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criticallyacclaimedstranger · 10 months

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a very self-indulgent frankie fic

Okay so I've been on this work trip, doing field work at a folk music festival. It's been fun but super tiresome, and the trip itself was very long: first a four hour train ride, spent one night with friends, then 5,5 hours on a cruise ship to get to the island where the festival was held. Two days there, then ship back, now I'm at a hotel for the night before I take a 4 hour train ride home tomorrow morning.

It's helped me cope with the long days to once in a while imagine Frankie with me on this trip, and I decided to write and share it. It's hella specific, but I think you guys can appreciate Frankie even if it is hella specific.

Short specs:

Frankie x f!reader/you

Non-explicit sex

3,299 words

About two hours after leaving port, the ship leaves the archipelago and cuts into open water, and the breeze becomes noticeable.

”That’s nice,” you murmur as you sip your ice cold Pepsi with muddled lime. Even in the shade on sun deck, it’s warm enough for you not to feel anything but refreshed when the wind hits. Frankie hums next to you on the plastic wicker couch as he takes a sip of his beer. It’s ten in the morning, but he’s on vacation, coming with you on your work trip that required some traveling – first several hours by train, a hotel night in the port town, and now an early morning departure to go out to an island where you’d do fieldwork. When you told him in April that you were going, he immediately suggested that he’d come with, which you happily agreed would be a wonderful idea. The event you’re documenting is one where most participants bring their families, so Frankie wouldn’t even stand out in any way.

Except, of course, that you already knew he’d be the most handsome man in a crowd of a couple of hundred people.

Aboard the ship, you first went to the breakfast buffet before trying to find a somewhat calm and secluded place where you could hang out for the next four hours. Turns out, sundeck was the place to go. Dance music blasts out of the speakers at a volume which allows for conversation, people are happily lounging in the sun or shade, having ice cream or drinks, and there are children present – something you could do without, but at this time of day it means that there probably won’t be many drunks causing a commotion. You managed to snag a couch in the shade, Frankie bought drinks for you both as you pulled out your knitting project from your bag. You’re quietly knitting away, looking up to watch the small islands go by, and to glance at your pretty man next to you. He’s wearing shades but from your angle next to him, you can see that his eyes are often closed. His face is relaxed underneath the bill of his trademark cap, and he’s sunk deep into the embrace of the couch, right ankle resting over his left knee, leaving his right thigh pressing against you. When he puts his glass down, he yawns, stretched his arms up, and his right arm lands on the backrest of the couch, slung around your shoulders. You smile at the cliché movie theater move but know that it’s not a way of discreetly trying to get close to you: it’s just Frankie wanting the physical contact. So you say nothing, but move your row marker on the knitting description up, and begin a new row. Neither one of you speak much, except for when you see something to comment on: a very nice summer home on an island, a cool sailing boat passing by, the nice view. The music and sound of other people talking fades into the background as you glide smoothly through the waters, relaxed and happy in your public little bubble on the sea.

The hotel is more of a motel, and hasn’t been renewed at least since Clinton was president. But it’s clean, and the room isn’t too warm, despite the late June heat.

Frankie enters behind you, but stops in the doorway.

”Do they honestly expect us to not share?”

You grin as you look from his aghast expression to the two single beds with a small table in between.

”I don’t think they expect anything,” you tell him. Frankie releases his backpack and immediately starts to redecorate: moving the bedside table out of the way, and pushing the beds together. The ugly, early 1990’s bedspreads are an eyesore, but he seems a lot more pleased with your accomodations when it’s clear that you can sleep together.

”The bathroom’s almost as big as the room itself,” you announce while you’re washing your hands. ”And there’s a ramp at the front door. I didn’t expect this old dump to be fitted for disabled people.”

”Good on them.”

You come out of the bathroom, finding Frankie reclined on the bed in a typical 1970’s soft porn pose, chin seductively lowered and brows wiggling.

”Why don’t you come over here, let’s test the bed.”

”We don’t have time, the bus leaves in half an hour,” you laugh as you walk up to him.

”I’ve been known to get you off in less than that.”

”Tempting,” you smile as you take his hand and pull him up to a sit, ”But I need to freshen up and repack my bag so that I remember to bringe everything.”

”Let’s just test the springs?” he suggests, patting his thigh, and with him sitting like this on the side of the bed, you can’t resist sliding into his lap, straddling his thighs and slinging your arms around his neck. His skin is warm and a little sticky from sweat: after coming ashore, you were packed into a bus which rolled out of the ship alongside you, and the AC had no time to come into full force, so the heat inside the vehicle very nearly killed you.

”Just a quick test run,” you agree, and he pulls you close for a kiss while starting to bounce carefully. You giggle against his lips but are in no way immune to the way the apex of your thighs rub against his crotch when you rock together like this.

”I reckon we can have a good time here later,” Frankie murmurs before trailing kisses along your jawline to your ear. ”We’ll open the window and anyone who dares use that pool at bedtime will regret it.”

He’s referring to the pool right outside your room. Your door goes directly out onto the quad, and you can hear the delighted screams of children who, hopefully, will be in bed by the time you get back from your evening program.

”Everybody in the building will hear us,” you point out with a soft sigh, the heat of the day mixing with the heat Frankie’s stirring up in you. ”I don’t think this hotel has soundproofed rooms. I won’t sleep a wink.”

”We can do other things,” Frankie shrugs before getting up, holding onto you and throwing you down onto the bed before covering you with the entire length of his body.

”It’s too warm!” you protest, but he presses his lips to yours, effectively silencing you, and grinds against you, pressing you into the mattress. You’re pleased to notice that he’s getting hard.

”Yeah, I can work with this,” he states before getting off you as quickly as he pushed you down, and offering you his hand to pull you back up. ”Let’s freshen up and go to work.”

”Here.”

You look up from your camera at Frankie, who’s handing you an water bottle, cap already off.

”You’ve been running around in 79 degree heat for over an hour. You’re dehydrated.”

”Thanks.” Gratefully, you accept the bottle and take half of it in one go. The bottle is straight from the cornershop: cold and refreshing in the heat.

Frankie takes the bottle when you return it to him.

”You doing okay?” he asks, and you step close to him to give him a little smack on the lips.

”Am now. Thank you.”

”You’re welcome,” he smiles, and even through the sunglasses, you can see the way his eyes crinkle.

”What time is it?”

”Around six.”

”Christ, already? I have lost track of everything. It’s almost time for dinner. You got your ticket?”

”Yup.”

Without a word, you hand him your camera and turn around, and he puts it into your backpack. You grin at him when turning back to him, and take his hand.

”It’s good to have an assistant.”

”Only here to make your life easier, m’am.”

Hand in hand, you start to walk towards the building where dinner will be served.

”I really can’t.”

It’s closing in on 11 pm and you’re finally in bed, fresh out of the shower and crashing hard. Not even Frankie’s roaming hands and the idea of ”trying out” the bed can keep you awake.

”I figured.” Frankie kisses your shoulder. ”You need sleep. Tomorrow is a long one.”

You murmur something affirmative, eyes falling shut. Finding his hand under the covers, you clasp it lightly and settle in.

Despite being tired, however, you notice after a while that you’re too tightly wound up still. You try to turn onto your other side, Frankie fitting himself to you when you do, but it doesn’t work.

”Babe?” you finally whisper.

”M-hmm?”

”I think I could use a little orgasm to help me sleep.”

His arm around you tightens a little.

”Is that so?”

”Yeah. But I’m as dry as a tinderbox, it would be a lot of work, I’m afraid?”

He nuzzles your neck. ”Never too much work for me, my love.”

You roll onto your back and accept his sweet kiss before he moves down your body, casting the covers aside while peeling your pj pants off.

”Go ahead, say it.” You grin at Frankie, who smirks back.

”Say what?” His tone is perfectly innocent.

”You know what.”

”I told you that you need to pack a cardigan.”

”There, thank you, yes, you told me, and I didn’t because it’s gonna be hot all weekend, but you said we’re going to the archipelago, and so you packed one, and lo and behold – ”

”It’s really windy and cold this morning,” Frankie finished your sentence, but he’s not being smug about it, at least not annoyingly so. And he did tell you so, told you when you were packing that you’re going out to a tiny kingdom of islands, and that it’s probably going to be windy at some point. You vehemantly resisted the idea of bringing a piece of clothing that you probably wouldn’t need, so Frankie pretty much shoved one of your favorite cardigans, one that goes with most of your other clothes, into your suitcase. And even if you’re not exactly freezing this morning when you’re on a boat ferry on your way to another, smaller island, the gale and the heavy clouds in the sky are a far cry from last night’s heatwave temperatures. You’re a lot more comfortable with the cardigan, that’s for sure.

The ferry ride is barely a half hour long, and there’s a small cafeteria on the ferry, but you and Frankie, and maybe two dozen other travelers stand on the sun deck and look over the dark sea and surrounding islands. He has his arms around you and even if you’ve slept too little and are worried about your energy levels for the day that’s promising to be a very long one, you feel good about Frankie being with you. He has your back, right now very literally: he’s standing right behind you, arms around you, keeping you warm and safe.

The day starts off with orientation around the small island community, before the musicians scatter into different directions for practice, workshops, and concerts. You walk around for an hour, taking photos and notes, talking to people and getting the vibe of the place. The sun finally breaks through and you can put away the cardigan, applying sunscreen instead and putting on your hat to protect your face.

After lunch, you take a little break to enjoy yourself, attending a workshop for singing sea shanties. The leader, an accomplished folk musician specialized in shanties, has rigged up a rope in a tree. After an introduction, you join other participants in pulling the rope in rhythm to the responses you sing out to the shantyman’s call. It’s a lot of fun, and very different from anything you’ve done before. The chance of participation is also a very welcome break from just being an onlooker.

When the workshop is over, you’re wearing a huge smile as you join Frankie again. You noticed that he took both pictures and video, and you know that he’s probably already sent a clip to the group chat he has with the guys, probably accompanied by some horribly cheezy line about what his girl is capable of.

”You looked good,” he compliments you. ”Very strong and sailor-like.”

You scoff in good fun, taking out the water bottle from your backpack for a sip. Frankie glances around before stepping closer to you and mumbling into your ear:

”Maybe we should try that rhythm in bed? Heave a-way, haul a-way…

You almost choke on the water as you laugh.

”Who would be the caller?”

”Duh,” Frankie rolls his eyes, ”You, obviously. You’re the one with the experience now. You’ll just do the screaming, telling me what to do, and I’ll heave away.”

You feel a short burst of heat inside you at the thought, and Frankie snickers.

”You’re blushing. Let’s go get ice cream.”

It’s close to midnight when you finally get to leave the festival venue and walk the short distance to the hotel. The Saturday night is cool and calm, and you’re so tired that you’ve gone non-verbal. The mere thought of having to wash off your makeup and take a short shower to get all the sticky sweat rinsed off is almost too much, but once you reach the hotel room, Frankie quietly takes off your clothes. You manage the rest by yourself before you stumble into bed, this time really too tired for sex.

”I wanna learn how to play the fiddle,” you murmur into the pillow before you’re out like a light.

The next morning you allow yourself a little sleep-in, only because the shitty motel serves Sunday breakfast one hour later. Still tired and unable to think about the day ahead, you and Frankie take your breakfasts along with the other earlier risers, before retiring back to your room. As Frankie packs his few belongings, you try to make sense of the morning’s programme.

”So there’s a bunch of people going to another island again for a fiddler’s sermon at the local church, we’re definitely not going on that one, and then there’s just random people playing in random spots in the vicinity. We have checkout at noon, and the bus leaves for the harour at 1:15, from downtown.”

”Okay, you gonna do some more documenting?”

You sigh and put down the itinerary. You’re all socialized out, still tired and feeling extremely drained, and it’s hard to plan.

”I don’t know… I think I’ll just listen to some of the playing and make up the rest in my field report.”

”Atta girl. Wanna do some sightseeing? You said you were interested in the museum of cultural history?”

”I don’t know…” You can’t think, dread walking around but also sitting still. The long stretch of over five hours on a cruise ship back to the mainland during the afternoon and early evening feels overwhelming.

Frankie sees your exhaustion, and takes the itinerary from you.

”Let’s see… okay, so there’s going to be playing in the park right next to here, why not go there? Then check out, put our suitcases on the bus, walk downtown to get a little stretch, then get on the bus there as it leaves for the harbour.”

”I really should work at least a little…” you mumble, but your thoughts are already straying to your knitting project.

”You’ve worked enough, and you’re still going to write your report on the way back. Let’s just take it easy for now.”

You gratefully accept his idea, and start to pack up your own stuff.

It is with a deep sigh of relief that you come on board the ship back to the mainland. Frankie immediately takes the reins and steers you down the stairs.

”Where are we going, the restaurants are up one level?” you ask, still too dazed to really care. You’re stuck on this ship for hours anyway.

”We’re getting a cabin,” he tells you. ”You’re exhausted, you need to be away from people.”

”Oh, okay,” is all that you can say. You thought you’d be cheap and get away without a cabin, but you can settle the expense with Frankie later. As you wait in line to the info desk, you duck into the ladies right next to it. When you come out again, Frankie’s holding a key card and looking pleased.

”How far down are we?” you ask, expecting the below-the-car-deck tiny wardrobe that usually is within your price range. Frankie just guides you to the elevator with a hand on the small of your back. You look at him again when you’re about to hit the right button, but the elevator fills with people and you don’t see which button he presses. The elevator goes down several floors, letting people off, but Frankie keeps you where you are.

”Frankie, where are we going?” you ask when the elevator goes up to the 12th level. When the doors open, you look at Frankie with big, round eyes. He can’t keep his face straight anymore.

”I got us a suite.”

”You did what?” you gape. Frankie gently pushes you out of the elevator and looks around for the right numbers, then directs you to the right.

”I got you a suite,” he corrects himself. ”You need to rest, baby, and I want you to do it in luxury.”

You’re at a loss for words, just following him to the right door that he unlocks and opens, inviting you to go first.

The suite is elegantly and peacefully decorated with a king-size bed, a lounge corner, a huge bathroom and an infrared sauna. You just stare around you, trying to understand what it is you’re seeing. What your man is treating you to.

”I think it’ll get us by for the next five hours, don’t you?” he asks a little shyly, and you look up at him.

”Frankie… this thing’s three hundred bucks. For five hours.”

”And you deserve it. You worked so hard this weekend, baby, and I know you’re going to spend tomorrow’s train ride writing your report. And we’re not going anywhere on holiday this summer. This is self care, nothing else.”

You shake your head and blink away the tears. ”Thank you. This is… you’re the best.”

”You’re welcome,” he says gently, pulling you in for a hug and a kiss. ”Let’s rest for a bit, then go find a restaurant, and then come back here and kick our shoes off.”

About ninety minutes later, you’re on your back in the soft bed, the clean white linen soft and nice against your naked skin. Frankie’s buried to the hilt in you, slowly fucking you, kissing you over and over again. You let your hands travel all over his back, down to his ass cheeks, pressing him deeper inside, moaning into his mouth when he hits some deep, intense place inside your core. He murmurs sweet nothings into your ear and thrusts harder a couple of times, smiling devilishly at your whimpers. He then resumes his slow but resounding pace, hiding his face in the crook of your neck. You sigh out a moan before your brain makes a connection, and you start to giggle.

”What?” Frankie slurs, and you draw a deep breath before blaring out a resounding:

”Heave a-way, haul a-way!”

Frankie joins you in your laughter, propping himself up onto his elbows.

”Give me a rhythm,” he chuckles, ”and I’ll stick to it until you cum.”

You try, god knows you try, but you’re laughing too hard. When you finally calm down, you pull him down over you for a kiss.

”You did perfectly before,” you promise him.

#frankie morales #frankie morales x you #frankie morales x reader #triple frontier fanfic #my fic

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coulsonlives · 27 days

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That person's attempt to smear the roleplayer's rules is astonishing, sheesh. I wanted to thank you for dispelling it, and say I agree with your reply! Because I had similar rules once upon a time.

Basically, I did collaborative writing for over 15 years. In the end, I had a rules page that was fairly no-nonsense too. Mainly because over that time, I met hundreds of people with various quirks. Some partners were very incompatible with me, and I quickly learned the reasons why, but others stuck around and we hit it off really well, and I learned the reasons for that, too. Over time, those bits and pieces of knowledge made it into my rules. Specifically... I block people if they expose me to dumb drama. I don't do public url shaming because of the dirty laundry aspect. And I don't do purity culture bullshit. I avoid people with DNI lists in general, because those lists are usually just performative bullshit. And I only write with people who tend to be descriptive, because I love description and hate one-liners; it doesn't feed my imagination or fulfill me as a writer or reader. It's also pretty soul-sucking if I write 3,000 words and someone gives me a single line that isn't even 10 words back, haha. I also tried to write with multiple partners who'd only ever written one-liners and tiny paras, and they expected me to teach them how to write novellas on the fly. I was like, how on earth would I have the time or energy for that?! Am I getting paid?! I just want to write, without also feeling like I had to keep tabs on someone else's writing, too. It wasn't long before that became a rule - I couldn't teach people how to write longform stuff. I just didn't have the capacity. And that's just how these rules are born. It's not malicious, it just happens with experience and knowing your own limits, and being responsible enough to articulate them for others.

Anyways, informing a possible roleplay partner about these things is not a fucking "friendship contract" like OP implied. It's a courtesy. A heads-up along the lines of, "we're doing collaborative writing, and investing a lot of time into this. The least we can do is ensure things go smoothly, and ensure we're on the same page about our preferences, our overall sensibilities, and what we want to achieve with our characters and our writing." Because some of these collabs last years. OP wants to talk about something being a contract? I've seen rules that were super nasty, demanding, and micromanaging to the point of making you wonder how the person even functioned. The OOP doesn't come close to that. I've even seen a rules page that was 15,000 words, and it took me a whole damn evening to read through it. But even that wasn't a contract, or nasty. The person had memory issues due to a disability, and most of the page was explaining their complex tagging system, and telling people what to expect when they were writing together. Could they have chopped it in half? Maybe. But it, like OOP, isn't worthy of ridicule.

My own rules page never became overbearing, but it did become more informative for possible partners, and that was helpful for everyone in the end. It saved us so much time, and it helped me find so many amazing partners - people who had very similar mindsets to my own! Knowing that, the person in the screen cap is definitely not alone; I could pull up ten names who have the same kind of rules page right now, and who made it that way for precisely the same reasons I did. And I'm sure I could find ten more within minutes, because any roleplayer who's been around for long enough will have boundaries like the above ones, or more. Of course, sometimes even other roleplayers (usually ones who are very green to the scene) will balk at these rules, but it's essentially because they're uninformed (like OP and the other commenters in that post), and they haven't experienced what the more seasoned roleplayers have. They act like it's overkill but as time goes on, most of them will ultimately adopt the same stuff, lol. I've seen it happen.

As for the other stuff, yeah, it's all just basic blog and follower maintenance. Most roleplayers dislike having mutuals they don't actively interact and roleplay with, because it's inefficient, and they especially don't like following someone who isn't even following them back, because most of the time, it means they won't be able to write with that person.

Of course, I don't roleplay any more because of all the anti bullshit, but yeah. People like OP submitter can meet me in the damn pit, I'm old and I have zero fucks to give when it comes to defending sensible communication in the RPC. Which is all OOP is doing. There should be more of that.

Anyways, cheers. And sorry for the long-ass ask.

Legend! All of this tbh. 🙌 Also didn't fail to notice that most of the rules you mentioned were just common sense courtesy, "be a good human being" things that nobody should actually have a problem with reading in the first place.

#no tolerance for drama? and no clique infighting? and writing with peeps whose writing has similar depth to mine? sign me tf up fam lol.#i can't believe people actually mcfuckin expected you to teach them how to write longer stuff though wtf? why didn't they just google that?#also i think a lot of the reason new rpers freak out about longer rules is bc they think rp is some 'silly stupid hobby'#that nobody takes seriously or wants to use to improve their writing? i saw that mentality so much when i was still rping. :/#but lots of people actually like writing novel-like stuff? heck there was a whole subreddit for it. so it can't be that rare?#tumblr rp #roleplaying #social media #bullying #psa #because this is too good not to share ngl. i hope you dont mind me tagging it as that lmk if not!

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takiki16 · 3 months

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FIC 20 QUESTIONS

@gallifreyburning tagged me in this!

1. how many works do you have on Ao3?

Ten! I am a prolific reader, but not so much a writer.

2. what's your total Ao3 word count?

253,223. Holy moly. I remember when cranking out 1500 words was a lot for me. I never expected to break that Big Phat 100k, which is yet another reason gallifreyburning is the wind beneath my wings. Half of those words are hers.

3. what fandoms do you write for?

The Old Guard and Jupiter Ascending are my two most dominant fandoms per stats. I've also written for Mad Max, the MCU, Leverage, and The Man from Uncle (the 2015 movie), but I wouldn't call these my most active reading fandoms.

4. what are your top five fics by kudos?

If Never Again, If Every Day (cowritten with gallifreyburning, TOG)

Kiss With a Fist (cowritten with gallifreyburning, TOG)

A Fine Chain (JA)

and sat him doon at her bed feet (Leverage)

breathes there the man (TMFU)

lolllll no surprises here.

5. do you respond to comments?

Unfortunately not. When all of my fics were relatively short and I only got a handful of comments on each one, I replied individually to each comment. However, we have THOUSANDS of comments on INAIED, and although I've replied to some of the particularly consistent and wonderful commenters, there is no way for me to get all of them. However, please know that they are all loved.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

and reason quite decay, for Mad Max. It's a pre-canon snippet to the 2015 movie, about how Max lost the little girl he keeps hallucinating. I was very, very much into the "all lower caps, title is a line from a poem" aesthetic. Still am, to be honest, but A Fine Chain is just CONSUMING me atm.

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

and sat him doon at her bed feet is a triptych of each of the Leverage OT3 being a selkie and getting together with the OT3, so that's technically three happy endings in one, but our INAIED boys worked so hard for their payoff that I have to put them first.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I have been lucky enough to avoid this so far!

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

I've written a grand total of like...two smut scenes, both of them m/m, but DEPENDING on how much longer I can tolerate the slow burn of A Fine Chain, I may be writing something f/m in the near-ish future!

now private chats between mutuals about IMAGINED character smut, on the other hand...

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

I don't write crossovers - they generally don't appeal to me as a reader so I avoid them as a writer.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not as far as I know, and I hope and pray it never happens to me. INAIED got a few weird pings last year, but so far I've been very very lucky.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I have gotten a request or two, but I don't remember if a translation was ever posted?

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

LOLLLLLLL. If it weren't for @gallifreyburning i would still be languishing at 5-something chapters of AFC and a handful of fics, and I would never have written for TOG at all.

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

Harsh, bro. I don't think I have a very favorite ship, but I definitely have favorite dynamics. See my "you are responsible forever for what you have tamed" tag

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

Much Nothing About an Ado. My post-canon Mad Max fic where Max comes back to the Citadel and Furiosa decides to Hit That, but in the sexy way this time. But hey! I thought that It would take another decade to finish A Fine Chain, and I am ROLLING!

16. What are your writing strengths?

Mmmmfdfnggg. Umm...I'm very good at long, flowery descriptions, and at grounding clips of dialogue to specific physicality and setting, I think? When I want to write something, I usually see a movie of what I want to write playing out in my head, and then I have to figure out how to translate those actions to the page in a way that accurately conveys the action and tone. I block out the scene in bullet points first, then bang out a loose first draft, then go back over everything and rewrite it from the top, trying to make sure that someone reading it would see and feel the same things I did when watching the movie in my head.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

TOO MUCH FLOWERY DESCRIPTION. Sometimes I get lost in the movie in my head. Also, my crippling fear of intimacy sometimes translates to being hesitant to get to the actual climax of the story. I have to have acres and acres of slow burn, or I'm writing a single poetic one-shot with artsy film blur. This is where a good co-author is worth their weight in gold - you can't get away with kicking the can forever.

Also - I need to see if this still happens in AFC, but I feel like I rush through smut, and sometimes that pr0n deserves to be LINGERED UPON.

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

It's nice, if it's used correctly! It's off-putting, if not.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

OOF. I saw the first Tobey Maguire Spiderman as a wee babe, and wrote an absolutely passionate proto-whump fic about it in my spiral notebook along with some very bad illustrations.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

INAIED is a Lifetime Achievement (TM) for me, the thing that makes me genuinely frustrated I can't brag to my coworkers about the massive novel I co-authored. I will be proud of it forever and ever and ever. I own a physical bound copy of it, and take it out every now and again to look at it fondly. I Helped Write That Thing. It is dear to my heart.

#my posts #relevant to my life #my writing

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zyrafowe-sny · 8 months

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What should you do if you feel like loser and absolute waste of space and garbage in the writing community? Like everyone hate you (all the talented well known people at least), your ideas suck, you'll never be popular or get request or anything like that and you'll never have the same amount of friends or support or love as others because you're stupid and annoying and your writing suck and everyone hate you and nothing you do matter? Like you'll never be successful or reach mile stone no matter how much you try like you had opportunity to but you screw it up because you stupid and annoying and dumb and now it's too late?

Hi Anon,

I don't really feel qualified to respond, but I'm going to give it a go anyway and hope that any of this is helpful.

The "writing community" is anyone who wants to try their hand at writing. It includes both the second grader putting together a handmade book during rainy day recess and the award-winning, bestselling professional author. There's no cap to the number of writers. There's no such thing as a waste of space.

"Hate" seems like an awfully strong word. I know it's frustrating when fics don't get the engagement that you want - and don't get attention from people you admire - but sometimes fics have a niche audience and sometimes people are busy. Personally, I've had stretches when I just can't read much at all or only very specific things (like stuff under 3k and nothing too intellectual). Reasons include: life being busy, general executive dysfunction, (rare) stretches when I am super-focused on writing, not wanting to read things too similar to what I'm working on, etc. For several months I just felt overwhelmed by the thought of leaving thoughtful comments and that tricked me into just not reading at all (don't be like me).

Popularity is... complicated. "Success" is complicated. If you're just looking at kudos... a not insignificant chunk is being in the right fandom at the right time (while also writing what lots of people are interested in). Here's a good overview about writing for kudos and how that doesn't relate to quality. You can have super-interesting ideas, but sometimes those ideas have a small audience (and that's ok if that's the story that speaks to you!). Honestly, I think all writers need to write at least one super-niche fic to readjust expectations about AO3 stats.

As for requests... Not all writers like getting them and not all readers like making requests? If I see that someone shared a prompt list ask game post, I'll send an ask, but that's usually it.

As for getting support... sometimes it can come from outside your fandom and from Internet strangers (or real life people in writing groups). I've been trying out this WIP Wednesday game because I wanted some encouragement to make progress, and a good chunk of people who nudge me to write don't follow me and won't ever read the final fic.

As for writing quality... That's also complicated. For one, people have different tastes (my eyes start to glaze over during long fight scenes or long descriptions, but other people eat that up). There are seemingly more-objective criteria (spelling, grammar, etc), BUT: people's knowledge of "the rules" isn't static and can be improved, sometimes it's fine to ignore "the rules" for style, lots of non-native English speakers write fanfic and that can lead to some charming (if less standard) writing, and one of the joys of fanfic is that it doesn't have to follow the norms of published fiction. If there is something that you want to work on in your own writing (for example, description and plot don't come easily to me), there are ways to practice. But only if you want to. Only if it's part of the fun. (Fun doesn't always mean easy.)

As for milestones... I don't know what milestones you're going for, but word count is the one most in your control. Getting that up isn't trivial, but the important thing is to keep chugging along.

I *know* it's hard not to obsess over AO3 stats or compare yourself to other people. I *know*. But try to remember that it's not a race or a competition. Writing is supposed to be fun (as much as writers like to complain about it sometimes). It's fine to want validation and encouragement, but stressing too much about the numbers/how much engagement you're getting can suck all the fun out of the process.

And it's never, ever too late. I took a loooong break from creative writing and sometimes I regret that, but I had other life experiences during that hiatus that help inform my writing now. We write when we have stories to tell and the life circumstances that let the words come out.

I don't know if any of my rambling was useful, but I wish you all the best, Anon. Take care and be kind to yourself. No one else can tell the same story that you can.

#ask box #friends in my phone feel free to weigh in if you have any thoughts #writing

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digital-corruption · 2 years

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So the way I see it, I'll be posting one more tomorrow and then there might be a small break because of reasons. 🤭

Unrecognisable Part 7

Sweep by sweep, I could feel my hair falling. Though the room was quite, the sound of the electric razor was deafening. I know it wasn’t on for long, but it felt like forever. When it finally ceased, my hair follicles still reverberated. I still didn’t dare look. As long as I kept my eyes closed, the memory of my hair remained intact.

I jumped the first time Jake’s fingers ran through what was left of my hair. His touch gave me goosebumps all over. As he applied the black dye to my hair, I started to relax. After the devastation of the razor, it was soothing. He cursed to himself as dye ran a bit more than he was expecting and he rushed to get to it with a paper towel before too much got onto my clothes.

“I should’ve made you strip,” he mumbled.

“I definitely would not have,” I shook my head.

“It would’ve been easier,” he insisted.

“And I still would not,” I reiterated.

“Why not? It’s just skin. It’s nothing that I haven't seen before,” he said without thinking. “Of women in general! I didn't mean you specifically.”

I opened my eyes to get a good look at him. I couldn’t tell if that slip was intentional or not. He looked a bit embarrassed so I had to assume he didn’t intend it. Nevertheless, my mind drifted back to those videos. It was so unbelievable that I started to wonder if my mind was playing tricks on me. My boyfriend and I had been together for the better part of a year. How did I not know he had been recording our most intimate moments? Was I seriously that naive? First Jake, then my boyfriend. I felt like next I was going to find out I am actually the illegitimate child of some obscure royal family. I wished I could just pick up my phone and demand some answers out of my boyfriend. I didn’t know if there could ever be a plausible explanation, but I needed something to make sense for a change. What a time it was to be on the run. Nothing was ever simple in my life.

“Ok, you’re done. Can you please lower your head under the faucet?” Jake broke my train of thought, pulling me back into the present.

He turned on the sink to get it to a decent temperature before I leant over it. I let the water run over my head for a while first and I was going to rinse it myself, but Jake beat me to it. He spent a long time massaging my scalp, far longer than what seemed necessary. I pulled away after it became clear to me it was sufficiently rinsed. As soon as I did, I saw my new hair in the mirror. Pitch black, very shortly cropped, but not buzz cut – he hadn’t taken it all, but it was certainly different than it was before. Jake reached into his bag of tricks again and pulled out an old baseball cap to put it over my head. I had to say, I hardly recognised the person in the mirror. Sacrificing my hair had better been worth it.

“Say something,” Jake was watching me uncomfortably. It was clear he felt very guilty about what he did.

“I don’t know, I think I am in shock,” I sighed. “Everything feels strange, like this is just one long nightmare.”

I glanced down and saw all of my locks of hair forming a circle around me. Even then I was still in disbelief.

“I am sorry to have made your life so miserable,” Jake said with a layer of annoyance.

“I don't blame you,” I insisted. “I know you're just trying to keep us safe.”

“I'm trying to get you home. I have a contact that can set you up with a new ID. Then we can get you across the border. From there, you can travel back to your country,” he explained. “Maybe once this blows over, you might even get to go back to your family and friends.”

“What about you?” I questioned.

“What about me?” he looked at me confused.

I turned to look at him directly. “What do you plan to do?”

“Do what I always do. Find a quiet, secluded location and lay low,” he said nonchalantly.

“That's pretty lonely,” I commented.

“I'll be fine,” he brushed it off.

“Don't lie,” I frowned. “That's not a way to live.”

“It’s done me all right so far,” he insisted.

I looked into deeply into his eyes. I could tell he didn't fully believe that, but he didn't waiver from his stance. However, the more I stared into his eyes, the more I was drawn to them. They looked sad, regretful even, with a touch of longing. I saw him, I saw the old Jake in his eyes and I didn’t want to him to disappear again. Before I knew it, I was drifting closer to him. He closed the gap, letting our lips lightly touch. It was too tantalising for me, so I kissed him with more emphasis. He pulled the cap off of my head to get it out of the way so he could grab my neck and deepen the kiss. By then we had disconnected from the rest of the world - we were just two lost souls that had finally reconnected. At some point Jake had pushed me up against the wall beside the hand dryer. If I hadn’t pushed him away, there’s no saying what might have happened in that bathroom.

“Um, that was unexpected,” I blushed.

“But it was nice,” he smiled. He leant to kiss me again, but I stopped him. “What’s wrong? Is it the location? We can take this elsewhere.”

“No,” I shook my head. “Well, ok, this is the last place I would want to be doing this, but… I shouldn’t be doing this. I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” he said with a disappointed tone. “Don't tell me you're feeling guilty about him? The jackass that has no regard for your integrity?”

“He's still my boyfriend!” I argued. “Technically.”

“Still?” he scoffed. “I hardly think he has a right to be!”

“I have to give him a chance to redeem himself!” I insisted. “Everyone deserves a second chance to do better. I owe him that much.”

“You don’t owe him anything!” he continued. “He violated your privacy! That’s something I would never do to you!”

“Trying to, what, show off? Two seconds ago you were saying that you were going to send me on my way and you were going to disappear. Again!” I pointed out.

“I thought that’s what you wanted! To go home! You think I don’t want to keep you down in this world with me!?” he said painfully. “When you were far away in your country, it was manageable. With you here now…”

“Jake…” I didn’t know how to respond to him.

“No, you should go back home, as planned. It’s where you belong,” he decided. “You should be waking up in your warm bed, having a decent breakfast, working an earnest job, going home to have dinner with your… boyfriend… so he can fuck you to sleep.”

“Seriously?” I glared at him.

“It’s not my fault that he bores you so much that you have to fake it all the time.” Yup, the prick was back.

“I know what you’re doing,” I frowned.

“If it was me, I’d never let that pass,” he ignored me. “No faking on my watch.”

“Are you done?” I raised my eyebrow at him.

“I don't know, is it working?” he asked apprehensively.

I rolled my eyes, “No, it’s not.”

“Then I need to try harder,” he smirked.

“Ok, you do that, but you know, we should go. The attendant will get curious as to why we're taking so long,” I changed the subject.

“Not really, I told her you have morning sickness. She’s giving us all the time in the world,” he said casually. “But we should clean up.”

“We should,” I nodded slowly glancing around the floor again.

Jake went and grabbed the broom and dust pan from outside and immediately started sweeping it up. While he continued, I cleaned up the hair dye from around the sink. We worked in silence, each consumed in our thoughts. That kiss wasn't just a kiss. It was addictive and intoxicating. I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to do it again. But everything was so complicated.

“Hmm, it's starting to grow on me,” Jake said suddenly.

I glanced in the mirror again and eyed the stranger in my skin. She seemed so much more confident than I, so much more hardened than I, so much more in control than I. I felt like I had been given a role to play and it was time for me to step up, but I didn't know my lines.

“Are you ready?” Jake asked.

“Yeah, let's go,” I said as I put the cap back on and slung the backpack over my shoulder again.

I waited for Jake to return the bathroom key before we started walking down the street again. The night sky was lightening over the city, which made me realise just how late, or early rather, it was. Exhaustion hit me immediately.

I yawned, “Jake...”

“We’re almost there ok? Just a few more blocks,” he assured me.

“Please tell me there will be a bed for me,” I rubbed my eyes.

“Aww, is whittle MC tired?” he teased.

“Shut up! I'm not a machine like you,” I gave him a small shove.

“We can’t all be perfect,” he joked.

“Ugh! That was so bad it makes me want to vomit!” I winced. “Can’t you go back to that other Jake?”

“The one that hurts every time he looks at you? Unlikely,” he mumbled.

I stopped walking, but he kept going so I reached out and grabbed his arm. “Oh, come on, Jake. You left me remember? Why do you have to keep acting like its my fault?”

He sighed, “I left because I needed air. With everything with Hannah… it was just too much. I realise the timing was very...”

“Inappropriate?” I ended his sentence for him.

“To put it mildly. And we were so entangled that I couldn’t think straight. By the time I got a handle on everything again, you had moved on,” he explained.

“Jake, that was like, what, four months later? Let’s not forget you deleted everything,” I frowned.

“It’s what I do when I panic. I hit the kill switch and get rid of all traces of me,” he admitted. “When you’ve been on the run as long as I have, paranoia becomes a part of you and sometimes is your only ally.”

“You could’ve reached out,” I shook my head.

“No, it was for the better. You were in your world and I was in mine,” he shifted his weight uncomfortably. “Our worlds don’t mix.”

“Didn’t mix, you mean. It seems fairly mixed now,” I mused.

“No, you were pulled out of yours and into mine. There is a difference. You don’t belong here and I need to send you back.”

“Then what was that before? It sure as hell seems like you don’t believe that,” I pointed out.

“What I selfishly want and what you need are on opposite sides of the war,” he said defeated.

“By your definition!” I grabbed his hoodie and pulled him closer. “You can't decide what I need without consulting me.”

“You said so yourself earlier, that this has been a nightmare. For me this is everyday,” he argued. “And it’s not like you can even make up your mind.”

“Oh come on, that’s not fair. You only just came back into my life less than a day ago and all of this has been a trial by fire,” I lowered my head. “I need time to...:”

“Yeah, I get it,” Jake pulled away. “Come on, let’s find a place for tonight for us to rest.”

I watched him walk off for a bit before following. With the lack of sleep, lingering jetlag and absolute chaos, I couldn’t think straight anymore. One voice kept telling me I had a boyfriend I still needed to work out things with. After all, how could I throw out all of our time together over one misdemeanour? Just because Jake reappeared? That wasn’t right and obligations and all that.

But then there was Jake. The more time I spent with him, the more old emotions were brought back. There was an undeniable dark cloud that followed him as he walked away. How much was he keeping from me? I swore I heard Dan yelling at me, begging me to stay away from Jake.

If you hadn’t noticed by now, I don’t always make the best choices.

#duskwood #duskwood fanfiction #duskwood jake #duskwood jake x mc #unrecognisable fanfic

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useless-bi-otch · 1 year

Text

Cookies'n Cream - Chapter 4

Last chapter / MasterList / Art by @aneenasevla

Chapter 4 - Embarrassment, with icing on top

Tomori hadn't felt so anxious about the arrival of a Monday since her college days, where she had stayed up various nights in a row while preparing her thesis. She had arrived at the Heavy Bakery exceptionally early that day, almost at the same time as Kanami, which had surprised her boss a bit.

“Look, Tomori, it's not that I mind you being here so early, you know that… but we don't open until two hours from now."

"I know, Kanny. But I ended up sleeping little, so when I woke up, I saw no reason to stay another two hours doing nothing at home" She had yawned, walking in after her friend after the back door was opened. Kanami arched an eyebrow.

"You didn't sleep well? Wanna talk about it?"

“Don't worry, it was no big deal. Just anxiety about the debut of the new dessert", She assured her, and technically it wasn't a lie. It was just that her anxiety was more focused on who would be tasting the dessert, specifically. And the anxiety remained, even now, with the bakery at its peak and bringing enough to do to occupy her head.

"Girl, if you keep looking at the door like that, people will start to think that you intend to run away during your lunch break", Hiro comments playfully, when he catches the assistant cook once again staring at the bakery's entrance door . She shakes her head as she re-stocks the food display, leaving the donuts in the spotlight.

“I'm just checking the movement, Hiro. It's good to keep an eye out for the type of people who frequent our workplace."

"Yes, tell me about it… especially if that 'type of person' is part of your selection of juicy meats, full of natural, hormone-free muscles…"

"Hiro. Don't", She snorts, her ears getting a little hot, to which he smirks.

"Come on, Tomori, don't think I didn't notice the way you lift your head like a meerkat every time the doorbell rings. You're waiting for him to show up again, right?"

“Who?”

"That big bald guy who thinks that wearing a baseball cap inside a closed establishment isn't a non-bailable crime against fashion. How that didn't make you drier than the Sahara, I'll never understand."

Tomori would have thrown one of the donuts at his head if that wasn't professionally inappropriate and a waste of food.

"Baseball caps are the hallmark of his style, okay? Not wanting him to wear them is like expecting Hurricane Helms to not wear his mask or for Matt Hardy to not enter the arena to the sound of 'Matty Facts'!"

"Girl, you know I don’t understand shit about those pro-wrestling references you make, right? But anyway, I think that answers my question", He laughs again "You're really waiting for him, right? Did the classic 'phone number written on a napkin' technique worked?"

She tries to remain impassive, but fails. A goofy smile takes over her lips, her eyes twinkling

"He called me last Saturday night!"

"Girl, no way!", He presses his face between his hands, mouth opening in an excited O "He skipped straight to calling? God, I LOVE men who knows what they want!"

"I thought he was going to ignore my efforts, after three days without receiving even a little text. But he ended up surprising me!" She gives him a coquettish laugh "I wasn't even close to the phone the first time he called, can you believe it? It got to voicemail, I almost missed the opportunity."

"Atta girl! He almost escaped through those fingers thirstying for muscles. Now be more careful and don't let go of that phone, not even if your life depends on it!", He practically orders, imperiously pointing at her, to which Tomori laughs. Tomoyo approaches, carrying an empty tray, calling while delivering a notepad sheet:

"Here are the orders for table five! And tone it down a bit, we can hear your voices all the way from the pantry."

"Sorry, Tomoyo. It's just that I can't help but cheer on when one of my friend's about to get a piece of some round, muscular butt."

"Hiro! She's sixteen...!"

"I'm not a kid, Tomori, c'mon", The girl rolls her eyes a bit.

“And you're not an adult either. Keep that devilish tongue in check and don't tarnish her innocence too soon, Hiro", The cook warns, to which the cashier raises his hands in surrender.

"Okay, okay, I won't sully her little ears anymore. The muscular butt in question is far too old for her, after all..."

"You're terrible", She rolls her eyes, while Tomoyo just looks unimpressed. She takes the sheet with the orders and goes to the kitchens, where Kanami was already preparing the first batch of homemade cookies.

"Hey! The icing is almost ready. Stir it for me while I bake the first batch, please."

"Right away, boss!" Tomori grabs the icing bowl, whistling happily. Kanami smiles at her over her shoulder.

"I heard the conversation just now. Hiro and you really don't know how to keep it quiet..."

"Sorry!"

“Ahaha, it's okay. It's just that I now know where this anxiety of yours comes from. Wow, that spurt of courage you had last week really did pay off, huh", Kanami jokes while opening the big pre-heated oven "Is he really going to show up today?"

“He told he would on the phone. Oh, Kanny, I can't believe it..." She lets out a dreamy sigh, removing the plastic film that sealed the bowl and picking up a spatula "It's a teenage fantasy of mine coming true! I mean, the oil-smeared octagon is missing, but anyway..."

"Girl, your fantasies are weird as hell..."

"That's funny, coming from the girl who was all out of breath when her favorite bottomless pit nailed Judas Sabbath in karaoke like a professional."

"Did not! Now get back to work!" Kanami growls, blushing, to which Tomori laughs, concentrating on the royal icing, already imagining how she would confect the cookies.

Did Okubo Naoya like sugar cookies with icing? She knew that he was very fond of typical American fried food, especially donuts, but she was already having ideas on how to serve those cookies in such a way that they were irresistible to him. She just hoped he didn't find them too 'girly'. She knew how many men's mindset worked…

About two hours and four more batches of cookies later, they hear the doorbell ring. And Hiro's laugh followed it the next second.

"Listen up, cooks on duty" He called from the kitchen door "The Beefy Car is passing by on your street. Come and enjoy this fine selection of full-bodied meats and choose the one that best suits your specific tastes. We have breasts, thighs, biceps, triceps, rectus abdominis and pectorals. Pectorals, I said! For the friendliest price you could imagine!"

"Hiro, the customers will hear you", Kanami grumbles, to which the cashier immediately replies:

"Relax, your seaweed monster is not among the samples of the day. Just Tomori's muscle man and his friends from that day, with one more addition."

"Hiro, I swear to god- Easy, Tomori, you'll drop the batch!" Kanami warns her friend when she almost runs out of the kitchen, the cookies swaying on the tray she was carrying. She stops dead in her tracks, taking all of her willpower to stop herself from grinning too wide as she sees the new arrivals making their way to the counter.

Unsurprisingly, Okubo was the first one she noticed, being the tallest of the group. He was better dressed than he had been on his last visit, and her heart was beating like a drum just thinking that this production was all for her. But was it just her imagination, or did he look… angry? He was frowning, seeming to be muttering to himself, and for a worrying second she wondered if he was forcing himself to show up... until she saw that his blond friend (Rihito, right?) was following close behind, smiling from ear to ear as he gave Okubo a cracking slap on the back.

"Come on, you already have an ugly mug. Don't make it worse, you’re gonna scare the poor girl..."

"I wouldn't be making that face if I didn't have to put up with your annoying asses! Why did you come anyway?"

"Kaneda wanted to see the bakery", The white-haired man (Himuro, if she remembered correctly) enters right behind, smiling scathingly, followed by a shorter man, with straight black hair framing his face, narrow eyes and wearing more traditional attire that she would only expect to see during festivals. He was smiling too.

"Yes. Rihito and Himuro also wanted to have a snack."

"Aaaand of course, we wanted to offer our good ol' friend all the support he needs" The blonde puts a hand on his chest in theatrical innocence "That's just how strong our friendly bond is."

"Not as strong as the bond between my fist and your faces. Don't you dare make me look like a fool in front of her, did'ja hear me?"

"Dude, you already do. Good afternoon, Miss Kanami, Miss Uta!", Rihito greets them, raising his voice and waving with an excited smile "Remember us?"

"How could we forget?", Kanami, from the kitchen door, rolls her eyes, while Hiro had a discreet burst of laughter when he saw the bald man's eyes widening like golf balls. He finally sees Tomori and his expression changes completely, going from angry to dumbfounded, his face and thick neck reddening. He straightens his shoulders and puffs out his chest a little, adjusting as discreetly as he can the silver chain he wore around his neck, and then opened an adorable little smile when she discreetly waved to him.

"Welcome. Are you going to order something? No, phone numbers don't count as orders" Kanami says right away, with a bored expression, when Rihito opens his mouth to say something.

"Eh... Okubo got one..."

"He got one when he wasn't looking for it. He didn't need to ask. Learn from him."

"Heck yeah! Take that!", Okubo points at Rihito with a triumphant expression. And then he flinches, getting even redder, when Hiro lets out a nasal laugh. Himuro and Kaneda laugh too, more measuredly, while Rihito opens a mocking smile, arching an eyebrow.

"Heh. Would you look at that... your little gift was like an injection of self-esteem for my buddy here, you know, Miss Uta? He's been strutting up and down like a peacock all week, hahaha."

Tomori had never seen a pair of ears turn red so quickly, so Okubo must've been breaking some sort of record. She holds back the urge to laugh and tries to think of something to say in an attempt to ease his embarrassment, but it ends up not being necessary.

"Y'know what? I sure am" He suddenly lifts his chin, and although he was still a little red in the face, his expression now conveyed much more confidence "You'd also be walking like that if you’d received the number of such a pretty girl, you jerk."

He looks sideways at Tomori, arching an eyebrow and smirking. And she has to hold on to the counter as her legs quivered a bit, her face heating up to the point of making her sweat. She was partially aware of all the eyes on her, but she couldn't focus her mind enough to care.

Would it look too bad for her to jump over the counter to grab and kiss the hell out of him?

Hiro was grinning from ear to ear, and even Kanami seemed to be amused by the situation. Himuro and Kaneda exchanged amused glances, the former commenting:

"Heh, he countered like a true MMA champion."

"I know, right! Forget it, Rihito, he won this time around."

"Whatever, I'll have my rematch."

“Anytime you want”, Okubo waves away, still smiling, but there's a slightly sharp gleam in his eyes. He was warning the others, Tomori realizes, awakening from her dazed state. That indeed seemed to be a pretty common interaction in that friend group, and judging by the expressions of the other three, they were going to ignore the warning and continue with their teasing. It reminded her of her high school days, when teenagers amused themselves by psychologically torturing their friends about their crushes. He then turns to her again.

"Anyway… I came, as promised."

"Yeah… you did..." She takes a deep breath to be able to respond normally, and opens her best hostess smile “W-Welcome back, Mr. Okubo. And you guys too! We're glad that you enjoyed our service enough to come back."

"And enough for us to introduce it to our friend here", Himuro indicates the smaller one, who nods with a smile.

"Hello there! Kaneda Sukeichi, at your service. I'm also a friend of Ohma, Mr. Yamashita and the wrestlers from SJPW. These three told me very good things about this place and I got very interested in visiting. Especially when I heard about you, ma'am", He turns to Kanami, who raises an eyebrow.

"Nice to meet you too. And wow, if I had known before that I had become so famous in your social circle, I would've placed an ad on the front of the bakery, promoting my illustrious presence."

"We can spread the news in exchange for some complimentary snacks!"

"Giving up on her number already, Rihito?"

"A soldier knows how to choose his battles."

"If you did you wouldn't even try to eat for free around here. But we guarantee that our prices are fair and affordable, right guys?" Kanami smiles at Tomori, who follows the cue and assumes a professional pose, determined not to look bad in front of the guy she wanted to impress.

"Absolutely, and it’s their quality that makes them that way! Today we are serving one of our specialties: sugar cookies!" She displays the tray of cookies with the pride of an artist presenting her masterpiece "They're fresh out of the oven! Do you want a sample?"

The four of them approach to check the tray, interested... and she sees the exact moment when Okubo and Rihito get a little suspicious.

"Uuh… they're… pretty colorful, aren't they?" Okubo comments, hesitating, while Rihito twists his mouth a little.

"Flowers, lace and ruffles? Is this really for eating?"

“Of course it is, knucklehead. That's royal icing, isn't it?", Himuro asks "I got a box of those from one of my girlfriends last Valentines. They're pretty good."

"Oh, they look very nice! Was it you who baked them, miss?" Kaneda asks, to which Tomori nods, now feeling a little embarrassed.

"Yes, it was me. Cookies are my specialty. And I also frosted them."

"Congratulations, that's a neat hand job. I'll have some!"

"Ahaha, thank you!"

"Me too, they go well with coffee", Himuro looks over his shoulder "What about you two? Are you really going to get all prissy over some icing?"

"Uuh..." Okubo glances at Tomori, and she sees guilt in his eyes. Rihito suddenly smiles, nudging his friend's arm and teasing:

"Yeah, dude, you're not going to embarrass Miss Uta like that, are you? Relax, get some cookies, and meanwhile I'll order you some tea, in a china cup with daisy prints-"

"Quit it! I... alright, I'll have some too" He finally seems to make up his mind, after swatting Rihito's hand away. Tomori holds out the tray hopefully, and he chooses one with the simplest possible glaze job: yellow polka dots on a baby blue background. Rihito kept smirking, oblivious to how Kanami and Hiro were giving him annoyed looks. They should include ‘disgusting sexism’ as an intolerable behavior by the bakery's policy. And if Tomori's crush exhibited the same behavior...

Okubo takes a bite of the cookie, chewing slowly, his brow a little furrowed. And then his expression softens, the hesitation replaced by surprise, his eyes actually glistening a little.

"Wow… this is really good!" he exclaims suddenly, looking surprised by the fact. Tomori's face lights up.

“Really?”

"Yeah! They're delicious” He eats the rest of the cookie, even licking his fingers to catch the crumbs that have stuck to them. He looked absolutely sincere, which made Kanami and Hiro relax, while Tomori looked like she was about to float away with happiness.

"I'm so glad you liked it! Will you have some more?

"Some? I want a whole tray of them!"

"I told you so", Himuro shakes his head, while Lihito stops laughing, apparently realizing that his friend wasn't forcing himself to be polite.

"‘Wait, are you serious? … Ugh, okay, I want one too,” He mutters as he picks up a cookie, frowning at the pink frosting. They thought they heard him mumble 'fuckin' sissy food...' under his breath before popping the cookie into his mouth, but before either of them could scold him for the homophobic remark, he made a startled sound in the back of his throat, eyes bulgying, his mouth still full as he chewed in slow motion. He swallows, licks his lips, then mutters, trying to sound nonchalant:

“Uuh… there's- there's more where those came from?

"Yes! Do you want some too?"

"I do, but… don't you have some cookies with more… I don't know, manly designs? Nothing against those, they're pretty good, but you understand, right? Fighters of our caliber have a... uh... reputation to uphold and all…”

"Relax, honey, Kanny and Tomori don't have the habit of injecting the cookie dough with estrogen or something like that. Your man tits won't grow. I mean, not that they need to..."

"What the hell, man! Cut that out!" Rihito puts his hands over his chest, glaring at Hiro with a shudder, to everyone's amusement. Tomori says happily:

"I have one more batch to put on the display! And I know you're going to like these a lot…"

She smiles at Okubo, who was already reaching out to take more cookies from the tray. She goes back to the kitchen, while Kanami grunts:

"Hey, you've already tasted the samples. If you want more, you'll have to pay!"

"Sorry!" They cringe a little, at the same time that Tomori returns, bringing another tray.

"Here! You may consider these a ‘special edition’. I made them because I knew about your visit and… well, I thought you, more than anyone, would understand the reference, Mr. Okubo."

She shows the contents of the tray. The four of them huddle together to look. And Okubo's face lights up like a kid in a toy store.

"Maaan, I can't believe it! Guys!" He picks up a cookie, smiling like the happiest idiot in the world "Look! It's Kuidaore Taro!"

"Really? The mascot from that restaurant in Osaka?" Kaneda bliks, coming closer to have a better look at the cookie, which was sporting the frosted figure of the adorable clown, in a white and red suit and wearing round glasses and a small conical hat.

"Wow, Miss Uta, you managed to make a detailed drawing like that with this little space? I'm impressed", Himuro comments, and Rihito nods, smiling.

"Yeah, they look dope! Right, Okubo?"

"You bet! D-Did you bake them with me in mind, Miss Uta? Seriously?" He asks, sounding even a little emotional. She nods, ecstatic to see his joy.

"Yes, I did! I wanted it to be a surprise. I know that he is a mascot in your prefecture, a cultural symbol, and that you are very proud of it. I mean, you even sport his colors when you fight! I think that's admirable, and I kinda wanted to show it..."

Kanami and Hiro had the privilege of watching the exact moment when Okubo Naoya started looking at Tomori as if she were the most formidable creature to walk the face of the earth. They look at each other, stunned and dying to burst out laughing.

"Wow... the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, indeed. I'll have to apologize to my mom for not taking her seriously..." Hiro whispers "Although you kind of already proved her right, with your seaweed head monster..."

"You wanna wash the dishes today? 'Cause you will if you don't cut that out!"

Okubo's friends seemed to be thinking the same, considering their expressions of hilarity. Himuro nudges him in the back, saying:

"So... we're going to place our orders and look for a table. You're not going to sit with us today, are you?"

"Wha- oh… no, not today…" He seems to wake up from a kind of trance, turning almost as red as Tomori, who hadn't failed to notice the way he had been looking at her "I'll talk to you guys later."

The three of them nod, chuckling to each other and throwing glances at him as they went to look for an empty table. Tomori, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, asks:

"So... are you going to place your order too?"

"I will. I want two donuts, the ruby chocolate ones with sprinkles, a to-go box of these cookies... and the new dessert you mentioned on Saturday. I didn't forget, hehe."

"Hahaha, okay! Do you want something to go with it?"

"Yes, you."

…

Tomori blinks. She hears Hiro choke, hears her idol's three friends in a nearby table exploding into a violent fit of laughter. And Okubo looked like he was wondering if the traffic outside was chaotic enough, because he wanted to run out into the middle of the street and let himself get hit by a truck.

"Uh… excuse me?"

"I- I mean...! I wanted your company! Yes, that's it! You, as a company!" He almost shouts, gesturing with some desperation "When- When is your lunch break? If- If your boss doesn't mind you sitting at a table with a customer, that is..."

Tomori feels her heart wanting to burst out of her chest. She looks at Kanami over her shoulder hopefully.

"No, I- I don't mind", Her friend gasps; she had tears of laughter in her eyes. Hiro was already bent over the cash register by then, shaking with barely suppressed laughter "Her lunch break is in half an hour."

"Y-Yes! Of course, I'll love to!" She nods, still very red "Then you can tell me what you think of the new dessert."

"Yeah, about that new dessert... you’re the one who made it?"

"Yep!"

“Then… then I'm sure I'll love it.” He smiles shyly before going to sit in the farthest corner of the bakery, still mortified and throwing furious glances at Rihito, Himuro and Kaneda, who were too busy laughing their asses off to care.

And she wanted to laugh too. But from absolute ecstasy. Her, sitting at a table with Okubo Naoya, just the two of them, like on a date? How could that day get any better?

* * *

"Seriously, you're the first person in two years who's understood that reference."

"That's a shame. It's, like, a cultural symbol for an entire province!"

"I know, right! They're all uncultured swines. They should learn more from you" Okubo points to Tomori, who laughs. He was managing to get laughs out of her with ease, which, in her opinion, was a tremendous plus.

She had joined him at the table just as the clock on her cell phone had struck exactly three in the afternoon. Tomoyo had brought her lunch along with his orders, the transparent box of cookies already packed, complete with a white and red striped ribbon around it, and she was relieved when he didn't didn't seen to mind. He looked utterly content just being there with her, devouring his donuts and making small talk, while deliberately trying to ignore his friends a few tables away who probably wouldn't forget his faux pas anytime soon. She didn't mind though. His slips thus far had been adorable. She could let a few more pass on behalf of the company.

"The truth is, Kuidaore Taro is not such an unknown icon within my social circle. My mom is from Osaka!" She tells him, and he seems to get even more excited.

"Really?! That's nice! So you're half my countrywoman, hahaha!"

"Hahaha, yeah! She moved here to Tokyo for better job opportunities, then she met my father and ended up staying for good. My brother and I were born here, but she never missed an opportunity to introduce her children to some aspect of Kansai culture, hehe. Oh, and she's also a fan of yours!"

"Wow…" He scratches the back of his head again, smiling sheepishly "That makes me a little emotional, hehe. Your mother must be a nice woman. Your entire family must be, if they have half your love for martial arts..."

"They're as fanatical as I am! My parents didn't make my brother and I watch pro-wrestling matches earlier only because someone could report them to social services, hahaha!"

He laughs out loud, choking a little on his donut. After a few fist bumps on his chest, he manages to say:

“Ooh god... no, seriously, have you really been watching me since I was practicing wrestling?”

"Yes, I have."

"Hnnn… good to know, 'cause I feel like doing a test" He points at her again, smiling with an arched eyebrow "I want to see how much you know. What do you say?"

"Sure!" She reaches to grab the table top in her excitement.

"What did I do before starting my career as a martial artist?"

"You played baseball, and you were a batter!"

"Good! How was my wrestling career in middle school?"

"You had already established yourself as one of the top four in the national rankings!"

"Atta girl!" He seemed to be having as much fun as she was "And I won the national championships during...?"

"Your senior year in highschool!"

He starts clapping, laughing as he sees her chest swell with pride.

"Alright, last question. After my three year career as an amateur boxer, I switched to MMA in the year of...?"

"Oh no", She suddenly raises a finger, shaking it with a coquettish smile "I'm not falling for a trick question. Your boxing career spanned two years, not three."

She thought that if his smile got any bigger, his face would probably tear up.

"Miss Uta, you are a human encyclopedia. A beautiful human encyclopedia, with the most wonderful hands for confectionery."

"Oooh, stop it, you…!" She holds her hot face between her hands. She was probably smiling like a fool.

"I'm only telling the true. You're not only a dedicated fan, you're also a dedicated cook. These donuts are great-"

"Oh, Kanny and I made them together, she deserves half the credit."

"Haha, okay. But the cookies were your doing, right?" He smiles more when she nods "See? My point still stands. Only someone with a lot of love for what they do could do something as cool as this" He picks up the to-go box "They're so well made that I don't even know if I can eat them, haha!"

She felt like crying. That couldn't even be classified as a dream come true, because not even in her wildest dreams did she imagine that things would get to that point.

"Thank you, Mr. Okubo, really" She bows a little "But sure you can eat them, that's what they were made for, haha. You can just take some pics as a memento."

"I'm going to do it right now! – He takes his phone out of his pocket "And I'll post it on my social media, to help promote your work."

"Really? That would be great for our publicity, thank you!"

"No need to thank me, you deserve it. And it's the bare minimum too, considering the good service and just as good company, hehe... h- hey, Missa Uta..." He calls out, suddenly alarmed, and that's when she realizes how her eyes were stinging and her vision was kind of blurred "Hey, don't- don't cry, please! If I said something wrong-"

"Oh no, I- no need to worry, this- this is pure happiness, I swear", She quickly wipes away her tears, taking a deep breath to try to control herself "It's just... I'm just so happy when my work is appreciated like that! Especially by someone I look up to... I feel like it's because of this feeling that I studied to become a pastry chef, you know..."

He lowers the arm he had been extending towards her, relieved.

"Thank god, I thought I had offended you somehow… but yes, I can imagine" He smiles again, now more tenderly "Like I said, someone has to really love what they do to be this dedicated. And I'm not just talking about the cookies.” He picks up a spoon, dipping it into what was, according to Tomori, the newest dessert in the house: a dollop of what looked like pastry cream, artfully placed in the corner of a small plate, next to two fat chocolate chip cookies "This one looks great too..."

"Eat it with the cookies. The dessert is a combination of the two", She sniffs a little, and smiles when he does what she suggests "It's a slightly deconstructed version of a popular flavor."

"Which is…?"

"Cookies 'n cream."

“Uh- oh yes, of course” He nods as he puts the spoon in his mouth, chewing slowly to savor it. She waits anxiously, and she's isn't disappointed when his eyes shine again in the way she had learned to recognize.

"Man, this is as good as the cookies!"

"Thank you!"

"This is that pastry cream thing, right?"

"Yes, with a few extra touches. My treat. And I put something else in the cookies. Did you notice?"

"Brownie bits, isn't it?"

"Yes!" She claps her hands in excitement "That's the best thing about cookies 'n cream. It's the perfect union between softness and crunchiness, the full-bodied flavor of the chocolate and the smoothness of the cream, a proof of how appearances can be deceiving!"

He laughs quietly at her excitement, taking a spoonful of cream again.

"I'm just wondering if there's anything you don't know how to cook well, 'cause I find it unlikely."

"Well, Kanami's cakes are better than mine, haha. But I know how to make a little bit of everything. My specialty is pastries in general, but I know how to cook savory dishes too."

“I'd love to eat more of the stuff you make. And speaking of that..." He takes another bite of the cookie while she has a mini burst of happiness in her chair "I'm curious about one thing."

"What?"

"This is the Heavy Bakery, isn't it? I mean, the name is kinda suggestive, so we thought there would be more fit options around here, you know? It's not a complaint, we really enjoyed what you’ve offered so far, but it's something to think about."

"Oh, we know that! Rest assured that in the future we will have new items on the menu, totally appropriate for your… lifestyle" She has to make an effort not to let her eyes wander over his torso, his muscles evident under his shirt "Kanny and I we've been researching a lot, and I can already say that I have a good hand for fit dishes, hehe."

"That's good to know!" He straightens up in his chair "I was going to ask you... me and my pals have been wanting to vary our menu between workout sessions. Could you send me some recipes?"

She feels her traitorous heart do another somersault inside her chest.

"Aah… of course I can, but… you're a professional fighter, Mr. Okubo. Don't you have a personal trainer or a private nutritionist to advise you on these things...?"

"Uuh…" He looks to the side, seeming to be looking for the right words "I do, but… I just like your food. Yeah, that's it." He gestures to her suddenly, giving her a confident smile "And having one of your recipes in hand would surely guarantee a good meal."

Tomori was pretty sure she heard some devilish giggles a few feet away, but she didn't dwell on it. She was too busy trying not to have a heart attack.

"Oh… yes, yes, of course! I'll give you all the recipes you want" She puts her hands together on her chest, a little dizzy with happiness "As far as I'm concerned, you and your friends will only eat well from now on!"

He smiles more, that smile she's seen so many times on magazine covers and on television, from a man who's so sure of himself and who knows exactly what he wants, when he wants it and how he wants it. Dear lord, her legs were getting weak-

"Dame da neeee! Dame yo, Dame na no yoooo..."

And that smile is immediately replaced by an expression that was a bizarre mix of horror and homicidal rage, his face turning red as a pepper. He grabs his phone, declining the call and looking over his shoulder while muttering a "What the fuck...!" under his breath, and this time Tomori clearly heard the devilish giggles. But she was still busy, trying to process what had just happened.

His ring tone was Baka Mitai? Really? The urge to laugh was almost uncontrollable, and she had to put a hand over her mouth.

"I told you not to bother us, you jerks!"

"Sorry, man, but our time is up!", Lihito nods, very relaxed with an arm draped over the back of his chair, while Himuro laughs and Kaneda shakes his head with a mix of hilarity and disapproval "Adam and Imai are waiting for us at Kureichi's dojo, remember?"

"Shit, I forgot…" He throws his head back a little before turning to Tomori, still blushing "Sorry, Miss Uta, but we have to go."

"Oh, alright then..." She nods, feeling a little guilty for not being able to contain her laughter, which only made him even more embarrassed "My lunch break is about to end anyway. But I was really happy with your visit, Mr. Okubo. You have no idea how much" She again tucks a lock of hair behind her ear as they both get up from their chairs. He watches the movement of her finger, and his expression softens.

"Yes, I do, because I was happy too. I really enjoyed talking to you... and I'd like to talk again" He scratches the back of his head "I have a busy schedule, you know, but when I can, I'll stop by again. I want to see what other cookies you’re going to bake next time."

"Hehe, I already have some ideas. How about a Billiken?"

"Or maybe a Glyco Man!"

"Or a Kushikatsu Daruma, but that might give you a bit of an indigestion, haha."

They laugh, smiling at each other. Until Rihito's voice calls again:

"Hey, Rocky, don't make me call you again..."

"Ugh, I'm coming! Well... you have my number, so we can talk later. See ya, Miss Uta" He puts two fingers to the side of his temple and then takes them away in a goodbye gesture, giving her a sideways smile. And then he turns his back on her, very haughtily, and goes to join his friends, who were saying goodbye to Kanami and Hiro. She lets out a low sigh, nodding, subconsciously knowing she was sounding like a lovestruck fool and not caring in the slightest.

"See ya..."

She watches him walk away towards the door, his steps firm and confident, looking very much in control of himself... until she hears Rihito commenting, before the four of them left the bakery:

"Again with the menu excuse? Tokita is apparently giving some seduction classes and you're his most dedicated student by far."

"Leave me alone, Rihito!"

"But it was a good idea. We really need to vary our pre and post workout diet", Kaneda comments, and Himuro nods.

"And with the recipes from here, we will eat like kings."

"It depends. Will Miss Uta come with it, Okubo?"

"Bitch, run! Run, 'cause if I catch you now, I'll beat the shit outta you!" He snarls, his friend's laughing fit fading into the sounds of traffic as the door closes behind them.

Tomori sighs again, this time more deeply. Kanami shakes her head, one hand on her hip, murmuring:

"We've never had such noisy customers… well, at least they pay."

"And they pay well, considering how much they eat. You two and your fetish for men who have an appetite as huge as their pecs, I swear..."

"Shut up, Hiro" The cooks grunt at the same time, to which the cashier just laughs. They return to service, each with their own thoughts. Tomori's were very specific as she tried to remember all the recipes for an athlete's diet she knew. That was an excuse to keep in touch with Okubo, and she wouldn't waste it for anything in the world.

"Hey, Kanny", She calls as they both enter the kitchens.

"Yes?"

"I think we should make the Kuidaore Taro cookies part of the official menu from now on…"

Kanami just laughs to herself.

"Girl, you really have some weird fantasies..."

NEXT CHAPTER

#Kengan Ashura #Kengan Omega #kenganverse #fanfiction #Okubo Naoya #Naoya Okubo #okubo x oc #kengan oc #Rihito #Himuro Ryo #Kaneda Suekichi #cookies'n cream #the heavy bakery series

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batsarebetterthanpeople · 1 year

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I hope you realise that minimising or ignoring incidents racist abuse just because it happened to Izzy fans is straight up racist. Saying it ‘doesn’t matter’ if Izzy fans get harassed when the harassment in question was (for example) anon messages sent to two black trans people saying they deserved to be hatecrimed for liking Izzy is racist. If you’re willing to cap for fictional POC but not real life POC then your supposed allyship means nothing!

Ok let me help you out here man. I don't minimize or ignore, I just straight up haven't seen it happening to you guys. I go to blm protests when I can and I support the POC that I'm friends with/are in my family irl. And I have been supporting poc in fandom by calling out racism when I see it. It's just that a lot of that racism is coming from one spacific end of the fandom and I'm sorry to tell you it's the Izzy stans. It's not racist for me to focus on the racism I'm seeing. No one should be harassed simply for liking Izzy and no one should experience racism ever. But I can't make any comments on it when I haven't seen it. I'm busy worrying about the harassment being levied at my mutuals of color by racist Izzy stans which I do see because they're my mutuals. If you want to bring it to my attention that's cool I can make a call out post or block and report or whatever but so far I've only been bitched to in vague terms about the harassment that Izzy stans are allegedly receiving. But I have seen a whole lot of racism coming from y'all. I'm going to continue addressing and calling out racism wherever I see it. I don't go out of my way looking for nastiness, the nastiness comes to me. I don't have a magic sixth sense that tingles whenever racism occurs. I can only ever do my best with the information I have, which is what I intend to keep doing. But if you keep coming to me like x y z is happening and then don't give me evidence of even point me in a direction to look for it all I can really say is "wild if true, sorry about that."

That said, I don't know why you guys are so fixated on the anons, man. I've been told all kinds of heinous shit on Anon including anons saying they hope I get killed for being trans. Like it's not ok but it's certainly not Izzy stan or even OFMD community specific. I just fail to see why I should be extra upset about it happening to you guys when it's happening to literally everyone who hasn't turned the Anon function off. I just have chosen not to give a fuck about Anon inbox harassment regardless of who it is happening to (including myself) or what about unless doxxing is involved. Sometimes I respond to it if I think it's interesting or funny to do so but Anons are faceless freaks who literally have nothing better to do than say whatever the worst thing that pops into their brains is and they've realized they can do it without consiquences and if you don't want it happening to you the only solution is to just turn off anon. Like I'm sorry that that's the case but it is. Come back to me when someone says they hope you get hate crimed on main I'll block and report that person but I can't do anything about the anons. If you allow anonymity on the internet a certain subset of those anons are going to be demons who crawled over here off of 4chan and there's nothing I can do about that. Expecting people to get up in arms about that when they're fending off their own anons is kinda self centered idk. Didn't I teach y'all how to turn off anon? it's right there in the settings.

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msmargaretmurry · 2 years

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57, 75, 77

57. How conscious are you about including symbolism or foreshadowing in your fics?

i've gotten more intentional about it over the past few years! in the ratnovel in particular i found myself being more deliberate with my symbolism and ~motifs~ than i've been in the past, and in tnno there are a couple of bits of foreshadowing that i'm very proud of. i think it's natural that over the years as i've kept writing and made a deliberate effort to improve as a writer (and started writing much longer things than i did when i was younger) it's become more natural for me to both think consciously about those things and for them to find their way into my fics without me thinking about them. however with very long stories especially, when i write i'm often very aware of the threads i leave hanging for myself as options to pull on later -- sometimes those really pay off, and sometimes they wind up getting axed or ignored, it's an imperfect science but i am working on it!

75. Is there a particular fic that readers gravitated towards that you didn’t expect?

hm, i'm not sure! pretty much everything i've written in the last five-ish years (that is, everything i remember clearly enough to have an opinion on) has kind of attracted the expected audience (which isn't a bad thing at all!). i guess out of those it does often surprise me, in a really nice way, how many people feel a very strong connection to tnno. that was very much a "writing this in my emails for my two other deranged friends" fic (ily maddy and kas) while i was not really engaged with the wider fandom as a whole, so the reception of that one over the past couple years has been really lovely. other than that, i've gotten a few comments recently about people remembering and really loving some of my ancient bandom fic, especially this one, and it knocks my socks off that folks remember those at all!

77. Why do you enjoy writing fanfiction?

you mean besides the inherent satisfaction of my friends yelling my name in all caps at me? honestly, i usually write fic when there is a specific story i want to see in the world that does not exist, and i love then just going and crafting that story to my own exact specifications. it's a fairly low-stakes way to indulge in my beloved hobby of writing, and it's a super fun way to connect with people here on al gore's internet who love the same idiots that i do.

(questions from here!)

#ask #my fic

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idontlikeem · 2 years

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f*ck Yohe ~ it was pretty obvious from his numerous articles, but "nice" of him to finally say it (in a comment of course, to keep article "neutral") ~ he wants Geno gone cause team won't win cup with Geno, however Yohe fails to offer path for team winning cup without Geno, so his "solution" doesn't actually fix the cup problem ~ so f*ck him and his "neutral" articles ~ have a pleasant day 😇

goodness! this is quite the message to send to someone! a friendly reminder to all that i don't know any of the pens beat reporters or have any connection to the team, and that aggression ABOUT something can easily be read as aggression TOWARDS the person you're messaging when you're communicating in a text-based medium!

i don't think it's quite as clear-cut as you're saying here, anon. i think you're actually pretty significantly misrepresenting what he said, both in his article and in the comment.

i went and looked at the comment (which i shan't be screenshotting because i don't want to get another copyright strike lol). what he's saying is that from a team perspective—from the overarching perspective of 'what is best for the pittsburgh penguins long-term, what gets them their next cup'—it makes more sense to look for younger talent that will come either cheaper or comparable to kris and geno. he did NOT single geno out in his comment at all, he very specifically named both of them. he (rightly) points out that with their combined current cap hits, you could sign up to four younger players that have considerable upside.

i'm not saying i agree with his take. but it's a valid one. it has merit. and i think you saying 'he wants geno gone cause team won't win a cup with geno' is not at all accurate. what he actually says is, and this is me typing exactly what his comment said, 'i don't think this core has another cup in it, so i would make changes.' that's significantly different than singling geno out as the source of the penguins' problems.

he also has this on twitter:

which actually contradicts what you've said he's saying via both article and comment.

something that i've found is that people, in defense of geno, can swing too far the other direction. they overcorrect, if you will. it's one thing to point out idiocy like 'sign him to one year at league minimum' (which is a literal take i've seen multiple times) or 'he's terrible at 5v5 all his points are on the power play and he ruins the system' (easily debunked with actual information). but he's not as good as he was at his best, there is decline in his play, and you can think that he's still far and away the best option for the team while acknowledging that. pointing out a flaw in someone's play is not the same thing as wanting someone gone or having a vendetta against them, and i'm not sure it warrants hatred.

people who are fans of a team are allowed to have different opinions on how that team should proceed when it arrives at a major crossroads. josh's conclusion, one he's come to via watching every game, is not one that i agree with at all, because i have looked around and i do not see good replacements out there. however, it's not an insane, irrational conclusion to arrive at, and people are allowed to have different opinions on things without any one person being right or wrong. someone disagreeing with you in a reasonable fashion does not mean they have it out for your favorite guy, it just means they disagree.

the bottom line is, geno is not the player he was in his prime. that's not a criticism, it's simple facts—he's not, and he won't be ever again. that's how aging works! however, he is still an elite-level center who galvanizes a power play and provides the team with depth down the middle. he is an asset to any team that picks him up and provides him with quality wingers to play with—he is at the point in his career where he can no longer elevate literal trash to an elite scorer, and expecting him to be isn't reasonable. sid can't do that either, at this point, and geno is not as good as sid. he's also coming off a second major surgery and still recovering and getting his conditioning back from that, so the truth of the matter is we don't actually quite know what he's capable of. it won't be 2012-level, we won't see that from him again, but it's still significantly better than most of the other options.

i frequently disagree with josh's game analysis and his takes on certain players, geno included. but i do think he's significantly more neutral and objective about gameplay and the team as a whole than, as an example, rob rossi. disagreeing with someone doesn't make them an enemy.

have a pleasant day 😇

#objectivity is so so hard with stuff like this but there's such a thing as taking it too far the other way!#asks #anon #long post

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thetentaclecommander · 12 days

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Interesting Fic Traction Notes I'm not a stat/views whore but I do look at them in fascination. I swore I read somewhere that long fics don't get the most hits and that Ao3 tends to skews towards short fics and porn but in looking at my stats the highest engagement (hits/favs/comments/subs/bookmarks) is mainly on longfics (fics longer than 2 chapters and over imo is a longfic). In order it goes: -2 chapter smut (that reader fic of all things, odd.) -longfic smut fics -a one shot smut fic -longfic that isn't smut centered (makes sense cause of the amount of years it has been up) -more smut one shots -a smut compilation -longfics that aren't smut centered -that one canon compliant one -brutal violent sex fics (the rapey and or heavily murderkinky ones) -then one shots that are just dreamy weird plot heavy -newer canon compliant or not as smutty stuff at the bottom (or new stuff less than a few months old in general) Sorting by views/hits renders mostly the same result (and hits, like okay that's a lot to me even including my rereads to edit and read my own stuff and before I was cross posting to here).

So in one way, yeah 'smut sells' proves true, but the length doesn't. If anything my short fics tend to get passed over faster especially anything sub 1,000 words (in context my largest longfic smut fic is over 35k words). My highest engaged fics tend to with a lone 2k exception, cap out around 7-8k words. Also, only straight forward pwp or little plot are like this as too much emotional/plot investment ranks way lower. Well, the murderkinky violent ones rank lower too, intentionally as I know what I wrote - but also brings in a certain niche of reader so there's that. I can't even go by comment threads as sure, the top three are longfics understandably, but then it evens out to a similar range across the board no matter the length. Usually due to regular commenters (I <3 u guys!). Oddly, I find my human focused/human shippy ones aren't as well viewed but I also think it's a combo of my set niche of 'monsterfucker', doing exclusively rare pairs and being 'that asshole that writes N/J all the time' together so it could be simply not writing as expected of my account. Though getting engagement on those is pretty cool because of these 'hurdles', not in spite of them! I enjoy being convincing outside of my wheelhouse, too. So what I get from all this is the Ao3 adage of 'what is more likely to be engaged with' is on crack and just not reliable, at least in my case. Pretty on brand for me really (with the self-awareness I am niche in general). I both prove the adage both true and false oddly. Resi to note is not a huge fandom just vocal (we don't even rank in the larger Ao3 fandom poles) so that could be what's causing the skew? I also I see what you folks cheer for overall (readers, pwp and hyper erotic murder/violence in that order). I also think that one reader fic* I think hit the DBD crowd unintentionally - I've never played lol. Also to note, I see those bookmarks. The sheer amount of private ones for an account that is hard to miss in larger Resi tag and almost always in that specific rare ship tag is so high and it's hilarious and amazing to me. The thing about people who hide their porn habits through bookmarks is *very* true - I hope y'all were well fed! I cackle every time cause christ on a cracker the sheer amount of them solely on the porn, I see you /wink *Though I might...do that male!reader/Nem fic I've been saying that for like 2+ years now at some point because I like balance since I've already done female and gender neutral readers.

#thetentaclecommander writhes and speaks #Ao3 stat observations

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remythologise · 3 years

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I don't have twitter and I'm seeing posts but a lot of them involve knowing what I'm looking at...can you pls explain the latest spn/Jensen news, pretty please?

Sure! Explanation of the events of the past week (some of these dates might be relative to my timezone, apologies for any errors):

JUNE 24: News breaks that Jensen Ackles and Danneel Ackles’ production company has a prequel in the works focusing on John and Mary Winchester; entire fandom displeased

Fandom ire at the prequel focusing on John and Mary momentarily overshadows the fact that it seems like Jensen Ackles has the rights to Supernatural (!!!) and has ‘five shows in the works’ of which this is only the first

Showrunner is Destiel fan-favourite Robbie Thompson, responsible for such Absolute Banger Episodes as ‘Meta Fiction’ (see more here)

A lot of blowback from absolutely all sides of the fandom - BiBros et al mad that it focuses on Not The Brothers, Destiel fans mad it focuses on Not Resolving Destiel, everyone largely mad it focuses on John Winchester (widely regarded as abusive) and the ‘epic love story’ of John/Mary (canonically forced by cupid magic)

Various cast members including Misha Collins, Jim Beaver, Jake Abel, Ruth Connell and Julie McNiven reply to the article with comments indicating they’d like to be involved

Eric Kripke tweets that Jensen and Danneel are ‘the perfect people’ to take control of this story and Jared is ‘too busy Texas Rangering’ to be involved

JUNE 25: Jared Padalecki tweets about being left out of the loop on the prequel; absolute chaos ensues

See this ask reply for a list of tweets, events and reactions

I’ll also add that this gets large enough to get coverage on Vulture, Variety and other news sources

Robbie Thompson retweets his tweet from 2019 saying ‘I ❤️ you #SPNFamily’ in response to… everything

JUNE 26: A scramble for Jensen, Jared and Eric Kripke to do PR damage control on the Jared issue. Meanwhile, Misha Collins does his best impression of this scene from the Lion King to promote GISH

Eric later deletes all tweets about the issue, which is VERY funny. Man can’t handle the heat!

Very funny contrast between Jared’s ‘have a talk, as we often do’ and Jensen’s ‘miss these talks'

Jensen later changes his twitter header and bio from Supernatural/Dean Winchester to The Boys/Soldier Boys which IS somewhat unfortunate and perhaps deliberate break-up related timing

Jared tweets that he ‘doesn’t want anyone to receive hate or threats’ which is like… Jared YOU started this, YOU tweeted this to your millions of followers

JUNE 26: Jensen Ackles does further damage control by tweeting ‘Canon? we got you’ and linking to this article about what the show might hold, which points out the Problems of John Winchester

See article for further details but this implies Jensen actually does care a lot about doing right by the fans and the narrative canon

This, combined with the fact Robbie Thompson is running it, convinces most Destiel-side fans that the show Might Be Better Than Expected and one CW-approved stepping stone to greater things

BiBros are furious because article is written by ‘known Heller’ Natalie Fisher, who is friends with writers such as Meredith Glynn and Robert Berens

Meanwhile, Steve Yockey references the ‘Steve Yockey is dead?!?’ tumblr meme on twitter in a reply to Ruth Connell

JUNE 27: Gen Padalecki posts an instagram story which may or may not be shady commentary on Jensen Ackles

However, yesterday Danneel Ackles also promotes the Padalecki MLM product on HER instagram - can I just say I simply love the use of a) product promotion and b) instagram stories as tools of warfare and diplomacy

JUNE 28: Various scripts drop thanks to the team at tumblr’s spnscripthunt (go support and fund their efforts if you can!)

Notable changed content includes Castiel telling Dean to ‘parent’ Jack in 14.16 and Castiel texting emojis to Claire in 12.16 (possibly an in-script joke about Dean being attracted to a poodle?)

JUNE 29: News breaks that Chaos Machine Productions was started as ‘Free Will Entertainment LLC’

The name was apparently changed in October 2020 - was that as a result of the 15.19-15.20 filming? Or something else?

The idea that Jensen set up a company called ‘Free Will Entertainment’ to continue telling the story of Supernatural is honestly BONKERS. A lot to unpack here to do with the textual and metatextual narrative of Supernatural that I don’t have time to get into, since there’s about twenty wild implications that could be speculated from that name alone

Stock price on ‘Jackles’ Sexy Silence’, conspiracy that Jensen didn’t like the ending of Supernatural and was quietly plotting to take the narrative under his own control, to bring Dean back to life and possibly to canonise Destiel, reaches historic high

The fact does not go unnoticed that, through coincidence or not, Jensen and Danneel registered the company on a Thursday very close to September 18, the Lazarus Rising/Castiel Anniversary Date when Dean was saved from Hell

JUNE 30: Misha Collins makes a social media post with Castiel art for the last day of Pride Month

Twitter post liked by Robbie Thompson

On his instagram, Misha also puts music on the story of ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love With You’ a song made famous by Elvis and then subsequently Destiel AU Fanfic Twist and Shout

“The song was initially written from the perspective of a woman as “Can’t Help Falling in Love with Him”, which explains the first and third line ending on “in” and “sin” rather than words rhyming with “you” - Wikipedia knowledge obtained via @jurisffiction

Falling… sin… But we don’t have time to unpack all of that-

JUNE 30: 8.17 Goodbye Stranger script excerpt surfaces with Dean’s ‘I love you’ to Castiel

Fandom has long known that the ‘I need you’ was formerly an ‘I love you’ because Jensen believed Dean saying it in that moment to Castiel was out of character - but we did not have the script to prove specific changes

Additional ‘I forgive you’ not included in the episode - the original scene reads as very romantic, since this was Dean absolving Castiel for past crimes and telling him he loves him in the moments before death, as well as ‘I love you’ of course being what ‘broke the connection’ of Naomi’s control

Notably this episode written by Robbie Thompson, the very man Jensen and Danneel chose to helm their next project

JUNE 30: Misha Collins misses his blanky text

To cap all this off, Misha Collins texts fans a selfie of himself at ‘the spare room at Jensen’s apt in Vancouver’, saying he ‘misses his blanky’, implying he has spent many nights there

It has been an open secret that Misha basically shared Jensen’s apartment in Vancouver since around 2018 due to [redacted dubiously obtained information] but it’s never been publicly stated (to be clear, this does not imply anything other than friendship, as actors in Vancouver often share accommodation and Misha had previously couch-surfed at Jared and Jensen’s places)

Cockles shippers go wild. Does the ‘blanky’ refer to Jensen? Was there a reason to send this on the last day of pride month? Will this man ever shut up?

Hope that helps! May this wild carousel of News About A Show That Ended Eight Months Ago never end!

#ask #anonymous #kira for ts #supernatural spoilers #spn spoilers #long post for ts #there ARE people out there who blacklist that tag… this one’s for you #making a text post like. well now what do I say in tags.#god this took me a long time anon I hope you appreciate the hours I spent on this sourcing lskdflskjdfdfsdf #this post was scheduled for 3am no idea why it posted at 10:15 pm thank you to Broken Website #UPDATE SORRY FOR INCORRECT LINK ON THAT ASK THING CHRIST #again broken website I was meant to check links BEFORE it posted

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quillsanddaydreams · 3 years

Text

i don't like you

james potter x reader

—author's note: This was a story from my main that I adored so I thought why not rewrite it? The plot is the same, my ability to tell a story however, has changed. James and you do not like each other. Not even a bit. I hope you enjoy ;) Please do leave a comment, it makes my day.

—warning(s): couple of harmless pranks, slytherin! gender neutral!reader (pronouns aren't used).

—word count: 3,431

Groaning, you got up and squinted to make out the details of your dorm. Shouts and rushing made your head thump. You slowly realized a god-awful smell was filling up your room, quicker than you could think. Squeezing your nose shut, you rushed out. Other Slytherins were alongside you, you could hear coughing all around. Your eyes pricked with tears, your throat felt raw. Seeing a very familiar messy dark-haired boy run away jeering; you sensed rage gripping your form like a vice.

Third time. It was the third time the same week that Potter and the elder Black brother had pranked you all. Except it wasn’t funny anymore. That was what pranks were supposed to be right? Something that made everyone laugh along? Looking towards Elodie who was clenching her eyes shut at the sensation, you made a plan in your mind. You knew it was crazy. But when did that ever stop you? James had never conversed with you. Nor you, him. Yet it was clear that he did not like Slytherins. Not one bit.

-♡♡♡-

James yawned, stretching his limbs for a new day. Scrunching his nose, he felt a flowery scent attack him. Maybe it was just Sirius with one of his experiments. Shrugging, he got up and into the shower. That day he had transfiguration, charms, and astronomy. Thankfully nothing with the snakes, they might still be sour about the prank they pulled yesterday. Getting out of the washroom, he hummed to himself as he passed Peter who was still fast asleep. Remus was asleep and Sirius was furiously scribbling on his homework. Always finishing at the last moment.

He didn’t realize the uniform he was putting on until he looked at himself in the mirror. And boy oh boy did he panic. Eyes widening almost comically, he rummaged through his wardrobe, everything a dark green color with silver accents. A note fell at his feet.

“Dearest Marauders,

Take this beautiful gift of green robes from me. I know not all of you deserved this, but then again, I didn't feel like any of you should be left behind. I know how much you love us, Slytherins. Why not showcase it?

With love,

(Y/n) (Y/l/n)”

“Sirius! Remus!” he called out. “Wormtail!”

Sirius didn’t even look up from his parchment, Remus let out a grunt in response. The only answer he got was a faint ‘what’ from the shared bathroom.

“Mates listen to this,” James said firmly, reading the letter out loud. That got their attention. “Our robes are all green. Vivid Slytherin green!”

Remus got up suddenly, with wide eyes rushing to check his almirah. He groaned loudly on finding them in the same predicament James foretold grass-like and smelling heavily of flowers. Sirius however, started crackling.

“What?” James bellowed, his nostrils flaring.

“Well, the sarcasm in that letter is…” He snorted, stopping himself seeing James’s frown. James shook his head as Remus glared at them both.

“This has a strong one-week dye,” he said, punctuating each word, infuriated. “There’s no way it can be removed before the expected time. Why should I suffer for all the things you two do?”

“And I am not suffering?” James quipped back as Remus just shook his head, huffing, and went back to his bed. James looked at Sirius who didn’t look worried at all.

“What? Aren’t you bothered at all?” James asked.

“I look great in everything,” he replied shrugging, making James want to punch him.

He dressed up quickly after, dashing out of the dorm towards the great hall. Ignoring the looks of the students from around and the snickers he looked for you amidst the Slytherin table. It was infuriating, how casually you ate your breakfast, almost oblivious. Stalking towards your place, he cleared his throat grabbing your attention. Your eyes sparkled amusedly, taking in his appearance.

“Why the hell did you do this?” he demanded.

“Now, that’s not a way to talk about the gift I gave you,” you said, batting your eyelashes as he scowled at you. You muttered a spell under your breath, waving your wand slightly before continuing. “I worked hard, you know?”

“You Slytherins are the best thing to walk on this planet!” he shouted before he could stop himself. His eyes grew large. Everyone’s attention now seemed to be on your table.

“Thank you, I know,” you smirked, challenging him. He narrowed his eyes on you.

“You put a speaking charm on me didn’t you?” he hissed as you put on an innocently sweet expression.

“Well, I thought you needed some help with words,” you prompted, getting better reactions than you hoped for. James growled, jumping up and down in annoyance. You tried not to laugh. Did. But the corners of your mouth turned up anyways. He looked like an idiot. The giggle you let out grabbed his attention, his cheeks turning a rosy red.

“I don’t like you,” he said in a rather squeaky voice.

“I don’t like you,” you retaliated. James hated himself for thinking the laugh you let out looking adorable. Anger, which was more of a frustration gawned on his skin. He knew exactly what he was going to do next. Giving you a sickly sweet smile, he enjoyed the slight shiver that went through your arm. Let the prank war begin.

-♡♡♡-

You rushed out of the bathroom, vexed. It had been a long exhausting day and this was the last thing you needed. Your skin was tinted green. Bright neon green. Elodie stared at you in stupor.

“What happened?” she asked and you couldn’t help the raucous whine that escaped your lips.

“I don’t know, okay? I was in the shower and after using soap, my skin turned freaking green,” you hissed as Elodie tried to calm you. You handed her a small piece of paper. “Oh and look what I found beside the shampoo bottle.”

Dear (Y/n),

A gift from me, to showcase your pride in your house. You could thank me later.

James.

P.S. This gift in no way means I’ve started liking you. I don’t.

“James. James did this; that bastard!” you said, nostrils flaring as Elodie rubbed your back.

“Well, it’s just hands and legs…”

“I'm gonna get back at him. Just watch me.”

Your jaw clenched. You knew just what you were gonna do. James started a fight with the wrong person. And you didn’t like him. At all.

-♡♡♡-

You were reading your book when you saw James pacing towards you, from the corner of your eye. Trying to keep a straight face, you fixed your gaze on the book in your hand. Yet you couldn’t help the twitch your mouth gave as he stood right in front of you, folding his arms.

“Wow,” he breathed through clenched teeth. You looked up.

“Real mature of you,” he said in a baby’s voice. It sounded like he pronounced everything through his nose. You made an effort not to start crackling right then.

“Well, one of us had to be, right?”

“Yeah. And giving me the baby voice makes you the adult.”

“I’d think so, yes.” You said brushing his hair. They were surprisingly soft. James glared at you.

“I don’t like you.” He squeaked as you raised an eyebrow.

“I thought we already established that. I don’t like you either boy,” You said, letting out a laugh.

-♡♡♡-

Adjusting your cap, you pulled your books closer to you. It was like everyone was staring at you. Specifically how stupid you looked. A whistle caught your attention. James, it had to be. When you turned towards the sound, you were sadly proved right.

“I like your cap,” he commented, clicking his tongue.

“Geez. Thank you. Just bought it,” you said, threateningly. Take one step James, I dare you; you thought. He didn’t get the message.

“I wonder how it would look on me,” he said, taking a step towards you. You hissed.

“Sorry, not gonna let you borrow it,” you tried to say in a normal tone, but it came out quite high pitched. James dared to grin.

“What if I just…” he said, coming closer as you took a step back, glowering at him in a warning. Not that he took it. He snatched the cap from your head as the long white hair fell. They reached your feet.

“James, give it back,” you warned and he put it on his head.

“Nope,” he said, his eyes full of mischief. You hesitated at his expression, he looked as candid as a child. Maybe you never noticed it, his hair fell round in pretty curls, framing his face. James winked, making you break out of your reverie.

“I think,” he said thoughtfully. “I think I’m going to keep this cap with me, I quite like it. If you want it back, you’re gonna have to take it from me.”

James took a step back as your eyes dilated. He turned around and started sprinting in that direction.

“James!” you shouted, chasing him.

People around you bolted aside, gasping at the scene. A ghostly white-haired student chasing after James as he chortled. It had been going for quite some time and everyone wondered who would win. Few in the favour of James, who had been pranking ever since he set foot in Hogwarts; a few for you since you were a Slytherin and Slytherins never lose. Others just shook their heads, wishing they would get it over with already the cat and mouse game was becoming rather tiring. No one however had the courage to raise their opinions out loud, lest they got involved in the prank war.

-♡♡♡-

“James," you said calmly, though the atmosphere made you anything but. Thick hot fumes rose from all around you making beads of sweat form on your forehead. "James, this doesn’t go in. We have to stir it first.”

“Why don’t you do it then? Little miss know-it-all” he snided. You looked at him fiercely. Slughorn had paired the two of you together for the next project and it couldn’t be more of a disaster. Only if he could just listen.

“I would if you let me,” you pointed out, finally taking over the shared pot. James watched you take a few breaths before starting to work on the potion. Muttering for ingredients from him now and then, you stirred the concoction. Soon, it started to show the exact signs given in their books.

James couldn't help but stare at you as you worked, humming to yourself all the while. You seemed cute like that, bending over the book, occasionally muttering to yourself. His face heated up when you caught his gaze. Luckily he could blame it on the heat.

“Could you cut some beetroots for me?” you asked, ignoring the way he flushed. James nodded, chopping them to the required amount. The two of you finished up fairly swiftly after that.

"So," you started after Slughorn left. He had commented on your work and applauded you both. Happiness was evident from the smiles on your faces. "Library at 4?"

James grinned, giving you a thumbs up. He packed up his stuff before turning to leave. You couldn't help but stare at his retreating figure, thinking, maybe he wasn't so bad after all. Shrugging, you shook away the thought and went your own way. There were things you had to get done that day.

-♡♡♡-

As time passed, the thought started becoming more predominant. He wasn't so bad, your mind reminded you time and time again. The more you started to know James, the more you believed in it. Constant teasing and bickering wasn’t something that became unheard of between the two of you. But it was more lighthearted now… almost as if you were friends crackling over a shared joke. James had somehow caught your eye again, in a completely different way.

It seemed you were noticing new things about him, like how he didn’t look at you with hatred. Come to think of it, was it even ever ‘hate’? Yet there was something soft about the way he gazed at you now, gentle even— you couldn’t put your finger on it. You had come to enjoy his goofy personality, the smile he gave when his eyes were light with mischief. Knowing where these musings led, you had tried your best to beat them down. What was it that you did not try? Remembering every single detail that made you despise him once, all those times your blood boiled at the prank he pulled but nothing— nothing ever worked and your heart still fluttered every time he complimented you.

Was it that bad an idea though? Liking James?

You shivered, pulling your sweater closer to you. Walking had failed to heat your body the way it always did and you reckoned that your deliberation also had something to do with that. It wasn’t about you liking him, your mind prompted, it was about whether he could feel the same way. And if you knew something, you knew that you couldn’t take the answer to be no. The skip in your step halted, and you couldn’t help the sigh that escaped your lips.

Path to the library couldn’t have been more daunting. That was until you saw James and Lily around the corner. Talking, laughing, and standing too close to be called friends. Evans, the one girl James was head over heels for, the one girl you never paid attention to much.

It was like the final shoe dropping. James and you didn’t like each other. People knew that you did as well. It was time you believed it too. Your stomach twisted up at the sight, your mood souring. You turned, walking away.

“Oi!” James called out to you, apologizing to the students he bumped into. You brisked forward, hoping to make it to your dorm. It didn’t work, James ran to catch up with you. Damn his long legs.

“Stop fucking running,” he huffed on reaching you. “Where are you going? We have a study session. You haven’t changed your mind, have you?”

You gritted your teeth.

“I was heading to the library but you and Evans seemed quite busy, so I thought against it,” you said, albeit aggressively. Jealousy was never a good color.

“We were just talking for a moment,” James explained. “I want us to complete the project first though.”

He looked at you, confused. It was hard controlling your anger right then. You couldn’t help the dry laugh that escaped your lips.

“Of course,” you said in a temper. “The faster we finish up the project, the faster you can get rid of me, right? Because you don’t like me.”

James’ smile dropped. Sadness gave way to rage. Of course, you still thought that even after all the time he spent with you.

“Yeah. I don’t like you,” he hissed, gritting his teeth. “So let’s complete the project, shall we? To get rid of each other?”

You looked away. It was the last thing you wanted to hear. You yearned for him to tell you otherwise, to apologize for his words, and to reassure you that it wasn’t so. That you two were something. Friends, companions, anything but this. Yet the bigger part of you told you that he was right. And you were nothing to him.

“Yeah, sure.”

-♡♡♡-

The following study session was tense. You two never worked quietly. Jokes, laughs, and incessant chatter filled the air when you were together. James had regretted his words as soon as they came out of his mouth. He watched your expression fall and a wall build up around you. Your eyes hadn’t met his since. It ate him up. Somehow he didn’t know how to break the bubble he created.

He hated seeing you close off to him.

You heaved a sigh checking the last lines you’d written and then looked at the clock. It had been two hours.

“I think we should stop. There are just two pages left, we can do them tomorrow and you’ll be free,” you said, packing up your things. James opened and closed his mouth as you picked up your bag.

“Hey, wait!” he said as you turned towards him.

“I didn’t mean to, “ James started, but you cut him off.

“James, it’s alright,” you said, taking a deep breath blinking away the tears that emerged. “I understand. You don’t like me, I don’t like you and we’re stuck together for some time. You don’t have to apologize for that.”

James sucked in a breath. That wasn’t right. At all.

“But—“

“There you are! I’ve been looking all over for you,” a voice came and you shifted to see Elodie. You looked over at James, whose eyes pleaded you to stop. But you couldn’t.

You left the library, walking towards your friend leaving behind the boy who stood transfixed at his spot. Why did he feel like he was losing everything? He grudgingly moved his feet towards the common room, your thoughts plaguing his mind. James heard a shout behind him, twisting to see Lily jog up to him.

“James, I was wondering,” she began biting her lip. “Maybe we could sneak out for some butterbeers today? It’s freezing and the snow looks heavenly.”

James found himself shaking his head. His mood was far too spoiled for anything.

“Not today, Lily,” he answered. “I’m tired.”

“Oh, I meant it as a date, you know?” Lily added hopefully. James considered her for a moment. It was everything he had wished for years. Yet he couldn’t feel the happiness that should have come with it. He wanted, no— he needed someone else, someone who made him far giddier. He needed you.

It was like a bolt striking him. He had never been so sure of anything else. Unable to keep the grin off his face, he spoke his next words in a rush.

“Lily, I’m sorry but I can’t,” he shouted, sprinting towards the dungeons. Running through the rather empty corridors he saw the snow which coated the grounds. His breath came out in puffs as he urged himself to move faster. He stopped when something caught his eye. You. Standing out in the snow, looking at the sky with a smile.

Moving towards you, he conjured up a snowball and threw it on your back. Your eyes widened in shock as you jumped, looking towards him.

“What now James?” you snapped.

He conjured up yet another ball and threw it at you. Your eyes grew larger and you glared at him.

“I wanted to say something,” he said as you conjured up a ball and threw it at him in response. He hissed at the icy sensation.

“Then say it.”

“I don’t want to get rid of you,” he said, throwing a snowball at you as your teeth clattered at the sensation. You threw a snowball in return, narrowing your eyes at him.

“Then stop acting as you do.”

He threw yet another ball at you.

“You make me act like that,” he stated. You threw a huge one in response.

“I make you act like an idiot?”

“Yes, you drive me crazy,” he said, throwing some snow at you as you grunted.

“Then why don’t you leave me alone?” you huffed as he threw yet another ball at you, making you cough and splutter.

“Because I can’t.”

“Why?” you asked, throwing a ball at him.

“Because I can’t leave the best thing that happened to me,” he said, making you stop. You stalked towards him and poked his chest with every word you spoke.

“I'm the best thing that happened to you? What is this? Some kind of sick prank? You don’t even like me,” you sobbed, frustrated and angry. That was how he made you feel. Everything all at once. James didn’t know how to answer you so he just took your hand away and cupped your cheek with his other one, leaning in to kiss you. Your eyes fell shut as feeling his lips against yours. You grabbed his shirt pulling him closer feeling his arms tighten around your hips, sucking his bottom lip. When you pulled away you both caught your breath.

“I promise those are the truest words I’ve ever said,” he whispered, his hair messier than usual. He cradled your face, pressing his lips against your forehead. You crossed your arms.

“I still don’t like you,” you said in faux anger. James let out a teary chuckle.

“I don’t like you either,” he replied, smiling.

—as for the taglist: I don’t make taglists, I have a blog @from-my-quill which is updated whenever I post fanfiction. You could have the notifications on for it and it will work just like me tagging you.

⟨⟨REBLOGS AND FEEDBACK ARE APPRECIATED⟩⟩

#james #james potter #james x reader #james potter x reader #james x y/n #james potter x y/n #the marauders #marauders #james x you #james potter x you #james potter fluff #james potter angst #lily evans #sirius black #remus lupin #james potter one shot #james potter fanfiction #from anu's quill

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fruitcoops · 3 years

Note

hiii i've just spent the last 36-48 hours reading your works and oh dear do i lOVE your writing and this universe :') . i dont know if you are taking requests but i think it would be kinda interesting (and low key hilarious) if you would write the lions reacting/reading thirst tweets? idk if this is a dumb idea or not but just like some of them reacting to them and going "well i'm actually gay/married so.. no!.. but thank you!"

Part two of the six-month celebration, everyone! Thank you thank you THANK YOU to everyone who submitted comments--I had over 60 come in, and while I couldn’t include them all, reading them was a true joy. The Lion Pride channel was something I started writing on a whim; I never expected it to grow like this <3 Much love to all of you!

TW for alcohol mentions and thirst tweets (nothing explicit)

“Why do I always fear for my life around you?” Sirius asked as Marlene settled into a cushy chair to the side of their table.

She smiled, catlike, and crossed her legs primly. “Because only Finn appreciates me.”

“That’s just the Aries connection, Cap,” Finn said with a smug grin.

“We’re both Leos, Harzy.”

“Eh, close enough.”

Remus raised an eyebrow at her. “You should probably start asking questions before this devolves further, Marley. He’s gonna keep digging himself a hole and we won’t get anything done.”

Marlene’s smile returned with a vengeance. “That’s where you’re wrong, Loops! We’re not doing any questions at all today.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Read it and weep.” She tossed a small posterboard at him like a frisbee; he caught it, barely, though both Talker and Sirius had to duck out of the way. Marlene faced the camera and winked. “Welcome back to Lion Pride, everyone! Today I’m here with Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, James Potter, Thomas Walker, and our wonderful cubs to react to your comments on our videos!”

“Bet you thought we’d never see ‘em, huh?” James asked.

“The comments fall into four categories: thirsty, funny, mean, and sweet. I will be reading two of those groups, and my lovely fiancée will be reading the others because she is the human embodiment of sunshine.”

“If you make Dorcas read the mean ones, I’ll be sad,” Leo laughed.

Marlene gave him a look of disbelief. “You think I’m passing up a chance to roast you guys? Puh-lease. We’re starting off strong with some thirsty, thirsty comments! Loops, you’re up first.”

“This is going to be fun,” Sirius said, leaning back in his chair.

She cleared her throat, then turned a smoldering look on their table. “I didn’t know I had a freckle kink, but then Remus Lupin appeared and now here we are.”

“Oh, shit,” Remus muttered, covering his face with his hands as the others howled with laughter.

“Lupin has been looking sexy as hell on the bench for years now. I'm so glad people are simping over him like he deserves,” Marlene read. “And there’s a little heart emoji, just for you.”

“This is every one of my nightmares come to life,” Remus said, though his voice was muffled by his forearms.

James lifted his glasses to swipe away the tears of mirth that had gathered in his eyes. “Are you kidding? This is everything I have ever wanted.”

“Y’know, it is so good to see people drooling over this hot piece of ass at last,” Finn sighed, reaching over to ruffle Remus’ hair as his face turned bright red.

“One more, and it’s a good one,” Marlene warned. She licked her lips, then had to take a moment to laugh before speaking. “I feel like Remus Lupin is the type of guy to bake you muffins—”

“Accurate,” Leo said.

“—but is also a kinky motherfucker.”

Remus’ mouth dropped open as the table erupted into cheering. Logan pumped both fists in the air and Sirius was laughing so hard no sound came out; Talker sank so low in his chair that only his head and shoulders were visible as he applauded.

“Why do people comment these things?” Remus asked, barely above a whisper. “Holy fuck, I’m engaged!”

“Speaking of…” Marlene raised her eyebrows and Sirius smile drooped.

“Oh, no.”

“Oh, yes. Buckle up, Cap!” She rolled her shoulders out. “Get someone who looks at you the way Sirius Black looks at a hockey puck.”

Remus snorted; James’ laugh was so short and sharp that it set everyone else off as well. “That sounds like I have a hockey puck fetish!” Sirius complained. “Which is so, so not true!”

Finn made an ‘ehh’ noise, and he leaned around Remus to smack the back of his head. “Hey!”

“Next one!” Marlene announced. “Sirius Black was my bi awakening.”

A beat of silence passed. “Is that it?” Sirius ventured, looking nervous.

“Yep.”

“Aw, man, that one’s lame,” Talker said, shaking his head. “Everyone thinks Cap is a little hot.”

Remus shot him a look. “A little?”

“Fair. Marley, I dare you to find one person who wouldn’t tap that.”

She rolled her eyes. “Me, though that dovetails nicely into the last one for our lovely captain. Ahem. I understand why Remus is with Sirius: he's hot as hell and rich, I'd hit that too.”

“Oh, fuck, you’re right,” Leo gasped. “Why didn’t I think of that?”

Finn and Logan turned to him in unison with a mix of disbelief and offense written all over their faces. “Dude.”

“First of all, Leo, you found yourself two hot rich boys,” Remus interrupted. “Second, that comment is forgetting that he’s funny, and smart, and nice, and—”

Seconds after the initial cover, Sirius took his hand off Remus’ mouth as if he’d been burned. “Did you just lick me?”

“Moving on! This is in all caps, so be prepared.” Marlene shuffled through her posterboards and turned to Leo with an ominous smile. He glanced toward the camera in mild fear. “What does a person have to do to get some hockey player ass?! Like why is Leo Knut so fine?!”

“Amen!” Logan called as Leo blushed.

“According to six of the seven people at this table, the answer to that first question is to be a hockey player,” Talker laughed. “The world may never know the answer to the second, sadly.”

“Lily could play hockey,” James said, resting his chin on his hand. Every single one of the others rolled their eyes. “She could! She’d be so good at it, too.”

“We know,” Finn groaned. “You only mention it every other day.”

“Speaking of the lovely Mrs. Potter,” Marlene began with a sly look as she held up a new card. “Do James and Lily Potter need a third? Asking for me specifically.”

James paused, dumbstruck, while the others drummed their hands on the table. “…no?”

A general sigh of disappointment went up. “I was really hoping he’d say yes,” Leo said.

“Ask Lily next time,” Remus recommended.

James turned to him and blinked slowly. “What are you insinuating, Loops?”

“Oh, nothing.”

“Don’t worry, James, you’ll like this one,” Marlene assured him. “James Potter is the ultimate dilf.”

“You’re damn right I am!” James whooped. “Vindication, bitches!”

“Marley, what have you done?” Talker whispered. “He’ll never shut up about that, now.”

“Oh, never,” James all but cackled. “I’m officially a dilf, you guys!”

“I hate you,” Sirius groaned.

“Tremzy, are you ready? We’ve got a couple very special ones for you,” Marlene said.

“Anything to get us out of this hell,” Logan begged.

“In that case: Logan Tremblay’s ass is better than Sidney Crosby’s. I said what I said.”

A pleased flush rose to his cheeks as Finn and Leo high-fived over his head. “Really? Thank you!”

“And they would be correct!” Finn announced. “Best ass in the league.”

“Come on,” Remus scoffed, though he was smiling.

Marlene cleared her throat to get their attention. “I don’t think I can legally read this on air without being censored or getting the video taken down, but…”

She turned the board around; all seven of them leaned forward to read it, then slowly looked at Logan, who turned vivid red. “Mon dieu. Is that—someone commented that on a video? Like, for people to see?”

“I feel like I need to bleach my eyes,” Sirius said just as Finn began shaking with silent laughter.

Leo’s face fell. “You wrote that, didn’t you?”

“I did,” Finn wheezed, scooting forward to fist-bump Marlene. “We wanted to see what you guys would say. Fuckin’ hell, your faces.”

“Alright, Talkie, are you ready?” Marlene asked around her laughter. “Seeing Thomas Walker with a baby makes me want to have his babies…please hit me up.”

He held up his index finger and took a second to laugh before responding. “If that’s Noelle, yes. If that’s anyone else, I’m flattered, but absolutely not.”

Logan made a face. “Ew.”

“We have two more,” Marlene warned. “For some very special people that aren’t here today, but I think you’ll like them anyway.”

Sirius narrowed his eyes. “I don’t trust the look on your face.”

“Daddy Dumo makes me swoon.”

A muddle of horrified noises echoed through the studio as all seven of them cringed. “Oh, my god, that’s my dad!” Logan yelped, covering his ears. Sirius looked vaguely ill and Remus’ shoulders crept toward his ears; James shuddered.

“The worst part is, we all know he can get it,” Finn said with a grimace. “God, I feel like I just heard someone talking about my parents having sex.”

“I’m sure he’ll love to hear that,” Marlene laughed. “Last one, from one of our truth or drinks.”

Remus went pale half a second too late. “N—”

“Hope Lupin is a milf.”

A broken noise escaped his mouth and he clamped his hand over it while Talker rubbed his back in sympathy. Sirius shook his head. “Somehow, that’s worse than Dumo’s.”

“Whoever sent that in, show some respect!” Leo said indignantly as Remus bonked his forehead against the table. “Hope Lupin is a lovely woman!”

“I think they noticed that particular fact,” Marlene pointed out, earning herself several scandalized shouts of her name and a whine from Remus. “That’s all we have for thirst comments! Are you ready for some funny ones?”

“Anything,” Remus pleaded. “I am begging you, anything else.”

Marlene shook her head as she stood, still smiling, and kissed Dorcas on the cheek when she entered the frame. “Go for it, love.”

“Dorcas!” they all cheered, lighting up immediately.

“Hey, guys, it’s been a while!” She curled up in Marlene’s vacant spot and took her own posterboards out from underneath the seat. “Alright, let’s rock and roll. Pascal Dumais is the team dad and nothing will change my mind, and Tremzy is the annoying youngest child.”

“That is so accurate,” Sirius laughed, leaning just out of range of Logan’s playful punch. “Whoever commented that has no idea how right they are.”

“We’ve got a whole sibling dynamic thing going on,” Talker agreed. “Tremzy’s the baby of the family, Cap is the quietly chaotic middle child, and Pots is the older brother that starts shit and inevitably gets blamed for however out-of-control it gets.”

Dorcas nodded. “You are one hundred percent correct. In a similar vein: Pots was the dad jokes friend before he was even a dad.”

“Painfully so,” Leo confirmed, shaking his head as they all groaned in agreement. James looked rather smug about the whole thing. “So many puns.”

“Oh, you’ll like this one,” Dorcas mused as she drew a new card. “If Tremzy looked directly into my eyes for even two seconds, all of my problems would be solved. I am sure of it.”

“Yes,” Finn and Leo said in unison.

“It’s something about the eyes, I think,” James added. “They just stand out so much that it’s a little startling straight-on.”

Logan looked to the camera and stared at it, unblinking; it zoomed in slightly on his face. “Everything will be fine,” he said with mock solemnity. “Your problems are solved.”

“Well, that was terrifying,” Sirius said drily. “Got any more for us, Ms. Meadowes?”

“Of course I do! We’ve got quite a few for Loops and Leo.” She took a sip of her water before getting comfortable again. “My favorite thing about these videos is that we can all see Loops get steadily buffer as the season goes on. Good for you, king!”

“Flex! Flex! Flex!” the six of them chanted; Remus rolled his eyes, but slid his sweater sleeve to his elbow and flexed his forearm, resulting in enough hoots and hollers that they could probably be heard a block away. Talker fake-swooned into Leo’s arms and Remus lightly whacked him on the shoulder.

“Remus Lupin looks like he has squishable cheeks,” Dorcas read aloud.

“He does!” James cooed, scooting over and reaching out.

Remus narrowed his eyes. “I swear to god I’ll bite you.”

Sirius cupped his face between his palms and kissed his nose, then pinched both his cheeks gently. “Ta-da!”

“How many of these do we have?” Remus asked, though his voice was a bit muffled by Sirius’ hands.

“Just one more for you, and it’s my personal favorite.” Dorcas assured him. “I love how the team probably had no impulse control until Loops joined.”

Sirius let go of his face and dissolved into laughter as Finn nearly fell on the floor. “Oh my—you think he has impulse control?” Talker slapped the edge of the table as he shook his head. “Absolutely not. Hell no, Loops is the first person to do stupid shit with us.”

“Yeah, I just don’t get caught,” Remus added around his own laughter. “Everyone thinks I’m such a hardass goody-two-shoes and it lets me get away with so much more than you delinquents.”

“Speaking of delinquents,” Dorcas continued. “This one is from our ‘Taste Testing Sexy Alcohol’ video: ah, yes, now I know how to do a body shot. 10/10, very educational video.”

“Do not take educational advice from us,” Finn blurted instantly. “I know this is a joke, but please exercise caution. That video was a ton of fun but a nightmare to recover from.”

Sirius winced at the memory. “I took two naps and then wished for death for a full day.”

“On a lighter note, who’s ready for some Knutty appreciation?” Dorcas smiled at her cards. “I've only had Leo Knut for a season and half, but if anything happened to him, I would kill everyone in this room and then myself.”

“Big mood,” four of them said simultaneously.

Leo turned to the camera with a concerned look on his face. “That’s a meme reference, but are y’all okay?”

“No,” Dorcas answered. “Especially not this next person: Sometimes I do something productive and then I remember @LeoKnut is a 19 year old professional athlete who radiates happiness and with two of the hottest boyfriends the good lord has made, and then my bowl of packaged ramen seems less impressive.”

“I’m proud of your ramen,” Leo said, even as the corners of his mouth twitched in a smile. “And I appreciate the note about my boyfriends, because they are definitely the hottest people the good lord has made.”

Talker stuck his lip out in a pout. “Rude.”

“Sorry, Talkie, I’m biased.”

“Last one before Marlene comes back, so you’d better enjoy it!” Dorcas announced. “Did the Lions effectively utilize girl power when they wrecked toxic masculinity, yes or yes?”

“Can we utilize girl power?” Remus wondered, resting his shin on his hand. “Isn’t that exclusively for, y’know, women?”

“We can utilize himbo power,” Finn suggested.

James gave him an offended look. “Not all of us are himbos!”

“Okay, but you definitely are.”

“I am not!” James held up his fingers to count. “There are only, like, three qualifications, right? I might be strong, hot, and respectful, but I’m not dumb so it doesn’t count!”

“Pots,” Remus said quietly, hiding his smile for half a second. “Buddy, that was four things.”

James paused, then sighed in resignation. “Ah, fuck, I’m a himbo.”

“You really are.”

“At least we don’t promote toxic masculinity.”

They raised their waterbottles in a ‘cheers’ motion as Marlene and Dorcas switched spots; Marlene stretched her arms over her head and grabbed the new boards. “I’m back, beloved himbos. Talker, Leo, you are beloved by the people and have no mean comments. Cap, we’re starting with you.”

“Are they actually mean mean?” he asked.

“Sirius Black seems like a little bitch. Not in a bad way, necessarily. He just. Seems like he'd be a little bitch."

Sirius raised his eyebrows. “Oh, okay. That answers one question.”

“He’s not a little bitch,” Leo said. “Pouty on occasion, but not a little bitch.”

Remus gave him a long look, then shook his head. “Yeah, I mean, you teared up a little when Hattie got a splinter in her paw but didn’t even yell when you almost sliced your finger off while making dinner.”

“Duality of man,” Finn said sagely.

Marlene cocked an eyebrow. “Finn O’Hara’s hair kind of reminds me of Garfield the Cat.”

“Alright, that’s just rude.”

“It does not!” Logan gasped at the same time Leo made a noise of agreement.

Finn turned to him in utter betrayal. “Nutter Butter, I thought you liked my hair!”

“I do!” Leo defended. “But they’re not entirely wrong. It’s very orange in the sun.”

“I’m never going to forget that,” Finn muttered, staring at the floor.

“Ugh, it bothers me so much that Lupin just objectifies Black all the time!” Marlene read in a high-pitched, nasal voice. “No respect in that relationship!”

Sirius raised his eyebrows. “Pardon?”

Marlene stared at it for a moment, then shrugged. “Yeah, I have no idea what videos they were watching. Do you feel objectified in your relationship, Cap? I know the opinion of total strangers really bothers you a lot.”

“I’m really glad you picked up on that,” he said with false gravity. “Yeah, it’s such a bummer when my hot fiancé says I look nice. Such a blow to my self-esteem.”

“That was supposed to be a roast against me,” Remus said, looking amused. “Talk about backfiring.”

“Are you ready, Pots? This one’s pretty brutal,” Marlene warned. James nodded and Finn linked their hands for moral support. “James Potter is a swiftie and you cannot tell me otherwise.”

He furrowed his eyebrows. “…yeah? That’s true? T Swift is a regular occurrence on the locker room playlist.”

“Also, James Potter looks like someone who would think black pepper was spicy.”

“Now that one is mean,” he complained as the others burst out laughing. “It’s not my fault I have sensitive taste buds!”

“Oh, honey,” she said under her breath as she took a new card. “Get ready, Tremzy. This first one is short and sweet: Logan Tremblay looks like a lesbian.”

“That is not an insult,” Logan laughed. “Every lesbian I know is rad as fuck. I wish I looked that good in a leather jacket.”

“I just realized Logan doesn’t look short cause he’s next to bunch of hockey players, he’s short cause he’s 5’9.”

The smile slipped off his face in a millisecond as the others roared with laughter. “Quoi?”

“Oh, she got you good,” Sirius gasped, patting his shoulder clumsily. “Holy fuck, can I frame that?”

“That’s not what it says.” An edge of distress appeared in Logan’s voice. “Marley, that’s not what it says.”

James sat on the floor with the heels of his palms pressed against his eyes. “You’re fucking—whoever sent that in, you are my new favorite person. Jesus.”

“Do you need a second to recover before we move on?” Dorcas asked as she draped her arms over the back of Marlene’s chair. “The next one is our biggest section by far.”

“It’s the sweet ones, yeah?” Leo asked.

“Right.”

“It might be a good idea to do those before Lo spontaneously combusts.”

“Agreed!” She swapped with Marlene and hauled a short stack of posterboards out from their hiding place with a smile. “A hug from Dumo can probably solve any issue.”

“Facts,” Logan said. “I could really use one right about now, too.”

“Has anyone noticed how blue Leo Knut’s eyes are?”

“Yes,” the six of them chorused.

Finn gave him a dreamy look. “Every single day.”

“When I first read this one, I thought I wrote it,” Dorcas said with a snort. “Someone give Marlene a raise. No reason why, I just love her.”

“Can we do that?” Sirius asked, looking toward the camera crew. “Can we lobby to give you guys raises? Because you definitely deserve it after all the bullshit you deal with to make these videos watchable, and Marlene, you’ve drawn the short end of the stick ninety percent of the time.”

“How?” she called off-screen.

“You have to actually talk to us and try to get answers.”

“Fair.”

Dorcas finished scribbling something down on her notepad. “Just making a note of this conversation for future reference. Moving on! Sirius Black and James Potter are a prime example of hockey husbands, and I adore them.”

“The ironic part of that is that we’re both in committed relationships, but we’re basically married,” James mused.

Remus shook his head. “You guys are so married. Lily wanted to get you matching rings for your birthday, Pots.”

“That would be so cool!” they said in perfect unison. Remus turned to the camera and spread his hands in a case in point motion.

Dorcas stifled her laughter before moving on. “This one is cute. Give Remus Lupin all the hugs! I feel like I could tell him he’s an inspiration and he’d be so nice about it—” She paused to glance up at them. “—this next bit is in parentheses: all the LGBT Lions give me that vibe, but Cap and Knutty are super intimidating so I wouldn’t have the guts.”

Leo’s face fell and Sirius’ eyebrows pitched. “I’m not intimidating!” Leo protested. “I thought we already went over that! Loops gives fantastic hugs, but I want some, too.”

“He definitely deserves all the hugs in the world, but I promise I’m nice,” Sirius said, a bit softer than usual. “Is it because we’re tall?”

Dorcas half-shrugged. “Probably. It’s a little startling at first. Oh, I could’ve written this one, too: The Venn diagram of men I trust and the Gryffindor Lions is a full circle.”

Talker beamed at the camera. “Thank you!”

“So many hockey guys are such douchebags,” Logan said with a shake of his head. “I’m really glad we don’t do that shit.”

“Me, too.” Dorcas slid her old card under her chair. “Sirius Black’s hair looks so soft and I just want to touch it so bad.”

“It is so soft,” Remus agreed immediately. “You have no idea.”

“Everyone wants to touch Cap’s hair,” Finn said, sighing. “It’s so majestic.”

“I need a haircut.”

“No, you don’t,” Remus said as he tugged a stray curl. Sirius hummed.

“This one is from the interview some you did with Jules and Katie: these hockey boys being so soft with kids is my aesthetic! Like, it’s just so adorable to see these big, intimidating dudes be so, so sweet! Love them all!” She turned the card for them to see. “And then they added a heart at the end.”

“It’s impossible to be around those kids and not be happy,” James said. “They’re just too cute and wonderful.”

“Yeah, I love kids.” Finn nodded. “Especially the Dumais and Jules. They’re a hoot.”

“Jules would die if he heard you say that,” Remus laughed. “The hero worship is still going strong with most of you.”

“This one made me laugh when I first read it, but it’s really sweet,” Dorcas informed them. “Anyone else feel like we were deceived these past five years into thinking Cap was this hard-ass man, when in reality he's a cuddle bug who definitely captures and releases spiders instead of squishing them?”

“You weren’t deceived, I was just closeted,” Sirius said. “Also, I absolutely squish spiders.”

Remus gave him a look. “No, you do not. That’s my job. I’m the catch and release person if I can get away with it.”

James shook his head. “The third week of practices you saw a spider and threw me at it.”

“You did what?” Finn asked.

“There was a spider in my stall,” Sirius sighed, looking as if he would rather be anywhere else. “And Pots and I were talking so I didn’t see it until I almost sat on it, and my brain decided the only logical thing to do would be to grab him and shove him toward the spider.”

“That was after you shrieked,” Talker added. “Like, literally shrieked. I’ve never heard anyone make a noise like that.”

“Alright, alright,” Sirius grumbled. “We get it, I don’t like spiders.”

Remus shrugged. “But you are a cuddle bug. They got that part right.”

“We’re in the final two!” Dorcas announced. “This one has some pictures to go with it, so it’s on my phone. Fuck Romeo and Juliet, I want what these bitches have.”

“It’s us!” Leo cooed as the phone made its way down the line. In the upper corner of the screen, the photo appeared—it had been taken in New York, and Logan’s whole face was alight with happiness as Leo and Finn each pressed a kiss to his cheek. The camera caught him mid-laugh, so his eyes were closed and his chin was tucked slightly into Finn’s Strand hoodie.

“That’s my screensaver,” Finn said with a grin, pulling his phone out and turning it toward the camera without moving away from Leo. “One of my favorites.”

“I forgot you took that one,” Logan murmured. He hooked his chin over Leo’s shoulder and kissed his cheek; the four others at the table gave soft are you seeing this? looks to the camera and Dorcas smiled.

“Pots, I think yours is next. I hate to break it to you, Talkie, but they didn’t get any of you and Noelle.”

“We don’t take a ton of pictures together,” Talker said as James took the phone. “I mean, we take a bunch of selfies, but we don’t live close enough to each other to actually post that often. What picture is it, J?”

James was staring down at the picture with an unbearably sweet expression. “It’s our wedding. That’s my favorite one, actually.”

Like Logan, they had been captured while laughing—Lily was bent slightly at the waist as James clapped, his glasses just as askew as the flower crown on her head. It was impossible to tell who had told the joke originally, but they were both radiant in the sunset.

“That’s a really good one,” Sirius said with an unreadable look on his face.

“Well, well, well, fancypants, you two got a video.” James wiggled his eyebrows and Remus leaned in to see.

“What kind of video? One of our tikt—oh. Oh, this is so cute.” He shifted his chair over as the short edit began to play. “D, who made this?”

“A fan.”

“It’s really impressive,” Sirius said without taking his eyes off the screen. The edit was a series of photos, both on and off the ice; Sirius knocking their helmets together, then Remus looking back over his shoulder, then both of them in the water playing chicken in the sun. It was a slideshow of their life and their love.

“Can you send that to me?” Remus asked when it was over. “Cause that’s super cool.”

“Sure thing. Are you guys ready for the last one?” When they all nodded, she drummed her fingers on the posterboard and cleared her throat. “Arthur appreciation hours. He deserves it after managing to control the team.”

A cheer went up—all seven stood and applauded, half-laughing and half-whooping. “Miracle worker!” Sirius called.

“Best coach in the league!” Finn added.

“Most tolerant man to ever walk the earth!” Remus raised his water in a toast and they tapped the plastic edges together, nearly spilling all over the table.

Dorcas’ eyes crinkled in a smile as she turned to the camera. “That’s it for today, Lions! Tune in next time for more content of our boys, and thank you for such wonderful comments!”

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sabugabr · 2 years

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"Eternals" is not a bad movie — it just doesn't look like a Marvel movie (1/2)

And honestly? I'M HERE FOR IT

So, after seeing all the polemics unfolds regarding this movie, I've finally watched it, and having watched it, I went and read all those bad reviews again and, boy...

We need to talk about some things.

You see, Eternals (2021) was a very divisive movie even before it came out. Racists were mad, homophobics were mad, some other people were also mad, the movie was banned from premiering in some countries, and when it did premiered, some critics were all over it, and it received some pretty bad reviews, and... it was a lot.

A huge amount of the reviews were just plainly complaining about the representativeness of minorities. I found SO MANY coments like:

"I DON'T KNOW IF THERE WAS A MINIMUM AGE REQUIRED, WHEN I FRONTED SEVERAL SUBLIMINARY MESSAGES, REACHING FROM THE CREATION OF THE WORLD AND BABYLON ITSELF, IN WORSHIP TO SEVERAL GODS." [...] "I SAW IN THE MOVIE EVERYTHING I DON'T WANT FOR MY CHILDREN AND GRAND CHILDREN, IN THE STORY CREATED BY THE AUTHOR, HE MAKES MANY BIBLICAL REFERENCES, AND REGIONAL AND RELIGIOUS CUSTOMS, BRINGING CONFUSION AND PERVERTING THE GOOD FAMILY VALUES. IN MY TIME, WE KNEW WHO WAS THE VILLAIN AND THE GOOD GUY, NOW THERE IS THE EVIL SHOWING ITSELF IN THE FORM OF A DEMON BEING THE INNOCENT, GAY COUPLES AND CHILDREN WITHOUT THEIR IDENTITY, MALE OR FEMALE DEFINED😬." — by An Asshole, read the full comment here if you have the stomach for it

I swear to God, that guy wrote the whole thing all in Caps Lock, and the full text was like, HUGE — this is just one part of it. I almost pissed myself reading this absurd. The emojis just... kills me.

There is also a lot of pearls like "The boredom and superficiality of the representation will soon make us have an elderly, obese, black, oriental and transsexual character to not leave anyone out." And even like, professional critics (like the ~cof cof~ white men in the ~cof cof~ Rotten Tomates) were complaining? ANYWAY YOU GOT THE POINT

So, before watching it, I was avoiding more specific reviews because I didn't want any spoilers, so I really thought the bad ones were just disgusting people ranting, you know? But then when I went to the specifics, I found a lot of videos and articles going on the line of "Eternals is messy", "it just doesn't make sense", "has a lot of plot holes", and then I had to stop what I was doing to politely desagree.

I think that what frustrated those people was the fact that they expected a standart Marvel-like movie. And honestly, if you go watch it with that expectation, I get why one might be disappointed. This movie didn't right-on followed the Marvel formula, and actually that's why it works in my opinion.

I really liked this movie, a lot. So I'd like to discuss here some of the topics this reviews adress, and dissect this points of the movie in it's defense, because I think that, have they made a standart Marvel movie for the Eternals, it would just be bad. And second, I think the kind of backlash this movie of all Marvel movies is getting, is very, very telling.

BUT ANYWAY it goes without saying, but there'll be some SPOILERS ahead. Especially for the 2006 comic by Neil Gaiman.

So without further ado...

WHERE THE HELL DID IT COME FROM

Well, when they announced this movie, I could bet that most part of people were, like, Eternals who???? Even comic fans might have though it was kind of random, and I really get that. It makes sense that they're not that well-known, because the stories with them were initially pretty self-focused and independent, and there aren't that many comics about them overall.

So, first I'd like to state that I'm a huge fan of the Eternals in the comics. I think I've read pretty much every issue they feature in? I really like them. So when I saw the announcement for this movie, first I got really tense (bc I don't trust Disney, sue me), but after seeing the first teasers and plot reveals, I thought "Oh, they're goin with the Gaiman plot!". And now, having watched it, I still think that's the source they drinked most from;

Of course they took a lot from other Eternal comics, but for my point here I'll be taking the contextualization of this post on the 2006 comic written by Neil Gaiman and ilustrated by John Romita.

(and you can desagree with me anytime btw, this is a safe space, my doves)

So, if you've never heard of it, there's a 7-issues comic by Gaiman and Romita that focus on the Eternals:

This wonderful work of art

It's a very "closed" story, it doesn't really mix with any other event in the Marvel Universe (as were all the Eternals plots when Jack Kirby created them), but it takes place more or less after the Superhero Registration Act, so if it were to be applied to the MCU it would probably be around the same time as the events of Captain America: Civil War (2016), or right after it.

To make matters short, the story follows Mark, a very nice, common guy who works at a hospital and suddenly catchs himself having very weird dreams. He dreams of battles and long-lost tales, and he dreams he's a god. And then, he gets the visits of a strange man in a overcoat appearing at his window, asking him weird questions and apparently, they were dreaming the same dream.

It is very Neil Gaiman-ish

You can feel American Gods vibes pouring from it. And then, obviously, Mark discovers he is actually and Eternal named Makkari, and that the weird flying dude is Ikaris, and that all Eternals had lost their memories and were living on Earth thinking they were human. And their backstory goes very much like the movie tells:

But here, the Eternals were made from a hominids, "proto-human", species, and the Celestials actually helped against the Deviants, and they have these "judgments" going on: basically, if they find a species worth it, they "allow" this species to evolve. And, of course, the leader of the Eternals is Zuras, not Ajax (also, Ikaris made a little historical mistake there, and Makkari was actually called Toth, not Osiris, but minor detail, they call it out later)

So they all find each other, Makkaris is reunited with Sersi, his long-life love partner, Sersi is a party planner and she like, plans this party for the Soviets and Druig is the Sovietic Prime-Minister (...?), Tony Stark is there, Thena works for him as a weapon scientist, Sprite is like a Disney-Channel star, Zuras is homeless, anyway

Mark finds out this was all Sprite's ~ plan ~ to turn them all into humans because he got tired of being a kid and he wanted to grow up (and get laid). Meanwhile, the Deviants were planning to wake up the "Dreaming Celestial", who was there chilling, sleeping on Earth and could destroy the planet if awaken so they were doing that.

BUT THEN their plans all get frustrated because Mark is a very nice guy, so he gets bffs with the Dreaming Celestial and therefore the Celestial decides to not destroy Earth, but instead They (yes I'll use They-Them for the Celestials, sue me p. 2) will stay low and judge everyone to see if Earth is worth saving. So They make Makkari Their prophet and peace out.

And I swear, it gives me chills everytime how They call the mutants "The Changing People". This comic is very, VERY beautiful, and I highly recommend you read it (I linked it there above).

Like, it has the action scenes and you know it's Marvel, Tony Stark is there being not useful and rich, but both Romita's art style and Gaiman's poetic writing give this comic a very "mythological" vibe. It really feels (to me, at least) like they are not just superheroes, you know? They are so off, and so orbitant of the "mundane" events, that it really feels like "ok, this is another shit". Not because they are "stronger" or some God-Ex-Machine stuff like that, but because they are just a different kind. If it were mixed with, idk, the Avengers appearing, to me it would just turn this plot into some "bigger threat Marvel-style" thing.

IT'S JUST BEAUTIFUL

And this is even more effective because we have Tony there, being our human rep on the situation, a superhero that is caught up into the middle of this gods interacting and there's nothing he can do so he's just watching and going "Jesus Christ what the actual fuck" as we all would.

And maybe that's a very singular opinion, but I really think that Gaiman managed to tell a story of people in the modern days and still evoke the vibe of "yes, these are the characters that influenced all the archetic constructions of the mythologies of Western societies", "yes, we know these characters because their archetypes are engraved in our collective imaginary". You know?

I think that once you know the comic plot, is very obvious that the movie took a lot from it, from general plot choices to some minor details that made me go all cheered up in the movie theater (like, Sersi also turns a Deviant into a tree, and they also try to create the Uni-Mind to connect to the Celestial and things like that). I dare to say that this was intentionally made.

I think that it makes sense to adapt from Gaiman's comics, because it's the most popular one. Most people discovered the Eternals through Gaiman, myself included. And I really think that the reason it works so well is because they worked on the poetics, on the archetypal, on the mythological. The Eternals really feel like they are something else. And I really think the movie manage to replicate this vibe.

And knowing how impossible this plot would be to adapt into the current state of the MCU, I think the movie did a pretty good job telling this story. In many ways, I even liked some movie choices better.

So, about the movie >>>

#eternals #the eternals #eternal spoilers #spoilers #marvel #marvel eternals #and for god's sake just let us have the damn representation???#I'm a latina lesbian I'm done with the male straight leads thank you very much #neil gaiman #makkaris #mcu #and I'm also done with the girlsboss feminism they tried to sell us with Capitain Marvel #pls just let us have angelina petting that iguana #it's all we're asking here sir

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