#I just have been meaning to write for you again but I got bogged down with stuff

[runnning-outof-time]

Worth Breaking Plans For | Tommy Shelby x Reader

Request: yes by anonymous

Pairing: Tommy Shelby x reader

Summary: Tommy Shelby never thought he'd willingly go to see a ballet…that was until he found out that (Y/N) was performing in one. (Y/N) (Y/L/N) never thought she was someone worth breaking plans for…that was until Tommy came into her life.

Warnings: drinking and one bad word

Word Count: 4238

A/N: I’ve got another long one for ya here…the words just wouldn’t stop haha. This one was super fun to write. I hope I added enough ballerina elements for you, anon. If you haven’t got your fill by the end of it though, @padfootdaredmetoo has an amazing ballerina!reader series that you should check out! Enjoy! :)

PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!

Comment/Message me if you’d like to be tagged in future stories similar to this one!

(Y/N) just barely had the time to take in her surroundings before she was having a flute of champagne thrust in her direction. "Here," the drink was accompanied by the words of her friend, Lou, "have a few of these and you'll be settled in in no time."

"Thank you," (Y/N) gingerly replied, accepting the glass and bringing it up to her lips so that she could take a sip of the bubbly liquid. She then smiled at her friends, who were intently watching for any microexpression she would share with them. "It's good," she told them, feeling a little silly for even saying that in the first place.

"Good," Julia affirmed, a smile present on her face as she watched her friend take another sip, "let's get into this party now!" she cheered, taking hold of (Y/N)'s hand so that she, and Lou, could lead her deeper into the establishment.

(Y/N) took that time to look around in awe. She hadn't attended many of these parties - as if that hadn't been obvious enough - and was eager to soak in every aspect of it that she could. Spending time with a few friends from her company at either her flat or a smaller venue was more her speed, but that didn't mean she wasn't excited to see the other half of the spectrum.

"Did you hear what Lou said, (Y/N)?" the sound of Julia's voice broke into her thoughts, making her focus on her friends again.

"I'm sorry, I didn't," she admitted, a sheepish smile present on her face. They'd been here for a handful of minutes now and yet there were details of the venue and revelry that she still hadn't caught onto. She didn't feel too bad for being lost in the atmosphere of it all.

"I was saying that I've gotten word about there being some rather prominent figures at this party," Lou repeated herself, a grin forming on her face.

"Prominent in what sense?" (Y/N) couldn't help but ask. She had a right to, considering that she and her two friends were members of one of the most prestigious ballet companies that ran in London and its surrounding areas. Technically they could be considered part of the 'prominent figures' being talked about.

"I've heard everything from entertainers, to politicians, and even..." Julia trailed off, glancing around before she leaned closer to the other two women, her grin growing as she went to finish off her statement, "gangsters."

"Why did you say it in that way?" (Y/N) couldn't help but giggle at her friend's delivery of the word.

"Because the thought of it is so utterly...interesting," Julia responded.

“And exhilarating,” Lou added.

"Wouldn’t it be fun to meet a gangster?" Julia finished off with a question, making Lou nod, a giddy grin present on her face as she added a few more words of agreement.

"Hmm...I suppose," (Y/N) aired more on the coy side of things, looking out at the sea of people that were attending the party. She found it slightly hard to believe that there were actual gangsters scattered amongst these innocent looking party-goers. Maybe it'd only be those fake kinds...like the ones you'd see in the pictures.

"Come on ladies, let's find ourselves a gangster!" Julia cheered, obviously not letting the distinction bog her mind down. She clapped her hands together before leading the other two even further into the venue.

(Y/N) took that time to do some more looking around, her eyes dancing from the band, to the extravagant decorations, to the many people who seemed to be having the time of their lives. Amidst the looking, her eyes stopped on a man...one who immediately stood out from the rest of the people she'd been watching so far. She couldn't help but let her eyes linger on him for a longer amount of time. He just looked so...interesting, for lack of better words, and she found herself entranced by him.

She let her eyes linger on him until Lou broke into her thoughts - yet again - this time going on about seeing a familiar face that she wanted to go speak to. So with slight dismay, she broke her stare and followed her friends.

"Ada Thorne! It really is you!" Lou exclaimed as the three women approached another one, who had brown hair and a well-dressed figure.

"Lou! It's so good to see you!" the woman replied in a similar fashion to the initial greeting, a wide smile forming on her face. "Goodness, you've brought friends as well," she added, her eyes focusing on the other two ladies.

"Yes, I have," Lou answered with a smile, "this is Julia and (Y/N), they're both in the same company as me," she then went about the introductions.

"It's nice to meet you ladies. Lou always goes on and on about the women she performs with...it's so nice to finally put some faces to the stories," Ada said, smiling as she spoke.

"So how have things been with you?" Lou then moved to the small talk portion of the conversation, her eyebrows raised as she awaited a response.

(Y/N) figured that she didn't really need to be a part of the conversation anymore, so she happily went back to people watching. Much to her upset, she couldn't find the man she'd been fixated on earlier, no matter how hard she looked for him. That didn't mean that she didn't still enjoy taking in her surroundings once more.

She stayed locked into her own world until the feeling of Julia jabbing her side brought her out of it. "Goodness, what's that for?" she asked her friend, her eyes snapping to the other woman as she sent her a glare.

"You've been in your own world while we're being introduced to someone here," she hissed, nodding her head to the left to indicate that someone else had joined the group in the meantime.

(Y/N) was a bit nervous to look, feeling bashful all of a sudden for not having proper party manners. But she had to look, because it quickly became apparent that the conversation wasn't going on without it. So she did, and the sight that was awaiting her made her mouth go dry in seconds. Standing before her was the man...the one that she'd been transfixed on earlier. She suddenly hoped that her jaw hadn't gone slack at the realization as she scrambled to think of something to say.

"You'll have to forgive me...I like to take in my surroundings whenever I'm able to," she said to the man, a sheepish smile forming on her face.

"All is forgiven," the man brushed her apology off without second thought. The gruffness in his voice moved her in ways that she truly hadn't been moved before. That, coupled with the intensity of his ocean blue eyes that were currently focused on her, made her feel like her knees could give out at any moment.

"My name's (Y/N). (Y/N) (Y/L/N)," (Y/N) then decided to introduce herself, figuring that the group had already gotten past that step and was waiting for her to catch up.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, (Y/N)," the man said with a slight, greeting-typed nod before continuing, "my name's Tommy. Tommy Shelby," he then offered up his name, along with his hand for her to shake.

"Pleasure to meet you as well, Tommy," she responded to him, accepting the handshake with a kind smile.

"Tommy's my brother," Ada then entered the conversation, making (Y/N) remember that there were others around her, and that she wasn't just standing by herself with this man. "He says he's in town on business, but I think he's come to keep tabs on me," she added, a grin forming on her face as she took a playful jab at her sibling.

"It's nice to meet you, Tommy," Julia offered a greeting similar to (Y/N)'s, which made her wonder if maybe introductions hadn't been completed yet.

"These ladies all belong to one of the finest ballet companies this city has to offer," Ada then gave her brother some more information on the women he'd just been introduced to, her words making Lou playfully chide her.

Small talk re-commenced then, and (Y/N) tried to stay with it for the sake of not making another awkward mistake. She found it hard to be completely focused though, because no matter what she did, she couldn't quite keep her eyes off of Tommy.

——

"Well this is a surprise," Ada remarked when she opened the door to find her brother on the other side of it.

"Do you have plans for this evening?" Tommy asked, deciding to skip the greetings and get to the reason he was standing outside her door.

"I don't," Ada, thankfully, answered without much thought, "is there something you need me for?"

"I need you to come with me," Tommy continued, fishing his watch out of its pocket so that he could make sure he was still on time.

"Where?" now she was answering like the Ada he knew.

"There's a show going on at the theatre...I wanted to go to it and figured you'd might want to come," he gave her some vague details.

"And what is this show exactly?" she asked, tilting her head to the side in a questioning manner.

"Just come with me, Ada," he answered in a dismissive tone, not exactly wanting to play twenty questions at this moment.

Ada pursed her lips, not happy that her brother was being abrupt with her. She took a few moments to think his proposal over, secretly loving how the wait was driving him crazy. "I'll come," she finally agreed to his plan, "just let me make sure that Karl can be watched first," she added, turning and going back into the house to find that live-in nanny and tell her that she was going out.

—

"I never thought there'd come a day where Tommy Shelby would willingly go to a ballet," Ada commented with a smirk as she and Tommy found their seats in the front row of the upper balcony. She'd been sending these little jabs his way since she got the program and realized what show he was bringing them to.

"Ada," Tommy spoke in a warning tone, having heard enough of her teasing.

"Fine, I'll stop," she conceded, although she was trying her best to withhold her giggles.

Tommy just shook his head and turned his attention to the stage's curtains. He could see from the corner of his eye that Ada had opened the program and started flipping through it. He was thankful that she'd now found something else to do. But he wasn't out of the woods just yet.

"Which of the ladies is it?" she asked after a few minutes had passed, her words making him turn to look at her with furrowed brows. "Of the women we met at the party...which one is it?" she added more clarification.

Tommy went to speak, but the house lights dimming stopped - saved - him from having to answer. A round of applause coursed through the theatre as the curtains were pulled aside and the performance began. Tommy spent the next hour or so keeping his eyes fixed on the woman he hadn't been able to rid his mind of since he last saw her at the party.

—

"Oh my, this is so lovely," (Y/N) cooed as she accepted the single flower and hand-drawn picture from one of the girls that had come backstage to meet her, "thank you so much!"

"I drew the picture myself," the girl boasted, her words making (Y/N) look at the picture to see that there were two ballerinas drawn on it: one bigger and one smaller. "I want to be a ballerina one day when I grow up," the girl added, a toothy smile forming on her face.

"You keep practicing and you may just be on stage with us one day," (Y/N) told her, an encouraging smile present on her face.

The group of girls said their goodbyes then, their mothers calling them back over so that they could leave. That was when (Y/N) looked up to see a familiar figure leaning against the wall not too far away. The breath got stuck in her throat as she became focused on him; feeling the exact same feelings she'd experienced at the party. Goodness, he just had this aura to him.

"Tommy," she hated that she said his name a little too eagerly, "I...I would have never expected to see you here," she couldn't help but voice her surprise.

"I was in town and figured I'd come to see a show," he brushed her statement off with a slight shrug of his shoulders after he pushed himself off of the wall to move closer to her.

"Did you come alone?" she just had to ask.

"No, Ada came as well. She went off to find your friend...Lou, I believe it was," he answered, glancing down at the items she was holding then. "Had I known you were accepting gifts, I would have brought one," he said, motioning to the flowers and bears she had in her arms.

"Oh no...that's not necessary," she brushed him off, trying to ignore the giddy feeling she was now getting in her stomach.

"You did well," he complimented her performance, tucking his hands into his pockets as he spoke.

"Thank you," (Y/N) accepted the compliment with a smile. She looked down at the things she was holding then, feeling the heat rise within her more with each second that they held eye contact.

"You know..." Tommy started, clearing his throat before continuing, "you should at least let me take you for a drink; since I came here empty-handed."

His words brought (Y/N)'s eyes back up to his in a flash, and he most certainly caught the look of surprise she was wearing before she tried hard to hide it. "Oh you don't have to do that," she tried to brush his offer off.

"No, I insist," he held steady, "it'd be a way to celebrate a successful show...my first ballet," he added, the final words of his sentence making her let out a stifled laugh.

"You're truly offering?" she checked with him before giving her final answer.

"I am," he nodded, a smile playing on his lips.

She had to bite back the smile that was threatening to form as she took a moment's pause. If she answered too soon, it would have looked like she was overly excited for this opportunity. "I'd like that then," she told him, hoping that her giddiness wasn't plastered clear across her face. "I need to quickly put these in the dressing room," she added, raising her arms slightly to call attention to the gifts she'd been holding.

"I'll be waiting here," he told her, nodding as she turned and walked towards the dressing rooms.

She was unable to get to them without being stopped by Julia first. "Is that the man from the party, (Y/N)?" her friend asked, her eyes swapping between (Y/N) and Tommy.

"It is," (Y/N) answered, again hoping that her giddiness wasn't too apparent.

"What's he doing here?"

"He's offered to take me for drinks," (Y/N) couldn't help but feel proud as she spoke.

A grin spread across Julia's face as she heard her friend's response, "oh so it's like that?" she questioned, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Not exactly like that," (Y/N) was quick to brush her off, "he's just being kind."

"You'll have to tell me all about it at rehearsals tomorrow...we'll see how kind he ended up being," Julia stated, winking as she put emphasis on the word 'kind'.

"It's not like that, Julia!" (Y/N) insisted, her eyebrows raised as she stressed her point in a harsh whisper.

"Don't keep your man waiting." (Y/N)'s statement was ignored, and Julia's grin only grew as she spoke, ending off with giving the other woman a friendly push towards the dressing room.

(Y/N) let out a huff as she went to quickly put the gifts she'd received down. She then hurried to get changed out of her costume before grabbing her things and heading out of the dressing room. Tommy was standing right where she left him, and she sent him a smile as she approached him. He asked her if she was ready, and she nodded, allowing the two to leave the theatre and go wherever they'd be having drinks.

—

Conversation came easily between the two as they settled in at the bar of one of the more prestigious clubs in the city. (Y/N) would have loved to look around and get lost in her surroundings but, well...she had more interesting things to look at.

They learned a good bit about each other as they sat and talked. (Y/N) told Tommy all about her rise to the company that she was dancing for now, and Tommy in turn told (Y/N) of how he made his way out of Birmingham, coming from nothing to now dealing with some of the heads of the business sphere. He also made hints at some other avenues that he's simultaneously working in, but didn't really elaborate on them. (Y/N) truly didn't need details though...she'd become so enthralled by this man that she was sure it'd take something dire to make her want to leave him.

So enthralled, in fact, that she did something that would be considered rather bold by her standards and invited him back to her flat for a nightcap. Tommy, who was also enjoying himself, accepted the invitation with no hesitation, then going to pay off their tab so that they could leave the club for the building she lived in.

Things transitioned more than smoothly to her flat. The shift in the energy between them became increasingly more noticeable the closer they got to the building, and neither said a word as they rode the elevator up to her floor, instead choosing to let their eyes do the talking as they held each other's gazes.

If she was being honest, (Y/N) couldn't wait much longer to get him behind the privacy of her door. The second she did, her hands found the lapels of his suit jacket so that she could bring him to her and press their lips together in a haste kiss. Tommy accepted it with a matched eagerness, holding her tight to his body as he deepened it.

"I'm sorry...that was a bit forward of me," (Y/N) panted once they'd pulled away. She couldn't mask the bashfulness that was coming on once her mind caught up to her actions.

"Don't apologize," Tommy told her, taking a chance to take in her features at this new closeness, "I quite liked it." A slight laugh left her lips as he finished speaking, one that sounded like music to his ears.

"Would you like something to drink?" she asked him then.

"Sure."

(Y/N) nodded before she glanced down to where she was still gripping his lapels. She exhaled a breath of a laugh before releasing them and smoothing them back to their previous state. Tommy let go of her waist then, and she quickly turned to head to the kitchen so that he wouldn't see her frown at the loss of contact. He followed her to the kitchen, not really wanting to leave her side either.

"Did you enjoy the performance today?" she asked him as she grabbed a bottle and two glasses.

"I did," he answered after having to recall how the night started. It felt like it happened so long ago at this point. "You didn't have much of a part in it though," he pointed out then.

"Yeah," she answered, a bit of a lopsided smile present as she went about pouring the drinks. "I did audition for the lead in our next show though..." she paused, sliding one glass towards him before she looked up with a smile, "and I got the part!" she couldn't help but voice her happiness to this man she'd only met a week ago.

"Yeah? When is the show?" he asked, genuine curiosity present in his voice.

"It's in two weeks. On the twentieth," a fire started to burn in her stomach at the thought of him coming to see her perform again.

"Fuck," he breathed as he looked down at the glass.

This was a response she was not expecting, and it confused her. "What? Is something wrong?" she asked, all of the excitement now gone.

"I'll be out of town that day, on business," he told her, his simple sentence effectively breaking her heart. Why had she gotten her hopes up?

"Oh," she couldn't help but voice her upset, glancing up at him before she took a drink.

She looked at him again as she set the glass down on the counter, trying not to let this turn of events spoil what had been an otherwise amazing evening. Hell, she had this insanely handsome man in her flat...who was she to stand around and mope over something she couldn't control? Tommy was taking that time to look her over too, and she couldn't help but love the feeling of his eyes on her.

"We still have tonight though..." she spoke again after a few moments had passed, keeping her eyes steady on him, watching his every move.

He let his eyes trail over her face again, taking in every inch of it. He licked his lips as he thought about the magnitude of her statement. "We do have tonight," he answered then, letting her lead the interaction.

She couldn't stop from biting on her bottom lip as she thought of how to word her next question. The energy coursing between them was almost palpable at this point, and she wondered how she was able to shift so quickly from disappointment to desire just by standing in his presence. It felt like ages before she spoke again, a hint of curiosity now sparkling in her eyes: "would you like to come to bed with me?"

Tommy didn't wait ages to give his response. He broke the distance between them in seconds, his hands finding the sides of her face so that he could pull her into a deep kiss.

The kiss alone buried the upset of him not being able to attend her performance, and if it was a precursor of what would come, (Y/N) knew that this would be a night she'd hold in her mind for years to come.

——

(Y/N) hadn't had a moment to herself since she exited the stage after final bows. She was being swarmed by the fellow ballerinas in her company, who were congratulating her on a wonderful show and already celebrating their collective performance. She didn't mind it though...she was buzzing from the high herself.

"You have a few fans waiting out in the hall to see you, Miss (Y/L/N)," one of the stagehands told her once she'd finished the conversation she was having.

(Y/N) nodded and allowed the man to lead her to the door that separated the backstage area from the rest of the theatre. He opened the door for her and she thanked him before seeing the same group of little girls that had been at her last show waiting for her. She greeted them with a wide smile, happily accepting their flowers and other gifts that they came back to bring her. After many hugs and a short conversation, she said goodbye and some words of encouragement.

Standing tall again, she looked ahead of her and found the last person she expected to. Tommy Shelby was there, leaning against the wall much like he had last time, but now he had a bouquet of beautiful red roses with him. (Y/N) went over to him without a second thought.

"I brought you flowers this time," he was the first to speak, raising the bouquet slightly to accentuate his statement.

"You...you did," she stuttered out, still not quite believing her eyes, "were...were you...?" She couldn’t get a complete sentence out. Not once in the times they’d met up over the last two weeks did he mention he was able to make it to her show - they hadn’t spoken about it after that night.

"I was," he answered with a slight chuckle, a smile forming on his lips at her shock.

"Please tell me you didn't cancel your plans for me."

"I did," he confirmed what she already knew, "you're worth breaking plans for, love."

The widest smile formed on her face at his statement, and she couldn't help but close the distance to wrap her arms around his neck in a tight hug. He chuckled at her reaction, holding onto her as tightly as she was holding him. "You did amazing," he mumbled into her neck before pressing a kiss to it.

"I'm happy you came," she said, holding back her emotions with a smile as she pulled away, "so happy," she added, her hands moving to his face so that she could kiss him.

Even though she’d just given what was surely the best performance of her career, (Y/N) couldn’t deny that she’d never felt happier than she did at this moment.

Tagged: @mystcldydrms @the-anxious-youth @cloudofdisney @look-at-the-soul @elenavampire21 @mrsalwayswrite @julkaamazing @evita-shelby @lilyrachelcassidy @notyour-valentine @shelbydelrey @onlydeadcells @peakyswritings @just-a-blackhole @watercolorskyy @strayrockette @peakyduchesss @alexxavicry @captivatedbycillianmurphy @yummycastiel @dark-academia-slut @tommystargirl @stevie75 @lyarr24 @signorellisantichrist @zablife @anotherblinder @midnightmagpiemama @cillmequick @rangerelik @dandelionprints @letal-y-poetica @itscheybaby @gypsy-girl-08 @insanitybyanothername @depxiety @raincoffeeandfandoms @dragons-are-my-favorite @acewritesfics @forgottenpeakywriter @cljordan-imperium @areyenotfondofmelobster @little-diable @thomashelbyswife @iambored24601 @shaddixlife

MASTERLIST

#tommy shelby #tommy shelby x reader #tommy shelby x y/n #tommy shelby imagine #tommy shelby one shot #tommy shelby oneshot #tommy shelby fanfic #tommy shelby fanfiction #peaky blinders #peaky blinders x reader #peaky blinders x y/n #peaky blinders imagine #peaky blinders one shot #peaky blinders oneshot #peaky blinders fanfic #peaky blinders fanfiction #fanfiction #fanfic

[nevadancitizen]

do you think you could write something where könig and/or ghost (separate) were nearby or watched reader try to participate in a conversation but constantly got ignored or talked over to the point where they just kinda go silent and walk away? they end up comforting the reader and just trying to be a shoulder to cry on while they talk about their frustrations because this is something that always happens to them <\3

it doesn’t have to be too long and you don’t have to worry about getting to this request too quickly!! thank u for reading anyways :3

-> THE SOCIAL WEAK LINK

synopsis: rookies and debriefings are pains in both you and ghost's asses. rich people fail the turing test while interacting with you and könig.

word count: 2.2k (~1.1k each)

characters: ghost, könig, awkward! reader (lol)

notes: (rings dinner bell) hey friend.. this req has been sitting since september.. im so sorry (ಥ﹏ಥ)

-> GHOST:

Debriefings were always boring. Everyone was tired, sweaty, and just wanted a cold shower and a warm bed. But what else encompasses the military so eloquently except unnecessary misery?

And to add to the misery, some rookies had tagged along to the mission. “On-the-job training,” Price had prattled off as he read the mission statement. He had given you and the rest of the 141 an exaggerated look that screamed If these rookies compromise the mission I’m going to tear the Lieutenant Colonel a new one.

The rookies (with callsigns Quest and Cable) were nice enough. They weren’t given the opportunity to burn off their energy on the mission like the 141 – they’d stayed behind as backup while the 141 went in to deal with the bad guys. As a consequence, now they’re in the debriefing room, chattering away like parrots.

Ghost could fall asleep in the chair he was in, if Cable and Quest were a little quieter. He looks at the next spinny chair over, where you’re sitting. You’ve got your knees tucked to your chin and are silently tracing the patterns in the wood table with a fingernail. Every now and again, you glance at the rookies, but ultimately turn your eyes away.

You were always just a bit too awkward to fit in with the rest of the military. Either too quiet or too loud; you rambled too often and your voice cracked when you did. You slipped through the cracks, into the quiet background with Laswell and Shepherd. You’re one of the powerful hands that move the pieces on the chessboard, but not a well-recognized one. Well-recognized within the 141, yes, but not on a wider scale. 

Ghost can tell how you’re feeling by the obvious emotion on your face. It’s yearning – an emotion Ghost knows well.

His eyes sweep the rest of the table. Gaz is fucking around on his phone, probably making a new Pinterest board, while Soap leans over his shoulder and watches him. Price is in another room, talking to someone important. Ghost couldn’t really bring himself to care about who. 

The entire room is bogged down with an unmistakable tiredness that goes right over Quest and Cable’s heads. Really, the only sound in the room is their voices and, intermittently, yours as you try to inject yourself into their conversation. Each attempt is met with pursed lips that barely count as smiles and something along the lines of “Yeah. Anyway…”

Eventually, Price pops in, leaning his head on the doorframe. The brim of his hat crinkles and his nose wrinkles up in disdain. He sighs. “Everyone out. Lieutenant Colonel wants this meeting room for herself. We’ll debrief later.”

Quest and Cable pop up like excited teenagers and head for the door, continuing to talk. “I’m soooo goddamn hungry. Hopefully the mess hall has something good…”

“Hey!” You practically jump from your chair, your eyes on the rookies. “Um, I heard that they just restocked the vending machines? Do you wanna maybe chick – I mean, check – them out with me? They’re just down the hall.”

They both tense, and Quest looks over their shoulder. They smile awkwardly and exchange a look with Cable. “Uh… maybe another time?”

You visibly deflate and rock back on your heels. “Yeah, totally. See you later.”

They both nod tersely and exit. You take a deep breath and let out a long sigh. You sit back in the spinny chair and it wheels backwards from the force.

Gaz shuts his phone off and groans while Soap sucks air through his teeth. 

“Not your best effort,” Gaz says. 

“I know,” you say. 

“Maybe you’re not just compatible with rookies?” Soap tries.

You roll your head back against the back of the chair and stare at the ceiling. “I know.” 

You sink further into the chair, then stand. “Whatever. Let’s clear out. Price will have our heads if we don’t.”

Ghost tails you out the door. You don’t acknowledge him, but you know he’s there (even if his footsteps are extraordinarily light for a man of his stature). 

“Pompous pricks, ay?” Ghost says. 

You stick your hands in your pockets, hiking your shoulders up by your ears. “Wish they were a little more personable. Wish I was a little more personable.”

“Why, you’re plenty personable.” Ghost laughs gruffly at his own joke as he nudges your shoulder with his. 

“Asking to go ‘chick out’ the vending machines is a personable interaction?” You relax your arms and knock your elbow against Ghost’s. 

“I thought it was funny,” Ghost says. “Even if it was just a slip-up.”

You sigh, but keep up with Ghost as he walks. “If it was funny, then why didn’t they laugh?”

Ghost thinks for a second. “Maybe they just don’t have a sense of humor?”

“You don’t have a sense of humor,” you jab.

Ghost scoffs. “Of course I do.”

“Then make me laugh,” you say. “Make me laugh right now.”

Ghost breathes in and exhales slowly through the fabric of his mask. “Well… do you know why the Cold War was called the Cold War?”

“The supernations fought using proxy wars,” you say. “America and the USSR never really went head-to-head.”

Ghost sighs pointedly. “Yes,” he says, “but also because of the icy-BMs.”

“The what?”

“The Cold War?” Ghost repeats. “Icy?”

“ICBM stands for Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles.” You stop midstep, looking at Ghost with a disbelieving smile. “Ghost, don’t tell me you don’t know what ICBM stands for?”

“No, it –” Ghost sighs. “Icy sounds like IC? Icy-BMs?”

You burst out laughing, waving Ghost away like he was some form of stupid. “Ghost, seriously? You don’t – oh my God!”

“I’m not a fucking knob, I know what…” 

Ghost can’t bring himself to correct you as he watches you laugh like that. It’s a bit too loud and there’s a snort in there somewhere, but it rings true and warms Ghost’s heart. He doesn’t mind being seen as dumb for a minute if you’re able to warm his heart with a sound as nice as that. 

-> KöNIG: 

König nearly always hates going undercover. 

More often than not, the higher-ups stick him in some ill-tailored enemy armor and send him in with nothing but a less-than-encouraging slap on the ass. They know he’ll make it out alive.

On this mission, he feels a little more comfortable. It’s more than obvious you’re not. 

You and König are camped out on the edge of a ballroom, sitting together at a small table. You’re dressed in a fancy outfit that just screams decadence, and it fits your role well – the adult child of some rich, cigar-chomping tech baron. König is playing the role of your bodyguard, dressed down from his usual military garb in a plain black suit (with kevlar padding) and a balaclava.

You cross one leg over the other at the knee and look down at your flute of champagne as you swirl it. The bubbles rise to the surface and pop as the pale liquid settles. 

“I hate this,” you say under your breath, just loud enough for König to hear. 

He nods along, but straightens up when a small group of people approach the table. There’s an older woman, a middle-aged man, and a girl, maybe fifteen. 

“Hi, sweetheart!” An older woman croons at you. “You’re Bohumil Silvester’s youngest, right?”

“Oh!” You sit up straighter and put the champagne flute on the table. “Yes, I am. And, um – and who might you be?”

“I’m Laila Matthews.” Laila checks over her shoulder at the people accompanying her. “This is my daughter, Adine, and this is my husband, Keaton.”

“It’s so nice to meet you!” You smile politely, but König can scope out of the corner of his eye that you’re gripping a bit of the fabric of your too-fancy outfit like you’re meaning to rip it off. You spout your fake name to Laila with a cheeky “But you know that already, right, ma’am?”

Laila is utterly delighted with your carefully constructed persona. She throws her head back and laughs, one hand on her chest and the other finding Keaton’s shoulder. “Oh, Lord. Aren’t you just your father’s child?”

You nod and, once again, smile politely while exchanging side-eye glances with König. He’s just as confused as you are. 

As soon as Laila recovers, she’s talking again. She gestures vaguely in König’s direction. “And who is this? Security, for this casual meeting?”

“Uh, yes, ma’am,” you say. “You can never be too careful these days, with all the laws about concealed carry and everything.”

“Well, I’m 57, and I’ve only had security for a few occasions,” Laila says. 

“You’re 57?” You bark, a little too loud. You can feel a few heads turn your way and Laila’s stare turns withering. König’s shoulders shake as he coughs into his fist.

“I mean, um, you’re 57?” You try again, quieter. “Because you don’t look it. Like, at all. Ma’am.”

Laila’s tone is flat when she speaks. “Right.”

“I meant, um, you look younger? Uh, anyway.” You smile nervously, then pick up your champagne flute and take a sip. “I love your family’s outfits! And the, uh, the way they match.”

Keaton leans in and grabs a hold of Laila’s shoulder. He gets up on his toes to whisper something in Laila’s ear. It’s hard to hear over the ambient noise of the ballroom. Laila nods and Keaton continues to whisper.

“Um, Laila? Mrs. Matthews?” You try to get her attention, to no avail. She keeps nodding to Keaton’s words like you’re not even there.

You stand and turn to Adine. “Adine, right? Tell your mother it was nice speaking to her.”

“Uh-huh. Sure.” Adine nods absently, her eyes somewhere else on the ballroom floor. 

You toss the rest of the champagne in the flute down like it’s a shot and stand from the table. You make eye contact with König and nod towards the French doors that lead towards the balcony. 

People don’t notice as you and König step out. The sky is clear, yet the night is still young enough to be starless. 

“Christ, I hate rich people,” you mutter under your breath. 

König moves and leans his back against the wrought iron of the railing. His eyes sweep across the small area, then he nods. “Yes. That interaction was less than pleasant.”

You lean against the railing next to him. “Why was she even talking to me? And what did she mean, ‘Aren’t you just your father’s child?’ Like, what’s that supposed to mean?”

“I am… not sure,” König says. “Maybe it’s part of rich people code?”

“Yeah, maybe.” You huff out a laugh, then sigh. “I really wasn’t the best pick for this mission.”

“What do you mean?” König asks. “You are perfectly capable of fighting.”

“No, the, like…” you sigh again. “The talking part? I’m not fit for that. Never been a good conversationalist, never will be.”

“You are conversing with me right now, no?” König gestures between you and him. “This is a conversation. You are doing fine.”

“Yes, but…” you trail off. “You saw me. I shouted her age out in front of everyone.”

König hums. “To be fair, it was a bit of a shock.”

You glance up at him and laugh, a pretty smile gracing your features. “Shut up.”

“But it was!” König insists. The fabric of his balaclava puffs out as he laughs. “I had to cough to cover up my laugh. I nearly had to excuse myself.”

“Yeah, sure.” You shove his shoulder half-heartedly as you turn and look out over the railing, at the courtyard. König follows your gaze.

The courtyard is illuminated by ambient lamps. Paths are laid with bricks, with neatly trimmed grass in between each one. Exotic plants from every corner of the globe line the pathways, some of their flowers closed for the night. A fountain is in the middle, with water spouting out of the trumpet of a cherub statue. A few people surround the fountain, talking quietly with drinks in their hands in the low light. 

You lean close to König and point at one of the people – a man in a navy suit. “That’s the target. Mister T. Kilgore.”

“So he is,” König says. He pats under his armpit, checking his sidearm. “We need to get moving. I do not like the way Laila’s husband was talking to her. Suspicious.”

You nod and send König a small smile. “We’re still going with the plan, right? I’m going in and playing drunk?”

“Of course.” König mirrors your smile even though you can’t see it. “Besides, it’ll give you an opportunity to practice your conversation skills.”

You scoff, but you’re still smiling. “Yeah, if I’m planning on interacting with everybody as a drunk idiot for the rest of my life.”

“I’m serious!” König insists. “More likely than not, you’ll never see these people again.”

A beat of silence.

“You’re right.” You knock your elbow against König’s. “Let’s give them a show.”

#riptide writes 🌊 #call of duty 🪖 #requested ✨ #skelletonscloset #call of duty x reader #call of duty x y/n #call of duty x you #cod x reader #cod x y/n #cod x you #könig call of duty #könig cod #könig mw2 #könig #könig x reader #könig x y/n #könig x you #konig x reader #konig x y/n #konig x you #simon ghost riley #simon riley #simon riley call of duty #simon riley mw2 #simon riley imagine #simon riley cod #ghost #ghost call of duty #ghost cod #ghost mw2

[nyarlathotep-thecrawlingchaos]

Hey could you do a Opla with Zoro x reader x Sanji? Where she is from a world without magic (like ours) and wants to find a way to get back home to her family. An Zoro catches feelings for her. (The restaurant scene but with y/n, making Zoro jelly asf.)

Reader getting isekai'd into One Piece LA?? OH I AM SO DOWN FOR THIS—

And I haven't written Zoro in an actual fanfic yet (on Tumblr at least, and it's been probably over ten years since the last time I DID write him), so again. So unbelievably down for this.

I can already tell this is going to be a little on the long side (spanning from just before Baratie to probably just after Cocoyasi Village), and I'm a little bogged down on my other fics, so here's a preview.

Genres/tropes will include humor, angst, hurt/comfort, slow-burn, love triangle, and honestly who knows what else

::BIG HECKIN EDIT BRO::

Clicky here for the full first chapter

Strawhat Stowaway

Just a preview

Probably gonna be working on this all night this is so much fun I can't

I cannot thank you enough for this anon I needed it

After an alcohol drenched Halloween party at your friends' dorm, you wake up to find yourself in a strange place. This might not have been terribly alarming...if not for the fact that said "strange place" is an entirely different world.

There really hadn't been a dull moment since Zoro agreed to sail with Luffy, and this was definitely no exception.

He blinked rapidly down at the unfamiliar girl stretched across the hammock, in the cabin below the quarterdeck of the Going Merry, fast asleep and dressed in an oddly sterotypical pirate costume with what looked like a fake flintlock pistol tucked into one of her cloth belts. The small "crew" hadn't long set out from Syrup Village with their new caravel, and already things were getting weird again.

He backed out of the cabin slowly, leaning back through the doorway to look at the others behind him—Nami going over the Grand Line chart, Usopp sitting on the railing behind her listening to her explain the Red Line; and Luffy, reclined back on the ship's figurehead, still clearly thrilled that his plan to get a free ship had worked out in his favor, nevermind the hiccup of all of them nearly dying—again.

"Uh—hey, guys?" The other three looked up at him, Nami lifting an eyebrow at his offhand tone. "I...think we have a stowaway."

"Excuse me?" said Nami sharply, immediately rolling up the map.

"Whoa, seriously? We've got a—" Luffy slid down from the figurehead and hopped down onto the deck, excitable as ever and hurrying over with Usopp and Nami to look over Zoro's shoulder. He laughed a little. "Cool."

"Wh—this isn't cool," said Nami, shaking her head at Luffy in disbelief. "It's technically kidnapping."

Luffy's face fell at that. "Oh—yeah, probably not cool. Uh...." He rubbed at the back of his neck, glancing between his crewmates. "So...do we turn around and take her back?"

"She's not from Syrup Village." Zoro glanced over his shoulder at Usopp, who looked easily as flummoxed as the rest of them. "I mean, it's not a big town, I know everyone there, and...." He shook his head slowly. "Never seen her before."

Of course it couldn't be that simple. Nothing was ever that simple.

"Then how did she end up on a ship that's been sitting in the shipyard there for years?" said Nami, crossing her arms as she leaned in the doorframe behind Zoro, frowning thoughtfully.

"Five hundred Berry says there was booze involved," offered Zoro, and she scoffed.

"Not taking that bet."

And that was the moment you woke.

Rubbing your eyes, stretching and slowly opening your eyes.

Blinking just as slowly as you seemed to take in the strangers huddled in the doorway.

And then, with a yelp of alarm, you sat straight up, attempting to back yourself against the wall, and fell off of the hammock entirely instead, scooting yourself back into a corner, your eyes wide as saucers.

"Wh—who—where the hell—?"

The crew glanced between each other in growing concern and alarm, and finally, while you continued to stammer in fright in the corner looking very much like a trapped animal, Nami heaved out a sigh. "Not it."

"Not it," Usopp echoed quickly.

Luffy was utterly unfazed, shoving himself into the small confines of the doorframe as well, his shoulder pressed up against Zoro's arm. "Hi there! I'm Monkey D. Luffy, this is my first mate Zoro—" Zoro rolled his eyes toward the ceiling as Luffy clapped him on the shoulder. "So..." He pushed through and sat down in the center of the hammock and you pressed yourself further back against the wall, looking no less terrified. "How come you were asleep on our ship?"

"Sh—ship—?" you repeated breathlessly, glancing warily between him and Zoro. Your eyes landed on the three katanas at his hip and widened even further.

"Yeah! We're going to the Grand Line," Luffy said, grinning happily. "You can come with us, I'm still gathering a crew. I'm gonna be King of the Pi—ow, hey!" he added as Zoro grabbed him by the back of his collar.

"Not helping, captain," he said, dragging him out of the cabin. "Just go do—go do something else."

"I am kinda hungry," he said, frowning. Then he waved at Nami and Usopp. "Hey guys, crew meeting in the kitchen!"

Nami grumbled something about not being a crew, but despite that and rolling her eyes, both she amd Usopp followed Luffy across the deck and out of sight, roping Zoro right into dealing with...whatever the hell this was. The swordsman leaned in the doorframe for a long, silent moment, hand curled over his mouth, brow furrowed, trying to decide how to address the issue. The fact that you had no idea where you were was definitely not a huge help in the matter.

He pulled his hand down with a sigh, crossing his arms.

"Alright, so...you got a name?" he asked finally. You swallowed, eyeing his swords again as you forced out your name—and then pointed at the swords.

"A-are those—real?" Your voice practically squeaked.

"Uh...yeah," he said slowly, glancing down at the handles briefly before looking back at you again, raising his eyebrows. He glanced at the obviously fake gun in your belt, and nodded at it. "What about that?"

"N—no, why the hell would I be carrying around a real—" You shook your head quickly, your eyes Stull wide with disbelief. "I was at a Halloween party at my friend's dorm and—"

"Hollow-what?"

You blinked, and gave a small, nervous laugh. "What?" you forced out weakly. "Halloween? Kids go trick-or-treating, college kids use it as an excuse to dress up in stupid costumes and get drunk?"

"Trick-or— college?"

This definitely wasn't helping—you were staring at him like he had lived under a rock his whole life, he was staring at you like you were speaking another language, and you might as well have been. It was pretty clear that wherever you had come from, it hadn't been Syrup Vilage. It probably hadn't been anywhere even in the East Blue.

But that didn't make any sense at all.

"Look," he said, shaking his head, shaking away the growing fog of confusion. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"I—ah..." You grimaced a little, wrapping your arms around your knees. "I vaguely remember getting talked into doing a keg stand, one of my friends dropping me, hitting my head pretty hard." You rubbed at your left temple a moment, and frowned when you pulled your hand back. "I swear I was bleeding...." you mumbled to yourself, rubbing at your eyes now.

"So...you got drunk at this... 'Halloween' thing," said Zoro slowly, "hit your head, and...stumbled onto a shipyard to sleep it off?"

That didn't sound right to him—nor did it seem to sound right to you, as you lowered your hand only from your eyes to stare at him, your expression deadpan.

"Last I checked," you said, "there weren't any ships near my campus."

"...Right," he said, nodding slowly. He rubbed at the back of his neck, resting his other elbow at the hilt of one of his katanas, trying to form some grasp of the situation.

And failing spectacularly.

"You have no idea what I'm talking about," you said, your shoulders slumping.

"Nope," affirmed Zoro, shrugging a shoulder. This was by far the weirdest thing that had happened since he had started following Luffy—and considering he had just assisted in saving a millionaire heiress from being murdered by grown adults dressed like cats, that was saying quite a lot. "No idea."

#opla #opla zoro #opla fanfiction #fanfiction preview #zoro #zoro one piece #zoro x reader

[emmettworld]

Okay I promise this is genuine and I don't want to send hate, and if you don't believe it, fair...but why post the works involving minors and nsfw (yes that includes the incest) ? I do believe that you can write whatever you want, and I don't think you're some boggeyman that get his kick of writing about abused kids or whatever bullshit. But there's a difference between writing it and publishing it, and while I think it's unfair your blog was straight up deleted and not flagged, I can also understand why Tumblr did it : I read the ToS, and I don't think they're just for real minors (but it's my personnal interpretation). This type of work (text, art, etc) can be shared with a group of friends or a group of people who're all used to this kind of content, and maybe it would prevent the risk of people stumbling unto texts involving Logan and David for example (happened to me once, oof) and more importantly, Tumblr throwing a fit? You're an amazing artist and while I haven't kept up with your content for a while (I unfollowed when you started posting about incest and non-con against minors sorry, it's a topic I really don't like), I don't want you to keep on being flagged and banned forever.

the simplest answer i have is because it's part of who i am as a creator, and sharing those parts has not just been extremely liberating and cathartic for me, but for others too.

that's one of the most important things to me. it would be different if all i got was hate and not a shred of support or positivity -- if nobody told me that they liked it, that it helped them be more comfortable with themselves and their own work, then i don't know if i would. it's hard to say whether i would just get bogged down by hate and give it up or if it would keep going regardless.

but aside from that, it's the principle. it's the fact that i, as well as similar creators, am not forcing anyone to see this content. i am not posting things uncensored for anyone to stumble upon. i always use very specific warnings, read mores, and links. not once would you encounter a post of mine like that and see anything explicit unless you chose to view it.

and that's the principle i'm fighting for: choice.

this website used to be place where you could pretty much post anything, way before the Naughty Ban, because we understood it was all about personal choice. about curating your own content, blocking tags and blogs you didn't want to see, unfollowing if you had to (which you have EVERY right to do, and don't need to apologize for!). most of us followed online etiquette and those who didn't, again, you can just choose to unfollow or block. not report them just for posting shit you don't like.

the TOS explicitly states real minors. if they wanted to include fictional, they should have stated that. if they wanted to include fictional, they should not only reference the actual crime, but the thought crime of creating things that don't adhere to morals in reality.

personally, i think it's one or two people throwing a fit, but that's just me. i think my content, which is not even posted directly to this site and is by no means being shoved in anyone's face, is the least of this site's problems or concerns.

but anyways, that's why i'm ready to die on this hill. because i've met so many wonderful people from being open about what i post, no matter how disturbing it may be, and because we should all be able to post freely as creators if we're not directly showing anything explicit that could violate TOS.

#answered asks #anonymous #tw purity discourse

[wildissylupus]

Alright I saw someone post about people misinterpreting Gabe being an ex-cop and it got me thinking....

And you know what happens when I start to think...

So this person pointed out that Reyes left the police force and joined the military right after he realised the corruption within the police force and that nothing he did effected anything. This is a cycle that repeated up until Overwatch, which is what Doomfist used to manipulate Reyes. This person is correct and I think the reason why this isn't pointed out more is because of how bad "Code of Violence" is written. I stated before that what upsets me about CoV is the fact it brings up so many interesting points but it's bogged down by the shitty character writing and the lack of focus on those points. This is one of the things that is heavily effected by those problems.

Reyes saw the same corruption time and time again to the point when he talked to Akande he was already at a breaking point. The thing is though is that a big part of Reyes's character in this aspect is that he sees the corruption in the police force, in the military, in Overwatch, but what he doesn't look at is how he's contributing to that corruption. Reyes is said to have been "hard on crime" when he was a police officer, which might seem good on the surface, more criminals locked away means less crime right? But that's not how it works, and it actively ends up benefitting the corruption within the police force. Him being harder on crime didn't do anything because Reyes himself was contributing to the corruption. This cycle repeats up until a very important moment.

When Gabe hires Cassidy.

Now I have been on record saying that Cassidy did not have much of a choice in joining Blackwatch, it was either that or a high security prison, not to mention he was around 17 at the time. I have also been on record saying that Blackwatch was not a health work environment. However, that doesn't erase the fact that for Cassidy it gave him an out, gave him a chance to do something other than crime, it had many downsides but it still helped Cassidy.

And it's also something Reyes had never done previously, give a criminal a second chance. This is a positive turning point for Gabriel's character, and it would continue to be positive until Moira and Genji, Genji because he really shouldn't have been hired in the state he was in, both physically and mentally, and Moira for very obvious reasons.

The thing about Reyes when I first started thinking about this is that I noticed he tends to over correct, he saw what he did with Cassidy made a change, something that hadn't happened before, and then proceeded to give a chance to people who either shouldn't have been given one or should have been given a different chance. Then when that (literally) blew up in his face, he went back to what he was doing before, being hard on the people he thinks deserves it.

The saddest thing about this is the fact that if he had just talked to Cassidy, someone who is a confirmed victim of the systems in place, he would have gotten some insight on what he was doing wrong. But another thing about Reyes is that he's stubborn, combining that with the fact he tends to underestimate Cole. Instead of looking for advice, something Cassidy would give him, he ended up pushing him away.

And this leads me to my last point.

This continuous cycle of recognising corruption, trying to fix that corruption, ends up helping corruption spread, leads to Reyes becoming Reaper. Leads him into becoming the thing that he was fighting against, because he is now helping an organisation that directly benefits from the corruption of the world. An organisation determined to make history repeat itself. A history Gabe lived through and saw didn't actually have that much of a positive impact other than to the people who actively benefited from it, aka, the rich and well connected that exploit other people and get away with it.

Honestly I don't know why I haven't taken a better look at this until now, it is so interesting to look deeper into.

#overwatch #overwatch 2 #overwatch lore #overwatch headcanons #analysis #ow reaper #overwatch reaper #gabriel reyes

[solarishashernoseinabook]

Yk, I was going to ask this in the comments, but then I thought, why not a nifty little ask?

Do you actually write all your stories by hand? And how does it work? Cuz personally I am always put off by the fact I like, don't write fast enough to be able to keep up with the sentences forming in my head, yk. And do you then retype the chapter after you've handwritten it? Genuinely curious as to why/if/.. you prefer doing it this way

I'm glad you asked! And I'm glad you asked as an ask, because this would be a weee bit long to go in a tumblr comment 😅

I handwrite most of my fics, yeah! Tho it's more of a hybrid model instead of strictly handwriting, then typing. I bounce between handwriting and typing based on if I'm having writer's block or not. If I get stuck when typing up a chapter, I save what I have, close down my computer, and pick up a notebook and start writing from the last point I remember. Not being able to refer back to what I've written previously means I'm not stuck agonising over it, and allows me to write more freely than if I was constantly going back to earlier paragraphs. If I get stuck when handwriting, I boot up my computer again and transcribe everything. Y'know that bit of writing advice that's like "if you have writer's block, your problem is actually half a page back"? Yeah, that's why I transcribe! The process of rereading my earlier writing lets me identify what's not working and how to fix it.

TRR2 is actually the first fic where the majority of it has been handwritten beforehand, because Angel bought me a gorgeous notebook to write it in (and he got me a second to continue with!). A good portion of every chapter so far has been handwritten, and some chapters were entirely handwritten before I transcribed them :D

Further reasons I like handwriting include...

...no longer worrying so much about making it "perfect", and letting a first draft just be a first draft Sometimes in the middle of writing a scene I'll realise it works better in another character's POV, or in another setting, or any number of things. Instead of going back and changing it, I make a note saying what the change is and then keep writing as though I've already made the change. That way it doesn't break up the flow of writing and I can continue on a roll! Similarly, if a line is wonky or weird, but I can't immediately think of a better one, I just write down the wonky line and continue. Without the ability to erase what I just wrote, I don't get bogged down making every line perfect, and usually when I go to transcribe it later I have a better idea of what to write

...it helps me be more considerate of my words Wait, isn't this a direct contradiction of what I just said? Let's pretend it isn't I also write slower than I type, which I find is a bonus! My brain keeps working on the words and scene while I write, and they can often end up more refined than if I was typing everything because I had more time to turn the words over in my brain. There's also just something about handwriting things that helps my brain remember them more

...it's way more versatile I can't type on phones - it's actively very uncomfortable for me (small hands yaaay). Unfortunately, this means if I'm not at a computer, typing anything more than a couple of sentences is a no-go. Notebooks are easy to carry, don't require an external power source, and I can easily curl up with them to write in the car, in bed, or outside (bonus: it's MUCH easier to see a notebook in direct sunlight than it is to try and make out words on a screen). It also means I can write at work without worrying about keystrokes being logged, people seeing what's on my screen, forgetting a USB, or - disaster of disasters - computers crashing and erasing my data

...purely autistic/aesthetic reasons :D Writing is a huge physical stim for me. Typing can be too depending on the keyboard I'm using, but writing with a pen on paper is remarkably calming in a way that very little else is. Also, notebooks pretty ❤

thanks for dealing with all that (and also giving me an excuse to ramble on for way too long :D)!

#asks #my writing

[cyncerity]

I am becoming a utter bitch for Jackmanifold so I was curious if he is in your Epic au and if so tell me about him

Hi hi hi!! I know this ask was sent like a year ago but uh in case you’re still curious, he’s basically Tommy’s nanny! Phil got tired of Tommy running off so he’s been hiring people to try and keep an eye on him (keyword: try)

Anyway Jack is my comfort streamer so I always want to include him in stuff, so I wanted to write a short little thing to show his dynamic with Tommy and Niki. This “short little thing” turned into a full story and character designs because I have no self control! Hope you enjoy!!

(btw anyone who can pick out the song quote in here and tell me what it’s from gets a cookie)

“Hold on, get back here!” Jack yelled running after the young prince, who stopped his sprint down a hallway to turn and look back at Jack with a disapproving stare. Jack stopped and took a few deep breaths from exhaustion before continuing through pants. “I promised his majesty that I wouldn’t let you out of my sight, and I intend to keep that promise. The last thing I want is the fuckin king mad at me…again.” Tommy simply rolled his eyes, hands on his hips as he took a few steps towards the older leafmen. “Ooo King Philza this, King Philza that,” Tommy said in a mocking tone. “Let’s be honest with ourselves here Jack, if Phil hasn’t fired you yet he’s not gonna. The last guy got kicked after losing me like 4 times and you’re already way past that. The only reason you still have a job is cause you’ve got connections in high places.” “Is not!” “Is too!”

“God you’re so immature,” Jack said, having finally fully caught his breath. “Maybe if you could actually be responsible and not fuckin disappear every day then the king wouldn’t need to assign you a-“ “Babysitter. You’re a babysitter.” Tommy cut him off, only angering Jack further. “You’re such a fucking child! Why can’t we have one normal conversation about you disappearing under my watch, it’s like you want me to get exiled or something!” “Oh my dad’s not gonna exile you,” Tommy responds nonchalantly, “Niki likes you too much for that.” “There are only so many times you can lose the crown prince before his dad will get fed up. Niki isn’t more powerful than the fucking king, Tommy.” “No, but she’s one of his best soldiers, which means her and her happiness is important to him, and for some unexplainable reason you’re part of that happiness. Phil isn’t gonna risk losing his General cause he dismissed her best friend like he dismissed the rest of the fucks he hired to watch me.”

That made Jack pause. He knows Phil; they’ve had plenty of talks personally (well, personally with Schlatt in the room too, as if Jack would ever pull something with the ruler of the whole goddamn forest). In all the talks he’s had with Phil, he’d never guess that anyone’s personal happiness was important to him. The kingdom’s happiness? Sure, of course, that was his fucking job, after all. But, personally? Jack just always assumed that Phil was kind of a cold guy. To hear that he valued Niki’s happiness personally, even for his own gain, was…an odd thought. “Phil cares about Niki?” Jack asked, though he wasn’t quite sure why. Tommy seemed just as confused, before shrugging it off. “Yeah, ‘course he does. She and Schlatt are, yknow, his friends.” That genuinely shocked Jack. “There’s something in that guy to befriend??” He questioned, though as soon as the words came out of his mouth he regretted it. Tommy’s face wore absolute shock, and Jack quickly slapped a hand over his mouth as they both stared at each other in silence.

“I- I’m so-“ Jack’s poor attempt at an apology was cut off by roaring laughter from Tommy, the teen bent over to his knees wheezing as Jack stood terrified. He’d almost forgot that he was in the presence of the second most powerful person in the forest, magically and politically. That the boy in front of him was just as capable of exiling him to The Bogs as King Philza was. And, just as a bonus, Tommy never let Jack doubt the fact that he didn’t fucking like him. And now he’s just gone and insulted the king and gave his son a free pass to get rid of him for good. Oh fuck.

But, to his shock, when Tommy righted himself his face was absolutely beaming. He wiped a tear from his eye as he slapped a hand on Jack’s shoulder. “Ok, I take it back, maybe I can see why Niki likes you, just a little bit though.” “S-so you’re not…gonna tell Phil..?” Jack asked, his fear only slightly relieved. When Tommy’s face morphed from humored to smug, though, that fear was immediately back. “Well, I think that can be arranged…for a price.” “Price?” “Yeah, let’s put it like this; you let me go right now and don’t make me tell you where i’m fuckin going, and I don’t report you for lèse-majesté.” Tommy stuck out a hand, and Jack shook it before he could even fully fathom what he was agreeing to. “Deal, a hundred times deal, your dad would fucking kill me.” Tommy just laughed. “Good man. Well, i’ll see you later then, Jack! Good luck with Schlatt when he comes to ask where I am!!” Tommy chuckled as he began to walk away.

“Wait, your majesty!” Jack shouted, and Tommy turned, seemingly slightly annoyed that Jack was still trying to talk to him when he so clearly wanted to fuck off to wherever he went to when he disappeared for hours. Jack knew he had to be careful with this; he’d just made Tommy like him a little bit, he couldn’t lose that yet. “Just…when you get back, can we talk about this? A bit? I don’t care where you go, for fucks sake you can do magic, I know you can protect yourself, but can we like…work out when you leave or don’t? So your dad doesn’t absolutely fucking hate me? He may be a bitch but he’s still my boss.” Jack hoped that insulting Phil again (as horrified as it made him feel) would open Tommy’s mind to the idea since it had seemingly worked before, and given that Tommy seemed less annoyed, it apparently worked. “You mean…you’d cover for me? Without even knowing where I’m headed off to? You would lie to the king for me?” “I mean, sure, man, why the hell not. Right now I don’t know where you are and I get in trouble, I’d much rather not know where you are and not get in trouble. Plus, who’s gonna turn me in for lying, you? You’d be turning yourself in.”

Tommy stood in shock, like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing, and that scared Jack. Shit, had he overstepped a boundary somewhere? Was Tommy angry that he would advocate a scheme against his dad? Did he just fuck himself over?? But Tommy, ever so full of surprises, just smiled at Jack. “We’ll see, let me think about it. I’ll let you know when I get back.” He said, and held a fist in front of him. Jack smiled unsurely and fistbumed him, making Tommy chuckle as he turned and continued down the hallway.

Oh Prime, what has he got himself into?

~~~

“So, Jack, where is my son?” King Philza said, sat at his desk in his chambers, and Jack could barely utter a word. Schlatt stood behind Phil on his right, face as stone cold and intimidating as ever. Niki, bless her heart for arguing to be in the room with him for this, stood behind Phil on his left, eyes pleading with Jack for him to think of something. But, truly, in the dozen or so times he’s had to do this because Tommy fucking sucked, he’s never had an excuse. He’d always just apologized and Phil had disappointedly sent him home for the night with the command that he’d better be able to do his job tomorrow. That he’d better know where Tommy was the next night. It never happened, he never did, and this “i’m not mad i’m just disappointed” routine with the fucking king had become a nightly routine. Jack was getting kind of sick of it.

“Jack?” Philza repeated, and Jack sighed. “Your majesty, I-“ The door was kicked in suddenly, scaring the shit out of Jack and no one else in the room (fuck the royals and the guards and their unnatural lack of fight or flight), the prince in question proudly standing in the doorway, panting and exhausted but excited looking. “Holy shit!” he shouted. “You were right Jack! This was a tough book to find!” Tommy chuckled only mildly unbelievably before chucking a book at Jack, who quickly caught on. “Ah, yes! I was just about to tell his highness your father that you were down in the library grabbing a book on…uh, gardening…yeah! Yeah, we…we gardened today.” Jack lied through his teeth. “Yeah, we were looking into where the best place for crops would be so the bugfolk have a good harvest this spring! Y’know, doin some charity work, spreading peace and kindness and all the shit you preach, yeah?” Tommy continued, waltzing up to the king’s desk and leaning on it. Jack had to keep himself from gasping, reminding himself that Tommy was the prince and therefore wouldn’t be harshly punished for showing such disrespect in a royal’s presence. He himself was a royal, after all, though that didn’t make his lax behavior any less unexpected in an area that Jack had come to know as strict and horrifyingly stressful.

“So you were…out gardening.” Philza repeated, seemingly not buying a word, and Jack felt his heart stop. Tommy, however, was unfazed. “Yeah!” Tommy exclaimed, ignoring his father’s skepticism in favor of pulling a map out of the book in Jack’s hand. The map was a hand-drawn top view of the forest, with doodles, circles, arrows, and written notes scribbled all around it. He proudly came around to Phil’s side and excitedly began rambling about every little thing on the map. If Jack didn’t know that Tommy was his son, he’d assume that Phil was on the verge of exiling him based on his face alone. He seemed…more than annoyed, he seemed straight up miserable sitting and listening to Tommy talk. Yeesh, maybe this was why he had to hire someone to be around him. It seemed like an overreaction to listening to his kids talk about plants, he looked like he wanted to die right then and there.

“-so I think the best place for the sugar cane would be this spot where there aren’t any trees so it gets super hot, and it’s close to the lake but not too close so the soil doesn’t get waterlogged, which means the dirt will be ideal fo-“ “Stop!!” Philza shouted, slamming his hands on his desk and startling everyone in the room, even his guards. He dropped his head into his hands and sighed, fully missing the reaction of everyone in the room. Schlatt’s eyes were wide and Niki looked panic. Tommy looked…scared. Well, scared for all of .2 seconds before his expression shifted to something smug. Phil looked up at him with pity and Tommy’s reaction quickly changed into innocent confusion, slipping a mask back on to continue his act.

“Just…just stop. Listen, Tommy, I’m glad you think you’re helping. I am. But we can’t involve ourselves in the bugfolk’s problems. Their crops provide absolutely nothing to us, it’s a waste to fix what they need to be fixing amongst themselves.” Jack saw Tommy’s mask crack a bit. “But they’re like us, dad, they’re our people! This winter has been rough for them and they need all the help they can ge-“ “No, Tommy.” Phil interrupted, eyes turning hard, any and all pity gone. “They may be our people, but they’re not like us. They will never be like us. They’re in our land, and we allow them to be, with all of the benefits that come from living here. That’s all we owe them, nothing more, nothing less. End of conversation.” Tommy’s facial expression was blank, though if looks could kill, Jack was sure that Tommy would have needed a coronation by the next morning. He was pissed at Phil. A bubbling, festering anger that was sure to explode and cause permanent damage at some point in the near future.

However, it wouldn’t today.

Tommy, ever the actor, breathed out deeply to compose himself before rolling up his map. “‘Course, dad. Whatever is best for our p-…for the forest. You know best.” “You’ll learn, Tommy.” Philza said, reaching out to hold Tommy’s fists that curled around his map. “You’ll be a great king someday. A wise man once said: ‘the line between naivety and hopefulness is almost invisible.’ You just haven’t found the line yet, and I don’t expect you too at your age. In time you’ll learn just as I did exactly what needs to be done to keep the people you care about safe.” Tommy just stood, pointedly not answering. Philza sighed. “You are dismissed, Tommy. And Jack, good work today, keep this up. You are dismissed as well.” Tommy, deadpan as ever, walked back towards the entrance as Jack bowed in response. Well, tried to. Tommy yanked him by the shoulder and dragged him out of the room midway down, almost making him drop the gardening book.

As soon as they were far enough away from the chamber, Tommy dropped jacks arm and started screaming with clenched teeth, yanking on the petals on his head and kicking the nearest wall to him. Jack figured it was best to just…let him have his moment. “UUGGHHH, just, who does he think he is?! ‘oH Tommy they’re not liKe uS, they’re our people but they’re woRsE cause they’re not LeAveS’ it’s fucking ridiculous!! He barely knows anything about them, who is he to just decide that we just shouldn’t help with their crops?!” Tommy yelled, kicking another wall. “I- i don’t know, man.” Jack whispered, unsure if any of what Tommy said was rhetorical. Tommy looked over at him and just sighed.

“Sorry, it just drives me up a fucking wall. He thinks he’s the prime example of a fucking king and meanwhile he hates like half his citizens, and 3/4 of the forest as a whole, it’s fucking ridiculous.” Jack stood for a minute, eyes wide. What did he say? 3/4 would imply that he was upset that Phil hated…the enemy? “Well…he, uh, at the very least protects us from the boggins, but yeah…all that stuff about bugfolk, that wasn’t, uh, that wasn’t cool, man.” Now it was Tommy’s turn to be shocked, before he quickly tried and this time failed to put a mask back on. “Oh, yeah, ha! Whoops, sorry, I, uh, yeah, no fuck the boggins. Totally, yeah they suck. They’re, ha, yeah they’re horrifying, i’d hate to ever have to face one of them, thank god Phil keeps ‘em out!” Tommy rambled awkwardly, which led to a far more awkward moment of silence between Jack and Tommy after he finished.

“Look, man,” Jack finally broke the silence, “I appreciate you helping me out of that. I think Phil was really done with me that time.” “Well, I figured it was a good enough idea. Would benefit both of us, anyway. You wouldn’t get in trouble, my dad gets to think i’m doin’ shit, it’s foolproof.” “So, it’s official?” Jack said, offering a fist. Tommy laughed and fist bumped him back, a genuine smile on his face. “It’s official. We’ll work out the details tomorrow, though, I’m tired as shit. See ya, man.” Tommy said as he turned away, waving with one hand and holding a map in the other…

He was still holding a gardening book.

“Wait, Tom!” He didn’t know when he decided that it was ok to call the crown prince by a nickname, but given that Tommy didn’t correct him when he turned in response, he supposed the nickname was accepted. “You forgot your book.” He said, holding it out to a very relieved looking Tommy. “Shit, right, thank you! Can’t believe I almost forgot this.” He said, unrolling his map and placing it back in his book. “I gotta say, man, that’s a lot of effort to put into a map for a bit.” Jack said. “Where did you even get this gardening book? I’ve never seen it in the library.” “Oh, it’s not from the library, it was a gift from a friend. And the map wasn’t for the bit.” Tommy said gleefully, ignoring Jack’s shock for probably the fiftieth time that evening. “I wasn’t lying this time, that’s genuinely what I was out doing all day. I didn’t have time to think of a fake out story. But don’t expect me to tell you everything from now on, that’s just a thank you for helping me out. Night Jack!” Tommy said, waving and running down the hall towards his room, leaving Jack in confused shock. Jack huffed and shook his head as he started in the opposite direction towards the castle’s exit.

“Jack, wait up!” he heard a familiar voice call as his best friend caught up with him. “Hey Niki, don’t you have important General shit to do?” “C’mon, you’ve been a personal hand to the royal family for almost a month now, i’d say it’s important to make sure you’re escorted home safely.” She snickered, and Jack rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, as if the king would care if I got home safe.” “Well, he might start to if you make a habit of keeping track of the prince! It’s been a while since he’s even told us how his day was.” “Has it also been a while since his highness had a freak out like that or is that a regular thing?” Jack whispered. A pause, before Niki sighed and whispered back. “He’s stressed. I…I haven’t seen him get like that in a long while. Phil is my friend, I know him, I know how he is, and that isn’t him.”

Ok, so getting the confirmation that Phil and Niki’s relationship wasn’t strictly professional and was an actual friendship was unexpected, but that wasn’t the topic right now. “Was it Tommy? Does he really hate the idea of gardening that much? Does he just…not like being with Tommy? Is that why he needs me?” “No, not that, definitely not that.” Niki responded urgently. “He loves Tommy, I know he doesn’t show it well, but he does. I…I think it was more the topic. Not the gardening, more the idea of who it was for.” “The bugfolk? Why?” “Beats me, but Phil doesn’t ever really like to talk about them. If we’re trying to be more specific, though, something happened recently. More territory shit, some leafmen got hurt, we’ve been dealing with it so it doesn’t turn into an uprising. It’s been getting handled, but I think it was just bad timing, we haven’t told Tommy about that incident because it’s contained, so he wouldn’t have known that talking about helping the bugfolk would set Phil off.” “Prime, man, that’s…that’s rough. Not like it’s Tommy’s fault, though, felt kinda wrong for King Philza to snap at him of all people. Plus, some of that other shit he was saying was…how do I put this…..distasteful.”

Niki looked…uncomfortable, to say the least. “I know, and I agree with you,” she sighed, “but he’s my king. He’s my friend. He has his reasons to be like this and frankly? Our kingdom is thriving, so what’s the harm?” The harm is that he might hurt bugfolk like he’s hurt others, Jack thought. The harm is that he could exile an entire species out of the forest to a place of rot and death and savage beastly occupants and the worst part is that it wouldn’t even be the first time he did that. The harm is that he’s destroying his relationship with his kid and making said kid standoffish to anyone who attempts to befriend them. And oh, didn’t that just make so much sense? Maybe it wasn’t that Tommy was just brash and rude, could it…could it be self defense? Was he pushing people away on purpose? Now that he thought about it, he’d never actually seen Tommy talk to…anyone. Prime, did this kid have friends? He doubted it, if his general approach is the same one he used with Jack. He would have given up with the prince a long time ago if it weren’t for Niki and the fact that a royal job pays well.

“Jack?” Niki said, snapping him out of this thoughts. “Sorry, sorry Niki, I’m just…I’m just tired.” “I can only imagine,” Niki laughed, elbowing Jack in the arm, “you’ve got to be exhausted if you were out gardening with Tommy all day.” And oh, Jack hadn’t thought of this part: he’d have to continually lie to his best friend for this plan to work. Fuck his life. “Yeah, yeah, ha..takes a lot outta ya.” He laughed uncomfortably, though Niki didn’t seem to notice. “Well, you’re almost home and I’ve got to get reports in from the soldiers in my unit. I’ll talk to you later Jack! Good night!” She gave him a quick side hug before turning back towards the castle, leaving Jack alone in his thoughts.

Ok, so new notes for the day: the prince is…tolerant of him. Dare he say kind of likes him. He’s kind of still reeling from the realization that Tommy may just be acting out due to daddy issues and loneliness. The king likely knows they’re full of shit and just doesn’t care, Niki trusts him and he’s going to have to break that trust and lie to her because the prince is a secretive prick, and, oh yeah, the king might be a fucking bigot. Great.

Fuck.

#first story of 2024!!!! #i wrote this all in one night at primarily at 2 in the morning!!!!!!!! #cyncerity #cynwrites #mcyt gt #mcyt g/t #g/t #epic au #bedrock bros epic au #t!phil #<-might start using this tag to differentiate from the earlier posts before the cast change #g/t writing #t!tommy #t!jack #t!philza #t!niki #t!schlatt #mentioned: #t!tubbo #<-in case you’re new to this au; the friend Tommy mentioned is Tubbo #Tubbo gave him the gardening book and he’s a carrion beefolk #Tommy keeps breaking out to hang out with his friends that his dad is racist against 💪

[pikapeppa]

Hi there. It’s me again. I’m having so many feelings right now. I wanted to thank you AGAIN for your tutorials and your incredible writing inspiration. 

I’ve been a fan of your Horizon fics and your writing style for years. The way you capture voices, the way you write smut, the consistency with which you update and finish your fics… And your writing feels so accessible, which I hope you take as a compliment. It’s easy and enjoyable to read while still capturing such incredible emotion and story beats.

I wanted to tell you that I DID IT. I finished my first longfic! 9 chapters, 90,300 words! (It’s called Secret Fandom: Avatar Legend of Korra)

I wrote a story about two characters in a secret relationship. It’s got romance, smut, humor, and the teensiest bit of angst. I’ve had parts of this fic in my head for literally YEARS but I didn’t know where to start or how to actually follow through with this story! But YOU. Your fics. Your writing tutorials! They gave me the courage to buckle down and write it!

I wanted to capture their voices, I DID. I have received numerous comments complimenting the way I portrayed the characters. One person literally said “I could hear her voice in my head” about one of the characters and I just about passed out.

I wanted to finish this fic, I DID. I followed your guide: I knew how I wanted it to end. I outlined. I wrote the story in order. I held on to some chapters here and there to space it out and build anticipation. (I also found a couple of beta readers who helped me TREMENDOUSLY with the editing process.)

I run a blog for the pairing I wrote, and I actually got people reaching out and asking me when I’d have the next chapter and if they could have previews… Just an incredible reception overall to this fic, given that it’s a smaller fanbase.

I just really need to say thank you for the part you played in this. Your writing really did inspire me, in particular Becoming Whole gave me lots of inspiration for the way I wrote and even some parts of the plot (an experienced character guiding an inexperienced character through his first relationship!) and of course your tutorials really gave me a lot of help and insight on how to accomplish what I wanted!

PIKAPEPPA you are a HERO and an INSPIRATION.

Thank you A MILLION TIMES.

MY FRIEND. BABE. MY BELOVED. OMFG I'M SO SO FUCKING HAPPY FOR YOU AND SO PROUD I JUST 😭❤❤❤ I AM IN A GLASS CAGE OF EMOTION!!!

No but forreal OH MY GOD. This is so incredible and momentous and I'm absolutely thrilled for you!! There is nothing like being told that your readers can hear your characters' voices in your writing and I AM SO SO THRILLED FOR YOU 😭❤❤ Also, can I just say, the fact that I've been able to kind of track the progress of your writing journey through the asks you've sent me, and for this to be the culmination of it? I AM OVER THE MOON FOR YOU OMG SERIOUSLY okay I'm going to stop screaming at you I swear. I'M SO HAPPY FOR YOU THOUGH OMG. YOU DID THE THING!!!!!

And also, THANK YOU for saying my writing is accessible, that is absolutely a compliment!! I know that one of the things I look for in a fic is the feeling that you can just breeze through it and enjoy it without getting bogged down trying to decipher complex prose LMAO so I'm thrilled to hear it!!

In conclusion: I am SO FUCKING PROUD OF YOU that you created the story that had been kicking around in your head for years. And I'm thrilled that my tutorials and writing could play a role in that! THANK YOU FOR BRINGING ME ALONG WITH YOUR JOURNEY, THIS MEANS SO MUCH TO ME 😭❤❤❤

Everyone, check out SweetVenom's fic Secret here on AO3! It's Mako/Prince Wu (Legend of Korra), ~90k words, rated E! And if anyone wants a peek at my tutorials, you can find a list of them here on Tumblr!

--all the love from your friendly neighbourhood Pika! xoxo

#fanfic writer's life #pikapeppa tutors #no but the way i smiled and laughed in sheer delight when i read this ask YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW 😭❤❤❤

[emonydeborah]

20 questions for fic writers

thanks for the tag, @curator-on-ao3 :)

1. How many works do you have on Ao3? 43

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 289,964

3. What fandoms do you write for? Whatever catches my fancy. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has the most fics (8), but my most recent fic was for Black Widow.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Family First- a Coco fic, the first multichap I ever finished, I think. An AU where Victoria stole the guitar when she was a child and she and Elena got stuck in the Land of the Dead.

Sick of Waiting for a Miracle- angsty Encanto! My take of Mirabel growing resentful instead of desperate, and the family falling apart a lot harder. Happy ending though because I am who I am.

Patching Up- post-Incredibles 2 fic of Bob and Helen patching each other up (hence the name). Short fluff I am astonished was my third most kudos-ed fic.

From the Hands of the Weak- Black Widow AU where Alexei and Melina take Natasha and Yelena and run.

Tia Victoria one-shots- Listen. My Coco phase was strong. And I did not have standards yet, so I posted whatever came into my mind. Most of these are about her tragic death. Unfinished, or it would have made "angstiest"

5. Do you respond to comments? Yes! I love responding to comments, especially to follow up on whatever the commenter found interesting.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? I had to go back through my AO3 because no matter how much I put my little guys through, I usually like a happy ending. Technically it would be 5 Times Una Talked Chris Into a Breakup and 1 Time She Didn't. But that's part of a series that had a happy ending, so. I am redeemed.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? I'll go with The World That Lives In You. I always write with a happy ending in mind, even if I don't finish it, but I picked this one because it ends with a domestic little scene of a traumatized family being cute and well-adjusted together.

8. Do you get hate on fics? Not that I have seen.

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

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? I have, not a lot though. I have a little series where I put the Incredibles in the Harry Potter universe. The Incredibles were Aurors and you can't change my mind was a fun time when I was very into Incredibles 2.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Once, allegedly by accident.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? I don't think so.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? No, aside from spitballing ideas with @justreckin.

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? Don't do this to me.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? When I first started writing and posting fic, I had an enormous DS9 fic all planned out. It was going to span 20+ years, introduce so many OCs, and center around Kira Nerys, my OBSESSION for a long time. I posted maybe 4 chapters. RIP.

16. What are your writing strengths? Dialogue and cute little moments.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I get bogged down in details and lose sight of the long game. OR if my intention is to make a little moment stretch, it lasts two sentences. There is no in between.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I will do one or two words at a time, maybe a sentence if I can pull it directly from the source material and I know what it means and the context.

19. First fandom you wrote for? NCIS.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? oof oof oof. Great question. I have plenty that I go back and read just for fun. The one I'm proudest of right now is Discipline, Diligence, and Learning to Fly. My favorites to read are And the Time Eve Collected Human Beings Like Shiny Rocks and Keep Us Connected.

I'm late to the trend so I think everyone has been tagged. Anyone who wants to, and @fiadorable, @justreckin, @sun-lit-roses and @raddocwrites if you'd like! (unless you’ve already done it and don’t want to again 😂)

#I literally left this open in a tab for ten days bc I wanted to do it and not forget #fic

[voxofthevoid]

fucking yikes im so sorry you get these kind of notifications, and of course theyre anonymous😒 coward cant even say it with their chest about a FICTIONAL character, in something completely optional to read. anyway, im a big fan and i reread your fics all the time! ppl complaining about gojo being ooc for being a bottom make me giggle everytime tho like no shit? fr?? gojo fucked canonically in the manga?? whens THAT getting animated and which chapter was it. can you link me 👀👉👈

and again, its not the source material. Its fanfic shared with you, not made for you. Its like walking into an ice cream parlor and demanding a steak, except even worse because the food is free!!! No one is holding you at gunpoint to sit down and read the whole thing huffing and puffing about how "its not what you ordered." and if you didnt read it, why are you here.🧍‍♂️

and imo the market is oversaturated with top gojo and bottom gojo satosugu. You're doing the lords work righting the scales one yuuji at a time🥰

"No one is holding you at gunpoint to sit down and read the whole thing": You'd think so, but some of these people do act like I'm at their house holding their entire family hostage while they read my fic with bloody tears streaming down their face.

Listen, if I had that kinda power, I'd manifest in my friends' houses to cuddle them to death. And hopefully cow-eye them into feeding me (looking at you specifically @eusuntgratie).

Delulu anon is the only one who's been a dick about it so far (and I think that one's just got several screws loose), but variations of this happen enough in my comments that I've constructed whole mental categories.

There are the nice ones, who basically say some variation of "I'm not usually into bottom!Gojou, but I'll read it from you." That's great! I generally take any version of "not my thing, but you're an exception" as a compliment, and the commenters generally mean it that way. There are also the neutral questions about who tops, usually before the fic gets explicit (yes, even in the fics where Gojou goes "fuck me, Yuuji ❤" well before the porn), and while opening my email to just that, without a peep about the fic so far, is about as appealing as eating burnt toast, I do answer and leave it be. It's fine.

And then you have the people with main character syndrome who cannot seem to conceive that any goyuu fic author would gleefully and exclusively write top!Yuuji. I've had people act like they're doing me a favor by reading my fic or assume it will be switching at the least. There was one...memorable occasion where someone liked the deaging fic overall but didn't like top!Yuuji, so they told me they'd be "stealing" the concept. Deaging is a bog-standard trope, so that's stupid as shit, but fucking Christ, the audacity. That was, IIRC, a fairly popular PWP author, so it's not even that they need any help to get eyeballs on their work.

There's just this persistent disbelief in the goyuu fandom about someone (me, I'm someone) writing top!Yuuji over and over. And it's clearly not that JJK fans just cannot conceive of Gojou taking it up the ass; like you said, there's plenty of it in satosugu, and I have it on good authority that nanago and sukugo are the same. It's just the combination of Yuuji and Gojou that gets this "one way only" attitude, and yeah, I know precisely why, but I've been in fandom for some 15 years now, a decade of it on Ao3, and JJK is the worst about it I've seen.

Sorry for the *gestures above* rant, but every goddamn month, this shit happens, and I am clinging to civility by the skin of my teeth.

But, far more importantly, please know that it put a bigass smile on my face to know that you like to reread my fics. Thank you, anon 😘

#anon #i love my anons #the civility doesn't apply to delusional anon and their ilk #i'm only polite until the other person isn't #but god those civil comments that basically insult my own tastes TEST me sometimes

[roguedarkscribe]

Hitsuhina Week 2023 - Day 7: Future / Fairy tales

Rating: T

Summary: The Women's Association run a special article 😏

AN: Originally posted on AO3. I probably had about 20 half-baked ideas for today but didn’t get very far into writing them. So probably just going to share some of my already posted stories.

--------------------------

There had once been a time when the Soul Reaper Women’s Association had been one of the best funded and most influential organizations in the entirety of the Seireitei. But after the end of the Quincy War, much of their power had diminished greatly. The funds that had once been designated for the group had to be reinvested towards repairs and the time the members once reserved for the various activities they sponsored, had been redirected to be more usefully spent supporting the reconstruction efforts. The meeting room hidden in the Kuchiki Manor, which had been the group’s favorite headquarters, was left for dust to slowly build up where lively meetings and laughter had once persisted.

For four years the Seireitei remained in a state of limbo waiting to see what sort of enemy would emerge. For four years they worked tirelessly on rebuilding their strength and repairing their world that had been nearly destroyed by the Quincies. But now it felt as though there was true calm and peace in the Seireitei and it was time to take care of the smaller things that they had all but forgotten about. Central 46 and the bodies that be had loosened the strict budgeting that had been in place and now allocations allowed for spending towards groups and clubs once again. The Seireitei Bulletin was the first to be green lit, releasing the news through their New Years Edition and calling for new and old article writers to submit their work for the next edition. The Women’s Association jumped at the chance and were among the first to be allotted a two page spread for the next release.

Nanao Ise spread the word among the former members quickly and arranged for all of them to meet in their old meeting room. Excitement buzzed as the time of the meeting drew closer and Momo Hinamori was looking forward to it more than she thought she would. She had never been a frequent member of the group not having much interest in some of the topics or events that were conducted, nor did she always prove of the more… questionable means by which the group got its funding. But it was always a good time to spend with her female friends whenever she could go to a meeting.

Entering the old meeting room, Hinamori found herself to be among the first to arrive. Nanao and Kiyone were already there, dusting the old tables and chairs and preparing for the meeting. Momo joined in cleaning with the others while they all waited for everyone to arrive. One by one, the old members of the group filed in and once everyone had arrived and taken seats, they all found themselves looking around the room taking stock of how the faces had changed and the faces that weren’t there. Other than Captain Isane Kotetsu who was bogged down at the Fourth Division, and Rangiku Matsumoto who was in the World of the Living on a mission, Captain Unohana, Yachiru and Nemu, were all gone. Lost to the war.

Nanao walked to the head of the table where a blank board stood. Adjusting her glasses, she cleared her throat and began the meeting. “Welcome everyone to the First Soul Reaper’s Women’s Association Meeting,” She announced. “As you are all aware, funding has been approved for all clubs and associations through the end of the second quarter. Which leaves us with three major topics on the agenda today.” She turned to the board and wrote out the first item to be taken care of. “With the Presidency and Supervising Chairwoman positions, empty, we need to establish who will take on those roles.” A sad silence filled the room, no one wanting to voice possible replacements for the members who were gone. But eventually, in hushed tones, nominations were uttered and discussed thoroughly. By the end, the decisions were made. Nanao would become the President, with Rukia Kuchiki serving as the Vice-President and the Supervising Chairwoman would remain empty out of respect (and fear) for the former Fourth Division Captain who held the position.

With the hardest part of the meeting out of the way, the group moved on to the main topic that everyone was eager to discuss. The Seireitei Bulletin. With a full two page spread, they had the opportunity to come up with something great that would bolster interest in their group and potentially earn them profit for a future event they could plan. Ideas were quick to be formed in the group ranging from interesting to impossible, and from decent to horrible. A photo set of stealthily acquired images of Yoruichi, How to Turn a Closet into a Home, Health and Wellness Tips, Fending Off Unwanted Advances… Momo had little interest in any of the topics and everyone seemed to be quite polarized about which direction to go. The board filled up with ideas quickly and hastily scribbled notes kept track of the major points for and against each one.

As arguments were starting to get out of hand, Nanao called the group to a vote when the door to the room slammed open and Rangiku Matsumoto charged in. “Hold everything!” She shouted, holding a folder over her head and slamming it down hard on the table.

“I thought you and Toshiro were in the world of the living,” Momo said looking up in surprise at the late addition. She hadn’t expected her to be back for another day at least.

Rangiku smiled, “We finished early,” She said, waving off any other questions. “Normally, I’d still be there, shopping until the Captain dragged me back; but I have found the perfect article for our little group.” Opening the folder, she revealed what had to be at least 100 pictures all of Toshiro. The women huddled around the pictures and looked at them with curiosity.

“The captain seems to have a knack for football,” Rangiku said, “And he’s grown quite a bit since the war ended.” The women quietly gave a murmur of agreement because he really had grown, now standing about a head taller than Momo. But that clearly wasn’t what Rangiku was referring to. Flipping through the pictures, the shots got closer together in time especially after one image of Toshiro making a clean slide tackle that split the left side of his shirt up to his third rib and leaving little to the imagination of what the rest of his torso looked like.

A few images later, Rangiku had somehow managed to get a rather… impressive frame by frame set of him pulling the tattered shirt off. The smooth way in which he pulled it off by tugging at the back of the collar, the way the tattered hemline slowly rose up, revealing the sculpted muscles of the man who had the distinction of being the youngest Captain in the Soul Society. Momo felt her cheeks burn red as the other women looked through the images with similar looks of appreciation.

How did she get these pictures without him freezing her fingers off? There was even a series of photos of him drinking from a water bottle that made the simple act look… seductive.

“When did you take these?” Momo asked, diverting her focus to the images after the water bottle when he returned to the game shirtless.

“Yesterday,” Rangiku answered. “And this was after we’d eliminated that hive of hollows in the area. To be honest, if he hadn’t come across that game, we’d probably have been back last night.”

“Uh huh…” Ignoring the older woman’s attempt to practically sell her captain’s ‘sex appeal’, the photos did manage to capture a side of him that she had only seen glimpses of every once in awhile in the past few decades. The child-like side of him that he’d repressed since becoming a soul reaper. He’d always been competitive, but for him to be competitive and… happy at the same time was something she’d only seen fully on display when he’d been the undefeated champion in top spinning when they were kids.

Momo smiled as she looked at one of the last few images on the table. The ball was undisturbed halfway between him and the goalkeeper. He stood relaxed with his hands in his pockets as he stared straight ahead as if the keeper wasn’t even in the way. To someone who didn’t know him well, the smirk on his face could have been described as either confident or cocky. But she knew better than to just look at his lips to read his expression. The answer was always clear in his eyes. Even if he wanted to hide something, those turquoise eyes of his could never hide the depth of his feelings. His eyes were relaxed and almost half-lidded in the picture with the color closer to a blue-green. He was having fun.

After everyone had gotten a glimpse of the photos, Nanao brought the group back to order and after a quick review of options, brought the group to a vote.

———

A month had passed since the Women’s Association had decided on their article and, as with all activities within the group, were sworn to secrecy. Momo had mixed feelings about hiding it from her best friend but reluctantly complied. It wasn’t the first time she’d had to withhold this kind of stuff from him and as much as he hated it, he at the very least tolerated the group’s need for secrets. Besides, it couldn’t possibly be any worse than the other times Rangiku published articles about him, or the previous run of trading cards the Women’s Association had sponsored. And the last thing the Soul Society needed was Toshiro (literally) freezing the magazine for eternity.

As the publication date drew near, Rangiku made herself more scarce than usual around the Tenth Division. She had made the precautionary decision to remain in the Women’s Association room in Kuchiki Manor knowing there was no way her captain could reach her behind the walls of the imposing home of the noble. She had urged Momo to join her since, in her own words, Toshiro was horrible company when he was angry. Which was true, but Momo had known him her whole life so he wasn’t nearly as ‘horrible’ with her as he was with everyone else. Besides, it wasn’t like she’d be one of his targets. She hadn’t even voted for that article and had tried to convince the group that it was a bad idea. Unfortunately, the potential sale of prints and posters won out.

The day the monthly bulletin went out had started out fairly normal but as the day went on and people sat down to read it and talk about it, the entire place was abuzz with talk about the article submitted by the Women’s Association. Knowing her best friend, he probably hadn’t even read it yet, too absorbed with extra work left behind by his missing lieutenant. Abandoning her own work for the day, she made her way to the Tenth, taking the long way to get an idea of how bad the whole situation was getting. Momo spied several groups huddled over issues of the magazine, pointing, giggling, and sighing while whispering among themselves. This was bad.

Fortunately, it seemed his own division had some idea about how angry their captain would be once he got wind of the whole thing. She saw a few issues floating around the Tenth’s offices but the owners were quite secretive as they glanced at the infamous article when they thought no one was looking. Momo approached the Captain’s office and knocked, announcing herself before entering. As expected, Toshiro was at his desk sifting through several piles of paperwork, muttering to himself. “Have you seen the fourth seat? I’m missing their incident report,” He asked, not even sparing her a glance as he leafed through a report.

“I don’t even think I know who your fourth seat is,” Momo said, walking up to the desk and resting the palms of her hands on the wooden surface.

It was only then, he seemed to register he wasn’t talking to one of his men. He looked up, his eyes reflected his surprise but only for a moment before he hardened his eyes again. “Oh, it’s you.”

“You could sound a little more happy to see me, Shiro.”

“It’s Captain Hitsugaya,” He corrected, a little harsher than usual. Clearly it wasn’t a good day for him. And it would only get worse once he saw the article. “And I am glad to see you. I’m just… busy,” He said, tossing the pile of papers onto his desk. “I can’t find Matsumoto anywhere, and for some reason people around here are either avoiding me, or in a rush to leave as quickly as possible.” He frowned and folded his arms over his chest, thinking. “Maybe I was too rough on them yesterday with training…” A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts, and he immediately sat tall in his chair. “Enter.”

A young girl who looked to be fresh from the academy stood in the doorway, her cheeks flushed red, and holding a folder close to her chest. Toshiro cocked his eyebrow up, and the girl dropped her head down, hiding a girlish smile. “S-sorry, sir.”

“Did you need something, Shuyama?

The girl giggled, and blushed even more. Toshiro exchanged a look with Momo as though she might have some female insight into the girl’s behavior. And oh did she. The girl cleared her throat, “S-sorry. I-I have… here,” She held out the folder but she was still standing in the doorway. Momo could see the girl sweating from across the room as she slowly walked forward, her hand still awkwardly extended as she approached her captain’s desk.

Toshiro accepted the folder from her and his gaze softened a little. “You alright, Shuyama?”

“Uh, y-yes, sir! I’m perfectly fine.”

He didn’t seem to believe her but shrugged, and sent her on her way with orders to find the fourth seat and the missing report. Momo shook her head as the girl fled and he gestured at the door with his hands, “See what I mean?” He asked. “You wouldn’t happen to know what’s going on, would you?”

She shrugged, “What makes you think I know?” She asked.

“Because it’s mostly the women acting weird. The men just look at me funny.” He opened the folder and began reading the first few lines of the report.

Momo pursed her lips as she leaned her hip against his desk. “I’m sure it’s just… something in the air today. It’ll pass.”

He looked up from the report and focused his intense gaze on her. “You’ve always been a terrible liar, Bedwetter,” He said. “What is it?”

“I’m not lying—“

“You’re not telling the truth either.” Momo pouted, realizing her mistake. Toshiro always knew when she was hiding something. His fingers tapped on his desk as he waited, “Well?”

With a sigh, she walked out of his office and into another office nearby that was shared by four officers.

All four of them were working diligently, only looking up when she entered and kept their eyes on her as she walked over to the only woman working in the office. Momo ignored her as she looked under the report she was currently working on and pulled out today’s edition of the bulletin. Without saying a single word to anyone, she left and returned to Toshiro who had been waiting patiently for her to come back. His brow was arched as she held the magazine and handed it over to him.

He looked at her questioningly, “You’ll know when you see it,” She said.

His brow knit tightly as he flipped through it, coming to a stop near the centerfold of the magazine. The color in his face paled and she knew he had found it. Taking a small step back, she braced herself for what was to come.

“What. The. Hell!?” The windows in the office shattered and the temperature dropped as he slammed the magazine onto his desk, sending the stacks of paperwork flying into the air. “‘These shots of the Winter Lion will keep you warm through the winter’?

“‘Despite being a late bloomer’—” He growled as he read the few lines of text that accompanied the pictures, his fists clenching the magazine, ripping the ends of the pages. “Who wrote this shi—“ The room got colder and ice started to climb up the walls. Momo gently increased her own reiatsu to counter the cold as realization set in for him. “Matsumoto.” He said her name with such venom. “I thought I sensed her lurking around Kuchiki’s manor. Now it makes sense why,” He muttered. Looking up, he met her gaze, then glanced back down at the magazine, focusing on the prominent banner printed just above the title. “You…you knew about this?”

Momo sighed, “Unfortunately.”

“And you didn’t tell me?”

“I couldn’t! You know how secretive the Women’s Association is!”

Toshiro pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, “Right, of course,” He muttered, shaking his head. “They just had to pick me again, didn’t they,” He muttered.

His reiatsu dissipated slightly, allowing Momo to come stand closer to him again. Walking up to his desk, she stood in front of it with her hands folded, “Rangiku was very persuasive. Er, rather… the pictures were persuasive.”

His cheeks were a little red and he looked away, torn between anger and embarassment. “Is… is that really how people see me?”

“Hm?”

“This,” He gestured at the magazine again. “The trading cards, pictures of me sleeping, that calendar from a few years back;” He listed off several of the Women’s Association’s past ventures that had featured him as the main subject matter, his brow knit tightly as he cleared his throat. “What… what exactly is it about me that makes me a target for… this?”

Momo shrugged, “Well, you’re a prominent figure in the Sereitei—“

“—That’s not what I mean,” He said, his jaw was tight as he grit his teeth forcing the clarifying question out. “How… how physically attractive am I?”

Her hand on his desk faltered as she nearly slammed her face into the wood surface. “Eh? What?” She could feel her cheeks burning as she replayed his question over in her head again, making sure she had heard him right to begin with.

Toshiro sighed and held a hand up, making a calming gesture, “I’m not asking what you think. I need an objective opinion. And you’re the only girl I can have this conversation with.”

“Oh…” Momo relaxed a bit, taking a moment to think about the question and how to answer it. As his friend, she didn’t like him for the same reason everyone else did. Her personal opinion was very biased and based more on the traits no one else could see. But, as a woman, she wasn’t blind to the superficial layer of physical appeal he definitely had. The only problem was he was completely oblivious to all of it.

“Well… See…” Her lips pursed as she looked down at the magazine, pointing at the picture of him drinking from the water bottle. The light perfectly highlighted the lines between his abs, and the sheen of sweat on his chest practically made him shine with an almost god-like glow.

“What?” His brow slanted, and he tiled his head sideways, still not seeing what she meant.

Momo sighed, wondering how he could be a genius and an idiot at the same time. “The answer to your question is… yes.”

“Huh?”

Rolling her eyes, she continued. “Women find you attractive,” She said. “More so now that you don’t really look like a cute little boy anymore.”

His eye twitched a bit in annoyance, still a bit stingy about having been so short for so long. “…That doesn’t tell me why, though.”

“Well…” Her lips pursed as she thought about how to explain it. “To start, you have really nice hair.”

“I always thought it creeped people out.”

She shrugged, “Well, maybe in the Rukon Districts, yes. But, you’ve been here a long time, and the color makes sense given your reiatsu and zanpakuto. So people are able to look beyond the color and… appreciate its other characteristics.” His hair had always been quite thick, but it became more noticeable after he stopped spiking it and let it fall more naturally around his face. It looked nice, giving him this almost rugged appearance that unintentionally added another notch to his physical appeal.

He gave her a blank expression, showing he really had no idea what the big deal was about hair. Sighing, she moved on. “Um… Your eyes are nice too.” Much like his hair, the color was unusual and the kids in the Rukon Districts found them unnerving. Momo never understood why. His eyes were probably his most beautiful feature. When the light hit them just right, they could look like deep pools of water, or dusty emeralds. And to be the focus of those eyes, it could be the most terrifying moment, or the most wonderful thing ever.

She cleared her throat, noticing he was waiting for her to continue. “And then there’s… that,” She pointed at one of the many shirtless photos of him. “It’s, er… nice… very nice.”

He blushed again and shook his head. “Madness,” He muttered. Grabbing the magazine, he tore it in half, tossing it in the trash before turning to face the broken window. A light breeze blew through, ruffling his hair and robes.

Momo closed the distance between them, coming to stand next to him. His arms were folded in his sleeves as he glared outside. There were a few groups on the streets below and some were looking through the magazine as they walked. Sighing, Momo wrapped her arm around his back, pressing herself into his side. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I did argue against publishing it. And I really did want to tell you about it, but…”

“I know.” He craned his head back and closed his eyes in an attempt to try and relax.

“Thank you, Momo.”

“Hm? For what?” She pulled back enough to look up at him.

Toshiro met her eye and shrugged, “For being honest,” He said. “Though I can’t say I completely understand… any of it. Girls are crazy.”

She pouted, poking him hard in the ribs, eliciting a loud “ouch!” From him as he shifted away from her.

“The Hell was that for?” He asked, guarding his ribs from her fingers still trying to jab at him.

“For calling me crazy.”

He scoffed, “I didn’t call you crazy.”

She crossed her arms, her eyebrow arching accusingly, “You just said girls are crazy.”

“You don’t count,” He said. Momo felt a small pang at the simple statement, though she wasn’t sure why. He sighed, adding, “You’re… different.” He returned his focus to the streets below the window, his body tense and indicating that he wasn’t going to elaborate further.

She smiled and turned to look outside with him, somewhat understanding what he was trying to say. She knew that words were not something he was particularly good with. From the corner of her eye, she caught the small scowl on his lips as he spied the two guards standing out front of the gates being sucked into a conversation as they giggled girlishly, pointing at a picture or two in the magazine.

Momo could only imagine the punishments he was thinking of putting the guards through for what he was sure to document as ‘neglecting duties’ in his reports. It made her wonder what he’d do once Rangiku surfaced again… it inspired a little idea. It was perhaps a little risky, given the secrecy of the Women’s Association, but one that, if played out right, would greatly improve her friend’s mood at the small expense of his lieutenant and maybe a bit of property damage. Besides, it wasn’t like any of it could lead back to her. Looking over at Toshiro, she smiled, confident that once she told him, he would never share where the secret entrance to Kuchiki Manor was located.

#hitsuhina week 2023 #hitsuhina #Toshiro Hitsugaya #momo hinamori #Bleach #mywriting

[savebylou]

Article below. Read it if you can.

The discourse surrounding Harry Styles is many things, but one thing it literally ALWAYS is is exhausting. Harry Styles has reached the calibre of celebrity and fandom that whatever move he makes, how he chooses to do his hair, what he chooses to wear all spark conversation and debate. It feels like for years now the odiously boring conversation on whether Harry Styles has been “queerbaiting” or not is a never ending pollution across social media and the more yawn inducing side of Reddit – but now, it’s pivoted in a new direction thanks to how Harry Styles looked when he went to watch a footie game the other day, with people saying he’s now “straight again”. O-kay.

Just a very bizarre opinion to be fronted with, in my opinion. And even more bizarre to see it’s currently sitting on 138,000 likes – which either means that many people genuinely believe such trite nonsense or they think it’s funny. It’s got to a boring area of the discourse where it doesn’t matter if Harry Styles rocks up in the pretty bog standard, neutral outfit he did or wears a feather boa as per his Love On Tour era – he’d be spoken about with the word queerbaiting not fair behind.

I think where this gets really problematic is that it’s sort of all centred on the nonsensical. If Harry Styles is bi, gay, queer – any of those things being entirely his business to keep to himself or share when he wants – then why would he suddenly not be if he wears a muted colour, goes the footie or cuts his hair shorter? I feel like the fact I’m even having to voice this makes me feel like I’ve fell down a time slip to 2010 or something. And what I find even more baffling is that the outfit in question is a shirt and sweater vest, big 70s vibes – isn’t that how Harry’s been dressing for … years? So we’re saying all this Harry Styles ‘is straight again’ because he’s cropped his hair short? Do me a favour.

Was particularly riled at this one, which suggests the reason that Harry Styles isn’t walking into a footie match with a feather boa on and some pink palazzo trousers is because Love On Tour has ended and so has the album cycle – therefore he has not interest in… Your guess is as good as mine. No interest in being gay, of which he more than likely isn’t anyway? No interest in appealing to gays? Why are we pretending that over half of every stadium on Love On Tour wasn’t filled with heterosexual women?

It’s all just very weird, to be honest with you. I am writing this as a gay man, and whether Harry Styles is presenting himself in whatever way he’s seen fit I have never once felt “queerbaited”. I have not spent the last few years of my life thinking Harry Styles was LGBTQ+ – just that he was a massive ally and someone who wasn’t afraid to be a bit flamboyant from time to time. Even if he was gay or bi or whatever it would make a grand total of zero difference to my life or to my enjoyment of his music.

If your first thought when you see a pop star with shorter hair at a footie game is “oh, Harry Styles is straight again” – you need an urgent life.

Link to article.

#i wish everyone that like those tweets read this article #harry in the press #harry's hair #harry's fashion #harry's image #harry's sexuality #queerbaiting #the tab #harrison brocklehurst #harry styles

[pigeonwit]

hullo pidge!

ive got three for you: ✄ , ✦, ♡. i already forgot what each of them means, but i trust that you can check the list and know. (for the one thats about comments u can choose what fic its for xx)

also notre dame by paris paloma as vice vermin virtue is so accurate literally everytime i hear that song i think of triple v

sneep you really feed my need to just talk about things all the time and i love it thank you so much for feeding my inane ramblings.

✄ what’s your editing process?

,,, yknow i dont think i really have one? like for oneshots and stuff i just sort of write it all down and try to see if it all Works for the character's POV and the story i want to tell. i try to break it up into segments so i can look over it piece by piece instead of slogging through the whole thing afterwards (cause i hate that and hating it makes me rush through it and that's how i make mistakes) but that's kind of it - for oneshots at least. for stories that i intend to keep adding to i want to make sure everything's followable, like character motivations and mental states and etc etc, so i go scene by scene and REALLY scrape over it. i have a bit in rbr4 that i've revisited at least eight times now because it's just not QUITE getting davey's motivations down the way i want. and then once i'm done analysing all those sections and fitting them together, i normally go to @rebuke-me for beta-ing just to make sure everything's flowing in an understandable way. i don't really do first and second drafts because i've already been drafting every scene bit by bit, so when i'm all done i just proofread as best i can and send it off to jupes if she's not too busy. unfortunately i do occasionally make some little mistakes (repeating a word or phrase too much, mixing up my metaphors, some small grammar stuff, etc) and i have a PROBLEM of getting too bogged down in little details that don't matter, but fanfictions a hobby, not a profession, and treating it like a profession is always what ruins it for me, so i prefer my casual editing process. it's not perfect, but i wouldn't be enjoying myself if it was.

✦ what was your easiest fic to write & your hardest?

ayyy this is. hm. probably 'matches' since it was so short, and i had the idea just kind of pop into my head fully formed. it's literally just one snippet of jack and davey's lives so it was pretty easy to get down. and the hardest is absolutely 'run boy run'. it's every single davey thought i've ever had written into a loveletter to my own autistic experience, which is... taxing, and on top of that it's a bit of a struggle to keep davey's motivations and character clear without projecting too much of myself onto him. but it's my baby and i love it dearly, and even if i don't get it all out perfectly it's still going to be my most treasured fic.

♡ pick a fic and I’ll pick a comment that made me really happy

without a doubt this goes to the comment left by ao3 user 'tablesaltiv' on 'say you came on first (i think you came on fine)' - it's too long for me to feel comfortable putting it in this post, and honestly i'd feel a little vain even if i did, but it's probably the most reassuring comment i've ever gotten. i stopped writing fanfiction when i was around sixteen/seventeen due to a very VERY big personal spiral and didn't post any again until i was twenty. i was REALLY scared of posting 'say you came on first' because it was probably the most character-studyish thing i'd ever done before, and i was. very stupidly paranoid that i had completely misunderstood the characters and should just call it quits again - and then tablesaltiv left their very lovely comment saying that having seen the show live themselves, my fic felt entirely accurate. it was incredibly reassuring for me and filled me with a lot of confidence, and even though i know i'm never going to understand these characters FLAWLESSLY, i at least feel confident enough to think that i understand them well - and now i'm still here and writing a very ambitious fic that i'm worrying about a LOT, but i'm determined to finish anyways :) thank you tablesaltiv

(also - i know i can't REALLY count this since it's not on a fic like the ask game said but i have to say thank you to YOU, sneep, for saying that you think about one of my own silly little fanfics every time you listen to a song?? that's crazy to me. i can't believe that. that's so kind and meaningful in ways i can't put into words. like. holy shit my fic exists in your brain. i can't believe that. so yeah that made me extra happy too fshhs)

#sneep you are an incredibly encouraging person and hearing from you is wonderful :)) #newsies #ask #sneepsnoopboopideeboop #long post #fic thoughts

[ltleflrt]

I want to give up on this fic.

But I'm actually pretty close to the end, and I don't want to leave it abandoned when I've really only got a few plot points left to address (probably still like 10 chapters tbh lol). I really like the story, but I'm struggling so hard to write it because I don’t like the words I’m using to build it.

The first 40k flowed really easy, and when I re-read those parts of the story, I'm happy with the writing. But after I got bogged down again, I hate it. I lost the melody I usually hear when I'm having an easy time writing. It reminds me of being in orchestra and somehow I got off tempo, and I can't match myself up with everyone else, so I put my violin down and stop playing. But the concert is still going; I can't just walk off the stage, y'know?

Whenever I get really frustrated about this feeling, I inevitably get someone telling me "you just hate it because you're improving" and that enrages me, because no that's not the problem. I can go back and look at the fics I wrote 8-10 years ago, and feel like that was better writing than what I'm doing today. And even if it's true that I hate it because I'm improving, SO WHAT?? What's next? HOW DO I GET PAST THIS HURDLE? Keep writing you say? Oh alright, I've only been doing that for the last FOUR YEARS, so at what point is it supposed to get fucking better?? If that statement is intended to make me feel better, it's not working. Every time I hear it, it makes me want to quit even more. It's not a a helpful solution to the problem, it's just a platitude.

I will concede that my plots are improving. I progressively write more difficult stories. I get stuck a lot more on indecision on how to handle certain plot points, what order to put them in to get the most oomph from the events, and what to do next once I've resolved those issues. That's the main reason my current WIP has taken me 11 months to write 78k, even though my first fic ever was 78k written in 2 months, and I used to consistently write 100k+ stories in 3-5 months. I have to really examine this stuff up close, consider a lot more possibilities than I ever have before, and figure out what to trim and what to create brand new from the ether. But this isn't what I'm frustrated about, even if it IS a struggle.

It's my Author Voice that I've lost. The cadence, the melody, everyone put down your instruments because we've fucked up the song.

*sigh*

Anyway, I'm still going to finish this fic. Thank goodness for Tauren stubbornness, or I'd have given up 30k ago.

Please, please, do not respond to this with any flavor of “but it means you’re improving”. Even if it’s true, it undoes any catharsis I just got from venting, and actually sets my progress back another week while I try to get over the increased frustration. I know it’s meant in good faith, and I love you for it, but it’s not what I need right now.

#ltleramblings #writer's angst

[sunder-soul]

Hi Sunny! As a former HP imagines writer and someone who's very particular about Tom Riddle characterization (he's my favorite!), I just needed to say that I absolutely ADORE your work.

The way you approach his character is with so much love and care -- it especially shines through with how you write his emotions and expressions (i.e., every time I see the "colourless" descriptor in one of your pieces sparks joy!).

Your Take a Bite mini-series has me hooked, which is saying a lot since normally I lean more toward White Dove kind of Tom characterization. I honestly don't think there's a way that you could write Tom that I wouldn't like. The way you play around with "what if"s for his personality is just...it's so, so very good.

Your writing flows wonderfully and your banter dialogue is sharp and fun, while still feeling realistic and flowing naturally -- that's not easy to do! I often find myself grinning like an idiot when I read your works because of it.

Writing reader inserts is very difficult to do well and your works are so well balanced with giving the reader personality, but minimal description. It's always a lovely read. I have so much respect for reader insert authors who can pull off mini-series, I always found it to be a struggle! The pacing on yours is always very satisfying.

I understand very, very well how writing on tumblr can feel; there's often a lot of silent spectators who adore your work but don't interact and many of those who do tend to be more request oriented than AO3. It can be very demoralizing and just;;;stressful? Hope you find whatever works best for you and keep it up!

Seriously, thank you for sharing as much of your writing as you have! It rekindled my love for Tom's character amidst all my complicated feelings toward the HP series, so thank you for that, too. I missed reading about him a lot and I'm excited to keep reading through your backlog.

Sorry for the rant in your inbox!

- VII.

Hi VII :) I'm in love with you now.

I really don't know how to say how this made me feel, it really feels like you GET it 😭💖

First of all, thank you so much for all your amazing, lovely compliments and observations, I was absolutely beaming like an idiot reading this. I really agree it can be a weird experience writing publically, and tbh I think I got super bogged down with peoples' expectations/feedback and that's why I crashed a bit. I've got to let go of thinking about how things are going to be received and just write because it's fun to just write, ya know?

I hope you're also feeling more in touch with your writing spark! Sad to hear you're a former writer and not current, but I totally get how these things change. Pls feel free to message me if u ever want to yarn about such things 💞 we must stick together 💪

Thank you again, I've been low key hoarding this message in my inbox bc I loved reading it so much. It really means a lot to me 💖

#VII #ask #anon #tom riddle #the absolute loveliest of people #favourite

[rigil-kentauris]

When you get this you have to put 5 songs you actually listen to, publish. then, send this ask to 10 of your favourite followers!! here ya go!!

OH NO JUST 5????

lets see

hm. im going to take the definition ACTUALLY LISTEN TO and translate that to listen with a capital L, put that song on and melt into mattress, listening to that song is a Task.

1. Nothing Left To Say/Rocks Imagine Dragons EXCEPT i dont listen to rocks i do not like it. i got this album for free back when google play music was new enough to coax people with free music if you can believe that. anyway this song is too big to listen to while walking. i will listen to it while driving but i think i shouldnt. its very. hm.

its very sad. it reminds me of people ive left behind. and places i cant go back to. situations that are over without a choice or chance of reprieve. sometimes it just be like that.

but as sad as it is i think lots of parts of this song are also hopeful. the chorus is entirely about giving up, but ever verse ends with i keep pushing on. i think the idea that you keep pushing on and on is the kind of hope that makes all the sad worse. the first time i wrote a piece of fluff, coming off of a solid career of angst, the person i was writing with was like, see, now that they are happy, you can make them even sadder! because once, they were happy! and i think this song is a bit reverse of that. things suck, and you keep going. theres nothing left to say about it.

anyway, i think this song says about me that i am depressed but what is new there. my favorite line is all of them. god ive decided to pick lines. so i would say that. despite liking individual lines more, i think my favorite line is when it goes

But I keep pushing On and on and on and on

or when it goes and instead of but. i think it contrast is what makes the song powerful. im tired, and im lost, and everything hurts, and im giving up but im still going. im falling but im pushing on. theres nothing i can do and nothing i can say. im pushing on. what a very modern tragedy. ill stop now before i go in circles.

grumpy side note. i think If you could only save me/I'm drowning in the waters of my soul… could be improved. this whole song has been internally driven until then, and then the song gives the spotlight moment to a desperate wish that someone else could save me/us/you. pah.

also fuck rocks. im sorry if someone reading this is a rocks liker but i am not.

2. Well now that we've got a a bog standard answer I'll put All My Friends by LCD Soundsystems for the umpteenth time. I won't make everyone sit through this ramble again. I think this song also says about me that i am a depressed zillenial.

i genuinely cant pick a single line. if im picking one part then that means im not picking another

in general i think this whole song is. regrets and nostalgia bound together. lives youve lead. mistakes youve made. people who have come apart from you just as it is. losing yourself to the grind but also living. this whole verse is

It comes apart The way it does in bad films Except the part Where the moral kicks in Though when we're running out of the drugs And the conversation's grinding away I wouldn't trade one stupid decision For another five years of life

And its like. life is coming apart. we're coming down of the life of living and being young and being in the moment. theres no moral to this story. just entropy. and despite that. despite all that. i wouldnt give any of it away. everything has lead me here and i- i am not just happy with that. i wouldnt take five more years worth of chances in exchange for the one shot to change what ive been

i think its pretty aspirational

theres another song i like to listen to that has a theme of even the mistakes weren't really mistakes at all. i think. eh. i think these aspirations are useful. i think we can find happiness even if the past is sad.

anyway all of these are my favorite lines. this is another one i listen to in the car even though i shouldnt.

3. DID I SAY STOP BEING MAUDLIN I MEANT START HARDER. Wide Open - Chemical Brothers after about a million hours listening time i am becoming slightly immune to this one though.

tbh the lyrics arent particularity striking to me but the whole combination of everything is just MAGICAL. plus theres like four whole words in the song. but since ive decided to make myself pick lines, im going to go with the chorus Slow me down/It's getting away from me

4. OH OH. OH I WANT TO PUT. Hm. I think this might not count but i've written almost an essay about this one and i listen to it critically so I think it fits the definition of Listen listen to. Truth Despair and Hope, FE8, Saki Haruyama, Yoshihiko Kitamura, Yoshito Hirano. im mentally ill about this song re: how it blends storytelling and music.. i'll tell you how ill i am about this song i dug up my exhiled FE blog (nobody @ me there i wont see it) to find what i wrote about it [long eyes emoji post with timestamps][a shorter post that i DID NOT FINISH ELABORATING ON???? but i think is more insightful and important analysis of the story/song meld]

anyway. its not like. a song on my playlists. its just like the only music ive every done serious analysis on voluntarily and because i once said if this song was a person i'd marry it. also help i managed to avoid putting any of these songs on while writing and now ive failed and i cant turn it off. im worked up about this again. its about teh WEAVING OF THREE DISPARATE TALES EACH ALIKE IN MEANING EXCEPT WHEN VIEWED THROUGH THE LENS OF THE OTHER. WHO IS TRUTH? WHO IS DESPAIR? WHO IS HOPE? WHO IS WORKING THAT SICK ASS BASS LINE? THIS SONG AND ITS TRIO OF PARTS (okay i count four in several parts but yknow) HAUNT ME

this one doesnt have lyrics so i cant have a favorite one. my favorite part i think would be the bass from 0:30-0:45

5. there are better candidates for 5, but i spent a week on internal debating and if i dont pick a 5 im never going to. in the spirit of something more cheerful than the prior, im picking Where the Streets Have No Names which is by U2. so, for reasons i wont get into, i have been flying on planes regularly for most my life. this is my Plane Song. i dont listen to it very often because like. the atmosphere. has to be: you are squished into your window seat. its fucking BAKING hot because the sun in magnified on you. it is also FREEZING because youre on a plane. you are squished like the sardine with a stranger and your leg hurts from playing the cant touch anyone anxiety game. and youre tired from getting up early or staying up late and youre unrelated, slightly dozy because the whole process is a stress and theres the tremendous white noise of the massive engines leaking in through your very worn earbuds. and theres the minute vibrations of your tiny metal tube, and you are looking out the baking hot window and there are clouds and clouds and clouds and SUN. and you are nowhere in the world on your way to somewhere else. and it doenst matter if thats a good somewhere or a bad somewhere. your in the Sky now. and it is beautiful

anyway i havent flown lately as you might imagine. plague and all that.

im going to cheat and pick two lyrics. We're still building then burning down love/Burning down love because i like it and i like how it sounds in the song. i like the sound more than the next lyrics but i like the next lyric better, which is And when I go there/I go there with you/It's all I can do

im very disappointed i couldnt sneak in a complextro song or one of the glitchy ones. but tbh i listen to those because they distract half my brain, allowing me to focus. they arent really for Listening listening to.

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okey i know several of yall do NOT like tag games and i cant remember who right now so i will wait on tagging. but if you want to do it please tag me and i will skedaddle over and give some songs a listen!

#long post #WOOF THAT TOOK FOREVER #THE INTERNAL DEBATES LASTED A WEEK #that was fun though #ask games