#and then knowing that he either has to kill this innocent version of his soulmate or let his existence be unwritten

[luxaofhesperides]

Post-Apocalypse + Soulmate AU ; requested by @burr-burr!

When Danny was a kid, he used to imagine how the world would end. It was never a zombie apocalypse or the fallout of a nuclear war, but the death of the sun, the expansion of their star in death that would swallow their planet whole, leaving no survivors.

It would have been nicer than the post-apocalyptic world he stands in now, knowing that it’s his fault the world has ended. 

He’s still struggling to wrap his head around it. To understand that all of this is his fault because he cheated on one test, desperate to pass after being unable to study for it with how exhausting and time consuming fighting ghosts is. Everywhere he looks, there’s more destruction. His own home is rubble, with only the partially untouched Ops Center remaining to let him know that this is where he once lived.

The rest of Amity Park is in worse shape. Buildings are hollowed out, the skeletons of their foundations visible, if they still remain standing. Most homes have been burned to the ground, leaving blackened corners of walls and nothing else. The roads are cracked and difficult to walk through, as if an earthquake tore through the city. Cars are scattered along the road, overturned or left abandoned, doors still open.

Danny has yet to find any bodies. He doesn’t know if that’s a good sign or not. 

He’s only caught a few glimpses of his future self, the cause of all this, and can’t bring himself to chase after that monster. He feels sick to his stomach knowing what he’ll become. 

That monster has to be stopped. The world has already ended, but that doesn’t mean his future self can be allowed to go on like this. If there are any survivors, they need protection. They need to know they’ll be safe to try to start rebuilding, and that can only happen if his future self is dead.

Danny knows what he has to do; he has a responsibility to protect what little remains of Amity Park, and to do that, he needs to kill himself. 

But his head it spinning from the horror of the situation and his throat is tightening up the way it only does when he’s about to have a panic attack.

He needs to stop his future self, but he also can’t stay another second in the ruins of Amity Park without destroying himself.

The guilt sits heavy in his chest as he goes ghost and takes to the sky, flying blindly towards the setting sun. Danny doesn’t know where he’s going, and he doesn’t really care. He just needs to get away for a bit, until he can calm down and put together a plan of attack so he can take out his future self in one go.

He just…

He never thought he’d be a monster. But here they are.

Flying away from Amity Park reveals the truly harrowing extent to which this world has suffered under his future self’s hands. There are no intact cities or towns. Roads are broken beyond repair, highways littered with empty cars, most bridges crumbling into the rivers below them, and everything is covered in overgrowth. All signs of humanity’s careful cultivation of the world has been erased. The earth takes back what humans took from it, covering everything in green. 

There is no movement. No people. Barely any birds flying beneath him. 

What remains of the world is silence.

Danny is terrified that there’s no one left. That his future self has so thoroughly destroyed the earth that no human survivors remain. 

That gives his guidance, some idea of where to go: a big city. Any big city, really. 

He flies lower, searching for some sort of landmark, or a sign that will tell him where he’s going. A rusted over green sign farther down the road tells him that he’s 50 miles from Gotham.

Oh, Danny thinks, Maybe Batman can help me.

If anyone could survive the end of the world, it would be the superheroes, right? If anyone stands a chance at defeating his future self, it would be a superhero. Superman might have been a better choice, but Metropolis is the opposite direction and multiple states away; Danny’s not sure he can make it before his future self catches wind of him and hunts him down. 

Danny has no doubt about what would happen to him if he’s caught; there’s a reason he hasn’t seen any ghosts around, after all.

Gotham is a city of secrets and rumors. What little he’s heard of it is baffling and, frankly, insane. There’s no city in the country like it and Gothamites prefer it that way, stubbornly loving the home that will kill them. For all the manmade horrors they survive on the daily, they would be more prepared for the end of the world than anyone else. 

Gotham may be another casualty of his future self’s destruction, but it also offers him hope.

Danny follows the broken road towards Gotham, pushing himself to fly faster than he ever has before. What should have been a half hour flight is completed in fifteen minutes. 

As soon as the towering buildings of Gotham, dark and semi destroyed, come into view, Danny drops from the sky and returns to human form. The strain from pushing himself has exhausted him and he feels it like an ache in his chest, his heart twisting and trying to burst from how hard it’s beating. 

He collapses to his hands and knees and gasps for breath on the outskirts of Gotham. 

It takes a good few minutes to calm down and breathe normally, then another to gather his strength to stand up and begin walking. 

The world is eerily quiet as he enters the city, feeling the chill fall upon him as he is consumed by the shadows of tall buildings. It’s much more intact that Amity Park, but there’s no denying the destruction that still surrounds him. Buildings are empty and worn down, decaying and slowly being consumed by new growth. Burnt out husks of overturned cars fill the street, leaving Danny to carefully pick his way around them, unable to walk in a straight line. 

He feels like the only person in the world. He feels like he’s being watched by a hungry eyes. 

Danny shivers and walks faster. 

The deeper he goes into the city, the more he starts to hope that he’s not alone in this world. There’s small signs of life: the smell of smoke, recently burned, certain streets cleaned up, makeshift walls constructed from rubble to block access to certain areas of each block.

He swears he can see people move above his head, but anytime he looks up, the windows of every building are empty. 

“Batman,” he whispers to himself, “I just need to find Batman.”

He turns a corner and continues walking. Apartment buildings give way to stores and businesses, all with their windows broken and nothing on the shelves. Then the buildings end abruptly and he’s left staring at an overgrown park that resembles a jungle more than it does a part of the city.

The scent of something sweet lingers in the air. Fruit, perhaps, or flowers. 

If he was left in the aftermath of an apocalypse, he would go to where he could find growing food. If there’s anyone left in Gotham, he’s willing to bet they’re in here, surviving off of what food can be grown in the confines of the park. 

Danny crosses the road and takes three steps onto the grass before someone appears beside him and points an electrified baton at him.

“Who are you?” they demand, eyes hidden behind a cracked helmet, but the bottom half of their face is visible, revealing scars crossing on dark skin. 

Danny takes a step back, eyeing the electric baton warily, and lifts his hands to show he means no harm. “Danny. I came from out of town. I was hoping to find people here.”

“You don’t look like you’ve been traveling.”

His clothes are clean and intact and he has none of the world-weariness that weighs down this Gothamite. Danny winces, and says, “My situation is kinda complicated. But I did just get here. I’m looking for help, actually. Do you know where I could find Batman?”

There’s a long moment of tense silence, then he hears a quiet sigh and the helmet comes off. An exhausted looking man looks at him with one blind eye, turned a milky white, and his voice is low and stricken as he says, “Batman’s dead. But maybe I can help you.”

“Batman’s dead?!” Danny repeats, shocked.

“Yeah. Sacrificed himself in one of the last times Phantom attacked Gotham. Got me and Nightwing out of that encounter alive. We’re really the only heroes left in Gotham, not that there’s much need anymore with everyone trying to survive.”

Phantom killed Batman. His future self killed Batman. 

Danny feels sick to his stomach.

“Oh,” he manages to say. 

The man’s expression softens. “Don’t worry, we’ll help you as much as we can. Why don’t you come on in? Ivy can get you some food if you’re hungry.”

Danny nods numbly as he follows the man deeper into the park. He walks with ease, taking paths that only become visible when he walks them, leaving Danny to follow close behind. It takes some time before he realizes that the plants are moving out of their way just enough that they don’t trip, and when he looks back, the path is covered again, hidden from sight.

He’s taken to the heart of the forest, where the trees shift to the side to reveal a large encampment of survivors all living together. Beds are strung up as hammocks between trees and rope ladders dangle from branches to help people move up and down. The ground is full of small fire pits, a few in use to make make food, and sections in the back full of vegetable and herb patches, separated by berry bushes. 

The people here all look tired and worn down, but they still smile and speak in light voices, adjusted to a new life after surviving so much horror and destruction. He even spots a few people using powers, or just looking different, including one large man who looks like a crocodile. 

“Pick up another stray?” a raspy voice asks, humor lighting the tone. They both turn to see a woman with long red hair and a green tint to her skin be lowered to the ground by a vine. She’s also heavily scarred and her right arm is completely gone, replaced by a wooden limb covered in moss that moves as if it’s always been a part of her body.

“Hey Ivy,” the man greets, “I don’t think this one is staying. He came to Gotham looking for Batman.”

The words make Ivy’s gaze sharpen, and Danny feels a trickle of dread go down his spine. She’s dangerous and standing before her feels as if he’s in the mouth of a hungry beast.

“Is that so,” she says, voice flat. “How interesting. I’ll let you two talk somewhere more private.” Her gaze flicks to the side, and when Danny turns to look, he can see some of the people in the encampment observing them warily, bodies tense and poised to either flee or attack.

Ivy turns and the plants part for her. Danny waits for the man to begin walking before he follows, trying not to feel trapped as the plants close the path behind him. She takes them to a small pond full of water lilies, gives the man a careful look, then leaves, swallowed up by the plants.

“Is everything okay?” Danny asks hesitantly. “I didn’t mean to cause any trouble.”

“Nah, you’re good,” the man replies, “It’s just that people don’t trust me much.”

“Why? You’ve been really nice.”

The man shrugs. “My soulmate is Phantom. He’s the one responsible for doing all this and killing almost everyone we love. I didn’t know until the first time I fought him, but they hate anything to do with Phantom, including me.”

Danny’s heart stutters in his chest. This is his soulmate.

Most people don’t subscribe to the belief that they’re meant to be with their soulmate. Meeting your soulmate is rare enough that most people don’t try, and plenty of people have spoken of how important it is to have a variety of relationships, to not close yourself off for the slightest chance of meeting your soulmate. 

Danny never looked for his; he didn’t want to subject them to his parents, and then he became a halfa and gave up on all dreams of having a normal life or any relationship with someone who didn’t know he was Phantom.

And now he’s here, in a ruined future, standing before his soulmate who understandably hates him for destroying the world. 

“You’re Phantom’s soulmate,” Danny breathes. His hands are shaking. He wants to cry.

The man sighs. “Yeah. I am. Not that it’s stopped him from trying to kill me. Don’t worry, kid, I’m not working with him. I swear.”

“He’s your soulmate and he hurt you.”

“He hurt everyone,” he says, then gestures at his blind eye. “This is barely a thing compared to what he did to other heroes.”

Danny can’t find the words to expression his horror at seeing the damage he did to his own soulmate. His future self is heartless and cruel and bloodthirsty. He has to be stopped.

He doesn’t want to kill his soulmate. 

“I came here for Batman,” Danny says, “Because I thought he could help me stop Phantom.”

“That’s rough, kid. Batman couldn’t beat Phantom. I don’t think anyone can. We’ve tried, but most heroes are dead and we can’t just go out there and risk the lives of everyone here. We gotta focus on survival, not revenge.”

“I have to stop Phantom.”

“Sorry kid, but that’s a terrible idea. Don’t go out there trying to be a hero. You can stay here, alright? Ivy will get you set up and the others will help you settle in.”

Danny takes a step back and shakes his head. “No. I have to stop him. It has to be me.”

“And why is that?”

“Because I’m Phantom,” Danny whispers. 

The man immediately reaches for his electric batons again, taking a step back. “Not funny, kid,” he says with a tense voice. 

“I’m not joking. I am Phantom, just from the past. I’m not supposed to be here.”

“You’re Phantom?” the man repeats. “You. You’re just a kid, and you’re going to destroy the world one day?”

“I don’t want this to happen! That’s why I need to go back, so I can stop the event that will set me down this path. And to go back, I need to defeat the Phantom that exists here.”

“He’ll kill you, kid.”

“That still solves the problem, doesn’t it? If I die here, then he’ll never live long enough to destroy the world. He’ll die too.”

The man stares at him with cold eyes, then turns away, dropping his hands away from the batons. “Don’t turn this into a suicide mission, kid,” he says. “The Phantom who’s here isn’t you. You don’t have to pay for his crimes. Just… stay here and I’ll go fight Phantom.”

“He already hurt you,” Danny says. 

“What’s a little more hurt? I can handle it.”

“No,” Danny says firmly. He shoves away the fear and hurt in his heart and finds his strength in determination. No more running away. No more hiding. 

The timeline should not exist. He can’t hesitate at the thought of erasing this version of his soulmate from existence; he’s tired and injured and an outcast in the only community that still exists in Gotham. He deserves better. Everyone here does.

And to give them a better life, Danny needs to stop this one from ever happening.

“This is my future. It’s my responsibility. I’ll stop it and make sure this never happens. And… I’m sorry for everything I did.”

“It’s not your fault, Danny. You’re not this version of Phantom.”

That’s not at all true, since Danny’s actions lead to the end of the world, but he’s not going to argue when he’s preparing to fight a stronger, more ruthless version of himself. He takes a deep breath, then goes ghost and floats into the air. 

“Before I go,” he begins, hesitantly, “What’s your name? Since you’re apparently my soulmate.”

The man smiles sadly and answers, “Duke. If we ever meet in your time, tell that version of me to look for my mom’s favorite book.”

It’s an odd request, but if it’s important enough to be asked for, then Danny will do it. “Your mom’s favorite book,” he repeats, “Got it.”

“Take care, Danny. Good luck out there.”

Danny nods and takes one last look at his soulmate, older and worn down, stubbornly getting through each long day, and swears to make things better.

Then he flies off, ready to fight his future self and make things right again. 

. . .

He thinks of his soulmate for years after he’s back in the present. The timeline where his future self exists is gone and the world is safe, but he still remembers the pain he caused Duke. 

When the time comes to apply to universities, Danny sets his sights on Gotham. His parents take him on a trip during spring break to tour the campus, and it’s after the tour, as he wanders around on his own, that he bumps into a student walking out of a building.

“Sorry,” they both say at the same time, reaching for each other to help each other keep their balance. 

As soon as their hands meet, it’s as if lightning runs through him. From the look on the other guy’s face, he felt it to. 

This is his soulmate.

“Duke,” Danny says, amazed and disbelieving all at once. And the request crosses his mind, something he wondered about almost every night since he returned to his time. “Look for your mom’s favorite book.”

“How—?”

“I met you in the future. You asked me to take back a message for the you that’s here. So: look for your mom’s favorite book. What does that mean, by the way? I never asked.”

Duke blinks, then slowly retracts his hands from Danny’s. “My mom’s favorite book was a hand bound journal from my dad. They were soulmates and he wrote about their first year in a relationship together. It’s full of pictures, and she loved it more than anything. That message is to remind me to have faith in soulmates, to believe that something good can happen to me.”

“Oh! That’s… wow, sorry, I didn’t mean to pry into something so personal.”

Duke shrugs. “It’s fine. I needed the reminder. I would have already run away by now if you didn’t say that. You already know my name, but I think now’s a good time to introduce ourselves.”

“Right!” Danny says, flustered. He sticks his hand out, which Duke shakes with an amused smile. “I’m Danny. Fenton. I’m coming here next semester.”

“Duke Thomas. I’m a freshman here and I’d really love to get your number.”

He’s not hitting on Danny, not really, but it still makes him blush. The way Duke looks at him is full of light and laughter, so different from the exhausted and wary way he looked in the future now rewritten. 

This is what the future version of himself tried to kill. He doesn’t understand how anyone could ever hurt Duke when he’s so full of life. 

But he’s safe now. Everyone is; Danny changed the future and what lies ahead is wholly unknown to him.

The world is safe and full of promise. 

No matter what comes, Danny is sure he and Duke are going to be just fine.

#ghostlights #dc x dp #dp x dc #dcxdp #dpxdc #prompt fill #my writing #the horror of knowing what kind of monster you are capable of becoming paired with the knowledge that your soulmate has suffered bc of you #and reasonably wants you dead/taken out of the picture not just for revenge but for the sake of everyone's safety #but also from duke's pov he's found a teenager wandering into gotham's last refuge. he looks strangely untouched by the end of the world. #hes looking for batman who duke watched die. and then it turns out that hes a younger version of the monster that ruined your life #(and everyone elses life) and realizes that this is who his soulmate once was #and then knowing that he either has to kill this innocent version of his soulmate or let his existence be unwritten #there is no happy ending for post-apoc duke's story #but he and danny get a second chance in a new timeline where things are better #doesnt mean the nightmares ever leave danny lol #thanks for the prompt!!

[venusmelody]

personal reasons: seishirou/subaru as erotic horror soulmates

I've written in the past about why I don't like soulmates—in brief, external factors like fate pushing two people together always feel weaker than those who choose—but there are certain tropes or subversions that do work for me. All of them are, in fact, encapsulated by Seishirou/Subaru: my favourite ship that both leans into and deconstructs soulmates. And thus: a mini-manifesto why I love them. CW: dark fictional relationships.

Seishirou and Subaru are high-key Soulmates, in the way CLAMP does soul-mates. Their storylines merge, they always meet, one chases eternally after another in a way that consumes their entire lives, artwork features literal red threads, but fate doesn't dictate how they're together. In one universe (TB/X), Seishirou has ruined Subaru's life in every way you can imagine, and they're fated to be enemies on every battlefield they face: onmyoji with opposing morals, family feuds rising from this, and opposite stars across the battlefield during the X/1999 apocalypse. In another universe (TRC), Seishirou is a hunter/priest trying to hunt down vampire!Subaru for unclear reasons, trading away one eye just for the chance to follow Subaru across worlds. Subaru pretty clearly misses him in both. But they are fated enemies; the trick is that being together would be a defiance of fate, rather than being in its throes, and it is always about choice.

Despite the throes of fate, their relationship is because of who they are as people, rather than their positions or what fate dictates. Subaru is a kind, compassionate, selfless person who wants to give to the world; this is true with or without spirit powers. Seishirou is a psychopath who doesn't understand compassion, or feel love. When they meet in Tokyo Babylon, they are shaped by powers, yes. But Subaru followed the voices of ghosts in pain because he wanted to help them, and only because of that side of him—him, not the Sumeragi heir—did he meet Seishirou. And Seishirou is just stunned that anyone can be that kind and innocent, and amused, and curious about whether that kindness can touch him. He's fascinated by Subaru's kindness first, rather than abilities of powers, before anything else.

Despite being on opposite sides, despite the pain, tragedy, and violence, the draw between them is there. They fit. They complement each others' loneliness, despite the vastly different sources: Subaru loves everyone and therefore no one (except Hokuto) is special to him. Seishirou cares about no one, and therefore no one is special to him. Except the other person worms their way in, despite Subaru's distance from the world, and Seishirou's apathy. Someone new matters.

It feels perverse and wrong to say that they provided something fundamental the other needed, given how abusive the relationship is, and yet. Subaru was innocent, but he wasn't whole in TB. He was a person without self-esteem and was selfless to the point of self-destructiveness. Subaru needed someone who could actually make him selfish, before he burned himself out and died, and as sad as it was, he finally found someone he couldn't just give up even for the greater good. Seishirou needed someone to... kill him, because good god that guy, but it needed to be someone he loved. Subaru and Seishirou both needed to have one person they considered special, and they found it.

Even the ultimate tropes of soulmate marks and mysterious blood connections link Subaru and Seishirou, but nothing either was born with. Subaru has marks signalling he's Seishirou's because Seishirou put them on himself, after already becoming fascinated. And they're not meant to be marks of love, however Subaru later regards them, but the sign of prey. In TRC, there is some sort of connection between a vampire that Turns a human, and again: Subaru made the choice to give Seishirou his blood, though we never find out why. Soulmate marks, soulmate connections, but created by choice, not fate.

What external factors do to Subaru and Seishirou can be further seen by Hokuto's fate. Hokuto—who I love dearly—does her best to push them together, mimicking the idea of fate, friends, relatives, circumstance. But the ultimate legacy of her involvement becomes another reason to push the two of them apart—Hokuto's death.

They are both terrible at communication and self-realization and it shows; we're left with so many what-ifs. If Subaru realized earlier that he loved Seishirou, or recognized Seishirou's moments of composure breaking—all but outright telling Subaru he wasn't to be trusted, with his talk to seventeen-year-old Subaru about corpses buried beneath Sakura trees!—or was affectionate back. If Seishirou realized that, maybe this person he couldn't keep his hands off, found adorable, drove him to shatter mirrors with his fist, cuddled closer even when no one was watching, who he sacrificed his right eye to keep safe (for dramatic effect, I assume), might mean something, even if that something wasn't whatever he thought love was. If Subaru realized it. They don't. There were plenty of opportunities, which neither Subaru nor Seishirou took, to be honest.

It's ultimately their undoing. At the very end, they meet on Rainbow Bridge, but lets be real: it's personal. The apocalypse-battle and its deaths is a backdrop to the private tragedy that plays out. Seishirou thinks Subaru wants to kill him for revenge. Subaru doesn't know what Seishirou wants, but thinks it's definitely nothing to do with him. Seishirou's last act fulfills what he thought Subaru's wish was—his death—but he was completely misguided about what Subaru wanted, as Subaru was in turn.  They already have what both of them wanted but didn't say until the end: Subaru wanted to die at Seishirou's hand so that he could matter to Seishirou, not knowing he's perhaps already the person that matters most to Seishirou (as a toy or anything else). While Seishirou wants to possess Subaru in every way possible, not realizing that he already does. I'm already trapped in cherry blossoms, as Subaru says in their last fight.

Of course, in the end, did it matter if Subaru realized it all? What better way in CLAMP-verse to mean the most to someone, to be someone they never move on from, than dying at their hands? Seishirou makes Subaru kill him and then leaves his remaining eye to Subaru. Which, for ClampKink reasons, Subaru takes, letting Seishirou erase the lasting mark that someone else left on Subaru, marking Subaru forever as hiiiiis, and doing his best to stop Subaru from ever moving on. Subaru has to live on after killing the person he loves most in the world; in the aftermath, he can no longer raise a seal's kekkai, because whatever he wanted to protect on Earth, it died with Seishirou. As much as Seishirou died, so has the last part of Subaru that existed at the beginning of Tokyo Babylon—Subaru, not the Sumeragi heir.

But there was no other way, and no other path, than this. Because what dooms them isn't being on opposite sides, but themselves—that obsession, that lack of communication.

The fault isn't in the stars. It's in themselves. Especially the murderous psychopath, but I digress.

Which is, in the end, the most intriguing and affecting version of soulmates.

#seisub #tokyo babylon #x/1999 #sumeragi subaru #sakurazuka seishirou #clamp #my meta #seishirou x subaru #i'm not back but i have feelings okay

[phoebehalliwell]

Asking the important question about Bianca x Chris In the change!future : who fall in love first ? And who say i love you first ?

Because we got Chris, who believe in soulmates and destiny but also who probably think no one will love him like that because, insecurity. And Bianca, who simple does not believe in love. A great match, full angst / unrequited love potentiel

i’m gonna like. link my entire chris/bianca anthology just because i love talking about them

chris + love a, b, & c

bianca + general phoenix lore a, b, c, & d

chris & bianca: a, b, & c

it’s under a cut 🥰💞💕

i mean like short answer is i think they both say i love you about a million different times a million different ways before either of them kinda drops those words like. like i think for chris i love you is a really common phrase for him like growing up it's just like all around his household he has about constant exposure to three health marriages everyone in his family like they all like each other for the most part. well like um. they all love each other, that's guaranteed. the like can sometimes fluctuate. so it’s not like he’s uncomfortable with the phrase it’s just like. it’s big. real big. and you know i don’t know but you grow up around wyatt and you grow up around cupids and all these really grandiose ideas of love and love is all around us it’s the air we breathe it’s the crucial tether of human existence love is epic love is iconic love can stop the rotation of the earth like that shit. like i mean he looks at his parents (and at the versions of paige/henry and phoebe/coop that live in my head) and like. love was a fight. it was this epic pull that caused them to go to the ends of the earth for each other you know hell they were ready to risk death to get married you know that must be like this epic heartstring tugging feeling in your just red string of fate yanked so hard it almost hurts and like. that’s just not what chris has. it doesn’t feel at all like that. it’s just comfort. nothing more, nothing less, really. he just feels 100% wholly comfortable and safe around bianca it’s not like. it’s like he thinks in order to be In Love in love it has to hurt a bit you know nothing comes for free and being with bianca just isn’t. it doesn’t hurt. just spending lazy slow time with her it doesn’t feel much like anything it’s just nice. it doesn’t like. move stars rip a hole in the earths crust. he doesn’t feel this burning ache. it’s just. being with her. it feels safe it feels normal it’s just like it’s normal!! this is what normal feels like not the constant nagging voices in his head own insecurities playing on a loop not you know the constant ever-present knowledge of the next demon battle there’s always gonna be another one not who is he as the son of a charmed one what will he do what will he be. like none of that’s there with bianca. it’s just normal.

and of course all the cousins draw straws on who gets the honor of whacking chris on the head with a hollow tube saying that is love dingus because like. again he’s probably aired out his thoughts to like wyatt or somebody maybe melinda if she pried maybe henry if he pried where like. because obviously they’d be interrogating on hey what the fuck’s going on over there because like. soulmatism all that everyone’s watching like you get it right you’re in love and chris gives his whole stance on like blah blah blah it’s gotta hurt i don’t feel that i just like bianca. and whoever they’re talking to. maybe kat? if just thinking about all chris and bianca have been through together all the times they like nearly died in each other’s arms like are we not counting that?? is that not enough for epic love right there? this is a really long yarn to basically say i think chris would be in love with bianca for a really long time and just genuinely never have the word for it you know just like stupid but are we not all fools in love?

i think bianca would say it first because she definitely picks apart their relationship in her head a lot more that him because like that’s just the person she is because like phoenix are not supposed to fall in love. you’re loyal to your family. you respect your family. and by extension, they are who you love. because you have no one else to love. no one else knows the true you, and no one else would be capable of knowing and loving the true you like your family. everyone else would rather see you dead. so i think she picks apart the concept of love and what it means to her a hell of a lot more than chris ever does. because i think from the start. you know it’s kind of an enemies to lovers situation.

okay so here’s my current sketch of what i’m doing with them in the light timeline because like. let’s face it. killing a charmed one is impractical. it’s an immense risk, one i think the phoenix would never take. also like. if bianca was sent to kill chris i really think she could do it respectfully chris is powerful he’s talented he’s smart i still think bianca could kill him. and then, of course, if you kill a charmed one, then you have the rest of the family after you and at this point it’s a really big family. and yes you could plant evidence throw them off the scent but again you’re dealing with like. 10 whole ass experienced trained powerful witches? how long does that last? and for what. what price could that ever possibly be worth? i get wanting to kill a halliwell on your own your own personal business risk v reward, but the phoenix are a neutral power they do not care. the only skin they have in the game would be the price on chris’s head an i literally can not think of a single thing that would be worth the wrath of the warren line, a family that presently does not give a shit about you, you know?

okay i’ve aired out that opinion. so that being said. what do? so you remember the evil cult from prince charmed and they thought wyatt was their leader and they wanna flip his morality but they failed? yeah and they didn’t all die right. like some of them escaped. the Point is: concept is they’re going for round two, but they don’t wanna make it obvious because if they flip the morality then everyone kinda knows who did it and how because it’s happened before. so hear me out they are casting or they are contracting the phoenix to cast that basically wipes any memory of them ever existing off the face of the earth. phoenix, of course, will be immune, as will their library collection on them because fuck you that’s why and then the members of the cult will be immune tho gotta say. would be hilarious if they forgot that part and then everyone just went home in their funny lil robes like huh wonder where that came from. the issue is chris. cuz he was there. but he’s not him. you know? i don’t think the cult fully knows what’s going on right but like. that’s definitely chris who definitely like single-handedly thwarted their plans. except he wasn’t even alive yet. so they need chris’s memories resurfaced so they can wipe them, otherwise they run the risk of the memories resurfacing at a Very inconvenient time. so that’s bianca’s job. the how they do not know or care about they just need him to have memories of season 6 so the can promptly wipe them. no murder necessary.

but still has weird shit magical invasion of privacy happening and probably a witch fight. blah blah blah i have ideas that i shan’t expand on right now bianca doesn’t lose but chris doesn’t win. no i will expand on actually. i think lynn bianca’s mother knows kinda what’s going on here with the cult’s scheme to create evil!wyatt and the phoenix have done their research and then know that they can survive perfectly fine in a evil wyatt regime and the cult has promised them immunity + powers in their new world order or whatever. so on paper, fine. but lynn’s way overprotective overbearing mother knows best types you know like she will do about anything for her daughter so when future bianca came she definitely used a scrying bowl kinda like what we see the stillman sisters use filled with kid bianca’s blood because that’s really the only way she has to see where bianca’s going what she’s doing and she gets to see evil wyatt kill bianca. so lynn’s actually very much not game for this actually. and i think she if not explicitly tells bianca what’s up at the very least plants seeds implying that she should not go through with this plan.

so when chris proposes instead her teaming up with him to take down the cult, in exchange offering the protection of the charmed ones (which is really the best thing he’s got to offer besides like. a punch card for a free sandwich at ike’s that only needs two more punches.) and bianca takes the bet. and they already have one fist fight under their belt between the two of them that ended in a terse treaty and not they gotta go complete a mission together. and i think that’s kind of like the jumping off point for their relationship is assorted missions together but before things can get Too Chummy chris has an innocent or something to protect and who is trying to kill them well um bianca. zoinks.

basically i think every time bianca aligns herself with chris, in doing so, she aligns herself against the orders of the phoenix. and every time she has to ask herself: is it worth it? and usually like in the case of Murder, the answer is yes. honestly, she’d rather not take an innocent’s life for some rich asshole. but in the case of the initial cult, that was a selfish move. she doesn’t want to die. is that so wrong? and there’s kind of this repeated team chris or team phoenix motif going on where the actual answer does not lie with either of them again the phoenix are on contract that’s not their motive you know they don’t personally care about what happens and then. she’s never picking chris per se it’s not like she’s choosing him she’s choosing and innocent or she’s choosing herself but that just always happens to be the side where chris is.

and also like. they work well together. they just do. so once bianca kinda like. needs to do something dangerous and her first thought is call chris then she kinda has to take a step back and go hmmm. because chris knows who she is right he knows she’s a murder cold blooded killer phoenix (chris, actually, has not seen her murder any innocents in cold blood in fact he has only seen her opt Not to do that but like. bianca has her own vision of herself) and she’s just not. friends with anyone who knows. again not that she would consider her n chris friends but he is like literally the only one who Knows her outside of the phoenix. and that’s weird. Even Further Step Back when she has to do something dangerous and at this point that’s all she does with chris but she Doesn’t want to call him because hey that’s dangerous and i don’t want him to die. which she justifies under the same Death of a Halliwell rule in that the charmed ones might go after her but even she kinda knows that’s bullshit but like. does she really wanna face the music on this one?

so basically while chris’s relationship is very in the moment he’s goin with the flow here he doesn’t know what’s going on where this is going he only has what he feels Right Now. bianca on the other hand is like how does this tie into the past what does this spell out for the future and it keeps circling back to the question is he worth it and bianca kinda hates but the answer every time is yes. she would rather spend time with him be with him fight alongside him than any other option. but to her, that’s still a long way out from love because like. it’s alliance it’s strategic they work well together they care for each other which is more than she can say about like most other people she’d bring to a fight and at a certain point yeah they hang out because they enjoy each other’s company but like. they like spending time together. is that a crime? you can enjoy spending time with a person. but then it’s like more n more time and now yeah look at it you’re in a relationship this is a relationship but like. love?? idk. i mean it’s not like...... you know like in... hmm.... so like... okay so if i Were in love....... okay. okay hm. okay. alright. okay might actually be in love.

i also think bianca would be the one to have the notion of like the finite resource of “i love yous” and even after she’s accepted that okay she can say that she doesn’t wanna waste it she does want to save it for a moment when it means something a dramatic reveal i mean they are in a lot of life or death situations surely she can just like. drop it then. but then like idk she accidently just ends up saying it at like the grocery store. chris on the other hand says i love you all the time like once the floodgates open They Are Open and it’s like. you leave the house okay bye i love you i’m going to bed goodnight i love you i made you dinner i love you like. constant.

#i mean like these really aren't set in stone in my mind #in fact if y'all have opinions on the matter i'd love 2 hear em #but like. i think bianca really breaks down everything because not paying attention gets u killed #whereas chris i really don't think does any emotional introspection because he doesn't want to know what's going on in there #charmed #chris x bianca #chris halliwell #bianca bishop #next gen #charmed next generation

[one-boring-person]

Hi! I had an idea for a David (lost boys)/reader fic if you're interested! Basically David finds his soulmate or mate, whatever you call it and he's doing everything in his power to get her to turn. Like she already knows what he and the guys are and they both are crazy about each other, but she's stuck on the idea of having to kill in order to survive. And David is doing everything from his usual mysterious behavior to down right pleading her to turn so they can be together forever? Thank you!

Thank you for requesting something! I hope this is satisfactory😁😅(I'm sorry if it's a bit cringy)

**

Please?

David (The Lost Boys) x reader

Warnings: mentions of blood and violence, mentions of death

Masterlist

He'd found me six months ago, a lone figure on the Boardwalk with a nervous disposition, jumping and tensing whenever someone nearby suddenly yells or shouts over the cheery music playing in the background, eyes wide at the variety of characters lining the bright streets. I hadn't initially felt the connection between us, but he tells me he'd been drawn to me instantly, somehow feeling the urge to search the crowd until he eventually found me, though he hung back, unwilling to give me any further shock, what with his rather intimidating appearance. It took him a month to finally introduce himself, and even then I'd been a little wary of his confident approach, but I'd soon gotten to know him well enough for him to reveal his secret to me, and to explain to me what the mate bond between us is. As soon as he did this, however, he started asking me the one thing I'd always have to refuse him - if I'd turn for him.

The idea didn't sit well with me, it never had and undoubtedly never will, the thought of having to intentionally kill people in order to survive, not to mention drinking their blood, making me feel sick to the stomach. It has nothing to do with him, or the others, of course; in fact, I've had the best time of my life with them, slowly gaining more confidence as time goes on, falling harder and harder for the platinum blonde mullet wearing vampire, so much so that I would stay with him for an eternity, if it didn't mean slaughtering hundreds of innocent people. I've told him this thousands of times, every time he's tried to get me to turn, but my reasons always fall on deaf ears, the vampire being stubborn and unyielding to the point where he started utilising his incredibly cunning mind to try and convince me. He's tried everything, bribing me with dates and gifts, threatening (unsuccessfully) to leave me and even getting the other boys to talk to me. At some point, he even asked Max for help, but apparently the head vampire could only laugh at David's predicament.

And even after all his failed tricks, he still hasn't given up, which explains why we're currently sat, a metre or so apart, on the beach, my mind having instinctually told me to put space between us when he first brought it up again, a grim expression on my face.

"What's not to like, (Y/n)? Immortality, enhanced senses, flying..." He encourages, giving me the same speech as always, just worded slightly differently.

"Killing people..." I mumble irritably, carrying on the same tone, as if reading out a list, crossing my arms across my chest.

He chuckles, the sound reverberating around my skull as it always does, a smile tempting my lips as I hear it, having always loved the sound of his laugh, even before we officially got together.

"Yes, but I've told you before: you don't think about it once you've done it, and the thrill-"

"Overshadows the guilt, I know. You've told me about a thousand times." I finish for him, knowing he's smirking at my words, though I refuse to give him the satisfaction of looking in his direction, aware of the fact that he's most likely staring at me and able to see me in the dark, what with his vampire vision and all.

"So I don't see why you can't just accept what I'm offering you." He pushes, the vampire taking a drag from the cigarette in his hand, blowing the smoke out a few seconds later with an audible sigh.

Rolling my eyes, I clench my jaw before replying, annoyed that I have to go over it all again.

"Because, unlike you four, I'm not used to drinking blood every night, and I'm most definitely not used to killing people to get it, and the whole idea of doing either one of those things is not one I even want to think about! We've been through this countless times, and every time you just ignore me. Maybe it's time you actually listened, for a change." I snap at him, shocked at my own tone, though it is understandable after all the pestering he's put me through in the last five months.

For once, David is silent, somehow unable to come back with a witty comment or remark, a first for the cocky vampire.

"Maybe that's because I don't want to hear another rejection. I'm just as tired of this as you are, (Y/n)." He finally admits, voice uncharacteristically quiet.

"Then why do you keep doing it?!" I exclaim,  looking over at him to find that he has his head bowed, though I can tell from his posture that he is uncomfortable.

"Because I want to spend eternity with you! It's got nothing to do with the bond or whatever, I genuinely love you!" David retorts, voice laced with raw emotion, a sigh escaping his lips as he tries to calm himself, "At this point, I've run out of ideas so I've got nothing better to try than this."

Confused, I go to speak, only to be cut off when I feel his leather clad finger against my lips, telling me to keep quiet, his hands moving to hold onto mine as he goes to kneel in front of me, taking a deep breath.

"Look, I don't do this often, and it will very likely never happen again, so know that I am being as sincere as I can be. I want you to turn because I can't face an eternity without you. I've felt alone for the longest time, even with the boys hanging around it's nothing compared to how I feel when I'm with you. You make me feel as if I still belong in the world, and that I'm not some abomination that was created to spite the traditional idea of living then dying. I know the idea of killing people isn't a pleasant one, but I swear to you that it gets easier, and controlling yourself can also help with this. You don't necessarily have to kill anyone, and drinking blood doesn't sound as bad when you're like me; it's just like drinking normally, but much more satisfying trust me." He stops for a moment, looking down briefly as I try to come to terms with this new approach, barely recognising the needy vampire before me, "Please, (Y/n), I need you to stay with me. I need someone to ground me as much as you do. I, well, I don't tho k I'll be able to face the rest of my life without you. Please turn, (Y/n), please. For my sake?"

For a couple of minutes, I remain silent, my eyes wide at David's heartfelt words; I knew he loved me, but I never realised just how strongly he does, the ulterior meaning behind the words making me feel much happier about the relationship. I soon find my voice, my mind spinning from the different outlook on what he's been trying to get me to do, my response a little shaky.

"Are you begging me, David?" Is all I can manage, my head still trying to wrap itself around the idea. David doesn't beg, not for anything.

He seems to stumble over what to say, until it clicks that that is, in fact, what he is doing.

"It's the only way I can think of that will convince you, (Y/n), so yes, I am begging you to turn and stay with me until the end of our days. Please, (Y/n). I'm begging you."

Again, I take some time to myself, rubbing my thumbs over his gloved hands to reassure him a little, a low ache starting in my head as I think it through properly. I'd never considered that he had become dependant on my attention, but it makes sense: he's spent so long living as the leader of a group of unruly boys that he's most likely missed out on the affection and care that comes with having a lover, so much so that it's made him needy enough to beg for me to join them properly. We'd be able to spend endless days together, enjoying the perks of being immortal vampires through the decades, and God knows I crave doing that, spending time with the vampire I've come to love with all I have to give. But, as always, one thing keeps me from agreeing on the spot.

My thoughts stray to the imaginary images my mind conjured up, recalling the visions of terrified people being torn into by a ravenous, vampiric version of me, dying at my hands simply because I need to feed. But what he'd said earlier strikes a chord within me, reminding me that I don't have to kill, if I learn how to control myself before I become addicted to the thrill.

"(Y/n)?" His concerned voice breaks through the trance-like state I've put myself in, shaking me from my thoughts. I look him in what I think to be the eye, relaxing myself a little before speaking.

"David, I honestly want to spend eternity with you, I really do, but I have to consider the whole killing thing again. You say I can learn to control myself, but none of you guys can, not even Dwayne, who is one of the most controlled people I know. It terrifies me, honestly, having the choice to kill someone or let them live, depending on how hungry I am, and then almost always choosing to kill them anyway, because the bloodlust is just too strong. You have no idea how much that scares me." I confess to him, looking down at my lap in the dark, hoping he won't see the embarrassed flush rising to my cheeks. Quietly, he shuffles around until he's sat beside me again, wrapping his arm around my body and pulling me into his chest as he always does, letting me muzzle into him for comfort, breathing in the familiar scents that always accompany him.

"We can all help you, (Y/n), and you know that I will never give up on you, no matter how stubborn you get. I want, no, need to spend the rest of my life with you, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make sure that happens." He says to me, voice low and comforting as he buries his face into my hair, holding me tighter against him.

"I believe you, David. I just need time to think." I reply, moving my head so that I can look up at him, knowing his icy blue eyes will be focused on me.

"I'll give you time, (Y/n), but you know how impatient I get."

I giggle quietly, reaching up to brush a strand of platinum blonde hair back into its correct place.

"I promise you, David, I will make a decision soon, but if I do turn, you have to swear to me you will help me try not to kill people. Please?" I assure him, watching him for a reaction, though it is nearly impossible in the black night.

"Of course, I'll do anything for you." David hums in agreement, leaning down to capture my lips in a gentle kiss, lifting a hand to cup my face, pulling me closer as I gladly reciprocate.

Pulling away, he rests his chin on top of my head as I return my face to his chest, intent on staying there until he has to move, knowing he is only too happy to oblige.

"I love you, David." I whisper to him carefully, resting a hand on his chest.

"I love you, too." He replies, his voice low as he murmurs this into my hairline, pressing a quick kiss there as his hands continue to caress my sides and back, lulling me into a sense of safety and comfort.

#joel schumacher #the lost boys #vampire #david(thelostboys) #paul(the lost boys) #dwayne(the lost boys) #kiefer sutherland #marko(the lost boys) #santa carla #star(the lost boys) #request

[join-the-joywrite]

Hamish & Vera soulmate au headcannons

Because why not :)

For my next trick, I'll be doing the one where you have a countdown on your wrist of the time your soulmate has left to live. What a lovely race against the clock. If you find angst in here it wasn't me.

The clock can change with each action you make and when circumstances change. For the better part of both their lives, Hamish and Vera's clocks show a reasonable amount of time.

When Vera is 16, the clock on Hamish's wrist drops ridiculously low. He panics. He has no idea who his soulmate is and they're about to die. How is he supposed to find them? It never crosses his mind to wonder what happened, just that he wants to be there and offer his help or even just his shoulder to cry on.

Luckily, Vera finds her strength and pushes forward. The numbers on Hamish's wrist go back up. He didn't think he'd ever feel more relief than he did the day he woke up and his soulmate had years instead of days. (Boi was about to get a vibe check on that tho)

When Hamish is 18, the numbers on Vera's wrist start going down. She isn't worried at first, but the numbers don't start going back up and they don't stop either.

When Cassie dies, they drop considerably lower. Vera remembers when her daughter died and how the only thing keeping her going was that there was still someone out there hoping and waiting to meet her, to love her. She lies awake some nights, holding her wrist and watching the numbers go from months to weeks.

Vera hasn't felt relief like the morning she wakes up and notices that the numbers have gone back up into years. (She's about to get a vibe check on that too)

And then Jack Morton makes his way to Belgrave. Jack fucks up in the Order and the numbers on Hamish's wrist start fluctuating between years and weeks. Jack fucks up with the Knights and the numbers on Vera's wrist start fluctuating between years and weeks. Both are convinced their soulmate is an Order member or a secret Knight respectively. (Hamish doesn't know who to suspect because Jack is a literal baby to him, Randall's a bit more on the puppy love side and Lilith scares the everloving shit out of him. Vera doesn't know who to suspect because the Order is really pretty fuckin huge)

Hamish gets stabbed by Kyle and Vera's counter drops to like 1.5 hours. What the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck -- stay alive you piece of shit I swear to God when I find you, I will beat the ever loving fuck out if you

When Vera and Hamish throw themselves into the Order ambushing the den, neither of them notice that their clocks have synced up. When they next look at their wrists, they've already parted ways and their clocks seem slighty lower than a normal time frame. It's still enough time to search and keep to their Order and Knight business respectively.

After they powder the Knights and lead them to live normal college lives, the numbers on Vera's wrist climb a little higher every day. She doesn't make the connection.

When Vera announces that they're all going to die, Hamish isn't alone in checking the numbers on his wrist. Several people screamed. One Medicum fainted. An Acolyte fled the room to barf. Hamish shrugs off the dangerously low number. He's sure that Vera will figure something out. She's smart enough to fig-- wait. Vera?

"Dude, are you hot for teacher?" "I admire good leadership." Fucking Randall, now I'm questioning myself, thanks for that.

When Rogwan knocks Vera out, Hamish is at her side. He catches a glance at his wrist. Not zero. That doesn't mean she's safe, Hamish, you don't know know if it's her.

Vera is prepared to do the Excidium. She notices that numbers on Alyssa's wrist is just a few minutes shorter than the numbers on her own. Is Jack going to survive the trap for Rogwan? Is Hamish going to die along with almost all of Belgrave? She doesn't even know if it is Hamish, but at this point, she hopes. She also hopes the numbers on his wrist are the same as the ones on hers. She didn't think she could live in a world where she'd killed Hamish -- I mean, a hell of a lot of innocent people!

When Foley attacks Vera, had Hamish not transformed into Tundra to fight Salvador, he would have noticed that for some time, the numbers had gone down into mere hours.

When Vera learns that Hamish is missing, she finds herself checking her wrist now and then. Since when had she started believing that Hamish was her soulmate?

"Is everyone all right?" The numbers are back up.

When Foley releases the bug-virus-thing over the Order, a lot of clocks start to go down. Some don't. When the bug problem is solved and the numbers go back up, both Vera and Hamish are a hundred percent convinced that even if they may be wrong about each other, their soulmates are definitely a part of the goddamned Order.

They're laying together one night, looking at the numbers.

"Your soulmate is going to die before mine, Vera."

"Yeah, well, long is the road and short is the life."

"Did you just--"

Hamish finds out where Vera is ticklish and in a burst of self defence, she blasts him away from her. As he throws her glares while he sits immobile for a few second, Vera notices her time jump all the way down and climb faster as Tundra heals Hamish.

She means to say, "You are my soulmate" but instead, she says, "Tell anyone and I will tell your Knight friends that you not only have Spiderman undies, but that you treasure them very much."

"Noted. I honestly don't know if I'm more attracted to you or more afraid of you." "Both works for me."

When Salvador betrays Vera and Jack during their parlay, Hamish can't help but noticing the numbers dwindle away. He should go after her, she should -- oh no wait they're going back up again. He should have known, Vera is truly a force to be reckoned with.

When Alyssa turns up and fires a spell at Hamish, knocking him down, it's Vera's first instinct to check her wrist, releasing an inaudible sigh when the time left is still fairly great. The movement doesn't escape Alyssa. "A werewolf, Vera? Really?"

Had Vera not been wary of Alyssa's unstable states she probably would've quipped, "That's rich, coming from someone who was with a werewolf before the Knights and the Order allied."

When Alysss dies, their counters go back up a little. Neither notices until after Jack leaves with Alyssa's still body. When Vera grabs Hamish's hand, to ask him to stay with her, she glances at his clock.

They've synced up again. Down to the very last second.

I couldn't do it. I couldn't do the angst. Maybe I'll do an angst version but I just ,,,, I couldn't end off on angst again.

See more of these on the masterlist

#hamish x vera #hamish duke #vera stone #the order #the hermetic order of the blue rose #the knights of saint christopher #the knights of the blue rose #blue rose knights #vermish #soulmates #soulmates au #mara-writes

[spideypoolbigbang]

SPBB 2019 - Masterlist

Thank you everyone for another great year of Spideypool Big Bang 2019! For ease of reading, we’ve compiled a Masterlist of all our works below the cut. See you again for SPBB 2020! /End SPBB 2019

Title: The Bias of Judge, Jury, and Executioner

Author: IAmAllYetNotAtAll

Artist: Luce-xoxo

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: N/A

Word Count: 13K

Summary: Shield has tasked the Avengers with capturing and sending Deadpool to the Ice Box after a visiting diplomat is murdered. Peter has to disprove the allegations despite the substantial evidence against him, save his best friend, and also figure out why the thought of losing Wade terrifies him.

Fic Masterpost | Art Masterpost

Title: A Full Guide On How To Adopt A Pet Spider

Author(s): noshallowend

Artist: thatbanananana

Rating: Mature

Warnings: N/A

Word Count: 8802

Summary: One, keep your Spider well-fed and hydrated. Eye-eating you in a questionable coffee shop will do. Two, your little pet needs a room, or is it you? Well, anyway, you have been warned, so don’t complain if you wake up pinned to your bed by a 5’ 10" love bug.

Fic Masterpost | Art Masterpost

Title: Choose Your Words Wisely

Author: TimidTurnip

Artist: Sofreakinmanyfandoms

Rating: E

Warnings:  Dubcon, sexpollen, mpreg

Word Count: 10k

Summary: Peter should know by now that you can’t just say the first thing that comes to mind. That words carry weight, especially when directed at someone like Loki. Peter doesn’t really understand how getting him to fuck Wade is a punishment, not until his stomach starts to swell.

Fic Masterpost | Art Masterpost

Title: Peter Parker and the Very Bad No Good Mercenary Fleet

Author: ChibisUnleashed

Artist: ask-spideypool-42069

Rating: M

Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Temp Character Death

Word Count: 24,232

Summary: So what if Peter’s an enhanced human being? His everyday, average, utterly normal human being powers of very good lab work and drive to innovate have been far more useful to the universe. Peter Parker, owner and founder of Parker Tech, has been leading the cosmos in medical technology for years. Ever since he founded it, in fact.

Peter can’t leave a person in need without aid. It’s just not in him. So when he finds out a mercenary blockade has prevented the transport of vital medical supplies to a planet just outside of the United Front’s jurisdiction, he decides to go there and fix the situation by force (Because it’s mercenaries. Force will be necessary.)

Wade doesn’t really care either way, but if a hottie in a tight suit offered you a ridiculous amount of money to lend them a hand, would you say no?

Fic Masterpost  | Art Masterpost

Title: Parallel Horizons

Author(s): mokuyoubi

Artist: Meeps

Rating: E

Warnings: Canon-Typical Violence, Temporary Major Character Death, Deadpool being Deadpool

Word Count: 40,700

Summary:When Peter B Parker enters the collider again to return to his own dimension, he’s dumped out a week into the future, but still in Miles’ universe. Repeated attempts to return home only speed up the damage done to his body by the glitches, and leave him stranded 2 years in the future. Enter Deadpool, who’s seen a lot of versions of Spider-Man, but never one so in need of a friend. He vows to save Peter’s life, whether he likes it or not. Along with Miles and Gwen, they work to repair the damage, and find out what’s keeping Peter from being able to return home. And maybe Peter finds he has more in common with the strange Merc than he could have anticipated.

Fic Masterpost | Art Masterpost

Title: Shooting For Your Heart

Author: theultimatespidey-petey

Artist: Jay

Rating: Teen and Up Audience

Warnings: Canon-Typical Violence

Word Count: 43K+ words

Summary:

“In my defense, I didn’t expect you to get hurt.”

“And I didn’t expect to be run out of town, yet here we are.”

He went suddenly stiff, “Wait…you were run out of town?”

“As if you didn’t know,” Peter grumbled, but when he looked up he did a double-take at Wade’s confused expression. “Almighty, you really don’t know, do you?” he snapped the drawer shut, “Well, after that little fiasco by Two-Stone Canyon, a little rumor spread that me and you were in cahoots. The rumor got some ground and it turned the whole town against me. I was run out before I could defend my case. Why'dya think I was out there the other night to begin with?”

<><><><><><>

When Peter Parker, a deputy known as Webslinger, gets accused of working with the West’s deadliest outlaw he finds himself on the run from the people he once trusted. But in an effort to prove his innocence, he finds himself captured by the very outlaw tarnishing his name.

Fic Masterpost | Art Masterpost

Title: Rooftops

Author: Jo

Artist: AiralySwirls

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Wade-typical temporary death

Word Count: 11,800

Summary: Spider-man is a mercenary. He’s not proud of it, but a job is a job and he’s good at it. Things get more complicated when he does a job one night with a loud-mouthed and sharp-shooting Deadpool, and even more complicated when the two grow close. When Wade introduces some demons from his past into Peter’s life, things fall apart.

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Title: The Order of the Silver Spider

Author(s): @mscaptainwinchester

Artist: @blondeulence

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Word Count: 34000

Summary: When Wade Wilson signed his loyalty to Queen Shiklah of Monstropolis, he did it for the money. That he’d thought he was in love with her was secondary. But as the years pass, and Wade begins to understand that Shiklah doesn’t return that love, his eyes begin to wander elsewhere. Prince Peter of Spider was supposed to be a distraction, a momentary dalliance to fill the time. But it’s difficult for someone to be a momentary distraction if you can’t get them out of your head. What was meant to last a night turns into something much deeper. Soon, Wade must question what’s more important to him: loyalty to his word or loyalty to his heart. Prince Peter of Spider is barely holding things together. With his wife murdered by a would-be usurper, his kingdom’s future was put into question for the first time in centuries. As the pressure mounts to find a new spouse and produce the heir that will assure his kingdom’s future and treaty negotiations between his tiny principality and King Anthony of Longueile heat up, Peter welcomes the distraction of Colonel Wilson of Monstropolis. But Peter finds himself still distracted even months later, and quickly must face the fact that he is in love. Can he find a way to secure happiness with another ruler’s consort, or will he be forced to marry out of duty and never truly know love again?

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Title: Your Heart’s in the Right Place (And So are the Furnishings)

Author: Doctoring

Artist: Moemai

Rating: Mature

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Word Count: ~25,800

Summary: I mean, friends to lovers is one thing, but roommate to lovers has that whole efficiency appeal to it.

Peter is thinking about moving when his lease is up. Wade makes it his mission to convince Peter to move in with him. However, there’s a lot of home makeover (and flirting) he needs to do first before his crush will even consider it.

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Title: You Can’t Spell Awesome Without Me

Author: Pineau_noir/ @pineau-noir

Artist: Dropthebeet/ @albeenocookie

Rating: Mature

Warnings: No major warnings apply

Word Count: 25k

Summary: On Peter’s 30th birthday, he finds a red and black mark over his heart. Then, on his way to his teaching job at Empire State University, a heavily scarred man dies in Peter’s arms. The two things don’t seem connected until Peter’s Spidey Sense goes haywire and his AI, Janet, tells Peter about soul marks.

But soulmates are just an urban legend, like Reagan killing all the birds in 1986 and replacing them with spies, right?

Meanwhile, Wade is stuck in the hospital, after losing his favorite kidney and briefly being dead. He flirts with his cute nurse (Anthony), gives a false name (Thom Cruz), and learns to live without his precious righty (his kidney).

Peter and the Avengers are on the hunt for the slightly shady man who may or may not be Peter’s one-and-only until something unexpected brings them together.

Spoiler— it’s really dumb and ordinary but Wade lives for the drama of it all: car chases! Illegal drug rings! Exotic animal smuggling! Or as Peter tells it, patrolling and seeing cars go by, accidentally stealing a bottle of ibuprofen from Tony Stark, and finding a stray kitten.

Either way it’s going to be all the fluff and domestic Spideypool the author can manage.

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Title: Rock You Like a Hurricanrana Author: Jennicide Artist: Aredesification | @aredesification Rating: E Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Word Count: 111K Summary: Peter thinks he’s finally made it now that his masked persona, Spider-Man, has been offered a full-time contract with one of the largest wrestling companies in the United States. He’s spent years training for this moment but nothing could have ever prepared him for getting into the ring with Pileta de Muerto, the hottest heel in professional wrestling entertainment, on the night of his debut. And to make matters worse, their first meeting was a complete disaster. One of his biggest idols probably (definitely) hates him, but he’ll manage somehow because they’ve got a show to do and everything in wrestling is scripted anyway… until it isn’t.

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Title: Parker’s Monster

Author(s): Rainbow820

Artist: Alfie  

Rating: Teen

Warnings: Graphic Descriptions of Violence

Word Count: 30k+

Summary: In the early twentieth century, world tension is at an all time high. A young university student in New York, Peter Parker, meets Wade Wilson, a military officer from Canada on a chance encounter as Wade looks to find his professor Doctor Connors.

America needs Doctor Connor’s work and Wade needs him, and Peter Parker wants to protect his professor. Wade finds something captivating in the student who feels the need to save everyone around him.

War rips through Europe and Wade has to leave with Doctor Connors, but Peter is not one to be left behind. Falling in love at the worst of times Peter will do anything to keep Wade with him, anything.

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Title: Bettas are just P®etty Assholes

Author(s): DefendersofMCUniverse (GeekMom13)

Artist: SpiderKatana

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: No Major Archive Warnings. Minor Character Death, Mermaid anatomy,

Word Count: 8,644

Summary: Wade really loved his job- going around taking care of pointless mers and eating all the best food in the ocean. But he really, really hated Bettas. They were grumpy, conceited, and liked to get in his way far too much, even when they failed miserably. (They always failed, Wade just hated the superficial scars they left. Because, honestly, he already looked like Neptune’s left nutsack, did they need to make it worse?) Really, how hard was it to just… let him kill the worthless mers of the pod? It’s not like he took on contracts for the productive members of pod-ciety. It just figures that one assignment he meets a Betta-mer who changes everything. Why the fuck did he have to be so pretty?

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Title: Cradle Author: macaronigrille Artist: nonexistenz Rating: Mature Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Word Count: 8971

Summary: Peter’s encounters with Deadpool are initially only fleeting. He doesn’t know much about him, simply that he’s a trained mercenary for hire who’s nearly impossible to kill.

Impossible to kill, maybe. But as Peter spends more time with Wade, he realizes that Wade is not unbreakable. From broken fingers to head injuries, Peter teaches Wade how to be cared for, and Wade returns the favor when Peter needs him most.

(Or: 5 times that Peter helped Wade with his healing factor, and one time that Wade returned the favor.)

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Title:  Odds Aren’t in Our Favor Author(s): NexusPhenomena/Nhrive Artist: Chez Rating: Explicit Warnings: Minor Character Death, Graphic Depiction of Violence Word Count: 75k Summary: What happens when the world is forced to sacrifice children in the name of order and justice? The Games are the result. Wade had never been lucky in life and as he made his way into District 12, fate showed him just how much they didn’t like him. Now scarred from his experiences, he must deal with helping the new tributes make their way through the games. Can he help keep one of them alive? Peter has suffered so much in life as it is and when it’s finally his turn for the games, will he be able to make it out alive? What will he lose along the way or is there possibly anything to gain? Fic Masterpost  | Art Masterpost

Title: Neighborly

Author: DramamineOnTopOfMe

Artist: DrunkRat

Rating: Mature

Warnings: None that apply

Word Count: 9k

Summary: Peter’s finally moving out! And Wade Wilson helps him move in? Peter knows that Spiderman and Deadpool are now neighbors, but he can’t let anybody else find out. Especially not Wade! But for just how long can Peter keep his secret when there’s crime in his city and a mercenary next door?

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Title: on a genderbender

Author(s): Devral

Artist: Art Wolf

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: none

Word Count: 40k

Summary: While checking out one of Doc Ock’s warehouses to try to figure out what Doc is up to, Wade and Peter accidentally activate a machine that changes someone’s gender. Peter is the unlucky recipient of the change. Wade does his best to take care of Peter by stuffing as much food into him as possible and sneaking in some leg ogling while Peter works to get himself back to normal!

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Title: a world away

Author(s): silvyri

Artist: Limeonik

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Mild Self-Harm (it’s Wade), Temporary Character Death (it’s Wade again), some violence

Word Count: 35k

Summary: Peter is saved by a mysterious scarred stranger when a extraterrestrial stowaway causes the Avenjet to break apart mid-flight over the Pacific Ocean. Stranded on a deserted tropical island with the man who can’t seem to get the hang of verbal communication, Peter struggles with not knowing how his friends and family are faring in an alien infested New York, his growing feelings for the man he names Wade, and how Wade came to be on their little island in the first place.

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Title: My Heart’s A Little F*cked On You

Author(s): Spiderkatana and Dr.FumblesMcStupid

Artist: Chez

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: Explicit Language, Very Brief Major Character Death

Word Count: 26,000+

Summary: When Peter was forced to leave his childhood best friend (and first crush) behind, he didn’t think he’d ever see him again. He definitely wasn’t expecting Deadpool, the first person he'd really felt safe with since then– to be the same boy who gave him an over-sized Captain America hoodie, threw rocks at Flash Thompson, and used to calm Peter down by softly singing La Vie En Rose.

AKA The One With The Silver Unicorn Charm Necklace.

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Title: Behind Closed Doors

Author(s): crookedswingset

Artist: babyshawk

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Temporary Character Death (Wade), Police Corruption, Angst, Bad Decision Making, Happy Ending

Word Count: 140K

Summary: When the Benefactor arranges a successful hit against a cop in a Spider-Man suit, Peter Parker has one shot to go undercover, infiltrate the criminal’s operations, and shut them down for good. But, to do that, he needs to let everyone in his life think he’s really dead. Even Wade.

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Title: there’s a fire in your eyes

Author: bisexualbarry

Artist: luminspidey

Rating: mature

Warnings: graphic depictions of violence

Word Count: 36k

Summary: When Peter moved to a boring town in Maine, he thought his life would be normal. Instead, he’s now being stalked by a creepy man with a wicked plan. Even after escaping him once already, Peter can’t go anywhere without feeling eyes on him.

Cue Wade, a man who’s a mystery from the start who has weird injuries that seem to heal right before Peter’s eyes. Along with him comes a ragtag family that don’t quite seem to match. The biggest reality check, though? Vampires are real and they live amongst humans.

Now Peter has to try his best not to get kidnapped (again) by an evil vampire who’s trying to assemble his own group of elemental controlling vampires. And Peter happens to have a very fiery presence.

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Title: In Which Peter is Not Okay

Author: ladyamante

Artist: Gensyz

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: PTSD, Past rape/non-con, Violence, Suicidal ideation

Word Count: 55k

Summary:  Peter has hit rock bottom. He is anxious all the time, he can’t get out of bed for days on end. He’s isolated himself from his friends and Aunt May. What happened with Skip was ages ago, and he’s Spider-Man now, so he should be fine, right?

One night, Peter finds himself at the top of a building, ready to jump, when an unlikely person steps in.

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Title: Five Years Grown

Author: 343EnderSpark & thelonebamf

Artist: thelazydrawer

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Character Death, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Bullying, Implied Childhood Sexual Abuse, Homophobic Language, cliffhanger ending

Word Count: 137,096

Summary: Growing up in a New York City that has seen the likes of superheroes and extraterrestrials was never going to be easy, but finding a friend was sure to make the journey more fun. A young Peter and Wade meet and bond over their shared hobby of dumpster diving and a fast friendship forms between them. While Wade’s home life is complicated and downright abusive, he slowly finds a place among the Parkers, learning to trust Ben and May as he grows closer to Peter. Yet no relationship stays the same forever, and Wade’s sprouting feelings for Peter are at odds with the expectations people have for the two of them. Things only grow more complicated when Peter develops his spider powers, and is unsure whether or not he should confide in his friend. Of course nothing could keep the two apart for long… or could it?

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Title: (life)lines

Author(s): Anhumblegoose

Artist: Cheermione

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Canon Typical Violence, Happy Ending

Word Count: 49k

Summary: When Wade takes home a callboy, he isn’t expecting to find his second chance at love. Now that it’s in front of him, he doesn’t want to let it go. He knows he can make his sweetie happy; that they can pull each other up. That is, if his baby boy’s insistence on keeping secrets doesn’t end up tearing them both down.

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Title: Big Enough Umbrella

Author(s): fancastical, aka @fasterthanmybullets

Artist: @the-italian-pasta, aka romeyruu

Rating: T

Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Child Abuse, Happy Ending

Word Count: 58k

Summary: Peter is high key miserable at the beginning of senior year. It takes everything he’s got to get out of bed sometimes, let alone go to school. It’s a problem, then, that the first person to make him laugh since Uncle Ben’s funeral is also the new school bully, a guy from Canada named Wade who steals money from freshmen and has no sense of propriety or, if the bruises he’s always showing up with mean anything, self preservation. Wade doesn’t expect to stay in New York City long. His dad never lets them stick around after people start asking questions. So it really shouldn’t matter what the nerdy guy in his Spanish class thinks of him, and yet he’s bending over backward for even half a smile from Peter, and making all kinds of promises he’s not sure he can keep. Wade knows it’s not gonna end well. But when has that ever stopped him before?

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Title: Rebound

Author: @evansenpai13

Artist: @Ninja46464

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Self-Doubt, Alcohol, Sexual Intercourse, Mature Themes

Word Count: 9K

Summary: Peter needs to see Wade. At 3 am. And the ever Spider loving Merc has no reason to deny the man he loves. Of course, it’s not as expected, why would it? Peter B. Parker recently divorced his sweetheart Mary Jane and just as any distraught human being, needed someone to rely on. It just so happened that Wade was the one he confided on.

Matters become difficult when Peter believes Wade to behave oddly due to the loss of Vanessa. Though the present events are long after the incident, this belief clouds Peter’s judgment on what’s really happening.

Wade just couldn’t catch a break nor drop the feelings he had for the other. But Wade being Wade, did his best to get Peter out of the slump he was in. All while pushing aside the love Wade had for Pete. He would never be selfish enough to admit those feelings at such a sore time in Peter’s life. Or would he?

Give it time and a bit of alcohol, and what will happen once both men open up to one another? What’s Peter’s thoughts about the divorce? How will Wade help? Will Wade finally be honest? How will Pete react?

What will become of their relationship?

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Title: Careful What You Wish For

Author: @xbloodrunsredx

Artist: @sillytheotter

Rating: Not rated

Warnings: Referenced Past Non/Con, Slavery Undertones, Depression

Word Count: 15k

Summary: Wade Wilson is a mercenary that has had a rough life, but meeting a strange, powerful genie certainly puts things in perspective; through trials and memories, they struggle to find common ground… and there are too many questions that need answering before they can even try. But they can work it out—Wade knows it more than he’s ever known anything, even if the genie refuses to give up his name, or the past that hangs over him like a dark cloud. After all: he can just wish for it, can’t he?

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Title: Two Lies and a Truth

Author: @salios

Artist: @sofreakinmanyfandoms

Rating: Teen

Warnings: Mild stalking

Word Count: ~6K

Summary: Having a thing for your teacher seemed like a reasonable fetish back in highschool. Personally, Peter hadn’t ever found a teacher worth pining after, but then again he’d had the saltiest, most sour, dried out educator-jerky the world had ever produced. There had definitely been fresher fish to cast after.

So again, while he understood it was a respectable and somewhat common kink, it wasn’t for Peter. He also realised, within three months as a TA, that it was super uncomfortable to be on the receiving end. Especially when you were being actively chased not by one, but two over eager students with no concept of personal space.

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Title: Falling Backwards

Author(s): KiwiBerry

Artist: princessellie3

Rating: T

Warnings: Canon Typical Violence

Word Count: 7.4k

Summary: Peter loves being an Avenger. Or at least he thinks he does? It’s kind of hard to tell since he’s missing about four years of information after a run in with a mind-altering mutant. Luckily, he has two over protective, father-like figures to help him figure it all out. Oh, and a man in a red jumpsuit who keeps calling him “Spidey” with a fondness that almost rivals Aunt May. So, yeah, Peter loves being an Avenger (or at least he hopes he does. Mr. Stark would be so pissed if he didn’t.)

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#spbb masterlist #spbb 2019 #spideypool big bang #Spideypool #Spider-Man #Peter Parker #Deadpool #Wade Wilson #Marvel

[the-musical-cc]

OK Sally headcanons (under the cut because this is gonna be long) :

I keep finding encountered versions on what she’s made of- either just rags or bits of flesh and cloth or different body parts- so I pretty much am making my own: Finkelstein HAD experimented with reanimation of dead parts but found fresh parts to be rather hard to come by, so he decided to experiment on providing life to materials that weren’t meant to be alive. Somewhere along that road, he begun to feel like it’d be nice to have someone to care for him, so he mixed both ideas into the creation of an ‘Ideal partner’ made from materials that weren’t necessarily organic- eventually, this project became Sally. He provided a soft heart made from marshmallow so that she would easily love him and a brain made from sponge so that she’d be a fast learner, filled her limbs with the dead leaves of Halloweentown’s trees to root her to the land (And because it doesn’t seem like Halloweentown inhabitants are familiar with plush?) (And yes, it IS a bit ironic that a lot of the elements of Sally’s built relate to principles of magic rather than science, but it’s part of the idea. Finkelstein isn’t really half as smart as he thinks he is.) 

Sally was, of course, alive by the end of the experiment, but she didn’t seem half as interested in Finkelstein as in everything in the castle- well, that’s good, he figured, she is curious and she’s definitely a fast learner and the sooner she learns how to do things, the better. Downside being- he himself has no idea of how to do most things he built her for. What to do? He figures he can kill two birds with one stone: Introduce her to the townsfolk and have her learn different things from them that can come in handy.

Sally, on her part, isn’t really trying to snuff Finkelstein or anything of the sort, she’s just- new to everything and eager to see all she’s been missing on. So when he tells her he’s gonna have her meet some new people she’s delighted.

They didn’t use to get along that badly at first. Sally was sweet and caring enough and Finkelstein was sort of high on the success of his experiment, so he didn’t use to mind her over-eagerness and restlessness that much. Sally, on her own part, had obvious affection and gratefulness towards him for creating her, and didn’t know enough yet to crave freedom or resent his control over her.

The Halloween Town citizens aren’t really half as surprised by the new inhabitant as they probably should- even though the Mayor was the only one who even KNEW he was making a girl. They gladly agree to show her the ropes.

Witches taught her to cook, which is why she knows how to work with poisons and magic herbs, as well as where to find them.

The vampires taught her to keep a house- that is, the Halloweentown equivalent, which includes a lot less cleaning and a lot more feeding the spiders and keeping the ambient gloom.

She’s a self-taught seamstress. Had to sew herself back together a couple of times on the first days because Finkelstein’s original stitches weren’t that good. Thanks to this, she realized she rather liked sewing.

She also made her own dress. Finkelstein had originally given her something similar to what he gave his ‘Soulmate’ at the end of the film, but she didn’t find it practical enough to move in. The Mayor actually gave her the stripped socks, which are typical Halloweentown wear.

She met Zero before she met Jack while on her way back to the castle from her daily cooking lesson. Zero had to teach her how to play fetch and once she got the hang of it, they played for a while- this was the start of Finkelstein’s reservations about letting her go out because she took longer than usual and he begun to realize she might actually not want to spend all her time cooped up if she saw enough about the outside world. This resulted in their relationship becoming tense because Sally had been curious and restless from the start, but he’d only then begun to have a problem with it, which obviously confused and frustrated her.

This was actually also the first time Jack saw her- no, look. LOOK. Hear me out. Jack saw her from afar when she was playing with Zero- he’d been looking for the doggo but upon finding him having so much fun, decided to let him play a bit longer, keeping a distance as to not interrupt. Sally was the one to stop the game once she realized how late it was, running off. Jack didn’t get to ask her name. 

(I’d like to say it was love at first sight but- really, he just was sort of surprised to see someone he didn’t know around town and playing with his dog. And the fact that Zero was all over her. He did find her pretty, though.)

Enter the events in ‘The Pumpkin King’ and Jack finally gets to learn WHO she is, exactly. This is also Sally’s first time seeing him.

I KNOOOW it’s generally regarded that Sally fell in love with him on first sight after he saved her but I think she may simply have developed a crush at that point.It’s also the first time she realizes there is a difference between types of affection and that what Finkelstein wants her to feel about him is closer to what she feels for Jack.

Sometime later, Dr. Finklestein -oblivious to Sally’s crush because he’d have to be actually paying attention to realize what was going on- asked Jack to allow her into his library for educational purposes.She asks too many questions and he doesn’t have the answers for all of it- not when she’s asking about things that require emotional intelligence rather than scientific knowledge. Jack agrees, of course. During this time, they get to know each other better. Jack is used to blind compliance and continuous praise, but Sally doesn’t provide it because she has no notion that she should; and he realizes he rather likes it. When she does comply and does praise him, he actually feels like he’s earned it. He likes that she’s as restless as he is, and that her curiosity makes him consider things from angles he hadn’t even thought of. He likes talking to her and is comforted by the fact that if he isn’t feeling like it, she doesn’t demand it. On her part, Sally is just now getting a taste of what companionship can feel like when it’s not obsessive and controlling. Jack allows her to roam freely, answers her questions as best as he can and allows her to look into whatever she’s interested in- be it useful for her role at Finkelstein’s or not. She gets to see some sides of him no one else has- because no one else has spent hours sitting on his studio in silence with him working through plan after plan, talking to himself. Seen how his face lights up when he’s come up with something good. Allowed him to slip into a role that’s truer to who he is rather than who the Town needs him to be. By the time Finkelstein decides she’s had ‘Enough education’, they’ve become rather close. Sally’s crush has evolved into love and Jack may be nursing the same kind of feeling for her but he’s too much of a numbskull to realize at first.

Close enough, actually, that Jack ‘Looks the other way’ when he spots her out and about on the street even though Finkelstein’s obviously against it.

(Actually most of the town does this. Did I see Sally? Here? Why, no, Doctor! Are you sure she isn’t in your attic, feeding the spiders? Meanwhile, Sally deadass naruto runs behind them.)

Spiral Hill becomes her favorite hiding spot because Finkelstein can’t really roll in there to look for her. It’s not very wheel-chair friendly.

No one really bats an eyelash to the constant scenes between them because they know deep down the Doctor isn’t all that bad- everyone figures at some point they are going to find a middle ground and all will be well.

((I’m not sure of WHAT they think about the evident fact that the Doctor wants Sally for a wife while she looks upon him as a guardian at most- part of me thinks he never did clarify this to anyone so they innocently assumed he shared the same feelings and was just being an ‘Over-protective parent’ with her.))

Jack does know, though. And as much as it saddens him, the thought that Sally might not want to be with Finkelstein never really crosses his mind. He thinks the only source fo the conflict to be how restrictive he is and that they’ll eventually solve it. This is why the minute he sees the Doctor with his new companion at the end of the film, he immediately looks for Sally in the crowd- he knows this means she’s free.

The Mayor prrrobably knows and prrrobably isn’t chill with it, but keeps putting off that conversation with the Doctor because he’s got so much work to do. What? No, it’s not also because it’s uncomfortable as fuck to talk about. It ends up solving itself without his intervention, though, and he can breathe easy on the matter and go back to obsessing over plans.

Sally is actually not that great at scaring kids. Finkelstein made her pretty by Halloweentown standards, which normally would mean she’d be pretty darn scary, but thanks to her personality she’s only mildly unnerving at most by human standards.

She and Santa are pen pals.

Lock, Shock and Barrel actually like her quite a lot and were a teeny bit sorry to see her at Oogie’s lair with Santa. Consequently, a teeny bit relieved when Jack saved her.

This is stupidly long already, let’s just leave it at that.

#the nightmare before christmas #tnbc #sally ragdoll #headcanoning

[alternis-dim]

If someone wanted to get into persona, what is the best game to start with?

to be honest, Persona is kind of nice in that it doesn’t matter a whole lot where you start, since each game is a relatively self-contained story which only has brief mentions or cameos of previous entries! some elements of the lore make more sense if you play certain games before others, but it isn’t anything drastic enough to impact your enjoyment. Hell, I started with Persona 5 and was just fine. So I guess I can just sorta talk about the pros and cons of each game as an entry point to the series! I can also briefly describe their premises in case a particular one seems more interesting, which could help someone with deciding where to start.

this is gonna be long, so I’ll put it under a read more.

Persona 1/Revelations: Persona is the only game I wouldn’t recommend playing first. Its mechanics are pretty outdated and not reflective of the rest of the series, and it’s relatively short compared to the others as well. Not to say that it’s not worth ever playing! In fact, from my understanding it has wonderful characterization, an engaging plot, and lays important groundwork for the franchise’s worldbuilding. I just wouldn’t recommend it for getting a taste of what the series is like.

Persona 2: Innocent Sin is the first of the dual entries for the Persona 2 duology. It has some of the same cons I mentioned for the first game; it’s relatively old, so its mechanics are a little outdated, and it plays more similarly to an SMT game than the future Persona entries do (for example, the story is fairly linear and occurs over the course of a few days, whereas later entries are strung out over a year). It is a little more refined, though, and the formula is starting to get there. It also has, in my opinion, some of the best character writing in the series.

P2IS is a story about how strange occurrences are brewing in the city of Sumaru because of a phenomenon where rumors actually influence and/or become reality. A group of high schoolers get tangled up with a mysterious man named Joker, who can supposedly grant wishes and, for some reason, seems to hold a very personal grudge against them. They discover their ability to call upon Personas to defend themselves from the demons at his command, and soon end up teaming up with journalist Maya Amano to get to the bottom of Joker’s identity and the source of the rumors which are warping the city. Over the course of their journey, they slowly start to piece together their past in order to figure out why Joker seems so invested in them.

Pros: - Stellar character writing- An intriguing, interconnected plot which is a bit of a rollercoaster but a lot of fun- Lays the groundwork for lore in the Persona series (most importantly the existence of Philemon and Nyarlathotep, as well as the origin of the Velvet Room)- Incredibly mature takes on the impact of trauma and familial abuse (TW for both of those things though)- Canonically bisexual protagonist with a potential same sex dating optionCons:- Unavoidable random encounters and really grind-heavy, as most 90′s jrpgs go- Outdated mechanics that aren’t really reflective of future Persona entries- One of those wiki-heavy games: it’s damn near impossible to unlock certain character interactions or personas without use of a guide- The second game in the Duology, Eternal Punishment, isn’t nearly as accessible to English audiences

Persona 3 is where a lot of the series formula originates from! It’s also my personal favorite, but I’ll try my best to be unbiased describing it. Small note: I recommend playing Persona 3 FES specifically, since it refines a lot of the things that were clunky in the vanilla version, adds more character content, and features a post-game which answers a lot of questions.

P3 takes place in a coastal city called Iwatodai at the beginning of the school year, where the protagonist moves in as a transfer student after being bounced around in foster care for ten years following an accident which killed his parents. Upon arrival, he experiences the strange phenomenon of the Dark Hour: an extra 25th hour in the day where people are transformed into coffins and monsters roam free. Technology doesn’t work during this hour, and anyone not protected by a coffin is violently attacked and seems soulless the next day, a condition local news dubs Apathy Syndrome. A select few people have the potential to stay conscious during the Dark Hour and protect themselves by use of a Persona, and these people make up a unit called the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (S.E.E.S.). The protagonist joins, and the game follows their investigation of the phenomenon. It’s considered the darkest entry in the series, and for good reason: “memento mori” is right in its introduction. The game focuses heavily on themes of death, what it means to be mortal, how people deal with being confronted with their mortality, what the point of life is, and much more. 

Pros:- Introduction of the Persona formula: school life and dungeon exploration which requires time management on a linear calendar, the knockdown/1-more feature in combat, all-out-attacks, social links. Starting with this game may actually be the best way to go gameplay-wise, since coming back to this game after playing later entries makes it seem clunky.- Dungeon-crawl style of gameplay, which is a lot nicer than random encounters. You explore randomly generated floors and choose when and where to ambush enemies.- Excellent character arcs which enrich the game’s narrative- A dark, mature, and interesting story which explores human natureCons:- Still an older game, so some controls are clunky. One game mechanic in particular that many are frustrated with is the inability to directly choose what moves your teammates will use, instead requiring you to use Tactics to direct how the AI should behave.- Probably has the worst pacing issues out of any game in the series. There’s an entire calendar month where you do basically nothing.- The post-game is grind-heavy and long for the amount of story it offers. Some people just recommend watching a playthrough.- Features an uncomfortable transphobic skit towards the middle of the game.

Persona 4 is a refinement of many of the features of Persona 3. The best version to play is Persona 4 Golden, since it has a lot of extra content, but it’s vita exclusive and I’m stuck with vanilla :( Vanilla’s still fine in my experience, at least!

P4 takes place in the small town of Inaba, where the protagonist has transferred for a year to live with his uncle and cousin due to his parents leaving the country for work. Shortly after his arrival, a bizarre series of serial murderers start to occur where the bodies are found strung up on telephone lines. There’s also a rumor that looking into a turned off television screen on a rainy midnight will reveal your soulmate; this rumor is referred to as the Midnight Channel. The protagonists and friends inadvertently discover a parallel world which exists alongside Inaba, which can be entered through televisions but which can’t be exited without the help of a mysterious denizen named Teddie. They discover that these worlds are linked; people who show up on the Midnight Channel turn up dead in the real world shortly after, and the weather is inverse to Inaba’s. They discover that this is because someone is throwing people into this world, who are then unable to escape, and that the Shadows living in it become violent when the fog lifts (inverse to when the fog settles in the real world). This world also has an interesting quirk: people who enter it end up confronting their own shadow, which is a manifestation of the parts of themselves they repress or deny. Denying your shadow leads to it attempting to kill you, and this is likely what caused the deaths of the first victims. The protagonist and team discover that confronting and accepting your own Shadow, however, turns it into a Persona which you can then use to combat the monsters in the world. Equipped with their unique knowledge, the team sets out to save victims, solve the murder mystery, and learn how to accept themselves.

Pros:- A powerful message about the importance of seeking the truth and accepting all facets of yourself- An absolutely incredible murder mystery with clever plot twists and high stakes: getting the true ending is actually difficult if you don’t know who the murderer is, and you’re expected to understand the themes of the game and the characters in order to get it.- A nice in-between for the mechanics of P3 and P5: it’s pretty easy to transfer to either one after playing this one. (also introduces the ability to control party members directly, thank god)- A TON of spinoff content if you find you enjoy the characters and setting- Probably one of the best games in terms of understanding the overarching lore of the series, since it explains how Personas and Shadows work in much more depth than other entriesCons:- Has sort of a wonky difficulty curve. The first couple dungeons are honestly kind of a pain in the ass because of how level scaling works, and it takes a little while to level out.- The character arcs aren’t quite as well-written as previous games, due to the ultimate personas being associated with social link completion rather than events in the plot.- Oh god, such clumsy handling of LGBT topics. Plays around the idea of a gay narrative for one character (Kanji) and a trans narrative for another (Naoto) but ultimately just ends up playing up stereotypes and then backing out before doing anything “risky.” Another character in the party is pretty homophobic to Kanji for a while too, which sucks.

Persona 5 is the most popular in the series for sure, and for good reason. It’s the complete culmination of the Persona formula, and it adds all sorts of stuff to the gameplay and lore. It has a pretty lovable cast, to boot. Not that it doesn’t also have its problems, imo.

P5 features a protagonist who was falsely convicted of assault after attempting to defend a woman from a drunk man harassing her. His criminal record and probation result in his expulsion from his home school, so he moves in with a family friend in Tokyo where a school will accept him until his time’s up. Tokyo’s been strange for a little while now. Mysterious incidents have been causing disruptions for a while. There’s been a surge of “psychotic breakdown incidents” in which people act out unpredictably for seemingly no reason, and on rarer occasions “mental shutdowns” where people seem to completely break and die shortly after. The protagonist and friends get tied up in nonsense pretty quickly when a mysterious app on his phone transports him to a parallel world in which real locations of Tokyo are warped beyond recognition. The protagonist discovers the power of persona pretty early on, which he uses to fight the enemies there. With the help of a strange creature named Morgana, they learn that this is the “Metaverse”, a space in which the twisted desires and perceptions of people are made manifest. It’s a space where a person’s Shadow lords over a “Palace”, an altered version of real-world locations which reflects how that person views the world around them. They also learn that personas are the result of having a strong, rebellious will, allowing you to control your Shadow in combat. By breaking into a Palace, defeating the Shadow, and stealing the “Treasure” at its core, the Palace will crumble and the person in real life will come to grips with the morality of their actions, effectively outing themselves. This is referred to as stealing hearts, and the Phantom Thieves are born; they quickly become infamous in Tokyo, though their reputation attracts unwanted attention, as well as blame… could those breakdown incidents be related to the Metaverse, too? This game focuses heavily on the corruption of society, the abuse and manipulation of people in power, the ways in which our circumstances force us to hide parts of ourselves, ideas of justice, and all sorts of fun ideas of “rebellion”.

Pros:- ABSOLUTELY the best gameplay in the series. The controls are smooth, the battles and UI are streamlined, the visuals are absolutely stunning. This is the one that’s most fun to actually PLAY, bar none.- More of a stealth/heist game than a dungeon crawler, which is a fun spin on the series.- Excellent social commentary on the injustices young people face in a system stacked against them.- A really lovable cast of characters, and social links which actually grant you access to helpful gameplay features as incentive. Cons:- Sort of a small thing, but one of the game’s twists is a lot more fun to figure out if you’ve already played at least one other entry in the series.- Has some serious writing issues. The game has a very strong first half, but then starts to feel rushed the further along you get after a certain point. You can tell that the developers wanted to fit in a lot, but didn’t quite have the time to refine the ideas they implemented.- On that note, some of the character writing starts to regress or even becomes contradictory.- Has a couple instances of homophobia surrounding the Red Light District.

This got long, sorry, but I hope it’s helpful! like I said, you really can start anywhere, and you don’t have to play them in a particular order. Just pick the ones that seem the most interesting and have fun!

#hope this works as an answer! sorry it got kinda long #persona #shush

[closecry]

Trip Of A Lifetime (Vaas x Female Reader)

Also posted on AO3, heed the warnings that are under the cut.

Word Count: 3,491.

This is a soulmate AU, but that doesn't mean it's happy because I tried to write Vaas true to his character.

Warnings: Minor Character Death, Human Trafficking, Misogyny, minor descriptions of violence, and torture.

You have a brother in this who is unnamed and several random female characters that are also unnamed.

This is a dark story! Read with caution.

Tumblr requires me to censor all the f words, a use of the words d*ck, and c**cksucker or it won't show up in tags because it's dumb. If you want a version without that, there is a link to the AO3 at the top.

****

You didn't normally go on vacation. It had been years since your last one, and you don't know why, but when your rich asshole brother offered you the “trip of a lifetime”, you accepted the offer.

He always seemed to travel here with whatever girlfriend he had at the time and a couple of friends. Normal enough.

This year it was with your brother's new girlfriend and her 2 sisters, which you thought was odd, but you didn't want to look a gift horse in the mouth.

You and your brother never got along, and you remember vividly him seeming to hate you when you two disagreed on matters. He was kind of misogynistic, but you thought maybe this was him trying to finally bury the hatchet.

In hindsight, maybe you should've just said no when you were given the option.

The island was nice, it was the dry season so it was, well, dry. Incredibly so. It was also hot, and because of it you spent most of your day out on the water in some manner.

You enjoyed jet skiing, fishing, and snorkeling, and it wasn't until that night that it really started going downhill.

You all were enjoying the cool night around a small bonfire you had created, and one of the girls even helped clean and then cook a few fishes she had caught earlier for you all to eat.

It was then that your brother pulled out a bottle of white wine. Innocent enough. What better to wash down the delicious, fresh fish?

You too eagerly accepted a drink, as did the other girls, and within the next 10 minutes you all one by one started dropping like flies. Maybe in hindsight you should've noticed that your brother had kindly denied when his girlfriend teased him about not taking a drink. Maybe that should've tipped you off.

Your head hurt like a bitch when you woke up.

Your eyes open languidly and you look around. Your hands were tied up above you to some bamboo shoots, and f*ck, was this a cage? You see one of the other girls in a similar situation in front of you, although she still looks to be out. Idly, you wonder how much of the drugged wine she had drank. More than you, you're sure.

There were men in red with guns walking around the cage, and you can't help it when you see one with a mohawk make a beeline for the cage with you and the other women in it.

“Hey, bitches, wake the f*ck up!” You hear in a vaguely spanish sounding accent, and motherf*cker you feel those words appear across your hip. This man was your soulmate. “Enough beauty sleep!”

Your eyes open, darting to where you can feel someone starting to bang on the cage, shaking everything in it.

He's the one with the black mohawk, and he has scars on either side of his head. You wonder who was able to get close enough to hurt him like that, as the person likely would have to have been on top of him because of the angle. Former lover maybe?

It's too dark to tell much else about his features immediately, but your mouth goes dry when his eyes meet yours.

The man crouches down next to your cage, next to you in order to get at eye level with you. He grows to have a wide smile on his face as he continues to look at you, and that pisses you off at how happy he looks at the situation.

This. This was your soulmate. This sorry piece of shit who is likely involved in human trafficking was your soulmate. What the f*ck type of luck is that?

You can't help the tears that prick at your eyes. This was how you were going to die, probably. Your soulmate was either going to kill you or sell you… or worse yet, keep you as some sort of pet. You can't imagine any of those options sounding appealing… Actually, at this point, maybe death did rather than the alternatives.

Your heart is racing, and you wonder what's going to happen when you finally speak and he knows who you are to him. What you are to him.

The tears fall down your face and you can see a vague amusement run over the man, the monster's face. “Why are you crying, honey?” He asks, his head tilting in reaction to you and he places his hands on the bars of your cage to lean closer to you.

You can make out more of his face with him being this close, and just like his head- scars litter his face. Some are in groups, but most of them look like scrapes or scratches that didn't heal correctly.

“Because I’m… afraid?” You admit, with a whisper and you see realization come over his eyes. It feels kind of good, to see him finally look as worried as you had felt since you'd woken up.

His eyebrows furrow and you can see his hands curling tighter around the bamboo sticks that make up your cage. He looks like he can't believe it, like you'd grown a second head.

“Vaas? Is there something wrong with that one? I know she’s a little bit of a bitch, but...” You look up and see your brother behind… Vaas.

Vaas cocks his head as soon as he calls you a bitch and you can tell he really doesn't like it, even though he had called you one just moments prior.

Your brother looks afraid of Vaas as he continues. “I can bring another one if you'll wait a few weeks if she doesn't meet your standards.” He says, throwing up his hands in defense.

You watch Vaas push up to a standing position and he pushes against the cage, causing it to almost break under his hands. Vaas turns around and faces your brother and you don't think you've ever seen your brother this scared before in your entire life.

Vaas starts to slowly walk toward him, and your brother backs up, but is met with a group of guards that stop him from continuing after Vaas gives a small whistle and head movement. Vaas was undoubtedly the leader here. That's exactly what that little show told you.

“I can bring 2, if that's what you want!” Your brother says, looking like he's about to have a heart attack as he visibly shakes in the guard's arms. “I can even give you a discount, two for one!”

Vaas only starts to laugh, and it’s so bone chilling that you almost want to look away, but your eyes are drawn to it, to him. “You stupid f*ck, you’re trying to sell me what's already mine!” Vaas grabs your brother’s shirt and headbutts him incredibly hard, and you can see the blood that starts to pool at his nose that is now bent at an angle, where Vaas had obviously just broken it. If he had been standing on his own you imagine he would've fallen.

Vaas pulls a gun out from his holster.

You should probably say something. You should be screaming at him to stop, begging for your brothers life… but you stay silent.

Vaas moves the gun to your brother's head and it's only now you register that the other girls are awake, and they are begging for your brother's life…

Why?

He had tried to sell you to a human trafficker, he got what was coming to him. He was no better than the man pointing a gun against his head. Maybe the wine hadn't worn off completely for them, maybe they were still in a bleary state. They likely don't understand what's going on.

Vaas, instead of just blowing his brains out, moves the gun down to your brother's knee, and pulls the trigger. It all happens so fast, the noise of the gunshot and the girl’s screams are heightened, and you notice his girlfriend is crying the hardest in fear of everything.

Your brother falls to the ground with a shout and Vaas motions for the guards to grab him and pull him back into a standing position.

Your brother screams as the pain you imagine is made worse by the way they're holding him up and forcing him to put pressure on it.

“Shut the f*ck up!” Vaas screams back, getting extremely close to your brother's face. “Stop f*cking screaming!” Vaas says, and then leans in close to whisper something to your brother, and it's only then that he stops screaming in pain.

You can’t imagine what depraved thing he'd whispered to him, but it works.

Vaas starts to walk back over to you, leaning on the entrance to the cage, and motions toward your brother with his gun still in hand. “Who was this c**ksucker to you, hermoso?”

Was. Who was he to you. Vaas was referring to him with past tense verbs. Vaas is planning on killing him.

“...My brother.” You tell him after a moment.

Vaas nods and opens the gate to the cage, looking like he's contemplating his options. He pulls a knife out of his belt and plays with it as he talks. “I have a shitty sister as well, I can get that.” When he leans down to you with a knife in his hand you're confident he's about to kill you, soulmate or not Vaas was f*cking crazy.

Instead, Vaas moves the knife to where your hands are tied up and then stops. “If I untie you, I want you to promise me you're not going to fight me.” Vaas says, running his other hand through your hair to get it out of your face. “I would rather you not see what I'm about to do to your brother.” He admits, and you believe him.

He pauses and gives you a small smirk. “Unless... you want to help me?” The way he says it runs chills down your spine. Vaas seems to really like that idea.

So, you had been right about him wanting to kill your brother. With the way things were going, with how the blood was rushing out of his leg, you doubt he'll survive the next hour.

You don't feel sorry for him, but you do feel afraid of the man in front of you.

“No, I'd rather… go.” You whisper, your voice quiet and shaky. If there was even the barest of chance he would let you go, you would take whatever you could.

He chuckles darkly. “Let me be clear, this isn't an offer to be set free.” His smile doesn't fade, it's incredibly unsettling to see. “It's an offer to avoid watch me kill your brother, hermoso.”

You should've known. How could you get your hopes up around this sociopath? “Okay.” You say, and your eyes drop to the floor.

That’s apparently not good enough for him, judging by the way he shakes his head. “Say the words, ‘I promise I won't run away, or try to fight you, Vaas.’... Do it.” He prompts you, moving your chin up and down in line with the words he’s wanting you to say.

“I promise I won't run away, or try to fight you, Vaas.” You repeat back to him in as monotone of a voice you can, trying to avoid the fear leaking into it. You didn't want to give him the satisfaction. You fail, for the most part.

Vaas nods, that seemingly pleasing him. “That wasn't so hard now, was it?” Your hands fall to your sides with a swift move of his knife, freeing them.

“Hermanos!” Vaas yells toward a few of the guards, catching their attention and motions to where you’re standing. “Take her out to the beach to relax.”

His eyes narrow at them, dangerously, and when he speaks it's almost too quiet for you to hear. Unfortunately, you had always had good hearing. “And if any of you f*ckers lay a finger on her I'll cut every one of your d*cks off and feed them to the dogs.”

Somehow, even though it's a bizarre threat, you honestly believe him and feel like he's done it before. The guards look legitimately afraid by his threat, and because of it you feel somewhat safe… He cared about you in some f*cked up way, and you believed the guards wouldn't try anything because of it.

The walk to the beach is done in almost complete silence. Almost.

There are a total of 5 guards he sends with you, which is 5 too many for your liking... Perhaps he knew you would try to run if you were given the opportunity.

The guards at the back are the only ones that dare to talk, and you wonder if they think you can't speak Spanish, because that's what you hear in their whispers.

“Who do you think she is to Vaas?”

“I think it's his soulmate. I've never seen him act this way around anyone.”

“Is it possible to have a soulmate even if you don't have a soul?”

“She has a nice ass. He's lucky.”

“You better not touch her, though. Vaas’ll kill you."

You wish you didn't know Spanish.

The feel of sand in your shoes isn't entirely unwelcome as you get to the beach. After all, it's better than the alternative of the blood and guts you were kept in at the cages.

The guards eventually let you start to lead as soon as you get to the beach and you decide to just plop down in the sand when you're out of the eyeline of the outpost. In the distance, you can still see a trail of smoke billowing out from the direction of the camp.

Even though you know it's going to do nothing but stress you out further, you decide to look around the other areas where the shoreline turns into forest. There are similar smokestacks as far as the eye could see… even if you escaped, you wouldn't make it far before you hit the next camp.

It's with a heavy heart that you decide to ignore the trees and the dozens of smokestacks, and instead think about anything else.

It's a nice night out, this is the same night sky you had spent watching with your brother and the girls he had brought. You hope they’re okay, but you doubt it.

There are a lot of stars out, and you remember when you were younger when you used to chart them with your brother outside. You don't care if he's okay so much. He'd done this to you. He deserved everything that Vaas gave him.

You end up leaning into the sand and essentially making a small bed for your tired body to lay in.

It's easily 3 or 4 hours by the time Vaas shows up, and you only know it because the full moon has disappeared and the sun is steadily rising on the horizon.

You were sleeping incredibly lightly, and so even the soft noise of him whistling the guards away startles you from your slumber. You move to a sitting position and move to sit cross legged groggily.

The guards fall away and he sits down next to you in the sand, sitting cross legged with his arms bracing his body on either side.

You expect to see him covered in blood. Maybe even have another scar on his face. Guts staining his shirt.

No, he looks… wet. His hair is still drying, that much was obvious, as it's lying flat where it had been spiked into a mohawk earlier.

You're not sure, but you're also fairly confident he's wearing a different pair of clothes as well… They look almost identical to the ones he was wearing. If you hadn't paid attention, maybe you wouldn't have noticed.

He's showered since torturing and killing your brother before coming to pick you up from the beach at least. That's the least he could do.

Vaas looks over to you, and to the sunrise. “Are you tired, hermoso?” He asks, apparently taking in your exhausted appearance in his quick scan of you. It upsets you how nicely he sounds when he says that, like he’s only your soulmate and not also your captor.

You almost don't want to respond, because, f*ck him for everything, but you do anyway. “Tired is an understatement.” You tell him honestly, scrubbing a hand over your face and sighing when you feel the sandy grains staying behind from where your hand had been buried in the sand.

“I have a shower and a bed, if you want it.” He says, his eyes not leaving the sunset and ocean now.

If you weren't paying attention, his offer would be completely innocent. But you can sense the subtext in his words, the hidden meaning. Reading in between the lines you can tell he's planning something. Probably. “But…?” You prompt, staring at him.

Vaas turns his head towards you and his eyes meet yours, his eyebrows furrowed. “Are you asking me if there's some sort of catch?” He says, like it’s the most crazy thing in the world for you to assume it.

You nod, and feel your cheeks flush for some reason. Why was he making you embarrassed? Why did it matter if he misunderstood you? Why did you care about what he thought of you?

“There isn't a catch.” He deadpans, as if it should be obvious. “I was just trying to be nice, hermoso.” Vaas says, sounding incredibly hurt, and putting a small hand over his heart as if you had physically hurt him.

He seems sincere, and you hate that. It's easier to see through his obvious lies, his passive aggression that turned into real aggression. His display with your brother had shown you that. But this? This version of Vaas was so much harder to understand.

What would he even do if you did say no? You can imagine being dragged back to the cages, or better yet, a shallow grave if you pissed him off enough.

“...Okay.” You say, not feeling much like you had a choice in the matter.

His smile was like the cat that had gotten the canary. “Great.” Vaas says, and quickly stands up, extending his hand down to you. “Your palace awaits, princess.” He says overdramatically.

You begrudgingly take his hand and let him help you up. His hand is incredibly calloused, and you should've expected that for a gun slinging, knife wielding pirate. You're shaky on your feet, and he's quick to catch you at your waist before you go tumbling down back into the sand.

Instead, you tumble into his arms and all at once you wish you had been left in the cages, because looking into his eyes you can see he's attracted to you as he catches you and feels your body up against his.

You can also feel his, can feel the large muscles underneath his shirt and had this been any other man you might be attracted to that as well, but all you can feel when that happens is the fact he's much stronger than you are.

He could easily snap your arm or, perhaps if he were so inclined, your neck with a twist of his wrist. That scares the absolute shit out of you.

His smile is sweet if but a little flustered and you’re quick to pull back. He allows for it.

Vaas looks at you, and his smile grows into something almost sickeningly cute.. “That was like, uh, one of those Hollywood movie moments.” He says as a matter of fact and laughs as if any of this was funny. “If only we had a camera on us, no?” He offers, and jokingly pushes lightly into your shoulder.

You don’t laugh. In fact, you don't even respond other than a small nod.

“Man, you need to lighten up, hermoso.” He grumbles, his mood souring slightly. He continues to talk for you as he considers the possibilities of why you didn't laugh at his joke. “Maybe you're just tired, let's get you some sleep and we'll see how funny you think I am in the morning. C'mon." He motions his head, forward back to the camp. "Let's get some sleep."

You can tell there are a million things he wants to say, wants to talk about on the way back into the outpost. He doesn't say one to you, though. Choosing instead to allow for the comfortable silence to overcome you two.

You're thankful, because you don't know what you would even say to him.

What could there be to say? After all that he had put you through.

As every step you take gets you closer to the camp, you can't help but feel your heart quicken.

...You were extremely worried about what would happen the moment you stepped into camp.

#fc3 #far cry 3 #vaas imagine #vaas montenegro imagine #my writings #my writing #reader #vaas Montenegro #vaas Montenegro x reader #tw: long post

[chiibinomonodamon]

My Top 10 Shoujo/Josei Ships

Let’s address the elephant in the room. Yes, they are problematic which is why they rank last. No doubt. But like, they’re ten and children make mistakes. Especially children who are as unfortunate as Natsume. Natsume himself is probably the most offensive one in this list. But I just...really have a soft spot for brooding bad boys who secretly want to be saved by the cheerful nice girl and that’s not going to go away ANY time soon. I grew really fond of these two as the series went on. I just did.

Man, these two used to be a lot higher when I was younger (like the same age as them lol) KKJ was the first true cosplay I ever did! So...um, not so much in the anime (although he’s not totally innocent but he is better). Chiaki has...issues. Lol. To say he’s insecure...is probably an understatement. But when you look at his upbringing, it’s really no surprise. Maron is the only person he truly seems to care about so he’s going to cling and be needy. But she knows how to handle him. She’s always in control (not in a bad way) but in a way that’s good for both of them. I love how mature she is. He will learn from her....if he hasn’t already. Okay, they’re married with a baby so I would think adult!Chiaki has gotten over what made the teenage ship problematic. Besides, they totally have God’s approval; what more do you need? XD

  *laughs* Who here watched this for the episodic Phantom Thief plots?

*crickets chirp*

OF COURSE YOU F*CKING DIDN’T.

Ya all watched it hoping for these two....RIDICULOUS TSUNDERE...GOOBERS TO TURN AROUND ONE DAY AND CONFESS HOW MUCH THEY DREAM OF GETTING MARRIED TO EACH OTHER...

MeimixAsuka is the absolute classic “love-hate/ slap slap kiss” ship DONE RIGHT. Which is great because so many are done very very wrong (and I can think of quite a few in, ironically non-Japanese media...aimed at children...that can honest to God, be interpreted as downright abusive. *coughiCarlycough*

But not these two. They are so f*cking innocent. Delightfully innocent. Like, their most offensive action is to call each other “idiot”. But God forbid anybody ELSE do that...oh no, if you dare bad-mouth one in front of the other, he/she gets so mad. And that’s like the cutest shit ever.

OH HEY. IT’S THE ONE BL SHIP I ACTUALLY CARE ABOUT!! Um...well, these two are great. I thought they were great in college when I went through my fujoshi stage (ugh) BUT I STILL think they’re great NOW. This is the anime version of The Odd Couple. With more gay. xD These two are sweet as chocolate. Their interaction is just precious. What’s more important? THEY’RE ACTUALLY GOOD FOR EACH OTHER. No rape. No forcing feels on each other, great chemistry, comforting comforters; all the reasons you’d ship a regular boyxgirl pairing. This one just happens to be two boys. AND I STILL DON’T KNOW IF THIS EVER TURNED CANON AFJLFJLFJDLJF

This is one of those very few Childhood Friend Ships I’m all for. It’s kind of crazy that they were able to rank this high when I haven’t even finished their story yet. BUT I LOVE THEM. I was going to pick a ship and say “Imagine _____, except they’re little kids.” But actually, I’m having a hard time comparing them to another ship I can think of. So...they’re KINDA ‘Slap Slap Kiss’-ish but Seiya does not hide his feelings. AT ALL. He’s pretty out-spoken about it. And all he wants to do is sweep her off her feet...but it’s basically the other way around xD As for Ririka...going by Shoujo Logic, her crush on (wow he’s so boring I can’t even remember his stupid name LOL) is superficial and she subconsciously has deeper feelings for Seiya that she’s unaware of...but damn, she sure gets fired up when he’s hurt in front of her! So that gives me hope.

This is just a given. It’s HIGHLY unlikely you would find another “Best Shoujo Pairing” list WITHOUT them. So he’s already there but HURRY UP AND REALIZE YOU LOVE HIM, AHIRU. Lol dammit. The only hint we get from her is “Fakir always makes me stronger” and that SINGLE LINE is deeper than ANY thought she ever had about Mytho. Hell, I’m pretty sure Ikuko herself ships them hard. Their entire relationship is so beautifully crafted...just like the rest of the series except maybe for Ahiru’s crush on Mytho which just had me going “LOLWHY” the entire time.

“SLAP SLAP KISS” LITERALLY. All they do is fight...and then kiss. xD They’re always saving each other, supporting each other, underneath all those insults, then they get married and have two cute kids. Some people think Kazune’s too hard on her...but it’s “tough love”. He has to be because that’s what motivates her. Every single thing Kazune does in the series is strictly for her sake. Their main problem is miscommunication...but I think that goes away quickly so who cares?

Yes, yes, I know. We have two major problems here: The first is initial sexual harassment. Obviously.

But here’s the second problem:

IT’S  JUST TOO DAMN FCKING HOT.

Tooyama Ema knew how to turn up the sexual tension to ELEVEN with these two. Good lord, did she ever. This is by far the sexiest manga I’ve ever read!! Whoever coined the phrase “DOKI-DOKI MOTHERFUCKER” surely had to be reading about Yukina making Shigure do things and Shigure making Yukina do things. While the ship (born from blackmail) should strictly fall into ‘Guilty Pleasure Smut’ category, it only teeters on the edge. For me, at least. Why? Because the character development is actually really damn good. Shigure goes from Cold, Uncaring Magnificent Bastard to Excellent Tsundere Boyfriend Material quite steadily and beautifully. He’s also the only character in the series who can handle Yukina’s personality flaws. Basically, “he’s good for her” while the others are...um, terrible. xD

HEY. IT’S “ANIME TWILIGHT EXCEPT IT DOESN’T SUCK” SHIP.

It’s an ancient story. ‘Vampires make sexy boyfriends’. I believe this has been going on for a reeeeeeeeeeeeeeally long time. Like.....since the 30s, maybe? When did Anne Rice start writing? IDK ANYWAY IT’S A THING. Cutesy human girl wants vampire. The vampire is broody, dark, emo. “I’m dangerous. Stay away from me. You’ll only get hurt”. But they still turn into an off-again, on-again thing because he can’t make up his f*cking mind on whether to protect her at his side or “protect by neglect”. We’ve all heard it before.

EXCEPT THAT IS NOT THIS STORY.

No, it’s cutest f*cking damn vampire romance I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing. And yeah, I did watch Karin and Tsukuyomi Moon Phase but I’m partial to vampire stories for women so fck that. lol. So...where to start. First of all, Riho loved him way before she even knew what he was. When she finds out, she still loves him. And he does do the “You’re better off not being with me because danger”. But he doesn’t say this to be edgy or to manipulate her; he says it because what he does is actually dangerous enough for her to get killed and he doesn’t want that. But she doesn’t give a damn. And he treats her like a princess. And she finds out how lonely he is and vows to always stay at his side and he respects her f*cking decisions and they go on cute dates and always comfort each other and just afjalfjalfjaijfIWEJFILOVETHISSHIPSOMUCH.

Before I get to #1, here’s some honorable mentions:

SakuraxSyaoran from CCS

YonaxHak from Akatsuki no Yona

KurosakixTeru from Dengeki Daisy

KirarixHiroto from Kirarin Revolution

DaichixNajika from Kitchen Princess

TamakixHaruhi from Ouran High School Host Club

ZeroxYuuki from Vampire Knight

Note: I am not good at top lists. This was insanely f*cking hard to do.

So....drumroll..........

WHO SAW THIS COMING?

WHO FCKING SAW THIS COMING?

IF YOU DIDN’T,

YOU DON’T KNOW ME.

GET OFF MY BLOG.

These two pairings are....like...they affect me in ways I just cannot fathom. Like...I literally do not understand how they’ve cast these obsessive spells on me...but they have. Fanart records do not lie. And mine...for both of them is ridiculous.

So why?

The best answer I can come up with is...

“Most emotionally deep”. They inspire me. They make me squeal with joy and break down sobbing. They give me warm fuzzy feelings while at the same time, tearing my heart to shreds. I just can’t get enough of either one. It’s almost like they’ve touched my soul somehow. I just don’t know. I don’t think there’s a ship that expresses the feeling of ‘soulmates’ stronger than these two ships. I feel like Takuto and Mitsuki and Issac and Rachel were born so they could meet each other. They’re both oddly similar...and yet different as night and day seewhatIdidtharwiththepics. I think “sacrifice” and “salvation” is what I respond most to when I think about ever-lasting true love. And everything about these four characters’ development is centered around these two things.

#shoujo #shipping #happy valentines day #I'm like so bad at elimination lol #feel free to ask me about a ship I didn't list #or one I did #long post

[bindy417]

Crisis on Earth-X: Olicity & Earth-X Oliver Spec

This is a brief speculation about Olicity regarding the upcoming crossover based on recent spoilers.

As many of you have probably seen by now, it appears that Earth-X Felicity dies at some point. We don’t yet know the when (just that it’s sometime this year), the how, or the full why.

I’d like to preface this spec by saying that I’ve hated this Earth-X story arc from the very beginning. I truly believe the writers could’ve just pulled a Star Wars or Harry Potter and created a completely different regime that mimics some of history’s greatest atrocities without bringing the actual Nazis into it. Because no matter how they try to spin it, I don’t see a good enough reason to bring up something like this (especially with the holidays approaching) on these types of shows when there are so many different ways to get the same point across. Leave this stuff to the History Channel and other movies/shows based on this actual time period and not fantasy scenarios.        

I’ve also said right along that if anything happens to any version of Felicity, I’ll be extremely upset. Seeing her die in Doomworld was bad enough, and a certain other fandom that shall remain nameless is already delighting in it (which is disgusting!). The recent spoiler photos have me dreading this crossover even more. Although it has a happy ending for Olicity, it doesn’t change the fact that this is going to be a really tough journey to watch. (At this point, I wish the crossovers would end. Baby mama drama in Season 4 and the aliens in Season 5 have totally turned me off to them.)

In addition to Felicity, we don’t exactly know what Earth-X Oliver will be like. I’m desperately hoping that he’s good. Because honestly, I can’t envision any world in which Oliver Queen doesn’t love or at the very least wouldn’t feel some urge to protect Felicity Smoak. The circumstances may be different, but I believe the underlying connective thread of fate is always present in some way. The writers have said Oliver will learn a lesson about “true love” and that this is going to be a “dark love story.” Aside from X-Oliver being evil, the only other way it’s dark is if he loves X-Felicity and loses her.

If this is the arc they’ve chosen, there are a few scenarios that have been running through my head that I’ll share. The lesson doesn’t lie necessarily in what happens on Earth-X but in what our Oliver takes away from it.

 1. X-Oliver seeks to avenge his love.

The most obvious scenario is X-Oliver loses Felicity and is completely consumed by rage and grief. He vows to burn his enemies’ world to the ground. He could either take out the bad guys head on or join their ranks as a spy, waiting to make his move and get justice for Felicity. X-Oliver doesn’t care what happens to himself as long as he takes out everyone who is responsible for her death. Basically, he’s on a suicide mission.

Our Oliver may even agree with this to some extent and help take them down. The lesson he learns is Felicity is truly the love of his life, and he must do everything he can to protect and cherish her. He never wants to experience a world where he loses her and they don’t make the most of their time together—hence, they decide it’s finally time to get married.

I also think it’d be interesting if X-Oliver interacts with our Felicity. He’d probably be somewhat comforted by the fact that she’s alive somewhere else but also extremely heartbroken that he lost his Felicity. But maybe in talking to our Felicity, he is able to hear from her that she would never want Oliver to not go on living his life. She’d want him to heal and to continue to do good in the world, because it needs heroes like him. I could envision X-Oliver surviving his mission while also getting a sense of closure. Our Oliver sees himself persevere while once again realizing Felicity will always be the light of his life.

2. X-Oliver goes too far for revenge.

Another scenario is that X-Oliver is so hell-bent on revenge that he starts losing pieces of his humanity. Although he may be doing what’s right in fighting the Nazis, he starts going to extremes. Innocent lives are lost in the battle, even though it could’ve been avoided. X-Oliver starts to believe the ends justify the means—think Malcolm Merlyn in Season 1 when he planned the Undertaking to avenge his wife Rebecca.

Our Oliver learns that doing what is right shouldn’t come at the expense of others or himself as a person. Avenging Felicity in a way that actually goes against the qualities she loved most in him doesn’t honor her memory; it disrespects it. I’m reminded of the first Olicity hospital scene in 4x10. Felicity understands that Oliver is scared and upset while relentlessly hunting Darhk, but she’s also concerned about him “going off the rails.”

Felicity challenges him, stating that being the Green Arrow is pointless if he loses himself in the process. She would never want Oliver to lose himself and have the man she loves change into a monster in her name. She accepts his scars and loves that he aspires to be a better man and help others. Oliver must hold fast to the light no matter what.

3. X-Oliver wants to kill E1-Oliver for Felicity.

This is by far the craziest of the three theories. I wouldn’t want this to happen but since it popped into my head, I have to share it. X-Oliver could be so warped by his anger and grief that the only sense of peace he gets is when he discovers our Felicity is alive. He sees her as a second chance—a way to get “his Felicity” back in some form. However, our Felicity is loyal to our Oliver; he’s the man she loves. As a result, X-Oliver decides to fight and kill the other version of himself, because he believes she’ll turn to him instead afterwards. They can build a new life together. Therefore, we get Oliver battling a twisted version of himself.

The lesson in this scenario could be that no matter what earths they live on, their love isn’t interchangeable. Oliver and Felicity love each other in their world because of who they are and what they’ve experienced individually and together. There is no one else they’d want to be with, even if it is another version of themselves. They are each other’s soulmates.

I’m sure as more interviews and spoilers come out about the crossover, we’ll be able to paint a clearer picture. Maybe one of these theories is true. Maybe we get something totally different. But this is where my head’s at right now. Feel free to add any of your specs if you have them!

#arrowverse crossover #olicity #spec #spoilers #felicity smoak #Oliver Queen #earth x

[snake-house]

Remus Lupin X Male!Reader - i’ll never go.

Young!Remus Lupin X Male!Reader warnings: slight sexual themes he/him pronouns used for reader *set during 6th year marauders era **and for the sake of the story, the reader is a gryffindor as well ___ requested by a sweet anon on tumblr

- it is not as fluffy as i wanted it to be in the beginning, but i hope you like it!! ___ As the first pained howl racked through the Shrieking Shack, you instantly turned towards the noise. "You're... a werewolf," You whispered as you saw your sweet and mischievous Remus go through the pain of his transformations. You always expected something to be up with the male you were proud to call your boyfriend, but this... this was not what you expected. 

"RUN!" Remus screamed through the pain, "PLEASE [NAME], RUN! I DON'T WANT TO HURT YOU-" Another scream broke him and he collapsed on the ground as the transformations became too much. Your heart broke as you watched the person you were so ready to tell you loved them in pain like that, you took a step forward in any way to comfort him, but there were suddenly hands all over you. "You have to go [Name]!" James exclaimed as he and Peter started dragging you from the Shrieking Shack. Sirius was already in his animagus form for when Remus was fully transformed. "I have to help him!" You cried, all the self control you were known for had vanished, and all that was on your mind was Remus. "You will be helping him by doing as he said and leave," Peter said firmly. There were hot tears rolling past your cheeks as you struggled against their hold. But eventually, you sagged in defeat and let the sobs rack through your body. There was no hurt by the fact Remus kept this from you, there was no anger or fear, there was none of that. All you felt was despair for your love. You could only imagine how he felt, you finding out his secret and seeing him in such a state. He looked so vulnerable as he yelled at you. It hurt so much. You loved him, and to see him go through that pain, to know that every month he had to endure this shook every nerve in your body. -- You didn't need to look to know the brunet was standing before you. During your final lap around the seventh floor, you felt his familiar presence a few feet behind you. He was ready to talk, and that is why you headed to the seventh floor. Just as you pictured, the room was transformed into a version of the Gryffindor dorm rooms, save for the bed being bigger than a single size. While you took a place up on the bed, Remus stood a few feet from the bed silent. It had been almost a week after the full moon, and Remus has not talked to you yet. You respected him and knew him enough that when he was ready, he would come to you to talk about what happened. The last thing you ever wished to do was to force him to talk about something he was not ready to relive. He was the first to speak. "Why did you go to the shack?" He whispered. "I received a letter that morning that said it was from you, that you wanted to meet me at the Shrieking Shack after curfew," You started, keeping your voice level even though your face started to burn with embarrassment, "The letter said you wanted to, erm, spend time with me if you can understand what I mean by that." It warmed you inside to see Remus return your blush. "But before you say anything else," You added quickly, "May I talk freely?" "Of course," Remus said as he finally took the step forward to sit next to you on the provided bed. "You should have known me better Remus," You murmured in a light chastising voice you always used when he did something questionable, "I may be a muggle-born and not quite understand everything that goes on in the wizarding world, but I know you. I love you, I really do. If you told be about this, I would not have been upset or angry, and most importantly, I would never leave you." You placed a hand on his cheek and smiled at him, a soft gesture that seemed to release some tension in his body, "I've read many books, both wizarding and muggle, about werewolf actually. About their nature and everything that surrounds them, even if some of the muggle folklore makes me giggle. And because I've ready all that I've can, I understand that while you may not have wanted to be gifted this ability to transform, I understand that this is apart of you. And therefore, you and your wolf are one in the same, and I love you no matter what. To be honest," You laughed a little as you thought over what you were going to say next, "You could have killed someone, and my first reaction would be to defend you. You mean so much to me, and while I am not hurt by the fact you kept this from me, I am ready to move on from this and work on how we can fix the little patches in our relationship to help you, to help us." "[Name]-" His voice cracked, "I don't know what I ever did to deserve you," You smiled, "I was scared that you would leave me if I told you. That was the only thing keeping me back. Deep down I knew that you would say that, that you could never leave me because of this, but my demons- my insecurities got the best of me." "Hey, hey," softly to cupped his face in your hands, "It's alright, I know. And I'm here for you, to share those burdens you have, to make those insecurities go away," You cooed softly giving him a look you reserved only for him. You adored him, no matter what. He could tell you he as really one thousands acromantulas disguised as a human, and you could cringe before you opened your arms wide for him. He was your love, your life. You may only be sixteen, but you were certain he was your soulmate. "I love you [Name]," Remus said just as softly. "I know," He furrowed his brows at you, "I knew the moment you yelled at me to run when you were turn. The look in your eyes spoke for you." Slowly you pressed your lips to his, rubbing your thumbs against his cheeks in a soothing manner. Remus did not hesitate to recuperate the kiss. Whenever the two of your have kissed, it was always innocent. Though you always wished to spice it up a bit, and maybe see how far you could go to fluster the male, you never could. You could never push him into something he wasn't comfortable doing. But this kiss, this kiss was different. Remus took control and moved your hands from his face to wrap around his neck as his went around your middle to pull you against him and successfully into his lap. He kissed you fiercely with a passion you've seldom seen. It took your breath away. You moaned as he wormed his tongue into your mouth and completely devoured you. You weren't sure how long the two of you kissed, but it escalated from the hot make-out session into hesitant touches and grouping. He wasn't sure what you were comfortable, but the two of you couldn't stop. The love you had for one another had reached its peak, and was pouring over onto the other. You needed to reassure him in any and every way that you loved him. You placed your legs on either side of him and ground your hips down, gasping as you realized Remus was just as affected as you were and hard against you. The shuddered moan you got from Remus set your nerve endings on fire just knowing you were the one to make him like that. Remus eventually lost his nervousness, because in an instant his hands were gripping your arse to grind his hips up into yours, "You're perfect [Name]," He growled and started kissing along the length of your neck. A stuttered sigh left your lips at the sensation, "You're perfect," You whispered, "And if you'll let me, I'm never going to leave." "Then don't leave, and stay with me forever," He whispered back. A brilliant smile lit your features at his words, and you knew what your future held. It may be a rough and bumpy path, but you knew if you did stay by his side, you both would get through it easily. "How much longer do we have till curfew?" He rasped as he hastily loosened your tie and started for the buttons of your shirt. You giggled and started doing the same to his shirt, "Since when have you been worried about curfew?" You teased, nipping at his neck. He paused once he got the last button, "You're right," He grinned and shucked the fabric from your shoulders and easily maneuvered you onto your back on the bed, "Then this is going to be a long night." Remus' grin widened as he saw a dangerous fire flicker in your eyes. It may have been a long night, but it didn't matter to you that the thought of double potions in the morning. You would worry about that when the time comes. Right now, it was about Remus and you. That was it. -- "Thanks for saving me a seat," You sighed as you sat down between Remus and Peter a few weeks and one full moon later, "Mcgonagall kept me after class to talk to me about my paper." "Don't worry about it [Name], but we were thinking about not saving a seat to force you to sit in Moony's lap," Sirius grinned as Remus chocked on his pumpkin juice, "Because I'm sure he'd love that idea." You hid your grin behind your hand as you noticed the flush on the brunet's cheeks, "Sirius, don't say things like that." Remus chastised weakly, knowing he didn't stand a chance against Sirius' words. "Why not? I'd sit in your lap and more if you only asked me to, Remus," You pressed a fleeting kiss to Remus' cheek before you started digging in to your dinner, leaving the wizard stunned in his seat as the other three marauders around you laughed at his reaction. "In fact," You grinned, placing a hand on Remus' thigh, "I'd be happy to do something much more intimate with you while sitting on your lap, would you like that?" If you thought he was blushing before, he was certainly bright as a cherry now. And after all you two have done together, he still blushed when anything related to sex was mentioned. It was so sweet and endearing, and one of your favorite things about him. "I really like him Remus," James started, "He gets us and gets you, and it is simply amazing seeing him fluster you up like this." "Oh shut up Prongs," Remus finally said as he angrily took a bite of his chicken. "Don't worry," You smiled, "Nothing they can say could make me leave you, no matter how flustered your or I get, got it?" Remus couldn't help but return your smile at your sweet words. That used to be his biggest fear, but now he knew that it would never happen. "I know you wouldn't and thank you for that," Remus whispered and returned your kiss with his own to your cheek. A little while later as you all were lazing around in the empty common room, a sudden thought came to you, "I really like your little nicknames you have for each other," You said absently as you leafed through your potions textbook, stopping and reading something every once in a while. "What do you mean?" Sirius spoke up. "You know, how you call Remus 'Moony', which it adorable by the way, and how James is 'Prongs', and Peter 'Wormtail', and you 'Padfoot'. I like them, that's all." You glanced up at the friends, only to be met with uneasy smiles. You thought it was an innocent statement, "What?" "Oh nothing, nothing at all, no one has ever told us that before," Sirius said quickly, and started to change the subject, "Why are you reading that anyways? Do you have a test or something in potions or something?" You shook your head, "No, I just like potions that's all. I'd like to do something in potions when I'm older, so..." You trailed off. "Now you're sounding like Snivellus," Sirius sneered which you returned with a shrug. That statement didn't bother you, Snape was a master at potions, and thus you would treat his words as a compliment. "Anyways," Peter said suddenly, obviously not liking where the conversation was going, "Have you and Remus gone all the way?" Both you and the brunet flushed at the question. Yes, after four months of dating, you have gotten used to the sexual innuendos from Remus's best friends, but they have yet to right out ask if you've ever had sex. "That's none of your business," Remus said immediately, and you hid yet another smile, but this time it was behind your textbook. "Exactly, besides I wanted to ask you guys something," You said lowly and gestured for them to lean in just encase someone was still loitering around the common room. "What did you want to ask?" James stated skeptically. "I know you all are animagi, expect for Remus of course," They hesitated and looked to Remus who gave them a firm nod, and then they other three nodded as well, "Do-Do you think you could help me become one? I want to help Remus too, you know, more than I can from here. I want to be able to spend the full moon with him." The four marauders huddled together and started whispering in hushed tones at you question. They were really thinking this over, you thought, more so than they do on most of their decisions. After a solid five minutes, they broke from their huddle and gave you a hard once-over. "If you think you're up to it, as Remus said, then sure. But you have to be dedicated to the cause- the cause being protecting Moony here, even if you find out you don't have the ability to change into an animagus," You nodded with a bright smile, "We can start this weekend, alright?" "Awesome!" You beamed, "Thank you! I really appreciate it, and don't worry, when it comes to Remus his priorates always come first." "But-" James cut in with a impish grin, "There has to be a little test first, to prove that you are willing to put completely trust and faith in us." You gave them a nervous gaze, your eyes flicking briefly to Remus, "And what may that be?" "Just a little prank, that is all, on Severus of course." "I can't do anything to Severus," You said instantly, "He helps me in Potions, I kind of need to be on his good side if I wish to pass the course with flying colors and want to become a healer or something." You protested. "Alright," Sirius said and put his hand up as James scowled and started to go off on your defense, "Then tell us about the first time you guys had sex, I have to know all the details. And don't go telling me you guys haven't done the deed, I know you did. I just want to know who tops." You flushed bright and looked to Remus to see he was no different, "Are you alright with that?" "Y-Yeah..." "Remus tops," You started, "We tried switching, seeing as we went more than once that night, but Moony is an alpha werewolf and wouldn't allow Remus to bottom, not that I minded," You muttered and looked away, "Is that all you need?" "When did it happen?" Peter asked eagerly. "A few weeks ago." "Wait," Now it seemed James was no longer mad and ready to participate in the intimate conversation, "Are you telling me, the two of you have been dating for over a year and you just now went all the way?" You blushed and stuttered a little before you caught your bearings to respond, "Well, when you put it that way, it does sound kind of absurd. But we had good reason behind it! We both wanted to make sure we were both one hundred percent confident that that was what we wanted, alright? I didn't want to push him too far, and he didn't want to do the same to me." "That's actually kind of sweet," Peter murmured. You smiled and Remus thanked him, "Ok, now is that all?" The friends exchanged a few glances before nodding. "So be ready for this weekend. We will explain each of the steps of becoming an animagus, and help you start the potion, sound good?" "Yeah, so if I do become an animagus, do I get a cool nickname too?" The four burst out in laughter at your very innocent words. "Sure! You'll get a cool nickname too," Remus said and kissed you. You returned the kiss before standing, "I think I'm going to head to bed now, so thank you and good night." With one last kiss placed on Remus' cheek, you left up the stairs to your dorm. Once you were out of sight, Sirius spoke up, "I'm really happy for you and [Name], and the fact he accepts you so openly. It's refreshing compared to the closed mindedness you always hear about." Remus gazed longingly at where you disappeared from their sight and nodded, "Thank you, really. I don't think I've ever been this happy before." "We will support your relationship, and you two in general, because we can tell. It's good to see you look normal and not like you haven't slept for weeks." James said matter-of-factly. Remus really thought about his friends words, "You think it's because of [Name]?" "Absolutely," Peter started, "You've been different now that you're together, but in a good different." The four friends continued to talk for an hour or two over various topics before they finally ascended the stairs to go to sleep themselves. Remus, even though he was change into his pajamas and laid down in bed, he was still up thinking about everything that has happened to him. You were truly a gift to him. He could never have imagined someone coming into his life and completely and wholly accepting of him. You filled ever hole inside of him, because even though he loved his friends and treasured everything they have done for him, it was nice to have someone there that he could emotionally invest himself in as you did him. He didn't ever want to let you go, and he doesn't think he ever could.

#harry potter #remus lupin #x reader #x male reader #male reader #male reader insert #x male reader insert #remus x reader #remus lupin x reader

[coldtomyflash]

How would that version of them reconcile the ''not a serial killer but still a criminal thief and murderer' thing?

In the no powers soulmate au?

As messy as ever, of course.

Barry is genuinely relieved to find out that Len’s not a serial killer, which, that being his starting reference point, probably makes a difference. Serial killers enjoy killing, they seek it out, they take trophies, they fantasize about killing people and aggrandize themselves through it.

Len is still, however, a murderer. In this AU, he hasn’t killed any innocent theatre ushers, and maybe I’d have it so he hasn’t killed any random innocent bystanders at all, only other criminals. Maybe more than that though, security who caught them sometime, or whatever. But then, maybe Barry doesn’t know about that, either...

At some point, Barry would extract a promise from Len that he can’t keep killing people, that Barry can’t do this, can’t be with him, if he’s a murderer. Self-defense, killing out of pure necessity, he accepts that. Bold-faced murder, he does not. And Len would end up agreeing and accepting that.

(Hell, maybe it’s not even made in conjunction with their bond, maybe they come to the agreement for other reasons, or maybe Len is the one to suggest it so it’s not that Barry is asking this of him specifically. But it’s still a necessity).

And the people he saw Len kill? Yeah being his Soulmate means he can’t exactly testify against Len and there’s no other evidence. Actually, Len’s records / rap sheet likely don’t have any murders on them that he’s charged with, he’s just a person of interest in some unsolved murder and missing persons cases. I mean, he did it, but he doesn’t leave evidence behind, nothing that could lock him up. He has other outstanding warrants - weapons, assault and battery, robbery, breaking and entering, etc, grand larceny - but no murder or manslaughter.

Which means that at some point in the fic, I’d have the option for Len to make some kind of deal with a DA or with Singh. I don’t know how it would go down yet, and Len would have to offer up a lot of something valuable to get those charges all dropped, but I can see it somehow working.

I don’t know if I’d go that route because, well, it’s Len. But I might, if it fit the narrative.

So that’s a lot of Barry’s concerns dealt with, honestly. Worrying about his Soulmate going to prison, worrying about his Soulmate doing things he can’t emotionally reconcile (like murdering people). The things he did in the past... that’s difficult, extremely so, but not un-navigable for Barry. 

#coldflash #redhead vs. writing #soulmate au #no powers au #if this keeps up i'll have to make a specific tag for this one lol #Anonymous #replies

[mystic-head-canons]

Hello! I was thinking about this the other day; the RFA reacting to finding fanfic of themselves? X3

Yoosung

It’s not really fanfic of Yoosung as much as it is of SuperYoosung (aka, his online persona)

Thing is, he was talking to a girl he met while playing LOLOL and she was awed by him

So, she started talking to him regularly, always admiring him and all his hard fought work and so on

Then he finds out from a guild member that she’s writing fan fiction versions of his exploits in game (and out, but in the context of in game)

He reads them and the character she’s made him out to be is this brave, handsome warrior who travels the land searching for his one true love, fighting evil, helping innocents and fellow warriors alike, and just being a hero

Yoosung is embarrassed to admit he got super sucked into the story and the way it progressed like a real fantasy novel, and is so disappointed to find that she’s two chapters from finishing it, although the last two chapters promise to have a reunion, a final battle, a satisfying wrap up, and a happy ending

Yoosung talks to his online buddy and learns that she never named the female character because nothing sounded right, so he tells her to use the real love-of-his-life’s name

She does, she startled people are so happy with the reveal of the name, Yoosung cries over the ending three months later

Now, he’s subscribed to her, so any fanfics she writes about SuperYoosung or based around his adventures, Yoosung will read

It’s totally a guilty pleasure, he can’t even bring himself to share it with MC

Jaehee

So, you know, she was casually scrolling through some Zen fan fiction when she saw an “RFA” tag

So she clicked it out of curiosity

First of all, SO much Zen/Jumin porn

Just like

Wow

one of the main writers for these fics username is HackerLoveGod, and she swears it’s Saeyoung

Then she finds a tag of her name

She clicks and finds an overwhelming amount of fanfics about her

It’s mostly really cute fics about her interacting with the RFA, possibly flirting with someone and finding someone inside or outside the RFA

Ironically, MC is in very few and is never the romantic interest

The only romantic interests Jaehee has is either one of the guys (most Jumin, she’s mortified to find out, with Zen as a close second) or a random guy, once it was even Rika

Jaehee never admits that she found any of this, still kind of shaken by the idea that people are actually interested in her so much that they theorize about her happy ending

It’s kind of creepy

Zen

It’s to be expected with a big name actor, especially when he’s cast in so many romances because of his good looks

Plus he canonly has a romance writer who bases a lot of her male leads off of Zen

But most fanfics are extremely romantic, long winded stories about how he and MC met, their whirlwind romance, and how they had to fight off Echo-girl

They’re all extremely romantic, some better than others, some even becoming soulmate au’s because some fans love and respect his love so much

NGL, Zen totally uses a few fanfics as platforms for romantic dates (he takes MC ice skating because of one fic where he did that, she almost fell, he caught her, and it was all very sweet, where as the reality was that he tripped and accidentally pulled her down with him and she ended up pinned under him by accident)

Jumin

A woman actually wrote a book with a character loosely based off of Jumin as the main lead

It was a rather… inappropriate book, especially coming from a woman that had never met him

But one day, he finds MC sitting on the couch, laughing at her phone with Elizabeth in her lap

She shows Jumin the hundreds of self-insert fan fiction where women meet and ultimately fall in mutual love with him

When he asks why she thinks this is so funny, she points out two things

1. At least a third of them take 2-14 days for them to fall in madly in love, which parallels real life, which she thinks is hilarious

2. All the ones written after MC and Jumin got married, MC is this monstrous, smoking, drinking, possessive, greedy bitch, and the women “rescue” Jumin from such a terrible woman

Jumin fails to see the amusement in these, especially the idea that MC is evil

She finds a few really bad ones and reads them to him so that he can truly enjoy them with her

She also reads some really good ones that are super romantic and Jumin totally takes ideas from (i.e. Gifts to give, restaurants to eat at, things to do together)

Saeyoung

“I’ve hacked the world in which you exist. I found the lives you imagined we’d have together. Let’s make one a reality.”

Hahaha, ignore that please, it’s mildly creepy

Also, there’d better not be fan fiction of him as that could be a terrible thing

Seriously, he’s a hacker, he lives in the shadows, so if anything gets out about him, he’s screwed

So that means, the only reason he’d find fanfic of himself was if the RFA or someone that knew him wrote it

When Saeyoung finds the fan fiction, he’s horribly confused for obvious reasons

He reads them, is slightly disturbed that the character dynamics between him, the RFA, Saeran, MC, and others are so spot on, but actually becomes pretty invested in some of these adventures

Eventually he backtraces everything to…. his house? What?

When he finally figures which computer is posting it, he’s surprised to find Saeran’s writing it, while he was expecting MC

Then it hits him; that’s why she’s been giving Saeran feed back about his writing lately

Saeyoung totally hacks Saeran’s computer to watch him write, so he can have the next chapter now

When Saeran starts to kill Saeyoung off, he can’t help himself, opens a chat box and says “NOooo!!! You can’t kill your own brother!! Why would you do this?!”

Saeran types back, “I FUKCING KNEW IT!!”

#mysme #mystic messenger #mystic messenger 707 #mystic messenger zen #mystic messenger jumin #Yoosung Kim #mystic messenger yoosung #jaehee kang #mystic messenger jaehee #hyun ryu #jumin han #saeyoung choi #mystic messenger saeyoung #707

[shipping-n-handling]

I don't know if you still do prompts, but if you do can you please do some fitzsimmons angst? pleeeeas? Thank you!

Hey anon! I’ll be honest, I haven’t gotten one of these in a while, so forgive me if I’m a bit rusty. Being out of college has not been kind to my writing skills ;) 

Here’s a scene from Jemma’s POV after all the Framework stuff and before the team is taken at the end of season 4. LOTS of angst, but remember - you asked for it!

Her hands shook.

Jemma let out a breath and gently gripped her knees as she struggled to regain her composure. They were back at the base, albeit temporarily, trying to sift through the rubble and figure out their next move before probably being arrested by the military. The thought of being incarcerated on top of everything that they’d been through during the past few months made her laugh involuntarily. The sound of it echoed slightly in the small conference room Jemma had suddenly decided to escape to. It was as if the universe, if she actually believed in such nonsense, was trying to break them. 

Once Robbie killed AIDA and took the Darkhold to the dimension he was trapped in, the gravity of everything that had occurred during the previous days and weeks threatened to overwhelm her. Suddenly, she couldn’t breathe. Suddenly, the thought of returning to any semblance of a normal life within SHIELD seemed impossible. Mumbling some excuse and trying to ignore the way Fitz’s concerned gaze followed her, Jemma had rushed from the room and found the small conference room. She was proud of the fact that she managed to keep the tears from forming until the doors shut behind her. 

It was like her panic episodes after she got back from Maveth, only worse. Her breath quickened, her hands started shaking, and sweat began to form on her forehead as her heart worked overtime. Jemma closed her eyes and tightened the grip she had on her knees, trying to control her breathing to no avail. It was all too much. AIDA, Radcliffe, LMDs, the Framework, all the horrors she witnessed in that virtual reality, the way Fitz had pressed the muzzle of that cold pistol to her forehead, demanding that she renounce her love for him…

The sight of her hand plunging a knife into Fitz’s neck and watching the light leave his eyes…

It wasn’t him. It wasn’t him. It wasn’t him. A small gasp escaped Jemma brought her hands to her head, trying willing the image out of her mind. Appearing after it; the memory of the man she loved callously shooting an innocent woman in cold blood. It wasn’t him. It wasn’t him. It wasn’t him. The way Fitz’s eyes radiated fury and pure, unadulterated hatred as he shouted at her to say she meant nothing to him, all the while pressing a gun to her head. It wasn’t him! She pleaded with her mind, begging it to stop. It wasn’t him! IT WASN’T HIM!

A small sob erupted from her throat as the tears rushed down her cheeks. Jemma brought her knees to her chest, the sounds of her grief echoing in the small room. The worst memory came suddenly before she could deny it, filling her mind’s eye like some sick projection. The small moment she had while listening to Fitz and AIDA in the holding cells. That tiny, minuscule moment that seemed to last forever in her world. The moment Fitz declared, in a voice that sounded every bit as broken as she felt, that the relationship he shared with her was dead. Though he asserted moments later that he was still in love with her, the blunt statement had struck her to the bone.

Jemma was no fool. She knew that all of them had gone through a traumatic experience that would likely take many years to heal from, if ever. She knew deep down that Fitz blames himself for all the horror that had taken place in the Framework, no matter who tried to tell him otherwise. She knew that it was that same guilt that led him to think that things between them were irreparable. But that moment, the split instant Jemma thought she had truly lost him, was worse than any amount of torture or any length of time in the Framework. She wished for death in that moment, numb to the idea that after everything they had gone through together, after all the blood, sweat, and tears she went through to bring him and the team back, it was all for her to lose him - yet again. 

Growing up, Jemma was taught by her mother to never let herself be defined by anyone else, least of all a man. And for the most part, she had honored that lesson. But Fitz was different. From the first moment they worked together at the Academy, she knew that her life would never be the same. Suddenly, they were no longer Agents Fitz and Simmons. It was Agents Fitzsimmons. Their minds worked together effortlessly, like a well-oiled machine. Their personalities clashed occasionally, but it was the kind of controlled chaos that inspired…well, inspiration. They orbited each other for years in perfect tandem, a force to be reckoned by experts in any field. Their friendship knew no bounds either; by the end of their first year, Jemma felt like she knew everything about Fitz, and he about her. Others joked about them being joined telepathically, but even that seemed like a little less than their bond. If Jemma believed in the idea of soulmates, she would declare Fitz was her’s. 

The thought of losing that, even for a moment, was like someone ripping away that part of herself. He was as much a part of her as she was to him, and the idea that it was not just anyone, but his creation and subsequent abuser that was taking him away was simply unbearable. Jemma knew - or at least hoped - that they will work through these issues in time, but she was finding that the interim was rather difficult to bear. Resting her head on the wall behind her, Jemma wiped the tears from her face as her breathing finally started to stabilize. 

She knew without a doubt that it would take a number of weeks, possibly months to be able to look at Fitz without thinking of that other version of him, or even of the LMD Fitz that tried to kill her; the one she had been forced to kill. Jemma swallowed, the memory of that still too fresh. For once, she welcomed the idea of going to a psychiatrist and wondered if the prison they were likely headed towards offered those services. Probably not, she reasoned. The team was likely to spend a long time in custody. With SHIELD all but destroyed and all the evidence of the havoc created by the Framework and the LMDs pointing at them, it would almost be a miracle if they weren’t shot on sight. 

The sound of soft tapping at the door nearly made her jump and reach for a sharp piece of debris, a habit that she still retained from her time on Maveth. Jemma’s heart ached when she heard the Fitz’s careful voice on the other side. 

“Jemma?” He called softly. “Jemma, I’m sorry, but we have to leave now.” His tone was a strange mixture of shame and concern, with a tinge of fear. She realized with a pang that he was likely afraid of the man he remembered being in the Framework. 

They would get through this, she reasoned. They had to. After all they’ve been through, after all that had come between them, Jemma refused to let this be the thing that tore them apart for good. She loved him, whatever kind of man he was after all the horror they had just endured. If Jemma knew anything at all, it was the man standing on the other side of the door, with his hands likely together and a concerned look on his face, had the purest heart of anyone she had ever met. No matter what evil came next, no matter if they were pulled apart during their time in prison, she knew that they would get through it, together. 

It was that thought that finally managed to push all the horrible memories out of her head. Standing up gingerly, still feeling slightly dazed from the fight a few hours ago, Jemma slowly walked over to the door and opened it to reveal Fitz standing there, just as she had pictured him in her mind. She smiled inwardly that despite everything, she still knew him. Her eyes found his trying to glance at anywhere other than her face, likely still thinking she wouldn’t want to have anything to do with him. Jemma tried to convey all the love and resolve in her own eyes as she nodded and placed a tender hand on his arm. 

“Lead on, Fitz.” She whispered with a small smile. His eyes focused intently on hers for a moment, as if finally hearing what she was trying to say. Fitz’s throat contracted as he swallowed and shifted his stance. After a moment, he placed his other hand over hers, like when the base had first been captured, in a time that seemed so long ago now. His eyes were still red and raw, but Jemma saw within them what she was searching for:

Hope.

Sliding her fingers in between his, the pair began slowly walking down the small hallways leading to what was left of the hangar doors, their hearts just a little lighter than before. 

#aos #aos spoilers #fitzsimmons #leo fitz #jemma simmons #agents of shield #fic prompt #anon ask #replies

[shakespearerants]

Why Modern Y/A Literature Is Shit - Five Lists, A Rant, And A Conclusion

Let’s start with the lists, shall we? First, we have the typical overused y/a protagonists. There are:

1) the incompetent-but-pretty female protagonist. I’m talking about that “oh I’m not like other girls I hate makeup and I’m sooooo clumsy and also a nerd because I don’t like to party” girl, the one that always says she’s ugly but is described as stereotypically attractive. Usually white. Always gets the insanely attractive guy in the end. Relatable ™.

2) the mysterious bad boy that every girl wants a slice of. Usually either rich, a supernatural being, or involved in some sketchy shit. Has a Tragic Backstory™ that is unlocked by the female protagonist after little-to-none probing, maybe some bambi eyes, when the story is at the point where he would look like a real douche if his shitty behavior was left unexplained.

3) the female Leader of the Revolution. Usually white. Fights for Freedom and What Is Good, would actually be pretty ok in my books, if there weren’t…

4) the male love interest of the female Leader of the Revolution. Usually very flat character. We know exactly two thing about him: a) He’s Sexy b) He’s In Love. Sometimes there’s a small bonus and we also know that he has a Tragic Backstory™, usually involving something that is supposed to show that he and the female Leader of the Revolution are Soulmates or at least that they have History Together. And then there’s…

5) the Love Triangle. Im counting this as “one” main character because, lets be honest, most (read: all that I know) love triangles don’t have enough depth to justify analyzing all three parts separately. It goes like this: girl was Normal and had Best Male Friend who was In Love With Her since Forever, but Never Said Anything. Then Something Happens and Guy Two (the mysterious bad boy) shows up, usually quite out of the blue. He is Mysterious and Experienced and Interested In The Girl, who is suddenly Very Important for a Higher Cause. Then Best Male Friend Gets Jealous and Confesses His Feelings when confronted by the Girl. Then all there of them go on an Epic Quest together. A common variation of this is Girl meets two boys. One is Nice™ and one is Sexy™. HOW WILL SHE DECIDE???!11?? (also epic quest in the backround)

And then we have the supporting characters. Who are usually either…

1) the gay OR the racially diverse Best Friend of the Protagonist. Especially if it’s a male protagonist. BUT CAREFUL!!!!!111! He has to be a) male b) EITHER gay OR racially diverse, and c) ok with casually used homophobic/racist stereotypes

2) the Nerd Friend of the (usually male) protagonist. Wears glasses. Doesn’t know anything about sports. Easily hurt. Thankful™ for their Cool Protagonist Friend. Usually bullied. Knows stuff about: a) Star Wars b) Comics c) Lord of the Rings. If the author is really adventurous he also cosplays, usually as a LOTR character

3) the Best Girl Friend of the incompetent-but-pretty female protagonist. Usually very flat character. Comes out of nowhere to Give Advice and disappears back into the void. 

But the most annoying thing is that literally almost every y/a novel or series that you pick up in literally any bookstore/library can be assigned one of these general storylines:

1) the Your Are Different storyline. Girl is Normal™. Maybe has a Tragic Backstory™, but nothing too bad. Then Something Happens and she learns that she is Not Normal, by which I mean that she either has some sort of supernatural powers or that she is The Long Lost Princess or at very least The Chosen One. Then some love triangle comes to spiel, she has to Leave Her Old Life Behind and Save The World. Book ends with some sort of sappy love confession or her deciding which part of the love triangle she chooses. Sometimes seen with a male protagonist, but without the love triangle. 

2) the Love Triangle storyline. Well. I think it’s self-explanatory.

3) the Supernatural Shit Going On storyline. Someone (usually a guy) is the Chosen One. Chosen One has to fight in order to save some recently discovered world/their own world. Meets some friends who are usually two or more dudes and one super badass girl who is only there because Equality™ and is either the one who gets Possessed By The Evil or is the only one who has to be saved at one point in the story. If we have a female protagonist then she and the girl Hate Each Other For Literally No Reason until the protagonist Saves The Girl in some very dramatic way and they realize that the other is Actually Not That Bad. Female protagonist usually teaches girl about Feelings and maybe sets her up with That One Guy In The Group that she’s had a crush on for Literal Years but never made a move because Feelings Are For Babys or she was Scared And Didn’t Know What To Say To Him. 

4) the This Book Isn’t Like Other Books storyline. Some shit that doesn’t have anything to do with interpersonal relationships or at the most bullying is going on. Usually features a Controversial Protagonist™ (read: the one who started the deeply illegal or at least sketchy shit that’s going on and is also the muggle version of Voldemort, character wise). The (usually male) protagonist, who is also a social outcast, now has to work to Stop The Sketchy Shit that he started, but he Can’t Do It Alone. A group of three people (two boys, one pretty girl), who are also a part of the Popular Group At School, are somehow pulled into the shit and help the Controversial Protagonist™ Fix His Mistakes and Become A Better Person. Sometimes they become friends in the end. 

AND, because I can, have some shitty shitty plot devices.

1) the Love Triangle. It’s shitty and unnecessary in every way because it always features at least 3 of these things: bad writing. Heteronormativity. Exclusively white people. Disregard of the feelings of the female lead by at least one of the guys. Use of past traumatic experiences of one of the male leads to justify predatory and/or dangerous/possessive behavior. Related to that: use of mental illness/trauma solely to gain sympathy of the audience. Characters’ (specially the guys’) lives and decisions revolve around romantic/sexual relationships. Related to that: romanticization of unhealthy relationships. Enforcement of gender stereotypes. Objectification of the characters (especially the male characters). 

2) Miscommunication. I don’t even have to say anything, do I.

3) The One Friend In The Group That Betrays Them All And The Subsequent Fallout. WHY. WHY do authors feel the need to have one person in a close-knit group of friends betray everyone. I mean, it would even be THAT bad if most authors didn’t use it as a cheep method to create suspense for the final showdown, or kill off a character, or to distract from the fact that most villains in modern y/a literature are really flat characters with no real motives for their plans for world takeover or whatever it is they’re trying to accomplish by giving them a radicalized follower. 

4) the Love Confession When The Guy Either Thinks She’s Chosen Someone Else Or Is Being Separated From The Girl. Like. NO. Just no. Thats like THE cheapest way to create emotional conflict. Or to subtly manipulate your readers. Because that is essentially what the author is doing: guilt-tripping you into supporting a relationship, because unless that guy was a real douchbag, and if he WAS, 99% of the people who read that stuff will be like “OH MY POOR BBY JUST GOT HIS HEART BROKEN” and BAM, no one’s gonna argue that his feelings aren’t genuine, or say that he doesn’t deserve her, bc bitch did you read this he confessed to her when he thought he was never gonna see her again  

5) the Love Confession From Her Jealous Best Friend. Again, a cheep way to create emotional tension and gain sympathy from the reader. 

6) the Vaguely Sexual Encounter. Usually something comparatively innocent, like a heated kiss or make-out session, usually used to intensify emotional dilemma, either because of a love triangle (I really can’t stand love triangles) or because she shouldn’t be kissing the guy or something. And the thing is, it wouldn’t even be a bad thing if it weren’t completely misplaced (like, a day away from the final battle misplaced) in most cases, or worse: slutshaming. Or, worse still: the cringey sex discussion that ends in either slutshaming or kinda just fizzles out.   

7) the We’re Gonna Die But It’s Okay Because I Love You talk, usually delivered by the male lead to the female lead before all goes to shit. And honestly I have never read a book where this shit happened where they knew each other for more than four weeks. And lemme tell you there is nothing more unrealistic than a teenage dude giving a two-page talk about why he loves a girl that he’s known for a maximum of four weeks. I once read a book where this happened and they knew each other for three days and made out once and he literally gave that speech twice (no, I’m not taking about Romeo and Juliet). Like, do you authors understand the people you are writing books for? Do you have any idea how teenage relationships work? 

8) Bulling That’s Used As A Plot Device But Ultimately Stays Unresolved or, even worse, The People Who Bully Me Are (A Part Of) The Group I Have to Join To Save The World And Suddenly We’re Best Friends. THIS. THIS is almost worse than the fucking love triangle shit. Because lemme tell you something: If bullying isn’t stopped, if the bullies don’t face consequences for their actions, then guess what? IT’S NOT GONNA FUCKING STOP, THATS WHAT. It’ll continue on and on and on until someone won’t take that shit anymore. Yeah, sure, it might seem like it stopped, especially if you’re seeing everything from the view of a character who was suddenly not bullied anymore, but let me tell you: that is an illusion. They just shift to the next victim. And it’s so so toxic to write it like everything is suddenly ok, oh my gosh. Because it’s not, it doesn’t stop, it just shifts to somewhere else, and thousands of bullied kids that read these books are gonna think that it does. And they’re gonna go and look at their bullies and start feeling sympathy for them because they read a hundred and one books where the bullies are actually good guys, so their bullies can’t be that bad, can they? And voila, thats the first step to excusing toxic behavior. The first step to make sure that these kids never speak up against oppressors. 

Some things that I am really sick of in general but even more when seen in y/a literature: 

1) bad and/or lazy writing, especially when it comes to character development

2) casual sexism

3) underrepresentation and/or stereotypization of LGBTQIA characters

4) underrepresentation and/or stereotypization of non-white characters

5) lack of female supporting characters

6) little to no character development seen in male characters, especially love interests/supporting characters

7) reinforcement of stereotypically masculine/feminine character traits

8) little to no explanation offered concerning culture and other specifics of fantasy worlds (also known as WHY WRITE FANTASY IF YOU’RE NOT GONNA INCLUDE SOME ACTUAL FANTASY)

9) romanticization of toxic relationships

10) hypersexualization of teenagers, because no matter how good looking he is, you shouldn’t describe a sixteen year old boy the same way you would a twenty five year old porn star

And the thing is that this isn’t some kind of one time thing. I didn’t just finish a series that i really disliked or read a few bad books in a row. This rant is the product of literal year-long frustration because I literally cannot find anything in the y/a section of bookstores and libraries and publishing companies websites that doesn’t feature at least one of the above mentioned main characters, one of the above mentioned supporting characters, and some variation of the above mentioned storylines. And I am honestly so sick of it, and so are many many more young adults, because in the beginning you just read that shit, you know. And then it comes to the point where you get so sick of seeing the same stories repeated over and over and the same characters used over and over that you start really searching for books that are different. But these books are so rare, and so hard to find! And after some time you start feeling like you’re being bullshitted by authors and publishing companies. Because most of y/a literature is not only cliche and stereotypical and just plain boring after some time, its also often very badly written. And I’m not just talking language here, though that is a part of it. I’m talking major plot holes, complete lack of character development, period novels or novels that feature time travel being so cringe-worthily historically inaccurate that you actually start wonder if the author did it on purpose, a suspense arc that would, drawn, look like a squiggly line or, even worse but sadly even more common, just a downward sloping curve that maybe, if you’re really lucky, curves slightly upwards again in the last five chapters. There are so many y/a novels out there that I seriously can’t imagine ever having been edited or beta read. And lately it seem like most publishing companies out there just don’t care what they publish any more, you know? Its just one love triangle after the other. And honestly society is moving forward at an increasingly fast pace, the current generation of teenagers and young adults is becoming more tolerant and open minded by the second, and the literature that is written for us, marketed towards us is still dominated by heteronormativity, all-white characters, a lack of male protagonists in the romance and of female protagonists in the action/adventure genre, and sexism. Like, okay, if you think a love triangle is necessary for your story, why not write in a bit of representation for the LGBTQIA community and make it a polyamory in the end instead of having your heroine decide between two hot guys? Or just feature a bi protagonist instead of the cliche straight girl? If you wanna write that stereotypical high school romance why not feature a protagonist who is not white for a change? Also there is a huge difference between books written for boys and books written for girls that is honestly, in my opinion, incomprehensible. Especially if you factor that most boys between the ages of 12 and 20 just don’t read novels because they think reading in general is stupid or they can’t relate to the characters that are portrayed. And this is honestly so concerning because most boys are behind their female classmates when it comes to reading and language skills, which scientists say is a result of boys reading less for enjoyment in their free time, especially less fiction. (sources: (x) (x) (x)) And honestly I can see where thats coming from, there is a) very little literature written for boys, and lets be real, how many boys do you know that would voluntarily read something thats explicitly being marketed for girls and b) the literature actually written for boys is tremendously boring and even more stereotypical and redundant than literature written for girls, plus, you sometimes get the very paradox impression that sex is a kind of tabu theme in boys literature. Like in girls literature its ridiculed and treated in some sort of prepubescent giggly way even though most of literature written for girls revolves around sexual and romantic relationships, but it is addressed, even if its done in an immature way. But boys literature is all about action and danger and bros before hoes. Most books written for a male audience don’t even feature a love interest. And again, this is paradox and kind of weird or even ridiculous because boys are expected to be sexually active from a very young age and the teenage years are the years of (sexual) self-discovery, so in almost all media boys are portrayed as very experienced and sure in their sexuality, except for literature aimed towards them, where they are treated the same way little children are treated: you just don’t talk about sex. How can you expect boys to be sure of themselves when you just leave them in the dark about what they are supposed to be sure about? And don’t even get me started on hyper masculinity portrayed in almost every male character I’ve ever seen in a book (honestly, I won’t start on it because I think that a) my point is clear and b) no one would actually have the patience to read this till the end if I did).

So what’s my conclusion? Well, mainly that y/a literature is currently a lot of shit, and it needs to change to fit the needs and interests of the group that it’s trying to reach. The current development in literature aimed towards young women that features a growing hyper-sexualization of teenage boys and a shift to almost exclusively straight romance literature combined with a gradual decrease of writing quality is very concerning, as is the lack of development in literature aimed towards young men, which seems to be stuck in three genres: mystery/thriller, sports, and action/adventure.

#literature #books #y/a #rant #epic rant #im mad #booknerd problems #lists #everything wrong with #y/a literature