#FFN Feed

[miscmangos-wonderland]

time to tma post on main even tho im still in the 140s of episodes and not even past the 3/4 point of the podcast but i had some Thoughts i think youd all like, copypasted directly from my dms with my buddy @/sbpstudios (hi neil if you see me)

"theres a key difference between hunt, slaughter, and flesh. to me anyways.

and thats like. the end result/purpose of the deaths.

for hunt, its in the chase and pursuit, of prey and predation.

for flesh, its the blending of meat and bone, of being only the sum of your parts and being valued insomuch as you can provide. flesh is about what you leave behind when you are killed.

slaughter is about death. death and killing, indiscriminate and uncaring so long as the pied piper gets his dues"

#this is how im feeding myself in the ao3 drought #since ffn is barren and wattpad is an unscavengable wasteland that doesnt even have 1k hollow knight fics and theres nowhere else to go #i must come here lmao #no way to feed the danny phantom/magnus archives hunger beast ive accidentally stirred in my head #my mind is fucking hungry feed me statements /j #dp/tma is an underrated crossover more people should work at it #lemme slurp up them words like spaghetti #also. if you want more thoughts re: fear natures or analysiseses. lmk #i love to ramble about things #and tma is so so tasty as a horror work #chefs kiss #i scarfed my way through the first half in like a week #the magnus archives #tma #tma fears #tma slaughter #tma flesh #tma hunt #tma fear analysis

[pnjrnk]

i was looking thru old art and i found the first time i drew gregory and christophe <3 unfortunately it is an unfinished south park/okami crossover that makes my neck retract into my body, but i thought u might want to see it anyways idk u guys probably like my art

i can and will combine my interests and nobody can stop me

(most of u probably wont remember this but one of my earlier posts was me gauging interest in art where christophe was issun and gregory was waka, then i deleted it after ten minutes because i was embarrassed LMAO)

#south park #christophe delorne #ze mole #gregory of yardale #too scared to tag the game #or the game characters #seriously wtf would fans think if they saw this on their tumblr feed #i actually headcanon that christophe thinks mythology is cool tho #also surprisingly im not the only one to think of combining gregstophe with this game #theres an old fic on ffn that is completely bonkers #i love it tho

[sing-me-under]

I am chronically addicted to reading, and AO3 is like the biggest assortment of potato chips in history.

#personal #Look #I never really read fanfics until like 2017 #up to that point #I was on wattpad and whatever other independent free publishing sites wattpad users migrated to #although back in middle school I was on ffn for kingdom hearts fanfic #and before That #I would read the 100+ books scattered in the house #I read like I breathe #and AO3 feeds into it

[cowsaresushi-coral]

kirby right back at ya fics, good fics of meta knight, please, any recommendations? i hunger for fics.

#coral yaps #please feed my problem #i will also take submas fics #dw i still like submas but it's much tamer now #primarily bc i got blasted so hard that i essentially made a massive explosion of a bonfire and then ran out of fuel #that's pretty accurate #i still want kirby fics #preferably like a mock episode bc im trash for that show or like some meta knight bs bc im also trash for him #the show is so old that i feel like the fics aren't on ao3 and are probably on ffn or shivers wattpad #i have never been on the latter tbh #and i will not. #i actually know very little about the site so it's probably fine but i dont feel like learning the navigation #my friend is going to find out im back on my bs #it's going to be like when we were 10 again <3

[ishizizzle]

Going through the Dick/Kory tag on a03

#SHEEESH sheesh #I like the Kory reverence trope because obviously its what she deserves and battle worn love sick Dick Grayson is therapeutic #but damn yall the teen titans live action show got the girlies guylies and theydies DEPRESSED #canon divergence this and rewriting an episode that but i get it cuz a fanfic writer can often write a better episode #but its all rewrites and live action show characters like YALL WHERE IS THE DICK/KORY?? WHERE IS IT?? I'M TIRED OF THEM BEING 'MOM AND DAD' #CAN THEY SMASH? CAN THEY GO ON A MISSION? WHERE IS THE DRAMATIC FLARE PEOPLE?? #also the more I'm on a03 the more I think ffn had a better interface... #as someone who goes on many a tag rant i think a03 tags are too much lol they border irrelevant #i used to write a little tt I should dip my toes back in and feed myself

[avaetin]

If the next pjo book has the canon couple giving each other (or even just one of them) a promise ring, I swear to god you can't get any more "for YA" than that.

#you can be cheesy but I think even this is too cheesy #why I thought of this? I'm seeing too much promise ring in my feeds and in ffns recently #yes we get it you are THE OTP but promise ring... #/cringes/ #😂😂😂✌️

[echoekhi]

I’m Declaring War Against “What If” Videos: Project Copy-Knight

What Are “What If” Videos?

These videos follow a common recipe: A narrator, given a fandom (usually anime ones like My Hero Academia and Naruto), explores an alternative timeline where something is different. Maybe the main character has extra powers, maybe a key plot point goes differently. They then go on and make up a whole new story, detailing the conflicts and romance between characters, much like an ordinary fanfic.

Except, they are fanfics. Actual fanfics, pulled off AO3, FFN and Wattpad, given a different title, with random thumbnail and background images added to them, narrated by computer text-to-speech synthesizers.

They are very easy to make: pick a fanfic, copy all the text into a text-to-speech generator, mix the resulting audio file with some generic art from the fandom as the background, give it a snappy title like “What if Deku had the Power of Ten Rings”, photoshop an attention-grabbing thumbnail, dump it onto YouTube and get thousands of views.

In fact, the process is so straightforward and requires so little effort, it’s pretty clear some of these channels have automated pipelines to pump these out en-masse. They don’t bother with asking the fic authors for permission. Sometimes they don’t even bother with putting the fic’s link in the description or crediting the author. These content-farms then monetise these videos, so they get a cut from YouTube’s ads.

In short, an industry has emerged from the systematic copyright theft of fanfiction, for profit.

Project Copy-Knight

Since the adversaries almost certainly have automated systems set up for this, the only realistic countermeasure is with another automated system. Identifying fanfics manually by listening to the videos and searching them up with tags is just too slow and impractical.

And so, I came up with a simple automated pipeline to identify the original authors of “What If” videos.

It would go download these videos, run speech recognition on it, search the text through a database full of AO3 fics, and identify which work it came from. After manual confirmation, the original authors will be notified that their works have been subject to copyright theft, and instructions provided on how to DMCA-strike the channel out of existence.

I built a prototype over the weekend, and it works surprisingly well:

On a randomly-selected YouTube channel (in this case Infinite Paradox Fanfic), the toolchain was able to identify the origin of half of the content. The raw output, after manual verification, turned out to be extremely accurate. The time taken to identify the source of a video was about 5 minutes, most of those were spent running Whisper, and the actual full-text-search query and Levenshtein analysis was less than 5 seconds.

The other videos probably came from fanfiction websites other than AO3, like fanfiction.net or Wattpad. As I do not have access to archives of those websites, I cannot identify the other ones, but they are almost certainly not original.

Armed with this fantastic proof-of-concept, I’m officially declaring war against “What If” videos. The mission statement of Project Copy-Knight will be the elimination of “What If” videos based on the theft of AO3 content on YouTube.

I Need Your Help

I am acutely aware that I cannot accomplish this on my own. There are many moving parts in this system that simply cannot be completely automated – like the selection of YouTube channels to feed into the toolchain, the manual verification step to prevent false-positives being sent to authors, the reaching-out to authors who have comments disabled, etc, etc.

So, if you are interested in helping to defend fanworks, or just want to have a chat or ask about the technical details of the toolchain, please consider joining my Discord server. I could really use your help.

------

See full blog article and acknowledgements here: https://echoekhi.com/2023/11/25/project-copy-knight/

#ao3 #fanfic #copyknight #theft #copyright

[ao3commentoftheday]

I've never orphaned a fic, but I'm glad AO3 has the option to do that. When I was in my late teens, I deleted all of my work from FFN because I thought I was done writing fanfic and for some reason got the idea into my head that it was dangerous to just leave them up, in case future employers or whoever found them. Even though I was writing very tame, mostly K+ and T rated stuff based on relatively uncontroversial original works. *facepalm*

Anyway, if I'd had the option to orphan my fics back then, I think I probably would have done that instead of deleting them. I wish it had been an option. I don't intend on ever orphaning what I'm writing now, but it makes me happy to know that if I ever did want to no longer be associated with it, I'd have the option to do that without taking it offline completely.

It's things like the orphan feature that really highlight the fact that AO3 was created and is maintained by fans. The people who volunteer there are also people who read fic and people who write fic. They get it.

Other features that I think are fantastic include, but are not limited to:

being able to have private bookmarks

being able to subscribe to a single fic, or to a fic series or to an author

the Fannish Next of Kin system whereby you can set a guardian for your fics in case of your death or incapacitation

site skins, which allow you to change the look and feel of the site to something that works best for you

the ability to have a pseudonym account on your main account, so if you want separate our your works that way you can

Tag Wranglers, who read all of the weird and wacky ways we tag our fics and make them searchable and filterable in the database

the search and filter capabilities!!

otp:true

the kudos feature, so I can still show love even when I don't have words

RSS feed capability

the ability to restrict access to my works and to restrict comments on my works

blocking and muting!

never having to click the Proceed button again

Anyone else have a favourite feature that I didn't list above? (if any of my points is new to you, lemme know - I'm always happy to do a deep dive)

#asks and answers

[sobeautifullyobsessed]

I've been thinking a lot about Khan lately and those ancient-seeming days when he fired my imagination so powerfully that the words flowed easily onto the page. Both in fics and in rp. I was always especially proud of the backstory I created for him (beyond the bare facts of the past that he is given in 'Star Trek: Into Darkness'), which was inspired by Benedict's many-layered characterization. There was enough pathos in his performance to make me believe that Khan became the compelling villain we saw onscreen from a good share of angst in his past. In his fierce loyalty to his people I caught a glimpse of his better self.

So, it naturally follows that I'd love to share some of my Khan writing again here. Sadly, I face two obstacles. First, I only have my phone to work on, and try as I might, I haven't been able to copy/paste the chapters from AO3 & FFN. I'm restricted to whatever already exists here on tumblr. Second--and frankly to my keen disappointment--I know from past experience that what I may be able to share here will likely be ignored. And I'm utterly disheartened at that sad fact.

But as it's my day off, and what's on television today pretty much sucks ( where's a LotR marathon when you really need one!😏), I may end up posting some snippets to fill my time and feed my mind. Telling myself it's not just a lesson in futility, though I only half believe that. Hoping a few Readers here will prove me wrong.

#trials and tribulations of a writer #Khan #my dark magnificent prince #Khan Noonien Singh #Star Trek: Into Darkness #Star Trek Into Darkness #Star Trek Kelvin Timeline #Kelvin Timeline #Khanbatch #A Khan By Any Other Name #Man of Passion Force of Nature #Benedict Cumberbatch #My Muse #My Constant Muse

[getvalentined]

I curate my fandom experience very specifically. I block tags for ships and subjects I don't want to see, I mute and block users who engage in behaviors that I find unacceptable and focus on themes that I actively dislike, I use a number of extensions to keep specific types of content from coming across my feed. Every platform on which I spend any noteworthy amount of time is carefully managed in this way.

I will also block anyone who knowingly posts machine generated content. Period. I understand why it's allowed on AO3—if it weren't, people would just post it without tagging it appropriately the same way folks used to post smut on FFN—but I will go out of my way to make sure that I never ever have to see it.

This is not, contrary to a number of arguments I see, an act of bigotry. This isn't a form of harassment. It's not even ostracization—I'm a single person making a decision regarding what I want to see in my fandom experience, not a community shunning someone for their behavior. It's a personal decision.

If you don't think blocking creators whose work focuses on a ship you can't stand is "targeted harassment," then blocking users who post machine generated content certainly isn't either. I get to decide what fandom is for me, and for me it's engaging in something I love with other human beings.

If I wanted to interact with a computer, I'd call my health insurance provider.

#fandom vent

[only-lonely-stars]

The Gift of New Life

Oneshot – (FFN) (AO3)

Summary:

Zane had sacrificed himself to save all of Ninjago from the Overlord. Pixal didn't go to his funeral. Instead, she went to the factory floor. Zane, of course, didn't stay dead, but how he lived afterwards is yet a mystery... Here is one possible story of his rebirth. aka, "How Zane Defied Death (the first time)"

Anyone who said "time flies" was wrong; Pixal had never felt time move so slowly. It had only been one week since the end of the Overlord's second attempt to conquer Ninjago, but the world had changed immeasurably, and no less with the loss of Zane. As she thought about it, Pixal's half of a heart hurt. The very one who had given her his heart was gone– cast into oblivion– dead and buried. Even the memorial service was too painful for her. Instead, she stayed in Borg Tower and watched as the Ninja said their last words to their beloved steel friend.

"You are Zane, a droid like me. What does Zane stand for?"

"I stand for peace, freedom, and courage." How long it had been since Pixal heard those first words. They almost felt like she was hearing them again.

"Your hardware is outdated, and your processor is slow and incompatible." Pixal once didn't know how beautiful Zane's differences were; once, she mindlessly followed her code, not her heart.

"Why are you so different?" If only she could hear that voice speak to her again. She turned from the window with an unnecessary sigh (no droid could need air) and looked toward Borg's computer. There, on the screen, was a camera feed from the day she met Zane. Hadn't it been blank just minutes before?

"We're all different, but I don't feel so different around you." Pixal gasped and ran to the computer.

"I wasn't recalling that voice! Zane, is that you?" Was he here, with her, somehow? She had always known him to perform small miracles.

"You are vital to me." There it was, the voice speaking again.

"You are vital to me," she replied, quiet. "Are you… here?"

"I shall see you again," the videos replied, before switching to a view of the nindroid assembly line. Pixal nodded before running to the elevator and slamming the call button. As she descended within it, she hardly dared to breathe. As soon as the elevator doors opened, she bolted out onto the conveyor belt, watching as the robotic machines turned their eerily human heads toward her. She held her breath, waiting for a signal.

"Are we compatible now?"

-----

Clank, clank, clank– the sound of a hammer rang throughout the factory. Three weeks had passed in a flash, so unlike before, but this time the distorted passage of time was a good thing. Pixal had been working non-stop trying to rebuild Zane's body, while he worked from inside the digital systems of Borg Industries to reconstitute his mind. A few small memories were lost, like Cole's favorite type of cake, but he was alive and intact, so it was good enough. Pixal had run a diagnostic on him at the beginning of the process, and she shuddered at the cold feeling that sprung up along her spine at the thought of Zane's untimely end. How awful that had been…

"Have you finished it, Pixal?" Zane's voice echoed from speakers, with a camera trained on her to act as his eyes.

"Oh, yes! It's all in place. I just need to finish the chestplate."

"Wonderful." Zane smiled, and despite him being the Ninja of Ice, it was like sunshine on a spring day (in Pixal's unbiased, logical opinion). She gave the hammer one final strike before putting it aside.

After fastening the plate to his new titanium body, Pixal turned to the computer, where a digital avatar of Zane waited. "Are you ready, Zane? You can commence the upload at any time."

"Yes, let's begin. Thank you, Pixal." Zane's avatar fizzled out immediately after.

A robotic voice echoed loudly in Pixal's ears. WARNING. Certain files are incompatible with newer BorgTech™ systems and may not properly align. Commence upload anyway? Pixal shook her head and pressed a button.

"Upload will commence in 3… 2… 1… Do not disconnect the power source."

-----

Aquamarine eyes flickered to life as a viewscreen displayed diagnostics. A titanium body sat up, creaking from its newness. A hand stretched out. "Pixal…?"

"Zane. Welcome back." Pixal took his hand and pulled him to his feet. "I have missed you."

"I have… missed you too, but I cannot remember why… Was I gone?" Zane blinked owlishly at her.

"Do you not remember it, Zane? You sacrificed yourself in order to freeze the Overlord." Pixal took Zane's other hand. "You saved everyone, including me."

Zane shook his head. "I feel out of sorts. It must have been the upload. I do not think this disorientation will last very long."

"I am inclined to agree with you. We should go meet with the Ninja and tell them the good news– they have not yet been informed of our project, in case something went wrong." While she did not say it, Pixal's fears were palpable; if they had failed, how would she have told them their brother was gone a second time?

Zane nodded. "Let us be glad it succeeded." He took Pixal's hand, and a pleasant staticky feeling ran up Pixal's arm. She smiled, but Zane's returning grin was short-lived. "I cannot remember some things, Pixal. Some of my memory files are missing or corrupted. I am concerned that perhaps the upload was not as successful as we thought it was."

Pixal's eyes widened. "You have more missing memories? What is the magnitude of their severity?"

"I do not think they are severe at the moment, but they may worsen. I am afraid only time will tell if they are resolved. We should meet my brothers and tell them; perhaps Jay or Nya can help." Zane sighed– to Pixal's ears, it seemed oddly mechanical.

"Very well, then. Shall we go?" Pixal held her hand out to Zane, who took it with a smile.

"We shall." Moments later, his vision turned black, consciousness lost.

-----

Zane blinked rapidly, his new eyes flickering slightly as he came to full consciousness. He looked around frantically, spotting Pixal shut down in a corner. "Pixal!"

"Hey, tin can, you're awake! Welcome to my humble abode," an unfamiliar voice called.

As Zane looked around, he saw no identifying markings of any kind; only the walls of a warehouse. He tried to stand, only to find that his hands were tied to a post, making that impossible without help. "Who are you?" He struggled against his bindings.

"That's not gonna work, buddy. You're well and truly stuck there." The stranger approached, remaining half-clad in shadow. Only half his face was visible, the other half obscured by a bandanna and an eyepatch with a telescoping lens. A wide-brimmed hat cast long shadows on his face, belying creases on his face. "Besides, we wouldn't want you getting hurt. You're worth an awful lot of money."

"You kidnapped us? Do you not know who we are?" Zane protested.

"Of course I do! That's the point. Too bad you're easier to transport in hibernate mode; you're such a bundle of joy to talk to." The man stepped closer. "I suppose it doesn't matter anyway; I can just switch you off."

"Don't do it!" Zane shouted, trying to lean away. "What have you done to Pixal?"

"Nothing that can't be undone," the man said with a chuckle. "Same with you." With those final words, he reached out; Zane shut his eyes tightly, and then he felt no more.

-----

Pixal blinked several times and sat up, raising her head to look around her. In front of her stood Zane, looking frightened for his life. "Zane? What happened?" She shook her head. "It seems I have been hard reset. Do you know who did this?"

"It was a stranger, Pixal. I do not know his name. He did the same to me." Zane kneeled before her, a hand resting on her cheek. "He has taken us hostage. My global positioning system says we are currently off the eastern coast of the mainland, on an unmarked island."

Pixal nodded and looked around. "Where are we? Some sort of holding cell?"

"We are in the back of a truck, I believe. It has not moved for some time." Zane glanced at the door. "I cannot access my elemental powers at all, and I am unarmed; with my neural drive's current state, I am also unable to open the door. We are trapped." He looked back to Pixal, a deep frown upon his artificial features. "I am terribly sorry you were dragged into this."

"Do not apologize, Zane. It was unavoidable, and I would have it no other way. I am glad I am with you." Pixal smiled sadly, taking Zane's hand in her own. "After all, we are compatible."

Zane smiled. "Yes, we are." As if to punctuate his statement, a loud thump occurred against the wall of the truck. "It seems we are not alone."

A voice rang out, muffled by the truck walls. "Gah, stupid cultists! Can't even carry crates right! This deal had better be worth it."

Pixal locked eyes with Zane. "How is your neural drive? I hesitate to believe we will be alone for long."

Zane shook his head. "It is in a bad state. I seem to have even more corrupted files. It will take a long time to dredge the backups from my hard drive."

Pixal frowned. "It will have to do for now."

The voice outside the truck shouted again. "Hey, watch it! That's valuable cargo, straight from Stiix!" It paused, then took a different tone. "Ah, Chen. There you are."

A whiny voice shouted in return. "There you are, Ronin! Do you have the robot?"

"Yes, I have the nindroid," the first– likely Ronin– responded.

"Let me see him!" the whiny voice, which must belong to Chen, shouted. "I need to know you kept your deal!"

"Hey, hold it," Ronin responded. "Give me the money first."

"Yes, yes," Chen replied, his tone off-handed. "Clouse, give him the money. I want to see the prize!"

"I brought Borg's droid too. The nindroid's smitten with her. You never know how helpful it is to have a bargaining chip."

"Yes, you're right! Clouse, add an extra three hundred for her. It's a pleasure doing business with you, Ronin."

"Yeah. A pleasure." The voices fell silent, and Pixal nodded at Zane.

"Here's our chance," Pixal whispered.

Zane nodded and stood, helping her stand up too. "We won't get a second. Ready?"

"Ready." The two of them stood apart, ready to fight. A minute later, the door creaked open, and Pixal launched herself at the men opening the door. After landing a kick, a man with a sort of telescoping eyepatch grabbed her foot and threw her onto her back.

"You're a feisty one, huh sweetheart? Careful, don't hurt yourself," the man snarked.

Pixal sat herself up abruptly and pushed herself back. After managing to stand, she glanced at Zane, only to find him frozen. "Zane…?"

Zane shook his head rapidly, looking confused. "What is going on? Did I miss something?"

Pixal's eyes widened. "Oh, no. Your neural drive!"

The man in the hat laughed harshly and turned to a man next to him with facial hair and a large purple boa. "Well isn't that handy. Look, Chen. He can't even fight you off! I'd say that's a deal for you."

Chen laughed. "Yes, yes, you're right! Clouse, get our men to take them to their cells!" Another man, this one with a greasy mustache and slicked hair, nodded and gestured to several tattooed men wearing skulls, who entered the truck. Pixal edged away from them with Zane, but they hit a wall and the men grabbed them by the arms.

"Zane!" Pixal called frantically, struggling unsuccessfully to free herself. "You must fight back!"

Zane shook his head and pulled his arms free, only to have another man pin them. "My d-defensive programs are not respon-ponding! I-I-I-I am unable to fight th-th-them!" His voice glitched painfully, displeasure evident on his face. The men wrenched his arms behind him and began marching him out of the truck. "Pixal!"

Pixal stared in horror as her own captors marched her in the same direction. As Zane glitched erratically, she tried to defend herself, but she could only watch as they were brought to two identical cell doors. Zane was thrown in the right, and she in the left.

Zane shouted as he was thrown against a wall and shackled. His captors immediately slammed and locked the door, as Pixal was locked in her own. "I am unharmed. Are you?"

Pixal ran to the window connecting their cells and shook her head. "I am as safe as I can be. You are shackled, Zane!"

"Yes," he replied with displeasure. "I will be able to cut them, I believe, but not any time soon. The saw in my arm will suffice."

Pixal nodded. "Very well." As soon as she said that, the door to her cell slammed open, revealing more of the tattooed men. She gasped and backed up to the wall, frantically searching for an opening for escape, yet finding none. "Do not touch me!"

The mustached man approached from the back of the group and grinned. "I find it difficult to see the power behind your words, robot."

"I said, don't touch me," Pixal exclaimed. "I am a droid, and I can defend myself!"

"Well, that poses a problem," the man simpered. "But that can be remedied." He gestured to her. "You know what to do." With that, the men advanced.

"Stop!" Pixal held out her arms in protest, only for the men to encircle her and remove her arms at the shoulder sockets. Red warnings flashed across her visual interface.

"Pixal!" Zane exclaimed, pulling uselessly against his chains. "What are they doing to you?"

"T-they are disconnecting my body!" Pixal replied. "They have taken my arms- You can't take that ou-" Her voice cut off abruptly.

"PIXAL!" Zane cried, but there was no response other than simpering laughter.

"My mistake. I seem to have removed her neural drive. Such a pity for that beautiful body to be useless." The mustached man came to the window. "Let this be a lesson, nindroid. Fighting back will only result in pain."

Zane shook his head. "You can't do this."

"You misunderstand, nindroid. I can, and I will." With that, the man stepped away.

Zane shook his head, his eyes falling to the floor as he uselessly tried to sob. His digital breath hitched, and he almost laughed; they had forgotten to add tear ducts to his new body. A fresh wave of emotion washed over him, pushing against his skull, and warnings flared across his vision. Warning: intense emotional experience will increase file corruption. Calm down. Zane laughed emptily and continued to silently sob, the warnings multiplying. It didn't matter that his files were slowly corrupting and disappearing; Pixal was gone, and nobody even knew he was alive again. There would be no rescue for him. He hung his head as his eyes closed, the warnings dyeing his vision red. Let him forget; it would hurt less.

#ninjago #ninjago zane #ninjago pixal #pixane #zane julien #pixal borg #ninjago fanfiction #set during the season 3 to season 4 gap #zangst #OLST fanfic #OLST writing

[shelbyshoe]

Looks Like Rent Is Due

One-Shot

Fairy Tail (NaLu) Lucy is fired, again. Saving the day with psychic abilities isn’t as rewarding as you think it is. Down on her luck, and with only half rent, she strikes a deal with her landlord’s brother, a vampire named Natsu. Free rent for free blood. At least it’s a trial run, and he’s incredibly hot. Rated E (smut, vampire bites, blood) Words: 7398

Based on this amazing post.

AO3

FFN

“You’re fired.”

“What? Can I at least get a two-week notice? I have people to feed,” Lucy said. Her manager narrowed his eyes and slapped an envelope onto the counter.

“First, you are the only person you’re feeding. Second, this is the rest of your paycheck. Feel free to leave.” He didn’t wait for her to convince him that she was a great employee and that she needed the money. On his way to the back room, she caught his brief thought.

Thank gods she’s gone.

The front door to the Seven Eleven rang as she walked out of the store for the last time toward her apartment building. The summer humidity settled over her skin. Some of the hair that had escaped her ponytail stuck to the sides of her face. This wasn’t the first time someone had fired her. That’s what happened when you had psychic abilities and just so happen to stop a man from abducting a child at a Seven Eleven. Alright, she could have stopped him a bit less aggressively. But come on. It was either she allowed the man to walk away with the kid or she kicked him in the face to give the kid some time to get the heck out of there.

Lucy was a magnet for disasters. She had stopped two kidnappings, a robbery, a drug deal, and stopped a surprisingly sneaky old lady from pickpocketing everyone that passed by her at the local coffee shop. Every time, she’d had to intervene without a good reason. No one would believe that she could read people’s thoughts.

She’d tried to tell herself that it was none of her business what people thought about. Their evil intent had nothing to do with her. But when she kicked that man in the face today, that little kid appeared so relieved. It made it worth getting fired. Except, she now had to find another job. The Seven Eleven gig was already a miracle. Managers knew her as the girl that kicked the shit out of customers. No one would take her.

Lucy stood in front of her apartment building with a sinking feeling in her stomach. The small apartment she’d moved into had the usual amenities, leaky faucets, missing cabinet handles, and of course the loudest neighbors in town. The ones below her sounded like two giraffes scraping their heads on the low ceilings, and the ones above had two dogs who had zoomies all night. The outside of the building let her know that she lived in a Junji Ito novel. The lock to the gate had long broken, left wide open for anyone to get through. The building itself needed a new paint job, and the banisters had rusted, just begging for someone to fall. But at least it was cheap.

She trudged up the concrete stairs to her second-floor apartment. The little old lady that lived next door sat in the breezeway in a little chair. She cradled a steaming cup in her hands and smiled at Lucy’s approach.

“You’re home early,” she said.

“Fired again.” She pulled out her house keys from her bag as she approached her door.

“You’re young yet. You’ll find another one. I believe in you, Heartfilia.” Ms. Sato took a sip of her tea and closed her eyes in bliss. If only Lucy’s life could feel that good.

“Thank you, Ms. Sato.” She pushed open her door and slipped inside. There wasn’t much to her apartment, maybe that was best in her situation. She pulled off her shoes in the tiled genkan, passed the little kitchenette and the door to her all-in-one bathroom, and dropped her bag on the floor before she sank into her two-seater couch. She had plans to get a new TV to fill the empty space in her living room. That was until she lost her job, again. Now she had to save every penny. She didn’t feel like she had needed one before. There was a used bookstore down the street, so she had piles of mass market paperbacks stacked just below the window in the way she’d seen on Instagram. Lucy’s phone buzzed in her pocket. She found a text message from her best friend lit up the screen.

Levy: Want to come out tonight?

Lucy leaned her head back on her couch cushion and stared up at the water-stained ceiling. Either this was a girl’s night, which she couldn’t afford now that she had no job, or Levy had asked her to be a third wheel again. Levy had acquired a new boyfriend and loved to drag Lucy along to try and find her one too. Her tired body begged her to stay home, take a hot shower, and crawl into bed. Her weary mind wanted to drink and forget her loss of a job. Ah, decisions.

Lucy: Who’s coming?

She hoped that was a hint to leave the boyfriend at home. With her luck, Levy would insist that he join them. Their honeymoon phase was cute and all, but Lucy didn’t want to date while in crisis. Did she even have enough money to go out? She leaned over, pulled her bag into her lap, and took out the envelope that her ex-boss gave her. Inside was a stack of cash. He had counted the exact amount that he owed her for her final paycheck. It included a copy of an official notice of termination. Great. Might as well add them to the pile. Her phone buzzed again. She expected to find her answer about Levy’s plans.

Scumlord: This is your reminder that your rent is two days past due. If it is convenient for you, submit your payment through the client portal. If you are using cash, please slip it under door 101. No checks or money orders. Thank you.

Fantastic. Just what she needed in these trying times. Another message lit her screen.

Levy: Just me and Gajeel. You’ve been working so many hours. You should take some time for yourself!

Lucy: Maybe next time! I’m exhausted.

If Lucy’s calculations were correct, she didn’t have enough money for rent. She needed money or time to find a new job. She stared at the landlord’s message. She had cash at least. Maybe she could go down to 101 and convince whoever lived there to take an IOU. Or she could run down to Seven Eleven and beg for her job back. She devised a plan to tell the manager that she’d heard the gross guy, that she kicked to hell, tell that kid some dirty things or something. Though she doubted that made a difference. She still kicked a customer, and corporate only cared about the money in their pockets. The next time she saw something weird, she’d ignore it. Lucy hated her little gift of reading minds. For her entire life, it had only brought her trouble.

“What people think is none of my business.” If she said it enough, she could feel better when she inevitably allowed things like kidnap to happen. Might as well—

Someone knocked at Lucy’s door. She stood and slipped her phone in her back pocket. She peeked through the peephole and found nothing on the other side.

“Who’s there?” she called.

“Here to collect rent,” a low voice said from the other side of her door. Lucy had met her landlord on a few occasions. He was aloof with longish black hair, owned multiple properties, and was ruthless with rent. He had enough money to live somewhere other than the Junji Ito horror apartment building. This person at her door must be whoever lived in apartment 101. Now was her chance to convince whoever was on the other side to allow her to pay half.

Lucy opened the door with an entire spiel about rent rattled off in her head. All of which evaporated as soon as she got a good look at 101. He stood off to the side and leaned against the metal railing. He braced himself on the rail. The drapey gray sleeveless shirt helped display his perfectly toned tanned arms and broad shoulders.

“I can’t.” She hadn’t meant to blurt it out. To her credit, her brain had run on fumes all week and clearly no longer functioned like an adult.

“You can’t pay?” The man in front of her lifted himself off the rail. Her eyes followed his movement. Bad idea. Now, she couldn’t stop staring at his arms.

“I can do half.” She held up the white envelope.

“No can do.” He crossed his arms over his chest. This was not the time to lust over a random man at her door to collect rent. “When can you have all of it? I was explicitly told by my shitty brother not to accept more than full payment.”

“Look, you seem nice. I’d hate to put you in a bad spot, but I only have half. I just got laid off and need to find another job,” Lucy said. He whistled low and shook his head.

“That’s a bummer. But I still can’t take half.”

“Wait, you’re the landlord’s brother?”

“Unfortunately.” He grimaced and peered down the breezeway.

“What brings you to this dump?” It helped the situation that the hot guy sounded like he hated her landlord as much as she did. If she could soften him up a bit, and get him to talk freely, she could convince him to take half the rent payment.

“Dropped out of college and needed somewhere to go.”

“Man, your brother must hate you to send you here.” Lucy leaned against her door frame and tucked her envelope in her back pocket.

“Probably, but I’m not planning to stay. What brings you here? I was expecting drug dealers and gang members.”

“What makes you think I don’t deal?” she said. His eyes widened before he broke out into a soft laugh. The sound made her want to hear more. “I’m kidding. I’m strapped for cash.”

“Clearly, but I meant that you seem like you belong in a high rise somewhere, not here.”

“It’s a long story. What made you drop out?” she asked.

“It’s a long story.” This time when he smiled, his canines stood out to her as particularly sharp. Either Lucy was extremely lonely, or she’d unlocked a new turn on.

“Well, if you don’t want this money, I’m going to grab a drink with it. You are welcome to join me.” Lucy ducked back into her apartment, grabbed her bag, and slipped the envelope inside.

“I’ll take you up on that,” he said as she locked the door.

They fell into step with each other down the stairs and to the sidewalk.

“So, what is your name, 101?” she asked.

“101? Oh, Natsu.” He lifted his arms to secure his hands behind his head while they walked. Lucy found him oddly relaxing to be around. “What about you, 204?”

“I’m Lucy.” They waited at a pedestrian light and waited for cars to pass. Natsu moved to turn the corner, but Lucy took his arm before he could move on.

“Nope, not that way,” she said.

“There’s a Seven Eleven down this way. It’s not that far,” he said.

“We’re going to the Lawson down the road. I was fired from that Seven Eleven.” When the crosswalk signaled them to go, Lucy stepped off the curb and tugged him in the same direction.

“How did you get fired from a Seven Eleven?” Natsu asked. This was the problem with superpowers. She didn’t know how to tell someone that she could hear people’s thoughts. Most freaked out or believed she was crazy.

“I apprehended a criminal,” she said. The cicadas whined in the lush green trees as they passed a small park. A couple kids laughed with each other on the swings. All the sounds of summer played out in a lull around the neighborhood. Even their chatter matched the ambient sounds of the city. If she wasn’t in such a tight spot financially, she may have enjoyed it.

“Fighting evil by moonlight?”

“I’m the one named, 204.”

“But seriously. What did you do? Attack someone in the store?” His tone implied sarcasm, and Lucy wished she could laugh it off with him. On another timeline, she’d still have a job and could have met Natsu under better circumstances, all bills paid. Her fantasy of a better paycheck loomed over her. Natsu’s smile fell, and he leaned forward to get a better look at her face. “You’re kidding. You attacked a customer? No wonder you got fired.”

“He was being a pervert to some kid! I couldn’t stand there and let him abduct children.” The need to validate her actions made her chest tight.

“You didn’t have to beat him up either. Though I don’t blame you. He sounds like he deserved it,” Natsu said.

“I didn’t beat him. I kicked him.”

“What’s the difference?” he said as they rounded the corner to the Lawson. They passed below its blue and white striped sign and into the air-conditioned building. Lucy followed Natsu to the back of the store and stood with him in front of the wall of refrigerated drinks.

“Beating him up implies that I hit him more than once,” she said and browsed the shelves. Her usual green tea caught her eye. Natsu picked up a bottle of cold coffee and eyed the back of the can. What was he thinking? Wait. What was he thinking? Lucy concentrated on his energy but came up empty. Until now, she’d yet to meet a person whose mind she couldn’t read.

“What? Can’t decide either?” He took up a different coffee from the shelf and meandered toward the alcohol. Either she was finally free of her powers, or Natsu’s mind was as dry as the Sahara Desert.

Damn it, she’s here. The thought had dripped in malice and entered her mind at top volume. Lucy glanced over her shoulder to find the man she’d kicked the hell out of eye her from the register. He narrowed his gaze in her direction as the clerk, oblivious, rang him up. Just what she needed, drama to follow her while she browsed a Lawson with her landlord’s brother.

Natsu had moved away from the drinks and strolled the aisle of snacks.

I’ll kill her. The man’s thought sent a chill down Lucy’s back. She turned back to the drinks, grabbed her usual green tea, and squeezed her eyes shut. When she opened them, she prayed the man had disappeared. Lucy jumped when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

“It’s on me.” Natsu held up two beers, a bag of Calbee chips, and his coffee tucked under his arm. “What?” He followed her eyes to the cashier behind the counter on their phone. “Miss your job already? Don’t worry! You’ll find another one.” He took her green tea and added it to his stuff. She followed him to the counter and surveyed the store for signs of the man. Maybe she had imagined him. Natsu swatted her hand away from the bag when she tried to take it from the counter.

“I got it,” he insisted. The summer air, while tepid, made her feel better. The streets were desolate behind them. “Looking for someone?” Natsu asked. Lucy shook her head and adjusted her bag on her shoulder as they walked back. They turned to the street where their apartment building loomed. When she realized Natsu was no longer with her, she made it to the staircase. He squatted on the corner of the street with a shoelace in each hand. He had placed the bag down beside him to tie his shoe. She crossed her arms over her chest and opened her mouth to make a snarky comment when she heard the voice again.

There she is. The man’s voice was unmistakable. Lucy took a step toward Natsu, who kneeled far from her by the street with his other shoe’s laces in his hands. The man jumped out from the shadows. Lucy stepped back into the massive crack in the pavement. She fell over her own feet to the concrete and lifted her hands in front of her face to block an imminent blow. A wall of darkness blocked the final rays of sunlight. Natsu had stood in front of her, bags dropped at her feet, with his hand clutched around the man’s throat. How had he gotten there so fast?

“You may want to rethink that.” Natsu lifted the man up. His feet jerked around as they left the ground. One of his shoes clattered to the floor as he clawed at Natsu’s grip to no avail. “If I catch you anywhere near my friend again, I’ll have to do more than choke you. Got it?” A grin spread across Natsu’s face, and his eyes lit up. While the man gasped for air, he nodded in Natsu’s grasp. The man crumbled to the ground and coughed. His hand had wrapped around his own throat, now an angry shade of red, as he clamored away. “You forgot your shoe!” Natsu picked up the shoe and threw it at the man. It hit the back of his head so hard that he hit the floor. The man grabbed his shoe with wide eyes and ran from sight. When Natsu turned and held out a hand to help her up, she flinched.

“Don’t worry, I don’t think he’ll be coming back any time soon.” Natsu helped her off the floor and took the bag again. Without a second glance, he trotted merrily up the stairs with their goods. Lucy followed behind him with her heart still in her throat. As not to incur his wrath, she quietly opened the door and allowed him inside. Natsu set the bag down on her coffee table and sagged into the couch. “I think your apartment is bigger than mine,” he said.

“What did your brother put you in? A sardine can?” she asked. Her apartment was already tiny. She couldn’t imagine something smaller.

“Basically, a closet compared to your place.” He leaned forward and took out his can of coffee. His fingers snapped back the aluminum tab. His casual posture did not read as someone who would murder her, but she found herself on edge.

“Are we going to talk about what just happened?” she asked.

“I think he followed us from the Lawson.” Natsu took a long sip of his coffee and leaned back on the couch. “I like your couch too. Need a roommate?” he teased.

“Are you on drugs?”

“Drugs? Where did that come from?”

“I’m serious. What was that?” she asked. He eyed her for a moment and tapped his index finger against the can.

“You are kind of odd yourself, being a mind reader and all,” he said. Lucy’s blood ran cold in her veins. She took an involuntary step back toward the door. Natsu held his hands up in front of him. “It’s cool. Your secret is safe with me.”

“How did you know?” she asked.

“You probed a few times,” he pointed to his head, “but I have guards up, sorry.” He downed the rest of his coffee, placed the can on the table, and leaned into the bag for his chips.

“You’re a psychic? But that doesn’t explain the speed.” Lucy slid her bag from her shoulder and set it down on the floor beside the table. Natsu munched away on his chips, and Lucy sat opposite him on her little pink sitting cushion.

“Not exactly. But I’m not allowed to talk about it. Chip?” He held out the open bag for her. She took some and pulled out her cold tea from the bag. They sat in silence munching and enjoying the air conditioning that she turned on with a little remote.

“Why aren’t you allowed to talk about it?” Lucy had never met anyone like Natsu before. Granted, she’d yet to meet someone like herself. “Is your brother psychic too?” she asked.

“Nah, he didn’t get the gift.”

“Does he have your speed?” Lucy’s phone buzzed in her bag, and she reached over to grab it. A text lit up the screen.

Levy: When was the last time you were outside of that apartment, aside from working? You deserve a night out. She practically heard Levy’s voice through the text. Unless she had an alibi, Levy would insist she join them.

“He does.” Natsu sifted through the shopping bag, pulled out one of the beers, and popped the tab.

Lucy: Just now, actually! I’m hanging out with a neighbor. Her phone buzzed immediately.

Levy: A hot neighbor? Her text included a very suggestive emoji.

“What?” Natsu asked from the couch.

“Nothing. Texting a friend back.” Lucy turned her phone face down beside her and sipped on her tea.

“I’m faster than him,” Natsu said. It took her a moment to remember what she had asked him before.

“Your brother?”

“I mean, he tried to beat my speed, but I always have the fastest time.” Natsu grinned to himself and took a drink of his beer.

“I feel like there’s something you’re not telling me. Let me get this straight, my landlord is a super speedy guy, and his brother can read minds but isn’t allowed to talk about it,” Lucy said.

“Look, I’m not allowed to talk about it with just anyone, but you clearly are just as weird as we are, so I’m sure he’d let this slide,” he said. Lucy’s heart raced in her chest. She didn’t expect the excitement that came with those words. Would she feel less alone if she could finally talk about her gifts with someone like her?

“We’re vampires,” Natsu said. The world dropped beneath her. She needed to get this clearly delusional drug addict with brother issues out of her apartment. She lifted her phone to check it and gave herself a moment to escape.

Levy: Lucy Heartfilia! Do not leave me hanging or else I will call you!

Lucy: He is good looking, but he is my landlord’s brother. It isn’t what you think. She hoped that was enough to keep her from calling. Now was clearly not the time.

“No, I’m not a drug addict with brother issues.” Natsu rolled his eyes and finished off his beer. “Do you recycle?” He crunched a can in his fist and pointed to his empty coffee.

“Stop reading my mind! And yes, the cans go in there.” She pointed to the kitchenette. “There’s a bag under the sink.” Her phone buzzed in her hand. Natsu got up with the cans in his grasp.

Levy: Ohhh free rent? Lucy had almost forgotten about her rent problem. Natsu’s relaxed demeanor and possible insanity really put a wrench in her plan to talk her way out of paying in full.

“Ah yeah, the rent,” Natsu said from the kitchenette.

“I said don’t—”

“Read your mind. Yeah, I got it.” Natsu waved her off and sat back on the couch. Lucy leaned back onto her palms. “Well, now that you know I’m a vampire, maybe we can make a deal for rent.” He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and his hands steepled together. From her angle, Natsu resembled a movie villain.

“A deal? Look, I tried to get you to take half the rent. I can get the rest by the end of the week if I can get another job.” Lucy didn’t want to make a deal with a drug addict, but her back was against a wall here.

“I’m not a drug addict.”

“How am I supposed to believe that you’re a vampire? That’s crazy.”

“You’re a psychic and you don’t think vampires can exist?”

“Fine, I’ll bite, what kind of deal?” Lucy heard her phone buzz again but left it alone. Levy could wait.

“I feed from you, and you get free rent. You can use the money to take a vacation or have more time to look for a new job. I get fed, which I’m currently having a hard time doing since the blood bank is low on supply. A win-win if you ask me.” His grin revealed the sharp canines from before. Could he really be a vampire?

“Feed? As in bite me? I’d rather not go to the hospital for an infected human bite.” She sat up and drank more of her tea.

“Well, it’s a good thing I’m not human then.”

“I’m going to be honest with you because you can read my mind.”

“That’s fair.”

“I think you’re a lunatic.”

“I’ve met lunatics and I can assure you that I am not one of them. But my offer still stands. My brother clearly stated he will not take half rent.”

“You couldn’t just ask him to take half?” she asked. Natsu tossed the empty bag of chips into the plastic shopping bag and stood.

“When I say he won’t take half, I mean it. That man will not budge on something like this, trust me.” He threw the trash away in a bag under the kitchen sink.

“Do you mean that, or do you just want to bite me?” she asked. Natsu leaned on the entry to her small hall and laughed.

“You really are fun to be around, you know that?” He ran his hand through his messy pink hair. She had to admit that she hadn’t lied to Levy. The man was hot. If only he wasn’t crazy. “I mean it though. He won’t take it.”

“But you’re so convinced that he’ll let it go if you get to feed from me?”

“Yeah. If he thinks it’ll get me closer to getting a big boy job and out of this apartment, he’d allow it. Saving money on blood supply would do that.” He pushed away from the wall, his eyes lit up, and he snapped his fingers. The gesture was so comical she expected to see a little light bulb above his head. “I have an idea.” Natsu bounded back into the living space and crouched next to her. He sat on the heels of his feet and draped his arms over his knees. Lucy leaned back at his sudden closeness.

“I’m afraid to ask,” she said.

“Why don’t you try a trial run?” he asked.

“Come again?” Close up, everything about Natsu remained pristine. The flawless skin and attractive turn of his lips made her rethink his immortal status.

“We can do a monthly trial,” he said, “I take your blood, and you keep your money. If you don’t like it, then you can go back to paying for rent the old fashion way next month.” His excitement was infectious and terrifying. The truth was, she had no idea where she was going to look for a job. She couldn’t go back to the convenience stores. Retail was hell and she had a better chance of running into people with malevolent intent. If she took this little trial, she could stash her money away and buy her time to find a job in another industry, something quiet.

“How do I know you’ll keep your end of the bargain?” Lucy couldn’t believe she entertained the idea.

“I live downstairs from you. Even if I didn’t keep my end up, you could find me easily and kick my ass,” he said.

“Do we have a contract or something?”

“I’m fine with your word.” Natsu shrugged and gave her a million-watt smile. She couldn’t help the way her stomach flip flopped. Either she had reached the limit of her loneliness, she had lost her mind, this man had mind control over her, or it was truly a good deal. Either way, she took his offered hand and shook it.

“It’s a deal then,” she said. He dropped her hand but made no move to stand up. “Uh, when did you want to start?” Her heart hammered in her chest as he leaned in and sank to his knees in front of her.

“Now, if you’d like,” he said. If she moved mere inches, she’d be able to kiss him. The idea rattled around in her head but all she could do was nod. Had he heard that little thought? Natsu moved her hair over her shoulder, leaned in with both palms pressed to the ground on either side of her, and hesitated at her neck. “I did hear that.” First, she felt his warm breath against her neck, then the exquisite sensation of his lips against her skin. She melted into him.

“You should stay out of my head,” she said.

“Do you want in mine?” Natsu took her arms in his grasp and pulled her against him. Lucy’s breath caught in her throat, and with apprehension, she concentrated on his mind.

Beautiful. The first word she’d picked up from him made her heart flutter. Hold still, Lucy.

When his fangs pierced her skin, she balled his shirt in her hands. The pinpricks were followed by the most overwhelming lust she’d ever felt in her entire life. A soft moan slipped from her lips, and his grip tightened around her arms. Her sex clenched painfully with need. A long draw of her blood forced another moan to tumble from her lips. Her whole body pulled taut and teetered on the edge of orgasm from his mouth alone. Natsu’s chest vibrated with a deep groan. He slid his hands onto her backside and dragged her into his lap. His thick arousal pressed against her core. He pulled away from her neck and lapped at the mark. Lucy’s head lulled to the side and her body thrummed in her haze.

Natsu palmed the back of her neck and dragged her lips to his. Their kiss was like lit propane. His taste mixed with the metallic tang of blood that rolled over her tongue. She thrust against his length, determined to relieve the ache. The clothes felt too heavy, too imposing, against her skin. As if to answer her thought, he pulled her shirt over her head and unclasped her bra. The air was cool across her heated skin. He took her lips again and trailed kisses from her jaw to her breasts. Lucy slid her fingers through his hair when he took possession of her sensitive nipple. He rolled the peak between his deft fingertips, and his eyes never left her as he swept his tongue over the breadth of the other.

The loud buzz of her phone cut off the curse that rolled off her tongue. She groaned when he squeezed her breast in his hand and sucked harder on her skin. The phone stopped and then started again. This time, her groan was because of the sound.

“Sounds urgent,” he said against her nipple, “you can answer it.”

“I can’t.” Her voice came out as more of a whimper than she liked.

Just tell them you’re busy and hang up. His hand that cupped her ass tugged her against him. She’d give anything to take the rest of her clothes off. The phone continued its demand for her attention. Better answer it if they want to talk to you that bad.

You just want me on the phone while you do this. She made sure that her voice came out snarky in her mind.

I wouldn’t say that. But it’s going to keep ringing. He grinned and released her nipple from his mouth with a wet suck. His dark eyes flickered up to her as he lapped at the flushed skin. Her phone started up again.

“Fine.” Lucy leaned back to reach for her bag. Her arm dug around for the damn phone. She wrapped her hand around it like treasure and answered.

“Lucy! What is going on? Did your hot neighbor leave?” Levy spoke loudly to the receiver. Her voice slurred slightly, and other voices mingled in behind her. A bar maybe?

“No and I have to go.” Lucy worked to keep her voice steady.

“He’s there with you?  Did he get you free rent or something?” she asked. Natsu took that moment to sink his fangs into the supple skin of her breast.

“Yes.” She bit her lip to keep from crying out in Levy’s ear.

“What? What does he get in return? Surely, they wouldn’t let you get away with a whole month for free.” Levy was clever. Lucy feared that her intelligent friend, even tipsy could hear what the man in her arms did to her.

You taste amazing. Natsu groaned low against her skin.

“I really have to go.”

“Are you alright? You sound out of breath,” Levy said. Lucy had a few choice words for Natsu, but her brain had barely processed her phone conversation, her telepathic one was out of the question.

“Just ran to the store. I’ll call you after, I promise.”

“After what?”

“Come on, Shrimp. You’ve had too much and it’s time to go.” Levy’s boyfriend’s voice sounded further away. If it weren’t for her predicament, Lucy would thank Gajeel.

“Talk to you later!” Lucy hung up the phone, tossed it on the couch, and let out a long moan. “Why did you have to bite me while I was on the phone?” she asked. Natsu gave another hard suck and groaned against her breast. Her pleasure sent stars across her vision. No matter how good she felt, or how close to the precipice she was, her orgasm didn’t come. Something about the bite itself could not bring her over the edge. He laid her back against the floor and pulled back. A bead of blood traveled down the side of her breast, and he followed it with his tongue before he licked the bite.

They fumbled to get the rest of their clothes off. His erection sprung free, and precum shone from the head of his shaft. In Lucy’s haze, she looked her fill, unabashed by her greedy gaze. Natsu did the same and languidly stroked himself at the sight of her.

Where have you been all my life? Did he even know she could still hear him? Natsu lifted her legs over his shoulders and clutched her thighs, lowering himself to the floor. His warm breath stroked her core.

Please. Her sex glistened with how wet she’d become.

Someone else liked the phone call too. His voice and soft chuckle bounced around her head. Natsu trailed his lips along her inner thigh toward her center. She wiggled with impatience. His deep green eyes flicked up to her. Looks like you loved it. He reached one hand over and ran his thumb up and down her damp slit. Her legs shook as he skimmed the pale skin of her thigh with his teeth. When he bit down, he pushed past her folds with his thumb and slid himself deep into her. Her moan was so loud that she was sure that the little old lady next door heard.

Lucy grabbed a fist full of his cherry hair and tugged. The growl of pleasure shook against her thigh. He pulled his thumb out of her and rubbed her aching clit with her own slick heat. Lucy writhed beneath him. He sucked hard and plunged two fingers past her soaked lips. This time, she felt her pulse race with her impending climax. The harmony of their heavy breaths and the slick sound of his digits moving in and out of her filled the room.

Can’t get enough of you. His voice was velvet and through their mental connection alone, he made her feel as though his hands pulled her hardened nipples. A curse left her lips in surprise. He pulled his fingers out of her and began to vigorously stroke her sensitive bud. The friction mounted enough to make her eyes roll back. With one last suck, she found rapture in her release. No man had ever made her cum so hard in her life.

Natsu slowed his pace and pulled away from his bite. He lapped at the skin there and moved her legs from his shoulders. The absence of him made her skin feel cold, and her sex tightened without him inside her. With the slickness of his hand, he stroked his length. A low hiss escaped him as he did. She could only imagine the discomfort he felt then. Even so, she found the look of his hand wrapped around his shaft, the definition of muscle across his arms, and the aching way he gazed at her body sexy as hell.

Lucy attempted to sit up, but dizziness made her fall back. Natsu stilled and leaned over her.

“Are you dizzy? I’m sorry, I may have taken too much from you.” He pressed his palms on either side of her and leaned in to take her lips.

“I’m fine,” she said into his mouth. His tongue moved over hers as though he’d never taste her again.

“Can I?” Natsu clutched his thick erection and poised himself over her damp curls.

“Yes.” Lucy squirmed beneath him with need. He grinned down at her and spread her lips with the head of his cock.

Hold tight. He steadily sheathed himself into her. She arched against him, and her legs spread wider. He cursed as he plunged himself inch by inch. Her walls stretched deliciously to accommodate him; the feeling so exquisite that her legs shook. He clutched her thighs, sat up, and peered down at the way their bodies met. You wanna try something? She barely registered his husky voice in her head.

Try what? Lucy had no clue what he wanted to try, but she knew she’d say yes.

Remember how I touched you telepathically before? He took a long breath out. Her walls gripped his length as he slowly moved out of her. Both groaned with the sensation.

“I remember,” she said.

“I’ve never had a connection like this before,” he admitted, “Concentrate on that link, the way you do when we talk.” At first, she felt skeptical. Part of her didn’t care about anything but the pleasure, but she obliged him. Their eyes locked as he thrust deep inside her. Lucy grabbed his arms like an anchor. Instead of pulling out, he rotated his hips so that he could stroke her clit.

This is the best sex I’ve ever had. She hadn’t meant to “send” that thought, but from the wide grin on his face, she knew it was too late to take it back. Their connection felt like a line between them, only stronger as they came together. She held onto that line. Then she felt it. Her eyes widened and her breath quickened. Natsu thrust into her at an easy rhythm all the while she felt his teeth gently tug on her nipples, even with his mouth far from her. How? The mounting feeling in the pit of her stomach started again. Her mouth hung open with cries that never came.

He bit his lip as he surged forward. He moved his hand to her ass and pulled her hips higher. The angle was her catalyst. The head of his shaft grazed a soft spot inside her with each thrust. Lucy came undone in his hands.

Yeah, just like that. A small trickle of blood rolled down his chin from his teeth clenched against his flushed lip. Her orgasm ripped through her. Could he feel it? She concentrated on the way they spoke to each other, that thread pulled taut. Natsu’s moans mingled with hers and he screwed his eyes shut. Is that your— Fuck, Lucy. Is that yours? The waves of her orgasm ebbed, and her mind reeled.

Maybe. Served him right for using whatever this was on her first.

I guess I have to return the favor. He pulled out and flipped her onto her stomach. She made a sound of protest but quieted when he lifted her hips up for his cock to slide back into her from behind. Lucy gasped at the movement. But it wasn’t until his orgasm reached her through their connection that she knew what he meant by “return the favor”. A litany of curses tumbled from her mouth. So much for a good repour with her neighbors. His climax ripped through her so hard that she thrust in the air around his dick that rocked into her. He moaned her name like a prayer. Their essence ran down her leg as she reached down to stroke herself as he came.

When their movements became languid and her muscles ached, he pulled out of her. They lay on the floor out of breath.

You said you’ve never had a connection like that before? Her exhaustion made it easier to ask in her head.

“You’re the first psychic I’ve met.”

So, you’ve never done that mind thing with another woman before?

“Never. This was the best sex I’ve ever had.” He turned his head to meet her eyes. Didn’t know it could be that good.

“Neither did I,” she said.

“We’ll need to work on this connection thing.”

“Why?” She sat up slowly. Natsu followed her movements and held out a hand in case she fell back again.

“We keep reading thoughts that we don’t mean to send. Are you dizzy?” he asked.

“Not as bad,” she said. Natsu stood and took to her little refrigerator. It was bizarre to see a hot naked man casually in her fridge.

“Ah, ha.” He pulled out a bottle of juice and came back with it. “Drink this. You should probably eat something too. I’m sorry about that.”

“Got a little carried away?” She popped the top off the drink. He messed with the back of his hair and didn’t meet her eyes.

“It seems like it.”

The two of them cleaned up and dressed. Natsu waited until she finished the rest of her juice before he offered to grab her food. She told him she had leftovers, and he didn’t have to worry about it.

“Can I ask a question?” she asked later as she walked him to the door.

“Sure.”

“Why are there no marks?” She noticed in the bathroom that none of his bite marks had stuck around. Another reminder that he wasn’t human.

“Why? Want them to show?” He wagged his eyebrows at her suggestively. She playfully swatted at him. His ability to bypass awkwardness with mischief was amazing to her. Nothing appeared to faze him. Who was this man?

“No, I was just wondering if that was why you, you know, licked them.”

“Yeah, that helps them heal as fast as I do.” Natsu leaned against the closed door with his arms crossed over his chest. “Are you sure you don’t want anything to eat?”

“I’ll be fine. I appreciate it,” she said. Natsu nodded and opened the door to reveal Levy on the other side. Her fist raised to knock. “Oh, looks like you have a visitor, Lucy.” Natsu extended his hand. “Nice to meet you. Levy, right?” he asked. Levy nodded with her mouth slightly open. “Well, this was nice. Same time next month, Lucy?” At that moment, Lucy wanted to kick his ass. She’d save it for next month.

The weeks passed quickly. Without rent looming over her head, she found a pep in her step. It didn’t hurt that she had great sex. Yet, she debated another meeting with Natsu. They’d seen each other in passing. One time she caught him in the hall, to which he whispered in her mind. Looking good, Lucy.

Her body craved him and his bite. She found that she’d pleasure herself more with thoughts of him. Occasionally she’d bite her own arm as she did so. She never broke her skin, and it never felt the same.

The day had come, and Lucy stood in front of apartment 101. Instead of knocking on the door, she focused on that connection, that thread they shared, and sent filthy images of everything she’d fantasized about. The door pulled open and Natsu’s dark eyes met hers. He had nothing on but a towel over his waist and droplets of water rolled down his body from a shower.

Looks like rent is due.

#nalu #fairy tail #nalu fan fiction #fairy tail fan fiction #ft fan fiction #looks like rent is due

[chromatic-lamina]

Any number you haven't yet answered but want to for the writer ask meme!

Heh-heh! Great ask ❤️

26. Would you rather write a fic that had no dialogue or one that was only dialogue? One with no dialogue, because I can always throw in reported speech and thought processes. Takes a particular skill to make a fic that is all dialogue authentic and interesting.

28. Does anyone read your fics before you post them? If so, who? Sometimes. I won't name 'em cos' I don't want to clutter up their notifications, but especially for exchanges, or if I've used someone's art (with permission) as inspiration, or for zines, etc.

37. Promote one of your own “deep cut” fics (an underrated one, or one that never got as much traction as you think it deserves!). What do you like about it? Okay, I guess the most recent is valuta from the Corazine (aftersales almost finished, but that's just an aside). I thought I did a pretty good job on portraying what the Donquixote brothers went through, also Cora's relationship with Sengoku and Law, and then Law with Sengoku, but maybe it was too much for the word count. It got very little interaction in the way of comments, at least. I like the KidLaw fics I did for the 2022 exchange and for the OP secret santa that year, but they remain two of my least popular fics (in terms of hits).

I like valuta for story parallels (Cora and Doffy, Law and Lami, etc.). I like the KidLaw fics because they make me laugh.

38. Did any of your fics get surprisingly popular (whatever that means to you)? Which ones? Why do you think they were so successful? Yeah. I think I've answered this before, and it's not massively popular compared to some fandom behemoths, but the Usopp vs the Heart Pirates fic: Dark like the North Blue Sea (aka The Sea-Hill you Die On) . I think it grew in popularity because it's canon compliant (also, maybe funny). Once a fic gets a certain number of kudos or hits too, it feeds its popularity growth, because people sort by kudos and hits, so all those hidden gems remain hidden! I'm happy that people enjoy it though!

43. If you take/write prompts: what’s your favorite prompt fic that you’ve written? Probably the one that @afterdeck-ace gave me of: Chopper and Law talking about courage or Jolly Rogers. They're talking about both in softening the fall of snow. That's followed or on par with screen / shiki-e, which was inspired by a tsute doodle. You can see the doodle and links to tsute's art on the AO3 page.

47. If [taxi] was a pair of shoes, what kind would it be? Describe the shoes.

Her jeans cost more than his weekly pay, hell — monthly— and her sneakers were scuffed and used in a way that hid or emphasised their one-of-a-kind design. Pretty cool. A red tonbo — dragonfly — from what he could see, stretched from the toe, its thorax and segmented body running along one side of the shoe, a blue chrysanthemum and pond reeds rising from the heel and undulating in the air below the insect.

I used a ref for that, but can't remember where I sourced it from.

I changed a few things, and the maker's name is on the jpg, fortunately!

48. What’s the last fic you read? Do you recommend it?

Yes! I recommend it: Ours lives like sand in the gears of the world by @afterdeck-ace (Lily_Amazon). A platonic Law & Robin ficlet that explores the parallels and differences between them so well.

Also, a quick but satisfying read (sounds like Borsalino's possible reflection on Akainu) with this fic, In The Dappled Sun. Lemon mentioned (tumblr's being silly with throwing out community settings left, right and centre, so sorry for the return to FFN vocab). Fic author @kookoofufu

Am continuing to read saltyrock's It Takes a Lot to Know a Man but haven't read the latest chapter yet. LawBin and CrocoBin. Endgame LawBin.

There's a lot of good stuff out there, and so little time!

#one piece #lawbin #fic recs #kidlaw #tony tony chopper #trafalgar law #nico robin #eustass kid #fanfiction writer asks meme #chromalami #long post #donquixote brothers #chromafics #chromafic #chromask #rimetin

[joaquinwhorres]

3 WIPs Tag Game

Rules: post snippets/screenshots/etc. from three of your WIPs! art or fic! tag as many people as you like! (created by @limetimo)

Thank you to the four amazing writers who tagged me in this and shared snippets from their WIPs. I highly highly recommend everyone who stumbles across this check out the posts from @demxters, @sylviebell, @bobfloydsbabe, and @ereardon.

kiss it better -- Javy "Coyote" Machado x Reader (but there's also an OC version with Audrey Herrera on AO3 & FFN) 

"Now's when normal people would say thanks back," he prompted. The flickering of concern you'd felt in your chest sputtered out completely as you leveled Javy with a flat look.  "For allowing me to save your ass in a fight that you started?" you asked, raising an eyebrow as you crossed your arms. "Or for showing the barest amount of basic human decency?"  "Yeah, that's about right," Javy muttered to himself, and his voice seemed to gain some strength back. He apparently did too as he pushed himself up off of the ground to stand in front of you. "Why are you even out here?" "I was sent to apologize," he answered, hand returning once more to his throat. "Sorry, by the way."

Tailspin (Ch. 5) -- Mickey "Fanboy" Garcia x OC

She hardly made the decision before her palm touched his cheek turning him towards her, and then she was pulling him into a kiss as the people around them exploded in cheers. Mickey shifted, hand falling to the other armrest as he bent closer to her. The cheers died as the camera feed refocused back on the pitcher, ready for the first batter, but Mickey's lips remained on Caro's. It was another moment more before Caro pulled back from him. "We're still not dating," she clarified.  "Of course not," he breathed.  "I just didn't want everyone to boo you." "You're very kind," he said, moving a piece of hair out of her face. 

hey baby -- Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x Reader

You realized belatedly that there was no way he was talking to you. His partner had to be sitting a few stools down behind you or something. Your face grew warm with embarrassment as your mouth closed. Before you could tear your eyes away from him and focus on the asshole before you who looked absolutely pale and spindly in comparison, the stranger reached out and drew you into a quick one armed hug, pressing a quick kiss to the side of your head.  "Sorry I'm late; debrief went long." Holy shit. What the fuck. What the actual fuck. "Think you can forgive me?" he asked, offering a sheepish grin, even as he winced in preparation for an emotional blow.

NO PRESSURE TAGS: @tongue-like-a-razor, @rae-gar-targaryen, @veetlegeuse, @asirensrage and anyone else who wants to do it. If you've already done it, please ignore this!

#javy machado x reader #bradley bradshaw x reader #coyote machado x reader #rooster bradshaw x reader #mickey garcia x oc #fanboy garcia x oc #javy machado x oc #coyote machado x oc #javy “coyote” machado x reader #javy “coyote” machado x oc #bradley “rooster” bradshaw x reader #mickey “fanboy” garcia x oc #javy “coyote” machado #javy machado #coyote machado #bradley “rooster” bradshaw #bradley bradshaw #rooster bradshaw #mickey “fanboy” garcia #mickey garcia #fanboy garcia #top gun maverick #tgm fic #tgm oc #fake dating au #series: tailspin #ship: fanro #series: kiss it better #ship: machera

[just-late-roman-republic-things]

if you're ok with sharing, what fandoms are you mainly in on ao3?

I've been in a bunch of fandoms over the years. Golden Sun, Star Wars, the Legend of Zelda, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Pride and Prejudice, Doctor Who, Irresponsible Captain Tylor, Death Note, Yu-Gi-Oh, Homestuck...And history has always been a low-level constant, like cosmic background radiation.

You won't find my earliest fanfics, though. AO3 wasn't a thing and FFN didn't have a category for it yet. So I made a website in HTML (uphill! Both ways! In the snow!) and posted some very...unskilled, but heartfelt, novelizations of Sumerian mythology. Two years later I let the hosting expire and didn't back it up, because I was embarrassed by how poorly written the works were.

But now, I wish I'd kept those stories. I want to repost them just to add a little more wackiness and incompetence back into the fandom world. There's so much pressure to be normal in fandom these days. People are afraid they'll get judgment or harassment just for being earnest. Back in my day we were all just a bunch of gay sewer rats who thought we were breaking the law ("I do not own these characters, please don't sue me Anne Rice!"), knew society didn't like us ("Eww, you write about fake people fucking? What's wrong with you?"), and posted our stories anyway.

Because we had to.

Because if you don't feed the part of yourself that is honest, and silly, and embarrassing, a part of your soul will suffocate.

And that's why I post my poems about dead Romans here even though I'm not very good at poetry; that's why I have a whole google document with citations (unpublished) devoted to whether Agrippa and Octavian were a couple or not. And that's why I try to encourage other folks to write and make art and be weird whenever I get a chance.

#just roman asks #positivity #be the weird you want to see in the world #writing #fandom #about jlrrt #jlrrt essays

[kingofthewilderwest]

Hey, just saw your ffnet post! While it's totally fair of you to not want to put your works on Ao3, I'd ask you to consider it. I've read a lot of fics, many that are years old, many that might be considered "cringey" or "bad", and many that had barely any views, and they all brought me joy. There's a special kind of grief I feel when I see that a fic has been taken down and deleted.

I do understand not wanting to upload this content as if it's what you're currently writing; Ao3 does allow you to backdate your works, so it wouldn't show up as recent but could have the original posting date. You could also consider setting up a pseud account on ao3, which allows it to be attached to your main but not explicitly your main, and have a note that this is a work that you're archiving from ffnet. It's kind of like having a sideblog on tumblr, except the links work better.

You don't need to decide right away; the "ffnet is going down" panic sweeps tumblr every few months and you likely have some time to figure out what you'd like to do. I just thought I'd reach out and share my thoughts. Your work is absolutely worth saving and sharing, in whatever capacity you're comfortable with, and I respect whatever decision you choose, but would also like to encourage you to be open to preserving your works for people to find and enjoy. You never know how much joy you could bring, even just to one person who finds your fics in the future.

Thanks for the message, I appreciate it and everything you've clarified here. Like seriously, thanks. I'm going to keep vomiting out words as I think "aloud", responding to what you've said, because you've helped me.

It's fascinating, because I am a hardcore preservationist who can't get rid of a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g to save my life. I'm similarly bummed when people delete even the most minor things online. And I have no sense of personal cringe. I'll always cherish what projects I've done.

You'd think this would be an easy decision given my values.

The challenge with me here is that publicly posting fics online is more about preserving for others as versus preserving for myself, and I'm trying to decide if I feel comfortable putting my stuff up again for other eyes in any capacity. I'm glad people have gotten joy out of my fics and it does help me think this over more, though I'll admit I've always felt out of sorts, nakedly exposed, having my writing online (even though I wrote and finished fics FOR that Sense Of Others, a sense of obligation and promise, rather than for myself). Ficwriters post about the excitement of getting notifications, whereas for me, it meant going through anxiety every time. XD (but thanks to everyone who wrote the kind words!!! they did make me happy once I got through opening the notification. your kindness is why I wrote. and I am touched when there's the rare comment from 2022 that pops through.)

I realize this frames the situation as more "me-centric" than "giving others joy-centric." I don't want to come off as dismissive of others finding joy, because that's important. The smallest things can be the brightest. My mind has just moved on so much from my fics that I think in terms of "How can I give someone joy today?" in new ways. But you are framing it in terms of people getting new joy. So. That's a good point to mull over.

I've never gotten an account on AO3, so I won't need to think about making the "sideblog"-esque account (though that's fascinating to know about!!! that's cool! you go AO3 for being awesome). But GOSH your response being thorough has been the bestest thing, because I've never known about the backdating, either. That makes it more likely I'd consider moving fics onto AO3, because even writing a "hey this is old" in front of a reupload onto a new site still puts it as "new" in the feed and that makes me uncomfortable. Just quietly shifting it to 2014 when it was written feels more fitting.

I was definitely wondering how this current sweep of "FFN going down" was different than the ramblings that have been going on for years. I've seen recent posts talking about how FFN might not have been updated for one or two years, and that's the most explicit I've gotten. I've recently seen some posts say "just in case," which is more of what I thought it'd logically be. I tend to not believe "FFN is going down" posts because they're just people hashing out what they've said for years, and I want better proof. They're right the site is falling, but yeah. But since these "ending" comments have been particularly widespread all at once, I figure, "Eh, only takes a few minutes, better safe than sorry." But it's good to know your impression of the situation is similar to mine, and that this isn't something I have to resolve anytime soon.

#long post #creative writing #fanfiction #my fanfiction #ask #ask me #theshadowedqueen82 #FFN #ffnet