#some of my fic outlines has notes that are like 'wow if they had the transmigrators privilege this wouldnt even have been a problem'

[microwaving-tesilid-argente]

.

#girl i have so many teshes thoughts its INSANE #me starting with haha actually this ship has no basis i just want to Put Tesilid Through It #but over the past few months of brainrotting their dynamic is now like. #what if we were doomed from the start and there was never anything either of us could do to save the other #(not even talking about the regression but rather the stigma bearer thing and how they have no social power) #(but also the regression thing) #what if we loved each other throughout all the lifetimes but there could never be a happy ending. tragedy dogs our footsteps #what if we were 'guy who has a good head on his shoulders and recognises our low social positions and looks out for his friends in similar #predicaments' x 'guy who is way too giving and this is bad bc the world is out to get him and he loves ppl too much to care about #the danger to himself' #what if we were 'guy who is way too giving' x 'guy who wants to protect him but Cant' #doomed ships..... #swings hestio around i like you SO much. i need to put you under a microscope and in a fish tank #(statements that should not ever be viewed by people outside of tumblr) #some of my fic outlines has notes that are like 'wow if they had the transmigrators privilege this wouldnt even have been a problem' #and im suddenly very appreciative of canon #god bless canon tesilid may you be happy. not my fanfic tesilid though im making him miserable #anyway. the more i think about it the more interesting hestio's internal conflict could be #it's about being so acutely aware of how shit their lives already are that he knows having a r/s that is frowned upon would just #make things worse #also i am very much hooked by the fact that like. nowadays i keep seeing ship posts about 'killing myself in front of you to change the #trajectory of your life forever' #for teshes its the opposite. hestio is desperately trying to make sure tesilid doesnt off himself #and also its not hestio dying that changes the trajectory of tesilid's life forever it's hestio confessing #and somehow this inflicts more pain on tesilid in the long run #which is extremely funny bc for all the notes that ive written abt teshes hestio has only confessed like umm. checks notes. 3 times #1. drunk (tesilid is not in the room) 2. the world is ending #like if hestio had managed to take this to the grave like he had originally planned then this could have been avoided #but the tragedy is that tesilid lives thru this multiple times so at least ONE time hestio's going to blab and that forever changes things #crying in fic writing being stupidly hard

[mochalate]

"no body, no crime" ; f!reader/osamu miya Osamu has heard people say it's not the dark itself that anyone's scared of, it's what could be waiting inside it. He thinks that what all fear boils down to, ultimately — exposure to the unknown. (Osamu has never been afraid of the dark, but now he sees it in your eyes.)

w/c: 1.6k ; fluff angst idk, vibes c/w: involuntary unaliving (you and Osamu are fine, dw), abusive relationship (ditto) a/n: just a little break from the two (TWO!! What was I thinking!) longfics I'm outlining/writing. the banner doesn't match the vibe of the fic tbh, but I just love how it came out lol, look how cute the little skull is

The lightbulb dims and flickers. 

Onigiri Miya’s kitchen is plunged into a strange, incandescent twilight; and Osamu pauses mid-step, despite the heavy stack of freshly washed plates in his arms. 

He’s never been scared of the dark. But there’s something unsettling about the way the space is transformed so easily; how this blurring of the line between light and shadow makes everything that had been familiar not a second ago, seem uncanny. 

Osamu sees you look up from the sink you’re cleaning, the motion made staccato by the flickering bulb. 

“We really need to replace that thing,” you huff, face obscured by the shadows. “It’s creepy.”

You’re silhouetted against the window above the sink; looking out on the narrow, deserted street behind the restaurant— more a glorified alley than not. It’s dark out, past eleven. The glow from the closest streetlight barely reaches.

“Ya don’t need to be scared when I’m here,” Osamu says with a grin, as he moves towards the rack. “Gonna protect you from the ghosts an’ all.”

The bulb stabilises, and now he has a clear view of the way you roll your eyes at him. “Oh, so our restaurant is haunted now?”

The plates clink as Osamu puts them away, louder than usual in the silence. “I’ve got a Bluebeard type operation going on here, ya see. Really think you’re my first girlfriend?”

You laugh as you return your attention to the sink. “Wow, shame you didn’t open with that line on the first date.” The steel wool makes harsh, scraping squeals as you scrub. “Nothing like reminding a girl her date could be a murderer. Makes everything a little more exciting.”

“Noted for my next victim,” he concedes. “And I’ll order a new bulb when we get home. Didn’t think it was makin’ ya that uncomfortable.”

You smile gratefully at him over your shoulder as you turn on the faucet and give the sink a final rinse. “We need some new knives too. Those kids you were training for the part time work really wore out the ones we have now.”

Osamu nods. “You okay to finish up and meet me outside? I’ll start pullin’ down the shutters.”

You agree, just like you always do.

Emi would fit right in with those ghosts that (did not) haunt Onigiri Miya.

You’re sitting with her at the only occupied table. There’s a light rain tonight, and the raindrops pattering against the windows drown out what little conversation he would have been able to hear from the counter.

She’s a wisp of a woman, huddled under a mud-coloured cardigan that blends into the restaurant’s wood panelling. She sits incredibly still. Her long, dark hair hangs loose around a pale and unmemorable face. Barely there. Almost a trick of the light.

Osamu watches as you take her hand, telling her something urgently. She never raises her eyes from her lap. Her shoulders are hunched, but her face is impassive. 

He wonders what she’s thinking.

“Who’s Sadako over there?” Atsumu asks, reaching for another rice ball.

Osamu slaps his hand away. “Are ya paying for any of that? This ain’t a soup kitchen. And lord, yer rude.”

Atsumu withdraws sulkily. “Stingy.” 

It’s easy to tell what Atsumu’s thinking. He says everything that crosses his mind; but even when he doesn’t, it’s written all over his face. Growing up with him, Osamu had to learn that people could lie; and lie well.

That woman looks pitiful, is what Atsumu is thinking right now, glancing over his shoulder with furrowed brows. Is she okay?

“That’s her friend,” Osamu says. “From college. Emi.”

“Yeah? What’s her problem?”

“Shitty boyfriend.”

“I thought you were dating—”

Osamu smacks him upside the head. 

The new light bulbs come in. Osamu replaces the one in the kitchen, but it still flickers. 

He expects you to comment, make a joke about ghosts; but you just keep scrubbing the sink. You haven’t said much at all, today. 

The steel wool screams. Osamu’s worried you’ll cut through your gloves. 

“Hey,” he says, because he’s not sure what else he can say, “Easy.”

You start, as if jerked out of a trance. “Sorry.”

The silence after, where you stand with your head hanging over the sink, too far away for him to touch, is suffocating and cavernous all at once. He’s afraid to say the wrong thing, and having to watch it echo and bounce, amplifying itself into something grotesque.

“Emi will get justice. They’ll find out who did it.”

You turn on him so suddenly, so violently, that he instinctively takes a step back; even though you’re half his size. 

“I know who did it, it was him,” you spit, face venomous and unfamiliar. “If the police would just listen to me and Emi’s sister—”

“He has an alibi,” Osamu reminds you gently. “There’s no proof.”

You blink, and seem to deflate. “Right, no proof. The police can’t do anything.” You chew on your thumbnail as you mumble, speaking more to yourself than to him, the rest of your fingers curled in a fist.

Your anger seems to have evaporated in an instant, quick as the flickering light. You’re you again. At least, that’s what he wants to believe.

He needs to fix that light. It’s making you look damn scary.

Emi’s sister comes by to see you a lot, after they find the body. Osamu’s not sure what you speak to her about. He’s also not sure why he feels like he shouldn’t ask.

It’s been gnawing at him, lately. This feeling of not sure, not knowing. It's always present, always sapping at his strength. It’s the real ghost in Onigiri Miya, only he’s not sure who it’s haunting— him, or you. 

You seem different. He finds himself watching you from a distance, trying to understand what you’re thinking, what you’re feeling. It used to be easy; a language he was fluent in. 

Now, his tongue feels rusty. He can never find the words that feel right.

You don’t speak as much as you did before, either. The silence after closing used to be warm and comfortable, the time he got to spend with you at the end of a bustling day. But now it isn’t calming. It’s tense, as if he’s constantly waiting for something to explosively fill it in.

There’s just you.

“Osamu, what time is it?” you ask, stripping off your gloves. “Could you check my phone? It’s right next to you.”

He looks at you curiously. You usually left it out front with his, charging under the register. Why the change? He can’t bring himself to ask.

“Osamu.” Your voice is stretched taut.

He swallows and hastily taps at your screen. “Ten.” It’s later than he expected.

“Okay.” You take a deep breath. “Is it okay with you if I leave a little early? Emi’s sister invited me to dinner. I forgot to tell you. It’s at eleven. I want to go home and get ready.”

The photographs the detectives showed you at the restaurant last week flash through his mind. He’d wanted to pummel the man for upsetting you that much. “I don’t want you walkin’ alone—”

“I’ll be fine. It’s only ten.”

Osamu notices you don’t wait for him to agree as you gather your things into your purse. 

Emi’s boyfriend is missing. 

Osamu doesn’t tell the police the knives they’re taking away are almost brand new. 

He doesn’t tell them that you took the old ones to the recycling centre two weeks ago.

He tells them you left the restaurant at ten, and that it was eleven thirty when he finished; a little later than usual, but that was to be expected— he didn’t have your help, after all.

He doesn’t tell them it should have been well past midnight.

You don’t say anything at all, merely watching the detective as you wash out the splattered soy stains on a napkin a clumsy customer had been using. The water runs brown.

He can't get Atsumu's words out of his head.

‘Is everything alright between you two?’

Osamu is watching you clean the sink again. He should be mopping the floor tonight, but he finds himself rooted to the spot.

‘Sorry, I don't mean to be nosy.”

You turn on the faucet, washing away the soap with a face that’s far too serious for what you’re doing.

‘She just looks like there’s something on her mind lately.’

Did you? Osamu doesn’t know anymore. When did you start feeling like a stranger?

He doesn’t want it to be like this. “I haven’t seen Emi’s sister around—” he starts.

“We decided to stop seeing each other,” you reply, never turning back. “Too painful. For both of us.”

You never told him that. He tries to convince himself it’s only because he didn’t ask, but he never had to, before. Osamu realises he doesn’t even know the sister’s name. 

The faucet shuts off, but you just stand there, palms resting on the edge of the sink, head hanging over it. Despite everything, his heart wrenches. When he reaches out to touch your shoulder, you don’t tense like he’d been expecting— like he’d been afraid of.

No, you lean into his touch; and he finds the courage to gently pull you back, turn you to face him. You look at him, really look, for the first time in days. Osamu can’t imagine how he could think your face would ever be unfamiliar to him.

The moment is perfect. He could pretend everything is fine now, he thinks. It wouldn’t even be that hard. He doesn’t know why he doesn’t just ask you to meet him outside, while he gets started on the shutters.

He doesn’t know why he says, “Is there something… I should know?” 

Something changes.

Your mouth is a straight line. Neutral. 

Impassive. 

Just like Emi.

The light bulb flickers.

please like/reblog/reply if you enjoyed :) [my other fics]

#osamu miya x reader #miya osamu x reader #osamu x reader #haikyuu x reader #haikyu x reader #my fic

[danceswithsporks]

Calm - Part 8

Part 2 of 6 in The Complete Series

Wrecker x Seamstress!Reader

Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Chapter Summary: Chai returns to Pabu with interesting news for all of you that will shake everything you’ve worked to repair.

Authors Note: Here we are! The second to last chapter before the end of this fic! I can’t believe we’re already almost there! I sadly don’t foresee the final part being finished before the premier of S3 of Bad Batch but I’ll def do my best to get it done soon!

If you haven’t seen my previous updates in regards to the final season! The events of The Complete Series have already been pre-planed and outlined for each fic! Nothing will change unless I find it massively imperative to the story!

Calm, well as calm as things can be when you’re making clothes to outfit an army. Or more directly ex-army. Somehow you’d been talked into supplying clothes, along with others, to Chai’s new business. She wouldn’t give too many details, apparently the less you knew the better, but she’d taken on supplying clothes to those who’d served in the war and their families. Wrecker had told you that they were important men to him and his brothers. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that they were mainly clones. There were those rare moments where you sent children's clothing as well that made you wonder who else was being helped. You didn’t push to find out. 

You were proud of Chai. It had been six months since Tech’s death and although things were rough in the beginning, she seemed to be doing better. She was helping those in need and running a successful business on an entirely different planet. At least you figured it was successful with how much you were being paid for making all this clothing. You could have sworn you’d heard Crosshair mention something about wealthy donors but once again, you didn’t push. If it was this much of a secret then you’d let Wrecker and the others keep it. All you knew was that those you cared for were helping those in need. That was enough for you. 

So when Chai returned suddenly to Pabu and asked to talk to you, you were a bit surprised. 

“C-Chai! What are you doing here?” Standing in the doorway of your home, you took in the almost frazzled look on her face. “Are you okay? What happened?” Your hand moved to her forehead where a healing cut could be seen. 

“I needed to leave. Can I come in?” She fidgeted slightly before stepping in when you moved to the side. Her eyes looked around at your home and she smiled softly at the signs of a family living here, not just you. On the dining table was a handmade clay vase that housed a bouquet. A few new holo-flats of you, Omega, and Wrecker had been added to the walls and a child’s jacket could be seen on the couch. “Omegas at school?”

“Yeah, Wrecker’s down at the docks helping bring it today's catch. Sounds like it was a good one if they needed his help.” You moved into the kitchen and grabbed the tart you’d made the night before and two plates. “Sorry about the mess. Omega had her first sleepover a few nights ago and we’re still recovering.” Five little girls did more damage than you thought possible. 

Chai followed behind you and grabbed two glasses and a pitcher of water from the fridge. “Wow, sounds like everyone’s settling in.” 

Placing the plates on the table, you nodded. “It’s taken some work, but I think we’re finally getting back to normal. Omega’s making a lot of friends at school and even Crosshair is settling in.” 

“Are they still having nightmares?” Chai placed the glasses down before taking a seat at the table, the bag she’d been carrying sat on the floor next to her leg. 

You chewed your lip for a moment before sighing softly and sitting down. “Periodically. But calming down after is getting easier.” 

“That’s good.” Pouring two glasses of water, Chai chewed her lip for a solid minute. It was clear there was something on her mind. 

“Chai. What’s going on?” You reached across the table and took one of her hands in yours. “What happened? How did you get this?” You pointed to the cut on her forehead. 

She reached up with her free hand and carefully touched the still-tender cut. “Fang. He attacked me behind the shop.” 

“What? I hope you taught him a lesson.” You moved to stand but felt yourself pulled back down. 

“I did my best but someone ended up stepping in and saving me.” Chai didn’t make eye contact with you as she spoke, clearly glossing over something. 

“You know that Crosshair and Hunter are going to demand you take self-defense lessons now, right?” Releasing her hand, you grabbed the knife and cut two slices of tart. All of the boys had taken on caring for Chai. No doubt feeling a sense of duty to protect her and be there for her in Techs sted. “Did you get the name of your savior? I hope you thanked him properly.” 

Chai watched as you placed a slice of tart on a plate and passed it to her before plating one for yourself. “It was…Tech.” 

Your hand froze over the piece of tart in front of you. “Wh-what?” You had to be hearing things. Maybe she said a different name? 

“It was Tech who saved me. He’s…alive.” The look of disbelief on your face seemed to match hers at the time. 

Blinking rapidly, you tried to focus on her words. She was being serious, wasn’t she? “Ch-Chai, are you sure? It’s not someone who looks like him?” 

Chai reached into her bag on the ground and grabbed her datapad. Tapping at the device pulled up the surveillance feed from the shop. She clicked on a saved file that showed the clone stepping in and saving her, his face clear and crisp on the screen. “Here. I couldn’t believe it at first either.” 

You took the datapad from her and watched as Tech tased the attacker before helping Chai stand and rush into her shop. “But wait, why are you here if he’s alive? Shouldn't you two be making up for lost time?” Passing the device back to her, you caught the way her bottom lip trembled. “Chai?” It was like a damn was broken, as soon as you said her name the girl broke into a fit of tears. 

“He doesn't remember me!” She covered her face with her hands and broke into loud sobs, her body shaking. “Kix says it’s a severe case of amnesia and there’s a possibility that he’ll never get his memories back!” 

Oh, that was a lot more than you were expecting. “Amnesia?” Stars, that was far worse than him just being dead. At least with him being dead, she could move on. With him alive and her knowing that he didn’t remember her it would be like torture. “Oh sweetie, I’m so sorry.” 

“I tried, I tried to just be normal with him. I made him tea and talked with him like we used to but” she sniffled and wiped at her face with the long sleeve of her shirt. 

“It wasn’t the same?” She nodded to you, making you frown. Standing you moved around the table and held your friend close. “There’s the chance he’ll remember one day. Right?” 

“Echo says it could come with time. I just...I couldn’t be around him. Not yet at least.” Her head shook against your shoulder. “Am I a coward?” 

“Shhh” You rubbed her shoulder gently. “Not in the slightest. You suffered more than the rest of us through all of us. I don’t think of you as a coward for leaving.” You tapped your teeth for a moment before continuing. “But I will think you a coward if you avoid him forever after this.” 

“Avoid who?” Wrecker stood in the doorway of your home with a smile and a large fish in tow. “Hey, Chai. Didn’t know you were coming for a visit.” 

“It’s not a visit.” She shifted awkwardly against you. How would she tell him that his brother was alive? From what you’d told her, he’d suffered harshly after the supposed death of his brother. “I’m moving back.” 

“Was it Kix? Did he overstep? I told him he needed to be careful with his flirting with you.” Wrecker shook his head disapprovingly before moving to the kitchen to place the fish in the fridge. 

Kix had a crush on her? She never noticed that. “Umm, no.” She wiped her face with her sleeve once more before pulling away from you slightly. “Kix has been nothing but a gentleman. They all have been.” 

Wrecker stepped out of the kitchen with that happy smile still plastered on his face. “That’s good to hear. Didn’t want to have to beat up my vod.” He chuckled deeply but found the gesture not returned. “What’s going on?” He looked at Chai closer and noticed the cut. “What happened? Is the shop okay?” 

“She was attacked behind the shop. By Fang.” You stroked your friend's arm gently before stepping away. You’d handle this. “But one of your brothers stepped in and saved her.” Stepping over to the man you loved, you grabbed one of his hands and looked up at him. 

“Which one? Gotta thank him.” Why were you looking at him like that? “Sarad? What is it?”

“You should sit down, Wrecker.” Stroking his hand gently, you took him over to the couch and watched as he sat down. That sweet, pure brown eye was staring at you with so much love. He was doing so well lately and now you were going to destroy all this progress. “Love, the brother that saved her was” You took a long deep breath. “My love, it was Tech.”

-*-

Wrecker watched as the same scene played over for the fifth time on Chai’s datapad. Tech. His vod. He was alive. “Tech…but how?” He looked at Chai who’d now taken a seat across from him while you sat safely next to him, a hand on his forearm.

“His repel line snagged on a service ladder. It helped cushion his fall.” Chai poked a fork at the tart still sitting uneaten on her plate. “His femur injury reopened from the fall and he developed amnesia. Some villagers found him and nursed him to health. Once he was healed, he left to try and figure out who he was.” 

“He found his way to Ord Mantell and to you. It’s a sign from the universe.” You leaned your head against Wrecker's arm and watched him press replay on the video once more. It was no surprise that he was shocked by the news. He’d watched his brother die. Had blamed himself for weeks over his death. If this was how he was then how would Omega be? 

“Will he get the memories back?” His eyes took in the way Tech carefully approached Chai after tasing Fang. It wasn’t the usual confident way Tech moved, this was timid and filled with nervous energy. How could Tech be alive? His brain just couldn’t seem to wrap around the knowledge. 

Chai picked up her glass of water and swirled it for a moment. Unable to look at the large clone before her. “Kix and Echo say there’s a chance they’ll never come back. But that’s a small chance. For now, we just need to not force anything. Let it all come back naturally.” Which she was doing amazing at by running. Maybe you were right, she was a coward. 

Tech could never remember them. If that happened then it would destroy Omega. “Omega can’t know. Not a word to her about any of this.” He placed the datapad down on the table and chewed his lip. “We need to tell Hunter and Cross. They deserve to know.” 

“How long can we keep something like this from her though? Surely one day someone would slip and reveal it. How mad would she be when that happened? How heartbroken?” Beside you, Wrecker shifted awkwardly in his seat, clearly uncomfortable with the idea of lying to Omega. It was clearly for her own sanity but still. 

This was something he needed to talk to Hunter about. He was their leader for a reason. “Just…nothing to her for now. Not until we have a plan.” Or Tech got his memories back. 

“We can invite Hunter and Crosshair over for dinner tonight.” You looked at Chai and smiled softly. “You’ll be there too. Once Omega goes to bed we can go over everything and see what they think.” 

Chai just wanted to go home and check in on her family. It had been months since she’d seen them last and she’d be lying if she said she hadn’t missed them. “Are you sure you need me?” When you nodded to her with a stern look, she knew there was no way out. “Alright.”  She moved to stand up but stopped when she heard the door open once more. “Oh, Omega.” 

“Chai!” The young blonde quickly ran across the room and hugged the woman tightly. “What are you doing here?” She could have sworn you’d said it would be a miracle if Chai came back anytime soon. 

“Just came back for a visit, that’s all.” Reaching into her bag, she pulled out a small container. “Brought ya something from an old friend.” 

Omega's eyes lit up and sparkled as she opened the container. “Mantell Mix! Thank you!” She excitedly jumped in place before turning to show Wrecker. For a brief moment, she found a serious look on her brother's face. But as fast as it had appeared, it was gone. How strange. “Wrecker look! So happy they let us out early.” 

You moved around the table and took Omega’s satchel from her. “Why did they send you home early?” It wasn’t like the school to let the kids out early. 

“The teacher droid said a storm is coming.” Omega popped another piece of mix into her mouth before moving around the table and sitting closest to the tart. She remembered you making it the night before and how delicious it looked. Silently, she pointed at the tart earning a smile and a head nod from you. Her eyes lit up at the silent permission you gave her and quickly she grabbed the knife and cut a slice. 

“Yeah, all the boats are being called back early. That’s why they sent me home.” Wrecker watched as Omega carefully cut a slice of tart and happily ate a small bite. 

“Storm, huh?” You walked over to the kitchen and grabbed your datapad. Sure enough, on the screen was a message from Shep to the entire island letting them know about the storm. “Looks like it’s gonna be a rough one. We should probably secure the shop and the house. With us being so high on the mountain we’re gonna get hit with the wind worse.” Already you could hear the wind picking up a bit. 

Wrecker stood and stretched carefully. “Chai, want me to walk ya home? Gonna check in on Hunter and Cross and invite them to hide out here for the night.” He looked at you. “If that’s ok, Sarad.” 

Already you were making a mental list of everything you’d need to do. There was fabric air drying that would need to be pulled in and patio furniture you’d need to secure. Wrecker asked you once more if it was ok for the boys to hide out at your place and you smiled. “You never need to ask, Wrecker. <strong> Our </strong> place is always open to your family.”  Strong arms wrapped around your body and pulled you close as a warm stubble-covered face rested against your cheek. 

“Thank you.” Came as a whisper from him and you knew it wasn’t simply for letting his brothers come over. With the news that you’d all just received, all any of you wanted was to be with those you cared for. Your arms wrapped around him and held him close. “Of course, my love.” 

Omega made a fake gagging sound as she watched the two of you. “You two are doing it again.” She watched as you smirked and rolled your eyes. 

Chai chuckled at Omega’s dramatic playfulness. “They do this a lot?” 

“All the time. Super lovey-dovey. Especially after they go on one of those long dates in the Marauder.” She bit into another piece of tart. The flavor exploded in her mouth as a berry popped. She giggled playfully as you gasped at her words. “Well, you guys do! For like three days after you two are extra kissy.” 

You hadn’t realized your trips to the waterfall with Wrecker lifted your mood so much that Omega noticed. Chai shot you a knowing smirk and you felt like you were going to die from embarrassment. “Good to know, Mega. How about you get started on your homework?” And give you a moment to not feel so embarrassed! 

“Don’t you need help securing the shop?” She took another bite of the treat in front of her, enjoying the way your cheeks were getting redder and the way Wrecker was trying not to laugh. 

Damn, you did need her help. “Uh, yeah. But I need to fold fabric and bring stuff in so it’ll be a bit before I need your help.” Beside you, the clone was shaking from trying to hide his laughter. It wasn’t funny…ok it was a little bit. You thought you’d been secretive about how the trips went but it seemed not. Stars, Doll was going to have a field day with this, and with the way Chai was looking at you? It seemed like she was going to tell the innkeeper as soon as she could. “Homework now and I’ll grab you when it’s time.” 

Omega nodded and stood with her now empty tray. “Okay.” She paused for a moment and looked at the three adults in the room. Something was going on. Things had felt tense and heavy when she walked in earlier but now it seemed fine. Maybe things were okay? But something in her stomach was telling her that they weren’t. It was that same feeling she’d had after they’d lost Tech. 

“Omega? You ok?” You walked over and took the plate from her while watching her carefully. The girl blinked a few times before shaking her head and nodding. 

“Y-yeah. Sorry. Can I take the mix with me?” She held up the container for you to see. 

“Just a little bit. Wrecker brought home a beautiful fish for dinner tonight. I figured you could help me make it after we get the house secured?” A strand of hair was brushed behind the girl's ear with your hand. The blonde locs were getting long. The length looked good on her. 

Brown eyes lit up and shined at you. “Yes! Of course!” She loved cooking with you and Wrecker! It was always so much fun! The feeling in her stomach disappeared slightly, now replaced with the excitement of helping you. She’d definitely finish her homework fast now. With a wave to everyone, Omega took off for her room. 

You waited until her door had shut before speaking to Wrecker and Chai. “Let the guys know we want them for dinner, but don’t tell them why. It’ll come as a shock to them too and it’s better if we do all of this as a family.” 

“Including Omega?” Chai looked down the hall to the extra rooms. The girl was so sweet and pure for everything she’d gone through in life. She could only imagine how this would make her feel.

Wrecker looked down at you and the two of you shared a silent look before he shook his head. “Not yet. Not until we have better news for her.” 

“Agreed. We can take a group vote tonight to see what Hunter and Crosshair think. But I feel that they’ll agree with us.” Walking over to Chai, you hugged her tightly. “I hope you’ll come back tonight for dinner.” 

Chai returned the hug while nodding. “Of course. As long as the storm doesn’t get too bad. I’ll be here.” 

Omega stood with her back against the door to her room, her ears straining a bit to hear what was being said. What were you guys not telling her? Why did you need to take a vote with Crosshair and Hunter? She heard the door open followed by the heavy footsteps of her brother. Whatever it was, she’d find out. 

-*-

“Stitches, dinner was amazing.” Hunter sat back with a satisfied sigh, his hand on his stomach. He had to admit that you were one hell of a cook. Wrecker was one lucky man to have you by his side. 

“I’m glad you enjoyed it. But it would have been nothing without that amazing fish Wrecker caught today.” With a happy hum, you stood and began to clear the dishes. 

Omega stood up quickly and grabbed some of the plates nearest her. “I’ve got it!” The longer she stayed up the more likely the adults would say something to her, right?

You watched in surprise as the young blonde grabbed the dishes in your hands and carried them towards the kitchen. “O-oh. Thanks, Omega.” It wasn’t uncommon for her to help you after dinner, but it was a surprise that she was so eager. Usually, you had to ask. You felt a tug on your wrist and found Wrecker pulling you back down into your seat.

“Seems like the kids settled in nicely.” Crosshair pulled a toothpick from his pocket and stuck it in his mouth. Arms crossed, he watched Omega place the dishes into the sink and turn in the water. “So, what’s going on? Why are you here, Chai?” 

Eyes flickered quickly to Crosshair as he asked his question. “Umm, perhaps we should wait until she’s asleep.” Your voice was low as you tilted your head towards the kitchen. 

Hunter chewed his lip while the sound of clinking dishes filled the room. “That important, huh?” When you nodded to him he sighed. “Should have known this wasn’t just a group dinner.” 

“We still have a reason to celebrate. Chai’s home. The gang’s almost completely back together. Just need Echo.” And Tech. But the others didn’t know that yet and the idea of him being able to join you all once more was still just that, an idea. If the amnesia was as bad as Chai was saying it was then it could truly be a long wait before he was truly back to you all. You caught the way Chai shot you a look. No doubt she wished you could say Tech's name as well. 

“If we’re gonna celebrate then we need some cake.” Wrecker proudly cheered, trying to keep the air light and joyful. The moment the others learned of Tech everything would change. 

You chuckled brightly while leaning against Wrecker. “Well, I didn’t make a cake. But Chai brought some macarons from the shop.”  

Chai smiled at you and pulled the round container from her bag. “Assorted flavors. Couldn’t decide on just one so I made a little of everything.” The lid popped off with a small hiss and the colorful rainbow of treats was now visible to all.

Reaching across the table, you snagged one of the pink ones and happily took a bite. “Mmm, Rosewater?” The flavor lightly danced across your tongue making you hum excitedly. 

“Of course. I know they’re your favorite.” Reaching into the container, Chai grabbed one of the yellow ones. “Omega! Come try some of these and let me know how they taste!” 

The sound of dishes clattering into the seat and the water suddenly turning off made those around the table chuckle. The blonde came running into the room with still-dripping hands as sweet chocolate eyes scanned the table for the aforementioned treats. You smiled brightly as she found them and quickly made a grab for one. Hunter reached out and gripped her wrist, mentioning that she should dry them first before touching the macarons. The girl made a defeated whine before wiping them on her pants quickly. Earning an eye roll from Hunter and Crosshair and a laugh from the others. You allowed yourself the moment to enjoy the happiness of your group, knowing that in roughly an hour it would all change. 

“So, Omega. How’s school been going?” Chai watched the child wiggle happily as she bit into one of the sweets. 

“Really good!” Omega bounced back and forth in a happy dance as she took another bite. “We learned about currents in the ocean and riptides. Lyana said that’s why we can’t go to the cove?” She looked at you and Chai for verification.  

You nodded while reaching for another macaron. “Yup. The current is too strong and will pull ya right out to sea. Usually, people use boats to get over there or if the tide is low enough then they swim over. But that’s rare these days. Especially since the tsunami.” 

Omega sighed dejectedly “Oh man. It sounds like a cool place. I wish I could see it.” 

“Oh, it’s the coolest. We used to spend so much time there a few years ago. Was the first place you showed me after my family moved here.” Chai ran her finger around the rim of her wine glass. The amber liquid within pairing nicely with the sweets she’d brought. “Isn’t that where you and Paolo-“

You feigned a coughing fit, stopping the woman from continuing her train of thought. She shot you a knowing smirk and it took everything in you not to fling a macaron at her. You loved her but damn did she know how to push your buttons. “Like Chai said, it’s a cool place. Maybe we’ll take you there when the weather gets better.” 

“Paolo, huh?” Wrecker smirked at you before leaning over and kissing your temple. “You’ll have to tell me more about him later.” He teased you with a grin while grabbing a treat for himself. It wasn’t hard to figure out where Chai had been going. He’d wondered who your first had been, seems like he’d just found out. As did the others. 

“Take it that the spot is popular with the teens and young adults of the island?” Crosshair raised a knowing eyebrow as he watched you and Chai redden at his question. When you nodded sheepishly he smirked. Perhaps his pretty little Doll would be up for a visit. 

“Why would it be popular for them?” Omega bit into her third macaron with a happy hum. Why was everyone looking at her like that? “Oh, is this another adult-only thing?” She hated being young. Even if she was technically older than the boys. 

You’d be flinging macarons at all of them at this rate. Omega was hearing far too much for someone her age. Clapping your hands loudly, you tried to change the topic “Omega, how about you show Chai the new decorations we added to your room?” 

Omega tilted her head as you changed the subject. She may be young but she wasn’t dumb. You wanted to talk about something else. “How old do I need to be to be able to talk about this stuff?” 

“18” 

“18”

“18”

“18”

“30”

Everyone looked at Hunter in surprise at the absurd number he’d just spit out. What? He wasn’t ready for any of these conversations with her yet. You’d mentioned to him something about the talk about puberty soon and he’d nearly passed out. “Uh, 18. Of course.” He feigned a laugh as the sound of the rain outside picked up. “Chai, these are delicious.” Hunter picked up a raspberry macaron and stuffed it into his mouth. He wasn’t cut out for this life.

Now Hunter was getting red! Omega giggled before stepping away from the table with two more macarons in her hand. “Come on, Chai. I’ll show you my room. We got these pretty star decorations that hang from the ceiling. I really like them.” 

You watched as Chai followed the girl down the hall while chatting about the new decorations. Thank goodness Omega tended to be easily distracted. Picking up your glass of wine, you took a slow sip and sighed. This was nice if only it would last all night.

-*-

“He’s alive?” Crosshair felt his heart race at the words. Alive. Tech was alive. Omega had been sent to bed and the group had retired to the shop to not wake the girl. Already he’d heard from Chai twice on how his brother had survived and yet he still couldn’t comprehend it. “Tech? You’re sure?” 

“Yes.” Chai passed her datapad to him, the video from earlier playing once more. “It’s him in every way possible.” Even if he wasn’t fully himself, it was him. 

Hunter leaned against the wall closest to the door with his arms crossed, a frown on his lips. “Kix is positive there’s nothing we can do?” The door was currently cracked open slightly allowing the smell of rain to waft into the shop. Outside the wind howled with the storm and thunder rang out in the distance. The smell of your shop and its fabrics mixed with the rain making his senses override. It was a curse, his heightened senses, made situations like this difficult. Tech was alive, his brother was alive and yet he couldn’t focus on it. It was like his brain was telling him it was all too much. That he needed other things in his mind. 

Chai shook her head quickly. “Nothing. He’s worried that if we push too hard we could cause more damage.” There was so much she’d wanted to try and yet she couldn’t risk him losing his memories forever. Something she equates to torture and thus why she’d returned to Pabu. Being around him, even for that little bit of time the first night, had been far too tempting. All she’d wanted to do was kiss him once more and yet she couldn’t. She’d lied to him, told him they had just been friends. 

“All we can do is support Tech and be here when he’s ready.” You leaned against Wrecker, his arms tight around your waist as the two of you sat with your back against the counter. “The real question concerns Omega. Do we tell her?”

“The kid’s been through a lot.” Crosshair pointed at Wrecker with his toothpick. “Ya said she had those nightmares for months.” 

“Yeah. A mix between Tech’s death and what happened on Mount Tantiss.” You felt Wreckers shift so one of his knees was up, it began to bounce nervously. Reaching out silently, you placed a hand on his knee to calm him. “She still has one every once in a while now, but it’s not as bad as it was and she’s gotten better at calming down on her own.” 

Hunter chewed his lip in thought for a moment. “We shouldn’t put her at risk then. Won’t be fair to the kid.” He didn’t like the idea of lying to her and keeping such important news a secret. It was clear on everyone’s faces that none of them did. “Echo still not answering?” 

Chai shook her head before tapping at your datapad in her lap. They’d been trying for the last hour to contact Echo and get his input on everything but had failed. She worried something had happened when not even Kix had answered her call. “Somethings wrong.” 

“Something bad?” You continued to hold Wrecker's knee still, able to feel the tensing of it as he tried to bounce it. 

“They would have triggered one of our alarms if it was really bad. I would have gotten a notification.” What if it was Tech? What if something had happened to him? What if … he’d left? Would it be considered her fault if he did? Chai shook her head before trying Echo once more, this time from her datapad. After a few moments, the call still wasn’t answered. Sighing, Chai placed the datapad down. “Looks like it’s up to us. I vote we keep it a secret until he remembers her.” 

Crosshair and Hunter both shared a look before nodding in unison. “Agreed.” Came in dual voices. 

Wrecker swallowed loudly before nodding as well. “Yeah. Sounds like a smart idea.” 

Thunder cracked loudly outside making you jump slightly. “Then we’re all on board with this. Until Tech remembers her, Omega will not know he’s alive.” 

“What?” A soaked Omega stood in the doorway of your shop, a shocked Hunter staring down at her. “H-He’s alive and you weren’t going to tell me?” She hadn’t been able to sleep knowing you were all keeping something from her. Tech had once taught her that water could wash away one’s scent and thus made it harder for Hunter to track, a lesson that she’d used to her advantage. Sneaking out to your shop had been easy and she had silently thanked the universe for the door being cracked open. She hadn’t caught the entirety of the conversations, just the end, but it had been enough. 

“Omega!” You jumped up at the sight of the soaked girl. “Look at you.” Turning around you grabbed a pile of fabric off the shelf and ran over to her, ready to wrap the material around her and dry her off. “You’ll get sick if you stay drenched lik-“Your words were cut off as she moved away from you angrily. 

“I trusted you!” Her brown eyes shook with a mix of anger and sadness. “You were just going to lie to me? For how long? A week? A month? Forever?” 

You shook your head quickly as you stepped towards the girl once more. “Omega, it’s not that simple. We…”

“Why should I trust what you have to say?” She looked at everyone in the room. “Why should I trust any of you?” With that she turned and bolted out of the front of the shop and down the path, her bare feet sliding slightly against the cold cobblestones.

Instantly you were racing after her, the cold sting of the powerful rain whipping across your cheeks. “Omega!” Where was she going? 

Wrecker and the others weren’t too far behind you. It had taken them all a moment to process what had happened before they were moving and running down the path calling out for her as well. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen her act this way. Running off recklessly into a storm. “Omega! Stitches!” He called for you both loudly, his voice booming like thunder. 

Omega wasn’t sure where she was running to but she allowed her legs to carry her wherever they desired. How could all of you agree to lie to her? Keep from her that her brother was alive? Alive. Tech was alive! But he didn’t remember her? Wasn’t that what you’d been saying? That you’d keep the secret until he remembered her? How could he forget her? After everything they’d been through together. The past conversations with him ran through her head, especially the one in the cave after the mining incident. “Tech … ” tears mixed with rain as the girl continued down the path and now towards a destination. 

“Omega, please!” She turned left off the path and suddenly you understood where she was heading. “Omega! Stop! It’s too dangerous!” Behind you, Wrecker's voice boomed as he called out for the both of you. The path turned from cobblestones to mud and grass as you followed her toward the cliff overlooking the cove. You hadn’t had time to put shoes on and thus the thick mud was now sticking to your feet giving you some resistance. “Ome-“ you gasped before tumbling forward and the feeling of fire shot through your ankle. You landed in the mud with a hiss and swore loudly. Looking at what had tripped you, you found a sharp rock jutting out of the earth. Pain shot through your ankle as you tried to fight back tears. 

Wrecker was just barely far enough behind you to not see you trip due to the downpour showering the island with a wall of water, so when he found you sitting on the ground with mud on your face and your hand around your ankle he was shocked. “Sarad! Are you ok?” He yelled to you over the rain and thunder. Taking a closer look at your ankle he noticed red seeping from between your fingers. “You're hurt!” 

“Don’t worry about me! Get Omega! She’s heading towards the cove!” Fuck your ankle hurt. You watched as he gave you a nervous look. “Go, Wrecker!” 

“I … but your ankle. Are you sure?” When you nodded to him he kissed the top of your head quickly before taking off once more in the direction that Omega had run. Hunter and the others had to be close. “Omega! Stop!” 

“Leave me alone!” Omega yelled over her shoulder as she continued down the path. Where was the turn-off towards the beach? It was so hard to see with all this wind and rain. Suddenly, the ground tapered to a point making Omega fumble to stop. With a screech, she slipped in the mud and went over the edge. “Wrecker!! Help!” Her hands gripped a large root sticking out of the mud. Below her, the waves of the ocean crashed against the rocks and licked at her ankles. If she fell she’d be swallowed by waves and pulled out to sea. 

Wrecker heard her before he finally saw her. It was like a flash from the past. She hung from a root with fear in her eyes. Below her, the sea churned and reached for her like some terrible monster. Instantly he was back on that broken rail cart staring down at Tech. His brother hanging from a repel line for dear life as troopers fired upon them. The height wasn’t nearly the same but it still threatened to push him away from the edge. No, he’d worked too hard with you to face these fears. If it came to it he’d jump from their ledge to her. He’d lost Tech that day, he wouldn’t lose Omega. Reaching down, he gripped her wet hand tightly. “I’ve got you, Omega! Just hold on.” The crash of the sea below and the thunder and rain above mixed into a deafening roar that nearly drowned his voice out as he tried to find a better grip on the child. She’d weigh nothing to him and he knew as much, but it was finding a grip. 

Omega scrambled to cling to Wrecker's large arm that offered safety, both hands letting go of the root and holding onto his hand instead. She felt herself move as he began to pull her up and a sigh of relief left her lips. Her hands slipped from Wreckers, the mix of mud and rain making it too hard to hold onto. A scream left her as her eyes closed and she braced for the icy grip of the deadly waves below. 

“No!” Not this time. He wouldn’t lose another family member. His hand shot out and gripped the first thing he felt, her shirt. With an angry yell, he allowed his body weight to pull them both back and thud into the sticky wet mud.

Warmth, fabric, safety. Omega opened her eyes and found herself in the protective grasp of her brother, both of them safe on the ground. He’d saved her, ripped her straight from the air, and certain death of the angry sea below. 

Hunter and Crosshair both supported you on one of their shoulders as the three of you finally caught up with Omega and Wrecker. A red bandana was currently wrapped around your ankle to staunch the flow of blood and protect it from any more mud. Crosshair was positive it was broken, Hunter was hopeful it was just a sprain. They’d wanted to sit and wait for Chai to run and grab one of her brothers to help get you back to the shop while they went after their siblings but you’d been decidedly against it. This was partially your fault. You should help get her back. 

“He got her.” You let out a relieved sigh at the sight of Omega in Wrecker's arms. The girl's face was currently buried in the clone's chest as her body shook, a sign she was crying. 

“Here, hold onto her. I’ll let them know you're ok.” Hunter passed you to Crosshair and nodded to you before walking carefully toward the other two. 

“So, you and Doll?” A knowing smirk was passed from you to Crosshair who rolled his eyes. 

Crosshair shifted you in his hold while chuckling deeply. “You do know I could release you and let you fall into the mud, right?” 

-*-

“There. Nice and clean.” You ran the towel over Omega locs one final time before placing the towel down and covering the girl with a blanket. You’d all been out in the mud, wind, and rain for far longer than necessary, you wouldn’t be surprised if one of you got sick. Once you’d all returned to your home it had been a few rounds of everyone showering before Crosshair took a look at your ankle. Hunter had been right, it was sprained. Much to everyone’s relief. Until the storm subsided and you were able to get to the island doctor you’d need to be off of it. Something that Wrecker was diligently seeing to. Omega knelt in front of you on the floor while you rested on the couch with your foot propped on a pillow. A blanket was laid over your lap and one of Wrecker's large long-sleeve shirts enveloped your body in a warm embrace. The big clone himself was in the kitchen making all of you warm drinks, also worried about someone getting sick. 

Omega chewed her lip as your fingers began to run through her hair, the feeling making her relax slightly. “Thank you, Stitches.” She heard you whisper ‘You’re welcome’ and the room soon fell into silence again. It was five minutes before anyone said anything, the silence being broken by Wrecker stepping in with a tray of hot milk and honey. Carefully the mug was pulled from the tray and Omega allowed the warmth of the mug to radiate through her body before finally taking a sip. The warmth of the sweet and creamy drink raced through her body in a calming surge. She needed this. The warmth gave her the courage to speak finally. “Were you really going to keep it from me?” 

You’d wondered how long it was going to be before she said something. Looking around the room at the others, you took a sip of your drink before sighing. “Sweetie, there’s something you need to understand.” The figure in front of you moved and turned around to face you. Those sweet brown eyes stared into your eyes making your heart twist. How could you have thought about lying to such an innocent child? Yes, you’d been doing it to protect her from the pain of knowing the truth. But Omega was smart for her age, she understood things better than most. You’d fallen into the trap of seeing her as a child when she was in fact an advanced clone. “Tech has a severe case of amnesia.” 

“Like Gregor had?” She looked at Hunter who nodded. “Well, that’s good then, isn’t it? Gregor got his memories back. I helped Nala Se look him over when he returned to Kamino.”  Omega looked at everyone with a happy energy. “We just need to support him and be there to help him remember, right?” 

The way she seemed so hopeful at the prospect hurt the clone Sargent’s heart. “That’s just it. It’s been six months and he hasn’t remembered anything. Kix and Echo are concerned that he may not remember anything at all.” Hunter placed the warm drink he’d taken from Wrecker down on the table. “Ever.” 

“O-Oh.” She knew all of this, didn’t she? She’d researched amnesia after hearing about Gregor and had read as much as she could. That's how she knew about being there for him and helping him to remember. No matter how she tried to search her memories though she couldn’t seem to remember anything else. 

You watched as her bottom lip slowly began to tremble. “Oh, sweetie. It’ll be ok.” Moving to get off the couch, you felt Wrecker's protective hand on your shoulder silently telling you not to move. Instead, he reached down, easily picked Omega up, and hugged her tightly. The little clone's face buried into Wrecker's chest as sobs ripped from her once more. 

Chai stood from the opposite couch and walked over to Omega. Gently she stroked her back and shushed her. “When I found out I felt the same way you’re feeling. How could I even be around him knowing he didn’t remember me?” You cleared your throat next to her and she raised her hand to calm you. She was going somewhere with this. “But Echo talked to me and told me something that put things into perspective for me. Would you like to hear what it was?” 

Omega turned her face from Wrecker's chest and looked at Chai. “Y-yes.” Chai offered her hand to her and with a small bit of hesitation, Omega tapped Wrecker indicating that she’d like to be put down. Taking Chai’s hand, she moved next to you on the couch and sat down. 

Kneeling in front of the girl, Chain reached up and adjusted the blanket around her shoulders. “Echo helped me see that if Tech doesn’t get his memories back then that means that we can make new memories together.” She let out a hum softly. “Think about it, getting to know him all over again. It could be fun. I know you’ve all been through a lot with one another.” She looked at the group as a whole. “You all have a brother's bond with him, made memories that only you know of. You’ll get to make new memories with him now, we all will.” 

“Then …” Omega chewed her lip in thought. Should she ask her the question brewing within?

“What is it, Omega?” You reached over and stroked a piece of her hair. The blonde looked at you nervously. 

Swallowing the fear inside of her, she looked back at Chai. “Then why is Chai here and not with Tech?” 

“Because..” Chai remembered what you’d said earlier that day, that she was a coward. “I’m a coward. I ran when faced with the knowledge that he may never remember me.”

“Why?” Omega knew she was asking a lot of personal questions right now, but she needed answers to so many burning questions inside of her. 

“It’s hard for me to explain. But know that I love your brother very much. I left for selfish reasons and planned on staying away because of those reasons. But being with all of you reminded me how important being there for the ones you care for is.” She took Omega's hand in hers and patted the back of it gently. “It’s Tech, he’ll get his memories back, and if not then we’ll make new ones together.” 

“So you’re gonna head back then?” You watched your friend nod at your question. “When?” It made you happy to know that she’d be going back. Tech was far too important to just give up on and avoid. Now that all of you knew he was alive and safe, you needed him to come home. 

Chai smiled softly while wiping away a stray tear from Omega’s cheek. “Probably in a week or two. I’ll try Echo again in the morning and let him know I changed my mind. Gonna stick around and help my family with the shop for a bit. My brothers have been doing the stocking and everything is a mess now.” Standing up, she stretched her arms over her head. “Maybe Omega could come with me. Seeing his sister may be what the clone needs.” 

Hunter and Crosshair both shifted awkwardly at the request. Omega hadn’t left the planet since they’d rescued her. Too worried about someone else coming after her. “Maybe.” Was all that came from Hunter before he grabbed the cup of cooking milk and honey. 

-*-

“Echo, what are you doing here?” It had been weeks since the clone had been on Pabu and nearly a week since you’d last spoken to him. Last you’d heard Tech was in some kind of Jedi trance working on getting his memories back. 

“Hey, Stitches. You still have that pile of clothes you made for Tech?” He watched as a small smile began to form on your lips. Stepping to the side he allowed another figure to stand in the doorway. 

“Stitches, it has been a while.” Tech nodded to you with, to your surprise, a smile. He extended his hand out to shake yours, another surprise.

You took the offered hand, grasped it tightly, and pulled him into a tight hug. Tears burned at your cheeks as you took in that the clone remembered you and was here on Pabu. You held him tightly for a few moments before sniffling and stepping away. “Sorry. Just happy you’re back. Come in, I’ll grab those clothes.” 

Echo chuckled while slapping Tech's shoulder firmly. “You’re not the first to hug him like that, probably won’t be the last either.” Both of them stepped in and followed you as you walked over to a linen closet in your main area. “I see Omega’s still making messes.” 

“Huh?” You looked over your shoulder at a stack of books and blankets on the floor. “Actually.” Moving a large box to the side, you found the stack of clothes perfectly folded where you left them. “That’s Wrecker’s mess.” With a happy sigh, you pulled the stack out and looked at the two clones. Tech was giving you a surprised look that made you smirk. “He didn’t tell ya that they live with me now, did he?” 

Tech crossed his arms and shook his head. “It seems Echo deemed it unnecessary for me to know such information.” 

“Thought it would be more fun for you to learn this way.” Echo took the stack from you and looked through it carefully before deciding on something for Tech to change into. “Where are they anyway?” 

“Oh that’s a good one, she liked that one a lot when I made it.” White linen pants and a cream-colored cotton top. You’d made a gorgeous cream flowing sundress for Chai to match him. Nearly every one of his outfits had a matching outfit for Chai. “Wrecker took Omega down to the docks to grab dinner. Sounds like the fishermen brought in another good haul today. Ever since the tsunami the catch has been perfect. One of the benefits of that day I guess.” You smirked at Tech. “What do you think, Tech?” 

“It is indeed a great benefit. However, I feel I may have something better.” And thus he’d come to the question that had been burning at him the entire trip to Pabu. “Will she be happy to see me?” 

Oh, how sweet was he? Walking back to him, you looked him over carefully. Stubble was beginning to form on his chin and his hair was now longer and nearly covering his eyes. At least his giggles were back. “We should clean you up a bit. Looks like you need a haircut.” Reaching up, you brushed some of his hair out of his eyes. “Tech, she’s going to be so happy to see you, she may just cry.” 

“Tech?” A small voice called from the doorway. She couldn’t believe it, he was here. Omega shakily made her way towards the clone, nervous that this was suddenly all a dream. 

Tech turned and looked at the sound of his sister's voice. With another smile, he waved to her. “Hello, Omega.” The child was suddenly in his arms and holding him in a deathly grip. If she was Wrecker’s size this may hurt, but at her size it was endearing. 

Omega felt tears run down her cheeks as she felt Tech's arms wrap around her and hold her close. This was real, he was alive and he remembered her, right? “You remember me?” 

“Of course, you are my sister after all. My vod.” Her hair had gotten longer and she seemed approximately two inches taller. Interesting how much she’d changed in the time he was gone. No longer did she dress as a clone but as a young woman. Instead of pants, she was wearing a sundress with small heeled sandals and a braid around her crown with a ribbon holding the ends together at the back of her head. “You look like you’ve settled. I am glad this place has been good for you.” 

He really did remember her! A tear-stained smile played on her lips as she continued to hold Tech. Like heck was she going to let him go anytime soon. “Wrecker! Get in here!” Still holding onto the goggled clone, she turned them both to face the door. 

“I’m coming, ‘Mega!” Wrecker ducked as he entered the house, arms holding a small crate filled with crustaceans for dinner. Smiling, Wrecker looked for a place to set the crate down when he finally registered who was standing in the room. “T-Tech?” His eyes went wide as he dropped the crate, making you squeal in happy surprise, and walked over to his brother and sister. 

“Hello, Wrecker.” There he was, the last face he’d seen before the fall. Omega didn’t move as the large clone pulled them into a tight hug. Now this was a squeeze that could injure them. 

“Wrecker, riduur, you’ll injure them.” You placed your hand on the large clone's bicep and gave it a gentle squeeze. 

“S-Sorry.” Tears trickled from the corner of his eyes while he stepped back. “Tech, I’m sorry I didn’t pull you up.” The words spilled from him before he could stop them. It was like seeing his brother instantly made everything want to pour from him. 

“We were being fired upon and the rail cart was in jeopardy of falling. Understandably, you were unable to simultaneously protect Omega and pull me up at the same time. Thus while I enacted Plan ninety-nine.” Tech reached over and placed a hand on Wrecker's shoulder. Echo had explained the difficulties that Omega and Wrecker had both experienced after his supposed death. “Wrecker, my falling had nothing to do with your inability to pull me up. However, if it will help you to feel better, then I will accept your apology if you accept mine for having to watch me fall.” 

Wrecker swallowed the large lump in his throat as he nodded slowly. “Deal.” Was all that he could seem to say before he pulled his vod back into a tight hug. Tech grunted at the feeling but didn’t fight the hug, much to Wrecker’s delight. 

You blinked back tears as you watched the scene before you. Wrecker and Omega both seemed to visibly relax their shoulders and you realized that some kind of weight that neither had realized they were carrying was finally released. Beside you, Echo let out a happy sigh. Everything finally felt right. A calmness settled over the room as the three stayed in their hug for five minutes. “OK, OK. We can’t hog him all day.” 

Omega wiggled her head free from the hug and looked at you. “Why not?” She didn’t want to let her brother go.

“Because.” Echo smiled and held out the change of clothes with his good hand. “He’s got a date that he’s already late for.”

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@rndmpeep @sarahskywalker-amadala @queenariesofnarnia @idoubleswearimawriter @bambambunny @ravenclawbitch426 @jupitersaturnapollo @mzjakao @heylosers06 @dangraccoon @impala1967666 @andrakass2 @ducks118 @motte-the-goblin @rintheemolion @merkitty49 @jediknightjana @onyxtides @moon-wrecked @mssbridgerton @griffedeloup

#clone wars fic #fanfic update #the bad batch s2 #the bad batch fanfiction #bad batch wrecker #tbb wrecker x reader #wrecker x you #wrecker tbb #tbb wrecker #Spotify

[sinelanguage]

20 questions for fic writers

taking from @fivedayslater who tagged anyone for this, i'll also pass around to 'anyone who wants to answer these questions is effectively tagged' but also @lostlegendaerie, @sharpenote specifically.....

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

36! not too shabby considering i'm not super consistent about writing.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

257,465! wow. jeez.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Currently One Piece, historically Voltron. 

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

predictably: this is almost entirely Keith/Lance.

Stormchasing: Keith/Lance handcuffed together fic i tried to pace like an actual episode! posting early in the fandom’s lifecycle gave it staying power, lol.

The Hustle: Keith/Lance espionage/heist-ish fic i cowrote with a friend. Really fun premise, and it was fun to co-write something!

Good Grief: Keith/Lance 5+1. i don’t remember anything about this.

Tallies: Keith/Lance 5+1. look… i wrote a lot of these.

Interstate 80: It’s not Klance! Jean/Marco, roadtrip modern day AU. i wrote this as a teenager, and i do not think this holds up whatsoever, but i made a lot of close friends through this fic and i'm fond of it solely due to that, haha.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

i try! i have like, a half-life where if a fic is more than a year old i probably won’t respond because i’ve probably forgotten anything interesting to say. 

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Haha i wrote a hunger games AU for Attack on Titan? i don’t know what possessed me to take Jean Kirstein out of one horribly depressing canon and into another horribly depressing canon. 

Outside of that, i tend to stick to relatively happy or neutral endings. Most recently, Time Turned Fragile probably has the angstiest ending but i’d classify it as bittersweet really, even though Sanji like. dies? look. don’t worry about it

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Uhhh??? this is harder to answer … Inaba’s Self-Appointed Cat Adoption Agency is a fic that is probably the fluffiest thing i’ve ever written and as such has the most feel-good fluffy ending as a result.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

not really! i’ve gotten a-bit-too-bold concrit in bookmark notes, but i wouldn’t really consider that hate.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Nah lol. (gestures to weaknesses answer) it is not my forte, and i’m not super interested. 

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

not typically! I did write Turnabout Heart, which is a brief Persona 5 / Ace Attorney crossover, because I thought Sae being friends with Mia would be neat.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

ah, i found someone reposting my fic to wattpad once (username still attached). i just gently told them it was in bad form lol, it was wattpad in 2017 or so so I’m sure it was just some kid haha. they apologized and deleted it and their other stolen stuff so it’s all good.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope! Someone offered once, but never got back around to me. 

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes! The Hustle from above, and for better or for worst which was a fun last hurrah for Keith/Lance.

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

It’s really funny because i’ve never written for any of my all time ships lol. Ike/Soren is maybe my ship of all time. Keith/Lance i’m still stupidly fond of despite myself. i never even finished Voltron.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

this has historically been time loop fics, but I wrote two this year!!!!! Congrats to me!!

Currently i’ve been working on a Robin-centric Robin and Sanji roleswap fic, and while i have a good grasp on the emotional/plot arcs involved it is not easy to write Robin POV lol. i can only write characters who are more emotionally stupid than me. i keep chugging away at it though.

for one I know I'll never finish: I have a brief outline/scenes written for a Professor Sada/Robot Professor Sada (haha. lol. sorry.) fic that would be titled Stochastic Parent as a play on the machine learning term 'stochastic parrot', i.e. the principle that AI does not truly understand language, merely parrots it back to the user. i could not figure out how to write this without being on the nose.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Bizarrely i really like writing action scenes hahahaahaha. It’s one of the few scenes in fic i really fully visualize, so translating that is fun. emotions in a fight are fun too, i like writing fear. 

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

The main one: romance! More specifically though, physical intimacy. hilarious to write mostly romance fic and be bad at it. i’ve been actively avoiding writing kissing scenes for the last 10 fic or so. at this point i’m trying to see how long i can go without one.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

Think it’s incredibly neat to see but i don't think i'll ever do it. i feel like i need to return my linguist card for this answer....

19. First fandom you wrote for?

some different answers here: Fire Emblem (never finished or posted online), Harvest Moon (posted on deviantArt and deleted when i scorched my warrior cats username from the face of the earth), and Attack on Titan (first fic on ao3)

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

All time it’s Dead Horizon. i got to write a lot of fun environmental storytelling and horror in that one, and I liked the emotional arc overall. i really like environments/settings in terms of storytelling, and i don’t get the chance to write much of that since i stick with shorter one shots typically. Still very, very fond of it. 

Recent stuff it’s Same As It Ever Was. i’ve wanted to do a Once in a Lifetime themed timeloop for ages but I kept dropping the concept, until now! Finally I wrote a scene based off the ‘not my beautiful house, not my beautiful wife’ lyric! dream come true.

#ask game #personal

[mothmage]

20 Qs for fic writers

Tagged by @monstersinthecosmos , thank you!!!

1. How many works do you have on A03? 31 (and a few anon, i think 2 or 3. idk, when i post a fic on anon i forget about it forever)

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 446,135

3. What fandoms do you write for? currently/primarily vc, iwtv (amc), star wars, and merlin (bbc)!

4. What are your top five fics by kudos? A Lovely Little Normal Life (which, honestly, kind of annoys me lol. i know it's just bc it's a huge fandom, but really? the stupid little 12k harry potter fic i wrote in two days is my most kudos? please...); Arthur Pendragon, Long May She Reign (forever pushing my lesbian genderswap agenda); The Face of God (les mis slightly canon divergent javert character study); The Odyssey of Recollection (amc iwtv s1 pov armand); Away From Stranger Tides (potc philip/syrena fic i started ages ago and never finished, lol)

5. Do you respond to comments? yes i love talking to people in comments!!!! i've made a lot of friends through comments!!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? omg. umm. merthur fans don't know this yet bc i havent finished posting but it's arthur pendragon long may she reign (BUT it's part of a series, so it's literally fine). idk, i dont tend to write long fics that end angsty. but my angstiest fic in general is probably Hollow-Boned Boy (armand contemplating his human life in the early CoD era) or Vision of the Damned (daniel's turning from armand's pov)

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? i love a happy ending!! my series Odysseus in White Silk is probably the happiest ending, and in such an undeserved way hahaha it's so very AU because i was sad after s1 of the show and just wanted them all (and armandaniel) to live happily ever after

8. Do you get hate on fics? i dont think i ever have, but i tend to read comments in good faith too, so maybe someone out there is annoyed that i interpreted their vague dislike comment as a genuine comment or something, idk. in general though, i'll say no

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? yes but i dont post that often, idk if there's a particular kind, but generally it tends to be a little rougher than is probably appropriate without discussion in real-life situations, but also very...idk my friend described it as very tender, like theyre very clearly in love. which is so funny considering that that kind of tenderness irl gives me fucking hives lmfao

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? oh wow, not in a long time. i do have a wip sitting around rn that's a crossover between london spy and cloud atlas, which is really crazy until you remember that ben whishaw is in both london spy and the cloud atlas movie lol. and cloud atlas is already about weird reincarnations and parallel worlds and stuff, so it isnt too out-there.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? i dont think so!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? yes!! The Face of God was translated into Korean by ao3 user Crescent919 !! i've had a few comments on other fics asking to translate for personal use (always yes, of course), but no one else has asked to share a translation publicly

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? no!! i've been thinking about it lately though

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? all-time? probably merlin/arthur from merlin (bbc). it's the whole fate-destiny-choice thing, it just compels me like nothing else

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? hmmm, i would like to finish Roswell -- well, kinda (agent carter farm girl / alien crash landing au) because i still have all the original notes and outlines and stuff. i also made a shitty conlang when i was first writing it, which is crazy lol. but it would need some pretty serious revisions, and i would definitely rewrite the first few chapters that i posted years ago. i just kind of lost the agent carter bug, but i might return to that fic if i ever get in the mood for it again.

16. What are your writing strengths? ooh, i'm not really sure! i get a lot of comments mentioning characters' voices and/or personalities, so i would say maybe that!!! i also feel that i'm fairly good at mimicking an author's writing style when i want to (notably, i do not mimic anne rice when writing vc fic, lol)

17. What are your writing weaknesses? editing for sure. i have at least a hundred fics sitting on my hard drive fully or almost-fully written that i just need to edit. but i would simply rather die than do all of that. it's also why my whole merlin fic got put on pause while i went down the vc rabbithole, because i just can't bring myself to go edit the next chapters lol

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? hmm, i think it's usually unnecessary and comes off as a bit silly. that said, i did do it once (maybe excessively) in Daniel Molloy, Time Bandit (1984 daniel ends up in 1794 theatre des vampires, it's more of a character study than a time travel fic) BUT, let me defend myself -- i did it because daniel doesnt understand french, it's his pov, and he's incredibly confused and distraught for most of the fic. i felt like the dialogue being in french conveyed this sort of "daniel does not belong in this time/place" vibes. but, also, my french is...a little rough. so i'm sure it's an annoying fic for french readers lmao

19. First fandom you wrote for? warriors cats, a million years ago hahahah

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? ok, i have three different answers for this. the fic i think is the best, objectively, in terms of writing and content: The Story of Dani [...] (r63 devil's minion from armand's pov, starting with lestat's house). the fic i am the proudest of, mostly because it was my first "big" fic (it's funny now, bc it's only 41k) and i feel like i grew a lot as a writer while working on it, and i'm still happy with it: The Face of God (les mis pov javert, character study from childhood). the fic i have the most fun with and think about almost 24/7: Arthur Pendragon, Long May She Reign (r63 merthur, canon divergence, this is like a 4-part series that's currently over 300k lmao)

no-pressure tagging: @aunteat @leslutdepointedulac @butchybats @graygiantess and anyone else who wants to!!

#THANK YOU THIS WAS SO FUN #ask game #kind of lol

[wordsofwilderness]

For the fanfic ask thing! 2, 4, 15, 16, 30 💖

Hi! Thank you for the ask <33

2. How many fics did you work on this year? (They don’t have to be finished or published!)

Counting this as the number of fics where I've sat down and written on an actual chapter for, that number would be 11. If it's any fic that I've outlined it would be 20.

Oh wow, that's so many. I didn't realize it was that many. In my head it was like 8 ish max.

4. What piece of media inspired you the most?

I'm gonna cheat a bit and mention two fics. Dance of the Bacchantes as well as its author @soliloquy-dawn who convinced me to take the leap into writing omegaverse. sweet poison by @imdamagecontrol which pushed me to try out writing my own daddy James fic (still in the works, it has grown awfully long)

For non-fanfiction media it hands down has to be Britney Spears music catalog. Rather against my will too, but I've embraced it 😅

15. Rec a fic you wrote or posted in 2023

Speaking of Britney Spears, smutty Jegulus fame AU where each chapter is based on one of her songs? It has bottom James in the first chapter too. And I swear, chapter 2 is the best writing I did all year. Britney Spears - The Jukebox Fic

16. What were you go-to writing songs?

Well, other than Britney Spears for above mentioned reasons... Both Måneskin and Taylor Swift has been in the background a lot as I've written this year. But if I had to pick one song it would be Hally's Comet by Billie Eilish, for reasons that I can't talk about without it getting very spoilery

30. What’s something that you want to write in 2024?

Silver Secrets!! It's my Jegulus canon divergent long-fic. Like the angst in that thing is top tier and the fluff! And the drama!! I can't wait to share it. Every once in a while I need to go through my notes for whatever reason, and I nearly always end up crying over some random detail I'd forgotten about

#ask game #fic: spotlight on me (and i'm ready to break) #fic: silver secrets #ask wild

[hideyseek]

5, 9, 12!

crab!! hi hi hi hi hi hiiiii~! ty for quastions :3

from fanfic asks for the new year

5. Which WIP is first on your list to complete this year? Will you post a snippet?

aha, well. technically the first is mini heist!au but none of it is written that is in the shape of the final thing that i haven't already posted on here so i'm gonna cheat and say uh. wow huh okay then i kind of have no idea. ah! maybe my arthurcobb fic then! cos it sure won't be narrative!fic, lol!

here is a snippet from the current draft which is uhh three and a half years old (by which i mostly mean to say, there are a couple things in here i would write differently now.):

Arthur brings his coffee up to the counter where Dom has already deposited his onion rings and says, “Excuse me, can I purchase a — a temporary phone?” If he doesn't call it a burner maybe he will come off as more the kind of person he actually is. The cashier puts up a finger in question and Arthur nods but behind him Dom says firmly, “Two.”  Arthur turns, surprised. “Why — we don’t need two?” They’re traveling together, after all. Arthur’s not about to leave Dom alone, so it’s not like Dom will need his own phone. It’s not like Dom’s super functional, anyway. The three days he’d spent on Arthur’s couch before they read the news and had to leave town extremely suspiciously, he’d really just spent on the couch. “We don’t need two phones, Dom,” Arthur repeats.  “What if we get separated,” Dom points out. “How would we get in contact with each other again? You should have your own phone, too.” Arthur would rather not think about circumstances that would separate them. Dom says, “Arthur,” and it feels pointed. Something like panic hollows Arthur’s chest. Things are already out of control, apparently. Two days into being on the run and apparently Dom can call these shots but he can’t be on the run by himself.

9. Short term goals… what do you hope to complete this week or in January?

ahaha actually, getting this ask made me decide that i'm going to try my absolute best to finish the project i've been calling "mini heist!au" (which ... at this point ... is just an au of heist!au without any heists in it, lmao) this month! i used answering this ask as my bribe for reading through all the existing material and drawing up a revision plan / new fic story structure actually. i'm not sure i'll be able to, i suspect there are 2-4 drafts and i simply do not write that fast (at least one from scratch based on a new outline, possibly a second from scratch, and then a second/third that's just like. content/theme/cadence/character arcs etc revisions. though that might get complex enough to be two drafts). but we'll see! there are still 24 days so at this current moment i am optimistic :3

12. Will you change anything about the way you edit or rewrite this year?

YES I SURE FUCKING WILL. I HAVE BEGUN IT ACTUALLY, mostly i'm continuing to test a thing i tried in december 2023 to see if it still works for projects that aren't the specific situation of the beginning of devotion (so far, yes!) anyway the way that process goes is like this (recipe below):

first, write a terrible draft. some scenes can just be a note of what needs to happen. ideally: expend as little fucking effort on this as possible bc like. almost none of this will stay. just write enough to get the vibes of what you're going for.

second, read through that draft taking notes of what you like or don't like (or, the way i phrase it for myself to make the goal clearer "what feels like it is aligned with my vision for the fic vs what isn't") but most importantly. WHY.

for me doing this second step has 2/2 turned into "here is a rough outline of the story, completely restructured" but also, with no ending (which is fine, i just have to trust that the ending will appear when more of the draft is written).

third, compile those notes on a new draft into a narrative-order outline (linear for me).

fourth, write the new draft.

fifth, try to do step 2 again. but what i found for the beginning of devotion and therefore what i'm to a certain extent expecting, is that i will just have a bunch of Ns/dislikes and then go. ah. because the things i dislike are too granular to require big-picture story structure changes now.

sixth, copy the most recent draft into a new doc. and read through and revise directly on the page. maybe title at some point so that revision stuff is aligned with the mood/tone/content/vibes/whatever of the title. and maybe come up with initial tags and a summary here also to make sure the vibes are all aligned. hopefully the content of the ending will become clear at this point and you'll draft that for the first or second time.

seventh, idk i like to do an out-loud readthrough bc reading cadence is important to me personally. and also i am scared to lose the skill of reading aloud considering i do it about zero times a year other than this.

that's it basically.

#hidey speaks #ask game #hidey talks fic #is that my tag lol #man my paragraphs used to be so chonkyyy #but also wow im kind of emotional ... some of my older writing is so fucking beautiful #in a way i tried to train myself out of pretty hard the last two years. and now mmm. i'm better at structure but #i'm not sure i know how to get some of that lyricism back

[separatist-apologist]

Out of curiosity how is your writing process like for your longer fics? Do you typically start out with an outline to keep everything organize? Are you usually a few chapters ahead before you publish an older chapter? Is it a struggle to change perspectives when you're writing different couples at the same time? Sorry for all the questions! I'm very envious at how fast you are at whipping out chapters left and right.

You're always welcome to ask me anything you want to know. I'll answer any question with transparency.

When I start a long fic, I generally know how it's going to end and like, some points in the middle that I'm working toward. Everything else is just a journey we're taking together. With long fics especially, I try and write a bunch upfront so I don't get overwhelmed week to week and lose track of things, which has definitely happened to me before. And I get burned out with things explode in popularity, too- which I know seems antithetical because who wouldn't want that, right? But the pressure starts to get to me, and I don't want to work on it anymore (like YLR and WNGOOS, for example).

I am generally working ahead, so like, for ship weeks for example, I have 4-6 chapters written by the time the event is taking place so I can upload daily, and I start a couple months in advance. It's also worth noting that I am always working on things, but sometimes I set them aside and just leave them in my writing folder, so when I drop something and it seems like, wow she is a powerhouse, I just have a LOT to draw from at any given time. The amount of long fics with 60k words that I've done literally nothing with just hanging out in my writing folder would surprise you, I think. That makes it easier- I pull things out of them all the time for new fics, or like, to start something new that maybe I could rework. I remember once lifting an entire smut scene out of an old fic and copy/pasting it into my current WIP because I just had no imagination in the moment to write it.

As for perspective changing, no, I don't think its hard to shift between them. I find it pretty easy most of the time. If I'm struggling, I think the only way you'd know is that one section is shorter than usual, and thats not because the perspective is hard so much as the events around it are? If that makes sense?

#i love talking about my writing process because its so genuinely chaotic and insane #there is no method to it #just vibes

[starrcrossrose]

Do you have any fic writing tips for someone doing this for their first time?

Oh wow this is… a tough question 😅 okay buckle up I’m about to get wordy!

.

Writing is just like Art. It IS an art. It takes so much time and practice and will develop and change the more you do it. One of the best ways to learn to write anything is to READ. I mean it. Read regular books, fanfic, poetry, scripts, comics, letters. Learn how words can change meaning when placed in just the right places and in just the right intonation or formatting. The only reason I write is because I have an absolute love for reading. As far back as three or four years old my mom said I always had my head in a book. They opened entire worlds and possibilities to me; they were also my escape from reality. They inspired me. Literally nothing compares to a good book, to me.

Next, PRACTICE. Write stuff that’s just for you. Write stuff and get feedback from a close friend or a fellow writer you trust (as long as they’re okay with it, of course). Practice practice PRACTICE. It will help you grow and you won’t notice until you look back one day and go “wow I can write way better than that now”.

See if you can find a beta-reader! This was something that really changed the game for me. My beta-readers have not only helped me see things I didn’t (mistakes mostly lol), but they’ve also helped keep me motivated! A good beta-reader should have a balance of constructive criticism but also positivity.

Remember! No one is incapable of writing; it’s about finding the writing style that works for YOU. My husband, for example, has a writing style that I’ve told him would be great for scripting a show or a comic. Meanwhile, I’m more detail oriented and like to dig into character minds and feelings.

As for the writing of something specific… find what you enjoy, genre-wise. Then, do some layout of your story ideas! This is something I’ve only recently learned how to do in the last six to seven years, and I’m still learning. Some people function really well with very detailed notes/outlines. Others can go in totally blind, with only a little idea, and come out with masterpieces. I float somewhere in the middle now. If I don’t put down scene ideas, chapter/arc gists, I will get lost and I will write myself into a corner. I have given up on many stories due to poor planning and not knowing how to proceed and then getting so frustrated that I never want to look at the story again. Don’t… be like me😂 Plan! At least a little; it’s been a huge help to me.

Lastly, don’t give up. Writing is ART; it will take your energy and time and it will hurt sometimes. There will be days you’ll want to give up and there will be days you are on cloud nine because things are working for you. It will be fun, it will be hard, it will make you cry and smile and, in the end, it is very personal. But, if you love it and you want to pursue it, do not give up. Take your time, give yourself grace, and take BREAKS if you need to. Sometimes your brain needs that. During your breaks, read some more! Watch more shows! It will help the wheels turn again, I promise.

I hope that helps. Good luck friend! 💖

#anon #writing #writing advice #i am not an expert lol #but I have been writing since i could form sentences #a paper at least lol #ask #answer

[glorious-blackout]

for the fic ask 🥰

(side note but i went to your ao3 profile for inspo on the questions and WOW i never noticed you've written so many fics in so many different fandoms??? that's truly impressive)

• what's the fic that took you the longest to write, and what's the one that just flew out in a much shorter time than usual?

• what's one genre you'd write a million different fics for, and one that on the contrary you can't even imagine yourself writing about?

• what's the character you relate the most to, which version of them (from a particular fic that you wrote), and why?

Thank you! 🥰 And sorry I'm answering this so late, work has officially turned my brain into soup this week...

• what's the fic that took you the longest to write, and what's the one that just flew out in a much shorter time than usual?

I had a couple of fics back in the day where the last chapters were posted a few months or even years later than intended purely because I lost motivation or didn't have a plan for them, but I'm not sure if they count because I wasn't technically working on them throughout those long gaps. Fics like 'You've Always Been Here' or 'I'll See You On The Dark Side of the Moon' took months to finish which is quite long for me, but I was actually spending that time on outlining the plot, writing my drafts, editing, and just living with the story in my head day-to-day which was simultaneously a lot of fun and exhausting as hell!

As for fics that just flew out in less time than usual, my post-Infinity War fic 'Watch Our Souls Fade Away' (which is the longest I've ever written if I don't count series) was completed and published within just over 2 weeks. It's around 61,000 words and eight chapters long, and for the life of me I can't figure out how I wrote it so quickly. That fic took over my life so completely that I remember editing it during Eurovision.

what's one genre you'd write a million different fics for, and one that on the contrary you can't even imagine yourself writing about?

If we're talking fic-specific genres then I could absolutely write a million angst/hurt-comfort fics in any of my fandoms. It's honestly a problem 😅 More specifically I've really been enjoying the psychological horror aspects of some of my TBHC-inspired fics, though I'm not sure I'd want to write that all the time... For genres I'll probably never write I'll have to go with smut/erotica, solely because I can guarantee I'd be awful at it 😂

what's the character you relate the most to, which version of them (from a particular fic that you wrote), and why?

I could have given a really deep and insightful answer to this, but then it hit me that the character I probably relate to most is Roisin the doctor from 'This Is Going To Hurt' 😅 Though I would say I tend to swear less often at work than she does... Honestly I tend to find Alex quite relatable as well when I'm writing him, even though the situations I place him in can be quite out-there.

#fic asks

[wishfulina]

did I see correctly in the tags that you are offering us the director's cut for Bring Down the Chandelier 👀👀 You have my attention

If this doesn’t make sense I wrote this in a doctor’s office.

Bring Down the Chandelier is probably one of the most cohesive works I have managed to pull of and I am like director of an indie movie. I am begging to talk about it.

Like I’ve got cut concepts. Notes galore. I’ve written some sections several times and I have the ones that didn’t make the cut. But the thing that I want to talk about most is Sakura’s Backstory.

I have been dying to talk about this backstory.

As everyone who read this knows one of my biggest crimes that frankly, I still feel no shame for, is giving a lot of screen time to a rare pair that has no backers, barely any fics, and a dynamic that I made up because they don't interact in canon. But what it did let me do is allow someone to pursue her back story.

Is that the only reason, hell no? But it gave me a push to explore because otherwise I would have never bothered to return to it. And that is important because the time I wrote it I had no clue what that was.

I mean it was not in the outline. As a matter of fact this is all I wrote for that.

Which is you know :(

It didn’t help I had nothing to go on because her role historically did not have one. Why does Madam Giry help the phantom? Nobody knows and literally nobody asks. You’d think they would explain the sequel but nope they just turn her into this villain figure so not really.

So basically there was no actual Sakura backstory. But for some reason I kept alluding to one??? Insisting on dropping cryptic one liners that even I didn't know what they meant.

Hanako is like “Sakura is proof enough of why we don't share” but I was like hm.... 🤔🤔🤔 wonder what that means.

It’s dangerous for Nene to be caught up in a casting war between Tsukasa and Hanako? I wonder what has happened in the past for her to feel this way about when Tsukasa doesn’t get his way.

Oh wow Sakura doesn't feel like Teru would be safe if Tsukasa knew that he was pursuing her? Wow that's insane I wonder why? And I wondered all the way until Chapter 12 which is obviously way too late.

And yeah sure, some people are like oooh cool foreshadowing! But it’s literally not true. It was not planned at all , my dumbass just likes to type. I even looked back after it was published and was like wow this fits in super well with the backstory. I swear the fact that anyone liked this story is a miracle.

#and it’s not like I didn’t have detailed notes. I’m just really fucking stupid #ask #directors cut ask game #bdtc

[detectivemarvelingcomics]

Not Your Classic Vigilante [Ch. 7]

Alternate Dimension AU

TW: Language, Mentions of Death, Descriptions of Violence, Scar Mention, Mentions of Suicide/Suicidal Thoughts, Implied Sexual Assault

CW: OC Use, See the OC Guide [Here]

Genre: Angst, Some Comedy

Pairing: Batfamily x Batsis!Reader

(7/?) [First] | [Previous] | [Next]

[DC Masterlist] | [Not Your Classic Vigilante Masterlist]

YN Pronouns: Female (She/Her)

Word Count: 5.0K

Notes: WHOAAAAAAA When was the last time I updated this I'm so sorry guys I'll try to spend more time on this blog cuz wow this fic is so fun to write ahaha

Not Your Classic Vigilante: @gabytodd @marshmallow12435 @escapenightmare @luminaaz @akuri-shinsou

Unable to be Tagged: @peachydoki @lolsnack

Disclaimer: This series is originally by @fandom-meanderer who is a close friend of mine, but she has since fallen out of her Tumblr days and asked me to finish a few series for her, hence why I am now in ownership of the Not Your Classic Vigilante series, I hope I can still live up to her writing as I rewrite this series! (I promise not to change too much, hehe)

15 June 2015

“That one, I think, would be Orion,” you pointed to the constellation in the sky, your other hand holding your phone up to illuminate the astrological book on your lap. Your back was pressed up against the hard metal of the back of the truck, the cold being muted out by the quilt beneath you. To your side, Conner only hummed. His fingers drummed on his chest and he kept one arm behind his head.

“How d’you know?” His voice was gruff, and it was sign enough of what he had been doing prior to your date. He never told you about them, but you always knew. It was a stipulation of Tim’s, always trying to keep you as far away from the vigilante gig as he could but you’re bound to get wound up in it when all of your friends and the majority of people who surrounded you happened to be of the extraordinary kind. But, there was always this weird air around him when he’d just come back from missions, and you always knew that the worst ones preceded the text that would appear in your phone from him.

That and you could clearly see the new scars on his arms, Conner wasn’t too versed in makeup, it would seem, but the thought was still there. Who knew that it would be in your teens that you’d have to deal with your hero boyfriend who had an affinity for getting beat up on missions and going on dates with you right after? It wasn’t something on your checklist, that’s for sure.

“See how those stars connect? That’s his belt, then you go from there,” you spoke in hushed whispers. You turned your head to him, his eyes squinting as he tried to make out what you were saying. You sighed and pressed your head against his, trying to see things from where he was. Your hand wrapped around his wrist and you held it up, pointing his hand to where the belt started. “Now do you see? Here’s where it starts,” you moved his hand slightly to the side and his gaze followed, “and there’s where it ends. Now, you go up or down and you see the faint outline of the warrior,” your hand moved down his arm until it reached the first large scar, poorly applied foundation removed easily under your touch and you chuckled. “You know, Con, you have to blend it out.”

“Seriously? Donna said all I had to do was put it on like lotion…” He wipes the rest off with his sleeve.

“Oh, dear, no, honey,” you laughed. “And you have to get your right shade,” you took some foundation off his hand and swiped it across his cheek. “This is about two shades too dark,” you smiled. “But, seriously, you don’t have to hide it from me. I’ve seen my brothers come home with so much worse,” you muttered. Soon your hands intertwined and your eyes raked over the recently healed over scars.

“Tell me about it,” Conner did nothing while you traced over it.

“Wonder what the other guy looks like.”

“What’s left of him?” He adds with a short laugh. You only smiled in response and soon you felt him push his head against yours softly.

“Everything alright?”

“Yeah… Yeah, it’s alright,” he nodded his head slowly and you hummed quietly. “I don’t really want to think about it right now.”

“In that case…” you understood what he meant. “This is a really nice quilt, I feel kind of bad for just laying it on top of this dirty truck bed,” you played with the edges of it.

“Hey! I washed it, you know,” he rolls his eyes and you pushed his chest gently.

“Just teasing, it looks like Mrs. Kent worked hard on it, though,” you smoothened out the wrinkles now.

“Speaking of… it’s for you,” he sits up and looks at the patches on the quilt, he holds up the corner piece that sported the bat insignia on it.

“Why tell me after we dirtied it?” You grew wide eyed for a moment. “Oh, wait, so you wouldn’t have to wash it, huh?” You squeezed his cheek. “You suck,” your smile betrayed you.

“Yeah, well, you’re the one who can’t keep their hands off of me.”

“Ew,” you squeezed your eyes shut and shook your head. “You’re the one who’s obsessed with me.”

“Yeah, that’s also true,” he tilted his head to the side. His phone rings in the truck and he sighs. You only straightened, knowing that ringtone well.

“Duty calls?”

“If I just let it go to voice mail, do you think they’ll just assume I’m busy?”

“You could try that. Or you could chance Bart running all the way here and catching us.”

“Dear god, I might actually lose my mind if he did that, hold on,” he hopped out of the truck and sat back in the driver’s seat. You, meanwhile, stayed in place. You picked up the quilt, it wasn’t too dirty, actually, save for some bits of hay and dirt beneath it, but nothing a good wash couldn’t handle. It really did look like Mrs. Kent spent a lot of time on it, the stitches and the fabrics were meticulously placed, and the small depictions on each tile represented a facet of you.

It was a darling gift.

~

28 July 2022

And now, it was draped over your wall. It was kept clean, you assumed that Alfred regularly washed it, but at a closer glance you could see some of the edges frayed with use. You wonder who caused those?

The clock stroke midnight, and the Manor was empty save for two souls. Everyone else had gone on patrol, go figure. Dead sister comes back but crime never sleeps. Granted, Tim made a really good argument for having one of them stay behind, but Alfred ceremoniously volunteered himself to monitor you. Great.

Alfred Pennyworth sat in the library, patiently waiting for the Master of the home, with a simple book in hand and a cup of tea in another. The library was lit in a way that made the area seem warm and welcoming. Anyone who walked into its warmth would be encased in a feeling of comfort and safety that all else would fade away and allow one restful night. The old butler thought back to the simpler times when the Waynes were a rather joyous group, well, as joyous as a family could be given their hobby. Now would be an important time to note that the book in Alfred’s hands was not one you would find in a store, no, not quite, it was a birthday present gifted to Bruce Wayne by the one and only (Y/N) Wayne. The brightest of the Waynes, but at the same time the most tragic. All she wanted was her father’s approval, but it never came. And despite all the love and affection her siblings gave her, it was never enough to fill the void left by her own father. His eyes drifted over to the darkness of the hallway. The (Y/N) that entered the manor that day, he knew it was her, yet at the same time he knew it wasn’t. But what is this strange feeling?

Now, in stark difference to the library, was the rather cold and secluded bedroom where our heroine lay. Your eyes staring up at the ceiling, unable to even consider the horrors of allowing the tired captain to close her eyes for just a moment. Years of being in a new world conditioned you to be unable to relax in atmospheres like this, cold and alone. An environment that used to feel like the afore mentioned room, was now the opposite. You were at attention, like something would jump out at the shadows any minute now.

But there was a time where this room was, as Tim put it, the happiest place in the mansion. You recalled when the then younger Tim Drake would run in, shaking in his pajamas, and timidly ask to sleep with you after thinking it a good idea to watch a horror movie with Jason, or how every now and then you’d find Damian resting at the foot of your bed in full regalia and all. Even the days where Jason would come to just annoy the living hell out of you and Dick would yell at him from the next room over. You remembered these fondly, but was still unable to find yourself in a state of comfort. Was it the loathing you felt for this manor in general? Or was it the constant nagging of your best friend in your head. Whatever it was, it was enough to drag you out of the prison of your bed and onto your feet.

‘What, Alex?’ You grumbled, your hand clutching your heart. You looked to the wall in front of you, the intricate quilt that hung undisturbed seemed to mock you. You remembered shoving it into your closet after you and Conner had broken up, but someone must have taken it out to display it.

‘Remind me again why you two broke up,’ his voice had a hint of teasing in it. ‘I still remember those ten-paged letters you’d send me detailing every single glance he gave you.’

‘Oh, stop it. I was young and he was my first. And to answer your question, he fell in love with Cassie, perfect Cassie, how could I compete with that? Who was I to get in the way of that? A Super-Boy with a Wonder-Girl. I wonder if they stayed together.’

‘I’m now remembering your fifteen-page letter on that.’

‘Don’t tease me. I literally didn’t speak to either of them for months and I avoided Mr. Kent and Jon like the plague until Mr. Kent came here himself. It was so awkward…’

‘I don’t doubt it,’ Alex sounded like he was doing something as he spoke to you. ‘Anyway, I’m sure you’d love to come back, and I can see that the path to your father’s computer is empty.’

‘Okay, yeah, I’m going. Alfred’s pretty vigilant though.’

‘Ah, so you need a diversion.’

‘Yup, what do you have up your sleeves?’

‘Not much, unfortunately. Oh wait, just kidding.’

‘Wait, what? What’s up?’ Your mental conversation is disrupted by a small but sudden explosion outside. You rushed over to the window as Carter gives you a sloppy salute. You look down and notice Alfred walking out to investigate. ‘Alexander Wright, you are a genius.’

‘Thank you, darling. But you really should be thanking Carter, I’m sure he’d love praise from his dear Captain.’

‘Don’t say it like that it’s creepy.’

‘Is it? Why don’t you pay more attention to his mannerisms? I’m sure the two of you would make a lovely couple.’

‘What do you mean?’ Your face heats slightly. Was he catching on? Maybe you should’ve thought twice before keeping a secret from your best friend, but it’s not something you wanted to parade around. ‘Alex?’

After repeatedly trying to call out to him, and repeatedly not hearing a response, you opted to run down the stairs, making sure that Alfred is kept busy as you accessed the bat cave.

‘If you’re done teasing, how’s the cameras?’

‘Took him a while, but Carter was able to get them down for a moment.’

‘Good.’ You descended into the cavern. You fired up the comically large computer a d watched it spark to life, an array of articles that didn’t concern you filled the desktop and similarly multiple programs started running at once. You fumbled to pull the flash drive out but quickly regain composure as you watched all of the information from the bat computer duplicate and save onto the small device that would serve to be your lifeline. Then, a password prompt appeared. You typed in the password you remembered, your hand hovering over the enter button, but… if you were wrong, if your father changed it, then it wold be all game over for you. Instead, you went with the safer option. You pressed the small button on the flash drive and it was quickly overridden, that’s one obstacle down. The whole time you could feel your heart rate rise. You didn’t know how much your father’s tech had changed since three years ago, and you didn’t know if it would detect the device or not. So far, so good, though. You just hoped that there wasn’t a backdoor program that was alerting him right now. But why were the flags in your head raising? You looked around, the cave was dark to hide your presence more but you could swear that something was watching you. You turned back in time for the drive to finish its work.

‘Don’t forget the device.’

‘I know, I know, fuck off.’ You mentally argue with Alexander. You pulled out a second listening device and planted it far beneath the desk just as the flash drive completed its purpose. Just as quickly as you went in, you pulled out the flash drive and retreated back upstairs; however, this time you couldn’t ignore the library. You spent a lot of your time there, now that you thought about it, there was just something so soothing about the never-ending walls of pages. Seeing as it was still empty, you walked in.

‘What are you doing?’

‘I’m rarely ever home, let me live through the nostalgia again in peace, alright?’ He didn’t respond.

You looked out the window and watched Alfred finish cleaning up the aftermath of Carter’s work and more questions popped into your mind.

First of all, how did they cope after you left? Your father, you can guess easily, probably didn’t find out until months after the fact. Your brothers, Dick in particular, must have been heartbroken. You could hate your father as much as you wanted, but you could never hate your siblings. All of the carnival days with Dick, the late night motorcycle rides with Jason, how you and Tim would do midnight to dawn homework sessions together, and how could you forget about all the arcade days with Damian? And furthermore, the cute movie nights with Steph, or the girls’ nights with Cass, all of these were memories that you held dear. Cass, you thought of her more often than the others sometimes, she truly was, at one point, your best friend.

Cass... you needed to avoid her at all costs.

But more questions distracted you, how different would things be if you had stayed? Would you have gained your father’s approval? Would you have graduated? Who knows? Maybe you would have finally met someone who could have filled that lack of fatherly care. Maybe you would have met someone to share your life with under different circumstances. Two names appeared in your head, but you dismissed them quickly.

Your eyes land on the book near the fire. It was crudely bound with yarn and hastily glued over with scribbles of crayon on the cardboard covers. The pages contained between them were that of various colored construction paper until the last few pages that were white and neatly stacked against each other, no doubt added on much later. You recognized this book that stood out like a sore thumb compared to the expensively bound ones that surrounded it, and you recognized it because it was yours. You picked it up and turned through the pages. It was a sloppy, albeit adorable, picture book littered with polaroids of yourself and your many family members, and each picture had a short description next to it written in the same crayon that adorned the cover. You remembered clearly, you made this to give to your father. You had felt terrible that he was on “business trips” all of the time, and you felt like he would miss his family. At the time, the only people pictured were yourself, Dick, Jason, Alfred, and your mother. Simpler times. You flipped through the pages and noticed that they had been filled in with more neat handwriting and more professional pictures, and you easily recognized this to be Alfred’s doing. Finally, you came to a stop at the last page. In childish writing, it read: “For my superhero dad! So he would always have his family with him!”

Superhero. Is that what he was? That’s how you always thought of him back then. Your mother called him that, the superhero that Gotham needed. Alfred called him that, the superhero that kept you safe. Mr. Kent called him that, the superhero who was his best friend, and the list went on. You called him that at one point. When you were younger, you remembered how when you’d call he’d run over in a heartbeat, working quickly to rid of what upset you in the first place, and you remembered thinking of him as your hero. That all changed when you grew old enough to fully understand what it was that he did, when you renounced the family business, that’s when tensions started to arise. And they kept rising until they were untamable.

Then you died, but we’ve been over that enough times already.

“I know it may not seem like it, Miss (Y/N),” Alfred cuts in. You don’t move from your spot and continue to stare down at the page. You tapped your finger against the picture of you and your father. You didn’t even think he had any other pictures of you aside from this one. “But your father did truly love you.”

“Right,” your facade breaks. You catch yourself and took a deep breath. All these years, and all the lies you’ve told yourself, you’re back at the place you once called home and already you’re wishing you had even an ounce of his approval. “I’m sure he did.”

“Are you really the same (Y/N) Wayne who left this manor three years ago?” Alfred moves cautiously towards you. You take in a deep breath and close the picture book.

“Keen as ever, Alfred,” you smiled weakly. There’s no point in lying to him now, your best bet is to inch around the truth.

“Your smile certainly isn’t,” Alfred points out. He takes a seat by the fire once more and gestures for you to do the same. “It’s different, almost like you have seen a world of pain. And your eyes, they look so much like your father’s, and you know what I mean by that.”

“Do they? I guess that would make sense,” you try to build up you character again. You couldn’t jeopardize the mission, not when the flash drive was finally in your pocket. “I did die.”

“That is true,” Alfred says sadly. He drinks his tea silently. “Do you really not remember anything from that day?”

“I do not,” you lied. The two remain quiet for awhile. You coughed lightly and placed your hand on your heart.

‘He’s catching on,’ you worried.

‘It appears so,’ Alex responds. ‘Remain vigilant.’

“Are you alright, Miss (Y/N),” Alfred speaks again.

“I have been having these strange chest pains,” you explain.

‘Is that all I am to you? Strange chest pains?’ Alex teases. You let your hand drop to your lap, ending your side of the conversation with Alex.

Chest pains. Might be a little complicated to explain to Alfred the circumstances of your survival up to this point. The scar of a magical circle over your heart, one that linked you to the voice in your head, without it, you doubt you’d be able to function as a whole human, if that’s what you still were. You didn’t blame Alex, you couldn’t, his life was on the line and yours was already gone, with the Queen looming over him, you would’ve done the same.

The only catch now is that you have to be careful how far you are from him, which is quite generous.

“Maybe it’s an after effect of dying,” you finally said. And in some ways it was. You don’t remember your heart being taken from you that night, at least. If it was then you were already long dead before you could’ve noticed.

“Please don’t speak of your death so calmly,” Alfred shakes his head. “Dick did not sleep for days, Jason kept coming home with new wounds, Cassandra regressed so far to the point where she shut herself out, Tim kept surrounding himself with work, and do not get me started on Damian… It truly was a tragedy for us. You may not believe it, but it was.”

“Was it for dad?” You looked up at him again, but this time with genuine curiosity. Alfred is silent for awhile. “Did he even know?” You felt your voice waiver. You couldn’t understand why you felt this way, you should loathe him, and you wanted to, so you did for a time. But, and this is what you were afraid of when you heard you had to come back here, with all of these memories resurfacing, you didn’t know what you wanted anymore.

You shouldn’t have come here, you should’ve taken the long route and studied each member yourself.

“He… He did not,” Alfred admits. You put on another pained smile and nodded slowly.

“Of course he didn’t. Why would he care?”

“He was on mission for the League, at the time. No one could reach him and… he didn’t find out until Mr. Kent came over to pay his condolences,” Alfred admits. Of course Mr. Kent came. He treated you more like family than your father ever could. “Just a few days before your funeral.”

“Right, sounds like him,” you shake your head. Before Alfred could try to defend your father’s actions furthermore, you spoke up quickly, “Al, what else changed while I was gone? I feel like I don’t recognize things anymore, nothing is the same here. I don’t even recognize myself when I look into a mirror.”

“A lot has changed, my dear girl,” he nods his head. “And, it will take time, but you will grow accustomed once again, and we will do it together,” he says. You both hear a bookcase slide open then closed. “Your father’s home.”

“I’m going to bed.”

“Do you not want to see him?”

“No,” your answer came out quickly and sharply. It was a tone Alfred had never heard in your voice, and you knew he caught onto it. “Al, my last memory of this house is dad telling me that I have no value in this family, so… no, I really don’t want to see him right now,” you finished. Yet you didn’t move. “Did he even grieve?”

“We all have different ways of grieving, my dear.”

“What was his?” You leaned forward, your elbows resting on your knees now. “No, don’t tell me, I already know. He worked, didn’t he? Arkham must have had a field day,” you shook your head. Alfred didn’t answer and you knew you got it spot on. You wondered how your mother coped with it all, if it was a good idea to even see her at all. Despite appearances, she really was one of the pillars of your life. The days you spent with her helped you release so much stress off of your shoulders and made you feel so carefree that you’d forget all about your vigilante family. Granted, she was somewhat one of herself, but she knew how to separate life and work much better than any of the Waynes did. You shook your head. Why are you still here? “I’m going to bed.” You stood up this time, but as you did so, the library door opened. You didn’t move, your back was to the door and you looked out the window.

It was a night just like this one, your very last one on this earth.

~

27 July 2019

It was such a lovely night. The moon was full, and the air wasn’t as smoggy as it usually was in this godforsaken city. You had finished your final, three hours of grueling free response finally over as you made your way back to your apartment, having given up on the dorms since you’ve started to become independent of the Wayne fortune. You had your scholarships to pay rent, but you’ve barely even started unpacking your boxes. You stretched your arms over your head.

You were done. Once you got this grade from your final, you’d see if you would be able to graduate, and once you did? Who knows what’s next. You only had the rest of your life. You couldn’t stop the smile on your face. Never had you felt so much more relief than to know that you did it. You took your phone out, your thumb hovering over Dick’s contact, but you paused.

You wondered if your father had told everyone yet.

Without another thought, you scrolled on, your thumb landing on Roy’s number instead. It only rang once before he picked up.

“How’d your final go, Goose?” The nickname had a teasing connotation to it, but you ignored it. It was an old nickname he’d had for you since his time in the titans with your older brothers and whenever he said it it was quickly followed by you getting shot with a nerf gun and still, one year into this secret relationship, he still never relented when he called you by it.

“I think I did really good, actually! I feel like celebrating, are you busy right now?” You walked with a slight skip in your step.

“Uh… shit, yeah actually,” he says. “I’m with Jason right now.”

“Oh, crap, why’d you pick up then?!”

“And ignore a call from a pretty girl like you? How could I?”

“I’ll never understand how you do that so easily,” the heat in your cheeks was especially prominent with the cold air around you. “You talk to everyone like that?”

“Only to the future Mrs. Harper, of course.”

“Oh, god,” you rolled your eyes, but your smile betrayed you. “Raincheck then?”

“Raincheck. I’ll take you out to the best dinner you could even dream of.”

“Just so you know, Red, burnt chicken and raw asparagus isn’t what I have in mind for a celebratory dinner.”

“That was just the once, (Y/N)! Besides, I bet you’re equally as bad in a kitchen, trust fund kid.”

“That’s not what you said when you were bedridden in my dorm room for a week.”

“Your roommate is so cool for that, by the way.”

“Oh, I’m sure she just didn’t want to die,” you laughed. “Okay, I’ll call you later, I’m on my way back to my apartment.”

“You need help getting settled? I’ll gladly ditch your depressed brother for you any day.”

“Oh? And what’s your excuse?”

“Same one I gave him when I answered you. A pretty girl needs my help.”

“Screw you,” you shook your head.

“Maybe tomorrow if you’re lucky.”

“You’re so shameless, Roy,” you sighed. “Seriously, go back to whatever you’re doing together before Jason gets curious.”

“Do we know the same Jason Todd?”

“Roy!”

“Okay, okay, I’m going, I’ll see you later, (Y/N).”

“Bye,” you waited for him to hang up first before continuing. It was just around the block now, and the streets were clear. But, the longer you walked, the more anxious you got. You looked over your shoulder, once, twice, and maybe thrice now.

No, this area was a part of Tim’s rounds, you’ll be okay.

You’ll be okay. You thought this even as you felt someone grab your arm and drag you into an alley.

~

28 July 2022

“Alfred, leave the room.” You were pulled back into reality with a blink of your eyes. The moon was still as bright as ever. Alfred looked to you before looking to the person behind you.

“Of course, Master Bruce,” Alfred spared you one glance before exiting the room. You didn’t look behind you. You didn’t want to.

“(Y/N),” your father’s voice was stern. Always stern with him, he was never relaxed. You didn’t move. You didn’t want to. You took a deep breath.

‘Do you need another diversion?’ Alex’s voice rang in your head. You placed your hand on your heart, feeling the skin between them burning.

‘No. It wouldn’t work anyway.’ You turned around. “Hey, dad. Long time no see.” You kept your words slow, the library only illuminated by the fireplace that roared next to you. A fireplace in a room full of books, it spelled trouble, in your opinion. You closed the crude picture book with one hand while you looked at your father. His cowl was off, it was bundled in one of his fists, and his suit looked to have undergone some changes since last you saw it, but the man before you was undoubtedly your father. He took a few steps towards you until he was an arm’s distance. You both stood in silence, and the flash drive in your pocket became all the heavier. You couldn’t read his expression, you never were able to, but now it felt more intimidating than ever. For the first time in a while, you felt so small. You should’ve known that your high horse would have stayed on the other earth.

‘Take a deep breath, (Y/N), steady yourself,’ Alex spoke gently. Back in character.

“I’m sorry, I know I shouldn’t have come, I’m not welcome here anymore, but according to Jason, I have nowhere else to go,” you explained, keeping your voice from wavering. Bruce made no moves, he just continued to stare down at you. Until, finally, his hand rose and settled on your shoulder. It wasn’t heavy, had it not been for the soft grip you’d think that he wasn’t even touching you at all.

“You’re home, you’re always welcome here.” Such words that were so weighted were said by a man with only a sliver of emotion. His expression that was once straight finally broke and, for a moment, you could’ve sworn that you saw sympathy. You bit back any smart remarks and instead shrugged his hand off.

“I’ll be gone by tomorrow,” is all you said. You walked past him and back up the stairs, part of you hoped that he’d call you back, maybe have a civil conversation, but no such wish was answered. No, instead you continued forth until you were once again situated on your bed, memories of a time past swirling in your head.

This was a bad idea.

#dc #batman #batfamily #batfam #batsis #batsis fics #batfamily x batsis!reader #batfam x reader #batfamily scenarios #batfamily x reader #batsis!reader #batfam fics #batfamily fics #batfamily x batsis #batfam x batsis!reader #batfam x batsis #my writings #nycv

[thirsting-over-demons]

The Lingerie Game

{An Obey Me Fic} – F!MC

Synopsis: A game is happening at the House of Lamentation— anyone who sees MC not fully clothed will get the opportunity to spend 12 hours time alone with her wearing lingerie of their choice.

<<CH2

Chapter Three: A Game of Strip Poker

warnings: mildly n.s.f.t, sexual themes, poker

Mammon cashes in on his 12-hour reward. He's decided to teach MC the ins and outs of poker, but with a twist. However, the game can't last forever.

Word Count: 5610

Sitting in wait for MC is a package carefully positioned in front of her bedroom door. A gold ribbon wraps around the box, contrasting with the plain brown paper that covers it. Attached is a note that reads:

My room! Saturday night!

…

Wear this underneath your normal clothes.

 “Wow. His handwriting is worse than mine,” MC comments as she reads the note. She also remarks on the lack of signature. It’s a good thing that it’s obvious who sent this. No one else but Mammon could be so confident yet convey such bashfulness through writing.

As soon as she finishes reading, she takes the package into her room, eager to see the lingerie Mammon has picked out. Upon opening, she initially notices the color scheme—black and gold. As if she could expect anything else. She goes on to pull out the first piece, holding it in front of her to get a better look. In her hands is a short, black chemise with a sheer body. An outline of lace separates the see-through fabric from an opaque bikini. What’s more, golden dagger-shaped shards hang off the brassiere while metallic specks can be seen throughout the flowing fabric.

He expects me to be able to wear this underneath my regular clothes? The frown on her face as she thought this is replaced by an affectionate smile as she continues to stare at the chemise. She then sets it aside and lets out a sentimental breath as she does so. Reaching into the box again she pulls out a pair of black boyshorts studded with silver white diamonds on the sides. Attached to the shorts are garter straps with gold-colored clasps at the end. Stockings, however, did not come with the set.

“I wonder if that was on purpose,” she mutters to herself. “Oh well, guess we’ll find out Saturday night.” She stares at the lingerie laid out on her bed, and for a moment, thinks about all the potential activities Mammon has planned.

Whatever it is, I’m looking forward to it.

 Saturday has finally arrived and after a long day of making up missed school, Mammon and MC could use some winding down.

“Why did we have to spend a whole day at school for just a couple of lousy hours?!” Mammon complains as the two walk home.

“Because he’s a sadist,” MC replies. There’s no denying that ‘he' refers to Lucifer. She’s truly contemplating whether it was, indeed, worth it after having lost eight hours of her day off to forced independent study. “At least there’s tonight.”

Mammon chuckles shyly and agrees. His confidence picks up speed as he states, “Ya know it’s gonna be fun cause The Great Mammon planned it!” A grin plasters his face while he says this.

In response, she comments on how it sounds like she’ll have to take some time to relax beforehand.

He agrees rather begrudgingly, his disappointment shining through despite having just spent the first half of the day together already.

The two eventually reach home and part ways, having agreed to meet in Mammon’s room after dinner. MC has no idea what the evening plans could be, but knowing him, she’s going to need energy. With this is mind, she decides to nap in the time before dinner, and makes her way up to her room. Once there, she manages to only take her shirt off before flopping onto bed and falling asleep. The cool fabric is refreshing compared to the hot air outside, perfect for afternoon dozing.

A knock on the door disrupts her slumber. With it, a lazy acknowledgement escapes from MC, prompting the knocker to enter the room.

“Dinner's ready, MC,” Satan calls out. In response, all he hears is mumbles coming from the body half-under the covers. Satan sighs as he steps further into the room. “It’s not good to sleep so early in the day.” He immediately goes from lecturing to tempting as he adds, “Besides, I made your favorite.”

This sparks some energy in MC. Satan’s cooking is always delicious and better yet he says it’s one of her favorites. She quickly pushes herself up and the blanket that was covering her falls to the side. Still in bed, she turns to face him and with resolve, tells him she will be right there.

He decisively ignores what she said to instead ask, “Are you not wearing a shirt?”

MC looks down to confirm that she is, in fact, shirtless. Upon realizing what this means, she looks up, stares ahead at the wall in front of her, and says flatly, “No. I am not.” She can’t believe how quick that was.

“A win-win for us both, it seems,” Satan is obviously pleased with what just happened. “I’ll let you get dressed.” He then takes his leave, closing the door behind him.

MC remains sitting in bed, her eyes lingering blankly at the space Satan just left through. That was almost embarrassingly too fast. It’s only been less than a week since the game first started and already two prizes are being rewarded. Let’s just focus on tonight, she thinks as she pushes the encounter out of her mind. But, first, food.

Dinner passes without much incident. To their displeasure, the brothers know Mammon will be getting uninterrupted time with MC tonight. But the punishment from last time is still fresh in their minds, so they tended to steer away from that topic. Only the rogue complaint here and there made it out their mouths. Not that any questions would be answered anyway; MC is unaware of the activities for the night and there’s no way Mammon would tell his brothers what he has prepared.

Upon finishing her meal, MC heads upstairs to get ready for the night. First, a shower is in order. Can’t feel her best without one. She makes sure to use the scents she thinks Mammon would like best. He always seems to try to stand close to me when I use the strawberry-scented stuff.

After washing, she tosses on some throw-away clothes for the walk back to her room. She’s too wet to immediately put on the lingerie and she’s certainly not walking back in a towel. There can’t be two winners in a day.

She's eventually able to wear the lingerie and walks over to the mirror hanging on her door. Moment of truth. She looks over her reflection, quite pleased with how she looks. “Who knew Mammon could pick out something that looks so good?” Her thoughts instantly leave her mouth. “Well, I guess modeling helps.”

Still, there’s the matter of trying to wear it under her everyday clothes. It definitely wasn’t designed to do that. A larger, loose-fitting shirt will work, but the bottoms might be a bit trickier. Jeans definitely won’t work, in fact any type of pants won’t. She’ll have to go with a skirt. The two tops can easily be tucked in with that too, making it slightly more manageable.

The completed ensemble is a bit uncomfortable, but it’ll do. He can’t be planning on never seeing the lingerie. Eventually she can take off the other clothes…right? Well, either way, it’s time to head to Mammon’s room.

She announces her arrival with three sharp knocks. In return, she hears a startled Mammon telling her to come in. When she enters the room, she sees him sitting on the couch, his back to the door. She also notes the trashcan filled to the top with crumpled up paper. Seems like it took him a couple times to find the right words for the note earlier.

“You ready?” she asks.

“I’ve been ready,” he replies a little impatiently while turning to face her. His tone quickly changes, though, as he attempts to hide this anxious eagerness. “Not that I’ve just been sitting here waiting!” He swiftly decides to change the subject to avoid any further hole digging. Instead, he comments on what MC is wearing. On how little it is, in fact.

“What? You told me to wear my everyday clothes,” she says, genuinely confused by his line of reasoning. “The skirt isn’t even short. It’s mid-length.” MC lifts the ends while she states this, as if to prove the point.

This causes Mammon to look away. It takes him a slight moment to regain himself before he says, “I guess it can’t be helped.” He gets up from the couch and walks over to MC. Draping his jacket across her shoulders, he tells her, “Wear this.”

She’s completely baffled at this point. More clothes? A couple seconds are spent in wonder until she slips her arms through. She doesn’t completely mind. As the jacket settles, a scent drifts over her.

It smells like him.

MC hesitates to ask for an explanation, but the curiosity is pressing. “So, what’s the deal with the clothes, anyway?”

“Huh?” Mammon acts as though she knows what they’re going to do. “Well, with what you had on, you’d only have to lose twice.” This does nothing to clear up mystery, and its only when he sees MC's puzzled expression does he realize that. He finally reveals what the two will be doing, “I’m gonna teach ya poker!”

Of course. He has wanted to play countless times before, but MC didn’t know how nor was any interested in learning. But now she has too. On top of that, it seems like it’s going to be strip poker. How apropos.

“I see.” Good thing she took that nap. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have the mental energy to be taught anything else that day. “Alright, let’s get to it.”

Mammon gives a hum of agreement and the two make their way over to the couches where he’s set up the cards. On the table are examples of possible hands in order of ranking. As he goes over them, he makes sure to give MC enough time to properly memorize the categories. When she’s had her fill, he continues to explain the rules and mechanics of the variant his chosen in-depth.

Plainly, players will be dealt two cards, then five will be laid onto the table as community cards. Use the two cards in combination with the ones of the board to make a better hand than the other.

“I’ve decided to go easy on ya!” A huge smile can be seen on Mammon’s face. “This one’s the easiest to learn, so you should have no problem playing.” It’s obvious he’s having so much fun teaching her something he loves.

MC smiles in response. Seeing him so enthusiastic makes him so endearing. He’s quite serious about it too. No way he’s not by how thoroughly he’s explaining the game.

Soon enough the two begin playing, starting with some practice rounds. When MC decides she has the hang of it, she suggests they raise the stakes by finally betting clothes.

“Ya haven’t won yet!” Mammon rejects the idea straightaway. “Ya hafta win first,” he clarifies.

She has to wonder if he’s doing such a slow reveal on purpose. No, of course he is. First the long lesson now all the practicing. Though, she has to admit, it is more fun this way—there’s a buildup, anticipation. And there’s no point in rushing, they do have half a day. So, she's content to carry on without anteing for now.

While there’s a bit of enjoyment in trying to win against Mammon in something he excels in, MC is starting to lose interest. The lack of risk is starting to compromise the point of playing, even if she always either loses or folds. All she has to do is win once, then the real game can begin. Time to really focus.

Up to this point, she’s just been paying attention to her own cards and trying to beat Mammon’s hand. She’s been foregoing any observation of her opponent proper. Right, I’ve got to play the player as much as the game. She starts with some simple watching, noting anything that might help her: expressions, movements, comments, etc. Further scrutinizing is done by deliberately making a couple of bad moves to gauge his reactions. She’s getting nothing from him.

A couple more rounds go by, and MC has concluded that Mammon is unreadable, almost. The only time he reacted, just slightly, was when she nearly won. He seemed almost proud. That’s got to be her angle. She’s not skilled enough to read him, but she can coax him into giving away information. Just have to ask the right questions.

It takes some tries before finding the most effective line of questioning. Problem is, before, she wasn’t asking too many questions. Now, it’s like a flood gate has been lifted.

“Finally getting serious, huh?” If Mammon knew what she was up to, he wasn’t showing it. Additionally, the influx of questions hasn’t thrown him off. Rather, he’s quite excited to show off his talent in front of MC. Maybe a bit too excited. He’s letting down his guard.

Which is perfect for her. She needs this win. In fact, she might have him. The last thing she asked caused a slight stir in Mammon. “So, a pair in hand and a pair on the table is a two pair?”

“Yep! Got it!” Mammon's response showed no sign of hesitation or worry. But there was the tiniest hint of disappointment hidden within his words.

This is what tipped MC off. He thinks he has a better hand. Good thing her cards are better than what she said. And with what’s on the table, there's a good chance his cards will lose to her actual ones.

“Alright let’s show ‘em,” she says as she lays her cards into view.

Mammon almost immediately declared himself winner until she pointed at the three aces on the table, those being the two in her hand and then the community one. In addition to the pair included on the board, that makes her a hand a winner compared to Mammon’s, who only had five cards of the same suite.

“Guess we can start anteing then,” MC proclaims. She’s ready to stop being so damn uncomfortable because of the weird layers she’s wearing. She may not even try the next rounds, not that she’ll let Mammon know that. He would try to make excuses to prevent her from stripping for sure. “Actually, maybe you should explain how you’re thinking of doing that first,” she follows up after realizing he never clarified those particulars.

Mammon goes on to lay out the rules he’s devised. Simply, if both players show their hand, the loser has to remove an item of clothing. There’s no penalty to folding considering the circumstance.

Sure enough, the next round plays and she ends up losing an item of clothing. Can’t say she ended up not trying, though. She just didn’t try as hard. It was fun learning how to play against Mammon, but it’s too much now. There’s no way she can keep up steam.

She opts for the skirt first. It’s been the major cause of her discomfort, surprisingly to her. The band has been causing the two shirts to rub against her skin nonstop. She sticks her thumbs in to separate it from herself and lifts herself off the couch just enough to pull the skirt off, setting it to her side. With that she returns her gaze to Mammon.

This prompts a small fuss from him. Snapping out of a lascivious stare, he spits out, “Why'da go for that first? I gave ya the jacket!”

That’s the other reason. She doesn’t want to take his jacket off. She tells him as such, burying her head in it as she does. It’s soothing in a way.

A small amount of color rises across Mammon’s face from this. He gets up wordlessly and walks over to MC. Taking off his own sunglasses, he puts them on her, slightly brushing her cheeks as his hands slide past.

“There,” he says as he looks at her before walking back around the table. He seems satisfied with that explanation, or rather, lack thereof.

“These will literally be the next thing I take off.”

“They’re suppose'da be.” Mammon goes on to deal the next round. It was tight, coming down to who had the higher cards. Ultimately, he won by a hair.

And the glasses come right off.

The following hand plays much slower. MC takes her time to analyze everything, thinking of endless possible card combinations that’ll earn her a win as the community cards are laid down. She’s decided she can’t be the only one stripping.

It’s down to the last card on the table and she has to choose whether to show or fold. It’s a decent enough hand. She’ll show.

Mammon's the first to flip his cards, revealing a respectable hand, as well.

“Are you sure you haven’t been cheating?” She suddenly asks.

“Huh?” Mammon was taken by surprise with this. A little offended, he answers, “I may bend the rules sometimes. But this isn’t the time and place, MC. Even I know that.”

“You’re right,” she turns her cards over. “Because you would’ve won, then.” She reveals a hand that triumphs over her opponent’s.

“MC!” He exclaims both pleased and a little unsettled. “Ya had me going there. Hah! Look at ya.”

But she is just looking at him, waiting with a smile half-cocked. They showed their cards. She won. He lost.

He eventually understood why she was staring at him with such a look. And he froze. Right, by his rules, he loses an article of clothing now. For some reason, this didn’t even occur to him as a possibility—that they’d both be half-naked.

He's already lost his jacket and glasses. All that’s left are his shirt and pants. He picks the prior. Reaching over behind his head, Mammon takes his shirt and, as quickly as he can, yanks it over his head.

“You can quit lookin' at me like that, now.”

She doesn’t. Not even realizing she’s staring; she continues to admire his physique. Only when Mammon goes out of his way to get her attention does she snap out of her daze.

“Next round!” He says as if he’s uttering a decree.

The cards are dealt once again. MC, however, is getting tired. He sure can play for a long while. Having won the last round, she decides to phone it in for the rest, trying only as hard as it takes Mammon not to notice. It helps that she’s not good to begin with.

The next clothing item she tosses is the shirt beneath Mammon’s jacket, still refusing to take it off. She somehow manages it by balancing the jacket on her shoulders as she slips out of the top worn under it. Sure, she could have just taken off the jacket then put it back on when she was done, but it’s more fun this way. Plus, Mammon can't say anything her breaking the rules, so to speak.

Now, all she’s wearing is Mammon’s jacket and the lingerie he picked out. And she wants to show off this fact. She abruptly stands up, which causes the hanging daggers of the brassier to sway as she does so. Holding her arms out while posing, she asks, “Isn’t it cute?”

Mammon takes a moment before answering, soaking in what he’s seeing.

“You’re beautiful.”

MC felt a tinge of heat reach her cheeks. She wasn’t expecting him to respond like that. But she was glad.

She sits back down and comments on how she loves what he picked out. Then, silently thinks to herself how she hopes to wear it again for him.

Mammon, meanwhile, was marveling at how MC looked. Even going so far as to praise himself for his choice of lingerie.

“By the way,” MC begins. “This does beg the question, what about the stockings?” She leans back and to the side, supporting herself with her hands as she swings her legs alternatively up and down.

“Oh, uh,” he searches for the words, a little distracted by her bare legs. Finally finding them, he says, “It seemed like too much.”

“That’s too bad. It would’ve made the outfit even cuter,” she replies minorly disappointed. Then adds with a chuckle, “Plus it would’ve gave me more things to take off. Oh well, there’s always next time.”

“I can see that now! No need to rub—” He processes the last thing MC said. “Wait, for real?!”

MC confirms what she said, ready to laugh again. Well, that confirms he's all up for seeing her like this again.

“Imma hold you to that!” Mammon ecstatically swears. It’ll be even more fun the next time around, especially since the anxieties of this time won’t overwhelm him.

The night continues and MC can’t hide her exhaustion, yawning more and more frequently. She’s been folding more frequently too. Every round, in fact. The only thing she has left to offer is the jacket she’s been cuddling all night, and she’s not going to let it go.

“One more game,” Mammon says. “Then ya can go to bed.” He stipulates, “But no folding! Both of us gotta show our cards.”

“I’m not going to bed until you are,” she replies. “You have to get your full time.” A yawn tries to escape from her mouth as she says this.

Mammon accepts this but insists on having that last round. While she looks adorable, he does want to see how she looks without the covering piece. Plus, there has to be a proper sendoff of the game—folding just won’t do.

“In that case, we can watch a movie or something,” he suggests as he lays down the cards. He puts down all five table cards without delay. There’s no need to go through the whole process. When he lays the last card, he also flips his own, then looks at MC to do the same.

Although coming down to pure luck at this point, she ends up having to finally forego the jacket she’s come to love. She pouts as she removes it, then quickly makes her way over to the couch Mammon is sitting on the far end of. Settling down at a spot where they're almost touching, she goes on to suggest they watch a horror movie.

He’s reluctant to agree to this but relents as he’s too focused on the sudden close proximity between the two.

“I’ve been wanting to watch this certain one,” MC says as she pulls the film onto the TV. She stays on the summary screen to give Mammon the chance to read it and waits for him to give the go-ahead. Mammon, however, seemed to be focusing all his attention on MC, and she has to direct him to look at the screen. After a moment, a sign of confirmation is given, though hesitantly as if he didn't even process what he just read. She starts the movie anyway.

A little ways in, MC begins to shift and leans heavily onto Mammon, holding nothing back as she puts her full weight on him.

“If ya scared, all you gotta do is say so,” he says in reaction. “The Great Mammon will protect ya!” He looks down at who appears to be his new blanket.

She responds with a tired hum. Though she’s not having Mammon’s feigned bravery, she’s too exhausted to fight it. Instead, she continues to just watch the movie through half-closed eyes, propped against his shoulder.

“Hold on a sec.” He lifts her off for a split moment and repositions, his back now being supported by the arm of the couch. He pulls her into his lap, and she ends up laying between his legs with her head on his chest. “It’s more cozy this way, yeah?”

“Makes the jacket the next-best thing,” she answers.

The two continue to watch the movie in silence. During so, Mammon’s arms have been slowly moving from the couch to around MC, getting closer and tighter every time he got scared. He soon was fully encircling her with his head hiding behind as far as he could manage, which wasn’t much considering his position, even with sliding down. This was when he noticed the smell of strawberries.

“Hey, MC,” he spoke low trying to get her attention. There was no response. “Are ya sleepin'?” Again, he was met with silence. He took this opportunity to lightly bury his head into her, absorbing the scent that he adores on her. It had a calming effect, especially after the stress caused by the horror on screen.

“Did’ya wear this for me?” He asks softly to himself. Though the movie was over, he stayed still. He wanted nothing but to continue holding her like he was. There’s a chance he might just fall asleep too.

But he couldn’t. It’s too uncomfortable for that. The position is fine for cuddling yet sleeping like this will only bring pain the next day. And it can’t be much better for her. Not to mention, they don’t even have any blankets, and the pillows that were already on the couch are hardly meant for such use. He ultimately decides to sacrifice the snuggling, over much internal debating, and wakes MC up.

“Time to get up,” Mammon’s voice was loud as he shook her tenderly. He knew all too well if the first attempt didn’t work, he’d have way too much trouble with trying again. “It’s better to sleep inna bed. C'mon.”

MC grumbles at this as she sits up. Without a word, she makes her way over to the bed in his room.

“What're ya doing?” He asks a bit flustered, fully not expecting her actions.

“You said to go to bed,” she replies rather pragmatically. Then adds, “And there’s still time left in your twelve hours.” As she says this, she lifts the covers and climbs into bed. “Unless… you want me to walk all the way back to my own room?” It’s clear she has no plans to do this anyway, as she’s already quite settled in his bed.

Mammon makes no arguments, only an off-hand comment that can be taken as him denying all responsibility in having the idea. Instead, he gets into bed next to her, facing her way.

As soon as she feels his weight, she rolls over to meet him. She asks, “Can I hold you?”

He answers by holding her first. Showing no restraint, he presses his body into hers, his arms fully wrapped around her. He lets out a heavy sigh as he does so.

MC stiffens in surprise by this, but very quickly relaxes into him. Lifting her head off the shoulder she was resting on, she gives him a peck on the cheek as she tells him, “Good Night.”

Stunned by this, Mammon stares at MC, who has taken her position back onto his shoulder. Shifting his gaze to the side, a short moment passes before he says, “If ya gonna kiss me, ya gotta do it right.”

To this, she looks up again and brings her face to his, stopping just before his lips. And she waits, hesitating in front of him as she pauses for consent, her own lips somewhat parted ways in anticipation. She looks from his eyes to his lips then back again, as her way of asking.

Mammon gives his permission by impatiently pressing his lips to hers. His hand supports her head as his avarice takes over, roughly deepening the kiss more and more. To him, no matter how near their bodies, it will never be enough. There will always be some distance to close.

In return, he gets kisses that are sleepy but not effortless. Noting this, and realizing that he’s getting too excited, he pulls away. When he does, he meets MC with eyes brimmed with compassion. But only for a second as he quickly buries her head into his chest, hiding her from the complete redness that is consuming his face. He ends the night by telling her, “Go back to sleep,” as he feels her warm breath against his skin.

As for her, she falls asleep to the sound of his heartbeat, loud and fast.

 Although falling asleep later, Mammon was the first one to wake up. He wants every second awake he can get holding the woman he’s come to adore. In fact, even though they repositioned during their slumber, he’s still cradling her. As he lies on his back staring at the ceiling, MC sleeps soundly on his chest. He starts to caress her head, feeling the hair that would tickle him occasionally throughout the night on his fingertips, wishing this won’t end.

Unfortunately, this wakes her up after a while and she moves off his chest, much to his disappointment. So much so, that he pulls her back without delay, saying that he’s not done holding her yet. The Avatar of Greed, indeed.

“Mammon, I have to get up.”

But he doesn’t let go. Rather, he tightens his embrace.

“Mammon…” she sinks into him, not wanting to get up either. But she has to go grocery shopping for dinner. It’s her turn. A fact she relays to him, yet he still won’t budge.

“How ‘bout a good morning kiss?” This got his attention. “But I can’t do it from here.”

He relents to this. Eager for another kiss. His grip loosens, allowing MC to position herself in front of him. He props her chin up and runs his thumb over her bottom lip before he goes in. It’s softer this time, slower with deliberate motions. He wants the feel of her lips committed to memory.

Her kisses in answer are the same. In contrast to the tired grazes of yesterday, her touch now is very much alive.

Mammon stops first, distancing himself just enough to where their lips barely touch. Tentatively, he asks, “This… this makes up for last night, yeah?” His lips brush against hers with each word.

MC doesn't want to talk, but they're too close to just silently ask. She opts for a quick, “What do you mean?”

“I wanted our first kiss to-” he stops midsentence, a little bashful by the words. He rephrases, “I wanted to be gentler. But I couldn’t hold myself back once I felt your lips.”

“I didn’t mind at all,” she reassures as she smoothly rubs her nose on his. Afterwards, she furthers the distance for a better look at him as she says, “In fact, I like it when you’re assertive.”

“Don’t say such weird stuff all of a sudden!” An embarrassed expression appears on his face. “Geeze, it’s kinda scary when you act so sweet.” He thinks for a moment until he decides to tell her, “But, you could do more of that…you know, if ya wanted.”

MC feels as though she needs to put his mind to ease. “I like you, Mammon.” She’s sure to enunciate this, clearly saying his name so there’s no doubt about who she’s talking about.

He’s at a loss for words at this point, stunned. A smile soon creeps on his face and the words he finally comes up are filled with self-praise. “Of course ya do!” Secretly though, he’s relieved by what she said. The affirmation of her feelings fills him with confidence.

The conversation continues with MC reiterating that she, unfortunately, needs to go out for groceries. She furthers the argument by reminding him that his twelve hours are up.

A demand for one more kiss is his response, which she gladly indulges. He steadies her with his hands once more, as if it’s a need to feel her body while they kiss. It’s more fervent this time around after hearing her confession; his emotions seemingly exploding into her lips.

The first to pull away this time was MC, sensing that Mammon would never stop. She can’t leave if the kiss never ends, right? Looking at him, she can see he’s visibly disappointed with his eyes still closed.

When he opens them, it’s only slightly and he’s sure to not meet her eyes. If he sees her, it’ll only cause him to try to make her stay again. Instead, he rushes her along. “Just hurry up so you can get back, will ya?”

MC slips back on the clothes from the night before. Stopping short of the door, she turns to face him once more and pauses, pondering on whether she should express the idea on her mind. Ultimately, she chooses to tease him with the one other reason she had prepared to use against him.

“You know,” she gets his attention. “I was gonna entice you with some of my homemade ramen.” The jestful smile on her face cannot be hidden, no matter the amount of lip biting. “But looks like I don’t have to now.”

The speed at which Mammon disregards his previous determination to not look at MC is unimaginable. In fact, he completely abandons the notion to let her go. He hops out of bed almost as swiftly as his stare and bounds for the troublemaker. Reaching her before she can get away, he wraps his arms around her and brings her into a tight embrace of no escape. He’s back to preventing her from leaving. Not until she promises to make his ramen.

In between fits of giggles, MC manages to spill that she planned on doing that anyway. When she gets let go, she gives Mammon one last playful look before she sets off to buy the ingredients of his favorite dish of hers.

#obey me fic #obey me fanfic #obey me #obey me shall we date #mammon x mc #the lingerie game

[chubbs-the-fish]

Yo yo yo chubs

chubs

chubs

I want to ask you something

I'm not so sure what that thing is

so instead of asking you something

I'm complimenting you

you write so well how do you do it

oh there's the question wow

ahfdka Thank you??!!

I personally feel only mediocre at writing, but I want the story to get out of my head and into the world so I gotta start from somewhere, and that's what keeps me going.

My writing process comes from a lot of plotting before I even sit down to write. I had the first inkling of the idea for Lost Spirits, Wandering Gods almost two months before I opened up the outline/worldbuilding doc and just spent some time thinking critically about the worldbuilding and blending as well as the characters and how I wanted them to interact. That outline doc also has character notes that I built based off my own and other people's interpretations of the characters, and I reference them a lot while writing to make sure I'm staying on point.

I spend a lot of time figuring out future interactions and working my way to those events. For example, I knew I wanted Hornet to meet up with Zuko and his crew so I could have them bouncing off each other early on, but I didn't want her showing up on the ship immediately as soon as she arrived. Chapter 8 has her slowly exploring the world she got thrown into so that by the time she boards the ship she's ready to interact with something other than confusion, since it's in character to want to have some amount of control over her situation.

Finally, I don't push myself to write more than I am willing to in any given sitting. I try to write something everyday, but between work and classes that is not always possible. I usually average around 100-300 words a day, but sometimes I can crank out a full 700-1000 if I'm feeling super inspired to get a scene I've been excited about done. If I don't like the direction things are going or I feel I missed the mark with what the character would have actually said.

Since I don't have any beta readers, I just do one more lookover for grammatical issues before yeeting it into the void that is AO3. I've definitely improved a lot since I wrote my first fic, and I think that is just because I'm getting more practice.

#asks #lswg

[twopoppies]

Hi Gina..(I'm in a weird mood today)..Do you know any fics where one of them hears/ walks on the other while they're masturbating and then sexy stuff ensues?🙈 Thx in advance🥰

Hi sugar. Yes, I definitely have some like that. I’m going to make it an overall voyeurism fic rec, but there are definitely a bunch that fit your exact request.

You Give Me Fever (What A Lovely Way To Burn) by my_fandom_OTPs (E, 11K) This is just porn from start to finish, but I love it. Canon, friends to lovers, shower sex and more!

We’ll Be Seamless by @dinosaursmate (E, 52K) Inspired by Tumblr (back in the days when porn was actually allowed), this one is filled with super sexy teasing and flirting.

To Be The Friction In Your Jeans by orphan_account (E, 20K) This has slightly dated characterizations because it was written in 2012 (no one writes OT4/5 orgies anymore, do they?), but I actually really like this one. It’s simultaneously funny, oddly believable, and really damn hot.

An Invincible Summer by Brooklyn_Babylon / @twopoppies (E, 45K) This one is mine. It has an excellent voyeurism scene, if I do say so myself. LOL! Here’s the summary:

Never content to stay in one place for long, a few months down south researching for his novel seemed like an idyllic, slow-paced summer to Louis. He wasn't ready for the blistering heat, the backbreaking work of watermelon picking, or how stifling the attitudes in rural Georgia would feel. And he definitely hadn’t anticipated falling in love with the farmer’s son.

The summer of 1946 would turn out to be everything worth writing about.

See Clearly Now by Awriterwrites / @a-writerwrites (E, 12K) A 5 times fic where the boys are uni roommates. A little voyeurism, a lot of flirting, and some sexy smut at LAST!

Whoever, However by Brooklyn_Babylon / @twopoppies (E, 9K) mine, again. The whole fic is basically voyeurism. 😈

Louis could feel his heart rate pick up as he positioned the camera and Harry slowly stood up. They both knew what came next –– it had been clearly outlined in the advert Harry answered. The studio Louis worked for was filming a new series of camboy videos. Louis’ job was to make it look like amateur porn –– sweaty, sensual, dirty –– but well lit and edited. He was an artist, thank you very much.

––

Or: Louis has a much better day at work than he’d expected.

Public Display of Erection by @dinosaursmate (E, 2K) Sexy little uni AU one shot. Voyeurism involving new neighbors. Sexy times ahead!

Lights off, Lights on by @dinosaursmate (E, 3K) Another uni AU with voyeurism and masturbation. But this time they’re also roommates. That’s right, And they were roommates!

They Never Quite Leave by @kiwikero (E, 24K) I read this one ages ago, and old me is helpful, as always, and only noted, “sexy ghost sex”. Sigh. However….I love this author and everything they write is beautifully done. So…I’m including it even though I can’t remember the details (except sexy ghost sex). LOL!

the way the storms blow by rbbsbb (E, 22K) What would happen if you walked in on your best friend in the midst of an orgy? Louis finds out and it’s pretty damn hot.

Our Lives, Non Fiction by @indiaalphawhiskey (E, 114K) this is, quite literally, the best fic I’ve read in years. It’s so well written, clever, funny, emotional, and sexy. Its draw you in immediately and you’ll end up falling in love with these characters before you know it. This doesn’t really fit into voyeurism, but there is a great scene where one walks in on the other.

Cancel your reservations, no more hesitations by 14hrflight (E, 10K) I think this might have been the first alpha/alpha ABO I ever read and it’s really a good one—gender identity, body dysmorphia, but also so much comfort and understanding and sexiness.

Watermelon Sugar High by @rosemarianthyme (E, 2K) I’ve only recently discovered this author but I love what I’ve read so far and this one is….wow. So incredibly sexy. I love the way they write about kink, in general, and gender play in this one. So good!

Talk Dirty To Me by BriaMaria / @briannamarguerite (E, 13K) So….dirty talk is one of my favorite things in a fic. And when it’s done well it’s…god, it’s so, so good. And this fic does it so well. It’s simultaneously funny, and tender, and incredibly sexy. Dirty talk, friends to lovers, uni AU…what more could you ask for? Great writing? Yeah, got that too. Go read it!

Only Write By The Moon by orphan_account (E, 5K) This is basically pure smut, but this author has such a beautiful way with words…even smut sounds poetic.

And Touch Me Like You Never by runaway_train / @runaway-train-works (E, 36K) I really enjoyed how this author handled Harry’s confusion and growing attraction and eventual sexuality crisis. That, along with the angst and very sexy smut, made it a really good read. (Harry is bisexual)

Berry Bubblegum by UnderTheGoldenLights (E, 2K) roommates, camboy Harry, virgin Louis... somehow smutty and fluffy all in one.

Instant Pleasure by @100percentsassy (E, 25K) Otherwise known as the premature ejaculation fic. That kind of says it all. It’s a great read. One of the very few where Harry’s sexual prowess isn’t an automatic given. 

[s1utspeare]

Writing Tag Game

Once again, @hils79 is coming through and giving me reasons to live every day. I love u hilsy :')

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

18 lol

2. What is your total AO3 word count?

209,037

3. Top five fics by kudos

A Swiftly Tilting Planet - 228

i wish that you would love me - 133

cause it's easier to bury my head in the sand sometimes - 131

the play's the thing - 114

falling backwards, falling backwards - 103

4. Do you respond to comments, and why?

I like to!! Partially because I love talking about my work with people, and I love seeing what they've gotten out of it, and partially because i'm always so excited when people comment so it's like "!!!!!!!!"

5. What’s the fic you have written with the angstiest ending?

uhhhhh wow idk. ummmm the first fic i ever published, way back in like, 2012, was a Major Character Death ending... Precursor in the Trollhunters fandom is fairly bittersweet... idk most people like angst with a happy ending (including me) so I try not to end things on a down note. There's enough of that in the world. for recent fics, I guess falling backwards, falling backwards OH WAIT SHIT i completely forgot about can't be bothered by the teachers. nevermind, THAT one is the angstiest

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

the play's the thing! that one was just very cute and very fluffy so of course it had a happy ending ^.^

7. Do you write crossovers, if so what’s the craziest one you have done?

I've only ever done crossovers as crack fic, but i was.............. uh definitely very weird in middle school so there's some out there.

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Not really lol. There were a couple of critiques on some things back on ff.net, but they weren't even really hate, just things that I was like >:/ about bc i was like. twelve.

9. Do you write smut? If so what kind?

I didn't, and I never thought I would, but then I started writing smut for like, my professional job, and idk I just think it's really interesting??? it's something i haven't ever really tried so when I'm looking for a way to stretch my writing muscles and experiment I do some smut lol. I'm actually really proud of my chen pi/er-ye/yatou smut and i'm not entirely sure why??? probably just bc I wrote it which means i'm growing as a writer asighafjalfjg. who would've thought.

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Nope! I'm not sure if that's bc I've never been in a big-enough fandom, or if everyone I've ever come across is just really nice! My style is also pretty distinctive, so that could be a turn away from stealing lol

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I don't think so! That would be so cool though!

12. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Back on ffnet, yeah. They were all very 2012. And bad.

13. All time favorite ship!

I DON'T KNOOOOWWWWWW like my favorite ship (Wangxian) i haven't written yet, but my favorite ship to write has probably been Iron Threesome (have i even actually written them???? outside of pingpangsangxie?? i can't remember. Anyway).

14.What’s a WIP that you want to finish, but don’t think you will?

I have no idea? Like, I have every intention of finishing every WIP I have started rn... if it's not something I'm completely into, I just don't start it lmao. I want them all to be DONE but i don't have TIME lol. Uhhhh there's a dmbj kpop au that i have outlined but probably won't ever write bc there's a lot more plot than I think I have the patience to put into a piece that's essentially just "zhang rishan angst modern au"

15. What are your writing strengths?

Uhhhhhhhhh language use, probably. @xcziel said something recently about how my writing reads like it's lined in gold (and I nearly cried about it), and I definitely write as though things are going to be read aloud, so I like to pay attention to how rhythm and sounds and sentences flow. Also DIALOGGGUUUEEE see this is all because i'm a playwright alsidghasdfkjas

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

i go too fast :/ i feel like if i took some more time on things i could really up the quality of some of it but i get too excited and just want to get it OUT so i end up making tiny mistakes and then have to do more work correcting them, but if i had just been slightly more patient I could have avoided it in the first place lol

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in a fic?

I think that you should stick to languages you're fluent in, unless you have a professional translator. I also don't believe in making words in other (real) languages italicized, because that sort of emphasizes the "otherness" of a different language, and that's not a good thing. THAT BEING SAID i fucking love making up languages; I don't have any fully developed ones, but all of my fantasy worlds usually have made-up swear words lmao

18. First fandom you wrote for?

Percy Jackson adsighasdljalsdfjad. That was a while ago.

19. Fave fic you have written?

OOOoohhhhh, shit. Uh. I don't know if I have favorites, I just have things that I'm proud of for like, each fic? Like I really like At the Beginning of the End of the World because that one was written in second person, which was a fun challenge, as well as for a fandom that I'm not in (Deltarune) because it was a charity commission request, so I had to do a lot of research and stuff to figure out what was going on there. A Swiftly Tilting Planet is super fun and super interesting to me, and I'm really excited for the rest of the trilogy that I have planned, but there's also a LOT of stuff I kind of wish I could change about that one (mainly because I've read it over like 78 times and found all the small mistakes lmao). I'm also super proud of i wish that you would love me because i think I really doubled-down on the language strengths in that one, and the amount of people that fic resonated with is very important to me, because I'm one of them. So there's a lot of different things that I like about each fic I've written, and I like them all!

THIS WAS SO FUN THANK YOU HILSY i'm gonna tag @daydreamorama, @mejomonster, @jockvillagersonly, @bookjoyworm, and @pissmeoffanddie, as well as anyone who would like to TAG STEAL >:)

#fic #my writing #tag game #about me