#please bear with me on these i’m very much a writer first and artist second

[catcherwrites]

The first batch of my Arc 3 concept designs are finally done! It felt fitting to begin with the three who started it all: Rayla, Callum, and Ezran

Check out the more in-depth story and design choices below

Rayla

Story Choices

In the wake of S7’s Finale, Azymondias wasn’t just a 2-year-old King of the Dragons, but the only surviving Archdragon. That means he’s a very important figure across Xadia and the Human Kingdoms – and needs to be protected. Shortly after the events of S7, Rayla reclaims her title as ‘The Last Dragonguard’ and resurrects the order to act as Zym’s attendants, advisors, and protectors. She’s spent the last few years travelling between the Storm Spire, the Silvergrove, and Evrkynd, helping where she can and leading her fellow guards (who may be revealed in a later post). Rayla’s relationship with Callum has grown stronger than ever. Even though they’re holding off on marriage until Aaravos is dealt with for good, Callum gives her the Xadian equivalent of a promise ring he handcrafted (Ethari helped). With them both feeling secure with each other, they are more comfortable with being separated…but that won’t stop them from being attached at the hip whenever they’re near each other.

Design Choices

Going into these Arc 3 designs, I had a much clearer image in my head of Rayla compared to the other characters in my lineup. Using reference images of Tiadrin and Lain made creating Rayla’s Dragonguard uniform feel very bittersweet. Unfortunately, from a creative standpoint, uniforms run the chance of limiting the personality in a character’s design. I tried offsetting this by making Rayla’s undershirt and embedded gemstones in her armour more Silvergrove-y than Dragonguard-y. I also kept Rayla’s iconic belt, Arc 2 colour scheme, and added some of Ethari’s swirls where possible. Beyond the uniform, I kept going back and forth about her hairstyle. Keep the Arc 2 bun? Return to Arc 1’s style? Braided? A simple ponytail? Eventually, I settled on a half-up braid that let my sleep-deprived brain think I was getting the best of both worlds.

Callum

Story Choices

Ezran was disappointed when Callum turned down being his High Mage again, fearing that he’d lose his brother’s support in the council room. In reality, stepping down as High Mage meant that Callum could step up as Crown Prince. In the years following S7, Callum splits his time between assisting Ezran and studying magic on expeditions across Xadia. One of those expeditions leads him to Aaravos’ book in Elarion, which helps him delve deeper into the other primal sources. He’s fully mastered Sky and Ocean magic and has grown incredibly proficient at Earth magic. To Callum’s dismay, even with the help of Lujanne, Ethari, and Aaravos’ book, he still isn’t clicking with the Moon arcanum. He also hasn’t fully unlocked the Sun arcanum, but he’s getting very close and is a strong fire mage when wielding the Staff of Ziard. By Arc 3, Callum has gained the title of Archmage – and people far and wide seek him out for magical assistance, leaving him overworked and exhausted.

Design Choices

I was very excited to come up with Callum’s Arc 3 design for one reason: the parallels. His Arc 2 outfit is meant to resemble Viren, as Callum had taken his place as the High Mage of Katolis. But because he is no longer ‘High Mage,’ and instead ‘Archmage’, Callum’s Arc 3 outfit is intended to reflect Aaravos. I tried to do this with his uncovered arms, the open coat, and the vaguely celestial elements on his tunic. The geometric pattern on Callum’s coat is meant to look like a feather (symbolising his first primal source) while in the style of his Arc 2 coat. Rayla gifted Callum a matching belt buckle to hers (though with a moon opal for emergencies), which he wears alongside his uneven towers buckle from Ezran. His hair is mostly the same, except slightly longer, because I don’t see overworked-mage Callum caring about his hairstyle.

Ezran

Story Choices

S7 was a massive tipping point for Ezran: losing his brother, his true heart, and almost losing himself to the cycle of violence. While he stopped before he could go too far, Ezran was unequivocally changed by what happened. After Aaravos’ defeat, Ezran has been overseeing Evrkynd’s construction, ensuring it’s a safe home for humans and Sunfire elves who lost their home. However, it is also open to anyone, regardless of their origin. While he and Queens Janai and Amaya decided the people would rule the city of Evrkynd, Ezran continues to rule wider Katolis alongside his council. He does spend most of his time in Evrkynd for his royal duties, but Ezran is learning to take breaks – occasionally joining Callum, Rayla, and Zym on small getaways. As is tradition for anyone in the royal family, Ezran began combat training in his mid-teens with Soren as his teacher. He’s grown quite good and can hold his own in a battle (long enough for his Crownguard come to his aid, at least).

Design Choices

Ezran’s design in TDP has always been one of the simplest ones, probably symbolising his humble personality despite his status. I tried to maintain that effect in his Arc 3 outfit but with one major alteration. Going into this design, I wanted Ezran’s struggle in S7 to have had a visible impact on him by including armour in his design. His outer tunic is now gambeson, and his shoulder pads are scuffed-up leather. If he decides to wear it, the gold studs on Ezran’s shoulders are where his cloak will latch on. As should be expected from an age jump this severe, the biggest change to Ezran was his build. He’s finally overtaken his brother in height, much to the dismay of both Callum and Rayla, and is expected to be as tall as Harrow when he’s finished growing.

[wondeurland]

‘vogue’ happened on my ‘for you’ page suddenly yesterday night, but only now i had the time to properly check it out and enjoy it. i’m a big fan of ‘the devil wears Prada’ too, so spotting the details and cameos you added in it was really fun for me, i smiled all the time while reading it! that’s how much i enjoyed reading it! <3

i’m not a person to leave such a long comment on a fic unless it’s ao3, and i didn’t want to cloak in or occupy your comment section with a bulky comment such as this TT so i figured that leaving this message here was the right choice. please bear with me (and you don’t have to answer! i’m already grateful if you read this comment, truly!) because i absolutely loved it. for the sake of being brief, i’ll focus on the last scene but everything of this work was truly a masterpiece that i’ll come back to —i’ll stay tune it since you say it will be a series!

It's so... fresh. Your glasses were hiding such a view, like curtains to a window that unveiled the utmost rare and breathtaking sights. […] Geto studies it like an artist to a blank canvas, devoid of anything yet holding just the perfect amount of space-wanting, waiting to be filled with anything and everything.

omg… the way i absolutely folded! ꒰ᐢ⸝⸝•༝•⸝⸝ᐢ꒱⸒⸒ i loved the way you described here because —and maybe here is my sleepy head talking— the way is written really makes you understand just how focused geto is on y/n. the way he greedily yet patiently takes his time to study the face, the delicate way you described it… weak to my knees ! absolutely weak to my knees !

He eyes how you turn towards the building one more time, doing your usual adjustment of your glasses (it's a habit you often do in times of nervousness, he's picked up) […]

it’s kind of embarrassing how i was smirking here because sir… did you just implicitly affirmed that you do look at y/n?? it was such a nice detail to read because it implies that he does look at her enough time to link the action to a proper feeling, an expression of sorts. but maybe i’m just looking too much into it?? maybe i’m saying nonsense?? i don’t care, i’m delulu and sleepy!! ໒꒰ྀི´ ˘ ` ꒱ྀིა

i don’t want to take any more space (it’s just a sentence after all) but i absolutely loved the way you described how geto felt ‘irritated’ from the ‘hauting’ image of y/n’s face in his mind! it was a nice touch! now on my last point —and then i’ll disappear on thin air!

It’s instead, the person that’s wearing it. Because somehow, the eerie sketch of the model's face that he had drawn years ago...... somehow replicates your own face perfectly.

that was a very good cliffhanger. as a (somewhat) writer too i can only imagine and theorize the hard work you’re probably doing for this story —the behind of the scenes basically, and if you wanted readers to stand on their tiptoes and get curious about a possible plot twist (it’s called like this right? my first language isn’t english TT) … let me tell you, you absolutely nailed it! because i’m both standing on my tiptoes with my jaw on the floor.

i can’t wait to see what you have in store for this ff because you got me hooked. and the last part only further points to a possible connection between suguru and y/n which i can’t wait to discover more about! even though they both don’t seem to realize as of now —well, actually now geto does but just to a superficial extent, thanks to that sketch.

i’m sorry for the long comment because sometimes i feel like i’m saying nonsense and repeat myself over and over again so it might come off as annoying or rude TT god or whoever was on charge really didn’t blessed me with the power of synopsis, which i can only apologize for. just thank you for writing this, it was really good and i can’t wait to read more from you! thank you and take care of yourself!! i’ll patiently wait and, once you’ll feel ready to update a second part, i’ll be here reading it and enjoying it! (/genuine, no pressure! in this household we appreciate the hard work writers put in their works and respect their time ofc!)

have a good day/night ! ໒꒰ྀིᵔ ᵕ ᵔ ꒱ྀི১ 💗

one of the things i absolutely struggle with is just writing too much and on my end, it seems a little tricky and questionable, but for those on the other sides of things, it just means more cake for them and this very much applies to comments as well, so anonnie, NEVER apologize for long comments!!!! it shows your appreciation for the work and as someone who's on the receiving end for it, i hold so much love for comments like these!!! and your english is nothing less of wonderful!!!

i was praying someone would catch the little glasses bit! it's been the little motif i had incorporated in the first chapter as a symbol of the reader's shield from the new world of her work so i was pretty proud of blending it into the chapter. it also ties in with suguru finally noticing our little assistant for more than just a coatrack—just the first stepping stone of what i have planned for these two huehue •̀⩊•́

other than that, thank you again for enjoying my writing and i'll treasure ur kind comments dearly <33!

[ourstarscollided]

jatp fanworks appreciation - day 1 (writers)

motivation - so in true me fashion and my aversion to brevity, i've made three (3) posts (see also artists, gifs/edits) to celebrate the wonderful people in this fandom who have made my jatp tumblr experience what it is; a community of people who simply shout into the void about their love of a ghost band and their fearless female leader. i've enjoyed simply being on the sidelines admiring everyone's love for the show, but i thought this would be a good time to really show my appreciation for all these wonderful people, because if i've learned anything from this pandemic, it's that there is NEVER a wrong time to tell someone that they are simply ✨the best✨.

disclaimer: i don't interact with most of these people personally and i simply absorb their content from afar and scream about how wonderful they are in the tags.

This list kind of became a fic rec, so if you're looking for some wonderful fics to read (or reread), I've also included my favs from the author here as well.

Okay this is gonna get a little long so please bear with me. But I just wanted to preamble this by saying that the fanfiction written by the jatp fandom is what resparked my love for reading fiction after about 3-4 years of not reading for leisure (be an adult they said. it'll be fun they said.). So I'm really grateful for that? I don't interact with a lot of people, just because it makes me a little anxious, but I will constantly yell about your content in the tags as if I were on a set of bleachers with a megaphone.

I also know there are so many wonderful fic writers out there (on Tumblr and not on Tumblr) that make amazing pieces of work, and this is just a tiny peek into that, and is not at all conclusive.

Without further ado here are some writers who live rent free in my head, in alphabetical order, so feel free to just skip to your name to avoid my rambling:

@bluefirewrites -> your Merry Ex-Mas fic had me on the edge of my seat every single time you updated. I am so in love with how you wrote the characters into this and at how many words you churned out for this fic. This was filled with so much adventure, and it was really welcome during a time when the world wasn't allowed to travel. And I simply love all the other drabbles and fics you write, but I especially enjoy the hilarity of Ray Molina, Crime Scene Photographer and Matchmaker.

@captainkippen -> I'm pretty sure Love Drunk was one of the first fics I ever read in this fandom. Your stories and your writing feel so goddamn real and I find myself so immersed in the worlds that you've created. I have reread most of your jatp fics and I still manage to find myself stupidly grinning at my phone each time. Your stories flow so easily and are such perfect characterizations of the characters we know from the show, but elevated to fit into your verse. I cannot say enough how wonderful your writing is and how talented you are!! (also a slight nudge that I am still very much following along with The Key and the Crown and I hope you continue it!)

@catty-words -> Your???? Exhaustive??? Music??? Lists???? The amount of work and dedication and microanalyzing that you put into pulling out every detail from each scene is so admirable. You not only manage to find the details, but you also give us EVIDENCE via your intricately selected gifs. You could've just put the video of the performance, but no, you take your time to find that specific 1 second shot to emphasize your point. And your little fics that you sometimes throw out into the world? They're so beautiful, and so fun to read and I enjoy them so much! (I am STILL screaming about this band's a snack) Thank you for validating my yelling in the tags, and for feeding my hyperfixation to this show. (I'm sad these lists are ending soon, but it's about the journey ya know?)

@lydias--stiles -> I don't even know what to say here because I've yelled so much about your fics that I feel like there's really nothing else to yell. Your Road Trip AU was also one of the first ones I read in this fandom, and really just made me go absolutely feral. Pretty sure I absorbed the rest of your fics in an ungodly amount of time and I just simply think you are incredibly skilled and talented. Every time you post a new fic I always wonder what it's like to be in your head because the ideas you come up with are so unique and so well thought out. Thank you for all the art you create for this show, I will constantly be in awe of you. (Special shoutout to the 5+1 fic that became a 31 chapter monster)

@pearlcaddy -> This list would not be complete if I didn't mention you. First of all, thank you for suggesting this wonderful week, it has been so lovely to see so much love being spread around today. Secondly, I never thought I'd find myself reading a Buffy or a Wizarding World crossover fic, considering I know nothing about those two things. And yet I found myself on various nights after work at 3 in the morning just silently screaming and/or crying into my phone. Your writing is so insane. Your world building is so insane. Your banter/dialogue is insane. The way you capture the love between Julie/Luke in different universes is so perfect. Thank you for gifting us these beautiful pieces of art, and I hope you know that you have at least made one person (me) a very happy reader. I also really admire your dedication to "this will only be a oneshot", only to write like 4 other POVs for it. (Special shoutout to 100 Bad Days)

@ruzek-halstead -> Literally every single fic you have written lives rent free in my head. The way you've managed to build this universe of different Julies and Lukes, and each one still captures the essence of them is astounding. You've extended their characters beyond what we know from the show and I am just in awe of everything you write. Please know that dead of night is both triggering to me and yet the most hilarious thing I have read. (Special shoutout to the Fake Dating Christmas AU and of course the Cinderella Story AU)

@serendipitee -> Your stories and your writing are absolutely magical. I think Write It Down was one of the first multi-chapter fics that I followed super closely and whenever you updated, I would literally drop what I was doing and read it instantly. You have such a way of building the plot and the characters for all of your fics and drabbles, and making the reader just want more. Please know that I am so obsessed with Oh, She Waltzed With the Dead and I cannot wait to see where you take the story!

@sunsetcurbed -> I have no words for your writing. I am simply in awe every time I read something from you. The way you've got down Alex and Willie's voice to a tee is so crazy good. You write their characters and their stories with such grace and care, especially with how you approach the topic of mental health. Thank you for all the research you do and for also writing in your own experiences. I literally binged the Princes Diaries AU during work and lost a good half day to it, and I regret nothing because that fic left me in SHAMBLES. I secretly adore the way you say you're going to keep a fic short, and end up writing an insane amount of words for it. (I have not yet left my obligated long-ass comment on Chapter 4 of the College AU yet because I am still processing the fate/destiny concept.)

@tangledstarlight -> Gahh. Rosie. Please. This is going to sound a little repetitive considering I just screamed at you last night, but now I guess I will just have to publicly confess my adoration for you!!! Thank you for being my first online friend in a very long time, and for putting up with me yelling at you about everything (and also nothing at the same time). I can't believe all it took was one message about your Royals AU for you to post it, but I will gladly take that credit any day. You are so so so incredibly talented with your writing, and your ability to transport me to another world while I read your fics is unparalleled. I adore the way you can come up with a new story to write every day, and then proceed to throw it into your pot of other WIPs. I am so so so so lucky to have gotten to know you and am incredibly grateful that I now have someone to cry about everything with 🧡 (If you read anything from Rosie, you need to read her Seasons/Long Distance Juke "friendship" fic and the Reggie x Photography oneshot that made me bawl my eyes out.)

@thedeathdeelers -> No thoughts. Just soulmates. Jk jk, you know I love your Reggie x Ray x Carlos fics, and I will scream in the tags about it until the day I get more of those fics from you. This is lowkey a threat, but wrapped in kindness. You are so wonderful to see on my dash (albeit scary at times because of the sheer amount of headcanons and theories running through your head), but you radiate such positive energy that it's impossible to not want to jump in and scream about soulmates with you.

Some special mentions to fics that also live rent free in my head:

@sunsetsandcurves wrote a Willex Cruise Ship AU inspired by a Simple Plan song and it’s something I never knew I needed until I read it. 

@phantom-curve wrote a Juke fic based off of Coney Island and I would just like to say, yes, it did shatter me. (Here’s the fluff sequel that makes up for it though)

@unsaidjulie wrote the Juke dog fic of my dreams and I simply cannot express how much I want the Molina’s to have a dog now. 

@pawprinterfanfic managed to get me incredibly invested in a Star Wars AU even though I know absolutely nothing about Star Wars. I just know that I would die for two (2) space boys. 

@sanssssastark  your Later universe made me realize that I do very much want there to be more mature content for this fandom (and you constantly deliver).

@theobligatedklutz wrote a Tangled Willex AU that makes me screech every time there’s an update. Just read it.

@alexthedrummerboy your talent knows no bounds when it comes to your Social Media AU. Also she’s written ORIGINAL songs for Alex and Willie?!?!?! 

@gennified has this really wonderful modern take on pride and prejudice for Willex and I’m so obsessed with how much miscommunication there is.

@bananaleaves okay, I just found your Tumblr today, and I know you don’t know me in any capacity, but allow me to scream about THIS FIC RIGHT HERE. If anyone in this fandom is to read ANYTHING, it’s this fic. This was one of the best things I’ve read in a long time and absolutely wrecked me. Please just read this.

This turned out WAY longer than it was supposed to, and I’m SO SORRY. (I also tried to make sure I got everyone’s pronouns right, so PLEASE let me know if they’re wrong!) A final sincere thank you to everyone in this fandom who writes. Your talent knows no bounds. Gonna stop talking now before this becomes an essay....

[sabbywrites]

Let’s talk.

This is a long post that also happens to be long overdue. Also posted as a thread to my twitter (tl;dr at end). 

Hi everyone. It’s been a while. I’ve been debating for a little bit on how to write this, going back and forth between feeling scared and feeling determined to say what I want to say. I’m finally at a point where I can confidently say: let’s talk.

First, I want to say this: I’m sorry. I haven’t been very consistent these past two years, with both my writing and with keeping in touch with everyone I’ve met online. If you’re reading this and I haven’t spoken to you in a while, know this: I will be getting in touch with you soon. I haven’t forgotten the amazing people I call friends.

If you folks will have me, I’d love to catch up with everyone I haven’t talked to during my absence. I want to make one thing very, very clear— me being gone was never about me not wanting to talk to the people on here or participate in this community. The thing I regret the most about being gone is leaving people in the dark. If my absence has in any way, shape, or form hurt you, I cannot begin to apologize enough from the bottom of my heart. That was never my intention, although intentions don’t fix the hurt caused.

I want to discuss the reason for my absence, so please bear in mind that I’m not trying to excuse being gone— just explain why.

Some of you may know that I have three diagnosed mental conditions that have mostly been manageable through medication and therapy. When I first started writing online, I was halfway through undergrad and I wanted a place where I could put my writing so people might enjoy it. I found that pretty quickly on Ao3. As I worked on getting my writing degree, I would spend hours and hours working on what became ASID. I was thrilled beyond belief when ASID drew in readers who left wonderful comments.

I have a huge amount of love in my heart for everyone who has ever read any of my works, and I wouldn’t change anything about that. Ever. But as I graduated from college, I started noticing that my mental health was on a sharp decline that it hadn’t been on since high school. I tried to keep it at bay for a while, because I was sure I would bounce back.

I did not.

I began to take small breaks as I jumped into graduate school. I feel very purposeless without school in the background of my life; I’d gotten a degree that a lot of people in my life implied was useless, and with every break I took I felt more and more like an imposter. What’s a writer who doesn’t write? Had I gotten my degree for nothing? I trudged on through grad school and received my Masters in May. It still didn’t feel right. I felt like a failure.

Every time I logged on to talk to friends or check my comments, a voice in the back of my head kept popping up. I was getting older and less motivated. Life outside of undergrad hit me all at once. Nothing I wrote felt good enough to post. The amount of debt I was in already made me ill, and I went through four years of schooling just to feel like the degree I earned was for nothing.

There’s a weird misconception that artists have to be suffering to make good art. We have to be low to do our best. And I was low, lower than I had been since the absolute worst days of my life, and I still couldn’t produce anything. The pain wasn’t enough to jump-start me. What worth did I have, then? What worth does someone who has put their heart into their writing have if they can’t write anymore?

I mistakenly felt like I was an imposter among genuine people, like the friends I had made and the writers I admired were on the other side of a window, in a place I couldn’t get into. When the pandemic rolled around, things had already been teetering on the edge. I won’t sit here and pretend that I got hit any worse than anyone else during 2020— I had a roof over my head and a place to go during my state’s lockdown. But there was ample time, and yet I still wasn’t writing. I couldn’t even do that right. I had to rawdog my mental illness for a stretch, live in a town where the worst trauma of my life had happened to me, and feel like a total, complete, garbage failure every single day. Logging in was more and more of a reminder that I was dead weight.

Financially, I wasn’t doing much better. In the past year or so, I’ve had to provide for myself living on my own on an nonprofits’s pay (not much), as well as occasionally provide for my uncle. I’d thought that by my mid-twenties my life would be different; that I’d be better. In the last few months, it’s become clear that I require surgery for something that may not yet be able to be covered by my insurance; my options now are to wait for it to progress and get worse for coverage or pay out of pocket for the surgery sooner. It’s likely I will need a second one afterwards to completely correct my issues.

For a while, that just made the idea of writing again feel selfish. Why spend time interacting with the community when I should be working to make money because I wasn’t eligible for the stimulus? Why sit down and write something that I would probably just scrap anyway? There’s a lot of other more personal things that happened during my absence that I won’t delve into, including the passing of our family dog. I’m sorry if this seems vague as well, or if it appears that I’m just trying to make excuses— I’m not. Ever since I was younger, I’ve always kind of receded in on myself any time I feel anxious or like a phony. I know it’s not a good habit.

So that’s why I’m here right now, writing this. If I could go back and tell myself that those things I thought about myself weren’t true— that I deserve to have fun in this community and I deserve to talk to the people I care about— I would. But unfortunately, I can’t do that. All I can do is move forward.

I’m not going to sit here and promise that things will be the way that they were back when I first started; not right away, at least. But as of lately I’ve been letting myself peek at my Tumblr dash every so often or log into my Ao3 to see my comments. Those things used to scare me— and they still kind of do right now— but I can’t let them anymore. Joining this community is one of the best things I have ever done. I mean that. The people I’ve met, the comments I’ve received, hell even the discourse I’ve jumped in on— I wouldn’t trade any of it. Things might be overwhelming for a little bit as I adjust to being back after so long, but I want to be here. I want to let myself be happy again.

If you’ve read this far— thank you. Thank you so much for your love and for your patience. Like I said before, I cannot stress enough that my absence was because of myself alone and had nothing to do with my amazing friends on here or the community. If I haven’t messaged you in a long time— again, I apologize. I really, really did drop off. But the only way I can be better at being consistent with the people I care about is by holding myself accountable, not shrinking away.

It may take me a few days to really sort through all of my unread messages and comments and asks and give them the attention they deserve. But I promise, I’ll reach out to everyone whenever I’ve taken the time to do so. Thank you all for being there even when I am not.

Tl;dr—Mentally and financially, I’ve been struggling a lot this past year. I fell back into bad habits of receding into myself and leaving people in the dark, and I really wish I hadn’t. I’d love to be a more active part of this community again. I love all of you so, so much. 

[sasuhinasno1fan]

Finding your soulmate an in unexpected place- Lukadrien June Day 11

I finished it, I didn’t think I would but I suddenly thought of a Host AU from Stephaine Meyer and deiced to try and fit it in here. I move tomorrow so between working, I was trying to finish this. I hope you like it. Heads up, there is a warning as there’s mention of violence in trying to kill, an unnamed person dying and I guess the general violent stuff The Host had. Soulmate

Adrien held tight to the control he had on his body. He didn’t need Felix pulling another Kim incident, not with Lila glaring at him and muttering comments he could hear.

“Either shut up and serve us or get lost.” Luka snapped, clearly getting annoyed. “Not that you ever lift a finger unless ordered or ever do a good job anyway.”

She let out a huff and dropped the serving spoon, storming off. The other people in the line just let out a groan, a few mentioning how Fu was gonna throw her to other sections for her to work.

“You didn’t have to do that.” Adrien said, taking a plate from Luka, since he insisted on holding them both.

Using his free hand to serve themselves, Luka pointed out, “Did you want Felix to say something? I could tell you were holding hard to keep him from taking over.”

“Would have still been hilarious if how he went off on Kim was any indication.” Someone behind him said.

While it did prove to the rest of the group that Felix was still in his body, the constant grapple the two had when Felix decided to insult Kim back, when he blocked Adrien and started yelling at him being a parasite had been embarrassing overall. With Felix throwing scathing comments and Adrien apologizing a second later or begging Felix to stop, it wasn’t something he wanted to relive.

Hey, the asshole deserved it! Felix yelled in his head, his sudden volume causing Adrien to flinch. And she deserves a few scathing remarks, see how she likes it.

“Please stop.” Adrien muttered.

“Being loud again?” Luka asked, leading them to a free seat by Marc and Nathanial.

“And rude.”

It’s not rude if it’s true. But fine, I’ll behave.

Adrien doubted it would last long but kept his mouth shut. Marc and Nath had their noses in their respective books, being writer and artist respectively. Their jobs might have disappeared once the Souls landed on their planet but with Adrien helping with supply runs because of him being a Soul, they were able to restock on their items and get back into it. Rarely were the couple seen without a note book and pencil.

“Oh, Adrien, I had a question.” Marc asked, realising the two were there halfway through their meal.

“I can’t tell you the rest of the story again.” Adrien said, assuming what Marc would ask. Along with helping with supply runs, he was also teaching those interested about the different plants since the Souls had gone to – Invaded – at least 15 other planets and Adrien had been to most of them. Marc had gotten curious and bugged Adrien to finish one of his stories, which later upset some of the others. Felix said it was like when you watch ahead of a show, you’re watching with someone. Adrien didn’t get it, but he also didn’t want to upset anyone again.

“No, not that. Tempting, but not that. I was wondering if Souls believe in the idea of soulmates?”

“Soulmates? Are they a species?”

“More important,” Luka interrupted, “why were you thinking of that?”

“Well, I was trying to think of things I did before you know, things happened, with the writing community. Challenges I guess to get me back into it. One of them was listing all the troupes you like by ranking and I remembered that soulmates was one of my tops. I’m sure you can understand why I don’t fully love the idea, but it made me think. Do you guys have soulmates?”

Adrien looked at Luka, still not fully getting it.

“Basically, soulmates are people who are your perfect match. When people say they’re in love, they say they’ve found their perfect match, the one person they can’t live without.”

“So a lifemate? The Bears had that, and the Flowers.”

“Yes, basically that. Do Souls have mates?” Marc asked.

Adrien shrugged. “Not really. We only really ever encountered it with the Bears and Flowers. The practise was kept. Though, there have been times where two Souls find each other and have this instant connection, but it’s so rare. At most it’s like here, they find someone and stay with them. it’s not a decision we take lightly.”

“So no breakups. There’ve been times where it’s been pointed out that just because 2 people are soulmates, doesn’t mean they’re right for each other.”

“No, no break ups.”

“Huh, maybe soulmates aren’t bad after all.” Marc said.

“Don’t let Lila and her band of followers hear you say that. Come on, we have to help with laundry.” Nath reminded, getting up. “We’ll see you two later.”

With the two gone, Adrien focused on his food, knowing he’d need the energy for supply check he and Luka had to do after this.

“I have a question.” Luka asked, after draining his cup. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but say a Bear has a mate and then it has a Soul placed into it. What happens to its mate? The Bear’s mate?”

“It has the Soul’s mate placed into it. The idea of lifemates is something we Souls love, something we appreciate. If they have a mate, we use their memories to make sure they stay together.”

“So love is important then?”

Adrien nodded, “It is.”

Luka smiled. “Good. It’s nice to know no matter what, they keep mates together.”

Of course he likes it. Felix said. When he felt Adrien’s confusion, he continued. Well, he’d love nothing more than to be your soulmate. I mean it’s so obvious he likes you.

Adrien choaked on whatever he had in his mouth, some vegetable from the soup. Luka, like Adrien? No way.

“Are you ok? Was it Felix?”

Why am I always the first to be blamed?

Adrien would have replied with this actually being his fault but he was too busy trying to breath. Once he fully swallowed what was in his mouth, he could finally think. Luka did not like Adrien like a soulmate did. He just didn’t. besides, Adrien didn’t like him like that.

“Here. Are you ok? What happened?” Luka asked, handing him a cup of water.

“I’m fine. Um, I forgot Max wanted to see me. I’ll see you in the supply room, ok?”

Souls didn’t lie, or at the very least Adrien didn’t, but he guessed his sudden change of topic made it easy for Luka to not notice. He darted out of the dinning room. The colony was massive, filled with tunnels, some of which the group still didn’t know about. Without needing a babysitter every minute, Adrien had taken it upon himself to go exploring some of them. there was one just off the tunnel that led to the waterfall that Adrien liked. The water wafting from that nearby fall made the area cool and maybe it was the Soul part of him that liked chilled areas. He flopped onto the floor, trying to wrap his head around what Felix had said. Luka liked him?

Yeah. I mean, he was on everyone else’s side of not liking you, and then he changed his mind.

“So did a lot of other people!”

Yes, but remember, he was there to try and kill you with the others.

Not a memory Adrien enjoyed. It had been his first night, ‘locked’ in the supply room with Bridgette taking guard. He remembered that Bridgette, despite hitting him within seconds of seeing each other, refused to let anyone else guard him. Luka and one other person tried overpowering her, while Kim slipped past to try and strangle him. Felix always called Bridgette strong and she showed it by actually kicking all 3 attackers butts and leaving Adrien more scared of humans. Fu eventually released Adrien from his jail to get used to life and Luka had been one of the few people who actually looked when Adrien was in the room. He didn’t complain if they ever had to work together and when Xavier-Yves tries attacking him when Bridgette wasn’t around, Luka had been the one to stop him. He apologized and before Adrien knew it, he was usually around helping him. He’d gone from this person he’d been scared of to a person he could depend on. Luka had started seeing past just the Soul and saw Adrien.

But there was no way he liked Adrien.

Yes, Felix said, sounding tired, he does. You see how much he looks out for you and how he never treats you different since he apologized. Plus, let’s be honest, he always knows what you’re thinking and is always looking out for you and he’s not living in your head.

“Bridgette and Marinette look out for me. They like me too. Bridgette is who I like.”

Adrien, I don’t think you do. Marinette might have always liked you, but Bridgette didn’t. look, I love her to death, but she was willing to hurt you before she knew I was in here too. I don’t think I’ll ever find someone again, so I like her a lot, so much so I would do anything to keep her safe. No Soul has ever had to deal with what we’re dealing with right? So they wouldn’t know the affects. I think the reason they pair mates with mated Souls is because of residual feelings. They associate those feelings with the person in front of them, so adding those residual feelings with your actual ones, you’re even more in love. When you first saw memories of her, what did you think?

What did he think? He…thought he was in love. But it wasn’t immediate.

It grew when we found them again and my feelings came back tenfold. Adrien, you think you like Bridgette but I don’t think you do. You just associate her with the feelings and latched onto mine when we saw her again. I mean, come on, you feel awkward around her now that she’s so nice to you. do I think she likes you, yes, I do, but not like that and not like Luka feels. I think she thinks she does but I wouldn’t be surprised if you did ask her and she couldn’t give you an answer.

Was Felix, right? Were his feelings for Bridgette residual, not even real? Bridgette hadn’t been the nicest and Adrien still swore by liking her but Luka had changed and he felt more comfortable with him.

Adrien mulled over it for what felt like forever. He waved off Luka’s question if he was ok, knowing he wasn’t fooling him. Marinette, Bridgette’s younger cousin, asked as well but took his word when he said he was ok. He should have known Luka would have gotten tired of Adrien being weird eventually. Luka had shoved him a familiar bandana and waited until his vision was blocked before dragging him somewhere. Once he felt the breeze across his face, he knew he was outside.

“Where are you taking me?” he asked, trying not to stumble over the rocky plane.

“You’ll see. There’s a rock you need to climb here.”

If he kills us, he’d be the greatest actor ever.

Adrien decided to not respond.

“Ok. Now back up with me, there’s a rock you can sit on.” Once Adrien was seated, he felt Luka sit next to him as well. “Now take your blindfold off.”

Adrien knew he was outside, but it seemed like he was at the top of the mountain their home was in. the setting sun was casting pinks and purples on the land below.

“Wow.” He said, taking the view in.”

“I thought you might like it.” Luka said, smiling down at him when Adrien looked over. “You’ve been acting so weird I thought you were starting to get stir crazy.”

“Sorry.”

“I thought we agreed you’d stop apologizing so much. Besides, I can’t blame you.” Luka said, closing his eyes and letting his head drop back, taking in the wanning sun. “I miss going out too.” A content smile grew on his face.

‘I like his smile.’

Oh. Oh.

Oh indeed. Now do you see what I mean?

Adrien did. He was starting to understand that if something as simple as Luka’s smile made him happy, then he had feelings for him that were deeper than the ones he had for Bridgette. When it had started Adrien couldn’t pinpoint, but this was more. Adrien wouldn’t sure if he’d consider Luka his soulmate though.

He is, trust me.

“Are you ok?” Luka asked, noticing Adrien was staring at him.

This time Adrien was telling the truth. “I’m fine.”

                                              __________________

Adrien looked over at Bridgette who was stretched out on one of the beds, flipping through the channels. Luka was in the shower, leaving the two alone. Since realising how he felt about Luka, Adrien wanted to test something. Bridgette was obviously jealous when it came to Luka and Adrien, which made him think Bridgette felt the same, but since learning about the residual feelings, Adrien was starting to think Bridgette just thought Luka was interested in Felix. Now he had the chance to find out.

“Bridgette?”

“Yeah?” she asked, not looking away from the TV. Luka would have given him his full attention. He was starting to see the flaws.

“I need to ask you something.”

She finally looked over. “What’s wrong?”

“Do you love me?” he saw that he threw her. “And when I say me, I don’t mean my looks, because I know you love Felix. I meant me. Adrien. If I had a different body and you knew me, would you say you love me?”

“Um, well…” she sat up and looked at him. “I do care about you.”

“I know you do, but do you love me?”

He watched her open her mouth, struggling to say something. He also felt Felix utterly relieved.

“It’s ok. Trust me, I’m not mad. And you can stop being jealous of Luka, Felix is pretty sure he doesn’t like him. Can you tell Luka to meet me outside?” Adrien said, leaving Bridgette to get what he was trying to say.

He found a bench close to their room but as far away from the front desk as possible and not near any light that would reflect off his eyes but not Luka’s.

Are you gonna do it? Tell him?”

“Maybe. I also don’t know why you were worried. You know she loves you.”

Yeah, but I’m essentially dead. I could have been wrong on her end. Even been wrong when it comes to her before. But not like you weren’t relieved too. It makes how you feel pretty clear huh?

It did. Knowing the feelings weren’t returned made it clear to Adrien who he really had feelings for.

“Hey, what’s up?” Luka had his sweatshirt’s hood up, even with the new fake mark they made to make other Souls think he wasn’t a normal human. His sunglasses were hanging from the front.

Adrien pointed at the sky. He’d chosen their stopping point for a reason. It was the farthest from the city lights. “I thought I could repay you for the sunset.”

“Well, can’t argue with that.” Luka dropped down on the seat next to him, looking up at the stars. “I told you about how Jules and I used to live on a boat right? Mom would show us the constellations. The big and little dipper where the ones I could always spot. That’s what sailors use to find their way around the seas.”

“I’ve seen so many constellations. But I like the Earth ones more. The stories behind them say more.”

“Yeah, we can thank the Greeks and Romans for that.”

Adrien glanced over at Luka before saying, “I asked Bridgette if she loved me. She doesn’t, just Felix.”

“Are, you ok?” he asked slowly.”

“I am. I realised a while ago I don’t actually love her. I care for her, like I do Marinette, but not love. Those were Felix’s feelings that I held on to. It makes sense, I didn’t know her yet I thought I was in love with her. I just wanted to make sure she didn’t feel the same.”

“Oh. Well, good. I mean,” Luka seemed to be at a loss for words.

“It’s ok, really.” Adrien said, silencing Luka. he could tell him now. But what if Felix was wrong? What if he only liked Felix’s face but not the Soul inside?

Easy Adrien, you don’t have to say it now. Just, wait until it feels right.

Felix was right, he could wait.

Except he couldn’t. when they got back to the tunnels, they found out someone was dead. Because Adrien’s Seeker. It’d been a whirlwind after that, having to talk to the abrasive woman who started the bond he and Felix had, the funeral, teaching Max how to remove Souls without killing anyone, sending the Seeker away and finally the realization of what he had to do.

No, NO. you can’t do this! This is your life too. You can’t just leave. What about Luka?

Luka. Luka would understand.

Oh yeah, tell him then. Tell him what you plan on doing and tell him how you feel. He won’t pat you on the back and wish you well, and neither would Bridgette, no matter how she feels.

“I thought I’d find you here.”

Adrien looked up and saw Luka at the entrance of the cooler tunnel he like. They’d gotten back from sneaking the Seeker’s Soul to a transportation facility and he’d darted off the minute they got back to go over what he’d realised.

“Huh?”

“You like cooler places, so I thought you’d be near the waterfall. How are you feeling?”

Adrien wanted to say fine, but instead he got up and walked up to Luka. he looked down at him with his blue eyes, confused but not saying anything. Luka knew him, inside and out.

Tell him or I swear, I’ll take over and do it myself.

“I like you. the way Bridgette likes Felix. I have for a while and I wanted to tell you, but I got scared. I’ve never told this to anyone, I thought I never would.”

“Adrien.” Luka said softly. He didn’t look nervous or uncomfortable. That content smile was growing on his lips.

“Felix teased me and said you wanted to be my soulmate but I didn’t believe him.”

Then Luka’s brow furrowed and then he started to look nervous. And angry.

“Adrien. Tell me the truth. You showed Max how to remove a Soul. Did you do it so he’d do it to you?”

Adrien opened his mouth to lie, but Luka always saw through his lies. “How?”

“You know about the heart song thing. that’s how I gauge people’s emotions. Telling me you feel this way should be happy, but you sound miserable.”

“How do you know it’s not because I think you like Felix?” why was he trying to push this away? He knew Luka had figured him out.

“I’m not interested in Felix; I couldn’t be if I tried!”

Hey!

“So you have his face, big deal. I didn’t fall for you because of how you look. I fell for you because of the kind of person you are. Your kind and caring, even to those who don’t deserve it. You have so much love to give and every time you think you don’t matter; it kills me inside. So I know why you’re doing this and I’m begging you, please don’t.”

“But Felix…”

“What about him? You matter just as much! If you do this, you’d be hurting so many more people. You can’t do this. Adrien please.”

There were tears, a lot of them and Luka had dragged Fu into it, begging for a tribunal to make the decision, which he’d agreed to. Before he knew it, he was in Luka and Juleka’s room, empty for Juleka no doubt being with Rose.

“I’m not letting you out of my sight.” Was Luka’s excuse.

Luka was still pacing, steaming while Adrien sat on his mattress. He’d stayed with Luka for a while before Bridgette got Marinette to ask him to stay with them, so he was familiar with the space.

“Please sit down.” Adrien asked.

Luka sighed before dropping down next to Adrien. “You can’t ask me to accept this. I thought you were in love with Bridgette and to hear you weren’t, I finally thought, this is it. I can tell him. But instead you tell me you’re giving Felix his body back?”

“I told you I love you too.”

“That’s not funny. When you said that thing about soulmates and didn’t say a word about how thought it was true, that hurt. Adrien, you might not believe it, but I do.”

Adrien felt like crying again. Though he was getting close with his eyes filling up. “This hurts.”

“Then don’t do it.” Luka said, pulling Adrien’s head closer to rest their foreheads together. “Please don’t.”

Adrien leaned in closer and kissed him. He’d only ever kissed Bridgette, who did it to see if Felix was actually still there and help pull him out after Adrien blocked him. He liked this better, it was soft and slow and it meant something.

It kept it on his mind when Luka eventually fell asleep and didn’t wake when Adrien pulled from his arms. He pressed a kiss onto Luka’s cheek. “I believe Felix now. You are my soulmate.”

Adrien, please don’t do this. I mean, I don’t love Luka kissing my body but he loves you and that’s all that matters.

“You’d get Bridgette and Marinette back. Luka will move on.”

He’d reached Max’s office and saw everything set up.

“Thank you for everything.”

You’re my brother and I don’t want you to do this.

“Ready?” Max asked, putting his supplies next to the cot.

“I’m ready.”

                                         _________________

“Adrien, wake up. Come on, I have to yell at you for disappearing.”

“Wow, yelling at your soulmate. Nice.”

“You want to yell at him too.”

“Of course I do. Clearly yelling in his head doesn’t work.”

“Shh, I think he’s moving.”

He knew those voices. Luka, Marinette, Felix?

Adrien forced his eyes – eyes? – open and stared up at the rocky celling. He also saw Luka, Marinette, Bridgette, Max and Felix looking down at him.

“Didn’t think you could get rid of us that easily, did you?” Felix asked. It was strange to see the face he’d been wearing staring back at him without the use of a mirror.

“Here.” Marinette held a mirror up to him. A new face stared back at him.

“I look like Felix.” His voice was slightly higher than he was used to. His eyes were green and his hair more golden than Felix’s lighter blonde. The face shape was different too but he still looked like Felix.

“That’s what I thought when we saw you.” Marinette said, sounding proud of herself.

Adrien pushed himself up. He didn’t feel weak but his body felt different. He felt slimmer but he could still feel muscle. “How?”

“Turns out Luka isn’t the only one who can tell what you’re thinking.” Felix said, looking at Bridgette.

“I got here just after Max finished you. he was going to tell us anyway. Felix found me and Luka and we went to go look for a body. Well, me, Felix and Marinette. Luka stayed with you.”

“I didn’t want to leave you. I didn’t care what you looked like so I stayed, helped Max put you back after we were sure this Host didn’t have a human still inside. You look pretty in your Soul form.”

The same content smile, the one Adrien realised was one that only he saw, was flashed at him.

“You wanted me to stay?”

“How many times do I have to say it? Adrien, I love you and that’s not going to change.”

Adrien wasn’t impulsive. He thought things through and was sort of a diplomate in matters. But this was different. He took Luka’s face in his hands and kissed him, sighing happily at the same feeling being there the last time he kissed him.

“Don’t run off again.” Luka said before kissing him again before Felix yelled at them to stop.

He wouldn’t, not after he found his soulmate.

[marrys-dream-world]

if we’re bound to be something, why not together? (chapter 12)

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Notes: I posted on AO3 yesterday and forgot to post here sooo...  I was having a huge writer's block with this fic and I'm still not satisfied with this chapter, but I also don't think it's gonna get any better. Hope you guys enjoy it anyway. Day 12 (what a joke by this point saldkqçkwdqpo) Blush. The beginning of the chapter is a bit off topic but I love it so pls bear with me. Have another one of my Emilie hot takes ig. 

Adrien Agreste was a man of science. 

It was, perhaps, his mother’s fault. His father was clearly the unholy mix of a man of the arts and a businessman, combining the worst of both worlds, if Nino was to be believed. Adrien let out a soft protest at that, but couldn’t really disagree. His father was all cold businessman and artist with a vision (Plagg often asked what vision it could be if he went dressed around like that and allowed Adrien to wear orange shoes, however, kwamis weren’t allowed fashion opinions so he didn’t pay attention to that). His mother was a completely different story.

Many people thought Emilie Agreste was an artist, through and through. After all, even with her outstanding beauty and ridiculous wealth, she worked in indie films and plays that managed to catch her fancy, managing her time between productions that made waves across France and small movies produced by a friend that had few copies to spare. Adrien knew better. His mother was also a gifted scholar, she loved studying things and figuring them out.  He had asked her, when he was young, why she traveled so much and put so many acting jobs aside, and she had said acting was a hobby, learning was her life.

Like mother, like son then. Being an impressionable young child with only one friend and copious amounts of free time in his hands, Adrien tried to mirror the behaviour of the person he admired the most: his mother. He would join her in her study, very unlike father’s, which was a little messy and always warm and welcoming and he was always allowed in before she got sick and everyone stopped caring about him. He would sit beside her in the little desk she commissioned just for him and study basic science, devouring book after book

and falling in love with the way the world just worked.

“I’m gonna be a scientist when I grow up!” He said once at the dinner table. His mother smiled indulgently, but his father wasn’t as kind. 

“Don’t be foolish, Adrien.” He admonished. “You won’t waste your time with such things, you’ll work with me as a model. We can’t let your perfect looks go to waste.”

His mother didn’t say anything to defend him, she never did. However, she winked at him as his father’s eyes left him. He straightened up then, that little gesture never failing to make him feel like they both knew something his father didn’t. These days, Adrien feels like maybe he hadn’t know anything at all. 

Anyway, no matter how much his father tried to discourage him, Adrien Agreste was still a man of science and that meant experiments! He would usually not try out a behavioural experiment, but it was, as a lot of good stuff in his life was, Nino’s fault. Both had been discussing an art project with Alya and Marinette...

"This is really good, Marinette." He said sincerely, leafing through her and Alya's booklet.

Marinette seemed to shrink, blushing a little and smiling awkwardly, a sharp contrast to Alya, who only puffed up.

"I know, right?" Alya grinned, slipping her arm over Marinette's shoulder.

"I-it's nothing, really. Just a school project hehe." Marinette, taking the book back as Adrien offered.

"Everyone did theirs, but yours is a standout." Adrien said, smiling softly. Her work was amazing and he would say it as many times as it would take for her to believe it.

Marinette turned beet red at that, stammering something incomprehensible and dashing out of the classroom's door. Alya cracked out a laugh, quickly following after her. He watched them confusedly, scratching the back of his neck.

"Dude, you gotta stop doing that." Nino said, sighing. 

Adrien raised an eyebrow. "Doing what?"

"Being all earnest and stuff." Nino answered, clasping his hands together and widening his eyes in a mockery of his best friend. "Oh, Marinette, you're so talented! You're so smart! You're so-"

"I don't talk like that." Adrien pouted. He didn't, did he?

"Yeah, you do." His friend snorted. "It drives the girls wild, even the ones that don't have a crush on you."

"You say that like a lot of girls have a crush on me." He rolled his eyes, other than his fans, the only ones who had a crush on him were Chloe and, the jury was still out on that one, Lila. 

Nino gulped. "I mean, yeah, because of your fans and all! Not Marinette, she doesn't have a crush on you at all! She doesn't like you, even. She barely likes you as a friend!"

His heart fell. "Marinette barely likes me as a friend?"

"No! That's not what I meant!" Nino groaned. "Marinette does like you as a friend, okay, dude? I just word-vomited for no reason. Just don't go around being all you like that on her, she'll blush so hard she'll explode."

“Nino, you’re exaggerating.” Adrien had said, rolling his eyes.

“Yeah, you say that now, but try it with any girl and see how they react.” Nino answered, mockingly rolling his eyes back. 

He had shrugged at the time, but the question stayed in the back of his mind. Adrien was aware that he was good-looking, it was maybe the only thing his hard-to-please father ever complimented him on, but to make even girls that weren’t attracted to him blush? It seemed very far off. However, he knew his mind wasn’t going to let it go anytime soon. Adrien had a bad habit of not letting things go, Plagg said. So it looks like conducting an experiment was  on the table and there was only one girl he would be comfortable trying it out with.

"Thanks, Marinette." Adrien said as he picked up a macaron from the box she brought to share with the class.

She flushed slightly, nothing so out of the usual that it would prove Nino's theory. "Y-you're welcome, Adrien."

"Did you help your dad make them?"

"Oh, I made them myself, I had some time to go to the kitchen lately." She said, eyes lighting up. "I missed it."

"It tastes great, Marinette." He said, making sure to smile and soften his gaze a little. It was actually hard to not do that around his friend, after all. "You're really talented."

Her face went fire truck red in a matter of seconds, mouth falling open and eyes going a little glazed over. Nothing out of the usual, but that was the thing: Marinette was always like that around him. Whenever he talked to her, a pretty blush would fill her cheeks and her blue eyes would go wide. Was he really so powerful that being earnest was enough to make a girl that only saw him strictly platonically blush like that?

“It’s our raw magnetism, kid.” Plagg told him solemnly when Adrien explained his theory. “Nothing we can do about it, girls better watch out.”

They spared a minute of silence for all the girls struck by their lady killer charms. 

“Hey, Plagg, when you say all girls…” His lady’s adorable face flashed in his mind.

“Yeah, no, kid, dream on.”

However, it must be said again: Adrien Agreste is a man of science and he would never fail to experiment on a hypothesis. 

Their next patrol was quiet, jumping through the rooftops and climbing down to comfort civilians separately. He could feel Ladybug’s eyes boring into his back at every confused glance she threw his way. The silence unsettled her, he knew that, but as much as he wanted to reassure her, he also had to create the perfect setting for his experiment. 

“A bit quiet today, weren’t you, Chaton?” His lady asked when they finally settled down, nonchalant tone costrating with her twitching fingers.

“Oh, I was just struck speechless.” He said, voice purposefully serious as to not arouse suspicion. 

“By what?” Ladybug frowned. 

“By you.” He smiled and she started to roll her eyes when he continued. “You’re really kind, my lady.”

She blinked owlishly. “What?”

“Every time I turn my back to you on patrol, when I look back you’re talking to someone. Comforting that little girl whose ice cream fell, getting that kite stuck in a tree. It’s not even just today, you always do that. I’ve never met anyone who does it as effortlessly as you do.”

The words flew easily from his tongue. Complimenting Ladybug was often easier than not.

“You’re really kind, Ladybug.” He repeated, only to see her face darken until her cheeks settled into a rosy pink. 

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but closed it again when she noticed it was hanging open. Her blue eyes went wide and shiny. It was the prettiest sight he had ever seen.

Maybe being a man of science has its perks sometimes. 

[beachknit]

MYSTERIOUS AUTHOR OF SIGNED, VENUS, "THE WRITER," FOUND

Sorry for the clickbait title. Pretty soon it won't be clickbait, though, and that's what this post is about!

If you don't already know, my name is Hayden. Welcome to my blog! Loyal readers might notice that all my old posts are gone… don’t worry, they’ve just been archived to a different site, and I will be sure to send everyone who was following before this post (which, honestly, wasn’t many people) a link so you can still read those old posts if you’d like. But for what I’m about to do, I think a fresh start and introductions are warranted!

Those of you who are from Coast Venus yourselves (which, I believe, will probably be the majority of you) will be excited to hear that the mystery we've all been keeping tabs on for the last ten years is about to be unravelled. Yes, that's right, I'm talking about the anonymous author behind Signed, Venus. The person, the myth, the Coast Venus legend themselves... The Writer!

To start this off with a bang, I have managed to identify and track down the slightly-less-enigmatic illustrator of Signed, Venus to their home here on Coast Venus's beach. Please do not try this at home, though, readers, for in most cases, it is rude to blatantly disregard the privacy and boundaries of others.

Now, I know what you Coast Venus skeptics are thinking, but rest assured: by the time you've finished reading this post, you will be completely convinced that I, Hayden, am the best and most worthy person for the job! But before we get to that, let me explain to our readers from out of town just why any of this matters.

Coast Venus is a little town in the country of Conclaire. If you've heard of us, it's probably because the town is known as a hotspot for authors and creatives. I copied this description from the town's official website, but we've been described as "Everyone's dream vacation, with breathtaking ocean views, world-class resorts, and famously friendly locals who will inspire with storytelling and poetry." The really important thing is that writing means a LOT to us here. You won’t find a person in this town who doesn’t at least read regularly, and I’m told that our local budget for literary arts is much higher than the international average.

The second most important thing to pay attention to is that, apart from Coast Venus, travel to other towns in Conclaire is generally off-limits. There’s a bunch of history behind that, blah blah, but basically for the last eighty or so years travel throughout Conclaire (except for Coast Venus, of course) has been almost completely unheard of. Almost.

Until The Writer did it. The first issue of Signed, Venus was published roughly ten years ago. In it, The Writer explained that they are breaking Conclaire’s travel taboo, going to the different towns, and recording what they find for publication here in Coast Venus. Signed, Venus is the only modern source of knowledge about what the rest of Conclaire is like. It’s such an important project for anyone who is interested in learning more about Conclaire, and The Writer conveys their findings with a unique and personal flair. Signed, Venus is my absolute favourite creative work, and I highly recommend that all of you check it out if you haven’t already.

Now, of course, there is a catch to all of this: nobody actually knows who The Writer is. We know that they’re from Coast Venus (or claim to be), and that they work with a local artist who illustrates and publishes each issue of the series. We know a bit about their personality from their writing, but we don’t actually have any identifying information other than that. Signed, Venus is published completely anonymously, and The Writer has only earned the moniker of “The Writer” from Coast Venus locals discussing their work.

Thank you for bearing with me through that explanation, Coast Venus readers, and you’ll be glad to know we’ve reached the part you actually care about. Here are the five W’s for your convenience:

Who: Me, Hayden, and my partner, Kameron, in pursuit of The Writer of Signed, Venus

Where: We will be going on a road trip throughout five locations in Conclaire, visiting sites that The Writer talked about. Specifically, we will visit Arabella, Sayre, Quidel, Mulani, and Urbina

What: We’ll be meeting and talking to locals of these different towns mentioned in Signed, Venus to ask them about their encounters with The Writer and their impressions of them

Why: The Writer is known for exaggerating. Instead of trying to go straight to where The Writer is right away, we want to try to learn more about what they’re like as a person as part of the process of uncovering their identity. Talking to those who have actually met him will be a great way to get a sense of what their character is really like off the page

When: This plan has been in the works for years, actually, but the first tangible step is happening today!

Okay, I know the “why” didn’t really answer the question you’re actually asking, which is, what prompted this? Why now?

The answer can be found in the latest issue of Signed, Venus, #44, in the final paragraph:

“… with my hammering heart and a tank full of gas, ready to head into what will likely be the last chapter of Signed, Venus, I want to thank those loyal readers who've kept up with my journey over the years. And, if my vain hope I've nurtured all this time ever comes true, that someday these journals will inspire one of you to set out from Coast Venus and explore Conclaire yourself, I'd like to ask that you not come after me or try to identify me."

As you can see, The Writer clarifies here that they have hoped for Coast Venus readers to someday be inspired by Signed, Venus to explore the rest of Conclaire. They then request that those of us who do make that journey do not try to find The Writer.

I believe that The Writer is being purposely facetious here (see issue #31 where they explain at length about their use of reverse psychology when talking to River). In the ten years since the first issue of Signed, Venus was published, no one has ever tried to find and identify The Writer. Sure, there has been plenty of guesswork done as to The Writer’s identity, particularly with astute readers comparing his writing style to the writing of other famous Coast Venus authors, or looking up records of locals who have left town, but no one has actually tried to follow in The Writer’s footsteps for the purpose of uncovering their identity. Also, there haven’t been a lot of attempts to travel Conclaire. The ones who have left end up either returning fairly soon after, discouraged by how this country isn’t exactly built for tourism once you’re outside of Coast Venus, or they create no written record of their travels so it’s pretty well useless to the rest of us. Keeping all of that in mind, it’s curious that The Writer would even bother to mention this, right?

Well, not really. If you’ve read enough of Signed, Venus, you’ll recognize this as a clear sign of encouragement. The Writer mentioned that readers travelling Conclaire is their hope because it’s something that they want readers to do. They love a good twist and a challenge (as we can see from the entirety of the series…), and they’ve been carefully creating a mystery around their identity since the very first issue. There’s a reason that here in Coast Venus we refer to The Writer as our town’s very own urban legend - that is exactly how The Writer wants us to feel about them. Telling us not to try to identify them just makes their identity even more mysterious and intriguing. The Writer knows that, and that’s the entire reason that they said it - they want us to look for them, and they want us to find them.

This morning, Kameron and I took the first steps on our journey. Like I said at the beginning of the post, I’ve figured out who the elusive illustrator of Signed, Venus is and their place of residence. But what I didn’t mention is that today, we actually went over to their house to ask them about The Writer. It didn’t all go exactly according to plan… but that’s a topic for the next post!

Follow my blog to keep up-to-date with me and Kameron as we set out to find The Writer! :) You can also follow Kam on Instagram.

[thedarkplume]

Throwback Thursday

Dust off those browsers, friends. We’re gonna travel back in time to the stories that brought us into the fandom or the ones that have stuck with you through the years.

Share your super old faves and reblog them, showing the authors their classics are not forgotten. Leave them a love note showing them how much it means to you.

Then reblog the first story you wrote for your current fandom or even the first one you wrote for each fandom you belong to. The world is our oyster. Let’s rediscover some pearls.

I'm not going to lie. This Ask made me a little bit sad. There have been some really great writers on this site that have left us for unspecified reasons, and some for the childish bullying that seems to be a daily thing.

One of my favorite blogs was @chocolatecherubs. They were a blog that was written specifically for black female characters in the Marvel Universe, with Steve and Bucky as the central love interests, particularly during the 1940s.

However, all is not lost! There are still plenty of blogs that I follow and love and can always count on to provide the most entertainment you can achieve without picking up an actual book. One of the blogs who always delivers on this front regardless of the subject matter is the beautiful and talented @avintagekiss24 . I've been following her for a year and it has been a nonstop rollercoaster of fun, excitement, surprise, and even a little bit of heartbreak.

@avintagekiss24 has so many stories that I reread over and over again, it's nearly impossible to pick just one. But...if I did have to choose a classic in a split-second decision it would be Night Shift. This was my first time ever reading a story about Andy Barber and since then I have not stopped!

As for my own forays into fanfiction, I've written for Twilight, Harry Potter, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Cruel Intentions, a few WIPs for We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Knives Out, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and that's not counting all of the stories knocking around in my head vying for attention!

Here is a VERY old Buffy the Vampire Slayer story I wrote.

Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Pairing: Buffy/Angelus

Setting: 1700s, New Colonies

A/N: This story is a little different from the others I’ve written. This story is set in the days of Angelus’ life when Drusilla had just turned Spike. Bear with me if everything is not exactly up to par historically – I am not a history buff! NSFW 18+ Warnings for offensive language, subject matter, violence, blood, gore, and sexual abuse.

His features could not be termed uninteresting—there lay in them something bold and daring—but the expression on the whole anything but benevolent. There were contempt and sarcasm in the cold dark eyes, whose glance, however, was at times so piercing that no one could endure it long.

from The Mysterious Stranger (1860) – Anonymous

What is obsession? Is it the madness that consumes a man when he’s confronted with the one thing he knows he is not supposed to have? Is it the burning desire to possess the aforementioned object, ensuring that she will only think of him as he only thinks of her? Angelus paced back and forth in his chosen room of the mansion. Darla was still off reconnecting with Dracula and giving Angelus some much-needed breathing room. While she was off having her own adventures, he moved his childe and grandchilde to the American Colonies. They were in the colony named New York. Angelus loved the New Colonies. The women were not as sexually repressed, and the humans as a whole were more trusting. Since their arrival, government officials, writers, artists, scholars – everyone who held wealth and power had invited Angelus, his “sister” Drusilla and her husband William, to parties. There was nothing Angelus enjoyed more than drunk socialites.

And it was at one of these parties that he saw her. The object of his obsession. Elizabeth Anne Summers. Buffy, to those who knew her intimately. She had long, golden blonde hair, not unlike Darla’s, but hers had more of a silky texture. Her eyes were large and hazel, brimming with innocence. She had sun-kissed skin that seemed to glow underneath the moonlight.

Angelus wanted her. He wanted to bury his fangs and his cock inside her. Her scent proved that she was untried, but that would only last so long. Angelus found out everything he could about her. She was promised to the governor’s son. She lived with her parents Hank and Joyce Summers. She had a baby sister – Dawn – who caught pneumonia and died at the age of six. Her father worked as a developer for the colony and his wife owned a prominent boutique. She had two best friends, Willow Osbourne née Rosenberg and Alexander Harris, husband to the beautiful and licentious Cordelia Harris née Chase.

The first time Angelus spoke to her was at a party that was thrown by an oil barren. Angelus, as usual, found himself surrounded by three potential meals. Drusilla stood by William’s side, smiling proudly as he recited poetry. It was terrible, but the women thought it was the most beautiful thing they had ever heard.

“Do you hunt, Mr. McConroy?” one of the women – Mrs. O’Hara or something or another – said, pulling him from his thoughts.

Angelus flashed an enticing smile. “Why yes, Mrs. O’Hara. ‘Tis one of my many pleasures.”

She wet her lips and fluttered her eyes in what he was sure was meant to be attractive. “Well, in that case, you should come to my husband’s estate in the country. You two can hunt and later you could tell me more about your pleasures.”

“How can a man of sound mind resist such an enticing offer?” he said, kissing the back of her hand.

The woman continued to place unnecessary hints concerning secret rendezvous and Angelus almost lost control and snapped her neck on the spot until one of the younger women spoke up.

“There’s that Elizabeth Summers.”

Angelus’ attention immediately shifted, seeking out his dark obsession. She came in with her parents. Her large hazel eyes seemed sad, and Angelus suddenly wanted to seek out that which had caused her misery and destroy it. He wanted to be the sole source of any pain she felt. But he could not gaze upon his obsession in peace as one of the three women continued her verbal assault.

“How a strange girl like that was lucky enough to have a contract with Governor Finn’s son is baffling.”

“She is a strange one, Harmony,” Cordelia Harris vehemently agreed. “My husband says that she spends all of her time reading. Reading! Have you ever heard of such a thing?”

“Well, I hear that she wishes to become a writer! As if any respectable man would want anything written by a woman! A proper lady should spend her time learning to attend a household and concern herself with pleasing her husband.”

“Yes, well, we all know that Buffy,” she sneered the name. “Is as far from a lady as one can be. It baffles me why Alexander enjoys her company so. It’s embarrassing!” she glared as said husband made his way over to Buffy.

“I see nothing wrong with a properly educated woman, Mrs. Harris,” Angelus said, drawing their attention away from Buffy. “It would be refreshing to hear a woman contribute something to the conversation beyond how pretty the dresses are overseas.”

Cordelia Harris’ expression darkened so that if Angelus had been human, he might have been afraid. “Well,” she sniffed, highly offended. “It is upon the hour, and I believe I shall take my leave.” She stood and scowled at Angelus when he broke societal conventions and refused to stand when she did. “I bid you goodnight, Mrs. O’Hara, Harmony, Mr. McConroy.”

“Mrs. Harris,” his flourishing bow was meant and taken in all its mockery. He smirked as she huffed and stomped away. He watched her approach Buffy and Alexander, and used his enhanced hearing to listen in.

“…husband and I must be going,” she said in a clipped tone.

Buffy knew that her friend’s wife didn’t like her, but for Xander’s sake, she at least made an effort. “I am sorry that you must be leaving so soon. I hope you will feel well, Cordy.”

“Oh, Elizabeth, how many times must I remind you to call me Mrs. Harris?” she said tightly.

“Of course. I apologize.”

“Alexander.”

The dark-haired young man looked between his wife and his friend, wishing he could stay, but knowing he would never hear the last of it if he did. “Of course, dear. See you soon, Buffy.”

Her other friend, Willow, who had watched the scene from across the room, performed her usual damage control ritual. “You know I think one of these days he shall divorce her.”

“Willow!” she whispered, linking their arms. “You should not say such things.”

“Well, he should! I’m fairly certain the only reason he puts up with her is for the sex and we both know the pregnancy scare was the incentive for the marriage to start with…”

Angelus watched the two young women disappear out onto the gardens. “Ladies, if you will excuse me.” He left the woman at the table and sought out William. He didn’t have the same mental link with him as he did with Drusilla, but William could feel when his grandsire called him.

“You called?” he said, appearing moments later.

“Yes, I’m stepping out for a moment. Make sure no one sees Dru nibbling on the livestock.”

“Are you ever going to tell me what’s so special about this bird? I mean, she’s a cutie and all, but is she really worth our queen mother handing you your own arse?”

“What Darla doesn’t know won’t kill me.” Angelus knew William had a point. Darla was extremely jealous and possessive of him, but he was still sore around the edges where she was concerned, considering that she left him to die in a burning barn. Darla was his sire and that was a bond not easily broken, but nothing could reestablish the trust he lost for her. He glanced at Drusilla to see if she was keeping out of trouble and caught her thralling Harmony. “If you want the blonde as a party favor you should take her out of here. She’s as dumb as a post but has a pleasant peach scent to her.”

Angelus left his grandchilde to attend to Dru and followed Buffy’s scent through the large garden maze. She and her friend, Willow sat on a bench in front of a pond talking quietly.

“…says?”

“You mean when she’s not nursing a bottle? She blames me. She says even whores aren’t low enough to chase their own fathers,” she sniffled.

“Oh, Buffy, have you thought about telling Riley?”

“No, I can’t tell him, Will. If he thought for a moment that it’s gone further than a drunken fumbling, he’ll never speak to me again.”

“And right now, he’s your only way out,” Willow sighed in sympathy to her friend’s plight. “You know Oz and I will let you move in with us.”

“People will talk.”

“They’re already talking. One of New York’s most beloved sons married to a kike?”

“Willow!” Buffy admonished. “Don’t ever call yourself that.”

The redhead shrugged carelessly. “I have been called much worse. I am just telling you that Oz and I do not care what anyone else says about us.”

“I appreciate it. And if the wedding was happening later than next month I would say yes.”

“But what if he goes too far before Riley can save you?”

The unanswered question hung heavy in the air. Angelus seethed. He barely restrained himself from going back inside, grabbing Hank Summers and tearing off his worthless cock with his bare hands. It didn’t anger Angelus that the man was taking liberties with his daughter. It bothered him that his touch would not be the first she had known from a man.

“I should get back inside before Oz starts looking for me. Come with?”

“In a little while. I just want a little more time away from the noise.”

“Don’t take too long. Your parents,” she mumbled.

Angelus watched the Osbourne woman return to the party from his place in the shadows. He turned his attention back to Buffy realizing that they were finally alone. She leaned back, her hands flat on the bench and her face turned up towards the starlit sky. Her eyes were closed, and the subtle breeze disturbed the tendrils of silky tresses framing her face. Angelus had the perfect view of the golden skin of her smooth throat. His face shifted as he imagined sinking his fangs into her throat as her naked body writhed helplessly underneath his.

Buffy’s eyes suddenly snapped open. She stood and she looked around her as if sensing she was not alone. “Is someone there?” she called.

Angelus contained his excitement and returned to his human visage. “Just me,” he said, pretending as though he was simply out for a stroll through the garden’s maze. “Didn’t mean to frighten you.”

Buffy stared at the man before her. She was certain that she had never seen him around before. He was tall, very tall. He had long dark hair that was bound behind his head. He had a wide mustache and she wondered if it was as soft as his hair looked. He had dark eyes. Eyes that were mischievous and secretive. She started to believe she was dreaming. She always thought Riley was cute in a boyish way, but this man before her with the long brown hair, his piercing dark eyes and his enticing smirk was…beautiful. His smirk seemed to widen, and Buffy realized with startling clarity that she was rather rudely staring at him.

“No, you did not frighten me, sir,” she recovered.

“You are Elizabeth Summers, correct?”

“Yes, but everyone calls me Buffy.”

He took her hand – it seemed tiny and engulfed by his – and pressed a small kiss to it. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Buffy. I am Angelus McConroy.”

Recognition flashed in her large hazel eyes. “Of course, Mr. McConroy! You live in the Crawford’s old mansion. Your brother-in-law, William, is it? He ordered a gown from my mother’s boutique for your sister.”

Angelus suppressed another smirk. He had sent William on that particular mission to scout out the boutique and Buffy’s work hours, and to spread the word to the local undead community that she, her family and friends, were off limits.

“Yes, my family and I moved there a few months ago.”

Buffy fidgeted with her dress before resuming her place on the bench. “Would you…would you care to sit?” she offered timidly.

He flashed a dazzling smile and took his place beside her. “Now what is a lovely girl such as yourself doing out here all alone? It’s really not safe,” said the wolf to the rabbit.

Buffy glanced up at him and flushed as he stared down at her unblinkingly. “Oh, well, I just stepped out for a moment. Just for some air,” she shrugged.

“You don’t truly enjoy parties, do you?”

“They are…acceptable.”

“Ah, but a lass such as yourself would much rather be at home in front of the fire with a book. You prefer the silence and solitude to the noise and excitement.”

She flushed an attractive pink and looked up at him from under her lashes. “I realize that those are not exactly the qualities one looks for in a woman, but…”

“But you are far from a woman, lass. You’re still a wee child.” He watched appreciatively as her skin flushed a darker red.

“Sir, I will have you know that I am of sixteen years and will soon be a wife,” she said, not really succeeding in sounding offended.

“Yes, to Governor Finn’s lad no less. I find it difficult to see what it is the boy could have done to deserve the hand of such a fair lass.”

Her hazel eyes met his and she wore a smile befitting that of the most experienced of coquettes. “Do you tell all your ladies that, Mr. McConroy?”

“Only the pretty ones,” he smirked and wiggled his eyebrows.

She started laughing and Angelus thought it was the most enticing sound he had ever heard. “You are indeed a charmer, Mr. McConroy. If I may be so bold…?”

“You may.”

“Why is there not a Mrs. McConroy? A gentleman such as yourself should have amassed quite the number of prospects from the fairer sex.”

Angelus, seeing his opportunity, angled his body towards hers. “Perhaps it is because a man can only have ale for so long before he starts to long for a fine wine.”

He could hear her heart pounding in fear and excitement as their seemingly innocent conversation began to take a different turn. “But what if you’re not supposed to have the wine?” she breathed.

“That’s when it’s the sweetest.” His hand cupped her cheek and her eyes fluttered from the contact. “Look at me, Buff,” he commanded. “Look into my eyes.” Angelus knew he could have waited rather than jumping at the first opportunity to thrall her, but he was anxious to have her in his bed.

“You have pretty eyes.”

Angelus felt his eyebrows rise. You have pretty eyes? Angelus concentrated harder and Buffy flinched as he suddenly seemed to be scowling at her.

“What? Men can have pretty eyes,” she pouted slightly, thinking he was offended.

Angelus blinked. He surveyed her carefully, playing close attention not to let himself linger on her pouting pink lips. He didn’t understand how it was possible for her to resist his thrall. No one had ever resisted! The girl was obviously human. She smelled human. She had a heartbeat. What had gone wrong? His eyebrows knitted together as he ran through any and all explanations as to why his gift had failed him. He felt her warm hand press against his own.

“Angelus? Is something wrong?”

He recovered, wearing his signature smirk. “You think my eyes are pretty, do ye?”

Buffy fiddled with the sleeves of her dress looking anywhere but at him. “Yes, they resemble little pools of chocolate.” She felt his fingers lace through hers and looked down. She liked the way their hands fit.

“Now which one of us is the charmer here, Buff?” he watched her shiver as his fingers idly stroked hers.

“There you are!”

Buffy stood, withdrawing her hand from Angelus, completely missing his darkened expression. “Riley,” she said, her heart pounding heavily as though she’d been caught doing something terribly wicked.

“I have been searching all over for you, Bethie.”

He took her hand in his own, missing her subtle wince at the nickname she loathed. “Forgive me if I have caused distress. I only stepped out for a moment.”

“Your mother and father are looking for you. They –.” Riley stopped short when he saw movement behind Buffy. “Hello,” he said to the man who sat on the bench watching them unabashedly. “I do not believe we have met. I am Riley Finn, Elizabeth’s husband-to-be.”

“Oh, yes, the governor’s boy,” Angelus said, taking in the blue-eyed baby-faced boy with mocking eyes.

Although the sarcasm went completely over the boy’s head as he puffed out his chest and stood a little taller, Angelus smirk only grew when Buffy gave him a warning glare.

“Yes, yes, I am,” he said proudly.

“Riley, this is Mr. McConroy.”

Riley tensed slightly, something neither Angelus nor Buffy missed. “McConroy. You purchased the old Crawford Mansion.”

“Yes,” he confirmed, his eyes glinting slightly.

“Well, it was nice making your acquaintance, Mr. McConroy, but Elizabeth and I must be going.”

“Of course. Nice meeting you, Finn.” He turned his penetrating eyes to Buffy. He picked up her hand and gave her a lingering kiss that left her near breathless. “T’was a pleasure makin’ your acquaintance, Buffy.”

“Mr. McConroy,” she blushed.

Riley’s jaw clenched as he led Buffy away. But his annoyance over what he saw as a threat to his future wife was nothing compared to Angelus’ fury over Finn impeding the progress he had made.

“I do not trust that McConroy fellow,” he confided when they were of a safe distance away from him. Or so he thought. “He worries me.”

“Riley,” Buffy sighed. “Mr. McConroy is a nice man.”

“You know him well, then?”

“No. We only made acquaintance tonight.”

“Yet he already calls you Buffy.”

A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips. “Riley Finn, I do believe you are jealous.”

“Perhaps I am,” he admitted. “Do you find him attractive?”

Buffy blushed and lowered her eyes. “He is…agreeable. But it is you who will become my husband. Your name I will carry and your children I shall bear. Tell me once more why you are jealous?”

With a few well-executed words, Angelus could see Finn’s worries and inferiorities fade away. He leaned down and kissed her lips as carefully as if she were made of glass.

“Bethie?” he whispered, still holding her close.

“Yes?”

“If I asked you to do something, as your future husband, would you do it?”

Buffy tensed. Her small hands fisted the sides of his shirt as her mind twisted and turned over in itself. As her future husband, he could ask almost anything of her, and she was duty bound to obey. She trembled against him and swallowed the bile suddenly flooding her mouth. “Yes.”

“I wish for you to have no further contact with Mr. McConroy or any of his family.”

Buffy stepped back from him so that she could see into his eyes. “Riley, I have already told you that Mr. McConroy bears no threat to us.”

“But he does,” he argued. “Have you noticed the strange occurrences in our town?”

“Are you referring to Madeleine Archer?” Maddie Archer was two years younger than Buffy and had gone missing from her bed in the dead of night.

“Yes, as well as Rebekah Harte, Joshua Black, Edward Morton, Christine Adams, and countless others.”

“Riley, how do these unfortunate people pertain to you desiring distance between Mr. McConroy and myself?”

“They all vanished or perished inexplicably after McConroy, and his family took residence in the Crawford Mansion.”

“You are not suggesting…?” she gasped.

“There is something amiss about them. His sister is said to be touched in the mind, but there is more. She speaks in prophecies. Her husband, William, the poet, who may I say is not very good, he was seen with Rebekah Harte before she went missing. Then there is your new acquaintance. He never leaves the mansion during the day. He does not work and yet he attends every party and somehow amasses enough wealth to support his family. They have no servants or cooks. Their skin is unnaturally porcelain – must I go on?”

“Are you suggesting to me that Mr. McConroy, his sister and her husband may be…nefarious individuals?”

Riley smiled humorlessly. “Why does it frighten you to speak the word, Bethie? You once told me that what most would believe to be a monster, you see as a beast maintaining his nature.”

“I was referring to the work of Bram Stoker, Riley. Beasts exist, yes, but not of that sort, and certainly not amongst Mr. McConroy and his family.”

“You have always had faith in the most undeserving of creatures, Bethie.” He reached inside his trouser pocket and withdrew a silver cross on a chain.

“It’s beautiful.”

“I wish you to wear it whenever you leave the mansion.”

“Even in the sunlight?” she quipped.

“Even in the sunlight,” he answered, unaffected by her glibness. “All of the victims’ blood was drained through small punctures to the throat.”

Buffy paled as she gasped. “What? But you never said anything!”

“My father thought it was best that the families were not informed of this. It would lead to panic and at this time, the authorities have declared it a beast. Wear it. For me.”

“Okay,” she whispered, still struggling with the concept of the creatures she learned of as a child could truly exist beyond the pages of a novel.

Riley secured the cross around Buffy’s neck and exhaled in relief. “Now I believe we should find your parents. They can hardly fault a man for enjoying the company of his love.”

The couple left the garden arm in arm, completely oblivious to the heavy stare on their backs.

Angelus was beside himself with fury when the Finn’s and the Summers left the Hardy Mansion. He had covered his tracks and the tracks of his childe and grandchilde carefully. Yet, the Finn boy seemed to have linked all of their victims back to them. Although he tried his best to come across as noble and caring in Buffy’s eyes, the boy was far more concerned with her affections rather than her safety. The thought in itself caused a malicious smirk to befall his angelic features. They would have to be careful. Meticulous. One mistake and all would be lost. Nevertheless, Angelus would have Buffy Summers…even if he had to eviscerate every townsman to get her.

Angelus itched to relieve his fury and he knew just how to do it.

“Margaret, is it?” she was nothing. An aide in the Hardy household with the burden of a fatherless son. She was not remotely attractive, and her blood was not in the slightest appealing. But her polite smile and cautious eyes appeased him.

“Yes, sir.”

“I regret to bother you as I can see you are terribly busy, but I am afraid I require your assistance.”

“In what way, sir?” still so trusting.

“Come with me, please.”

Ah. There is the hesitation. “Very well, sir.”

He led her to a dark corner underneath the stairs hidden from the rest of the intoxicated socialites. “Ah, that’s better, isn’t it? Not complete privacy, but it should do for what I have in mind,” he said, letting his eyes drift over her, hoping to discomfort her. She predictably squirmed under his gaze, unaware that her used and aged body held no appeal for him.

“Sir, I…I should get back,” she stuttered, her heart pounding beautifully, forcing her blood to flow quicker through her arteries.

“Why not stay a while? After all, you did say you would help a fellow with his problem,” he purred, moving even closer to the frightful maid.

*“Sir, please, I should return to the party.”

*“Margaret, Margaret, there’s no hurry.”

She tried to pull away from him, hoping that someone might see. *“Mistress will be wondering…”

*“Sshh,” he cooed. “Mistress will be wondering how to get the good Reverend Chalmers into bed and will not notice the absence of canapé.” He stroked her chin for good measure, and she shuddered in spite of her fear. “Stay with me,” he urged.

Angelus could tell by her eyes that she was considering it. How could she not? A lowly maid, past her prime, receiving the attentions of the young and wealthy Mr. McConroy, a man that all women, be they married, betrothed, or divine worshippers, have attempted to lure into their beds.

*“Sir, people might talk,” she weakly protested. “I’ll be put out on the streets. My little boy would…I can’t lose this job,” she said, forgoing any thoughts she might have had about taking a chance with the beautiful Angelus McConroy.

Angelus, sensing her resolve, lost his temper. He grabbed her arms. *“Then you must keep quiet.”

*“You’re hurting me!” she said, speaking a little louder than she intended.

*“Ah! Cry out. Call for help. I’m sure Mistress will believe your behavior beyond reproach,” he sneered.

*“Please!” she gasped, wriggling in his embrace.

Angelus shook her roughly. *“Come, make a scene, huh?” he taunted. “Shall I?”

Margaret hesitated. *“No,” she whispered.

*“No, no. We’ll be as quiet as mice.”

Margaret lowered her head. Her shoulders sagged in defeat. If she closed her eyes and didn’t put up a fight, maybe it would be over soon. No one would believe her if she said their familiarity was forced.

Angelus could almost taste her defeat. His face shifted and when she looked back up at him, her fear and terror flooded his senses. *“No matter what.”

*“Sir!” she trembled, tears welling in her eyes. “My son!”

Good, he had almost forgotten. *“Oh, he’ll make a fine dessert, huh?”

He grabbed her, sinking his fangs into her throat before she could scream. He drained her quickly. She was unsatisfying and not at all fulfilling. He released her, letting her body fall carelessly to the floor. He tucked her away in the corner, knowing one of the other servants or perhaps her Mistress herself would find her. Angelus maneuvered around the intoxicated guests, following Margaret’s scent to the servant’s quarters. He found Margaret’s whelp sleeping in his bed. He was a boy of no more than seven years. His hair was curly like his mother's and a brighter shade of blonde. Margaret’s pallet lay positioned beside the boy’s bed. The boy clutched a worn brown bear that was missing its left eye. He was a beautiful child, clearly taking after his father. The boy opened his eyes and startling emerald green eyes met his own.

“Are you an angel?” he whispered.

His lips twitched as he fought the smirk that threatened to reveal itself. “An angel?”

“Mum says when it’s time an angel will come and take me to see my Da. Will you take me?”

He arranged the boy’s body in his bed and retrieved his mother, placing her on top of her pallet. From a distance, it would look as If they were merely sleeping. He returned to his mansion an hour before sunrise.

“Daddy, we saved her for you!” Drusilla called over the screams.

He strolled down to the “playroom” in the cellar. The room smelled of sex, blood, and fear. The young woman from the party, Harmony, was naked and railroad spikes had been driven through her hands and ankles, courtesy of William. Her legs and stomach were flayed, and Drusilla greedily lapped up her flowing blood.

William leaned against the wall, a pipe in his hand. “How did it go with the bird?”

Before he could answer, Harmony turned towards Angelus. Her face had been clawed, most likely by Drusilla, and her right eye hung out of its socket and lay limply against her cheek. “Mr. McConroy, help! Please help me!” she whimpered.

A cold smirk drifted on his lips as he played with her blood-soaked hair. “I could help you, Harmony, but you would have to do something for me first,” he taunted.

“Anything, anything.”

“Open your mouth.” A single tear fell from her good eye. She opened her mouth without hesitation. Angelus released his semi-hard cock and shoved it into her mouth. She choked and gagged as his hand knotted in her hair. “She resisted my thrall.”

William pushed off from his relaxed stance against the wall. “Resisted? How the bloody hell did she do that?”

“Gee, William, I have no idea. I’ll be sure to ask her next time,” he growled, shoving his entire length down Harmony’s throat.

“She’s not like the others,” Drusilla whispered. Her eyes were wide and unfocused. She was having a vision.

“What do you see, pet?”

Just as Harmony’s heart stopped beating, Angelus felt his seed spurt into her mouth. He pulled out, using her hair to clean himself off, smiling lightly as his seed and her blood dripped from her mouth.

“She was almost Called.”

“Called?”

“As in…?” Angelus had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

“But the Powers…she was unworthy…innocent blood on her hands…now she is just a human.”

Angelus ran a hand through his hair, attempting to process what they had just learned. Buffy was meant to take the Calling. She was to be a Slayer, but she killed someone. The Powers deemed her unworthy and now she will never be a Slayer. But even though she didn’t have the Call, she was still equipped with the typical Slayer attributes. A mental block to resist the thrall. Possibly strength to fight against any demonic creature.

“Darla is going to kill you,” William snickered.

“Darla is too busy fucking Dracula to care what I do!”

“Sure, keep telling yourself that.”

Drusilla hunched over, moaning and hugging her stomach. William’s good mood faded quickly as he and Angelus flocked to her side protectively. “What do you see, Dru?”

“Bad man…bad man…bad man…”

“What bad man? What is he doing?” Angelus questioned her as she leaned against William.

“Touching…bad touch…bad touch…wants to keep her…wants to hurt her…!” she moaned.

Angelus growled deeply, startling his childe and grandchilde. “Hank Summers is a dead man. William, at first dark, I need you to do something for me.”

[kpopfromtheblock]

a/n ⇾ surprise bitch! bet you thought you’d seen the last of me! 🤪 i’ve been here all along but just haven't felt motivated to write. i know it gets annoying to have to wait so long for updates but i appreciate those of you who have stuck by my side! ILY, FR FR. i try to make every update as good or better than the last so that its worth your while and sometimes that process can take me a long time… i hope y’all can understand that… i won't always update as frequently as other writers but i will get an update out at some point, just keep baring with me pls and thank you! ✨

THERE WILL NOT BE A PART 2 TO THIS, PLS DO NOT ASK.

LIFE WITH BANGTAN | ot7 + kth smut

009

genre ⇾ fluff, smut and a bit of angst.

pairing ⇾ bts x reader, taehyung x reader (smut)

summary ⇾ the boys forget movie night and they have to find a way to make it up to you, starting with Taehyung...

warning ⇾ idk, if i matters but i just want y’all to know this is very TAE X READER heavy... i mean it’s still ot7 x reader but just a bit more Taehyung focused... — smut, pwp, hand job, oral (f receiving), penetrative sex, dirty talk (a lot of dirty talk), fingering and more... — usual warnings: cringy-ness, swearing

words ⇾ 12k

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”Ugh!” You groan as you step out of the elevator. The cardboard box you’re holding in your arms isn’t too big but it is quite heavy. The box combined with the large backpack you’re waring is adding a bunch of unnecessary weight to your body and the journey to get to the boys dorm has taken longer than usual because of it… But you know this will all be worth it in the end, for tonight is movie night and hopefully the start of a monthly tradition with your lovers. 

The cardboard box in your arms and bag on your back are both filled with Disney movies… From the classics all the way up to the most recent ones available on DVD. 

Mayhaps you went a little bit crazy on Amazon, buying a total of one hundred and ten DVDs, some of which still haven’t shipped yet bc they are coming from countries outside of Korea and mayhaps, buying all those DVDs put a bit of a dent in your bank account but you’re almost one hundred…No, a solid ninety-five percent sure that this will all be worth it once you see the look of joy on Yoongi’s face after he watches the Aristocats for the first time or the tears in Jimin’s eyes during that one scene in Toy Story 3… Yeah, it’s gonna be a good night and you’re excited to experience it with your amazing boyfriends.

Finally making it up to the boy’s door, you put the box down on the floor and sigh, feeling relieved that you get to give your arms somewhat of a rest, even if for only a few seconds. You slide the shield of the keypad up and watch it illuminate. Quickly typing your customized pin in, the door beeps and you put your hand on the knob, twisting it open before it can lock again.

Once the door is slightly open, you begin kicking the box towards the opening, too lazy to bend over and pick it up again. 

A minute or two passes and you’re still kicking… You’re doing well, the box is nearly halfway through the door when suddenly the door is pulled fully open. “Oh!” You say almost following forward as you had been resting a lot of your weight on the door to keep it from closing whilst you kicked the box inside. “Darling~” You know immediately, without even having to look up, that it’s Taehyung calling you. The tone of his voice combined with the endearing nickname he’s been calling you since the day you two met gives him away. 

Before properly greeting him, you bend down to pick up the box again since you don’t have to worry about the door anymore… Picking the box up will probably go much quicker than kicking it. 

Once the box is in your arms again, you look up to meet Tae’s pretty brown eyes and boxy smile. You can’t fight the smile forming on your own lips. “Hello Handsome.” You tell him before leaning forward to place a single kiss against his soft lips.

“Why are you so dressed up?” You question, not missing the way the navy blue slacks and crisp white button up he’s wearing, compliment his tan skin. 

He takes the heavy box from you then steps aside to let you in without answering your question. “Oh fuck,” He groans. “What the hell is in here?” He asks. There’s a slight strain to his words as he struggles to balance the heavy box in one hand whilst he closes and locks the door with his other. 

Upon stepping inside, you see that the dorm is up in slight chaos.

One of the boys makeup artist and a friend of yours, Sua, is chasing Jungkook around with an eye shadow palette in her hand. There is a stylist you’ve never seen before, standing entirely too close to Namjoon while she fixes the collar of his shirt and Jimin is sitting on the couch while their hair stylist straightens the few fly-aways at the top of his scalp. 

Sua notices you first before any of the other guys do. 

“Y/n!” She stops chasing Jungkook to approach you.

Jungkook stops running around and Jimin looks up from his phone at the sound of your name being called.

“Hi baby!” Jimin says enthusiastically before waving at you. You look over at Jimin and give him a sweet smile. “Hi...” You say softly, waving back. You know he would’ve gotten up to greet you with a kiss if the man above him wasn’t holding a hot hair styling tool to his head. 

You look away from Jimin to see both Sua and Jungkook making their way over to you. 

Sua gets to you first and wraps her arms around you, engulfing you in a tight bear hug, which is slightly awkward since you didn’t have time to put your arms out to receive the hug properly. “Long time no see, how are you doing?” She asks against your ear before releasing you. “I know! I’m doing well, how are you?” You smile at her, although confused as to why she’s there, you are happy to see her. 

Sua has always been sweet to you and she was one of the first people to discover that you and the boys had something going on and even though she was a bit weary, she was supportive when she realized how much you really loved all seven of them and how much all seven of them loved you. 

Sua kept your secret until it was made knowledgeable to the rest of the staff and you have been grateful to her ever since. 

“I’m good! Just trying to get these boys of yours to sit still for a second. Especially this one.” Sua says pointing a thumb at Jungkook who is standing behind her with the brightest bunny smile. He waits eagerly for his turn to hug you. “I don’t know how you do it.” She continues and you chuckle. “Don’t worry, they run away from me too.” You joke and  both Sua and Jungkook chuckle. “I do not.” He protest, opening his arms for a hug. 

You finally take off you backpack, placing it on the near by chair and walk up to him. You wrap your arms around his waist and press your face against his chest. Your eyes close instantly at the warmth you feel being against him. Jungkook waste no time wrapping his arms around your frame, squeezing you against him.

Like always, you’ve missed your boys so much.

“I missed you.” He tells you, almost as if he can read your mind and you smile. “I missed you too Kook.” You confess before pulling away.

“Are you guys almost ready? Manger-nim will be here soon with the car.” You hear Namjoon’s voice from behind you. You pull away from Jungkook and turn to face the leader of the group. 

What is going on?

“Did I mixed up the dates for our movie night or…?” You mumble to yourself, thinking maybe you had read the date wrong on your calendar. 

You pull out your phone to check your google calendar, that holds all your important dates. You are usually bad with dates which is why you rely on your google calendar to keep track of everything.. You know once you put it in there, it’s official so you don’t understand how you could’ve messed this one up. 

The men around you seem to slow down their frantic movements at your words. “Babygirl…” Namjoon calls out and you look up to face him. The look on his face, makes you worry. His brows are furrowed and his lips form a slight pout. 

“Movie night... We completely forgot.” Your heart drops at his words. 

‘We completely Forgot’… The words are dramatically echoing in your head for some reason.

How could the forget the movie night you’ve been planning for weeks. 

“You forgot?” You ask for confirmation and Namjoon nods his head, a solemn look on his face. “Darling, we’re so sorry.” Taehyung’s voice catches your attention and you turn around to face him this time. “An event came up that we have to go to.... A car is on the way to pick us up.” He explains to you. 

“Oh...” You say, not able to hide the disappointment in your voice. Jungkook comes up to you from behind and wraps his arms around your waist. You don’t even have to turn around to know it’s him. It just feels like him, not to mention, he loves to give you back hugs. He pulls you close to his chest and then rest his chin on your shoulder. “Please don’t be upset.” He begs you but it’s too late. Your feelings are hurt. 

How could they forget? You think again.

“I’m not.” You lie and Jimin is the first to sniff you out. 

“Yes you are.” 

Hoseok comes walking out of his and Jimin’s shared bedroom. He is looking as gorgeous as ever in a suit that is tailored to perfection. Upon seeing you, he gives you his one hundred watt smile but suddenly, it fades when he notices the look on your face. “What’s wrong Angel?” He mumbles, softly. You’re about to shake your head and lie again but Jungkook speaks before you can. “She came for movie night.” Jungkook’s chest rumbles against your back as he speaks. “That was tonight?” Hobi asks, looking up into your eyes. His usual bright expression is now a little less bright when he catches the displeasure in your eyes. He can tell you’re upset and that you are doing your best to hide it but he knows you. He knows that look. 

You nod your head at his question, a broken smile gracing your lips. “Angel...” He starts before his long legs strut over to you until he is standing in front of you. He leans down to place a sweet kiss to your lips. Although you’re upset, you return the kiss as best you can with Jungkook’s arms still wrapped firmly around your waist. 

“It’s okay...” You lie again. 

“We’re so sorry baby.” Jimin apologizes and you shrug. “It’s fine.” Your fourth lie for the night…

Jin comes strolling into the living room with Yoongi not far behind. “Ok kids. Car is here. Let’s get going.” They both look too good to be true. Dressed in dark suits that seem to compliment each other. “Princess?” He greets your curiously. You give him a small smile. “Hi...” You say. “You look handsome. You all do.” You say truthfully.

Yoongi looks up at you. “Kitten, what are you doing here?” He asks in confusion. 

Seriously? No one remembered what tonight is… or was supposed to be? 

You feel like you’re going crazy, like you made it all up in your head but you know you didn’t. You remember planning this night... The eight of you agreeing upon this date so you don’t understand how this has happened...

You want so badly to tell them off but you also don’t want to start anything… You suppose it’s not their fault... You knew exactly what you were getting yourself into, the minute you decided to be with them, to love them… They have priorities and obligations to fulfill as the ‘World’s Biggest Boyband BTS’ but you wish that sometimes, they could be your boyfriends and just that alone. Even if, just for the day…

“I came for movie night but it seems you all have other plans.” You say, the words come out bitter than you intended but you can’t take them back now. 

“Don’t say it like that baby.” Jimin tells you, feeling guilt bubbling in his chest. Yoongi comes to stand in front of you after Hobi has step away to put on his shoes. “Kitten, why don’t you stay until we get back?” Yoongi offers and you’re about to decline his offer when you feel Jungkook press his lips against your neck. “Yeah stay, we’ll be back before you know it,” He whispers against your skin. 

“You guys know I don’t like to stay in the dorm when you’re not here.”

“Please?” Jimin begs. “If you’re not too tired when we get back, we can watch one of the movies you brought.” Jimin suggest, and the idea swims around in your head for a little bit… As tempting as it sounds, you know that they’ll be the ones too tired to stay up and watch movies with you.

“Guys we really need to go…” Jin reminds them, picking up his shoulder bag and his suit jacket off the couch. 

“You guys go ahead... You don’t wanna be late.” You tell them and you watch as Yoongi’s lips form a small pout. You usually lose your mind at how cute he looks when he unintentionally pokes out his lips but in this very moment, all you can do is give him a half hearted smile. He leans forward and kisses you. “I hope you’re here when we get back.” He says before walking towards the door. Jungkook kisses your cheek then lets go of you to follow his Hyungs out. Namjoon is the last to leave. He places a kiss at the top of your head then walks towards the door. “See you later Baby girl.” He says before leaving, the door slamming behind him. 

You sigh and turn away from the door. You are instantly greeted by the messy dorm. The stylists and Sua must’ve slipped out of the dorm while you were conversing with the boys because you were now left alone. In a big, empty, messy dorm. 

You decide to tidy up so the boys will have a nice cozy and clean place to come home too. Plus you need the distraction… You just got ditched after all. 

You pick up the movie box that Taehyung left on the counter and bring it over to the coffee table. You plop down on the couch and begin  unpacking the box.

You even went through the trouble of buying as many of the Korean subbed versions as you could find for some of the older classics like Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. You know Tae and Jimin have never seen those. 

You neatly stack the movies in the middle of the table, surprisingly the only clean spot in the house, before you begin tidying up the place.

. * 　　　 ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . * ⁺ ⁺

Cleaning kills about two full hours. You cleaned the the living room, vacuuming and wiping down all the surfaces. You also decided to clean the kitchen, making sure the dishes in the the dishwasher were clean and then packed away and the counter top was removed of any stains. You attempted to clean each of the boys room but gave up after picking up all the clothes thrown around in Taehyung’s.

After you were satisfied with the way the dorm looked (and smelled), you walk back into the the living room and plop down on the couch. Your eyes glaze over the large stack of DVDs you brought with you... Without even realizing it, a frown grows on your face. 

Cleaning had kept your mind off of the fact that your boyfriends ditched your planned movie night but now that you were done, now that you didn’t have anything keeping you busy, your failed attempt at spending quality time with your boyfriends was all you could think of.

You sigh heavily and pick up your phone. You decide to open the twitter app and browse around. Maybe one or two of the fifteen people you are following would post something to make you laugh…

You loved laughing, it always made you feel better. 

You were lucky enough to stumble across a few memes. You giggle at them and save one in particular to your camera roll to use later in your group chat. 

As you scroll further down, you come across a photo that makes your heart flutter with fondness. 

One of the BTS fan accounts you follow (just because you enjoy the memes they posts and all the cute edits), posted a picture of the guys. You knew instantly it was a picture of them from the night. They look exactly the way they did when they left and you distinctively remember Yoongi’s shinny dangly earring and how it looked pretty with his outfit.

The picture was taken mid laughter. The way Jimin’s eyes turned into crescent moons, how Hoseok’s mouth formed a prefect heart, the way Jungkook’s nose crinkle and his two front teeth made an appearance and how you could practically hear Taehyung’s deep laughter just from looking at the way his mouth was wide open and his head was thrown back… It all made your heart swell in your chest. 

You wished you could be the reason they were laughing or be there to laugh with them. You genuinely just missed them. You were looking forward to spending time with them tonight. You desperately wanted to be wrapped up in Namjoon’s arms, snuggled under a blanket with Jin beside you and Yoongi’s head on your lap while you play with his soft locks as he drifted off to sleep… The other boys gather near by. You always felt comfort when they were close to you. 

You suddenly felt a wave of discontent wash over you. You’re not usually one to let things get to you. You pride yourself in being someone who is very understanding, especially when it comes to plans changing but for some reason this situation is hitting you hard. 

It’s been almost a month since you’ve hung out, like really hung out with them. And yes, you’ve gone longer without seeing them as they were away on tour in different countries for months on end but this time they were back home. You could pop into a practice every now and then or sleepover at the dorm if you want to but they had been so busy this month (even with them being back home), that spontaneous visits were not in the cards for you which is why you were so looking forward to this night.

Exiting out of twitter, you decided to open the Message app. You go into the group chat named ‘Team Kim Seokjin’ and type out a quick message.

YOU to Team Kim Seokjin

hey guys, i hope you’re all having a good time. i finished cleaning up the dorm a bit and now i’m going to head home.

YOU to Team Kim Seokjin

i know you all wanted me to stay but it doesn’t feel right... anyways, be sure to text me when you get home. love you all ❤️

You sent the messages and locked your phone, not waiting for a reply. You stood up, grabbing your duffle bag and throwing it over your shoulder. You shut off all the lights before heading out the dorm. 

Your phone pinged, indicating that you received a text messages but you decide not to check it right away as you were too focused on getting back to your apartment. 

You hope the comfort of your bed would make you feel a little bit better…

Meanwhile on the other side of town. Taehyung and Yoongi were in the bathroom. The award ceremony they were attending had just called for an intermission so the two decided it’d be a good time to release some fluids. 

Yoongi was drying his hands when suddenly his phone vibrated in his pocket the same time that he heard another phone ping, the obviou sound of a text tone… He knew it was Tae’s phone as he was the only other person in the bathroom and Yoongi himself had yet to take his phone off of silent. 

“Hyung!” Taehyung shouts after flushing the toilet in his stall. “Hmm?” Yoongi hums in response. The stall door flies open and Tae hastily walks out, holding his phone up for Yoongi to see the text he’d just received from you. “She’s not staying.” Tae pouts. 

“What?” Yoongi says in confusion, not too sure what the younger male was getting at. 

“Y/n... She said she isn’t going to stay over’.” Taehyung says,

Yoongi squints his eyes, trying to get a better look at Tae’s bright screen before giving up to pull out his own phone. He unlocks it and looks at the text messages you sent, rereading them a few times to himself. “Ah.” He says in realization. “‘Ah’? She’s mad at us and all you have to say is ‘ah’?” Tae whines. 

One of the things Taehyung hates most in this world is when the people he loves and cares about are upset with him and you are at the top of that list. “I don’t think so.” Yoongi tells the younger man. “I disagree… I mean we basically ditched her…” Locking the phone and pushing it back in his pocket, Yoongi turns to the mirror and fixes a few loose strands of hair.

“Leave it to Taehyung to over react at a simple text message.“ Yoongi thinks.

 “She’s not mad. Trust me.” Yoongi tries to reassure Tae but truth be told, he actually didn’t know himself if you were mad or not… He understands why you would be upset, if you were but he also knows that you are someone who doesn’t get upset easily. 

As Yoongi waits for Tae to finish washing his hand, his phone vibrates again. This time, it’s a text from Hoseok.

HOBI to Team Kim Seokjin 

🥺🥺🥺 you won’t be there when we get back?

After reading Hoseok’s text, Yoongi instantly feels a twinge of guilt in his chest. He knows he shouldn’t... After all, he didn’t even want to come to this event but, it’s work. Something he had to do… He’d much rather be at home, cuddling up beside you on the couch, watching some stupid children’s movies… That would be a way better use of his time because it was time being spend with you and his brothers.

“Ready Hyung?” Tae’s question pulls Yoongi out of his head. He nods in response at the blue haired man before the two of them exit the bathroom, heading back to the others.

Yoongi decides that he’d call you as soon as the ceremony is over, to check up on you. He just hopes you’ll be awake to answers…

. * 　　　 ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . * ⁺ ⁺

A    W E E K    L A T E R

With groceries in hand, you struggle to put the pin into the keypad of your apartment door. After two failed attempts and almost being locked out permanently, you decide it would be easier if the grocery bags weren’t in your hand… You lean down to place the bags on the floor and just as you’re about to stand back up, you hear the most horrifying sound… The keypad beeps indicating that it has been unlocked and the door is being pulled open from the inside.

“What the fuck?” You mumble out loud. 

You swiftly stand up straight, ready to throw hands at the intruder but you are pleasantly surprised to see the one and only Kim Taehyung, standing in your doorway with a bright smile on his face. “Tae?” You say, releasing a breath you didn’t know you were holding. 

Although relieved to see your boyfriend and not some thief or lunatic… You were still a bit confused. “What are you doing here?” You question as he bends over to pick up the grocery bags for you. “I came to see you.” He states the obvious. 

Upon hearing his words, your eyes suddenly widen at thought of him coming into your apartment complex… 

In the middle of the afternoon… 

Where nearly a hundred other college students are living… 

Anyone could’ve saw him. 

You hastily look around then begin walking forward, pushing Taehyung back into you apartment at the same time. “Whoa…” He says slightly confused and startled by your sudden moves. “Someone could’ve saw you dummy.” You scold him and he simply chuckles at you. “I was extra careful.” He informs you. “I wore a mask and a hat and I came in through the back entrance.” He tries to reassure you before walking over to the kitchen to put your bags down. You scoff at him in both amusement and disbelief because you can’t believe that he really thinks a simple mask and hat is enough to hide his appearance… 

His fans could spot him even if he were dressed up as Bozo The Clown. 

“As if a mask could hide you from an ARMY...” You say sternly. 

“Someone could’ve saw you…” You repeat, your voice still a bit on edge as you take your shoes off at the front door. Tae doesn’t seem to care that he could’ve gotten caught sneaking into your building... And it’s not like he hasn’t snuck in before. He’s been to your place a handful of times but never at this time of day so you’re just a bit concerned but you’ll let it go for now…

You walk into the kitchen to see that Taehyung has started unpacking the groceries. You’re amazed by the fact that he seems to know where everything goes. You can’t help the way your heart flutters at how domestic the scene in front of you is but flutter in your heart simmer down just as a thought pops into your head...

What is he doing here?

“Not that I’m not happy to see you babe, but what are you doing here, seriously?” You start. “I thought you and the boys would be in the studio all day.” You say and he shrugs. “Well yes, we’re supposed to be… That’s where the members are now but I snuck away for a bit...” He explains. “I wanted to make sure you were okay.” Your eyes brows furrow in confusion. 

Why wouldn’t I be okay?

“Where does this go again?” Tae asks as he holds up the box of cookies and cream Rice Crispy Treats.

“Cabinet above the microwave.” You point to the spot you’re talking about and Taehyung nods before turning around to put the sweet treat away. You walk further into the kitchen to help him pack out the rest of the groceries. “Why wouldn’t I be okay?” You finally say, referring to his previous question. “Well ‘cause of the whole movie night fiasco last week…” He informs you before turning back around to face you. 

“Ahh.” You say in realization. 

So that’s what this is about... He thinks I’m still upset. 

You chuckle at the thought and walk over to the fridge to put the orange juice inside. 

“I’m okay my love, you didn’t have to come all the way over here to check on me.” You tell him. You feel bad that you gave him the impression that you were still upset. You don’t want him to be worried about something that you were no longer thinking about. “You’re our girl, of course I had to come check on you… I’m sure the others would’ve tried to come, had they known I was coming” He says. 

You close the fridge and look up at him, smiling fondly. You make your way back over to the grocery bags… You decide to just take everything out at once and line them up on the counter to make things easier for yourself and make the process of putting things away go faster. 

“You’re sweet baby but I promise you, I’m okay.” You reassure him.

“But you weren’t though… Right? Before you were mad at us?” By the tone of his voice you know there’s a pout on his lip. “Yes.” You say truthfully, not wanting to hide anything from him. “I knew it!” He exclaims. “I knew you were mad. Yoongi Hyung said you weren’t but I know you darling.” He says confidently. “I’ll admit…” You begin before closing the fridge and turning around to face him. “I was upset that night… Mainly because I just wanted to spend time with you all but I got over it.” You confess. 

“I understand that you all have priorities and-“

“You’re our priority.” Taehyung cuts you off… As much as you want to believe him, you couldn’t. Yes, you know they love you and you know you mean a lot to them but you also know that their careers, their fans, mean just as much and sometimes that means you have to take a back seat to that part of their lives... 

And that’s something you have to learn to accept. 

“Let us make it up to you.” Taehyung’s voice brings you out of your thoughts.

“There’s no need.” You tell him and there really isn’t… They did nothing wrong and there’s nothing they needed to make up for. “Aw come on,” Tae whines. “Sleepover, we have the weekend off!” He suggests and you have to shake your head immediately. “I can’t.” You state. “I have a big project due on Monday that I need to get started on.” He pouts cutely and you resist the urge to kiss that pout off his lips. 

“Ok, well just come over Friday night then… The guys and I miss you so much.” He takes a step forward and you take one back… For some reason, your subconscious is telling you that some shit is about to go down that you are unprepared for…

“Tae…” You say warningly. You hate to disappoint him and the rest of your men and you would normally never turn down the opportunity to spend time with them but you just didn’t think it’d be responsible to hangout when you have so much work to do and catch up on. 

And yes, you could bring your work over to the dorm but that just wouldn’t be logical... You’d get nothing done.

“Please?” You don’t miss the way Taehyung’s voice has dropped and octave lower. You look up to meet his eyes and as you expect, there is something dark… Swirling around in them. He advances towards you again and you take another step back, this time your lower back hits the edge of the counter. Taehyung places his hands on either side of you, locking you between himself and the countertop. There’s no where for you to run. 

“Please stay over.” He pleads again and for a split second your eyes land on his lips. They are slightly chapped but they look so inviting... “Let us make it up to you.” His words come out as more of a command than question. “Tae…” You say his name again, a little breathier than you expected but his close proximity is making you somewhat lightheaded… It’s not like you haven’t been this close to him before, hell you’ve been way closer but for some reason, the way that he’s looking at you right now, like he can’t wait to get his hands on you, like he can’t wait to put his mouth on you… It’s all very intense. 

“I already told you… I can’t.” 

“You can’t or you just won’t?” He asks you. His question kind of catches you off guard because he’s sort of got a point… 

It’s not that you can’t go over to their dorm on Friday night or that you don’t want to… It’s just that you don’t think it’d be the smartest thing to do with the word load you have on your table right now… “Darling.” Tae calls… He can tell by the expression on your face that you are playing with the idea of coming over, in your head. “Hmm?” You hum, looking into his eyes. This time, you’re the one to catch him staring at your lips. 

Somehow the two of you have gotten so close to each other that your faces are inches apart. You can feel his breath fanning over you as he speaks. “What do I have to do to change your mind?” He questions, seductively. His voice is as smooth and raw as honey. If lust had a sound, it’d be they way Taehyung is speaking to you right now... The tingle in your core seems to get stronger the more he talks.

You look at his lips one last time and because you can’t resist him any longer, “Kiss me.” is all you mange to say. 

Tae is on you in seconds. He smirks as his lips collide with the softness and warmth of your own.

Kisses with Taehyung always start off slow… Slow and sweet and extremely passionate and today is no different. He sucks on your bottom lip slowly and you moan at the feeling. “Mmm.” He moans along with you. He loves how plump your bottom lip is and the way it bounces back into place when he lets it go. 

Tae takes his hands off the counter and grabs your arms, that are still awkwardly at your sides to place them on his shoulders. You instantly wrap them around his neck and pull him closer. You run your fingers through the blue locks at the back of his head and gently grip them. 

You had been so thrown off by his lips on yours that you had forgotten what do with the rest of your body. 

The two of you are chest to chest as his hands caress your sides. You slide your tongue across his bottom lip, hoping that he’ll get the hint and sure enough he does, opening his mouth for you to slip your tongue in. The two of you swirl your tongues around each others, the feeling is sensual and sexy and is slightly overwhelming your senses but you can’t stop. 

Another minute passes and Tae pulls away from devouring your mouth so the two of you can catch your breaths. “So...” He says breathlessly. You lean forward and peck his lips again, wanting to taste more of him. He smiles against your mouth before speaking, “Is that a yes?” He asks with his lips against yours and you giggle… It seems the man in front of you is adamant in getting you to agree to come over and if you weren’t so horny and now, so extremely wet, you’d tell him off but unfortunately (or mayhaps, fortunately?), you are both of those things and it doesn’t help that Taehyung has decided to drag his mouth from yours to the sweet spot where your neck and shoulders meet, peppering kisses and sucking harshly on the skin there.

“Oh god,” You mumble to yourself. 

It feels so good. 

“Darling?” Tae calls you as your eyes flutter closed. You tilt your head to the side, giving him more space to work. “Hmm?” You can only give him a hum of a response because you think your brain is too clouded with lust to form a coherent sentence… So you just don’t.

“You didn’t answer my question,” He reminds you. His warm tongue runs over the patch of skin he’d previously sucked on. “What was it again?” You ask, having genuinely forgot what it was… He chuckles and slides his hands from around your waist down to your lower back, they rest there for a second or two before he moves on, sliding his hands over the curve of your ass. He grips it firmly and you gasps at the feeling “I said...” He begins. “Is that a yes… To coming over?” He pulls away from your neck to look at your face. 

Tae’s heart beats rapidly and the tightness in his boxers increases when he sees the look on your face. He always thinks you look beautiful but even more so when your eyes are filled with desire, much like they are now. He could just eat you up... And he will. 

“No.” You say, bringing the man in front of you out of his trance. He raises his eyebrow at you and you try to hold back a smug smirk from forming on your face. “No?” He asks, wanting to make sure he heard you correctly. 

“Nope.” You confirm, popping your ‘p’ and shaking your head. 

“Hmm,” He hums. You can tell by his tone that he knows you’re just giving him a hard time and he definitely doesn’t mind playing along. “I guess that means I’m gonna have to work a little harder to get you to say yes huh?” He questions you and you smile sweetly at him, “Bingo.” You say matter-of-factly. 

He knows exactly what you want.

A sudden mischievous smile graces his lips before his mouth is crashing on to yours again. Slow and sweet kisses will no longer suffice for such a moment between the two of you.... Everything now is fast and sloppy and so so good. 

You moan as Taehyung’s tongue pushes into your mouth. He tastes as delicious as the first time he kissed you and you swear you could loose yourself in his mouth alone. 

His hands come down to grip your thighs. “Up.” He grumbles in your mouth and you jump slightly, so that he can effortlessly lift you off the floor and on to the countertop. You can feel the groceries behind you, uncomfortably pressing against your lower back. You remove your hands from around Taehyung’s neck and bring them behind you to push the groceries out of your way so you have more room to move around… The whole time you’re doing this, your lips never leave his.

The sounds of heavy breathing and wet kisses fill the space around you... Also the sound of your favorite bag of chips hitting the hardwood floor but you have no time to dwell on that, not when one of your gorgeous boyfriends is making a mess of your panties and he doesn’t even know it…

Now with Taehyung in between your legs, you can feel how hard he is. He’s pressing himself closer to you and the sudden urge to feel and taste his cock is strong. 

Your hand is down his sweatpants and past his boxers before you know it. “Oh fuck,” He grunts as you grip his hard cock in your small hand. 

You don’t hold back, beginning to stroke him as best you can from where you’re sitting. The angle is a little weird and slightly uncomfortable for you and there’s a bit of restraint from his boxers and sweats still being on him but he seems to be enjoying it from the way his mouth has fallen open and his eyes are fluttering open and closed. “Feels good?” You ask, wanting to hear praises from him. “I-I’m... Fuck...” He’s struggling to get the words out and that is a boost to your pride, if any. You love that you can turn him into a puddy from just your hands. “I’m s-supposed to b-be making you f-feel good.” He finally get the words out and you smile. 

You think it’s so sweet that he’s thinking about making you feel good whilst your hands are on his cock. 

“We can take turns baby.” You remind him before you grab him by the collar of his shirt with your free hand and plant your mouth on his again. The kiss is all teeth and tongue as you continue to pump his length... You use your thumb to spread the precum over the head of his dick. “Y/n...” Taehyung breathes your actual name for the first time since he’s stepped into your apartment. “If you keep doing that, I’m gonna cum in my pants.” He warns you but that only encourages you to go faster. 

You stroke his length with determination. 

Your end goal is to get him to bust a nut… 

Right here… 

In your kitchen… 

In his boxers… 

While you watch… 

You want to make a mess out of him. 

“But isn’t that what you want baby?” You tease him. “To cum, right here in my hand.” Your voice is innocent but your words are so dirty that Taehyung can only growl at you in response before throwing his head back. “Fuck, your hand feels so fucking good around me.” He says through gritted teeth. “My mouth would feel better but we’ll get to that later.” You continue to pump his cock. Your pace goes from slow and steady to fast and hard and it’s making Taehyung loose his fucking mind. 

From the way his dick twitches and the way his face is screwed up in pleasure, you know he’s already about to cum. “Are you close my love?” You ask him sweetly and his heart feels like it might explode. The fact that you can switch from being so dirty to so soft and sweet while you rub him off, really throws him for a loop. You are truly the best of both worlds. 

“Yes...” He groans, finally bringing his head down to lock eyes with you and you bite your lip at the sight in front of you.

You don’t realize it but your hips are desperately gliding back and forth on the countertop, trying to get whatever friction you can… Even if its just the dull shift of your wet underwear rubbing against your folds every now and then… It’s better than nothing at all. Your boyfriend takes note of this, feeling a little guilty, as he was the one who was supposed to be getting you off but instead, here you are giving him, probably the best handjob of his life. He’ll have to make up for it later but right now, he can only focus on the fact that he’s about to cream his pants. 

“Oh God, please Y/n...” He calls out, his eyes haven’t left yours. The both of you are staring at each other so intensely that it feels impossible to look away. “What my love?” You ask him. You twist your hand around his throbbing cock as you continue to stroke him up and down rapidly. Your arm is about to fall off because of the constant change in speed but you refuse to slow down. “Please don’t stop.” He begs you, his voice strained. “I won’t… Not until you cum for me,” You promise him. 

“Are you gonna cum for me Tae?” You feel his dick twitch for the second time after you speak.

Your mouth starts to water at thought of how pretty his cock must look right now. So thick and veiny and probably tinted a pretty shade of pink… You wish you had taken it out of his pants before going to town on it so you could see it in action… You were too eager but it’s okay... You’ll have a better view of it, once you get your face down there to suck him off. 

“Oh f-fuck!” He groans loudly, halting your fantasies about his dick. “I-I’m cumming,” He stutters out, his eyes rolling to the back of his head as his mouth falls into a perfect ‘o’ shape. Your hand strokes him relentlessly for a few more minutes before you feel it... Tae releases his load all over your hand while your name falls from his lips repeatedly. You continue to pump him through his release, your thumb rubs over the sensitive head of his cock and he flinches at the feeling. “Shit...” He says and you giggle, before pulling your hand out of his boxers. The back of your hand is shiny and wet with his cum… Instead of letting it go to waste, you decide to give him a show... You look him in the eyes and lick the mess he’s made off the back of your hand... You’re not sure how sexy you look, licking your skin like a fucking cat would their fur, but Tae seems to be enjoying it and that all that matter. 

“Holy shit...” He says once you’re done, he comes towards you at full speed, lips colliding for the third time tonight.

Taehyung places his hands under your thighs, guiding you to wrap them around his waist. Once you do, he hastily picks you up and you squeal as he carries you over the couch. He basically throws you down on it… Thank God, you got a bigger one. The little two seater you had before would never work for what the two of you are about to do… 

Your boyfriend moves swiftly to help you pull your shirt off over you head and you have to laugh at how eager he seems to be. “Whats so funny?” He questions and you smile. “You’re just really cute when you’re needy.” You tease him and he scrunches his face in disapproval, making him appear even cuter than before. “I’m about to bury my face in your cunt and you’re calling me cute?” He says in disbelief. “Well, you are…” You simply shrug your shoulders with smirk on your face. “Shut up and get your pants off.” He says somewhat playfully before pulling his own shirt over his head. Your eyes land on his tan skin and his pretty collarbones.. You’re sure your drooling now at how good he looks above you shirtless and dark eyed with his pretty blue locks cascading over his forehead… 

He looks un-fucking-real… 

You begin unbutton your jeans but apparently you weren’t moving fast enough for Tae’s liking which seems to be a recurring theme whenever you’re about to get it on with one or more of your boyfriends… Taehyung impatiently moves your hands out of the way to unbutton your jeans himself so instead you work on your sports bra which actually doesn’t require much work at all… It isn’t the cutest one you own but it does have a zipper down the front which makes the removal process much easier and for that, you are thankful. You unzip the bra and slide it off your shoulders before dropping it on the floor beside the couch. You can’t stop your hands from caressing the tops of your breast then running your palms over your hard nipples. Tae’s hands would feel better but, he’s busy pulling your pants down past your hips. You lift yourself off the couch to help him get them off you. When they’re off completely, he takes the clothing and tosses them somewhere behind him. “Jesus,” He says as his eyes meet the large damp spot on your navy blue panties… “You were this wet the whole time?” He asks, looking up at you and you nod in response.

“Please take care of it Tae…” You plead… Now that he’s brought it up, the wet, stickiness between your legs is starting to get uncomfortable and since he’s the cause of it, it’s only right that he fixes it. “I’d love to.” He tells you before leaning down to press kisses on your stomach, right above the waistband of your panties. You bite your lip and look down at him, both your heart and your pussy are throbbing in anticipation for what is about to happen. 

Taehyung takes a chance and peaks up at your through his lashes… You are a sight to behold, laying here, so prettily and patiently waiting for him to make his next move… He thinks it’d be so easy to tease you and make you whine underneath him but he’s not a selfish lover and he desperately wants to repay you for the nut you made him bust not too long ago. He kisses the damp spot on your panties before looping his fingers in the sides of them. He pulls them down slowly and as your pretty cunt comes into view, he licks his lips. He can’t wait to taste you. “Hurry.” Your voice is soft and very desperate. “Sorry Darling, I just was admiring you…” He confesses and your face heats up right away.

Oh god, this man is going to be the death of me.

He pulls your panties off the rest of the way and tosses them in the same way he did your jeans, he then begins placing kisses one by one on each of your thighs… He takes his time, stopping every so often to suckle on your smooth skin… It feels amazing but you are loosing your patience. You whine out his name and he chuckles… After he just told himself, he wouldn’t tease… He can’t help it though, he just love to take his time with you. 

Tae positions himself more comfortably between your legs, hooking his arms under your thighs and spreading you open wider. He starts by licking a stripe from the bottom of your core to the top, just to get a taste. The tip of his tongue hits against your clit and you sigh at the feeling. Taehyung groans in delight when the taste of you glide across his tongue, igniting a fire in him to taste more. He flattens his tongue over your folds, licking his way back down before pushing the wet muscle between them. Your breathing is already starting to become rugged, the small pants leaving your lips are enough to boost Tae’s ego and he’s only just getting started. 

Gripping your thighs tighter to bring you even closer to his mouth, he begins lapping his tongue between your wet lips and your mouth falls open at his ministration. The back of your head gently hits the arm rest of the couch when Tae’s tongue hits your clit for a second time, this time he lets it stay there, rolling it over your harden bud slowly just before he sucks it into his mouth. “F-fucking hell..” You nearly screech out. His lips are locked around your clit and you can feel his jaw rubbing against your folds while his nose is pressed to the skin at the top of your cunt. You glance down to find his gaze is already on you. For a brief minute, you are able to see that his eyes are glossed over with lust before the flutter closed in pure bliss. 

The fact that he loves eating you out just as much as you love getting eaten out is just…. *chef kisses* 

You push your hands in his hair and grip from the roots, he grunts causing a small wave of pleasure to vibrate over your clit. “F-fuck!” You moan out, arching your back. Taehyung sneakily removes a hand from under your thigh, bringing it up to your wet pussy. He swiftly slides a finger in without warning, causing you to yelp and arch your back, “Oh my god…” You say breathlessly. He begins pumping his finger in and out of you slowly, his mouth never wavering. He sucks on your sensitive bud like it’s his favorite candy. 

Taehyung adds a second finger to your dripping heat and you clench tightly around them. He groans louder around your clit at the thought of you clenching around his cock instead. He knows he’d fit snuggly inside you and he can’t wait to feel your warmth and wetness engulf him but for now, he wants you to cum on his tongue. You taste so sweet and you’re so wet for him that he might just end up staying down between you thighs forever. “So sweet.” He mumbles exactly what he’s was thinking, over your clit. He then uses his tongue again, twisting the muscle in a circular motion around your clit while he steadily pumps his fingers in and out of you. You grab hold of your breast and pinch your nipples between the tips of your fingers to increase your pleasure. 

Your body is on fire… You can fill that familiar coil in your stomach starting to turn and he can sense it too… Almost as if he’s is in tune with your body… Not to mention the way you keep pulsating around his fingers. “Your close..” Tae mumbles, only loud enough for himself to hear. “C’mon Darling.” He mumbles again, in the same tone as he takes his mouth off your clit… 

You can hear him talking but it’s almost like you’re under water… The pleasure is deliciously overwhelming and all you can think about it cumming hard all over his mouth and fingers… You’re so close to that sweet release, it’s unbelievable… 

Now that his mouth is off your clit, Taehyung can focus on the look on your face. “Beautiful.” He, once again, mumbles to himself. 

He’ll never get tired of seeing you like this. Never, ever. 

He blows air over your aching bundle of nerves while he watches you become a quivering mess right before his eyes. 

The moment when he decides to curl his fingers up inside you, moving them back and forth as the tips of his fingers graze across that spot, is all it takes to send you into a frenzy. “Jesus, right t-there! P-please don’t stop!” You exclaim. He pops his head up further, the entire area around his mouth and his chin are g l i s t e n i n g with your juices. “Right here?” He asks, grazing his fingers over the same spot again. The way his words fall off of his lips combined with how he’s looking at you should be fucking illegal. “Yes, yes, yes!” You squeal as you orgasm begins blazing a trail through you body. “Oh fuck,” Tae groans, as he feels your fluids run down his palm… In an instant his mouth is back on your clit. He sucks your clit, mercilessly and the overstimulation causes tears to pool in the corner of you eyes. You try to push his head away from your aching cunt but he won’t budge. 

“Ah-h T-Tae wait, p-please.” You beg him. 

“I-I c-can’t!” You blurt out and he finally releases you from his mouth but his fingers stay in you just a little longer, pumping you as you come down from your high.

The wet sound of Tae pulling is fingers out of your cunt is sensitive to your ears. He licks his fingers clean the leans forward to kiss you and you’re able to taste yourself on his tongue, which causes another moan to escape you. “Do you think… You can take my cock right now Darling?” He asks in between sloppy kisses. “I need to be inside you.” He admits and all you can give him is a nod of your head. “Are you sure?” He questions. He doesn’t want to pressure you or make you feel like you have to do anything you’re not up for… He just really wants to feel you wrapped around him. 

“Yes.” Your voice is hoarse and barely audible but he hears you... 

Taehyung kisses you once more the leans up, you can make out the imprint of his hard member through his sweatpants, you can also see a few dry patches of cum from earlier and your mouth salivates for the hundredth time tonight.

When the blue haired boy above you pushes his sweatpants and boxers down in one go, his dick springs free and your eyes light up when you see the glossy, pink tip… 

Just as you remembered, it is gorgeous… He is gorgeous. 

You don’t get enough time to admire it because he is positioning himself between your legs again. “Ready?” He asks you sweetly and respond by leaning up to place your lips on his again. “Give it to me.” You encourage him and that’s all he needs to hear before slowly pushing himself inside you… No foreplay, no teasing… Just straight to the point. The both of you gasps into each others mouths when your warm walls engulf his thick cock for the first time in a while…

“Jesus…” He calls out and you fall back on to the couch, not having the energy to hold yourself up anymore. He begins with slow strokes, like he usually does. He leans down to meet your mouth again, repeatedly kissing you. “I love you.” He confesses and your heart does backflips, like it always does when they say those three words to you. 

“I love you.” You say back to him whilst his hips start to pick up the pace. His mouths falls on to your chest, peppering kisses on the valley between your breast before it comes to hover over one of your nipples. He pokes his tongue out and flicks it over your nip and you moan his name loudly as your eyes flutter closed. 

Tae pulls out of you, leaving just the head of his cock inside your warm, wet center. He mouth comes down and closes around your harden nipple… He doesn’t hesitate to suck it into his mouth right before he pushes back into you. “F-fuck.” You shout as your hands tangle in his hair yet again. He begins stroking into you at rapid speed… 

Your moans must’ve set him off… 

It’s almost like a flip was switched…

The way he’s ponding into you now is total contrast to how soft and gentle he was being earlier… Not that you’re complaining. “T-Taehyung!” You scream and he finally lifts his mouth from off your nipple, making sure to release it with a pop. He leans up and you’re able to see the beads of sweat rolling down his golden skin. He grabs hold of your legs, wrapping them securely around his waist.

“Scream my name again Darling.” He commands as he grabs onto your hips for support. “Taehyung!!” You scream again when he hits a particularly sweet spot inside of you. “You’re so good to me baby! I love your cock so much.” You praise him and he smirks… The man thrives off of your praises.

Tae bucks his hips faster, you lift your own up to meet his thrusts. Your skins slapping against each other mixed with your heavy panting is one of the prettiest sounds you’ve heard and you don’t want it to end but you don’t think that you’ll last much longer… And from the way that Tae’s head is thrown back, how his grip on you is getting a lot tighter, and the way his adam’s apple bobs in his throat, you know he’s close too. 

“Are you gonna cum with me Darling?” His voice is raw and he sounds so fucked out that it makes your pussy lips quiver… 

“Y-yes, yes I-I’m so close baby.”

“Argh! M-Me too,”

“Give it to me Tae, please..”

You hear him mumble another curse word under his breath and his thrust begin to stagger a bit before his releases his load into you… It takes you a little longer to reach your second orgasm but Tae doesn’t stop fucking you until you do, even with exhaustion starting to settle into his bones, he rubs your clit and continues stroking his dick inside you until you cum all over him…

Soon after your release, Taehyung collapses on top of you, trying his hardest to catch a breath. His eyes fall shut as he rests his head on your shoulder while you lazily run your hands through his damp hair. It’s quiet between the two of for quite a while… You’re both in post-amazing-sex bliss and are just enjoying being in each other embrace. 

You think that Tae has fallen asleep because his body is limp on yours, he’s resting most of his weight on you and his breathing is steady but then you hear his slightly muffled voice say:

“So we’ll see you Friday night then?” 

You toss your head back and burst into fits of giggles.

“This guy…” You mumble to yourself, whilst shaking your head with the fondest smile on your face. 

What am I going to do with you Mr. Kim Taehyung? 

. * 　　　 ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . * ⁺ ⁺

F R I D A Y    N I G H T

You arrive at the boys dorm at eight o’clock on the dot, like you were told. Stepping up to the front door, you quickly type your code into the keypad, the door beeps and you twist the knob and push it open before stepping inside. All the lights in the dorm were off, expect for the one in kitchen which casted a dim light into the rest of the open space. It seems like no one is home but that couldn’t be the case... Surely Tae wouldn’t have invited you to an empty dorm and furthermore, you texted him less than twenty-five minutes ago to let him know you were on your way so he had to be home.

“Where is everyone?” You mumbled aloud to yourself. 

Just as you pull your phone out to give Taehyung a call, you are startled by the sound of the toilet flushing. You whip your body around to face the bathroom door. You then hear the sink running. “Taehyung?” You call out but there is no answer. The sink is still running as you walk closer to the door. “Hello?” You call out again, a little louder and closer this time when suddenly the sink turns off and the door is being swung open. You are greeted by a pair of sparkly, yet startled brown eyes. “Oh!” Tae says placing his hand over his heart in shock. “Shit, you scared me.” He says, sounding like someone has knocked the wind out of him. You smirk, doing your best to hold your laughter in.

“I was calling your name...” You informed him.

“I’m sorry Darling,” Taehyung steps up to you and wraps his arms around your waist before pulling you into him. You place your hands on his chest to stable yourself. Your faces are inches apart, much like they were two days prior. “Hello beautiful.” He says sweetly. You feel heat rise to your cheeks at the compliment he gives. 

Will you ever get used to all the compliments and affection these men throw at you? Probably not. 

With the sudden urge to kiss the man in front of you. You lean in to close the gap between the two of you, pressing your lips to his. He instantly melts into you.  With his arms securely wrapped around your waist, he pulls you closer. 

The kiss begins to heat up. His hands begin roaming your body, slipping from around your waist to lay them on the small of your back. His lips are so soft today and you find it incredibly hard to pull away from him but you do before things go any further.

You reluctantly pull your lips away from Tae’s and he eagerly chases after you, always wanting more. 

“Slow down tiger,” You say jokingly as you put your hands on his chest to prevent him from getting another kiss out of you.

“I’ve missed you.” He confesses and you can’t wipe the stupid grin off your face… “Tae, we literally saw each other two days ago.” You remind him and he scoffs. “Why can’t you just say it back… You’re turning into Hyung.” He tells you, his tone bitter. You laugh, instantly knowing exactly which Hyung he’s talking about. “Leave Yoongs out of this.” You say, poking his chest playfully. “Speaking of Yoongs…. Where is he?” You say, looking around at what seems to be an empty dorm. “Where is everyone and why is it so quiet in here?” You ask curiously.

Upon hearing your questions, a mischievous smirk graces face. 

“What?” You ask, suddenly suspicious. 

“Come, I wanna show you something.” Tae removes his arms from around your waist to grab hold of your hand. 

“Show me what?”

“It’s a surprise.”

Hearing those three words cause a irritable groan to escape your lips. You hate surprises, really hate them…

You start to have flashbacks of the amount of times you’ve voiced your distaste for surprises and it had to be over twenty… Taehyung should know better. “Tae, did you forget that I don’t like surprises...” You remind him. “C’mon, stop being difficult,” He begins tugging you towards the front door but you are resisting. “And close your eyes.” He instructs you. “Oh God, no.” You pout, stomping your foot like a child. “I don’t wanna go.” You whine. 

“Hey, stopping being a brat.” He says, sounding somewhat annoyed with you… “Just close your eyes.” He adds. ”You close your eyes...” You mumble under breath… Tae hears you and laugh at your immature comeback. 

“If I close my eyes we’re both screwed, don’t you trust me?”

“With my life.”

“Okay then, close your eyes. I’m not leading you into danger... I promise.”

You scrunch your face up in discomfort… “That doesn’t make me feel any better flex but okay.” Your remark once again causes more laughter to erupt from Tae. “What am I gonna do with you?” He mumbles more to himself but you still hear him, you’re too worried about where he’s taking you to comment.

After a few seconds of hesitating, you finally close your eyes. “Ready?” You can feel Tae looking at you so you nod your head in response. “No peaking.” He warns you as he start moving again with your hand locked in his. Your free hand moves around in front of you… You use it to prevent yourself from running into anything. As you start to follow Tae further into the unknown, holding on to him for dare life, you take a chance and pry your left eye open. Just as you do, he turn around to check on you. “Hey!” He exclaims and you close your eye just as quickly as you opened it but it’s too late… You’ve already been caught. 

“I said no peaking.”

“I didn’t see anything and we’ve barely moved an inch,”

Tae sighs before letting go of your hand. “Wait here.” He says, before jogging down the hallway. “Where are you going?” You call after him and get no response in return. You roll eyes and wait, anxiously shifting side to side.

It takes him all of five minutes to finally make his way back down the hall to you. You raise a curious brow at him when you realize there is something in his hand. He holds the item up, letting you get a better look at it. “A tie?” You question, looking at the funky patterned accessory dangling from his hand. “I couldn’t find a mask or scarf… This will have to do.” Taehyung walks around you. “What are you doing?” You ask frantically. “Blind folding you idiot, since you can’t follow instructions.” He says nonchalantly. “Hey!” You turn around to hit his chest and he huffs out a breathy laugh at the contact. “I was kidding!” He tells you, before lifting the tie up to place it over your head then in front of your face. “Turn around.” He instructs you and you sigh before obeying his request. You decide not to argue with him anymore… The quicker you put the blind fold on, the quicker you’ll be able to get it off… Hopefully.

Tae securely ties the fabric over your eyes, making sure the large part isn’t covering your nose. “Are you okay?” He asks after stepping to the front of you and you know. “I guess..” You shrug and you can hear him chuckle. “Can you see me?” He questions. You can’t see him but you can feel him moving around in front of you, probably dancing or making weird faces. 

“No Tae… Can we hurry up and do this… I wanna take this off.”

“Ok, ok.” 

Taehyung finally grabs your hand and starts moving. You decided to grab onto the length of his arm, rather than just his hand. The closer you are to him, the safer you feel… And also if he decides to try and throw you down into a ditch, you’ll be able to pull him down with you with how tightly your holding on to him. 

You hear the sound of the front door being unlocked. “We’re going out?” You ask, nervously. “Yes Darling, but not far.” He assures you and your nerves calm down just bit. You know you’ve stepped out of the apartment when the cooler air of the hallway hits your skin. You hear the door of the dorm shut behind you and the beep of the keypad, indicating that it is locked. “Come.” Tae’s deep voice is comforting as he continues to guide you to your destination. You walk for a short period of time before briefly stopping so that Tae can open, what sounds like, another door. “We’re going up the stairs now.” He warns you. His voice is echoing in space you’re in and you body get goose bumps, not only from the chill in the air but also when you think of all the horrible scenarios that could happen while you’re blind folded. 

“Y/n?” Tae pulls you out of your own head. 

“Hm?” You respond shakily and he laughs. “Why are you being so dramatic?” He questions in amusement. “I’m not.” You protest and you can’t see him but you feel like he might’ve just shook his head at you. “You’ve gotta step up, okay? The first step is right in front of you.” He explains to you and you awkwardly lift your leg up and forward just a bit before putting it back down on the step.

With Tae’s help, you are able to make it up three flights of stairs. You’re tired and out of breath by the end of it. “I’m not in the right shape for this.” You complain and Taehyung chuckles. “You’re shape is perfect.” He says sweetly, the heat that rushes to your cheeks is evident but if Tae noticed, he doesn’t say anything. 

“Are we here?”

“Yes.”

“Can I take the blind fold off?”

“Not yet.”

You can feel Taehyung shifting around you for a bit, then you hear another door being open and another b rush of cool air slaps you in the face… “Ooo.” You say wrapping your arms around yourself. It’s not freezing cold but it’s the start of September and the weather is starting to change from summer to fall so it’s a little chilly. 

Taehyung puts his hands on your shoulders and nudges you throw the door way. The rest of you boyfriends are watching you amusingly as you put your hands in front of you in attempt to feel out your surroundings.

Jungkook is trying his hardest not to laugh out loud at how ridiculous you look flailing your arms about. Yoongi takes a little break from grilling the meat in front of him to glance at you and a fond smile graces his face when he does. 

“Is someone cooking beef?” You say out loud. Jimin and Namjoon’s eyes widen when pick up on the smell so easily. “It smells like a barbecue.” You admit and you can hear what you thought was muffled laughing in the distance but you’re not sure… You know it isn’t Taehyung because he’s right beside you. “Ok, I’m gonna take the blind fold off but you’ve gotta keep your eyes closed until I say…” He says. “Okay.” You respond, happy to just be able to get the fabric from over your eyes. 

Tae stands behind you and begins untying the blind fold. He is looking at his members with a knowing smirk as he does so. “Keep your eyes closed.” He says, as the blind fold falls from over you eyes. 

“Okay, ready?” Tae questions and you nod your head. “Open your eyes,” He whispers in your ear and you do immediately 

“Oh my god.” You gasps, placing your hand over your mouth in awe. 

“Surprise!” All seven of your boyfriends shout in unison. Before you know it, your eyes are beginning to pool with tears. 

The sight in front of you isn’t what you were expecting.

You are on the rooftop of the boys dorms, it is completely decked out with fairy lights and streamers. There’s a wooden bench off to the side with an array of foods displayed. There a cute little tent made of sheets and filled with what looks like the softest and fluffiest pillows and blankets, right across from a huge portable projection screen. 

There is a Disney movie already cue up… You’re not sure which on it is but, the blue screen with the infamous white castle is ever present.  

“Are you crying?” Taehyung suddenly asks, as he leans down to match your height so he can get a better look at your face. “No..” You lie, trying to subtly wipe away yours tears. “Aw~ My baby,” Jimin coos before he jogs over to you. He wraps his arms around you, engulfing you in a big bear hug and you sniffle, before hugging him back. “Please, don’t cry Princess... Our hearts will break if you cry.” Jin pouts as he shuffles over to both you and Jimin, wrapping his arms around the both of you for a mini group hug. “Me too!” Jungkook shouts as he runs over to the three of you. He tries his best to wrap his arms around all of you, snuggling close to Jin first and resting his head on the older male’s back. 

“I-I c-can’t believe y-you guys did t-this…” You’re a stuttering mess and it doesn’t help that your words come out extremely muffled because of all the bodies smothering your own. Jimin laughs because he isn’t able to hear exactly what you said but the shakiness of your voice is adorable. “What was that Baby?” He asks, moving back a little to give you room to speak but his arms are still securely around you. 

“Ok, I don’t think she can breathe… You all have to give her room.” Namjoon is amused at the display of affection in front of him. Jimin, Jungkook and Jin back away from you, giving you breathing space and when you finally look up to greet them, your eyes are puffy and red and your nose is slightly snotty. “Aww.” You can hear Hoseok say from across the room. He had been busy fixing one of the fairy lights and hadn’t gotten a chance to see you properly. Now, here you are, a snotty nose mess in front of him and all it makes him want to do is hold you close in his arms until you’re done crying.

“I can’t believe you guys did this…” You repeat yourself, this time a little more clearly. “We felt really bad about missing movie night,” Taehyung, who has now made himself comfortable in the pile of pillows and blankets at the side of you, confesses. “But I told you it was okay.” You say, voice still trembling. 

“Yes, we know thats what you said…” Hoseok starts. “But it wasn’t how you felt.” He adds.

“Yeah, we’re really sorry Princess.” Jin chimes in. “We know you were really looking forward to that night and we hate that we disappointed you by missing it.” He continues. You smile and grab his hand. You can see the guilt in his eyes, but you don’t want him to feel that way. “But all of this?” You say, looking around. “Not that I don’t love all of this but, isn’t it too much?” You ask shyly and by ‘too much’, you mean ‘too much for little ole you’… 

“It’s not enough!” Jimin exclaims and the rest of the boys chuckle. “This was all Jimin and Taehyung’s idea.” Namjoon admits. “Yeah and you know they don’t do anything half assed.” Yoongi adds as he takes the last few pieces off meat off grill to put them on a plate. You nod your head in agreement. “Thank you guys for this… It’s perfect.” You say truthfully. You’re sure the boys can hear in your words, how moved you are. Your chest feels like it could explode at any minute. “Anything for you Angel.” Hoseok is staring at you like you’re his whole world and it only makes your heart flutter more. “Let’s eat kids before the food gets cold… Then we can watch the movie.” Yoongi suggests as he takes a seat on the bench. The rest of you follow suit, gathering at the table. “What movie is it?” You ask after sitting down in between Namjoon and Jin. “Astro cats or something like that…” Yoongi shrugs his shoulder and you laugh knowingly. “Its Aristocats and excellent choice.” You tell him excitedly before digging into the food like the rest of the boys.

This is way better than the movie night you had planned and you can’t believe the lengths these men will go to make sure you’re okay. You almost feel like you don’t deserve it but you would never say that thought out loud as you know they’d scold you for even thinking it.

Just like always, you are feeling extremely blessed to be loved by such caring and considerate men and you are convinced that you are indeed, the luckiest woman in the world to have all seven of them by your side. 

[zabreti]

the time has finally come for me to start expressing what i have been overwhelmingly feeling for the past week, since i started to properly listen to this sunshine of a woman named joanna newsom. i want to- actually, i need to vent a little about the album ys, since it’s the one i first listened to. plus my initial contact with joanna’s work and thoughts that came with it

even though i only found out about her a few months ago, i guess everyone knows her(?); if you don’t, you should. there’s not one single moment in which i’m not mad at myself for not finding her sooner. so fyi, she’s a harpist, pianist, singer and songwriter from nevada. according to some sources, she may be the most famous harpist alive today; i really don’t know about you, but it really sounds quite badass for me.

i started searching for her stuff after watching her husband’s - andy samberg - multiple interviews, where he would be sometimes asked about their marriage. i’ve been binge watching random interviews with people i like for the last weeks, and i found myself actually watching some interviews of hers before i even got to listen to her music.

btw, look at this fucking adorable couple. just look at them for a second.

first of all, what a lovely woman! each answer, each laughter, each little thing she did on camera caused an admiration for the idea of andy and her together to grow strongly; i wasn’t even sure if it was ok for me to feel so strongly about someone else’s relationship. my curiosity grew when i started to read the comments on these videos on youtube, pretty much 100% of them being about her intelligence, her talent and how her music sounds angelical, mystical and perfectly constructed. (let it be said that it only grew more and more as i watched every single interviewer asking both andy and joanna about how different their works are, and how different they appear to be as individuals; not only was suggested that andy would probably not rise up to such an intelligent, serious taste as to fall in love with her (he doesn’t even need to say a word for anyone to realize how passionately in love he is with joanna and her entire work), but also said that no one could believe she was actually able to be a goofy, easy-going, good-humored person because of the lyrics she writes. ok, i could spend hours listing the unnecessary questions i identified in these interviews, and how i get easily annoyed by these famous hosts assuming stuff or trying to create an uncomfortable environment; and don’t even get me started on the fact that most of the interviews she was invited to would revolve around her relationship with andy. i’m choosing to let this feeling pass for now, since it’s not my focus today.)

i couldn’t help but start by saying all this since i truly adore andy’s works, and nothing feels warmer than realizing two amazing people are in love and have a family together by choice.

i mean..... ??????? c’mon. greatest couple alive. try and fight me on this.

another interesting thing i found out was that she dislikes streaming platforms similar to spotify, which probably (?) justifies the fact that i never came across her songs, since i use spotify on a daily basis and have been using it to find new artists for the last years. call me ignorant, it’s fine, truly; but i haven’t heard of similar opinions coming from artists, and it made me even more curious to know what this woman was expressing, creating, thinking. she actually told larry king: 

“spotify is a business model. it’s not good. it’s based on the idea of circumventing the payment of artists. (...) i’m not opposed to streaming. i understand that the world is shifting and that the way music is valued and monetized is shifting, and i’m ok with that. and i’m even ok with people not paying for music (...), i just wish that there was a better way to do it that didn’t only pay a company. (...) i haven’t heard of one [alternative to spotify] that seems built the way that i would prefer it to be built.”

one of spotify owners (owners or directors, idek and idec) even replied to her many critics, but she never changed her mind or retreated from defending even her honest, harsh comments about how spotify is “like a villainous cabal of major labels”. for me, that’s a badass woman. not only for expressing herself without giving a damn about anyone who might be offended in this process, but also for choosing the path that felt ethical and worthy, and being recognized all over the world for her talent while following her own ways. i know, right? simply awesome.

there i was, reading the endless comments on her interviews’ videos and wondering what the fuss was all about. there was nothing left for me to do other than to actually start listening to her songs. i could have done it by looking up her discography and starting from her first project, but somehow i stomped into the ys album, which was released in 2006, in youtube itself.

first of all, would you look at this freaking cover?

i found it absolutely gorgeous in each detail; in fact, i really wish to know if there are meanings in the little specific parts of the painting. maybe there aren’t any and i’m just trying to create a more complex joanna in my mind? sure, sounds like me. or maybe there are lots of ‘em and she already said it on camera and i simply missed this video? sure, sounds possible. i won’t lie, i spent so much time thinking about this cover... maybe way too much time. alright, on we go.

there are 5 tracks on the album: emily, monkey & bear, sawdust and diamonds, only skin and cosmia.

at first, i didn’t quite understand what i was listening to. and i’m not talking about the lyrics, i’m talking about the whole idea of the album, the artist, the genre. the conjunction formed by her high pitches and soft, delicious vocal variations, surrounded lovingly by the harp and the violins was very mysterious to me. at first, i wouldn’t be encouraged to keep listening to her. but something kept me there, seated, staring at the screen and paying attention to each second of it. it was an experience. a real transportation. i searched for the lyrics on genius, and anyone that would pass by my bedroom’s open door would see me completely enamored by what i was listening to, like a concentrated kid being told an epic, adventurous, huge, beautiful and complex story. that is exactly how i felt: in the middle of a field, picturing each image she described in the song; each figure, each feeling. she described it all in a way that made me wonder how can someone describe a dream so vividly, how can someone describe anything so perfectly, so fully, and not sound redundant, not sound at all boring. the way the melody and the lyrics fit together, as a gift perfectly wrapped and tightly involved in the most beautiful way. i repeat: it was an experience. it is an experience. this is not something you can listen to at any given time, at any given place; i would not dare to not pay attention each time i would plan to listen to it. this is how seriously submerged i felt by joanna in that moment; in that entire day.

all of this, all of this immersion, all of this dream-like state in which i found myself in, kept growing its roots in me throughout the entire album, in a way i needed to show someone - anyone - joanna before i even got to finish the five songs; and the first one that came near me happened to be my mother. while listening, she actually found it quite pleasing, “like some old movie’s soundtrack” when listening to emily, “like an 1960′s melody” when listening to sawdust and sand, and on she went about the entire album. and this got me thinking about how i would describe her genre; of course, after following her on bandcamp i found out i was actually listening to some folk/pop/avant-garde/baroque pop/chamber folk/indie stuff. sounds about right, but at the same time not right at all, for some reason. i believe it’s fair to say that joanna has a magical, rare quality to her music that makes it different to each one listening to it. i’ve said it too much and i’ll say it again: it’s an experience, a complete, true one. it ressonates with deep, personal places. and, strangely, it makes many people describe the feeling that urges to grow inside their hearts as “home”; and i share this exact same sensation.

i really don’t know if it makes any sense, but see: i cherish my alone time probably more than anything in the world. i have learned to be my own best friend in many ways, and being by myself in some quiet days, at my house, reading, listening, watching and creating is when i can truly be myself. with that said, listening to this album, i felt at home. it made me feel even more alone, and i mean it in the most loving, warm, hypnotizing way. 

the ys album is a relatively quick production to be heard, even though it feels like you’ve been gone for hours, days, weeks on end while listening to it. the amount of literary, historic and philosofical references in the lyrics is magically overwhelming; i simply wasn’t able to snap out of it for a long time, and i have, to this day, re-listened to the album about 5 times. still reading the lyrics again and again, still grasping at some expressions faintly but amazed, still finding out about hidden and not so hidden meanings behind each track. still defining it, every single day.

i hope for the great discoveries i feel like pursuing from her work, and the diverse new singers, song-writers, harpists, pianists, violinists, chellists and musicists in general i’ll try to find, understand and support from now on. i’m thankful for finding out how much i love the mix between an orchestra-like atmosphere and a sweet, honest voice ringing in my ears; and how the words assembled together feels like a psychography.

i thank the universe every single day for the opportunity to discover people like joanna newsom.

[takonei]

Beta AU - Main story: Prologue

Hehhhehhehh since I couldn’t summarize the prologue I wrote it entirely despite my non existent writing skills.

Forgive me guys, I snapped.

Also yeah towards the end I kinda gave up because everyone knows the rules of a class trial by now.

Edit: Forgot to add that while the main story and context remain the same, I added my own twists as to repair plot holes and just for fun.

Day: Unknown.

Place: Unknown, Japan.

A young highschool student makes his way to the address given to him on the sheet of paper he holds on to tightly.

He looks up to the large building before him.

“I still can’t believe any of this is real.”

He doesn’t realise how much time he stared at it until he heard another voice beside him.

“You’ve been staring at this for about two full minutes. You good?”

He snaps out of whatever trance he was in to face the other boy. Another highschooler, with messy light green hair and physical aspects that could be described as feminine.

“No I just…”

He looked back to the building.

“I never thought I would get in in the first place.”

“Me too, and yet here we are.”

He sighed. “It was about damn time.”

…

-----------

...

Day: Unknown.

Place: Unknown.

Shuichi woke up in a confined space. If he were to guess, it was probably a locker. He tried to get an idea of where he was, but his movements were very limited.

He heard footsteps coming towards his locker, and out of panic, Shuichi stayed still hoping the person outside didn’t notice another presence.

“Is someone in there?” another voice questioned. A male voice. But Shuichi didn’t recognize it, and didn’t know if this person was nice or not.

“I’m not here to hurt anyone, I just want to know where am I.”

Perhaps this person wasn’t a bad guy after all. Shuichi pushed the door and got out of what was indeed a locker. Around him was a classroom, with a modern aspect, but looked like it was abandoned years ago due to the long vines on the roof and walls.

It was only then that he faced the only other person in the room.

A male teenager around his age from his looks, perhaps a bit younger. He wore a dark blue, comfortable looking jacket, a white shirt and dark blue pants. But what was the most noticeable thing about him was his light green hair and  intense green gaze, staring at him. It wasn’t in an angry way, but it still intimidated Shuichi.

“You don’t look like you have any idea about where we are.”

Unfortunately he was right.

“No clue, sorry.” he scratched the back of his head.

They looked around to get, perhaps an idea of their current location. The other boy swept away some dust on one of the desks.

“Strange. Even though we were brought here, this place looks like it hadn’t been stepped in in at least years.”

Shuichi frowned. “Brought here? What do you mean?”

The unnamed boy turned around to face the blue eyed student.

“Unless you went here on your o-”

He was brutally interrupted by a high pitched voice.

“Rise and shine, ursine!”

The two teens were startled by the sudden apparition of… A bi-colored teddy bear, red and white, with a scarf and a shuriken.

“A teddy bear??”

“I’m not a teddy bear, I’m Mo-”

“Let’s get to the point. Are you the one who kidnapped us?”, the green haired boy interrupted, clearly, already annoyed.

“How rude to interrupt me! I’m Monotaro, from the Monokubs!”

Shuichi was confused by what was happening. “I’ve never heard of you though…”

The bear looked at the two boys.

“Alright! We’re good to go then! Let’s tackle each issue one at a time! Any questions?”

The green eyed teenager didn’t waste a second.

“Where are we?”

“This place is called the Ultimate academy for Gifted Juveniles, an academy made for you two and the other fourteen ultimates!”

Shuichi was getting more and more confused. “The Ultimate academy for… What?”

The red and white bear looked more than glad to explain things, which was the only plus in the situation.

“There are 16 Ultimates at this school! Students chosen and recruited for the Ultimate initiative for their talents!”

Shuichi seemed to understand the situation, but his ‘partner�� raised an eyebrow in confusion.

“Anyway, it’s time for you to greet the other ultimates of the academy! It will be important for you guys’ activity later!”

The duo looked at each other.

Monotaro seemed satisfied.

“Alrighty then! So long, bear well!”

“Wait!” Shuichi reached out to it, but it was too late.

“We were definitely kidnapped.” the other boy said bluntly.

The chestnut haired teen looked at him. But turned his gaze back to the ground. “Unfortunately there isn’t much we can do about it for now.”

“What’s your name by the way?” Shuichi asked.

“The name’s Rantaro Amami. I’ve been called the ultimate medic from time to time.”

“Oh, you work in hospitals? That’s nice!”

He chuckled. “Not exactly, but whatever. What’s your name?”

“Oh, my name is Shuichi Saihara, the ultimate violinist. At least it’s the title I often get from the people I play for.” He didn’t want to brag about his talent, perhaps in fear of being judged.

The two made their way out for their quest for the other ultimates. But as they were walking, Shuichi had a question on his mind, something his ‘new friend’ had said.

As if reading his mind, Rantaro turned to him. “You look like you want to ask me something, but you don’t dare to.”

“Ah!-”

The medic chuckled. “Hey, it’s fine, really. But what’s on your mind though?”

Shuichi looked for words. “Earlier you looked confused when the red bear said we were recruited as Ultimates, and you are absolutely sure this wasn’t on our will. Why is that?”

“You’re observant, I see.” Rantaro affirmed. He looked away from Shuichi. “Because my place is not here. Even if it’s an academy for us ultimates, I don’t belong here.”

“What do you mean?”

“My place is on the battlefield, with my crew, helping soldiers recover from their injuries. Not in an academy studying to work in a hospital.”

Shuichi’s eyes widened. “You’re a war medic?”

“That’s what I’ve always been. And even if someone handed me a letter to say I was accepted here, I would have refused.”

Rantaro didn’t seem mad, or sorrowful in those words. It was barely a statement, but Shuichi couldn’t help but look away.

“Don’t be sad, even if my work conditions aren’t the best, that’s the future I choose for myself. My duty. My role as a war medic.”

At least he didn’t look like he was too much forced into his position, which was a relief.

The two explored the academy, finding one by one the other ultimates.

Tenko Chabashira, the ultimate judoka, a cheerful girl who had a positive attitude despite the situation they were in.

K1-B0, a stoic robot who didn’t remember if he had a special talent besides his nature.

Himiko Yumeno, the ultimate astronomer, a young looking girl who was determined to befriend everyone here.

Kokichi Ouma, the ultimate karma, a very timid boy who preferred to describe his talent as “Ultimate unlucky pest”, already unsettled by Himiko’s cheerful attitude towards him.

Ryoma Hoshi, the ultimate weapons maker, a calm and small yet mature boy, whose soldier nature stood out more than Rantaro.

Maki Harukawa, the ultimate tailor, whose outfit was clearly homemade with a skill living up to the name of ultimate.

Kaede Akamatsu, the ultimate writer, very passionate about her talent and didn’t miss the occasion to talk to the other girl in the room.

Miu Iruma, the ultimate street artist, very flirtatious and confident in her talent as an artist, calling herself “firefly of the city”.

Tsumugi Shirogane, the ultimate prodigy, a calm girl who didn’t have a lot of friends from the look of things.

Angie Yonaga, the ultimate craftswoman, clearly foreign from the way she looks and speaks, but being with Japanese people doesn’t seem to bother her.

Gonta Gokuhara, the ultimate zoologist, who looked reluctant to meet everyone but talked nonetheless.

Korekiyo Shinguji, the ultimate therapist, a bit creepy on the outside, but it was easy to see he was not ill intended in the slightest.

Kaito Momota, the ultimate biker, confident and up to meet the rest of the ultimates, proclaiming himself “the best biker and mechanic you could ask for”.

Kirumi Tojo, the ultimate maid, who looked very serious and mature, and would probably be the mom of the group if it wasn’t for her cold demeanor. 

Despite their friendly interactions with them, the gut feeling that something wrong was going to happen didn’t fade away.

Rantaro and Shuichi were suddenly startled by one of the monitors suddenly lighting up.

“Rise and shine, ursine!” the already annoying jingle ringed through the speakers.

It was only then that the two realized there were not one, but five of those bears speaking to them.

“Hiii! Thanks for bear-ing with us!”

“...”

it didn’t take long for Shuichi to start getting annoyed at the bear puns. After glancing at Kirumi and Rantaro, he realized he wasn’t the only one.

“Kept you bastards waiting, huh!?”

“Everyone, make your way to the gym please.”

“The opening ceremony can finally begin!”

“Phew! We already finished our preparations!”

“... You do realize you just read your lines backwards, don’t you?”

Their catchphrase was already starting to get stuck in their heads.

“So long, bear well!”

The monitors turned off, leaving the trio alone. They looked at each other.

Kirumi broke the silence. “It looks like we don’t have a choice.”

Rantaro frowned. “I still have a bad feeling about this. You go without asking questions?”

The young woman briefly stopped in her tracks. “I am a maid. If I am requested at one place, It is my duty to go.”

Shuichi was not optimistic about the situation either. “I guess all we can do is get there.”

After a short walk, they made their way to the gym, finding the rest of the students here.

Some of them were talking about the new academy. But some were also worried about what everything was about.

Their talk stopped when the ground started shaking, only for five huge robots to come out of nowhere, almost crushing them.

“Yoo-hoo! Rise and shine, ursine!”

Some started screaming, telling everyone to run away, but the robots had already them surrounded.

“What do we do?”

“I don’t know! Those machines look powerful!”

“I’m not experienced in fighting robots!”

A voice came out of one of the exisals. “They’re exisals, not robots! Highly mobile, bipedal weapons platforms! They got lotsa hometown pride, too!”

“I can’t keep track of these backstories.”

Miu got the attention of the rest of them back. “It still doesn’t change the fact that we have to run!”

“Wait.”

The voice came from K1-B0.

“If they wanted to kill us, they would have done it right away, don’t you think?”

The rest of them were septic, but the exisals weren’t doing anything. The robot faced one of the exisals.

“You five asked us to join you here for a ceremony. I assume this isn’t to crush us with these machines?”

Tsumugi faintly, but surely joined in.

“I-If you took those giant robots, that means you guessed we wouldn’t cooperate with whatever you want to do to us…”

The yellow exisal seemed to react the first. “Aren’t you a wise girl?”

The blue one exclaimed “I’ll start us off! Listen up! Here’s what we want you punkasses to do…”

He paused, then laughed.

“My heart’s goin’ 100 miles per hour! I’m gonna say it! You ready!? Hell yeah! It’s a-”

He didn’t even finish the sentence that the green exisal spoke.

“KILLING-GAME.”

A sudden silence fell on the students.

“A… What??”

“If that’s a joke that’s not funny!”

The exisals started to fight between themselves, blaming one another for ‘ruining’ it.

Some of the ultimates looked at each other. This… Didn’t look like a prank. They were thinking about a strategy to run away until an unfamiliar voice was heard.

“Now, now, now…”

Shuichi looked at the origin of the sound, even though nothing was there.

“My cute little cubs… You gotta knock off this awful fighting…”

The monokubs suddenly got out of the exisals to go on stage, leaving the huge mechas on the sides of the gym.

“Father!? Father, is that you!?”

“Papa Kuma! Papa Kumaaaaa!”

“Daddy!? Where are you, Daddy!?”

The others were confused to say the least. The light suddenly shut off, only for a single spotlight to light up, in the middle of the stage, revealing a sixth bear, black and white, landing on the ground with what could be grace, if it wasn’t for the fact they were talking about a teddy bear.

“I am the god of this new world, and the headmaster of the Ultimate Academy! The one, the only… Monokuma! Nice to meetcha!”

The kubs and their so called father started arguing in front of worried and confused students.

“What is this…?”

“It’s aura is certainly not blessed!”

“Why is there a sixth one of those teddy bears??”

As if offended by that word, the black and white bear turned back to the students.

“First of all, I’m no teddy bear. I’m Monokuma. Show some respect! I’m the headmaster of the Ultimate academy for Gifted Juveniles!”

Kirumi, despite declaring herself as the ultimate maid, was having none of the bear’s nonsense. “Don’t try to make me believe you are the headmaster of an academy like this.”

The robot on the students’ side spoke up. “I know robots when I see them. But I have a bad feeling about this.”

Ryoma stared at Monokuma. “Alright. You bots talked about a ‘killing game’. What are you even saying?”

Said bear started to laugh.

“What’s so funny about a killing game?!” Miu butted in, both mad and afraid.

“I want you students with your Ultimate-level talents to participate in a killing game.”

Kaito stepped in. “You want us to kill each other? Who would even try to do so?!”

Tenko raised her hands in a combat position. “If it’s just those six bears, we can take them!”

Monokuma laughed again. “We have the exisals on our side. You can’t defy us. In other words… I have the power of life and death over each and every one of you.”

Himiko, despite her short stature, yelled at the bear. “Why on earth would we kill our friends?”

“You guys aren’t friends, you are enemies! After all, a game where no one dies isn’t fun!”

Shuichi didn’t even know what to say. The situation was so absurd.

Monokuma, with his frozen smile, continued the conversation.

“How about an explanation of the killing game? Let’s get this heart pounding killing school semester started already!”

“You are allowed to kill whoever you want, however you want! Stabbing! Drowning! Poisoning! Chocking! You ultimates have all the potential to create some of the most creative methods of killing! After all, there is no better place for a killing game than the ultimate academy!”

No one really dared to respond.

“Once a murder is done, the remaining students proceed to an investigation, then a class trial! The blackened must deceive the spotless! After the trial, it’s voting time! If a majority guesses correctly, only the blackened killer will receive punishment. Buuut! If you vote for the wrong person, the blackened gets away, and all the spotless students get punished instead!”

Kaede’s voice was shaking. “What kind of game is this…?”

Rantaro frowned. “And what is the punishment you talked about?”

Monokuma looked at Rantaro.

“Well it’s simple! The punishment is an execution. After all, it’s only suited for a killing game that a murderer gets killed for their crimes!”

Shuichi couldn’t believe that was real. It all felt like fiction. Yet they were here.

Kokichi was holding onto his sleeves. “Why would we… Why would I… I don’t want to be a part of this! There’s no way I’m doing this!”

Monokuma smiled widely. “You think you have a choice? The killing game is the only reason you’re here!”

For the first time since all this nonsense, Shuichi spoke.

“There… There is no way we’re gonna kill each other just because you told us so!”

Monokuma laughed once again. “I love that spirit of resistance! That’s what I’m looking for in a killing game!”

“But what’s better is to watch you crumble one by one… And then there were none.”

“It’s my role as a headmaster to ensure this killing game is done according to the rules!”

Monokuma went again through a fit of sadistic laughter.

The students all stood there. All of this felt unreal.

But now was not the time to give up. They were going to survive, no matter the cost.

They were not going to be part of this sick, twisted game.

[saber-wing]

2019 Creator Tag

Rules: It’s time to love yourselves! Choose your 5 favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2019. Tag as many writers/artists/etc. as you want (fan or original) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome works!  

@xxx-cat-xxx ​ tagged me in this, and I’ve never actually sat down and thought about favorites before so, here it goes. Five favorite stories I wrote last year, not necessarily in order of importance:

A Love Like That

Tony managed to retract the rest of the helmet and his right gauntlet as he dropped to his knees. He tasted blood; felt it draining in rivulets down his chin, and he reached up with his bare hand, gingerly cradling his cheek. He could feel missing chunks of skin beneath his fingers – deep, sharp lines carved into his flesh.

Someone touched his shoulder.

 “You all right over here, Shellhead? Don't tell me that guy actually sucker-punched the smirk off your....oh, shit.” Tony could hear it in Clint's voice the moment he saw the blood dripping onto the ground. “Shit!”

**Tony takes a hit. His team is not pleased.

This one was my second one in the Avengers fandom. My first one, at least since the golden years after the 2012 Avengers movie, was very spur of the moment. I turned to Avengers Assemble for comfort after Endgame and wrote the first one, ‘Worth A Damn,’ but at the time, I had no idea it was just the beginning. After I wrote ‘A Love Like That’, and I really started getting a feel for how I wanted to portray these characters, I knew I was in it for the long haul. Also, first ‘physical’ whump of the fandom.

Before We Sleep

 “Might have to...s-skip the debriefing, Cap.”

 “Oh, no, I'm not letting you off that easily,” Steve quipped, bile rising in his throat. He reached for his com again, helpless to disguise the tremble punctuating every word. “Where are my medics, Fury? I need an ETA, pronto!”

“Three minutes out, Cap. Pushing as hard as they can.” Steve nearly groaned aloud. Three minutes. Such a long time.

 Such a very, very long time.

***There was a spear jutting out of Tony's side, and Steve couldn't breathe.

This was heavier than anything I’d done in Avengers up until that point, and probably still is. Steve has no idea if Tony is going to make it out of this. And neither do you. I wanted it that way. I enjoy writing heavy, bittersweet pieces. Much as I am a sucker for a happy ending.

Scavengers

 Something was wrong with Tony.

 Anyone who didn't know the man as well as Steve did would have missed it. The signs were subtle. So subtle he had to look twice, just to make sure he wasn’t overreacting.  But there they were. Something was wrong. He just couldn't put his finger on what.

***Steve learns the hard way just how cruel the modern world can be. And when it comes after his best fella, well. He has a few things to say.

In this one, Steve bears witness to Tony’s persona in the public eye, and it was rewarding to write from the outside, looking in. Tony Stark is kind of a big deal, whether his suit is gold titanium alloy, or Armani. And I wanted to remind people of that. Tony kicks ass in ballrooms and at charity events just as well as he does as Iron Man on the battlefield. BOTH of those are battlefields for Tony, in a sense. That’s not to say he isn’t fantastic at both, but it isn’t without great personal cost. In either case.

Knife Fight

One moment, Tony was saying goodbye to an associate he’d met for dinner. The next, he was on the ground with something sharp, metal, and definitively blade-like sticking out of his thigh. 

This one was just a lot of fun, to be honest with you. Not that I don’t always have fun writing my pieces, but it flowed really fast and easily. And also, I got to see Tony kick ass OUT of the suit. And stab wounds. Who doesn’t like a good stabbing?

All That Remains

Stark was nothing to Bucky. Just another happy do-gooder who didn’t know when to quit.

This is the one in the fandom that has gotten the least attention, but it honestly is one of my favorites. Not only did it allow me to explore a character I hadn’t thought much about up to that point. It also allowed me to see Steve and Tony’s relationship from the outside, looking in. From the Winter Soldier’s eyes, no less. It was fun to explore that duality between the Winter Soldier and Bucky -- this person who is at the same time both of them, and neither one. And, to explore his evolving relationship with Steve. Neither of them is quite sure what to make of the other at this stage, and it broke my heart a bit.

Anyway, I’ll tag a few people, I suppose, who are in no way under any obligations. @jehbeeeh @smiley-sunflowers @captain-truffles

[cheryllcher]

Marinette: Guardian of the Miraculous

part 2

i have too many wips but im writing something else again :)) (woes of a writer/artist/just creators don’t @ me here)

so my brain clearly isn’t prioritising so here’s a really very long lil one shot based on this post i found by @aly4son and it’s pretty cute and fluffy. i decided to make some changes and add some stuff here as well becuz i love fluff hope it’s okayy. this took pretty long becuz i had to figure out how to put everything together ://

and as it stand it is getting way too long so im gonna have to put up a second part whoops.

—

“Hmm… Add a little of this…, a drop of water from the Dragon’s Tears Fountain… Oh, don’t forget the edible glitter…”

Marinette was adding different ingredients to her pot, swirling her wooden spoon at the same time. She was preparing for her final test before she was officially declared the new Guardian of the Miraculous. However, she needed a break from all the formulas and power-up functions. So, she decided to continue playing around with the concoction she’s been working on for weeks, hoping to complete her experiment that afternoon. She knew she could just finish it after her test, but she could feel that she’s so close, and was eager to observe the results.

Ever since she started learning the recipes of the power-up potions, she wondered what other power ups she could try making, if it were possible. She’s been trying over and over again, playing around with different kinds of ingredients. She’d even brought some items from the bakery, if only to give it a little taste and colour. (And also to test a theory of whether it can be used to make power-up potions. It did work out in the end, but only some foods.) She remembered Chat mentioning that Plagg hated those power-up cheese (said it tasted like “liquidy goo you humans take when you’re sick”) and decided to mess around with flavours.

“And… Done! Tikki? Up for another round of taste testing? I think I’ve got it this time!”

“Of course, Marinette! I’m curious though, why did you add the glitter?”

“It’s for flair, for the potion I’m brewing. If this works, you’ll see why I wanted glitter in there.” Marinette threw in a wink, and dipped a little spoon inside the pink, glittery liquid. Tikki floated towards it and took a sniff, noting the scent of champagne coming from it. I wonder if kwamis ever get drunk, didn’t think we’d try that before in all the time we spent in the miracle box.

She quicked sipped the delicious brew, and immediately felt a tingling sensation.

“It’s happening! It worked!”

In a flash of pink, Tikki transformed, her usual self now a sparkling crystal-like texture, her centre spot and tail (?) now dazzling diamonds.

“Wow… Well, what power up is this?”

“It’s called the Elegant power up, ooooooor Exquisite. Haven’t really decided on the name yet. It’s just a little fun power-up I came up with, you know, like a fancy dress transformation.”

“Cool! I’m sure Kaalki would love to try this power-up. It’s glorious.” Tikki laughed at her own little joke.

Oh, how she wished she could snap a photo of Tikki, but kwamis don’t show up on cameras. It was a great accomplishment, and she was really proud of herself. Specially created with an original outfit designed by her, a sketch of the design slowly added into the mixture while it boils. (Another absurd theory that flitted through her mind.) Never thought this crazy idea would work but here we are.

“Alright, I’m going to try transforming. Ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be, Marinette!”

“Elegant Tikki! Spots on!”

The familiar feeling of transforming washed over Marinette, yet it feels completely different at the same time. The swirls of pink magic disappeared to show a red cocktail dress with exquisite black sequins scattered on silk, the fabric a darker shade of red than what she usually wore. Extremely fancy indeed.

A Mandarin collar wrapped around her neck with a mini brooch which had a symbol engraved into it, a representation of her Chinese heritage and the pattern associated with the Miraculous. The top half had black polka dots, embodying her super-persona’s namesake, along with a matching mask and gloves, both of which had intricate embroidery. Her hair was pulled up into a stylish updo, braids twisted to form a crown above her head. Her red heels has little ladybugs on them, just like the one in her hair. Just how she imagined it.

“Wow, this is even better than what i would have done!” Marinette twirled around, noticing that the outfit has a litte glittery shine to it. Now she wish she would get to wear this someday; she felt like a princess! (Well, it was pretty funny because Chat would always call her civilian self that.)

In the midst of admiring her work, Master Fu walked into the room. His eyes widened at the sight in front of him, and Marinette shrieked, quickly transforming back to her usual self.

“Ah, sorry Master! I was messing around with an idea I had and I completed it just now. Don’t worry, I was practicing potions before that.”

“I’m not mad, Marinette. On the contrary, I’m actually very pleased that you have managed a feat that even my masters were unable to achieve back when I was in training with them. Perhaps I could show it to them when I return for a visit.

“In the mean time, how about you use this power-up for your Guardian officiating ceremony. It is something to celebrate after all and you deserve it.”

Marinette didn’t know what to say. She just thanked the master profusely, grateful for the opportunity to try out her new invention. She didn’t bother trying to refuse because she knows that there would still be one no matter what she says. Master Fu simply waved it off with a chuckle.

“Now, would you like to have your final test today or prefer to still wait for tomorrow? I feel that you are ready.”

—

School was still a priority, being in senior year and all. Marinette could only work on designs during her free time, and with Hawkmoth around those are scarce. Marinette would sometimes sketch out ideas besides finishing her homework, for fear if forgetting them. She absolutely hated it when an idea struck while she was busy fighting an akuma.

Good thing was, she didn’t need to worry about measurements. The miraculous will ensure that everyone’s suits and dresses would fit them to a t. So all she had to do was make sure that the designs represented each of the holders perfectly.

Tikki wholeheartedly agreed that Marinette deserved to be celebrated as the new Guardian, she hadn’t had a holder who was a Guardian since millennias ago. She was positively buzzing with exhilaration, moves animated with so much zest Marinette was afraid she might explode.

Chat was the first person she told about becoming a Guardian. He was surprised, after all he wasn’t aware of her receiving training, but that was short-lived as he immediately tackled Ladybug in a humongous bear hug for her sensational achievement. He even said, and I quote, “My, I’m honoured to be graced with the presence of the great and powerful Guardian of the Miraculous Box,” topped off with an exaggerated bow and a kiss to the knuckles.

He was also ecstatic about the prospect of a new transformation. Ladybug told him to assure Plagg that she had added a different flavour to it, and will add some cheese to his batch on top of infusing it in his beloved camembert. That night, Plagg denied purring loudly in his sleep. (“You were dreaming, Adrien. Hallucinating!”)

Three months of constant sketching and resketching, coloring in and retracing it for the potion, Marinette finally got the designs out. She asked the kwamis for their opinions on the designs, (after a mini celebration of their own, obviously.) and they gave their input. Some even made flavour requests, though they still kept the champagne in there as they loved it and it made the power-up more fancy.

Then it’s another week of measuring, mixing, and carefully infusing the correct batches into the different snacks. She almost put Wayzz’s herbal tea flavoured potion into Pollen’s honey comb, if not for Tikki and Wayzz’s interference. Oh, the look of horror on Pollen’s face would send Plagg laughing with tears.

With everything ready, it’s time to paaaaaaaaartay! (Clearly Xuppu was here :) )

—

With the help of Chat Noir, they managed to get the miraculouses to the respective holders’ rooms before they arrived home from school. She handwrote all the dissolving letters containing the information, taking care to use her cursive. Those online lessons really paid off, even Tikki couldn’t recognise that she was the one who wrote it.

Ladybug hid behind a rooftop as she watched Max open read the letter, coming to the conclusion that everyone else is doing the same. She hoped that she had made her instructions clear enough, considering how… excited some of her classmates could be.

—

Everyone was confused when they found a box in their rooms, realising soon after that it was a miraculous box. Alya and Chloe immediately opened their boxes, paying no mind to the paper that were below.

“Oh, finally! Ladybug is giving the Miraculous to me! It’s about time.”

“Trixx! Does Ladybug need me?” An extremely loud gasp, “Oh my gosh, is she here? Do I get to hold on to my miraculous?”

The kwamis questioned had to clarify that no, Ladybug was not nearby as there is no emergency, no, it was only for a few short hours, and no again, the miraculous was technically not theirs but “belonged” to the Guardian for safekeeping unless they are permanent holders. They were only temporary holders who are called upon when their help were needed.

(Ladybug and Master Fu had them make sure they got it through their heads after getting irritated when some people kept begging for it again. And also to inform those whose identities were compromised that it was their last time using theirs.)

“Please read the letter before you do anything, Alya.”

“It contains some important information that you really must know before you call upon me, my queen.”

All holders read through the letter:

“Dear [Name],

I hope this letter finds you well. I’m to be officiated as the new Guardian of the Miraculous, and it would really make my happy if you could join me tonight. Along with your miraculous, you will find a small snack for your kwamis. It is to be consumed strictly before transforming, so do not waste it as I’ve only provided a small piece.

You will transform tonight at 4am, going going to the address listed below. Don’t worry, the kwami will be able to help you with that. I know it is late but this is to ensure no reporters or your parents will see you sneak out. Hawkmoth rarely comes out at night anyway, so that’s a bonus.

Chat Noir and I are greatful for your contributions as the heroes of Paris, so we would also like this to be a celebration of thanks. Hope to see you there!

Signed, Ladybug

Address: 53 Rue de Corentin, Petit Fortune Hôtel 3rd floor”

The letters dissolved with a flame of green sparkles, kwamis reaffirming the chosens that they know the address and will help them navigate.

[jonsafan-blog]

Bran, the future, and wedding dresses

This post has potential spoilers.

There has been a running headcanon in the GOT community that Bran might be able to see the future. It’s never been confirmed, so it’s only been a tentative theory.

One aspect the jonsa fandom has explored is that when Bran told Sansa she looked pretty in her white wedding dress, he was not actually referring to her second wedding to Ramsay, but a future wedding. His comments to Sansa were so rude in contrast to what she suffered (and what he knew she suffered) that it seemed out of place, even for his muted self.

But he specifically said he saw the past and the present, but that it was all in fragments and he needed to learn to see better. However, we know from experience that Bran has seen visions of the future before, famously his vision (unseen, but mentioned) of the sea coming to Winterfell. That came true. He didn’t realize at the time what he was seeing.

Bran can see the future, he just doesn’t realize he can see the future. He is the three-eyed raven because each eye represents the past, the present, or the future.

You know the stunning thing about what Bran said?

He doesn’t clarify where the wedding happen. When he says it, Sansa is reminded of her second wedding and is horrified... walking away. but Bran only said he saw her in her white wedding dress, that it was snowing, and she was beautiful.

There is not a single line indicating where it happens. We as an audience just assumed it was the Godswood with Ramsay.

This speculation was honestly more fandom-hope than expectation, but I think we have reason to suspect he does see the future...

Because Sansa has another wedding dress coming up.

There has been some chatter that these are just artist mockups, but it is interesting that they chose white dresses related to Sansa for the premiere party. This one in particular is on display with clear indications of Sansa-related glory.

First, there is the obvious lemoncake background that reminds one of a wedding feast. They are a food eaten in social gatherings by women of the nobility... meaning it is likely a treat for special occasions - like a wedding.

Feathers are also a running motif for Sansa, as well as that weird circle thingy. However, what is especially interesting about this dress is that she no longer has a needle. In fact, this entire dress spells festivity, not the reserve of her Alayne dress nor the cloaked nature of her second wedding dress. There is just a lot of peace with this dress, and she no longer has the needle.

There are two more dresses on display, but this dress appears to be the UBER dress, and I can’t help but think of the wedding dresses they put on display for Princess Diana and Kate Middleton, both famous dresses.

Here is the second wedding-like dress:

This is an interesting dress because it is more restrained than the others. While it reminds me of Sansa, I can’t imagine Sansa would wear it (though I could see her sewing it).

There is a particular dress I am reminded of though when looking at this dress... and it’s the other dress. The dress we forget was worn but was part of one of the best scenes in GOT. The Pink Bear Dress:

Think I’m joking? Go look at the detail around the waist, and at the simplicity of the hem on the white dress and compare it to the image below.

The waist belt actually seems like a very Brienne accent:

My point is that the second wedding dress appears plain because it is meant for a bride who doesn’t care so much for finery, while the first dress definitely looks like a dress meant for a lady of the highest order... and it can only be Sansa. It is not a Daenerys dress nor a Cersei dress. There is no equal.

We spend so much time thinking... three random artist mock-up dresses for weddings? What if it is not three random mockups... but three mockups of three future weddings?

So whose dress is the third one I mentioned?

The confusing one.

Until you realize where I’m going with this:

When you look at that dress... who do you think of?

Arya.

You are supposed to think Arya.

I don’t know if these will be their actual wedding dresses, but if you put each dress to the correct character, the pieces start pulling together.

We know that Sophie seems happy with the ending and was apparently the first cast member to get back to the writers about the ending. There was also a recent interview with Gwendoline Christie and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau which possibly contains a major spoiler... because Nikolaj all but admitted Gwendoline messed up.

We know that Nikolaj isn’t a big fan of Daenerys and seems pleased with the ending. He is also a big fan of the dynamic of Brienne and Jaime.

In this interview, Gwendoline wishes they can have another show twenty years from now so they can all have jobs again.

They have some oh shit looks after that. AND WHAT DOES NIKOLAJ SAY? “THAT WAS A SPOILER!”

When she says this, Nikolaj looks a little surprised... because Gwendoline spoiled that there would be essentially a happy ending, and that Brienne and Jaime are going to make it.

I know. I thought he was going to die too.

But I really think these wedding dresses are meant to represent the future of Westeros in three major character pairings: Jon/Sansa, Brienne/Jaime, and Arya/Gendry.

It just makes sense.

[clairehazelb]

A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR OF THE TENTH CUBE

And by Editor I mean, Claire Hazel,

(whom you may know as C.M. Hazel)

Writing my first historical fiction novel was a task of love, but a great endeavor nonetheless.

When we do things we love. we love the things we do. The Tenth Cube was, in essence, my love for romance and history poured onto pages of combined plotlines and historical facts. Coupled with science and a good dose of ritz, it blossomed like a garden flower into the novel it became. I felt, finally, like a writer the moment I wrote “The End.”

Writers, like professionals of other art forms, just are. Mostly, it occurred to me long ago,  we can become it, like the second you write the last sentence of that novel, or publish your book, like there is a glorified ending to calling yourself a member of the elite group of artists who pine at the sight of a lonely blank page.

Or so I felt. 

I read years ago -and my apologies to the person who wrote it for I sincerely do not recall the author- that ‘the moment you call yourself what you esteem yourself to be, is the moment you become it’. Therefore, if you want to be a writer, you call yourself a writer and let others deliberate on whether you are apt to be or not.

I practiced my skill of saying I was a writer in front of a mirror or while waiting for traffic to move in the lane ahead of mine. I yelled it out the window for good measure. “Move the fuck out of the way. I am a writer and can write this into my book!”

The moment somebody asked me and I said it out loud, I embodied it with pride, like the day I stepped with character shoes onto a stage felt for the actress in me. It burgeoned out of me like it was supposed to forever, waiting to be discovered. I beamed with the wine-laced fever of the evening.

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  It was a pivotal moment in my history, redefining where I ended up with my work. I went on a search for myself and found my writing voice. The days were growing longer with the dawn of my ideas and entries, so I had to make use of what I was inspired to do.

Despite my assertion, that I was a writer and not a poser, fear of criticism stalled me. I faced it like stage fright, but it was a sinister face at the end of my journal telling me it was not good enough. Nothing could come out of my penned notes and rhythmic pentameters.

I read about imposter syndrome around the time, looking for ways to face my fears. As it turns out, it can apply to anyone in any career, but it is a disorder that affects writers especially so, the idea that you aren’t good enough is prevalent amongst the inked-fingered-wordsmiths in my profession.

When I finished the Tenth Cube, everything changed.  While editing, I thought about a piece I had never published which explored the elements of fear. From that entry into my journal, came the text I eventually entered into my novel. I felt it appropriate for my second published book and first historical fiction novel. Aspiring writers are usually the best readers and learn best while to reading other writers’ works, taking what they can to heart. Here is part of the text in my book.

  A WRITING INDULGENCE

When I first started writing The Cube (as I lovingly call this novel), I typed without direction and wrote about many topics. I posted most of it on an old website, I would not even dare call a blog at this point. I eventually learned to hold hands with my muse in a better way and supplied my artistic knowledge with my other artistic experience. But, it inevitably always led me toward the same reason for not embarking onto a manuscript fully. Fear.

  My head swam with thoughts and reasons why I would fail miserably at my task. I just knew.

I know everything in stories has already been said and done.

I know I’m not alone when it comes to storytelling and interesting facts about life and circumstance. I know the very principle of storytelling relies on the fact that the narrative is good and characters are interesting. And, then again, I don’t know anything at all.

I personally see the story better in my head than how it reflects on writing.

  Despite knowing and fear, stories ultimately lead you where you need to go. And for sake of argument,

Yes, I believe it’s possible to be a good storyteller, despite everything having been done already.

Rarely am I ever afraid, even rarest is my admission to the fear, but it scares me a little still because nothing has ever worked in my mind better than my stories.

I’ve failed so miserably at so many things it’s hard to start this again. I do not fear telling you this though. I write for a while and the fear disappears. I want to be the bearer of good news for new writers or those having an urge to quit like I have so many times before. Bear with me on this.

The phrase ‘It started with a notebook I once wrote’ jumped into my head a while ago. I wrote a poem about it because of the many notebooks later it took me to create the first personal entry into a public medium. I’d written about theater plays and Language Education with a technical point of view, but storytelling, like acting in stories which came to life through my fingers, became the part of me I most enjoyed writing.

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About eight years ago, I wrote a story –also based on a weird dream- and I went from there. I haven’t really stopped writing since. So, maybe that’s my beginning for this. I’ve scattered ideas and unfinished stories everywhere. My own pending as ever, the satire runneth over my brimming mind, for lack of better understanding sets perfectly in here. But, to make things simple, I will advise you to keep trying new and trying for more.

“Delia became my headstrong voice for writing. Though it was my second novel finished, she paced my thoughts in a way no other story had, and I was hooked to her charms. Delia Donovan became my daily dose of the [her-story] I so hated as a young girl and delight so in my adult years. Instead of writing columns of advice for women as I had planned, I went toward writing about strong, intelligent, resourceful, frightened yet capable women with the same principle in mind.” Claire Hazel

Delia will hopefully continue to inspire stories – I am in research and writing the second novel. There will likely be a third as well.

Aspiring writer and authors, the gist of what I mean in this.

It took me X years to develop the voice I needed to write this book.

It took me lll to research and write the full novel, with periods of off and on to dream and work on other projects.

It has taken me lV between trying to publish on my own and finding a publisher.

  The Tenth Cube became an enduring project because it has a life worth living, I have said that before I think. Most writers live in this world where stories cannot go untold. Therefore my dear thirtysomething-writer who hasn’t started yet, if you are like I was, find the outlet to do so and share the story that has a life worth living.

Take the time to write and sit with confidence to edit. And please, share with me that hard-pressed jewel when you like.

A big box with recycled paper packing and a mug of coffee with enough supply for reading will be the most delicious treat a grown girl could ever get.

  What are then, these so-called Elements

By ways of telling you of the best technique I have used to move my stories and find the hidden information in my characters I need to shape their persona, we will use the What if? technique. What ifs are a way to create possibility. When you have doubts, there are endless What ifs going around in your head like a merry-go-round of incertitude. In essence, The Elements of said turntable of fear could be considered the following:

What if I can’t write like the rest of the authors I read?

This could fall within the impostor syndrome I wrote about before. You are not an impostor of your own game, you feel like a writer, believe it with confidence. It does not mean you have to be like other writers, successful or not.

Writing may or may not take time. For the present me, it is a matter of sitting to the type or jot down notes. But as I mentioned, it took many years to develop a voice I found pleasing and suitable, according to my desired writing style. I guess what is important is that

you don’t imitate but emulate those you love AT FIRST to develop your own voice

write about what you like and not what people like, the audience will find you and relate better

study the greats and accommodate your needs through your learning styles and experiences

nobody is alike and we are all connected, so find what works for your personal style without judging yourself or thinking you will be compared

What if there are things I don’t know or need to include in my novel I know absolutely nothing about?

Researching novels doesn’t have to be grueling work. Annote as you write (for pantsers) or outline the novel as you want it to be (plotter). Your writing style can help or hinder you. So, read carefully,

Research as needed before and fully after finishing your manuscript

Too much research can create difficulty for you and/or your reader, who is probably not in need to sit through, say, a history class instead of understanding through the plot movement

Too little research shows lack of pulchritude and disrespect to your readers, or make you sound nonchalant and ignorant.

Rule of thumb? Be aware, show knowledge, but don’t over inform.

What if I get stuck in my writing process?

Find inspiration wherever you look or take time to be still and OBSERVE

Nature, life, family, etc, show us and teach us. Use its lessons to show you the way, so do not just look and see, WATCH AND LEARN

Don’t overwhelm yourself or stick to a plotline if you feel stuck. Take a break to refresh your ideas and they will hit you when you least expect it, I promise you! An exercise that works for me is jumping the part where I am stuck and either mind mapping or planning the ending first then backtracking to the difficult area

Talk to your characters. they tell you lies at times but help you find the way. Listen carefully!

What if they do not help me publish?

Many writers are still sitting on the sideline of genius, gems of witing prose at their fingertips. Sadly, most give up writing because of this. I have quarried and continue to quarry publishers without much success, but I keep pressing on.

I self-published my first two books with great difficulty and many years of work, but they paid off in a way nothing else has. Take your chances with self-publishing. (I will soon open a platform for other writers to send me manuscripts to publish as an editor. News on this later!)

What if I don’t have time to write?

Write where ever you are able to create a strong writing muscle. Keep pen and pads where ever you can or use phones and tablets, recording apps, and /or your digital cameras

Take every chance you get to exercise the need to write, be it a post-it note or a short phrase inside a journal, a Tweet or a love note, make those words count in your favor

What if I do not feel like I can write my novel (yet)?

Use blogs, submit to magazines, write articles or content, keep journals, or write your family’s newsletter.

Contact your local papers or ask if anybody needs a content writer in your school or local businesses

Start with simpler texts, like magazine entries and restaurant menus

Keep writing your way into the published author you want to be without thinking that you have to have a published book in your hands before you can call your self a writer. There are hundreds of professions where writing is a need and many forms of writing are included in this. Comic book writers, for exa

  Comic book writers, for example, are storytellers, too. It is a matter of how you see your writing come to life to show others your stories. Find where your style fits best and show your best work.

My final writing indulgence was to tell other writers that there are ways, time, and chances to do what you love and ways to do it. The biggest problem most people face is fear, but fear can come with a face, a price tag, a backseat without a window, or an empty stomach and children on your hip.

We may fear different things which hinder our jump into the life we want. Discovering the fear we face is the first step toward the freedom from it. The next is up to you.

  With love,

Claire.

Lovely writer and content creator, take a moment to create your own purpose, and formulate a plan to write your way into the content you like to read. Start by creating your own space and sharing with others the gift of your writing wisdom, comedic genius, romantic side, laughing tales of your youth, or the recipes and secrets your grandmother gave you to keep.

You will get a cool credit for those plugins that make your place shine and sparkle.

It is easy and fast to start. Tell me about it on your way back to my content and happy writing!

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Before the Tenth Cube. I typed without direction and wrote about many topics. With time and practice, I learned to hold hands with my muse, but fear held me back. Learn how to understand it and push past it. A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR OF THE TENTH CUBE And by Editor I mean, Claire Hazel,

[theswordofpens]

Get to Know Me Tag/Tag Game!

I was tagged in two tag games by @orphicodysseywrites and I didn't get to properly answer them, so I'll be combining both of them into one post! Without further ado, let's go!

1.) Nickname(s): Six Twelve (as in 6:12), V-man (that's because people couldn't spell or pronounce my last name), Captain America (my English professor named me that last semester because I wore Cap stuff on the first day), Superman (that's my work nickname), The Flash (I was/kinda am fast at running a mile), Jay (this is an alternate nickname a close friend of mine calls me), and Pooh Bear (this is because I used to love watching Winnie the Pooh as a small child).

2.) Gender: Cisgender Male.

3.) Astrological Sign(s): Scorpio is my sun sign, Virgo is my Rising/Ascendant sign, and Cancer is my moon sign (idk what any of that means of how it applies to me, but hey there it is!).

4.) Height: 5'11", but I like to feel like I'm 6'0".

5.) Sexuality: Heterosexual (but I'm a huge supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community).

6.) Hogwarts House: I'm a Ravenclaw, and it really shows in my actions. 😅

7.) Favorite Musician(s): Okay, so there's entirely too many to list here, so I'll just say all the artists on my writing playlist. (Go check it out on my blog!) I'll also go with my favorite modern musician and say Mayer Hawthorne, because the dude's music is legendary! (Also check this dude out!)

8.) Last Thing Googled: This one's because I'm A.) Into D&D, if you guys didn't know that before and B.) My friends and I on a writing Discord server are thinking about starting a game! But the answer to this is - "How would you make a Spartan in D&D 5e?"

9.) Following: 2,742.....that doesn't make me look bad, does it? 😅

10.) Followers: 859 followers. Not bad for a guy from the same city he's always lived in!

11.) Favorite Animal: The African Lion, and here's a little story to go with this. One of my life goals was to come face-to-face with a Lion and stare into its eyes. Earlier this year, I went to my city's zoo and we walked over to the African exhibit. The male lion was staring in my direction and since they have a thick glass plate up, I slowly walked over and kneeled down before him to stare into his face. Now, I know what you're thinking- "Joshua, don't stare into a predator's eyes! Especially not Lions, they'll kill you!" Oddly enough, when I did this, the Lion was very calm. He didn't growl, roar, or riddle his fur. He just stared right on back at me. And it was a really touching moment for me. The animal was very majestic, in all honesty. (Sorry, I got a little sidetracked!)

12.) Where Am I From: I'm from the state of California in the USA. Born and raised, never left at all.

13.) Song Stuck In My Head: Mayer Hawthorne's newest song "The Game." I'm telling you, guys, go check him out! He's incredible!

14.) Dream Trip: I would love to take an old muscle car and drive up the I-1 all along the coastline of California, hitting up every beach along the way while we sing along to every song on my playlist. (I've been told I have an old soul, alright?)

15.) When & Why I Created This Account: Well, I had been on Tumblr for a while before this account, but due to some personal problems I had to delete it. I created this account back in February, and I created it because I want to stay connected to my fellow writers, poets and artists.

16.) Do I Get Asks: (Okay, I'm jot gonna lie to y'all - I legit thought this was asking if I get ass XD in which case, the answer's no) UHH, I do but I'm always open for more! You guys can even tag me in ask posts and games you find and I'll answer them!

17.) Amount of Sleep I Get: Ah yes, the great phenomenon of sleep. It just so happens that this does not occur in young college students in North America, specifically in the United States. XD I'm not sure, about 5-7, on average?

18.) Lucky Number(s): 7 & 9.

19.) Wearing: Gym Shorts (Because it's hot outside, y'all).

20.) Dream Job: That's why I'm in college! I'm studying to be an Archaeologist, and I'm making strides to try and get my book published so I can be an author and an Archaeologist!

21.) Instruments: I can sorta (?) play violin, though I really need to get better at it.

22.) English & Partial Spanish (I'm currently working on second one).

23.) Favorite Songs: This is just like the musicians question! My answer's very similar to that one as well. To name just one of my many favorites, it would be "Corsican Rosé" by Mayer Hawthorne.

24.) Random Fact: I'm currently collecting money for a treasure chest! But the coins and cashed used in the treasure are either foreign currency or rare American currency. So far it's looking pretty amazing!

25.) Aesthetic: Brown worn boots, dark blue Jeans, white undershirt, my seatbelt belt, red plaid shirt w/ rolled up sleeves, and a pair of aviator sunglasses!

Thank you so much again for tagging me, and please continue to do so if you're interested!