#...why I started writing “moe” when tagging you?

[cantillat-moved]

@more-than-a-princess ✏️ (But for the Shirous, Van, -and- El Melloi)

Sonia (non-despair): I think I should be allowed on ghost hunter tv shows. Shirou(non-despair): I think that would be dangerous for the ghosts.

Sonia, to Shirou (non-despair): Please, picking locks is my specialty. Sonia (non-despair): *throws a brick through the window* Sonia (non-despair): Okay, let’s go.

Sonia: Just so everyone knows, don't ever try to climb a tree at night carrying a strobe light, owls DON'T like it. Shirou: ...what happened ? Sonia: I made a VERY bad mistake

Shirou: I don’t mean to be rude— Sonia: Yet, sadly, accidental rudeness occurs alarmingly often.

Van: Remember, violence is never the answer. Sonia: You're right, Van.. Violence can't be the answer. Van: Correct, Sonia. Now, on to the next lesso- Sonia: Violence is the question. Sonia: And the answer is yes ! Van: Sonia, no !!

Sonia: I want to kiss you. Van, not paying attention: What ? Sonia: I said if you die, I wont miss you.

Sonia, T-posing in the doorway: Greetings, El-Melloi II. El-Melloi II, not looking up from their coffee: Good morning, problem child.

El-Melloi II: I am going to need you to swear- Sonia: Fuck. El-Melloi II: El-Melloi II: ...swear as in promise.

[web-novel-polls]

Hidden Web Novel Character Submissions

Last Checked: September 20th, 2024 - Please check the original post for updates

Death to popularity bias! Submit any character you'd like, and they'll compete completely anonymously.

Rules

Must be a character from a web novel or similar

Propaganda must be sufficient to judge without giving away the character (just do your best, no stress)

Write the propaganda with the character's name, and I'll edit it out for the tournament itself

No limits or rules for the length of the propaganda. Either people read it or they don't

Please do not reveal a character’s identity if you guess it. If you want to guess anonymously and/or submit additional propaganda, you can do so here:

Based on:

@guess-that-ship

@mysterycharacterflowers

& others I can't find

Tag: #hidden wn character tournament

Alcoholic

Submission:

[Alcoholic] woke up in the body of a guy on Earth some years in the past and decided(read got forced) to go into the entertainment industry.  This guy egosurfs a lot, was an alcoholic and got an intervention for it. Plus he goes to therapy!! Also got kidnapped once and escaped by beating up the kidnapper . There was also the one time he went into a parallel universe.

Mod Propaganda: [Alcoholic] (seemingly) starts the novel with a “I’ll do anything to survive” mindset but grows to genuinely care about and for his friends while dealing with a LOT. He’s smart and calculating, which also manifests itself in supporting his friends and the people around him AS WELL AS himself.

Boccia

Submission (Edited to remove identifying info): 

He’s a demon. He wanders the human realm to find little human trinkets, possibly to sell them. He is a good boy who wants to make a living, and deserves to be acknowledged.

Farmer Guy

Submission: [Farmer Guy] was reborn in a xianxia world after living a boring life as a civic engineer in Canada. He spent about 24 hours in a cultivation sect before quitting due to bullying and corruption in the sect, and decided to move to bumfuck nowhere to take up farming instead. After all, superstrenght & endurance makes it way easier to pull a plow, put up buildings & so on. So why is his chicken starting to do martial arts?

Moonlight

Submission: 

[Moonlight] is the boy of all time. From his perspective, he successfully scouted out a talented new coworker, got blatantly propositioned while the ink was still wet on the contract, thought "wow, this guy is forward, but we really need his skills so... okay," within a month had fully progressed to, "it's fine to get married first and fall in love later," and then just. fell SO HARD. for a guy who, in his own POV sections, HAD NO IDEA his behavior even could be interpreted as flirty. For his actual character, the gap moe between "doting thinks-he's-a-boyfriend" and "super serious taskmaster" is adorable. 

Sunshine

Submission: 

My sunshine son!! Got isekai'd into another world pretty similar to his original one, and basically just went "welp, time to restart my career from the bottom! I did it once, I can do it again!"  Re: the differences from his original world, he straight-up just asks people questions and takes notes in front of them? And when they're like "how do you not know this, this is preschool level knowledge," he just laughs and goes, "yeah, I'm really forgetful and didn't pay attention in school." Iconic, honestly. Still doesn't stop him from mistaking social cues so thoroughly that he  accidentally gets into a romantic relationship without realizing it, due to having multiple chicken-and-duck conversations with his would-be boyfriend. (He got into the situation by basically propositioning the guy without noticing, having not paid attention to the social differences between worlds.)

Poor Single Dog

Submission: 

[Poor Single Dog]! My brilliant dumbass son! He's so book smart, yet can't see what's right in front of his face. He's really concerned about losing his Best Friend Status when the protags start spending time together (read: going out, because they're in love). There is no level of PDA he can't misunderstand as mere friendship. When he FINALLY gets hit by a clue-by-four (read: walks in on the main couple cuddling while doing the dishes, and one of them says, quote, "This is EXACTLY what it looks like!") his reaction is: [Poor Single Dog] remained silent for what seemed like a century. Finally, amidst his chaotic thoughts, he said: “You….so….then, am I still your best friend?”

[olivernothere]

NAME: Oliver Castellioa Solace-Di Angelo

ALIAS: Ollie, Ol, Olive Tree (sigh), Olive (ONLY Iggy)

AGE: 16 years old, 6th of January

WEAPON(S): A dagger made out of celestial bronze, 20 centimeters

POWER(S): He can enter peoples dreams, and watch what’s happening from afar. He can also change their dreams to however he’d like, this tends to drain him very much though.

PERSONALITY: He’s a bit rude and cold, sometimes shy, in the start, but if you get to know him, he’ll warm up. Once you know him, he’ll be the most caring person, he’s a bit loud sometimes, he’s a little overprotective of his family, even though hems the youngest, he ignores rude comments and such in public, he doesn’t know how to say no, so you never really know if he wants something or not. He’s REALLY scared of adults (sometimes even Will and Nico), and WILL call them sir, miss, ma’am, etc., he can and will sometimes isolate himself from everyone if he’s having one of his “episodes”.

FATAL FLAW: Thinking that he’ll never be good enough for anyone and it’s why his mother disowned him

HOBBIES: I like to paint, mostly landscapes and such, sometimes I write poems I guess? Oh and I love to spend time with my cat, is that considered a hobby?

FAMILY: Nico Di Angelo (Papa), William Andrew Solace (Dad), Daphne Naria Solace-Di Angelo (Sister), Hades (Grandfather), Maria Di Angelo (Grandmother), Apollo (Grandfather), Naromi Solace (Grandmother), Morpheus (Father A stranger to me.), Allison Castellioa (Mother Who is this?)

People I know (!!):

FAMILY:

@ghost-king-and-thebones - Nico Di Angelo, my wonderful papa!! <3

@daffy-not-a-duck - Daphne Naria Solace-Di Angelo, my lovely sister!! (STAY AWAY FROM EPHIE)

@doctor-sunshine-andcarebears - William Andrew Solace, my awesome dad!!!

@drea-and-nico - Andrea and Nicolas Lilith, Children of Hades, my aunt and uncle, but Drea is like a sister to me

@iggy-mini-miny-moe - Ignis Grace, a child of Jason Grace and Leo Valdez, my boyfriend fjbfjgbekd<33, DON'T let him near bleach

FRIENDS:

@chasing-that-jackson - Charlotte Sally Chase-Jackson, a child of Perseus Jackson and Annabeth Chase, please stop dying

@ineedtoescapefromreality - Echo and Rosalyn Mclean, children of Piper Mclean and Shel

@hey-guys-its-sam - Samantha Zhang, a child of Frank Zhang and Hazel Levesque

@violent-cinnamonroll - Aria Nicole La Rue, a child of Clarisse La Rue and Silena Baeuregard

@notwillingtobefound - William Valdez, a child of Jason Grace and Leo Valdez, Iggy’s brother

@not-a-panda - Pandora Stoll, a child if Travis Stoll amd Katie Gardner, she has a cute cat!!

@morningstar-of-the-night - Kallisto Danica Arrelano-Grace, a child of Reyna Ramirez-Arellano and Thalia Grace

@daredevil-larue - Lucine La Rue, a child of Clarisse La Rue and Silena Beauregard

@overwhelmingly-his-son - Lukas Castellan, a grandchild of May Castellan, he's cool

@the-poison-and-the-sky - Belladonna Chase-Jackson, a child of Perseus Jackson and Annabeth Chase-Jackson, from another Universe

@praetor-ambrose-asher - Ambrose Asher, a legacy of Primordial Khaos

ADULTS I KNOW:

@leo-repairguy-valdez - Leo Valdez, father to Iggs and William, married (?) to Jason Grace

@percy-jackson-xxx - Perseus Jackson, father to Charlie and Cassie, married to Annabeth Chase

@sincerely-anniejackson - Annabeth Chase-Jackson, mother to Charlie and Cassie, married to Perseus Jackson

ACC IS RAN BY: @moonssong

Tags:

#Oliver arrived - In character Oliver

#Oliver died - ooc

#Ephie supremacy - About his cat

#Oliver rants - something random ic Oliver

#Sister tag☀️ - When he interacts with his sister

#Death and fire - Oliver and Iggy (They’re shipped)

[providing-leverage]

The A-Team

(asexaul and aromantic Ted Lasso fic recs)

Let's be honest, half the reason for this post is the title. But also to shine some light on a couple beautiful fics I've found with aro and ace characters in this fandom. The purple heart indicates ace, green indicates aro content.

A is for Ally by starryeyedknight 3.8k💜

When Richard suggests a novel way for the Richmond boys to show their allyship, Colin ends up coming out to the team...just not in the way they were expecting.

In which the team gets distracted (multiple times), Isaac is overprotective, Jamie suspects Colin might actually be a Jedi knight, and Bumbercatch reveals way more about his sexual preferences than anyone was expecting. (And poor Will is inadvertently scarred for life.)

A cute little fic that I found perusing the asexual tag. I really enjoyed this au, and Colin's coming out/the guy's reactions to him as well as him not having it all figured out himself.

Love Stuck by @altschmerzes 6k 💚

When Keeley opens the door, Jamie bypasses any kind of perhaps typically-expected greeting. While this isn’t exactly unusual for him, what he says is.

“I’ve got great news,” he tells her, smiling like he really does have great news, which helps to somewhat offset the sense of foreboding she’d been starting to feel. “I am not in love with you. Can I come in?"

OR: Jamie Tartt is aromantic. This changes everything. This also changes nothing. A study in identity, defining your own relationships, and different kinds of love.

I am completely in love with this fic. Jamie having a bi panic before he realizes actually, neither is good/ref. It's very true to my own experiences and made me relate to him so much.

Such a Skeptic: or, Keeley Jones is Bad at Communication by ellarree 800💚

Keeley Jones is definitely not bitter about Shandy. Barbara is definitely interested in double dates and the institution of romance as a whole. Jamie Tartt definitely knows why he’s here. And Jack Danvers? Well, she knows that none of those three statements are true.

A short sequel to the above fic, with aromantic bonding and Barbara who quite honestly deserves so much more screen time in cannon. It has it's own sequel which you can find here.

A Simple Matter of (Mis)Communication by starryeyedknight 3k💜

For the past few weeks Moe Bumbercatch and Jan Maas have been spending an awful lot of time together, and everyone knows what that means. Everyone, apparently, except for Moe Bumbercatch himself...

Apparently I just need to binge read this author's whole collection of works because I didn't realize they also write A is for Ally until making this. Asexual Jan Mass which again I found myself relating to a lot. Technically part of a series and his asexuality was mentioned in the first work, but it's central to the plot of this one. It's also super cute.

Self rec: it's a rather touching notion by providing_leverage 5.7k 💜💚

“I won’t beat around the bush. We think you might be bisexual. You familiar with it?” A friendly team game of spin the bottle ends in a few revelations, some quicker than others. (AKA Moe Bumbercatch going through the unofficial aroace right of passage: adding no real attraction to men with no real attraction to women and coming up with bisexual, with a little help from his friends)

I really enjoyed writing this, even if the last 2k was just a fight against myself. It went through so many different versions and ended longer than I meant for it to be. I really neat part of the Ted Lasso fandom is how platonic so much of the content is.

If you've got any aspec recommendations of your own, please drop them here or tag me. Self recs are absolutely invited. Happy pride!

[canonicallyobserving911]

WIP Wednesday

Fanonwriter2023 on AO3

Where CANON and FANON collide!

FANON speculation for season 7

I wasn’t tagged by anyone but I wanted to share a snippet from chapter 7 of “I’m still in love with you but... I needed to learn how to love myself too!”

I’m excited to finish writing Chapter 7 because it starts right after Buck’s mental breakdown and even though he pushed Eddie away at the end of Chapter 3, Eddie’s there to help him pick up the pieces. He literally found Buck lying on his bedroom floor practically unresponsive and after almost three weeks of them not talking to each other, Buck finally lets Eddie in and he explains everything that happened to cause his mental breakdown.

___________

Here’s another snippet from chapter 7 of Buck and Eddie’s early morning conversation after one of Buck’s most difficult therapy sessions.

___________

It’s after 2:00AM and Eddie’s sitting on the couch watching an oldies TV channel that plays nothing but television shows that aired prior to the 1970s.  The volume is on low because he doesn’t want to wake up Buck but he’s surprised when he hears his footsteps coming up the hall.

He looks towards the hallway as Buck enters the room and asks, “Hey… what are you doing up?  Did the sound from the TV wake you?”

“No, I woke up to go to the bathroom but I saw the light and uh… I came in here to check on you.” Buck replies as he sits down next to him.

“I’m ok.  I was too wired to fall asleep so I figured watching reruns of ‘The Three Stooges’ would help.”

“But you’re still awake so… I guess it’s not working.”

Eddie chuckles.  “No it’s not.  I never understood why Moe was always so mean to Larry and Curly.”

He looks at Buck but he notices even though he’s looking in the direction of the TV, he’s actually looking past it.  He realized earlier in the week that it’s another thing Buck’s been doing lately, he zones out in thought but after he processes whatever he’s thinking about, he eventually starts talking so Eddie patiently waits.

As he stares off somewhere into oblivion, Buck remembers all the stories other people told earlier today during his first “Savior baby” support group session and he’s still having a difficult time processing all of it.  One story sticks out from all the rest because there was a teenage boy who shared his story and he reminded him of himself when he was 13 years old.

His name is Eric and he explained the way his parents had him so he could save his brother Dennis who’s seven years older than him.  He said they took one of his kidneys right after his 9th birthday and he’s had multiple painful bone marrow extractions since before he could remember but that’s not all.  Now they want him to donate again but he doesn’t want to do it since the recovery time is long and excruciating.  Eric’s story sounded so familiar to his own story that it made him wonder if life would have been better for everyone if he hadn’t been born.

Buck clears his throat and asks, “Do you ever think about how… it’s not worth it?”

It’s like déjà vu as realization sets in for Eddie because they’ve had this conversation before but their roles were reversed and the question hits him in the chest like a boulder has been dropped on top of it.  As he looks at him, he tries to keep his facial expression neutral but he’s not sure if Buck even notices since he quickly glances at him then looks away.

“Not the therapy. I—I mean…”  He runs his hand over his face and continues. “Is being born even worth it?”  He meets Eddie’s eyes then quickly looks away.  “I mean with all the crap we have to put up with when… dealing with our parents… or in my case… the people who brought me into this world.”

Eddie doesn’t interrupt but he does raise his eyebrows.

Buck clears his throat and nervously rubs his sweaty hands on his thigs to dry them on his sweatpants. “I wanted them to love me but they’ve always had their own selfish reasons for bringing me into the world so…” He trails off.

A loud and uncomfortable silence engulfs the room.

Then after about a minute, in a low voice, Buck continues.  “Maybe things would have been better if I was never born.”  He shrugs his shoulders.  “I mean my defective parts prevented me from being able to do the one thing I was born to do and since I couldn’t do that… I’m just wondering what’s the point of it all since I wasn’t meant to be here in the first place?”

Eddie’s heart shatters at Buck’s words because after all these years, he still hasn’t realized how important he is to them.  Not just to him and Chris but to Maddie, Bobby and the 118 since they all need him.

How will Eddie respond to Buck’s comments👀?

___________

Summary: Months after Buck and Eddie were hit by the same lightning strike; they’re still struggling with the aftermath of it.  But before they make their love confessions, they’ll spend time getting to know themselves as individuals first. Eddie learns to enjoy the simple things in life as he participates in activities on his own and with new friends while Buck learns the rest of the 31-year-old deep dark family secret about his conception and birth. Their journey to forever is still a work in progress but once they finally admit they’re in love with each other, everything that follows their love confessions will be cataclysmic.

__________

Chapter Summaries

Chapter 1 - Eddie makes a new friend while Buck receives devastating news regarding the sperm donation he made for Connor and Kameron.

Chapter 2 - Buck does a lot of research to learn more about the abnormalities found in his red blood cells and Eddie starts a new therapy journey that’s all about him and not the traumas he’s experienced.

Chapter 3 - After more than a month, Buck and Eddie finally spend time together outside of work but it doesn’t end well and they part with a lot of uncertainty regarding their places in each other’s lives.

Chapter 4 - Eddie has a few realizations about his life which causes him to consider moving back to El Paso, TX while Buck continues to be reminded of his past which causes him to take an impromptu road trip across America.

Chapter 5 -  Both Buck and Eddie have difficult conversations with their parents and Buck finally learns the truth behind the reason why his mother despised him while Eddie finally tells his mother about the way she tries to control him.

Chapter 6 -  More than two weeks after Buck pushed Eddie away after suggesting they needed a break; Eddie decides to try again. Eddie’s there for Buck when he’s at his worst just like Buck was there for him when he was at his worst and he won’t let Buck give up.

Chapter 7 - Will be posted soon.

__________

I’m enjoying writing this fic because it’s giving me the chance to unravel the mess that was the 6x18 ending for Buck, Eddie and Chris.  Also, it’s taking them places the show refuses to go including Buck finally having a mental breakdown and Eddie being there for him the same way he was there for Eddie in season 5.

Buddie Multi-Chapter Fanfic - Hiatus Reading

Read chapters 1 - 6 are already available on AO3.

[generalized-crowposting]

And here it is! The Prologue to

Hangman’s Joke

Crossposted on AO3 under the same title!

The members of Hangman’s Joke always seemed to connect beyond just playing music together. They supported and loved each other, and each other’s partners. When the news of Eric and Shelly’s murder reaches them, they’re devastated. They stay in the city and take care of Sarah as well as they can, but none have been able to find any sense of closure with the killers still on the loose.

~~~

This story is mostly going to pull from the 1994 movie, but there may be bits and pieces from the original comic and the 98-99 show The Crow: Stairway to Heaven. We’re going off of vibes here. If you like this and want to be tagged when future chapters go up, please let me know!

~~~

Prologue: Before the Storm

The band finished their final song of the night with a flourish. The crowd cheered as they took their bows and headed backstage. “That was fuckin’ amazing!” Tex hollered the moment they were out of sight. He side-hugged Eric, Nearly knocking him over.

Eric laughed, righting himself. “I don’t know how you’re always so energetic after killing it on drums every night, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t infectious!” He returned the hug before pulling away. He turned to the rest of the band. “You all did great! Where did that solo even come from, Moe? We gotta write that down!”

“Same place as yours and Brion’s on the song after! The energy was just right and we rocked it!” Moe grinned, slinging his guitar onto his back. “We’ll hash out the details for it at the next rehearsal. For now, let’s just relax and have a good time!”

They all burst into the lounge, laughing like madmen. “Shelly!” Eric and Gunnar shouted at the same time, noticing her waiting on the softer of the two couches. A set of cheap beers and cups of water were waiting on the table.

Shelly smiled and rushed over to the band. She gave each of them a quick kiss on the cheek, and Eric full on the lips. “Great show, boys! The crowd loved you!” She ushered them all into the room. Everyone quickly put their equipment away and piled onto the couches.

Gunnar flopped onto the other couch, this one was a poorly maintained but still comfortable leather. He grabbed one of the beers and raised it, “To another amazing night for Hangman’s Joke!” He said. His face split into a wide grin.

The band and Shelly followed the toast with a cheer. Tex was the last to grab a drink, and raised one of the waters to toast. The group spent a couple hours in the lounge, just talking and enjoying each other’s company. Eventually the time felt right to pack up their equipment and head home for the night. They all piled into Moe’s van. Tex sat down in the driver’s seat.

“Hey, my van, I drive!” Moe complained. He leaned against the driver’s side door to keep Tex from closing it on him.

Tex laughed, “Hey, I saw you drink the extra beer I left on the table, absolutely not!” He grinned, “Unless you want us all to sit around here on the street for an extra hour to make sure you don’t get us killed, I’m driving. This place is rough enough to drive through as it is.”

Moe grumbled but reluctantly let the door close. He crawled into the back seat, mumbling under his breath. Brion chuckled as he clambered over him. “C’mon, it’s not so bad, you get to sit back here and cuddle with me and the love birds!” He leaned over to let his head rest on Eric’s shoulder and wrapped his arm around Shelly.

Gunnar took his spot in the passenger seat. He immediately started fiddling with the radio dials to get a good station that wasn’t full of static. Tex began driving as the rock station they usually heard eventually crackled through the speakers. Gunnar let out a whoop and grinned back at the four people piled in the back seat. “And this is why I ride shotgun!” His voice was raised to be heard over the drum solo in the song that played. “You all look like a can of sardines!”

Shelly smiled back at him, petting Moe’s long hair gently as he laid across the other three’s laps. “I’d say we’re pretty happy for sardines, but I guess that’s why no one argues with you for shotgun. That and no one else seems to be able to get that damned radio to work as quick as you.”

He rolled his eyes and turned back to the front, smiling at the other’s antics. “You’re probably right. I’m sure one of you could learn this thing’s quirks eventually.” He said. As if to prove his point, he smacked the dash above the radio and the static cleared up a bit more. “Y’know, I’d offer to drive on occasion too if Moe wouldn’t mope every time someone other than him drives!” His wide smile burst into a fit of laughter that nearly knocked his sunglasses off the top of his head as Moe sat up with a huff.

“I am not moping! I’m- I’m” he looked to the others for help. Eric did his best to hide his snicker behind Shelly’s curly hair. Shelly raised her hands in a gesture of ‘I’m staying out of this,’ though the amused glint in her eye told a different story.

Brion didn’t care to hide his bright laugh “You’re definitely kind of moping there, Mr. Devious!” He said, gently ribbing him on his rockstar name choice.

“Hey now, you have no room to use my name like that, Brion! You could’ve picked anything but you decide keep Brion!” Moe laughed, jumping at the opportunity to change the subject from his definitely-not-moping.

Shelly sighed and put her hands down, setting one on each of their legs. “Alright you two, cut that out! No arguing in the van. I don’t want to get caught in the crossfire!” She grinned as she pushed them apart playfully. Brion’s glasses ended up a little crooked, but she quickly helped him fix them.

The van pulled through the Detroit streets, dodging trash piled up on the side of the road and cars parked where they shouldn’t be. The seemingly ever-present light rain made the already poorly maintained streets look more like rivers. Despite the dreary state of the city, the inside of the van was filled with joy. They joked and sang along with the radio, delighting in each other’s company. Gunnar and Brion kept the happy attitude as they ducked out of the vehicle and into their apartment, which was the closest to the club. When they got to their stop, Eric and Shelly kept the goodbye going a little longer. They stayed in the back and sang along with the radio for a couple more songs with Tex and Moe.

“Hey, why don’t you two just crash with us for the night?” Eric said as the song faded out. He and Shelly crawled out of the back seat. He held part of his jacket over her head to keep her dry as they both leaned into the passenger side window. “The loft might be small, but it’s a hell of a lot better than that tiny hole in the wall you’ve got.”

Tex grinned, turning off the engine and tossing the keys into Moe’s lap. “You don’t gotta ask me twice!” He ducked out of the van. “Help me get the equipment up your rickety staircase, though. Like hell am I leaving it out here.” He began grabbing bits of his drum kit.

Moe gently shut the van door behind him as he got out. He swung his keys around his finger once before tucking them into his pocket. “If my van gets broken into, you three are covering repairs.” He picked up his guitar case and an amp and headed to the door. The others followed suit, grabbing their things and heading up the stairs.

Shelly set down the cases she’d been carrying and unlocked the door. She picked them back up and walked in, holding the door open for the three boys. Gabriel trotted up to them, meowing gently and immediately rubbing up against their legs. They quickly began putting their heavy armfuls down near the door. A noise from the couch caused them all to freeze and snap their gazes toward it. They breathed a sigh of relief as they saw who it was.

Sarah stretched as she sat up. The couch blanket fell off from where she had been sleeping. “Sorry guys, didn’t mean to startle you.” She yawned. She got up and made her way over to the group, hugging Shelly first, then pulling everyone in. “Mom locked the door on me again..”

Eric frowned. As they all pulled away from the hug he crouched down to be eye level with her. “It’s alright, we got you a spare key for a reason. We’re sorry for waking you.” He gave her another hug and smiled. He turned to the rest of the group as he let Sarah out of the hug.

Moe reached out ruffled Sarah’s hair, “Looks like we’re having a nice big sleepover tonight.” He made his way over to the couch and collapsed. It creaked at the sudden weight, but no one paid it any mind. There were always quirks to secondhand furniture. Tex and Sarah followed him over. Sarah taking up a perch on the arm of the couch despite there being plenty of room for her on the cushions.

Tex lightly rolled his eyes. “Y’know, you don’t have to be up there on our account.” He smiled with a mischievous glint in his eye. “It can’t be that comfortable up there.”

Sarah let out a loud laugh, “Hah!” She adjusted her position on the arm to be more stable, “I am not getting lost in a cuddle pile again! The moment I sit down there, Shelly will come sit down. Then Eric will think he’s hilarious when he lays across all of our laps like a big puppy!” She shot a glance at Eric.

Eric, for his part, was doing his best to hide his laughter. “Damn, we’re getting predictable!” He couldn’t stop himself from laughing for long and it escaped in a gentle chuckle. “Guess we’ll have to change it up.” He made a face like a lightbulb had gone off in his head. “When was the last time any of us made a pillow fort?”

The room exploded into bright laughter. “A pillow fort? What are we, five?” Moe said once he’d gotten ahold of his laughter. “Do you even have enough chairs and blankets for that?” He glanced around at the room and its sparse furniture.

“I’ve never even made a blanket fort!” Sarah said, still giggling. For the second time that night, everyone in the room’s eyes snapped toward her. Eric and Moe did their best to hide their surprise so that she wouldn’t feel like the odd one out.

Shelly and Tex couldn’t hide it and gasped, “What?!” They looked to each other, then back to Sarah. “Oh no, we’re absolutely doing this.” Shelly said, practically launching herself over to the bed. She quickly began gathering blankets.

Tex stared at Sarah for a moment more before shaking his head, “You are not getting all the way through being a kid without making a pillow fort. Not on my watch!” He stood up from the couch and scooped Sarah up in a quick bear hug before setting her down. “C’mon, help me find stuff we can use as supports!”

Sarah slowly followed Tex over to the round dining table, or at least what was supposed to be a dining table. Photos of the band and pieced together camera equipment covered every available bit of space on it. Sarah picked up one from the top of the pile. In the picture, Eric sat on top of Moe’s van. He was caught mid laugh as the rest of the band stared up at him. They all looked just as happy as Eric did. “Hey Shelly!” She shouted, turning toward the bed, “Where do you want your pictures if we need to use the table?” She set the photo back down with the others and smiled.

“There should be a couple drawers in the vanity.” She said. She put the blankets down and made her way over. She began gathering the mess into semi-organized piles. “Here, let me get those. You focus on designing the fort.”

Tex grabbed one of the two rickety chairs from beside the table and placed it so that its back faced the back of the couch. “Could you grab the other one for me?” He adjusted the placement of the chair so there was a little more space.

Sarah nodded. She dragged the other mismatched chair over and put it in the same position on the other side of the couch. “Like that?” She looked at Tex with a small smirk.

Tex nodded, “That’s perfect.” He looked around. “Moe, make yourself useful and grab stuff to weigh the blankets down with.” He pulled the couch blanket out from under him.

“Hey!” He said indignantly. He stood up, shaking his head, “I was using that!” He sighed and moved over to the bookshelf. “Eric, do you care which books I grab?” He didn’t wait for an answer as he began to grab the ones that looked heaviest.

Eric looked up from where he had been gathering the blankets Shelly had dropped. “Not really. The only ones I would worry about aren’t heavy enough to work.” He chuckled. “This is probably the most lighthearted thing that poetry’s been used for in a while, though.” He finished gathering the blankets and dropped them on the couch.

Sarah grabbed one of the blankets, “Alright, let’s see what you’re all fussing about.” She draped it from the back of the couch over to one of the dining chairs and held it there. Moe placed a book on each side of the blanket and Sarah released. It shifted a bit, but stayed.

Tex grinned. “And the first blanket is placed! The fort begins!” He laughed as he grabbed a different blanket and mirrored its placement to her’s. He made them overlap a bit so the ceiling of the fort wouldn’t have gaps. The middle sagged a little bit, but it held. “That’s the easy bit.”

Shelly finished putting away the photos and equipment from the table and looked over to the partially constructed fort. “Looks like it’s coming along well!” She walked over and stood next to Sarah. “Do you still want to use the table? I’m not sure we have a blanket big enough to cover it and hang down as far as those two.”

Sarah grinned, “I’ve got an idea.” She turned to Eric and Tex, “Drag the table over here.” She pointed between the two chairs. “Put it closer to this wall in line with the middle of these two.”

The guys jumped into action. Between the two of them, they lifted the old wooden table off of the floor. They carried it and placed it where Sarah had indicated without scraping it on the ground at all. “Does that look good?” Eric asked as they set the table down.

Sarah nodded, “Perfect!” She said, her aloof teen act cracking a bit. She grabbed two of the remaining blankets and laid them out on the table, each covering half. Moe, immediately catching onto her plan, weighed down the blankets in the middle and at both edges of the table where they met. Sarah grinned, seeing her little plan work perfectly. She grabbed a third blanket and tucked it under the book closest to the chairs. All three blankets slipped a bit. She frowned. “I think we need a bit more weight here.”

Moe quickly set a second, bigger book on top of the first. He corrected where the blankets had gotten out of place. “I’m starting to run out of weights here.” He stepped back and held up last two books that he’d grabbed, one in each hand, to prove his point.

Shelly smiled “I think that should be plenty.” She pulled one edge of the blanket attached to the table and held it to the seat of the chair. “We’re almost out of blankets anyway.” She said, taking the book from Moe’s left hand and weighing down the side.

Eric mirrored her action with the other chair. “That looks pretty damn good.” He said as he stepped back from it. He grabbed pulled a cushion off the couch carefully to make sure the fort stayed up. He then turned to Sarah and handed it to her. “It’s your fort, so you’ve got to be the first one in.”

She laughed and grabbed the cushion. Shelly pulled one of the blanket flaps aside for her as she crawled in. Everyone else quickly grabbed various cushions and pillows and made their way inside. “Y’know, it’s surprisingly roomy!” Sarah laughed from her spot under the table.

They spent quite a while in the fort, all of them reveling in the mild absurdity of the situation. They talked and laughed even as cloudy morning light began to filter through the large round window. One by one they began to drift off, no one having the heart to wake them once they passed out. Eric was the last awake. He smiled at the pile and lay down in between Shelly and Tex. Soon enough, he slipped into a peaceful sleep himself.

[wingzie]

Brutally Honest Reactions to Jikook

It was requested on Twitter that I talk about the less positive posts about Jikook moments from my live reactions research. These will NOT include any screenshots, but I will discuss what I saw. I will continue to keep posting positive things about Jikook, but the fandom reaction towards Jikook is one of the reasons why I feel so strongly about supporting them so much. Please read ahead if you are interested. I will also keep it out of the Jikook tag.

I will quickly add my own experience here before I continue. I am an early 2019 ARMY. I didn't follow any BTS accounts on Twitter until after I caught up on content. I then started following Jikook accounts once I got braver, because I could see a clear difference in the way the fandom talked about them. (Or not at all in some cases.) It wasn't until I started following Jikook accounts, that I knew about GCF Tokyo. For a fandom that hyped up Jungkook being a director for LGO, his previous work and especially GCFT is rather ignored. Especially when it's obvious that Jungkook has always had an interest in making videos. 

GCFT

An important factor here is that GCFT was posted after Jimin's lovely twitter edit. From what I saw, no one had any real issues with Jimin's edit. The general consensus was that it was sweet that Jimin and Jungkook were finally able to go on a trip together and that Jimin made an edit out of it. But if that's the case, why were there then issues when GCFT was posted, that are still here today?

Compared to Jimin's edit, there is a clear sense of jealousy when GCFT was released. A "sweet trip" turned into a "not big deal" or started to include fake narratives. Some of which really confused me at first, until I asked someone at the time and got the truth. 

There is a sudden change of tone aimed towards Jikook: “How dare they go on a trip together?” and “how dare they share it with us this way?.”  It's clear to me that this jealously suddenly began because of the editing style, the camera shots and the song used. All of which made you feel a certain way when watching GCFT, if you were not so blind or bitter. However, the fandom did it's best to try to belittle JK's work. Saying excuses such as the song was not intentional or that the editing choices were coincidental. That's not the case at all and to quote a certain song "this is no coincidence."

There is an interesting notion that some shippers and y/n's turned to fan fictions after GCFT was released. This suggests to me that they did indeed in fact feel the same way about GCFT. They got the message loud and clear, but had to try to tune it out with another fantasy because of what they felt. They wanted what Jimin and Jungkook had for themselves or another member.

GCF's after GCFT

After GCFT there was a need to show: "look Jimin and Jungkook aren't that close." Which Jikook didn't get the memo of and it shows that people were keeping an eye on them. However, this was only to be able justify their negative thoughts about the possibility of two men being together. They couldn't stand the idea and came up with every excuse possible to deny it. There were a fair amount of “don’t assume their sexuality” posts floating around.

There was also a definite shift after GCFT with Jikooker’s themselves. Of course they were supportive, but much more discreet about it. Afterwards though ,and up through to today, they got louder about Jimin and Jungkook's bond. It's clear this reflects in the fandom perception of them together as a unit or just on the timeline itself. There is almost an annoyance whenever they show up.

The newer GCF’s turned more into a competition between the members. Something which sadly continued even with the Life Goes On MV. Rather than seen as a cute maknae trip in Osaka, GCFO was used as leverage against Jikook to prove that they weren't that close. Which is bizarre in itself and it was like Jimin wasn't in the video at all.

The outrage that sparked when GCFH was released showed the true hypocrisy of the fandom. Jungkook set the tone beautifully to match the Winter Package location of Helsinki. The fact so many quickly jumped on this, but ignored his skills previously is very telling. For all those yelling about appreciating Jungkook, they only yell when it's about making themselves feel better about something. 

Rose Bowl. I don't need to introduce this. However what I found interesting is that people outside of ARMY were more accepting of what happened than actual ARMY.  It also made me question what the definition of "ot7" is,  because these accounts were going around underneath posts with "stop shipping”, “they're just bros" or my most hated one "they do stuff like this in South Korea all the time."

The last one is an absolute hate of mine and is always used by NON Koreans. ARMY are often all about Korean culture until it's something they don't want to hear or know about. A general translation account has already pointed out that Jikook are extremely close due to lack of honorifics and it moe or less got ignored. Another account will mention the same , but for another unit, and it's worshiped to high heaven. Yet Jikooker’s are delusional for being the ones to understand the cultural significance of it?

Jungkook's Birthday in 2019

I am actually going to be calling out Jikooker’s here because the reverse happened this time. Others found Jimin’s Birthday video sweet, whereas Jikooker’s were being extremely rude and disrespectful ON the timeline towards Jimin about it. Plus the usual "Jikook broke up" malarkey that pops up twice a month happened. I only recently started researching this and I’m not even sure I can make a thread on it, because there was so much fighting on the Timeline about the Birthday video.

This is what spurred me on to write my twitter post about being careful about what you post and where your priorities lie. A lot of Jikooker’s were upset before Jimin posted. Not because "he hasn't posted.”, but because "he hasn't posted [for me]." 

This is something that Jikooker’s have to wrap their heads around. We only see a tiny percentage of their daily lives. They also have each other's phone number and see each other daily. They also know each other extremely well and probably better than any of us actually will. It is not up to us what they post or what we see. Do we miss them? Of course. However, to instantly start hating them for that is wrong. You're acting just like the fandom first did when GCFT came out. These same people also acted like nothing had happened as soon as Jimin posted the photo of Jungkook later on.

Seoul Final

For those that don't remember Rose, she was a k-army translator that went to Seoul Final. In one of her live shows afterwards, she explained how other Karmy were surprised by Jikook's closeness on stage. It wasn't just us.

However ,on Naver, there was a storm brewing about Jimin treating Jungkook inappropriately and the way they were acting on stage. This was first started by Jungkook akages and then spread around to some of the fandom who decided to jump in. 

This is one example of people using K-army as a weapon. That they know *best* when they suffer the same on their side with solos etc... It's also another example of the hatred towards Jimin. 

This isn't something new. Shipping was fairly peaceful and kept its original definition of wanting two people to be together. Even if this did include two real people. It wasn't until the definition of shipping morphed into something new and possibly real, that things started to erupt in the fandom. And this eruption was sadly placed onto Jimin, as people saw him as a disruption to their fantasies. 

This defamation of both Jimin and Jungkook's character from the fandom has been present since the beginning. They are seen as liars or not intelligent. That their closeness is fake, even though you can clearly see it from the start and then develop over the years. It's something that has always been beautiful to witness whilst watching, old content and new.

These examples of fandom reactions I have used are ones all related to expectations. If Jimin and Jungkook do not act as expected or they shock the fandom, one side will react negatively. The fandom also do not seem to like seeing Jikook be so loud, so to speak. And with the emergence of more Jikooker’s on social media, this horrid view of them will no doubt increase  Though many hate the term Jikook. It signifies the unit of Jimin and Jungkook and no matter what, they will do what they want too and continue to do so. Thank you for reading and feel free to ask questions if you have any!

[ice-cream-writes-stuff]

¤~°Scary Monsters! Screaming Halloween Show: Spooky Sweet°~¤

(Y/N) and Yuu felt the warmth of the sun on their backs as the two walk to Ramshackle. The two quiet as Grim chatters about on Yuu's shoulder. "Yuu, um.. Where exactly were you from before Twisted Wonderland?" The female dorm leader asked her vice dorm leader.

(Even though she thought Yuu would be suited much better as dorm leader.)

Yuu shrugs his shoulders lightly so Grim won't fall. His left hand and right hand carrying two bags, while (Y/N) carried the other bags with ease. "To be honest, I'm not really sure.. I don't really have time to think about it."

Yuu said plainly to (Y/N)'s question.The (h/c)-nette hummed in response. Not minding the young males simplistic wording. Instead she just smiled at him, "I'm from (Y/H), well... From what I remember."

She answered simply, like Yuu. "Huh. Really? I think I remember a place like that on the map, I don't think I've ever been there." (Y/N) (e/c) eyes widen, "maybe I could show you around if you ever visit! I think you would like it."

Yuu nods, smiling back at his crush. "Sure, I wouldn't mind." (Y/N) ruffled Yuu's head, his locks turning slightly messy. The male huffs at her antics as Grim laughs. "Sorry, couldn't help myself, you look cute when you pout. Kinda like Riddle!"

The female joked, Yuu only shakes his head as the two were finally on NRC grounds. Grim hops off Yuu shoulder and fly to Ramshackle without the two. Chanting that he wants to eat tuna. "Grim..!"

Yuu calls out to the furball, who didn't hear Yuu. "Fnga!! A monster!" Grim cries as a paper dragon was covering the Ramshackle grounds. Not seeing the students scattered around the area. Working diligently on decorating the whole place.

(Y/N)'s mouth turns into a excited grin, while Yuu looks at it confusingly. Not knowing of the spooky event they would soon participate in!

_______________________________________________

(Y/N) hears a knock on the Ramschakle dorm, curiously. She gets up from her spot on the couch and goes to open the door. Unlocking the front door, the female looks around the area. Not a single ghost, person, beastman, fae, in sight. Only a lonely brown package at the bottom of the floor.

(Y/N) picks up the box carefully and takes it inside. When walking to the lounge room, the three ghosts that lived in Rambschakle float down stairs to see what's up. (Y/N) sits back on the couch, with the average sized box sitting on her lap. "Did you three order something?" (Y/N) asked undead friends, the three shook their heads.

"I wonder what's in it?" One of three spoke up."Maybe it's something from the headmaster?" (Y/N) nods, "it could be.." She mutters quietly to herself.

(Y/N) opens the package with hesitation in each of her movements. A piece of (color) neatly folded fabric was in the box. "Huh?" Taking the fabric out, it reveals to be a lot more fabrics!?? (Y/N) and three ghosts look over the first piece of cloth and fabrics that had been in the box.

While the other colorful fabrics still sat at the bottom of the package. "Why is this here..?" (Y/N) asked, holding the (color) cloth up in front of three ghosts. "It must be left overs from the Diasomnia dorm!" The chubby ghost shouted in glee.

"Oh, right! It was probably for their costumes for the Halloween event!" The young female said, but was still puzzled. "Where did this even come from..?" "It came from the box," the smaller ghost said. "Right.. what I meant was, who sent it here?"

Pouring out the fabrics from the box to see if there was a note, or a price tag, nothing was there. "Strange.." The slinky ghost said as he rubbed his chin. (Y/N) could agree with that, but she was more drawn to the cloths scattered around on the couch. A idea pops in her head as she folds up the cloths and lays the dress on the couch.

"I think I got a idea on what to use this for. You three, please protect the stuff on the couch and watch over Yuu and Grim. I need to get some stuff from Mr. Sams shop!" (Y/N) ran out of Ramshackle and tried not to knock into the paper dragon that Senior Vanrouge and his other dorm members worked on.

Not seeing Yuu's confused stare from one of the Ramshackle window's. Once she had returned, she had a pumpkin in one hand. A bag in the other. "It's time to REALLY get into the spirit of Halloween!" (Y/N) placed the pumpkin on the counter and heads up stairs to Yuu/Grims room.

Not before taking the "mystery" box with her.

______________________________________________

It was finally Halloween week! The decorations and costumes were ready. The Halloween committee had decided to drop by Ramshackle to make sure everything was in order. "Wow, everything looks great!" Kalim said with enthusiasm as his ruby eyes shined.

Mallues turns a bit smug after Kalim priase. "Thank you, the Di dorm worked very hard on this." Lilia chuckles at the dorm leader and his haughty tone. Cater takes a few pics, while Deuce looks around. "Where's (Y/N), Yuu and Grim? Shouldn't they have met up with us now?"

"Maybe something came up?" Epel said, looking around the area as well. Vil sighs, "being fashionably late is not something you should do." Jack ears perk up as footsteps came towards the group. "I hear something, I think their on there way here."

Jack was most definitely right about that! Grim came to the group first before the dorm leaders. "Nyaha! Stare at the AMAZING Grim and his awesome costume!" The little feline shouted in pride and glee. His little hat tipping a bit.

"Grim! You're a ghost for Halloween?" Deuce questioned Grim, the furball gives a toothy grin. "Of course!" "What about the others.." Idia asks quietly.

A tired sigh escaped a familiar vice-prefect. Yuu showed a few steps behind Grim. "Hey guys, sorry for being late." Yuu apologized, yet the student didn't look exactly like himself at all! Yuu was dressed up today.

Yuu wore loose white shirt and a slightly grayish vest that had a tail coat attached behind him.The vest had small spider web designs that were a light shade blue, even some at the tail coats end. A pair of simple white pants and shoes. Yuu hair was rather messy, but looked very fluffy.

The final touch was a blue bow-tie that wrapped around his neck.

"You two look great!" Cater said as he started to take a few photos. "Not bad, Yuu!" Deuce says as he pats his friends back rather harshly. Yuu does his best not to double take and nods at his fellow first year.

"Thanks. You should tell (Y/N) and the ghosts that. They worked hard on them."

Almost like a genie being called. The female appeared before the group. "I'm glad you guys liked it." The (h/c) haired female said. "I had no clue what to do durring costume making, I'm greatful the ghosts had helped out."

The dorm leader says bashfully, rubbing the back of neck. "So.. What do you think!" She said with smirk, a creepy gleam in her eyes. The Halloween committee stares at her with awe.

(Y/N) wore a (f/c) dress that had bits of rips and tears. A few peices of uneven fabric hanged off her dress, almost like someone had clawed at it. Splashes of fake blood covered some areas of the dress. A simple white sash was also on her dress, covered in hints of fake blood as well. The sash said "Queen" on it in pretty hand writing.

A plastic tiara was placed crookedly on her head head. Her hair (styled/same). She held a knife in her hands that was drenched in fake blood. "Pretty cool right?" (Y/N) asked the the group.

A confident smile on her face as she waited for someone to respond. Surprisingly, Idia was the first to talk. "You look so.. MOE!" Idia fanboys internally at her costume.

Azul doesn't comment on his friends wording, he just stares at (Y/N) choice of outfit. "What was your thought process for these costumes, (Y/N)?" Jade asked for Azul. Even if the Leech brother was also in slight shock. Which was uncommon to him most days.

(Y/N) swings the knife around, like she was playing hot patato with it. But stops after Jade asked his question. "Er.. well you see. In Yuu's and my world, there was a story or song.. I can't really remember which?"

"But, it was a song about girl who wanted to become the "queen" of her dance that her school was having. Though someone stole her dream and she went on a murderous rampage during the party. Her name was Sarra, I think.. It's a bit fuzzy trying to remember. Anyway, I was inspired by it and then made these costumes with the ghosts help!"

(Y/N) explained, yet Vil looks at her with confusion. "Where did even get those clothes?" Vil gestured to her dress and Yuu's outfit. "I found them outside of Ramshackle. I think it was leftovers of from the Diasomnia dorm?"

"The rest I bought at Sam's shop using some of my paycheck." Yuu overheard her and looks at (Y/N) with worry. "Oh, I see." The handsome vampire said, walking over to her. Vil gently grips her chin, looking over her face.

"Hmm." He hummed, caressing one of her cheeks. "You need to put on some make-up." Vil says as he let's go of her. Pulling out a tiny tube of lipstick, he carefully applied it to her lips.

"I'll put on the rest once we are inside." Not caring for the hateful or unhappy stares of the Halloween committee. Vil goes back to Epel side. The first year looks anywhere but his dorm leader. His fists clenching tightly.

Kalim joyfully jumps over to (Y/N), "you look so pretty! And scary too!" Caring very little on how close they were. The fake werewolf holds her arm as he bombarded (Y/N) with sweet compliments. Cater steps in front of the two.

"(Y/N)-Chan~ Mind if I take a pic of you? Your super scary cute right now!" The female nods as Cater starts snapping a few photos. Hashtaging the pics under, super cute, NRC Halloween event! Cater then takes a selfie as well after, "thanks (Y/N)-Chan!"

"I think it's time to get going." Jack tells the group. Everyone agreed and started to walk to the main campus. Yuu and (Y/N) stayed in the back of group. "You didn't tell me you used your paycheck."

Yuu said as he stared at the female straight in the eye. The (h/c)-nette hurriedly says that she still has enough money for other necessities the three might need in the future. But Yuu only shakes their head, "I could of pitched in." "No way Yuu, you already used most of your Madols on groceries. You need to relax once in awhile and let me treat you!"

Yuu still was not convinced, (Y/N) sighs at him. "We can talk about this later. Right now, I want you to enjoy yourself tonight!" (Y/N) said with a determined, but a pleadding look in her (e/c) eyes. Yuu goes silent, though finally caved in. "Alright.."

"Good, cause I didn't want to abuse my power of dorm leader to make you." (Y/N) jokes, in her head she was cheering for her victory! Yuu gave her a small smile. (Y/N) grasps his hand as the two try not to lose the group.

The End!

(Alright. So I decided to add Yuu in this one because I think Yuu needs more love and free time. They keep dealing with so much stuff, so they need a break! I choose Sara Berry for (Y/N) outfit as a spooky easter egg. Grim and Yuu are her victims, so I gave them ghost costumes! Anyway, Happy Spooky Month! 👻 🎃🃏🍭🍬🍫🎇🎆)

[unnamedelement]

I posted 2,078 times in 2021

270 posts created (13%)

1808 posts reblogged (87%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 6.7 posts.

I added 1,527 tags in 2021

#about me - 300 posts

#writing inspiration - 215 posts

#fanfiction - 166 posts

#silm fanart - 144 posts

#tolkien - 142 posts

#location inspiration - 135 posts

#legolas - 111 posts

#lotr fanart - 108 posts

#lotr - 105 posts

#not tolkien - 101 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#nevermind that i'm doing my phd in trauma and spend way too much time every day thinking about the effects of trauma on elven bodies & souls

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

POV:

you’re Tolkien, playing “eeny-meeny-miney-moe” while writing drafts of the Silmarillion, trying to decide which brother is gonna go down in a fiery pit in the annals of Elvish history

342 notes • Posted 2021-07-12 00:14:49 GMT

#4

I will love The Hobbit forever and always for these quotes alone:

They differed from the High Elves of the West, and were more dangerous and less wise. 

...for Wood-elves were not goblins, and were reasonably well-behaved even to their worst enemies, when they captured them. The giant spiders were the only living things that they had no mercy upon. 

But the [Elvenking], when he received the prayers of Bard, had pity, for he was the lord of a good and kindly people; so turning his march, which had at first been direct towards the Mountain, he hastened now down the river to the Long Lake. 

But the Elvenking said: “Long will I tarry, ere I begin this war for gold. The dwarves cannot pass us, unless we will, or do anything that we cannot mark. Let us hope still for something that will bring reconciliation. Our advantage in numbers will be enough, if in the end it must come to unhappy blows.”

The elf-host was on the march; and if it was sadly lessened, yet many were glad, for now the northern world would be merrier for many a long day. The dragon was dead, and the goblins overthrown, and their hearts looked forward after winter to a spring of joy. 

“I will take your gift, O Bilbo the Magnificent!” said the king gravely. “And I name you elf-friend and blessed. May your shadow never grow less (or stealing would be too easy)! Farewell!” 

In conclusion (narrative reliability aside): you can pry woodelves and book!Thranduil out of my cold, dead, eternally grasping hands and good luck even then

635 notes • Posted 2021-06-28 20:29:44 GMT

#3

Accidentally going off on fandom kindness again

Once, someone I know saw the Hobbit films and got obsessed with them. They almost immediately reached out to me because they knew I loved Tolkien. They had bought the book and wanted to talk to someone about Hobbit things as they read.

They did not ask me how I felt about the movies, so I did not tell them. I was just excited to support someone as they explored Middle-earth more, even if the messages were extremely enthusiastic and frequent.

Before they started reading, I got questions like “Who is your favorite dwarf?” to which I could only answer… “Honestly, Bombur, because I think he is funny when he wakes up from the Enchanted River” to which I then got a 1000 character response explaining why someone else was there favorite dwarf. (I am a bit ashamed that I can’t remember which, given the detailed essay, ha.)

Next, during chapter one or so, I got texts like, “wow! This is just like the movies!” to which I could only respond, “Yeah, the movies really capture the vibe of the Shire and the dwarves really nicely!”

By Rivendell, however, the texts started to change tone: “This is not what I was expecting, this is so boring.”

By Mirkwood: “When do Bilbo and Thorin become, you know, friends?”

At that point I had to break their heart and explain that the movies took a lot of liberties, added plotlines and developed characters, and drew upon material or suggestions of material from other sources, like the LtR appendices.

To put it lightly, they were heartbroken, so we talked very briefly about the purpose of the Hobbit as a book compared to the purpose of the Hobbit as a film, and then I suggested they watch the LotR films instead.

They didn’t finish the Hobbit and they never read LtR, but they loved the original trilogy films: PJ’s films–the Hobbit & LotR both–enriched their life.

I share this because I could have chosen to be a dick about how the Hobbit films are so different they shouldn’t even count as adapted material. I could have said “I don’t have a favorite dwarf because I wasn’t fond of the movies and the dwarves are entirely undeveloped in the books and difficult to forcibly flesh out, even moreso than many characters in Silm, because at least then you have the explicit historical context and family relationships to make the picture fuller.”* I could have insinuated that I couldn’t deal with their disappointment with the source material and didn’t understand their obsession with the films; I could have suggested the films are overhyped popular culture; I could have implied their taste in media was lacking.

But I didn’t. I tried very hard not to let any negative opinions about them and their media preferences leak in.

They loved the films, so I let them love them. 

And maybe one day they’ll come back to the books and love them, too.

(And maybe not.)

But at least I won’t have soured the idea of the source material for them. At least when they pick the book up in 15 years–perhaps to read to a child–they won’t think of how elitist and lame and cruel book fans are: at least they won’t have been damaged by vitriol on my behalf, in the name of education, or purity and canon.**

So, fellow book!nerds:

Be kind.

And that’s all I have to say about that.***

*I say, fully aware of the irony, having read the Hobbit at 8 and promptly latched onto wood-elves who have no depth in the books, and have been thus obsessed for 20+ years. **This post ended up somewhere far different from where it began, oops. ***For now.

844 notes • Posted 2021-09-30 16:04:01 GMT

#2

See the full post

1161 notes • Posted 2021-01-22 19:54:00 GMT

#1

Part 3: This Elf and This Dwarf *Might* Be Gay

X

Let’s sail into the West together—no homo! (LesbiReal, tho, they are—in the most conservative interpretation of the facts—at least enjoying a QPR or an exceptionally romantic friendship.)

they’re in love, your honor

1286 notes • Posted 2021-05-04 16:43:25 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[mintchocolatechipnut]

the boys but they’re idols

ft. bakugou katsuki. midoriya izuku & todoroki shouto

Note: yes, I missed prime pun opportunity to write ‘the boyz’ in the title. Anyway, I’ll be general enough to not include any real-life names and music, but I’ll get specific about other details. (Besides, if you squint real close you can see where I got my references from.) I’m thinking of a follow-up part, but we’ll see. Hope you enjoy!

* These headcanons are detailing each of the boys as a member in a hypothetical idol group, and not that they’re all in the same group.

** For context: the difference between main and lead positions is that main is the position that gets majority of the activity e.g. song, dance, rap, etc. Lead is more of a supporting role, but still important nonetheless. 

Tags: idol!au, no x reader for this one, unless??, as you can see from the word length I think you’ll know who I’m partial to

Word count: 3.3k

BAKUGOU KATSUKI

Obviously an all-rounder. He can sing, dance, and rap, though his forte is definitely dancing.

Bakugou obviously has some mad hand-eye coordination if he can play the drums, and I haven’t even brought in his utilizing it through his quirk and fighting talent. He’s also very flexible when twisting through the air and extremely precise with his explosions

Thus, I’d say that his moves are the most on-beat and precise. He’s got very solid moves when dancing; imagine his limbs cutting the air in sharp, refined movements, and his flexibility leads him to be an overall powerful dancer.

Bakugou is a HUGE stickler for technique. Sure, he’s not above improvisation, but technique’s where he excels the most. He’s looking far ahead enough to not want to jeopardize his health by doing some dangerous moves that could potentially hurt his body, so he always takes extra care when going about them, such as taking advanced dance classes.

He works wonderfully as a center, because not only does he have this charisma that makes people unable to look away from him, his perfected balance between his fierce dancing and his emphasis on technique lead him to be a picture of refined strength, and an absolute delight to watch on stage

His facial expressions are definitely the best when he’s performing powerful songs, probably because he’s naturally angry lol. His worst concept has got to be cute, but while he dreads doing it, it’s not like he can’t pull it off. He’s an idol, dammit.

Bakugou’s that one member who wears a headband or bandanna during cutesy performances and sticks with it, because that’s the closest the stylists are ever gonna get to his hair

God forbid if he ever has curly or straight hair

He’s not against dying it though, but he still cares about the repercussions it has on his body, so he tries to refrain from dying it too often. (Which could be inevitable if his managers require him to, I know that. But I’m going to give the boys a little more leeway here to showcase their personalities.)

Anyway, a bandanna suits him just fine, and now he’s the trademark member with the bandanna haha

Some things that don’t change from canon are obviously his schedule. Boy still wakes up at the crack of dawn, probably goes for runs or do sets in the gym, make himself a healthy breakfast, then get down to work

Now I’m conflicted as to what position he would take in a group; I’m leaning towards main dancer

Then again, he IS an all-rounder, so really you could get him to do anything and he’ll be just fine

It’s not in his nature to fail, after all

He can sing, but since his voice is kind of gravelly he’s not the first choice for a main vocal. Strong lead vocal material, I’ll bet, because his voice adds a lot of color and diversity. It’s not something you’d usually hear in a song, that’s why.

He can rap, but again, his voice is gravelly and hard to hear, so I don’t think it would be too good a fit for fast-paced raps. Though, throw him one or two iconic rap lines in his natural ‘I’ll punch you in the face’ tone and you’ve got yourself an icon (and a meme) for days.

I can also see Bakugou being leader of the group, since in canon he’s actually the oldest in class 1-A. One thing though is his outward persona isn’t all that pristine; he has trouble switching gears into idol mode. As we know Bakugou doesn’t lie, regardless of circumstances, and he’s not about to start doing that just to be liked better. If any of these extras are going to be his fans, they’re going to have to recognize real talent, without all the fake smiles.

But because he knows what it could do to the group’s reputation if he came out to look like a big bad bully, he usually keeps his mouth shut during publicity events

He’s probably one of the first idols to have a not-so-sunny media persona, but fans mostly see him as this brooding, sulky kid that’s prepared to put 100% into everything he does

Which is why they still like him

Suffice to say, his fan-base is very similar to the BNHA fandom lmao

Cue all the memes on him being a jerk and everyone liking him anyway, but they know he’s fully committed to the group and wouldn’t want to do anything to risk its image

But over the years, and with the amount of events he’s been involved in, Bakugou’s learnt to let out his true personality one step at a time

He’s considering things carefully because he doesn’t want his fans to be jarred by his personality change all of a sudden, and also because he’s tired keeping up appearances

Jokes on him because the fans already know how he is and are just waiting for him to be more comfortable around the group to showcase his true feelings

And you know what? It sells!

His members also see him as some inspirational figure because his determination and commitment is truly unparalleled

And while he isn’t the easiest to get along with, they know that he’ll do anything within his abilities to push the group to greater heights

While that’s cute and all, it also means they have to suffer at the hands of Bakugou’s tough love. Tough luck

Besides being leader, I could also see him having a hand in producing as well

Remember when I said he was a stickler for technicality? Well, yeah, exactly this

If he feels something isn’t up to par he’d rather do it himself. I think he’d dabble in mixing for a bit and realize he actually has an ear for it, to which he’d then go on to producing whole songs that just awe his members and they’d be like ‘yeah let’s go with this’

And one more thing. Bakugou’s actually got an eye for fashion

Yeah, gripe all you want because all this boy ever wears in the dorms is skull shirts and black tanks but seriously, when he gets down to it, he knows what looks perfect on each member and can make little adjustments to change up a whole style

Courtesy of having designer parents lmao

Overall Bakugou is nothing if not capable. While it means he could definitely go solo at some point, he’s formed bonds with his members and knows he’s grown as a person as a result. And at this point he can only get better

In a leader position, he’s got the charisma, and is not afraid to push for changes if he thinks the status quo isn’t doing enough to ensure the members’ well-being

His weaknesses are obviously teamwork and perfectionism, but he’s been learning how to get along with others better, that it’s not all just a rat race for fame and influence, and he’s able to form some pretty lasting relationships (see: Kirishima)

Not perfectionism, though. He sees it as a strength and not for one second will he compromise. He wants nothing but the best quality, not just for himself, but for the fans

MIDORIYA IZUKU

Looks like the maknae but isn’t. That’s it, that’s the post

He has a really sweet voice so I can see him going for vocals. So imagine when he turns around, holds a mic in his hand and starts RAPPING

You got it, he’s a rapper. Look at the speed that kid goes when he’s mumbling and muttering to himself all the time

Cue Deku’s origin story where he’s mumbling to himself on the street and a talent scout hands him his business card asbfajgfsa

His enunciation is also clear, and his sweet voice makes for a very refreshing rap. That and he also writes his own rap, because if he’s going to be saying anything on that stage, he’s going to want it to mean something.

His raps are always soulful, with hard-hitting lyrics that serve to encourage and motivate anyone who hears and vibes with them.

Basically, his gap moe game is STRONG. Dude be spitting fire up there on stage but once he’s come down, he’s a timid, sweet, shy boi, with overreactions and exaggerations that just make him all the more endearing

He’s also a big fan favorite because he nails every concept well, and has a very down-to-earth personality which he doesn’t hide from the cameras

You want him to act cute and youthful? You’ve got it. You want him to go for something sexy? Um yeah, he’ll have his reservations, but he’ll still do well. You want him to be angry and powerful? The strength in his gaze has got you trembling from the pit.

He’s not just a fan favorite but also that of the staff. Seriously Deku deserves all the love in the world and in this world, he’s going to get it

He’s in the position for main rapper, but I could see him going for lead vocals as well. He’s got a sweet, clear voice that immediately tugs on anyone’s heartstrings the moment they hear it, and he’s usually given more lines in ballads. His vocal range isn’t bad, he can reach moderately high notes, but sometimes his voice undergoes strain. He’s training for that, though!

As for his dance style, Deku probably goes for freestyle! He’s got this easy-going, totally relaxed style going for him that’s full of swag (omg outdated word alert) that makes his movements very smooth. He’s also reasonably flexible, though not as flexible as Bakugou or Todoroki, so he still can pull off certain dance moves.

Unpopular opinion, but it’s Deku, not Todoroki, who looks good in EVERYTHING. Literally his stylist is squealing backstage because they can go ham on dressing him. You could put him in a gold chain and ripped jeans OR an oversized hoodie and rompers, and it’d just go. The only thing is his hair though; he’s thinking of selling it as his charm point (not his freckles!) so he’d prefer if it could stay green. He doesn’t mind if they style it different ways though

The fans would go ballistic if they saw Deku with an undercut, and chances are they’re going to get to see it

He’s definitely one for improvisation! He’s very flexible with these changes, much like how he considers his growth in canon. He’s always looking to try out new styles or moves and see if it fits for him

Besides, I also see him producing! It’s because he’s so immersed in his idol career that he’s always studying new trends on the scene and making them into formulas for the group. He’s also thinking of marketing strategies in his free time

Everyone better be afraid of businessman Deku because he’ll be stealing those bucks from right under your nose

He’s also got mean leadership skills, but I don’t see him in a leader position

Rather, he’s like the second-eldest-but-co-leader kind of guy! He assists the leader in any way he can, and always serves to inspire and motivate the younger ones to work harder together as a team

Deku’s still got that shounen-protagonist charm, even in this world

But for all his good points, Deku still worries he isn’t enough

He knows how cut-throat the industry can be, having studied it inside and out, and he doesn’t want to lag behind

Cue him getting up at odd hours of the morning to use the practice studio (without waking up the others, of course) and other instances

Whenever his members realize he’s been overworking, literally everyone turns on him

He used to be the mom figure, but the moment he’s ushered into bed, a cooling pad on his forehead and thermos at his bedside desk, and the members even station one person to be in the living room so if he tries to leave his room to practice by himself they’ll see him

Jokes on them because Deku practices in his room

He practically moves in his sleep as if trying to get the muscle memory down

Precious boy must protecc!

In sum, Deku’s a great teammate to have and a valuable asset to the team

He’s also the best of friends and is never one to let a fellow member down

Probably the first to burst into tears if the group ever disbands

With his talent and fan-base, he could definitely go solo. But more than that, he wants to cherish the time he has with his members and achieve greater milestones with them every day

TODOROKI SHOUTO

High-key a visual. I mean, everyone wants to look like him!

Like. Everyone stops to look at him whenever he enters the room. Staff, producers, backstage crew, everyone. Even his members, sometimes.

Man’s just too pretty not to stare at

That's not to say he isn't talented, oh no. He's much like Bakugou, an all-rounder, but he's gone through rigorous training from when he was young to get there

Definitely not because of genes, no offense to Rei

As much as Enji is a major shareholder in the industry, anyone who sees Todoroki strut his stuff and still says he got in because of his father has got to be blind. Or deaf. Or plain stupid.

Sure, he had all that training courtesy of his dad. But the moment he enters as a trainee, it's all him from there and no one else.

He's a lot withdrawn at first, still is, but he's improved a lot from when he first joined. It's because of the support he's gained from both his members and fans that he's able to push himself to be the best version of himself everyday

He definitely doesn't come out and say it, but he's probably the most grateful for his fans. As in his family isn't the only lifeline left for him anymore

Todoroki has an amazing voice; while his speaking voice is low, he can reach higher notes without much difficulty. His tone is deep, somber and perfect for ballads, but the training he's undergone has made his technique immaculate. He's got excellent control, he can do runs and riffs effortlessly and he's even perfected his growl. Fans won't even see it coming

His dancing on the other hand is a lot about technique; but unlike Bakugou, Todoroki probably did classical and contemporary dance training as opposed to hip-hop or popping. Because of that, his movements are smooth and elegant, and he always carries himself with the grace of a dancer

That's not to say he cannot be an absolute beast on stage, of course. He's just more in his element when it comes to melancholic ballads, and he's had a hand in choreographing contemporary routines before

That experience and knowledge easily make him a capable choreographer for the group

After all those years of not being able to properly express himself, Todoroki learnt to let his dance tell a story in itself

He's also a fast learner, so any hip-hop techniques he easily picks up and incorporates into the routine

This makes me think he’s going to be a main dancer and a lead vocal, maybe even main vocal

I don’t see him in a leader position because while he has the charisma for it, I think he’d lack in communication, like Bakugou. They’re both a bit too used to doing things on their own that they 1) can’t trust anyone else to do it right and 2) as a result have never consulted other people about how they do things

The difference is Bakugou is a little more observant and far-thinking enough to be a leader, but it doesn’t make Todoroki any less important

If anything, he’s the mom friend, and always makes sure that the members stay in line and out of trouble

Also, for some reason, he's got exceptional charisma on stage and he doesn't even know it

Like, a sexy song comes on and then there’s Todoroki's smoldering heterochromatic gaze

Fans: omgomgomg how is he so hot what the—

Him: ??? This is my normal face tho

It's a strange feeling. One moment, he can be humping the floor and another moment he's got dimples in his cheeks from smiling. It makes him look like a totally different person, even though he's the same guy

His fans don't know why either

As much as he has a creative outlet in dance, Todoroki thinks he has no talent for songwriting or producing. He doesn't consider them his areas of expertise and if he was asked to write lyrics he'd have a hard time because he rarely expresses himself with words. He'd fret on it and eventually not get much done, so why try?

He does help out though, in offering suggestions on how to proceed, but he won't take the lead for any of these. Only dancing

That and his growing up with a businessman father leads him to also know the industry rather well, so he can offer some insights as to what image they could go for and how to market their discography

When it comes to styling, Todoroki is an absolute Mess. The things he likes and wants to wear doesn't suit him all that much, and the stylists usually have a hard time picking out clothes that really accentuate his look and figure. The myriad of colors in his hair and face lead to color clashes, but they find that red and blue are usually the go-to colors.

Did I mention that Todoroki doesn't mind dying his hair as long as they don't dye the white part? Enough said

They've done rainbow on him before!

He also doesn't cover up his scar, and over the years he's learnt to make it his charm point

It serves to make him a noticeable figure in the industry (as if his heterochromia weren’t enough) but it also makes him easily recognisable to fans

It’s not like he doesn’t like interacting with his fans, but sometimes some of them get a little too close, or ask questions that are way too personal

During those times, he’s at least got his members to relate and support him through it

The cutest thing about this man has got to be when he interacts with fans

Like, he’s pretty expressionless most of the time, but he always makes sure that his fans know that he’s extremely happy to have them here, and that he’ll continue doing the best he can for them

If you’re lucky and catch a small smile from him when you’re at a fan sign, I guess you could die peacefully

To summarize, Todoroki is a sweet bean but hardly ever shows it

When people praise his looks, he’s humble about them (though it’s more because he doesn’t know or think he’s attractive… baby just doesn’t see it)

And to top it all off, he’s a charmer on and off stage  with his quiet, sensitive nature and calm demeanor

He’s also the one that’s most likely to have a modeling career outside of his idol work

He can’t act for the life of him even though he’s got the expressions right on stage

Like Deku and Bakugou, he could always go solo, but his reason for not doing so is mainly because he’s found a new family, here with his members, and he doesn’t want to lose it

He doesn’t even mind if they don’t produce music anymore. As long as everyone sticks together and has a good time, he’s willing

A/N: Thank you for reading! If you haven’t checked out my other pieces, you can find them on my masterlist; if you have, thank you for your support! I’m trying to post something new every week, so stay tuned :)

[lilyginnyblackv2]

I know with how things are, some fans want to distance themselves totally from Yashahime, and I totally get that. But I got hit with a fanfic idea last night, and I got around to writing this little one-shot AU where Towa doesn’t really remember much about her past and never travels to the Feudal Era. I haven’t written fanfiction in ages. I just needed to get this out. Also, I’m tagging this as anti because R*n isn’t the mom in this fic. So, anyway, if you want, please read and enjoy! :)

---

Something always felt off. It wasn't the burn of the hair dye as each white lock was soaked black, nor the slight discomfort that came about when she put in her brown (purely cosmetic) contacts in either. Ritual changes she chose to make to her appearance, as Mama Moe would remind her that, "We've sent in all the paperwork, you don't *have* to do this, you know." But she did these things anyway, because she was tired of the stares. Plus, the changes in her appearance were small, external aspects of her existence. Like the white suit she wore for school everyday.

No, what felt off to her was something more deep rooted than that. It was the extra strength felt when she ran or the feeling of soaring she felt when she would jump long and high in the air. Far longer and far higher than a normal human should. It was what she felt in her bones when the night would be black, free of all light except the stars, and something in her body would ache. Or when she would hear something just a little too far away to be normal or smell something just a bit more intensely than her family and friends.

It wasn't an other-ness due to her being adopted. Papa Souta, Mama Moe, Grand Mama, and grandpa had been open and honest with her about that for as long as she could remember. After all, she had the vague memories of crying outside of the Scared Tree out back by the shrine, and Papa Souta taking her hand. It had been warm, but the watermelon and cold soba that Grand Mama had placed before had been cool and refreshing. And her little sister Mei. Mei didn't remember her life without, "Big Sister Towa!" in it.

Mei, whose eyes would light up and whose hands would clap when Towa did practiced her fighting moves. "You look so cool!" She would say, with a big smile on her face. It was in moments like that when Towa felt it. That something was off. Her muscles would always feel like they were aching for a fight, her blood pumping through her body and her fingers curling, as if that blood was meant to drip like poison from long, clawed fingers. It was an imagery that she always had. Why? She wasn't sure. But it was one that always left her feeling odd and a little frightened in the end.

Just like the dreams she used have when she was younger. There was fire and smoke, screaming and crying, and a dark, shadowy figure chuckling. That particular nightmare stuck with her for years and often led to many nights tucked in beside Papa Souta and Mama Mei in bed. But as the years passed the screams and cries were replaced with calming violin sounds and laughter, while the images melted away under the many nights spent lazing about under the kotatsu as the occasional snow would fall as her and her family watched shows on the TV. In those moments she felt whole.

But sometimes when she would need some alone time by herself, sitting high up on the branches of the Sacred Tree or sneaking off to the rooftop of the school, she would feel an emptiness in her chest. As if part of her heart was missing. Sometimes she would cry. Softly, looking down at the ground. Usually she would feel the wind kick up then. Always when she needed some form of comfort. It would blow across her face gently, as if it was a soft, caressing hand wiping away the tears that were falling.

She never talked about those things. As she graduated from middle school and entered into high school, she started to notice the stares again, but this time in a different way. Attraction, is what people called it. She tried kissing a boy once under the stairs of the school, but it hadn't felt right. He told her he loved her hair and eyes. The hair that she still colored and the eyes that were still covered by contacts. A false version of herself that she had crafted to turn attention away from her. But now she had people's attention regardless. And as her high school years passed and she moved on to college, she finally left the dye and contacts behind.

Getting into college was always the hard part. Once she was in, she didn't quite know what she wanted to study, what she wanted to be, what she wanted to do. But she had caught the eye of a fellow freshman. And when she had kissed her on a bench in a secluded, but open enough, part of the campus. The young woman's cheeks had blushed prettily and she had mumbled that Towa was much too cool for her, with that white hair and those red eyes. Towa had just laughed and finally had someone she felt she could rant to about all the unwanted attention she had received because of those two particular features.

"But they make you special!" The girl had insisted, "I like your short hair and your suits too. They fit you." And that had been all Towa needed to hear. She had still felt like she was missing some part of herself, she was certain at that point that she always would, and what she wanted to do in the future was still a big question mark for her, but she felt comfortable being herself now. So things were pretty alright.

The wind blew around them. It was a cool spring day, but the breeze had felt warm and all encompassing, like an embrace. Towa smiled, "Hey, let's take a picture!" A nod and smile later, their heads were close together - nearly touching - and two peace signs were in the air. A flash and a "catcha" later a new memory was captured. It was a good day to finally start moving forward.

[iacon-stargazer]

THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE: MUN & MUSE

fill out & repost ♥ this meme definitely favors canons more, but i hope oc’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. multimuses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm.

tagged by: stolen from @oneshallfall like.... months ago. im a slow gremlin hjksd. it's been in my drafts and i finally decided to finish the last few sections while working on clearing them out

tagging: steal it

MY MUSE IS.   canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless

is your character popular in the fandom?  YES / NO.

is your character considered hot™ in the fandom?  Well.../ NO / IDK. (i know optimus is but i don’t really... know about orion? i have seen a handful of fanartists who turn him into a very sexualized moe baby but i’m not sure about the fandom at large)

is your character considered strong in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK.

are they underrated?  YES / NO. (lmao there’s like no fan content with him unless it’s with megatronus) 

were they relevant to the main story?  YES / NO.

were they relevant to the main character?  YES / NO / THEY’RE THE PROTAG.

are they widely known in their world?  YES / NO. (not yet.... lol)

how’s their reputation?  GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL.

HOW STRICTLY DO YOU FOLLOW CANON?

This... this is a trick question in this goddamn mess of a continuity. That said, I try my absolute best to make my portrayal coherent with the TFP show... even if said show contradicts itself at times. I take inspiration from the earlier parts (the thirteen primes section) of the Covenant of Primus for his origin backstory, but ignore the rest of the Covenant since it makes absolutely no sense with his characterization in... literally anything else. I’ve peeked at Exodus and it utterly sucks, but I’ve picked up bits and pieces of concepts that originated there just from spending time in the fandom. Aside from that... I spend a ton of time thinking about how to weave everything together in a way that both makes sense and makes for a character development arc.

SELL YOUR MUSE! (aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutuals.)

Orion is genuinely kind, thoughtful, and introspective, very loving of the world around him.

He’s also a more complex character than is initially obvious - despite mostly being good sweet pure baby nerd he’s still flawed, with many of those flaws being his strengths put into the wrong situation. His strong morals can lead to dogmatism, and he’s only slightly less likely to deliver lectures than Optimus. His determination to be kind and help everyone can come off as unintentionally patronizing at times; he has a very “well-intentioned semi-privileged middle class” perspective that he’s not always self-aware of. However, he’s also willing to look at himself critically and learn/adapt. 

Essentially, he has many of the same traits as Optimus... just more or less apparent and/or developed. He's less confident than he eventually becomes through his future experience with leadership, wanting to change the world for the better but sometimes struggling to ground his plans in reality—something that continues to apply, but with reduced intensity and frequency over time. Idealistic cinnamon roll will eventually develop some realism, though never really quite enough. His selflessness remains a strength for now, but we know that eventually it will dip into martyristic tendencies.

NOW THE OPPOSITE! (list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?)

He could be potentially ‘boring’ in some senses. he’s the polite, considerate ‘next door’ type, who has for most of his life has just lived as a very average middle caste nobody. He’s more laid-back than he eventually becomes as optimus, but where others might get into trouble and shenanigans he’s most likely to just express concern. And since I try to keep him at least mostly ic, even with non-serious posts, this can derail ‘fun’ stuff and I fear dissuade some interaction.

While I try my best to give him realistic flaws that work with his character, he could still be seen as a little too good. very kind, understanding, forgiving, patient, considerate... almost endlessly so. A lot of my “he’s so good and pure” interpretation comes from using his having been the thirteenth prime as backstory, where he was pretty much the epitome of that, but some might not like the “he was a literal deity in a past life” idea for its “super special chosen one protagonist” elements.

His responsiveness to his environment can also be a downside. He’s not the type to start things; he just reacts and responds, standing his ground and finding himself when things get crazy around him. without megatronus, he may have eventually attempted political campaigning, but it wouldn’t have gotten very far. He needs to have more intense characters or events around him for major plots to really go places. Without those nothing would ever happen besides slice of life fluff, because he’s content with that kind of life.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO RP YOUR MUSE?  

Honestly I just wanted to write op/ratch fhsjkdjsdh. But I also wanted to be able to interact with a variety of muses and so I chose Orion over Optimus because he’s not so emotionally closed off, which I figured would give more flexibility beyond the handful of characters op would reasonably have close personal and/or plot-important relationships with. Also, I can relate to him on a thought-process level which lets me get into his head easily, which additionally made him an appealing choice for my first real rp muse.

WHAT KEEPS YOUR INSPIRATION GOING?  

I just love him so much, especially with the layers of his character I've built up around him. I don't always have inspiration to write or rp, but I think about him a lot. When I do find motivation to write, it's generally out of wanting to continue to work on developing him and just having a chance to express his characterization.

SOME MORE PERSONAL QUESTIONS FOR THE MUN.

do you think you give your character justice?  YES / NO.

do you frequently write headcanons?  YES / NO.

do you sometimes write drabbles? YES / NO.  (i should do it more...)

do you think a lot about your muse during the day? YES / NO.

are you confident in your portrayal?   YES / NO. (at least most days fhsdhfskj)

are you confident in your writing?  YES / NO. (it waxes and wanes. I know I'm a good writer but I could still be better...)

are you a sensitive person?  YES / NO.

DO YOU ACCEPT CRITICISM WELL ABOUT YOUR PORTRAYAL?

I’ll be honest; I’ve never gotten criticism. I haven’t been here very long in comparison to some and I’ve never been that popular, so I figure I’m pretty easy to just ignore. I guess how I would feel about it would depend on what it was and how it was delivered, though I like to think I would be reasonable regardless

DO YOU LIKE QUESTIONS, WHICH HELP YOU EXPLORE YOUR CHARACTER?  

yes? yes absolutely?

IF SOMEONE DISAGREES TO A HEADCANON OF YOURS, DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY?  

I would be curious to hear their reasoning, but I think enough about how everything fits together that chances are I would agree to disagree

IF SOMEONE DISAGREES WITH YOUR PORTRAYAL, HOW WOULD YOU TAKE IT?

Depends on if their disagreement makes sense. Maybe I’ll give back my own reasoning for why I characterize the way I do. Maybe I’ll just agree to disagree, if their view is just totally different from mine. If they have valid points I’ll probably overthink it and spiral into self doubt. In all cases I’ll spill my thoughts to friends on discord.

IF SOMEONE REALLY HATES YOUR CHARACTER, HOW DO YOU TAKE IT?

......Orion in general or? ... fhsjkdhf...... Well if it was mine specifically that might hurt lol. But at the same time.... I doubt i’d agree with their takes either so... fair enough.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH PEOPLE POINTING OUT YOUR GRAMMATICAL ERRORS?  

Sure. I’m good at grammar so if something glaring is there it’s probably a typo I missed and I’ll be grateful for the chance to edit it out before more people see it lol

DO YOU THINK YOU ARE EASY GOING AS A MUN?  

Yeah. I’m pretty quiet most of the time because I just don’t have energy to talk to a lot of people, and I never want to get caught in drama. I honestly wouldn’t know what to do in a situation like that. I tend to avoid conflict, I’m quick to apologize, and polite with anyone I don’t know very well.

[boymeetsweevil]

(Welcome to) Camp Lonely Heart

Grouping: Camp Counselor!Reader x Camp Counselor!Taehyung

Word Count: ~15.6k lmao 

Warnings/Themes: walkie talkie sex + masturbation, graphic public sex in a field, descriptions throughout of breast play, 69ing, riding, fingering, creampie sorta, some bullying, some angst, concerned older brother Minho, OC is kinda flaky

Summary: It’s possible to find love in all sorts of places: In bars, in school, on apps. But what about through a walkie talkie?

Part of the Masterlist for Group 2 of the @btssmutclub Summer Project

A/N: sorry its late! tagging @classickei and @chimchurro

A noogie from his older brother is the first thing to welcome Taehyung when he arrives at the admin building for the first weekly counselor meeting. He sits through it patiently because he knows Minho means well and it’s better than those times where he just cups Taehyung’s face tenderly and says absolutely nothing. But this is why he insisted they arrive separately.

With Minho’s arm tossed over his shoulder, Taehyung makes his way into the familiar conference room. Despite the fact that this is his 3rd year as a junior counselor, the fact that the conference hasn’t changed since it was built in the 80’s still surprises him every time. The people inside it change fairly frequently, though. There’s always a steady rotation of counselors for both the boys’ and the girls’ camps on their respective sides of Lake Lonely Heart.

A smattering of people are already seated and chatting amongst themselves before the introductory meeting starts. As more people trickle in, Taehyung acknowledges them from his corner seat. Some veteran staff from the boys’ camp naturally come to his and Minho’s side of the table, greeting Minho mostly.

“How was your trip up, son,” asks one of the senior staff, Cref.

“It was good,” Minho gives a genuine smile up at Cref before giving a pointed look in Taehyung’s direction.

“Oh,” Cref’s eyes dim noticeably, “And how was your trip, Tae?”

“It was fine,” Taehyung’s answer matches Cref’s in its lack of warmth.

“I see you kept that little ponytail thing you had last summer.”

“Yeah.”

“Shame,” Cref huffs before turning to some of the other boys’ staff that arrived while he was talking and gesturing to Taehyung.

“Cref can you really talk when you’ve still got that comb-over?” The comment sends the other boys’ staff who’d been listening into a tizzy and Cref scoffs before turning on them to compensate. Meanwhile, Minho gives Taehyung a covert pat on the back.

None of the girls’ staff seemed to be watching the exchange with the exception of one girl who must be a new hire. Taehyung doesn’t recognize her face from last summer and though she’d been snoring softly when Taehyung first arrived, she looks at some of the jeering boys’ staff with a bit of muted disapproval. The look is brief because almost instantly another one of the counselors near her pulls her into another conversation. The sour tinge her features had disappears and leaves a gentle and open expression on her face as she listens to someone tell her about what to expect with her sleeper cabin.

There’s something nice about her face even though nothing specific jumps out at him as super beautiful or sexy. The soft way she smiles is subtle, almost like the turn of lips could have been a trick of the light. He wants to know what a full-blown smile would look like. Taehyung likes to think that he would have gotten up to talk to her. Eventually. If it weren’t for the camp leader entering the room with the dreaded Talking Stick.

“Alright everyone,” the camp leader shouts energetically, halting all conversations. “Veterans don’t spoil anything. Newbies, one of you raise your hand and tell me what you think this is,” she grins and wiggles the bedazzled stick in a wide circle.

Taehyung sighs and settles back further into his chair, ready to endure yet another round of icebreakers and name learning games.

“Here’s your humble abode for the next few months,” Moe grunts as she pushes the door of the cabin in. She smiles shakily before mumbling something about the paint job being so new that the door wouldn’t budge. A few hits to the door with her shoulder help it swing open.

The cabin looks nearly identical to that of Moe and Moe’s roommates. A pair of bunkbeds sit across the main room from one another. There’s some simple wooden furniture and a nice view of forest on the girls’ side of the lake in the front window by the door. The bathroom has two shower stalls and two sinks. The cabin is clearly made to hold four occupants.

“Are my roommates on their way?”

You walk in and admire the posters on the wall. They must have been left by some other counselor some number of summers ago.

“So, uh, you actually get this whole cabin to yourself.”

“Huh? Like I’ll be sleeping here by myself?”

“Yeah. I know its weird, but it’s not on purpose. The rooming system isn’t the most efficient. People fill the first cabin and then we fill the second one and on and on. When we got your answer, it was late and we’d perfectly filled 3 other cabins before this one. And since your position was the last one we filled before closing the apps, there weren’t any other people after you who could have been placed here.”

You try your hardest not to look too dismayed at your lonesome living situation. But, truthfully, one of the things that made you consider taking the position was the friends you were hoping to make on he job. The job testimonies on the Camp Lonely Hearts website mentioned that some of the best times of being a counselor were the times had in the cabin with coworkers after dark. With you being new to the city and this being the first summer in a long while where you weren’t forcing yourself into a boring 9-to-5, you wanted to take a chance on something inspiring instead. And you really wanted to make friends because city life alone was taking a toll on you. The chance to be a ‘youth leader for the young women and men of Camp Lonely Heart’ seemed like just the right thing.

Now, though, it looked like you would have to work a little harder to make the lasting connections you were expecting to fall into your lap the first night on the grounds.

“I’m sorry sweetheart,” Moe says when some of the bouncy pluck in your shoulders seems to leave you with the sigh you let out. “You’re welcome to bring a sleeping bag and sleepover in cabin 3 any time.”

“Thanks, Moe.” She leaves you to unpack with the slow setting sun.

Everything seems clean enough under your quick inspection. You take over the bathroom with your toiletries and towels. The bunk bed is less uncomfortable than you thought it would be, and there’s an outlet near your little writing desk, so you’re able to plug in and set up your boombox. There’s no wifi at the camp, and while it’s an experience you’re looking forward to, you can’t live in total silence. You did, however, bid all your friends a temporary goodbye on Facebook after explaining where you’d be for the summer.

You switch the boombox onto radio mode and extend the boosted antennae. It picks up a classics station that you unpack to. The job is over quickly given that you only had to pack a few undergarments and pairs of shorts to rotate with the t-shirts that they give to counselors so people don’t confuse some of you with campers.

When boredom starts clawing at the edges of your brain, you snoop through all the little corners and crannies you ignored when you first arrived and were busy with settling in. You don’t find much. You find a shoebox with a bunch of office supplies under the other bunk bed, a supremely large beetle carcass on your window sill, and a solar powered walkie talkie in the bottom drawer of the writing desk.

The walkie talkie obviously is the most intriguing find out of all of your finds, but you don’t see its mate in the cabin. Surprisingly enough, it powers up, but it has a low battery. You fiddle with the channels and mumble a wimpy little ‘anyone there’ into the first one. Figuring that no one is there, you lower it from your ear and move to go make your bed when the device sounds.

“Hello?”

The voice is deep and smooth. You’re so spooked by the response that the walkie talkie slips from your hand and clatters to the floor with a loud clunk. You let out a curse and bend down to pick it up only to find that the transmission was cut off from the impact. With the hopes that you can revive the device, you stick it in the bathroom window where you know it will get the most sun during the day and pray it's not broken.

Before you head to bed early, you go over your schedule and how you’re going to present yourself to the kids the next morning. It takes a while for you to memorize your schedule because your mind is slightly preoccupied,  wondering what the person on the other end must be thinking of your sudden departure.

You were worried that it would take a while to adjust to your position and that the kids would be intimidating, but quickly you realize there was nothing to worry about.

You love your girls more than you could have predicted. They took to you instantly since you were the youngest among the counselors. Even the 17-year-olds, who are the oldest campers there, flocked to you too during parts of the daily schedule that you weren’t leading. Many of the girls in high school would drag you to their table in the mess hall during dinner or the free period before lights out to ask you for school advice and questions about the more mysterious parts of life. It instills in you a strong sense of responsibility that you didn’t think was possible. You didn’t think you’d ever find teenagers endearing.

The camp itself is kind of like a hazy afternoon dream. The nature around you is beautiful and the air is crisp. If you take a 20 minute trek away from the main grounds, you stumble into the camp’s medium sized lavender field. It’s your favorite place to be at any time of the day because the air is thick with the scent of the purple flower. The first time you see it, you’re joining one of the other junior counselors, Jade, to grab some plants for craft time.

“You’re gonna trap flies like that,” Jade gestures to your slack mouth.

“Sorry, sorry. It’s just that we barely even get grass on the sidewalks at my new apartment. And this is...so beautiful.”

You can’t help it really. The sweet scent that had been coating your nose and throat since you were halfway up the trail just increased ten-fold and has stolen the place of your breath.

“Yeah, it has that effect on people. But you get used to it after working here long enough and the smell starts to fade. You might even get a little sick of it.”

You shake your head to clear it and try to fathom the idea of being sick of lavender. The rows of plants are lush, huge, and neat. You walk through the small plowed paths between each bush looking for the most fragrant patch you can find. There’s what looks like a few other counselors from the other side of the lake wandering through some nearby rows, looking for the same thing you are. You tap Jade’s shoulder when their backs are turned to you and whisper.

“They’re from the boys’ camp, right? Do you know those guys? ” Jade turns and squints into the distance before straightening up immediately.

“Oh my god, yeah, that’s Minho. He’s the yoga instructor for the boys.” Her tone takes on a wispy, dreamy quality. “He’s so nice and so cool. And, like, really funny.”

The man in question has on a shockingly bright Tiffany blue t-shirt with the sleeves rolled up to beat the heat. And perhaps showcase his sculpted arms. He looks tall and broad from your vantage point, but he doesn’t seem extraordinary at first glance. Maybe he’s really great once you get to know him.

“What about the other one?” The slightly shorter man with the tiny ponytail and coke-bottle glasses catches your attention more. Even though he’s fairly far away, you can tell he has a nice profile. Jade squints again and hums in thought.

“Mm, I don’t know. I think he’s one of the newer guys. I don’t really remember his spiel from the intro meeting. Do you know him?”

“No,” you give him one last look before squatting down and getting to work. “Just curious.”

***

“—and then move this finger here,” Taehyung nudges one of the camper’s fingers until it’s sure to make the guitar in his hands sing that way he wants. “That’s the last part of the chord. So from there you can play that song we went over in musical hour. Did you take notes?”

“Yeah.” The kid in front of him is probably no more than 16, maybe a baby-faced 17. He looks too nervous for an impromptu guitar review during free time.

“Kook, what’s the matter?”

“Nothing,” Jungkook hangs his head a little in embarrassment. “Just...what if I suck at guitar?”

“Then you suck at guitar,” Taehyung shrugs. “It’s okay to not be good at things. Especially if you’re just learning them for the first time.”

“I know, but I really need to be good at this. I have to be able to learn a song in less than a week by the time camp ends.”

“That can be kind of fast depending on the song. Why do you need to learn songs so quick?”

Jungkook’s round cheeks heat up and he eyes his peers who are playing jacks at one of the dinner tables. “There’s this girl...”

Taehyung hums knowingly and smiles down at the kid. “I see. Did you tell her you could play guitar?”

“How did you know?” Jungkook’s are wide as he eyes Taehyung like he read his mind.

“Just a guess.”

The camper nods. “I told her I’d learn her favorite song and play it for her when she gets back from vacationing with her parents. But I obviously don’t know what I’m doing.”

“Well, I can’t promise you that you’ll become a prodigy before the end of camp, but I’ll let you borrow my guitar every day as long as you promise to practice like you mean it every time.”

“If I do that, do you think I’ll at least be able to learn her song?”

“I’ll personally help you learn the song.” Jungkook’s shoulder relax instantly once he realizes he’s in good hands.

***

“Star, it’ll be fine. Really,” you try your hardest to get the tiny middle schooler to stop shaking without drawing attention to her as you bring her into the admin building. “Once your mom picks up, I’m sure she’ll understand and she’ll bring your hormones over.”

“I know,” Star’s frame shivers with the force of her hiccups, her eyes pink and watery. “But I can’t believe I forgot them at all. She didn’t even wanna let me go because she was worried I’d lose them.”

“But you didn’t lose them, sweetpea. You forgot them. Kinda different.” The little sobs, now intermittent at best, halt as she processes your logic.

You show Star to the telephone used for emergency contact or extreme cases of homesickness before stepping away to let her have some privacy with her mother. In the meantime, you let the borrowed keys of Moe’s truck swing from your fingers while you explore the halls of the admin building.

It feels odd roaming the various wings of the building when you’re not there for your Wednesday morning staff check-ins. The layout isn’t any different from those days, but you rarely get to see the other parts since you usually just make a beeline for the conference room.

The white painted cinder block walls and the linoleum tiles give you flashbacks to your own adolescent days in school. As does the un-ironic use of retro inspirational posters—though you suppose they weren’t retro when they were first put up. A few doors leading to utility closets or other, smaller conference rooms. While hunting for the staff lounge, you find a counselor you recognize from your side of the lake talking covertly with a counselor presumably from the boys’ side. Your roll your eyes when they give a disdainful stare for breaking their private moment and keep snooping.

At the end of the hall is the communal laundry room. The lines for it are usually awful on Wednesdays. You peer in just to see what it is you don’t have to deal with since you have your own unit in your little cabin. In that moment, you catch someone holding up boxers. You recognize them as that Minho guy that all the counselors seemed to have fallen for.

“Did you find any extra detergent, Tae?” He turns to you then and realizes you’re not who he thinks you are and you’re out of there as quickly as possible.

When you get back to the phone, Star is waiting patiently with no more tears and news that her mom will be dropping off her hormones and some homemade fudge.

***

Breakfast is served to the counselors at asscrack od dawn so that they can get the mess hall ready for the campers and complete the first things on the schedule for the day. Usually it's not so bad, but today’s early rise is hard for Taehyung because Minho brought some of the other counselors into their cabin the night before and they didn’t leave until late.

So when Taehyung stumbles into the mess hall looking for pancakes, he hasn’t given any thought to his morning appearance. He fixes his plate and sits across from his brother since the spot next to him is taken by Cref.

Taehyung’s wearing an old t-shirt that’s gone through many of his more experimental phases with clothes. The previously white t-shirt is now a soft apricot color after a night he was practicing with dyes a few years ago and the sleeves are thin in the places he took scissors to the shirt.

“Nice lingerie,” Cref sneers down his nose at Taehyung while he picks at his breakfast meat sleepily. “You know, I think I saw something at the mall a few weeks ago.”

A few of the guys sitting on the side laugh, some even dumbly repeat the joke under their breath as they chuckle into their breakfast.

“Fuck off, Cref.” Taehyung’s sigh comes out deeply tired. More tired than one could be from one night up too late from a noisy roommate’s friends. “It’s too early for this.”

“Yeah, Cref,” Minho pipes up, eyes locked on Taehyung’s sleep-puffy face and messy long hair. “We all know you don’t personally have the ass to pull off anything in a lingerie shop. And you definitely don’t have anyone’s ass to pull them off of either. You just sound sad, man.”

Cref stammers at Minho’s comment, not missing the subtle way the jab went a little deeper than it normally does when the two are just ripping on one another for fun. He admits defeat and sends a little nod in Taehyun’s direction. The same guys who were giggling earlier look on at Minho with some awe and are quick to jump on Cref for his non-existent ass as well.

When Minho kicks him under the table, Taehyung gives him a small thumbs up before taking his now half-eaten plate away to dump.

***

Dinners are normally spent at a table off to the side with the campers because they want to be able to treat you less like an authority figure and more like a wise older sister. But tonight you’re eating with the other counselors because you’re missing adult company. It’s been hard to have any of the bonding moments you were hoping for and there’s not much time during the day to have them when you’re trying to patch up skinned knees and guide macaroni projects.

Even though everyone is friendly enough and does try to make sure you feel included, you can’t help but notice how peripheral you are. After a few weeks, everyone has their designated dinner seat, so you were forced to pull up a chair to eat. Once the plates were cleared, you still felt a little left out. Apparently everyone makes a habit of staying up a little later than you so they can have time to unwind and talk about the day together in the other cabins. Apparently, people even share bunks occasionally so that they can visit non-roommate staff for the night.

You know you’re really not part of the group when the conversation becomes 80% inside jokes and you can’t recognize or understand a single one. The girl next to you attempts to explain the first few, but it slows the conversation down and you can tell that people are losing their patience when a story has to halt for you to catch up on nicknames or events. She stops explaining after the 4th one and you don’t really blame her. Maybe you should have spent dinners with them more. Or maybe you shouldn’t have gone to bed so early; even on the nights where you felt the exhaustion in your bones.

While everyone laughs about something someone said one night earlier in the summer, you construct a mental pros and cons list in your head. You could stick around and try to scrape through every single thing everyone says until you get all the jokes and can understand why random things like the brisket you’re eating is so funny. Or you can accept that you’ll probably have to forge these connections individually and not feel bad about getting well-deserved rest when you need it.

You opt for the latter and genuinely explain to everyone that while you had a nice time, you’re feeling a little fatigued. No one looks like they’ve caught on, but no one looks too upset to see you go either. The conversation continues to flow as you leave the dining hall, no need to fill the space you left because you didn’t really leave one. The walk from the mess hall to your cabin is short and brisk and you feel as though you’re not sure you made the right choice. You hope sleep will clear your head.

But before you get to the little fork in the foot trail that separates the other cabins from yours, you get struck with a current of rebellion. If you’re going to be lonely, you might as well make the solo time as fun as possible. So you sneak behind one of the cabins, searching for the cooler you know is wedged under the raised foundation. The first night there, someone showed you the booze that they brought in behind the camp leader’s back during the strict luggage inspection. If you recall correctly, you remember this girl saying that her boyfriend drives up during the weekly meetings and drops off new cases of beers for her to scoop up under the guise of a “bathroom break”.

When you open the cooler, there’s several 40s sitting in a bath of ice. It’s not your drink of choice, but beggars can’t be choosers. You take two for good measure and skip off to go drink on your porch with the radio blaring from inside the cabin.

***

“Tae, come on. You haven’t pulled your trunks out once since we got here.”

Minho whines fairly well for someone of his stature and it’s convincing enough with the pouty lips and the puppy eyes that Taehyung really does consider it. ‘It’ being swapping his pajamas for some board shorts and heading out to the lake for a night swim. Apparently the water will be refreshing in the thick and heavy heat in the night air. One of the other counselors had promised a smuggled beer, but Taehyung isn’t really interested in tempting fate.

“I don’t think I’m up for it,” Taehyung says while pushing Minho out the front door of their cabin. His biggest fans Jay and Dan are waiting outside and groan when Minho turns back again.

“You sure you don’t want to come? Maybe you’ll end up having fun. You never know.”

Jay whispers to Dan then. “I don’t know why he’s always so obsessed with bringing him around to stuff. It’s not like he adds anything to the mood, you know?”

It’s loud enough for Taehyung to hear, though he doesn’t think it was supposed to be heard. Minho instantly shoves Jay into Dan, who both go stumbling off the steps of the cabin porch. A moment later his eyes admit defeat and he pats Taehyung’s shoulder.

“Do you want company? I can stay in and you can, like, teach me the color wheel again.”

“Really, it’s fine. I’m gonna do some reading. I brought a few books that I’ve been wanting to crack open. And I’m kinda tired. Don’t worry about me.”

***

By the time you’ve finished half of your second bottle, you’ve migrated back into your cabin. Drunk-you is a little paranoid and worried that the camp leader will show up out of nowhere and see you intoxicated. Although, as you flop onto your bed, you’re not sure that’s such a bad thing. At least then you’d have company, you muse.

The bottle hangs from your lax fingers and you take a look at your surroundings. The screen door is facing out towards the lake and the view shows that the boys’ side of the camp is still awake with the lights from their own cabins shining like small beacons back at you. Then you look back and there’s the four walls of wood. You wonder briefly if its pine or oak before realizing you’re a little too drunk if you’re trying to distinguish between types of lumber. You do appreciate the wood’s warm tone and the natural striations that add some intrigue to the otherwise bland walls. If it weren’t for the abandoned Kiki’s Delivery Service poster on one wall facing your bed, you might think you were in a wooden version of solitary confinement.

Your head turns to rest more comfortably on your pillow and you gaze up at the little writing desk below the window that faces the woods behind the cabin. A little blurry shadow obscures some of the view of the forest and you sit up to see it better. It’s the little walkie talkie you discovered on the first day.

Drunkenness and boredom compel you to leave the softness of your mattress and stumble over to the window. The walkie talkie spent several weeks in the sun, so you figure it can’t be out of battery. You also figure it can’t have actually been destroyed from the meter it fell from your hand to the floor that one day. So you flip the power switch with blind hope and squeal excitedly when it turns on. Pressing the ‘talk’ button, you hop around the main room of the cabin and hum into the first channel. The song you’re singing is a broken version of a tune your grandfather used to always have floating in the air of his house from his record player. The melody sloshes together at certain points like the contents of the bottle you continue to take generous swigs from.

***

Taehyung’s reading in his bed, trying to tune out the sounds of distant splashing and shouting coming from his co-counselors by the lakeside. When he picks up the sound of sloppy singing, he wonders if Minho has come back to the cabin for a towel or to try to convince him to come back out again. But the door of the cabin doesn’t swing open. Taehyung is confused for about 5 more seconds before he’s eyeing the dark space under his bed suspiciously. There, underneath a sheet that fell down the crack between the mattress and the bed, is the walkie talkie that’s been collecting dust since the night before the camp session started.

He shifts an arm down behind the bed and disentangles the device from the sheets and dust bunnies. Sure enough, the broken lilting of the soft tune is coming from the walkie talkie. To say he’s surprised is an understatement. A few weeks prior, he’d turned on the walkie talkie by accident and a moment later someone’s voice sparked from the speaker. He was intrigued enough by the voice to leave the device on during the day, charging it often in case whoever was on the other side would want to tune in again.

Now, the fog of sleep rises to make room for this little mystery. He doesn’t try to speak just yet. Instead, he lets your voice continue your rendition of a few songs mashed into one from a famous jazz album. When your voice putters out because you forget where the rest of the tune’s trail leads, Taehyung smiles to himself.

“I really—hic—wish someone was there,” your whisper crackles through the speaker.

He worries a bit about scaring you off again, but the urge to speak outweighs the worry. He holds the device up to his mouth hesitantly. “Someone is.”

“Oh.” You don’t seem nearly as startled as you were last time he spoke up. “The void speaks.”

“Believe it or not, I’m not the void.”

“Well,” you hiccup more into the walkie talkie and the sound is funny and tiny. “I suppose you’re not if you say you’re not. But who’s to say the void isn’t just a consciousness trapped in a reality that won’t answer back.”

“Wow. Do you normally philosophize in the midnight hour while drinking?”

The sound of you taking a large swig from your 40 washes into his side. “How did you know I’ve been drinking?”

“Call it a hunch,” he grins up at the slats of the mattress above his own.

“Well, what are—what are you doing?”

“Me?” For some reason the question takes him by surprise. “I’m just reading.”

“Reading what?”

“N-nothing.” He stares down at the book he was reading. “It’s just an art book.”

“What kind of art?”

“Uh, Van Gogh,” he trails off, waiting for your reaction.”Van Gogh’s art.”

“Oh, that kid. Nice one.” You let out a burp, but otherwise sound completely serious.

Taehyung can’t help the laughter that takes over him. It’s not that your reaction was stupid, but it was so unexpected and nonchalantly ridiculous that his brain can only react with laughter. You grumble at him through the speaker, but don’t actually take offense. He laughs for so long that you’re silent on the other line when he finally calms down.

“Sorry,” he wipes at his eyes, “I didn’t mean to laugh at you like that. I just...I’ve never heard anyone do something like that.”

“‘s okay,” your shrug is practically audible.

“Hey, you’re not a camper from the girls’ side, are you?”

“Are you asking if I’m one of Camp Lonely Hearts’ young women?” Your voice takes on a strange lisp in attempt to sound hauty.

“Yes?”

“Well, sadly I’m not. I’m a counselor over there, though.”

“I think this is the first time I’ve talked with one of you guys this whole summer.”

Back in your cabin, you have the walkie talkie resting against your ear after having fallen back into bed. Your feet are at the wrong end of the mattress, but you don’t care because the sound of the deep voice on your little radio is soothing and pairs well with your beer exhaustion.

“Mmm, me too.”

Your breathing slows and evens out, lengthening in Taehyung’s ear. He lays the walkie talkie down then, realizing that you’re probably on the verge of falling asleep. From the sound of it, you probably fell asleep with the ‘talk’ button still activated. He switches his walkie talkie off after mumbling an awkward ‘goodnight’ and lays the device down on the ground near his bed. He falls asleep quickly that night.

*** After waking up slightly hungover but not hungover enough to be without memory of the night before, you panicked.

Whoever this mystery person was on the other end of the walkie talkie, you had babbled dark philosophical nonsense at them for a good five minutes before doing who knows what else. You were so embarrassed you could hardly swallow down the overlooked eggs they served you for breakfast that morning. Being on kitchen duty didn’t help the upset stomach. You felt nauseated by your dopey antics and the smells of the meat and eggs you were frying for the campers’ breakfast.

The only thing that settled your stomach was the resolute plan you made to apologize to the mystery person over your lunch break. You hoped to all that was good in the world that the other person wasn’t a camper that was so scarred by your actions that they already reported you to the camp leader. Although, something about their tone when they asked you if you were a camper the night before made you think they were a counselor like you. It was the nerves and the hint of disappointment that even drunk-you picked up on. Nerves and disappointment about what, though?

With all your musing, you’re spaced out during physical education period and get brained by a volleyball. It’s actually a blessing in disguise because it means you get sent home and don’t have to work the dinner shift. The walk back to your cabin is full of you patting the tender skin of the back of your head while you practice your explanation for why your dignity is still actually intact and why you’re not as weird as you may have seemed last night.

But when you get back to your cabin, you find that you’re more nervous of the idea that no one picks up than the idea that they do pick up to give you a piece of their mind. Still, you switch the device on because you want to explain yourself. The first channel crackles to life again and you press the ‘talk’ button.

***

“I’m telling you, if these kids would just put their phones down, their spinal alignment would be so much better. You ever looked at their little shoulders? They looks like fucking mole hills. Makes me wanna cry.”

Minho is trying as best he can to remain still despite how much the topic of young people’s posture riles him up. Taehyung appreciates the effort, though, as it makes Minho’s silhouette much easier to capture on his canvas. On nights when there isn’t much to do, Taehyung takes out his paints and sometimes gets his older brother to be his model. In exchange, Minho gets to rant to a whole person about the dangers of office chairs on the coccyx or whatever the sexy new topics are in his chiropractors' digest.

Tonight is one of those nights and Taehyung’s managed to fill the canvas with three different poses and has also learned why he shouldn’t ever cross his legs for extended periods of time or diss nursing shoes until he’s tried them. But before he can ask Minho to find another position to hold, the walkie talkie by the foot of his bed fires up; on from when he turned it on as soon as he got back into his cabin for the day.

“Hello? It’s me,” your voice calls tentatively out into the air.

“Ooooh, who’s that?” Minho’s eyes turn into little semi circles as he grins at Taehyung. The mocking coos are inaudible to you because Taehyung hasn’t pressed the ‘talk’ button and he’s glad for that too. He quickly flips Minho the bird before scooping up the little device and leaving to sit on the porch.

Time stretches thin as you wait for an answer. The seconds are long. Long enough that your face is hot with unnamed shame and you’re reaching to switch the device off when—

“Hey. Sorry about the delay.”

“Hey!” You pull back automatically before remembering you’re the one who initiated the call. No backing down now. “So, I’m—I’m sure you remember the other night.”

“I do,” he snickers and recalls the way you’d bumbled around verbally. “Are you back for a repeat performance?”

“Uh, no. I actually wanted to apologize for being so weird yesterday. I was kinda drunk and I didn’t think about the fact that I might be bothering someone by turning this thing on and talking into it.”

“You didn’t bother me.”

“I didn’t?” You were just about to venture into the next part of your prepared speech, but now that you don’t need to, you’re at a loss for words. “That’s...good to hear. Are you sure? I can be kind of a lot when I’m drunk.”

“I really didn’t mind. It was a nice change from—I mean, it was funny. And nice.”

“Nice? I can’t remember the last time someone said I was nice.” The laugh behind your voice is subtle, but it sweetens the tone of your already pleasant words until Taehyung is smiling again.

“Glad to be of service, then,” he shoves a hand in his pocket.

“You sound nice too,” you blurt out. The sound of your feet hitting the floor in a little dance of embarrassment are thankfully too soft to reach Taehyung’s ears. “I mean—”

“Thanks. So,” he clears his throat softly, “do you like jazz?”

From that night on, you and Taehyung begin talking with one another via walkie talkie. Every night, a few hours before sunset, one of you will send out a little message to the other. Nearly like clockwork. Nearly because there are some nights where the conversation gets put on the back burner. Those were unusual nights, though. On one of those nights, the older counselors wanted to host an ABBA karaoke night with some of the older campers in the dining commons and you couldn’t miss it because 1) the 17-year-olds really like you, and 2) you can completely body an ABBA song despite the fact that you were never an avid fan growing up. Another one of those nights Taehyung couldn’t make it because Minho dragged him out of the room to play flashlight tag in the woods. He didn’t even have time to change out of his paint-stained shirt, much less shoot you a quick warning about not being able to talk. Although you didn’t like being left hanging, when he explained why he was busy the following night, you completely understood. Because, really, how often does an adult flashlight tag opportunity come up?

Even still—on nights like those you both miss each other’s voices.

99% of the time, though, you both make time for talking with one another. When you both are in, you talk about anything and everything. From family and life outside the camp to joke competitions that have Minho snorting to himself from under the covers even though he’s supposed to be asleep. The number of movie and book recommendations you’ve swapped only to find out that the other person was a fan is almost too high to not make you wonder if you’re actually stuck in some cliché young adult summer novel.

These days Taehyung’s cheeks hurt from smiling so much. Usually he doodles what he thinks you could look like in his Moleskin while ignoring Minho’s weird soft looks or wiggly eyebrows. Sometimes he’s not up for sharing his cool new digital pal with his brother and he’ll migrate outside, to the back of the cabin, and endure the bugs so he can enjoy your voice in peace. The only downside is that Minho won’t let him live it down. The countless jokes about his new lady friend only get worse when Minho slips up one breakfast and lets all the other counselors know that Taehyung’s been avoiding the group to talk to you. The raucous applause was one thing, but Cref’s fake pride that Taehyung managed to capture female attention was enough to have him kicking Minho under the table for his indiscretion. But it wasn’t all that bad.

You’re fairly content with the way things are as well. You’ve managed to get your boombox radio to play a local ‘best of’ jazz station and it reminds you of your myste when you’re not talking with him. It's only until you catch yourself trying to recall Taehyung’s appearance that you realize what you’re missing. That is, you don’t know what he looks like and that makes you feel odd. In theory, people don’t need to know what their friends look like. Pen pals and mutuals on social media sites don’t always know what their internet friends look like and still manage to talk for years and feel a real sense of closeness. But you keep wondering. Is he tall, is he brunet, is he pretty?

The thought keeps plaguing you until one day the question just tumbles out of your mouth. It’s a Tuesday, and you’re getting ready for bed because you have to be up earlier on Wednesdays for the weekly meetings. Taehyung had just been telling you about a flip that the arts director did that morning off the pier. It was a grisly story of broken legs and nose bleeds and how Taehyung  became both the arts and music counselor until further notice. You’d been trying to listen diligently but you couldn’t help drifting off. You’re trying to picture Taehyung’s face solely off the timber of his voice when that same voice blares a little louder than normal in your ear.

“Yo, did you fall asleep on something?”

“How tall are you?”

“Uh,” is all you get back from him. And it’s honestly an appropriate response to such a blunt change of subject.

“Sorry, that was kinda rude of me. It’s just that I realized that you’re probably the closest person to me in this whole camp and we’re not even on the same side of the lake...I just realized I don’t even know your name. And I definitely wouldn’t be able to pick you out in a crowd.”

“That’s—that’s true,” he gnaws thoughtfully on his lip and Minho raises his surprised and bespectacled gaze from a physical rehabilitation manual. “I’m Taehyung.”

He’s not sure how he managed to spend weeks talking with you nearly every night only to never ask for your name. When he was alert and talking with you, he felt no gaps, he didn’t even think to ask. But, Taehyung thinks, maybe the thought came to him when he was on the fuzzy border of sleep and wakefulness. When he was most open and sometimes the yearning slipped out. He doesn’t say any of that to you, of course. He just listens to you reply with your own name and repeats it to you until you’re praising him for the way it sounds on his tongue. Minho makes fun of him and whispers your name in a squeaky voice that’s supposed to be Taehyung’s.

“I like your name,” you chirp. You’re so happy to have one more piece to the puzzle that is Taehyung that you almost forget your original question. “So, Taehyung, what do you look like.”

“I’m 5’10.5,” he starts. “And I have...blond hair. All my friends tell me I have a perfect face–”

“Is that so?”

“–and a great chest-to-waist ratio. I don’t wear makeup, b-but if I did my MAC shade would be NW30.” Minho narrows his eyes at Taehyung, but the younger man simply turns away.

“That’s nice?” You sound a bit baffled by the description as well, but you try to take it in stride and picture it.

The resulting image in your mind isn’t exactly what you expected, but you guess you can’t be surprised that he looked different from how you imagined when you didn’t even know his name. You rattle off your own appearance, though not quite so awkwardly. When you’re finished, you wonder what he imagines with the description you gave. What does he think, you wonder. Do I sound nice?

Taehyung, on the other hand, realizes instantly who you are. You’re the girl that was falling asleep during the first meeting. He remembers watching your head lolling back and forth during the icebreaker and trying to contain his laughter when the camp leader shouted loud enough to wake you. He remembers your boisterous laughter at the third weekly meeting when someone thought it would be funny to round up 5 squirrels and release them into the conference room to watch the mayhem unfold. If he’s being honest, he’s actually more excited with the connection he’s made now. He’s glad it’s you. It makes sense.

“Well, I guess this will make tomorrow’s meeting a little more fun, right?”

“Huh,” he snaps out of deep thought. “Why?”

“Because now we can talk to each other in person.” Your voice is brimming with excitement and it’s easy to hear even through the half mile of distance and the static-y connection. “I’ll be able to find you now.”

“Yeah,” his voice trails off guiltily but you don’t catch onto it because you’re busy smoothing out your sheets.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Taehyung,” you bid him goodnight with extra giddy emphasis on his name now that you can actually use it. It’s cute and should probably bring a smile to his face, but as he turns off the device, he can only purse his lips in frustration.

The sounds of sheets rustling remind him of his brother’s presence and he lets out a sigh, waiting for the lecture that’s about to come.

“So,” Minho begins slowly, “How come the person you described was cousin Jin when she asked you what you looked like?”

“In my defense, I...”

“In your defense, what? I’m really curious about what your explanation is.”

“I didn’t want her to be disappointed. And no one’s ever been disappointed by Jin’s looks, so when I got nervous I just gave her his greatest hits.”

“I heard. The foundation thing was a little much.”

“Yeah,” he sighs.

“Why do you think she would be disappointed?”

“I don’t know. I guess if for some reason the appearance stuff was important to her, I thought it made sense not to leave things to chance. In case that would mess things up.”

“But what if, to her, lying is even worse than having an ‘ugly’ friend,” Minho asks with air quotes included.

“Then...I fucked up big time.” Taehyung holds his head in his hands for a few minutes before eventually looking up helplessly. “But I didn’t do it to spite her or anything.”

“Did you really just do it because you thought she would be disappointed? She doesn’t sound that shallow to me, and I don’t know her like you do.”

“Yes and no,” he groans and tosses himself onto the mattress. “I mean, I wanted to seem good in her eyes. Someone she might...like?”

“Someone she might like? She does like you.”

“Someone she might,” Taehyung eyes Minho softly, “want to be with.”

“Ah,” he nods sagely. “So it’s like that.”

“It’s like that.”

“Then you know what you need to do.”

“Yeah. I’ll tell her tomorrow. During the meeting.”

***

Taehyung figures that the idea of preserving his friendship with you being so important will make confessing his lie to you super easy. But when he lumbers into the meeting room the following morning at 6:30, the nerves take over. He grows silent. He stays silent when you come in looking too chipper for a normal morning meeting. And when you spend the majority of the meeting studying the face of every counselor from the boys’ side of the camp, looking for the man described to you on the phone yesterday and not finding him. And when the meeting officially adjourned and you’re standing around hoping for some sort of explanation. Silent when he eventually slips out while Minho is in the bathroom and someone has started chatting you up.

He knows that eventually he’ll have to face you—figuratively speaking. The floor will probably have a trench plowed into it from where he paces the area in front of his bunk anxiously. Sundown is soon and normally you’d be tuning in at this time to see what his plans are for the night and talk about each other’s days. But as the minutes tick by, his walkie talkie stays quiet. Minho pins him with an expectant look before mumbling something about going to go hang out in someone else’s cabin. Maybe he thought Taehyung would benefit from the privacy, but the empty space on the other side of the room just makes him more aware of how the ball is in his—and only his—court. He picks up the walkie talkie and presses the ‘talk’ button.

“You there?” When he gets no response at first, he presses again. This time, he just calls your name pleadingly. Surprisingly, you pick up.

“Is this Taehyung?”

“What? Yes, who else—”

“Or maybe this is Mr. tiny waist dorito face SPF 30. Can’t tell who’s who these days.”

He ducks his head. The smile in his voice is self-deprecating. “It’s me. Taehyung.”

“What can I help you with this evening?” Your voice is sharper than it normally is, but subtly so. He almost wants you to just yell at him instead.

“I just wanted to say sorry.”

“For friend-catfishing me?”

“Yes. For lying and for not coming clean at the meeting when I first saw you.”

“Why didn’t you say anything at the meeting,” your voice wavers a bit, traitorous in the way it shakes. “I was looking for you.”

“I know. I really was gonna tell you. You can ask Minho. But I just got scared all of the sudden. Like as soon as you saw me, you’d regret the decision to ever talk with me.”

“Tae, I wouldn’t do that. I really...I care for you. Something like that doesn’t just go away because what you pictured in your head isn’t 100% reality.”

Your words are simple, but he feels comfort from them. The grip he had on the plastic of the walkie talkie loosens significantly and he lets out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding.

“I still haven’t been completely honest with you, yet.”

“What is it now. Do you even work here?”

“No, no,” he chuckles and the sound drives you to chew on your thumb. “When you asked me what I looked like that night, I described my cousin to you.”

“Yes, ok, we’ve established that you’re not really Mr. Dorito head. What else is there,Taehyung, you’re making me nervous.”

“Hear me out.” You huff but otherwise settle for tapping your foot rapidly to channel the nerves productively. “I told you that I did that because I thought you wouldn’t want to be friends with me. But that’s not the only reason.”

“Okay,” you trail off.

“I did it because I thought maybe if you thought I was handsome, it would make it easier for you to, uh, return the feelings I have for you. I...like you. In a like-like way.”

“I see.”

Now it’s your turn to stretch the pause out until Taehyung’s fisting tufts of his hair in his free hand. The walkie talkie is probably going to leave a red imprint on his face from how hard he’s pressing it to his cheek, but he doesn’t even register the discomfort.

“I really don’t like that you lied to me,” you begin. “But, since I really like-like you, you can be on probation.”

The sound of exaggerated gagging sounds from the entryway of the cabin where Minho has been eavesdropping for the last five minutes. Taehyung doesn’t even bother to chastise his older brother for getting into his business and instead lets laughter bubble passed his lips.

Not too much changed after the night you both confessed to one another. Supposedly that’s a sign that you had a good foundation for your romantic relationship. But there are little changes and they’re noticeable. Much to Minho’s chagrin.

Most notably to everyone involved, since that night, the tone of the walkie talkie conversations shifted. Now your voices have become a little more hushed and Taehyung absolutely refuses to pick up the device unless he’s alone, whining until Minho leaves the cabin or is truly asleep. If the talks go on late enough, midnight moonlight lays a forlorn, whispered feel over you both and things become a competition for who can be the mushiest. The air is made of breathy laughs that bleed into sighs and unironic use of ‘No, you hang up first’. It’s all so rosy and the happiness you feel starts to stain your cheeks and smile. The other counselors notice too. A few give you meaningful looks like they’ve caught on. Moe, especially, looks proud to see that the dour cloud that was hovering over you has dissipated some. Others don’t quite have it right. They ask you if you’ve been sneaking weed into the camp. You don’t give up your secret for either of them. Mainly because you could face disciplinary action, but also because you don’t want the next time there’s a meeting to be turned into a spectacle. It’s not lost on you that you still don’t know what Taehyung looks like. But you were being sincere when you said that you didn’t need that to care for him.

Still, the curiosity wears on the edges of your consciousness every now and then. You can’t quite ignore the idea that you guys are sort of dating—that you may have a boyfriend at the end of this summer—and you still can’t tell when you’re in a room with him. Despite this, you feel a visceral attraction to him growing from what was a gentle simmer to a boil the longer you exchange pillow talk with him. At the right moments of the night, your hands itch to feel the solid weight of him, of any part of him. To have something other than the intangible rasp of his voice when he spills his feelings to you over the walkie talkie.

***

The Sunday night before the last week of camp finds you, of course, on the walkie talkie. Unlike all the previous conversations, there’s a bittersweetness that you’re trying to swallow down. You’ll both be busy with preparations for the end of the summer festival where both sides of the camp meet—this year on the girls’ side of the lake—to celebrate a summer well spent. This means you won’t have the time or the energy to talk to one another before the big day. If it wasn’t for the fact that you still hadn’t met up properly, you wouldn’t be bemoaning the brief absence so much. But with the end of the camp session rapidly approaching, questions linger in the air. It’s not clear what happens to what you have with Taehyung once you’re not close enough to use walkie talkies to talk with one another every night. So you cherish every minute you get with the man, even if its just his voice.

“I wish we could just keep talking forever,” you whine half into your pillow, half into the balmy night air. You’re trying your best to combat the heat with your sheets kicked down to your ankles and your lightest sleep clothes on. The tone you use is one you might normally be a little ashamed of, but you’re feeling extra needy.

“I wish we could have worked on the same side of the lake,” Taehyung counters after a quick glance toward Minho’s bed. Still unmade and empty because the man in question went to go smoke on the dock. “This whole separating the camp for the kids’ sake is dumb sometimes.”

“Yeah. I wish I could’ve seen you teaching songs to the kids on the guitar.”

“I wish I could see your face while you listen to the songs I rec’d you.”

“And I wish I could see your paintings.” Taehyung turns back to see the canvas he’d filled yesterday with paint swatches, trying to remember the exact hue of your skin from the first meeting in which he knew you were you.

“I wish we could just see each other.”

“Me too.”

“And touch each other.”

Your mouth drops open wide. He’s been flirty in his own way, but never so outright.

“Oh my god, Taehyung, are you drunk?”

“I don’t drink,” he replies simply. Your cheeks feel too warm and you have to pat you face to give yourself a semblance of control.

It’s not that you haven’t entertained the idea of being intimate with Taehyung, but it was a bit difficult when you still couldn’t match a face to his name. Perhaps that was just a ‘you’-issue, but it frustrates you and, until now, kept you from getting very far with your fantasies. But with his voice in your ear that night, you think maybe you could get there. Already your skin is taking on a feverish heat, sweat starting to prick certain areas.

“What would you do if we could. H-how would you start?”

He palms himself deftly over his shorts and lets his eyes fall shut in indulgence. “Are you in bed?”

“Yes.” Your breath is bated. A hand trails down the top you’re wearing to lift the hem up, exposing the dewy skin of your torso. You pick at the elastic waistband playfully, eager to hear what Taehyung’s plans are for you.

“What are you wearing?”

It’s a benign question, but it still speeds up your heartbeat. His voice is somehow silken in its depth while tugging raggedly at something inside you.

“Um. I’m wearing a camisole and some shorts.”

He hums appreciatively. “Well, first, I’d take off your top. I’d pull the straps off and push the rest down slowly. I’d kiss your neck and your skin all over. Until I get to your breasts.”

Your fingers slide under your shorts to find the crotch of your panties. A growing wet spot greets the searching pads of your fingers. “And then what?”

“Easy, easy.” He smirks. “I’d take my time on you. I bet they’d feel so nice in my hands. Probably soft and warm. I’d put my mouth on them, lick them, suck on them. I’d pinch your nipples until they’re hard and you’re moaning.” Sure enough, a moan floats up through the speaker on Taehyung’s end. “Then I’d kiss your stomach and your hips and then I’d get your shorts off. Are you wearing panties?”

“I am, yeah.”

“Shame,” he pouts. “I’d take those off too. I’d kiss your thighs and then I’d kneel between your legs and I’d taste you. Get you all over my tongue.” His erection throbs with the image and he has to squeeze himself at the base to keep his cool. With his words momentarily halted, you jump in.

“All that sounds nice, but I think I’d like you under me more.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah. I want you on your back on the bed and I want you naked. And then I want to sit on your face. I wanna grind on your mouth for a bit and then I want to get you in my mouth too.” His breath hitches sharply in your ear. From the sound of it, he’s stroking himself slowly and leaning on and off the ‘talk’ button. “I want to feel you in my throat. I want to gag around you while I stroke you.”

Taehyung’s whines are high as he fights the urge to fuck into his hand quickly and chase the high he feels pulsing under his skin. “Are you—ngh—are you touching yourself?”

“Yes, but I wish it was you. I’ve got my fingers inside, but it’s not enough when I could have you do it. I want you to stretch me out. I wanna ride you after. I’m gonna ride you one day for real.”

“Can’t wait for that day,” he sighs, tossing his head back.

Taehyung spits into his hand to aid the glide. His hand moves quickly over his length, under the fabric of his bottoms. The slick sounds show up in the background noise of your cabin, egging you on. You bring your fingers to the apex of your lips and ghost them over your swollen clit. The first touch has so much anticipation behind it and has your back bowing off the mattress. Like a feedback loop, your moans set Taehyung’s hand in action and trigger his groans, which bring trickle after trickle of arousal down to wet your hand.

“I bet you’d feel so good. You sound so wet, god. You’d probably squeeze my dick so tight and good.”

“What would you do,” you gasp into the little radio, rolling a nipple under your satiny top. “Tell me what you’d do while I sit on your face.”

“I’d fuck you with my t-tongue. And I’d give some attention to your ass. It would probably look so good from where you’d be sitting. Bouncing on me while I fuck your mouth.”

“Fuck, Tae. I want you so bad.”

“I know,” he hisses through gritted teeth. “Add another finger for me and play with your clit with your other hand. I want to hear you come. Be loud for me.”

“I’m so close. I’m—”

As soon as you heed his instructions and add another finger, you’re able to re-angle your hand and hit a sensitive spot along your walls. The sudden onslaught of pleasure makes your volume increase by double. Taehyung’s erection jumps at the sound of your orgasm.

“Did you come?”

Your heaving breaths through the speaker are answer enough. He soldiers through, trying to catch up to you. So you help him along.

“If I were with you, I’d hold your dick right on my tongue so I can taste all of it when you come. Or maybe you want to come inside me. To fill me up and get me all sticky?”

“Fuck,” he grunts one, twice and then his mouth drops open as he spurts over his hand. The thick white of his orgasm leaks through the gaps of his fingers to make a mess. His body tenses with a few of the aftershocks before he flops bonelessly into his pillow. “I can’t feel my toes.”

“I don’t think I’ll be able to walk for a while either.”

Taehyung pouts up at the top bunk. “If we were on the same side of the lake, we could have just done this in the same bed. Then at least we’d be immobile together.”

“How romantic.”

“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with taking a lazy day off.”

“Maybe not normally. But with the festival coming up, I don’t think we really have that choice.”

“That’s true.”

“But,” the smile is audible in your voice, coy in its sing-song tone. “The next meeting is coming up soon. And we can maybe see each other there.”

“Yeah, we can.” Sleepiness makes his eyelids heavy, but he fights it as best we can. “I wanna see you so bad. Wanna hold you.”

“We can be really brave and hug in the parking lot outside the admin building.”

“I’d swim across the lake if it meant that was the fastest way to see you.”

“Aww. You’re such a sap when you come.”

“Only for you,” he mumbles. His cheek presses into his pillow as he loses his battle against sleep.

By the time Wednesday rolls around, you’ve been swamped with preparations for the festival. When you’re not busy avoiding paper cuts while designing decorations for the mess hall, you’re fighting off campers who want you to spoil the movie that the boys have chosen for the group as a whole to watch together. You go to bed at night without word from Taehyung, but you’re too tired and too familiar with the work he’s most likely doing to feel upset about it.

You’re so busy and your mind is so full that you don’t even realize that you should be looking for Taehyung when you go to sit down in the conference room. It’s only when you’re zoning out while the camp leader gets progress reports from the boys’ side that you realize you haven’t heard his voice in several days and you’re still not hearing it during the meeting. So you tap your fingers and wait for the meeting to adjourn. And as soon as it does, you make a beeline for Minho. Despite never having spoken with him directly, you’ve heard enough about him in and out of meetings to know what he looks like. Though, even if you hadn’t heard anything from your fellow counselors, you’d heard enough about him from Taehyung. If you listen carefully, you can almost hear similarities in the way that he and Taehyung talk. You suppose that’s what happens with siblings.

“Hi,” you greet him when there’s a lull in the conversation between him and some older counselor from the boys’ side.

“Hi, yourself.” Minho’s eyes widen as he registers your voice. It’s the only part of you he has direct experience with, but he has quite a lot of experience with it. He takes in your appearance with a grin, happy to finally meet the person who’s ensnared his baby brother’s affections.

“We’ve never met before, but my name is—”

“I know who you are. I hear Taehyung talk on the phone with you every night.”

“E-every night? Like even Sunday night?”

“Uhh,” his eyebrows raise at the sudden question. “No, actually. Not Sunday night. I was staying at someone else’s cabin. Why?”

“No reason. Listen, I just wanted to ask you if you knew where Tae was. I was planning on finally meeting with him face to face, but that...didn’t happen. And there’s not much time left.”

“I mean, there’s always after the summer. You both live in the city.”

You give him a non-committal noise that he doesn’t really like the sound of, but he doesn’t say anything. He’s not about to butt into his brother’s relationship just because he’s older. Even if it seems like you’re maybe not on the same page about what happens after camp ends.

“Well, he’s not pulling another fast one on you if that’s what you’re worried about. He told me not to tell you, but he got sick off bonfire weenies last night. So he’s probably still at home shitting his pants while he makes banners for the festival.”

“Thanks for that.” You blink away the image Minho’s words bring up and focus on the task at hand. “So I guess I probably won’t see him until the actual day of, then.”

“Probably. Since he’s covering the old art director’s tasks in addition to the musical stuff, he’s pretty swamped and this hot dog thing might set him back a bit. He definitely wants to see you, though.”

Minho tries his best again not to overstep and reveal too much. Not about the rampant diarrhea, but about the way Taehyung’s been scribbling frantically in notebooks for tasks that weren’t assigned to him for the fest. Nor does he tell you about the 3 a.m. guitar sessions. Or the tender way he sees Taehyung pick up the walkie talkie sometimes, holding it in his hand as thoughtfully as someone can when running on 5 hours of sleep.

                                                    (Festival Day)

“Come on, we’re gonna miss the concert!”

A camper pulls you by the wrist from the small station where face painting was being held to the center of the makeshift festival grounds where a stage has been set up.

People have been pulling you around since the wee hours of the morning. By now you’re used to just letting your body follow the person pulling you, but the slight twinge in your wrist is starting to worry you. You replace your wrist with your hand and the camper merely pulls you along harder. There’s already a large amount of campers and counselors from both sides of the lake surrounding the stage where some performances are about to take place. Somehow the 11-year-old holding your hand manages to weave you both through the bodies until you’re only a few feet from the platform.

After a juggling act done by two of your favorite campers, a lovely comedy routine where Moe roasted her ex-husband Cref, and a trio of high school yo-yo experts, the prep for the final performance begins. Apparently, Camp Lonely Heart had an anthem that all the campers learned in their music periods so they could all sing together during the final days of the summer. Since you were never present for the music sessions, you didn’t really know there was a song. Luckily for you, Jade gave you a sheet with the lyrics printed on them earlier that morning. You didn’t have any time to memorize them, but you got a good look and they seemed like pretty typical camp lyrics.

You spot Minho making his way to the front of the stage easily. He’s got a small glittery sign that says “That’s my little brother” and a few of the guys around him snicker when he waves it at the counselor and camper on stage. The words on the sign are slow to register with you, so it takes a moment for you to put two and two together to get Taehyung. But you do. And when you do, all you can hear is your own blood rushing in your ears and all you can see is him.

He’s seated with a guitar resting casually in his lap. His hair is long. Longer than you imagined it would be. It’s also lighter than you thought it would be based solely off Minho’s own dark chestnut locks. He’s handsome, though. With the honeyed skin and the large, expressive eyes behind vintage frames to offset the manly geometry of his other features. The young boy next to him on stage must say something nice or cute, because his whole face lights up. You marvel at the boxy shape of his mouth while he laughs.

In the background noise, you hear the camper, Jungkook, make a little speech about this summer and camaraderie and how long it took for him and Taehyung to prepare this original arrangement of the Camp Lonely Heart anthem you’re about to hear. But it all sort of washes in one ear and out the other. Instead you’re watching Taehyung bounce his foot with pre-show nerves and smile occasionally at what the other counselor says. Then he’s being handed the mic and he’s looking out into the audience. You lock eyes after a few beats, and he holds your gaze like he’s trying to see if you know who you’re looking at. Maybe it’s your awestruck expression. Or maybe it’s the stupid smile on your face when his voice comes through the mic and you’re hearing the voice you’ve grown to love pour through something other than shitty walkie talkie speakers. But either way, his back becomes a little straighter while he greets the crowd and tells them he hopes they like the song.

Everything after that is kind of a blur. You don’t sing along and instead watch Taehyung sing back up to Jungkook’s pretty tenor stylings. Minho was screaming when the song ended and threw some snipped sunflowers wrapped in cellophane onto the stage at Taehyung and Jungkook’s feet. In that chaotic moment of applause, you slip out the crowd after making sure Taehyung’s eyes are on you. The path you make is clear: a beeline straight behind the cabins on the trail that leads through the small foothills. With the festival going on and all the campers in one place, counselor supervision has to be tight. No campers allowed past these parts.

After giving him a few minutes to catch up, you can hear his footsteps are close behind you. The trek is short and you come up to step past the gates that open into the camp’s lavender field. It’s been a while since you last visited it, but the smell is just as fragrant and lovely as it was the first time. Your heart rate slows down slightly. Anticipation makes everything in you coil taut, full of sharp and tiny vibrations. You feel giddy. When his footsteps thud softly and finally behind you, you release your breath and turn around.

“It’s you.”

“Me,” he confirms with his palms open like an offering. An offering that you take immediately.

Your launch yourself into his open arms and he huffs as he takes the impact. The hug is tight like you’re worried he’ll turn into mist if you’re not careful. His arms are sturdy around you and he pulls you in even tighter so he can get closer. He runs the tip of his nose along your temple, revelling in the way the summer sun mingles with the scent of your soap and you. It’s a small detail but it’s exciting. Here you are, in the flesh, in all your glory. Your arms and bare legs are covered in small splatters of dried paint from the last minute changes you had to make to some of the decorations this morning. And your counselor’s t-shirt has a few rips and frays in the seams from all the wear and tear it got over the summer. The flyaways in your hair and the way you sway as you hold him are all catalogued. Even in this more life-worn state, he can’t stop looking at you.

You pull back after a long while with your heart still beating in your throat. There were so many things you planned on doing when you first met Taehyung for the first time, but now you’re overwhelmed. Perhaps it’s because, in the back of your mind, you’re worried about time. It feels very fairytale-like, the way you only managed to come face to face on a special occasion. Like a good dream that will come to an end at the beep of an alarm or a fantasy that collapses into tatters at the stroke of midnight. You try to remind yourself that you’re not in a fairytale. This is real life and you have more than midnight because you have the internet and public transportation. But is that enough? You shake the thoughts out of your head, trying to focus on the here and now because it may be all you have.

“I liked your song,” you finally say. Both his hands come up to cup your face.

“Thanks. I practiced a lot for you.”

“It paid off.”

He takes a deep breath and accepts your compliment robotically before letting his eyes flit back down to your upturned mouth. “Can I kiss you,” he sighs.

“Please.”

The kiss doesn’t actually start for quite a few moments. As soon as he has your permission, then he decides to take his time. Your eyes are nearly closed and he admires the pretty shadow your eyelashes cast on your cheeks. Impatience scratches at your nerves, but you try to go with the flow. He tilts your head in his hands like he’s calculating the best angle to kiss you from, knowing he’s driving you crazy from the little frustrated huffs you let out. Chuckling, he ghosts his lips over yours once before fully pressing forward.

As soon as your lips move together for the first time, you both let out twin sighs. Instantly, like a choreographed dance, arms and hands move in tandem to bring each other closer. You experiment with the long hair that flirts with the back of his neck before following its path and dipping your fingers beneath the collar of his shirt. He responds with large hands spreading over the small of your back, fingertips digging in before lifting and then digging in again like a game of  practicing restraint.

You press your chest to his in an effort to get closer to him and unwittingly tease him with the promise of more unexplored softness under your clothes. He opens your mouth up with his own and nudges a subtle rhythm against your tongue. You moan and he mirrors the sound earnestly.

“I don’t think we can make it to the cabins,” he mumbles against your mouth.

“That’s fine,” you lay both hands on his chest and enjoy the firmness you find before pushing him back towards the tall rows of lavender. “I don’t need a bed if you don’t.”

“You’re something else.” He pulls back then with a wet sound. His lips are slightly puffy and shiny from kissing you and you grapple with the urge to bite them. You lose the battle and he shivers at the feel of you nipping at him. “Fuck.”

Once he and you have stumbled far enough back amongst the fragrant bushes and you find a soft enough patch of flattened lavender, you lower yourself to your hands and knees. He scrambles to sit beside you before immediately pulling you back in. You straddle his waist and rest some of your weight on his thighs while you peel off your shirt and bra. His hands smooth over the curve of your side once the skin is exposed, noting the way you arch into his touch. With an inquiring look, your hands move to the fly of his cutoffs. He lays back and then lifts his hips, impressively with you still seated on his lap, to pull his bottoms down and off. You do the same with yours and return to your perch as fast as possible.

Taehyung’s fingers find the soaked center of your panties and you rock your hips against the heel of his palm when he wriggles a finger in experimentally. He lets out a low appreciative whistle at how wet you are. You get wetter still when he grinds up into your clit to get you to lose some of the control you’ve garnered since leading him to the field. The feeling forces you to lean your hands on his abdomen, fingers fisting in his shirt.

“I want you inside me,” your moan shudders with the rhythm of the little circles you gyrate onto his long fingers. “I wanna ride you like I promised.”

“Are you sure you’re ready? We have time until we need to go back for clean up.”

“I know, but I want you to fuck me a couple of times before that happens.”

“I don’t have a condom, though.”

“Are you clean?”

“Yeah...You?”

“Yes,” your mouth drops open when he scrubs at a particularly sensitive spot on your slick walls. “And I’m on the pill. If you want, we could...”

“If you don’t mind.”

“I want it,” you assure him.

He takes off his shirt while you massage your breasts and take in more of his body now that it’s on display. The long hair framing his face falls prettily in his eyes after the shirt displaced it. Once it’s off, he pulls your panties to the side to admire the crystalline sheen that coats your lower lips. You shoo his fingers out of the way and pull the fabric to a more ideal angle before lowering yourself onto his length. The skin of his erection is hot to the touch and parts your lips easily. Your hips move in stuttering pushes forward to bump your clit against the swollen head.

“Oh, fuck,” his hands fly up to comb through his bangs. “God, this—you’re so sexy.”

“You are too. I don’t think I can wait any longer.”

With that, you raise up just enough to grip his length and line him up with your entrance. Instantly you realize his girth is a bit of a challenge, so you’re not as quick as you’d like when you take him in. But the slick aids things and your pelvises are snuggly slotted together after a few moments and some deep breaths. Taehyung’s hand flies to the slight bulge in your lower belly, enjoying the way he seems to fill you already.

You rest your hands on his ribcage again and get your bearings. With an efficient readjustment of your weight so you can freely work your thighs, you begin bouncing on him with no pretenses. His answering moan is louder than he clearly intended because as soon as it’s out, he bites down on his tongue. It’s clear he doesn’t want to make it obvious where you are and what you’re doing, but he’s having trouble containing himself. There’s sweat already starting to prickle under the surface of his skin and his hands feel restless just minutes into your ministrations.

Taehyung settles for muttering quiet curses and gripping your rapidly circling hips with bruising force. He can barely keep up with the pace you’ve set, but he does manage. He thrusts up to meet your every downstroke, though it’s not without an obscene slapping sound. The fact that he’s so visibly affected by your movements gets you wetter every second until he almost slips out a few times. You adjust your rhythm so that’s not a problem, but your thighs are burning with the effort. Taehyung sees through hooded eyes that you’re losing steam and seizes his chance.

You’ve opted for sitting and grinding with him inside you when he starts to shift. His arms come to envelope you and keep you steady as he sits up. Then you’re suddenly on your back. You want to protest about the dirt, but the ground looked clean and dry and doesn’t make your back itch, so you let it happen. Taehyung repositions himself among your splayed legs, hitching one up to wrap around his hip. He grabs the ankle of your other leg and lifts it slowly, testing your flexibility and giving you time to tell him where your limit is. When your ankle is hovering level with his shoulder, you give him a cheeky smirk at his wide eyed expression. He punishes your silent brag by sucking a rough hickey into the skin just above your ankle before resting it on his shoulder. The very fact that he’s pretzled you like this turns him on and gives him a slight energy boost. He figures you must have stolen some of his life force with the way you rode him earlier.

“Little succubus,” he spits through gritted teeth as he begins pistoning his hips against yours.

You let out a shameless laugh that quickly devolves into a low moan with the way the new angle feels. He’s not going to last much longer if you continue to squeeze around him like you’re doing, but he’s fairly certain you’ll finish first. Certain because his hand moves down between your bodies to tweak at one of your nipples. He noticed earlier how your eyes fogged over while you played with yourself in the same way. Leaning over, he continues to thrust into you while pulling the nipple between his teeth. He rakes over it lightly and your leg tenses before falling back down with a thud. You don’t seem to notice and instead your abdomen spasms with the waves of pleasure that begin lapping at you without ebbing back. The feeling merely builds until it explodes the moment he minutely clenches his jaw and bites. It’s a small amount of pain, but it takes you by surprise and pushes you over the edge.

With your walls milking him, he follows your high soon with his own. His breaths come out in deep huffs in your ear, heavy with bass. You test your limbs and the shifting makes you aware of the come he filled you with. When he pulls out, the sensation grows and you’re moaning weakly as it leaks out. He takes his lower lip in between his teeth as he watches the evidence his orgasm drip from your puffy center. He kind of wants to push it back in with his tongue or his fingers just to watch it drip out again, but he knows you might still be sensitive. So he settles for stroking your hip bone lovingly.

Grabby hands creep into his peripheral vision. It’s you silently asking for him to come lie with you, and he does. He presses sweet kisses against your lips until you sling a leg over his hip and add tongue. His dick twitches with the promise of second round, rubbing against the soft skin of your inner thigh. Normally, he’d need more time between orgasms. But you’re kissing his neck and for some reason the smell of your sweat combined with lavender is a miraculous pairing and has the blood flowing back south. A quick glance at his wrist watch tells him that there’s still a good 45 minutes and he flashes the little screen to you. Your answering grin is the rest of the motivation he needs.

The festival day ended two days ago. Following your rendezvous, you both smoothed out your clothes and shook the grass out of them before sneaking back into the campgrounds smelling suspiciously of lavender and ‘something else’ according to Moe. You managed to somehow avoid her keen nose just like Taehyung avoided his older brother’s wiggly eyebrows.

Clean up was an absolute bitch that night, so you both went to bed without hitting each other up. And the following day was for making sure all the campers were packed up and shipped off to town or picked up by their guardians. That was somehow more exhausting even though there wasn’t any cleaning or sweaty sex involved. It was probably the giant bonfire you had and the 40s you threw back that night with your co-counselors. It was probably the most fun you had with them in a while. You were up into the wee hours recounting all the chaos from the last week and the shenanigans that resulted from having the counselors from the other side of the lake involved. No one mentions you slipping away for over an hour, and for that you’re thankful.

But the headache you wake up with the next day has you silently cursing the whole camp. You don’t need to spend a long time packing, and you’re out of your cabin in record time. Hitching a ride with one of the other early risers, you find yourself at the admin building with plenty of time to kill until you have to walk to the nearest bus stop. There’s donuts and bagels and a basic fruit plate in the conference room and you stealthily sneak some food out while the camp leader interrogates other counselors about how they felt the summer went. You even resort to filling out your evaluation form in the hallway to avoid the camp leader’s hawk-like gaze. You’re still seated on the floor, counting the dots in the pattern on the linoleum tiles, when Taehyung’s characteristic sneakers appear in front of you.

“You going home?”

It’s an awkward question, but it technically shouldn’t be. The last moments in the lavender field were spent with you skirting around his questions about where in the city you lived and what your plans for the fall were. It seemed pointless to tell him all that and act as if you were guaranteed to be able to pick things up where they left off once camp closed for the summer. With your back turned that day, you missed the way Taehyung looked at you after struggling with the feeling of not knowing you. Despite the fact that he felt deep in his soul not more than 3 hours ago that he knew you.

Couple this with the fact that you did have down time after the festival ended, but you said you were busy when you weren’t and you end up where you are now. Suddenly uncomfortable in front of the guy you’d been opening yourself up to for months because you never really got to breach the subject of what would happen when the summer ended. Now you’re realizing these are probably your last moments with what you had with him at Camp Lonely Heart.

“My bus is coming at 2,” you say eventually. He tries one last time.

“That’s hours from now. I can...I could drive you instead. I’m going into the city anyway.”

Yes, your brain wants you to say. Take me home, and then come in and stay with me. You want to utter the words, but your tongue grows heavy and clumsy. So instead you say something stupid.

“The ticket’s non-refundable.”

“Oh.” His head lowers to stare at his own shoes. “Yeah, that’s...I get that. Money, right?”

“Yeah.” You stare down at your shoes. You fight to find a redeemable moment, something lighter to end the summer on. “Hey, uh, look what I brought when I cleaned out my cabin.”

Taehyung stares down at your seated form while you fish through your little backpack for something. He’s not sure why the moment he was dreading before officially meeting you is happening now. The rejection he was hoping to avoid by remaining a nameless, faceless voice is now slowly rearing its ugly head.

“Look!” Your voice is a bit too enthusiastic to come off as 100% genuine, but the sight of the walkie talkie that started it all does make Taehyung smile despite himself.

When he pulls out a matching device from the side pocket of his messenger bag, the uncomfortable atmosphere lifts a little. Minho shows up then, keys jingling in his pocket. He calls for Taehyung and looks at you curiously.

“Are you coming with?” Before you can explain, Taehyung answers for you.

“She can’t. She’s gotta catch the bus.”

“The bus that’s going into the city? Where we’re also headed,” Minho asks with an incredulous smile that’s got none of the usual sweetness in it.

He looks at you for a better answer, one that makes more sense, but you don’t volunteer one when suddenly put on the spot. The slump in Taehyung’s shoulders betray the weak smile on his face. To Minho, the whole situation positively reeks of a similar situation his baby brother got into when he was younger and much less careful with his heart. He’s not 100% surprised at you, though. He saw this coming in the last few days when there were no calls from you and Taehyung’s eyes lost their summer shine. Minho pins you with a look of disappointment that you feel deep in your bones before he gives you a second chance.

“Tae, can you go start up the car?”

There must be something in Minho’s voice that you miss because Taehyung surprises you by only hesitating for a second before taking the keys and turning on his heel. You can feel Minho’s eyes on your face the entire time you watch Taehyung leave, but you can’t bear to face him until he’s gone.

“What the fuck is going on?”

“I don’t know,” you answer honestly. “I just panicked when he asked if I was coming, so I said no.” He sighs in what you think is understanding, eyes closing momentarily before opening again. This time, his face is slightly more patient. He thinks he knows what’s going on.

“Do you want to ride home with us? With him?” There’s something else in the question, and you see it and grab at it, even though the implications scare you.

“I think so. I want to spend more time with him before I have to go for good. We didn’t really...talk about how this would end.”

“Does it have to end?”

“I mean, you know what they say about summer flings. Plus, this all happened in a really weird environment. Who knows if all of this was only possible because we just happened to be in the right place at the right time.”

“Mm, yeah. It sounds like you guys were lucky in that regard,” he crosses his arms. “But you can take luck and build on it with actual effort and make something solid.”

You open your mouth to protest, but you can’t think of anything to actually say because he’s right. So you pick up your backpack and zip it up and gesture for him to lead the way to the car. A tiny bit of prideful approval bleeds onto his otherwise grave expression. On the way to the parking lot, your mind swirls with thoughts about the ways that this thing could fall apart. About how a summer haze made everything possible or how the distance that can’t be covered by walkie talkies will be the end of you and Taehyung. You look up to catch Taehyung’s profile as he waits for Minho in the driver’s seat. You also catch the way his face goes from a flat mask of indifference to surprise to badly concealed joy at the sight of you trudging behind his older brother. He rolls down the window while Minho makes a beeline for the back seat.

“You’re coming?”

“If that’s okay.” And you do wonder. Is this okay? Can we really do this? Can we make it?

“Y-yeah, of course,” seems to be Taehyung’s answer to all your questions, even the ones unspoken.

While you make your way to the passenger’s side, Taehyung whips his head around to stare at his brother.

“What did you say to her?”

“I’m not telling you, but just know that you may owe me for life after this.”

“Alright,” Taehyung concedes as you get in and strap in for the ride.

Thanks for reading through these collab pieces with me. Plz also go check out the pieces @polaritae wrote on the masterlist link above!!

[celticheartedfangirl]

My OUAT Rewatch -- S6E17 -- Awake

Link to Rewatch Review and Ranking archive

Ah yes, part 3 of Hook’s not that excellent Adventure.  Also

What the Fuck is Emma Wearing???

I mean, the rest were bad, but how in the actual fuck did Emma Swan start out like this:

And end up looking like a reject from an Amish community?  I do not get it.

Speaking of things I do not get . . . . this episode.  I mean . . . . it didn’t suck totally but it didn’t NOT suck and it was like it was TRYING to be good and ended up being a hot pile of shit and I don’t even know anymore, I swear, I’d have bailed if Bobby weren’t still on the show . . . . . grumbling under the cut . . . . 

First of all, since when do flowers with pixie dust grow in CURSED Storybrooke?  Wasn’t the whole point that there was NO MAGIC????

Second of all, I think this is literally the only scene that Belle has with the Black Fairy, and she’s only mildly annoyed.  You’d think after the past three seasons of her bitching and yelling at Rumple for everything, even if he didn’t do it, that she’d actually be allowed to bitch and yell at the bitch who TOOK HER SON and has been TORTURING him!  Because I know I’d be ready to cut a bitch with that woman if that were my kid, and I don’t even have kids or particularly LIKE kids.  But I’d have been all over her ass, magic or no magic.  But again, hey, it’s just Belle -- why give her character development?  Or airtime.  Or anything to do with HER OWN FUCKING STORYLINE!!!!!

Third . . . . . I’m sorry, but did I just hear Emma Swan APOLOGIZE TO HOOK for him killing her grandfather?  Why yes . . . . yes I did.  Who is this woman?  

Fourth . . . . did we really seriously need Hook to propose to Emma as her parents lay in a sleeping curse RIGHT BEHIND THEM, and then for her to not interrupt him and just let him go on and then make out with him?  Then be like oh yeah, here’s my mom and dad who are basically dead but YAY, we getting married!  

These two have no shame.  How are they appealing in ANY way?

Fifth . . . . why is Zelena there?

Sixth . . . . . wait, Rumple can provide a portal for Snowing to find Emma but he can’t provide one for himself to find Baelfire?  WHAT???  What the ACTUAL FUCK?????

And sadly, despite all of these complaints, I didn’t actually HATE the episode.  There’s been worse.  

How’s that for bullshit?  I just listed six reasons (I have more but I’m stopping at six or I’d be here all day) on why this episode was stupid and ridiculous, and yet it was still not the worst thing the show has ever offered.  

No wonder I spent most of S6 in a state of perpetual anger.  

BTW, have some of me in 2017 live blogging this one (have not looked at ANY of these until just now after I finished writing the above -- let’s see how much I agree with 2017 me):

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159658322107/and-rumple-cant-use-that-door-because-why

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159657580777/i-just-cant-with-emmas-little-puritan-dress

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159657111617/wtf-is-emma-wearing

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159657286157/so-zelena-is-now-officially-a-useless-lamp-as

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159657042527/so-am-i-supposed-to-be-rooting-for-the-lost-boys

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159657432737/of-course-run-to-rumple-to-magic-the-thing

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159658436362/oh-jfc-this-is-such-crap

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159658777732/oh-hook-you-murdered-my-dad-but-that-was-a-long

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159658404552/so-wait-a-minute-are-they-implying-that

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159658477647/yup-i-called-it

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159658639672/oh-look-the-pilgrim-is-instantly-forgiving-the

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159658691827/so-i-guess-that-one-rumbelle-scene-is-all-we-get

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159674299382/show-of-hands-everyone

Deleted scene alert:

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159659879507/i-thought-moe-was-supposed-to-be-in-the-episode

Not my OPs but yup:

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159658094012/notice-those-pixie-flowers-never-grew-when-rumple

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159659394792/fanaticfangirl001-my-reaction-when-the-whole

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159679495752/ilivedeliciously-emma-swan-has-become-that

In case you wonder why the fandom hates me:

https://celticheartedfangirl.tumblr.com/post/159659064917/imma-go-write-fanfic-right-now

Nope, not sorry.

Dear lord, this is when they started advertising the musical episode.  How many episodes away is that?  I never watched it, I’ll need alcohol.

Points tally:

40 points to start

5 points for Leah Fong -- at least she TRIED?

10 points deducted for Hook and Zelena

Sorry, gotta dump 25 points here.  Way too much nonsense and WAAAAAY too much Hook propping.  Although honestly I’d dump 25 for the pilgrim dress alone.

Total points: 10

Follow #celtichearted OUAT ranking tag for more to come!

[eirian-houpe]

The Library Beneath the Clock Tower - Chapter 37

Fandom: Once Upon a Time (TV)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Belle/Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold, Belle/Gaston (Once Upon a Time)

Characters: Belle (Once Upon a Time), Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold, Red Riding Hood | Ruby, Widow Lucas | Granny, Grumpy | Leroy, Maurice | Moe French, Evil Queen | Regina Mills, Merida (Once Upon a Time), Jiminy Cricket | Archie Hopper, Gaston (Once Upon a Time), Le Fou, Mad Hatter | Jefferson, Prince Charming | David Nolan, Gus | Billy, Huntsman | Sheriff Graham, Mother Trude (Fairytale Character)

Additional Tags: Bookshop On the Corner, slightly AU, Cursed Storybrooke (Once Upon a Time), Alternate Universe - In Storybrooke | Cursed (Once Upon a Time), Eventual Smut

Summary: Storybrooke has no library, and neither does Belle, not since the library where she worked in Boston discovered her past as an inpatient at a mental hospital. Taking her future into her own hands, Belle travels to Storybrooke where her intention is to open up the town library, but all does not go according to her plan. Obstacles and false starts, and diversion along very wrong pathways interrupt her journey toward fulfilling her dream, as well as taking her rightful place and becoming a part of the Storybrooke community.

Read Previous chapters on AO3

Chapter 37 - Everyone Does

After the jangling bustle of Boston, and all of the emotion that had been piled on top of her, the quiet of Storybrooke felt like a welcome balm, soothing a soul that ached for all that seemed to have eluded her through her whole life, and eluded her still. Ruby, at least, had promised to think about moving to Storybrooke, so perhaps she wouldn’t be alone forever.

Even as she was thinking that, working on cataloging the books she had brought back from Ruby’s and the ones she had purchased at the book sale as a distraction from such thoughts, the town reminded her, in its own unique way, that she was not as alone as she feared.

“Now there’s a sight for sore eyes,” Leroy bellowed as he pushed through the library doors. “Welcome home, Sister.”

Belle smiled. How could she not with that kind of greeting? She put down the book she had been labeling and came around the desk to give Leroy a brief hug.

“It’s good to see you too,” she said as she drew back. “What can I do for you.”

Leroy’s expression became a little sheepish, and he colored a little before reaching inside his jacket to pull out a well worn paperback book. She recognized it at once. It was the copy of Mystic River that she had been reading when she first came to Storybrooke, and which she had left behind.

“I hope you don’t mind,” Leroy said, hanging his head almost like a school boy confessing to wrongdoing in the classroom, “but when you left it behind, I picked it up and read the back… and then the first few pages, and…” he shrugged.

“Of course I don’t mind,” Belle said, and her eyes truly twinkled with delight as she reached out to squeeze Leroy’s arm. “What did you think of it?”

“I loved it!” Leroy looked up, the worry and contrition and sheepishness leaving his face as he became animated. “I never thought they’d write books about people like this. I hated having to put it down, but as I said, the hospital keeps me busy and… well that’s why it took me such a long time to read it.”

“It doesn’t matter how long it takes, so long as you enjoy a book,” Belle said.

“Anyway,” Leroy nodded his agreement, “I wanted to be sure to return it, and…” he shrugged again.

“Yes?” Belle asked softly.

“Well, I was wondering if you had… any more like this one?” Leroy half gestured around the library.

Belle nodded with a smile, “We have quite a few, actually, by this author. He’s very good.” She gestured toward the adult fiction section of the library and said, “Fic: LEH”

Leroy hesitated, then asked, “You couldn’t… recommend one, could you?”

Belle thought for a moment. “Hmmm,” she said at last, “I’d perhaps try either, Sacred, or Darkness, Take My Hand. They should have a similar kind of feel.”

Leroy beamed his thanks and hurried off into to find  one of the books in question, and Belle returned to the circulation desk, pulling up his library account so that she would be ready to check his book out for him when he returned.

As lunch time approached, Belle decided to go across to Maggie’s grocery store to see if she had any of her bannocks. She had a craving for them. Maggie greeted her with a cheery smile, and a knowing twinkle as she began to package a few of the bannocks into a paper bag for Belle to take.

“I heard ye were back a day or so ago, and I figured you’d be in soon,” she said by way of explanation. “So, are ye ready?”

“Ready?” Belle asked, puzzled. “For what?”

“The weekend,” Maggie said, but Belle kept her expression blank as she wondered what on earth was special about the weekend. “Midsummer?” She watched Maggie’s expression dissolve into a mixture of exasperation and shock. “The Miner’s Day Festival.  Don’t tell me no one’s told ye about it.”

“No one at all,” Belle confirmed, finding herself suddenly curious about it. “What is—?”

“It’s huge around here. A whole day and into the night,” Maggie began to explain even though she’d cut off Belle asking what it was. “Traditionally it was a holiday thrown to honor the miners for all their hard work in keeping the town alive in the early days. Then, when the date shifted to Midsummers, it became the place for couples and lovers to find one another.” She chuckled then, “Now, it’s just one big party, although I wouldnae say that none of the latter goes on, and no necessarily behind closed doors, if ye catch ma drift.”

Belle couldn’t help but blush. She did catch Maggie’s drift.

“Ye’ll be going of course,” Maggie said. “Everybody does.”

“Everybody?” Belle asked, feeling uneasy, and wondering whether it was like the Mayor’s Ball, where those that didn’t turn up were ostracized from the town.

“Aye,” Maggie confirmed, “Even Gold, though that’s only been since Milah… well, that was a sorry mess if ever there was one, and probably none o’ ma business to speak on, since you two are— and it was such a long time ago now… you know?”

Belle blushed at Maggie’s insinuations, and tried not to ask, truly she did, but she could not contain her curiosity.

“No, it’s fine, really,” she said, “You can tell me.”

Maggie looked at her dubiously for a long time before saying anything more. “The rumor is that he caught Milah with another man, and even then tried he tried to make things work as best they could because of their wee boy.” Belle nodded, following so far the gossip that Maggie was telling her. “Then one day, after a while, Gold showed up at the apartment to collect the boy and he was missing, along with his mother. Years later, some guy shows up, says he was with Milah since she left, and…  well, she’d died. There was never any news about the boy. Everyone assumed he got lost inside the system. Broke his heart it’s said.”

“My gods!” Belle covered her hand with her mouth, “That’s horrible!”

She couldn’t help but recall the tall, dark haired man that had looked like a pirate wannabe at the Mayor’s ball, and wondered if that was the man.

“Aye, it’s tragic, is what it is.” Maggie agreed, “They say that Gold has all manner of investigators out looking for him, but still… nothing.”

“Poor man,” Belle’s heart softened, understanding a little more why Gold should be so bitter and sarcastic most of the time. “And the poor boy.”

“Aye,” Maggie said. “Listen, I shouldnae really have said anything, so…”

Belle reached out and placed a hand over Maggie’s. “I won’t say anything,” she promised.

Maggie nodded with a smile. “So… ye should go to the festival. Enjoy yourself. Ye’ve earned the right to let your hair down a wee bit.”

Belle returned to the library after paying for the bannocks, and assuring Maggie that she would give some serious thought about the weekend. Her mind was filled with what she had just learned even as she tried to push it aside.

It was a day when Paige was supposed to be coming and she wanted to be fully present so that she could be sure to make her feel wanted and valued. Since school finished for the summer vacation, Paige had been coming more regularly again, and Belle had suffered less run-ins with her dreaded neighbor, but still, whenever Trude spotted Belle in the street, Belle felt the dagger that embedded itself between her shoulders. What the hell did the woman have against her?

When she arrived, Paige came in and all but dropped into one of the bean bags in the reading nook.

“Everything all right?” Belle asked softly, coming over to run the tips of her fingers over Paige’s hair, glad of the opportunity to escape from the obvious attempts by Doctor Whale to hit on her.

The girl shrugged. “Just been a lot to do all day, and with the weekend and all.” She sighed and fell silent for a long time before suddenly bursting out, “I hate the Miner’s Day Festival.  It’s stupid!”

“Why do you say that?” Belle asked, and pulled another bean bag closer to where Paige sat.

“It’s supposed to be all about family, and togetherness, but all people ever do is show how we aren’t,” Paige said, running a hand over her little forehead.

“You only say that because you don’t appreciate a lot of the things that happen at the festival,” Doctor Whale’s voice sounded from beside the circulation desk. “You’ll get it when you’re older.”

“Don’t be so… stuck up!” Paige blurted, and surprised, never having seen such behavior from the girl before, Belle gasped softly - even though she agreed with Paige’s assessment of the doctor’s interruption.

“Paige,” she said softly, “The word you’re looking for is condescending.”

Then getting up from the bean bag, she walked across to the desk, ready to check out the books Whale had set there and ignoring the way he was leaning her way.

“So tell me, Doctor Whale, what is it about the festival that you appreciate?” she asked as she did, offering Paige a cheeky twinkle of her eye over Whale’s shoulder.

“I think it is good the way everyone comes together to celebrate a common value,” he said. “We’re lucky, here in Storybrooke; a small town, with old world values in a big world. It gives us a strong sense of community and as Paige said, family. Everyone dresses in their finery, and the whole atmosphere is one of celebration. It epitomizes Storybrooke.”

“Easy for you to say,” Paige muttered.

Belle raised an eyebrow at her before turning back to Whale and asking somewhat sarcastically, “And of course nothing at all to do with how easy it is at big parties like that to get a date for the night…?”

Across the room, Paige let out a small huff.

“No, of course, nothing,” Whale protested a little too quickly. “My point is… I really think you should come, Belle.”

Belle began to worry that the Miner’s Day Festival would be like the Mayor’s Ball after all. It wasn’t something she wanted to do, even if she did have something to wear. What would she do?

“You should,” Whale repeated. “Everyone does.”

“Oh, because that’s a great reason!” Paige snarked.

Seeming somewhat uncomfortable at the comment, Whale picked up the books he had checked out of the library, and gave Belle a nod, and then glanced over at Paige to add, “You should bring your mother, Paige. It’ll be fun!”

Paige paled as the doctor left the library hard on the heels of his words, and as if he’d just fired the first salvo in some kind of larger war.

[intricate-oeuvre]

say it before you run out of time || B. Hardy || part XI

part I  part II  part III  part IV  part V  part VI  part VII   part VIII  part IX  part X  part XI  part XII part XIII

Word count: 1.1k

Summary: Ben and the reader have been friends since childhood. And along the way reader falls in love with him. But it might be too late when another girl shows up claiming that she’s his girlfriend.

Warnings: nothing really (for now), horrible writing

A/n: FELIX AND MARZIA ARE MARRIED, THE VIDEO WAS BEAUTIFUL AND I AM STILL CRYING!!! This is shitty chapter but I promise that the next one will be SO MUCH BETTER,  READY FOR THE SMUT YALL!! If you want to be be tagged in next chapter hmu

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***gif- courtesy of google // if it’s yours hit me up so I can credit you

“About things…” you trailed off, unsure how to start this part of the conversation. You opened your mouth couple of times, but didn’t find words which to tell him, your eyes darting to the door every other second. Ben looked behind, trying to understand what you were looking at.

“Is it about-“

“You should date Nina.” You interrupted him. Ben’s eyes grew big and he blanked for a moment.

“What?!” he leaned in closer as if not sure he heard you right.

“That’s what we talked about.” You swallowed.

“Are you joking? You must be joking.” Ben searched your eyes with his green ones. You couldn’t look at him and turned away.

“Oh, no, no, no.” Ben shook his head and softly reached for your chin.

“I know you too well to know you are joking.” Ben said, trying to make you look at him. You looked down, still not meeting his eyes and shook your head.

“You are lying. I can see it on your face.” Ben tried to cox the truth out of you. You opened your mouth to talk again, but still, nothing came out just like previously.

“Don’t lie, not like her. Not to me.” Ben pleaded quietly, his eyes still trying to see your eyes. At his words your eyes shot up to catch a glimpse of his green eyes, which in hospital light almost seemed translucent.

“Ben… I would never… “ you answered him in similar tone.

“But you are right now.” He said, leaning back from you. Why did he look so broken?

“It doesn’t matter what we talked about. Nina wants to be with you.” Why were you saying these things? Why did you condemn him with such person?

“And you? Because you are important to me. And that is not going to change. Even if we go our separate ways, I will always care about you. And I though that maybe, these encounters and moment we shared were something more, because at the moment it feels that maybe I was wrong.” Ben said, his eyes drifting to the window.

How do you tell him that you were fallen in love with him? The fact that you didn’t just fall for him, but simply because he was so unapologetically himself? That you loved him for everything he was and everything he wasn’t? The fact the he was perfectly flawed, and, so were you? How do you tell him that if you confess you lose him to another girl?

With no answer from you, Ben sighed and got up:

“Why do I even bother?”

“Don’t you dare to walk out that door.” From out of nowhere you got this surge of confidence as you now sat at the end of the bed.

Ben stopped and turned to look at you.

Now or never.

“She said… Nina said… That is not what happened. I didn’t jump in.” you said. Part of him expected some other confession. With tilt of his head, Ben waited for you to continue.

“I just want to say this before I continue, Nina is probably a nice girl, you know her better than I do. But that talk we shared. Honestly, every moment I had to share with her, was not what I expected from a girl that was dating my… that was dating you. Nina isn’t stupid, she is really smart girl. I kind of asked for it.” You said, not sure if Ben understood anything.

“Ask for what?”

“She pushed me, I’m sure she didn’t mean for me to fall that badly. I didn’t do as she asked. She asked me to leave, so I wouldn’t around when she gets everything she wants. She knows that I love you. And me being around probably doesn’t go along her plan of getting your money, so she asked me to leave which I refused, so she said she will do so herself and then I ended in the pool. Everything felt numb and stiff at the same time, I thought that I am going to die in that moment. And then there were medics everywhere and everything was fuzzy, but all my eyes could do was search for you in the crowd of people around me.” You rumbled quickly, your hands all over the place as you tried to prove your point, as your breath got quicker as you remembered being under water.

Ben just stood there. Taking everything in. Every single word you said. Half of it sounding bizarre to him. But that one little phrase.

“Say that again.” Ben mumbled. She knows that I love you- ringing in his ears. Taking slow steps closer to you.

“Which part?” you said, your eyes still full of fear from the memory. In second you raked your brain of everything you just had said.

“The She knows that I love you part.” Ben said now standing in front of you, playful smile adoring his lips.

Oh.

Love.

You had used a really strong word there.

As you were about to say something regarding the brought-up question, your mum came in the ward with your stuff, ready to take you back to the dorms.

Your mum looked at how Ben was standing in front of you:

“Come on, sweetheart, let’s go.”

“I—” you started, not knowing how to finish that.

“Go on, I have things to take care of.” Ben nodded towards you and then at the doors.

With that school-girl blush, you slipped off the bed.

As you were walking to your mum’s car with your uni friends you couldn’t stop your eyes from searching for Ben.

“Mum, give me a moment.” You said to your mum as your legs on their own accord brought you closer to Ben’s car.

“You got a guest, Mr Hardy.” Rose smirked at him as she opened his car’s doors. At first sending a confused look at Rose, Ben looked around to see you coming his way.

“Get in the car.” Ben pointed at Nina briefly and then walked to meet you.

“Your mum is waiting, you know.” Ben said, smiling none or less.

“I know. What did she say?” your eyes briefly darted to the car behind him where Nina was still standing besides with Rose, while Maddie was already sitting in the front.

“She’s leaving tomorrow.” Ben shrugged.

“But part of me is glad that she was here.” He said. You only gave him confused look.

“Because she opened my eyes to show me what kind of treasure has been in front of me all this time. Making me look like a fool because of that.” He explained, giving you a soft smile.

You only blushed, not knowing what to tell him.

“JUST KISS ALREADY!” Rose called from behind.

And just like that, Ben pulled you closer and kissing you like there was no tomorrow.

You could never get bored of the way he tasted. That hint of cigarette that lingered. He kissed you like breathing wasn’t important to him. Thankful to God that you were still standing in front of him. He kissed like he wanted to erase the feeling of your cold lips from earlier.

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