#and is about as competent as you would expect someone who left the modern world in the 70's to be.

[tealin]

Antarcticans

I may not have used my sketchbook as much as I thought I would, with regard to locations, but I did fill a few pages with one of my favourite pastimes back in The World: people sketching.

My biggest anxiety about going to McMurdo was the human factor.  Whether it was school or work, a recurring motif in my life is that I do not do well in a big box full of Americans, and that is, almost literally, exactly what McMurdo is.  Sure, the continent wants to kill you, and every way of getting to and around it comes with risk of serious accident, but the only thing I was actually afraid of was finding myself in a stressful social situation and not having any recourse to escape.  I know how to build a snow cave.  I don't know how to deflect the ire of people who've taken a set against me – and, for whatever reason, I tend to rub people in the States the wrong way.  When I was shortlisted for the placement, the person handling the admin briefed me about the process and asked me if I had any further questions, and I raised this concern.  She responded that, speaking purely from her own experience, she had never felt more comfortable being herself than when she was at McMurdo.  Not knowing who 'herself' was, I took this with a grain of salt, but it was an encouraging answer nonetheless.

It turned out that the best thing about McMurdo was, in fact, those very people I had been afraid of.  Everyone I met was absolutely splendid.  In my first days there, my supervisor joked that if you shake the world, all the best people end up at the bottom; the remainder of my time there proved how right she was.  One of the main things that attracted me to the Terra Nova story, and has kept me committed to it for so long, was how wonderful the people were – far outside what I had come to expect from humanity.  Warm, genuine, accepting of and attentive to each other, a wide range of personalities and dispositions that nevertheless got on and functioned together as a society, in the face of environmental and emotional extremes ... I needed to know such people were possible, and clung to them as an ideal.  It was a wonderful surprise to discover that they would not be out of place amongst their modern counterparts.

Is it because they're scientists, as someone theorised? But they're not – most of the people at McMurdo are support staff, working in the kitchen or waste disposal or shuttle fleet; helping the science happen, yes, but that's not necessarily why they're there, personally.  Is it because a harsh environment triggers something in the human psyche to support each other, rather than compete?  Maybe, but these people seem like they'd be solid wherever they are, and were like that before going South.  

I suspect there is an element of self-selection – something about the sort of person who would want to go to Antarctica correlates with a certain mindset, one that gels extremely well with others who share it, however different they may be in other respects.  There is no denying that everyone there is a bit odd.  They tend to be types that exist on the fringes back in The World and, like me, may struggle to conform to its values.  A few years ago, I came across this adage from an Antarctic veteran: "You go the first time for the adventure.  You go the second time to relive the first time.  You go the third time because you don't belong anywhere else."  Many of them live in remote places, or travel, or do itinerant work when not on the Ice.  There is a bit of a running gag in Where'd You Go, Bernadette? that everyone doing a mundane job in Antarctica is a high achiever in something amazing, who left it all behind – and that's not exactly untrue.  Perhaps what unites Antarcticans is an awareness of what really matters, when you get right down to it: they've played the game enough to see through it, and are done with it.  "Glory? He knew it for a bubble: he had proved himself to himself. He was not worrying about glory. Power? He had power." So Cherry wrote about Wilson in 1948, but many modern Antarcticans might sympathise.  When you come out the other side of self-aggrandisement and jockeying for status, and are happy just to be yourself and let others be themselves, you get a happy, harmonious society.  Or so it would seem.

At midnight on my last day there, I had a deep conversation with someone I'd only met in passing before, but who was totally down to have a long talk with a random stranger on a footbridge in the middle of the night. I presented her my hypothesis that no one at McMurdo was popular in high school.  No, she replied; there may be a handful who were popular in high school ... but they're not popular at McMurdo.  Maybe the secret is in there somewhere.

Anyway, I didn't do nearly as much people sketching as I'd have liked, given that the base was populated entirely by Characters, but these are the pages I did manage to get. 

Two pages of random McMurdites, likely in the Galley:

These last four are from a meeting where team leaders were presenting their projects to some high muckymucks visiting from the NSF. I was only there because my project was allotted a space in the presentation, but the main focus was the massive Thwaites Glacier project, a collaboration between the US Antarctic Program and the British Antarctic Survey to study one of the most unstable regions in Antarctica.  They quite rightly took up the whole meeting time, and the privilege of being there meant I learned a lot about the project.  My longstanding habit is to draw during meetings, so I captured some of them in my sketchbook while absorbing the science into my head.

Notable characters in my sketches include: - David Vaughan, heading up the British contingent of the Thwaites team, was quite an engaging and affable guy but had a concentration scowl that puts mine in the shade. I was shocked when I heard he died of cancer earlier this year (2023) – a great loss to BAS, glaciology, and Antarctic science generally. - When Erin Pettit isn't studying glaciers with an eye to climate change, she's taking girls on wilderness adventures to foster an interest in science and art, as well as self-confidence. - Britney Schmidt, Queen of Icefin, not only earned my profound respect but has a whole episode of PBS's Terra dedicated to her work developing sub-ice autonomous robots with the aim of exploring Europa. (Seriously, so cool.)

I could go on about Antarctic people, but there's nothing so good as showing you, and luckily I can do just that. PBS sent a small team down in 2018 to do a YouTube series, and one of their episodes is all about the cool people who call McMurdo home.  It might make my point better than all my whittering, and is certainly more fun. If you'd like to see more, Werner Herzog's film Encounters at the End of the World is much of the same, but more so.  It had been recommended to me several times, but I hadn't managed to get my hands on it until a week before I left, when it turned out a Cambridge friend had a copy and lent it to me.  'I don't know how true it is,' he said, 'but I want it to be.'  When I got back, I was happy to confirm to him that it was, indeed, exactly like that.  And I miss it so much.

#antarctica #mcmurdo station #antarctic people #travel #david vaughan #erin pettit #werner herzog #encounters at the end of the world

[debong29]

The Day our paths crossed: A reflection on the Analogy.” Lockdown Litanies: Countless Untold Stories” an Essay by Dave Pilotin

First of all, it was fascinating how the author created these unique stories. Although the plotlines and conclusions of each of these stories differ, they all teach us that even though we may every once in a while feel hopeless, we should never give up and lose confidence and trust because better days will eventually come. Instead, we should simply hold on and make progress every day, even if it's only tiny steps.

The first poem which is “Dear Diary” I felt something as I was reading this poem. “Got stuck in front of my screen and became distant from people I know.” I picked this line because it was honestly relatable. Life is like that, there are times that you have to go through the lows in order to appreciate the highs in life. You are going to lose people in your life and that’s okay too. “Move away and discover a world on my own.” This line has struck me the most, the author did not lose hope but instead they found a way to end the toxic cycle and heal themselves. You Are Enough by Sleeping At Last, The reason I chose this song is because even though we might felt like our lives are really messed up or we are having a hard time, we must always believe that we will always be enough.

As I read the “The Tale of a Modern Sisyphus,” I realized that the first part was all about royalties as it was mentioned ‘Every girl’s dream to wear the most coveted crown’ Then on the last line of the part one, I think the narrator are judging the women who’s competing as they said ‘Haven’t seen a woman who’s clearly a ten– let alone the judges; they chose a far less seven.’ On the second part, I really like the line ‘A burden is less felt when carried together.’ It is true because you have someone to talk to about it or depend on them unlike when you’re alone, you’d have to do it all by yourself. I have two songs in mind for this poem, You're Beautiful by James Blunt as I believe that every girl should have a crowned and we should empower women more and Lego House by Ed Sheeran because the part ‘I'll pick you up when you're getting down’ in Lego House is all about not being alone and also depending to others.

The third part of this anthology, “O’ Yayi (A Prose Poem)” made me think at first that it would be just like other poems about soldiers or World War II. However, as I reached the end of O’ Yayi, I never expected it to be so heartbreaking. The man loved Yayi for years and never left her side, he was actually the definition of a perfect husband that every woman could ask for. That's why it was upsetting that he was never valued by Yayi and even forgot all about him but he still loved her so much. I could not think of a better song than Joji’s Glimpse of Us because it was also about the person being in a relationship even though they still loved their past lover and always remember a glimpse of them with their ex.

As for the fourth part, “Two Red Laces on the Wonderwall,” A poem about two people in love. “Tried my luck with several men, but you felt like home, where I belong.” This actually shows what love really is because even if you tried denying it or running away from it, your love for someone will never change. When I first read the title of this poem, I felt like the ‘Two Red Laces’ was like the ‘Red Thread of Fate’. This poem reminds me of Naked by James Arthur especially on the last line that says ‘All because of you, I bare my soul.’ is similar in the song, ‘I’m standing here naked,’ as both of the lines are about taking risks and giving everything now to their partner.

The fifth part of this anthology, “Umbilical” is about an unborn child who felt the mother’s pain. ‘The pain she suffered just for me to see.’ This line definitely explained well how our mother always sacrifices everything, it doesn’t matter if it might kill her or make her suffer because as long as it’s for her children, the mother would do it. ‘Drained herself to save me from misery’ and ‘Wrinkles, fragile bones, gaunt face in plain sight’. I love the way the author made the lines so perfect and beautiful in every way. The song “You're Gonna Be” by Reba McEntire ‘Life has no guarantees but always loved by me. You’re gonna be me, always loved by me’ This shows how much a mother can love her child, it’s always and forever.

Moving along to the sixth part, “RE: Paper.” Honestly, when I was reading this poem, it was really confusing yet it was also interesting. I believe that it demonstrates our current living situation. It’s difficult to find a job and not only that, our school life is also affected as we are forced to adapt to online classes and modular work. The poem had a line that said, ‘Teachers must upskill on how to implement these competencies for student development’ " and I agree since sometimes it is the teachers who are to blame when students struggle with their studies. That’s why I chose Teacher Teacher for this poem.

For the seventh poem which is “3 A.M Awakening,” I feel like this piece is a person experiencing an extreme emotion that’s why he needed to be calm. ‘Breathe as if it’s easy to do today’ although breathing is an involuntary movement, there are days that it can be harder to breathe especially when you’re stressed out or even when angry. ‘People hold truth in fiery tongues and spit’ How the author constructed this line is really good as there are situations when people are expressing the truth but saying it incorrectly can affect the truth. “Breathin” by Ariana Grande is the song I believe fits on poem perfectly, ‘I can so overcomplicate, people tell me to medicate’ this line made me feel like it was related to one of the lines of the poem, ‘Heaven spoke lies to me telling I’m sick with people’s daggering every inch’.

As I read the eighth poem, “My frail lady,” It was very clear that the poem was all about a girl who committed suicide. The moment I read ‘The most beautiful suicide’ and the name ‘Evelyn Mchale’ I instantly know who she is as I already read the article before, it was about a girl who jumped off the 86th-floor observation deck of the Empire State Building. ‘Freedom at long last upon here long, quiet pause,’ this line at first was light to read but as I was reading it over and over again, I realized how dark this line is because she finally got her freedom after a long pause which is passing away. A song that I could relate this piece to is “Goodbye I'm Sorry” by Jamestown Story, ‘So here's my goodbye, no one will cry over me. I'm not worth any tears.’ The girl from this poem actually has one wish which is to have no service and remembrance for her.

For the last poem in this anthology, “Major Arcana,” I could not really get what the poem is all about at first as all I think is that it was about Tarot Card as there were 6 cards all of that was from the Tarot Card. For me, I believe that each card from the poem represents happenings in our lives. It shows difficulties but also hope for each card, ‘You silently sit on the storm you created for yourself.’ This line from the poem shows that the storms we created are the results of most of our bad decisions that we make and for that I chose Here Comes The Sun by the Beatles because even though we might face difficulties in our daily lives, it’s also important to believe that everything will be okay.

In Conclusion, after reading this anthology, it was clear that each poem was unique from the others, thus to sum it up. However, I truly like how distinct and fascinating each of their individual stories is. The poem "Umbilical," which shows how strong our mothers are and how their love for their family always comes first, is my favorite in this collection. This Anthology also enabled me to view things from a different perspective. Some of the stories even convinced me that because we are all flawed, it is normal to make mistakes and that what matters is what we do next—are we going to strive for improvement or reject change? The author(s) of this anthology should be extremely proud of their work because it is well-made and built.

[ecoamerica]

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[nyxerebus]

Boring Bar - Modern Levi x Female Reader

“Why are we here again?” The raven-haired man asked his friend. “You need to get out more Levi, So this is me dragging you out” Erwin smiled back. Levi just scoffed at him and looked around the bar.

Filthy.

“Hange and some others are coming soon”.

Huh!? “Shitty glasses and her shitty friends are also coming?” Erwin chuckled and nodded. Levi’s mood became even more shittier. If that was possible. They both drank in silenced for a while. Both ordering the same glass of whisky, Erwin on the rocks, Levi with a twist. The music was typical bar music, boring. Some people were dancing over at the dancefloor. Half the booths were filled, but Erwin and Levi were the only two sitting at the bar. “So, how have you been?” Erwin asked. He knew the answer. Not good. Levi and Petra had broken up a month ago, and he was still hung up on it. The breakup was really messy. Levi had caught her cheating on him with her co-worker. The biggest cliché in the world. “You know”, Erwin expected something more, but that was the only thing he got from Levi. “Okay, talking about it clearly isn’t something you want, but do you know what you need?” Levi raised his eyebrows at the blond. “A rebound!”

“A rebound?” Levi repeated. “You need a quick one night stand to get over her and move on, it will clear up your head. I promise” Levi looked at the man with a questionable look, but didn’t push further. They both fell into a silence, Levi still processing his words - was a rebound all he needed?

The glorious silence between the long-time friends was cut short when the bell at the door rang. “Leviiii! Erwinnnn!” Hange’s voice boomed over the bar. Her and Mike and Nanaba walked over to them and hugged Erwin, (Hange tried to give Levi a hug, but ended up with a elbow in the ribs).

A comfortable conversation fell between the four adults. Even though Levi gave them a hard time for dragging him out, he loved just sitting on the side-line and listening to the conversations. It was comforting. “Oh! I forgot to tell you guys” Hange exclaimed. “What’s up four eyes”.

“An old friend of mine is coming over and staying with me the next week! She’s going to meet us here, you guys fine with her hanging out with us?”.

“Of course! Where do you know her from?” Nanaba asked.

“We were dorm roommates back in my collage days!”. Hange smiled. “She is really nice, so you better treat her nice!” She threatened, even though she wasn’t that threatening.

The bell over the door rang again. “She’s here!” Hange waved over a (your height) woman. Hange hugged her and lifted the poor girl up from the ground, her legs kicking in the air. “So good to see you again!” Hange squealed and danced around, still holding the girl up. “Hange, let the poor girl down” Nanaba looked a bit concerned by her mad scientist friends action. Hange, reluctant, let the girl down and introduced her to her friends.

“This is (Y/N) (L/N)! My long-time friend form collage!” The group greeted her and Erwin moved over a bar stool she could sit on, moved it next to Levi. He sent the raven man a smug look. Damn eyebrow freak.

“So, (Y/N), what did you study?” They asked her many questions about her life. They learned that she studied History, (was still studying, but balancing school with working in a flower shop with her brother), she had two cats and her favourite book was Pride and Prejudice. Hange was clearly proud of her friend and showed her of to no extent. Levi noticed the girl, (Y/N) was looking very nervous and would often blush and wiggle in her seat when Hange went on about her life.

Cute.

What was he thinking? He couldn’t develop a thing for Hange’s friend, she was clearly very protective of her and would no doubt rip his dick of if he tried to get with (Y/N). “So, (Y/N), got a boyfriend” This time it was Nanaba that asked. This made Levi perk up, for some reason the idea that she had a boyfriend made his chest tighten.

What was wrong with him? He felt more jealous at the possibility that a woman he had just met had a boyfriend, than when he caught his girlfriend of 9 months in bed with another man.

“No, its just me and my cats at the moment” She rubbed the back of her neck. Levi realised a breath of relief, no one noticed. Well, no one except Erwin, who grinned into his drink.

The conversation drifted away from (Y/N) life to more mundane things. Work, family and what not. To be honest, Levi was only paying attention if (Y/N) was speaking. But sadly, the evening turned into the night. And everyone was suddenly reminded that they had work tomorrow.

“It was great meeting you all! Hope we can meet another time!” (Y/N) smiled at them. “Of course! Maybe for lunch?” Nanaba questioned. They agreed to meet for lunch one day, and split up. But luckily for Levi, he and Hange lived on the same street. So the three of them walked together to the building the two ladies lived at. Hange wouldn’t stop talking about her latest experiments.

Levi tried a few times to ask (Y/N) some questions, but they either came out as insults or as interrupted by Hange. Usually he was smooth with woman, never having to struggle cause most flocked towards him. But when he had to impress her, he became suddenly shy and nervous.

Snap out of it Ackerman! But before he could snap out of it, the stood outside Hanges apartment. “Looks like were parting ways here Clean freak! See ya tomorrow!” And with that they disappeared behind the entrenced to the building. Levi stood on the street for a couple of minutes, thinking over the night. He cursed at himself for not growing a pair and asking her out. He went to bed angry with himself.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The next week past with everyday just the same like the last. Levi would meet you and Hange at 8 am and walk to your respective jobs. Everyone would meet for lunch (sometimes Erwin, Nanaba and Mike couldn’t make it, but Levi would always make it). And everyday, Levi became more and more enchanted with (Y/N).

“I don’t know what to do!” Levi groaned and threw his head back against the coach back. He and Erwin and Mike was chilling at Levi’s apartment. “Sounds like love to me” Erwin replied with his cheeky grinned. Oh, how Levi wanted to smack the grin of off his face.

“How? I have only known her for one week!”

“Love at first sight” Mike spoke up. “That doesn’t exist asshole” Levi grumbled out, chugging back his drink. “I don’t know man, Mike might be on to something”.

“Fuckers”

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Levi was driving home when he saw it. ‘Mushrooms and Flowers’, the flower shop (Y/N) worked at. His body reacted before his mind could stop it. And before he knew it his car was parked in front of it and he was halfway between his car and the shop.

A bell rang when he entered the small shop. It was cozy, fairy lights hanging from the celling and the walls were covered in flowers, and by the counter there was a mushrooms display. “Levi!” A familiar voice called from him. “So good to see you” She walked over to him. “How can I help you?”

He was silent. The cold, stoic, gives zero shits Levi Ackerman, was fucking silent.

The hells wrong with you?! Speak!

“I need some flowers” Yeah, idiot why else would you be here?! “You came to the right place! What is the occasion?”

Oh god? Was he going to get flowers for a girlfriend? Of course, he had a girl, a man that gorgeous always have an equally beautiful woman by his side. You cannot compete!

(Y/N) was equally nervous as Levi. The same pang of jealousy raced through her at the thought of him with another woman. “A girl” was all Levi muttered out. Sadness filled (Y/N), but she bit her tears back. Not wanting him to know about her feelings for him. The same feelings that had kept her up at night and made her heart race in a way it never had.

“Well, we have some beautiful roses in many colours! What’s her favourite” (Y/N) tried not to sound disgusted by the mentioned of another woman.

Levi thought back to when (Y/N) mentioned what her favourite colour was. “Orange”.

Good taste, (Y/N) thought. “Well, these are my favourite. They have a nice deep orange colour and gets pretty red at the tips of the flower leaves”. (Y/N) pointed at the flower in the rose’s aisle. Levi agreed that it was beautiful and didn’t hesitate to say: “I’ll take it”.

His apartment smelled of roses. On his kitchen island, four rose bouquets of the orange flowers sat. He had gotten all they had in the store. He was opening a new bottle of whiskey. Not knowing what to do. The glass he filled was quickly swallowed and he filled another.

“I blew it!” He shouldn’t have said it was for a girl. What if she thought it was serious and stopped talking to him? What if she found out that he lied about having a girl and though he was a creep?

A million bad thoughts raced through his head, until he finally decided. He was going to do something about it. Maybe it was the adrenaline, maybe it was the alcohol. But a new wave of courage waved through him and he grabbed the flowers and his keys. He knew Hange had a meeting at work, so (Y/N) was home alone.

The walk over was quick. But not quick enough. When he reached the apartment door, the courage washed of and he realized what was going to happened. He was going to confess and she was going to reject him. Why would she not? She has probably heard about his insults and how cold he is from Hange. Why would someone as cheerful as her want someone as dickish like him?

No, he couldn’t do it. He left the building.

(Y/N) heard someone moving around outside the door. She looked out the peep hole and saw no one, but something on the ground caught her eye. The flowers Levi had bought from her. All four bouquets. Wasn’t these flowers for a girl? After a minute of looking at the flowers with pure confusion, it clicked.

She was the girl.

Without thinking she ran after him. Only in her sleeping shorts and tank top, and her slippers, she ran down the stairs and out to the street. After looking around, she caught him walking away.

“Levi!”

He turned around and was met with her body colliding into him. She was out of breath after running down all the stairs after him. “The hell you doing out here brat!”

He looked down at her hands and saw the flowers. He rubbed his hand down his face and sighed deeply. Here comes the rejection.

“Was I the girl?” He looked down at her. Risking it all, he nodded. “Yeah, yeah you are”. Time stood still. The people around them didn’t matter, the rain that was starting to pour down didn’t matter, only them. He looked in her eyes, looking for an answer, but when she pulled him down too meet his lips, he got it. Even though it took a moment for him to realize this was actually happening, when he snapped out of it he kissed her back.

It was like something out of a movie. The rain was pouring down. He was bending her back down a bit and leaning down with her. One hand was behind her back, stabilizing her and the other was on her jaw, holding her close. Her hands were wrapped around his neck. He broke the kiss when he felt her shivering against him. Suddenly he was reminded that they were out on a busy street, it was almost midnight, and she wasn’t wearing clothes fit for the rain, or just being outside in the cold.

“Let’s go inside, yeah?” She nodded her hand. As they walked back to her apartment hand in hand, Levi thanked the gods that Erwin had dragged him out to that boring bar.

A/N: Hope you like it! I'm not too happy with the ending, its a bit rushed but i am writing this at 2 am, sooo hehe. Might write a part 2! Take care :)

#levi x reader #snk levi #levi ackerman #levi x y/n #levi fanfiction #attack on titan #aot #snk #moder au #modern au

[writergirl2011]

Jaime x Brienne 2021 Exchange Fic Recs!!!

Hey there! While I haven’t quite gotten through all of the fics in this year’s Jaime x Brienne Fic Exchange, I wanted to go ahead and get this rec list posted ahead of the reveal tomorrow night. I plan to add to it once I finish the final batch of stories and go back and reread a few I bookmarked. So without further ado, and in no particular order, here are some of my favorites:

Desserts. [Modern AU] This wonderful story was written for me and it’s a lovely character study of chef!Jaime and his growing relationship with Brienne (who is his sous chef even if it takes him forever to admit it). But what will Jaime do when Hyle Hunt walks into his restaurant, stating that he’s Brienne’s fiancé? Jaime’s response is epic, so don’t miss out on this one!!

Bug Juice: Jaime and Brienne’s Summer at Camp. [Modern AU]. A story with a Myrcella POV! This author did a fantastic job of combining a 90’s children’s show with a GoT Season 8 fix-it. Myrcella’s running commentary on the last episode of the season is hilarious as she finds out whether her Uncle Jaime will finally get together with Equestrian Director Brienne!

Come Home. [Show canon divergence]. This was so beautifully written. When Selwyn sends Brienne an urgent message for her to come home, Brienne doesn’t know what to expect. What she finds is that Evenfall Hall has a very problematic guest that’s inevitably going to attract trouble when the world finds out he’s there. To say more would spoil the surprise.

On Paper. [Modern AU]. Poor Addam Marbrand, forever stuck dealing with Jaime’s perpetual inability to flirt effectively. One of the funniest stories I read in the exchange.

Safe. [Modern AU]. Oh. My. God. The train heist story. Electric sexual tension between Jaime and Brienne, competence kink, and a wonderful backstory woven throughout. Guh.

Ding Dong Ditch, Baby. [Modern AU]. Jaime needs Brienne’s help when someone leaves an unexpected package for Tyrion on his doorstep. Complicating matters is that their one date was an absolute disaster, not that that will keep the sexual tension at bay!

Unrestrained Summer Fun. [Modern AU]. Jaime, Brienne, and Cleos spend one memorable summer together as children, and are reunited about twenty years later. The author cleverly recreates their trip through the Riverlands in a series of misadventures only kids could have. I loved this story so much!!

Has the Past Passed? [Modern AU]. Jaime and Brienne were driven apart by a misunderstanding. Ten years later, Jaime returns—as Brienne’s on the verge of marrying another man. It’s not every story that has you feeling sorry for Hyle Hunt for a while, and the author handles the sticky situation deftly.

they say your body is full of sin (it’s the door through where peace begins). [Modern AU]. Take a premise that could’ve been a pretty quick, hot-and-heavy PWP (5+1 masturbation fic). Throw in Jaime’s complicated history with his father driving him to become a camboy, lonely journalist Brienne tuning into his channel, and don’t forget the feelings. Lots and LOTS of feelings. And baked goods. Have I left anything out? Probably. This story is amazing.

Where I Cannot Stand. [Firefly AU]. I must admit, I’ve never watched Firefly. That will soon be rectified as this story was fantastic. Jaime and his ragtag crew take on two passengers for their trip to the Twins. One of them is a tall, mysterious blond acting suspicious and bringing along a large crate. To quote Jaime at one point in the story, “What could go wrong?” (Seriously, Jaime, you’d think you would know NEVER to say such a thing.)

right here, forever. [The Martian AU]. MARTIAN AU! MARTIAN AU!!! Brienne finds herself stranded with Jaime on Mars—not ideal considering they’ve got a complicated history. One of my favorite movies mashed up with my favorite OTP? That’s my catnip.

Thanks to the @jaime-brienne-fic-exchange mods for putting this together!!

#fic recs #jaime x brienne #jaime x brienne fic exchange 2021 #READ THESE AWESOME STORIES!!! #and all the rest of them too #fanfiction

[iron-mum]

I wish you would write a fic where Tony and kid Peter are being adorable father and son as retribution for the angst you’ve made me suffer through in the past hah! (JK I love you and your angst! 💛)

Well, well, well. What do we have here, eh? A request for adorable? I'm not sure, I'm very good at that 😌

Here's SIMTony who would stop at nothing to help his unwell son, Peter get better. Even if it meant using Extremis.

P.S. ILY3000 💕

In the final throes of the graveyard shift at the hospital floor, the elevator pinged for its frequent lone visitor. The front desk staff, whilst tense and sitting up suddenly straighter, knew not to actually engage. No ID was needed for their boss, one of them barely suppressing a gulp as his determined strides headed for the private room that had been deliberately placed near to the room equipped for every possible kind of emergency. Once inside, he carefully shut the door silently and took a seat at the bedside.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Sharp blue eyes shifted from the persistent buzzing of the most technologically advanced medical equipment anyone, anywhere could offer before looking back down to something far more invaluable and precious. Tony’s entire world. His purpose in life. The little boy on the bed lay motionless, breathing slowly and evenly, nose occasionally scrunching up at the discomfort of the oxygen mask upon him. He should have been cocooned in a hug from his father but instead his son, Peter, was littered with wires attaching him to the very best modern medicine had to offer.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Pale, soft skin with the daintiest of freckles stood out against the dark curls spread across the far too big pillow. The small fingers of his left hand had loosely closed around the calloused thumb of his father, letting him know that whilst he had been rendered weak from illness, he was still aware of his comforting presence. Tony’s index finger gently glided across the small knuckles, willing himself to see a tiny curve of the lips on his son’s face.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

This had been the Avengers fault. Peter’s current critical condition. The young boy had been on a school trip when a battle had broken out and the wannabe heroes managed to cause more destruction than lives saved. A chemical explosion had landed most of the class in hospital and many of them had ended up becoming very unwell. Unfortunately for Peter, he already suffered many ailments so even under the wing of Stark’s finest medical personnel, the struggle had taken a toll. The genius shook his head as thoughts of revenge started to sprout from the many seeds that had been planted since the catastrophic incident. He shelved the many ideas he had that would lead to the demise of the reckless group once his kid was better.

It had been hours when the sound of a nurse's footsteps acted as the catalyst that would remove Tony from the room so he could head back to his lab. As he reluctantly moved his hand away, there was no reaction. Not even a twitch from the slender child. Bending down, he tentatively stroked a small amount of the exposed skin that was available on the boy’s face before planting a light kiss on his forehead. By the time the nurse was opening the door to the room to complete the routine checks, any sign of a visitor would be long gone.

The moment Tony was back in his workshop, he strode towards his desk. Music started to reverberate from the ceiling, the sound greatly appreciated compared to the low hum and incessant beeping from the emotionless devices that were currently keeping his son alive.

Tony didn’t believe in a higher power other than himself. So in no way, shape or form was he ever going to accept that he couldn’t save Peter from the incurable illness now ravaging his frail body. Feeling powerless was simply not an option.

Rolling up the sleeve to his top, the genius opened a drawer and pulled out a device meant for extracting blood as painlessly as possible. Not that pain meant much to him these days. No pain would ever compete with a parent having to watch their child deteriorate every single second of every single day.

Satisfied with the draw, Tony placed it into a diagnostic machine of his own making. He caught a glimpse of his reflection in the glass of his workshop, eyeing it like he was in the most intense staring contest of his life. Jaw clenching, his arm shot out allowing liquid metal to glide across his skin before firing a repulsor at the glass and shattering it. There was an element of irony to everyone loving his face except himself in the minimal but intrusive “what if” moments that surrounded his current situation. With a crack of his neck, his arm remained outstretched so the Endo-Sym armour could return to it’s housing tank.

“Boss, the results are back,” F.R.I.D.A.Y. informed as the music lessened in volume. “No adverse reactions detected still. The chemical composition indicates that the Extremis is unchanged in it’s integration with you on a genetic level and continues to remain stable.”

“And the sample from Peter?” Tony asked, confident that he knew what the answer would be.

“Also remaining stable.”

“Alert the staff intending to see Peter following tonight's shift that their presence will not be needed,” the genius demanded as he mentally reiterated the next steps of his plan in his head. Lips curled into devilishly handsome grin at his victory, eyes crinkling at the sides. The smile only softened when his eyes drifted to a framed picture Peter had drawn of the both of them. He’d done it.

“Certainly, boss,” the AI had responded without any acknowledgement. Tony was too busy in thought. Not only was the Extremis flowing through his own veins, leaving him feeling at perfect health. But soon, it would be doing the same for Peter too. Pain free, peak performance and at complete and optimal health.

“Have there been any sightings of the Avengers in the last hour? I feel a splash of revenge is in order for this special occasion?” The holo-screens in front of him started to flicker as social media sites were searched and hashtags refreshed repeatedly. Hulk had been trending within the hour and Hawkeye in the last eleven minutes.

"Well, how about that?" he grinned gleefully. "I really am being spoiled for choice."

Whilst the genius had been certain F.R.I.D.A.Y. had relayed the message to the morning staff, Tony still found himself exhaling sharply at the sight of someone sat by Peter’s side reading his file. The thin bag of Extremis in his hand was shifted into his back pocket as quickly as humanly possible. The good feeling from beating the shit out of one of the Avengers, plus the buzz of providing Peter with a cure that no meagre doctor had been able to, shifted into a tension as tried to work out who it was.

Their face was narrow with sharp features and glasz eyes remarkably penetrating when they met his perusing stare. His black hair had been combed back neatly, the sides of his temples a distinct light grey. The well fitted suit looked designer even for Tony’s impeccable standards.

“Your services are no longer required,” he affirmed with a dismissive flourish of the hands before the man could even introduce himself.

“I’m sorry?” the other man replied without hesitation, closing the file and rising from the chair. Tony’s chair. If he’d been expecting any pleasantries or introductions, he was thoroughly mistaken. Tony was already locked onto Peter, the gentle rise of his chest a welcoming sight as always. He refused to allow his attention to be divided, ignoring the piercing stare boring into him now. “I have an oath to this patient. He critically needs help from the best in all fields. He needs my help.”

The genius turned at that, an eyebrow raised as he looked the doctor up and down. He certainly held himself strongly for someone who had that much audacity in addressing the owner of everything within his current vicinity.

“Are you new around here… Doctor Strange?” He asked disingenuously, eyes narrowing as he scrutinised the name badge. The letters ‘VISITOR - Dr Stephen Strange’ jotted on the bottom, likely the reason he hadn’t got his AI’s memo. The receptionist who let him in would be fired whether it was her fault or not.

“Unlike everyone else in this building, no, I don’t work for you” the doctor shot back tersely. “However, you were so insistent on my consultation that, somehow, I found my diary completely cleared of all surgeries that were booked in.”

“Well, you can now stick them back in your diary. We’re done here.”

“I know this is difficult,” the doctor started, tone suddenly softer as if he were hoping a change of tact would get through. “You brought me in for my expertise, so use them.”

“I’m the most intelligent, capable person on the planet. I don’t need you. I don’t need anyone.”

“Your arrogance surpasses all the rumours and expectations I had of you,” Strange snapped back incredulously. Apparently nothing was going to get through. “Your child is-”

“You know, it would be a real shame if you were to lose your medical licence, wouldn't it, doctor?” Tony sneered dangerously low. This ungrateful little shit was going to get it for not only wasting his time and energy, but also his son’s. An insignificant speck like the rest of the world.

“Are you threatening me?” the doctor replied doing his best to keep his tone cool and unflinching when the other man removed all personal space between them. The lack of intimidation he was feeling only pissed Tony off more.

“Let’s not test my resolve, doctor.” Despite feeling completely wrong about leaving considering Peter’s condition, Dr Stephen Strange tucked the file he’d been reading under his arm and left the room in just a few strides. Tony had spotted the hand diving for a phone as the door shut behind him and clenched his fists in disdain.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y., be a darling and ensure Doctor Douchebag doesn’t make it back home,” Tony demanded followed by a nonchalant sniff.

“Yes, boss. His phone has also unexpectedly lost all signal so will not be usable anytime soon.”

Satisfied with the course of action his AI had taken, Tony locked the door to his son’s room for good measure. He eyed the current equipment before making his move. One of the drips currently providing Peter with much needed medicine was switched to make way for a sample of the Extremis that Tony had meticulously created and tested on himself. He peered at his son, swallowing thickly that this would all be worth it.

Bag secured, the first few drops started instantly, the older man watching as they flowed along the thin tubes before entering the cannula imposed on Peter’s hand. The skin began to glow orange, the lava looking trail gliding all the way up the arm’s before entering the chest. Daring a glance at the monitors, Tony noted an instant improvement in the readouts. A smile spread across his face as sheet-white, sickly skin started to immediately brighten.

Peter’s big, brown doe eyes suddenly shot open as he took a huge gulp of air, eyes landing on his father who was remarkably in focus for the first time in his life without the aid of glasses. Tony removed the oxygen mask so he could take his son’s face in fully for the first time in well over a month.

“Dad?” the young boy croaked, clearly a little disoriented from the abrupt wake up.

“Hey, buddy,” Tony whispered, voice cracking with emotion as he closed the distance between them.

Peter lunged at his father, his small arms wrapping tightly around the genius’ neck and face burying into his chest. It had been far too long since either had been able to enjoy the tender, heart-bursting feeling of overwhelming, unconditional love from one another.

“I love you, kiddo.” Tony gushed as one of his hand’s lovingly cupped the back of Peter's head holding him as close as possible. The other enveloped around his back, his thumb slowly stroking up and down. When the older man's hand started to trail through Peter's hair, the boy somehow managed to burrow even closer. Tony soothingly lifted curls between his fingers and then let them ping back as new life continued to circle through his son’s body.

“I love you too, dad,” Peter whispered, a strain evident in his voice that Tony hadn’t been expecting. When he leant back, he saw the likely cause. Now unnecessary wires were tugging at his child’s skin.

“Let’s get these off you, bud. You don’t need them anymore,” he promised softly as he carefully went to work at removing the monitoring equipment clips and stickers. Peter’s curious eyes followed every step of the way, surprisingly not wincing even when some of the tougher stickers were peeled away. Although he was too young to even begin comprehending what had happened, he knew from vague memories he’d been hurt and that he’d slept a lot. Often he had been unsure if he was dreaming or awake when he’d hear his father read him stories, express his love and let him know how brave he was being. A slight tug on his hand drew him from his recollection as he looked down.

"I’m scared," Peter timidly admitted as he eyed up the last piece of medical equipment attached to him. The cannula in his hand.

“Here’s what we're gonna do, bud. We’re going to put on our brave faces and before you know it, it’ll be all done and over with. Can you show me your bravest, fiercest face?” Tony gently challenged, as part of his upper lip curled and he playfully growled.

The child’s dinky nose scrunched up and his lips pushed out into the biggest pout he could form. He shook his head a little and hummed in a way that likely felt fierce to him but could only be described as adorable to his dad.

"Wowzer. That was super mean, you nearly scared me!” Tony gasped dramatically, as he gestured for the boy to look down and see that the only thing on the top of his hand was a small cotton wool ball and a light pressure from his dad. Using his free hand to fish into his pocket, Tony revealed a green Paw Patrol sticker with Peter’s favourite character, Rocky, on it.

It had been a distant memory since the young boy had handed it to him, having spotted the numerous nicks and cuts that littered his hard working hands after a long day in the workshop. Extremis meant Peter wouldn’t even need it, but the placebo effect would make it worth it.

“Am I all better, daddy?” Peter asked as Tony eyed him up once more. The overwhelmed father cupped his kid’s face and planted another kiss on his forehead, relief washing over him that he was now free from the concatenation of medical instrumentation.

“You most certainly are. And that means we get to skedaddle out of here.”

Before his son could anticipate his next move, his father had scooped him up into his arms and they were making their way not only out of the room, but off of the floor for good.

They’d had a chance to change into matching casual wear and feasted on a huge breakfast before snuggling up on the sofa. Peter had selected an Octonauts movie to watch as he tucked into his father’s side and enjoyed the sound of his steady heartbeat.

It would be a couple of hours when Tony’s phone pinged with a notification he knew was F.R.I.D.A.Y. when she was being discreet. His son huffed at the movement as he shuffled to get the phone out of his pocket, muttering an apology to his kid before opening the message.

[Unfortunate accident on the Hawk’s Nest, Route 97. Vehicle crossed the barrier and rolled multiple times down the cliff’s edge before landing in the Delaware River. Initial scan from one of the Iron Sight Bot #364 shows one survivor.]

Tony’s smirk widened into a full blown smile. Peter’s heart-of-gold eyes suddenly on him, looking up from his position. It was likely a silent protest at the lack of head strokes he was suddenly receiving so the genius replied swiftly.

[Call off any emergency services and get him med-evaced here.]

“You know what I think we need. Celebratory cheeseburgers for lunch,” he announced as Peter let out a squee of joy.

#writer prompt game #thank you for sending this one in! #ill be working on the next over the weekend! 🐸

[juiceastronaut]

Okay so. I watched Q-force. And I have no idea what I think about it.

Imma just be rambling so I'll break down the characters and my likes/dislikes about them before giving my plot breakdown at the end. Only the main/prominent ones because I don't have time.

Steve Maryweather-Easily the best character out of them, with Deb being a close second. He could've very easily fallen into the trope of being someone who was incompetent but expected the world anyway, but he doesn't. He graduated top of his class, and despite his quirks is a genuinely competent team leader, and wants the best for his team. He wants to prove that he and his team are competent enough to get recognition, and has a genuine faith in the people around him. It was refreshing to see him hold his team in a genuine high regard, where a lot of times it's like "We're shit but lets do this thing now" He's a genuinely well-rounded character, and (and forgive me if this isn't the best way to frame this) it feels like being gay is an important part of his character, without encompassing the whole thing. I thought Benji and his relationship was super cute and I was sad when they broke up. I was afraid he was going to be, like a second but worse Twink with the stereotyping but gladly fell away from that.

Deb-I thought her and her wife were super cute (though I hate how the wife is designed ngl adjafkldajfd). I liked Debs character, but I feel like she had a lot of racial stereotyping that wouldn't be inherently obvious unless you were looking for them, her being the strong one, and also the "mama" type at the same time. No one treated her with disrespect, and her lesbianism seemed to be more authentic but I feel like there wasn't a lot of thought put into what these tropes were and why they were bad. Her being black and making her the mama type, as well as the big strong type could be read as tasteless. Again, I really liked her character but these were some things I noticed while watching.

Twink- You know, I didn't really like him at first, I thought he was the epitome of all the bad stereotyping (though I'm just glad him and Mary didn't get put into the same category). His humor isn't my taste, and it just kinda seemed like someone for half of his lines went "what twitter stan language can we put in here?" And sometimes it was a bit too random for my tastes. However! I do like that his drag was considered important and was an integral part to a lot of missions they went on, and not just "Ah look at that dumb gay trying to find reasons to dress in drag." His talents and expertise were both respected and, save for Buck (which his whole point was supposed to be offensive anyway) no one undermined Twink for his femininity. His back story is also kinda random but did play a role in the missions as well. Still, personally think he's the worst character. Plus, he's French so minus four-twenties amount of points.

Stat-You know, in a show where everyone was stating what letter they were every few seconds I was surprised that I had to look up that Stat was trans. I...liked her character for the most part, except the part where she was fucking a robot. Kinda weird ngl, outta left field, and with her being trans I wonder if her having that sort of relationship is problematic for her. Love her design tho, love me a hacker girl. She's also listed as "ambiguously gay" tho showed to have mostly girl love interests but, okay.

Buck-He's the straight guy, emotionally repressed haha and he's bigoted. Did think it was funny later on when he was more "accepting" but managed to be even more infuriating about it. Tied with Twink as worse character but you know they tried to do stuff with him.

Vee-Really liked me a boss lady, but kinda weird how they bait-and-switched us with her actually being a lesbian, then go "no she's straight tho" in regards to Karen. I thought her and Mary's relationship was cute, wish I saw more of it. But she did feel like a random plot device in later seasons, what with her disappearing and reappearing when it was plot relevant. (Tho she HOTOHOTHOTHOT bikini episode WOOOWEEEE)

....

Okay, so now the plot....which. it had one?

It felt like it was flip flopping back n forth about whether it wanted to take itself seriously or not, and it seemed to decide on serious more towards the end, but then it would have this random plot element that would be so out of left field it would pull me out of my suspension of disbelief. See the whole "Back cracking to unlock memories" plot point. This back and forth on whether it would be a comedy or not I think weakened both categories it tried to play into.

If I had to compare the show to anything it would probably be Futurama, but the thing with Futurma is, its set in the future, so you're suspension of disbelief is allowed to stretch a bit more because all the wacky quirky stuff can be attributed to future shenanigans. Q-force, to my knowledge, is set in the modern day, which makes the wacky stuff that much wacker, because it's set in our modern times, which you apply the rules of everyday life to.

A lot of the problems that I had with Q-Force is, in the attempt to write specifically about the "gay experience" revealed that the writers have really only had a very specific experience of interacting with gay ppl, what I call the "Urban Gay" experience.

The fact they're in West Hollywood, and all the things that were listed as "universal gay experiences" but were only things that you'd be exposed to if you were in the city. I think a flavor of "white gay" can be implemented here too, which Q force has exactly one black woman, who manages to be the only lesbian.

That coupled with the fact that, there's a difference between having Twink naturally being a drag queen, the whole team being gay to some degree, and the fact they interact with the gay community often without Drawing Attention to all of those things and self-congratulating itself on concluding it. Funnily enough, Q-Force had examples of doing this right and doing this right. Right way: In the second or third episode where Mary found that guy with the flash drive to the uranium in it and seduced him in the gay bar. Relevant that it was gay without overtly drawing attention to it. Wrong-Way: Having Pride go on while Girl Boss was trying to take over the world.

And, for the show that promoted itself as representing the gay experience, there were...two gay men, one lesbian, one trans person, one straight guy and...no bisexual people. Also no nonbinary people. Like of course it's unrealistic to include every single identity but you're one bisexual person who appeared for one episode and was promptly blown up. And also showed to be...more off than the other characters, what with the stealing of silverware and all. Just, bisexual people are already forgotten enough as it is and not including them in the show, but you include two gay men just kinda reads as tasteless to me (as a bisexual person, obviously).

Which makes it so weird that Stat was left "ambiguously gay" when she could've easily been bisexual (which still would be problematic because of the robot-fucking but at least you got the B in there somewhere in the main group)

Overall, it tried to market itself as the "be all end all" of what it was like to be gay, but ended up excluding the exact people that get excluded in real-life lgbt spaces. This combined with the indecision with what kind of show it wanted to be managed to make it fall short. If you arent the very specific type of gay person who lives in a city environment and doesn't fit the stereotypes showed you're not going to feel "seen" by the show.

Weirdly though, I didn't hate watching it, and I would probably watch another season if they managed to make one. The parts that did work, I think worked really well, and even the bad parts just read as tasteless, and not actively terrible. If they focused less on making "hey I'm gay" jokes every three seconds and just let each character be what they are I think the show would be stronger for it. And I think they'd find less problems overall if they did that too. In the mean time I'll just be here side-eyeing the whole thing.

Edit: I forgot to mention, and this is a problem a lot of adult TV shows fall into, that because they got the clear to show nudity/sex they felt like they *had* to show nudity and to a lesser extent sex every episode. So just that whole "Haha adult=sex obviously."

Oh! And this generally goes for the whole "shove it in your face" part, but a lot of the characters who are bigoted were shown to be. Very blatantly so. And not to say there isn't blatantly bigoted ppl of course they are but I don't think that's where you see a lot of bigotry nowadays. This was sort of touched on during the show but more of a jokey manner, but I think it would've been more realistic if we had more "girl with a gay best friend" kinda bigotry as opposed to the "I'm literally hurling slurs at you" bigotry, especially since they're in Cali.

#like its a C+ I think #q-force #criticism #like there's a lot wrong with it but I thought it was kinda charming overall #like. you could have all those things that gays like in these characters but to every three seconds go #'i like this thing because I'm a lesbian' #just kinda got old after a while #juicy takes

[ecoamerica]

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[sheron-c]

XiSang Fic Recs

I haven’t seen any rec lists floating about, so for the XiSang Week 2020 challenge - Day 7 - Free choice, I wanted to create a rec list of my personal favourites for Nie Huaisang/Lan Xichen ship. There’s actually a lot of stories that are great and I don’t want to duplicate the entire ship tag, so these are just the top 10 that I found super enjoyable: 1.  My Heart is a Saber by peskyjellyfish (~11k)

Summary: Huaisang is on his way to Xinglu Ridge when he gets sidetracked. Rec: This is the fic that gave me everything I wanted to read about them post-canon. Nie Huaisang is angry and damaged, Lan Xichen is hurt and curious, and they find the kind of hope in despair that can only be found together. 2.  come and find me (lying in the bed i made) by ImaginationCake  @demonic-cultivar​ (~22k)

Summary: After Jin Guangyao dies, Nie Huaisang is ready to enjoy his life free from the burden of revenge plots and subterfuge. But his decisions have resulted in a deep guilt that he can't shake, and he struggles to stay afloat with no one left to support him. To top it off, he finds himself tangled up in politics that he really couldn't care less about.What he does care about is Lan Xichen's opinion of him, but Lan Xichen won't even look at him anymore. Nie Huaisang can only hope that his life doesn't get any worse. Rec: The fic that got me into this ship! ♡ I did of course come to AO3 looking for more NHS & LXC content immediately after watching the Untamed. After seeing that ending scene with their conversation on the Temple’s steps I wanted more, but I wasn’t sure it was a romantic ship for me until I read this story. It’s got everything, a kidnapping, a rescue and a bad case of feelings :D 3.  A Skilled Tactician is the Jewel of a Kingdom by Hypatia3 (~50k, WIP) Summary: During the Sunshot Campaign, Nie Huaisang wants to help despite his terrible sword skills. But there are other things he's good at, and nobody can say his mind is weak. But nobody has to know.After all, he wants to go back to his life of general uselessness after the war is over, and Nie Mingjue would never allow it if he saw a single sign of competence from him.But this has consequences that he didn't expect. Rec: One of the absolute best stories in this fandom when it comes to Nie Huaisang’s characterization -- he’s clever and yet so very Huaisang, in such a believable way that *hands* I can’t explain how much satisfaction I get out of reading and rereading this story. Honourable mention:  A Decisive Victory by Hypatia3 (~24k, WIP) Summary: When Jin Guangyao acts against the Nie Sect a little earlier, Nie Huaisang ends up in over his head as acting sect leader. But he has a responsibility and a duty to his sect. His brother is counting on him until he recovers.Or Nie Huaisang loses his temper, starts a war, and impresses a lot of people along the way. Rec: This is not marked XiSang, and is a divergence from the earlier Tactician story (around chapter 7) but it’s such fun to read and Huaisang’s interactions with Lan Xichen are top notch, so I can’t help mentioning it here.

4.  from tomb to tomb by @the-pretzel​  (~16k)

Summary: It's a lot easier to get truth out of someone, even one with a very good reason to lie, when they're drunk. Or, five times Nie Huaisang was drunk and once it was Lan Xichen's turn instead. Rec: Written to capture moments over the years during the course of the show, as Lan Xichen and Nie Huaisang dance around each other, this story is absolutely beautiful and vivid. I can still see the scenes of the story pop up in my head like drawings, of Lan Xichen walking in on semi-hungover Nie Huaisang and the sheer tension between them enough to keep you breathlessly reading.

Honourable mention:  when i'm reborn by @the-pretzel (~1.1k)

Summary:  Nie Huaisang's daemon settles the day he finds out what Jin Guangyao has done. (His Dark Materials fusion) Rec: A very short, very lovely daemon AU, which I’m definitely reading as XiSang :)

5.  What I had to do by @ibijau​ (~20k) Summary:  After three years in seclusion, Lan Xichen gets an unexpected guest he would rather have avoided. Yet when he learns that Nie Huaisang is dying from a curse, he is forced to confront his guilt toward Jin Guangyao's fate and the people his sworn brother hurt. Rec: I’d say this is a fandom classic, so you’ve probably read it already :D But, one of my favourite things about this story is the way it captures Nie Huaisang running away from emotions, and Lan Xichen being selfless when it comes to those he cares about. 6.  gather jewels from graveyards by LuckyDiceKirby (~15k) Summary: Nie Huaisang stole happiness from Lan Xichen. He stole peace. If he could just see him, and see for himself exactly what he’s done, and know—that will be enough. Then he’ll be able to paint again, and his hands won’t shake as he does it, and he’ll remember why he ever in his life bothered to put brush to ink to paper. After all, a man should have to live with his mistakes. There is no other way to learn from them. His brother believed that. Rec: One of the first stories I read for this ship and so well done! This is one where Nie Huaisang feels very guilty, and who doesn’t enjoy reading that? Nie Huaisang comes to the Hanshi to make amends, and doesn’t go away when Lan Xichen won’t see him.

7.  When the world is cold (I will feel a glow) by @marsdiogenes (~3k)

Summary: Xichen is trying very hard to get his crush to notice him, but gallery curator Nie Huaisang has a job to do and would appreciate it if Lan Xichen's beautiful face would stop for a moment so he can focus. Mingjue just wants to have a nice, quiet family dinner and for everyone to respect his efforts.

Rec: I don’t normally go for Modern AUs for this ship, but this was so fun and sexy! Also Nie Mingjue’s knowing reaction is :3 8.  to embrace doubt by fensandmarshes, Fleetling, idendreams, medievalfantasyqueen, space_enjolras, sxnshot (blasphemyincarnate)

Summary: Five times people thought they understood Nie Huaisang + one time someone admitted they didn’t - a collaborative, semi-chronological character study of Nie Huaisang through other characters’ eyes. Rec: Okay, it’s technically not marked shippy, but you tell me that someone who thinks about Nie Huaisang the way Lan Xichen does in this story, in the chapter that’s from his pov can possibly not love him, and I won’t believe it. The lyrical prose is the best description in a paragraph I’ve ever read of Nie Huaisang.

9.  Love of my life, I hate you by Ibijau (~126k) Summary:  With Qishan Wen growing ever more powerful and menacing, QInghe Nie and Gusu Lan decide to cement a firm alliance between their sects through a marriage between their children. Lan Xichen and Nie Huaisang are less than thrilled to learn this, but nobody is asking for their opinion anyway Rec: At first, I wasn’t sold on Lan Xichen being so thoughtless in his treatment of Nie Huaisang as a child and mostly wanted to smack him, but damn if the later events don’t make up for it, make him grow up, and turn the tables around. :D This story is utterly satisfying to read, like one of those novels that give your Id everything you want, eventually. I love slow burn and this is that in spades! So much fun, I’ve re-read parts of it multiple times already.

Honourable mention: Ibijau has so many interesting XiSang stories, like the one where Jin Rusong survives and Nie Huaisang ends up raising him (Second Chances For First Time Villains), and the one where Lan Wangji and Nie Huaisang, both in love with someone else, make a marriage match and solve crimes together ( We can light a match and burn it down), the god!LXC AU, and many others. Check them out! And finally,

10.  Chapter 95: LXC finds out about JGY and tells NHS,  from MDZS short fics by nirejseki ( @robininthelabyrinth) (~1k) Summary:  In that AU where LXC pretends to be LWJ and discovers NMJ's head, what if he went on a quest to put the body of his old friend together and along the way accidentally ran into NHS who's on the same mission. And they realize the other knows! Rec: Nirejseki writes a lot of great Nie brothers content, and this is one short story that can arguably turn into XiSang in the future. The possibilities of this AU make it so exciting, I had to include it on the list even though NHS and LXC only talk and nothing else happens.  ...Okay, that was more than ten fics here, but can you blame me? 😍 I love these two together. And with the XiSang week running we have so much new stuff!

#xisangweek2020 #xisang #nie huaisang #lan xichen #the untamed #mdzs #fic recs #favourite xisang fic recs #watch tumblr eat this post because external links lol #¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[spookyspaghettisundae]

Run on for a Long Time

Jericho had lost sight of his friends. The rushing of blood in his ears eclipsed the scratching sounds, caused by claws scraping along floors and walls. Coming from abominable things that crawled through the corridors of the derelict hospital, in search of them.

Catching his breath, he stared down the length of one such hallway he had gotten lost in. The scratching and scraping and skittering were far away enough. For now.

One of the long fluorescent tubes kept flickering while all others remained dead, drowning the corridor in darkness and flooding it with a cold hard light. Flickering in and out, in an irregular rhythm, robbing his eyes of the ability to adapt.

He blinked and his vision blurred. That made some of the dried splatters on the wall almost appear like something else, like something that was not blood.

Gunsmoke still stung his nostrils, rising from the muzzle of the revolver in his hand. He dared to tear his gaze away from the other end of the corridor and check the chambers of his gun. Every single one of them was empty.

The rushing in his ears continued, his wheezing breaths competed with it and made it hard for him to hear if any creature’s sounds were nearing. Or to hear if any of his friends were sneaking around nearby.

Something scratched against the linoleum floors. Metal screeching followed, like a metal bar being wrenched apart, or twisted and bent.

Without looking where he went, Jericho instinctively ducked through the nearest door into whatever room awaited him nearby.

The light behind him projected a soothing warmth just by virtue of its soft orange color. It dispelled the wintry cold flooding the corridors outside the room. But Jericho also sensed a presence here. Eyes—a gaze—burning into the back of his head.

He still heard the scraping sounds from outside, so before even bothering to look around, he closed the door behind him with care, gripping it between one hand and the fingers of the other still holding his gun, letting the door’s lock emit nothing beyond a soft click once it latched into place within its frame.

This place did not belong. Jericho could tell as much without even turning around to fully take it in. The rustic and homey appearance of the wooden-paneled walls, sturdy bookshelves lining the walls which he already saw from the corner of his eyes, and a lush green potted plant.

The rest of the hospital looked like a slaughterhouse left to rot for a decade. By comparison, this place looked like it was in another world entirely.

And he still felt like someone was staring at him, standing right behind him.

He slowly turned and raised his gun. Whoever it was would not know there were no more bullets left inside of it.

A single burst of sharp breath escaped his lungs as he found nobody there. Paranoia had gotten the best of him.

Yet the room still did not belong. Immaculate, untouched. Some antique-looking chairs with fine leather upholstery and brass tacks. A marble bust of some Greek philosopher stared past him, adding to the atmosphere of sophistication that permeated this place.

One single other door leading out of the room. Footsteps approaching it.

Jericho trained his weapon on that next door, ready for anything.

The door opened and a man poked his head through. Sharp, angular features, short curly hair that had turned salt and pepper over the years. A piercing gaze, like what Jericho had expected to see staring at him upon turning around. And a well-fitted suit that clung to a sturdy and muscular frame, like that of a person who constantly worked out.

This stranger’s eyes went wide, staring right into the barrel of the revolver in Jericho’s hand for several seconds. If he felt fear now, he was hiding it well. He peeled his gaze off the weapon and locked eyes with Jericho while fully opening the door.

With a sweeping gesture of his arm, he presented a larger room beyond that door, a lavishly decorated office filled with more antique furniture. The small adornments like statues, taxidermized deer heads, antique books on more shelves, and water-colored paintings all screamed of a strange sense of opulence.

“Mister Day?” the man asked Jericho. “Please. Would you do me a favor and put the gun away?”

Jericho swallowed and registered how the rushing of blood in his ears had quieted itself somewhat. His heart had decided to take it down a notch, too. Descending from frantically thundering drum solo to a softly thumping background beat.

Confused by how he was being welcomed in here and how none of this fit together with the nightmare he had just hidden himself from, he shoved the weapon into the back of his belt. Once he blinked, he uttered a string of foul-mouthed profanities as he tugged it back out—in response to the searing pain of heated metal stinging his right butt cheek.

The man stepped fully into the waiting room and flashed him a feeble smile, communicating a sense of sympathy towards Jericho’s plight. He held out an open palm to Jericho while also giving him enough space to enter the office.

“Allow me to hold onto that for you until our session is over,” said the man.

Jericho swallowed again and placed the pistol into that open palm. The stranger took it and nodded to him, the air about him heavy with expectation.

Not having forgotten the clawed monstrosities prowling through the abandoned hospital’s hallways, where he had lost track of his two friends during their panicked escape, Jericho never felt more confused.

Jericho bit his lip, shook his head, and muttered under his breath, “Fuck it, I guess.”

He walked into the large office. Surveying the desk and chairs and the small couch and their respective placements finally made the needle drop. This office was a therapy room.

The man closed the door behind them and placed Jericho’s revolver on the desk, then he gestured to one of the chairs. That chair looked newer and more modern than the ones in the waiting room, but also more comfortable.

Jericho hesitated and stood in the middle of the room. Right now, he preferred the idea of standing, just in case he needed to make a run for it.

Because something was wrong. Not only with this place, but with this man. This therapist?

“Who are you?” he asked, his skepticism elevating each syllable to a higher pitch and instantly annoying himself at the sound of it.

“Wolff,” replied the therapist. “Doctor Simon Wolff. We have been working together for a while now, Mister Day. It is especially important that you do your best to remember that.”

Doctor Wolff straightened his jacket’s collar, slipped a small journal from the desk’s tabletop, and paired it with an expensive-looking pen. Taking the objects, he sat down on one of the chairs across from the other that he had gestured towards before, where he expected Jericho to sit.

The geometrical placement of the furniture was so perfect that it unsettled Jericho. He stayed standing and earned another small smile from Doctor Wolff, this one warmer than the last.

Windows to the outside world reflected everything in this room like darkened mirrors. The dead of night swallowed everything outside of them, save for clues of pine trees standing in a thick, snowy mist beyond them.

“Shall we begin?” asked Doctor Wolff, opening his journal and twisting his pen.

He crossed his legs, rested the journal on his lap, and tapped it twice with his pen, the smile never fading from his face.

Jericho mentally reeled. Doubt started eating away at the frayed fringes fluttering around in the darkest recesses of his mind. Was this real and the hospital before, those creatures—was that all unreal? Delusions?

“Do you know who you are?” asked Doctor Wolff.

It took Jericho another moment of internal deliberation, another instance of him swallowing emptily before he replied.

“Yeah. I’m Jericho Day. Private investigator of Fuller & Day.”

Wolff nodded and wrote a short note in his journal.

“Anything else?”

“I, uh, served in the military for almost four years. Uh, am 33 years old, uh,” Jericho stammered his way along, pooling his identity into the format of some lame fact sheet. It helped him get his mind off the horrible hospital behind him.

The more he rattled it down, though, the more the temptation to tell the truth grew. He added, “Two friends from high school hired me to help them, uh, well, check out a letter from our dead friend. It was, uh, sent posthumously.”

The regular ticking of a grandfather clock tocked away in the background, filling every empty beat and every awkward pause of his. The mechanical clicks thudded louder with each strike. After taking down more notes in his journal, the pages rustled as Doctor Wolff flipped through them, at one point back and forth before settling on a specific spot.

“The letter was authentic, the writing indeed Harry’s, but running the fingerprints yielded no match. So you traveled to your home town with your childhood friends, Daniel Smith and Joel Kline,” Doctor Wolff read out loud, in a monotone punctuated by the grandfather clock’s ticking. He clearly removed all melody from it to not offend Jericho, to not make it sound like he was mocking him with the brief summary.

The accuracy still stunned Jericho. He stopped fiddling with the black marble statue of a buffalo on a stand nearby and stared at the doctor.

How in the hell did he know? Jericho sheared every thought over Occam’s Razor and concluded that he must have told him all of this. The doctor obviously knew. But how come he himself did not remember telling him? The doctor acted as if he had been here with him several times before. Jericho wondered if he was losing his mind.

The hospital out there—was it even real? The creatures that infested this town in the absence of people? Had he been seeing a therapist and telling him about all of this? Was all of that out there the hallucination, or was this in here the illusion?

The gun on the desk suggested: both were real. Somehow.

Right?

The therapist’s gaze softly trailed from the book on his lap back to meet Jericho’s eyes again.

“Please stop me if I have gathered anything wrong from our previous conversations, Mister Day.”

Doctor Wolff cleared his throat and continued.

“You keep running into,” he paused, arching a brow. “Monsters—vaguely human-shaped, often faceless or eyeless. Some of them look like people wrapped in plastic that shamble around like zombies. One of them, you described, was a tall man with a horse’s head that attacked and injured your friend Daniel with a—with a stop sign.”

He looked up at him again and Jericho felt put on the spot. Sweat erupted from his pores, knowing how absurd it all sounded when read out loud like that. Yet the therapist allowed no pretention, no derision into his voice. His relaying of Jericho’s experiences felt earnest. Jericho felt taken seriously.

A nervous grin spread across his face, a day to the night of the doctor’s calm, statuesque, mask-like expression.

Still—it was all the truth. Nothing but the truth.

Jericho’s truth.

Right?

Jericho nodded in response. Doctor Wolff mirrored his motion. The therapist pursed his lips, flipped through the pages and kept his gaze locked onto Jericho.

“Good. There is more, but I see that you remember all the experiences you shared with me, even if you do not remember any of our sessions together. That is—somewhat, at least—to be expected.”

The clock continued to tick and tock away, unnerving Jericho further.

“I have been following your progress for a while, Mister Day,” Wolff said. The pause that followed left a lot of wide-open space for pondering. A lot of time for dread to take root in Jericho’s heart, even if the ticking and tocking indicated mere seconds to be wasting away.

He shot a glance at the gun. Even with its chambers empty of ammunition, just looking at the weapon’s cold steel lent him a sense of safety. Jericho wanted it back in his hand.

Some part of him wanted to be back out there. Looking for his friends. Running from those monsters.

Away from whatever this strange place was.

“Though I do not think you are ready, yet.”

Wolff clapped the notebook shut and folded his hands, resting them on top of the little black book, with the pen peeking out from between his fingers like a cigarette.

“Ready for what?” asked Jericho. Each word sharper than the last. “Who the hell are you, anyway? Who are you—really?”

Wolff savored the seconds as they passed upon letting that question sink in. An eerie and knowing smile crept across his face until it froze in place there.

“I have many names, Mister Day. Some call me Judas Iscariot. Some have dubbed me the First Man, others the Harbinger of the End Times. But for you, I’m simply Doctor Wolff.”

Jericho squinted at him.

“‘Kay. I’ll be leaving now while you wax poetic about, uh,” he paused. He waved a hand in a figure eight motion in Wolff’s general direction. “Whoever the fuck you are.”

Wolff still smiled at him. Tilted his head.

“Soon, you will be done with what you came to Evergreen for,” the therapist said. Shook his head. “But until then, the dusk will refuse to end. The sun will never rise again until you commit.”

Jericho had enough. He paced towards the desk and took his pistol. The steel had cooled down again. He wedged it into his belt behind his back.

“Do you realize how long you have been wandering your hometown? Jericho?”

Jericho decided not to indulge him.

Although he did not turn to see it, the rustling of fabric told him that Wolff took a theatrical glance at the watch wrapped around his own wrist.

“Twenty years. You have been trapped in a soulless place, unable to leave for all the mountains of snow that swallow the streets leading out of town, unable to see beyond its borders for all the fog that strangles your vision. You and your friends have lost all sense of time.”

Jericho clutched the brass knob of the door, but he did not twist it yet. Hesitated to leave.

Wolff spoke with such authority. His voice exuded such clean resolve.

It all sounded true. Like nothing but the truth. An impossibility, but now that he thought about it, his memory was obviously not what it used to be. His mind must have been Swiss cheese, or something. Deep down, Jericho knew, that all of this was real.

“Ten years ago, while you still aimlessly stumbled around in this little pocket of personal purgatory, you weren’t even a private detective. You were a petty thief—a grifter—who had burnt down every last relationship in his life before returning to this town. Are you aware of what you are running from?”

Jericho opened the door, returning to the waiting room he had entered from.

“The exit is through the other door, Mister Day,” Wolff informed him in his strangely melodious monotone. “I would kindly ask you to follow the proper path.”

“Fuck off,” Jericho muttered while stepping back into the waiting room and heading towards the final door.

Wolff had nothing left to say. Perhaps Jericho’s rude retorts had finally rendered the sickeningly polite therapist speechless.

Opening the door, the single fluorescent tube in the hospital’s hallway flickered again, alternating between flashes of pitch-black darkness and a harsh, cold light. Cold air poured through the doorway, biting his skin and reminding him of the winter outside, the winter that had taken hold of the abandoned hospital’s bowels.

“Perhaps, next time, you will not even be Jericho Day anymore. Perhaps you will be Danielle. Or Jerry. Perhaps, next time, you will be ready to move on. Ready to finally grow some balls,” Wolff’s voice echoed behind him, the tone rising in pitch to underline his sudden taunt.

Jericho slammed the door shut. Then the words fully sank in, poured fuel into the dimming fire of his fury. He ripped the door open to tell this Doctor Wolff to go fuck himself.

But the waiting room and the office had vanished.

Instead, he only found empty rooms beyond that door. Windows to the outside had been fogged up with years’ worth of grime, boarded up from the exterior. Trash from squatters and disaffected youths littered the corners and the place smelled of urine. Graffiti and lewd comments had been scrawled onto the defaced walls.

With nowhere else to release his anger, Jericho slammed the door shut again.

Scratching sounds erupted in response, traveling to him from the end of the corridor.

A pallid head with neither nostril nor eyes reared around the corner. Its toothless mouth opened, and black slime oozed out from its lower jaw, dripping to the filthy floors. Slender fingers with the flaccidity of undercooked sausages, covered in polyps, flopped around the corner, tipped by long, sharp, black claws. Those talons dug into the surface of the wall, scratching the paint from it, sending more unnerving sounds his ways.

Though it had no eyes, he felt seen by the creature.

Jericho ran.

He would be running for a long, long time.

—Submitted by Wratts

#spoospasu #spookyspaghettisundae #horror #short story #writing #my writing #literature #spooky #fiction #submission #run on for a long time #Evergreen #Reunion #surreal #hyperrealism #abandoned #lost #hell #purgatory #demons #mystery #Jericho #creature #monster #escape #revolver #therapy #therapist #office #confusion

[softlass27]

Flufftober Day 20 – Enigmatic continuing my trend of "canon if robert was still here" fics some context for those who aren't up to speed on the show: bernice recently offered to sell the salon to leyla or mandy – whoever could come up with the money first. mandy won (thanks to paul's dodgy gambling winnings) so now she owns it – despite the fact that she knows sod all about how to run a business. and she's already made the place even more hideously tacky than it already was.

AO3 link here

Aaron sighed as he closed the front door behind him, rolling his aching shoulders with a wince. Having just spent six hours on a scrap run, he was officially knackered. All he wanted to do was order a pizza, have a cold beer and curl up with Robert on the sofa for the rest of the night.

As he kicked his shoes off and walked further into the house, he saw Robert sitting with his laptop at the kitchen table, surrounded by a mass of paperwork.

“Hiya,” he sighed, dropping a kiss on the side of Robert’s head on his way to the fridge.

“Hello,” Robert said around the pen that was held between his teeth, grinning brightly.

Aaron took the cap off his beer bottle and took a long gulp, before pulling up a chair opposite Robert.

“Busy?”

Robert hummed, stretching his arms over his head. “Can I run something by you?”

There was an enigmatic look in his eyes, like there was something he’d been dying to tell Aaron all day.

“Go on, then.”

“I spoke to Bernice this morning.”

Aaron blinked, nonplussed. Of all the things he'd been expecting, it wasn't that. Far as he knew, Robert and Bernice had barely had contact since she'd buggered off to the other side of the world.

“Bernice? She coming back to the village or summat?”

“No, the opposite actually. She’s definitely staying put in Australia.”

“Okay… what does this have to do with you?”

“She’s decided to sell the salon,” Robert said, fiddling with his pen. “And she wanted to give me first dibs on it.”

Aaron frowned. “As in… she wants you to be the new owner.”

“Yep.”

“You?”

“Well don’t sound so – ”

“You’re her first choice.”

“Technically, Nicola was. Bernice wanted her to take it over, since they’re family n'all. But since Nicola’s just bought the cafe, she can’t be taking on another new business right now, so she turned her down. I’m second choice, apparently.”

“Why?”

“If it doesn’t go to family – which I am, sort of – she wants it to still be someone in the village. So if not me, then the next option would have to be Leyla or Mandy. Which… ” He shuddered. “Could you imagine the amount of leopard print Mandy would assault the place with? Talk about an eyesore.”

Aaron stared at him, still trying to comprehend what he was hearing.

“Do you know anything about salons?”

“A bit… ” Robert looked slightly hesitant all of a sudden. “Chrissie owned about half a dozen of them while we were together.”

There was an uncomfortable, but brief, jolt to Aaron’s system at the mention of Robert’s ex-wife. It would probably always be there, but hearing her name didn’t actually bother him, not anymore. He smiled encouragingly, gesturing for Robert to continue. Robert smiled back, resting his elbows on the table.

“Okay, so I used to help her out with them sometimes. Go over the books, help her with pitches, come up with marketing ideas, that sort of thing. So it’s not totally new to me. And it’s not like I’d actually be the one cutting anyone’s hair or doing nails or anything.”

Aaron snorted. “Well I should hope not, not after what you did to my hair on lockdown.”

“How many times, I’ve said I’m sorry! It grew back, didn’t it?”

“I had to wear a hat for two months.”

Robert rolled his eyes. “Anyway, it’s a business like any other, right? As long as I can manage the finances, beat the competition and get decent staff, it should be a piece of cake.”

Aaron nodded slowly.

“You think it’s mad?”

“No, “ Aaron said quickly. “Just… I can’t believe you'd want to work with Mandy of all people, for starters.”

Robert gave him an odd look. “I wouldn’t be working with Mandy. She’d have to go. In fact, she’ll be the first thing to go.”

“Good luck telling that to my lot.”

Robert waved an unconcerned hand in the air and powered on. “Honestly, staffing issues would be the least of my concern, there’s loads of stuff that would need changing.”

“So you wouldn’t just keep the place running as it is, then?”

“No, Bernice sent me some stuff to look at and I’ve spent all day going through it. Long story short; it's completely outdated, the whole thing needs a total overhaul,” Robert said, shuffling through some of the paperwork. “It’d be a totally different place by the time I was done with it.”

He pushed a handful of printouts in Aaron’s direction, showing images of trendy-looking salons with sleek, shiny hairdressing stations and cream-carpeted beauty rooms.

“Something classy and modern, more gender neutral. Less tacky pink,” he said with a grimace. “Properly trained, competent employees, not ones who show up looking like they got ready in the dark. That means no Kerry and definitely no Mandy. Vic’s always complaining about how she has to go all the way into town to get a decent haircut or have her nails done. Do you know anyone in the village under the age of 50 who actually goes to Bernice’s place?”

Aaron cast his mind back to the time they’d both watched Marlon sprinting out of the salon with half-dyed hair, screaming at Kerry to stay away from him, and shook his head with a chuckle.

“Don’t think they ever get any men in there, either.”

“Exactly!” Robert grinned, pointing at one of the printouts showing examples of leather barber chairs he'd researched. “So that’s already about half the residents who don’t even consider setting foot in the place. Which is ridiculous, when you compare that to businesses like the HOP or the cafe.

“And if we were aiming for a younger, more diverse crowd, it would need social media, too. Bernice didn’t even use Instagram, for God’s sake. And then there’s Take a Vow; Leyla’s business is really taking off now and there’s loads of deals we could do with her – hen dos, wedding packages, that sort of thing. I bet if we did everything properly, we could double the client numbers – and the profit – within a year.”

Robert’s eyes gleamed with that passionate energy he always got when talking about new business opportunities. It was a look that Aaron hadn’t seen for a while, and he couldn’t help smiling at him with slight bemusement.

“You really want to do this, don’t you?”

Robert paused, before shrugging.

“I can pretty much run the haulage with my eyes closed. The only thing I really like about it is that I get to spend most of the day with you,” he winked, causing Aaron to roll his eyes fondly.

“My heart’s not really in it anymore, especially since Jimmy and Nicola have pretty much ditched everything for the cafe and left me to run it single-handedly,” he scowled, before fixing Aaron with an earnest expression. “I wouldn’t mind a change, a new challenge… and I reckon I could make a good go of it. But I’ll only do it if you’re onboard; Bernice has given me a couple of days to think it over, we have time to decide. So… what do you think?”

“I think… you can do anything you set your mind to.”

Robert’s face lit up, overtaken by a wide smile. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Aaron nodded, laughing at his husband’s excitement. “If it’s what you want, then of course you should go for it.”

Robert leapt from his seat and yanked Aaron up with him, pulling him in for a kiss.

“Best husband ever,” he murmured happily, grinning against Aaron’s lips.

“Don’t you forget it.”

#bit random i know #but honestly putting robert into canon scenarios is the best way to get through the show atm #also i am SICK TO DEATH of the dingles owning so many businesses in the village #it gives them too much power #and MANDY of all people too #she's the last person who should be in charge of anything #robron #my writing #flufftober2020

[anoceaninthesun]

Needs Improvement

Thanks largely to a brilliant suggestion by @shineejeya the Home Improvement AU continues with this ficlet (mini-series ??). This time the renovating teams tackle their toughest assignment yet. If only it was all about the house and not the feisty, beautiful client.

Summary: When Yamanaka Ino meddles in her best friend’s love life quest to DIY renovate her new fixer-upper, Haruno Sakura finds herself caught up in a home improvement competition between four handsome, creative questionably qualified renovators.  

(Home Improvement AU, Modern AU, Slice-of-Life AU)

Pairings: FoundersxSaku (IzuSaku, TobiSaku, MadaSaku, HashiSaku), ShikaIno, other background pairs

Rating: T

Genre(s): Romance, Comedy, General

Warnings: none really—except maybe swearing, atrocious flirting skills and the Founders being renovating crackheads (not literally, but almost)

Pt. 1, Pt.2 

Sakura had her doubts about Ino’s intentions from the moment she showed up dressed so...expensively. The season’s latest denim cut off jacket, glittering top, a perfectly pleated skirt she’d seen in an upscale boutique they went to together, and boots easily worth someone’s paycheck. Granted, her friend had been a fashionista and trendsetter since they were kids.

 But, when Ino called the night before claiming it had been too long since they’d hung out and she wanted to do a quiet, girl’s-day-in, she’d agreed. So maybe the pinkette had brought whatever was coming onto herself. She hadn’t thought much of it when the blonde said she’d swing by.

 It wasn’t really done, boxes barely unpacked and some rooms still without fresh coats of paint, but it was slowly coming along. Buying her first home at only twenty-two was a big deal, all the years of frugal spending and careful saving, of building credit and working hard culminating in such a huge achievement. 

She was so proud of herself, and determined to turn the house into the home of her dreams, one weekend at a time. “Do you want a soda or water?” she called from the kitchen. 

She could see Ino on her couch with her thumbs flying over her phone screen, not paying any attention to the movie playing. “Smoothie.” she responded, absently. 

“That’s not even one of the choices I just offered!” Sakura huffed. 

“Don’t be an ungracious hostess, Sakura.” Ino laughed.

The doorbell chimed, and Sakura went to the fridge and fished out two bottles of water. She raised a suspicious brow when Ino ran to get it before she could so much as ask. Sakura knew she wasn’t expecting anyone else over, but her friends sometimes popped up when they knew she was free (which was sadly less than ever as of late). 

Taking the water and setting the two bottles down on the coffee table, Sakura wandered into the mudroom, peering out the window. She took a startled step back, blinking at the cars parked in her driveway and on the other side of the street. Was that...a camera crew? “What the hell?” she whispered. “Ino!” She stomped to the front door, only to find her friend bouncing around, happy sounds leaving her mouth as four incredibly attractive men stepped into her home. And yes, a flood of people with cameras coming in too. 

“Hi!” Ino waved with both hands. “Thank you so much for choosing this house! I can’t believe you’re here,” she tucked a loose lock of hair behind one ear and then moved forward to shake the first man’s hand. 

Sakura caught herself doing a double take. He looked so much like her childhood friend Sasuke it wasn’t even funny. More like Sasuke than his own older brother did, and she had always thought that their resemblance was pretty strong.

 The only real noticeable differences she could spot was his longer hair (hair which stuck up messily the same way Sasuke’s tended to) hanging down his back when he turned.

 His lips also looked fuller, and she and Naruto had always reluctantly agreed Sasuke had lips to die for. Their eyes met from over Ino’s shoulder and Sakura felt her heart seize up for half a beat, averting her eyes. He smiled politely, stepping back from Ino so she could continue conversing with the strange group of people. 

“So this is the house?” A white-haired man rumbled, his sharp, red eyes drinking in every detail. His unyielding facial expression made it hard to determine whatever thoughts were running to his head. Until his head bobbed once, evidently satisfied. “It’s got good bones.” 

Good bones. Sakura had thought the same thing when she’d seen it, and that’s what had prompted her to put a considerable amount of her savings into buying it. That, and maybe a tiny splash of idealism. The location, the rooms, the cute (if not somewhat overgrown) backyard...

“You’re Yamanaka Ino, right? The friend who wrote in?” The next man who spoke brought her right out of her idyllic visions. He was huge, with a beautifully bronzed skin tone, a voice that exuded warmth, and a flannel shirt stretched over a broad chest. He shook Ino’s hand, her whole arm bouncing with his strength, “Is the home owner around?” 

“Sure is! She’s right,” Ino half turned and her eyes immediately found Sakura, who had been frozen there the entire time. “Right there!”

Just like that, any illusion of invisibility she had was ripped away, and Sakura stood exposed. The cameras were zooming in, taking in her wide eyes, ghostly pallor and everyday clothes. 

“Haruno Sakura?” The man approaching her had a voice that felt like it punched the wind from her lungs, knocking her sideways. He shifted some of his long hair aside and smirked slightly, catching her reaction. She took the hand he offered and shook it, because she wasn’t really sure what else she could do. “I assume you know why we’re here?”

“Bad assumption,” she croaked. “This wasn’t what...I don’t know why...have I seen you somewhere before?” 

The role reversal was abrupt. His cocky grin melted into a thin line as his brow arched and he retracted his hand. “You...You haven’t seen the show?”

“No.” Sakura responded, almost challengingly.

The Sasuke-Look-Alike approached with a softer expression, but it did nothing for her nerves. He was just as overwhelming up close as the man she shook hands with.

“We were contacted to renovate a home, your home. As part of a new episode of our show, From House to Home. I’m Uchiha Izuna, and that’s my charming brother—”

“Madara.” Madara introduced himself with pride, as if he had the title of royalty attached to his name. They really were Sasuke’s relatives! Ones she’d never met, and she thought she had met a good deal of his extended family.

Apparently not wanting to be left out, the man with the large presence and abundance of energy came over, his eyes merry even before the genuine grin pulled his mouth up. “I’m Senju Hashirama, and I’m excited to work with you. We’ll get your dream home complete in no time.” Tugging the solemn man to his side and placing an arm around his shoulders, he waited.

“Senju Tobirama.” he said, his tone no more ‘excited’ than his face.

Sakura blinked once, wondering why a brain that could memorize the names for all the bones in a human body with ease had so much difficulty processing this. “Nice to meet you all.” she said slowly. Her eyes darted back to the camera crew still filming. She worried her face was going to look clammy on film. Would they edit out the awkward parts at least?

“So, Ino-san’s told us a little bit, but it’d be great if we could go over what you’re looking for.” Izuna urged.

Figuring it was too late to turn back (although she owed Ino one hell of a scolding for blindsiding her), Sakura nodded. “I’ll show you around.”

______________________________________________________________

Ino flitted around like a dragonfly that couldn’t decide where to land. Sakura did her best not to break into a sweat over the pack of handsome men following her around from room to room. She had plenty of male friends.

Attractive male friends, even. But there was a hot flame at the back of her neck from the gazes tracking her that just wasn’t there when she was around her boys. The crush she’d once had on Sasuke for that awkward period when they were younger, notwithstanding.

“A more open kitchen?” Hashirama repeated. He pulled out a tablet and began fumbling with it, biting his lip briefly. Sighing loudly, Tobirama yanked it from his hand, pointedly turning it so it was no longer upside down, and began tapping.

Sakura smiled slightly. Though they were apparently something like celebrities in the world of home improvement, they gave off a very difference impression in real life. On the other hand, exactly how competent were these men?

“It’d be nice if she could have a bigger island bar. You know, for get togethers with our friends.” Ino put in, standing at one corner of the room.

For all the helpful advice she had, the renovators probably thought Ino lived with her.

“We’ve definitely done some very fun island bars before.” The older Senju said. “Remember the project with the tropical fish tank built in?” He nudged at his brother, who grimaced.

“Your ideas are somehow always even bigger than the clients.” Tobirama grumbled.

Madara wondered over to her humble stove area, examining it. Then her second-hand fridge and microwave. “These appliances are outdated. Anything new we put in would clash.” Sakura took offense to his disdainful expression. It wasn’t easy to afford a house on her budget and spring for brand new kitchenware and appliances.

“It works fine.” Sakura explained, teeth grinding. Who did this man, who probably drove around in a car the same price as the down payment on her house, think he was? To demonstrate, she brushed by his taller frame and turned on one of the eyelets of the stove. A flame sputtered to life. “Plus,” she added, putting on her syrupiest voice, “I know seasoned renovators like yourselves can work around any minor inconveniences the house has.” Madara stared at it, then her, saying nothing else.

Sakura happened to catch the shrewd carmine eyes of Tobirama, noticing how they were lit with mild amusement.

“Without a doubt!” Hashirama agreed, “So Madara, you’ll take responsibility for the kitchen area?”

Crossing his arms, the older Uchiha made a noise reminiscent of reluctant agreeance. Sakura had been friends with Sasuke for a long enough period to decode most vague noises and gestures in an Uchiha’s standard repertoire.

That was without a doubt, “challenge accepted.” ______________________________________________________________

So far, the job ahead didn’t make him feel as miserable as Tobirama had been expecting. Despite the strange newness of the situation, Haruno Sakura didn’t seem like an unreasonable client. They were currently surveying her unfenced backyard, no one more eager to talk about plans for it than Hashirama. “The great thing about how unstructured this space is right now, is that you could do almost anything with it and not worry about taking anything out first. A fence is a definite, but how do you feel about a greenstone garden?”

Sakura contemplated, a slow smile curling her lips as her best friend barely contained a squeal. “Well, I did say whenever I got my own place I’d try my hand at something like that.” 

Happy that she was on board, she and Hashirama began to talk shop, with Ino interjecting, apparently a gardening fanatic herself. Tobirama let them chat, busy watching Madara scope out the yard, presumably to see how he’d implement his own project. When he wasn’t doing that, he was boring holes into the side of the client’s head. She had to feel it. 

It was starting to agitate him a little, and he wasn’t even the focus of the man’s gaze. Ever since the little display of sass in the kitchen – something Tobirama thoroughly appreciated since quite a few clients were too busy fawning to put Madara in his place–it was hard to tell if the older of the Uchiha brothers wanted to one up them or impress Sakura. More than likely both.

“I don’t think I’d want to splurge on anything like a pool,” Sakura was shaking her head. “But it’d be nice to have something entertaining...”

“A firepit.” Izuna said instantly. “We can do one right off the patio if you want.” He took out his own tablet and showed her a three dimensional construct of what it would look like. 

Sakura leaned in, her face approving. “Oh!” Without even seeming to realize it, she gently tugged it from his hands and tapped. “Are these the different designs? I really like this one.” 

The camera shifted to show what her choice had been. Though Tobirama found the Uchiha’s penchant for firepits entirely unoriginal from a design perspective, the one Sakura liked would unfortunately be very nice surrounded by Hashirama’s horticultural touches.

 Izuna was certainly proud of himself for suggesting it, much less openly smug than his brother. But...too pleased nonetheless. In fact, he had been stealing interested looks at Sakura nearly as often as Madara. 

As they moved back into the house, Hashirama and the women in front, the younger Senju traded a very loaded look with the dark-haired brothers.That probably wasn’t going to make the final cut. The show liked to capitalize on a “friendly” if not overly-competitive rivalry, but the venomous sneers they gifted each other were far past it. 

They were all supposed to be alright with a collaboration for the sake of Sakura’s dream reno. He just had the niggling suspicion that wasn’t the only thing on their minds. Deny all they wanted, the Uchiha Team tended to shine best when the client was young, female and single. Sakura was at least two out of three things thus far. 

At the very least, she wasn’t acting besotted. That was a welcome change. She also seemed financially conscious, which was something else Tobirama appreciated after so long doing budgeting on these projects. A lot of clients didn’t truly understand how that portion of project management worked.

 Though, with how surprised she was by the whole affair, he wondered if she even knew an anonymous source had put up a very generous amount to cover the renovation.

 Sakura could have two identical houses and triple the square footage if she really wanted it. And it wasn’t beneath Madara to use that knowledge and some sex appeal to coerce someone in the pinkette’s position to let him take control of a project like this one.   

Tobirama wasn’t about to let the opposing team break ahead. The time would come shortly for him to speak with Sakura, and when they had that meeting of the minds, he would convince her that an economical reno was the way to go.  

______________________________________________________________

It took a lot longer than anticipated but here’s part two. The beginning of the SakuraxFounders interactions! I usually do slow burn, but at the same time this isn’t going to be super long, so romance may happen quicker than usual. I think this is looking more and more like it may become a mini-series (a handful of these little chapters probably), which I have never done on tumblr. Fingers crossed I figure it out. If you’re looking for more FounderxSakura fun from me, and there’s a chance you haven’t seen my oversaturated advertisement for it, you can check out: A Stitch in Time.

#sakura haruno #foundersxsakura #konoha founders #needs improvement #madara uchiha #izuna uchiha #hashirama senju #tobirama senju #ino yamanaka #sakura is already done #tobirama’s getting there #madara should maybe keep his shirt on #sakura might splash bacon grease his way if he crosses her #hashirama never sticks to the budget #madasaku #tobisaku #izusaku #hashisaku

[scarletmelody]

Queenstrial - Chapter 3

Masterlist

warnings: language

semi-modern AU

Summary: Mare Barrow’s only wish is for true freedom. But all that’s taken away from her when a gods damned letter shows up on her doorstep. Gone is the hope for a life of happiness. Instead, she’s been chosen to enter the 50th Queenstrial competition to win Prince Tiberias the VII’s hand in marriage. But not only is the Prince she’s expected to win, not a stranger at all, but rather her previous one night stand, but now she’s competing against 20 other cutthroat women for his love and affections she’s not even sure she wants.

...

I want to disappear. I want to combust in a thousand pieces never to be seen again. Because in this moment the only thing left in my head is that I need to leave. Oh my gods. I need to get out. I think the world is collapsing beneath my feet as I can’t even bear to stand. My legs start shaking under me and I can hardly breathe.

 And his fucking eyes. They pour endlessly into my own and I know that he remembers me. His face is stunned into the same expression currently on my own. Utter shock. How he can stand there and emotionless while I’m feeling like I’m in utter hell is beyond me.

 Cal has enough composure to avert his gaze before anyone else notices that the prince and one of his Queenstrial contestants know each other. Especially under our less than ideal circumstances. But while he looks away, my heart fucking drops. This might take a win for the worst day of my life.

 I continue staring at Cal while he smoothly pretends that nothing wrong is happening. And then he starts speaking. In that familiar voice that I can remember hearing last night. Although in an entirely inappropriate context.

 “Hello everyone, my family and I are very excited to have you all here with us for my Queenstrial. I’ve been looking forward to this moment for a long while and I hope that this will be the start to an amazing journey for all of us.” I scoff. Amazing my ass. “…but before we get started today, your maids will escort you all to your rooms where you’ll find all the necessary necessities you’ll need waiting for you. If anything’s not to your liking don’t hesitate to let them know. Afterwards you’ll be brought down to the dining room and we’ll dine together” he says with an annoyingly dazzling white smile.

 Gods. He’s a fucking silver. That’s one option I didn’t even consider last night. Fuck. I feel so utterly stupid. Everything about him makes me want to punch his unfairly perfect face. I’m almost bursting with anger. Red is the only thing that comes to mind. And yet part of me knows that I’m being stupid. Stupid for being angry because it’s not his fault I’m in this situation.

 I watch as he turns and exits the room in his impossibly sharp form fitting black suit that shows off that toned body of his I had to privilege of eying only hours before, his uncle following him. Walsh breaks my stare as she grips my hand and drags me towards the opposite end of the room where another grand staircase awaits us.

 “This way Mare”, she says ushering me towards it.

 I roll my eyes as I let her escort me up the stairs with the other ladies although I do notice a few walking as far away from their maids as possible. And of course, they’re all silver. What a pain it must be to even touch a red for them, being all high and mighty.

 When the staircase splits into 4 different sections, we take the one to the left side, with Nina apparently having been selected to have a room in the same wing of the castle.

 She smiles at me as her maid walks with her as well, before she reaches her room a few doors across from my own and waves goodbye as she’s whisked past her door.

 My room is apparently a fucking castle of its own. At least to me. The floor to ceiling windows on the opposite side bring in the natural lighting with the most stunning view of the lush green gardens I have ever seen. Accompanied by a plain dresser, and two doors that I assume lead to a bathroom and close, I almost can’t believe that this room is my accommodation. Although the aesthetic of it is nothing compared to the bed. Because it’s gigantic.

 I almost want to reach out and lay on it because it looks like a cloud. And just when I reach out and my fingers skim the edge of the sheets feeling its soft silky texture, Walsh slaps my hand away.

 “What- “

 “Mare, we don’t have time for ogling eyes at the bed for god sakes! We only have so little time before dinner and I want you to make a good impression!”

 Glancing at the clock I respond exasperatedly, “Walsh we literally have an hour”

 “You think that’s enough time?” she smirks, looking me up and down.

 I feign a gasp of offense. “Really? I thought I looked damn good.”

 She rolls her eyes. “Sorry Mare, but I’m going to make you look more than ‘good’. By the time I’m done, you’ll be drop dead gorgeous.”

…

Fuck she was right.

Because by the time she finished I look amazing. Better than I’ve ever looked in my entire life.

 She lets me continue to wear my dress, which I insisted on, but other than that I’m completely revamped. I no longer look like an ordinary girl from the stilts, but now I’m completely transformed.

 My hair is now done in voluminous soft curls that makes my generic long brown hair with graying ends flow elegantly down my back. A layer of foundation makes the blemishes I didn’t even know I had virtually disappear. But all that is nothing compared to the light bronze eyeshadow look that accompanies my own tan skin from hours spent in the sun along with the perfectly rosy pink lip gloss.

 It’s so utterly flawless that I want to cry. I don’t deserve any of this. I don’t want any of it. But I have to. For my family, I remind myself. But it makes me feel sick. I’m currently sitting in luxury while my family is still struggling to survive.

 Shaking my head, I quietly tell Walsh that she can leave and thank her for making me look so beautiful. She just nods as if she knows what exactly is going on in my head and walks out telling me to meet her downstairs in 5 minutes.

 Once she shuts the door behind her, I walk to the bathroom in my room. Of course, just as I expect it’s massive. It houses a standalone tub in the corner with the same view of the gardens and a glass door shower next to it. But I move towards the white porcelain sink with a giant mirror above it and stare at my own reflection. Looking at my appearance it’s as if I can’t even recognize myself. Underneath all that makeup and clothing, who am I?

 The only answer I can come up with is that I’m just Mare. A stupid foolish girl that decided to sleep with the Crown Prince of Norta who’s now expected to compete against 20 other girls for him to fall in love with her. Or at least choose her to marry. Stupid fucking Mare.

 Allowing myself one moment of vulnerability I let myself release one tear before I angrily wipe it away. So Walsh doesn’t get mad at me for ruining all her hard work.

 Quickly reaching into my bra, I reach for the set of emerald earrings that Kilorn gave me just this morning.

 I punch the first one in without a second thought. The sting of it piercing my skin is almost a relief. At least I can feel something now. The second goes in quickly without another moment’s consideration.

 The blood continues dripping for a minute before I wipe it away. Satisfied, I take a look at myself again, force a smile and try to ignore the fact that I know exactly who and where the purple marks on my neck and bruises on my legs covered by concealer are from. As I walk out the door to my room the only thing I think of is, ‘This is it. Time to pretend to be someone else’. Because that’s exactly what’s happening. Tonight, I’m no longer Mare Barrow. 

 Walking down the steps down from my wing of the castle I take my time because no matter how much I feign confidence I’m still nowhere near feeling as powerful as I feel. Because I’m still hiding from the truth. I’m going to be forced to face Cal. The only person I wanted to reach out to just this morning is now the only being I would rather burn in hell before facing.

 When I meet Walsh downstairs where it appears I’m surprisingly not the last one, I smile and nod to her. She dips her head in response and I attempt to find Nina because well, she’s the only girl who’s talked to me so far.

 Moving past the sea of bodies I scan the crowd for her eyeing the sea of heads for a familiar head of blond hair.

 Ah, that’s her. I think to myself.

 But just as I tap who I think is Nina on the shoulder, the person in question immediately flips around, her hair almost slapping me in the face.

 Oh, shit. This is definitely not Nina.

 Because this girl does not look like my kind and thoughtful almost-friend. No, she’s all ice. Her hair, which I now see is platinum blonde up close, swishes back and forth in her slick long ponytail and her charcoal black eyes sharpen as she stares right back at me. The two girls who were in conversation with her also turn around noticing their leader’s lapse in attention. Now all three of them glare at me.

Fuck.

“And who are you?” the platinum blond scoffs with an undeniable sense of superiority.

 “Mare Barrow”, I respond trying my best to keep my dignity and pride although those two things are long gone by now.

 “Well Mare Barrow, listen up” she continues, her perfectly manicured finger almost poking my eye out as she points it in my face. I almost feel the need to spit in her face.

 But before she can finish her sentence which I assume had some vulgar words, a deep male voice behind me interrupts her. “Evangeline. Be nice.”

 Oh. This is Evangeline. The girl that Walsh told me about. SHIT.

 Turning around at my unexpected savior, I almost crash right into his chest. Moving my gaze up, my eyes widen realizing who exactly is in front of me.

 It’s the fucking prince’s brother. Maven Calore.

 “Hello”, he grins, staring down at me because even in these extremely tall heels I don’t push past 5’6 and he stands to be at least 5’10.

 But before I can respond, he turns back to Evangeline. “Don’t you have something else to occupy your time with?”

 She chooses to roll her eyes at him and giving me another scowl, before turning back to conversation with her two other lackeys.

 “So…” he starts, continuing to look at me.

 “Thank you” I quickly blurt out.  

 “Don’t mention it”, he grins, adding a wink. “Evangeline has been fucking up people’s lives for long enough, thought I’d return the favor.”

 Interesting. For another Calore prince, this is not what I had in mind.

 “I think you know my name already, but I didn’t quite manage to catch yours” he starts, interrupting my thoughts.

 “Mare”

 “I see. Well Mare, Maven Calore at your service. It was an honor to save you from Evangeline’s torment, and I would love to do it again”.

 I chuckle at that. If we weren’t in this situation, him being a prince and me being a competitor in his brother’s Queenstrial, I think we could have been friends.

 I avert my stare for a second to glance at the other girls in the room, but he catches me.

 “That one’s Sonya Iral”, he begins, over my shoulder pointing to Evangeline’s brunette friend who’s currently speaking animatedly. Iral. So, she’s a silk.

 “And the one next to her is Elane Haven.” Elane is the redhead who nods quietly as Sonya tells her story. Haven is another high house and she’s a shadow. That’s one to look out for.

 “Over there, that’s Rohr Rhambos.” Rohr’s honey blond hair flows down her back as she stands in the corner of the room scrolling on her phone with a smirk. Although she does look a little like a mouse. It’s hard to believe she’s older than 17, seeing as she doesn’t a look a day past 12. But still, a strongarm.

 Maven continues to point out a few of the other girls, but I only recognize a few of them. Heron Welle, a greenwarden, and Atara Viper, an animos. Deadly silver girls of more high houses.

 My observances and Maven’s introductions are cut short however, when another bell rings and we both look up towards the end of the hallway where Julian Jacos once again stands.

 “Apologies for the wait ladies”, he begins in his soft yet firm voice that reminds me of my teachers in school. “We’re ready for you, so please follow me.”

 Maven grins at me as I turn around to face him. “Well Mare, let’s get your Queenstrial journey started” he tells me, holding out an arm for me.

 I take it without a second thought. At least I have him; someone to guide me.

 He leads me at the back of the pack currently beelining for the entrance to the dining room.

 It’s at this point that I start a mental battle in my head again. Well, mostly it’s a string of curses. Fuck. I’m not ready.

 But it’s too late because I’m already inside where everyone happens to already be finding their seats and I’m still standing there with Maven.

 My eyes drag down to the end of the table first meeting the King’s and then Elara’s. The King’s eyes are bloodshot and I wouldn’t be surprised if he we’re almost blacked out drunk. But that’s still nothing compared to the ice blue stare of Elara’s gaze. Her blue eyes so similar to Maven’s eyeing me up and down, probably at my short dress so at odds compared to the more refined tastes of the other girls’.

 I rip my eyes away before I bolt out of the room from fear. Unfortunately, I end up staring right at him instead.

 Cal holds my gaze, a fierce determination present in his face before my mind starts to blank. I swear to god every time I look at him I can’t breathe. I can’t think.

 Before I can succumb to my impulse to run far, far away, I force myself to take a deep breath, and move towards the only chair left which happens to be on the very far end from the table. Thankfully the farthest away from Cal.

 I expect Maven to move down towards his expected seat towards the front with the rest of his family, but to my shock and horror he pulls another chair from the line of extras littering amongst the walls and drags it right up next to mine.

 My face loses all of its color as he gives me a knowing smirk and finally sits down right next to me. Braving a glance at the rest of my table I think my stomach drops a flip and lands downwards. Because every single person at the table is staring. And definitely not nicely.

 All of the girls glare daggers at me, enraged at the fact that I’ve already managed to sway one of the princes even though that couldn’t be farther from the truth. And at the head of the table the Queen is practically livid. She sharpens her gaze at Maven who rolls his eyes and shrugs. How anyone can have the audacity to perform those actions in front of a whisper is beyond me.

 The King doesn’t seem to notice the change and merely downs another glass of red wine in front of him. Cal on the other hand… His face flares in pure shock as he watches me and his brother seated on my left.

 I almost want to flip him off and tell him to look away and go fuck himself. I shouldn’t care what he thinks. I shouldn’t be having any reaction to the way he attempts to have eye contact with me. I shouldn’t still be remembering the feel of his lips on my skin tracing a fiery path. I shouldn’t.

 So, I shut off my thoughts and lean back. Time to get this shit show started.

 I don’t even bother to feign interest as I audibly hear his chair scrape back and I know that he’s now standing.

 “Thank you for joining me here today. I’m excited to get to know you all later after dinner. You all look lovely” he says, the deep tone of his voice echoing throughout the room so silent and yet so full of tension. “I hope you understand how much your participation in my Queenstrial means to me and how much I’m looking forward to this experience”.

 Then his uncle Julian Jacos adds on, “Tomorrow we’ll reconvene together in the morning for breakfast before we get started on ability training.”

 Ability training. I almost forgot about that aspect of Queenstrial. This competition isn’t just about happiness or finding love it’s also about strength and who the most capable out of all of is.

 “But for now, let’s eat” Cal add with an infuriating wink, ending the introduction.

 And then silence. Pangs of silverware remains the only sound left in the room. Although almost instantaneously conversation starts in hushed whispers from small groups around the table. Girls whisper in each other’s ears trying to remain inconspicuous to their companions.

 I sit there frozen in my spot just observing the other girls mumbling to each other, catching some parts of their conversation through phrases like “that one’s really ugly”, or “she’s a whore”.

 Of course. What else do I expect from these girls. I’m still unmoving even as servants move in from different sides of the exits to the room bringing dishes of food with them.

 As they set one in front of me which happens to be filled with thick slices of lamb and grilled potatoes, I suddenly remember the person sitting next to me. Looking sideways, I catch him staring at me.

 He just smirks.

 “Why are you sitting here? Next to me, I mean” I have the nerve to ask.

 Laughing softly, he responds, “I thought we were friends”.

 This must be some joke. Me and the younger prince being friends?

 Rolling my eyes, I tell him, “Sure”. Even if part of me starts to lift the corner of my lips into a smile.

 “So, when’s your Queenstrial?”, I ask him attempting to strike conversation.

 “Mine? I’m not having one. I already have someone in my life.”

 “Oh”

 “His name’s Thomas.” He grins, and I can already tell his face softens as he says his name. “He’s great. Maybe you’ll even be able to meet him if he comes by”, he winks.

 I smile and tell him I would love to. Even as my attention turns to my plate. My stomach almost groans in anticipation. It’s been a while since my last meal.

 I cut into my slice of lamb and watch as the juice oozes out. Stabbing it with my fork I move it towards my mouth as Maven continues telling me about his boyfriend.

 Right before the steaming morsel makes it to its destination, I catch Cal’s attention on me. Turning my head slightly, I finally meet my gaze.

 I almost want to scoff seeing Evangeline to his right attempting to talk to him.

 I love a challenge.

 Putting the piece of meat into my mouth, standing up to his gaze it feels as if it’s just the two of us in the room even if it’s not true.

 When I take my first taste of the morsel, I have to bite my lip to hold back the moan that threatens to escape my lips. Because this food was made for gods.

 And he still watches me. Even as his golden eyes sharpen with some kind of internal fire.

 I smirk. If he wants a show I’ll give him one.

 Purposely licking my lips, I watch as his tongue darts out to wet his own. He holds my gaze as I grab my napkin and wipe off the remaining liquid deliberately slow letting it scrape my bottom lip ever so slightly.

 His mouth opens preparing to do or say something stupid and completely inappropriate but before he can even get the chance to Evangeline puts a possessive hand on his bicep.

 Yanked out of his daze, he shakes his head and I want so badly to laugh as he stares at Evangeline, blinking attempting to remember what she was talking about.

 She sharpens her eyes at me as if she knows what or rather who was holding his attention and silently communicates to me through her facial expression, ‘Watch your back bitch’ before faking a smile at Cal and speaking to him softly.

 I roll my eyes. She can have him for all I care. But that doesn’t explain what I was just doing.

 The rest of dinner passes by uneventfully with Maven and I continuing to make small talk here and there about him, his life, but never my own.

 He understands enough when he sees me flinch as he asks me about my brothers, that he refrains from broaching that subject.

 Other than that, the food is absolutely divine. Following the main course, we’re served a beautiful dessert of chocolate ganache with some kind of frosting I can’t even name. All I can say is that it’s got to be the best thing I’ve ever tasted.

 But just as I’ve finished indulging in it, Julian Jacos stands out of the corner of my eye.

 “Now that dinner has elapsed, the Prince will meet all of you individually tonight for a short introduction” he says, lips in an almost smile.

 Next to him, the King and Queen still sit unmoving and emotionless although the King’s face is about the shade of a tomato at this point. Drunk, no doubt about it.

 I brave a look at Cal and his face is bursting into a wide smile. It makes him look almost young. Almost like the young man I met last night.

 That thought hurts me more. Because he’s not that person. He’s the goddamn Prince of Norta, responsible for the oppression of my own people, for my brothers’ suffering, for every miserable night where my family and I went to sleep half freezing to death and empty stomachs.

 It’s that that takes all of it out of me. Remembering exactly who he is, is the only thing keeping me sane.

 So, while all of the royal family, including Prince Maven make their exit to another room beyond the dining room while we stay seated, I contemplate ways to make this impending conversation bearable.

 Maybe I’ll end up just staying silent and he’ll get the hint that I don’t want to talk and leave me alone. Maybe he’ll bring up last night and our meeting.

 It’s option 2 that scares me most. Because on the inside I know I’m a fucking coward. I can’t face it. I can’t face him bringing up the reality of what I did or rather what we did.

 All of the girls end up lining up behind the white door of the room where the prince is currently waiting for us all. I’m content in taking the last spot in the line so I can continue overthinking every possible circumstance of my inevitable meeting.

 Before the first girl goes in Maven gives me a wink from where he and his parents are walking at the other end of the castle where I presume the royal family resides.

 I roll my eyes as I watch him mouth “good luck”.

 From my observations the conversations with the prince end up being about 3 minutes a piece as the line starts dwindling down. Once the girls finish their meeting they usher themselves up the staircase and to their rooms.

 Good. Now no one has to see me after I end up embarrassing myself.

 Quicker than I thought, the line is left with just 2 people. Me and another girl who I presume is Melody from the eavesdropping I’ve done. A name fitting for a banshee.

 She gives me a look up and down at my dress and appearance before giving me a confident smirk.

 “He’ll never fall for trash like you”, she snarks to me before shutting the door in my face.

 And I’m left, not entirely surprised by myself in the empty hallway. These girls certainly love to assume that I would want him in the first place.

 Waiting on my own is surprisingly daunting as I shamefully attempt to eavesdrop on the conversation happening beyond the dark oak door. I hear a laugh. And it’s his.

 My heart makes an unwelcome pang at the sound. I silently scold myself. It’s not like you even know him.

 More pondering thoughts elapse as Melody opens the door suddenly making me jump from my slumped position against the wall. She gives me another disgusted look and walks herself back to her room.

 Fucking hell. Fuck.

 I’m left alone staring at the door wondering whether or not to go in or just run and forget that this ever happened. Suck it up Mare. Get it over with. You were never a quitter anyways.

 Another 20 seconds passes and I reluctantly grab the door knob. Twisting it, I forcefully push it open determined to make an entrance. That is, before it shoves into the person on the other side.

 I hear a surprised “Shit”, from what I presume is Cal as I mentally scream inside my head. IDIOT!

  Even though I would rather electrocute myself at this point I side step the door slowly and face him.

 My face almost wants to crumple into laughter at the sight. The crown prince of Norta doubled over with a hand on the door, clutching his forehead which now sports a mildly angry red welt.

 I almost feel sorry. But then again, I don’t.

 “Oh!” he says looking up as he sees that I’m here. “I- I uhm was expecting you”.

 I roll my eyes. Of all the things to say when he first sees me, that’s what comes out of his mouth.

 “Yeah, you too.”

 “Mareena. Unless you lied about that?”

 My face heats with a semblance of shame. Remembering how he said that name last night only makes it worse.

 “It’s Mare” I try to say confidently. No need to let him know how he affects me.

 “Mare” he repeats. “Suits you more than Mareena, I’ll give you that”

 I don’t say anything. I just stand there, infinitely aware of how close his hard, toned body is to my own. If he wanted, one more step would push me against the wall. My flushing face is likely showing just what I’m thinking.

 “So, why didn’t you tell me who you were” he asks me. “Then we could have avoided this… surprise.”

 “Well, I’m not exactly going to spill my life’s secrets to some stranger just because we fucked” I respond sharply.

 He seems taken aback as he almost stumbles before he responds, “And do you often take strangers to bed in shabby clubs?”

 “I- I’m sorry? Are you really such a misogynist that you’re debasing me for the same behavior as your own?”

 I don’t even have words. He thinks I’m a slut who parades around spreading my legs for anyone and everyone. And I wonder why I ever doubted that I would hate him.

 “Well at least I’m not in the habit of having hook-ups knowing that I’m supposed to be committing to a relationship the next day”, he retorts.

 My face heats to a different kind of red. The kind filled with fury. “Goodnight your highness. I think we’re done here”. I say abruptly before I succumb to my anger and slap him.

 “Wait! That’s not what I meant!” he calls out, hand outstretched as if to catch me.

 But I couldn’t give less of a fuck. He said what he said. And I’m walking out leaving him still standing and gaping after me.  

 …

 I debate leaving this god damned castle; leave and never come back. After that statement it shows exactly what he thinks of me. Just another girl who’s going to fawn after him and vie for his love like some doe eyed fool. Just trash to be used once and disposed.

 It’s that thought that makes me want to show him exactly what he’s missing. And it’s what drives me to find my room where Walsh has already left leaving me a note telling me to text her if I need anything, conveniently leaving a cell phone number.

 I just turn the paper over and collapse onto bed not even bothering to change out of my clothes and makeup. It’s not even worth it at this point.

 And it’s not until I snuggle under the covers which are disgustingly so soft that I let myself cry to sleep.

...

a/n: thank you guys so much for reading, this chapter was a rollercoaster to write but I’m excited to see what comes up later

love you all <3

#red queen #mare barrow #cal calore #fanfic #writing #bachelor #modernau #queenstrial

[9worldstales]

INTERESTING POINTS TO PONDER FROM INTERVIEWS 7

Interviews might not remain forever available or not be easy to find so I’ve decided to link them and transcribe the points I find of some interest so as to preserve them should the interview had to end up removed.

It’s not complete transcriptions, just the bits I think can be relevant but I wholeheartedly recommend reading the whole thing.

And of course I also comment all this because God forbid I’ll keep silent… :P

Title: EXCLUSIVE: Screenwriter Don Payne Talks Thor!

Author: Elisabeth Rappe

Published: Feb 23, 2011

BEST BITS FROM THE INTERVIEW

ABOUT THE SCRIPT FOR “THOR”

Thor has seen a lot of screenwriters come and go, and I imagine that led to some very drastic changes to the character and story. Can you talk at all about that process, and what changes were made over the course of project? (For example, I know rumors swirled very early that the Thor movie would be an origin story with his alter ego, Dr. Donald Blake!) How did the script come together? At what point in the process did you come on board, and what was your contribution?

Don Payne: First off, for the record, the final, official WGA writing credits for the film are “Story by J. Michael Straczynski and Mark Protosevich, Screenplay by Ashley Edward Miller & Zack Stentz and Don Payne.” Any other writing credits you might have seen elsewhere are either outdated or incorrect.

As far as how the script came together, J. Michael Straczynski and Mark Protosevich worked on the project before Kenneth Branagh came on board to direct. At that point, Ken and Marvel sat down and decided exactly what kind of story they wanted to tell. They took everything that had been written so far and figured out a game plan. Marvel then hired Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz, and, as I understand it, those guys worked pretty intensely on the screenplay over the course of four or five months. After they left the project, Marvel hired me, and I stayed on all the way through the end — about a year and a half total. For the first eight months, I continued to develop, rewrite, and restructure the screenplay, bringing in new characters and new scenes. I worked closely with Ken and Marvel throughout the process, and, as the cast came together, I worked with Ken and the actors during rehearsals here and in London.

Then, once production started in January 2010, I was on set writing every day, both at the studio in Manhattan Beach and on location in New Mexico, and continued to work through post-production.

I’d like to say more about how the script has evolved since the very beginning of the development process, but I don’t want to spoil anything. I hate spoilers. (Mostly because I’m weak, and I can’t resist them myself!) But I’ll be happy to talk about it all after the film comes out. What I can say is that this really has been the greatest writing experience of my life. I’ve never worked harder or been as closely involved day-to-day on a project as I have on Thor.

And as far as Thor’s alter-ego goes, as Kevin Feige has said, people looking for a Donald Blake reference might just find one.

ABOUT THOR’S JOURNEY AND FAMILY

I know you’ve worked with iconic superheroes before, was Thor more or less daunting to deal with? He’s a real anachronistic, medieval character. How do you bring that into the modern world? Is it ultimately the same as trying to make any superhero realistic and relatable?

Don Payne: Well, I think the challenges are pretty apparent. As you say, Thor’s a unique character, and it’s an unusual story we’re telling. When you’ve got something like Captain America, the premise is easier to get right away — he’s a superhero fighting Nazis in World War II. Whereas we’ve got an extra-dimensional being once worshipped as a god by the ancient Norse who’s banished to earth and stripped of his powers to learn humility, all set amidst the Shakespearean intrigue of a dysfunctional royal family. It’s not as simple to grasp.

You just have to find the things that make Thor timeless and relatable as a character. It certainly helps that he’s charismatic and likeable, albeit flawed. He’s banished for good reason, but I think people will want to go on the journey with him and root for him to find redemption — particularly with Chris Hemsworth’s performance.

I think what really makes Thor relatable are the family relationships. There’s a lot of dysfunction in the House of Odin. Thor’s got a hard-ass father and a jealous brother. But for all of Thor’s hardheaded rebelliousness, he, like Loki, is really just trying to live up to his father’s expectations and make him proud. I think people can relate to that father and son dynamic.

ABOUT SIF, THE WARRIORS THREE AND HEIMDALL

What can you tell me about the parts popular Asgardians such as Heimdall, the Warriors Three, and Sif play in the overall plot? Will we see more of them in other Marvel movies? Is there potential for a Sif spinoff, as she has enjoyed in the comics?

Don Payne: The Warriors Three and Sif are very much like they are in the comics. They’re fierce warriors who are fiercely dedicated to their friend Thor. They’ll follow him anywhere — which might not always be the wisest thing. Also, as in the comics, Heimdall is bound by duty and honor to guard his post on the Rainbow Bridge, and he’s got serious issues with anyone who tries to cross it who would endanger Asgard.

As far as seeing these characters in other movies or their own spin-off films, I think Marvel already has a full slate of projects in development, so I imagine we’ll only see them as part of the Thor franchise. But you never know. I’d ask Kevin Feige if I were you!

ON THE HUMOUR OF THE MOVIE

One element that jumped out at me in the trailer was the comedy – it felt very light and natural, not corny. (Jane reacting to Thor’s name, for example, or the coffee cup scene.) How did you strike the balance between the comedy and drama of the piece? Were there moments where you thought “Ok, this goes too far with the fish-out-of-water joke”?

Don Payne: Well, my hope is we’ve included just enough humor in the script, but no more than that. This isn’t a comedy, and that’s not what I was hired to do. It’s an action film, and, as in all action films, you need those fun moments. But you have to do it sparingly. You don’t want things to get silly.

One thing we all agreed about early on was to make sure we were careful about how we approached the fish-out-of-water moments. We didn’t want Thor to come to earth and suddenly become an idiot for comic relief. Even without his powers, he’s the same person on earth as he was in Asgard — a smart, headstrong warrior. He’s a being from an advanced race who’s used to travelling to other worlds and thinking on his feet. We didn’t want him looking at a television set and going, “What is yon magic box, with phantoms that move and speak inside it?”

Still, he’s on unfamiliar turf, and there’s some fun in that. You just have to find the right balance. You also want to have fun moments and dialogue during the action sequences, so you put those into the script. Of course, those bits are the easiest to cut in editing if you find the jokes are too much or too distracting. You can pick and choose.

ON JANE AND DARCY

I particularly liked how Jane and Darcy react to Thor’s arrival. They aren’t immediately throwing themselves at him. They think he’s hot, but likely to be crazy. I know you’re a staunch feminist, so I imagine their portrayal was important to you. Can you talk about how you approached them? It seems rare to have two girls in a single Marvel film, possibly competing for Thor’s attention. How did that play into the romance, and how did you approach the relationship between Thor and Jane? Did Natalie Portman and Kat Dennings have any input into their characters?

Don Payne: Kat did an amazing job taking the words on the page as written and making them fly. She really embodied the character of Darcy.

After the second trailer came out, I read some people mistakenly speculate that her character was created as a marketing decision to appeal to the youth audience or some such thing — as if the producers sat down and said, “Hmm… this script is good, but we need a character to appeal to the tweens! With current pop cultural references!” I promise you, that wasn’t the case at all. I came up with Darcy because we needed someone to work with Jane Foster, and the character had to have a vastly different background, personality, and world-view from Jane in order to make that relationship interesting. I decided to make her a woman, frankly, because other than Sif and Frigga, we had a very male-heavy cast of characters. I thought it might also be interesting to have someone working for Jane who both frustrated her and who Jane saw as protégé whose potential she could help fully realize.

But I also wanted Darcy to be the voice of the common man. We’ve got Asgardians and astrophysicists, so I wanted someone to say what the average moviegoer might be thinking. If someone in the audience is thinking, “What the hell is that weird, glowing thing?!” Darcy should be asking “What the hell is that weird, glowing thing?!” (That line isn’t actually in the movie, but you get the idea…)

Natalie actually helped out tremendously with the character of Jane Foster. Let’s be honest, Jane Foster in the comics has traditionally been one of the most boring characters in the Marvel Universe. In the film, she’s an astrophysicist, so that makes her more interesting right off the bat. And it doesn’t hurt that she’s played by Natalie, who brings loads of personality and charm to any character she portrays.

Originally in the script, however, Jane was more of a traditional scientist — a hardcore skeptic. But Natalie came to the first rehearsal with the idea of turning that on its end. She suggested making Jane the believer. She thought Jane could be more of a kind of “scientist as poet” — someone who thinks outside of the box, someone whose theories are considered outlandish and are frowned upon by the scientific community. But it’s the kind of thinking that leads to great discoveries. When Thor arrives, she’s willing to take a leap of faith — and she has to pay the consequences for it. Natalie’s input made the character more interesting, improved her relationship with Thor, and, in general, made the story better. And she helped make sure Jane Foster isn’t boring. So I’m grateful to her for that.

During my story meetings with Ken and Marvel, we put a lot of work into the Thor/Jane relationship, and there was much discussion about exactly how and how quickly things should progress between them. I think we succeeded in developing their romance realistically, so it doesn’t feel forced.

ABOUT HEIMDALL AND THE MCU TAKE

There has also been a lot of ugly and foolish controversy about Idris Elba being cast as Heimdall. I don’t like to justify bigotry with attention, but has the reaction surprised you and the rest of the team?

Don Payne: You’d think as a society we’d be beyond this now. The funny thing is, this film was never meant to be a straight representation of traditional Norse mythology. It’s the cinematic take on the Marvel comics take on Norse mythology. In fact, in the reality of our movie, the Norse myths are actually based on our version of the Asgardians, after they visited ancient Norway. The Norse just got some things wrong, based on their primitive understanding of their encounters. (Like, for example, worshiping the Asgardians as gods.)

The bottom line is Idris is great in the movie. I think almost all of the people who are skeptical or have issues with the casting will be convinced when they see the movie — except for all the actual racists out there. But who needs them?

MY TWO CENTS

This interview is so goddamn awesome because it’s so informative. Don Payne talked about a lot of topics and didn’t give just two lines answers but well rounded explanations. There’s so much more than the bits I’ve selected but I couldn’t really copypaste it all, though I wholeheartedly recommend you to read it.

I’d kill to get a peck at the old scripts but definitely there was a lot of work ongoing to produce the definitive one.

Anyway I love how almost all Marvel seems to know Odin is a bad father yet Odin doesn’te ven get a slap on his wrists. Really guys...

I like how he admits Thor’s journey is one of redemption... but really that’s not how you made a redemption arc...

I also find interesting how again we get a confirmation that Sif and the Warriors Three are ‘fiercely dedicated to THEIR FRIEND THOR’.

In the movie Thor says:

Thor: Why don't you tell her how you sent the Destroyer to kill our friends, to kill me?

But the truth is that those were his friends, not both’s. For the Warriors Three and Sif there was never a choice between Thor and Loki. They were Thor’s friends and to him their loyalty went.

I also like how he says he hopes they included enough humor, but no more than that as this is an action film, and, while fun moments are needed they need to have them sparingly of things get silly. How they didn’t want Thor to come to earth and suddenly become an idiot for comic relief. How they didn’t want for the jokes to end up being too distracting. I think this speaks of care for the story.

They even put care in creating Jane and Darcy. I still think they could do Jane better, but still they tried.

#thor odinson #lady sif #fandral #volstagg #hogun #loki odinson #odin borson #heimdall #jane foster #darcy lewis #interview #don payne #mcu thor #9 worlds interview study

[gascon-en-exil]

Mercilessly Judging the Men of Fòdlan: The Kingdom

It’s been a long time coming, over eight months in fact, but now that it may be assumed that the last of the DLC has been released and the fandom as a whole has settled comfortably into its various camps I think there’s no better time than now to answer that burning question: how raunchily, outrageously gay can the male cast of Three Houses possibly be? For those unfamiliar with this fun little series of mine, I’ve been applying my extensive knowledge and experience of gay male sex and hookup culture to the men of Fire Emblem, originally as a way of reckoning with the refusal of the games themselves to provide me with any worthwhile self-insert M/M content. I stand by that premise for FE16 - you all know how absolutely nothing appeals to me about m!Byleth or his prospects on that score - but in the years since my first outing of merciless judgment with Awakening that idea has expanded into something broader, an imaginative modern AU of sorts where all these guys are into men (if not always exclusively) and willing to put themselves out there in the lewd and semi-anonymous world of hookup apps in search of their preferred carnal delights.

A note on organization before we begin, as this material is too long to cram into one post. Excluding Byleth (as Avatars and their spawn always are for this project) there are twenty-one playable male characters in Three Houses. This makes for an even threeway division to preserve the eponymous conceit of the game, but not a particularly neat one. Aligned with the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus I therefore have below the male Lions, Kingdom knight and Azure Moon-exclusive Gilbert, and Faerghus-based underworld kingpin Yuri. As with all things concerning M/M outside of Byleth and his awkward S rank monologues, the Lions have it the most clear-cut.

The Empire

The Alliance

Dimitri

It’s rare that you can get a feeling for someone’s whole life story entirely from watching their presence in hookup spaces over time, but he’s an exception. Once a sweet, wide-eyed collegiate who looked eager to get dicked down by any reasonably polite and attractive top/vers, hard years have turned him grim and sad and just barely put together enough to be presentable for a clothed face pic, much less anything more revealing...and still eager to get dicked down. He’s been dealing with a lot lately, and even though he’s still game for a quickie from time to time (especially with muscle guys, a shallow weakness of his he’d blush to admit to out loud) a single roll in the sheets isn’t going to make him emotionally available. Apparently he’s already well-covered on that front as it is; with his charisma and open-minded way of looking at the world he’s made many friends and fuck buddies and companions who seem half like boyfriends and half like something indescribably beyond that, and a new trick would be hard-pressed to compete with that and likely wouldn’t want to if it means engaging with his demons. Still an enviable hookup partner though, with a full pert ass and a whole assortment of friends who love to play with him and anyone else who lands an invitation to his bed. His cock has left many a bottom drooling, but unfortunately he’s haunted by the memory of the time when he went too hard and nearly caused a medical emergency. Now he just takes it and doesn’t even let anyone ride him, but there are just as many men who aren’t complaining about that in the slightest. Has a very high chance of winding up in a tender and fulfilling poly marriage that’s still open on all sides - he’s got a lot of hot, sweaty love to give.

Favored erotic tea time subjects: body worship, muscle bears, group sex

Favored gift: a body pillow, on the infrequent occasions where he has to sleep alone with no one to cuddle

Dedue

One of those shy larger men who will never initiate conversation, because he’s been blown off one too many times for shallow reasons and isn’t expecting that to ever change. It doesn’t bother him greatly though, because as his profile states he’s in a relationship and he and his partner only play together so unless you’re only looking for friends - not impossible, as he’s got quite the array of engaging hobbies on display in his pics - you’ll have to accept that this bear has a cub...or something like that anyway. Bad at small talk and even a little embarrassed to talk about his expertise in the kitchen or the garden, it’s a completely different story when the lights are off where he’ll give cocky power bottoms and scoffing total tops exactly what they deserve. Sub bottoms on the other hand bring out his softer, cuddly side, and he’s more likely to be using his considerable weight to lovingly press them into the mattress as he opens them up with his tongue and eventually his dick. Is utterly devoted to his partner but enjoys watching him playing around with third parties, even if he’s almost never allowed to sit on the sidelines for the entire night. To the shock of everyone he’s actually a total vers, even if he leaves most tops stammering excuses and bending over for him anyway. He’s usually polite enough to stick to oral in those cases. He’ll never be the most sociable man, but he’s a real catch regardless in every other aspect and is no doubt looking forward to his inevitable wedding and only sometimes X-rated married life. Still fondly recalls the first time someone introduced him to the idea of sex while cooking, and now he takes it as a challenge (only when he’s cooking just for himself and his sexual partners, of course; he doesn’t want to be unsanitary).

Favored erotic tea time subjects: twunks, voyeurism, cum swapping

Favored gift: a chef’s apron short enough to let his junk hang free

Felix

Has a biting retort for every unsolicited nude and “looking?” ever sent to him, and he gets a lot of both when his pic is just enticing enough and his profile is full of enough acerbic wit to provoke the kinds of guys who actually read those things. Claims he’s vers, gets pissed whenever anyone tells him that’s just code for bottom, gets even more pissed after hookups when his partner points out that that’s totally true in his case. Prefers oral to conversation, both giving and getting, and he’s got a remarkable talent for handjobs that surprisingly doesn’t seem to be born from excessive masturbation. Not so great with fetishes - he punched the first guy to pull his hair while he was giving head, and passes made at him during his workouts leave him more annoyed at the interruption than aroused. Disarmed by anything too soft and cutesy so he’s not great with fems, but it’s unclear if this has anything to do with his lingering daddy issues that he’s not working out in the bedroom because they’re (probably) not like that. Not sentimental at all, but he’s probably got that one longtime slow burn affair he doesn’t bring up with his tricks. If anything ever comes of that he’ll vanish immediately from the app space, but until then he’s up for a 69 followed by a good long pounding - much longer than you’d expect from someone of his frame. Good thing too, because he loves making his partners cut loose and give it to him raw and hard.

Favored erotic tea time subjects: “straight” guys, dildos, pig sluts 

Favored gift: high-quality lube. and lots of it

Ashe

Everyone’s BFF, sweet and affable and able to bounce from friend group to friend group even without always having to take his clothes off. Usually finds himself as the token twink surrounded by men who are very much not that, because they value his friendship and reliability (and also his ass, as expected). Did not have the best home life and has probably had to do a few shady things to get by, but with all that mostly behind him anyone would be happy to date him or even just to take a walk with him, as he’s quite outdoorsy when he’s not taking care of relatives or less responsible friends. A bottom by expectation because there’s not much else one can infer when he shows up to bars and house parties alike in the company of guys twice his size who aren’t shy about being casually handsy with him. Still, has learned to be quite deft when the need arises and knows how to stimulate on multiple fronts, whether for one partner or several. His weakness for muscles is genuine too, and he loves a firm chest as much as taking some guy’s thick meat. Paradoxically doesn’t have a lot of patience for dumb jocks, but since he knows just about everyone worth knowing (and sleeping with) in his area and works the freckled fresh-faced young cutie angle with an artlessness that surprises some of his less gifted peers he’s bound to wind up in a comfortable relationship of some kind or another. Prefers to have sex with the lights on, and if given the option will cuddle for a long time afterward to avoid turning them off. His ass has freckles too, but he rolls his eyes when he gets asked that.

Favored erotic tea time subjects: gym sex, spit roasting, breaking in new bottoms

Favored gift: a sensible jockstrap, for workouts and for dates

Sylvain

Everyone you know has slept with him, but almost never more than once. You might have even met him in person long before you encounter his minimalist profile with its headless abs pic hitting you up with a shot of his erection measured against a beer can followed by an address. Gets a lot of action on that pic alone, but repeats are few and far between when he pulls out his phone right after pulling out of his guy of the hour and starts browsing through what’s on offer again and slow jerking. Not a big fan of FWBs met through hookups since he always feels like they’re being too clingy even if they just happened to get horny for him again a few weeks later. Does not like to talk, especially about his family, and he almost never extends an invitation to spend the night. Still, as callous as he is that cock is impressive and he knows how to put it to work. Good with his mouth too, and true to his cultivated total top persona he’d sooner rim than blow. He’s also successful and likeable enough in his personal life to have buddies who’ll play around with him, and he might even have some kind of nebulous long term thing going with one or two of them that they strictly don’t discuss. Bottoms only as a challenge, but he’s not great at it and doesn’t have the stamina to last very long while riding. Is on PreP and uses condoms religiously so he’s got that going for him, but testing after sex with him is still recommended because there’s really no telling how many other holes he’s filled that week. Likes twinks and twunks, but loudly refuses to ever be a sugar daddy no matter how desperate he might get in his later years assuming he doesn’t die of untreated syphilis or something equally appropriate and ridiculous.

Favored erotic tea time subjects: marathon fucking, double penetration, open relationships

Favored gift: a fleshlight molded into the shape of his favorite fuck buddy’s hole, for sentimentality

Gilbert

His pics are neither very current nor very flattering, and he doesn’t excel at small talk although he’s evidently been around long enough to know how to get an open-minded hookup over to his place from time to time. Encounters are fast and fumbling and drawn out more by his waning libido than anything else, and half the time he’ll settle for watching a guy play with himself in front of him while he makes an effort to get into it. It would be inaccurate to say that he’s not a romantic man; rather, it’s as though all his passion has been left behind in a difficult former life that he only reveals some of in long wistful moments over multiple encounters. Doesn’t get many repeats however on account of the lackluster performances, and also because his stubbornness bordering on self-righteousness about certain topics becomes very grating very quickly. Based on the stories he tells and the few pictures he has to show he was quite a catch in his earlier days, but circumstances and being closeted until much later in life kept him from exploring as much as he wanted. Has the potential to end up in a loving if not particularly sexual relationship with someone provided they’re extremely patient as he works through and/or learns to set aside his numerous hangups. There are worse fates...but never, ever call him daddy. It brings up a lot of bad memories, plus he just thinks it’s weird. Kink is something he left behind decades ago when he resigned himself to the knowledge that he wasn’t going to be getting much vanilla action, much less anything more exotic.

Favored erotic tea time subjects: mutual masturbation, actual straight guys, spooning

Favored gift: the balls to get some closure

Yuri

A consummate professional, albeit one whose marketing strategy carefully conceals that fact and also leaves no room for the kind of casual bigotry that flourishes on hookup apps - having a problem with “no fems” is expected from the build and the guyliner, but he’s all for equal opportunity sex even on top of that. Accustomed to the usual array of lonely and horny men who hit him up for pics and dirty chat and the occasional good time, and skilled enough in a variety of roles to perform whatever’s being asked of him. It’s not entirely clear where his own tastes lie; even the muscled closet cases who show up in his messages on the DL don’t seem to do all that much for him if they’re not paying. A former career in the arts has left him with an entertainer’s flair for pleasuring his clients both in and out of the bedroom along with an eclectic skill set that always finds a way to get put to work during sex. He can grind his hips, swirl his tongue, arch his back, and moan in the just the right ways to drive his partners wild, and all that experience also lends itself to his ability to patiently tutor even the clumsiest of lovers into something resembling competence, enough for them to get off if not himself. Bottoms more often than he tops, but he’s vers enough in skill and in preference to pivot when necessary and will probably have little trouble keeping this gig of his going later in life as well. He may not ever end in a proper relationship, but he’ll still do well for himself in an unorthodox way in keeping with the curiously world-weary optimism he sometimes espouses during pillow talk with guys who actually interest him enough for conversation.

Favored erotic tea time subjects: flip fucking, big top/small bottom, religious kink

Favored gift: creative restraints, for when he’s feeling acrobatic

#Fire Emblem #FE16 #Fire Emblem Three Houses

[eryiss]

This is the masterlist for the drabbles and one shot’s I’ve written for the Fairy Tail LGBTQ month that is being hosted by @ft-wwtdp​. It’ll be updated every five days; I hope you all enjoy them.

Canon Compliant Fraxus

Day One - Love (Fanfiction, Archive of Our Own, Tumblr)

Laxus has always known his own emotions, more than people give him credit for. And in Magnolia’s marketplace with his boyfriends, he feels a new emotion. One he rather likes. [Fraxus. 1,200 words]

Day Two - Gift (Fanfiction, Archive of Our Own, Tumblr)

Being mages, sometimes Freed and Laxus have to spend large amounts of time away from each other. But even when Laxus is called away on Freed’s birthday, he makes sure his love is known. [Fraxus. 1,000 Words] 

Day Three - Brave (Fanfiction, Archive of Our Own, Tumblr)

Laxus had always known that Freed was brave. But seeing him reuninting with the family that caused him so much pain, with his head held high, is the bravest thing he has ever done. [Fraxus. 1,100 Words]

Day Four - Tease (Fanfiction, Archive of Our Own, Tumblr)

They should have expected it. Given how much they teased Evergreen when she started dating, it shouldn’t have been a shock when Bickslow did the same to them. It was still annoying though. [Fraxus, 1,100 Words]

Day Five - Quirk (Fanfiction, Archive of Our Own, Tumblr)

Freed knew how to read Laxus well. He knew what to look for; the little quirks that portrayed his feelings. So he knew when his husband was uncomfortable, and when he needed to leave a situation. [Fraxus. 1,200 Words]

Canon Compliant Gajeed

Day Six - Adventure (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

When Gajeel gets injured badly on a mission, he finds himself bored and alone at the guildhall. And weirdly, the salvation of his sanity is found by Freed and his improvised stories. [Gajeed, 1,300 Words] Day Seven - Lies (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Evergreen and Bickslow have noticed that Freed has been sneaking away night after night, and decide to follow him to find out why. Unfortunately, Laxus is there to stop them. [Gajeed, 1,100 Words]

Day Eight - Ghost (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

There are some things that Gajeel had always kept to himself. His fear of ghost is included. But, sitting alone in an old house with Freed, he feels like he should let the other man know, [Gajeed, 1,200 Words] Day Nine - Blossom (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Sometimes, Gajeel gets overwhelmed, and he’s forced to endure a panic attack. Freed has helped a lot with them since they’ve gotten together, but Gajeel can’t rely on him. Freed knows this, and offers him help through gardening. [Gajeed, 1,100 Words] Day Ten - Truth (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Freed wasn’t a perfect man, and sometimes he told lies. But if that lie allowed him to watch his boyfriend as he worked, then it wasn’t such a bad thing. Specifically when Gajeel knew exactly what he was doing. [Gajeed, 1,000 Words]

Modern AU Fraxus

Day Eleven - Questions (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Freed should have guessed that, the moment he let it be known that he was dating someone, Mirajane would try to find out who he was. But Freed could deal with her better than most, and would prove that easily. [Fraxus, 1,200 Words]

Day Twelve - Acceptance  (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Laxus felt awful for even thinking it, but as he sat in the apartment he shared with Freed, he considered all the firsts he'd never experience again if he stayed with Freed. But when he comes back, Laxus starts to feel okay. [Fraxus, 1,100 Words]

Day Thirteen - Loss  (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

It took a lot to get Freed at a loss for words. To do so when he was presenting to a class, in the middle of the day, was a challenge. But all Laxus had to do was show his face. [Fraxus, 1,000 Words]

Day Fourteen - Growth  (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Laxus hadn’t taken it well when Freed and Makarov insisted that he go to therapy. And, as they drive there, he starts to close up. All Freed can do is be there for him in support. [Fraxus, 1,000 Words]

Day Fifteen - Beginnings  (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Not once had Laxus been dating someone long enough to even think about introducing them to his grandfather. But, Freed apparently was different, because Laxus took the chance when presented without thinking. [Fraxus, 1,000 Words]

Modern AU Gajeed

Day Sixteen - Tradition (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Gajeel had always lived an odd life, and often didn't see traditions in the same way other people did. But when Freed's birthday comes, he knows he wants to do something special for his boyfriend. And what better gift than the gift of music. [Gajeed, 1,100 Words]

Day Seventeen - Quiet (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

On a sleepless night, Freed and Gajeel find themselves at the beach, watching the sun rise. But as the waves crash around them, the quietness brings Freed to an oddly melencholy mood, and Gajeel tries to cheer him up. [Gajeed, 1,200 Words]

Day Eighteen - Abrosia (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Freed hated being sick, and did whatever he could to avoid it. But sometimes it wasn't possible, and he would be forced to endure sickness. But perhaps with Gajeel, and some rather delightful soup, being sick wouldn't be that bad. [Gajeed, 1,200 Words]

Day Nineteen - Learning (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

The early stages of relationships were all bout learning who the other person is. And one day, when Freed gets a flat tire in the middle of nowehere he finds out something about Gajeel. The man loves to gloat. [Gajeed, 1,100 Words]

Day Twenty - Game (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Gajeel and Freed have always been competative men, and being a couple has only added to that. And when an improptu snowball fight starts between the two men, it's more obvious than ever just how much is means for them to win a game. [Gajeed, 1,100 Words]

Victorian AU Fraxus

Day Twenty One - Blame (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

It had all been Bickslow's fault. He had been the one to get Laxus into this situation, doing chores for an old woman. But, after meeting a lord who seems very comfortable in who he is, maybe he should also thank Bickslow as well as blame him. [Fraxus, 1,300 Words]

Day Twenty Two - Temporary (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Moving in with his lover was always meant to be a temporary situation, while Freed's house was fixed of flood damage. But waking up next to Freed each morning had become addictive, and Laxus wasn't ready to lose it yet. [Fraxus, 1,000 Words]

Day Twenty Three - Queen (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Laxus had already been dreading the visitation of the royal family’s representative before he had met the arrogant Rufus Lore. But, when facing the and self importance, Laxus realises he can expect the Justine Family’s eldest son to take his side. [Fraxus, 1,500 Words]

Day Twenty Four - Air (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

The whole situation was overwhelming. Laxus was essentially to be married off so his father's land could be sold. Laxus needed some air and a break, and perhaps the company of the charming Mr Justine to calm his nerves. [Fraxus, 1,100 Words]

Day Twenty Five  - Leaving (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Makarov shouldn't be this emotional about his grandson leaving. He was only moving across town, but it felt like half the world away. But at least he was moving in with Freed, a man who he claimed was his landlord. Makarov knew better. [Fraxus, 1,000 Words]

Victorian AU Gajeed

Day Twenty Six - Gamble (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Gajeel had taken a lot of gambles to get where he was. Fairy Tail; a bar made for the type of men who sought the company of other men. Already, Gajeel had risked a lot getting there. But maybe taking a gamble on the charming man drinking beside him was a gamble worth making. [Gajeed, 1,600 Words]

Day Twenty Seven -  Balance (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Freed had always managed to keep his life well balanced, and he was happy with that. But Gajeel is a threat to that balance, and Freed finds himself wondering if he should let the man close enough to change the structure he had made. [Gajeed, 1,300 Words]

Day Twenty Eight - Thirst (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Freed was just thirsty, that was all. The fact that he was forced to spend an entire afternoon with his lover looking so damn tempting in formalwear that it was unbearable had nothing to do with it. He was just thirsty. [Gajeed, 1,000 Words]

Day Twenty Nine - Quarrel (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

Gajeel had lived on the streets before, and he coudl do it again. After a fight with Freed, it seemed like the only choice he had, as living with the man probbaly wasn't an option anymore. So why had Freed come to find him? [Gajeed, 1,100 Words]

Day Thirty - Accident (Fanfiction, Archive of our Own, Tumblr)

When Freed is the victim of a mugging gone wrong, it gives Gajeel some time to think. He doesn't know how long he has left with Freed, and he wants to make the man know just how much he loves him. And how better to do that than with a ring. [Gajeed, 1,100 Words]

#fanfic masterpost

[bltngames]

Review: Lloyd the Monkey 2

Back before TSSZ News imploded, I would often do write-ups for many of the games at the Sonic Amateur Games Expo (SAGE). SAGE is an annual online expo that I started all the way back in September of 2000. I personally ran SAGE for over a year, and remained deeply hands on for at least another two years as it continued to grow. The main focus of SAGE was primarily to showcase fangames, in particular Sonic fangames, but the event never limited itself to any one type of game. It's never been uncommon to see original games appear in the lineup -- especially now, given the modern indie scene. 

One such original game was Lloyd the Monkey, a bit of a strange game, written in Javascript of all things and run through a webpage. That by itself was notable enough to stand out from most of the games at SAGE, but Lloyd was also a completely original product created by someone who possibly seemed to be young and new to game development. Making games is no easy feat, especially when they’re written in Javascript and you’re doing tons of original artwork yourself. Taken as that whole, the game impressed me, even if it was more than a little rough around the edges.

Now we have Lloyd the Monkey 2, written in Unity. The developer, Noah Meyer, sent me a Steam key in order to review the game. Up top, I just want to say how I think it’s kind of brave to go all the way in putting the game on Steam and everything. It felt like just a few years ago, newer indie developers sort of had to work up to releasing their game on Steam, usually getting a few releases under their belt first. People view games differently when they’re asked to pay for them, and critics may not be so willing to let circumstances influence their review. It can be a harsh world out there for a beginner.

Lloyd 2 is a much bigger, more ambitious game than the first. Whereas the original Lloyd didn’t even have sound effects, Lloyd 2 introduces voiced cutscenes, some of which are full-on animated cinematics. Quality is about what you would expect -- I would assume the developer sought out friends and acquaintances to voice characters in Lloyd 2, leading to wildly varying audio quality due to differences in recording hardware. Lloyd himself sounds fine, but some of the other characters are a bit quiet, while others have clear background noise. Nothing I heard was unlistenable, however. 

The story is also a little hard to follow. Not much is done to refresh our memories as to who anyone is or what’s going on, we’re just kind of thrown into the middle of things and turned loose. On one hand, it’s nice that the story doesn’t slow the pace of the gameplay down too much. On the other, you’re given a map screen with different objectives to clear but there’s very little context as to what you’re doing or why. At one point I made my way to the end of a Power Plant level only to confront what appeared to be an evil monkey. Despite a whole cutscene involving a conversation between four or five different people, this evil monkey never seemed to say a single word. He just stood there in total silence with a sinister smile. Then I killed him.

I suppose maybe I missed something, however. With greater ambitions comes a number of unfortunate bugs in Lloyd 2, one of which happened not long after our monkey and his crew landed on planet Grecia. I entered what appeared to be a castle to talk to the Queen, but I think the game expected me to take a lower route, where I was apparently meant to overhear the Queen making secret preparations before my arrival. Instead, I took the direct route straight to her chambers, and triggered the cutscene with Lloyd standing in front of her while ominous music played, even though the camera was still clearly focused on the next floor down. I apparently still had some amount of control, because midway through her dialog I touched a teleporter that sent me to the game’s map screen before she was done talking. If that cutscene was meant to give context to what I was doing, I didn’t get a chance to see it.

That was one of the more harmless bugs in my time spent playing Lloyd 2. Harder to ignore was the fact that, within the first 30 seconds of getting control, I soft locked the game. Lloyd 2 opens with a short prologue section where you play as a man with black hair. If you decide to ignore the obvious and go left instead of right, you quickly run out of solid level tiles and begin falling indefinitely. Later areas feature invisible walls presumably to prevent this exact scenario, but for whatever reason they weren’t implemented in the prologue. 

For the most part, Lloyd 2 seems to be a co-op game. Many levels see Lloyd teamed up with an alien princess named Lura, with gameplay vaguely reminiscent of Mega Man X crossed with the tag mechanic from Sonic Mania’s Encore Mode. At the touch of a button, you can switch between the Swordsman Lloyd and the more projectile-based Lura… assuming your partner is still alive, I guess. While playing alone, your partner is controlled by artificial intelligence, but it’s incredibly basic and prone to accidentally committing suicide. That wouldn’t be such a big deal (considering Tails in Sonic 2 never acted in self-preservation either), but once your partner dies, they stay dead. Your only option to bring them back is to either restart the stage or hope another cutscene triggers, since they’ll magically spring back to life in order to say their dialog (though, again, usually only seconds before they fall back into the next death pit). 

This might not be much of a problem, depending on your viewpoint. There’s not much incentive to switch between Lloyd and Lura, so once you pick whoever you think works the best, chances are, you’ll just stick with them. You do unlock special team-up attacks after beating each boss, but this just reinforces the idea that Lloyd the Monkey 2 is meant to be experienced with another person holding a second controller, as most of the team-up attacks require both characters to do something specific that the single player artificial intelligence usually can’t interpret. Regardless, the team-up attacks never seem strictly necessary to progress, so they can be safely ignored if you’re playing solo.

I understand this is a pretty negative review I’ve written here. Lloyd the Monkey 2 aims high and tries to the best of its ability to get there. I assume it was a struggle to get even this far. Making games is hard work, and like any skill, takes practice to get good at. Just because this is Lloyd the Monkey 2 doesn’t mean Noah Meyer, its developer, is automatically an expert. I'm sure he's doing his best, and, quality aside, this game has a lot of heart put into it. This isn’t something cheap, quick, or lazy. It’s really, genuinely trying, and that matters. 

I’ve said a few times here and there that I see pieces of myself in the releases of Lloyd the Monkey, and I still see them here. I remember, for an early SAGE event, I was working on a fangame project of mine called The Fated Hour. I was probably already a year or two or maybe even three deep in the game by now, and after a lot of hyping up the community, this was their first chance to play the game. I spent months and months coding this iteration of my engine, and by my standards back then, it seemed like bleeding edge technology. I felt like I was going to blow everyone's minds. 

It was a mess. Few were impressed. Even worse, the game straight up didn’t even run correctly for some people. What followed was multiple patches, and even rebuilding some entire areas from scratch. My ambitions got the better of me and I unintentionally cut corners -- not because I was trying to cheap out on doing proper development, but just because I simply didn’t know any better. I may have done the best I knew how to do, but I was running faster than my body could keep up with and I stumbled.

When I see things like the missing invisible walls in the prologue, or how easily partner characters commit suicide by accident, I think back to that demo for The Fated Hour, and how I've been in this exact place myself. There’s even a side quest in Lloyd 2 where you have to track a floating girl as she drifts through a level -- there was a nearly identical set piece in The Fated Hour, where you were chasing a robot. It’s a very strange feeling to see something like that and think, “I’ve been here before.” Like looking through a window at a younger version of yourself.

It’s true that I stumbled, but I didn’t let that stop me. I learned by doing. I kept going. Three years later, a game of mine was featured on TV, leading to more than a million downloads. The mistakes of past projects did not weigh me down and I soldiered onwards, newfound knowledge in hand. 

So where does that leave us with Lloyd the Monkey 2, then. Well, it's not exactly a game to compete with Super Mario Odyssey, but given the circumstances in which it was created, I don't think that's necessarily the point. As a learning experience clearly made for the fun of its own creation, I think it's a success. And who knows what awaits in the years to come?

#writing #review #lloyd the monkey 2 #steam #noah meyer

[markleesthighs]

Black Mamba | Chapter 7 Finale

Pairings: Reader x Mark Lee, Reader x Hendery, Reader x Jaehyun, feat. ot21

Genre: NCT mafia!au, angst, fluff, light smut (suggestive), comical

Warnings: Mentions of funerals, death, goodbyes

Words: 3.91k

【 ❶ ❷ ❸ ❹ ❺ ❻ ➆】

Chapter 7 - One Last Time (Finale + Epilogue)

You let go of Jaehyun and laid down on his bed looking at the ceiling, reflecting on why just happened. Jaehyun joined you and held your hand slowly, not wanting to rush you. But you grabbed his hand and squeezed it back. 

“Are you going to be okay?”

“I think so”

You got up from his bed and started to walk to the kitchen. 

“hey. y/n...”

“yeah?”

“if you ever need anything or need someone to talk to, just come to me”

“I know”

You were hungry and wanted something to eat, you decided to cook yourself an egg white omelet and some bacon. You finished your breakfast and washed your dishes and walked back into your room to change into your clothes for the day. You smelled like Jaehyun, he smelled like a mix of sweetness and musk. He didn’t reek of alcohol or cigarettes and kept his clothes clean. His cologne smelled nice and you’d probably keep the shirt anyway. You threw it into your closet grabbing a red leather jacket, black crop top, black high waisted jeans, and red boots. You also tied your hair up into a ponytail and put on some light makeup. You put your lab coat on and walked to the lab. You opened it to find Mark sitting in your chair. 

“You’re late”

“You’re an asshole”

You put your stuff down on your desk. and turned back to Mark

“What do you want?”

“I wanted to find out if you had finished that rocket launcher I asked about.” 

“I finished that about a month ago it’s over there”

You pointed to a rocket launcher that looked like a handgun but it had small rockets inside of them. It was in a glass case but as Mark walked to it the walls of the class descended and he grabbed it 

“I’m going to go test it out” 

“Whatever”

Mark walked over to a testing chamber in the back of the lab that was a bullet, bomb, and any weapon proof. He shot and hit the dummy perfectly with almost all of its limbs obliterated. He walked out 

“I’m constantly amazed by your work y/n, you can make anything in the world” 

Mark noticed you didn’t hear him as you had your AirPods in blasting music drawing a new blueprint for another weapon. Mark looked in disappointment and guilt as he decided to look around at your lab since he hasn’t been in here since he’s been busy with a/n so much. He saw how perfectly organized all of the weapons were. He loved the simple and modern decor you had done to the lab. He also didn’t realize how lonely you get in a big lab all to yourself. He noticed you also had some flowers to liven up the place. His eyes fell on roses in a vase that was in the center of a table with a card tucked underneath it. 

The roses looked like they were healthy but old. He slipped the card from under the vase and realized it was his card for you. It was the day he confessed to you and you had kept the roses healthy ever since. He glanced over at you mixing chemicals for what he assumes was for a new weapon. He felt horrible, shit, trash, for what he had done to you. He knew you didn’t deserve to be with someone like him. He was scum, and he did love you at the start, but it soon became a fight for power later on in your relationship. 

Mark fought for his spot as king and to have you as his powerful woman as queen. Having a powerful queen compared to the other mafias in the area was what had become important to him. He would brag about your killstreaks while others could only complain about how much their girlfriends are spending on purses and shoes. He had stood you up on several dates and broke your heart that night, the night where he was supposed to love you. Mark had to leave, it would not be his place to even attempt to win you back. 

“I’ll be heading out” 

You gave no response as you did not hear him. The only sound you heard was the lab door closing as well as this chapter on your life. Taeyong rang the bell for access into the lab and you let him in. He came to you with an envelope and sad eyes. 

“I’m sorry about your loss y/n”

“Thank you Taeyong”

He left as you opened the letter as it was an invitation to Jackson’s funeral hosted at the mansion. You accepted and decided to attend tonight. You finished a long day of work and notified Taeyong that you would be out for the night as your brother's funeral. You wore a long black dress with a slit from the bottom to your thigh and wore silver jewelry. You straightened your hair and as you were doing your makeup Jaehyun walked in. 

“Going out?”

“Y-yeah, for my brothers funeral” 

“Oh, sorry for asking”

“No, it’s okay”

“...”

“...”

“Actually would like to at-ttend the funeral with me? It said I can bring a plus one.”

“Do you want me to?”

“I would appreciate it if you did”

“Okay let me get dressed”

Jaehyun left as you put on your heels and as you were walking down the staircase Jaehyun came down in an all-black outfit and his gold Rolex on his wrist. You both walked out the door and into a limo where it took you both  to the mansion where you saw the bodyguards in-front of the house. Jaehyun got out and helped you out of the car holding your hand as you both walked up the staircase. They stopped you as they scanned your face and did a security check with your outfit. Same thing for Jaehyun as well. You both entered and saw all the members awaiting your arrival and hugged you comforting you. 

They revealed Jackson’s casket as you saw his face. You walked up to it as Jaehyun watched you attentively. Your tears fell seeing him like this and you leaned on his casket sobbing at his sight, Jaehyun almost felt that he was going to cry, watching your beautiful eyes spew tears as the white casket and white lilies surrounded you. The members walked up to slowly removed you from his casket as they all sat down. Others from other mafias soon found out about your relationship with Jackson and many allies with GOT7 had also attended. 

Each member got up and gave their speeches mourning Jackson and Yugyeom turned to you and whispered 

“Do you want to give a speech?”

“S-sure”

“Are you sure?” Jaehyun asked worriedly 

“Yeah, I can do it, for Jackson.”

You held his hand and squeezed it as you walked up to the altar and looked at your brother one more time before you took a deep breath and gave your speech 

“As you all know I am Jackson’s sister, y/n. I was very close to Jackson as a young girl and loved having him as an older brother. However, when my father had passed we got separated, and I didn’t see him for a while. Yesterday, was the first time I’d seen him in a while and the last day I would talk to him ever again. He didn’t know who I was but treated me well, and I’m sure he ran his mafia with leadership, passion, and kindness. I expected nothing less than him to compete with my own mafia, as he was very hardworking. Although he has been a missing piece in my life, I know he was a good man with good intentions. I now no longer have family, but I will continue to keep all of them with me in my heart. I love you  Jackson and I will miss you.”

A tear fell down your cheek as you sat back down as many others were sobbing at your words. You grabbed Jaehyun’s hand again and leaned your head on his shoulder looking at the marble floor. The priest walked up to read Jackson’s will to see what to inherit.

“I Jackson Wang hereby give the following if I perish on the ground and will not live to see another day. To my members, you all will have my belongings and have the choice of whether to keep them or burn them. My room shall be handed off to the new leader, so it must be cleaned of my remains. You are all free to read my diaries and enter my office whenever. To my sister, if she is still out there, find her, and once you have, tell her the following: 

‘You as the last living blood of the Wang family shall take the Wang family name with you to whomever you marry. You will inherit the company, and train hard to maintain and run it. You will be led by the guidance of Jaebum, who will be a temporary leader while you train. Welcome to GOT7 y/n.’ “Your eyes grew wide as you heard those words. Everyone in the room didn’t know whether to congratulate you or freak out. Jaehyun looked at you sadly and shocked as everyone else was. The priest called you up for you to sign the family book of GOT7 mafia. You rose as your name was called and saw the signature of your brother, father, great grandfather, and so on. You looked at Jaehyun, and all of the other GOT7 members as everyone in the room was awaiting your response.

“Y/n, would you like to change the name of your mafia?”

“No, I will keep it in honor of Jackson.”

“History shall be made today, as this will be the first top-notch mafia based in Seoul to be run by a female and you will be forever written in mafia history.”

You looked at your brother then looked at Jaehyun. It was a hard decision. Do you choose your family by blood? Or your family or friends? Ever since you left, NCT became your new family, they were all your brothers, did you have to leave them? You took the quill and dipped it in the black ink. You looked at Jaehyun mouthing an “I’m sorry” and signed the book.

“Everyone, join me in applauding and celebrating miss y/n Wang’s new journey as she takes on a new life as a new leader.”

Everyone started to applaud as well as Jaehyun as you stepped from the podium as all the other 6 members got up and bowed to you as their new leader. Everyone was dismissed soon after into the reception area where there were drinks and hors d'oeuvres. JB pulled you aside to discuss what is going to happen to you and your new life with GOT7.

“I know you are extremely qualified to take on this position, but I am merely here to help you adjust and be an assistant to you. This is going to sound sudden, but we want you to live here by tomorrow. Easier for us and easier for you, it’s better to not delay it and get it out of the way. You can say your goodbyes and be done so you’ll be ready to leave when we send a chauffeur to pick you up at 8:00 PM tomorrow. We will clear out Jackson’s room and office and accommodate any personalizations you want in your room and office. You will be protected and well cared for as much as Jackson. You will lead and inspire many of us here at GOT7, and you better be up to the challenge for anything, and willing to sacrifice everything you have for this mafia, you are no longer part of NCT, y/n, you are one of us. Upon your arrival here, your tattoo will be removed and replaced with a GOT7 tattoo. We will accept anyone willing to come with you if they accept the same loyalty, respect, and skill as you. See you tomorrow, y/n.”

You walked off to find Jaehyun who had your coat and called a limo for you two to leave. The car ride was quiet, and when you arrived home, you didn’t say anything and headed for your room. You grabbed your luggage and started to pack, Jaehyun walked in and didn’t say anything but helped you pack. It surprised you he gave you a bittersweet smile as he handed you clothes, jewelry, bags, and several other belongings. He noticed his t-shirt in his closet, seeing that you had kept it in your closet. You were too busy packing to notice that instead of handing you a piece of clothing, he held your hand.

You looked at him with a sad grin on his face as he looked at you, concerned and upset.

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Of course I do, I’ve always wanted to have my own mafia. Besides, it’s what runs in my family.”

“Aren’t you going to be lonely?”

“That’s the fun about going somewhere new, new people and experiences.”

“What if I came with you?”

“Jaehyun, please don’t speak nonsense.”

“I'm serious y/n, I don’t want you to go through this alone.”

‘I don’t know Jae, aren’t you happier here?”

“Not if you aren’t here.”

“…”

“Please, let me come with you.”

“I don’t know-“

“Who else is going to comfort you as a leader? I know you are going to go through a lot-“

“But NCT needs you.”

“Not as much as you need me.”

“Do you really want to come with me?” “Yes”

“Pack your things, and let’s go.”

Before Jaehyun left Mark and Taeyong found you both in the doorway.

“We heard what happened, are you going to compete with me y/n?” Mark chuckled

“What we mean is that we are very supportive of you, y/n and we wish you the best,” Taeyong added.

“I’m leaving with her.”

“Why?”

“She needs me, I’ve been with her through everything, and I will continue to be there for her.”

“Jaehyun, I will allow you to go, but don’t expect me to go easy on you next time we meet.”

“Hopefully this will create a new alliance between us.”

Jaehyun left along with Taeyong discussing the new GOT7 contract.

“I’ll miss you.”

“I’ll miss my lab.”

“You’ll make a great leader.”

“A leader greater than you that’s for sure.”

“y/n, don’t be like that, I’m sorry, but I know you’ll be happier getting a fresh start.”

“Thank you, just promise me one thing, Mark.”

“Which is?”

“Make a/n happy as much as she makes you happy. Don’t mess it up, as much as I want to strangle her, she makes you happy, and I hope you will treat her better than me.”

“I will, I promise, y/n.”

Mark left as you and Jaehyun had finished packing. It was 7:00 PM and you both were waiting by the door. Everyone had come to see you both off, everyone hugging Jaehyun and you as well as trainees bowing to you, and that they will miss your expertise. They had already found you a replacement, as a rising trainee who had followed similar in your footsteps and was a trainee under you. People had mixed reactions, most were happy to expect Donghyuck who was balling this eyes out in happiness and sadness. He made your arm wet and numb from him, holding on to you tight and crying for a long time. A GOT7 car arrived as grabbed all of your and Jaehyun’s luggage into the car as you gave everyone one last goodbye and wave and entered the car.

“Jae?”

“Yeah?”

“Why did you want to come with me?”

“Because...because I love you.”

You kissed Jaehyun on the lips as your response and hugged him with happy tears falling from your face. 

“Thank you. For making me feel loved, cared, and most importantly, happy, I can trust you with my love Jaehyun, forever.”

“Hey, who else is going to take over the company if there are no mini y/n Wang’s running all over the place.”

You hit his arm as he chuckled at your flustered response. 

“S-shut up, idiot.”

You arrived at the mansion, greeting all of the members awaiting your arrival. You and Jaehyun got out as you looked out onto your new home for the rest of your life. You looked worried as Jaehyun held your hand and suddenly all your worries were gone. 

“Are you ready to go?”

“Let’s do it.”

You both entered the mansion holding hands and opening the door to the next chapter of your life. 

Epilogue

“MOOOOM TELL AIDEN TO GET OFF OF ME”

“TELL JAYDEN TO LET GO OF MY DAGGER”

“CAN YOU BOTH STOP YELLING IM TRYING TO READ”

You were now a mother with three children with a set of twin boys, with Aiden being the older twin. Aiden and Jayden looked like Jaehyun and were identical. You had one daughter Blake who was younger than both of them and looked and acted like you. 

“Jayden, give back the dagger, Aiden stop yelling, and Blake, you keep reading that book about bloodstains. You wouldn’t want to see your mother mad right?”

They all nodded as Jaehyun walked to your office and sighed as he sat down in one of your chairs. 

“Exhausted?”

“I don’t know how you do it.”

You got up and started to massage Jaehyun’s shoulders as you kissed his neck. You were now running the top mafia in the world, going across the world just to assassinate political figures and set up drug deals. You adapted well to the GOT7 lifestyle You were now married to Jaehyun, and you had a beautiful wedding with GOT7 and NCT members mixed into it. They were now allied with you and were still doing well without you. Mark and a/n got married shortly after you and Jaehyun but their’s had not been not nearly as gorgeous as yours (at least in your opinion). 

“We did well, thanks to you.”

“No, it’s thanks to you, I love you so much.”

Jaehyun kissed your lips as soon as you were interrupted by your children.

“EWWW” 

“Calm down you two its normal among married couples.”

You got up and hugged and kissed all of your children and raised them well, just as your parents did. They had to work hard for what they wanted, just like you. They all were smart and all capable of self-defense and were ahead of all of their classes in school, handing you As and A+s left and right. You decided that you would tell them one day about what you and Jaehyun did, but that’s when they reach double digits. 

“Dad, how did you meet mom?” Blake had asked

You both laughed a little too hard as all three of your kids looked at you both confused

“That’s a LONG story going to be saved for bedtime sweetheart.”

“Aww, I want to know!”

“How about we throw some knives instead for now.”

“YAYYYY!!”

You lifted Blake up as the boys ran to the weapon range grabbing knives like candy

“Woah, woah, woah, boys, not until your mom says you can throw them.” “One at a time boys, you know the rules.”

“But I’ve seen you throw five at a time mom!’ “Why can’t we!”

“I’ve done this longer than all three of you combined, it takes a lot of practice and precision.”

“Alright, mom.”

It was time for bed for all of the kids, tired out of their minds (as weekends usually do) You dedicated Saturdays for the kids especially since you were so busy, with its overwhelming success, it allowed you to have one day to yourself and your kids. Jaehyun was a mission general, leading and commanding all the missions as well as your right-hand man. You tucked Jayden and Aiden into the beds of their shared room. From what you could tell Aiden seemed the type to lead and Jayden to analyze and assist, they were a dynamic duo. If Aiden wanted to brush his teeth, he would go, and Jayden would follow. But Jayden would get the stool and toothpaste before Aiden could even start grabbing his toothbrush. 

Blake was very similar to you, is well diverse in every field, and loves reading. You and Jaehyun walked into her room, covered wall to wall by shelves of books, and constantly begging you to take her to the GOT7 library to pick out new ones. You tucked her in and started to tell her the story of how you and Jaehyun met. 

“Well, it started when mommy and daddy both lived and ruled in their own castle, they had their own kingdom but never crossed each other, until mommy visited daddy’s castle, in a magical land called NCT...”

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