#okay this was a really fun idea on poppy's part actually

[mostcertainlynotcis]

TRICK OR TREATTTTTT

"Oh my god, Poppy wasn't kidding," says a man with an Australian accent as he pokes his head out of the door. He has long, curly hair and golden wings. "There really are trick-or-treaters this year!"

He steps outside and closes the door behind him, rooting through his pockets and spinning around comically.

"Ahah!" he says triumphantly, spinning to face you again. "Stickers? Do you like stickers?" He holds out several small stickers, which seem to have characters on them. A few that look like him, but are red, blue, and purple, and some that seem inspired by gothic horror - you can tell one is Dracula, and another is Frankenstein's monster.

"Eh, I'll just-" He dumps them into your bucket. "Oh! And-" He pulls a loose feather from one of his wings and tucks it behind your ear.

"Hope that's good. Happy Halloween!" He gives you a small wave, and then heads back inside.

#asked and answered #galaxy-starshine #okay this was a really fun idea on poppy's part actually #stardust.txt #stardust.writing

[sarafinamk]

Fallen Angel (Reader Insert) Incorrect Quotes Part 3

The Smiling Critters Space Riders Au and the character "Z" belongs to @onyxonline

If you haven't checked out the Fallen Angel (Reader Insert) series, you can check it out here. The reader will be referred to as both (Y/n) and Archangel. Enjoy!

Warning: Cursing

----------

Bobby: Don't break someone's heart, they only have one.

Archangel: Break one of their bones instead, they have 206 of them.

----------

Crafty: Do you guys ever have a civilized conversation that doesn't require insulting each other every time you get a chance?

Z: No.

Archangel: No.

Crafty: Didn't think so.

----------

Archangel: I've invited you here because I crave the deadliest game...

Hoppy, nodding: Knife Monopoly.

Archangel: I was actually going to play Russian Roulette, but now I'm really interested in whatever knife Monopoly is.

----------

Archangel: I found a note in one of my old logs that said Note to self: Get revenge on Captain Dogday.

Archangel: Except I couldn't remember what I was supposed to get revenge for.

Archangel: But I trusted my own judgment, so I went with it.

Dogday: Hmm... I don't know what you were supposed to get revenge for, either.

Archangel: I can only assume you got what was coming to you. Not 100 percent sure, though.

Dogday: Well, whatever I did, I guess I deserved it.

Archangel: Let that possibly be a lesson to you.

----------

Archangel: The only thing keeping me from running away and hiding from society for the rest of my life is spite. I could disappear forever, but there are some bitches whose downfalls I have yet to witness, and I wanna be around when that happens.

----------

Poppy: Your archangel was in a fight.

Dogday: Oh no, that's terrible!

Catnap: Did they win?

----------

Dogday: Did Z just tell me he loved me for the first time?

Archangel: Yeah, he did.

Dogday: And did I just do finger guns back?

Archangel: Yeah, you did.

----------

Archangel, watching Hoppy do something stupid: Kickin, you're officially only the second highest risk here...

Kickin: Hell yeah! I'm gonna-

Archangel: Don't finish that sentence, you'll move back up.

----------

Archangel: How do ethical philosophers feel about murder?

Bubba: Well, it's frowned upon.

Archangel: Okay, but what if the reason you want to murder someone is to make your life easier?

Archangel: That's okay, right?

----------

Bobby: And now for a gay update with Captain Dogday and Z.

Dogday: Getting gayer.

Bobby: Thank you, Captain.

----------

Bubba to Archangel: We call that a traumatic experience.

Bubba, turning to Catnap: Not a "bruh moment."

Bubba, turning to Kickin: Not "sadge."

Bubba, turning to Hoppy: And DEFINITELY not an "oof LMAO."

----------

Archangel: Why do you look like that, Captain?

Dogday, laying face-first on the floor: Like what?

Archangel: Like you're dead.

Dogday: It's because I'm dying. Leave me here to perish.

Catnap: Dogday accidentally called Z "babe" in front of everyone today.

Dogday: *sobs into the floor*

----------

Archangel: What's this?

Bobby, hugging Archangel: Affection!

Archangel: Disgusting.

Archangel:... Do it again.

----------

Kickin: You know, (Y/n), when you generalize, you tell general... lies.

Archangel: ...

Archangel: Are you trying to teach me moral lessons through puns?

----------

*One of the many, MANY fights before the events of Fallen Angel*

Dogday: You tricked me!

Archangel: I deceived you. 'Trick' makes it sound like we have a friendly relationship.

----------

Archangel: Here's a fun Christmas idea. We hang mistletoe, but instead of kissing, you have to FIGHT whoever else is under it.

Dogday: (Y/n), no.

Hoppy and Catnap: Mistlefoe.

Dogday: Please stop encouraging them.

----------

Archangel: I have a plan.

Dogday: No murder!

Archangel: ...

Dogday: ...

Archangel: I no longer have a plan.

----------

Archangel: If I die, you can have what little I own.

Bobby: Wait. What do you mean "if" you die?

Archangel: My unending existence is fueled by pure spite, that of which the painful experiences of life have rendered me full.

Bobby:

Bubba, sighing: Let me call your therapist again.

----------

Archangel: I'm bored, any suggestions?

Catnap: Sleeping is nice.

Archangel: I acknowledge your suggestion, and I'm deciding to ignore it.

----------

Hoppy: You think you're smarter than everyone else.

Bubba: I don't think I'm smarter than everyone else. I know I am.

----------

Kickin: So, I MEANT to say: "Oh crap, I left my phone my car," but what I ALMOST said was "Oh no, I left my cone in my phar," and damn, wouldn't that have been embarrassing, but I caught myself, and what I ACTUALLY said was:

Kickin: "Ah, my fart cone."

Kickin: So, anyway...

----------

Archangel: I know you don't have to listen to me...

Z: Glad we agree on something.

----------

Dogday: Do you have any skeletons in your closet?

Archangel: You mean literally or figuratively?

Dogday: Honestly, the fact that I have to specify...

----------

Dogday: (Y/n), I am questioning your sanity...

Hoppy: I never questioned it. I knew their sanity was missing from the start.

----------

Catnap: Why is Hoppy rolling on the floor laughing? And what happened to Kickin's head?

Archangel, sighing: Kickin was about to hit his head on the door frame, so I told him to duck and he quacked at me.

Archangel: And then he hit his head.

Catnap: *wheezes*

#poppy playtime #space riders au #dogday #catnap #hoppy hopscotch #kickinchicken #bubba bubbaphant #bobby bearhug #craftycorn #picky piggy #poppyplaytime au #poppy playtime oc #poppy playtime smiling critters #smiling critters au #smiling critters #x reader #poppy playtime x reader #poppy playtime dogday #poppy playtime catnap #smiling critters x reader #platonic #dogday x oc #incorrect quotes #reader insert #gn reader #gender neutral reader #crack post #crack fanfic #crack fic #shitpost

[deus-and-the-machina]

MCYT Yuri week - day 5, rare pair

day late for @mcyt-yuri-week but it's okay. I dedicate this one to my friend @rachelsquill because I know she really likes this pairing :D yadda yadda its on ao3 please go kudos and comment if you can.

Gem had been looking to the end of the week every day now. Her special guest, fellow princess Katherine, was coming over for tea and pastries and she was bursting at the seams. 

The other empires were lovely, sure, but they weren’t always on the same wavelength. From the moment she’d met Katherine, she’d known that their princess personas would get along swimmingly. Both of them valued nature, aesthetically pleasing builds, and pretty dresses. It didn’t hurt that Katherine was clearly strong, her well toned arms laid bare with her strapped dress. 

Gem could usually handle herself, but this princess character wasn’t really a fighter. Having not only a fellow princess, but an ally who could be her knight in shining armor, well that was a tempting prospect. 

The day of their meeting, Gem went about her house getting things in order. Usually the small sun forged creatures she’d created to populate Dawn would help tidy things up, but she wanted to do it herself today just to make sure things were exactly in place. 

Dusting off chairs, placing tablecloths and setting the table, she did it all. But the best part of it all was the baking. While several kettles were set on the stove to boil (because you could never have enough), she opened the large tome of a cookbook gifted to her by Sausage and decided to follow a poppy seed lemon bread recipe. It had a honey glaze on top, and Gem could think of no better gesture to show off the primary resource of her empire. 

It was a surprisingly soothing process. Gem stirred the batter while humming, thinking of potential conversation topics. Perhaps Katherine would want to talk trade or economics? Trade maybe, but no definitely not economics. Katherine did not have the air of one interested in such matters. They could discuss combat, but Gem’s character wasn’t meant to have any interest in such things. 

She was sure she’d figure something out. Conversations were best when they were natural, after all. 

The bread was placed in the oven, then topped with the glaze, then placed on the windowsill. It was ten minutes til, and Gem scuffled about to get everything ready. The table was outside, but close to the door of her house so she could easily make the trip to the kettle. The little round table covered with a sun print tablecloth was decorated with a tasteful vase, teacups on platters next to small plates for the poppy seed bread, yellow napkins with orange stripes at the borders, and a small bowl of tea bags in the center. There were several kinds available. Gem figured it would be fun to rummage around in the bowl for a bit, searching for one’s favorite kind.

Before she knew it, the time was upon her. Princess Katherine strolled into Dawn chipper as ever. She carried a basket on one arm, which she extended to Gem in greetings. “Thank you so much for inviting me! It’s just some flowers, but hopefully they’ll make for some nice dyes, or just decoration!”

Gem smiled back and thanked her profusely before leading her to the table. “So!” she began, heart in her throat. “Katherine. What have you been up to lately?” A bit casual, but personal.

She bounced her foot, seemingly in excitement. “Oh, it’s been great! Actually,” she looked around conspiratorially. “You remember what I told you about my secret?”

“Your monster hunter one? Yes I remember.”

“Shhh! Not so loud!” Katherine couldn’t help but giggle even as she said it. “Well…I was thinking that it’s maybe not such a good idea for me to be going out by myself so often, you know?” She peeled off a glove to show Gem her hand. There was a rather long cut on the back of it. It was mostly healed now, but the edges looked puckered, as if it would scar.

Concern pooled in her stomach. “Did a creature do that?”

“No actually, I scraped my hand on a tree branch.”

“Oh. Wait, why would that make you ask for help?”

She fiddled with the glove, looking down. “Because it happened when I wasn’t watching myself! It can be really dark, and natural dangers can be just as annoying as monstrous ones.” With a sigh, Gem reached forward and took Katherine’s hand in hers. Her genuineness was endearing.

“May I?” she asked. Katherine nodded, a faint blush creeping up her face. Gem placed a kiss on the back of her hand, right on the scratch. She held contact for a moment, then pulled away. “I can’t actually kiss it away, but let's hope that helped!” Nailed it! She thought giddily.

“Still, I don’t understand why you’d come to me. I’m not really a fighter…”

Katherine tilted her head. “You’re not? Could’ve fooled me. You have such strong arms…I’ve seen you lift super heavy boxes before!”

Sheepishly, Gem smiled. “Ahaha well, I have done a bit of lifting in my time. But fighting? Not really.”

“I could teach you then!” Katherine exclaimed. “I’m sure having a princess of Dawn fight alongside me at night would be just swell.”

Man. Gem really wanted to commit to the character, she did! But running around killing monsters with Katherine at night, especially if she also got to help protect her, sounded like an awful good time. Twiddling her thumbs, she thought about how to spin this. “You know,” she began. “I do recall a few sword fighting lessons from my youth…” and also from last Thursday. When I put Etho flat on his back on Hermitcraft.

Beaming at her, Katherine grabbed both of her hands. “That’s perfect! We can start there. I’ll have an ax, you’ll have a sword and we can be a monster fighting duo!”

Flushing, Gem nodded eagerly. “Looking forward to it!”

#empiresshipping #kathgem #mcytyuriweek2023

[kittyball23]

Okay guys, listen up!

Got some insight to the Annecy Film Festival and some of the news it revealed! The info I found was from a posting on the YouTube channel "jstar" (if you're on Tumblr, I'd love to know 😀) from a screenshot presumably found from somewhere on social media ( A friend I speak to on Wattpad brought this channel and its postings to my attention). Here's what exactly was said:

"To be factual: after the furious madness of the second Trolls, whose psychedelic energy had something orgasmic about it, exit hard rock and welcome to the glorious era of boy bands. A retrospective choice (still) logical given the astounding popularity of Kpop today. He's Justin Timberlake's character, Branche, who was actually in a boy band with his brothers when he was little (watch out for the puns in the movie on Nsync, One Direction and the like) before being cowardly abandoned, becoming th grumpy, melancholy troll he is today. The goal of the film will be to reassemble the band to save one of them, captured by idols without talents who sniff him to become good singers. By breaking a crystal that imprisons him with the power of perfect harmony."

So I guess the brothers have to sing the 'Family Harmony' (which sounds like a special song of some sort) to save Floyd who is trapped in a crystal that Velvet and Veneer placed him in after they smell him to obtain his talent?

Um... what? XD

So I guess it kinda makes sense in a way - Bergens ate Trolls to obtain their happiness, so perhaps sniffling them means that they can get their singing abilities?? Perhaps that's why they have to keep him - maybe inhaling his talent is only temporary? Maybe each time they do it continues to turn his hair the white that we saw in the first poster? And what's the deal with the Family Harmony? How will that play out? Are their voices going to combine like a magical force and break the crystal Floyd’s trapped in? If this is all true, I've certainly got a lot of questions lol

Other postings that were made on social media stated that the first 20 MINUTES of the movie were shown.

Here is a posting regarding Broppy:

"Branch definitely has a bigger emotional hurdle to jump through in this movie and Poppy really helps him with that, kind of like in the first movie, but it's a much different issue, even though Poppy feels like it's the same kind of situation to solve."

I had a feeling that this movie would remind me of the first :) This next one is about my boyz:

"We explore the world of boy bands in the world of 90s music! We celebrate them, but with a certain irony, having a little fun with them. They are more expressive and maybe they also have problems on their side. It was fun exploring these different personalities, feeling a likeness and family connection to them. But also for each of the four brothers to find their own personality, their own voice and their own part of the family."

This last quoting is about the music:

"The composer remains Ted Shapiro and we are working with a great musical team at the moment. Justin is still the executive producer of the original music and was involved in its development early on. There are five original songs that he spearheads, as well as more jukebox songs, classic and familiar happy tunes and he calls on other producers he wants to work with to create the best song for this moment in the film."

Still don't have word on the original songs, but we do know from previous info that some of the involved songs are We Are Family, Staying Alive, Everybody (Backstreet's Back), The Hustle, You Got the Right Stuff, Sailing, Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This, and I Want You Back. I also have my own ideas for what songs I think could work for the movie, but I'll save it for another post :)

#trolls #trolls 3 #trolls band together #brozone #velvet and veneer #branch trolls #poppy trolls #dreamworks

[spaceratprodigy]

OC Superlatives Tag Game

Thank you for the tag @the-lastcall 💖💫

The Favorite

I don't think this comes as a surprise to anyone. Faith is so very dear to me she is quite literally a part of myself. She brings me so much comfort and has been an outlet for me for the past like? 3 years?? Gosh look at how far she's come. She helps remind me that everything is going to be okay.

The Oldest

While technically I have some ocs that are even older than her, Cookie is my first self insert lmao. Nowadays I don't think any but a couple of y'all would even know who she is and that makes me a lil sad! She's very special to me and was very beloved by people who meant a lot to me. Very few know me and her story well enough to see how on the nose it is an escape from my own life. Not shown here but she has burn scars on her right wrist/forearm. An exaggeration of my own burn scar in the same place. Cookie has always been there as a way to not feel alone, to see myself in someone who has been through similar experiences and made it out through the other side. To remember why it's so important to keep fighting.

The Newest

Okay maybe not the newest.. but Iris is the newest oc I've actually been putting a lot of time and love and effort into! I love her a lot! I know I still don't talk abt her as in depth as I would like to but I swear she's got more going on than I share. I just can't help wanting to draw her so self-indulgently full of love all the time, it makes me happy to have silly fun! I really really have been meaning to doodle her more vulnerable and serious moments because she's got a lot of grief in her heart she isn't letting out.

The Meanest

I suppose she was going to have to make her debut sooner or later.. okay but I genuinely don't have much to say abt Poppy. She's been a priv exclusive oc for a lil while and she's not developed.. like.. at all.. I ramble about her a LOT but I'm also literally every day scrapping everything bc my ideas are constantly changing so she's fr not ready yet lmao. Even I don't fully know what her deal is yet! But I can confirm she is the most ruthless (should I admit she's my lowkey nuka-world raider oc I made specifically to fuck Porter Gage nasty as hell likeeeee)

The Softest

Maril is my BABY!! She does not have a mean bone in her body and the closest she'll ever get is when she's defending her friends! She's so generous, she wants to help others any chance she gets and sees the best in everyone.

The Most Standoffish/Aloof

Faith is quite reserved, honestly. Becoming Captain wasn't exactly the life she chose for herself but it was the role she had to take on. For Phin, for her crew, for Halcyon, it was something she would grow to take seriously in time. She doesn't like to let on just how stressed and overwhelmed she is until she crashes and burns and has to be forced to rest before her stomach ulcer incapacitates her (speaking from experience, it's excruciating). When allowed to, she's pretty quiet and keeps to herself. She was never exactly the most social person and struggled to maintain any sort of relationship with anybody. She'll eventually warm up to her crew and come out of her shell. Sometimes you just need to meet the right band of misfits who get you.

The Smartest

I swear this isn't just me tooting my own horn. I genuinely built her character favoring her intellect and charm. Her highest levels were in engineering, science, and medical. She's got a head on her shoulders, and she's often pretty lost in it. Faith loves to build and tinker with things and loves reading and learning as much as she can. One her own comforts, really. Maril and Iris aren't necessarily too far off on this one, Faith just has a little more under her belt. (Maril is also dedicated almost exclusively to being a gummi ship mechanic and Iris is best at carpentry!)

The Dumbest

Poppy is by no means a moron and shouldn't be underestimated. But her skills and knowledge are very strong in fighting and survival. She does however qualify as my dumbest oc here because.. she was my melee heavy idiot savant build! Girl never at any point got a single level put into her INT lmao.

The One I'd be Friends With

Hands down Maril would be the bestest friend I could ask for. She would be so sweet and considerate and let's be real.. I'd want to also work on the gummi ships with her. I love my gals but I just know Maril would be a ray of sunshine and a great friend. She'd also love to listen to me talk abt all my own projects and we could build so many cool things together..

#this was super fun I've been wanting to work on it for a while but!! i wanted cool lil oc banners too #okay it's super late and I should def be sleeping so I'm gonna pass tf out as soon as I hit the post button fr fr #hopefully everything I wrote was coherent lmao I try to save these for when I'm actually awake but I was too excited to finally work on it #ocs #captain of the unreliable #sole survivor #maril highwind

[maddiefriendlovesbilly]

Okay actually, I’m gonna be the change I want to see in the world— I Know I’m the only person pushing for this, but can you do a ship review on. Light Zeron and Officer Maloney— if you don’t know enough about either character for that,,,, I dunno— Poppy Soup and Sally Acachalla? - overthinkingtaleblr

you CANNOT do this to me I'm INSANE about both of these concepts and I'm gonna do both you fiend! I'm starting with zeron/maloney because I think the idea of that is just below spooker/maxwell for me on deranged (/pos) ships.

Light Zeron/Officer Maloney

so to start us off let's go over the AMAZING dynamic of "world's most pathetic officer of the law" and "vampire security guard on the run"

we know that maloney is. ahem. SHIT at catching criminals, which makes this whole thing work long enough that they Could form a love/hate relationship

god I want a 5k fanfic on this unironically but I would have to write it!!!!

is this post- or pre-vampire? I'm thinking pre BECAUSE imagine!!! imagine the angst

zeron is acting strangely, super out of character. the only person who knows him well enough to figure it out is the man trying to catch him :sobbing:

(also on an unrelated note, they're both aliens which I think is really cute)

look just like. god I'm just shaking my fists irl because I'm so incoherent about this

theyre like. weirdly similar tbh. something about their egos i feel like would both clash heavily and potentially work really well together

IT'S THE PERFECT ENEMIES TO LOVERS SICK FIC GODDAMN

zeron hasn't drunk any blood in ages, (something-something moral quandary something-something starving) and now he's basically passing out from malnutrition, so of course that's the moment maloney spots him in the alley he's squatting in.

and maybe if it were a stranger he would corner them and feed, (its so much easier to drink someone's blood when you can convince yourself that they aren't actually a person, in a weird, convoluted way) but this is someone he knows, maybe even respects. even if they are enemies.

so he doesn't want to drink maloney's blood, and that leaves him with only one other choice - he runs.

he pushes past him and ducks into the nearest abandoned building, hoping to lose maloney in there, but maloney's right behind him.

and meanwhile maloney, so used to their usual back-and-forth banter during fights, is highly confused (maybe a little upset - and fairly worried - if he's being honest) by this behavior.

zeron keeps running but it's clear he won't get much further unless he drinks someone's blood, and now there's literally only one person around - the guy he cares for too much (even if he won't admit it to himself).

be caught or surrender, that's his choice.

it's made for him when maloney catches his wrist - but instead of cuffing him, he spins zeron around, cornering him.

(at this point zeron is wondering if he's about to die a very painful death, but all he can do is stare at maloney's neck.)

maloney oblivious to his surroundings as always, is currently checking zeron over for injuries, and mentally slapping himself because he caught the criminal, why isn't he cuffing him?

this is around the time zeron's resolve breaks - close proximity to a very appetizing meal while starving makes it a bit difficult NOT to partake.

he goes for the neck - literally - and begins drinking like the world is ending. make this part as gay as your little heart desires.

being stabbed in the neck hurts, even more so when they are draining your blood, so maloney quickly pushes zeron off.

but a meal's a meal, and zeron is gone before maloney can even get a word in.

that's all ive got on that for right now haha, so let's hop over to pros and cons!

pros: very fun dynamic, their shared weirdness and the fact that they're both aliens (of different species) could be a bonding point, and they are both like. so so sopping wet and pathetic, they also have similar personalities in a strange way. great potential for hurt/comfort, enemies to lovers and hurt/no comfort fics.

cons: uhhhh. okay so theyre on opposite sides technically, which means any happy ending is gonna have a lot of rough spots, and there's like SO much distrust between them (and light zeron already has issues trusting others)

Conclusion: I'm like SOO biased here so give me a sec to find my center and use logic. Do I think they would work short-term? I feel like they would somehow manage it? like despite everything they'd somehow manage to stay in a not-so-secret kind-of-relationship for at least a year (meanwhile all the news stations are reporting about the two gay people fighting in the street again), and then they'd actually start going on the cheesiest dates ever (and causing pure chaos wherever they went), like coffee dates and amusement park dates and all that shit. everyone would just accept that they're dating and that maloney will probably never catch him but it's Buttsville, NC so what are you gonna do?

at the same time though, I'm sitting here like, what's the long-term gonna look like? does maloney become a criminal? do they get married and settle down? both are hilarious yet tragic because undoubtedly maloney would be a better criminal than police officer but it goes against his perception of himself, and neither is exactly built for domesticity. still, I think they'd manage. somehow it feels like they're too much of a force of nature to let something like that stop them, y'know?

#can... can we call this ship SirenZeron? #ship reviews #maddie answers #maddie writes #taleblr #venturiantale #light zeron #officer maloney #maloney x light zeron #light zeron x maloney #everyone become insane and deranged with me #im having a blast in this small enclosure. stick ur hand through my cage bars i promise i wont drag you in. btw its great in here

[pixelqueen666]

DEVIL IN DISGUISE (Archer pastry x troll reader)(Warning: a bit of fluff)

"Where could they be?" The glitter troll known as guy diamond asked.

As soon as he said it you came barging in "Am I LAtE fOr THe AnUaL PArtY GaMEs!?!?" You practicly shouted. "No Y/N your just in time!"He responded. You let out a relived sigh as you start preparing for the games.

You were just another one of Poppy's friends. And you were abot to play on the party games with your friend Guy Diamond when another glitter troll came in sight. He looked quite friendly, with a everlasting grin."hey you guys" the red glitter troll said "My name is Archer, im here to take harpers place" He was talking in such a cheerfull tone it made you want to smile, although I dont think Guy had the same idea.

Well, long story short Archer ended up competeing agaist you 'cause Harper got better, or thats what Guy said (you honestly thought he was just jelous). But then GD remembered its all about having fun and the games ended surprisingly great.

Now you were getting out of the stadium and on you way home when you bumped into someone "Ouch!" You let out "HEY WHAT GI-" Just as you opened your eyes you saw none other than Archer, who was a bit shoked but eventualy he shrugged it off "Sorry, are you okay?" he said reaching out his hand so you coud take it. You just smiled and took it "Its ok.. I hope you are ok too" You said with a hint of concern "Sure am!!" he said whit his signature grin and cheerfull voice. Then he wanted to make it up to you inviting u to have ice cream which you agreed.

*time skip*

Two weeks have already passed and your friendship with Archer just grew stonger, you two were the best of friends. But still you coud feel your heartbeat faster when you two were talking, or that smile escape your lips. And as you were processing this thought another one came to mind 'why the hell would you have a crush on a naked troll that is basically made out of glitter?' the thought of it made you laugh, but then it hit you, you actually DO have a crush on him... you dont know why... you just do.

That morning you were on your way to have some ice cream and there you saw Archer, a part of you wanted to avoid him, but then you thought that was ridiculous and you ran to him to say hi.

"Hi Archer whacha doin'?" you asked "Oh! hi Y/N! I was just getting ice cream" he said, still smiling as always, you actualy began to question if he knows what frowning means, but you let it go." Same, let me guess, you my friend are having ..." you put two fingers on the sideaf your head like you were predicting something and one finger on his head, he just tried to hold back a little chuckle "... Strawberry ice cream!!!" He just chuckled "And u are having chocoate" he said smoothly "You do realise thats what we have EVERY time " "yeah, but its still fun" he replied whith a soft giggle. You two sat on a table with your ice cream and started talking. And as you rambled about why pineapple should/shouldn't ( A/N: whatever u like) you could see that Archer's smile was.. fading

wow

You didn't actually think it would happen..

"Archer... are you ok?" you asker putting a hand on his shoulder, "Er- I- Uh-" he muttered, then he took a deep breath and said "No... Y/N can we go to your pod for a sec?"he said, his cheeks brighter than usual. You blushed at his proposal but accepted.

Once you were there you opened the door for him and he passed, but you were stuck closing the door cause you were still shoked with a ton of senarios of what was about to happen in your head

...and the key was stuck

Once you finished and turned around he said "there is something I need to show u..." you blushed madly as he .... took his ... took his SKIN OFF!?!?! WHAT THE-

Revealing a strange green figure-WHAT THE TROLL IS GOING ON!?

"Archer... "you said with a hint of insecurity as you steped closer to him and put your hands on his shoulders "This is who I really a-" " WHat aRe YoU?!?!?" you interrupted skaking his shoulders. He grabbed your hands for you to stoped with a 'are you serious' look and he expained, as he was explaining you were looking at him taking in his new form

...you actually liked it

it was different, but cool

Once he finished explaning that he was a party crasher and a scout, and he told you about his mission you only had one question...

"Archer, why are you telling me this. im your enemy" The way you said enemy made his heart break " thats the thing ... you are not my enemy. You have been so sweet with me .. "Archer ..." was all you could get out "a real friend" he continued." And after some time I also realised.. I think im in love with you Y/N" you were shoked "i think i love you too" was all you managed to say, he smiled warmly and you..

WELL YOU WERE A BIT MAD AT HIM FOR TRICKING YOU

but you will bring that up later

..and as i was saying...

He gently grabed your waist and you let out a small gasp he looked at you with a bit of concern but that look soon faded when you reassured him with a smile, you looked at his olive green eyes and then to his lips as he leaned foward finally conecting your lips with his you closed your eyes in bliss taking in what was happening.

Then you two parted, you two smiled, he put his troll skin back on and you two left the pod.

Now the was only one queston left...

Should you tell Poppy?

(Authors note: WOW. so here it is. my first oneshot. YAY! please forgive me if you didn't like it Its my first time BUT I just saw the request and i couldn't say no. Cause ther is no archer x reader on tumblr so i hope this can serve as a motivation ok ave a nice day BAI!)

(also if u want part 2 just say so)

#trolls #trolls the beat goes on #Archer pastry #Archer pastry x reader

[probablyaseamonster]

Secret Life hot take kinda?

I really didn't like the merch. Felt cheap as hell. Also, I felt like there were so many ways it could've been more creative, you know?

I was hesitant to put this out there because 1) it's a complete asshole move to say "your thing sucks, here's some of MY ideas" and 2) I heard that Grian tries really hard to come up with new ideas for each season's theme ON HIS OWN and he doesn't want to be inspired or influenced by any suggestions he recieves.

But well. I have decided to share my ideas anyway, because i want to. Hope you guys like them?

- Pizza on everything. I want him on tee-shirts, phone cases, keychains, stickers - he's one of the most iconic pets in the Life Series and he deserves his own merch! Also it'd be fun to draw actual pizza next to him if whatever way

Similarly: edgy red wolf-moon shirt with the line "til death do us part" with the letters L and Y drawn over the first word in a different font so it looks like Scott handwrote on top of a line from a book

Graphic design of Scarlet Pearl looking scary, either with the moon behind her or the moon-shaped scythes the fandom likes to draw her with poised and ready, and the line "something wicked this way comes" in distinct typography

Dogwarts banner as a poster. This one would be really simple I think and it's subtle enough to have people outside the fandom not even be able to GUESS what it's a reference to

Similarly, the Cherry Blossom shield pattern as a banner. I know they weren't as interesting as Dogwarts but they're like one of the only alliances who had something akin to a flag and their colours were aesthetic anyway, similar reason as Dogwarts

Fake band poster of Gem and the Scotts

Beanie designed to look like a mound of dirt, representing the Mounders

Cute design of an upside down house with the words "YES I KNOW IT'S UPSIDE DOWN" underneath. To anyone not in the fandom it reads as one of those "don't ask me blank" shirts

Cute design of an angry yorkshire terrier with a bone in its mouth with the words "the hound of hell" underneath in bloody gorey print to contrast

Stickers that come in quartets for BEST and TIES - bonus points if the B is green, the E is white-blue, the S is red, the T is orange, and the I is yellow, bonus BONUS points if the B has a mossy pattern, E has a snowflake pattern, T has a flame pattern, S has a halo, and I has demon horns

Cute ghast with puppy-dog eyes saying "We can still be friends!" Again, has a different vibe without context but isn't totally incomprehensible

Cute cartoon clock-people standing tough with the phrase "don't mess with the family" underneath in some font that makes you think of mafias or crime lords

Bread wearing sunglasses - "Bad Boys love bread, Bad Boys get bread"

Shirt with canary wings on the back

Cactus circle - "what happens in the cactus circle stays in the cactus circle" THIS one is incomprehensible to non-fans

Turtleneck with a bleeding pattern on the neck (meant to invoke images of beheading), very edgy but also works for a variety of situations

Pufferfish and poppies together somehow

Simplified flower valley with the words "hobbits invented gay people". Might get sued by whoever has the rights to Lord of the Rings.

Red shirt with snowflake pattern - "Red winter is coming!" Also might get sued by someone

Chonky Jellie with the phrase "frick you, my soulmate is my cat"

Okay! That's 20 of them! I actually have a lot more ideas but I'm stopping here because I have no clue if anyone's actually gonna read down this far! I hope you guys like these ideas (I say to my like 10 mutuals, love you guys)!

#life series #merch ideas #so many references #i'm really proud of some of these

[rich-and-bitchy-is-my-type]

In Spite Of Me (let’s drive)

Chapter II

Part one Part Three

Tags: post-canon, semi slow burn, potential NSFW in later chapters.

Poppy doesn’t know what possessed her to agree to go with Bee’s crazy idea, but she must face the consequences of her decision now. These include a car with ridiculously tacky bumper stickers, gas station bought candy and dealing with Bee’s poor driving skills and overall lack of common sense. Maybe it will be okay, if she somehow manages to make it out alive (and without having murdered Bee Hughes in the process.)

Sooo here it is! I started writing part 2 of In Spite of Me and I decided it will be a multi chapter series. I don’t know how many chapters I have planned yet, but probably around 5-8. They’ll be shorter than part one, but I hope they’re good enough to make it up. I literally wrote this in less than a day so please forgive any typos you might see! Also, english isn’t my first language so if you notice any grammatical mistakes please let me know and I’ll fix it right away. Lastly, please tell me if you want to be tagged in future chapters!

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

The next morning is the last morning Poppy wakes up in her Zeta room before moving out. It feels strangely bittersweet, the room is pretty much empty now and the house is quiet, but she still feels like she’s not entirely ready to let it go.

She has made so many memories in these four walls. Most of them were… not that great, if she’s being honest. She remembers angry-crying herself to sleep after losing the Person to Watch award, or after being the human sacrifice at the Bacchanalia that Bee hosted (a part of her knows that she deserved that one. And maybe all of them, really.) A lot of her recent memories involve, well, her failures. There are bits of it everywhere around the room.

But not all of them were bad. Chloe and her used to have a lot of sleepovers together in this room, back when their relationship wasn’t so defined by the rankings or the votes. She taught Veronica some of her favorite makeup looks in front of her now emptied vanity.

There are bits of Bee everywhere around the room too.

If you had asked her about it a few weeks ago, she would’ve told you how much she wished she could erase those memories forever.

But now… she isn’t so sure anymore. She doesn’t despise the idea of Bee being a constant presence in her life that much anymore.

She gives her room one last glance before closing the door.

"Morning," Chloe tells when they bump into each other in the kitchen. "You’re leaving soon, right?"

"Yeah, I think Bee is supposed to pick me up in less than half an hour," she replies with a small smile.

That’s when she notices Veronica standing behind Chloe, looking at her phone.

"Can I just say how weird it is that you guys are going on a road trip together?" she says, not bothering to look up from her phone screen. "And now you’re calling her by her name instead of one of your nicknames. So. Weird."

Poppy knows that Veronica is right. In fact, she’s pretty sure that everyone else thinks that this (whatever it is that they’re doing) is weird. She can still see Zoey’s closed smile when Bee told her Poppy was going with her back to Farmsville, or Chloe’s vague “huh” when Poppy called her to tell her the news.

Hells, even Poppy herself thinks this is strange. It’s not like she actually thought it through.

"Well, yeah. It’s definitely weird," it’s all she says in reply.

Veronica puts down her phone and actually smiles at her. Smiles! Veronica! This day just keeps getting stranger.

"I think it will be good for you," she says as she stands up and grabs a box. "Well, my mom is here to pick me up. Kinda weird to be leaving this house after all this time, right?"

"I feel like I’m really going to miss this place," Chloe chimes in, looking around. "V, are you not staying for the goodbye party with all the girls?"

"Nah," Veronica shakes her head, eyes darting back to her phone. "Anyways, have fun in your trips. Keep me posted, I want all the updates."

She gives them each a quick hug (which is a lot more than Poppy had expected, to be honest) and leaves the room.

"So, uhm, I guess you’re not staying for the party either," Chloe looks at her.

"Bee should be here any minute now, so… not really."

"I see. Well, I hope you have fun. I mean it, Poppy."

"I know," she replies and meets her eyes. Chloe gives her a smile. "Thank you, Chlo."

Her phone buzzes and she notices that she has a new message from Farmsville Cornhusker. She should probably change her contact info to something nicer.

Farmsville Cornhusker: i’m outside 😜

She rolls her eyes and types a quick reply.

Poppy: are u a wannabe frat boy now? no decent person uses that emoji.

Farmsville Cornhusker: oh, because you’re such a beacon of human decency

Poppy fights off the urge to laugh. Who would’ve thought that one day she would be texting Bee Hughes without feeling the need to murder her?

Farmsville Cornhusker: are u coming or not? i don’t have all day

Farmsville Cornhusker: actually i do but i kinda wanna make it to the bed and breakfast on time

Poppy: fine, just let me say goodbye to chloe and I’ll meet u outside

Farmsville Cornhusker: tell her i said hi!

"Is that Bee?" Chloe asks her, trying to sound casual.

"Yeah, she says hi. She’s outside, so I should get going."

"Yeah, go ahead. It’s kinda cute, though."

"What is?" Poppy raises an eyebrow.

"You two! You were smiling at your phone just now. I’ve never seen you do that before," Chloe sighs dreamily. Poppy purses her lips. "I wrote a Destiel fanfiction like that once. It was an enemies-to-lovers slowburn."

"I have no idea what any of those words mean," she frowns. Some time ago, she would’ve mocked Chloe for simply using the word fanfiction. She’s trying to be nicer now, so she won’t.

"Nevermind. Just… have fun, okay? Try to enjoy yourself," Chloe smiles sincerely at her. She can notice a hint of worry in her voice, and it tugs on Poppy’s heart a little. Chloe is a good friend, after all.

"I will. See you when I come back?" it’s a genuine question.

She wouldn’t blame Chloe if she didn’t want anything else to do with her. She hasn’t exactly been the greatest friend, to put it mildly. But then Chloe throws her arms around her and Poppy feels like maybe everything will be okay.

"Sure. See you when you get back."

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

"Finally!" Bee says when she steps out of the house. Poppy notices she’s holding up a bag. "I was starting to think that you stood me up."

"You’re so dramatic, Hughes. You’ve been waiting for less than ten minutes," she rolls her eyes and points at the bag. "What’s in there?"

Bee laughs and pulls several things out of the grocery bag, listing them off as she places them on Poppy’s arms.

"A large pack of Sour Patch Kids, an extra car charger, and a six pack of canned cold brew."

Poppy hums in approval. "I don’t think I’d survive more than two hours in a car with you without coffee."

"Oh, really? Because if I recall it correctly, last time we were in a car you seemed pretty comfortable with me," she laughs and Poppy blushes furiously.

"God, must you always say things that will cause me a migraine?"

"You walked right into that one, Pops," she barely dodges Poppy’s light punch. "Hey! No more violence, okay? Now let me help you with those bags. Your little bird arms won’t support all the weight."

"My bird arms?" Poppy rolls her eyes again, but there’s an air of playfulness between them. It’s refreshing. "Just because you’re freakishly tall and strong doesn’t mean I’m weak."

"I’m trying to be nice here, princess," Bee smiles and Poppy feels her heart beat slightly faster. "Now, hand them to me so we can get going!"

Bee quickly packs both of their bags in the car trunk and it isn’t long before the two of them are sitting in the car.

"I’m really glad you’re coming with me," Bee tells her before starting the car. Her tone is serious, maybe a little timid. Poppy isn’t used to seeing her like this. Bee is usually so playful and sure of herself, so this is different. Almost endearing. "I know… I know things are complicated. But I am glad that you’re here with me right now."

She knows that Bee wants to say more. She knows that both of them should have a serious conversation eventually, to see where they stand and what’s going to happen next. But this is enough for now.

“I know," it’s all she says.

She wants to tell her that she’s glad too, that she is excited but also scared and confused. There’s so much she wants to say but can’t find the right words to do it yet. But Bee smiles at her, a genuine and beautiful smile, and Poppy thinks that maybe she understood the meaning behind her words.

So it’s okay. For now.

"Well then, let’s go!"

"Yeah, let’s go," she whispers back as she pulls her seatbelt on.

"By the way," Bee says casually, turning to Poppy as she stops at the redlight just before the turnoff to leave the street where their university campus is, "don’t you think this is how the best rom-coms start, Pop?"

She winks to let Poppy know she’s joking, and it eases some of the tension.

Poppy lets out an accidental snort. "In your dreams, maybe."

Bee grins at her and turns the speakers on low to their playlist and places her coffee in the center console’s cup holder. She backs out, honking at a guy who tries to cut her off before she turns to Poppy. 

"Okay, we need to come up with our background and shit."

Poppy tilts her head to the side, squinting her eyes. "Huh?"

"You know," Bee starts, making a left towards the freeway. They have a few hours ahead of traveling before they can stop for the night. "We need to figure out what we’re gonna say to my family."

"You mean that you didn’t tell them we used to be mortal enemies and all?" Poppy asks sarcastically, pressing her forehead against the window.

"Used to? Aw, Pops, don’t tell me that we’re friends already!" she laughs.

"Shut up," Poppy fights the urge to laugh too. This situation is so bizarre, but is it ever not when Bee is involved? "what did you want to tell them?”

Bee clicks her tongue, taking a drink of her coffee as she tries to think. 

"Maybe we could tell them we’re dating," she says wholly unaffected, skipping a song.

"Right. And when did we start dating?" Poppy asks, unsure why the words make her pulse pick up speed. 

"Maybe at the Person to Watch gala?" Bee laughs.

"Mhmm. Did that happen before or after I kicked your ass at the fountain?" Poppy retorts.

Bee pretends to mull the possibility over, stepping on the gas again to continue driving. "After."

"Then that means that our anniversary is coming up," she teases.

What is happening? Is she seriously flirting with Bee right now? Openly flirting? Maybe she got a concussion.

Taking a moment to think, Bee bites her lip. She watches the cars pass her on her side, and she waves at a little boy in the backseat. He smiles wide at her, his front two teeth missing. It makes Poppy grin too, despite herself.

"Then we should go to the beach to celebrate. Maybe we could watch the fireworks," Bee starts, careful and measured with her words in a way she’s never been. Poppy doesn’t know why this moment feels like it carries so much weight. When did the teasing fade and the conversation turned so serious? "I could find us a cute hotel near some good restaurants with plenty of menu options. We could have a good time."

"Huh," Poppy says quietly, kicking herself for feeling her body flush involuntarily. 

Bee clears her throat and tries to ease the tension.

"I know. I’m the best fake girlfriend ever." She flips her hair, making Poppy smile.

"Says the girl who ruined my dress with sunscreen."

Bee laughs with reckless abandon, and Poppy can’t help but watch the way her curly brown hair blows in the wind and her dark eyes shine. 

"That’s just our love language, Pops."

Bee grins back at her. Neither of them have any idea what they’re about to get into. 

The next three days should be fun.

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

"I’m hungry," Poppy complains. "Let’s stop for lunch."

Bee fights a smile.

"We’ve only been driving for less than two hours," she reminds her. "Can’t you wait?"

"No," she sighs. "Spending so much time with you it’s starting to take its toll on me. I might die if I don’t eat soon."

"Oh, really? Is spending time with me that exhausting?" Bee laughs.

"Yes," Poppy answers plainly. "And trust me, Hughes, you don’t want to see me in a bad mood. And being hungry definitely sours my mood."

"Is that so? Are you telling me that the charming version of yourself I’ve gotten to know in the past two years was just you in a good mood?" as soon as the words leave her mouth, Poppy lightly punches her arm and Bee complains overdramatically. "Ow! Fine, fine. I hope another drive through is okay with you."

"Yeah, whatever. Just hurry up and pick a place."

"So demanding. I like it."

They end up at yet another McDermots drive-thru because Bee wants to stick to their schedule so they can check-in at the bed and breakfast she picked, lie down and buy snacks for their drive tomorrow. They’re glad to be the only ones in line, and then their order is ready, Bee hands the woman at the window her card before Poppy has time to say anything.

"Hughes, I don’t need your charity—"

"I’m just practicing," whispers.

"What?"

Bee leans over, cutting her off with a quick kiss. She really needs to stop catching her off guard like this. "The whole fake girlfriend thing."

(She tells herself it’s just Bee being Bee.)

Poppy’s heart stutters.

(It’s just Bee.)

She watches as Bee —who’s totally unfazed—turns back to the woman, smiling. 

"She always gets mad at me for paying," she says like it’s the easiest and most normal thing in the world. "We’ve been together since last year and every time she says—"

"I don’t need your charity!" Poppy repeats, disgruntled.

Bee points at her.

"—and every time she says that. Such a feisty one, this girl. You know how former trust fund babies are."

The woman grins at them and hands them their food. "You two are just the cutest."

Poppy rolls her eyes, turning her face towards the opposite window.

Bee laughs. "Oh, we know!"

Once they’re out of the driveway, Poppy looks at her with a frown.

Bee can sense it

"What’s wrong, Poptart?"

"What the hell was that?" she scowls, taking a sip of her frosty. 

"Oh, you know. Just pretend," Bee replies and plucks a fry from where the bag is sitting between them. "But seriously, we should come up with some kind of explanation."

Poppy notices the change in Bee’s tone and shrugs uncomfortably. "What did you tell them?"

"Not much," Bee says. "My older sisters are busy with their jobs so it’s not like they have the time to question me about my life. My parents are just happy that I went to my dream school, but my little sister…"

She trails off. Poppy looks at her suspiciously.

"What about her?"

"Luna is turning 17. She was really excited about me attending Belvoire, and she kept asking me all these questions. I think she might have read the T."

"Oh," it’s all Poppy says. She feels her cheeks redden in embarrassment, and it’s not the good kind.

No, it isn’t embarrassment. It’s shame. Shame that Bee’s family might know about everything she did to their daughter in the past two years. Shame that they’ll be able to see right through her. But why does she care so much? Why does she want to make a good impression? It makes no sense.

"Don’t worry," Bee quickly adds when she notices her discomfort. "I told her I’m bringing a friend over."

"Great," she says. For a moment, a flash of hesitation paints Poppy’s eyes, as though she wanted to say something important, but it disappears in an instant leaving Bee wondering if it was ever really there. "Okay, then. I guess that we’re friends now."

Bee smiles and reaches for her burger. She takes a big bite. "Yeah, so you’re going to play nice, right?"

"Shocking, you have no manners. Swallow your food first," Poppy orders, lilting her voice to be purposefully condescending. "Then you can ask me again."

"It’s hot when you tell me what to do," Bee says cheekily, still chewing.

"It’s hot when you actually do what I say," she snarks back.

"No thanks," Bee replies easily, but she does finally clear her mouth of food. "I know you like it when I’m a brat."

She winks. Poppy loses her breath. It’s concerning how warm she’s getting under her collar. She tries to change the subject. 

"So does your little house have enough room for the both of us?"

Bee lets out a laugh. "Oh my god, Poppy. I was middle class! I had my own bedroom!"

She shrugs, grabbing some of Bee’s fries. "How was I supposed to know that?"

"Maybe if you had asked me anything about my life you would’ve known?" Bee retorts.

"I guess I’ll have to start asking you about your life, then."

Bee chuckles, and Poppy ignores the way her heart pumps faster when she hears that carefree laugh.

She ignores how easily she could get used to this. 

"I guess I’ll have to tell you, then."

Chapter III

Tagging: @somewillwin (espero que este bien arrobarte, si te molesta solo decime y dejo de hacerlo 😚) @ownagef

#poppy min sinclair #mc: bee 🐝 #poppy x bee #my writing

[yackers]

Why Jerome Cheating Wasn't Out of Character and How It Actually Developed Him Further as a Person: an unproofread rant/essay by a bitch with too much time on her hands

okay first I just wanna talk about the circumstances round him cheating. Like he definitely could’ve made better choices and in no way am I saying he’s not to blame but he and Mara were very much broken up when he first started dating willow. Jerome was being a dick in the business competition, but it wasn’t exactly a break up forever kinda mistake. He apologised multiple times in varying degrees of big gestures, to which mara did not respond to or make any move to forgive him. Sure, a lot of this was to do with the sisterhood but it’s not like he knew that.

I think he only went for willow because not only did she help him with his schemes without question, she was also willing to take the punishment all in good fun. In no way were they right for each other but she messed around with him in the costume closet and had fun with her the way he never did too often with mara without being interrupted by mick. Mara then, a while after ignoring his various attempts came up to him and told him she’d forgiven him and they were now back together. He definitely should’ve just told her there and then that he had kissed willow, but he was already starting to question their relationship and honestly I still think it would’ve crushed her.

I think that Jerome only ever wanted to be with mara because he put her on a pedestal as some perfect unattainable girl. He pined over her for years before she showed interest. She was sweet to him and treated him as a human with feelings when the others often wouldn’t but I don’t think they were ever right for each other. They were cute in season 2 but although she helped him with his dad she constantly overstepped with him and poppy and always held a sense of righteousness over him like on donkey day. I think especially once they were in a relationship she expected him to be a different person for her in ways that would change who he was. He looks visibly uncomfortable with the nicknames and is constantly shown to be at her beck and call in a way that is less playful in comparison to season 3 Alfie and amber.

The whole trying to then get away with having two girlfriends whilst he makes up his mind on who he wants to date therefore makes perfect sense for his character as in truth he doesn’t actually wanna date either of them. Willow is fun but not serious and mara is serious but not fun. willow and him was only really ever a fling, as shown by how quickly she moves on. And Jerome is literally an asshole it would be unrealistic at this point in his development for him to handle the situation maturely and lay his feeling out to them because he barely knew what he was feeling and he is self identified sneaky. Are we forgetting that he used to manipulate Alfie for money, literally broke up mick and mara and consistently just makes the worst choices readily available to him. Yes he did gaslight willow and lied to mara but it’s nothing he hasn’t done before and was presently above doing again.

Joy being the one to find out first and see the comparison table is important to her relationship because there is all the worst parts about his character laid out on a platter for her. I think often mara completely avoided seeing how cruel and insensitive he can be at times and thought the others exaggerated it which is why she took the cheating so hard because she didn’t see it coming. But joy knows he’s flawed right from the start of their relationship, including his taunting of her near the beginning of the season. They also have a lot more shared experiences as shown during the ceremony scenes at the gatehouse. They’re both actively mad at each other but yet still come together against Alfie and Patricia and then the teachers. Mara never knew about anything Jerome went through in the first two seasons but joy did.

A really key part of his character development is when mara makes the cruel comment about his dad. I think if anything it shows how wrong they were for each other. Joy’s speech about being the bigger person is a turning point for him. Like mara, she wants him to be better but she says it from the perspective of someone who acknowledges that they too have done shitty things in the past. I think the ‘if you can bare it’ is important too, because she’s acknowledging to him that being a good person isn’t easy especially for people with upbringings and pasts like theirs. I think for the first time he actually feels understood. The ‘my lady’ scene confirms this.

Joy never requires him to be too mushy and vulnerable to her publicly. She’s playful and jokes around and anything sweet he says to her he says because he means it, not because it’s something he thinks she wants to hear. Their letdown washing date it so key to his growth like he’s able to joke around with her in a space where he can also freely talk about his dad and his insecurities about being allowed to scheme and be himself without having to be cold hearted because of it. He tells her she’s a good listener because he’s being heard without anyone looking out for poppy or his dad or the greater good over his own feelings.

One of the biggest signs he’s changed is when he knows that the play is a plot to embarrass him and takes it on the chin, admits he made a mistake and just hopes that it helps mara move on. And he just seems so much more into joy than he ever was anyone else, he even says it!! Unlike mara he isnt following her around like a puppy and doing as he’s told he gets distracted by her as she walks in the room and calls her names and is just!! I think the show is so good at writing couples that don’t have to be mushy and all over each other to show they care and mara is right they are kinda perfect for each other. They both have made mistakes in the past but they’ve grown up and there isn’t an unequal balance of a bad guy and a better girl who wants to fix him. He’s respectful of mara and backs away from joy around her without taunting and fighting back like season 1 or 2 Jerome definitely would’ve. He changed for the better organically on screen and I think his arc was done really well. You can tell by the way he he cries when he overhears about the revenge plot how much he really cared and he broke up with her to protect his own feeling but as soon as he realises that her feelings were genuine he tries to get her back. Not in flashy empty feeling gestures like before but by expressing how he feels.

Im not saying he didn’t develop a lot over the course of season one and two and that mara didn’t play a big part in that development but I think to truly be better he had to take a step back from pretending to be perfect to get the girl of his dreams and actually take the time to work on himself.

And in terms of the cheating/revenge plot line itself it had to be something big and time consuming this season that took up all the characters not involved in the mystery’s time whilst also giving them their own arcs and stories within it. sibuna were literally soulless for a portion of the season which could only work if they were distanced from their close friends outside of it like Jerome and joy because they were far too wrapped up in their own shit to notice. And they’re teenagers! Of course trying to date two girls at once and orchestrating the plot of John tucker must die is a dumb bad idea!! But so is literally every other thing they do in the show because they’re naive and half of them were left there by their parents to rot and have been kidnapped in the past of course they’re not rational!! I actually found the whole sideplot an entertaining break from the darker themes of the third season and throughout the whole season you can feel the characters are 17/18 instead of 15/16 like in the first season, there’s gonna be more romantic motivation to their actions.

In conclusion/ TLDR: just because a character makes mistakes doesn’t mean they lost their development or they were out of character. Interesting characters aren’t good people all of the time and thats what makes it entertaining.

#I have not read through this #sorry its soo long #this is NOT meant to be mean to anyone who disagrees!! #you're entirely entitled to you own opinions this is just mine #please feel free to add on #house of anubis #txt #s3 watch #jerome clarke

[sparring-hyena]

again and again.

i think this kinda counts as a groundhog day-esque AU with some quirky time travel mixed in for fun. is that even a thing? idk.

OR, time is complicated, and so is love. here’s a story about both.

-

“i will destroy you,” Poppy says, her tone razor-edged and precise. she feels a pulsing thing beneath her skin. something that warns her to tread carefully in a manner that’s much too pleased for the situation at hand.

“good luck with that,” AJ answers, her tone somehow daring to be amused.

and then a beat. a moment that exists only between the two of them. it rings loud in Poppy’s mind. thrums along in time with that pulsing thing beneath her skin. it’s warning her about something. telling her to make the right choice, as though it’ll be forced to do something if she doesn’t do this right.

pshhh. ridiculous.

“i hate you.”

and that’s the last thing she says before the pulsing thing expands and consumes her whole. it drags her away from the fountain and AJ and that clear night in May, and drops her in bed just as her alarm to wake up goes off.

Poppy sits up in bed, her hair a tussled mess, and watches as her phone buzzes and plays that horrible alarm tune on the nightstand.

strange, she thinks, reaching out to silence the damn thing. she checks the date, which is right, but the time is, decidedly, wrong. it was well after ten at night the last she checked, only now her phone is telling her it’s nine o’clock in the morning. she pads to the windows and peers outside, and sure enough, the sun is in the sky. it’s morning.

a dream then, right? it must’ve been. her loss and meltdown and run-in with AJ at the fountain, it was a dream and now she’s awake. good, she didn’t really lose to AJ-fucking-Hughes.

-

she showers and dresses and heads downstairs in search of something quick to eat. Veronica is in the kitchen, scrolling through her phone as she waits for her coffee to brew. she looks up and nods in greeting, and Poppy’s suddenly hit with a very strange sense of déjà vu.

“you ready for tonight?” Veronica asks, head still buried in her phone.

Poppy hums and then, unsure of why, she says, “i had the strangest dream.” the pulsing thing returns. a warning. a caution. a very much not-exclusive-to-dreams thing.

be careful, it sing-songs.

“oh yeah.” Veronica looks up, suddenly curious.

“yeah, it was…” she’s actually not quite sure of what to make of it. of what hidden insecurity it sheds light onto. maybe she shouldn’t say anything then. best to keep her cards close to her chest—they are competing against each other after all. “nothing. it’s nothing. never mind.”

Veronica shrugs and returns to her phone.

her day carries on as it usually would and before she knows it, she’s stepping onto the red carpet for the awards show. cameras flash and she smiles as she presses through, as though feeding off the attention.

and then the end of the night comes and— AJ wins. AJ wins. AJ-fucking-Hughes. Poppy’s shouting and cursing before she can stop herself. she’s peripherally aware of her parents calling out to her, begging her to stop, but that pulsing thing beneath her skin hums with energy. it tells her this is right. that this is how it needs to be. so she doesn’t stop.

she doesn’t stop until she’s out of breath and finally realises what she’s done. and then she slips outside and tries to disappear for a moment at the fountain.

she takes deep breaths, paces back-and-forth, and tries to figure out where it all went so wrong. and how— she’s back at the fountain. the same fountain she was at in her dream. how the fuck?

second time’s the charm, right?

and— what? second time?

yes, do try and keep up.

“fuck you,” she thinks, she says, speaking aloud into the world.

“you say the sweetest things to me,” a voice, it’s AJ’s voice.

Poppy spins around, absolutely fuming, and with déjà vu sitting heavy in her mind. this is just like her dream. how the fuck can this be just like her dream?

the pulsing amps up, thrumming along her veins. this is it, it says, excited and breath held in quiet anticipation.

it? what the fuck does that mean?

there’s a moment where it looks like AJ is about to extend an olive branch. where she offers one of those small and hesitant smiles that asks for a do-over. but Poppy’s learnt her lesson. she knows that branches almost always have thorns. so instead of accepting AJ’s hand, she slaps it away and says something cruel. something prickly and sharp that slices at skin and won’t ever really heal.

“i hate you,” she spits, just like in her goddamn dream.

the pulsing thing doesn’t like that. it tells her no, you’ve done it wrong again, and then rips her away and throws her back into bed as her alarm to wake up goes off.

-

she sits up in bed and is more pissed than anything else. her alarm is still ringing and vibrating like everything’s okay—everything is not okay. because she’s in her bed again and her alarm is vibrating and it’s somehow morning again.

she gets out of bed and marches downstairs, more determined than ever to finally get some answers.

she finds Veronica in the kitchen, just like in her dreams that didn’t at all feel like dreams.

“you ready for—”

“what the fuck is happening right now?”

Veronica blinks. takes a second to properly wake up. “uh, what?”

“this.” she gestures widely to everything and that little pulsing thing warns her again. “what the fuck is this? what is happening?”

“are you high?”

“what? no, i’m not high. i just want an answer. why have i already lived through this morning twice?”

and she never does get an answer because the pulsing thing yanks her back and drops her bed just as her alarm is going off. again.

-

Poppy screams into her pillow and the pulsing thing says sorry, but you broke a rule, i had to pull you back.

and suddenly Poppy’s demanding answers from this stupid pulsing thing, but it remains silent.

so she pulls herself out of bed and tries again.

-

attempt number four goes wrong around noon, and attempts five through nine are all spectacular disasters because Poppy decides that she just does not give a fuck.

if some cruel force of the universe wants to lock her in this never ending purgatory, then so be it. she’s done enough shitty things in life and probably deserves it.

-

attempt number ten goes better. it still goes wrong because she got into a fight with AJ and apparently that’s not how it’s supposed to go, but she overhears a conversation between Chloe and Veronica and realises just how horrible she’s been to them.

-

she stays in bed for the entirety of attempt number eleven.

the pulsing thing begs her to get up, says please, i only want to help. but Poppy doesn’t buy it. who would want to help her?

the pulsing thing goes quiet and gently pulls her back until it’s 9 o’clock in the morning and her alarm is going off again.

-

c’mon, one more time. please? the pulsing thing asks as soon as attempt number twelve starts.

Poppy sighs but gets out of bed anyway. she can do this one more time. she finds Veronica in the kitchen just like the last eleven times and feels strangely compelled to say something new.

“i wasn’t a very good friend, was i?”

Veronica looks up from her phone, wary but curious.

the pulsing thing says no, not yet. but Poppy ignores it and pushes on. and as soon as she gets to the end of her apology, the pulsing thing pulls her away and drops her back in bed just as the alarm is going off.

not yet, it says.

“then when?” Poppy shouts at the top of her lungs. “when do you want me to start being better?”

she gets no response from the pulsing thing, but Chloe does knock on her door and ask if everything’s okay. she snaps at Chloe, tells her to go away, even though she knows she shouldn’t and wishes she didn’t.

she decides then that she’s done playing this stupid game.

-

she shaves her head during one version of the day and streaks across campus in another version because fuck it, no one will remember.

-

it’s during attempt twenty-one that she accidentally bumps into AJ on some quiet part of campus. they sit together and talk and the pulsing thing tells her to be careful.

“can i ask you a question?” AJ says.

“sure.”

“did i ever mean anything to you?”

“yes—”

the pulsing thing tells her to stop.

“—i think i was scared because i knew i could lo—”

the pulsing thing rips her away.

-

Poppy can feel it in her bones that this is it. attempt twenty-two will be the one to break this cycle.

she plays through the day as she usually would, making only small changes that she knows are the right thing to do. then comes time for the award show and it’s just before the winner is announced that the pulsing asks if she knows what has to be done.

yes, she does know.

AJ wins and Poppy’s strangely okay with that, but the pulsing thing tells her now, go, you have to do it. so she does. she shouts and she curses and is vaguely aware of her parents begging for her to stop.

she runs off outside and finds herself at the fountain again.

she doesn’t have to wait long until AJ sits down beside her and Poppy looks up at her and smiles, waiting for AJ to accept the olive branch she’s extending.

“i’m glad you won,” Poppy breathes, almost like a sigh of relief.

and she feels something in the air shift then. it’s small, barely noticeable. but she knows that something is different in the way that sometimes you just know something even if knowing it has no rhyme or reason.

“really?”

Poppy hums. “you deserve it.”

the pulsing thing says i’m proud of you.

and Poppy wonders if she’ll be okay without the constant nagging, because this is the furthest she’s ever made it before and she has no idea what comes next.

that’s the point.

what if i screw up.

then you fix it.

what if i can’t.

you can.

“you alright?” AJ asks, breaking Poppy’s trance. “you just kinda zoned out for a sec.”

Poppy smiles and finds AJ’s hand with her own. “i’ve never been better.”

-

time is linear, Poppy firmly believes. like dominoes in a line, stacked neatly in formation, and all tumbling one right after another when nudged.

time does not repeat. it does not offer do-overs. except maybe when it does. which might be complete bullshit, Poppy thinks. but years—decades even—after that day she lived through twenty-two times, she’ll listen as AJ recites some corny pickup line in their kitchen.

“i can’t believe i married you,” Poppy will say with a smile.

“tragic, isn’t it?”

“couldn’t agree more.”

“good.”

and then AJ will swoop in and plant a kiss on Poppy’s lips. and it will be in moments like those that the pulsing thing will hum and ask aren’t you glad you finally listened to me?

and yeah, maybe she is.

#my writing #poppy x mc #poppy min-sinclair #queen b #playchoices #a funky little story about love and time travel #does that even make sense? #i sure hope it does

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

Friday Night Stabby best quotes part 14 - Legacy Peeps edition (05/03/21)

people playing in this game: Skizz, Joker, Impulse, Zloy, Logic, Poppy (PoptartKatze), Pearl, Chim (ChimneySwift), Sausage, Avo (Avomance). prox chat is off bc the game updated and crewlink didnt work

…

Chim: Okay, I’m here! Don’t start without me! Poppy: We just started without you. Zloy: We just started without you.

...

*Impulse reports Skizz’s body* Impulse: Hello hello. Somebody killed my blueberry friend. Somebody killed my blueberry friend and I’m sad! Zloy: Quick let’s think about it: who had the motive? Impulse: It was in electrical, by the way. Poppy: I was messing with wires. Logic: That sounds very ‘electrical’. Poppy: Not messing with bodies! I was messing with wires IN electrical. Pearl: That’s where the body was, Poppy.

...

Impulse: I’m just happy to be part of this crew :) Pearl: So happy you would stab somebody?

...

Sausage: You voted for me?! Logic, get outta here! I didn’t even say one word, Logic!

...

Pearl: Another body in electrical. Poppy, have you been playing with wires again? Poppy: I was… somewhere. Not in electrical, obviously.

...

Joker: At the beginning of the game, I went into electrical and did my tasks and left and then I went ALL the way around to the other side to do asteroids in weapons. Pearl: I actually believe that; I remember seeing you in there. Zloy: I’m sorry, I was not listening. I was too busy voting you out of the airlock.

...

Logic: *is the only one who voted for Sausage again* Sausage: Stop it, Logic! I hate you!

...

Zloy, during the round: This is a public announcement that ghosts can and should do their tasks. Sausage: Roger roger. Logic: Roger roger. Zloy: It’s a public announcement, you don’t need to roger roger if I’m speaking over the intercom.

...

Pearl: I think it’s Logic; all of us have been in the middle for the majority of the round. Zloy: I’m pretty sure Logic hasn’t been, so let’s yeet him. Impulse to his chat: Oh no. He’s getting yeeted.

...

Zloy: Joker, can I have my lime back, please? Joker: What, Zloy? What’d you say? Zloy: Can I have my lime back? Everybody knows I’m lime. Since Avo stole green. Avo: I didn’t steal anything! *changes colour to brown* Zloy: *changes colour to green* There we go. Thank you, Avo. Avo: You are welcome, sir. Zloy: See? This is how you make friends. This is how you establish connections. Joker: Zloy, we’re- We’ve always been friends, though.

...

Skizz: Okay, who was not doing tasks? We were down to one task for, like, a month. Joker: I want to say that I did all my tasks and that you should be proud of me. Skizz: Well, you WANNA say that but can you say it truthfully? Joker: I DID do all my tasks. Skizz: Well, atta boy. Joker: Are you proud? :D Skizz: I AM proud of you! :D

...

*body is reported* Avo: Who did it?! Skizz: You make one heck of a detective.

...

Skizz: I was 100% with Impulse, you’re absolutely right, but he cut into reactor and I went up towards upper engine. Avo: I did see Skizz in north engine. Joker: So you cut Impulse and then went up? Skizz: Okay! Well, you know what, don’t make me do it, Mister Joker! You’re adding all these extra words. Joker: Do what? You’re gonna kill me? Skizz: No, I- I could not be more- I’ve been playing with you a while. I have kind of a- It’s not fair, I- I’ve been playing with Joker for a while. This is how he talks when it’s him. Joker: What?! No it’s not! Skizz: And there goes the high pitched voice. Like a recipe. It’s like a RECIPE with you. Joker: You’re getting me confused with Impulse.

...

Chim: So we’re voting for Poptart? Wait- Poppy: No! I FOUND the body. Chim: Oh. But how do we know you didn’t CREATE the body?

...

Zloy: It’s like rock-paper-scissors. Skizzleman beats Joker, Impulse beats Skizzleman, Sausage beats… uh… what’s-his-face. Logic. Logic: What’s-his-face? What’s-his-face?!

...

Avo: There’s a green body! Mister Joker in electrical, just as I went into electrical to do my electrical tasks. Chim: That’s pretty sus. Skizz: That’s what he gets! Sausage: Self-report. Poppy: Self-report for sure. Avo: It is not a self-report. I can put my hand on my Avomancian heart and say it was not I. Skizz: Wooow, that was diggin’. Pearl: Very sus. Zloy: Yeah, I was about to advocate that there’s no reason to self-report on the first kill of the game but you changed my mind single-handedly. *votes* Skizz: Whoa, Zloy! We need a little bit more. Little bit more.

...

Avo: I’ve never been so hurt in all my life getting voted on that. Skizz: It was just Zloy.

...

Skizz: I don’t wanna wrong Avo again. Avo: I’d be very disappointed if you wronged me again, Skizz. Impulse: What if I wrong you? Cuz I saw you and Logic take off towards electrical together. Zloy and I were still chilling, dumping trash. Avo: I was dumping trash with you, Impulse! For goodness sake! Impulse: Yeah, then you and Logic ran off together and you killed him. Chim: Wait, what about trash? Impulse: Avo just called Logic trash because that’s who he killed. He was taking out the trash, you heard it.

...

Pearl: Make sure to vote, Chim. Chim: I did. I voted for “skip”. Whoever that guy is, he’s super sus all the time.

...

Zloy: So it was a double kill, which means that we’re operating with people who are really, really comfortable being around one another. Chim: Or there’s a sniper. Zloy: A WHAT? Chim: A sniper. You know… like, a long-barrelled gun that shoots bullets at a long distance. Zloy: We’re on a SPACESHIP! Chim: That’s a good point. I’m getting too immersed.

...

*Skizz and Pearl win as imposters* Zloy: Hey, remember when I said it’s competent people and my idea was that it was Skizz and Pearl because they were the only ones left who are competent? *everyone immediately protests*

...

Zloy: Double kill by electrical. SPARKS were flying. Joker: If I get imposter, I’m killing you first, Zloy.

...

Chim: I did a scan in medical. Impulse: Oh yeah? How much did you weigh? Chim: I don’t wanna talk about it. Impulse: What’s your blood type? Chim: What blood type is not sus?

...

Zloy: Chim walked right past a body. Chim: Oh I did? OH! That WAS a corpse, wasn’t it? I thought it was, like, a pet. Literally, no joke, I thought it was a pet. I didn’t even- Zloy: I’m completely certain that you are a crewmate and I still want to throw you out of an airlock right now.

...

Zloy: We had fun! Let’s go to medbay with everybody. It’ll be fun. You can watch your friends get undressed and scan themselves.

...

Skizz: Maybe when you undressed for your scan, Chim, Zloy saw something that you don’t want him to tell the world about. Chim: Well, I mean… ;)

...

Joker, getting voted out: Well, that’s rude.

...

Chim: You can’t spell Sausage without ‘sus’. Skizz: Are you saying Sausage is a… SAUSpect?

...

Skizz: I think he wanted a piece of the Skizz. He wanted a Skizz sandwich! Logic: Skizz, I would never do something like that to you! Never! Skizz: I was your first kill, homie.

...

Chim: I have a body to report! Zloy: Boy do you. Chim: What? Why would you say that, Zloy? Zloy: Nothing. Chim: You know about a body? Zloy: I’ve just been staring at your butt for most of this round. Chim: Yeah, why’ve you been following me? Zloy: I’ve been following you because I needed a buddy. *later* Pearl: So what we’re getting at is it’s either Zloy or Sausage? Chim: No, I don’t think it was Zloy cuz he was honestly on my booty the whole time. It was sus but wasn’t THAT sus.

...

*Avo kills Impulse and Skizz immediately walks in* Skizz, singing to the tune of Bad Romance: Whoaa whoaa whoaaaaa, your killer, he is Avomance. Pearl: What happened? Skizz: I walked into reactor as Avo is walking out and there’s bloody footprints as he’s walking away from the body. Zloy: I appreciate how extra you are.

...

Zloy: Look, you can always trust a man who is not afraid to sing Lady Gaga. That man has nothing to hide.

...

Joker: I found Poptart’s body in… Chim: In the cereal aisle? Joker: Yeah, in the cereal aisle. Haha. Um… Yeah, I found- Avo: THAT was sincere (/s)

...

Impulse: I do feel kinda bad sussing [Avo] last round too but- I mean, he KILLED me! So hey. Avo: You deserved it, Impulse.

...

Pearl: Could someone kill me? I haven’t been killed yet.

...

Chim: Where’s the body? Joker: It’s where you left it.

...

Joker: You were chasing me and then luckily, someone put up the doors and blocked you from getting to me. I also watched you stand on a vent, change your mind, and go the other direction. Chim: How do you know I changed my mind? You can’t see anything through my little spacesuit. And I was following you cuz you looked like a pro with your little party hat. I thought maybe you were going somewhere cool and I wanted to check out where you were going. Joker: You’re a horrible liar. I don’t even know you but you’re a bad liar.

...

Skizz: Lemme tell you something there, Pearly Pop. I know that you loved killing me; I know you did. So I want you to know HOW you killed me. See, what you did was- I was wiring the ship. ‘Kay? I was saving lives, I was busy saving lives. You punched me in the head and I turned around and looked at you and you shot me right in the face. That was the animation that showed. Pearl: That’s great :D I love it.

...

*vote ties between Chim and skipping* Skizz: Oh my gosh! Zloy: We were ALMOST free, everyone.

...

Skizz: I’m done. Is anyone else done? Joker: I finished my tasks again, Skizz. Are you proud? Skizz: I AM proud of you! Joker: Look at me doing tasks! Skizz: I’m impressed! Joker: Thanks, man :D

...

*Zloy’s body is reported* Avo: There’s a dead Russian outside navigation.

...

Zloy: The reason [Impulse and Pearl] are so good as imposters is specifically because they know when to shut up.

...

Avo: We don’t know that Pearl wasn’t a killer. Joker: Well, how do we know YOU’RE not a killer? Avo: You have my word as an English gentleman, obviously. Joker: You can’t fool me with your fancy accent.

#friday night stabby quotes #legacy smp #impulsesv #skizzleman #misterjoker #zloyxp #avomance #chimneyswift11 #poptartkatze #pearlescentmoon #logicalgeekboy #mythicalsausage

[st-just]

Semi-coherent Thoughts on the Poppy War Series

(Because I really need to start forcing myself to write semi-consistently again)

So I’ll say outright that I actually liked the series quite a bit, which does mean I actually got engaged and invested enough to start turning it over and picking it apart in my head after I finished it. So, like, this is probably going to come across as more negative overall than my actual opinions of the books.

Anyway, first off I really do adore Rin as a protagonist (I’d say ‘heroine’, but, well, no). Now partially this is because I always love even minimally sympathetic morally grey (..grey like coal soot, in this case) protagonists. But she’s just also such a complete garbage fire of a person, it’s kind of endearing. Well, that’s a bit callous – her entire personality is more or less a conflict between different kinds of unhealthy responses to powerlessness and trauma. Be she’s also just such a mess, and when she really starts leaning into delusions of grandeur you can’t help but root for her and hope things do actually turn out okay, regardless of how many fivers of blood she’s currently fantasizing about creating.

A big part of that is just how thoroughly awful the entire setting is, and how terrible everyone in it are, of course. Like, there are basically exactly three developed character in the entire trilogy who are unambiguously at least mostly good people (Chen, probably Venka, specifically the amnesiac and semi-delusional version of Jiang, but that’s being generous), and the fact that they stick around with Rin right to the end kind of puts that into doubt, honestly. Beyond that – almost every family has negligent or abusive parents, and literally every political figure is a bloody-handed tyrant ruling through violence and fear. The Hesperians are racist imperialists convinced they have a divine mandate to conquer the world, the Mugenese are every horror story from the IJA during WW2 translated to a pre-industrial fantasy setting, the ruling elite of Nikara are so many racist, scheming, power-hungry snakes with no concerns except their own position....

And, part and parcel with how terrible the setting is, Kuang does an incredible job of making all the worst things Rin does (until the final act, anyway) incredibly cathartic and badass and fun-in-a-fucked-up-way to read. There’s a terrible sort of awe while she turns the main islands of not!Japan into a pyroclastic hellscape. And whenever she gets a chance to enact any of her numerous revenges on some of the many people who abused and betrayed her it’s always poetic, in a Count-of-Monte-Cristo sort of way, and so kind of sickly compelling, even beyond it being some of the only times Rin’s really hopeful and happy. (Also, there are fun villainous monologues and quippy post-murder one-liners!)

Also, all forms of love are a terrible idea 100% of the time and is only going to end in at least one of the parties dead, abused, or (more or less literally) killing themselves in order to keep up with the other/earn their approval/try to keep them together. (I mean, Rin mostly had horrible taste in men, but Chen wasn’t able to stay mad at her for longer than a few months even after the whole ‘genocide’ thing, which he’s just about the only person to react to with any horror whatsoever. And look at how that ended up working out for him, so-)

I’m sure comparing grimdark fantasy to A Song of Ice And Fire is thoroughly out of fashion by now, but the overall perspective really did strike me as incredibly similar to Martin’s, a lot of the time. ‘Legitimate’ power and ‘lawful’ authority are ultimately nothing but polite fictions maintained by violence, terror and brutal oppression. War is a hell suffered most keenly by civilians with the misfortune to live and die in the middle of it, and least of all by the people with the power who actually start and end them. A flawed and unequal peace is very often preferable to dragging everything to hell with you as you die for the sake of freedom. And so on.

Now, to start the nitpicking – this is entirely personal and aesthetic, but it was kind of annoying how each of the first two books ended in moments of megalomaniac grandeur and terrifying empowerment, and then the next book started with a timeskip of things having gone to shit and her back under someone else’s thumb, and then a solid majority of the text is spent getting manipulated, betrayed, and finally crawling and clawing her way back out to the same point (both emotionally and in terms of independence/vision) that she had been at the previous book’s climax.

This isn’t anything even close to unique to TPW, of course – everything going to shit between the end of one story and the start of the sequel is kind of endemic to a lot of genres, really. And it is frankly incredibly in character for Rin to go through cycles flipping between resentment at being manipulated and used, and desperately craving authority figures to tell her what she should do and give her validation as valuable or useful. Still a bit annoying to read, though.

I’m sure it’s more me than the books – not like they didn’t put in the effort – but I could just never get really invested in the whole enemies-to-almost-lovers-to-enemies-again-to-? Thing with Nezha. Like, he’s interesting in that you can do a 180 perspective flip and he’d clearly be just as suitable a protagonist as Rin is, and his life’s very sad and everything. But, like, we get a front row seat to Rin’s internal monologue, and she gets thirsty for plenty of terrible men (and one awful woman), the only thing that makes Nezha special is that he’s not at least twice her age. So I never really got nearly as emotionally invested in them as the books seemed to expect me to. Which does kind of hurt the whole final act of book three.

Speaking of – okay, the ending isn’t awful or anything, but it is kind of disappointing in being exactly what you would expect it to be, as far as Rin’s character arc goes? Which might be just because I was already primed to compare this to ASOIF and she just literally pulls a Daenerys (fire-aligned vengeance/justice character with revolutionary impulses and an autocratic sensibility is willing to burn down the world in the process of freeing it, goes mad with power and paranoia, needs to be put down for the good of the country), but still. Her reading Venka throwing her to the ground to avoid an assassination attempt as a betrayal and burning her to death before she realized what was happening was just really heavy handed, you know? Same with turning on Kitay, who at this point is her actual literal soulmate. (Also sad in a broader sense, because those two are like literally two of the only characters in the entire series I’d actually peg as worthy of/capable of being trusted with political power.)

The specifics aside, I’m a miserable enough person to appreciate how unsatisfying the actual resolution at the end of the book is – imperialism wins! Literally no choice but to sign those unequal treaties and hope you’re eventually able to grow strong enough to force them out! Everything is the same as before this forty-year cycle of wars except much, much worse! - but yeah, I really just don’t actually care about Nezha enough as a character for it to really land. Also Kitay and Venka deserved better, even if literally no one else did.

Anyway, yeah, good series. Would recommend if you like the genre and can stomach all the, well, everything.

#books #the poppy war #the dragon republic #the burning god #r. f. kuang #book review #in this essay I will #this is theoretically a writing blog

[join-the-joywrite]

You are the music in me (part 1)

(mostly) juke soulmate AUs no. 1

Special thanks & shoutout to @endless-navigator and @i-spit-on-fire for helping me with my first juke soulmates au post, you guys are amazing!!

Suggested by the lovely Endless: AU where soulmates are musically connected, so whenever the one is playing music, the other hears it in their head (Everyone Is Alive AU, Trevor and Bobby are not the same person I know it doesn't make sense shh)

First of all, I love this au and my co-writers

Second of all, let's just pause for a moment to imagine Alex suffering out hours of Justin Bieber's pop music because that was Willie's playlist at one point. Alex retaliated by starting a rock band and that's the real story behind Sunset Curve, shhh

They all go to the same school & the entire grade is very aware of Julie & Carrie's rivalry for top spot in music, dance and drama. So far, Julie has music, Carrie has dance and somehow, Flynn accidentally got into drama due to an admin error in eighth grade and she's been rocking it ever since. But Julie and Carrie are best friends, don't doubt that. It may seem a little suspicious, but they do love each other.

Luke thinks Julie is a hotshot and finds Carrie super arrogant. He tolerates Flynn. He expects his best friends to do the same but Reggie adopted Flynn as his little sister and partner in crime, and Alex regularly sleeps over at Carrie's for spa night and boy gossip. Luke is very betrayed when he discovers this.

Once, Alex was over for a Dirty Candy recital and spent the next day singing the song they were performing and when Dirty Candy performed it, Luke and Reggie were Very Confused -- but half an hour later, Alex was singing Justin Bieber under his breath again.

Anyway back to the juke I initially started this for

Perfect Harmony

Luke doesn't really like Julie but he's the first to admit she's actually really talented. Julie has no idea who Luke is.

When Sunset Curve started up and found their sound, Julie decided that she couldn't wait to meet her soulmate because she was going to strangle them on sight. How was she supposed to get her homework done when all she had every afternoon was rock music???

They once independently went to the same concert and after realizing that the music wasn't bad, they were just hearing double, both got excited that their soulmate liked the music they did.

Julie wrote music with Rose a lot and often, she'd be the one singing. Luke often thought about penning down the unfamiliar lyrics to search it up later but he always forgot, getting lost in the beautiful music his soulmate listened to.

Eventually, Julie grew accustomed to the constant rock and decided to Google the lyrics in her head. After coming up blank everywhere, she concluded that her soulmate was making original music. So she had a talented soulmate. Didn't mean they weren't annoying.

Perfect Harmony

Julie still can't wait to meet her soulmate. Maybe she won't kill them on sight but she sure as hell will beat them with a cushion for the one calculus test she flunked after spending all the study time with loud music in her head.

Luke and Julie write music together

I love Luke but he's dumb and he doesn't even notice that he's writing music with his soulmate. Julie does, but only because her soulmate has a very distinct voice and any music that comes from her soulmate shares that voice and even though it's so very different to her own, there is an undeniable complimentary aspect.

Julie has like 8 duets locked away from her family that she co-wrote with her unaware soulmate.

Perfect Harmony

Sunset Curve has ballads now and then. Bobby, Reggie and Alex know why but they're not gonna tell Luke. They're just gonna share knowing glances and pretend like nothing is different. They have a bet going with how long it'll take Luke to realise.

Luke is falling in love with his soulmate because music is life and his soulmate has GREAT music taste. Unlike Julie, he hasn't yet figured out that the music in his head is original music.

P E R F E C T H A R M O N Y

Endless, Sun & I thought about killing Rose but we threw that out the window pretty quickly. Instead, we decided upon a year-long coma. In which Julie loses music.

Luke is absolutely distraught. He thinks his soulmate died. Reggie, Alex & Bobby don't think so for sure but the longer the silence goes on, the more convinced they get. It affects Luke's music too. Sunset Curve doesn't shut down like Julie did, but they do get softer.

Luke spends more time writing, singing to himself. If by some miracle, his soulmate isn't dead, then he's singing to them. Hopefully.

One day, Sunset Curve performs for Julie. Well, they don't specifically perform for her. They'd have to know her for that. Sunset Curve throws a small gig and "this song goes out to all of you who feel hopeless, like you'll never be able to wake all the passions you used to have up again."

Flynn decides Julie needs to start living again and drags her to the small mini concert because it's small and why not.

Julie goes through the entire evening in a daze, but after Flynn leaves her house later that night, Julie feels a little fuzzy, like something's wrapping her in a big warm hug. And the next day, Julie absolutely obliterates Wake Up.

A week or so after, Rose is concious again.

Now that the serious moments are done, let's get to some funnies.

Luke, distracted and bored: you with the sad eyes

Julie, trying to do her homework: W H Y

Luke, oblivious: don't be discouraged

Julie, squishing her scrap paper: >:(

Flynn finds this amusing and asks what's up. Julie growls, "he's singing Trolls."

"So sing back. Duh."

And then she does. Luke's singing gets less lazy and more energetic. Julie actually really likes Trolls music and she has to admit singing Poppy's lines are fun. Flynn is super tempted to record Julie and call it blackmail stock. Alex, Reggie and Bobby actually act on the temptation.

They do this often. Julie will be doing something mundane and then all of a sudden, there's a duet playing in her head and it's her idiot soulmate covering the song akd hoping she joins in. Thankfully, Julie is mostly alone but she wonders if her soulmate is acting a fool in front of other people just for the sake of hearing her voice. Endearing.

P E R F E C T H A R M O N Y

Julie needs some practice on her dance recitals okay, so randomly, she has the track playing on her headphones and bops her head along. Sometimes she's cleaning the kitchen and dancing with the broom pretending it's her dance partner. No I don't do that haha

It has been WEEKS of this.

Luke has developed brain cells. He now knows his soulmate is helping him write music. So he starts penning down a new song. Both of them know it's a duet. They've even had some joke practices together with no music and things like that. Julie doesn't know the music that goes with it because Luke is careful not to play it. Ever.

And so one night, Julie's down in the studio -- it's dusty and needs a little cleaning -- and pops her earbuds in and she's doin her lil dancy-dance as she listens to her the music for her dance class recital.

Luke: GUYS GUYS GUYS ITS TIME ITS TIME SHE'S PRACTICING GUYS GUYS

Alex: IT'S FINALLY HAPPENINNNGGGGGGG

Reggie and Bobby: so should we leave you two alone for a minute or--

Luke: NO YOU WILL STAY HERE AND YOU WILL PLAY THE NOTES I GAVE YOU LAST WEEK I HOPE YOU NERDS PRACTICED

Bobby: you know we're gonna silently make fun of you the whole time

Luke: I am aware but you guys love me and you'll do this for me now shut up I have to time this perfectly

Julie is hearing double. At first she thinks maybe she never plugged her headphones in or maybe Flynn or Carrie are nearby listening to it too or -- no wait hang on a minute that doesn't sound like the track she's supposed to dance to.

Taking out her earbuds confirms that the music is in her head.

Off topic, speaking of music in her head, Luke definitely thinks I Got The Music is a Bop™

Its soft, its sweet, it's just guitar. There is no way in hell her soulmate is listening to guitar instead of playing it. She knows that much.

So now Julie has forgotten about cleaning the studio up and is pretty much standing in the same spot, just holdin on to the broom that did just two short sweeps

"Step into my world"

"THE BASTARD WROTE A SONG"

"Bittersweet love story bout a girl"

big gasp "THAT BASTARD IS PLAYING OUR DUET"

"Shook me the core"

Julie's brain: singggg,,,,, Julie: I'm afraid, ,,, Julie's brain, in Flynn's voice: S I N G

"Voice like an angel, never heard before"

Julie, before she can back down, "here in front of me"

Luke's eyes get so wide and so happy. Bobby takes a pause to snap a photo. When they finally find Luke's soulmate, they're gonna have so many dorky pics to show

Y'all it is the most beautiful separated duet of all time. I mean, not for the guys, the pauses are really weird but hey, at least Luke seems to be enjoying himself.

Post duet: "Mija are you singing to yourself"

Julie: (screams and throws broom) no?

You know what maybe this needs to be split for a part two...

#julie and the phantoms #julie and the fat ones #julie and the himbos #jatp #julie molina #luke patterson #juke #sunset curve #alex jatp #reggie jatp #carrie wilson #flynn jatp #willie jatp #willie williams #willex #jatp soulmate aus #mara's soulmate aus #soulmate au #au headcanon

[pricemarshfield]

personal problem

A Lexi x MC cheating AU, requested by @hizzieluthor​. Chapter 3/22. Read the chapter on AO3 here, or the full fic here. Rated E; minors DNI.

After an hour with a vibrator and some very vivid fantasies, Bea's worked out almost all the tension from a day spent around two of the hottest women at Belvoire, equally unattainable, both attained. Three, if you count Zoey, who greets her in the morning with a knowing smirk.

"So how'd your meeting go with Kingsley? I didn't think I'd see you until tonight."

"We got interrupted," Bea groans, sitting on one of their barstools, elbows on the table like her parents always told her not to do, head in her hands. "But she promised we could talk about it! Since I had to deal with Lexi."

"Right, such a difficult thing, to make out with a hot professor you can't get in trouble for kissing because she's not at this school," Zoey says with a little shake of her head. "Honestly."

"Oh, no, not that! God, okay, so--" Bea starts to recount her time in Ina's office, flirting with her and kissing her for like a second before the Dean fully walked in and interrupted to ask if Ina would spare her for Lexi? Like, what the fuck. Zoey gasps at all the right places in the story, especially when Bea talks about flirting with Lexi, too. "And then we made out, and guess what?"

"Dean interrupted again?"

"No! Ina called me."

Zoey's laugh is half-disbelieving, half-impressed. "Your life is completely wild, what the fuck, you've been here for less than two months! God, so did you let it go to voicemail?"

Bea knows this next part crosses the line from fun, gossipy drama to probably morally wrong, but it's Zoey, what's she gonna do, not tell her? "So I actually...picked up?"

Zoey's mouth drops completely open, and she stares at Bea like she's just said she stole the Mona Lisa. "You what?"

"No, I know, thinking back it's really dumb and honestly, kind of mean? No, not kind of. It's mean. But it seemed like a good idea? And it was really hot."

Zoey fans herself. Bea can't tell if she's joking or not. "It does sound hot. But are you, like, flirting with Lexi to get under the professor's skin or? Are you interested in her too?"

"Physically, sure," Bea says with a snort. "But as a person? No, she sucks. Ina..." She starts to smile, sees Zoey's expression soften in response. "She feels...real, you know? Like, completely outside of all this drama with the rankings and the T and Poppy."

"And also she's hot."

"So hot, oh my God."

"Okay," Zoey says. "Can I give you some possibly harsh advice?"

Bea pauses. She'll definitely deserve it, but she's not sure she wants to hear it here, in the early morning space where everything still feels light and easy and consequence-free. But it's Zoey, so. "Sure."

"If you want Ina as a partner, as more than a hookup, then you should probably stop messing with Lexi. Or with anyone--don't think I didn't see the kiss with Carter--"

"--that was mostly to mess with Poppy--"

"--and Lexi's mostly--yeah, some weird mindgame, or whatever, I don't always get you. But Ina doesn't know, right?"

"No," Bea says in a voice that comes out quieter than she meant it to.

"If you want this to work, if you really want a relationship and you're not just chasing her because she's a hot professor, you've gotta actually commit to her. And to the fact that you'll have to hide your relationship, and the fact that you'll have to be very, very careful to avoid it getting toxic. Honestly? I...nah, that's too harsh."

Bea tries to grin, keep everything funny. "What? You're on a roll, don't stop on my account."

Zoey looks at her for a long moment. Bea wants to duck away but she holds her ground. "I don't think you should date Ina. If you want to, I'll support you, because you're my best friend and I love you."

"Wow, gay," Bea mutters.

"I am literally talking you through two inadvisable relationships with two older women you shouldn't date that you seem keen on dating anyway, so glass houses. But I think you should think long and hard before you do."

Bea valiantly holds herself back from making a 'long and hard' joke and nods. "I see what you're saying. I don't necessarily agree with all of it, but I get where you're coming from, at least." After a long moment, where she can feel Zoey judging her, she adds, "Okay, I see what you mean about Lexi, I'll...stop. I mean, I won't be nice to her, but I'll stop--you know."

"Good!" Zoey says with a grin. "Then you should probably check your phone, because Kingsley's been blowing it up."

Bea glances at it, and sure enough, she has three new texts from Ina Kingsley.

Bea, I'm free whenever you are today.

We should discuss some things.

There are also some quizzes to grade. I'll be in my office for a few hours before my office hours begin.

The texts are drier than Bea after any amount of time talking to Michael, but after being interrupted by the actual literal Dean and Lexi planning on staying on campus, she gets that she wants to be careful. Besides, that's what Zoey was telling her. She has to get used to hiding some things if she wants Ina.

And she does. She really, really does.

Sounds good, Professor. I'll see you soon.

--

Bea doesn't dress up in her nicest outfit, but she is wearing her nicest non-lingerie underwear underneath it when she knocks on the door to Professor Kingsley's office. She pulls it open right away, dark circles under her eyes like she hasn't slept. She pulls Bea right in, locks the door behind her--ooh, finally a breach of propriety--and says, "I'm so sorry about Lexi."

"What?" Bea says, having completely forgotten about anyone other than the woman in front of her. "Oh, right. It's really okay, I'm okay."

"Are you sure?" Ina asks, hand on Bea's face all of a sudden, when did that happen, holy shit? "I don't...it'll be a little risky, if I fight to keep you--" Ooh. "--as my TA instead of hers--" Slightly less enthusiastic ooh. "--but I will, if you want me to. I don't--like seeing you with her. I know you kissing her was the kiss cam, and avoiding suspicion of any anything untoward with me, but...I hated it."

"Were you jealous?" Bea asks, hands twitching as she resists the urge to hold Ina's hand on her face even longer.

"Yes," Ina admits, quickly and easily. Bea could swoon. "Yes, I was jealous. I think...had she not been there, or if I could've stayed on our date instead of having to leave for the call from the Dean, I wouldn't have been able to say that. But Bea, I don't want anyone else to have you. And I--I understand I can't ask that of you. It's your life, and you would have to hide--"

Bea puts an arm around the back of Ina's neck to pull her in for a kiss, and Ina just fucking goes for it, pinning Bea to the door with her whole body, pressed together in as many points as possible. The kiss is deep and passionate and perfect, and it's only the fact that they're right against the door that prompts Bea to bite back a moan.

After a couple minutes of this, Ina pulls back, but only to rest her forehead against Bea's. Bea smiles up at her. Ina, miraculously, smiles back, no sign of wanting to cut and run at all.

The moment only lasts a second, though, and then Ina clears her throat, pulls back a little. "We should...talk about this."

"What's there to talk about?" Bea says. "I get that we have to keep things secret, I get that it's risky, but I want this and you want this, so what's the issue?"

Ina clears her throat, looking at Bea with so much emotion that it's almost uncomfortable. "I don't...Bea, if you want me--"

"--I do--"

"--then you'll still want me after you think through the consequences."

Bea groans, pushes Ina back until the professor's back hits her own desk. "Ina. I have thought this through. I have. And I'm all in. The question is, have you?" (She has thought it through. That's what that conversation with Zoey earlier was about.)

"Of course I have," Ina says, more a hiss than calm, casual discussion. "Bea, I've thought of nothing but you since the speakeasy. How could I not? Our conversation, you on top of me--" She clears her throat, face flushed. "But you don't want--"

"Hey, how about you let me tell you what I want? I'm an adult, I can make my own decisions."

Ina looks at Bea's face, and Bea tries to keep it nice and not angry about being pushed away again. She seems to come to a decision, and she presses a quick, chaste kiss to Bea's lips. Bea grins at her. "If you're sure, Bea."

"I am," Bea says. "No one else I'd want to be with but you. Promise."

Ina's eyes go a little darker at that, and Bea could tell Lexi to fuck off a thousand times without any flirtation whatsoever and it'd be worth it for the look on Ina's face. "Good."

"Good," Bea repeats, and kisses her one more time. This one's sweeter, less let's-fuck-on-this-desk-right-now and more I-really-really-really-really-really-really-like-you. "I want nothing more than to stay right here, right now."

"...but?" Ina asks. Bea's disappointment at having to leave is mostly soothed by Ina reading her well enough to understand what she's getting at.

"But I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to meet up with Lexi to TA," Bea grumbles.

"The one good thing about that wretched woman being interested in me is at least it means I know she'll leave you alone," Ina says, and lets her go.

Bea laughs, a little awkwardly, but Ina doesn't seem to pick up on it. "Right. Uh, before I go, though, we are--right? We're us?"

Ina nods. "If you want to be. And you were very insistent about the fact that you do."

"I do!" Bea says, smiling dopily at her. "Okay, good, I just wanted to be sure. I'll see you later?"

"I'll text you," Ina says. "I do actually have all these quizzes to grade."

Bea hates to leave her with that glum expression, so she kisses her and says, "I'll make it up to you later."

Then it's heading back over to Lexi's office, glancing at herself in the windows to make sure she isn't so obviously mussed up. She's certain that Lexi wouldn't expose her and Ina's relationship, if only because it would sabotage her chances of dating Ina.

It's not stupid to flex, just a little, right?

She knocks on Lexi's office door, hears the other woman call a disinterested, "Come in," and opens it. Lexi's at her desk, looking at something on her computer that she slams shut as Bea walks in. "Hughes. I've plenty of work for you to do to keep you away from Ina." Bea smirks at her, and Lexi's expression goes stony. "What, are you looking for a repeat performance of yesterday? I'm not exactly interested in bending you over and punishing you for your insolence right now."

Uh, damn. Bea blinks a couple times, shakes her head as if to physically clear the images of that. "No. Just letting you know that, uh, I win. So sorry, but you were barely even competition."

"You--" Lexi's eyes flash, and Bea thinks for a second that Lexi might throw something at her. Instead, Lexi sits back, and says, "Alright."

"See, I--alright?"

"Yes," Lexi says, voice weirdly calm. "I've still got work for you to do. And I have business to attend to."

"Leave her alone, she's not--"

"My business doesn't involve Ina at all, Hughes," Lexi says with an eyeroll. "But you need to go through and put all this--" She taps a stack of papers on the desk with a single finger. "Into a spreadsheet. Okay?"

"I...okay?" Bea says, too confused to put up a fight right now. Lexi passes her without a sideways glance and leaves the office.

That...wasn't what Bea was expecting. She texts Ina a quick working on some busywork, she's already left and Zoey a girl i have SO much news but don't worry i took your advice about Lexi and posts a picture of herself in a nice office to her Insta, then gets to work. The whole time, she's left thinking about what Lexi has up her sleeves, because there's no way she's actually that calm about losing Ina to her.

Not that she's going to get Ina back. Not that she's going to get Bea back; she's happy with Ina. She is.

#lexi x mc #lexi montgomery #queen b #mc x lexi #my fics #oc: helena hughes #fic: personal problem #hizzieluthor #request #bea hughes

[a-problematic-writer]

If you're still looking for writing prompts, how about a picnic with Petra, Aiden, and Jesse? Since Aiden (understandably) doesn't want to get burned in the nether or intrude on the adventuring schedule Jesse and Petra already have going

Anon, would you believe me if I said the original version of the first fic had them going on a picnic? But I decided it was too much and cut it and turned it into what it is now. It'll be nice to explore that idea in full!

Jesse loved Beacon Town. So much so that it was hard for her to step away from her duties as hero and leader in residence. But she did. Twice a week. Wednesdays she met up with Lukas, Olivia, Radar, and Axel. Saturdays she met up with Aiden and Petra.

She didn't like to pick favorites. But perhaps she favored Saturdays more. With Lukas, Olivia, Radar, and Axel it was a more formal meetup. Though only formal in the way they could be which is not at all. It was still fun and she loved seeing them. With Petra and Aiden there was a spontaneity to what they did. The three of them made an odd pair but Jesse adored them both.

Today, Jesse was given the reigns on what they would do. Exhausted from planning out the budget for the harvest festival, she decided against anything too strenuous and thought it would be nice to take advantage of the fading summer with a picnic.

Finding a nice spot was the hard part, but Jesse knew one that was just begging for it. A little East of Beacon Town there was a forest. If you took the path through for about a mile and turned left you'd come upon a meadow of clovers and leaves the surrounded a lake that was fed by a waterfall. It was just the place for an outing.

She was currently laying out their meal. A small thing, really. Some sandwiches from the local cafe, fresh lemonade made by herself, and some of Jesse's favorite cookies from the bakery.

She heard Aiden and Petra before she saw them. Their voices and laughter carrying through the air. A smile tilted her lips upward as she looked toward the entrance to the clearing. Petra and Aiden had stopped and were looking around the area almost awestruck. Jesse's smile grew wider.

"Come on, you two! Food's gonna get cold!"

They both looked her way and then started forward. They looked nice even if they were just dressed how they always were. They settled and Jesse handed out the plates of food and plastic cups.

They ate slowly. Talked idly about the upcoming festival and Lukas's new book. Aiden told them about a letter Maya and Gill sent him. Petra recounted a recent solo venture she'd been on. The food had been finished sometime ago.

"--and that's how I got my new favorite sword."

Jesse grinned at Petra.

"I think the diamond blade really suits you!"

"Me too!" she said with a grin. "It's a bit heavier than Miss Butter was but it's also sharper and far more dangerous and just as flashy."

Her smile grew soft as she looked over at Aiden. He'd been quiet. Too quiet. His eyes focused away from them. Something was bothering him. He was never just quiet. Jessa nudged him with her foot. He jolted slightly blinking at her.

"What?"

She frowned and pushed herself to her feet.

"Come help me pick some flowers. I want something to put in that vase Isa sent me."

His brows furrowed a moment before he nodded. Jesse reached out her hands and he took them and she pulled him up to his feet.

"That's fine," Petra said dryly. "I'll just clean this up by myself."

She scrunched her nose and grinned at the redhead.

"Thank you, Petra."

She rolled her eyes and began to collect up the plates. Jesse kept ahold of Aiden's hand and pulled him over to a nice patch of poppies and cornflowers.

They collected flowers in silence at first before she turned to the brunette.

"What's wrong? You've been super quiet."

Aiden frowned and continued to collect up flowers then sighed. "It's nothing."

"It's not nothing if it's bothering you. What's up?"

He stopped and settled the flowers down gently. He looked over at her eyes looking pained.

"Why am I here, Jesse?"

Her brow furrowed and she frowned. "What'd you mean?"

"I mean," Aiden sighed and settled back on his knees. "I know we're friends and all, but this feels... I don't feel like I should be here. I feel like... I feel like you guys just invite me because you feel like you have to."

Her heart sank. "Aiden~"

"I just I don't want to be a bother. I did enough of that. You guys don't have to keep doing this." He looked away from her voice shaking slightly. "I'm okay on my own."

She frowned and looked down at the flowers. This had clearly been bothering him a lot.

"Aiden," she said again, softer this time. "We don't keep you around because we think we have to. I promise, Petra wouldn't let that slide." she cut her gaze to him and found him looking right at her. "You're here because both of us want you to be. You're supposed to be here. We both want you here."

"Really?"

Jesse offered him a smile and nodded. "Of course."

Aiden nodded and they collected up their flowers and headed back to where Petra had finished packing up the picnic basket They set the flowers gently on top. Petra squinted at them.

"So, what were you two talking about?"

Aiden bowed his head immediately. Jesse frowned. She hoped he'd forgive her for telling Petra, but she needed to know.

"He didn't think we actually wanted him here."

Petra's smirk softened and she looked at him.

"Of course we do. You're nice to have around."

Aiden's head raised and he rubbed the back of his neck. Jesse smiled and patted his shoulder.

"I told you, Aiden."

He nodded and cleared his throat not quite meeting her eyes. Jesse found herself grinning.

"I think it's a good time for a hug!"

Aiden nose scrunched but Jesse didn't let him protest wrapping her arms around his middle. He laughed and wrapped a tight arm around her. Jesse looked over at Petra and waved her over.

"Come on, Petra! You're not getting out of this!"

The redhead rolled her eyes but crossed over anyway. Wrapping an arm around her and Aiden. They pulled away after a long moment and Jesse just smiled up at the two before frowning.

"Why are you two so tall?"

That got a laugh out of Aiden and Petra. The latter grinned and nudged the former.

"I'm still the tallest."

Aiden scoffed as he crossed over to grab the basket and blanket.

"Only by like an inch!"

"Still taller!"

Jesse laughed, warmth settling in her chest.

She was happy to have the both of them in her life.

#answered ask #anon #my writing #kyler writes #north writes #mcsm #minecraft story mode #mcsm aiden #mcsm jesse #mcsm petra #mcsm aidesstra #(I'm just tagging it with this because it is basically aidesstra) #I loved this prompt #thank you so much for requesting it ;;w;; #I perhaps took this prompt and ran with it #but listen #they're so good #I love them as friends and as more