#this is a Long long long time post brain i think. since they’ve sorted out the daywalker thing

[lazylittledragon]

you know what fuck it we’re doing dadstarion

#bg3 #baldur’s gate 3 #astarion #tavstarion #idk if this is canon to the dorianverse yet but he looks like a little hobbit!!! #this is a Long long long time post brain i think. since they’ve sorted out the daywalker thing #i don’t think he’d be affectionate but i think he’d be VERY protective #they’re not bad parents in the way that they neglect or mistreat him or even just don’t love him #i think they love him to death but you just shouldn’t give your small child a KNIFE #this one is my favourite sister bc she reminds me of robin

[scuderiahoney]

Love Of My Life

Max Verstappen x Reader // Strawberry Wine Part 5

Masterlist // Series Masterlist

Summary: Four moments leading up to the big day, and the moment you and Max have been dreaming of.

a/n: I actually have SO much to say but I will save it for the end or maybe a separate post. title thanks to Mr. Harry Styles. Hope you all enjoy this one!

Warnings: alcohol/intoxication, mild sexual content

1. something old

“You should come over Friday,” Louise tells you over the phone. “I’m having some friends over, you’ll love them. It’ll be fun.”

You don’t have anything better to do, really. You’ve had a hard time making friends since you moved here- people were still hesitant to socialize due to Covid. But things are opening back up now, and the one friend you have made wants to introduce you to more people. You should take the chance. You’d be silly not to.

So you head over with a bottle of white wine. You slip your coat off at the door, finding the apartment full of people. You’re suddenly anxious. You don’t know anyone here besides Louise, and you feel like such an outsider already. These people are all already friends, why would you think you could just insert yourself?

Just as you’re thinking about putting your coat back on and pretending you were never there, Louise spots you in the hallway. She calls out your name and beckons you over. Now you’re stuck. There’s no escaping anymore.

She greets you with a hug, squealing in your ear- you can tell she’s already tipsy. You hug her back and smile at her when she pulls away.

“I’m so glad you made it,” she says, loud enough to be heard over the music playing in her apartment. “I’ve got so many people I want you to meet.”

She takes you to the kitchen first, where there’s a wide array of alcohol and mixers. You help yourself to a tequila & soda. Then she holds your hand and pulls you through the crowd, making stops along the way. She introduces you to all her friends one by one, and you start to put faces to the names in the stories she’s told you. Everyone is kind and excited to meet you- apparently, they’ve heard a lot about you, too.

By the time you meet Max, you’re three drinks in. Louise doesn’t give you any sort of heads up. You suppose it shouldn’t really matter- to her, he’s just her friend Max. You’re not a big F1 fan, but you know enough to know who Max is. So when you’re suddenly face to face with him in a crowded apartment?

You handle it well, all things considered. The alcohol helps, keeps your hand from shaking when you give him a little wave as Louise gushes about you. Max helps, too- for someone who should be intimidating, he’s incredibly kind. It’s not long before Louise is dragging you off again, someone else she needs you to meet.

Max yells after the two of you, his hand cupped around his mouth. “Nice to meet you!”

You echo it back and laugh as she drags you away. You don’t see him again that night, but Max’s soft smile stays imprinted in the back of your brain for days.

2. something new

Just before Christmas, you and Max host a party. Half your friends are out of town visiting family, but you invite the people who are there to come over for dinner and drinks and games. Daniel, who is usually first to arrive and last to leave, gets there far too early. He rings the doorbell and Max looks at you with a wide grin. He has oven mitts on his hands, and he’s wearing an apron. It’s all very domestic, and it makes your heart sing.

“I’ll get it,” you say, sliding off the kitchen stool and heading for the door.

You take a deep breath before you open it. Daniel comes tumbling in, arms full of food and drinks, kicking off his shoes in the doorway. He’s grinning so wide at you that for a moment you think he already knows, but Max had sworn he hadn’t told him yet. He heads towards the kitchen, already talking a mile a minute, but when he turns over his shoulder to look at you he stops in his tracks. He cocks his head at you.

“Something’s different,” he says, one brow quirked. “Did you cut your hair? Something’s… new.”

You shake your head and frown at him. He frowns right back. Then he drops the bottles and bags of food on the couch. He casts a glance towards the kitchen, where Max has his head in the fridge. For a second, you’re worried about what he’s going to ask you.

Then he reaches for your left hand, and you start to laugh.

His grin grows impossibly wider when he spots the ring on your finger. He pulls you into a tight hug before he says anything. You hear Max let out a noise of confusion in the kitchen, but you’re busy hugging Daniel back.

“Congrats,” he says, voice low. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to him.”

You laugh, tears suddenly threatening to build up in your eyes. “Thank you. And. Thank you,” you say. “For picking me up and bringing me here that night.”

He nods, squeezes his arms around you once more before he pulls away. Max is standing at the kitchen island, watching the two of you with a soft smile.

“Told you he’d notice immediately,” he says. “Lando’s the one who’ll be oblivious.”

Daniel charges across the room to get to Max and wraps him up in a bear hug. Max reciprocates happily, smiling at you over his friend’s shoulder. They hold onto each other for a long time.

“Wait, so is this an engagement party?” He asks, and Max laughs. “Wait, when did you ask her?”

“Just after we got back from Japan,” you answer.

Daniel turns to you, eyes wide. “You little assholes! You’ve been keeping it a secret for weeks?”

He shoves Max’s shoulder lightly. Max shoves him back. Before long, the two of them are playfully wrestling in the kitchen. The timer on the oven goes off, but it doesn’t seem to stop either of them. You sigh, walk over, take the oven mits from the counter, and sidestep the scramble to get to the oven and pull the tray of cookies out.

Louise walks in without knocking and takes in the entire situation- you, a tray of cookies in your hands, Daniel, his arms around Max, Max, with Daniel in a headlock, and she starts to laugh.

“Oh my god, did you guys get engaged?” She asks.

“How did you know?” Max squeaks- Daniel’s pinched his side mid sentence.

“You’re wearing an apron that says fiancé,” Louise laughs.

You collapse into laughter, barely making sure to set the cookies down on the counter. You’d forgotten about the apron, a gag gift from you to him that he’d insisted on actually wearing. Max looks down at his own chest, tucking his chin comically to do so. He still has Daniel in a headlock. The other man is jabbing at Max’s stomach now.

“Huh. Forgot about that,” he says with a shrug.

“Let me see the ring!” Louise says, making her way towards you.

“Shoes off!” Both you and Max call out, pointing at her feet.

She sighs and shares a look of exasperation with Daniel. He rolls his eyes in agreement. Max sees and remembers his previous fight with Daniel, and seems to decide to return to that, shoving his elbow into his friend’s side.

You ignore them and head for Louise, holding your hand out to her. She squeals over the ring, holding onto your hand tightly, eyes lit up.

“Wouldn’t be here without you,” you tell her.

“And that awful strawberry wine,” she says knowingly.

She’s not exactly wrong. Without that night, the strawberry wine that everyone else hated but you and Max liked, you’re not sure what would’ve happened. You like to believe you would’ve found your way to each other- something else to have in common, something else to share. But you wouldn’t trade any of those shared bottles of wine for the entire world. You treasure each moment.

“They got engaged like three weeks ago!” Daniel calls out. “They’re assholes!”

You slip the ring off your finger and turn it around so Louise can see the strawberry, and you watch her face crumple into a sob. You laugh and feel yours do the same.

“Shit,” Daniel says. “I didn’t mean it.”

Max gives up on wrestling Daniel. “Baby?”

“It’s okay,” you reassure him, as you pull Louise into a hug. “Happy tears.”

3. something borrowed

You follow Max to Bahrain for the beginning of the F1 season. He’s often busy before he gets in the car, and you usually spend the time hanging out in hospitality or in the garage. But before the first practice of the season, he finds you and pulls you to the side.

He slips the bracelet you gave him from his wrist and hands it to you. “Keep this safe for me?”

You know the rest of his jewelry- his other bracelets, his watch, and any rings he’d worn- are sitting in his driver room. Your chest warms at the thought that he’s worn this one as long as possible, and that he wants you to hold onto it. You smile up at him and slide the bracelet into your own wrist. It’s a bit too big, but it’ll work.

“Sure, I’ll just borrow it for now,” you tell him.

A wide, soft smile spreads across Max’s lips. “Oh. That’s. That’s nice.”

His face has morphed into something warm and full of affection. His eyes are trained on the bracelet, sitting on your wrist, the way it hangs loosely against the base of your hand. It’s comforting to you, too.

You laugh, noticing the tears in his eyes. “You big sap.”

He brushes his thumb against your wrist and kisses your forehead. “But I’m yours.”

“Yeah, you are,” you say, and you kiss his cheek. “Forever. I’ll see you soon, love.”

After the practice, he finds you, his race suit tied around his waist. He pulls you into a hug, and you slip the bracelet off your wrist and onto his. And so, the tradition begins.

By the end of the race the next weekend, the two of you have it down to a science. He takes it off just before he heads to the grid, leaves it with you. You rub your thumb against the metal during the race, wrap your whole hand around it during the more stressful moments. The cold metal against the palm of your other hand is grounding, somehow. When he crosses the finish line in first, you run to greet him with the crew. He pulls you halfway over the barricade when he finds you, helmet still on, and you press your lips to the top of it as he holds you, strong arms right around your middle. He smells like sweat and shakes with the adrenaline of it all. There are people slapping his shoulders eagerly, people reaching to tap his helmet, but for just a moment, all he’s focused on is you. He reaches for your wrist.

You slip the bracelet off and put it back on his wrist for him. You watch his shoulders relax, like the last bit of tension is draining away. You hold onto the sides of his helmet, staring into his eyes, which are nearly squeezed shut. He holds your face in his hands for just a moment, fingers pressed to your skin.

He’s going to be your husband. In all of this chaos, you’re the person he wants by his side, the first one he runs to. It hits you like a freight train, and you swallow down the tears.

“I’ll see you soon,” he promises, smiling through all of it. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” you tell him, as you let go of him.

Someone pulls him away- he has other things he has to do now. But he’ll come back to you. He always does.

4. something blue

Soon, it’s late summer in Monaco. The hazy afternoon sun is about to slip below the horizon. You’ve just climbed out of bed after a long nap with Max, both of you having been exhausted from the race weekend and the journey back home. For once, you’d been the one trying to coax him to stay in bed. He’d insisted on getting up, on trying to scrape together dinner from what’s left of the groceries in your apartment. So far, you haven’t made much progress beyond opening a bottle of wine and starting a playlist playing.

“Maybe this could be a first dance song,” you suggest, some sappy love song playing over the speakers in the kitchen.

Max shakes his head, wrinkles his nose. “You don’t even know this song.”

“Sounds pretty.”

“It has to mean something, no?” He says, reaching out and pulling you close. “Not just… sounds pretty.”

“Yeah, but… how do we pick a song that sums it all up?” You ask, and his shoulders drop. “I mean. Have you found the song yet?”

“I have ideas,” he says.

“So do I,” you answer, and then you sigh. “But I don’t think any of them are the one.”

Max stands there, hands on your hips. “Let’s test them out,” he says.

You blink up at him, sliding your hands up his abdomen. “Now?”

You look down at yourself, and at him. He’s shirtless, in nothing but a pair of navy sweatpants and socks. You’re not much more dressed- one of his navy Red Bull tshirts, big enough that it falls down to mid thigh, nothing but your underwear underneath, a pair of light blue cable knit socks on your feet. Your hair is a mess. There are definitely dark circles under your eyes, courtesy of your near-permanent jet lag.

“Yeah, now,” he says, brushing his thumbs against your hips. “You’ve got a list, so do I. How are we going to know which one’s right till we try them out?”

You shrug, then nod, reaching for your phone. You open your music, scrolling to the playlist you’ve already made. Max looks at the screen upside down, trying to read the names of the songs. When the first one begins to play, he takes you into his arms and starts to dance.

The kitchen is big, but it’s no dance floor. The living room might be better, but he seems insistent on staying put. The two of you sway on the tile floors, careful not to bump your hips on the countertops. He spins you in dizzying circles, ones that make you laugh and smile and send you crashing back into his chest. And when you’ve heard enough of each song to know it’s not the song, you skip it.

“Too boring,” he says about one.

“Too cheesy,” you respond to another.

He wrinkles his nose at the next one. “This is even cheesier.”

It’s not long until you’ve exhausted both of your lists. You sigh in defeat, resting your head on his shoulder. His hand sweeps up your back.

“We’ll find it,” you tell him. “Or we’ll get Charles to write us a song.”

Max snorts out a laugh. “I’m not so sure about that.”

“He was the first of your friends that I met, you know,” you remind him with a teasing lilt.

He bends his head to kiss your forehead, but he stops halfway. His brows furrow. Then he reaches for your phone off the counter, swiping to open it.

“What?” You ask, softly.

“Danny- he suggested a song, a while ago. A long time ago, actually-“ he says. “I had forgotten about it. But. We should try, no?”

You nod. He pressed play. You don’t recognize the song as the first chords play out, but you’ll give it a shot. You rest your head against Max’s chest, let him hold you and sway back and forth. For a moment, you think you’re starting to feel it. That this might be the song. There’s a flutter in your chest.

And then the chorus hits, and you hear the lyrics, and you just know. You look up at Max with tears in your eyes and you know he feels it too. The sun is long gone, now, and the kitchen is filled with that blue, post sunset light. It matches Max’s eyes, brings out the color in them. He leans you back in the kitchen of your apartment and kisses you like you’re his wife- like this could be your first dance at your wedding. You wrap your arms around his neck and kiss him right back.

You’re not sure how many times you listen to that song that night. Enough to learn all the lyrics, enough to commit the feeling of it to memory. By the end of the night, Max is singing it to you while you wash your face and laugh, and you’re humming it while you climb into bed. You lay there, your head on the pillow, looking over at him. Neither of you can wipe the giant smiles off your lips.

5. and a sixpence in your shoe

You wake up just after the sun on a Saturday morning in early January. The year is still fresh, and Max is in bed next to you. He’s got his arm around your waist, face pressed into the pillow. The sight makes you smile.

Today, you get to marry him. You can’t wipe the stupid grin off your face. As Max starts to wake up, you see the smile slip across his face, too. He opens his eyes and meets yours, and the smile only grows. He reaches out, runs the back of his finger over your cheek.

“My beautiful girlfriend,” he says, softly.

You laugh. “My handsome boyfriend.”

“We have to use that up, you know. Say it while we still can,” he says.

He tugs at your side to pull you closer. You go easily.

“We’re getting married today,” you say to him.

He nods, eyes tracing your face. “Any second thoughts? Cold feet?”

You laugh and bury your face in his chest. You press your feet to his calves and he hisses, rolling over on top of you in retaliation. He presses quick, ticklish kisses to the sensitive skin of your neck, and you squeal and try to push him away. He’s much stronger, though, and he keeps you pinned under him.

“My feet are always cold,” you tell him. “But no second thoughts. I’m all in.”

“Are we getting married or playing poker?” He teases. When you groan and shove at his shoulder lightly, he laughs into your neck.

“What about you? Second thoughts?” You ask.

Max laughs again, louder this time. He presses himself closer, if that’s even possible, and kisses the hinge of your jaw gently. His nose brushes against your temple, then, as he presses his lips to your ear.

“Never,” he whispers, making you shiver. “I’m all in, too.”

He pulls away to look at your face, and you’re met with a soft gaze that sends your heart into overdrive. He leans close, lips aiming for yours, his nose bumping against your nose. You let your eyes fall shut, and then there’s someone knocking on your front door, loudly.

“You two better be decent!” Daniel calls out. “We’re here, time to get up!”

You sigh, throwing your head back on the pillow. Max lets out a long, loud groan, hands suddenly everywhere on your body, like he’s trying to get as much touching in as he can before it’s too late. You laugh and try to push him away again, but it’s no use.

“Why’d we tell him to come get us so early?” Max says, bordering on a whine. “And why did he listen to us?”

“He’s your best man,” you remind him. “You chose him.”

There’s a knock on the bedroom door. “Come on, lovebirds. We’ve got a schedule to keep. It’s your wedding day!” This time it’s Louise, who’s your maid of honor.

You sigh and try to sit up, bringing Max with you. He doesn’t go easily, or willingly. He seems perfectly content to stay tucked in bed, despite the threats from your friends. In fact, the second you’re halfway sitting up, he’s trying to push you back down onto the pillows.

“Max. I’m not wearing a shirt,” you hiss, gesturing down at yourself. “And Danny is threatening to come in here-“

Max sits up suddenly, eyes wide. “Okay, okay, we’re getting up,” he calls out. “Give us a minute to get dressed, yeah?”

You meet the two of them in the kitchen ten minutes later. Max is in a t-shirt and a pair of sweats, while you’re in a cream lounge set your friend Audrey bought you as a wedding shower gift. You have one of Max’s shirts overtop of it, unbuttoned and hanging like a jacket. Daniel and Louise are sitting at the kitchen counter, coffee and breakfast waiting for both you and Max. Your friends greet each of you with hugs and then rush you both out the door.

You ride to the wedding venue together, and even as you head to get ready, you don’t separate. This is what you both decided- you get ready for every other big event in your lives together, side by side, so why would this one be any different? Your friends all join you, your family members too, trickling in and out of the space. The morning is full of love and light. Max sits next to you and watches you get your hair and makeup done. Your makeup artist has to tell him to stop making you laugh- she’s worried she’s going to mess up your lipstick.

Max just grins and shakes his head. “We can’t have that,” he teases. “That’s my job.”

You wait until the last possible second to put on your dress. That’s when you leave Max’s side, letting go of him until you meet him at the end of the aisle. He's in his tux, a blue bow tie around his neck. There’s this peaceful smile on his face, one that grounds you and comforts you every time you see it. He kisses your temple to avoid messing up your makeup, and you smile up at him softly.

“I’ll see you soon,” he promises eyes sparkling.

“Yeah, see you soon,” you answer, feeling giddy.

The wedding itself is a tiny, intimate affair. Just your closest friends and family and someone to officiate. You can see the garden where you’re going to get married from the room you’ve been getting ready in. The guests are all in the seats- your family and Max’s in the front row. Christian, Geri, and GP are there, craning their necks when they spot Max. Lando is there, sitting next to Martin. Your mutual friends take up a whole row, the ones you met the same night you met Max, the ones who welcomed you with open arms. A whole lot of love in such a little space.

You take a deep breath and head downstairs with Louise, who helps make sure your dress is perfect before you head down the aisle. You stay hidden, watching through a window as Max walks down to the front. Daniel gives you a gentle hug, tears already forming in his eyes. Then the music begins, and Louise grabs you by the shoulders.

“This is your last chance,” she says. “I can be your getaway car.”

You laugh, tears already forming in your eyes, and you shake your head. “No. No second thoughts, no cold feet. I’ve never been more sure.”

She grins at you and squeezes your shoulders. “Cool, because we would’ve had to steal Danny’s car. Oh, I have something for you.”

She reaches into the pocket of her dress and pulls out a coin- a sixpence. Suddenly, you remember the old rhyme, and panic rushes through your body. She’s smiling, though, and shaking her head.

“Something old,” she says, pointing at the vintage bracelet you’d been gifted by Max’s mother for the day. “The something new is the perfume you bought special for today.”

“Something borrowed,” Daniel chimes in, a wide grin on his face, “is the pair of cufflinks I lent Max. And something blue-“

“His bow tie,” you say, softly. “I picked it because it brings out his eyes, but… it works, right?”

Daniel and Louise both nod, grinning brightly. Tears are already forming in your eyes. Louise swipes them away quickly with a tissue as you slip one of your heels off and place the coin there. You take a deep breath.

“Now I’m ready,” you say with a firm nod.

But really, you’ve been ready since the day you met him.

The rest of it is a bit of a blur. It’s like one moment, you’re standing there, watching it all from the outside. Then the next, you’re at the front with Max, his hands in yours, tears in both of your eyes. You hate crowds, hate public speaking, but for him you’d do anything. For him, you’d shout it all from the rooftops.

He has that soft look on his face, the one that makes you melt every time. His cheeks are rosy red, and you have to fight the urge to sweep your thumb against his face, to lean in and kiss him right there. You barely hear what the officiant is saying, but that’s okay because you already know it by heart.

“Now, I believe the two of you have prepared vows?” The officiant says. “Max, would you like to start us off?”

Max nods, squeezes your hands, smiles at you. You smile right back and hold onto him tightly.

“My wonderful love,” he says, voice so soft and tender it makes your chest hurt. “I spent a lot of my life before I met you wondering how you know when it’s love. But you’ve taught me that it’s not just a feeling, it’s a choice. At every turn, I choose you, and you have done the same. You’re my sunshine, my quiet in the noise. So in all the messes, in the stressful days, I love you. Not in spite of, or anyways. I love you in all of it, the good and the tough parts. I’d choose you over and over again.” He squeezes your hands softly. “I promise to save you the best strawberries, to listen when you need to talk, to talk when you need to listen. Most of all, I promise to always walk you home.”

God, you love him. You love him so much it’ll burn you up, so much it aches deep in your chest. You can’t quite believe that you get to spend your whole life with him. You hold onto his hands and blink away tears. His blue eyes stare straight into yours, calm and kind as always. If you could, you’d kiss him right then and there. You take a deep breath instead and begin to speak.

“I heard a quote once, that said there are years that ask questions and years that answer. I think that since I’ve met you, it’s all felt like an answer to a question I didn’t even know I had. You pick me up when I fall, you cheer me on when I succeed, and I love being able to do the same for you,” you say, softly. “I am so thankful for every moment I get to spend with you, from the dances in our kitchen to watching you win on the racetrack. You’re the best part of my life, my steady rock, my anchor in a storm. I can’t wait to be by your side for the rest of our lives. I promise to always share the wine, to cheer you on, to be the sane person in a room full of chaos.” He grins widely at that, eyes glittering with tears. “Above all else, I promise to love you for the rest of my life.”

Then it’s the I dos and the rings, handed to you by Daniel, who’s got tears in his eyes. Your hands shake as you slip the ring onto his finger. Max’s do too. The bands sit perfectly on your fingers, and you can’t take your eyes off Max’s hand- the ring, the bracelet, too. When you finally drag your gaze away, you look up at him again, tears slipping down your cheeks. His face mirrors yours, teary eyed but oh-so-happy.

When the officiant tells him to kiss the bride, he sweeps you up in his arms, the same way he did in the hallway of the club all that time ago, when you were still unsure, when you didn’t realize he wanted this, too. He kisses you sweetly, holds you close, and you feel it in every bone in your body, every muscle, every nerve. You wrap your arms around his neck and kiss him back. You could do this forever. Forever and ever.

…..

While the wedding was small, the reception is huge, and it’s packed with people. Everyone you or Max have ever spoken to seems to be there. There’s good food, better drinks, and enough strawberry wine to supply the entire city for a month, you’re sure. Someone forces you and Max to sit and eat dinner- you do your best. Then you wander the reception, hand in hand with him, greeting all of your guests.

You’ve changed dresses since the ceremony- out of your more simple white dress and into a bit more of an elegant one. You give so many hugs you think your arms will fall off, and accept countless compliments on the dress and the decor and the food. People tell you how proud they are of the two of you, how happy they are for you, how in love the two of you look.

You’ve just barely collapsed into your chair again, wincing at the ache already present in your feet, when they announce the first dance. Suddenly, you’re rejuvenated. Max grabs your hand and helps you up, a wide smile on his face.

“My wife,” he says, seemingly never tiring of using your new title. “May I have this dance?”

“My husband,” you respond, smiling. “This dance and every single other one.”

He laughs. It’s incredibly cheesy, overly sappy. But someday, a long time ago, you pulled your heart out of your chest and handed it over to him. And he took it, wrapped it up and held it safely, promised to protect it with his life, and then gave you his in exhchange. You have the right to be sappy and cheesy and emotional. He leads you to the dance floor, a million eyes on you. You just stare into his, and the rest of the world disappears as the song begins to play. It’s not the typical kind of music you two listen to, and it’s probably not what your friends were expecting. But when the chorus plays…

You're as smooth as Tennessee whiskey

You're as sweet as strawberry wine

You're as warm as a glass of brandy

And honey, I stay stoned on your love all the time

You rest your head on his shoulder as he holds you close, one hand linked with yours.

“I love you,” you whisper, fingers dancing in the hair at the nape of his neck.

“I love you, liefje,” he says, brushing a kiss against your forehead.

He kisses you on the lips at the end of the song. Everyone cheers, and you smile into it, unable to help yourself. Max raises one fist above your heads, like he’s just won a race, and you start to laugh. It’s one of the happiest moments of your life.

…..

When the reception ends, the afterparty begins. Most of the older or calmer guests head out. Louise helps you change your dress one more time- from the ballgown to a short party dress. You ditch your heels for a pair of white sneakers and sigh in relief at the feeling. By the time you make an appearance, the party is truly in full swing, and you spot Max up on the DJ stand with Lando and Martin. Years ago, if you’d have guessed who’d DJ your wedding afterparty, you’d have never suggested Martin Garrix and Lando Norris, and yet, here you are.

You climb up there with them, greeting your two friends with hugs before sliding up to Max’s side. He’s lost his suit jacket somewhere along the way, and his neatly tied bow tie hangs loose and crooked from his neck. You reach to try and fix it for him. He looks you up and down, a sly smile on his lips.

He wraps his arms around you, letting his hands fall low on your back. “This might be my favorite dress of the day,” he says into your ear.

You shove at his shoulder lightly. “You’re just drunk and horny.”

He shakes his head and kisses your cheek. “No, it’s just… you look the most like you in this one. Like the you I fell in love with.” He nudges his foot against your sneakers. “More comfortable, too.”

You feel warm and soft over that, over the way he’s looking at you right now. “Aw, Maxie,” you say, leaning up to kiss his cheek.

“I mean, you also look hot,” he says, hands slipping down to squeeze your ass. “But that is just an added bonus.”

You laugh, your forehead pressed to his chest. There are people all around you, music pounding in your chest, but you’ve got Max, and that’s all you need.

“Should we go dance?” He asks.

You press your lips to his jaw, then his ear. “Yeah, we should.”

The two of you climb down from the platform. Soon enough, you disappear into the crowd of people, his hand linked with yours the whole time.

You stumble out of the club at 3am, Max’s arm wrapped around your waist. Daniel, ever the dutiful best man, is the one to get the two of you into the car, despite Max’s protests that he can walk you home. You wave goodbye to all your friends, who cheer and wave from the sidewalk. Max has his arm around your waist as you lean out the window to hug Louise, and he yelps and pulls you back in when you start to lean too far.

By the time you’re halfway through the elevator ride up to your apartment, you’re pinned between him and the mirrored wall, his lips on yours. It’s messy and hot and you drag your hands down his torso as his hands slide down your back. When the elevator doors slide open on your floor, he picks you up easily, and you wrap your legs around his waist. He carries you to the front door, pins you against it so he can unlock it, and then stumbles inside, your legs wrapped around his waist. You press your lips to his neck and laugh.

“My wife,” he says, kicking his shoes off and shoving them aside.

You nip at his jaw. “My husband.”

He carries you all the way into the bedroom and lays you down on the bed. You’re a giggly mess, covering your face with your hands as he tugs your shoes off your feet for you. When his hands are free, you reach for him, pulling on his dress shirt until it comes untucked from his pants. The motion knocks him off balance, and he catches himself with both hands on either side of your head, face to face with you.

You always love him, really, but he’s your husband now. It makes butterflies swirl in your stomach, makes you giddy and warm inside. You reach for the collar of his shirt and start working on his buttons.

He starts pressing kisses all over your face- your cheeks, your nose, your eyelids. Each time you try to chase his lips with your own, he pulls away, kissing some other part of your face. You’re three buttons in on his shirt when you give up, grab for his jaw, and start doing the same to him.

When you pull away, he smiles down at you, and you admire your handiwork. There’s lipstick on his cheeks, now, smudged and messy. There’s a line of it down his jaw, leading to a spot that looks so inviting you have to leave a mark there. You dive in and seal your lips there, pulling a groan from his.

You’ll admit it- you’re the first one to yawn. You have your hands under his shirt, pressed against his warm skin, and his lips are dragging against your neck, and the exhaustion hits you all at once. You cover the yawn with your hand, blinking frantically to try and wake yourself up. You can’t fall asleep during this part of your wedding night.

But. Max’s lips are slow against your neck, and his kisses are messier and messier. You run your fingers along his side and he sighs softly. When you feel him yawn, you nudge his shoulder until he looks up at you. His eyes are half lidded, lips red and puffy, and he looks exhausted.

“Do you really want to have sex right now?” You ask, carding your fingers through his hair.

“With you? Always,” he mumbles into the bare skin of your collarbone. Then he lets his head drop back against your chest.

“You’re literally falling asleep,” you say, tugging lightly on his hair. You get no reaction. “See? I just pulled your hair, and nothing. That always makes you-“

“Mm. Yeah. Morning sex it is,” he says, nodding against you. “Probably for the best. We have a flight in…” he looks at the clock on the bedside table. “Six hours.”

You groan and cover your face with your hands again. “Why did we do that? It’s your plane, we could’ve picked any time.”

“Your plane, too,” he says against your skin. “Our plane.”

You stare at the ceiling with wide eyes. “Are you sure you don’t want to have sex? That sentence was hotter than it should’ve been. Ours.”

Max laughs against you and squeezes your hips. “How about this. We sleep. Wake up at the last possible second. Get in the car, go to the plane. Maybe more sleep. Then, we have-“

“Sex on the plane,” you say with him, nodding. “Fuck, we really are married, huh? We’re scheduling sex.”

“Yes. But it’s okay, because it’s mile high club scheduled sex, so it’s cooler.” Max says, which sends you into a fit of giggles.

Then he shoves at your hips, trying to push you further onto the bed. You go willingly and he follows. The two of you fall asleep still half dressed in your wedding clothes, with his head on your chest and your lipstick all over his face.

…..

You’d had a thought, a long time ago, about a honeymoon phase with Max. It’s what those first weeks had felt like, before anything was official, when you thought nobody knew. Now, you lay between his legs on a beach chair on your actual honeymoon, running your hands through his hair, your chest against his. The morning sun beats down on your skin, warming you up the same way he warms your heart. You look at him, at the smile on his face that matches the one on yours, and you think that maybe this is what relationships are all about. Finding the next honeymoon, the next thing to jump into headfirst, together, hand in hand.

“You’ll walk me home, right?” You’d asked him, so many nights ago in the restaurant lobby.

“Always,” he’d answered.

You look at your rings on your finger, laying against his chest. You feel his ring against your cheek when he cups your face, cold in stark contrast to the warmth of his hand, the warmth of him. Always.

That sounds pretty perfect.

a/n: I actually didn’t know about the sixpence in your shoe part of the wedding rhyme until I wrote this. learn something new every day! anyways. this all started with a oneshot and somehow transformed into this. i have a deeper love for max and a deeper hatred for his affinity for wearing Red Bull merch- it makes it very difficult to make fic headers. thank you to everyone who has helped encourage me while writing this fic, and to everyone who has read any of it i love you all! And now, we say goodbye to the strawberry wine universe, thanks for reading! 🍓🍷

ps. this is the last full part but i might have some blurbs if anyone is interested

taglist: @4-mula1 @celestialams @struggling-with-delia @lovekt @i-wish-this-was-me @forzalando @iloveyou3000morgan @callsign-scully @ggaslyp1

#max verstappen series #max verstappen fluff #max verstappen x you #max verstappen x reader #max verstappen fanfic #max verstappen fic #formula one fluff #formula one fic #formula one series #formula one x reader #formula one x you #formula 1 x you #formula 1 fluff #formula 1 x reader #formula 1 fic #f1 fic #f1 fluff #f1 fanfic #honeywrites #mv33 #strawberry wine verse

[s0lam33y]

long game

[ day 5 Of Shuriri Week ]

@shuririweek @mal-urameshi @neptoons1998

a/n: I wasn’t gonna post today but I’d drafted this up!

Shuri has never been the biggest fan of phones. They’re not very convenient, limited as well. The most use she’s found for it is Google searches and why do that when she has her own AI?

But she somehow found herself waiting for her phone to ring. She’s in her lab, all alone, it’s too late for anyone but her to be in here anyway.

Her phone finally vibrates against her metal desk and she picks it up immediately. She smiles much wider than she should at the stupid screen. They’ve been keeping in contact for the past year, ever since Riri was sent back to MIT after the war. She and Riri call once a month if they’re both lucky. And today happens to be their lucky day.

“Wassup, Shuri.” Riri smiles, she looks as beautiful as ever, Shuri thinks. Her thick hair is pulled back into a sleek bun that Shuri has yet to see her in until right now. Her face is clear with subtle eye bags beneath them that Shuri has noticed have been beginning to worsen.

She’s got her phone on the wall behind her desk and is dressed in an oversized sweater that allows the fabric to slip a little past her shoulders.

“Hey,” Shuri smiles as she watches the scientist work diligently on a worksheet of some sort. She has this gentle crease in between her brows when she’s focused, Shuri wants to tell her she thinks it’s adorable but she holds herself back.

“Sorry for not calling you last month, I’ve been real busy.” Riri apologizes quickly, looking up momentarily to make sure Shuri understands what she is saying.

“It’s fine, I was busy too.” It’s not a lie. She was very busy but she had to make sure to clear her schedule on the day they were supposed to call and her heart sank a little when she was sent a text instead.

“How are you? I know the Royal duties are a lot. But you’re doing okay, right? You would tell me if you weren’t, right?” Riri asks while

keeping her eyes on her assignment.

Truth is, having the throne is not as bad as Shuri had imagined. She barely has time to do things she’s like but she knows it’s what her mother and father would want for her, what her brother would want for her. It’s what her people need. That’s what keeps her going.

“I’m okay,” Shuri honestly says. She wishes she could spend the rest of her days watching Riri, being with her makes her feel like herself. Not like she’s a queen or just royalty but like she’s Shuri and nothing else.

“I’m glad.”

“And you? I hope you’ve been enjoying yourself on campus.”

“I went to a party last week, shit was ass. I don’t drink like that so it wasn’t really my thing. I do wish I was in Wakanda using your cool ass tech.” Riri mentions, hearing a small laugh escape Shuri’s mouth.

“Mhm, I bet. How’s the progress on your suit?”

“Good, slow but it’s moving,” Riri admits, finally putting her pencil down and giving Shuri her full attention. It almost makes the Royal nervous.

“You lookin’ a lil tired these days, you been sleeping?” Riri questions. She herself knows how much time equations and models can take to make, as a scientist they understand that they don’t get much sleep but it doesn’t stop them from being concerned for each other.

“M’fine, I just have long hours of training and building.” Shuri sighs as a soft yawn sneaks its way out of her mouth.

“Mhm, yeah. You really gotta start taking your own advice, Princess.” Riri says with some sass in her tone. Shuri doesn’t have a rebuttal instead she chuckles because she’s afraid that if she says anything it won’t come out coherent.

She isn’t sure if it’s the rasp in Riri’s voice or the title. It’s not very accurate since she’s been crowned Queen but since Riri’s known her, it’s stuck to her like glue. Just like Riri has.

She pops up in the royal’s brain involuntarily, when she sleeps, and when she eats. It’s all consuming but a part of her doesn’t mind at all and the other is trying to fight it because, at the end of the day, they’re just friends.

“Listen, I’ll call you tomorrow, okay? You-“ Riri begins.

“But we just-“

“No, I can tell you need sleep. I want you to talk to me when you’re full of energy and got some comebacks ‘cause this ain’t the Shuri I know.”

“You’re irritating.”

“Whatever…g’night, Princess. Sleep tight.”

“Goodnight.”

Riri hangs up and the only thing Shuri can think about is her friend. She knows now that she’ll play the long game. And a part of her, a rather big part of her doesn’t mind at all.

#riri williams #shuri udaku #shuriri #shuririweek2024

[yuri-is-online]

Cat Got Your Tongue? (MMO AU: Leona Kingscholar x Reader)

Master Post for AU: (x) please read for overview and links to other parts.

a/n: Sure Leona says he doesn't like video games but this is my blog and I choose the au. I ended up having to re-write this because the original premise wasn't working but this fits Leona's vibe a bit better. Side note, but I am thinking I'll probably write a sort of part 2 for each of these once I am finished with each of the main "routes" since there was some stuff I wanted to include in this fic but cut because it didn't flow.

notes: They/Them pronouns used for Yuu, loosely inspired by Love is Hard for Otaku and crappy otome games, Leona is a junior and Yuu is a freshman in American college years, some mild Ruggie slander? (he's hustlin and bustlin) Not a lot of gaming in this one sorry.

Sometimes Leona really hates having a functioning brain.  Maybe if he had been born comatose his family would have taken time to understand him.  Hell maybe he would have understood them.  And maybe, maybe if he’d been a bit more stupid, a bit more happy, a bit more inspiring and a bit less morose, someone would have looked his way.

Someone.  His bright green eyes settle on a desk strategically chosen in the furthest shadows of the classroom where someone sits.  They’re tired, fighting against the eight am death sentence of a class to stay awake and take notes.  Nose always at the grindstone with so little in the way of reward, just like always.  Sometimes he wonders if they’ve ever noticed his gaze, it’s been on them for a long time creating a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach he’d gladly brush off as disgust to Ruggie when pushed.  Not that Ruggie ever pushed hard over something he wasn’t getting paid for and he had enough sense not to laugh at Leona to his face.  They both knew it was worry.  It was written all over his face and twitching through his tail, they look up to meet his heavy gaze and twitch.  A smile works its way to his face involuntarily as he closes his eyes.  

He is getting tired of waiting.

~~~

[FC] <Tempura Kun> I STG IM GONNA KERMIT A FELONY

[FC] <Granny Smith> fr?

[FC] <Granny Smith> where we pullin up?

[FC] <Tempura Kun> whatever hole my Algebra TA crawled out of this morning

[FC] <Granny Smith> we pullin out (´×ω×`)

[FC] <Tempura Kun> （πーπ）

[FC] <Tempura Kun> real brave

[FC] <Tempura Kun> ur such a big man 

[FC] <Granny Smith> HEY

[FC] <Granny Smith> I thirst for the glory of combat not suicide 

[FC] <Gloomy Samurai> whisper or get in a linkshell if you’re just going to bitch and braid each other’s hair

You smother your screams with a pillow as your discord lights up with a call from Epel, which you answer quickly enough it barely gets a chance to ring.

“Just not yer day, huh?”  Epel sighs sympathetically, but you know he’s making that stupid smug face of his.  “Whatcha do this time?”  

“I accidentally gave Dr. Crewel some paperwork dad had me working on and when I tried to explain that to Leona, he laughed at me before I got it all out.”  Epel whistles.

“Did you get the papers back?”

“Yeah.”  You glare at your monitor as you settle into your desk chair.  “Would have been nice to keep my dignity though.”  Epel has enough sense to not to tease you more, just inviting you to a party and shooting a message to the guild to see if anyone is up for running a few dungeons while you stew in your frustrations, squishing your pillow and try to avoid reflecting on your day.  Realistically speaking it wasn’t that bad.  You’ve been pretty lucky in life compared to some people, as your adoptive father is so keen to remind you, he is very generous.  He’s paying for you to go to a good school (that he works for so he’s actually just paying for books), he let you keep Grim when pretty much every other foster family you were placed with tried to get rid of him, and you have a pretty solid group of friends left over from highschool.  But still, you like to think you have a right to complain about things, what sort of father makes his kid go through zoning laws under the guise  of “father child bonding time”?  And what sort of teacher’s assistant says that’s not his problem and snarks about taking off points of your actual homework?

Leona Kingscholar apparently, it’s his idea of a joke.  By the day after tomorrow he’ll be back to his lazy self, slapping a half assed grade on your homework with a bunch of snarky commentary that’s surprisingly helpful when you go to amend your notes.  Assuming he doesn’t hijack your table in the library to take a nap first.  He’s a pain in your ass, and the worst part is you really don’t know why.  Leona’s a junior, you think anyway, and outside of his job as a teacher’s assistant you don’t have any shared classes.  Epel plays on the Spelldrive team, talks him up pretty much every chance he gets, so you guess he’s pretty good at that if nothing else.  Maybe he’s mad at you on Epel’s behalf?  He invites you to their games sometimes, but you never go because you’re too afraid of the crowds.  The thought makes you huff in frustration as Rex and Snake join your party and begin bickering about what to que for; that’s between you and Epel, what’s his captain got to say about any of that?  What does he want to do, show off?

[FC] <Snake Whisper> Tempura you still good to heal?  Gran said you were stressed.

[FC] <Tempura Kun> I’ll stress more if I make you heal lol

[FC] <Tempura Kun> Thanks for asking <3

[FC] <Snake Whisper> σ(^○^)

[FC] <Snake Whisper> You’re good

You stretch and do your best to pop your neck.

Vivat Rex >> You shouldn’t stress about making him heal if you’re tired.  It’s ok to take a break.

Tempura Kun >> lol I like heals I’ll be good promise

Tempura Kun >> ty for worrying tho &lt;3 <3

Vivat Rex >> <3 ofc can’t have our only competent heals falling over dead

Tempura Kun >> HA i’m telling Nautilus u said that

Vivat Rex >> (^_~)  punk ass bitch deserves it

The instance cuts off your reply and you settle into your chair determined to enjoy the hour and a half you set aside for yourself today before you have to go back to being an overworked unpaid student.  Before you have to go back to trying to convince your friend Ruggie that you have a friend named Rex who is real and not a figment of your imagination that lives in your computer caused by dehydra- wait.  Your eye twitches settling on the date and time mocking you from the lower right of your second monitor.

“Epel.”

“Hm?”

“I need you to go wall to wall or I’m gonna be late for work.”

~~~

“Finally.”  Ruggie gives an exaggerated stretch as he yawns.  You sigh to yourself in relief that he isn’t too upset that you’re a few minutes late, you know Ruggie’s a busy guy from the few closing shifts you’ve worked together.  He’s one of the few people you feel actually respects your situation, if the side hustles he kicks your way are anything to go by anyway.  You’d hate for him to think you’re ungrateful for his help.   “I’m practically dead on my feet here, took you long enou-”  You pause in tying your apron, unsure of why he’s staring into you so disapprovingly you almost swear he’s been replaced by Leona.  Almost.  His signature laugh is too unique.

“Stuff it.”  You scowl and his laughter gets louder and it’s a wonder his tail doesn’t knock any of the cigarettes off the back counter shelves.

“Oh you look disgusting.”  He fishes his phone out of his back pocket as he clocks out, checking it just out of your view as you try to salvage your pride and settle into your seat.

“You don’t look so hot yourself either.”

“Yeah at least I don’t look like a truck hit me and backed up to make sure it finished the job.”  He looks somewhat serious for a brief second.  “When was the last time you actually ate food?”

“Before I came here?”

“Instant noodles don't count.”  Your silence is speaking volumes you don’t have the strength to combat and Ruggie sighs.

“I know I’m one to talk, but you should really get some rest.”  His lips quirk into a grin for half a second, quick enough to have missed if you had blinked as if he remembered something amusing.  “Unless you’re angling for someone to force you.”

“Like a health professional?  You know the old crow will just look for a second opinion.”  Ruggie lightly flicks your shoulder while he continues to focus on his phone on the way out the door.

“You mean thirty-second.”  He doesn’t even look up to say goodbye.  “Well I’m out!  Try not to scare off the customers.”  If you had to regularly interact with customers you would not have taken this shift.  Epel had given you a hard time about that, something about personal safety being more important than sanity.

[FC] <Granny Smith> not what I said

[FC] <Granny Smith> u should at least have someone visit when ur alone on shift

And you did sometimes.  Ace likes to drop by after practice, and Epel hadn’t said that with the intention of not showing up himself.  Jack and Deuce probably would have visited even if you were on a daylight shift, not that Jack would ever admit to checking up on you outloud.  But it was still very much only a sometimes thing, not that they didn’t care or worry they just had lives.  Most of your time at the convenience store was spent alone scrolling through magicam on your phone, only looking up to ring up a hoard of energy drinks for whoever was just as tired as you were.  Though maybe not today, Rex had tried to convince you to just call out.  He always does, complaining about how he’d have to run things with Nautilus now, but he might have had a point today.  The chair you and Ruggie snuck behind the counter is not remotely comfortable but you swear it feels like a cloud.  You tried to focus on your magicam feed, but you couldn’t even bring yourself to care about the fan art Gloomurai posted of the First Fantasia Knight Commander.  If anything it just made you sleepier, like he was personally inviting you to take a nap on his lap or something.  Your eyes shut and your phone drops out of your hand.  When you finally wake up you swear it has only been a minute at most but the smug look of your customer suggests otherwise.

“Morning sunshine.”  Leona looks painfully out of place in this shitty college convenience store.  The dingey, twitching light barely bounces off his hair and you swear his clothes have to cost more than all the electronic equipment in the place combined, maybe even more than your computer back home.  An odd thought to have, he’s literally just wearing the same kind of athleisure wear you had been wearing almost twenty minutes ago while gaming, but you recognize the branding on that shirt from a rant Ruggie went on a month ago.  Something about wondering why anyone would pay that much money to leave the house looking stupid in cheetah print.  “Are you even listening to me?”  Leona drawls, lazy and the slightest bit disappointed, he has been talking to you since you woke up you belatedly realize and completely fail to hide the fact.  Leona sighs, tail thrashing in annoyance as he moves to join you behind the counter.  “Whatever, just move over.”  You almost fall off your chair.

“What?  No no no this is an employee only zone you cannot take a nap back here.”  You have no idea how Leona is expecting to fall asleep, even if you’ve tripped over him on the campus lawn before you’re sure the green has to be more comfortable than this questionably sourced tile.  And yet he seems happy enough, bracing his back against the concrete wall as you turn your confusion back to the counter and notice a thermos that you don’t recognize next to you.

“That’s yours.”  Your head whips back around but the fucker’s eyes are closed and he looks so incredibly unbothered your loud retort dies in your throat.  He doesn’t bother to meet your piercing gaze no matter how long you stare at him, you get more of a response from the thermos when you accidentally elbow it trying to get more comfortable at the counter.  It’s a nice thermos, one of those expensive insulated things that cost a ridiculous amount of money, in a bright yellow that nicely compliments the royal looking lion sticker stuck to it.  There are a few other stickers, the NRC logo, a Spelldrive team logo, and a reaper job icon.  The last sticker makes you smile, you’re pretty sure you linked a similar looking sticker to Rex in the guild discord a month ago, the design included a silhouette of the cowboy hat from the class armor set behind the icon just like this sticker.  Exactly like this sticker, you realize as your tired eyes settle on the artist’s signature.  The shop bell rings you to attention, a significantly less interesting customer enters the store and you try to shove your rising panic to the back of your mind and try to focus on doing your job.

Leona’s annoyed sigh goes completely unnoticed.

~~~

“You aren’t going to tell Crowley I slept through most of my shift right?”  You have to be pushing things, Leona hates repeating himself and this is the third time you’ve asked him.  Leona had insisted on staying with you until the end of your shift, you had insisted he had better ways to spend his night but admitted, when he had explicitly asked, that no you weren’t uncomfortable with his presence just didn’t want to be an inconvenience.  That made him laugh, not unlike the little exchange you’d had this morning, but this time he had actually entertained your attempts at talking to him.  Until the time came to leave and he offered to walk you home.  Leona seeing you asleep at your shitty job was bad enough, the thought of that ramshackle house made your stomach tie up in all sorts of knots.  “I know you probably don’t see it as a big deal-”

“Because it’s not.”  He snorts.  “Really who do you think you’re trying to impress?”  You wince, Leona swings the thermos with that taunting sticker just out of view, as you huddle into yourself and he sighs stopping under a street light and turns you to face him.  “No seriously, just who are you trying to impress?  You’re always working to the point you’ve practically stopped being yourself.  It’s annoying.”  

“Well what’s it to you?”  You huff and Leona doesn’t bother to immediately answer.  Your eyes drift back to the sticker on his thermos.  

“Maybe I like playing games with you.”  His voice and face are uncharacteristically soft, but still unnervingly intense.  He doesn’t bother specifying what he means, almost like he’s daring you to ask first so he can make fun of you for thinking Rex was anyone other than him this whole time.  “Maybe I like Yuu enough that I want to spend just a little more time with them and not this weird zombie who doesn’t know the way back to their own house.”  

“Oh please-” you roll your eyes and turn back to the road only for your retort to die in your throat.  You are not, in fact, headed towards the haunted mansion.  This road, this stupid street light, is next to a diner you know the college sports teams like to go to after games.  Leona, gently, tugs you by the sleeve of your jacket towards the door.  “Hey, I can’t afford-”

“Oh don’t misunderstand we ain’t here for you, I was just feeling a bit hungry.”  The smug bastard doesn’t even pretend to hear your protests as he pushes his way into the diner and doesn’t wait to be seated.  He just drags you towards the back of the diner shooting you a truly catlike smirk over his shoulder.  “Of course if I have something left over, we can share.  Maybe if you play nice you can get your own straw.”  He spins you into the booth across from him, and despite what he literally just said shoves the plastic menu back into your hands when you try to hand it back to the clearly amused waitress.  

“How long have you known I was...”  You feel stupid even trying to broach the topic, there’s a pretty clear line you don’t cross when making online friends.  It’s even in the guild rules, you’re pretty sure “don’t ask for anyone’s IRL info” is probably Gloomurai’s life motto.  But Leona doesn’t seem to care, which you suppose is in line with what you know about Rex.  His laid back attitude was what had made him the most approachable out of all your guildmates, not that you would ever have thought to apply such a description to Leona.  If anything he seems confused why you’re so shy about talking, like he’s known who you are the whole time and that’s why he spent so much time pinging you in game or why he decided to spend his night keeping you company. 

“Maybe I like playing games with you.”  Something starts curling up in your stomach at the thought that he just might have, if Leona notices you loosening your jacket to release some steam he pretends not to notice.

“Epel mentioned he was gonna try to get you into the guild.”  Well that’s news to you, looks like someone is going to get yelled at later tonight.  “I didn’t expect you to be so excited about healing, but I ain’t complaining, it was cute and now I don’t have to take Naut’s shit outside of raids.”   Cute.  You intake a sharp breath and Leona definitely notices your nerves, clearly planning to press the point unless you can cut him off from the chase.

“W-what exactly do you have against Nautilus anyway?”  With the way Leona’s face wrinkles you idly wonder if he knows who Nautilus actually is too, or if he’s just displeased that the focus is no longer on him.  “He’s not bad at his role.”  

“Naut pays too much attention to pointless shit.  Sure he’s good but it’s not like he does world firsts or anything.”  Neither does Rex but that does seem to be besides the point when he’s paying for your dinner, especially now that it’s in front of you.  Diner food might not be the healthiest but Ruggie really was right about instant noodle not counting as a meal.  “You know he and Snake used to bitch at each other while they were supposed to be doing callouts?  Had whole ass arguments over cooking instead of calling out shackle timing.  Gloom and Musclered never stopped ‘em either since it was ‘funny.’”  They still do, just in discord and not while you run things.  It’s hard to picture someone as professional as Nautilus doing something like that, but then again you know that Rex has known him longer.  “So just in case you thought I was just being nice earlier, you are the better heals.  If I could get the cards I want with just you, Epel, and Ruggie I would.”  It’s disturbing how clear the picture is in your mind: your lala, Epel’s roe, and Leona’s cowboy coded catman being joined by some hyper pink catgirl in the mini game bunny suit that you can easily see Ruggie using to scam some tech worker out of his monthly salary in Pirate’s Port wiping to an EX rank trial because Leona decided his logs weren’t orange enough.  It sounds like a good time, and you can’t keep yourself from blurting out:

“We should try to run something sometime anyway, it’d be fun.”  And before you can retreat back into your shell,  Leona smiles, smiles and burns away any sort of shyness you wanted to have over talking video games with someone as “normal” as him.

“If you can think of something just text me.”  You fish out your phone and can’t even bring yourself to cringe at the time with just how happy that suggestion makes you feel.

And Ace said playing MMOs would get you zero bitches.

~~~

This was a mistake.  It was hard to keep that thought from drumming away at your nerves the longer you stood in the station square; Leona had been the one to invite you out, not the other way around, so if he really ended up not liking this then that was his fault not yours.  You even took into account that Leona was a lazy bitch and suggested you meet up later in the day instead, but then again…  You try to resist drowning in a wave of self flagellation over the clothes you picked out as you somehow manage to sink further into the park bench you have decided to camp out on.  For someone who had been so insistent they were not going out on a date when their generous adoptive father asked where they were going during such prime father child bonding hours, you felt insanely self conscious.  That was normal right, people who actually went out with their friends to do stuff other than pal around the local big box store put thought into their appearance.  Not that there was anything wrong with that.  If this goes south you know you already confirmed you can have Jack over here in two shakes of his tail and that’s probably exactly what you would end up doing.  But when Mannon posted in the guild discord about a First Fantasia themed pop up cafe that was going to be A) running for a limited time within walking distance from your house and B) giving out a code for an in game pet-

Well admittedly your first thought had been to invite Epel, but Leona had texted you almost immediately after Mannon dropped the link.

[irl catboy] ruggie said you aren’t working this saturday

[irl catboy] come with me to the stupid cafe i never know what to order at those places

With such a gentlemanly request how could you possibly refuse?  And now here you were fifteen minutes early trying to keep yourself from going stir crazy, or from jumping out of your skin when an increasingly familiar deep voice whispers a sleepy “hey” into your ear.  

“Seven’s Leona!”  You’re half ready to hit him with your backpack but your indignation and fright are almost entirely wiped away by the sheer figure Leona cuts against the setting autumn sun.  Someone, Ruggie you decide, because there’s no way Leona decided to dress up to come see you himself, forced your upperclassman into a knit  black turtleneck with golden claw-like trim on the neck and rolled up cuffs.  He’s kept his usual tan slacks, but the ugly woven sandals have been swapped out for a more weather appropriate pair of ugly slip ons with similar gold claws to the turtleneck.  His hair’s still tied up like he’s been at spelldrive practice, not that you fully know what he looks like outside of Epel’s descriptions and your own imagination. 

“What, did I scare you?” you drawls, clearly eating up the attention you’re lavishing on his appearance.  Before you can collect yourself enough to stand up he leans down to cow you back into the bench.  “Maybe I should scare you some more?  The mousey look really suits you.”

“Oh shut up!”  You huff and stand, trying your best to avoid cracking your head off of Leona’s stupidly broad frame as you both go to head towards the cafe.  “Did you look up the menu online or are you just planning on winging it?”

“You really like to put effort into things don’t you?”  Leona doesn’t look or sound too upset but there’s a strange wistfulness to his look you do not really like, but it’s gone before you can pick at it too much.  “Nah I figured I’d just let you pick.”

“Are you sure?”  You try your best not to sound excited, you swear the only thing you admire about Ruggie is his work ethic, not his grift.  “I could just take advantage of you and force you to get a bunch of stuff only I’d like.”  As if he’s reading your mind, Leona's green eyes twinkle with mischief you know will bite you in the ass later.

“Oh no you would never do that.  I know for a fact that you are just too nice for that.”  The “unlike someone else" goes unsaid as Leona decides to really double down on the gentleman act when you reach the cafe, holding the door and not even pretending to look at the menu until you prompt him.

“Do you want to get the reaper soda?”  Leona shrugs. 

“Does it sound like it will taste good to you?”  It does but that’s sort of besides the point, you’re much more interested in the white mage one.

“I just thought you might want the coaster.”  You murmur and he smiles.

“I’d lose something like that real fast, you can just keep it.”  Your eyes have to pop halfway out of your head with how hard he laughs, other patrons shoot a confused look at your table as you try to resist the urge to self combust.  “Let me guess, they’re worth somethin right?  In that case all the more reason for you to keep em.”  The look in his eyes is practically daring you to ask if he’s really sure, but knowing Leona he wants an excuse to tease so for now you swallow your insecurities and point your awkward smile up at the server who comes to take your order.  

“Um can we get one reaper soda, one white mage soda…” your voice trails off and Leona pipes up with the name of a burger you don’t remember reading out to him but they apparently serve anyway with how quickly she notes it down.

“And is the check separate or together?”  She sweetly asks and before you can so much as breathe Leona cuts you off.

“Bill goes to me.”  You glare at him, well try to really Leona’s a hard person to stare down.  “Didn’t I say you could get whatever?”  Not literally, it was more implied along with the trouble that you weren’t expecting to catch up to you this quickly.  His smile widens, not quite wolfishly, more like a lion staring down a particularly foolish gazelle that’s stumbled weak kneed into his territory.  “Go on, tell the nice lady what else you want, she won’t bite you, that's my job.”  Flames aren’t enough anymore.  You need to turn into a particularly fine paste or particle dust to relive how fast your heart is beating.  Luckily for you the server seems amused, letting out a good natured laugh as she shoots you a wink.

“You heard your man, what can we get for you?”  You take back every judgment you have ever passed Ruggie’s way.  With just how proud Leona seems like now he really is asking for it.

 ~~~

“You don’t really do things like this much do ya?”  Leona kept his teasing to a minimum after the bite comment thank god and kept his word about letting you keep the coasters.  Pretty much everything at the cafe seemed to have some sort of First Fantasia themed knick knack you were allowed if not encouraged to take back with you.  Leona had offered to walk you home once you both saw how dark it was, promising that would be your only stop this time much to your relief.  You weren’t sure how much more of his teasing you could take.

“I mean I’ve got Epel, but Ace, Deuce, and Jack don’t really like mmos.”  You aren’t sure if it has ever actually been established if you are friends with Sebek, but unless someone teaches Malleus how to use a mouse you doubt he’s going to be logging into anything other than a literal tree anytime soon.  “Sometimes Epel will send me links to merch he thinks I’d like, but he’s more into the…”  You pause to try and find the words for what it is you want to say, knowing your friend will kill you if you make him look lame.  “Sense of pride and accomplishment you get from beating high end content.”

“That sounds like him.”  Leona says proudly.  “He’s like that with anything mildly competitive.  One of his better qualities, just don’t go telling him I said that.  Wouldn’t want it goin to his head.”  There’s no way you’ll be able to keep his mild praise a secret from Epel forever, but what Leona doesn’t know won’t hurt him too much.  “But that’s not really what I was asking.”  Your pace slows as Leona lapses back into silence and you wrack your brain for what he actually could have meant.  “Do you like going out to cafe’s?”

“I… don’t really know.”  You liked tonight.  Talking to Leona, when he was awake enough to participate, was always fun.  Even when you were trading jabs back and forth in class.  “I used to dream about finally finding someone who I could do stuff like this with, but I kind of gave up after my last date said-”  you freeze in your train of thought and walk.  This had not been a date in any way shape or form.  Sure, Leona played a video game with you, and sure he’s been going out of his way to talk to you in real life more regularly since he came to visit your work.  But it’s not like he did that for any reason other than-  “said it was just too weird.  Said I was just too weird and I guess I just sort of got tired of not being able to talk about things that interested me so I gave up trying.”

“Then why not just date me?”  Leona’s eyes are a really strange shade of green now that you’re staring straight into them.  It’s like he’s got two neon lights shining a spotlight directly on you every time he speaks, judging and picking apart whoever he is looking at.  And right now he is looking pointedly at you, making it clear this isn’t a conversation he is going to let you run from.  “I told you before, didn't I?  I like playing games with you.  I want to spend time with you; I want to hear about your day every day, from what annoyed you to funny things you and your friends did.  I want to see you happy and know I made that happen, because you make my life a happier one just by being in it.  The only thing I have ever not liked about you is that you work too hard, and that’s not unfixable.  You just need to let me be a bad influence on you.”  It’s a confession you never really expected to receive, but somehow so very much him.  It’s insulting, honest, and just a touch demanding but it reaches into that small shrunken part of your heart that you’ve been burying most of your feelings in for who knows how long now and fills it with warmth.

“Would you-”  It feels like a silly question but with how intently Leona is hanging on your every word you feel a rush of power going straight to your head.  “If we were going out would you stop wiping things on purpose?”  He blinks, if he’s surprised by the request or shocked he got this far you don’t quite know, but he quickly recovers, moving into your space to offer his hand.

“If you ask nicely.”  You gladly take the offered arm and influence, squeezing his much larger hand with a soft smile.

“Then it’s a dea-”  Leona cuts you off with a kiss, swallowing your mouselike squeak along with most of your air with a speed you didn’t know he possessed.  

“Don’t use that punks line.”  He practically growls and you can’t hold in your happy laughter any longer.  It could just be the streetlights, but you don’t think Leona looks all that mad.  Quite the opposite really, not that you expect him to voice it out loud.  Instead he leans in for another kiss in a gruff effort to show just how much he means what he has been trying to say all along.

I’m happiest when I am doing things with you.

*if you are curious about Leona's outfit, I based it off of Lion King clothing items in Disney Dreamlight Valley (black and gold claw shoes, tan sunny slacks, and the gray claw top for those looking for specifics)

#twisted wonderland x reader #leona kingsholar x reader #leona x yuu #leona kingscholar #twst x reader #twst au

[seijorhi]

Hey, god it’s me again. 😔 LOL

I think that at this point of my life your beautiful and flawless fic ‘means to an end’ has physical intertwined with me. It is a part of my mind, soul, and body. 😩 Everything about it is chefs kiss.

I wish I could just kiss that beautiful big brain of yours for coming up with such delicious ideas. The way it’s on my mind daily since the moment I read it is SICKENING (in a good way obvi 😏).

I will go through my day and out of nowhere something will remind me of it and along will come a question. You did this to me Rhi 🫵.

NOW I know you’re very busy with getting your new fic ready (absolutely excited btw, I love Gojo and knowing your beautiful mind , anything you write will be to die for!!!!) but I wanted to ask a couple questions (I know, shocker right?). Since I know you’re busy, don’t feel obligated to answer these questions. In fact, I’ll be very happy if you even reply with a heart. (I simply just wanted to let you know deeply I appreciate/admire your work.)

But here are my troublesome questions:

- Did the guys on their volleyball team know about their obsession with the reader?

- I know you mentioned Atsumu having girlfriends through highschool but did that apply to Osamu too? (Especially since he liked the reader first?)

- This is sort of like my first question but did the girlfriends know as well? And if they did, did they feel any jealousy? (Jealousy from their boyfriend giving his attention to someone else.)

- Since there was a long period of time of not seeing the reader, did they have hopes of seeing her again? (before Atsumu found ame)

- While in that period of time did the twins still date around?

That’s all but please if you have anything else to add , it’s definitely welcomed. 🫶 (also I’m sorry if these questions sound silly or stupid but they’ve been taking up my mind for awhile and I’m sorry to everyone for constantly bringing up ‘means to an end’ but that fic has a strong grip on me yall. Like I’m down bad on my knees for this version/fic of the Miya twins 😔.)

OFF TOPIC: I’ve been trying very hard to be more active with my favorite writers to show love and support but still find the idea to be very scary. I still get nervous sending in messages or asks but I’m trying to take baby steps. I also want to gain the confidence of not having to press the anonymous button because I want you to know who I am but as a second baby step , I will now be signing my post with my nickname since I want you to (sort of) know who I am ☺️ (and not just some crazed fan lol.)

-🌬️🌫️ katia

(I keep on forgetting which emojis I used on the previous questions I sent but I hope I got it right this time 🥲)

(Edit: you’ll probably see the same message again but that’s because I’m sending it to you again because I forgot to mention this in the pervious one 😰.

You’ve inspired me to start taking a more darker route in my writing. I began writing maybe a month ago and it’s a romance novel. (So far I’ve got two chapters 🫠).

But these past couple days I’ve been REALL REALLY wanting to write more darker content (like the kind you write, you’ve inspired me a great deal with your writing technique).

But the problem is I don’t know how to write yandere/horror/gore. So I was wondering if it wasn’t to much of a bother, if you could give me some tips or advice. (Im very new to writing and I have my struggles but I want to branch out to more darker themes, like you and fairy.) Still learning the ropes but I hope with your guidance, I’ll get there 🫡. )

hello my love!

okay so first of all if ur gonna keep being so cute and complimentary i will melt into a soft gooey puddle and be of no use to anybody so be warned.

as for your questions:

i would say that most people who spent a decent amount of time around the twins, i.e. their teammates and classmates, would have at least an inkling about their interest in bullying her. the miyas are many things, subtle isn't one of them. having said that, i think out of everyone, suna was probably the only one who saw it for what it was

hookups yes, 'girlfriends' no

again, anyone who spent a significant amount of time around the twins was bound to eventually put two and two together. which isn't to say that they were all blind going in – some undoubtedly thought they could snag his attention once they were officially dating, only to find themselves bitterly disappointed

they 100% both kept tabs on the reader, it was more a case of biding their time and waiting for the right moment

yes. not serious, long term relationships (aside from ame) as neither one of them would be capable of faking it for more than a few months but relationships all the same

advice wise, i dug up this old post which hopefully will be at least a little helpful??

beyond that, all i can really say is that for me, good yandere/horror fics balance emotion with tension, and the build up of both. the characterisation is also really important – what makes you love to loathe them, or alternatively, not see them coming until it's entirely too late. nothing bores me more in a yan fic than when the writer hasn't bothered to give their yan a personality beyond a cookie cutter obsession.

but congrats on getting started with writing! i'm proud of you bby <33

#i was literally in the process of typing up a response to the first one when i got the second ghvfjdksjnhfjdks #rhi answers #fic asks #means to an end

[sisterkosho]

General Headcanons | Nanako Asano

Notes: So as I mentioned before, I’ve been having a bit of Tokyo Revengers brainrot as of late. And after some consideration, I figured I might as well just start letting it all out on here since the fandom still seems to be somewhat active compared to other sites. With that said, I offer you this little headcanon post centering around OC I’m currently working on. She’s still in the early stages of development so everything here is subject to change (and likely will be rewritten later), but for now I kinda just wanted to share the stuff that’s been floating around my brain as I work on her. Enjoy!

Nanako is a delinquent from the Roppongi district known for being particularly close to the Haitani brothers.

She first met the two when she was just 13 after wandering into territory they claimed was theirs. And while she wasn’t affiliated with any gang at the time, she was clearly a delinquent.

As such, the encounter inevitably led to a fight, and although she held her own surprisingly well given the circumstances of a 2 v 1 against boys clearly stronger than she was, she ultimately lost in the end.

However, perhaps because of her impressive skills in combat or her “natural charisma” as he put it, Ran seemed to take a liking to her over the duration of the fight.

Right then and there, he decided that he wanted to keep her around.

He’d have her join them, and nothing was going to change his mind,

This left Nanako… a bit taken aback, to say the least. It was all so sudden, and it sounded more like a demand than an offer. Just who did this kid think he was anyway???

She was fully prepared to tell him off, but once she actually took a moment to consider it… she realized that maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea.

It may have sounded crazy, but these boys were freakishly strong. So much so that they could easily take over the entire district if they wanted to. In fact, she had no doubt that they would sooner rather than later.

Getting in close with people like that could be the one chance she needed to make it big in the delinquent world, and that… well, that sounded fun.

And considering she did lose a fight against them on their own turf, a part of her felt like it would only be fair to accept. That’s how these kinds of things worked after all.

So from then on, Nanako followed behind them, serving as their right hand. And as expected, it wasn’t long before they had taken over Roppongi.

They became total big shots, and being associated with them gained her quite the reputation amongst delinquents in the area.

After all, the brothers were known for their independence and refusal to be a part of any gang, so for her to have gotten so close to them… she must’ve been something special.

It was thanks to all that that she eventually ended up becoming a part of the S-62 generation on Ran’s recommendation.

A part of her knew that maybe they were going too far by that point, getting involved in things they probably shouldn’t. But she couldn’t bring herself to care.

Even with the way things had turned out, she was happy. She was having fun. But most importantly, she had people she cared about more than anything in the world.

So when it came down to it, she didn’t care what kind of path she went down. She’d follow them anywhere, no matter what.

From Tenjiku to Bonten, she stood by their side. And never once did she regret a thing.

She was having the time of her life, and she wouldn’t trade it for the world no matter how many hardships they faced. Though really, she felt like she had it made most of the time.

To her, the Haitani brothers are like family.

Rindou is like the little brother she never had.

He started calling her “big sis” as a joke, but it ended up sticking.

She goes drinking with him sometimes and it always ends in shenanigans of some sort.

She always takes the fall so he doesn’t get in trouble.

They’ve played tic tac toe on Ran’s forehead on numerous occasions.

Ran calls her “Nana-chan”.

The two had this sort of unspoken thing going on between them for awhile until Rindou started trying to play matchmaker.

He wasn’t the greatest wingman but somehow it worked out.

In both the Bonten arc and the final timeline, Nanako and Ran ended up married.

In the final timeline, she works as a bartender at the Haitani brothers’ club.

#nanako asano #ran haitani #rindou haitani #nanaran #haitani brothers #tokyo revengers #tr #tokrev #original character #oc #fan character #fc #oc x canon #writing #headcanon #hc

[lladyofthedawn]

First Time on Earth

George and Lorraine can’t stop thinking about their friend Marty. He promised them they would meet in the future yet he’s nowhere to be seen! He’s gotta have a reason for not showing and a reason why he acted so odd…

so i posted this on my archive and decided to kinda make a separate tumblr for my cringe shit for funsies!

anyways this is inspired by this post here and also because i have brain rot enjoy

“Do you ever think about Marty?”

George pulled back, shocked at Lorraine’s question since she just nearly had her tongue down his throat.

They’ve been going steady for about a month now and it’s been an absolute dream. Just last week they went down to the diner and had a great time. They even went dancing afterward! George knew he had two left feet when it came to that sort of thing but as long as he was with Lorraine, he knew he’d be in good hands.

He also knew she’d nearly bite off anyone’s head if they made any remark towards them. He was still getting used to this new sense of confidence he’d had rushing through him since the dance, but it didn’t mean he wouldn’t go down without a fight. He sometimes wonders how different the dance would’ve gone if he hadn’t punched Biff.

Truthfully, it was a beatnik punch. But the shock and power that went through him, also surprising Biff, was the true thunderbolt that caused the bully to leave him alone.

“I-I think about him a lot, Lorraine.”

He’s unimaginably thankful to Marty.

Lorraine nodded and completely sat back in her seat. Her cheeks are red and her hair is blown out from their kissing for the last half hour, but she’s got a deep frown set in her face. She reached for her purse but quickly pulled back her hand, realizing she threw out her cigarettes weeks ago.

“I just,” she fiddled with her hands for a moment, trying to get her thoughts together. “Where did he go, George?” Her eyes are wide and glossy, telling George this has been on her mind for some time.

She threw her hands up, “He’s just gone! We haven’t gotten phone calls, let alone any letters. No one’s seen him around. Nobody even really knows him. I’ve even tried to-to-to-“

George grabbed her hands, seeing as she was getting excited.

“‘Raine, calm down I-I’m sure he’s fine!” He rubbed their hands together. “He’s a smart guy, maybe he had to go out of town to help family or something.”

Lorraine shook her head furiously, “No, he told us we will see him again. He guaranteed it!”

George winced at that, remembering their last conversation at the dance.

“I just don’t understand how we haven’t heard anything from him.” She rubbed her eyes, frustrated. “We were nice to him, weren’t we? And he was so happy when we got together. I’m so grateful he was so sweet about the whole situation.”

She took a deep breath and squeezed his hand, calming herself down.

George smiled at her. He loves how passionate she is. How she wasn’t afraid to let her emotions take control every once in a while.

“As thankful as I am for him, he sure was an odd fella,” he said, rubbing his cheek and thinking.

Lorraine nodded with him, her lips pursed, “There was just something different about that boy and I just can’t put my finger on it.”

They both sat in silence, thinking about their interactions with the boy. All George could think about was all the times Marty would trip up on his words or just stare at him for too long, almost like he was studying him. He could never say slang correctly or confidently but when he did talk with confidence it was strung together with words that barely go together! The reminiscence made George smile a bit. It was almost like it was Marty’s first time on earth.

The thought made George freeze, and it seemed like Lorraine came to the same conclusion as she shot straight up as well.

“Oh my god, he’s gay!”

“Oh my god, he’s an alien!”

George coughed loudly, “Gay! Right!”

Lorraine was still deep in thought as she ignored his slight misconstruity, “Aw Georgie, I think I might’ve frightened him off.”

Her eyes turned mistier as she turned away and put her hands on her face. George frowned a bit, upset at seeing her upset.

“What happened? Did he say something to you?” He asked.

Lorraine turned a bit red, obviously embarrassed by something. She bit her lip before she replied.

“It was at the dance-er well before the dance. We were in the car…”

She trailed off, not sure if she wanted to talk about her ‘original’ date to the dance to her now boyfriend.

George rolled his eyes playfully, “You can tell me ‘Raine. I won’t get mad.”

She shuffled nervously, her eyes flitting between his own and the car dashboard.

“Looking back on it now, he definitely thought of the date as a friendly one.” She then wrapped her arms around herself. “Oh, George! I’ve never seen a boy so nervous and that’s saying something!”

He chuckled at that, not minding the small tease.

“He could barely look at me! Let alone hold my hand or anything. All he wanted to do was get me to the dance and probably have some fun…” she trailed off again, remembering that night. “When I asked him why he was so nervous after we parked, you know what he told me, George?”

He raised his eyebrows in reply.

“He asked me if I’ve ever been somewhere where you know you had to act a certain way but when you got there you didn’t know if you could do it.”

The way she said it made it seem like it was a direct quote from Marty. Like she’d run it through her head a million times before speaking it out loud to him. The tears she’s been holding back finally spilling over. It’s clear this has been on her mind for quite a while and George is a bit sheepish that all he could think about is that Marty is an alien.

Oh geez, I hope that wasn’t ignorant of me.

But he started to recall more about Marty and all the odd mannerisms he had. He thought about how adamant Marty was for him to take Lorraine to the dance. He would always get so embarrassed when he pointed out that he thought she was sweet on him, not George. However, the embarrassment was borderline disgust to the strange boy. He would jerk away quickly and almost have a full-body shiver at the thought of taking Lorraine out. George, at the time, thought Marty was an idiot for not seeing how lucky he was to have a gal like Lorraine vying for his affection. But the more he thought about it, maybe it wasn’t Lorraine putting him off but the fact she was a girl.

Well, that does put some things in perspective.

He then notices Lorraine has been staring at him for some time, almost studying his expressions. She still had some tears left over on her cheeks and her nose was cutely puffed red. But her eyes were staring daggers into his head.

He bristled up, but it mostly looked like he was shaking off rain like a wet dog, “What ‘Raine?”

“You don’t have a problem with that, do you?” Her voice was hard, like she was ready to tear into him at any moment.

George’s eyes widened as realized he’s been suspiciously quiet for too long, “NO! No! Not-Not at all! I swear I was just thinking and-“

“And what?” She crossed her arms over her body and stared at him.

“I don’t know!” He threw his arms up. “Just all the odd words he’d say!”

She studied him more but he seemingly passed whatever she was looking for. She let out a heavy sigh and stared out the window.

The silence was calm and almost welcomed. Both of them mourning the almost loss of their friend. George reached over to grab her hand so that she could relax a bit. He fiddled with her fingers clumsily before finally interlocking them together. He blushed deeply, still embarrassed about holding a girl’s hand even though they were just kissing some time earlier.

“He knew that we wouldn’t have cared, right?” Lorraine broke the silence. Her voice sounded small and a bit far away. “I know it’s not exactly…common. And folks around here aren’t always the brightest, but he knew that we wouldn’t have cared? Right, George?”

His mind instantly conjure up a memory of the boy. Cool kid Marty, who definitely could’ve climbed up the social rankings to the popular kids but instead decided to mock them. Marty, who decided he wanted to talk to loser George Mcfly, who pushed him to talk to Lorraine and continue writing his dorky stories.

He smiled softly, “I’m sure he knew in some capacity.”

“Then why haven’t we heard from him!” Lorraine balked. “Biff and those goons could’ve-“

“Biff knows better than to touch Marty.” George snaps, not liking the thought of Marty hurt again. “I’ll sock him again if he even mentions him.”

Lorraine stared wide-eyed at George, a bit shocked at his sudden change in confidence and stern demeanor.

George turned red when he raised his voice. He can’t recall the last time he’s ever done that. Again, he’s still growing into this newfound confidence.

“I-I didn’t mean to interrupt, ‘Raine, I just-“ He breathed in deeply before taking off his glasses and pinching his nose. “Wherever Marty let's just hope he’s safe. But if he ever comes back to Hill Valley we’ll welcome him with open arms.” He finishes with a strained but toothy grin.

“Oh, George!” Lorraine kisses his cheek suddenly. “I love it when you get all protective like that!”

He ducks away, flustered, and cheeks darkening.

“I hope you’re this protective over our kids, Georgie!” She exclaims happily.

And he nearly passed out from the thought.

#mine #my writing #bttf #back to the future #marty mcfly #lorraine mcfly #george mcfly #bttf fic #fanfic #yes they give each other nicknames let me live

[theladyragnell]

Hello Nell, it's been a while since I sent you a fic request! I have a challenge for you - no worries if you're not interested though. In anticipation of Shadow and Bone season 2, how about Kaz/Inej/Jesper (specifically the show version of them) and "I didn't realise we were dating!" Jesper has talked himself into believing that he is just imagining being romantically involved with Kaz and Inej :)

(In which I don't have the time to rewrite In Defiance of All Geometry but a lot of people give serious thought to inventing powerpoint to explain things to poor Jesper. Set in some nebulous point in canon, probably post-s1 and pre-s2, but I haven't wached the show since it came out so you'll have to forgive some inaccuracies!)

It’s not that Jesper is lonely.

For one thing, he’s an incredibly charming person, thank you very much, and he makes friends (and other acquaintances, and occasionally, when luck isn’t with him, enemies) wherever he goes. For another, he has a crew these days, steady backup in any rough patch.

It’s just that the two people he sees most often, the two people who have his back more than anyone else, the two people he trusts (and who he can never tell he trusts them because they’d flee the city) are stupidly in love, and Jesper is not meant to be a third wheel.

Somehow, though, he still finds himself sitting and waiting it out while Kaz and Inej exchange looks full of all sorts of things that they then have to explain to him out loud because he can’t do their freaky mind-reading trick. And fading tactfully back when they’ve had a rough job and need to stare at each other and say weird intense things to each other.

“I don’t grudge it for a moment, you understand,” he tells Nina, who is very sympathetic as long as he lets her speak in her turn and who is less embarrassed in funds than he habitually is and buys them drinks when men trying to get her attention aren’t doing it. “It’s just awkward to be there, and they do it in front of me a lot.”

Nina frowns at him. “They’re both pretty private people,” she says, in a leading tone.

Jesper does not like leading tones when he doesn’t know where he’s being led. He groans. “I know that! That’s why I try to keep giving them privacy! It’s just that apparently they can’t restrain themselves long enough for me to leave them alone!”

Nina’s continuing frown takes a turn for the embarrassingly pitying. “Those two never do anything by accident. Surely you know that by now.”

“Whatever you’re trying to be delicate about, please stop, I have a reputation for being unable to take a hint.”

“I can certainly see why,” she says, and refuses to say another word on the subject.

*

The other problem is, and Jesper will take this one to the grave if his face doesn’t give him away, the problem is that Kaz and Inej are the two most amazing people he knows. They’re also terrifying, but sad as it is, Jesper seems to have a weakness for terrifying people. Inej and her silence and her very scary knives, Kaz and his very scary brain, they’re going to be able to burn down the world someday, and for some reason, they’re letting Jesper come along for the ride.

Jesper’s got an excellent opinion of his own good looks, intelligence, and skill as a sharpshooter. He’s an asset. He’s just not the sort of person who gets ballads and legends written about him, and the other two are.

So if, sometimes, he stares at them while they’re doing the freaky exchanging-looks thing and it’s not annoyance he’s feeling, he hardly thinks that anybody could blame him.

*

“You keep disappearing after our jobs,” Inej says in the dark.

Jesper yelps. “Must you do that?”

“Do what?” she asks, so dry and absolutely making fun of him. “You used to want to celebrate. Is something wrong?”

“Does Kaz know you’re asking me this?” She gives him a long, judgmental look. Right. Stupid question. She and Kaz plan everything out together, these days. “Okay, fine, obviously. And no, nothing is wrong, does something have to be wrong for me to give you privacy?”

Inej frowns, and Jesper groans and goes to sit down on his bed to start unlacing his boots. To his surprise, Inej sits down next to him a moment later, arm brushing against his. “You’re part of this with us. We don’t need privacy from you.”

First Nina feels sorry for him and now Inej does. And possibly also Kaz, though the thought of being pitied by Kaz is a horrible one. It doesn’t seem to be in his range of emotions, which to Jesper’s knowledge are plotting, anger, and utter devotion to Inej. “You two aren’t exactly babes in the wood, no matter how slow you’re going, and I don’t want to catch sight of anything that would make Kaz put a hit out on me.”

“He would never.”

“You’re right. I think he’d have the good manners to kill an old friend face to face.”

Inej frowns at him in confusion. Jesper waits for her to try to convince him and herself that Kaz would never kill a member of their crew for any reason, or that Kaz, who would probably wear a veil over his head if he’d still get respect that way because he hates anyone to know he’s got anything so human as skin, would be fine with Jesper seeing anything that comes out in the natural course of amorous activities. Instead, she just watches, and after an excruciating interval, says “Hm.”

And then, before he can ask her what that’s supposed to mean, she disappears in that special Wraith way she has, leaving him confused and annoyed and a little bit worried that Kaz might kill him after all.

*

Kaz does not kill him. Or yell at him, or threaten him, or anything else. Kaz pays for a drink and stakes him in a game and sits next to him while he plays it, intimidating the rest of the table so much Jesper actually wins. He gets them an easy job where Jesper gets to shoot a hole through a man’s hat and gives him the grimace-twitch that serves him as a real smile.

After, during their celebrations, Kaz and Inej sit on either side of him instead of all wrapped up in each other, and Inej leans against Jesper and drinks and laughs, and Kaz doesn’t kill him or even particularly look like he wants to.

“Yes, I get it, you value my friendship, it’s very sweet of both of you,” Jesper says later, when Inej is asleep against his shoulder. It’s kind of nice, being trusted like that.

Kaz stares at him coldly for a good thirty seconds. Jesper waits for a blistering insult, or at best a reminder that he ought to get some rest himself. “Hm,” he says instead, and when Jesper tries to ask what that means, shushes him, looking at Inej meaningfully.

*

“I don’t know what we’d do without you to make us smile, Jesper,” Inej says quietly, lounging on his bed, a habit she’s somehow picked up.

“Your terrible luck shames me,” says Kaz, and spends an hour making him learn to count cards.

“You’re a mess, Jesper,” says Nina with no sympathy at all when he brings his bafflement to her again. “I’d tell you what to do, but it’s going to be a lot funnier to watch you figure it out.”

*

Not every job can go well, not even for the best crew in Ketterdam. They set out to divest a merchant of his ill-earned gains, and end up on the run from his private security all across the city. Kaz is somewhere hidden, not being the running type, but Inej and Jesper have been running for long enough that Jesper’s lungs are starting to burn, and while Inej could disappear if she wanted to, for some reason she’s not doing it.

Jesper isn’t good at planning jobs out, all the thousand iterations of a plan that Kaz can come up with and switch between at a second’s notice. One thing he is very good at, though, is improvising. When there’s a convenient alley, he grabs Inej’s hand, pulls her in, and kisses her. It’s a classic distraction technique, and gives him a chance to pluck off his hat, muss up her braid, and make them look like two young lovers who have been at it a while, not a pair of criminals on the run.

Sure enough, the steps of the security slow when they pass them, but they don’t stop, and Jesper kisses Inej for a few seconds more before he backs off. “Do not stab me for that,” he says.

Inej frowns at him. “Stab you? Why would I stab you?”

He frowns right back at her. “Because I kissed you without asking.” He picks up his hat and then freezes. “Wait. Don’t tell Kaz. Kaz really will stab me. You like me at least enough to keep me alive, right?”

“We need to meet up with Kaz,” she says, still looking worried about him, even in the midst of this job knowing something that he doesn’t. “Everything will make a lot more sense then.”

*

It’s dawn before the three of them meet up, after a lot more evasive maneuvers and a little regrouping and a called in favor that got the unfortunate merchant dumped in the harbor for some nearby fishermen to pull out.

By then, Jesper is exhausted enough that his murder might be a blessing in disguise, so he doesn’t protest when Inej drags him into the room with Kaz and says “He still doesn’t know. He kissed me and he still doesn’t know.”

“Don’t you, Jesper?” Kaz inquires. That’s a dangerous tone of voice.

Jesper, pushed past all endurance, throws his hands up. “Of course I don’t! Why would I know anything? Nina won’t tell me, you two insist that you don’t want privacy despite that being a thing nearly universally desired by all lovers and you don’t really seem like the type to want an audience so I assume that includes you … it’s very trying!”

Kaz smiles. It’s one of the dangerous ones. All the ones that don’t look like weird grimaces are dangerous. “You’re right. We don’t want an audience. Or only a very specific audience, and not as much as we want a participant. You kissed the Wraith. If she didn’t want you to, she would be handing me your liver right now.”

Jesper looks between them, even more baffled. “You need a proxy? I thought you were just going slow about the touching thing, but I suppose I’ve done worse things for people I liked less.”

“Intriguing idea, but also not my point,” says Kaz. “I staked your bet. Have you ever known me to make a bad one?”

“You were being nice?”

“I’m not nice,” says Kaz, and kisses him. It’s quick and brutal and Jesper sits limply on the floor when Kaz is finished with him for the very simple reason that he’s too surprised for his legs to hold him.

“Now do you understand?” asks Inej.

Jesper takes a moment to recalculate his entire life like he might recalculate a shot when the wind picks up. He thinks about being included past all reason, about how Inej and Kaz use words and not touch with each other and, it seems, with him, about good bets and bad bets and Inej not stabbing him in that alley. He thinks, and he gives them his most charming grin. “Maybe you should explain it to me some more.”

Inej grins. Kaz grimaces. Very little of the explaining that follows is verbal.

*

“I regret ever wanting this to work out,” Nina says a few days later, but she grins and lets him buy her a drink, and really, Jesper is pretty sure he’s never had fewer problems in his life.

#sweetpollyolliver #answered asks #sometimes i write stories

[unohanabbygirl]

I was going to post something a little bit longer but it got deleted when my computer shut down so ill just keep it short . What if there is a scene kind of like in "The Butterfly Effect," where Aemond and Luke are having this conversation in a diner and Aemond finally got Luke to meet with him but not only that it has been a good minute that they have seen each other because well Luke ran away and he got tired of all the family drama and quite simply he has too much trauma that he is dealing with his own sh-. This is the first time Aemond has seen Luke in a while and Luke appears worse than when he had last seen him, he looks pale, gaunt, heavy bags, scars now on his face, old scabs on his arms and hands, signs of drug use and other self destructive qualities. He looks tired and really doesn't care in the slightest what Aemond has to say about the past life or his apologies. Because he is over it. All the while Aemond is trying hard not to fall apart at seeing the love of his life in the condition and is trying to get Luke to come back again to his old self to come back to him, to remember the love he had for his family, but Luke can't feel that love anymore because people have shown nothing but hate and ugliness to him that its overpowered all the love he was given in the past life. Like the scene in the film he tells Luke with tears in his eyes "You were happy once." Luke is just listening to Aemond talk about the past and how he regrets hurting Luke and Storms End, and Luke has this sleepy drugged out look in his eyes scoffing at Aemond and saying that he is still that kid stuck in the past, and tells Aemond mockingly and nonchalantly "its okay Aemond, don't worry, you didn't break me, other men did that, so don't feel bad about it." "So what, you want me to apologize for the eye, okay I'm sorry, you want me to apologize for the pig joke? you want my forgiveness, fine you have it." "That kid you killed at Storms End, is dead, he died there and if he did come back, he's been dead a long time ago." Luke just gets up barely able to walk and walks away "I got my own sh- to deal with than something that happened 2k, 10k years ago." Scoffing at Aemond. Aemond at this point is broken beyond any repair.

Inspired entirely by your amazing story "Forget Me Not," Unohananbbygirl and "The Butterfly Effect."!

This is so beautiful yet so heartwrenching!

I love this little drabble because the possibility of Luke running away and falling further and further down the rabbit hole of drugs, stealing and sex work is a big one. All it takes is the wrong words from the right person and Luke could very much just say forget it and decide that fighting the person he’s become isn’t worth it in the end.

I think that’s one of many parts that makes FMN so tragic. This scenario you’ve written has just as much of a chance at happening as the happy ending we’re all waiting for. So many people who live in a simyreality end up like this everyday, regardless of their financial situation (though coming from a harsh background makes it all the more likely)

Luke very well could feel himself incapable of change and choose to part ways with everyone because even though Luke will always be that caring kid down to his very core, Lucerys Velaryon died above ship breakers bay with his dragon over a thousand years ago and isn’t ever going to come back. That in itself is enough to convince Luke that the family is better off without him since the person they’ve been looking for is technically no more.

Now that I’m thinking of it, this makes me wonder if the reincarnation cycle would just keep on continuing until everyone gets their shit together. Of course this current like they’re living is a second chance, but would they get a 3rd, 4th, 5th, so on and so forth if they fail to truly fix everything. Sort like a circle of hell, forced to continue on as the world changes until everyone gets their happy ending. My god anon, you have my brain working overtime and I love you for it lmao

#asks

[fangirleaconmigo]

You’ve probably gotten tons of asks about it already but are you going to make posts talking about the new season now or wait till part 2 comes out?

Hello dear! I tend to think and mull for a long time because my brain is slow.

If anyone wants my preliminary thoughts that are subject to change after seeing the rest of the season, here’s a few things:

SEASON THREE SPOILERS

Canon bi/pan bard is fantastic so far. It feels very natural, the emotions, the chemistry is there, very special and particular connections, etc.

Joey said he had a lot of input and it shows, because it does feel personal. I love it. Anyone who listened to my Whiskey with Witcher podcast interview knows that I’m a big fan of that development.

He also talked up Hugh Skinner and I was like well we shall see. People always talk up their scene partners because they know them and care about them which is GREAT but that doesn’t always actually translate to the screen for the viewer.

But Hugh WAS amazing. Joey was not exaggerating his expressiveness, passion, and chemistry in the role.

Hm. Let’s see what else.

I really appreciate that they haven’t ‘dropped’ the centrality of the Yen and Tissaia relationship. I’m not a fan of the Vilgefortz Tissaia romance addition. But at least they haven’t minimized how important her other relationships are.

Tissaia and Yen is the relationship that hooked me into the witcher to begin with. It had complications and dramatic tension and I was intrigued by how it changed the two women. It is so central to me, and I'm glad it still is for the show.

Ciri: It’s a whole new Ciri. Very different from the books. It’s not worse, it’s just different. In the books she just wanted to be left in peace and wanted nothing to do with being royalty or the motherhood and reproduction that this entails.

She has like a rage moment of almost riding into Nilfgaard at one point but she comes to her senses.

But the show cast her much older and this is just a different story. It’s about leadership. She wants to be a queen. Like I said. Very very different Ciri.

I have always believed you can change things you're adapting, in fact you have to. The test is, what you change it to has to be compelling enough in its own right that people aren't sitting there bitter about what they are missing out on. And I think her internal struggle and arc has potential. We'll see how it plays out the rest of the season.

The stuff about experimenting on the girls and messing with their heads and mushing their body parts into one is obviously brand new as well. I don’t really get it so far, but we’ll see how it plays out.

I believe it's ideas adapted from Season of Storms but I've only read that book one time, so I'll have to go look again.

The plot line has potential. Again, the story in the books was about bodily autonomy and the villains were all trying to basically turn girls and women into breeding machines. The lab was discovered and was horrific in a different way.

So what they’ve done is a bit more “fantasy” and I think it is potentially a much better choice for the kind of show they’re doing. I don't think I would want to see TWN put in a bunch of extreme and graphic reproductive and sexual violence and torture. I think you have to know the kind of show you're making and have a consistent tone. So I'm open to something else, for sure. But I’ll reserve judgment until I see how they wrap it up.

I loved all of the Ciri and Yen stuff. Their conversation and scenes are great. I know for a lot of people it's sort of hollow after S2. Since I made the decision not to quit the show, I have to let that go or I'll be miserable. So, I'm blocking out and denying a lot of season two.

Season three I'm enjoying. Yes, it's camp and silly in a lot of ways. Of course it's a flatter more simplistic version of the story. But we are on season three folks. If that is offensive to people, they should have quit already. Hatewatching is bad for the soul and constant hate and hostility is bad for the fandom. If ya can't have fun with it, time to move on.

For me, I had a great time watching it. I'm actually re-watching it already. I didn't rewatch season two at all (except for the first ep) so that's a good sigh already.

How I judge the season's writing as a whole will have to happen after the second part. And I'll let you know then if you send me another ask.

What I'm looking forward to the rest of the season:

The lodge. I think Cassie Clare is a fabulous Philippa but I want to see her come into her own self. I hope that's coming.

Keira Metz's brass knuckles.

FRINGILLA. We've seen so little of her so far, but what is there has intrigued me. Where are they going with her? I hope she's a bigger part of the last three eps.

MERIHART I want Philippa x Triss so badly ghhhhhh.

Milva. I can't wait to meet Milva.

Jaskier x Radovid I hope is a satisfying arc, and I believe it will be.

Geralt and Jaskier in Brokilon oh I hope they do it justice.

WILL WE SEE THE UNICORN??

Thanks for dropping into the ol ask box hun!

#the witcher #twn #the witcher season 3 #the witcher spoilers

[supanuts]

(1/2 - sorry!)

Argh, just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in (with more Way slander)! Buckle up - this one's bitchy! The more out of step I feel with the rest of the PB audience, the more I double triple quadruple down on the Way defence until I find myself becoming increasingly mean and unhinged! Every time I see a post wishing for Kenta's rescue/release/redemption, framing him (accurately) as trapped and abused, by no means blameless but also not entirely to blame, I think to myself 'where's that same energy for Way??' Fully ready to keep digging my own grave now: I came across a 'consequences of my own actions' post featuring Babe laying into Way, and the petty part of my brain immediately started cackling as it visualised a parallel gifset for the Dean/Babe betrayal – consequences of your own actions indeed! (And, while I’m out here burning bridges, you know what? I’d include Alan in that too! All very well crying found family, but when you let your top racer dictate the rules based on which direction his dick is twitching...just saying!!! Also – and I blame the writers for this rather than the characters – for someone who cares so much about said found family, you’d have thought we could spare a second for Alan’s reaction to learning the truth about Way, or even heaven forbid a scene of him needing his own confrontation with him, considering they’ve known each other as long as they have Babe, right?)

And here's where I come clean and admit that I fully guffawed when Dean was so dismissive about mourning Charlie cos tbh I feel the same way! (Not to mention, why should Dean care about this person?? From his POV, this guy came out of nowhere, shagged his way into the team, undermined all Dean's years of hard work, and just like that was suddenly considered an integral part of the family, a family Dean now felt rejected and dismissed by - you be as bitter as you like, you angry little boy!)

I think for me it's a perfect storm combo of styling/acting/writing (or rather telling not showing), because, no matter how well Pavel sells Babe's grief, I can't stand Charlie, and am actively rooting against their relationship (and was doing so even before my love for Way emerged). One of my very least favourite tropes of anything ever is when you establish two characters as having a long and incredibly close history together, basically being each other's go-to person, whether that be as siblings or bffs (with or without a one-sided love thrown into the mix), only to bring onto the scene a third character who we're more often than not TOLD (and not shown) is just so amazing and special and beautiful that one of our original characters can't help but fall madly in love with them, usually to the absolute detriment of their relationship with the other original character (even worse when it's made into a love triangle, bluergh!), as if there's something just so irresistible about this newbie that the Babe in this scenario can't possibly have known love or desire until this point, and all that long and intimate history with their friend/sibling/whatever suddenly doesn't seem that meaningful after all, especially since in these sorts of stories it's usually a very rapid progression from mild interest to OH MY GOD I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT THIS PERSON THEY ARE MY EVERYTHING LIFE MEANT NOTHING BEFORE THEM! Which is only ever so slightly insulting to everyone else in their friendship group, let alone their discarded go-to person! (In fact, I wish more stories explored this, the complicated (and yes, sometimes grievous) effect a new romantic relationship can have on a pre-existing friendship, without going the cliched route of turning the one left behind into a villain or making it a love triangle. Platonic friendships can be just as - if not more so - complex and important as romantic relationships, but this is something the media seems very reluctant to acknowledge.)

full disclosure, this ask is from before ep 11 was out; i was debating answering as i try not to put any negativity out there but after thinking about it for a while there are some things i'd like to answer to, also i think it's more interesting having different perspectives and opinions and talk about it

oh waynnie (way nonnie) do i get you. i've been a bit emotional about this topic for the last couple days or so and i really don't get people lol i can honestly say i love all the pit babe characters (not tony) and my top blorbos are way and kenta, so maybe that's why? but it's so frustrating to me and i simply. don't understand!!! the double standard in judging two characters that are in such similar circumstances so differently. i just can't wrap my head around it. also i feel like we're very much ignoring kenta's active involvement in the whole human trafficking situation, which again, circumstances, but also: literal human trafficking?

you know what i kinda defended babe last time about the whole dean thing but i've been rewatching his parts for reasons and science and. i think i have to backtrack, actually. sorry babe you're alone on this; it was always weird, and what dean did is inexcusable and i'm not going to say you made him do it, but what a way to shatter his dreams and hopes right as he was about to make it to the track. also sorry about me, but what hurts me more is still the fact that dean betrayed the x-hunter family and not that he tried to kill charlie and then babe. i do have my priorities ig lol

yeah see i would have loved to see more on that, because again, family feelings. i'm not saying make alan suffer bc i know he already does and if i have to justify the lack of scenes i'd blame the script, but also (and this might be me just excusing them trying to read more into it than there is) i have spent hours goofing off with the same friend after at least four different funerals because we both deal with loss and grief in similar ways, and while we may seem flippant to others it really helps to have that distraction. this is also applies to jeff and how calm he looks after charlie's "death" btw.

sorry but i am a charlie shooter lmao i wouldn't really call myself that now bc i have been proven right about him, but after the first ep aired it was me against the mdl comments. and i won. unfortunately i can over-explain and gaslight myself into making sense of/seeing more depth to almost every situation which maybe isn't very helpful lol but in this case i think it was as simple as the right person at the right time- as far as we know way wasn't actively manipulating babe before, and babe himself said he was satisfied with his life and wasn't looking for or even wanted love before charlie showed up, so. i have kinda moved on from charlie (ok no that sounds bad. i'm just juggling other, more important blorbos atm) but i adore him still; he's the bravest and most selfless naive puppy full of love and affection and everything good that babe thought he didn't need or want in his life, and i need for him and babe to reunite and be happy again.

agree with the rest though! tbh i never really saw them as a proper triangle but since way and babe were best friends they (maybe accidentally) gave me everything i wanted in that regard, which is: not downplaying the importance of friendship, or ignoring how it hurts when someone you used to be with all the time suddenly isn't there. in a way it doesn't really matter that way was, up to that point, still as important as he had always been for babe because he still felt abandoned, and feelings aren't something you can control. his actions and disdain/straight hate for charlie are because he loves babe and he's jealous and hurt bc his feelings weren't reciprocated, but i kinda… choose to ignore that and focus on the friendship aspect. i don't hope to get that back, or for them to have any kind of relationship or even contact later, but that doesn't erase their past.

#asks #way anon #anon #pit babe #pit babe the series

[kristencsummerlin]

I always thought that a Soul Eater AU would be potentially fun with Hellsing characters...that being said, I'll never get around to writing that idea. 😅 BUT! Since you're a fan of both, I'm curious what your interpretation would be.

(I’m guessing you meant Hellsing but with living weapons sort of deal. If not, feel free to correct, I’ll than follow up with an answer the right question. My brain isn’t perfect.

After writing a shit ton of “on the spot OCs” to be character’s weapons and how the fuck they work. Then realizing how long the post was becoming. So Maybe a Part Two down the way. We’ll see.)

Alucard: Alucard LOVES demon weapons and finds them interesting as FUCK! He’s read everything he could on them. They are just the shit for him. His favorite method if he ran into one during a mission is to use the weapon to kill their own meister. That way he can learn about the weapon works while taking out his target. Though he’s reasonable enough to know that the weapon to a dickhead is also a dickhead. So that weapon will suffer in ways no one thought an living item could.

Alucard’s soul wavelength is complex but oddly able to match with any weapon. Most believe it has to do with the whole shapeshifting thing, but others aka Seras, believe it might be Alucard’s understanding of others. His worked with three Demon Weapons in his life. Tommy Boy, Pouty Casull, and Jackie.

Each one he has a different relationship and bound with. They’ve been a saving grace when it comes to loneliness but also in his personal growth as a human once again. (At least in mental and moral)

Integra: When she was a little girl she was excited as fuck about living weapons. Mostly because she grew up hearing about Excalibur and such. Though now she’s less interested. Too many things on her plate. So mostly looks into them when it comes to her agents and whether or not they want to work for her. She does worry about them in combat though. Because magical weapons are more capable in hurting vampires. Like her two favorite agents.

Integra’s soul isn’t that easy to match with. Then again she’s never really tried to match her soul wavelength to one. So it’s hard to say. From the few she’s met. She’s gotten along with. Pouty Casull is like a mother figure to her throughout the 10 years. And Walter was family to her. Even though he betrayed them.

Seras: Terrified. She’s terrified. Grew up her whole life never hearing about them. She struggles during twilight while laying in her coffin. Trying to comprehend how the FUCKIDY FUCK can someone transform into a weapon. Like shapeshifting into animals, or other people, or monsters makes sense to her. But transforming into a weapon is hard to understand.

Seras surprisingly as difficult as paddling through shit’s creek without a fucking paddle. Besides her being so confused of the weapon’s existence that she can’t properly sleep. Seras has a very tall and tough wall to crack through. Unless she truly feels comfortable with the weapon. She’s gonna be a pain in the ass to match with. Which annoys Alucard because he thinks she would do some good with a talking gun.

Walter: If you read the Integra part you already know. In this AU Walter is a demon weapon. The fact that he and his wires are always together. Always one. As if he can pull them out of no where is the main reason why. He’s classified as A Deadly Demon Weapon. So one of the more dangerous types in the lists. A part of Walter’s cockiness for the longest time was the fact that no one figured him out. Well Alucard did. Thanks to that third eye. But Alucard kept it under wraps for the young butler. Though he was always annoyed because Walter insisted on being his own meister. Never once letting Alucard try him out.

Hell his nickname “The Angel of Death” is because he managed to make himself into a Death Scythe. This knowledge was collected through the Magic Books in the Hellsing Sorcery Room.

Pip: My beautiful Pip. This boy had one Demon Weapon as a member of the Wild Geese. They weren’t his partner. But he knew one dammit. Which is enough in his books to know what he’s talking about when it comes to living weapons. Okay. He thinks they’re the kewlist fucking thing the Gods accidently created. His young pre-teenage boy fantasies seem more and more possible knowing they exist.

He’s ashamed that Seras can’t see the joy he and Alucard sees. He doesn’t know if he’s compatible enough to use a demon weapon. He fucking hopes he is! But can’t confirm.

When he became Seras’ familiar. He celebrated. Because in a way, he became her personal demon weapon. Sure he can’t turn into an actual weapon like he’s love. But he’s close.

#answered ask #soul eater au #living weapons au #hellsing #hellsing au #hellsing ask #Hellsing Alucard #Alucard #integra van hellsing #Seras Victoria #walter c dornez #pip bernadotte

[astorytotellyourfriends]

Hi! So, random question, but is your url by chance a reference to the Every Avenue song? I ask because they’re probably considered an old band by this point, and I don’t think many people know them, but they’ve always been so special to me. In fact, in high school (soooooo 2013), I made one of my favorite art pieces to date and it was inspired by Picture Perfect (the song, not the album necessarily, although I do adore that album). I’ve never heard anyone mention them before, but if my favorite Hellcheer author was a fan, that would be like a celebrity I admire knowing a weird obscure book I really like.

And, yes, side note, you’re my favorite Hellcheer author. So few authors write what I consider to be an adequate smut-to-plot ratio (too much plot in relation to the smut, dammit), let alone smut that’s actually good, and yours is fan-fucking-tastic (this is not pressure to update, btw. As far as I’m concerned, longer time between updates means they’re that much sweeter when they come). Anyway, sorry for rambling, lowkey hope you’re a Every Avenue fan also, that would be insanely cool, love your fics and hope you’re doing well 💗

oh this just dropkicked me back to 2006 💀

yes! my url is indeed from the every avenue song and i've had it since that album came out in 2009 (really dating myself here oh god), though not on this particular blog. i switched the url from my og tumblr blog back in 2018 when i wanted to rebrand lol

every avenue was one of my faves back in the day 😭 i could go on and on about them (and my history with them) but i won't bc that's a long story lmfao but!! i'm so glad you made the connection!

and thank you for your wonderful compliments about my writing 🥹 i'm honored that i'm your favorite hellcheer writer! i am sort of on an impromptu posting break at the moment (which hilariously will be undone bc i'm posting a fic today) because my beta has a ridiculously busy work schedule this month, but it does in fact just mean that i'm hoarding a pile of updates that will eventually get released when she has the time to look them over 🥰

(unfortunately it also means i have no one around to tell me No when my brain comes up with new ideas... which i did... last night...)

#answered #imnotoverlyobsessive

[kissmejusttokissme]

Summary: Robin & Steve aren't the first people someone would come to for advice but Steve knows a thing or two about having a bisexual crisis. (Max would have picked Nancy but she's out of town.)

[Family Video - A Year Post Vecna]

“Are you busy?”

Robin and Steve both look up from the stacks of videos they’ve been sorting through and shake their heads. It’s been too long since their last customer and they’re about ready to pull the fire alarm just to feel something.

“Not at all,” Robin says, pushing the stack of videos nearest to her off the counter. “What’s up?”

Steve ducks down quickly to catch the videos before they hit the floor but matches Robin’s eager energy. “Please say it’s something that’ll take up at least an hour.”

“It’s been the slowest shift ever to exist,” Robin explains, climbing up onto the newly cleared counter. “But, don’t get us wrong, we’re also one hundred percent on board to help outside of how bored we are.”

“Oh yeah, for sure.” Steve nods. “Always eager to help.”

Max looks between the two of them, earphones slung around her neck playing the same Kate Bush song people had come to expect from her, and sighs. She sighs a lot when she’s around them. Around everyone, really. Well, except for Will but that’s only because his faces starts to crumple the second he thinks someone is upset with him and Max doesn’t have time to deal with the guilt.

“You can’t tell anyone about what I’m about to tell you,” she says, shoving her hands deep into her jacket pockets. “Not Eddie,” she looks at Steve. “Or Nancy,” this is to Robin. “Or any of the boys.”

“Our lips are sealed,” Robin says.

“With glue,” Steve says. “Or, like, cement.”

“But heavy, babe.” Robin shakes her head. “I was thinking more like a lock. Then Max can be the only one with the key.” She tilts her head slightly to the side, her hair falling out from behind her ears. “Any cement? Really? You can’t breathe through cement.”

“Oh, but you can breathe through a lock?”

Max clears her throat and they both look back over to her apologetically.

“Sorry,” they say in union

“This was a bad idea,” Max turns to leave, one hand on the door and the palpable feeling of being let down.

“No!” Robin calls after her. “Seriously, we’re sorry it’s work brain. Or, like, more like lack of a working brain. We kind of turn off all critical thinking when we’re here. It’s the only way to get through a shift without wanting to slam your head against a wall.” She sits up, back straight like a kid at an assembly. “But we’ll get our shit together, OK? You’ve got our full attention and we promise, no more fucking around.”

“Maybe a little fucking around,” Steve says. “I can’t really help it.”

Robin rolls her eyes but Max seems satisfied with the deal.

“You guys know that I went to visit my grandparents over the summer, right?”

They’d both heard about Max’s trip from the kids during the rides to and from the various places Steve was ‘forced’ to take them. Two weeks without Max and they talked like she’d disappeared off the face of the earth. Abandonment issues, Robin had said. More like the trauma of almost losing her, Eddie had corrected. (He’s like that sometimes. The first to stop the joke and remind them that they’re all fucked up. Steve thinks it's something to do with him being dead for a bit.)

But, long story short, while the rest of them were stuck in Hawkins, Max was off living the dream. Her grandparents live somewhere out west and their condo is so close to the beach that it might as well be in the ocean. Occasionally, Max would send them letters with Polaroids attached of her on the beach or eating an ice-cream bigger than her head or, once, on the top of a literal mountain. She’d come back bronzed and more relaxed than she’d left.

Well, except from when she’s around Lucas.

“Something happened when I was out there,” she says. “Not, like, anything bad. But it’s kind of messing with my head and I don’t know what to do about it.” She looks down at her feet. “And I can’t talk to the guys about it and Eleven wouldn’t understand and, well, Nancy’s out of town.”

“Ouch,” Steve winces. “At least we came above Eddie.”

“The suns still out,” Max says. “And I couldn’t wait till tonight.”

“Makes sense,” Steve runs a hand through his hair. “I kind of set myself up with that one. Sorry, not fucking around, what happened?”

“In your own time,” Robin adds.

“Well, my cousin lives near my grandparents and she took me to this club.”

“A club?” Steve repeats, horrified. “You’re sixteen.”

“Not the time, Steve.” Robin says.

“Sorry,” Steve says but his faces is still doing that thing that mom’s do when they’re upset. “Carry on.”

Max exhales. “First of all, it’s one of those clubs that’s made for younger people. For, like, dancing.” She shakes her head. “Anyway, there weren’t any creepy guys and they played good music and I had a good time. But, uh, I met someone and we spent all night dancing and, uh, before I left we, uh, we kissed.”

“Oh,” Robin looks at Steve. “That’s… good?”

“I’m not with Lucas,” Max says defensively. “We’re taking it slow and we talked about giving it another shot when I got back so I don’t think kissing someone before then means I’ve done anything wrong.”

“You’re right. It’s not like you’ve cheated on him or anything.” Steve agrees. “So what’s eating you up then?”

There’s a moment of silence and Steve can’t help but jump to the worst possible conclusion. It’s this thing his brain just seems to do when he’s around the kids. (And, knowing their track record, he doesn’t exactly feel crazy for doing it.)

“The person I kissed,” Max says quietly. “It was a girl.”

“Oh,” Steve says. “Right.”

“And, I don’t know, I guess I thought that everyone looked at other girls and thought…” Max shakes her head. “At least a little bit, y’know? But then I was talking to my cousin and she said that she’d never thought about girls like that. That only lesbians would want to kiss another girl.” She’s looking everywhere but at Steve and Robin. “And I know that I liked Lucas. Like, I really liked Lucas. Still, really like him. But now I keep thinking that maybe I don’t -or I didn’t- because I liked kissing that girl and what if I’m just dragging Lucas along and I don’t even like guys.”

It’s the most either of them have ever heard Max say in one sitting and, for once, Steve knows exactly what to say to help.

“You know you can like both right?” He echoes the words Robin had said to him only six months before. “You can like boys and girls.”

Max looks up at him suddenly, meeting his eyes with a fierce intensity. “You can?”

“Yeah,” Steve says. “I mean, I liked Nancy back when we were dating. Like, really liked her. And now I like Eddie.” His cheeks tinge pink at the mention of his boyfriend. “ I love Eddie but it doesn’t mean I loved Nancy any less.”

“Did you really just tell us that you love Eddie before you told Eddie that you love him?” Robin laughs. “But, yeah, Max. You can definitely like both. It doesn’t mean that you’re going to like every girl you see just like how you don’t automatically like every boy you see. It doesn’t even mean that it’ll happen at the same time. But it’s very much a thing.”

“Bisexual.” Steve says. “That’s the word for it.”

“Bisexual.” Max repeats. “So, I’m not leading Lucas on?”

“Do you like him?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you see him and get all mushy, like someone’s blended your insides and then made soup out of whats left?”

“Jesus, Buckley.” Steve says.

“Uh,” Max says. “Kind of.”

“And do you want to kiss him just as much as you wanted to kiss the girl?”

Max nods. “More.”

“Well, duh, you’ve got history with him.” Steve says and then winces as Robin elbows him. “Sorry, bit harsh.”

“Incredibly harsh Mr. Talking-about-eddie-fifty-times-a-day-doesn’t-mean-I-like-him”

“At least I got my shit together when I figured it out,” Steve says. “Tell me again how you managed to get a date with Nancy.”

“Pure luck,” Robin says. “Truly a miracle.”

“You guys are weird.” Max interrupts. “But, uh, kind of helpful.”

“It’s like a genie thing,” Robin smiles. “We grant your wish but we’ll annoy you while doing it.”

“Talk for yourself, Buckley, I’ve never annoyed anyone in my life.”

Robin laughs. “Please, you came out of the womb annoying.”

Max goes quiet again, pressing her lips into a thin line, before saying, “Should I tell Lucas?”

“Only if you want to,” Robin says.

“You don’t have to tell anyone if you don’t.” Steve says. “But, between you and me, there are some good people around here that’d be happy to talk to you about the stuff you’re feeling.”

“You’re talking about yourself, aren’t you?” Max asks.

“Me and others.”

“Yeah, we have kind of absorbed the whole of Hawkin’s queer population into our friend group.” Robin says. “Which is to say, there’s people who will understand if you ever feel like you’re losing your mind.”

“About being bisexual,” Steve adds. “We’re kind of useless when it comes to anything else.”

“I mean, you’re kind of useless when it comes to being bisexual as well.”

“Not the time, Buckley.”

“When is it not the time?”

“When I’m trying to impart wisdom onto the youth of today.”

They carry on bickering, forgetting that Max is standing right in front of them, and it should be annoying. It should be something that Max rolls her eyes at and complains about later. But, at that moment, she just smiles. A small one. The tiniest quirk of the corner of her lip.

Maybe she’d come to them for advice again.

(You know, if Nancy is still out of town.)

#stranger things fic #ficlet #steve harrington #max mayfield #robin buckley #bisexual max mayfield #steve & robin #steve & max #implied vampire eddie munson #(also when i say club im imagining a slightly less shit version of those discos you'd get at butlins but for an older crowd)

[leofrith]

black sails anne bonny for the niche asks!

OH HELL YEAAAAAAAAAH!!!! she's so cool fucked up and interesting. i'm not sure i have a fully formed opinion of her yet but i'll do my very best 😇

a song that reminds me of them: i haven't been into black sails for long enough to reach my making character playlists stage of brain rot but after a very brief search i think post traumatic love by actors could be about her if i do enough mental gymnastics about it.

what they smell like: copper and sea water

an otp: max and jack. together or separate doesn't matter. ot3 of all time.

a notp: her and whoever the fuck her husband was. good riddance bitch!!!!

favorite platonic/familial relationships: charles i guess?? also her brief little frenemy team up with eleanor was extremely funny agdfhasf

a headcanon that is popular in the fandom but that i disagree with: i haven't been around long enough to see any headcanons really, least of all for anne, so any answer i come up with for this is going to be me literally inventing a guy to get mad at. which is exactly what i'm gonna do now 🤪 but based on when this show first came out and what i know of fandom spaces at the time, i'm going to guess that a lot of people on this here hellsite would have pointed at early s1 anne and said she is a prime example of "woman character written by a man" syndrome and that she's suffering from a serious case of internalized misogyny/homophobia. which i really don't think is the case at all and i think her initial, loud contempt for max is way more rooted in her being forced to consider her own individual identity separate from her relation to jack, perhaps for the very first time since she met him. and i think that when i first tried to watch this at the tail end of high school, i was a bit put off by anne's character because i fell into the former category. but i'm quite a bit more media literate now than i was back then. so yeah!!

the position they sleep in: alone? on her side with a hand on the knife under her pillow. with a very trusted partner? she's the little spoon. that scene when she's fast asleep between jack and max i'm telling youuuu.

a crossover au i’d love to see them in: i feel like black sails isn't something i would be super interested in crossing with another piece of media to be honest? but this cast as space pirates in star wars could be fun i guess! but also anne and jack as jaeger pilots. hello.

my favorite outfit they’ve ever worn: i do love her look in the s3 finale when they're sneaking aboard that english ship, especially because we so rarely see her without some sort of headgear. also her head scarf road bandit look when they're breaking jack out of the caravan. muah. anne i am free on thursday hiiiiiiii

send me a character and i will answer these questions!

#me: i haven't been a fan long enough to consider this question #also me: here's a very long answer about what i think of this question #thank you charlotte this was fun to think about!! ☺️ #alethiometry #answer #ask games

[professorsparklepants]

Tagged by @chucktaylorupset who tagged "You!" Which damn, that sure is me.

rules: post the first lines of your 10 most recently published AO3 stories (amending to add: or podfics). if you have less than 10 fics posted, post the first lines of all your fics.

Doing this made me realize i haven't uploaded any fics since 2019. OTL

1. Lion Passant, FMA

It’s not like Ed thinks they’ve lived in Resembool forever. Mom’s pictures and stories say otherwise, and he sort of remembers living out east, the way you do when you reconstruct a childhood based on stories and photographs. They moved back to Mom’s home town after she got sick—brain sick, not body sick, that happened later—but the bastard stayed behind to work.

2. Dreaming Like Silver, Girl Genius

People don’t like twins. Children should come into the world blank and empty. Their first marks should come from laying across their mother’s breast, and curling a tiny hand around their father’s pinky. There are many reasons given for why: they must let go of their past life, they must devote themselves to their parents above all else, they must possess a new soul. But all agree; twins are unnatural.

3. Faster Than a Final Breath, Girl Genius

Kay’s first date happened a little something like this: he was in Vienna for a day trip, tracking down a particularly troublesome spark who’d made an insultingly awful critique of his thesis paper, when his cab swayed slightly and a woman hurled herself through the window and straight into his lap.

4. A Spoonful of Diamonds, TT/YJ

Raven gripped her rescuer’s arm like a lifeline the whole minute and a half it took to walk to the kitchen, listening desperately to make sure Malchior hadn’t decided to follow them after all. The chef pushed the door open, sending about half the kitchen staff tumbling to the floor as he led Raven in before him. The door swung shut and she finally managed to breathe. One of the waitresses led her over to a little alcove full of serving trays as the staff grilled the chef that had helped her. As soon as her heart slowed to the same pace as her thoughts, she whipped her phone out of her purse and opened her friends’ group chat.

5. Drop a Lifelong Curse On Your Own Last Name, Girl Genius

The average age for soulmate appearances was twelve. The day of Tarvek's birthday, Violetta had tried to stay awake with him, but she ended up falling asleep on his bed while he stared at his wrists, as if his name would appear at the stroke of midnight. It hadn't. He had started wearing cuffs the next day anyway.

6. The Heavy Gait of Night

It was three o’clock in the morning and Agatha was supposed to be in bed. For the first time in a long, long time, the knowe was bright and loud and full of people. Agatha knelt on the tiny lip above the ballroom peeking down at the whirlpool of colors below. No one was likely to look for her up here. The servant’s passage that led here was rarely used, and she was fairly certain that the knowe would hide the entrance for her, since she’d asked it nicely.

7. Lights Out In Babylon, Borderlands 2

When Maya was a child, the monks of the Order told her that her siren powers were a divine gift. They said that their god had created the sirens as his handmaidens, and when he came to bury humanity in endless rains, the sirens would stand by his side and call down the lightning.

8. Paint My Spirit Gold, Girl Genius

Agatha’s oldest soul marks are two patches of bronze underneath her armpits, like someone had scooped her up from behind. Uncle Barry had done so often, before he disappeared and left her with the Clays. In the years afterwards, it always made her smile when she saw them, remembering how he’d throw her up into the air. She didn't remember exactly when or how she’d gotten them, but now she thinks of Lady Vrin’s story—of the Holy Child who was stolen—and wonders.

9. And With the Sea I Did Abide, Naruto

Long ago in the Land of Whirlpools, there lived a princess with long, red hair that trailed behind her like a samurai’s banner. She was said to be the most beautiful woman in the world, and many warriors and princes traveled to ask for her hand in marriage. They quickly learned that though the princess was very beautiful, she was also very proud, and very strong. Those who were not chased away by her sharp tongue were thrown out with her powerful fists.

10. One Beating Heart, Girl Genius

In your father’s house, you meet a boy who loves fairy tales, and one in particular. He tells you often the tale of a girl-spark who leaves home to rescue her closest friend, who was stolen away mid-breakthrough. He leans forward, enraptured by his own tale, and says: she searches for a boy who no longer exists.

Tagged: you! Yes, you!

#meme #my fic