#where the universe knows he isn’t supposed to be alive so IT KEEPS TRYING TO KILL HIM | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

st4rrth0ughts · 2 months

Text

Ok I know I said I’m taking a break but I’m going to just dump this idea and expand on it soon, warnings below

Reader is aven’s bodyguard, mentions of dead body, death, a bit of a word vomit, and a sfw brainrot (I know, shocking, Im writing on the train anyways) probably ooc aven? Prodding at the hsr 2.1 leaks (if ykyk), I’m not in my computer so no more yellow text T-T

Aventurine peeking into your dreams through that phone in the Penacony dreamscape, only to see you, his precious bodyguard, always so stoic and unemotional, breathing hard, in the ‘real’ dreamscape, desperately yelling his name.

but the feelings of happiness, the feeling that he was important to someone, goes away the moment he sees you mortified, staring at his dead body. He wants to just jump into the dream, hold you and tell you it’s alright, seeing the look of panic, desperation and pure agony in your eyes makes his heart shatter. He would never make you cry, and he certainly wouldn’t want to in your own dream, where it’s supposed to be relaxing.

nothing much he can do about it when he stares at the dream playing out in shock, when your begging, begging for him to wake up, praying to the Amber Lord himself that this dammed nightmare would end soon, and that you would see him alive and well again.

Aventurine has never known how to receive from anyone. All his life, it was him giving, since childhood to his current age as Senior Manager of the IPC. The fact you, on a daily basis, already sacrifice so much for him, your time, freedom, even your own safety, bearing cuts, wounds while Aventurine remains perfectly unharmed was a foreign concept he still struggles to comprehend.

the fact that in a dream state, where your supposed to be happy, thinking about something else, no, even in your dream, it revolves around him. As much as he wanted to be smug and shit and be proud he was the main priority in your life, seeing you quietly sob as you hold the dead body of his doesn’t sit right with him. Never in 700 years. (See what I did there)

the dream ends, and the caller cuts off the call before he can even say anything. He walks aimlessly through Penacony, the dream replaying in his mind.

You crying. You holding him close. Of course, close contact wasn’t exactly unheard of between you two, you always did keep a eye on him, mostly during gambling sessions because of jealous competittors, he can’t count the number of times you pounced on someone for trying to attack him, but to be still cannot wrap his head around the fact that he was so important to you that he was quite literally on your mind even unconscious.

He hears footsteps, and your just right behind him. He always questions and teases you about how fast you can clear up your appearance after it gets disheveled, but he doesn’t say anything as he stares at your slightly trembling hands.

“Apologies for being late, sir. I was caught up in the dreamscape.”

Stop apologising, he wants to yell. You just had one of the most horrific nightmares in your life and your apologising for being late?! He grabs you and pulls you close. Sometimes he wishes he was taller so he could bury you in his chest and whisper sweet nothings in your ear, but feeling your chest in his face isn’t that bad either.

“I’m staying here. I won’t leave you, never did and never will.”

You run your hands through his hair. It’s not just the nightmare, it was the fact you were trying to find him, and overheard his plan to be a sacrifice to reveal The Family’s secrets to the universe. But you can’t tell him that for now, he’ll be sure to make changes so that you can’t interfere and be a self sacrificing idiot (as he puts it).

So you simply nod, thank the Amber Lord that you have those sunglasses that hide your bloodshot eyes as you let yourself be consumed by his lie of forever.

“Likewise, sir.”

#dom male reader #dom reader #dom gn reader #sub character #sub honkai star rail #hsr x reader #honkai star rail x reader #honkai star rail #star rail aventurine #sub aventurine #hsr leaks #hsr spoilers #hsr aventurine #aventurine x reader

484 notes · View notes

flightfoot · 2 months

Note

Can you rec fics in which Gabriel isn't the main antagonist?

I mean there are plenty of fics where he isn't the main antagonist, where there's no antagonist at all (ML has a lot of fluff), but I'm assuming you mean fics where there IS a main antagonist but that antagonist isn't him, and probably a more epic sort of story with an antagonist on Gabriel's scale and not like, a high school bully kind of thing (not that there's a lot of those I'd rec anyway).

---

Stitched Together by @nedjsmlfavs

Stitch Witch Marinette was just supposed to be having a nice, terrifying outing with her best friends. She never expected to find a magically trapped kitten, but here we are! Whatever happened to this poor little guy?

Poor Adrien, being transformed and chained up for ages, having no idea that he was gonna be rescued. But at least he got to have fun at Marinette’s place as a cat!

Most of this fic is adorable, though with some dark undertones lying in wait. After all, SOMEONE chained up that poor little kitty…

---

In Direct Opposition by @generalluxun

Alya Cesaire is a brand new student to Francis Dupont, to Paris even. The first student she meets is one Chloé Bourgeois, and Alya is determined to make a friend. Things advance Chaotically. Her new 'friend' is definitely a handful, and suddenly Paris has a supervillain and two brand new superheroes! Alya finds herself balancing a lot of things, trying to live up to her ideals and those of her icons.

And then reality seems to contradict itself.

As time progresses it seems to happen more often. Becoming a hero, battling villains, staying alive, working through friendships. Something is lurking, tweaking events at times, changing them, and no one seems aware. Alya will need all her wits to get to the bottom of this. Her investigative mind can only get her so far though, and then she needs to rely on her friends. This is not a foe you can beat head on.

I betaed this entire fic, it’s really good! I adore the focus on Alya’s philosophy here, her determination to be a hero, to help people and defeat evil - and that defeating evil means trying to reform the people doing bad things when possible, to try to save EVERYONE, even the “villain”. I thought it was really clever the ways Alya would redirect Chloe and subtly encourage her to be a better person, while also trying to get the people around her to give her a second chance and keep an open mind.

Also Alya and Chloe are an adorable sapphic couple XD.

---

The Rules of Engagement by @overworkedunderwhelmed

When tragedy sends Adrien Agreste racing back to Paris to run his father’s fashion house, Marinette doesn’t expect much from her very new, very rich boss. At least not until she is set up on a blind date with a very familiar face.

Much to her surprise, Adrien Agreste was hiding far more secrets behind his stoic business-like mask of temporary CEO. Maybe as many secrets as she had been trying to hide for years.

As they grow closer, Marinette fears her mask isn’t nearly as foolproof. Day after day, it gets harder for her to keep all her secrets well hidden from the surprisingly sweet man who insisted on staying by her side as often as possible.

Only she couldn’t afford to fail. Not when her biggest secret could spell the end of the job she’d dreamed about for years.

They might not be superheroes in this universe, but secret identities are still active here. Both Marinette and Adrien used to be involved with the Ladybug and Chat Noir movies, and both kept that a secret - Adrien especially, since if his father found out about it, there could be some bad repercussions, as he voiced Chat Noir without Gabriel’s permission. Marinette, meanwhile, is well known for making cosplay (calling herself “Ladybug” after the movie), and has been in contact with “Chat Noir” for quite some time before the story starts - not that she knows he’s the actual VA.

It’s mostly an Adrienette fic with the two of them getting to know each other after their unusual “first” meeting, where Marinette pretended to be Kagami in order to scupper the date with Adrien and get Tomoe off her back, with some intrigue and drama thrown in. Lila’s skulking around causing problems for the people around her, but she’s honestly not the main focus here.

---

Kwami Magi Homura Magica by Crossoverpairinglover

After eighty-four loops in time, Homura Akemi takes a new path to Paris to save her friends.

The sixty-third loop after that, Homura arrived at the Agreste Mansion.

After clash after clash with the heroes of Paris and its greatest menace, events have reached a tipping point.

Ladybug faces someone verging on a second wish, a wish that endangers space and time to save a friend.

This was an absolutely AMAZING story that crossoverpairinglover dropped out of NOWHERE. Seriously, if you like Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Miraculous Ladybug, this is a real treat - but be prepared to sit down and binge, because it’s over 100,000 words and only has three chapters.

Anyway, I adore the care that’s taken with going through Homura’s mindset here, she gets a lot of character focus. And the lore! There’s some good explanations here for the history behind kwamis and Incubators’ interactions, and the Order of the Guardians normally treats Magical Girls, and why the Incubators are wrong in their assessment of the universe needing more energy to stave off entropy (hint: it involves Plagg), and just... there was a lot of love put into this.

And the action! Most Miraculous fics don’t have much in the way of fight scenes, and what they do have is mostly just functional. This is one of the rare exceptions. There’s some really long, detailed fight scenes in this (roughly the entire second half of the second chapter has one between Ladybug and Homura), which are a treat to read!

We also get some glimpses into a variety of other universes here, other timelines, alternate ways things could have gone down - I’m especially partial to the rather detailed view we get of one where Homura sent a message asking for help to the Ladyblog on her third time loop, and how things progressed from there.

The ending I also thought was really good, a happy ending that generally made sense and dealt with the issue of the Incubators.

If you can’t tell I’m really happy with this fic, it was incredible and unexpected. The length of the individual chapters can be daunting, but if you’re up for the task, I highly recommend giving it a shot!

---

Dreams of You by @chocoluckchipz

Dreams had long been his only escape. Dreams of Ladybug, the girl who had always been there for him.

If only in his dreams. And only while she was also sleeping.

Because with the first rays of sunshine gliding over her skin, with the first fluttering of her eyelashes, from the moment she opened her eyes in the morning, memories of Adrien would vanish from her mind.

She would go on living her life.

He would always be the only one who remembered.

At least until they meet in the real world and fall in love all over again, something that would’ve been easier to do if Adrien wasn't a prisoner in his own home.

Chocoluckchipz has some of the most beautifully executed lovesquare fics I’ve read, and this is no exception. Most of the fic is dedicated to Adrien wooing Marinette, spending time with her, with her own dream self acting as his wingman, giving her tips on how to get her to fall for him, all the while frustrated that she can’t share memories with her waking self, and that she and Adrien can’t share as much information as they’d like while asleep, due to limitations of the “curse” that allows Adrien to share dreams with his soulmate.

It’s not all cute Adrienette fluff though. There’s a threat in the background waiting to erupt, as the weirdness of Gabriel’s ultimatum to Adrien about finding Ladybug or else being forced to marry Lila keeps on gnawing at him - and with good reason. This is a world with magic and kwamis still, and that fact makes itself very relevant in the last third of the story.

It’s a well-written tale and very much worth a read!

---

#ask #ml fanfic rec #miraculous ladybug

34 notes · View notes

hlficlibrary · 8 months

Note

hello, do you know a few fics that you would say are absolutely must reads?

Hi, anon! Everyone's favorites are different based on preferences, so this list would likely be different if I knew what your own preferences were. However, here are five fics that really blew me away when I read them:

💜 Love After the End of the World by @mercurial-madhouse (E, 168k)

Society shattered when all electricity suddenly cut off across the globe, plunging the world into darkness. Now, Prometheus Industries is the sole remaining supply of power, a saving grace to those who survived Lights Out. As fugitives in no-man’s land struggling to break into Prometheus HQ, death lurks around every corner for Louis and Zayn. Things get complicated when a routine recon falls apart and Louis collides with Harry and his mates Niall and Liam, survivors with their own agenda.

When staying alive is already a constant battle, the deadliest weakness is to be in love. For Harry and Louis, finding each other sits on top of the endless list of What Else Could Go Wrong.

💜 This Multiplicity of Powers by @helloamhere (E, 149k)

Maybe in another universe he isn’t different. Maybe he hadn’t been given an impossible choice. Maybe he wouldn’t have lost everything and broken everything and then fallen impossibly, irrevocably in love with the first next thing that was kind. Maybe in that universe he doesn’t feel like he’s never breathing, always pretending, teaching the kids even though they all have to learn alone, trying hard not to read the headlines, and so afraid, every day, that he won’t be a good enough teammate to the superhero he can’t live without. He knows that love isn’t supposed to feel this way, slid secret under your skin like a surgical razor, an invisible war held close over the tender vein that keeps you alive. On the other hand, Louis wonders, had he ever known how to do it any other way?

Maybe there’s a universe where he doesn’t have to keep all his secrets on the inside.

But this isn’t that universe. //an X-Men AU.

💜 Black with Autumn Rain by whimsicule (T, 93k)

“Thank you,” Geoff says, taking a sip of his tea. “What did you tell him?”

Louis has a sip as well, lets the tea burn down his throat too quickly, too hot, and he feels it all the way down to his stomach. “The truth. Essentially,” he replies after a moment, licking his lips, relishing the slightly bitter taste of the brew that’s never quite strong enough for Louis’ liking. At least it’s not decaf. “That my dog scented it. That I didn’t touch the body. That I came here first thing.”

Geoff nods pensively. “Did he believe you?”

“Probably not. There’s only so many people who can drown on dry land before it gets fishy.”

or: Harry is a journalist, Louis has lots of secrets and the moors aren't exactly the ideal place to rekindle a lost romance.

💜 The Second Hand Unwinds by @kingsofeverything (E, 51k)

Louis Tomlinson is one of the first members of NASA's top secret Chrono Exploration Program. When things go wrong and he's sent further back in time than planned, he has no other option than to show up on his ex-boyfriend's doorstep.

💜 That's What I'm Here For by @taggiecb (E, 43k)

Louis Tomlinson is a dairy farmer on a tiny farm in eastern Canada. His wife of nearly thirty years has left him and his children are all grown up and out of the house. Louis needs help running his business but has no idea where to even start looking. Luckily for him his children know just the man for the job.

#ask #anon #mustread #must read fics #ficrec #taggiecb #kingsofeverything #whimsicule #helloamhere #mercurialmadhouse

82 notes · View notes

tackytigerfic · 8 months

Note

Knowing that that wartime au exits and is being written is enough🥺💗

Dearest anon, i love you! I suspect this is in response to me being a bit glum recently (about my writing and in general i suppose) and thank you for being kind and cheering me up. If I may offer a small scene as thanks? In this fic, Harry and Draco find a magical device that is used for travelling the multiverse—so they can visit other worlds, basically. They are searching for Draco's parents, who have escaped into a different universe to get away from Voldemort, who's still alive and waging war against Harry and the Order. In this scene, Harry goes dimension-hopping for the first time. Contains lighthearted references to murder.

"It feels like, I don’t know, like your blood is singing. Does that make sense?”

Draco was sitting cross-legged on the big rug, and in the lamplight he looked stupidly young as he spoke, though the concerned creases around his eyes were new.

“Not a jot,” Harry said cheerfully. “Can you tell me anything about the actual process? That way I might be able to know what to expect, rather than wait for my blood to launch into a rousing chorus of ‘Beat Those Bludgers Back, Boys’.”

Draco smirked.

“It’s more like something you’ve heard once, and you can’t quite remember the tune, but you recognise it because it reminds you of how you used to feel… Stop laughing, Potter. Look, I don’t know why we’re even bothering with this. You work best when you can just do the bloody thing, so why don’t we stop talking and you can just…"

“Do the bloody thing?”

“Literally.” Draco brandished the time device at him, its sharp end gleaming.

“Fine,” Harry said. He wiped his hands on his jeans, palms prickling with a sharp nervous moisture. “I’m ready.”

“Okay,” Draco looked a bit queasy, which wasn’t very reassuring. “But listen, just remember—you don’t really know what you’re going into here. I know we’ve seen my father’s memories of the place, but who knows what the situation will be once you arrive. Just… remember where you’re coming back to, okay?”

“This still isn’t helping.”

Draco blew out a frustrated breath, making the hair that fell into his eyes flutter and subside.

“I mean… once you get there, you may find yourself intrigued. Fascinated, even. Some of these timelines are very, very close to our own—well, you’ll see once you’re in there—"

“Ominous,” Harry muttered. “But there isn’t anything there that could stop me coming back, right?”

“Well, not unless someone kills you,” Draco said, helpfully, a gleam of incisor behind a small smile. “But you should be able to keep that from happening.”

“They can’t kill me if they can’t see me,” Harry offered, and felt a small warm feeling when the smile deepened a fraction.

“That’s the spirit. I must say, the cloak is a stroke of genius. But— Please, Potter. Remember, this is reconnaissance only. We have one goal here, and that’s to find my mum—my real mum—and work out how to get her back. You remember the spell?”

“Of course I bloody remember the spell,” Harry said mutinously. “Because, first of all, I came up with it. And second of all, you made me practice it at least forty times.”

“By all means, dash off half-cocked into an alternate dimension and use some wildly powerful tracking spell without ever having practiced,” Draco retorted, voice glacial, though his nose was wrinkled in the sort of concentrating look that meant he was probably trying not to laugh. He moved slightly uncertainly towards Harry and patted him, from shoulders down the swell of bicep and onto Harry’s forearms, while Harry tried not to tense under his touch.

“Okay, your magic feels fine,” Draco said. “The blood pact is still working, did you feel it?”

“Yeah, thanks.” Harry’s jaw felt tight. “I felt it. Now can I go?”

“Potter. If you don’t come back, you know that Sirius Black will personally, with his bare hands and probably his teeth, murder me? So remember what we talked about. No matter how familiar, or real, or right these other worlds feel— You have to come back, okay?”

“Malfoy.” Harry put on the same solemn voice that Draco was using. “Of course I'm coming back. I’m not going to just skip out on the people I love, and the war, and everyone who needs me—”

“—the fact that you’re even talking about people needing you as though it’s the most important—”

“—well, so what, it’s not a crime for me to care about this stuff—”

“—that’s not what I’m—”

“—well, what are you—”

Draco’s voice was slightly hysterical-sounding, and he had a horrid scrunched-up pinkness to his face.

“I just want you to know this world is worth coming back for, okay? No matter what happens. Not because it’s your duty to come back, or whatever your fucked up sense of responsibility is telling you. But because…” He swallowed, looking pale. “Well, for many reasons. But mainly because I am rather fond of being alive, and do not want to be horribly murdered by your godfathers if I have to tell them that you disappeared while conducting some very illegal time-travel on my behalf.”

“That,” Harry said, “is fair enough. I’m coming back, Malfoy. Okay? Like you say, this is just a scouting mission. In and out, quick and clean. I’ll be back soon.”

“Right,” Draco said firmly. “Well, good luck, then.”

“Thanks,” Harry said, and smiled at him, just a little. “See you in a bit.”

#tacky's fth #drarry #drarry wip snip #lovely people being lovely #thank you anon

65 notes · View notes

thyla · 1 year

Text

@machine-slays-dragons asked for a steddie fic rec. thought it might be easier to do a post and share. on request there will be no vampire!eddie fics on this list. and also i’m fairly new to steddie so i’m sure a lot of these fics have been read by lots of people. But I will try to stay clear of adding very popular ones to this list. so anz, hopefully there’s at least one fic on this list you haven’t read!! this isn’t even close to everything i’ve read just ones i’ve recently read. so here’s a short fic rec! Also! it’ll be a mixture of fics i’ve read on here and also fics i’ve read over on ao3.

Eddie’s Memory Log or read it here (starting here because I just finished this fic and it’s amazing 😘 go read!) 38,523 words

The only reason Steve volunteers to keep a journal to track Eddie Munson’s skim-milk memories, is because of the twerps. They have school, they can’t commute to the government-protected hospital that’s all the way in the city. That, and they gave Steve this well-rehearsed, tearjerker performance about how grateful they would be. About how grateful Eddie would be. Pfft like shit on a stick, he’ll be grateful. The dude doesn’t even remember how old he is, how the hell is supposed to be grateful for Steve Harrington jotting down notes in binder? But those kids have been through Spielberg-level disaster shit. Steve has too, but they’re just kids. So he’ll do it. He’ll do it for them and only them.

never been kissed (26,726 words)

Someone should... definitely check on how his brain is doing, after Eddie’s confession. Virginity is bullshit anyway, right? Robin told him about it, how it’s a completely made-up societal construct that invalidates a lot of queer people’s sexual experiences, and how toxic it can be to straight relationships too, so he can take her lesson to heart and be normal about it. Totally. “That’s so fucking hot,” he blurts out. Okay Harrington, way to be normal about it!Or, Steve is experienced, and Eddie is a virgin.

in breakable heaven (23,724 words)

"Dustin…” Nancy asks slowly. “Do they know we know?”

“No?” Dustin tries, but the way his voice goes up an octave or two betrays him.

“Dustin.” The girls say in unison.

“Okay, yes, they know you know!” Dustin finally gives in, throwing his hands in the air in defeat. It’s been one long summer and he just wants this thing to be over with already.

"Wait." Robin says. "They don't know that we know they know."

OR: Steve and Eddie are trying to hide their budding relationship, but their friends keep finding out anyway. Things take a turn for the worse when their friends try to mess with them to get revenge (based on Friends s5ep14 The One Where Everyone Finds Out)

slowly learning that life is okay series (35,112 words)

Under a much different circumstance, Eddie would have loved to have Steve’s eyes looking over him like that, would love to have that determination focused on him, but Eddie is very much dying, he knows it, so he smiles at Steve’s misplaced confidence instead, “High expectations, Stevie. Where’d you learn to swing like that anyway?”

“I’ll tell you,” Steve’s voice is a bit shaky, his tone wavering, even as he puts on a brave face, “but you have to stay alive, Munson.”

If he had more strength, he’d consider testing his luck one last time, tease Steve by asking if he swings for Eddie’s team, but- he’s tired.

Dying young. What a fucking nightmare.

Or, what if the Party defeats Vecna in time, and Eddie lives?

There id a Light That Never Goes Out series (73,886 words)

It’s not even the nightmares most of the time. At this point, Steve would totally settle for some up close and personal time in his brainpan with the Upside Down if it meant he could actually fucking sleep.

Crimson and Clover verse (20,685 words)

“There’s no immediate supernatural danger to our universe currently, not at this exact moment. I’ll be sure to let you know if there is. I’m just trying to get a little buzzed and have a good night, okay? Not everyone has to be perpetually horny all the time.” “It’s like I don’t even know you anymore!” Robin says, mock-hurt.

Or, Steve has a bisexual identity crisis and Eddie just wants to make him feel good.

or or or I saw a post about Eddie having a black hankie in his back pocket which in gay hankie code in the eighties meant that you were into S&M.

don’t ruin this on me (2,298 words)

Steve had always loved making his partners feel good. Watching people cum just from his mouth, their legs clamped around his ears–it was his favourite thing.

Or it was, before Eddie Munson ruined it for him. Ruined him..

(Or: Eddie sets out to Destroy Steve in the best way.)

Seems to Satisfy (5,348 words)

“I can’t like… get hard. At all. Since, uhhh -” he trailed off awkwardly.

There was silence, for a second. Steve’s fingers dug into his thighs.

“You… what?” said Eddie, finally.

love is like ghosts (7,780 words)

They stand at the base of a short flight of stairs leading up to the old university library. From everything Steve’s read, it’s one of the most haunted places in Indiana… within a tank of gas’ drive… that would let them in after hours.

“It’s the witching hour,” Eddie says spookily. He’s come up behind Steve, pressing close and wiggling his fingers on Steve’s shoulders.

Steve huffs a laugh and starts double checking his pockets for his share of the gear. Something to focus on that’s not the way Eddie’s breath ruffles his hair and skims over his cheek, raising goosebumps in its wake.

It’s not like he doesn’t like the attention, the closeness, the physicality of Eddie. He does. Probably too much. Especially since they’re just friends. Steve knows he’s not special to be on the receiving end, it’s how Eddie is with everyone.

the lathe (82,547 words)

"This time, do it right. This time Eddie won’t bleed out in his arms, in anyone’s arms. This time, Steve will do it right."

— or, steve relives the day they try to kill vecna over and over, and eddie just can't seem to stop dying. steve finds this totally unacceptable.

flight risk (81,321 words)

Eddie Munson is famous for giving his bodyguards the slip. Enter Steve Harrington. Has this bratty rock star finally met a babysitter that can keep up with him?

Rock My World (23,160 words)

After a lot of nagging from Dustin, Steve agrees to take him to see Eddie’s band, Corroded Coffin, play at the Hideout. He finds himself focused on more than just the music…

—

Or, Steve has a hell of a revelation.

In Your Eyes series (48,965 words)

It was decided then and there in the Buckley residence’s lounge, on their weird Persian carpet while staring up at the off-white ceiling and Robin giggling at his side. He was going to rock Steve Harrington’s platonic world, man. And nothing was going to get in his way.

Or... Eddie notices Steve struggles with touch and in trying to help his new friend, develops feelings along the way.

i don’t ask much (i just want you) (8,224 words)

"The fuck are you doing, Harrington?"

"Getting comfortable." Is the only response Eddie receives before Steve's head lands on his shoulder, half on his chest as he scoots up in the bed. Eddie freezes, mid air guitar solo, and frowns.

"Personal space, dude." He's so proud of his voice for not cracking when he says it, "Heard of it?"

Steve snorts and takes a puff, smoke clouding around his mouth before he blows it away, lips pursed in the air. "Don't think you're one to talk about personal space but I'll move if you want."

the affliction of the feelings (27,203 words)

“Hold on,” Robin interrupts. “Hold on, is this— are you, like. Do you know what masochism is?”

“I know I act like it sometimes, Robin, but I’m not actually fucking twelve,” Steve says.

OR: Eddie has a black hanky in his back pocket.

Steve and Eddie: Alternative ‘First’ meeting (read here on tumblr)

The Shire is NOT on Fire (54,148 words)

The kids convince Steve to take them all to a Renaissance Faire and LARP event. Steve has more fun than he admits. And then Steve has a LOT more fun than he admits.

November Paramedic (read here on tumblr) or on ao3 (25,662 words)

Eddie has had his fair share of fantasies, but none of them involved fucking a paramedic.

Until two years ago.

That's when the "sexy men at work"-calendar got added to his porn stash and orgasms as he knew them changed forever. All the men in the calendar are hot, but none of them hold a candle to the paramedic. He's got this look in his eyes, this slant to his mouth. Like he knows he's the hottest guy in it.

And everything is fine. Everything is great. Eddie's been single forever and he has no idea where he's headed in life, but he's fine.

At least until he's collateral damage in a bar fight after a gig, and none other than his sexy November-paramedic arrives to treat his wounds.

#steddie #steddie fics #steddie fic rec #anztag #*ficrecs

144 notes · View notes

sixpossumsinatrenchcoat · 2 months

Text

Natural Satellite [ch 9]

An In Stars and Time AU. In ch 9, Siffrin & Isabeau cover their tracks. Start from the beginning here.

Isabeau heaves a sigh. “I’m sorry, Sif, I swear I’m not trying to tell you what to do here, it’s just… You’ve already had to hurt so much. Doesn’t it make sense to share it around a little?” “No.” “But you—” “No!!” He doesn’t understand. You’re here because this is where the Universe wants you. But Isa… There’s no reason for him to be here. He should never have got wrapped up in this in the first place. “I won’t— I just. Don’t want you to do that.” “Aw, Sif,” he says unhappily. Insult to injury. He died for you and now he’s sorry for you. “I’m sorry, okay? I honestly really get it. But I can’t just stand there and let you hurt yourself.” “I can’t stand there and let you kill yourself!!” “Yeah, totally. I mean, same.”

Wow. Ow. That was way worse than Sif made it sound, and it already sounded pretty crabbing bad. How long have they been doing this, to feel like it doesn’t matter? Or is that how they felt from the start?

Isabeau rubs the side of his throat and decides not to think about it.

* * *

You jerk awake with blood and bile bitter on your tongue. Isa, Isa, he— Why would he do that? You were about to say it!! It was right on the tip of your tongue and you were, you were going to say it and instead Isabeau—died. He died. He was alive and alive and then dead. Steadfast then bleeding and dead. It wasn’t nothing to him. He wasn’t unafraid. You could see the terror in his eyes right before he made the cut.

He probably thought that it would happen instantly. The looping back. Instead you watched him gasp and squirm for whole minutes before the Universe wiped it away.

You swipe a wrist roughly across your eyes. Why would he do that? You’d almost said it! You could almost— And then Isa was in front of you and on the ground and bleeding and it was, real. It was real. He was real and he really died.

Because of you.

It’s your fault. But of course it’s your fault; when is it ever not? Isabeau died so you wouldn’t. You wouldn’t let him save you so he died.

“Hey, Sif.”

You jerk around to find Isa standing over you, hiding behind a wincing little grin.

“Haha, wow,” he says wryly, rubbing the back of his neck. “That was way worse than you said!”

Before you know what’s happening, you’ve already flung yourself at him. Literally. Your feet leave the ground from at least a meter off. You collide with his chest like something launched from a trebuchet, tackling him clear off his feet.

“W-Woah!” he yelps, belly-up against the grass. Even with you crouched over him like a wolf guarding its kill, you can still feel him trying not to touch you. “Sif?? Are you okay??”

Ugh. You hate him. You want to blinding kill him. You want to squeeze him into a diamond and wear him over your heart, where nothing will hurt him again. You want to keep him in a fishbowl and feed him the finest, most vitamin-rich flakes. You want to tuck him behind your ear where nobody will ever ever find him.

In the background, you’re vaguely aware of Mirabelle coming down the path. When she spots you, she lets out a little squeak and bolts. It doesn’t matter. You can fix it later.

“S-Sif????” Isabeau squeaks. Still trying not to look at you.

“Don’t do that,” you growl, glaring down at him. Loop already told you it was bad, ending a loop like that. People aren’t supposed to carve themselves open just to save a little time. That’s what monsters do.

“I didn’t want to!! I just— You were hurting yourself!!!”

“So you hurt yourself worse?”

“Yeah!! Yeah!! Yes, actually!!”

You lean down to examine his throat, running your fingers up and down over a wound that isn’t there. There’s no scar, not even the faintest hairline seam. (But of course there isn’t. You knew that already. That’s not how it’s ever worked. Why are you being so weird about this?)

Isabeau even has freckles on his neck, where you’d think the sun would never reach. Half in a daze, you find yourself tracing a line from one to the next. Throat to chin, chin to jaw, jaw to the soft skin just behind his ear. It's not until you feel a tremor shudder through him that you realize what you're doing.

Oh. “Sorry.”

You sit back on your haunches, pulling your hands away from his neck, and then realize that you’re still sitting on him.

“Sorry,” you say again, twisting off of him and reaching down to pull him to his feet.

“D-Don’t worry about it???”

Before he can get too comfortable, you yank him down by the collar and slam your forehead against his. It’s more of a headbutt than a friendly bump.

“Don’t do that again,” you growl, digging your fingers into the back of his neck. “There’s no point if I can’t protect you.”

Not even an eyelash away, Isa’s eyes startle wide. Somehow you can feel him holding his breath.

(You could kiss him. You think he might let you this time, what with the adrenaline, and all the dying. You flick a glance at his mouth and listen to his breath hitch.)

…You let him go.

Isabeau lets out a breath like someone stepping on an accordion. More wheeze than air.

You tilt your head, innocent. “Isa?”

“Fine!!!” he shouts. "T-Totally super fine!! I just—um—w-will you just, um, give me a second?”

You shrug agreeably. You’ve got nothing but time.

Isa turns away and covers his face with his hands. He takes a deep breath, in and out, and then shakes himself off. “Um. I’m… sorry?”

“Okay.” He should be. He died in front of you. Weeping, gasping, choking on his own blood. You had a plan. He promised to cooperate.

“A-And it’s—I mean, it’s not like I don’t get it, it’s just that it’s… literally the same thing you’ve been doing this whole time, so I don’t see why…”

You narrow your eyes. “Do you want me to start doing it again?”

“No!!” he gasps. “Change, no, obviously not! It was just… You were hurting yourself!!!”

You’re aware of that, yes.

Isabeau heaves a sigh. “Ugh. I’m sorry, Sif, I swear I’m not trying to tell you what to do here, it’s just… You’ve already had to hurt so much. Doesn’t it make sense to share it around a little?”

“No.”

“But you—”

“No!!” He doesn’t understand. You’re here because this is where the Universe wants you. But Isa… There’s no reason for him to be here. He should never have got wrapped up in this in the first place. “I won’t— I just. Don’t… want you to do that.”

“Aw, Sif,” he says unhappily. Insult to injury. He died for you and now he’s sorry for you. “I’m sorry, okay? I honestly really get it. But I’m not just… I can’t just stand there and let you hurt yourself.”

“I can’t stand there and let you kill yourself!!”

“Yeah, totally. I mean, same.”

But that’s a false equivalence. Dying isn’t dying, for you. You’re not even sure that you can die anymore. But Isa…

You shake yourself off. “I need to talk to Loop.”

“O-Oh? Can I come, or—”

“No.”

“Aw, what!! Really??”

“Really.”

“Okayyyy,” Isabeau sighs. “I, um. I trust you.”

Does he, though? After everything he’s seen? Well. That’s his mistake. Pretty soon he’ll know better.

“See you later,” you mutter, and disappear into the trees.

* * *

Read the rest of ch 9 here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/53412649/chapters/137739427 Or start from ch 1 here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/53412649/chapters/135189547

#isat spoilers #isat fanfic #isafrin #isat isabeau #isat siffrin #isat mirabelle #act 4 spoilers

14 notes · View notes

presidenthades · 2 months

Note

what do you think would have happened if aegon didn't manage to break his engagement to helaena and they ended up married? who would be jace's husband in this universe?

I’ll try to answer this seriously first before I go for a more fun answer.

If the kids are caught trying to elope, Rhaenyra probably feels pressured to arrange Jace’s match sooner rather than later to thwart any future recklessness. Rhaenyra would want to keep Jace close to home, so she probably picks a Velaryon cousin or Celtigar.

If there isn’t an elopement attempt in the first place, then Rhaenyra continues with her plan in Chapter 4 of the Handbook to let Jace choose from a list of suitors. Jace doesn’t want to marry any of them so she tries to prolong the decision, but she does have to make a decision eventually. She might pick Cregan Stark or Qyle Martell because of the alliances they bring, but Jace wouldn’t be super happy living in the North or Dorne, far away from her family. Or she might pick a Tully boy because they’re younger, so she can buy more time before the wedding.

Meanwhile, it’s still in the Greens’ interest to try to get one of Rhaenyra’s daughters in marriage. Honestly, I could see Otto moving onto the next grandson and throwing Aemond at Jace, but Aegon would 100% try to kill Aemond in this scenario. Or Otto could try to match Aemond and Luce. Luce doesn’t take Aemond’s eye in this universe, and their falling-out is something they could overcome if they needed to. But Rhaenyra probably doesn’t accept (Daemon definitely wouldn’t like it), so it probably doesn’t happen.

Since the Blacks and Greens are still at odds, the Greens will crown Aegon. When both sides try to negotiate terms, there’s probably another proposal for Luce/Aemond. If she’s already betrothed or married (most likely to a Velaryon cousin), then they’d propose Joff/Daeron.

If the Dance happens, it wouldn’t have such an explosive beginning because Aemond is unlikely to kill Luce in this universe. But somebody (Daemon or one of the boys) will eventually do something stupid that causes war/violence to break out. Jace’s choice of husband probably affects the balance of land armies. Luce being alive might affect the dragon battles, but Arrax is very small so who knows? Also, despite the tensions, the Targkids are probably reluctant to fight each other.

I feel like my answers are very wishy-washy, but that’s because there are so many different decision points that could change the story, depending on what people choose. Regardless, it would be a less happy timeline for the characters because most people are marrying the wrong partner, and some Targs probably die 😢.

But now the FUN answer!

I actually started jotting down notes for this scenario before I got distracted by other things. I wanted to write a fic where the Dance does happen, but nobody dies and it’s kind of romcommy, and everyone does marry the right person. The initial idea for this fic was “what if Jace and Luce seduce Aegon and Aemond to stop the war,” and I ran with it from there 😇.

Aegon and Helaena get married, but it’s never consummated because Aegon is clinging to the hope of still being able to marry Jace somehow. Meanwhile Jace has managed to delay picking a husband, but she’s feeling more and more pressure to get on with her decision.

When Viserys dies, Aegon is convinced to take the crown when he’s told that as king, he can have his marriage annulled and marry Jace instead. Peace terms are sent to Dragonstone, but like in the show canon, the Blacks are skeptical and try to win support from various lords. Jace is sent to the Vale and then the North, where she’s supposed to offer to marry Cregan in exchange for the North’s support.

Luce goes to Storm’s End and is very peeved about Aemond arranging a betrothal with a Baratheon girl. The two of them argue, Borros kicks them both out because they’re giving him a headache, and Vhagar smacks Arrax around in the courtyard. Aemond goes “fuck it,” kidnaps Luce, and brings her back to the Red Keep, where she becomes his personal headache for the next few months.

Aegon thinks it’s very unfair that Aemond has managed to nab Luce, and he’s also quite upset when he learns Jace is supposed to marry Cregan. To make things fair, Aegon and Aemond plot a way to kidnap Jace when she leaves the Vale before she can go North. So Jace ends up at the Red Keep too, and Luce tells her “hey Aegon is still really into you, maybe you should take advantage of this” and Jace says “fine but if I have to figure out how to seduce somebody then so do you.”

No real battles happen because Aegon and Aemond are too distracted at the Red Keep to actually get on their dragons and fight people. Daeron is traveling with the Hightower army from Oldtown when Joff finds him and is like “hi, I’m kidnapping you to make things fair,” and Daeron is like “great, just what I always wanted.” So now everybody has to sit down and actually talk about things nicely. World peace ensues. The end.

#my writing #ask me anything #recursive fanfic

18 notes · View notes

foolsocracy · 10 months

Note

THIS WILL KILL ME, AND THEN I CAN STOP TRYING TO UNDERSTAND.

Ever think. About how Uncle Ben, Robbie, perhaps even his parents, almost Aunt May, how all of them died (or got close to dying) in some way fighting for what they believed in? Is that noble? Or is it just cruel? Is there honor in not breaking that cycle, following that path down the road to some assured demise, or are you being stupid? At the least, there has to be some sanctity, comfort, in knowing how it will end. Teeth bared, you will not go down easy, but you will go.

Of course! Aren't these questions not at the center of peter’s story? His world kicks down at everything and everyone. Having beliefs to fight for and to keep you alive are what gets you killed. They’re all executed, Ben and Urich and Robbie. They go where they’re not wanted and get specifically targeted & killed because of it. The comic starts off telling the audience if you’re too loud, if you believe in something better, you’re not going to make it through the night. It starts off with Urich telling Pete to keep his head down, your anger will be the death of you, and Urich is right. But he himself changes later, believes too strongly in something better, and is killed because of that.

The question: is it noble? Is it cruel? Yes. The universe is set up in a positive feedback loop. To be noble is to stand up for what’s right. To be noble is to place a target on your back and to accept that your time has already started running out. But to lose your life or to lose a loved one will always be cruel. It’s cruel and it’s not right, so you need to make a stand.

Is it stupid to essentially walk head first into a loaded gun? I feel like the comic asks this question in Eyes Without a Face. It ends with hopelessness, MJ saying things will get better and Peter disagreeing, saying it’ll only get worse. Peter is aware of that feedback loop; he loses everyone because of who they represent and who they fight for. Sure there are decent people, he says, but it’s the decent people who look the other way and allow cruelties to keep unfolding so they can remain alive. That in itself answers the question, I think. Being decent isn’t being good. Letting horrors occur so you won’t die doesn’t seem honorable. But sometimes I suppose the question then leads to: is honor more important than necessity? Is it wrong to want to live?

There isn’t a follow up to Eyes Without a Face even though it sets up so much. Peter is staring this question right in the face. How do you keep fighting when it will only get you killed? How can you believe in anything? The world is full of decent people who look the other way, of awful people who create terror, of good people who get slaughtered. Why fight? Why be the spider-man? The next volume had so much it could have grappled with. Does Pete continue to get more ruthless? Kill all the wrongdoers in his path? How does straying from Aunt May's declaration that she can't live in a world where people kill each other like animals impact him? He's walking on a dangerous ledge. If you're not ruthless, corruption will save those in power. If you're too ruthless, its an easy path towards having people fear you just as much as they fear those you fight against. "Kill people like animals" and you've estranged yourself from the last family member you have. Have mercy and watch those that family member die. There is no easy way out! You're losing yourself no matter which way you step.

On a personal, character level, I think you're right. I feel like this fire in him that was lit by his late family and his mentors and the people he loved along the way isn't something he wants to give up, despite his horrific odds of making it out okay in the end. Its a way to connect with them, knowing that a piece of them can still live on, even if just through him. And in a world in such turmoil and uncertainty, it has to be a comfort to know that yeah, this is the life laid out for me. He will go down just like ben parker, just like ben urich, just like robbie robertson.

But his story is a tragedy in every way, isn't it. Funny how an impending death is a part of what connects him to his deceased loved ones, when the spider god is there right beyond the veil waiting to bring him back the moment he's been snuffed out. I wonder how he'll take that.

#THIS WILL KILL ME AND THEN I CAN STOP TRYING TO UNDERSTAND #ugggghhhhh that quote it just speaks to noir verse #i wanted to discuss ur questions so i didnt really touch on it #but i could write a whooole post about peter's search for knowlege (uncle ben. photography. eventual journalist. PI) and needing it and #hating it at the same time #that theres solace that it can pass. that he can stop.#when hes dead that is #(but... can he die?)#honhonhon #i hope this is comprehensible in any way #im puking onto the page and seeing what sticks #anon #asks #thanks for the ask!!#do u guys like these long ass posts or am i just insane #spider noir #marvel noir #peter benjamin parker

39 notes · View notes

bastardofmothman · 1 year

Text

If I love you then I love you too much

Tags: Aiden/Lambert (The Witcher), Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion/Yennefer z Vengerbergu | Yennefer of Vengerberg, Dreams and Nightmares, the reincarnation au no one asked for but I really really really wanted, Alive Aiden, Light Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hopeful Ending, Alternate Universe - Modern setting

...

Lambert wakes up sweating, panting, tears drying on his face, on the verge of whining but he won’t admit that.

Another restless night in the making as he plays over again experiencing a loss so great his chest continues to ache in wakefulness. He wishes he could remember the name of the asshole that keeps dying in his dreams so he had someone to blame instead of thinking about black curls and green eyes and feeling like he wants to cry.

Lambert lays back down, willing the mistiness in his eyes to dry down, preparing to spend the rest of the night staring at his ceiling trying to convince his lungs that just because a figment of his subconscious isn’t breathing doesn’t mean he can’t.

Lambert almost managed to convince himself he doesn’t see the eerily familiar face staring at him from the end of the tasting bar as he serves the other patrons, desperately hoping Eskel will take care of him so Lambert doesn’t have to get any closer to those green eyes. Green eyes he knows have flecks of gold in them. Won’t have to wonder how soft those curls are, how they’d look ruffled. Won’t have to remember exactly how that warm skin looks after death.

Eskel doesn’t even seem to notice him. That or he’s ignoring him because he sees how intently the man is staring at Lambert. Which is probably exactly what he’s doing because Eskel is a hopeless fucking romantic and Geralt, the useless fuck, isn’t here because his partners insisted he needed a day off to spend with them and his daughter. If Lambert didn’t know for sure Ciri was at a friend’s house he’d be less pissed off about it but he knows the lecture Vesimir would have given him if he’d denied Geralt a night off on one of the busiest nights of the week.

He should have known better than to hire his brothers after the massive layoffs. Fuck loyalty if they’re both not going to be available and doing their jobs when he needs them. (He doesn’t really think that, in fact he’s sure he would get along with strangers less but it’s still annoying as shit and he’s supposed to be the annoying one, not the responsible one with his own distillery and a thriving customer base.)

The man is still staring.

Lambert finally cracks, he’s served everyone on his end of the bar and is out of excuses. He sees the man sit up and flush when he realizes Lambert is heading his way.

“What can I get for you?” He asks gruffly as he turns red from being stared at so openly.

“Can I get two house flights for our table?” The man says a little too breathlessly. Why is he so flustered? Lambert is the one who’s been having dreams about loving him so much he wanted to die with him.

“Coming right up.” Lambert turns away to prepare the flights, the man turns and heads back to his table.

When he delivers the flights the man is still staring but Lambert turns away and heads back to the bar. He refuses to acknowledge the ache in his chest or the blush still staining the tips of his ears.

…

He keeps seeing him, the man with the green eyes, dark curls, and a feral grin.

One time he gets rather impressively tipsy and leans across the empty bar to stage whisper “I know this is the worst pick up line but I swear I’ve seen you in my dreams.” He starts to reach towards where Lambert’s hand is resting on the counter top as he says this.

Lambert pulls away, “I’m calling you a cab.” He states before walking away. It takes forever to get there, what with how rare a callable cab line is nowadays and all the while the man sits there and grins at him.

He comes in the next week, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck, “Sorry about last time, I did mean it though. Name’s Aiden by the way.” Lambert can’t help it, can’t keep looking at him, at Aiden. He storms away.

…

Why can’t he just leave well enough alone?! Is there a brain in there under that dark halo of curls? There doesn’t seem to be because no matter how many times Lambert refuses to continue the line of conversation, refuses to take the bait, refuses to acknowledge how flustered he gets under the other man’s gaze, Aiden just. Won’t. Leave. Him. Alone.

The worst part? Lambert doesn’t even want him to. When he finally lets up and starts responding, Aiden's eyes light up and he smiles like Lambert’s given him a gift, even when Lambert can’t resist being a snarky, sarcastic asshole. Luckily Aiden can dish out as well as he can take it. Neither of them bring up the dreams again. At least, not for a while.

…

Lambert has to ruin every good thing that happens to him, and like it or not Aiden’s company has gone and turned into a good thing. He craves it, he looks forward to seeing Aiden’s tall, lanky form walk in through the door, even catches himself missing him when Aiden doesn’t come in on his regular night a few times.

Lambert ruins every good thing that happens to him. He’s sure this will be no different.

…

“Do you remember when I said I’d meant it, seeing you before?” Aiden asks one day.

Lambert absolutely remembers. Remembers it vividly. Remembers dreaming about holding Aiden’s dead body in his arms and screaming to a raining sky with his entire being vividly too.

“Not a clue, I don’t pride myself on remembering the ramblings of drunks.” He lies through his teeth, resolutely wiping at the counter and refusing to meet Aiden’s eyes, hoping it plays off like him not caring instead of avoiding it.

“Hey!” Aiden responds indignantly, having taken the bait. “I’ll have you know that I am not a drunk, I am simply a connoisseur of fine liquors such as those served at this establishment which, by the way, are swiftly draining my bank account.”

“Not my fault your favorite is the one that took me the longest to perfect and takes the longest to age.” Lambert says offhandedly while wiping out glasses still warm but damp from the back. It takes him a minute to realize Aiden is staring at him again, god he’s always fucking staring at Lambert with this soft look in his eyes and that stupid attractive smile on his face. Except not this time, this time he looks a little surprised.

“Wait…you created this?” Oh…whoops. Lambert guesses he forgot to mention this is all his at some point, but he doesn’t pride himself on presenting as the owner, he works here, he puts in the effort. He just also perfects every single product his distillery makes. “You’re the reason I can taste heaven on earth?! Oh I want to live inside your brain.” Lambert has to bite his tongue to keep from telling Aiden that he already does, and it doesn’t end well for him most times. There are the rare good dreams, the hazy beautiful ones where they’re together and relaxed and fucked out and happy. Those dreams almost make the risk seem worth it, but Lambert has experience with making high risk decisions and despite his thriving distillery he knows how they end. It isn’t worth it. It’s not worth having to feel that pain again.

Aiden's too busy gushing to circle back around to his original thought. Lambert hopes he never does.

…

Lambert rarely gets the things he hopes for. He hadn't even hoped for his distillery to stay open. Just resolutely kept working at it all the while berating himself for putting this much effort in.

The only thing he's hoped for lately is that Aiden keeps coming back and never fucking brings up dreams about them again. Lambert can't bear the idea that it wasn't just him. Can't bear the idea of repeating how it ends.

“I’ve seen you in my dreams, you know, even before we met.” Aiden ventures on another day, completely removing the question aspect from his statement, likely having figured out Lambert’s misdirection from last time.

“Aww, you don’t have to lie to tell me I’m pretty.” Lambert bluffs, trying for a different type of misdirection, the fun one that ends in them blatantly flirting back and forth but never goes anywhere because he just can’t let it. This is enough, it has to be.

“Lamb c’mon, I’m trying to be serious here, don’t you think that means something?”

“It means you’re using current information to fill in the memory of your dreams is what it fucking means.”

“I know you saw me staring the first time I came in here.”

Aiden has him there. Backed into a corner.

“Aiden, I can't talk about them.”

“Have you had dreams about me too?” Dreams, nightmares, and everything in between, but Lambert isn’t ready, he doesn’t think he ever will be. He knows it’ll all be over if he opens his mouth.

“If I answer you will you drop it?”

“For now.” That’s the best Aiden is going to give him and he knows it.

“Yes.” Lambert whispers.

“The plot thickens. So anyway as I was saying I think America made a big mistake with horses, like, they look like plastic toys, what is the purpose?” Aiden has this talent for going directly backwards in a conversation seemingly without a tell that he’s interested in another topic. Lambert notices how his nose crinkles and his eyebrows lift but says nothing while Aiden goes off on his frankly terrifying amount of knowledge of horse breeding practices.

…

Aiden brings up the topic a few more times over the next months, pulls bits and pieces out of Lambert because Lambert just can’t give him a complete no.

"So what has happened in your dreams?" Aiden ventures one day.

"A lot, usually there's rain." And blood, lots of pooling blood.

"Oooh, I don't have a lot of ones with rain. Unless your dour mood counts when it's raining on my parade. Don't worry, I've always been good at taking it in stride. I think you only ever really upset me in one, but we had fantastic make up sex so I won't hold it against you." Aiden doesn't even blink at being so forward but Lambert can see the soft flush to his face and knows it took more than Aiden's letting on to bring it up. He isn't sure if it's the reference to the fight in their dreams or the reportedly amazing make up sex but Lambert decides to throw him a bone. And flirt a little.

"We have pretty fantastic non-make up sex too."

"Laaaamb, you flatterer." They're both blushing like teenagers instead of adult men.

"Leave it alone, Aid." Lambert states, effectively cutting this off from where it's spiraling, and the conversation moves onto less treacherous topics.

And then one day it comes to a head and the moment it’s all ruined is at Lambert’s doorstep and there’s nothing he can do to stop it.

…

Aiden follows him outside, “You can’t.” He states, voice filled with anger, “You can’t, you can’t, you never fucking can why won’t you just tell me! I know you have feelings for me and you know I have feelings for you and we both know about the dreams so why can’t you talk to me?!” He yells.

“Because I just fucking can’t, okay!” Lambert shouts, it echos off the neighboring buildings.

“But why not!? Why can’t you just tell me why you have that fucking stick up your ass about this? I just want to talk and you keep pushing me away every time I get close to you.”

Lambert takes a deep breath, he can’t do this, he can’t fucking do this and he can feel traitorous tears in his eyes and he takes another deep breath ready to start the screaming match again-

“I can’t go through losing you again.” It comes out soft and broken, his voice cracking. “I can’t fucking do it again.”

Aiden takes a cautious step forward, and then another. Slowly getting into Lambert’s space one step at a time. He reaches out and his hands shake as he brings long fingers carefully up to Lambert’s face and gently directs Lambert to look at him.

“Lambert I’m not going anywhere, they’re just dreams, nothing’s happened to me in them-”

“Yes it did!” Lambert snaps and pulls away, crossing his arms across his chest to create some distance, “I had to lose you over and over and fucking over again before we even met. I had to watch you die before I even knew you. You say you know how much you fucking cared about me before we met, so did I! But I had to lose you and I just- I can’t fucking do it again Aiden.”

Lambert’s breathing heavily now, he can’t make the words stop, can’t make the tears at the edges of his eyes stay put, “I don’t know if I’d survive it this time, I’m not even sure I did last time because I never had any dreams about what happened after, only about losing you and not wanting to stay in this shitty world anymore when the best damn thing to ever happen in my life was gone!” Lambert sobs on the last word. He doesn’t know if knowing will save Aiden this time but he has to try, the only thing he knows is that last time they were in each other’s lives and maybe if he can change that he can save Aiden maybe he can–

Aiden is holding him. Gently running his hands up and down Lambert’s back until Lambert uncoils his arms and hugs Aiden back, and then Aiden grips him tightly and starts swaying them back and forth. He’s trying so hard to be gentle but Lambert can feel the tension in how tight Aiden is holding on, like he’s afraid of losing something right now.

“Does the risk of it happening again really mean we don’t deserve to try and be happy? That they don’t deserve us trying again?” Aiden whispers, sounding not far from the edge of tears himself.

“Then it’s all up to destiny and she’s a stubborn bitch-tit of a phenomenon.” Lambert mutters, Aiden chuckles at him, still gripping him tightly like he’s afraid if he lets go Lambert will be gone and they’ll never come back together again.

“Maybe destiny was trying to keep them apart and we’re just too stubborn, did you ever think of that?”

“That’s not the encouragement you think it is.”

“Maybe not.”

"Aiden, I–" Lambert pauses, tries to gulp his heart down from his throat back to where it belongs. "I'm scared. I want you so much and I'm scared of it."

"Me too, wanna be scared together?"

Lambert thinks for a moment. "Yeah," he says cautiously, "yeah I think I do.

AO3 Link

#laiden #the witcher #lambert #aiden #reincarnation au #modern au #lambden #I wrote a thing

76 notes · View notes

spider-biter · 10 months

Text

A note on Miguel bc I feel like some people are overlooking this

Miguel is stricken by grief.

That doesn’t justify his actions. But it adds depth to his character, and explains why he was so ready to fight miles.

Miguel lost EVERYTHING that was important to him. She didn’t get any screen time, but he lost his wife. She was the love of his life, his estrella, his vida, his everything. And then he lost his daughter. Imagine loosing two of the most important people in your whole life in the same way at the exact same time

You can’t. Because it is mentally incomprehensible for your brain to do so!! We aren’t equipped (as humans) to experience the amount of grief we have to. Our bodies can literally shut down due to grief. And he experienced that not once but twice.

And to add even more pain, he is Spider-Man!!! He was supposed to save them!! To be there and save the day. But he couldn’t and didn’t and that’s why he feels so much guilt over their deaths.

so he built a device to literally change dimensions to try to get them back (this isn’t ever explicitly stated but I highly doubt he just stumbled upon a universe where he was happy) This is what makes Miguel a sympathetic character. He lost everything, got it back, but at a cost.

We know in our heart of hearts he didn’t care abt killing the other universe’s version of him. He got back what he lost, no matter who had to die for it. But then. he lost it all again.

And at the cost of an entire universe this time.

billions and billions of everything glitched out and vanished.

(Basing off the theory that Miguel’s device prevents him from glitching yet the glitch of the displaced atoms must go somewhere, therefore they went to like... the universe)

Miguel HAS to believe in canon events and shit. Because if he doesn’t, then all the suffering he went through was just. nothing. it happened for no reason.

And Miguel is (highly implied) to be someone who doesn’t really deal with “there’s no rhyme or reason to death” well. So in this mess of grief over losing the love of his life, his daughter, killing a version of himself, and then loosing them AGAIN at the sacrifice of an entire universe where his daughter is begging in his arms as she dies, his brain creates the idea of canon events. Complete bullshit justifications for all the pain that he had to go through.

They aren’t real. They aren’t based in fact. There is no other example of a universe “dying” due to the disruption of a canon event. Even visually Pav’s universe was being eaten alive by The Spot, slowly being consumed by black (hobie calling it “a metaphor for capitalism”) while Miguel’s was glitching out, pixelated, and spotty.

Miguel is deeply delusional and just a really sad man who is willing to kill to keep his delusion alive. He went violent when the first “threat” to his delusion intervened (miles) and will stop at nothing short of LETTING A CIVILIAN DIE AT THE HANDS OF A SUPERVILLAIN to stay delusional. Miguel is not the villain but simply an antagonist.

#miguel ohara #miles morales #atsv #Spider-Man #Spider-Man across the spiderverse #Spider-Man into the spiderverse #Gwen Stacy #Peter Parker #Peter b Parker #pavitr prabhakar #hobie brown #spider punk #ghost spider #spider gang #spider man atsv #lots of thoughts

34 notes · View notes

twistedwonderlandsimps · 2 years

Text

Narrator!Yuu Mini AU

Narrator!Yuu where it’s kind of like some parts of Stanley Parable and some parts of Just More Doors are mooshed together. They occasionally get scripts or like an outline of what’s going to happen in the future but they aren’t allowed to specifically say what it is because that’s cheating.

Mayhaps Narrator!Yuu in this AU gets the ability to turn back time but it can only be used if something happens that shouldn’t be part of the story like someone dying. It’s kind of like Relive!Yuu except Yuu isn’t the one that keeps dying but the cast of the Twisted Wonderland and Yuu’s trying to guide them to an ending where none of them dies.

“Grim, Grim! Come on! Please, you have to go to Scarabia! This is very important! Grim! Damn it, I’ll tell Crowley to give you 5 tuna cans-- no, 10 tuna cans if you go and stay in Scarabia for a few days!”

Or…

“What makes you think the Headmaster’s going to listen to you, Yuu?”

“Oh, he will. He will if he doesn’t want this school to burn down in flames.”

Now this just somehow made me think of Padparadscha from Steven Universe. Padparadscha!Yuu, heh. That’ll probably be for another day but anyway, Yuu probably has multiple monitors to look at, each on the different dorms and various places around school to help with their narration so they’re well aware of the situations of each dorms.

Speaking of narration, anyone can hear them, assuming that they’re speaking into the microphone and picked a place to narrate. Like for example, if they decided to narrate in the Heartslabyul kitchens, then the narration will only stay in Heartslabyul kitchens and nowhere else. Technically it’s kind of like Mr. Voice but without the power to affect anything outside their screen aside from turning back time.

That being said, they can only narrate in places they know and are on their screen monitor. So asking for help from Deuce and Ace for Grim in the Scarabia arc is impossible because they don’t know where they are. Another thing that would likely stop Yuu from asking for help is because they’re the narrator. The narrator can only narrate, that was all there is to it. They can guide but not actively participate so this limits a lot of the ‘deus ex machina’ options they have.

And just like Mirror!Yuu, it’s a lonely life. Narrator!Yuu is most likely touch-starved and wants to interact with the others outside of just being a narrator, too.

“Yeah, well, you think I want to narrate everything I see while also being trapped in this room that has no windows or doors? There’s no food here or drinks here and I can’t even bring those in because I can’t get out! I haven’t even eaten food or drank water since a long, long time ago that I would’ve probably been dead and dust now but somehow, through magic or whatever, I’m still alive! And I don’t get paid! What else am I supposed to do?”

Narrator Yuu is just stuck in a small room with walls painted gray. The rules that they have to follow painted on one of the walls, almost mocking them. Aside from the monitors in front of them, the microphone, their chair and the scripts, they have nothing else. They can only watch in envy as others go on with their lives while they stay in their prison. Yuu never asked to be here. They didn’t want to be stuck here…

Well, anyway, just imagine Yuu noticing an extra teacup and an empty chair in one of Heartlabyul’s tea party. They ask about it and find out that it’s for them.

“Although you have no physical body, it would still be rude if we left you out just because of something like this. You’re always welcome to the Unbirthday parties, Yuu.”

Or something like that where each dorm tries to include Yuu even when they’re not physically there.

363 notes · View notes

allwaswell16 · 2 years

Note

Are there any fics where you wish you could go and back read for the first time again?

Ohhhhh, anon. How much time do you have? I'm going to narrow this down into a certain kind of fic. I think there are some fics that had that real slap you in the face moment(s) that I wish I could relive. You can reread the fic, but you can't really relive that moment.

💜 Love After the End of the World by @mercurial-madhouse (E, 168k)

When staying alive is already a constant battle, the deadliest weakness is to be in love. For Harry and Louis, finding each other sits on top of the endless list of What Else Could Go Wrong.

💜 This Multiplicity of Powers by @helloamhere (E, 149k)

Maybe there’s a universe where he doesn’t have to keep all his secrets on the inside.

But this isn’t that universe. //an X-Men AU.

💜 There's Such a Lot of World to See by @crinkle-eyed-boo (E, 125k)

Louis has seen a great many things throughout his travels in time and space, but only one he can’t explain: He keeps meeting the same boy, who says the same thing to him each time. The boy should be impossible.

Maybe he is.

A love story that defies the boundaries of space and time. Doctor Who AU.

💜 Nothing But You On My Mind by nonsensedarling / @absoloutenonsense (E, 83k)

Louis Tomlinson is a PR manager hired to improve the image of royal bad-boy Prince Harry Styles. Unfortunately for him, that means being faced with the Prince's constant innuendos, incessant dirty jokes, and relentless flirting. Louis just wants to make it to Princess Gemma's coronation; once she's crowned Queen, his contract is up and he never has to see the Prince again.

💜 The Second Hand Unwinds by @kingsofeverything (E, 51k)

💜 And That's The Tea by @2tiedships2 (M, 27k)

I’d like an Earl Grey with milk and sugar, please.

Louis had the phrase memorized, even though it had disappeared off its place on his upper arm over thirteen years ago now.

At fourteen he didn’t understand. Soulmarks don’t just disappear. Not unless…

Unless one of them dies.

Or, the one where Louis loses his soulmate before even getting the chance to meet them, and he is in no way prepared for the kind of distraction his new friend Harry proves to be.

💜 The Risen (series) by @creamcoffeelou (E, 20k)

In search of the next breaking story, Harry goes off to do something no one else has been able to do: get the scoop on Louis Tomlinson and his devoted group of followers.

💜 I Am the Blinking Light by @dearmrsawyer (G, 19k)

There is a legend of a lighthouse far out to sea. It can’t be found on any map, and those who do find it never return. They say a ghost haunts the lighthouse, and you can hear it calling out in loneliness on the ocean waves.

💜 Bot (series) by tomlinsunshine / @tornlinsunshine (NR, 11k)

Zayn builds robots; Harry is a big fan of his latest model.

💜 No One But You Got Me Feeling This Way by runaway_train / @runaway-train-works (E, 3k)

Harry is well aware he should be studying or watching T.V or cleaning the kitchen or doing literally anything from a list as long as his arm instead of this, but he is. The list of reasons why he shouldn’t be doing this is probably at least double that, but here he most definitely is. He’s sitting on his bed, legs straight out in front of him, back propped up against the headboard and some fluffed-up pillows and his MacBook is resting on his thighs. His jittery fingers drum lightly on the edge of the keyboard as he stares at the tiny digital clock in the top right-hand corner of the screen, willing the seconds to tick by faster. He wants to get into this and get it over with in equal measures.

Or The one where Harry has a particular desire that only Louis can fulfil.

#ficrec #runaway-train-works #creamcoffeelou #2tiedships2 #mercurial-madhouse #crinkle-eyed-boo #kingsofeverything #tornlinsunshine #dearmrsawyer #absoloutenonsense #helloamhere #these all ended up being larry fics #I looked through all my rare pair recs but I just couldn't put my finger on any that gave me quite this feeling #maybe this one lilo one...#but anyway #ask #anon

289 notes · View notes

happy-hermit · 2 years

Text

Just a Desert Duo Double Life snippet because they're taking over my brain :]

(Ao3 Link)

Scar knows what people say about him.

He hears the whispers, and the sighs, and the muffled laughter. And he knows that they don’t mean it in a bad way. He knows they’re just teasing. He gets it, he’s an easy target, and sometimes it really is funny.

It works out, then, that they’re always getting thrown into worlds where there’s not much else to laugh about.

The first time it happens, he gets three lives. They all do, and in true Scar fashion, he doesn’t hold on to his green life for long.

He doesn’t get to be different, here. He gets to die early and drag the person responsible off to their own corner of the world to build a sandcastle, like they’re kids at the beach playing at being royalty and pretending that it won’t all just get washed away when the tide comes in. He gets to listen to Grian complain about being stuck in his service, gets to hear him warning others not to trust him, gets to hear him scream his name as he falls to the bottom of that stupid ravine.

Scar gets to wake up with red eyes and a voice in his head telling him to kill, and he gets to stop on the way back to Grian to pick flowers, and Grian stays. Even after his debt is paid, he stays.

He lives with that kill-kill-kill voice in his head for a long, long time before it turns its attention to Grian. (It had been easier, he supposes, to keep it pointed in other directions when there were more people to target.) And then, when it’s just the two of them left in the whole empty world, they go back to their ruined castle and they fight until one of them dies.

It is no surprise to anyone, that Scar is the one to go. Grian had kept him alive for weeks. It’s not shocking that Scar doesn’t last long after he stops trying. (And maybe Scar stops trying, too.)

—------------

Two minutes or a million years later, they get thrown into another world — a world where they have the option to share. The Universe sees fit to give him more lives than almost anyone else, because apparently even the Cosmos is in on the joke. Everyone knows that Scar can’t go two seconds without dying in some cartoonish or stupid way, and this place, this arena of death—

Well, Scar supposes it just wants a good show.

He gets seven lives. He gives one to Grian, and watches his eyes turn from bright yellow to neon green, and for a few seconds it’s like they’re back in the desert, like they could be a team again, and maybe Scar can get it right this time.

He tries to get Grian to come with him, later. He tries. But Grian doesn’t owe him a debt anymore, so there’s no reason for him to stay. Scar can’t just pick him flowers and ask him to be his friend, anymore, so Grian goes off with his shiny new group and Scar lives on a mountain alone.

And he stays that way, mostly, unless someone wants something from him enough to seek him out. He takes the enchanter so that they have a reason to visit. He tries to gather loyalty, and he tries to sell fake crystals, and he is alone, because no one who isn’t obligated would ever want to stay.

Scar isn’t built for being alone. It settles as a heavy weight in his chest that he can’t quite shake, and it sends him tumbling into deaths left and right and all at once, stumbling blindly towards danger for the promise of someone at least being close enough to see it happen.

(There is a trap, between him and Grian, and he knows this because he told him about it. The Southlanders with their spyglasses and jokes and fortress built a trap in their doorway, and Scar walks right into it. All he’d seen was the distance between them, and hadn’t been able to ignore the urge to shorten it. It costs him.)

He wakes up with red eyes and the faint itch to kill, and he thinks that he would rather die with witnesses than live all alone.

(Scar, of course, doesn’t win the game.)

(No one ever does.)

—-----------

They appear in a new world, and it has new rules. They can all tell immediately, that their heart isn’t just their own anymore. There’s a sense of connection, there. A bond. He feels it as he explores; the odd jolt in his legs from his soulmate hitting the ground a bit too hard, the sharp sting of an arrow that didn’t quite hit its mark but didn’t miss, either.

An anxious knot forms in his throat to accompany the ever-present weight in his chest. It’s hard to speak around it, when he runs into Grian and Etho and Joel and wonders absentmindedly how long it will be before they leave.

He finds an Allay and names it Minnie, and he gives it a dirt block so it will stay. (He tries not to think about a different world, then, and flowers to buy a friendship. He tries.) He finds a jungle with Jellie-Pandas, and thinks that at least he’d have company, if he settled there. At least it wouldn’t be quite so quiet, and he could pretend that he wasn’t talking to himself.

He watches Grian as they explore, and tries not to look at him too much, and he hears the jokes. Hears how they lament over whoever gets stuck with him, whoever has to babysit him, and Scar thinks that maybe it would be kinder to his Soulmate if he didn’t find them. If he didn’t try. He’s had some practice being alone, now. Better alone than a liability. Better alone than a burden.

Grian hovers around him for days, like some kind of judgemental shadow, though Etho and Joel’s presence makes it seem less strange. He meets people, he meets pairs who have found their other half, and he smiles in a way that feels painful and strained and he laughs when they ask him if he’s found his soulmate, and he changes the subject because it’s easy. It’s expected.

He’s Scar. Carefree and reckless and accident-prone, and anyone’s absolute last choice for someone they’d want to share a life with.

He goes back to the Jellie-Pandas, and he finds an empty cave, and he thinks that maybe it’s even worse to be alone in a world specifically designed to prevent it.

It isn’t even 24 hours before Grian shows up in his little jungle, something determined and sad in his eyes that makes Scar taste blood and sand in his mouth before he registers that those eyes are still green. He hangs a stalactite from a tree, and Scar knows how this game goes, so he stands under it like he asks. He can be comic relief, he thinks as he eyes the stalactite. It isn’t high enough to kill him, or even hurt that badly. His heart still speeds up.

“Alright, okay,” Grian says, a faint anxiety in his voice that Scar doesn’t quite understand. “Now look at me. Look directly at me.”

Scar looks at him, meets his eyes, and thinks that green really is a better color than red.

“Okay, I’m looking directly at you,” Scar says, holding bamboo in his hand so that the Jellie-Pandas won’t wander off.

One of them makes a noise just as Grian starts to mine the stalactite, and Scar turns to it as a welcome distraction, cooing and laughing. The spike impacts his head and breaks apart into pieces on the ground, and Scar winces, but continues to feed the Jellies bamboo in a slightly shaking hand.

“Scar!” Grian sounds frustrated and frayed.

Scar barely resists flinching, a spark of annoyance and confusion burning in his chest. Grian is a lot of things, but he isn’t cruel. He’s not. But Scar doesn’t know what he wants from him.

“Scar— Okay, I can only do this one more…” Grian places another stalactite over his head, and Scar looks up at it and blinks, frowning. “Look at me, Scar.”

Scar swallows hard, and he looks. Grian stares back at him with a flat mouth and uncertain eyes. He can count on one hand, the amount of times Grian has looked unsure. The guy usually seemed more like a force of nature than a human being, like he was some kind of mischievous deity more than a man.

Scar looks.

Grian breaks the stalactite.

There’s a moment where time stretches and slows, where Scar feels like he’s been holding his breath for a thousand years, like he’s been holding his breath since they were stuck in that desert.

Then the stalactite hits, and Scar watches as Grian winces when Scar does, watches his eyes flash red the moment it makes contact, the way his hand twitches at his side, and he can finally make sense of the way Grian is looking at him, like an apology and a condemnation and hesitance, all at once.

“Oh my god,” Scar says, embarrassed and tired and disbelieving, and Grian breaks out into laughter.

“You knew this whole time?” Scar asks, several recent events suddenly making more sense.

Grian grins, relieved and teasing, nudging his shoulder. “Why do you think I’ve been so concerned about your health and safety?”

Okay, maybe that hurt, a bit. He’s an obligation again. Their soulbond was the only reason Grian was here. (All this World wanted was a good show, and who didn’t love poetic cinema?)

There was another part of him that felt relief, that felt warmth blooming in his chest. Of course it would be Grian. Of course.

“You let me walk around with no idea who my soulmate was,” Scar says, playfully accusing, and really not surprised.

“I might’ve been working through the five stages of grief,” Grian says, shrugging and putting his pickaxe back in his belt.

Right. Because being tied to Scar means you’re as good as dead. It’s a sobering thought. His plan of never meeting his soulmate has gone out the window so completely that it seems like it was always doomed to fail. Everyone in this world is doomed to fail. Everyone but one. Or rather – this time – two.

Grian has received a death sentence for a soulmate.

Grian is turning around. “Come on,” he says, glancing over his shoulder. “I’ve got a base started. It’s looking pretty cool so far.”

There’s a knot, in Scar’s throat. He wonders if Grian can feel it, too. “Do we have to base together?”

Grian pauses and turns back around to look at him, his eyes a little confused, a little wounded. “Well, I mean, I guess not,” he says, taking a half step closer. “But it— it might be nice. To look after you.”

“I have a cave,” Scar says, gesturing a little uselessly in the direction of his little home. He’s giving Grian an out. He’s giving him an option.

Grian’s brow furrows in slight confusion. “I have sheep,” he says. “And chickens.”

Scar blinks, wondering why it feels like they’re bartering, or like there’s something between the lines that Scar’s not understanding . It’s like Grian wants him to come with him, but it doesn’t make sense. No one ever wants him around.

Maybe Grian feels like he doesn’t have a choice. Like if he leaves Scar alone he’ll get them both killed. It’s not exactly an unlikely assumption to make.

“You don’t have to,” Scar says, resting a hand on a Jellie-Panda where it stands at his side.

“I don’t have to… I don’t have to what?” Grian asks, tilting his head like a bird.

“I’ll just stay around here,” Scar continues, breaking eye contact to take in the secluded area. “I won’t get into trouble. I won’t even talk to anyone.”

“What?” Grian’s voice sounds strained. “Why would you do that?”

Scar shrugs and musters up a grin to contrast Grian’s frown. “To give you a chance?” Scars says.

Grian sighs and rubs at his forehead. “Scar, you’re not making any sense.”

“We’re bonded,” Scar says, almost desperately. This whole conversation feels like ripping off a bandaid as slowly as possible. It’s painful and necessary. “And I’m—” Scar laughs a little. “I’m me.”

“Believe me, Scar, I’m well aware who you are.” Grian huffs in irritation. “That’s why we need to stick together.”

“You don’t need to babysit me, Grian.”

“Yes, I do!” Grian shouts, and then he winces, looking down at his hand. Scar makes a conscious effort to uncurl his fingers, well aware of how hard his nails had just been digging into his palm. Grian had been able to feel it.

They stand in tense silence for a minute, Grian looking down at his hands, flexing them, and Scar wonders if he can see the blood on his knuckles the same way that Scar can. Wonders if he looks at Scar and still sees someone who betrayed him, once. Wonders if either of them ever left that desert.

“I wasn’t surprised that it was you,” Grian says eventually, quietly, finally letting his hands drop back to his sides. Scar watches him. “Angry, yeah, but not surprised.”

Scar finally feels a twinge of irritation. “Look, I’m sorry you got stuck with me again—”

Grian cuts him off with a bitter laugh. “I’m not angry with you, Scar, I’m just— I can’t—” He stops, taking a breath.

“We don’t end well,” Grian says, with such a deep well of pain in his voice that Scar’s own stubborn knot of hurt aches in sympathy. “We just end.”

The Jellie-Pandas make faint sounds off in the distance. Scar tries to scrape himself back into a shape that’ll fit into this conversation. Or anywhere at all.

“We’re still here,” Scar says, because they are. Because they don’t get to have anything as mundane or cathartic as an ending.

Grian blinks in muted surprise and finally meets his eyes again. There’s a bruise on his forehead that matches Scar’s.

“And we’re still there,” Grian says, a wry, sad smile on his face, and Scar can’t help but laugh a little. Because it’s true.

“I don’t blame you, you know,” Scar says, deceptively light and conversational. “For killing me.”

“Really?” Grian barks a self-deprecating laugh. “I do.”

“I betrayed you.” Scar shrugs. “I deserved it.”

“No,” Grian says, shaking his head. “No. You didn’t deserve that.”

It hadn’t been a quick death, that final one. Not like his first two. Hands weren’t really made for killing.

The sun is sinking lower in the horizon, and the wind is blowing, and the greenery around them feels a bit like it shouldn’t be real, and suddenly Scar is tired of the past. Maybe the Universe or whoever put them here is trying to tell them something. Telling them to try again.

“Wanna call it even?” Scar asks, cracking a tentative grin, and Grian lets out a startled laugh, which makes Scar smile wider.

“Not even gonna ask for my shoes?” Grian teases, tension leaking out of his frame.

“I’m about to move into your house,” Scar says lightly, starting to walk towards him. “I think you’ve got other things to worry about.”

“Oh, tons.”

They walk through the forest towards where Grian’s set up base, bickering and teasing and tentatively falling back into the familiarity of being a team. A pair. Something like hope is chipping away at the knot in his chest.

There’s still a long way to go from here, but it doesn’t seem quite as daunting, anymore. They’ll either win together or they’ll lose together, and neither of them will be alone.

“I’m going back for those Jellie-Pandas, by the way,” Scar says eventually, and smiles to himself as Grian puts up a dramatic protest without quite covering the amusement in his voice.

In this world, there is no desert.

#double life smp #desert duo #goodtimeswithscar #grian #double life smp fanfic #i love throwing angst at things #this time my target was desert duo <3 #anyway hope you like it if you read :]#jay’s journal

153 notes · View notes

hlficlibrary · 27 days

Note

hii !! any friends to lovers that are so slow burns like y&b ?

Hi, anon! Here are some slow burn friends to lovers fics that also have some angst/school related things in them like y&b...

This Multiplicity of Powers by @helloamhere

Maybe there’s a universe where he doesn’t have to keep all his secrets on the inside.

But this isn’t that universe.

//an X-Men AU.

Follow Your Arrow by Anonymous

Harry was the golden child, blessed in every way; Niall was the charming miscreant, a bad boy; Liam was the future-son-in-law parents of daughters dreamt of, and Zayn was the kid parents wished was their son. But Louis, Harry thought, Louis was the special one.

It's senior year and everything is about to change.

Promise in the Sky by Throwthemflowers / @hazzabeeforlou

AU in which Harry Styles, a naïve, repressed, socially awkward Midwestern highschooler tries to navigate his fundamentalist evangelical parents and radically progressive older sister. He’s doing an okay job of this until the Tomlinson family starts attending Lakeside Baptist Church and a boy named Louis changes everything. Harry is forced to come to grips with his true self when Louis becomes more than just his best friend; but their relationship opens a can of worms and sends them on the most painful, heartbreaking journey of their young lives. They risk everything and nearly lose, and Harry learns that perhaps only one Bible verse is true: that perfect love casteth out fear.

#ask #anon #ficrec #minificrecs #angst #friendstolovers #throwthemflowers #helloamhere

18 notes · View notes

stitchlingbelle · 4 months

Text

Watching Halo, Episode 4

Child soldiers! This universe doesn’t suck AT ALL. /s Like, I know we I want to blame Halsey for everything because she’s a monster, but SO MANY PEOPLE are involved in this program! Not just authorizing it, all the way down to the drill sergeants and teachers, etc. Watching Halsey groom baby!John is unpleasant, and so is knowing he’s tried to get out before (and before Soren’s attempt, too) and failed.

Meanwhile back in the present, we bask in the beauty of space and read vital signs! “Is this what anxious feels like?” “Technically.” Yep, it’s just a bunch of weird imbalances that occasionally threaten to ruin my life! Enjoy it, Chief.

Soren gets a parallel bit about memory, where he tells us, the audience, that the memories can be regained, and also admits a bit of tragic backstory to Kwan. Seriously, he killed his dad as a baby (ok, 6yo)? Are we going to hear the whole story at some point?

And back on Reach, MY GIRL KAI!!!!!! The MVP of this show, I’m calling it now, this is the Kai Show from here on out, has just removed her own emotion-regulation pellet. (I love Riz not questioning the blood etc at all and just walking off.) I’m fascinated to see what she does with it.

John et al land on Eridanus II, despite the aforementioned quarantine. (Is is safe, was that a cover story, or did the writers just forget?) They find things very quickly, but then, there’s only 9 episodes, they don’t have time to dick around on this show.

Kwan and Soren bickering is one of my favorite things. Take notes, Soren, Kessler’s gonna be doing this in a couple years if they live that long. Vinsher got a Gestapo makeover. Again, this is the guy the UNSC supports. Yikes. Kwan talks to the first friendly face she sees, IN PUBLIC. Is Attu going to sell her out? Also, her father’s memorial being that night made me stop and try to count. It really hasn’t been that long, it’s true. How fast the universe can turn upside down!

Kai dyes her hair! Cute, distinctive, a very girly moment for my tastes initially but I’m a little hypersensitive about how women get portrayed in media some days. I had to remind myself that there are plenty of women on this show and she can be girly! This isn’t the MCU. It is in fact very cool how many women we get, all of whom are actually doing stuff…

…which leads us to Miranda and her research efforts. It’s interesting how uncomfortable she is around Spartans, when you’d think she’d be pretty familiar with them if her mom has been working with them for what, 30 years? Probably longer than Miranda’s been alive, honestly. And good on Kai for calling it out, even if I worry she’s going to get herself in trouble. (Probably not with Miranda directly, but in general.) No one else can activate the artifact, but they do have linguistic skills. I should make my husband watch this.

Kwan attends her father’s memorial, which is a disaster on multiple levels—small, sparsely attended, she makes contact with someone she suspects might be a traitor, and the whole things gets busted up. Soren gets her out and will get her to her aunt, but then what? It’s no good having money if no one’s willing to get paid. And what if her aunt doesn’t want to pay up?

On Eridanus II, they dig up a box of drawings. Why did his dad make him bury these? Why not just throw them out? What did his dad know? Was his mom in on it, too? They explore the house, which inevitably triggers a bunch of memories—including Halsey! “our secret”???? This bitch’s blood cells are shaped like little red flags istg. How did she find him? Was she a member of the colony as well? (And how DID he keep guessing the coin correctly? Is the Master Chief supposed to be psychic? Is this part of the game lore?)

Kai and the other Spartans are helping Miranda out, and Kai keeps pushing to humanize them to Miranda (and to herself? Or her natural exuberance is just uncontrollable at this point). This actually seems to work to the point of Miranda getting invested and admitting she’s a little jealous. Kai trots out a charming little story of their childhood pets, and how HALSEY FORCED THEM TO MURDER THEIR PETS WTF. Miranda immediately reconsiders her jealousy, her mother, and her life choices. Kai: we’re like sisters! =D

Vinsher gets a scene straight out of Jupiter Ascending where he hires some random hot chick named Franco to eliminate Kwan while lounging in a huge pool/ bathtub thing and smoking a cigar. Franco proceeds to do nearly that, taking out all of Kwan’s aunt’s security and the aunt herself before Soren comes to save the day. Before she dies, Kwan’s aunt reveals that there’s a secret tribe of mystics in the desert than gave Kwan’s dad some sort of prophecy that drove him. This series really has everything and the kitchen sink, doesn’t it?

We wrap up with John finding the other alien artifact that he saw as a child, Halsey and Cortana at his side, while Kai and Miranda discover the Arc Word “Halo” and Miranda warns Kai in an extremely creepy and apt voiceover that her mother views any deviation as a glitch, and she doesn’t tolerate glitches.

#halo tv show

4 notes · View notes