currently Terminally In Love with your fae!Simon au, and it has resulted in some ✨Thoughts✨
so, the bond that’s between Simon and reader — we’ve seen how it functions as a kind of honing beacon that allows Simon to know if reader is being fucked with by any other fae who dare to touch what he’s laid claim to… but from what I could discern the mark reacted so violently and allowed him to come to reader’s rescue solely because it was reacting to foreign fae magic… does it work the same for physical, nonmagical harm?
(and further, asking for the girlies…. what would Simon feel through the bond if the reader were to die 😚)
So glad you asked because it means I get to do some horror stuff. The short answer is Ghost's mark doesn't react the same way to human danger, it just pings Ghost to let him know there's trouble. The long answer is, the mark is stupid and will lash out at anything that is scaring MC, which sometimes includes Simon. Most of the time it just functions as an alarm system, but there's an adjustment period when Simon sort of has to train it on who it's ok to bite.
You've been followed since you got off the train. He's not even being stealthy about it. You make a turn, he turns, you stop, he stops, always a few steps behind you. No one else seems to notice or care. You look over your shoulder and see the same crewneck, the same beady eyes. His lips curve red into a smile when he knows you spot him. Your chest is tight, you try not to look at him. You thought you were past this, always looking over your shoulder isn't a good look. Then again neither is being dead. Better to be paranoid and alive.
It's getting dark. You don't live that far from the station, at least you didn't think you did. Maybe it's fear making the street feel longer, emptier. You pick up the pace, hearing the sentiment echoed behind you. The thud of footsteps getting progressively louder and closer, until you're forced to sprint. The effort is wasted immediately as you're grabbed and dragged into the nearest alley. Your chest squeezes with fear, your heart pounding in your ears as you're thrown against the brick wall. The buzz under your skin expands and contracts with your breaths, trying to do anything but calm you down. You think it might actually be driving your anxiety higher, towards a full blown panic, as the man grips your arms tight and grins down at you.
"Don't you know it's dangerous for little girls to wander alone at night?" He asks, he's close enough you can smell the alcohol on his breath. Your skin hurts where he touches you, bubbling with something you can't put a name to. The buzzing doesn't fit right, it slams against your ribs as you draw in shuddering breaths, there’s nothing for it to latch onto. You glance towards the mouth of the alley, the street was so empty, who would see you? This isn't right, he told you you'd be safe-
Something wet hits your face. The buzzing under your skin is reaching a fever, shaking you to your bones. You look up at the man, at the thick red and black mud falling from between his lips. He gives a wet cough. Your eyes drag to the black talons protruding from his chest, a hole punched through his ribs as if it were paper. The ribs themselves are warped outward and folded back away from the intrusion, more like wire than bone. You can't tear your eyes away from the sight, from the slick clawed hand dragging its way backwards through the viscera as you feel your buzzing start to move.
The silhouette that the collapse of your aggressor reveals is abyssal. Absorbing the shadows of the rest of the alley in a way you've never seen before. The air around it swirls with them. It's holding the man's heart in one clawed hand, tipping it's head back to swallow the organ whole. You are pretty sure you're having a panic attack. The abyss moves towards you like a ghost, and the buzz under your skin takes hold and forces you to MOVE.
The nose your fist collides with is startlingly human.
"You little bitch," Ghost snarls, making a grab for you as you sprint from the alley. Your feet slide against the sidewalk as you round the corner. The buzz under your skin rears back and strikes as his claws just miss you. "Not me you stupid-" he swears, you think he swears, you don't understand it but the buzz cowers.
You don't stop. Not even when you pass the door to your flat. You run because you can hear him running after you, can hear the scratch of his claws on brick and concrete as he tries to grab you. The gouges that he leaves in everything he touches, you don’t need to imagine what he could do to you, you saw it. You catch a glimpse of him as you turn a corner, his teeth are bared, his movements wild and animalistic.
His claws wrap around your throat, and you’re slammed into a wall for the second time tonight. He’s huge when he presses against your back, his chest expanding around his labored breathing in tandem with yours. You try to turn your head to look at him and he yanks your head back to stare at the stars. You both breathe, the night filled with the sound of your desperation. You swing your arm behind you to try and hit him, anything to make yourself more difficult prey. He catches your wrist easily and twists it behind your back, growling in your ear as he leans his weight on you.
“Not Me,” He tells you, it thrums through you like a universal truth, the buzz under your skin going warm and shivery, “You don't run from me. Not unless I tell you.” You nod, desperate to do something to ease your situation. “Good girl.”
His hand slides through your hair, fingers pressing to your forehead, and it all goes black.
You jolt awake shaking like a leaf. You press a hand to your mouth, choking down a sob. You’re terrified, it’s too dark in here, your skin feels like it’s been scrubbed raw, you feel like you’ve run a marathon. It must have been a nightmare, it must have been.
Simon turns on the light by the bed, woken up by your movements. “What’s wrong?” He asks, still half asleep. You shake your head, trying to get the shaking to stop. You feel like your body is trying to rip itself apart. Simon reaches a hand towards you and you jerk away, falling in a heap off the edge of the bed. You scurry away from him, you need distance, you need to get away from him. From the nightmare. Your back hits the wall as Simon stands.
“What did I say?” His eyes tear holes through you, you press against the wall trying to make yourself small as he stalks towards you, “Not. Me.”
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Merry Whump of May Day 2
@themerrywhumpofmay
“Need a ride?”
-wrench
-paranoia
-club
Big huge thanks to my always amazing whumperful crew: @whumpcereal @quietly-by-myself @sparrowsage and to @oddsconvert who put in a lovely beta job for this little prequel.
Warnings for this story: bad intentions by the main character, whumper perspective, derogatory internal dialogue, intent to engage in noncon (talked about, not actually written), drunkenness, smoking.
A King of the Road Prequel (Find the original King of the Road (Whumptober 2022) post here.)
Six Months Ago…
The Trucker dropped his cigarette to the asphalt and ground it out with the toe of his boot. He surveyed the parking lot of another club in another town in Somewheresville, America. Fresh hunting ground.
He watched the drunk college freshmen, who by all means shouldn’t even be here, idiotically looking for the friends he’d come with. He’d been stumbling around the parking lot for nearly twenty minutes now. The cars have been steadily streaming out or their owner’s steadily being bundled into taxi cabs and Ubers.
When the young man passed by his idling truck for the third time the trucker smiled at him.
“You lost darlin’?”
The young man swayed a bit as he stopped and took in the sight of the big, red, oversized trucking cab. The Trucker could see the wheels turning in the young man’s head, trying to process the question.
“‘M not lossss...”
“But you’re not found either, are ya?” The Trucker looked the young man up and down, smiling the whole time. “What happened? Can’t find yer buddies?”
“No… I… They’re here s’m where…”
This was just too easy. And this little one was sure pretty. His pale green eyes, watery and wide, set in a cute face with cheeks flushed a bit too red, and finished off by a pair of lovely cherry red lips. The Trucker licked his own lips as he thought about shoving himself into that perfect round mouth. The boy’s cherubic face was surrounded by a mop of messy dark blue hair. He could see the boy’s warm breath huffing out in front of him in the cold night air.
“I’d be happy to give you a ride, wherever you need. My truck’s nice and warm. I bet you ain’t too far from here, right?”
“No… I… not far. I just… my friends have to be here somewhere. I just… maybe over there?”
The young man started to walk away, tripping over his own feet and barely catching himself on a parked sedan, towards the far side of the parking lot.
The Trucker reached out and wrenched the boy’s arm back a bit harder than he intended too. The kid’s phone went skittering across the pavement and under the truck. When their eyes met, the kid’s pale green eyes were wide with sudden fear and paranoia.
The Trucker laughed it off.
“Whoops, now look what happened. You’re in no state to be walking across the parking lot, son. You’re gonna get yourself kilt.” He gently guided the boy towards the door of his truck. “Why don’t you come have a lie down and I’ll get you where you need to go. Hop up there and I’ll grab your phone.”
The drunk college kid blinked rapidly, still trying to process what the trucker was saying. All the while the Trucker was guiding him towards the cab of his truck. The big red door opened quietly and he helped the boy up on the first step. The Trucker had done this a million times, and knew he had a charming, disarming personality. As the boy swayed backwards, the Trucker let his hand slip from the small of his back to the roundness of his pert, tight little college boy ass. Oh he was so going to enjoy this one.
“You got a name, pretty boy?”
“B… Bob-by.”
“That’s right nice. Little Bobby Blue. Once you get up there, grab yerself some water. It’ll help clear your head. Might keep you from a mighty powerful headache in the morning.”
“Yeahhhh, that souns gooo…”
Little Bobby Blue was going to make a great companion. The Trucker could taste it, or rather, Bobby Blue would be tasting it. The Trucker leaned down and retrieved the kid’s phone from under the edge of his truck.
Just as Little Bobby Blue was about to take the top step up into the truck, a sleek black Uber pulled up next to the truck. Several loud, clearly drunk, guys were hanging out of the windows.
“BOBBY!!!! There you are, you dumb fuck. We’ve been looking all over for you. How the hell did you get over here?”
“Yeah, what the hell you doing getting in that truck Bobby?” another one said.
“Thisss guy’s gonna give me a ride.”
“Awe thanks, mister. Awful nice. But we got us a nice Uber to take us back to the house. Come on Bobby, quit fuckin around and get your ass in the car.”
Bobby almost fell on the Trucker as climbed back down the steps and stumbled towards the car. That's the most amount of fucking action he'll get tonight, now.
“Nice to meet you, Bobby. I’ll keep an eye out for you. You be safe now,” the Trucker said, his face a mask of polite calmness while inside he was raging.
“Don’t forget your phone, Bobby,” one of the generic drunk guys said. Bobby staggered back towards the Trucker, retrieved his phone, and then nearly fell into the open doorway of the car, sending his idiotic buddies into a frenzy of laughter.
The Trucker glanced around the parking lot. FUCK! There were no other tasty, convenient little fishes to be caught. He slammed the door to his cab shut and then yanked open the driver’s door of the truck. May as well start driving. He was all hot and bothered and there would be no release tonight unless it was his own hand. Perhaps he could try the rest stops. Sometimes unsuspecting people found themselves in vulnerable situations. He ground the gears of his truck as he started out of sheer frustration. He revved the engine louder than he normally would, the rattling growl echoing across the wide open plains of the flat terrain. He’d find someone. He scraped his teeth together and reached for his cigarettes. Maybe he could smoke himself calm. He made a hard fist around the lighter as he struck it up.
He sucked in a lungful of smoke and blew it out again. He leaned back against the headrest and closed his eyes for a moment, calling up the blue framed face of his escaped victim. Damn he would have liked that one. If he came back through this town any time soon, he’d be on the prowl for his Little Bobby Blue.
Little Bobby Blue had dodged a bullet that night. It’s possible he wouldn’t always be that lucky. But for tonight, Bobby Blue made it home safely.
Tagging List: @i-can-even-burn-salad @peachy-panic @deluxewhump @arwenadreamer @whumpcereal @melancholy-in-the-morning @dont-touch-my-soup @whumpsday @keeper-of-all-the-random-things @whump-for-all-and-all-for-whump @oddsconvert @melennui @susiequaz12 @morning-star-whump @crystalquartzwhump @whump-and-other-things @mylifeisonthebookshelf @reflected-pain @hold-him-down @quietshae @sparrowsage @quietly-by-myself @castielamigos-whump-side-blog @darlingwhump @hold-him-down @quietshae @no-terms-and-conditions-apply (I hope I’m not forgetting anyone - please let me know if I am and I’ll fix it. I’m still getting used to this)
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It's a Matter for Perception
Weaving fantastical realities
Like the spider with her web
Room and board to the one
Yet trap and death to the other
Delight and horror: two sides of the same coin
Spinning multidimensional spheres
Hunter and prey: captor and captive
Is the oppressor also the oppressed?
Does generational trauma ever really end?
Cycles are just circles turning slowly in the wind
Rinse and repeat... rinse and fucking repeat
Uncertain certainties
What is in the depths will rise
What is risen will fall
Highs and lows: lows and highs
What of the grays?
What of the unseen?
What of the not voiced?
What of the silenced?
And the in-betweens?
All roads lead to the crossroads.
Fantastical realities woven through time.
All directions, yet none, all at the same time.
Schrodinger's cat: boxed and unboxed
Dead, yet still alive.
What's your perspective?
<shrug>
It's all a matter of perception.
Copyright by Arlene L.Perez on January 4, 2024
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https://twitter.com/Zulo_Ren/status/1770256561388101881?t=66YKLffNnA-VEcUhjybfLQ&s=19
My bad I probably should have just sent it to you in the first place!
Thank you, no worries! And...
Dude, I'm sorry, how the fuck does this individual think some professor is gonna walk up to HR and go "don't fire me, I thought it was okay because of this romance novel". Lmao be fr. I hate the phrase "touch grass" but touch fuckin' grass because what kind of separation from reality do you have to have to think that adults are going to abuse their power.... because of a book.
I actually think the relationship between Adam and Olive is really debatably dicey because they don't have professional interactions from what I recall? But it's been a while since I read the book, and again, the professors out there who are fucking grad students are already doing it regardless of how unethical it is, and regardless of whether or not that book is out. Like, I'm picturing a prof, probably in their 30s at least, going "you know, I though fucking my advisee would be a bad move... but I've been led on a different path by The Love Hypothesis".
And I do wanna make another thing clear here: I do not care if fictional advisors fuck their fictional adult students. I don't care! I don't care. Because fiction is not prescriptive, and I would also add that it is RECKLESS to compare two adults in a situation wherein there is a potential abuse of power but for all intents and purposes, both are consenting... to a teacher/student relationship, in which a minor is involved and CANNOT CONSENT.
I think that from a fictional perspective, an adult student fucking their prof is more akin to boss/employee romances, which I also think are fine. Advisable in real life? Probably not, though also not SET IN STONE disasters/crimes, the way an adult assaulting a minor is. Ethical? Probably not. But on a similar level in fiction, ESPECIALLY in Ali's settings imo because these students are really very much grown academics on their own research paths. There is a big difference between an undergrad and someone doing postgrad research. Jesus. Olive is learning, as an example, but she is also literally doing her work. She is working to cure a disease. She's not sitting there taking class after class, she is DOING WORK. Learning from people, but it's HER JOB, also. As is often the case in academia.
Which is why I compare her situation more to boss/employee, except ADAM IS NOT HER BOSS.
So yeah, idk, media literacy is dead goodbye lmao
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