was, but when he looked at his brother, he let out a deep sigh. He couldn’t see Twist’s face, but he could feel his concern. “I, er- might have said something to the General that- that I shouldn’t have said,” he finally admitted, double checking that he was on a private comm channel with Twist. “A-about the objective?” Twist inquired, resulting in Ragnar shaking his head immediately. “No, earlier. I, er- we had a conversation concerning Fives,” he let out with another sigh.

Twist put his hand on the sergeant’s shoulder, before easing his mind: “S-Sarge, just talk to her. S-she’ll come around. You know s-she’s very understanding.” Ragnar sighed again, as he started scratching the narrow bit of bare skin between his helmet and his blacks, which he was still wearing below his temporary outfit. “Yeah, guess you’re right, as always,” he said at last, letting go of some of his tension. A modest smile below his helmet. “I’ll just.. I’ll wait until tonight. Need some time to figure out what to say. Find the right words this time,” he said slowly, not sure yet how he could get a moment with her alone. Twist nodded, before reassuring: “S-she’ll understand.”

---

Sunset. It was almost time for their rendezvous, and although Lupe was looking forward to continue the mission without any more altercations, she was reluctant about getting back to their rendezvous point. As she rounded the last corner, she froze at the spot when she noticed Ragnar there, and Ragnar only. She didn’t want to be childish about it, but she couldn’t handle this conversation right now; not when the mission’s success was at stake. So without looking, she stepped backwards, back into the alley she came from, hoping he hadn't spotted her yet.

Almost immediately, she bumped into someone, and her heart dropped. The last thing she could use right now, was getting into a fight with some spice addict, a swindler, or even worse, a Pyke envoy. Her mind was racing, already searching for possible solutions to get the least bad outcome to this situation, when she turned around and noticed a familiar outfit. “Twist,” she sighed out of relief, briefly hanging her head as she caught her breath, letting go of some of the tension.

Twist gently tapped her on the helmet to get her attention, and she looked up at him again. “T-turn to comm ch-channel 2407.8,” he said as quickly as he possibly could. She shot into focus immediately, concern washing over her, afraid something had happened. She turned to the channel, nodding towards Twist when she was in. “You don’t s-seem yourself, s-sir,” Twist said carefully, not wanting to push her in any way, but trying to help her out nonetheless. Lupe was lost for words for a moment; she wasn’t expecting Twist to check in on her.

“Yeah, well.. This last rotation has been.. Interesting,” she managed, not sure if she should bring any of it up. She looked away, but she knew Twist’s eyes were prying at her through his visor. “Stop it,” she whispered, more to herself than to Twist, but she noticed Twist turning his gaze away immediately, as he started to shift on his feet and got all nervous again. Now she had done it; now she had managed to get half her squad into uncomfortable positions. “No no no, Twist, I-,” she started, but she interrupted herself as she was struggling to get her helmet off.

Twist tried to stop her, but she wouldn’t let him. She wasn’t a clone, so there would be no consequences if she took it off. “Kriff this,” she said as soon as she had managed, tossing the helmet to the ground. “I’m never gonna wear a helmet again after this mission.” Her hair was a cluttered mess, as it had gotten all tangled up under her helmet. Irritated, she tried wiping it out of her face before she turned to Twist again. “Twist, I’m sorry, I meant that to myself. Today’s been-”

She interrupted herself again, as tufts of hair in front of her face were still hindering her, pricking her eyes and tickling her skin. She groaned and closed her eyes, letting her head tilt backwards in frustration. A very gentle touch to her face brought her back to reality, and when she opened her eyes, she noticed Twist was tenderly fixing the strands of hair, getting them out of her face. Dearest Twist, she thought, whilst an affectionate smile appeared on her face.

She was finally able to balance her emotions again. “Thank you, Twist,” she whispered, and he nodded at her before picking up her helmet and handing it back to her. She accepted it and put it on again, allowing them to continue the conversation over the private comm channel. “As I was saying. I’ve been a shu'shuk* today and I think I’ve pushed Ragnar away. And now I’m afraid my actions might affect the mission,” she finally poured her heart out, before adding with a whisper: “And might affect the squad.”

*shu’shuk = disaster, big screw-up, etc.

Twist smiled below his helmet, even though she couldn't see it. “S-sir, we're not t-that easily p-pushed away. And you're p-part of the s-squad now; you're p-part of us.” He paused for a moment, before continuing: “T-talk to Ragnar, he'll u-understand.” She swallowed away the emotions that were trying to erupt at his words, which were exactly what she needed to hear. For a brief moment, she placed her hand on the side of Twist's helmet. “Thank you. And I will,” she said to him, now extremely thankful that she had bumped into him after all.

But the sun was setting, and they had to continue their mission. Lupe shot a quick look around the corner, and noticed Claw and Fang had joined up with Ragnar by now. “Seems we're late to the party,” she joked to Twist, and he was just glad to hear a tone of amusement in her voice again, after today's tensions.

“Heh, got lost, sir?” Fang shot at them when they finally reached the rendezvous point. Ragnar shot him a stern look, although it was lost under his helmet. After all the tensions, he just couldn't understand why Fang would say things like this, with the probability of making things even worse. Was he ever serious about anything? He groaned softly.

But Lupe's spirits seemed to have been lifted. “Luckily Twist found me and put me back on the right track,” she said casually, before turning towards Twist and granting him a quick, subtle nod. Ragnar wondered what that meant, but kept his mouth shut. He had said enough this last rotation to sour the mood.

“Alright, I did some recon and found the perfect spot,” Lupe continued, gesturing to them to follow her. “There's an abandoned building nearby; we can use the roof without potential residents getting suspicious.” As soon as they reached the building, she added: “Go make yourselves comfortable, I have to take care of one last thing first.”

As a few ‘yessirs’ echoed through their helmets, Ragnar watched the General walk off again. He wondered if this was his cue, if he should follow her to talk things out, but when he made the slightest indication he was going to follow her, Twist put a hand on his arm to stop him. “Wait,” he said quietly, looking at his sergeant through his visor, before following behind Claw and Fang to ascend the roof. Ragnar sighed, but followed Twist's advice anyway. His brother seemed to always be right, after all.

It didn't take long for Lupe to join them on the rooftop, and when she did, she was carrying food and drinks. “I come bearing gifts,” she said with an amused tone to her voice. She put everything down and Fang came jolting forward immediately, ready to still his hunger. Claw followed behind a bit more restrained. “We, er- thought it was gonna be another meal of ration bars,” he said carefully, as the scent of the food slowly made it inside his helmet and his mouth started to water.

Lupe chuckled, as she sat down and removed her helmet. Her hair was less of a mess than before. “Well, we don't know how long we'll be stuck here, so gotta keep things fun,” she said with a smile. She made sure the boys helped themselves to some food and drinks before taking any herself.

When the food was gone and their bellies were satisfied, the darkness had gathered around them. The mood had been good, and even as Lupe would have liked to continue their comradery, they had a mission to complete. “Alright boys, time to get on with the mission. Since we'll be here for a while, let's take shifts to observe the objective’s residence.” They nodded to her in agreement.

“Alright, I'll take the first shift, along with Tw-” Lupe interrupted herself when she noticed Twist shaking his head vigorously, before he subtly nodded into Ragnar's direction. Ah, right. “Ragnar, you're with me,” she said at last. “The three of you, get some rest.” Claw and Fang nodded, before finding a place to lay down and get some sleep. As Ragnar got up and found his way to the edge of the building, Twist shot Lupe an encouraging nod before he made himself scarce.

Lupe took a deep breath before positioning herself at Ragnar’s side. They laid down, peeking over the edge, their visual on the residence. Some quick to-the-point remarks concerning the mission, but nothing more.

It was only a while later, when he was sure they wouldn't get interrupted by any of his brothers, Ragnar found the courage to address their earlier friction. “Lupe..,” he started, after clearing his throat. Apparently, she had been ready for this conversation, as she replied in an instant: “Ragnar, you've made it pretty clear you don't like him, but I do.” Her voice had lost its earlier edge to it, but it was still serious. He couldn't help but notice some hurt in it, which put him off guard. “Lup- Sir, it's just that.. Nevermind.”

The air was heavy with suspense and Ragnar could hear Lupe swallow at his side. “Speak up. That’s an order,” she said at last. He noticed a slight tremble to her voice, and although she gave him an order, he wondered if she was really in her role as a General right now. He took a moment to carefully formulate his words, as making things worse was the last thing he wanted. This had already affected the squad enough, and it had only been one rotation. Besides, he hated seeing his General like this, and he detested himself for being the cause of it.

“I.. I don't trust him. He's got a reputation. Please, just- Just be careful around him,” he sighed, his voice low and quiet, but she could hear him alright. She was getting riled up again; why was it so hard for Ragnar to understand he was wrong about Fives, to notice he made her happy and feel loved? “Duly noted, thank you sergeant, but I can take care of myself,” she replied flatly, not taking her gaze away from the objective's residence. “General, sir, I-I-,” he stammered, clearly lost for words. Why was it so hard for Lupe to understand he said all this because he cared for her, because she was part of the squad; because she was family?

Lupe shot him a haunting look; it was a mixture of bitterness, incomprehension and hurt. He had to set this right, for the sake of the squad’s dynamics - and for his own peace of mind. “Lupe.. I’m only saying this because we care- Because I care about you,” he said at last, a softness to it she wasn't used to, not coming from her sergeant. “I’m afraid he’s going to hurt you. Break your heart. I don't want to see you get hurt.”

Silence. Lupe had averted her gaze again, but it clearly wasn't directed towards their target this time. Only when his words had dawned on her, she let out a relieved chuckle, as she bumped her fist into his shoulder. “Maker, why didn't you just say so?” Ragnar let all his tension go with a deep sigh. “I-I thought it was obvious,” he elaborated, before Lupe let out a short, cynical laugh. “Yeah, well, welcome to the female brain,” she blurted out.

This time it was Ragnar who chuckled. “You're the first female I shared a real conversation with,” he admitted, resulting in the most genuine smile he'd seen on Lupe's face since they started this mission. “I guess things don't get as complicated with your brothers,” she said softly, as she briefly put her head on his shoulder in a way to comfort him, to show her compassion; it made his heart skip a beat.

He swallowed before continuing the conversation. “You're my vod too,” he finally said. Since they had talked things out and he was already getting soft with her, there was no need to keep this from her any longer. She withdrew her head, and for a moment, he thought he screwed up again. “You.. You alright?” he shot at her with concern.

Just for a second, he thought she was wiping away a tear. But when she looked back at him, there was nothing to be seen, except for the most heartwarming smile on her beautiful face. “Yeah, I just- Have never heard someone call me that before,” she whispered, and he returned the smile, although much more restrained than he would have liked to share with her.

When the time came for the next shift, Lupe and Ragnar got to their feet. Before waking up Claw and Fang, they lingered at their recon spot for a little longer. “Thanks for the rollercoaster of emotions today,” Lupe said to Ragnar jokingly, a smirk adorning her face. Ragnar, finally comfortable again with a bit of bantering, replied: “I thought the Jedi were good at putting those away.” Another cynical laugh from Lupe, as she shook her head. “Yeah, well, in that case, I suck at being both a General and a Jedi.” Ragnar put a comforting hand on her shoulder, before easing her mind. “We couldn't have asked for a better option for either of them.”

---

It took them a few rotations to figure out their objective's patterns. They had spotted some scout parties from different origins, and knew they had to be careful not to reveal themselves and thus the Republic's involvement. They had to come up with a plan to get in contact with the objective, to ensure a discreet pick-up.

“Our best chance is early evening, when he takes his daily stroll through the streets. It's relatively quiet at that hour, so least chance of any unwanted attention,” Lupe concurred with her squad. “I have something in mind to notify the objective in a subtle way. Who of you is best at acting?”

Without a word or any debate, all the boys turned towards Fang, shooting him almost accusative glances. It took him a moment to realise, but when he did, he shrugged. “What? It helps handle things a bit less seriously,” he elaborated, resulting in a chuckle from Lupe; she should have known. “Great, keep that thought,” she told him, before continuing: “Listen up Fang, this is what we're gonna do..”

---

When the streets got quieter that evening, the squad was in position. Twist was still on their rooftop, overlooking their surroundings to keep an eye out on everyone, ready to alert them if they would attract any unwanted attention. Ragnar and Claw lingered at different corners of the street to move in if any assistance was needed. Lupe and Fang were waiting at different spots, ready to start the next phase of their plan once the objective would make it outside.

The door slid open, and their objective, a Sullustan male, appeared. He was wearing typical native headgear on his wide head, a pair of large ears protruding it. Underneath his dark and gleaming eyes were two flaps of jowls adorning his cheeks. His small posture didn’t make for a very intimidating appearance. “Go,” Lupe shot at Fang through their built-in comm devices, as soon as the objective had made it outside his residence. The Sullustan strolled away from his porch, and just when he rounded a corner, Fang came walking up from the opposite direction. His stride was grand and somewhat exaggerated; his shoulders widened to make them look broader than they really were.

Fang threw his whole body in when he hit the unknowing Sullustan, making him crash to the ground in an instant. He could have done with a little less effort, since the objective didn't even reach a cadet's size. When the Sullustan realised what had happened, Fang loomed over him, whilst slowly growling: “Di’kut*..” Twist had done such a great job at modifying Fang’s voice regulator, making it sound low and threatening.

*Di’kut = idiot, useless individual, waste of space

The Sullustan cowered behind one arm, trying to apologise but too intimidated to utter any intelligible words. At that very moment, Lupe came marching towards the spectacle. In her best Mando’a - no one here besides the clones would notice her pronunciation was less smooth than the boys’ - she started shouting at Fang. She made sure to add some swear words and phrases, since those were the first ones she had remembered correctly when she started learning Mando’a. She couldn't wait to tell Sinker and Boost she was finally able to use it to assist a mission.

She hit Fang in the chest plate, making him step backwards in defeat, like a massiff being scolded by its owner. The Sullustan seemed to relax a little. Lupe spun around to face him, kneeling down to his level, trying to make herself less intimidating. “Please excuse my coworker; he can't help it, he was born rude,” Lupe told the male, using the most comforting tone she could muster towards a stranger. “Here, let me help you,” she continued, reaching her hand towards him. He accepted it, somewhat confused, and she assisted him back to his feet.

When he was standing in front of her, Lupe started apologising again. “I'm very sorry; I promise you this isn't the last he'll be hearing about this,” she said, whilst crossing her arms and turning her helmeted head towards Fang ominously. With a small voice, since he still hadn't fully regained himself from this intimidating encounter, he tried telling her it was alright. She nodded a silent goodbye, before grabbing Fang by the arm and dragging him away, tossing in some more Mando’a scolding. They left the Sullustan behind, newly confused as he fidgeted with something in his hand.

When they reached a safe distance, Fang returned their conversation to their comm devices. “Sir, with all due respect; that was duse*. I counted at least seven mispronunciations.” Claw added from a distance: “Don't forget the incorrect usage of some of those words.” Lupe snickered at them. “Well, you two are very welcome to criticise my Mando’a - as soon as you best me in a lightsaber duel,” she shot back at them. “That's not fair, lightsaber practice wasn't part of our basic training,” Fang yammered in return. Lupe bumped her fist into his upper arm. “And Mando'a wasn't in mine; see how this goes both ways?” Fang could only groan in return, as he rubbed the spot where she had just hit him.

*duse = rubbish, waste (garbage)

As the sun was setting, they regrouped back on the rooftop. Lupe took her helmet off, glad to feel some fresh air on her skin again. “Were you able to hand him the note?” Ragnar asked her as soon as he made it to her side. She nodded affirmatively, before turning her head towards Fang. “Hopefully Fang didn't scare him off too much, with his convincing acting skills,” she said with a grin. “What can I say? I'm a natural,” Fang said with a shrug, resulting in laughter from the squad.

---

Early in the evening during the next rotation, the squad had found its way towards a new rendezvous spot. Lupe had deemed it best to meet up one rotation after their little theatre play, so the Sullustan could incorporate it into his next day’s stroll. Hopefully this way, the objective leaving his home would draw as little attention from other scouting parties as possible.

They had picked a rendezvous point at an old, abandoned square. The ruinous buildings surrounding it gave off an ominous atmosphere. A monumental statue at the centre was a memory to a bygone era. Lupe and Twist found themselves facing the monument, whilst the others were scouting the area from rooftops of nearby constructions.

“You th-think there will be m-m-monuments of the w-war, once it's o-over?” Twist asked her, his voice distant whilst he was looking up at the forgotten statue, as it stood broken in front of them, not withstanding the test of time. Lupe put a comforting hand on his shoulder. “I'm personally gonna raise hell if there won't be any; it's the least they can do to remember all of you, after all the clones’ sacrifices,” she said softly. She knew a smile would be lost on him, hidden below her helmet; but she smiled anyway.

As the darkness crept over the square and the time of their proposed meeting lapsed, they all got restless, an uneasiness taking a hold on them. “You all realise there's a chance he doesn't show up?” Claw finally spoke out everyone's fears. “Yeah, maybe your note wasn't too clear, sir. What did you write down again?” Fang continued his twin's suspicions. Lupe sighed out of frustration; they had already gone over this before delivering the message to the objective. “‘Return the Queen's Jewels’, including time and location,” she replied. She had chosen these specific words as a nod towards Coruscant’s nicknames, Queen or Jewel of the Core Worlds. The part of return should have been obvious.

But all Fang could muster was: “Sounds pretty cryptic to me.” Another sigh from Lupe, this time more annoyed. “Well, none of you came up with a better option. Besides, I couldn't just scribble down: ‘Here’s your ride to Coruscant, nice to have you on our side! Kind regards, the Republic’, could I?” She heard some static chuckling over her comm. In all its seriousness, Ragnar's voice broke through the subdued laughter. “He used to work for SoroSuub Corporation; he's a smart guy, he'll figure it out.”

“Or s-something happened on h-his way h-here,” Twist added, resulting in a moment of silence as everyone took in those menacing words. “Kriff, one of us should have stayed behind, keeping an eye on the objective,” Lupe blurted out, breaking the silence. The word ‘shu'shuk’ entered her mind again; she thought everything within the squad had finally been back to normal.

Just when she started to question herself again, especially her capability as a Jedi General, the redeeming words came in over their comm devices. “Objective inbound,” Ragnar's voice sounded, abruptly ending the discussion. Relief washed over Lupe, but there was no time to relax; she and Twist shot into focus, getting ready to face the Sullustan. “Let me know if you spot anything out of the ordinary,” she told the boys, before she headed for the objective.

“You must be Gra Neb. Thanks for meeting us; I'm glad we didn't scare you off,” Lupe spoke with a kind voice as soon as she reached him. Neb, the Sullustan, halted some steps away, not fully trusting the situation. He narrowed his big, mouse-like eyes before addressing Lupe. “How do I know you're on the right side?”

It was a fair question, and Lupe understood the Sullustan's restraint. She gently nudged Twist forward. “Will a squad of clones suffice?” she asked, nodding approvingly towards Twist to show his face for a brief moment; which he did. Neb’s eyes seemed to narrow even further. “Could be a defected one,” he shot out, and Twist's eyebrows wrinkled in hurt when he put the helmet over his face again. Lupe pressed her lips into a thin line before she discreetly showed her lightsaber, hidden at her belt below some rags.

Neb’s eyes widened, and for a moment, Lupe thought he finally believed them. But he crossed his short arms and almost accusingly, he shot at her: “Those can be bought on the black market.” Lupe let out a long, deep sigh. “Tough crowd,” she whispered, but loud enough for the squad to hear over their comms. “I guess you'll have to trust us. Doesn't seem like you have a lot of options left,” she said at last, quickly adding: “No offence.”

Just as the Sullustan started to protest again, Lupe's comm channel whirred up. “Uninvited guests at the south exit,” Claw warned the squad, moments before Lupe laid eyes on the newcomers. Instinctively, she positioned herself between their objective and the incoming threat, but she realised she couldn't use her lightsaber - not unless in dire need -, because it would give them away. It would tell them she was most likely a Jedi, and thus betraying the Republic's interference.

But since the arriving party didn't engage in a stand-off immediately, Lupe thought sharing a conversation wouldn't hurt. Her gaze slid over the colourful attendees, and since the party consisted of mostly Gossams with a few additional Sullustans, Lupe was quick to figure out their background. “Let me guess, Commerce Guild?” she shot out, as casually as possible, when they finally halted within hearing range. They wouldn't have been slightly intimidating if not for the array of battle droids that accompanied the group.

A female Gossam with wrinkled, blue skin addressed her, faking an amused attitude; she didn't seem very intimidated by these mere adversaries they were now facing. “Very perspective of you. Now please hand over our asset,” she spoke out, granting Lupe a slightly annoyed look, as if the situation just bored her. At least Lupe had been right about one thing: the Kessel System was proving interesting.

Lupe crossed her arms and started shaking her head in disagreement. “Afraid not. He's coming with us,” she said confidently. The Gossam was doing no effort to hide her irritation by now. “And who exactly is us?” she asked with a cold tone to her voice. Lupe shot a quick glance at Twist, trying to come up with a plausible answer. “The Pyke Syndicate sends its regards,” she replied at last, since pretending to be involved with the SoroSuub Corporation would be very unbelievable; it was a subsidiary of the Commerce Guild itself.

Probably not the best answer after all. Not trusting how this choice of words might escalate the situation, Lupe quickly turned to their internal comm channel. “Claw, how, er- how quickly can you get the ship here?” she asked cautiously, keeping her eyes on the party in front of her. “Just keep ‘em busy as long as you can, sir,” came Claw's response. Lupe swallowed: “Yeah, well, please hurry.”

The Gossam narrowed her eyes as the whole situation became more suspicious with every sentence exchanged. “The Pykes do not hire mercenaries to do their filthy work. They clean up their own messes.” Yeah, as expected. Lupe put her hands on her hips when she replied. “Yeah, and we don't ask questions when hired. That's why we clean up, er-.. Messes.”

She could slap herself in the face right now; she wasn't very proud of the remark, as it had been far from her usual wit. “Nice comeback, sir,” she heard Claw panting over the comm as he was running towards the shuttle, and she knew the audible chuckle came from Fang. She shushed them before returning her focus on the Gossam. As expected, she didn't buy any of it.

“You know, it doesn't matter who you are once we're done with you. So I'll give you one last chance; hand over the asset,” the Gossam made clear, all signs of charm and forced niceness gone by now. Lupe and Twist tensed, fully aware of what would happen next. Without thinking, their hands hovered over their blasters, ready to get them out in an instant. Without looking, Lupe nudged Neb right behind her, shielding him from what was to come. “Not. A. Chance,” she slowly growled towards the Gossam.

The Commerce Guild spokesperson sighed, before shrugging her scrawny shoulders. “Have it your way,” she answered, before snapping her fingers. The battle droids started advancing and aiming their weapons at them. “Nothing more warming than a get-together with clankers, eh?” Lupe shot out over their comm channel, as she quickly looked around her surroundings to find cover. She couldn't use her lightsaber, so she had to do this the regular way.

Dirt and dust erupted from the surface when the droids’ laser bolts hit it. Both Lupe and Twist had drawn their blasters by now and were returning the fire. Ragnar and Fang joined in from the rooftops, resulting in some surprised looks from the Guild members.

“Grab Neb!” Fang called, and he couldn't help but howl a quick laughter at his own wordplay. “Is everything a kriffing joke to you?” Ragnar shot at him over the comm channel. Fang chuckled in return. “Like the General says; gotta keep things fun!” he elaborated. A pause when Ragnar found an opportunity to hit multiple droids at fatal spots, before adding: “You and I have a different definition to the word fun.” “That’s why you’re the sergeant, and I’m not!” Fang replied with a chuckle.

Lupe and Twist had found some cover behind the statue's pedestal, dragging Neb with them on their way. Blaster fire was shot back and forth during an intense stand-off, and Lupe scolded about not being able to use her lightsaber or being able to improve their situation with some Force induced aid.

Just when the droids started to close in on their current position, and Lupe felt the dire need of using her lightsaber was near now, they all heard the familiar sound of their shuttle approaching. A surge of relief washed over Lupe. Claw piloted the ship between them and the Guild members, crushing some droids in the process, before Lupe dragged Neb to his feet. “Go, go, go!” she shouted, as they ran towards the ship's boarding walk. She notified Claw as soon as they had made it inside, and with a smooth movement, he turned the ship around and ascended it simultaneously, making sure the extended boarding walk was facing the rooftops.

Lupe and Twist positioned themselves at the ship's entrance, reaching out to catch them when Ragnar and Fang made the jump. “Get us the kriff out of here!” Lupe shot at Claw as soon as they were all inside, and he didn't wait a moment longer to guide them away from the scene, as blaster fire left scorch marks on the shuttle's hull. The clones all positioned themselves at their usual spots, aiding in their retreat, whilst Lupe guided the startled Sullustan towards a bench.

“Sorry about that, but I told you you didn't have a lot of options left,” she told him with a smirk, making sure to wipe it from her face before she took her helmet off. Neb looked up at her face, lost for words as he was still taking in everything that had happened on the surface. “Let's get you to Coruscant,” she said to him kindly, patting him on the shoulder before making her way to the cockpit.

“That was close,” she sighed as soon as she was in her squad's company, as they all seemed to be catching their breaths. “Thanks for the quick pick-up,” she added, putting a hand on Claw's shoulder as he was flying the ship into space, away from Kepler, and hopefully out of the Kessel System soon.

…

Epilogue

The Sullustan had been delivered to Coruscant, and his well-being was now out of their hands; they weren't responsible for him anymore. It was up to Gra Neb himself now, to share his experiences and knowledge from his time with SoroSuub Corporation to aid the Republic against the Confederacy of Independent Systems. The squad was ready to return their temporary outfits to the Republic military base, anticipating to get into their usual attire again. Lupe was mostly looking forward to getting rid of her helmet.

In a spare moment, when she claimed some brief minutes alone, she found the opportunity to comm Fives. “You said what?” he laughed over the comm transmission, after she had given him a summary of their mission. “The Pykes were the first ones to come to mind. What would you have said?” she shot back at him, an amused tone to her voice. “When in doubt, always use the Hutts,” he chuckled at her, and the sound of it made her heart both melt and ache.

A deep sigh from Lupe told Fives about her longing feelings. “I, er- could use some time alone. With you. Gotta come up with a plan,” she admitted, adding to Fives’ suspicions. “Already got one,” he replied in an almost sing-song voice. “Wait for my signal,” he added mysteriously, before they said their quick goodbyes and went on with their businesses.

So I guess getting vodzoned is now a thing. Also I wrote most of this chapter by accident (I hope it all makes sense).

[momotonescreaming]

Oh Momo I love it when you write characters not getting along for the simple reason of them just. Not vibing together. Fandom makes it some moral imperative that every character you like has to like each other when that simply isn't the case! It's fun to explore and see other people explore how those relationships go, with them being polite acquaintances. It feels much more natural and dynamic for characters to have different levels of closeness and intimacy and I just!! Love seeing it!

Nebs!!! my beloved!! hello!! 💜💜 You're always so sweet, thank you 🥺

You're right, fandom is slightly obsessed with characters being perfect and automatically being besties and how that's good and anything else is bad, and you're a hater - which is a slippery slope to go down.

Characters, just like people, have layers and flaws and are different to one another. Just because I think two characters wouldn't get along, it doesn't mean that they're bad, or I hate them.

I feel like I've said this a million times but I love it when characters are messy and complicated and also sort of fucked up. It's fun to put characters into situations and figure out what happens. It's just sometimes the answer is - these characters do not get along that well. It's fun! It's interesting! I am playing with these characters like dolls.

It's better - at least I think so - when you treat these characters more like actual people, than fictional characters, and figure them out that way. Dive into their complexities, and their relationships with other people, and how they react to things. I am a big fan of 'what if' situations and analysing the shit out of these characters.

[mew-tilated-mogai]

Welcome...

✦ ─ yo, im Kei / Guzma, you can also call me Mew since thats my blog name, Im a genderfluid bi-gay dude, crit inclus

Pronouns : he/him ; neb/nebby ; spike/muth ; Di/Devi ; oct/octo +

✦ ─ Requests :: Closed ✦ Ask box is always open

✦ ─ Do not repost any of my terms on any wikis, archives or other sites/blogs, thank you.

✦ Tagging

DNI, BYF + info below the cut

✦ DNI

i block very freely btw ;] also dni is subject to change

Basic DNI criteria (racist, homophobic, ableist, etc.)

Anti-MOGAI / LIOM, Anti-Xenogender, Anti-Neo/Xenopronouns, Anti-Otherkin/Fictionkin, Anti-Furry

Proship/Comship/Profic, anti-anti, "Dead dove", "Block and move on" blogs

Real-Person-Fiction writers/readers

Anti-Mspec lesbians/gays, Anti he/him lesbians / she/her gays / Anti-contradictory labels

Pan exclus / Ace/Aro exclus (also counts for cis/het aspec) / Anti- polyamory

Supports/is TransID, "transage", "transrace"/trace/diaracial, "transabled", "transopinion", "transill" or "non harmful transids"

Radqueer, Radpara, Medpunk, Warqueer, Feralqueer, Weedqueer, Kandiqueer, Para blogs, anti recovery, thinks paras are queer etc. etc., anything along those lines

"Safequeer" / anti critinclus

Thinks that all transpecies/chronosian stuff is radqueer/transid related (its not)

Supports/is (NO)MAP/AAM/Pedo/Zoo/Necrophile/"Kodophiles" etc. etc.

Refer to yourself as a "loli", "shota", "kodo", "yandere"

Blogs with any kind of syscourse on them (Applies regardless if pro-endo or anti-endo) / Discourse / drama blogs in general

TERF/Swerf, radfem, transmed, truscum, gendercritical, TIRF

Denier of transandrophobia

Gets pissy about people using "queer" or "fag" or tags posts that dont they didn't make as "q slur"

"minors DNI" blogs, NSFW / kink blogs, Vent / s/h blogs, Gore, Thinspo, Yancore blogs

Supports dd lg or other variations/NSFW agere / NSFW in agere spaces

Dream stans, Taylor Swift stans, tolerates JKR

Supports/Has anything on your blog relating to DSMP, Southpark, Harry Potter (introjects are always ok)

Have URLs/PFPs/Posts/Mentions about G-meGr-mps or donnie darko

Pro-life / Anti-abortion

Cop or military boot lickers

i have all the right to laugh and clown on you if you break my dni, its not hard lol.

✦ BYF/I

I am Crit Inclus, Im Pro-choice, I am completely Anti-Radqueer and if i see you interact with me while breaking my dni i will post about it.

As I said I am completely anti-radqueer and anti-transx (+ all the other names for it), however thats not including BIID, transpecies and Chronosian.

I will not give my stances on things to do with discourse, especially syscourse, and would like if you kept it miles away from me.

I swear alot and use words like "god" and "jesus" freely, so if you dont like that or if thats a problem then my blog is probably not for you, sorry.

Im shit with tone, so tone indicators are ok to use with me, im also shit with spelling and getting my own point/tone across so if im talking and that happens ignore it /hj

If your blog has typing quirks or you type differently (eg. LiKE THiS) i will have trouble reading it and will more less likely not interact with you.

I also get agitated and anxious fast, so if i come off as if im angry or disinterested in talking its least likely on purpose.

✦ Requesting

Please send an ask clearly describing your request, try not to be vague and use broad terms as little as possible.

(eg. "can you do neopronouns based off sylveon?" or "can you do a creepy/horror neopronouns list?", "Can you coin a gender related to X Y Z?")

I also ask that you research on if something has already been coined or not, it just takes some of the hassle out of it for me &lt;3

✦ request etiquette

Stamp/blinkie requests

Requests must have links to flags in the ask.

Flags have to be simple (ie. just lines/waves, simple designs. no frills, crazy designs or detailed symbols), as i dont shrink them down, i remake them at that size.

Up to 2 flags are allowed for stamps (ie. "can you do a pan lesbian and bigender stamp?")

PLEASE specify whether or not you want 2 flags on one stamp or just multiple stamps.

request multiple at once if you want i dont have a limit other than theres gonna probably be only 8 per post

I will do different border selections for stamps in the future, but you can pick between 2 lines of dots blinkies or clasic full all around dots blinkies (like. the blinking part.)

I will do basically any flag as long as it follows my no crazy detailed flags rule

Things i WILL do:

Gender coining, Flag coining, Help with naming

Genders based on two or more things (eg. the color blue, dragons and being sleepy)

Neopronoun + names lists

Neopronoun mega lists (as many variations and sets i can find/make with research, categorised)

Neo recommendations based on your sets

Stamps / Blinkies of (non complicated) flags

More if you can request it lol

Things i WON'T do:

Orientation coining

first and second person pronoun requests / titles

"Reclaiming"/Recoloring flags for terms I didnt coin.

ANYTHING to do with transids or paras.

Anything related to real life people/their personas, actors, youtubers

Any anime stuff

Anything from DSMP, Southpark, Genshin, Omori, The backrooms (or any youtube horror), Marvel, Disney, TOH, emH, she-ra, fnaf, ddlc

Anything to do with aesthetics/-cores like weirdcore, traumacore, dreamcore etc. (other ones are ok, just not those kinds)

Obsessive love, trauma, Yandere

Extreme gore/death/rot, medical things

Anything NSFW ( im a minor )

Anything related to disorders i dont have or cultures/religions im not a part of.

list is subject to change.

I will do just about anything else, however I will absolutely reject anything i dont want to do, sorry!!

✦ About me <3

Hi, Im Kei / Guzma , You might already know me cus I used to be an owner of the (now defunct) coining blog Bugbane-xenos. Or you might even know me from reddit or discord.

I ID mainly as lableless / bi-gay and aroflux aswell as mainly as genderfluid or genderqueer man and many other lables, im also thinking of using cistrans. Im also polykin, alterhuman, a furry and a juggalo, if you want specifics send me an ask! if its not too personal id love to tell you. Im Irish too so if i talk funny you know why lol.

I would prefer if you used my neos over he/him, cus im genderfluid it just kinda helps.

Another thing, im autistic and got a tic disorder, amongst other things, so burnout is normal for me if i take long on requests sometimes please dont get mad. I wont answer questions about the " other things" for my own reasons unless we're close.

Please enjoy your stay on my little blog <3

[trenchcoatsbi]

Okay so I know we came out as a system like 12 hourss ago, but I am begging any of the mods to please give us some names for Stars and Guide.

They've said they want new names. they are refusing to find new names. please help them /silly

For Guide - anything angelic/blue themed For Stars - anything more wild/dragonic themed

And both of them wouldn't mind options with protective or night/moon meanings, seeing as they both were guardians of something or another in source and they're associated with the moon / stars respectivly - Sammy (Voidling Not!Anon)

(also hello, I don't usually speak much but I am taking control and getting these nerds some decent names) (get in loser we're going shopping >:3 - Allister)

HI ALLISTER!! TY FOR REQUESTING IM SURE IT MEANS A LOT TO THEM :D

UMM HMMM. Something ive always loved a lot is the nickname starshine, i dont know why. ive used it in an affectionate sense for some people (dont let that deter you from using it!!) or interpreted it a few times with ocs, or as a playful nickname,, i just like it a lot! id love to see starshine being used mwahahha

i also like playing with variants of "starshine." moonshine (which is a super old illegal alcohol so could be used for aesthetics incase that fits anyone), starlight, starmoon, stardust, spaceshine, moondust, etc..... its fun to play arojnd with

apart from that! tbh just steal Word Names. as in, like.... the names of the shit and what makes up the shit. i often find that names of items, maybe shortened, sounds good asf. i have a friend who loves using food names

angelic shit: feathers, wings, heaven, glow, ascend/ascension/asc/asce, gates, skies/sky, angel, celeste, seraphina/seraphine, gabriel, ariel, sapphire, divine, eden (garden of eden), cherub(sometimes young angels who can be seen depicted as guarding the garden of eden, i think theyre hebrew based), elohim (hebrew name for "god"), hazel, blue/blu, halo, soul/souls, light

sorry if i got any of the context wrong, i'm not religious :,D

spacey shit: luna, orion, cons/cost/constell/constellation(s), stella/stellar, nova, eclipse/eclipsa, solstice/sol, astrid, aster, astroid, aurora, neb/nebula, stardust, cosmic/cosmo/cos/coz

UHH YE ENJOY

[amostfoolishgold]

It is not necessarily that people forget that Lazuli is a wild animal. Almost gutting a member of another faction and getting away with it was certainly memorable, and it was hardly the last time she had cause to flash her claws or fangs. It is simply that when she spends so much of her time eating and drinking with humans, like humans, the particulars of her diet can slip the mind.

No one blinks when she slips away from her friends to ingratiate herself with the new crew that docked earlier today. No one bats an eye when, several drinks in, she wraps an arm around the guy who's been loudest about flashing his coin. No one even notices when she leans in and sings ever-so-softly and ever-so-sweetly directly into his ear. They'd be hard pressed to, really, a siren's lure is at its most potent when sung, but she's been talking everyone in the vicinity into trusting her for the past hour. They probably wouldn't flinch if she started stabbing people.

It's not even really something she decided to do an hour ago. She just hasn't eaten since lunch (fish, cooked whole, drizzled with lemon juice and paired with the kind of bread typically reserved for long voyages, eaten with flagrant disregard for bones) and she started getting hungry. The criteria for an easy target are different on land than at sea, and different again for a siren than for a dolphin or a wolf, but her eyes had slid away from the chalkboard menu and instead found Thomas. Here for the first time as part of a crew that hasn't been to the Isle in years, quick to throw his coin around and always smiling and nodding like he's definitely involved in the conversation around the table but, crucially, rarely opening his mouth outside of calls for a new round. A wild animal does not hunt prey that will be more trouble, more danger than it's worth.

Thomas follows Lazuli out of the bar and his crew does not care.

It would be inaccurate to say that Lazuli doesn't know what she's doing. Running on instinct will only take you so far and a hunt is hardly a mindless activity. It is more that some part of her hindbrain has kicked in and she no longer remembers why she's not meant to be eating people.

Lazuli has Thomas pinned to an alley wall and her lips and the pulse point in his throat before she hears someone call her name. She turns with a snarl prepared only to see Neb staring at her from the alley entrance. It can be hard to read Neb's expressions, what with the beak and all the feathers, but if Lazuli had to guess (which, she supposes, she very much does,) she'd probably go for somewhere between interest and caution. Lazuli kind of loves that about them. It's maybe not necessarily the right thought to be having when she was about two seconds away from killing a man despite the perfectly good food in the kitchens and is now being witnessed doing so by someone who would be entirely justified in freaking the fuck out right now, but nevertheless. Neb tilts their head like Lazuli is a new slightly damaged book and Lazuli's heart does a little flutter.

"What was the plan here, love?"

Thomas tenses at the endearment.

"Oh shit, is she- I'm sorry I didn't, I'm new, I di-"

Lazuli presses a hand over his mouth and layers her lure into her voice.

"Shh, it's okay, you're fine."

She casts an apologetic look back at Neb and tries not to look as embarrassed as she feels.

"I was hungry?"

Neb let's out a little chuff of a laugh at that.

"May I make a proposition? You let whoever this is go and we go get you some food that isn't going to get you kicked of the Isle. Maybe if you're very good, I'll even tell you about that island no one's allowed to visit."

Their voice goes teasing at the end but Lazuli drops Thomas in a heartbeat. He stumbles to the ground like he hadn't quite realised how much she was holding him up. Lazuli presses herself to Neb's side, wrapping an arm around their waist and looking up at them with the widest eyes they can pull off.

"I would like nothing more, darling."

Neb gives her a smug look and tucks a wing around her before setting off in the direction of their house.

The rest of the night goes far better.

---

Neb as always belongs to the wonderful @solsearchingnights! This has actually been stuck in my drafts for a while bc I didn't know how to end it lmao

[raccoonfallsharder]

bro I just had the best idea for an oc for a rocket fanfic

a trans person

for me specifically I think it'd be cool to have a ftm trans person who's had top surgery because scars would be very important to both their stories (and also I'm transmasc; who doesn't like a little self-insert as a treat)

they'd be the perfect foil for him too! Rocket was fine as he was and changed against his will much to his deep displeasure, they were unhappy with themselves and remade themselves into who they wanted to be of their own volition

there's so much friend potential there! but I don't think I'd have it in me to do it justice in writing waaaaah T-T

1. i wrote a long response to this and it disappeared wtf

2. this is a fuckin lovely idea. i feel like rocket has no patience for terran concepts of a gender binary and that one of his most important values is bodily autonomy, so he’d be like, ready (well as ready as he ever is) to form a bond with this person. I feel like there’s so much they would deeply understand and identify with in each other and so much they could learn, too, with remarkable empathy and grace

3. i know some people headcanon nebs as transmasc and rocket as having helped them get topsurgery (I sometimes share this headcanon but my nebula headcanons are varied and sometimes contradictory). obviously this is different than what you’re suggesting but i feel like they could also go hand-in-hand. would love to see this dynamic with a terran though. there is, as you said, so much fuckin potential here

4. i. can appreciate not trusting that you would do this justice. writing is already so fuckin vulnerable?? and this has the potential to be a particularly risky arena, both in terms of a writer feeing “adequate” and in terms of expressing their own experience. but i also feel like you’ve got a beautiful fuckin idea here and it’s lovely and it’s yours, and for whatever it’s worth, I believe in you? sometimes sitting in those ideas and letting them unfold, cultivating them around you like a goddamn garden and letting them grow, is really fuckin good for the heart & soul & brain. i hope that you let yourself rest with this idea for a while. maybe write a couple drabbles or oneshots. you don’t have to share them. you can take as long as you want with them. you can eventually string them together or let them stay separate. you can continue unwrapping them like gifts to yourself (and maybe other people. eventually. if you want.)

(sidenote - honestly half of my shit starts out as exercises in catharsis. my whole folder of fanfic scraps is literally just titled “self indulgence” ¯\_(ツ)_/¯)

anyway you are lovely, this idea is lovely, and i’ve read a little bite of your writing and it’s also lovely. i would absolutely read anything you’ve written - and especially this.

[dalishthunder]

Honor and Glory I Have Enough Of (p2)

(You thought I was done here? No! I can't stop writing!)

You stared him down, and he could have sworn you saw his eyes because you held his gaze.

When hadn't you?

"Neb- no." Your brow furrowed as you took him in, and you let out the faintest, singular laugh, the ghost of a smile on your lips. "Barra."

Welcome.

Wanted.

The altmer bared his teeth.

He could feel his nostrils flare at your gall.

You continued to hold his gaze, defiant, calculating, mesmerizing, an unfathomable sorrow etched in your expression. "Please don't make me do this."

His hand immediately went to his sword, still sheathed but intentions clear. "And you call me mad."

"I'm sorry it's come to this, my friend." You whispered.

"FOOL!" He lunged at you, drawing his blade only for it to meet the side of your bow as you blocked the attack. Eyes wide as you inhaled to-

"No you don't!" Nebarra hissed, throwing his weight into the standstill and headbutting you, helms clanging together. You clattered to the ground. You had too many tells.

Not giving you a moment of reprieve to catch your breath he immediately brought his blade down. Clanging off the side of your bow once more. Again.

"Mul Qah Div!" Your voice, your thu'um, echoed off the walls and through the cathedral's chambers as spectral dragon scales formed around your armor, the air around you scintillating with your aura, and you shoved him back; sweeping his feet from under him, leaping to your own.

Immediately you darted away from him, but he wasn't far behind. You may have had stupid, Akatosh-given, ancient dragon magic, but Nebarra still had one thing over you.

Experience.

He could see you inhaling again, pausing just long enough to line up a few pillars, but a half a second was all he needed to bring the flat of his sword against your side, staggering you, and arcing his blade around to clash against your wrist, but your armored forearm parried his attack.

"Fus!" You were faster this time, keeping your shout short and condensed, shoving him back with a weak blast of force.

He was able to brace himself just in time to avoid being blown away, but he could feel his knees buckle under him just enough to throw him off balance. But if you'd used it already, that meant that you wouldn't be able to shout again for a few seconds while you regained your breath.

Gods you were fast, but he had a longer reach than you.

He thrust out his hand,fingers closing tightly around your wrist, and pulled you back with a strength he's never imagined he'd have to use on you.

'Enchanting' is what you had called yourself.

And like a fool he'd been spellbound.

No more.

He lurched you back, bringing you over his head to crash to the ground, and as your back hit the stone tiles, he could hear you wheeze, eyes wide.

Nebarra was no fool, he knew that you could shout him to pieces. Destroy him with just a couple of words. Even bend his will to your whim. And if that didn't work, you could easily snipe him through the eye slits of his helm. But the silly thing was... You didn't want to hurt him.

How quaint.

War stripped him of many such nonsensical notions.

He drove his blade down, intending to get your shoulder. Nothing that would kill you. Just incapacitate you long enough for Gariil to activate the magic of this place. But you rolled out of the way as his sword clanged against stone.

"Feim!" Your form shimmered, leaving you transparent.

Shit... that was quick.

He knew you were getting better, stronger, shout longer-

You stood, his sword going right through you, and sprinted away from him, form flickering as you moved. He gave chase, throwing a firebolt at you and you let out a pained grunt, but you didn't stop moving. Stalling for time, trying to catch your breath. He threw another, and you turned around to throw up a ward. It gave him just enough time to catch up, using the intensity of the flames he held in his hand to heat his sword.

He swung around, and you managed to block with your bow.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

Each strike more vicious than the last until you looked up at him, something dark and dangerous in your eyes as you slipped the string of your bow over the hilt of his sword, twirling it and shoving the blade back with the riser, forcing his sword out of his hand. It clattered to the ground and you kicked it away with all your might before smacking him over the head with the curve, and whipping around to punch him in the chest.

Disoriented, ears ringing, he shot another blast of fire your way only to have you dodge quickly as you rolled behind a pillar.

Shit.

Shit, shit, shit!

He grabbed his sword as quickly as he could, running towards you only to see you take in a massive breath.

SHIT!

"FUS RO DAH!" The force of your voice bounced off of the walls in waves, ground shaking as a blast of force hit the pillars. He hadn't been able to dodge in time as he was sent sailing through the air, stomach lurching, back hitting the wall hard enough that he could hear it crack behind him. He coughed, spitting out a bit of blood.

Shit... Crumbling... falling one by one the pillars gave way. He pushed himself to his feet, sheathing his sword quickly and making a check for Gariil. It would be a shame to have him die here too. You were so close to the exit... you could just leave-

But as the building began to cave in you began running towards him like the bleeding-hearted fool you were.

You never reached him, a chunk of ceiling raining down and catching you.

Ice flooded his veins, colder than all Skyrim's north winds. And before he knew it he was sprinting towards you, coming to a sliding halt as he dropped down to check for a pulse. Breath heaving, heart racing, he realized even if you did have one he'd never feel it through his gauntlets. So he held the metal against your lips, condensation telling him you were still alive.

Thank the gods....

He hefted you over his shoulder, picking up Gariil under the other arm as he made a mad dash out of this accursed cathedral.

Breathe in.

Don't panic, Cor-

No... He was Nebarra, but damnit if he wouldn't at least be useful.

His eyes scanned for the way through the debris, spottingthe door out and ramming his free shoulder into it as he didn't slow. It gave way and he tumbled out, accidentally fumbling Gariil for a second, grabbing him by the back of his heavy fur coat and dragging him the rest of the way to the dock.

It wasn't until the boat was pushing out that he let himself truly let out the breath he'd been holding in. Ripping off his helm and splashing his face with the frigid waters of the Sea of Ghosts. The cold air would have been bracing in his lungs if not for the ash of the Red Mountain.

Didn't understand how the Dunmer did it.

After a few moments, his breath started to come back, and he looked down, tracing where you'd punched his breastplate.

Another dent in his armor to buff out he supposed.

[kandisheek]

FIC REC WEEK 28 – HISTORICAL FICS

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: BladeoftheNebula

Neb is - in my humble opinion - the absolute queen of period pieces. I love the way she writes arranged marriage, A/B/O, old-timey gender roles and politics. Her writing style really grips me, and whenever I read one of her fics, I can't put it down before I finish it. She's amazing, and her fics deserve all the love in the world! I could honestly just recommend her entire AO3 catalogue, but since period fics are the theme, let's focus on those.

Here's some of their work that I think you should check out:

Object: Matrimony

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: E Words: 49,963 Tags: Mail Order Bride, Sheriff Steve, Domestic Life

Summary: Omega Tony Stark craves adventure and an escape from the life his parents have planned for him in New York. He places a listing in a marriage catalogue to seek a match with an alpha out West, and Sheriff Steve Rogers answers his advertisement. But finding a nice alpha doesn't mean it's all smooth sailing from there... - A Mail Order Bride AU -

Reasons why I love it: The world building in this is so perfect. I love all of the A/B/O politics and gender rules, and Steve as the protective sheriff is fucking adorable, oh my god. I really feel for Tony on his quest to become the perfect omega for Steve, and it's so satisfying when they finally stop being insecure idiots and figure their shit out. This fic is one of my favorites of all time, so I really hope you give it a shot, if you haven't already!

Fortune Favours the Bold

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: E Words: 6,217 Tags: Arranged Marriage, Regency AU, Outdoor Sex

Summary: Omega Steve Rogers is betrothed to an old rich alpha nearly three times his age, and decides on an act of passionate rebellion before his wedding.

Reasons why I love it: There's something so sweet about inexperienced Steve being well taken care of. And Tony is more than up to the task. I love the instant connection they have, and the smut is both stuffed to the brim with feelings and really hot. Plus, the ending makes the whole thing even better. I love this fic, and I bet you will too, so please give it a shot!

Needeth a lift?

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 2,922 Tags: Meet-Cute, Royalty AU, Identity Porn

Summary: Tony's luck was going to change and all his dreams were going to come true. All he had to do is get to the archery contest on time. Why did his horse have to break down today???

Reasons why I love it: Okay, first of all, that title?! I snorted when I first saw it. Prince Steve is always a delight, and Bucky made me laugh out loud. Also, I'm a huge fan of Tony being appraised for his skills when he doesn't even know that it's happening. This fic is delightful, give it a read!

In the midst of a heavy rain

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 5,968 Tags: Superfamily, Teacher Steve, Hurt/Comfort

Summary: “Do you know where Mr Rogers is?” Peter hummed. “He took his refreshment with him. He said he was going for a walk and would return for our next lesson.” That was very strange. If Peter was correct, then Mr Rogers had been on his walk for more than two hours. Tony couldn’t for the life of him work out why he would plan such a long constitutional when he knew Peter would be waiting for his afternoon lesson. He strode across to the window and looked out over the grounds. It looked like it might rain.Or Steve takes a walk that ends nearly in disaster and absolutely in a confession.

Reasons why I love it: Steve lecturing Tony on the importance on art in children's education made me point at the screen and say out loud, 'that's right'. I adore the hurt/comfort in this, Tony is such a caring man, and it's always fun to see Steve as the damsel in distress. And Peter is beyond adorable, but what else is new. Give this fic a whirl, it's amazing!

A Gentleman's Guide to Centaurs

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: M Words: 24,799 Tags: Historical AU, Regency Romance, Marriage Proposal

Summary: All of Marvyl is a-twitter when Captain Rogers comes to town and takes up residence at Brooklyn Hall. A single alpha in possession of a large fortune is an interesting prospect for any unmarried omega - especially when he has hooves.

Reasons why I love it: Oh my god, okay, so I have a huge thing for centaur Steve, and this fic is 50 percent of the reason why. It's so well-written, and the world building is fantastic. Neb's take on A/B/O is always flawless, but in this one I love it even more than usual. Steve is such a darling, and Tony's fascination with centaurs is so much fun. I also love the whole subplot with Sunset, plus Tony's friendship with Jan and Pepper is amazing. There's so much to love about this fic, so I highly encourage you to read it. It's definitely one of my favorites.

[kisses-4-loki]

Even though I ship GammaFrost platonically, I love the idea of them relating to having daddy issues and seeing themselves as monsters. My question is: How do you think Bruce would react to seeing Loki’s Jotun Form? Curious (Woah, alien science) or Freak out (Did his radiation spread to Loki)? How would Loki react?

First of all- bruce and loki are SO in marvels daddy issues club. those two bitches could be the founders (along with gamora and nebs ofc). and they ofc to relate to each other, both seeing themself, or even something that is a new part of them they've discovered, as a monster, and something that makes them monsters

I think Bruce would react fairly well, if only bc of the scientist part of himself. I definitely think he might freak out a bit "holy shit, loki is blue!! is this bc of me?? has he got radiation sickness because we've been too close? but that doesn't make sense-" but he keeps it fairly internalised, and he has a pretty good poker face. then the scientific curiosity kicks in- "he's blue? he has red eyes? this is so fucking COOL!!" like bruce knew loki was an alien, it was obvious, but now he LOOKS more alien than he ever has and its a bit of a surprise.

but based on the look on lokis face (or rather, in his eyes) he can tell that loki isn't HAPPY about being blue, it stresses him out. and given how bitterly he's been talking about being adopted (which bruce already knew) and his constant denial of being asgardian, he can tell something is up. so he acts very calm about it, even though loki can tell he's *curious* with a little bit of *anxiety* and he thinks he's afraid of him.

loki is very hostile about it, but bruce being calm but *excited* about everything to do with him being jotun means that he relaxes and is happy to show bruce his ice powers + the quirks of his other form.

TYSM FOR THE ASK 💞

[livingfictionsystem]

what's your ideal revenge for all your enemies?

Funny enough you asked this when the least vengeful of us was fronting lol

I mean, ideally, we want them all unable to ever do to anyone else what they did to us. So, as a base, for everyone to know what they did to us and others and for any new friends to be able to Google them to know to stay away. There should be no more victims.

But as far as specifics, Sparrow, who was horrifically sexually abused by Rowan "because Fae love to keep humans as pets", has said that he'd love for them to end up absolutely powerless, unendingly alone, and abandoned. "Just as isolated and hopeless as they made me."

Rowan would also p much be nothing without their little posse or their parents forking over money to rescue them on a regular basis lmao. No friends, no partner, no family. That'd be nice.

I'd also like to see what would happen if Sparrow's partner and Rowan crossed paths irl 👀 I'd pay to be a fly on the wall for that one lmao

For Apollo, who started a lot of this with his blackmail and psychological torture, I think it'd be fitting if something he was invested in and cared about ended up all being a lie.

He forced Neb/Sparrow/also myself into dormancy for eight years and was p vocal about preferring them to Xanthe, so I hope that he Does miss them, and I hope he knows that Sparrow fucking hates them. And is dating someone Apollo hates lmao

Idc if that's petty.

As for me, also abused pretty bad by Apollo, I've had pleasant dreams of him stuttering around and trying to answer interrogative questions on a livestream about breaking our ribs, beating us for not finding his wig cap for a cosplay fast enough, and a lot of the other fucked up shit.

For Vali, it'd be hilarious if he tried to go to us for help after Rowan throws him under the bus one too many times, because Xanthe would just laugh at him.

For AJ, they make their own hell lol

It'd be funny if no one never donated to AJ's bullshit again. Which as much as they yell at their friends for like, trying to help, might have already happened.

And Sage, I'd LOVE to see how their friends/LARP people would react to the news that they've been harassing the mentally ill on behalf of an actual pedo/rapist lmao

But yeah, I think that'd be fitting. Just for the truth to be out and the consequences of that to be a fair cause and effect.

-Rune 💠