#not many in this snippet though

[wirlibirb]

@justashana @ct-cactus and whomever else ahha uhhhhhhhhhhh have this, i will be working more on it but irl is murdering me lmao so

music: "The Fine Print" by The Stupendium

edit: EUCK?? I SOMEHOW FORGOT TO MENTION THE POST IT'S REFERRING TO.

[hrokkall]

Mama gave me music lessons,

now I play the saddest songs

[varpusvaras]

The whole base was already in a wild, celebratory frenzy as they got there.

Fox did prefer it that way. He did not wish to draw too much attention to himself. It would be for the best if he handled any and all reunions in a more private setting, and slipping away from everybody was much easier when everyone were busy celebrating their victory.

That plan did vanish the moment he stepped off the bridge and saw Breha standing there, looking directly at him.

Fox looked back. He had learned to read her quite well over the years, but right now, it was rather difficult to tell what was the leading emotion on her face at the moment. Perhaps it was needless for him to even try to decipher any of them. He was going to have to face her and whatever she had for him anyway.

So Fox walked towards her, never looking away, and Breha stood there, her eyes just as much unflichingly looking at him.

Fox stopped a couple of paces in front of her. She didn't say anything yet, just kept looking at him, and Fox knew that whatever it was she was about to say to him, he still had one thing to do regardless.

So he bowed his head and bend his knee.

"I offer you my deepest apology", he said. "For disobeying your word, and for forcing orders upon you, Your Majesty."

He barely got the words out, when Breha was already dropping on her knees as well, and Fox quickly straightened up, just in time to catch her in his arms.

Breha buried her face against his shoulder, not at all caring about anyone around them seeing it all. She was shaking, and Fox wasn't sure if she was crying, or if everything that had happened during the day had finally caught up on her.

It was all certainly cathing up on Fox. He was tired, like he had been running up and down a mountain for the whole day, and his legs and arms were starting to sting in that exact way that always prefaced them going slightly numb and weak for a while.

Still, he held onto Breha, pressing the side of his face on top of her head, and let her take her time.

"I am so, so angry at you", Breha said into Fox's shoulder. Her voice was definitely a little thick, but it didn't sound like she was yet crying. "Do you understand?"

"Yes", Fox said. He held her a little tighter. "I understand."

---

Bail was talking with Dodonna when they got to the War Room.

Fox looked around a bit. He didn't see Leia there, which he was at the same time a bit disappointed and relieved about. He did want to see her. Breha had told him that she was relatively fine, with few minor surface injuries, and a light headache from a mind probe, but Fox wanted to make sure himself.

But he also owed her an apology as well, and he wasn't sure if he could handle more than one of them at a time.

He didn't wish to interrupt the conversation, but Dodonna noticed him and Breha first, and he quickly tapped Bail on the arm. Bail raised a brow at him.

"What is it?" Fox heard him ask over the noise of the rest of the base, that was very much reaching the Room as well. Bail's head turned around as he followed Dodonna's eyes. "Is something- Fox!"

Fox felt weirdly almost giddy from the way Bail's face lit up as he saw him. Bail rounded the command table and crossed the rest of the room quickly in long strides, and Fox had barely the time to do anything before Bail had wrapped his arms around him and pulled him close.

Yes, Fox was definitely tired. He carefully pulled his arms a little more apart from where they were pressed against Bail's body, and he leaned his head against his chest. His arms were definitely a bit more tingly than they had been a moment ago, but not yet numb. His feet were, for the most part, but he could still stand on them, so Fox ignored them for the time being.

For now, he simply closed his eyes and breathed in deep.

"I was so worried", Bail said.

"I know", Fox said. "I'm sorry."

Bail didn't day anything to that. Fox just felt him breathe in a little deeper as well, and his arms tightened ever so slightly around Fox.

They stayed like that for a while, before someone carefully cleared their throat somewhere behind Bail.

"My apologies, Senator Organa, but we need you in the command center."

"Of course." Bail loosened his hold on Fox and leaned away a bit, and that was the moment Fox's legs decided to not let themselves be ignored anymore, and made very clear the fact that leaning most of his weight onto Bail had been the only thing that had kept him upwards still.

His weight shifted forwards as Bail leaned back, and his knees buckled immediately. Bail was very quick to step back towards him and tighten his hold again, so Fox's didn't go crashing down onto the floor. He probably wouldn't have been able to stop his fall himself, as he couldn't feel currently anything below his knees and elbows.

Breha was quick to step in as well, as her hands came to keep Fox upright from his side, and together they managed to keep him somewhat upright still.

"Are you alright?" Breha asked. Fox felt a little guilty for being relieved over the fact that she didn't sound upset at him anymore.

"Yes", he said. He was a little out of breath now, despite the physical support. "I'm just a little tired."

They both knew what that meant. Bail let out a deep sigh.

"I think you are a bit more than a little tired, my love", he said. "I'll be in the command center in a moment. I'm just going to take my husband to our rooms to rest."

"Yes, Sir." Breha pushed him up a little more, so that Bail could more easily let go of him in order to bend down enough to lift Fox's legs on his arms.

"Watch your back", Fox reminded him.

"You watch your back", Bail shot back at him. He got his other arm properly around Fox's back and hoisted him up.

"Both of you watch it", Breha said. She put her hand on Fox's knee and patted it gently, before turning around. "It's better if we take you to our rooms anyway. Leia will hear sooner than later that you are here as well."

"I don't doubt that", Fox said. He leaned his head back against Bail as they started to make their way down the hall. It wasn't thankfully a long way to the lift from the Room, nor would it be from the lift to their quarters, if Fox had understood the layout of the base correctly. This was the first time he had been there in person, after all, so his only frame of reference were the drawings he had seen of the layout, and what Bail and Leia had told him about it. "I'm a bit surprised that she isn't already here."

"She is a bit busy at the moment", Breha said. "She has become quick friends with the pilot that made the final shot. He was the one who saved her from the battle station as well."

"Really?" Fox had not been able to see who he had communicated with, and General Kenobi that been the one to sign the messages between them, so Fox hadn't known who else exactly was there. "I should extend my gratitude to him as well."

"Yes." Breha hummed, thinking for a moment as they walked towards the lift. "You should meet him. His name is Luke Skywalker."

Fox's heart made a couple of extra beats.

He swallowed.

"I really should, then", he said.

They stepped into the lift.

"We should also warn you", Breha said, as the doors closed. "The moment Leia knows that you are here, everyone else is also going to know."

"Who is this 'everyone else' we are talking about?" Fox asked.

There was a strange sense of foreboding creeping up on him, now.

"There were others, too, going in to save Leia from the Death Star, and to sabotage the station", Breha said. "Some of them are here now, too. Including your brother."

This time, Fox's heart left out a couple of beats.

There was only one brother that Breha could refer to with such gravitas as she did now.

"Cody?" Fox managed to ask around the piece in his throat that had suddenly formed there. "Is Cody here?"

Breha breathed in, and nodded, and Fox realised that the day was far from being over for him.

[wackywatchdotcom]

Rewatching episode one, I noticed that when Ragatha and Jax are talking to each other about Jax having a key, Pomni flinches away from, and lifts her arms to protect her face and head, when Jax toys with the key and catches it near her.

I wonder if she is that jumpy around others normally or if it's just when she's in a stressful situation (like suddenly being trapped in the circus) what do you think?

OK. ok. you mention this. and ive never said anything about it but i have genuinely noticed this almost every time ive seen that scene. i think about it a LOT but i havent been able to figure out my thoughts on it. but i think about it genuinely a LOT...

(i went on a huge tangent abt her thats like. only sporadically related to this specific moment SORRY. it was hard to address this moment without discussing a LOT about her i feel)

for the sake of clarity in the event someone reading this is unfamiliar, what this ask is referring to is this:

with the way that she so quickly dissociates and HARD (not that most people Never experience dissociation or smth, but its the intensity of it and how quick into this situation she starts dissociating is like. it makes it seem like its smth her body and mind are Used To Doing) she REALLY gives off the feeling that she had pre-existing mental health problems (i struggle to place anything TOO specific with the limited information we have but i feel like theres definitely a few things she has going on) before she even got to the circus, and like she COULD just be a naturally jumpy person, but with the dissociation thing and general distrust towards others, it feels like her jumpiness is also related to these issues

while her being naturally nervous is sort of implied and clear (though i think the extent of it is exaggerated by the circumstances of the pilot in particular) there ARE a few other examples that stand out to me

i THINK this can largely be passed off as her just being on edge from the horror adventure, but i this is IS notable that she reacts genuinely pretty strongly to what is a relatively minor 'jumpscare.' it happens later too w kinger pressing the tape recorder

in general she seems VERY easily startled by people, and frankly it reads a lot like it stems more from people being near her than just things happening abruptly. she notably doesnt jump hard when the angel arrives- she DOES get scared, but she isnt necessarily startled. she DOES react very strongly to ghostly, but i think its notable that she seems to find his visual appearance frightening and debatably not necessarily startling, but thats not really 100%. the times she reacts the strongest have to do with people, which imo ties HARD into her not trusting people

episode 2 breaks down her distrust of people well, and i dont think its a self consciousness thing. it seems more that she just doesnt tend to find people trustworthy- if something bad was happening to her, she would sooner assume theyd let it happen rather than help her. it could be argued that its partially a guilt or projection thing with ragatha, but im not actually so sure. pomni seems to be ashamed of leaving her behind, but particularly through ep 2 she doesnt seemed Plagued With Guilt by the way she acts towards ragatha, which implies that the dream didnt have to do with her projecting that shame in a way shed assume ragatha would turn back on her, too

it instead seems to be that she doesnt trust ragatha just... in general. the 'im not a child' thing, while a legitimate problem for pomni to have with ragatha (i love ragatha, and from my place in the audience i know her concern is genuine, and that she truly wants to encourage pomni, and is trying, but from the perspective of people around ragatha, its not an unreasonable assumption that shes JUST being infantilizing and belittling), does illuminate how pomni is seeing ragathas attempts at cheering her up- that it comes from a place of seeing pomni as immature or generally unstable. that pomni is incapable of managing herself and needs to be coaxed. it implies pomni doesnt see ragathas attempts at help as genuine. combined with her dream, that ragatha would allow the worst to happen to her even when she was asking for help, makes it very clear that, even with the 'nicest' person in the circus, pomni just... doesnt really trust her

(it is worth noting that pomni DOES seem to genuinely want to help ragatha in the pilot. she DID try to find caine. but she bolts at the first opportunity. she does care about people, but when stressed, she operates on keeping herself safe first and foremost, that she needs to do anything to get out of a bad situation even if that means leaving someone behind- and with her dream, it does seem that she generally assumes other people operate similarly, or otherwise in their own best interest)

this does, of course, improve by the end of eps 2 and 3. the funeral, and ragatha offering to include her, and how the others talk about abstracted players (combined with her conversation with gummigoo, someone who she has to assure has genuine friendships with those around him despite the lack of a true reality for them to be based upon), are able to convey that oh, these people do actually care about the people around them. theyre being genuine. they arent just looking out for themselves and thats it- they care when bad things happen to each other. and theres no true reason for me to be an exception. which is ALSO why i dont think its a self consciousness thing, she seems able to reason that shes not an exception to the intents of others, so much that when she cant assure herself that others' intents hold her safety as any sort of priority as well, any trust goes out the window. she WANTS to help if she can, but esp in the pilot, as far as shes concerned, its everyone for themself when shit gets bad, including herself

ep 3, she seems more trusting of ragatha- she has neutral and positive interactions w her, rather than assuming a lack of sincerity in it. but its not just ragatha, actually, because even before her talk with him, you can see it in how she interacts with kinger as well

she initially tries to help him run, which isnt too out there- with how she genuinely DID initially try to help ragatha, it doesnt require her to go out of her way to grab him and RUN. she can run AND take him with her. she can help without putting herself in extra danger. but then she DOES go back, which is one of my favorite and imo underrated pomni moments. because THIS is what i think actually highlights an improvement in how she sees the others before her apologizing to ragatha or taking kingers hand. because she puts herself BACK into (percieved, since its not actual sure WHAT the angels intentions were her) danger in order to get kinger away too

(theres probably a case to be made that ragatha didnt seem to be in immediate danger- she was in pain, that much was clear, but kaufmo had ran away by then. but even still, pomni couldnt have known kaufmo would shift gears and start chasing her instead of ragatha that first time. and i dont know if she actually knew death wasnt possible here yet. which isnt very flattering for pomni but also people do not act in flattering ways under extreme stress, esp given a predisposition to not trusting others, which ill elaborate more on in a second here- not that pomnis abandonment was ok OR that it was like evil of her or smth. shes just a person. there is no way she was prepared to know how to act correctly in this situation, and she didnt)

theres also this

which is SUBTLE but highlights a genuine increase in trust even before their heart to heart. now that she knows the cast (save for jax, who she seems to react to the harshest, which is worth noting imo) are not acting solely in their own best interest, that they WILL consider the wellbeing of those around them including her, that their concern for one another is genuine (which is concerning that she even assumes that to begin with, which ill circle back to momentarily), she very clearly has way more faith in them and the idea that she should stick around the others for safety

and of course, ive said it before, but her taking kingers hand has little to do with her enjoying holding hands. its her knowing that, if kingers wrong, this is going to end very, very badly. if holding their breath isnt the solution theyre BOTH going to get possessed, and who knows how theyd get out of that situation. but she decides in that moment that her trust in the others isnt ONLY about looking out for them and believing that theyre sincere in their concern for her. but that she is willing to let the others put her at a potential massive risk. getting possessed was a blatantly immediately traumatic experience- and she lets kinger put her at risk of it happening again. THATS why she holds his hand, at least symbolically. she doesnt like contact. but she can brave something that she doesnt like, she can let him lead her into and through something potentially horrific, because shes deciding to trust him and the others, that theyre not just people she can interact with without fear of ill intentions, but that theyre people who she is going to coexist with. the best thing she can do for herself and the others is trust them and work with them actively

anyway that got off-track, the point being that her having to have these ideas instilled in her at all through shared experiences and trauma implies that, while these issues with distrust may have been exacerbated by the stress of everything, they didnt come from nowhere. these are problems she likely already had to some degree. its great that theres been improvement but that improvement directly implies thesse were improvements that needed to be made to begin with. and the fact that the person she gets repeatedly most startled by is jax. who, even with episode 2, she explicitly doesnt trust. in the pilot, at least, her distrust is more vague (i think the dream sequence in ep 2 IS what highlights it best) so her flinching from jax can be passed off as related to a general lack of adjustment to the new environment and situation shes in. but it happens again with jax in episode 3 (and, notably, she pauses afterwards but it takes a moment for her to relax even knowing its just jax), after shes adjusted somewhat, and after shes gained some trust with everyone except for jax (given his absence from the scene at the end of ep 2). it also happens when barons voice plays abruptly next to her

point being that imo, she IS naturally jumpy. she says herself that she doesnt handle jumpscares well, which somewhat implies this even outside of the circumstances of the circus. but with how she reacts to things, it feels like her general jumpiness is far, far worse when it comes to people she doesnt trust (be it because jax is Like That, or because shes not familiar with baron). the way i see it, then, her distrust extends to perceiving physical threats easily around people she hasnt ensured are safe to be around. she IS able to gain this trust in people, but she seems to automatically place the intents of others as being Potentially Unsafe from the jump, especially under stress. she can jump back from it fairly quickly for what its worth, but to be honest, it seems more like she operates on some general, everpresent level of hypervigilance thats just sometimes worse based on the situation

and frankly i dont think we know enough about her as of ep 4 to fully determine if there IS a reason for this. because someone can have a reason to be this jumpy around others, or they can just... be nervous and dislike people moving suddenly near them. combined with the dissociation thing, though, im inclined to think the circus did not cause this, just made it more extreme with more unpleasant stakes. there is hardly any time between her entering the circus and this happening. she hadnt even seen kaufmo yet in that very first example, but she was already on alert for a physical threat, and i just. i think about it all the time...

i think the main takeaway from all of this is that i think she isnt necessarily jumpy like that all the time, but i think trust is not a given with pomni, and her jumpiness massively depends on how much she trusts people near her and the situation shes in to not be a physical threat to her. its definitely worse in the circus, but i think it was probably still something present in a different context in the real world, too

[jessicas-pi]

For the au ask game! Sabezra in a *flips through my au ideas list* private detectives au

so. yeah. this. this is egregiously late. But it's HERE! At long last!

....to be entirely honest I don't even know what this is. it's sabezra. they're private detectives. let's just leave it at that.

---

"Ezra, what are you doing?"

Her partner in preventing crime (and occasional partner in actual crime---they may or may not have broken into a house once; no one could prove anything) had stopped in the middle of the grim alleyway, staring at nothing in particular.

"Sabine..." he said slowly. "I think this is where I met you."

Sabine did a double-take, looking around with keen eyes. The place didn't seem familiar, but she'd been so distracted on that day, she probably wouldn't know it if she was there.

"Is it?" she asked, strolling back to him, hiking up her long skirt and stepping cautiously around the filth on the ground. "You think so?"

"Mm-hm." A nostalgic smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. "You know, I've still got the handkerchief you gave me."

Sabine grinned at him. "Of course you do. You were in the throes of violent yearning. You couldn't bear to part with it."

"And my nose was still bleeding."

"That too."

"And if you recall, I did try to give it back to you---later." His smile grew proud. "Tracked you down with just your monogram and a glimpse at your face. First bit of detecting I ever did."

Sabine slipped her arm through his, hopping lightly over something that could have been a filthy rag or maybe the carcass of a large rat, as they continued on their trek towards home. The streets cleared up when they got to the main roads, but there was still the inevitable splash of mud.

Mud was everywhere in London.

"I thought you might have been a princess when I saw you on the stairs then," he blurted out, and she tilted her head up to look at him from beneath the brim of her large flowered hat. He gave her a sweetly bashful smile and a shrug. "With those big white puffs in your hair---"

"Ostrich feathers," she filled in automatically, turning her attention back to the pavement and nodding politely to a gentleman and lady who passed by them.

"---and that white dress, too." Ezra laughed to himself. "Golly, you're lucky you kept it. Your old lady wasn't gonna give you a nickel for another one."

Sabine squeezed his arm affectionately. "I could have worn any dress."

"Well, no one would have thought it was a proper wedding if we hadn't got you in white."

"No one thought it was a proper wedding when we did," she retorted. "They thought I was degrading myself."

"Then the joke is on them, because I hit the big time pretty well, didn't I?"

Sabine arched an eyebrow. "You wouldn't have amounted to anything if I hadn't got us into the illustrated papers."

Ezra paused on the pavement as they reached the steps of their lodgings, looking thoughtful.

"You're right. I wouldn't have."

"Then it seems you're lucky you've got me."

He looked right into her eyes and grinned boyishly, slipping into his most intolerably trans-Atlantic accent. "We do make a pretty bang-up team, don't we?"

"A jolly good one," she nodded in prim agreement, adopting an obnoxiously posh tone, and they both giggled, smiling at each other for a moment more before a distant clock chimed the quarter of the hour, reminding them that they were on a schedule.

"Well, I suppose we had best go on in. Our client will be here any minute now."

"I guess so."

And with that, the unstoppable team of Bridger and Bridger ascended the steps of their home at 221b Spectre Street, arm-in-arm.

[sunfloweraro]

WIP Weekend

Aka an excuse to post more Pink Bunny stuff!

It’s Zelda’s turn to comfort Ravio. Slowly but surely, he’s beginning to accept help.

Tags: @tiredgaytheatrekid @thatonecrazysidekick

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 .

“You can still sense him out there?” Zelda asked, though she knew the answer. Ravio needed to speak more on this, and she would push him in the right direction.

“Somewhere,” Ravio mumbled. “He’s still alive, but… it’s faint. It’s been faint since yesterday like… like he doesn’t want me to know he’s still alive. Like he’s trying to break our connection.”

Zelda’s eyes widened. That made no sense; Link loved Ravio. They were best friends, as close as herself and Hilda. She knew how fond Link was of Ravio, knew his affection would never waver, even if Ravio upped and tried to resurrect Ganon.

So why was their link suddenly fragile? She would need to consider the implications of such a thing, but that would come later, once Ravio was resting. She would speak with Hilda on this, try and learn just what this could mean.

“Link would never,” she said firmly. “Perhaps…” she faltered there, uncertain. How could she know where Link might be, when he hadn’t come to her in months? “Perhaps, he has been called for another quest.”

Ravio scoffed. “He returned from one a handful of months ago. The Goddess always gives him at least a year between quests.”

Zelda was running out of ideas. She could sweet talk ambassadors from other kingdoms, could carefully guide her council into agreeing with one of her decisions. But here and now, she found herself frozen with uncertainty. “I…”

“I did this,” Ravio murmured. “I chased him away; this is all my fault.” His voice rose in pitch, and he was quick to clamp a hand down over his mouth as he shuddered in her lap.

This, Zelda could handle. “Oh, my dear. You don’t have to hold it in. You have a right to be frustrated and upset.”

Ravio sniffled. “But, I…”

“You are hurting,” Zelda said. “You have been hurting for so long. It is okay if you need to cry; you do not have to hide from me.”

Ravio’s breath hitched at her words, and she was quick to bring him into an embrace, grateful for her strength as she held him as close as possible. As he dissolved into soft sobs, his chest heaving against her, Sheerow landed on Zelda’s shoulder, pressing herself into Ravio’s hair, trying to comfort.

“You are okay,” Zelda murmured, holding him tighter, praying her words were enough. “I am here.”

“I miss him so, so much, Zel,” Ravio wept into her shoulder. “I miss m-my Link.”

“I know,” Zelda said, trying to keep her voice steady as her heart began to break in her chest. If she were in his position, if it had been Hilda who had disappeared… “I know,” she repeated, cursing the way her own eyes became wet.

“He hates me now. This is all my fault.”

Zelda shushed him softly, began to murmur comforts in response to his painful words, a vicious cycle that felt it would never end.

Finally, Ravio settled in her arms, slumping against her and sniffling occasionally. She began to run an arm up and down his back, smiled when he pressed closer.

“This is not your fault,” she said, now that he was in a state where he could listen.

Ravio hummed disbelievingly. Said nothing.

“It is not,” she insisted. “There has to be a reason for why your link is so weak. But for now, I do not want you to worry about anything. All you need to do is focus on getting better.”

“But… what about Link?”

“I have over half of my guards out looking for him. All of the townsfolk were eager to help. You should have seen Gulley.” She laughed lightly then, thinking back to when the young man had shoved his way to the front of the search party, eager to help a close friend of Link’s, even if he didn’t know they were searching for Link, and not Ravio’s rabbit. “Irene has been flying around nonstop all day, and at night she is staying in your cottage, keeping an eye out for Link.”

“She knows?”

“She put the pieces together herself. She will not tell anyone,” Zelda assured him. “She wants to help, like everyone else.”

“Oh…”

“You are not alone in this, my dear. We are all happy to take up the search, and we will bring Link to you the moment we find him,” she promised. Ravio deserved to be the first to know that the search was over, deserved the relief after everything he had been through.

Ravio sniffled, burrowing closer. “Okay.”

***

Also a note! I will be taking a little break from posting Pink Bunny snippets, folks. My brain needs a break from this project, so I’m putting it on hold for a little while to work on my novel—so no new snippets. I will continue updating the story every Wednesday though, don’t worry! Thank you all for reading and I hope to have more snippets soon <33

[madbalalaika]

Last line written

Thank you so much for tagging me @okthisway!! Sorry it took this long to respond, but I did see your tag right away and didn't forget!

I've recently decided to brush up on my long-forgotten writing skills, but even all the storytelling knowledge I'd been passively accumulating throughout the years couldn't make it any easier to put the words on proverbial paper.

Aghghggh turns out to get better at something, you have to actually do it. Turns out the only way out is through. Unbelievable.

Anyway, speaking of Zukka--

Warning: disgusting tooth-rotting fluff (before this, they were laughing like love-struck madmen in the dead of night)

"Eugh, get a room, you two, I'm gonna puke," they suddenly heard from an open window closest to them, and both flinched so hard they nearly jumped, breaking the hug abruptly. Deep red flush crept up both their cheeks and necks and ears, and after a minute of awkward silence they snickered again, not being able to hold it together. Zuko'd forgotten Toph could normally hear their heartbeats, let alone any louder noises happening almost right behind the wall. He couldn't see her but whispered apologies in her direction anyway, face ready to burst, as Sokka was giggling silently at the side, trying not to wake up the others. Once they'd stopped and caught their breaths, Zuko came closer, still smiling, and traced the outline of Sokka's hot red cheek, planting a quick peck on his lips and making his flush stay and eyes flutter closed. The sight of that made Zuko's guts twist into a tight knot. "The night is lovely," Sokka said, looking only into his eyes. "Wanna stay outside a while?" And Zuko smiled and pressed another, longer kiss to his lips in response.

Tagging (no pressure, of course) @boltlightning, @bluerose5, @beepbeepsan. I'm actually not sure who else to tag, so anybody who sees this is welcome to join! ❤

[grad-writes]

snippets from Rookie 54

Lucanis and Rook settle into their relationship.

Since Lucanis and Rook officially began courting, some things changed within the Lighthouse—and some things didn't.

They still both got up at dawn to run through stretches and morning drills—as they had every day since Lucanis had settled in. But now, Rook greeted a startled Lucanis with a beaming smile and a loud, smacking kiss on the cheek. He had been so flustered the first time, he had not even returned it—and just stood with red ears in the middle of the courtyard.

Illario, of course, had been extremely amused.

(The second morning though, Lucanis had been better prepared. He stoically ignored his cousin's snickers, and made sure to brush her cheek with a quieter, but no less fervent, kiss in return).

Rook learned that while he wasn't one for public displays of affection, it didn't mean he was unaffectionate. Though outwardly he didn't touch her much more than necessary, she felt his heavy gaze fall upon her more often than not. His eyes traced her form languidly as she stretched and ran with Illario, and again when they split up; Rook to practice her spellcasting, and Lucanis to spar with his cousin. She could always feel his quiet presence in the background watching as if he were trying to commit her movements to memory.

And when they did touch—to help pull the other further into a stretch, or to correct a technique, or to lend a supporting hand when spinning through the air—his fingers lingered just a few moments longer than usual, a fleeting warmth against her skin.

Lucanis still always made breakfast. Only now, it had become Rook's favourite time of day.

He always had coffee and food ready on the table by the time she and Illario returned from washing up. Illario was chatty in the mornings and tended to keep up most of the conversation—but Lucanis would sit right beside her, thigh warm against hers, while they ate and laughed. They would bask in each others' presence—Lucanis in her sunny glow, and Rook in his comforting warmth—as their other companions slowly joined the table.

Read more on ao3

[yujeong]

kpanniversary2024, prompt 13: Secrets

He didn't know what compelled him to open the door. It was late; most of the lights were turned off because no one was awake at this hour, especially in this part of the building. There was no point. A waste of energy. He just found himself unable to sleep. It'd been a few days since the coup, with most matters already sorted, but restlessness permeated, as always with him. So, his feet led him here. In Vegas' "room". Kinn was hovering by the entrance, finding himself hesitating to go inside. He took a deep breath to center himself and immediately noticed the smell. It was foul, unpleasant. A mix of antiseptic and the body odor of someone who hadn't bathed in weeks. Realizing Pete - his former bodyguard Pete, his former most trusted person Pete - was the source of it made an uneasy feeling settle in his chest. Moving closer hesitantly, he looked at his face as he was sleeping by Vegas' side and frowned. Somehow, it looked worse; ghostly pale, black skin under his eyes, drool coming out of his half open mouth, his parched lips. He was clutching Vegas' bony hand with more force than seemed possible, and it made Kinn confused, more so than when Pete took off his uniform and left his family. Left him. It also made him wonder: had Kinn looked like that when he had slept alone the night after Porsche had left him as well? Had his face morphed into something this ugly at the sight of Porsche on Vegas' bike, running away from him? If so, Kinn couldn't help but pity the man before him. He couldn't bare to stay in the room anymore. He left with hurried steps, not bothering to close the door behind him. A mistake, Kinn thought. That's what this visit was. A mistake that would remain a secret, and never happen again. (He tried not to think about how he never checked on Vegas' condition, or the reasons behind that choice. This way, he might get some sleep.)

[ythmir-writes]

dr. zayne "i'll use my body as payment" and "i always pay my debts" is all bark bark woof woof at first but then i remember his Myths and -

or, what you (i) would like to say the moment zayne decides its a good time to self-sacrifice

i hold his hand tightly, pull him back into a tight embrace because No, you don't have to, you don't have to do this zayne. there is no situation dire enough to come to pass in this world that should warrant that extreme a sacrifice

do you think you going on there and freezing yourself so you can stop a Wanderer attack will make tomorrow a little brighter? do you think its only you specifically who can save us all from the worst case scenario and save the world? dr im-so-brilliant-i-finished-medical-school-and-got-a-license-in-the-time-it-takes-someone-to-sneeze?

i dont want your sacrifice! i dont want to walk on roads paved with your bones. i dont fucking want to live in cities thawing from your frost because you thought unleashing a blizzard only you could do and wiping yourself out in the process would be a brilliant move to protect them. i dont want to take the cup that holds your blood, i do not want to have to look at the world and see you only in memory.

i want you here. i want you holding my hand. i want you poking at my forehead because i didnt bring enough warm clothes again or because i wasnt able to take my meds on time again or because i freaked out you werent calling when you shouldve -

i want to be there to bandage your wounds. i want you bandaging my wounds

you are the most selfless, kindhearted, driven, and dedicated person i know. your bravery is second to none - most infuriatingly so whenever you think you can save even just one soul but please!! dont ever fucking think you have to carry that burden alone.

remember that time you managed to parry that Wanderer attack and reminded me consistently of it for three days? do you remember? because i do! every day. every goddamn day i go out to do my work and you do yours, it all rattles in my head. you told me that i could rest easy because you have my back. that whatever happens, safety is a priority.

you told me that im not fighting alone anymore. i cried at that, remember? and you did too, you sentimental shmuck

so why the hell do you think you have to do it all alone? what kind of mental gymnastics did your brilliant brain do for you to reach the conclusion that its okay to leave me behind when youre out there fighting for the world, for Linkon, for us

for me?

i want you fighting with me, please

please

pleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease

dont do it. dont go -

let me fight with you too

[tamsinsfanfictionrecs]

@atomsforthewin, thank you for the ask. I'm always happy for the chance to work on my Stockshop TMNT 2003 fic.

Enjoy your snippet.

Bishop grabbed Michaelangelo and slammed him against the wall. Then, he drew one of his hidden knives and pressed it against the turtle’s throat.

“Give me one reason why I shouldn’t end you right now?”

“Because if you kill him, I will destroy everything you value, President Bishop.”

[moe-broey]

Somehow, I think gender plays a role in how Moe socializes with people. Despite being nonbinary itself, I think the family/background it came from had such specific ideas of gender roles that like... that, in combination with the family dynamics in general, does color how Moe interacts w others based on what it can glean from them.

Examples?

> Incomprehensible Feminist Agenda:

Flavored by a lifetime of looking up to, loving and respecting its older sisters -- and scary version, whatever is going on w its mother. Also results in respect (and fear.) Plus, previous experience adhering to those gender norms/role... It has insane shrimp color baggage from that. Mani portrays a lot of it. Ultimately, generally speaking -- Moe tends to be respectful, amicable, if a bit standoffish. Also loves doing the "God Forbid Women do ANYTHING" bit, and the like.

> Men???:

Complicated. But there are good men, and it never has any guilt about being associated w masculinity. I think the baggage (aside from any reductive ideas it was raised with), comes entirely from specific ass complexes. Some Cain and Abel shit. Can find itself switching the way it talks to match (tone, cadence, ect). I'm just like you, see? Asshole. Actually I'm better than you but that's neither here nor there. Bastard. Absolutely gets extremely frustrated and oscillates between "i've got nuthin' ta prove, go get a greater understanding of gender nonconformity and identity as a whole, Idiot" to feeling VERY MUCH like it has Something To Prove. There's also an element of envy, more broadly speaking! Sometimes evil, sometimes just pure respect and awe! (My trans Bruno hc goes crazy here bc Moe really is just dazzled by him LMFAOO) Also something something, "do i love you, or do i wanna Be You?"

Funnily enough, if someone exists in the Other category for any reason (trans and/or nonbinary identity, general nonconformity, ect), I think all social scripts have to be built in real time specific to that person, themselves. Which ironically leads to Moe having a chance at breaking down any walls that would otherwise be up, do to social convention.

Now, what does this look like in action? Say, there is a mysterious hooded figure of indeterminate gender, even up close. Well! I think it depends on three factors: How this person reads, how they identify, and what they specifically want to portray to Moe.

Like.... Misc examples.

Rosado is very Do Whatever You Want Forever, could be the sole other neopronouns user in the Order (I really like a fae/faer hc there!), and very easily reads as transfemme (... so much so she's just transfemme. To me. I switch between the neopronouns and she/her and legitimately forget fae canonically uses he/him 😭). What Moe does with this? Probably slots Rosado into more feminine coded social scripts (which fits well for Rosado, if you look at how she interacts w Hortensia and Goldmary!)

Forrest? Heavily defined by being amab and having a very complicated relationship w that. Moe reads a potential transfemme interpretation. Moe, attempting to be an ally/show solidarity... immediately fumbles the interaction. "what are your pronouns" "???? He??" "Are You Sure about that?" "...... excuse me? 😟😥"

Libra? Easy. He makes himself very clear as soon as you talk to him. Masculine social scripts.

Then you have very specific cases! Bramimond. Limstella. Kyza! All use they/them (Kyza esp in Heroes, very cool way to implement their ambiguity in Radiant Dawn across translations). I think all of them get factory settings until Moe figures out how to talk to each. Sometimes the completely neutal factory settings remains. Sometimes you figure out how someone wants to be seen/regarded as you speak to them (I think Kyza falls here -- masculine social scripts as a boundary on their part. If you aren't Ranulf or Lyre, you don't know me like that. Ect)

Sully? An interesting one to include here, actually. Often seen as butch. I've seen some fascinating transmasc reads/hcs for her. I think Moe entirely just lets Sully take the lead. Is she overcompensating for something, much like Moe used to just in an extremely opposite way...? That's none of its damn business. It could be a plethora of factors, really, all of which Moe itself has familiarity with and is sympathetic to. None of which, again, are any of its DAMN business. I think Moe has a lot of fun mimicking and matching her energy regardless LMFAOO (and again, lets Sully take the lead on how she wants to be regarded! Which, in this example... we're sticking to canon, a strong woman who takes no shit! Results in a fun mixture of feminine and masculine social scripts, from Moe!)

A little bonus, is how I've personally been using gender neutral pronouns for each summoner regardless of presentation. The purple haired Summoner? Very easily reads as a woman (either cis or passing as such). But in my head/the angle I was taking, is like... that's the first impression, yes. But then they mention a complexity to their identity. And IMMEDIATELY Moe does the gender perception factory reset in its mind. And starts building from there! Figuring out how they want to be thought of/how they're regarded!

Adjacently: Mani absolutely falls under this category of character. With Mani, there's a very clear starting point, sex assignment wise. Very much matches/falls into general expectations that come with that. Has "all the features", for lack of a better way to put it. With only a few oddities here and there -- all easily dismissed as not that unusual, actually. For example -- the short hair, no makeup. Not that unusual, generally speaking. Maybe odd combined w its highly feminine way of dress. But ultimately, there are plenty of instances of that! You don't think twice. But as you get to know Mani, you realize pretty immediately Oh! That is. That is Something Else entirely. DIVERSITY WIN?????

[vellichorsdesire]

wanted to take the time to recommend @sincerely-your-fo ‘s f/o letter writing commissions— i was able to commission xem quite recently, and having never commissioned someone a written work before (admittedly one of my small anxieties was my f/o being mischaracterized or for any of my writing of them to be misunderstood…) they wrote the f/o letter absolutely BEAUTIFULLY and so so very in character too i haven’t stopped reading it since i received it earlier today…

throughout the entire process from start to finish xe was super kind and the questions xe had ready forr xem to be able to write my f/o so accurately definitely helped me in describing them more + made the letter so much more heartfelt!!! not a lot of my f/o’s info is out there which i worried about too, but the letter turned out so lovely still and was so so very worth it 💗💗 xe has both digital and physical mailed letter commissions open (i commissioned the digital but recommend the physical if you can with how beautiful the wax seal options are!!) and you can see the info in their pinned here! if you see this, thank you again and i’d love to commission you again in the future (and hopefully tip even more) 🥹🫶/pos

[cakeiscoolsblogthing]

I know some Ao3 authors will share snippets of their WIPs. Now I don’t usually do that, but I also don’t usually have six chapters prewritten. I’m not going to start posting until I have at least ten prewritten chapters, but have a snippet of chapter seven’s beginning:

“Flying side by side with a ghost who’d tried to take over the world a few months ago wasn’t on Valerie’s nonexistent bingo card, but it was happening nonetheless. She especially hadn’t been expecting said ghost to be teaching her various Ghöstspeak swears.”

[cream-and-tea]

FIND THE WORD TAG

i was tagged by @encrucijada (ty!!) and tried to challenge myself by not using anything from Lay Me Down, so these are all taken from what i've written for Burn The Stars (my sci-fi fantasy thats in perpetual planning hell lol)

my words were: necklace, sigh, dream & heavy

NECKLACE

No one could say that Anandi Alva was not talented. She could recite epic poetry from memory and tell you the name of an old world plant by the way it grew towards the light and slip into the faces of others as easily as slipping into water. But the dead girl was in possession of a holy name, a holy vantage point to the unguarded backs of the most influential the Colossus Rings had to offer, a holy collection of necklaces where each glittering gem was modelled after a specific star, and the Priory had no need for Anandi Alva in the face of that.

SIGH

“I deal in precision Silas,” Danny sighed, turning away from the pulsing emergency lights. “I only fail when I leave things to chance.”

DREAM

This is outside of her, controlled, soft, it washes easily away once she blinks and realizes that she’s sitting on grass with her back resting against the trunk of a tree, one leg drawn up, hands folded behind her head as if she’s been sitting there casually for a few minutes at most. For all she knows she has.

This is a dream.

HEAVY

“You have to stop saying things like that.”

Silas paused, halfway through tying his hair back into its ponytail. “Like what?”

“Us, we, when this is all over. If you keep it up I might start to think there’s a chance.”

“I think there’s a chance.”

“I know you do.” They made a fist and pressed it to the space between their eyes. It felt heavy. Everything had felt heavy for a very long time now.

i'll tag: @albatris @spideronthesun @strangerays @violets-in-her-arms-writes and anyone else who wants to do it!!

your words are: slight, slip, silver and sharp

[misopossum]

finished reading mass effect andromeda: annihilation over the weekend and. it was good, a perfectly 3/5, pleasant but not mind-blowing read that focused on the lore and politics of the non-citadel races - which was super refreshing! however...however. (spoilers) the decision to punish the ultimate antagonist - a quarian woman - by *checks notes* stripping her of her enviro-suit and forcing her to be gawped at and touched in order to disseminate the cure to the disease she created until she ultimately dies of exposure was insane.

by hey, at least we ended it with drell-batarian MILF yuri.