#I have been trying to fill out the major plot points in my head in preparation

[voluptuarian]

I'm always Extremely booked and busy in November, so I've never had the chance to do Nanowrimo, but I have a month clear between now and the start of next term, so I decided I'm going to try do it in July instead and write that gothic novel I was talking about.

Hit my goal of 1667 words today, and most of that is probably worthless fluff which will not be kept in later drafts, but at least it is getting me where I need to go.

[wonustars]

𝘋𝘰𝘯𝘵 𝘔𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘏𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘺

Soobin vers. | Beomgyu vers.

txt as 5sos songs: you look so perfect.

Summary: yeonjun is a well known, attractive, and respected. you two are total opposites. the last thing that you would expect is for him to take interest in you. first meeting you at a coffee shop, he beomes a regular. constantly coming back to visit, but not just for the iced americanos.

Reposts are always appreciated/encouraged!! Tumblr works on reblogs not likes, Thank you for your support :)

Tags: nonidol!yj, popular!yj, campuscrush!yj, shy!asocial!reader, total opposites, opposites attract, yeonjun is so sweet and gives lots of reassurance, reader is a little angsty but still a lovely mc!

SMUT! MDNI 18+ only!

Warnings: dom!yeonjun, sub!reader, afab!reader, virgin!reader, unprotected sex, oral (f. receiving), fingering, mating press, creampie, bigdick!yeonjun,this one is more on the vanilla side.

Word count: 5k words

Note: this story contains smut so minors pls DNI! I mean it, if I see you interacting i will be blocking you. hellowwww!! a lot of people really liked the preview so, heres the full thing hehe. i like half assed with the proof read so let me know if i've missed any typos, tags or warnings!! my lovely Taehyun will be after this one :)

happy reading ~

All your life you had been the one in the shadows. There are no major plot points or no “y/n moments” that people would use to describe Wattpad-like events. You weren’t upset about this though, the life you live is content, happy enough. 

A normal day-to-day for you consists only of two things, school, and working at the cafe across campus. Your life isn’t appealing to others, but you like how quiet it is. A quiet life with no disturbances, no drama, and no feelings of stress. It's a peculiar feeling to want something that seems so lonely.

The last time you witnessed a major disturbance in your life had to be the event that took place within the confines of your part-time job. Two men were trying to win the heart of a girl. Two attractive men at that. The whole time the three were quarrelling you wondered what it would feel like knowing someone wanted you that bad, that they would fight someone else to have you. 

It left an odd taste in your mouth, and a stinging feeling behind your eyes. 

“Hey… are you guys still taking orders?” a voice brings you out of your internal tangent. You perk up from the relaxed position you were in. Shamefully, you nod. Not wanting to make eye contact you head towards the register. 

“What can I get for you?” you ask, eyes trained on the ordering screen. 

“A large iced americano please, that’s all.” 

“And the name of the order?” you ask, a stupid question. No one else was in the cafe except you and this random guy. The music feels louder than it usually does, the embarrassment causes your ears to turn red. 

“Yeonjun.” 

..̇·𓏲 would you wanna run away too?

Yeonjun found himself coming to the cafe across campus more often now. The girl behind the counter piqued his interest, more than anyone he’s ever come across before. The energy you gave off, the fact that you were so shy? He couldn’t get you out of his head. So much so that he caught himself visiting you for his iced americano at least once a day. 

Yeonjun was never on the shy side, he had always been popular at school, living a life filled with social interaction. Everyone at school always adored him, not only for his looks but his charming personality. Which only made the fact that not being able to talk to you is a weird, new feeling for him. 

As much as he wanted to talk to you, he just didn’t know what to say. Where to start, how the conversation should come about. He was overthinking, and he also felt like it was wrong to only visit the cafe as an excuse to see you, like a stalker, although this is just some innocent crush. 

“A large iced americano please,” Yeonjun asks, giving you his sweetest smile. You glance up at him and give a slight nod. He has been coming to the cafe more often lately, you weren’t sure why but you weren’t complaining. A handsome customer becoming a regular was something that caused you to look forward to your shifts. 

“Is that all?” you ask, looking up to glance at his features again. Fuck he was so attractive. 

“Actually, there’s something else I wanted to ask.” Yeonjun declares, his face covered with a layer of determination. You don’t say anything, the feeling of anticipation bubbling in your stomach. “Can I also get your number?” 

Your eyes almost fell out of their sockets. Not in a million years could you have predicted that the handsome regular would ask for your number. 

“U-um yeah sure it’s  _” you're stuttering, no one ever asked for your number before. Is this the “y/n moment” so many people on the internet talk about? 

..̇·𓏲 you look so perfect standing there

As soon as you get home from your shift a notification lights up your screen. It was a foreign feeling to see your phone light up from a notification, let alone a message. Of course, you had friends, but they preferred to hang out in person rather than text. 

You already knew who it could be from, your cheeks heating up at the thought, and possibilities of what this notification might contain. Getting ready for bed quickly, you envelope yourself in your comforter. The light from your phone screen lights up your dark room. 

unknown number: hey, is this y/n? its yeonjun. from the cafe. 

you: Yes this is y/n :) 

yeonjun: hi! you got home safely, im glad. 

you: Yes I did, and so did you. I’m also glad. 

yeonjun: lol ya i hope i didn’t come off too strong earlier. i just want to get to know you more. 

you: No you didn’t, Its ok. I didn’t think you would even want my number. It was kind of a surprise. 

yeonjun: what ofc i would want your number, i think you’re really pretty. and you make good americanos

you: Thank you, it just wasn’t what i was expecting. Americanos arent rocket science tho, its literally water and espresso lol 

yeonjun: yeah ik but they taste so much better when you make them :)

It’s only been a few minutes since you and Yeonjun started talking over text, but your face has already turned into a deep shade of crimson. Throwing your phone across your bed, you shove your face into your pillow letting out a scream. The sound of your feet hitting your bed as you kick them and giggle like a mad woman. As you come back to your senses, you quickly remember that you have yet to reply. 

you: You flatter me Yj, you should keep coming back for them if you like them so much. 

yeonjun: yj? even my nickname sounds sweeter coming from you, but the Americanos weren’t the only thing i was coming back for. 

The smile on your face hurts your cheeks. Never has anyone made you feel like Yeonjun did as he texted you. The blatant flirting and numerous compliments realized how much you were missing out on while living your mundane student life. 

It had only been a few hours of texting each other back and forth, but you started to grow fond of the person Yeonjun is. He’s so handsome, not just in the face, but also with the way he carried himself. The impression he gives off is insanely attractive. The way he made you feel wanted, liked, and cherished over the simplest things reeled you in. 

..̇·𓏲 your lipstick stain is a work of art 

It’s been a few weeks since you and Yeonjun started talking but it has started to become a part of your daily routine. You’ve become accustomed to the many good morning and goodnight texts, the late night Facetime calls, and the blatant flirting from Yeonjun. 

He still comes into the cafe daily to grab his iced americano which you look forward to every shift. 

“Hey y/n!” a voice coming from the entrance grabs your attention. 

You’re working the lunch rush and have been trying to restock the pastries in the glass display. To your dismay they weren’t cooperating with you, leaving you frustrated and tired. A sigh of defeat leaves your lips and you turn your head over to the person calling your name. 

It’s him. The one person who makes your whole shift a little better. He looked so good walking through the door. His dark blue hair appeared more vibrant than usual, and the sun was hitting his face in the most heavenly way. Your heart was pumping hard, the flow of blood running to your ears and cheeks. 

Yeonjun walks up to you, and you notice someone following close behind him. Your eyes shift between the two of them. Assuming thoughts filling your head quickly. 

She is really pretty, you thought. 

They walk up to the counter together, laughing about something amongst themselves. It made your heart sink to the floor. The feeling in itself made you want to throw up. 

Quickly, you push it aside. You were not wanting your feelings to get in the way of your professionalism, especially at work. 

“Oh, hey Yeonjun and friend. What can I get for you guys?” you ask, smiling a little too hard, trying hard to act normal.

“Two americanos pleasee,” he answers, prolonging the ‘please’ with a little pout. If not for your current situation you would’ve found Yeonjun adorable. Your heart can only feel a stinging sensation at the view of the two in front of you. 

“Sounds good. They’ll be at the end of the counter for you guys,” you mumbled, not really making eye contact with Yeonjun. 

He senses your change in mood but didn’t want to make a fuss with a line slowly forming behind him. It’s the lunch rush after all, so he brushes it off for the time being. Leaving you to work, making a mental note to ask you about it when you’re off. 

..̇·𓏲 got your name tattooed in an arrow heart

Your shift felt longer than usual, probably due to the fact that you couldn’t get Yeonjun off your mind. The feeling in your chest still hasn’t subsided. Who are you to feel jealous about him hanging around other girls? Especially knowing that the two of you aren’t even together. With that tidbit of information circling your mind, you felt even more guilt for letting jealousy get the better of you. 

Not bothering to even check your phone, you focus on getting home quickly, wanting to take a shower as soon as you got back. Walking down the sidewalk your legs felt like jelly, thankfully you didn’t live that far from work. It was already past sunset and the light summer breeze whistled with every step you took. Five minutes and you’re already standing in front of your building. A sigh of relief leaves your lips as you stare up at the brown bricks towering over you, imagining your bed and the comfort it brings you. 

As you come closer to your building you see a figure leaning against the wall near the entrance. Your senses are heightened considering there usually aren’t many suspicious people who tend to hang around your building. The distance between you and this stranger has gotten smaller, revealing their identity. All the while your heart drops once again, but in relief. 

“Y/n! Hey sorry if I freaked you out. You weren’t answering my texts I thought something bad happened to you.” Yeonjun explained, coming closer to you. His scent fills your senses, calming you down in just a blink of an eye. Thank god it was just him and not some stalker. 

“Hi Junnie, sorry I didn’t answer you. I didn’t check my phone after I got off. How do you know where I live?” You asked, raising an eyebrow at him, pretending to be suspicious of his actions. Your arms are crossed as you face towards him, his eyes are round as a globe. 

“U-uh sorry if I seem like a creep y/n-” he chuckles nervously as he scratches the back of his head “-I asked one of your friends because you usually shoot me text when you’re off work.” 

“Oh ok, and no I don’t think your creepy. We’ve known eachother long enough to know these types of things anyways.” You comfort him, patting his back as you tilt your head towards the entrance. Silently asking if he wanted to come upstairs with you. 

As if it didn’t exist in the first place, the feeling of jealousy brewing in your stomach disappeared. The only thing left was the warmth Yeonjun brought you, even though your relationship has been undefined. Unlabelled. He felt like a new world you had yet to explore. New experiences that you’re waiting to try. Although he was popular, especially with the women around campus, he was a total green flag. 

Yeonjun nods his head, giving you his signature heart stopper smile as you lead him up to your apartment.

The familiar air of the building envelopes you, both of your footsteps echoing as you slowly ascend up the stairs. It wasn’t too long of a trip since you live on the second floor. 

A warm hand intertwines with yours, causing the hair on your arms to stand. The chills running through your body like an electric shock. If you weren’t quick enough, you would’ve tripped on the next step; taking Yeonjun down with you. But you relax, squeezing his hand reassuringly as you allow him to continue to follow you. 

What felt like an eternity, was in reality only a minute or two. You and Yeonjun finally made it up to the front door of your home. Your hands staying intertwined even when you fetch your keys from the bottom of your bag. As you unlock the door, your shoulders instantly relax. This is what you’ve been dreaming of since the moment you clocked into work. 

“Well, this is me.” you turn to him, shyly smiling. It wasn’t much but you were happy here. 

He chuckles. “Its cute. It suits your vibe.” 

You can’t help but smile as you continue to drag him through the rest of your living space. He follows you obediently, taking in everything little by little. The whole place felt warm, cozy, familiar. Which is exactly how Yeonjun feels about you. 

“Im gonna take a shower and change. You can watch something while you wait if you’d like.” You beam up at him with his hand still glued to yours, both sets of eyes twinkling against the ambient lighting. In this specific lighting you found Yeonjun to be so pretty. The dim lighting accentuating his features; the pink tint to his lips, the sharpness of his nose, the admiration in his eyes. 

Distracted by your beauty, Yeonjun can only smile and nod. 

..̇·𓏲 dont move, honey

As you leave your room, you see Yeonjun sitting on your couch. Looks like he’s made himself at home, you thought. Giggling quietly to yourself, you close the door shut. The sound causing Yeonjun to move his eyes over to you. His eyes are stuck on your figure, he didn’t expect you to walk out in such little clothing. The lump in his throat gets harder to swallow as you make your way to him. 

Your definition of comfortable clothing is a oversized shirt and some sleep shorts. Yeonjun doesn’t know what to do. He doesn’t want to be rude and keep staring but he just can’t tear his eyes off you. The way your wet hair is causing your shirt to dampen; giving a sneak peak at your breasts. Or the factt that your shorts barely covered any part of you, it almost looked like you weren’t wearing any at all. God, he felt like a pervert, you looked so good he couldn’t help but feel-

“Whatcha watching?” you inquire, sitting down beside him, dangerously close. 

“Hmm just some random youtube video I stumbled upon.” he shrugs, trying to look non-chalant, but in reality, he was screaming at himself for being so turned on right now. 

“Oh ok.” You turn your attention towards the TV, your body stiff as you think about the proximity between you and Yeonjun right now. It’s the frist time he’s been over, and it’s also the first time you’ve spent alone time in person. At this moment you can only wonder if he feels the same way you do. 

With that thought, the memory of the girl who accompanied him to the cafe ressurfaces. You wonder if she was something more to him, of if they are just friends. Silently you pray its the latter. The feelings you’ve grown for Yeonjun seems to strengthen with everyday and night that you two talk. Although its a sad thought, he has every right to talk to other people; especially since neither of you stated that you would be exclusive. You aren’t really an expert in these types of situations anyways. 

Ever since you were young, the only relationships you’ve experienced were through media or reading. Some of your friends would tell you about their dating experiences, but you had no stories of your own to share. You were never as outgoing as they were, and you also didn’t like the idea of going out as often as they did. Funnily enough you still ended up in a job where you had to talk to strangers. All of that had lead you to believe that you were better off living the single life, as sad as it sounds; it was true for a good portion of your life. 

Until Yeonjun. 

“H-hey can I ask you something?” you turn over to face your body towards Yeonjun, your eyes flashing with clear nervousness. He pauses the video turning towards you with curious eyes. 

“Yeah of course, anything.” He smiles at you, his hand patting your bare thigh reassuringly. The action causing your cheeks heat up almost instantly. 

“Who was that girl you were with earlier? I know it’s not my place to ask considering we’re just friends but I’ve been thinking about it all day. Obviously if you’re not comfy you do-,” He cuts you off, a giggle leaving his lips. 

“Shes just a friend. She’s dating Soobin so you don’t need to worry.” he reassures, his hand coming back to your thigh again, squeezing it lightly, but this time he keeps it there. Your heartbeat is now in your throat as you look down at his hand. The veins running along his arms were prominent; the fact that his whole hand could grip more than half your thigh caused an unfamiliar heat to flow down to your lower body. 

“O-oh, ok just pretend I didn’t ask that then,” you mumble, your eyes still focused on the way he was no rubbing your thigh. It felt good to experience this type of skinship with him, even if it wasn’t all that much. It still has you stumbling over your words. 

“I thought you knew I liked you already y/n. I thought you knew from the moment I asked for your number.” he whispered, his face coming closer to yours. 

Your breath hitched not being able to move your eyes away from his lips. 

“U-um I didn’t know. No ones ever shown interest in me.” you confess, your head now turned down towards your hands as you play with them nervously. 

“Thats ok baby, I’m interested in you. I like you.” Yeonjun states firmly. His finger carefully placed under your chin, forcing your gaze to meet his. The look in his eyes sent a chill down your spine. This is the first time you’ve seen Yeonjun look so serious. You couldn’t help but gulp. 

“I like you too Junnie.” you whisper, your eyes locked on his. Smiling, Yeonjun strokes your cheek with his thumb. The warmth of his hand still burning onto your thigh. 

“Fuck y/n It’s so hard for me to hold back when you call me that.” His tone is low. Staring at your lips, he begins to trace their outline. 

“What? Junnie?” you provoke, matching his tone. A groan almost leaves his lips but instead his grip on your thigh only tightens. 

“May I kiss you y/n?” Yeonjun’s polite words are a stark contracts as to all the thoughts brewing in his head. You seem to have lost your voice, only nodding as you slowly try to close the gap. 

With Yeonjun’s lips on yours he grips your waist pulling you onto his lap in a swift motion. You can’t help but yelp at how easily he can move you around. It was like you were his own personal ragdoll. Wrapping your arms around his neck, he deepens the kiss.

This is your first time kissing someone but you’re glad your first is Yeonjun. Not only do you have feelings for him, but he tasted so good. It felt so wrong but right at the exact same time. 

The two of you continue to kiss passionately, and you feel yourself naturally move with the flow. Your hips starting to move back and forth slightly as Yeonjun guides you with his large hands. A tiny gasp escapes your lips as you feel something hard rub against your core. Although this was all new to you, it was like you already knew what to do. Yeonjun takes the opportunity to allow his tongue to enter your mouth. This surprises you, pulling away you say,

“Junnie I-i’ve never done anything like this before.” you squeaked, burying your face into his neck. He rubs his hands up and down the sides of your thighs, soothing you. 

“Thats alright princess, I can show you how. Will you let me?” he asks, his hands moving to take your face away from the space between his shoulder and neck. Brushing the hair out of your face, he tucks the strands behind your ear. The action in itself can only cause your cheeks to burn a deep red. Everything Yeonjun did always had you feeling like the most cherished girl in the world. You can only nod as his actions have left you speechless. 

“With your words princess.” he demands, a hand snakes down to your hips giving you an encouraging squeeze. 

“Yes Junnie, please show me how,” you murmur. Steadily, you move closer to him wanting to close the gap between you two again. You want to feel the same way you did when your bodies were pressed up against eachother. 

“Alright darling, just let me know if it gets too much for you ok? I’ll only go as far as you let me.” 

“Yes Junnie.”

“Good girl.” his hands are back on your hips, his lips back on yours. The wet sounds coming from both your mouths have you riled up. Yeonjuns back to moving your hips back and forth, desperately wanting to increase the friction. The sensation of his hard dick rubbing against you was addicting. Your thin shorts not really leaving anything up to imagination. 

Yeonjun can only groan, the feeling of your warm cunt against his cock is driving his crazy. He can only wonder how it must feel to be inside you. 

“F-feel’s good Jun.” you moan into the kiss, your hips now moving on their own accord. 

“You like that princess?” he chuckles, peppering kisses along your neck and collarbone, leaving love bites in his tracks. Slowly his hands creep up under your shirt. It lifts ups as his hands move higher. They almost hit your bare breasts, but before he proceeds he looks up to you for approval. You can only nod, dazed from all your senses going into overdrive. 

Yeonjun doesn’t waste any time and removes your shirt. You’re left bare in front of him, the blush on your cheeks still noticeable in the dim lighting. 

“You’re beautiful love,” he assures, going back to his ministrations. Kissing up and down your neck until he reaches your breasts. He takes one in his hand and the other one in his mouth. You can only moan, your head lolling back from the pleasure. Hands gripping onto his hair for some type of balance. 

Yeonjun is rock hard under you, the pulse in his dick only getting more noticable the more he pleasures you. He wants to show you how much he wants you, to show you how much you deserved to be cherished. 

Tongue swirling around your nipple, your moans become less shy, the feeling of being pleasured taking over you. Yeonjuns mouth moving onto the other nipple as he picks you up. You yelp from the sudden movement but wrap your legs around his waist anyways. 

His feet padding towards your bedroom, he opens the door. Gently he places you on your mattress, situating himself between your legs.

“Are you still doing ok over there sweetheart?” he inquires. 

“Really ok Junnie, please keep going. Want more.” you whimper, your elbows stablizing you as you get a good view of him. He begins to remove your shorts, your pussy glistening from how wet he’s gotten you. A groan bubbles up in Yeonjuns throat; just looking at you in this light could make him cum. 

He makes himself comfortable with his head between your thighs. Taking things slow, he uses one finger to play with your entrance. Rubbing you all over, collecting your wetness before he finally pushes a finger in. 

You moan, your elbows collapsing from the pleasure. You grip your sheets as he pumps his finger in and out of you. The lewd sounds of your soaking core bouncing off the walls. After a few more pumps he adds in another finger, the stretch burning so good.

He looks up at you to see you whimpering for him, his name leaving your mouth in what sounded like a sweet melody. The way your brows scrunch with his every moves turns him on even more. Watching you coming undone on his fingers is a sight he wants to see everyday if he could.

“Let me taste you baby.” Yeonjun says with a deep tone to his voice. Every word coming out of his mouth is dripping with lust. With that warning he places a kiss on your clit, your hands moving from your sheets to grip his hair. He continues to kitten lick and suck on your sensitive bud, the pleasure sending you to another universe. 

“O-oh Junnie, it feels so good.” you squeak out. He places your legs over his shoulders, delving into you more. He’s properly eating you out now, his fingers pumping in and out of your wet heat while licking you all at the same time. As he goes on, an unfamiliar feeling starts to brew in your stomach; growing stronger as more time passed. 

“I can feel your pussy gripping my fingers baby, cum for me. I know you can do it, just let go.” Yeonjun purrs, his words of encouragement is your last straw before your orgasm. 

“Good girl, so good for me. You’re doing so well my love.” he’s praising you as he moves back up to your face. Hes smirking at you as he hovers over your naked body. His own body still in between your legs, the lower half of his face glistening with your juices. 

“Can I fuck you princess?” he asks.

The vulgar words spewing from his mouth, the way he asks so nicely, the way he calls you such sweet names; the polarity of it all gives you whiplash. 

“Yes please, wanna feel you inside me.” you mumble and you press kissing all along his face, moving down towards his neck. You found it so attractive how he always asks for your consent. 

He quickly undresses, both your clothes randomly thrown around the room. Situating himself between your legs once again, he sits himself on his heels. Pumping his length a few times he then rubs the tip up and down your slit, collecting your juices. The squelching sound of your lips rubbing against his him is like music to his ears. 

Yeonjun finally enters you, causing your back to arch with every inch he slowly puts in. You’ve only heard about sex through friends, but being able to experience it yourself is on another level. The stretch of his cock pushing inside you stings more than when he was fucking you with his fingers. 

“Mmm Junnie I think you’re too big,” you whimper while hes pressing kisses all over your face to soothe you. 

“It’s ok love, it’ll feel better as it goes on ok?” Yeonjun groans, as he keeps pushing into you. He continues till hes dick is buried deep inside you. Stilling for a moment, he lets you get used to the feeling. The scrunched up look on your face begins to relax, giving him a signal to start thrusting into you. 

“Fuck baby you feel so good around me.” he whispers. 

At first hes slow, but the sound of your wet pussy getting fucked by his dick starts to fog his thoughts. Your moans increase in volume, his name falling off your lips repeatedly. 

“Junnie, hmmm it feels so good. Faster please.” you beg as your wrap your legs around his waist, pulling him down for another kiss. Who is he to deny you? 

He fucks into you faster, this time you can hear the slapping sounds as his length goes in and out of you. One of his hands moving between the two of you to rub your clit and his thrusts to turn sloppy. 

Your eyes are rolling to the back of your head the more Yeonjun pumps his dick into you. You could feel his length kiss your cervix with every thrust. This is all so new to you, and the only thing you could do is keep moaning and telling him how good it felt.

“This pussy was made for me. Isn’t it baby?” he states rather than asks.

“Y-yes Jun.” you’re a stuttering mess, you could barely answer him as it is.

“Taking me so well princess. I wanna fuck you like this all the time now.” he praises again, taking your thighs and pressing them towards your stomach. The new angle causes you to whimper, you can feel him so much deeper. Your gummy walls are practically suctioning him.

You moan in response. He’s fucked you dumb at this point, cock drunk with every move he makes inside your wet cunt.

“Can I cum inside you baby?” he asks in between kisses. 

“Please Junnie, wanna feel you cum in me.” you moan, the feeling of your clit being stimualted as he fucks you is causing you to see stars. You cum around him, gripping his dick as you ride out your second orgasm. As if on queue Yeonjun relases his cum inside you, halting his thrusts. He continues to kiss you making sure you feel loved and wanted, his member still buried inside you. 

“You were amazing for your first time princess.” he praises you once again, you kiss him in response. 

“Lets do it again please.” you giggle. 

Yeonjun kisses up your neck, his cock still rock hard. 

“Whatever you want love.” he responds, thrusting into you again. 

© wonustars

[ineffable-suffering]

Why Aziraphale is an unreliable narrator

Part 1: The Story of Job

I'm absolutely not the first one to talk about this on here and I probably shan't be the last either. Alas, here's my take on why all of the minisodes in Season 2 should be enjoyed with great care – and taken with a grain of angelic salt.

I'm gonna split this into 3 parts, aka the three minisodes we are shown, since I tend to get a bit waffley in my posts and want to still be able to include all the little details. Once I've written them, I'll link Part 2 & Part 3 here as well!

Alright, let's get into it under the cut of doom.

Episode 2 opens with the Story of Job. Right off the bat, I noticed that it sort of looks like an old film playing. At first I didn't read that much into it, but once we see the cut-away to Aziraphale at the bookshop, currently reading that part of the Bible (presumably), I immediately thought: "Oh! It's because it's his memory. He's remembering how it went down and therefore it plays like a figurative film in his head."

This, I then came to realize, is a very crucial difference to all the flashbacks of S1, which were exclusively told and narrated by God. May her intensions be as ineffable as they are: She did tell us all of these stories from an objective outsider's point of view. Now, however, it's Aziraphale who's re-telling those stories to us from memory.

And if there's one thing that's for certain, it's that a memory is something entirely different to an objective narration of a story. Just think about how you yourself remember things. Especially things that happened years, maybe even decades (or, in an angel's case, millenia) ago. What is it, that you really remember? Can you know for sure, that a conversation was held with those exact words? Are you 100% certain that the clothes someone wore weren't different? Had it really been snowing or would that make very little sense given what you're remembering happened in May? And did it even happen in May? Or does that just happen to be your favourite month, the current weather, your preferred style of clothing and what it was that you would imagine someone would have said to you?

What I'm trying to say is: The further away it is that something happened, the more your brain has to fill in the gaps. This is why, for example, your parents will remember the family summer holiday entirely different when you ask them about it 20 years later.

"No, it was Sarah who puked on the car ride home!" "Nonsense, Sarah never puked as a child. Bobby had that gone-off pizza, he's the one that was sick the whole ride long!"

We've all been there. Bobby made it out alive. Don't buy gas station pizza.

Alright, back to the plot: Naturally, Aziraphale is not actually human, so it is a pure assumption on my part that the way his memory works is similar to ours. However, the whole topic of "memory" is actually quite a recurring one on Good Omens.

Crowley seems to have lost his in the Fall, yet somehow managed to get most of it back. Not all of it, though, he clearly has some major gaps ("You used to jump on me back, little monkey in the waistcoat!"). Beelzebub helps Gabriel store all his memories in their little fly container before they get wiped entirely too, by the Metatron and/or Saraqael. Crowley and Aziraphale (and possibly Jimbriel) perform a miracle together that makes everyone in Heaven and Hell forget who Garbiel is or what he looks like. And we know that the Book of Life apparently has the ability to completely erase someone from existence – ergo also erasing them from everyone's memory and making it is as though the person had never been in them at all.

So, clearly, angels and demons being able to remember, forget, reconstruct and, if you're the Metadork, wipe memories, is very much canon. Apart from that very last one, it does make them quite human-like in a way. We too can forget or (wrongfully and incompletely) reconstruct memories, due to things like trauma, illness or simply a lot of time having passed.

So, just like Crowley remembers going into battle but doesn't remember Furfur being there, or just like Jimbriel has entierly forgotten who he is but still remembers the tune and lyrics to Buddy Holly's song Everyday, and just like archangel Michael was miraculously made to forget Gabriel and yet says "Don't I know you?" when seeing him again – just like that, Aziraphale's memories of the story of Job, the story of wee Morag and the story of the magic show in 1941, might not actually be the whole truth.

So, time to look at where the furniture isn't.

Now, it could very well be that the costume designers of S2 thought: "Fuck it, let's go crazy" – but given that this show has a track record of meticulously making sure to stick to accurate and cohesive character design, doesn't it strike you as odd that Crowley would go from this look at the Flood in Mesopotamia, 3004 BC:

... to the (very iconic, don't get me wrong) Bildad the Shuhuite drip in 2500 BC:

... back to this at the crucifixion of Jesus Christ in 33 AD:

I mean ... I mean– come on, that seems like a bit of a far stretch, even for someone as enthusiastically experimental with fashion as Crowley.

And it's not just that: Where did the sunglasses come from, all of a sudden? And why do they look like some sort of obscure, ancient optometrist's device? It's a known historical fact that the Romans were the ones to have invented sunglasses, somewhere around 50-ish AD. Which actually matches perfectly with when Crowley and Aziraphale meet again in Rome 8 years after the crucifixion (51 AD).

So, where do the weird spectacles come from, over 2000 years too early? Maybe from Aziraphale's brain filling in some gaps? Hasn't Crowley always worn those ridiculous sunglasses? Was it Rome? Or Golgotha? Wessex? Oh, blimey, what does it matter!

And it's not just Crowley: Aziraphale's own clothes, as well as the other angels', seem to be very different from the rather plain linen we see him wear before and after the story of Job.

They're laced with golden embroidery along the neckline and sleeves. The remind almost of the clothes angels are depicted wearing in biblical and historical drawings. Ornate and decadent. Not at all like we see Aziraphale in the other flashbacks of S1.

Even Bildad the Shuhite's hair within the minisode keeps changing, going from all pouffy and voluminous to rather deflated and straight-looking:

The costume department either had to fix up two seperate wigs or manually straighten out the volume of the one again to give it a more sleek look. I'm not a professional in this field, but if there's anything I've learned from watching hours of behind-the-scenes material of movies and shows, it's that very little about costume, character, prop and set design is purely coincidental.

You know what it could be, though? An accurate representation of how memories aren't linear, historically correct and objective representations of a certain event, but rather an ever-changing, jumbled mess of impressions, emotions and exaggerations.

More specifically: Aziraphale's impression, emotions and exaggerations.

Like "remembering" Crowley with sunglasses because he's been wearing them for so long.

Like "remembering" himself wearing more luxurious, angelic clothes because that's how he thinks of the difference between Heaven and Hell.

Like "remembering" the permit as a ridiculously long scroll that folded out over an entire valley.

Like "remembering" Job's children to be weirdly sassy in an almost Aziraphale-esque way (Enon: "Don't be silly!") for the fact that Job would have probably taught them to be more humble and obedient in the presence of a literal angel.

Like "remembering" eating an entire fucking Ox after having just one bite of it while Crowley watched him lustfully, sipping on his wine.

Like "remembering" Crowley calling him 'angel', despite them having barely known each other back then.

There's a reason why the flashbacks in S2 seem so much more alive, quirky and, at many points, confusing and all over the place. Because they're not objective stories being told by a third party. They're Aziraphale's. So much of his own thoughts and feelings at the time get projected onto them because that's simply how memory works!

It's subjective. It's unrealiable.

It's not that I'm calling Aziraphale a liar. He's no more a liar than your parents are, mixing up Sarah and Bobby. Or you, remembering snow instead of sunshine. Memories aren't lies. They can simply be faulty, focus on things that you thought were more important and leaving out or changing things that weren't, to you.

The real challenge in all of this, is trying to filter through Aziraphale's stories to see what it actually is they're telling us. Where it is that the furniture isn't. And I think in this case, that's 6 main things (eff you, God, I know you like sevens, but I don't care):

God and Satan (still) talk to each other We see that Aziraphale is quite surprised when Muriel mentions that the whole Job thing is God's bet with Satan. But clearly, despite having made him and the rest fall, God still converses with Her number one traitor about whether or not the humans simply love Her because she gives them nice things or because they truly believe in Her.

God and Satan (and Heaven and Hell) can and do collaborate with each other when they feel like it So much for choosing sides, huh? Truthfully, this is not the first time this is shown to us, but still. It's another piece of evidence on the growing pile.

Aziraphale understands the World and humans way better than any of the other angels "Well, you see ... Citis is 58 ..."

Aziraphale, despite having troubles voicing it, absolutely disagrees and even condemns God's plan of destroying Job's children (and goats and camels and––)

Aziraphale is willing to lie and thwart the will of God Also not the first time we're being shown this but again, piiiile of evidence.

Angels don't automatically Fall simply by doing the above To me, this is one of the most important take aways. It's already hinted in S1 as well that 'Falling' seems to have been a one time even back when the first war broke out in Heaven. And I actually believe that ever since then, no other angels have Fallen again. Aziraphale is the best example for this. He has gone against God's plan numerous times and even lied to her very face (voice?) about it. And yet, nothing ever happened to him. Why exactly that is the case remains a topic for another meta (that I might or might not be working on already, teehee).

Alright, that concludes this first look at the Job minisode! If there's anything I missed, feel free to share it with me. I'll try and add Part 2 (the story of wee Morag) and Part 3 (the magic show of 1941) soon.

Update: Part 2 and Part 3 have officially been written, you can find it them right here:

Part 2: The Story of wee Morag

Part 3: The Story of the Magic Show in 1941

Hugs and kisses, (God)!

[cross-my-heartt]

okay so I slept on it... and as much as I hate to say it I think I'm disappointed with episode five

really disappointed

putting my thoughts under a cut, they're mostly critical but there's some praise in there too

I'm not gonna lie some parts of this episode were fantastic. I legitimately started crying when Crosshair picked up Mayday's helmet and started lining them all up. but as much as I wanted to feel the same way about the other emotional moments in this episode (and they were a lot) I just didn't and it's weird because they feel right from a storytelling perspective but execution wise?... yeah, I have some thoughts

for starters I'm getting really frustrated with Corbett and co's aversion to showing us characters reacting to major events. I fully expected this episode to pick up where we left off but instead we went straight to the timeskip, foregoing all the initial stages of Crosshair's reintegration into the team (similarly people have pointed out how disappointing it is that we didn't see Crosshair react to the news of Tech's death. or Echo reacting to the news of Fives’ death. can we see the pattern here?)

we're supposed to feel like this tension in the team has been going on for a while but instead we're just told that it has. yes, it makes sense for this to be the case but when you think that the whole thing is resolved in one single episode, you start to realize just how damn rushed it is

so much of this episode relied on clunky exposition to fill us in on what's happening instead of just taking the time to show us. imagine if instead of one episode we had three episodes to develop this story line. one on Pabu, one on Barton and one final one for the mission where Crosshiar and Hunter's tension comes to a head. just imagine.

we have so much room for side quests where these characters' conflicts can broil and stew and develop in the background and we can get a real sense of time passing and a sense of how this affects them. we got a whole episode dedicated to showing us what Omega's imprisonment was like on Tantiss, imagine if they'd put the same effort into setting up Crosshair's return the same way

instead this is really starting to feel like we're trying to get Crosshair's arc out of the way so we can move on to the next one (which I presume will be about Tech) and if we do get episodes where this could have been developed as a background subplot I will chew my socks off

also if I see another giant worm creature living underground in a star wars media, I will throw myself off a cliff

NO MORE FREAKING CREATURES. we're sick and tired of them. why, why do we have to waste precious screen time on a redundant action scene? it feels so old at this point. not to mention how obviously shoehorned it is because a) it messes with Outpost's plot and b) Outpost never mentioned this being the purpose of the sensors meaning this is obviously something the writers retconned into existence to hastily cobble the plot together

a very predictable one too, I swear to god I expected it to be a worm the moment they showed the ground shake, I swear

yes, it was supposed to show us the batch working together as a yay team moment but I personally feel it was pretty lackluster (none of them actually put their special skills to good use, I'm baffled by how useless Hunter's sense were here). imagine if instead of this we got an episode that was actually interested in exploring the conflict between these two

have them walk off to quarrel after Hunter sees Crosshair acting strange with the helmets (the one piece of setup I would praise) then accidentally fall through a weak point in the ice, plunging them underground. and instead of an action scene we get a long episode of them trying to get out of the maze, walking through the tunnels and struggling to cooperate in between bouts of bickering. have Crosshair internally freaking out because this is all so similar to him and Mayday crawling through the tunnels. maybe have one of them step on an old mine, echoing that same moment in Outpost

have Hunter ask Crosshair why he knows about these mines and who taught him to disarm them. have Crosshair completely reluctant to tell him

seriously there is SO much wasted potential here...

which leads me to the next point which is dialogue. the worst side effect of rushing plot is that most of your dialogue ends up being expository and it really showed. characters saying exactly how they feel, over explaining and pointing out things that could have been shown. it all feels even more egregious when you realize that Crosshair is the one saddled with most of the exposition making him not only weirdly talkative this episode but also nudging him into the out of character territory

because Crosshair has always been taciturn and roundabout in the way he expresses himself and I feel like this was sorely lacking this time. it's a shame because that's one of the main things that made him so complex and interesting to watch

call me crazy but we didn't need Crosshair and Hunter acknowledging their mistakes. a meaningful look or a silent moment shared between them would have sufficed. we didn't need Crossahir saying what he's done, we know what he's done, and knowing Crosshair that shouldn't have come out so earnestly either

I feel like the show has proved that it's really good at conveying these nuances in a subtle way but somehow it forgot all about it in its urge to hurry the plot along

I don't know if I'm wrong or right about this but I really hope I'm not. I'm not saying the writers are neglecting Crosshair as a character, there were moments where I could really feel how much love they have for him. but the telling of that story really fell flat

all in all this episode felt like 'finish crosshair's story arc: speedrun edition'. the right story beats are there - the hug, the confrontation, honoring Mayday, focusing on the tremor - but they're so rushed and the dialogue is so expository and clunky that they left me feeling hollow

(also are we really going to pretend it's okay for AZ to be there?? your sole chip removing droid and it's used as target practice by the man with a hand tremor and a 50% accuracy rate?? hello??? anyway, just a nitpick lol)

all in all there is a lot to love and in a sense we got everything we wanted but I do wish it had been done differently

[vinelark]

can you talk more about your writing process? do you outline? what does your drafting process look like? I love to hear about the ways my fave fic writers write because everyone is so different!

hello! a while ago i wrote a bit about the broad idea-to-ao3 journey my fics usually take, and i’m always happy to go more in depth about outlining/drafting since i find it really interesting when i see other writers talk about it too 😊

i do outline, and often extensively—my outlines start out long and get longer as i go. usually my initial outline is a basic version of me telling myself the story; i have all the major beats in chronological order and all the random details/scene ideas i’ve already thought of while brainstorming. it’s very messy and often just for me, so i’m barely even using punctuation at that point. but by the time i start drafting i know where the fic ends, even if i don’t know the exact final scene/beat. for example, before i started even drafting chapter 1 of bbts i already knew what all the 5 + 1 scenarios were, when the identity reveal dropped (and didn’t drop), who the Big Bad was, and how that overarching plot connected to each scenario, so i was ready to start filling in the actual story details from there.

after that my outlines are constantly growing documents because i jump around and add things as i go, getting more detailed the closer i get to drafting—by the time i reach a scene to actually write it, it’s usually pretty well beated out for me. i zerodraft scenes right in the outline document, and then draft over those zerodrafts, so the outline eventually becomes the fic itself.

here are a few examples of what some bits of bbts chapter 4 looked like in the outline by the time i started drafting it vs. the final fic (also copied under the cut because they’re a bit long for alt text):

i don’t write every day (i wish!) but i do usually at least open the document every day or jot down ideas. especially in a mad scramble after i shower, because i always end up planning whole conversations/action sequences in my head while showering or brushing my teeth or otherwise doing something where i can’t reach for my phone immediately 😅 i tend to outline/zerodraft quickly but draft slowly (details always take so much longer than i expect), but i do write faster and faster the closer i get to finishing a chapter/fic.

also, i workshop a lot as i go! going to friends like ���hey i’m trying to [hurt a character in a specific way] but having trouble blocking the scene. can anyone help me achieve this more practically” is one of my favorite parts of the process.

text for outline vs. final snippets:

original outline:

have you ever been?

hmm? yeah i, uh, studied abroad here for a bit.

ah. kon should’ve figured;

before he can feel too disappointed, though, tim flashes a small smile and says, never seen it from this angle, though.

final snippet:

“Have you ever been?” Kon asks.

“Hmm?” The mylar crinkles as Tim leans further. “Yeah I, uh, studied abroad here for a bit.”

“Ah.” Kon probably should’ve figured.

Before he can feel too disappointed, though, Tim flashes him another smile and says, “Never seen it from this angle, though. Plane windows don’t really do it justice.”

original outline:

tim and bruce talking, bruce is like, yes, it’s safer the less people know who we are, but it’s not just about that. i want you to have something to return to. i want your civilian identity to be a haven—i don’t want robin to define you. if you ever stop being robin, i want you to still be able to be tim.

also if bruce wayne is compromised, it compromises my ability to keep you safe. i want you to be safe. but i also have another reason. it’s selfish of me. if tim drake is compromised, it would be much harder to keep you here with me, as my family. as someone i can care for as bruce wayne. and i want to keep you, tim.

final snippet:

Bruce holds up a hand. “It’s not that. That is—yes, the less people who know, the safer we are. But I’m trying to say…it’s not just about that. I have trouble explaining this part; it always comes out wrong. I think the first time I tried was the first time Dick called me a despot, actually.” He snorts, quiet and wry. “I’ll try to do better this time. What it really comes down to is this: I want you to have something to return to. I want your civilian identity to be a haven—I don’t want Robin to define you. If you ever stop being Robin, I want you to still be able to be Tim. If Tim Drake is compromised, it’s harder for you to have that option. And if Bruce Wayne is compromised, too, it compromises my ability to keep you safe. I want you to be safe. But I also have another reason, and this is the selfish part. The part I couldn’t explain right last time. Which is: if Bruce Wayne were compromised, it would be much harder to keep you here with me, as someone I can help in all of your identities. As my family. Not impossible—I would never let it be impossible. But it would make it harder, and that’s what scares me, more than the rest of it combined. Because I want to keep you, Tim.”

original outline:

oh, tim says. no, that’s. it’s fine. i didn’t. doesn’t know what else to say. it’s just. i’m robin, there on the tip of his tongue. he can’t say it past the hot embarrassment clawing at his throat, pulsing behind his eyes. he summons his mother, summons brucie wayne, summons normal, boring, see-through tim drake, and manages a vacant smile

final snippet:

The words have sort of been washing over Tim like a tidal wave, but he recognizes that he’s probably supposed to respond in some way. “Oh,” he says. “No, that’s. It’s fine. I didn’t.”

He doesn’t know what else to say. His hand is still resting against the mask in his pocket, I’m Robin right there on the tip of his tongue, technically irrelevant to whether or not Kon wants to date Tim Drake. But he can’t say it past the hot embarrassment clawing at his throat, pulsing behind his eyes. He wants to ask for a minute to think, to turn around so Kon can’t see his face, and immediately feels even more humiliated for needing that. He should’ve known. He should’ve known.

“Tim?” Kon says quietly.

Tim draws in a long breath. Another. He summons his mother, summons Brucie Wayne, summons normal, boring, see-through Tim Drake, and manages a vacant smile. “It’s fine,” he says. “I get it. Thanks for being honest.”

[journey-to-the-attic]

Hi Kin. I wanted to ask, how did you manage things like writer's block or creative burnout while writing JTTA? I'm midway through a longfic now and it's kind of exhausting. I feel like I'm whining but I barely get any comments or asks or anything.

hi anon! honestly i'm not sure if i was the right person to ask this, because i... kind of didn't? as in, i didn't really have these problems - boring answer, i know!

i got lucky because i hit a sweet spot where the base story and characters were strong, but with just enough gaps in plot, worldbuilding, development, etc. such that the momentum of filling everything in carried me through the whole process. but there were definitely a lot of occasions where i sat there thinking "okay i have no idea what to do now"

in those cases, often i had to just step back and ruminate on it for a little while - i've pretty much constantly got little ideas bouncing around my head, and sometimes they hit each other like snowballs and form into more fully-fledged plot points, scenes, dialogue, so on. i try to keep track of these in notes apps, personal discord channels, etc, and dip into them if i'm stuck on something!

not sure if your fic is for obey me, but this could still apply even if not - with all the pop quizzes and devilgrams that put the characters in a bunch of new contexts, it's helpful seeing how that character's static vs dynamic traits persist/change depending on them, and often that'll give you inspiration as well. depending on what you've got available, you could browse through source material, or brainstorm aus, whichever you enjoy most

i'm really not sure HOW i've stuck with obey me for so long, but somehow it's just stuck with me. i don't remember being so invested in it before jtta, so that's probably why, but i just really love these guys, and i suppose that's why i never burnt out of it? i think it was also because i knew what story i wanted to tell, and i really wanted to make sure ik got her happy ending, and that carried me through as well

seriously, though - do take breaks. every writer's mileage varies, so take a step back whenever you need to. writing fics should be fun! sometimes it does feel like a chore, and it becomes more like 'the only thing i hate more than writing is not writing', but it happens to all of us. sometimes you've just got to rest until your second wind comes along

in terms of comments and such... yeah, it's a tough one! the unfortunate thing is that a vast majority of readers - even if they really enjoyed your writing! - won't leave a comment. don't take this as a direct reflection on your writing! often the reader can't think of what to say, is too shy, or quite simply forgot

again though... i'm not sure if i'm the best person to ask for advice here! i started publishing jtta without much expectation for an audience, given the genre of game it's written for, so any attention was more a nice surprise than anything. i suppose that, later on, when the fic was more well-established, i did start holding some expectation of response - and it really is tough when you don't get as much of one as you were hoping for

i've seen people talking about how the ask culture on tumblr has died down a lot in recent times, so i'm sure you're not the only one feeling like this! all i can suggest is trying to find more friends (mutuals?) and... networking, i guess? i've seen advice saying to share your fic within communities of writers, too

i can't honestly say if these things'll work, because i'm very bad about interacting with a wider fandom in anything - i usually keep to myself, so often i don't have much of an expectation for how and when people come chat. as in real life, i'm only a chatterbox when approached first haha

i'm not sure how helpful this has been, but i'm rooting for you! if you'd like to share your fic here, please do - though i understand if that's something you'd rather keep to yourself as well.

creating things is a joy - it might take some searching to find a circle, but the beauty of the internet is that you will, somewhere out there! wishing you the best ^^

[bonefall]

what are the plot beats of bonefall tpb? i know youve mentioned its very politically focused, but what does the story really look like (if youve got that hammered out yet)?

It's very similar to Canon TPB in terms of plot beats, it's the least reworked arc because I think it's the one that needs the least amount of fixing. Even as-is I think it's a really good narrative against isolationism that just has some moderate stumbles (namely the introduction of BloodClan as the endgame enemy)

The majority of its problems come from its treatment of disability and its... terribly written romance. Even ships that should check out in theory like FireSand I think are just... frustrating at best.

So anyway I'll walk you through the changed plot beats off the top of my head. I'll also make some off-brand title changes for fun

Book 1: Into the Clans

Fireheart is aware of BloodClan to begin with and knows about their warnings of Clan Cats

Smudge has actually been seeing Spottedleaf in the darkness of the forest, she looks like an apparition of death because of her leaf-blight spots and bone-shaped markings

To begin with, more time is spent on Firepaw's apprenticeship before deposing Brokenstar

We're introduced to Channeling, which is an illegal way to contact a spirit... if they're willing to come when called. Spottedleaf does this to try and talk to her brother.

Redtail is not helpful because he is a jerk. Fireheart learns to not be afraid of death because of Spottedleaf's blithe attitude towards it

I also plan to establish at some point here that Longtail and Sandpaw's dads are Runningwind and Redtail and have Firepaw realize that the death of Redtail has affected them deeply

He considers this because he does not know what it is like to have a single dad let alone two, but if it's like losing a mom that's rough

Spottedleaf, Lionheart, and Rosetail die in the same raid where the Frostfour are snatched

Fireheart joins that patrol to retrieve the Frostfour from ShadowClan. Bluestar is on it, also.

Deerfoot is established as a rebel and Tangleburr as a Brokentail loyalist.

Deerfoot and many others don't like what Brokenstar has done, but he's a popular leader and they need help getting rid of him

Bluestar agrees to send the reinforcement they need. Tigerclaw is upset about this, citing that Clans aren't supposed to meddle in the affairs of others. They should just take the kits back honorably

An explanation of the ancient tradition of kit-stealing is given to Firepaw, which he is horrified by, but then he tunes back in to Bluestar rebuffing Tigerclaw with the Queen's Rights. He bows his head and agrees.

After Brokenstar is dethroned, Fireheart is named, and uses tarspot-blighted sycamore leaves to channel Spottedleaf for the first of many times.

Book 2: Blood and Water

Fire and Ice is basically unchanged, WindClan is retrieved, Silverstream is introduced, Cinderpaw and Brackenpaw apprenticed (though they are not below 6 moons this time), Brokenstar blinded, Cloudkit acquired, etc, but there's minor changes to motivations of scenes.

For example, the scuffle that gets Whiteclaw killed is an example of the Right of Challenge in action... and also Deadfoot and Leopardfur are equally matched the abelism in this fight bothers me.

Customary Deadfoot bonkening. All of his opponents get bonked once.

Graystripe's utter failure to train Brackenpaw is not forgotten, this is remembered. Fireheart is also asked to fill the role of Brackenpaw's mentor during the Warriorship ceremony later

Cloudkit is raised by Fireheart alone, Brindle just suckles him because Fireheart can't make milk.

Brindleface's kits are swapped! Ashkit is born later; the childhood friends of Cloudtail are Elderberry and Ferncloud.

Book 3: Old Secrets

In general THIS is the book where we would get an actual description of Thistle Law and its name

Fireheart also learns about Bluestar's Forget-Me-Nots, her old group of friends, and he starts to piece things together quicker than in canon.

For newcomers: The Forget-Me-Nots were a friend group of Bluestar, Deadfoot, Ashfoot, Barley Sr, Lizardstripe, and Oakheart. Her love of these people is what causes her to lead the way she does, helping all clans in a way unlike any other leader before her.

Similar to canon this is the book where Silverstream dies, Graystripe leaves, Tigerclaw is exiled, and Brokentail is poisoned. Not much else is different.

Book 4: Rising Fire

Runningnose does a little bit of epidemic. As a treat. Kills Cinderfur and Nightstar and installs Tigerstar

This is the book where Longtail starts to rise up as a close ally of Fireheart, more reliably than his younger sister Sandstorm who has more of her own mind.

The apprenticing of Elderpaw and Fernpaw is changed; Dustpelt is too young to have an apprentice and is rewarded for his loyalty by becoming the secondary apprentice of a Clan builder.

Frostfur gets Elderpaw, Darkstripe gets Fernpaw

Dustfern does not happen while Fernpaw is an apprentice, ick. She admires him one-sidedly while he is a young warrior arguing loudly with her awful mentor, though.

Snowkit is given some extra personality as being serious like his mom, and quite religious.

He is also a friend of Tawny and Bramble.

His death after the forest fire by a hawk is unchanged; and the start of Bluestar's cruelty arc.

We get Littlecloud and Whitethroat's thing, Cloudpaw's abduction, the beginning of Bluestar's cruelty arc, the forest fire, RiverClan sheltering them, and the deaths of Snowkit, Yellowfang, and Runningwind largely unchanged.

Book 5: Paths Chosen

Who_Let_The_Dogs_Out.mp4

Bluestar's cruelty arc continues

Ashfur is born in this book

Graystripe refuses to let Leopardstar murder Fireheart and is exiled; his kittens remember this

Cloudtail is made a warrior and Swiftpaw and Brightpaw go play with puppies

IMPORTANT: Brightpaw's "Dishonor Title" is SWIFTHOUND, it has nothing to do with her scarring. Her actions got Swiftpaw killed and that is what is dishonorable about this. Scars are a desirable trait in this rewrite.

It's a dare to StarClan; take her as Swifthound or make her live with this name.

Shuffle: Tigerstar lays claim to his kits after Swiftpaw dies, that was his oldest son and he says that ThunderClan is not capable of protecting his children

Shuffle: Sandstorm is the new mentor of Tawnypaw, Brackenfur is too young.

Firestar is aromantic, no confession scenes. These two actually have kittens together later as a form of honor-siring with coparenting.

They do the dog relay race, Elderpaw replaces Ashpaw because Ashkit is literally baby rn

Longtail replaces Graystripe on this race because Longtail's got zoomies and Graystripe's extra thick; NOT a runner.

Bluestar dies

Also as a side note the redux of Bluestar's Prophecy opens up right here, with Lizardstripe playing as her defense lawyer in StarClan and the trial framing the story. Thistleclaw also LEAVES StarClan in that book in protest to Bluestar being allowed in.

Book 6: Hour of Need (but also it would be funny if this one was called Before The Dawn and then TNP opened up with Dawn lmao)

Tigerstar actually offers BloodClan land in exchange for them helping him. This is important.

Fireheart evolves into Firestar like canon

Sorrelkit's poisoning results in her developing epilepsy after this, which will follow her for the rest of her life.

TigerClan officially forms... though I am thinking of pushing this back to the previous book so it's formed for longer.

The Bonehill is actually a really stupid idea in-universe and cats are working themselves to the BONE HHA to finish this incredibly pointless vanity project

I'm thinking a TigerClan rebel actually fetches Raven, Fire, and Gray to get them to help save the prisoners. Unsure who; maybe Primrosepaw or Reedpaw.

Execution of Stonefur like canon

There are several TigerClan rebels, one of which is Deerfoot, who help the Halfclans escape. Jaggedtooth is another, Primrosepaw, Reedpaw, Pikepaw, and Mosspelt as well.

In escaping, the only cat captured is Deerfoot

He refuses to rat out the other rebels, saving their lives, and is executed for it

Tangleburr is distraught

Later, WindClan is attacked and Gorsepaw dies.

Laterer Tigerstar gets unzipped by Scourge

AND THIS IS THE BIGGEST CHANGE;

Firestar calls to speak to Scourge, to ask what it is he really wants

He essentially learns that Scourge is sick of the dishonor of Clan cats, he was promised forest and he will have it. Diplomacy breaks down and the battle must happen

When Firestar and Scourge fight, Firestar dies once, revives, and beats him by ripping the collar off, but sparing his life.

"A true warrior does not need to kill to win their battles"

Scourge calls for a retreat

The Clans Win; but a lot of cats died on both sides

Longtail, not Graystripe, becomes deputy

Epilogue is ThunderClan, WindClan, and occasionally ShadowClan (but they're difficult) engaging in diplomacy with BloodClan, including trade and foraging rights.

Aaaaaaaand there you have it! Bonefall TPB summarized. If something wasn't mentioned here (like Tawny defecting) you can assume it happened in the book in a similar way.

[mishwanders]

Okay, so someone left some tags in a reblog of my “Why Chris Redfield is not a Republican” post about his misogynistic behavior in RE6 and because, being the way that I am, I wanted to talk about it and his whole situation in RE6.

CAPCOM, like many other forms of media do, decided to use amnesia for a plot device for Chris after having suffered a serious head injury where he fought a B.O.W. in close quarters right after the loss of the majority of his team. He suffered a lot of emotional and physical trauma in a short amount of time. When he wakes up in the hospital, he starts exhibiting the symptoms of Post Traumatic Amnesia and runs off. For those who don’t know what PTA is, it is the time after a period of unconsciousness where the injured person is awake, but are exhibiting uncharacteristic behaviors. This is a period of recovery for the person who had undergone the traumatic event. This could take from a few minutes after the incident all the way up to a few months, which happens to be the case for Chris. Before I dissect the opening scene, I just want to list out a few of the symptoms of PTA. Those can include confusion, agitation, distress, anxiety, a tendency to wander, and unable to recognize familiar people. Uncharacteristic behavior they could exhibit would be violence, aggression, swearing, shouting.

Which I say all of this to get to this fact - Chris is unwell throughout the entirety of RE6.

We see him at the beginning of the cutscene sitting at the bar, drinking, smoking A LOT, and getting aggressive with the bartender when she refuses to fill his glass up with more booze. Although smoking is canon for his character, smoking that much definitely is not and everything else that I described as well are all uncharacteristic behavior for him, all because he is still undergoing the symptoms PTA. Usually I would chalk up the misogynistic things he said as just “shitty writing”, but if CAPCOM was trying to show that he is unwell and not himself - then I kind of agree with them keeping that line in there. We’ve seen throughout so many other games how he is with the female characters and he is nothing but kind, helpful, and respectful to them, even if they are throwing themselves at him (looking at you Jessica) where he tries to keep as professional as he can when handling the situation. So him acting in this way is a part of the symptoms he’s exhibiting. Do I think it’s right? Hell fucking no, but I can understand why they kept it in and it was to show that he is, in fact, unwell and in need of professional help.

Of course then when he walks away, he gets aggressive with the man telling him “she asked you to leave”, to which Chris turns violent (again, a symptom) until Piers stops him.

Now, don’t get me wrong I love Piers and I can understand why he would be irritated with Chris throughout the rest of the scene. The guy has been searching for six months for Chris - only to find his captain, a man he held in high regard, acting in a way that he is not used to. But Piers handled the situation in one of the worst ways. Piers immediately shows Chris images of the traumatic events they both suffered, showing him the faces of his dead men, becoming more and more aggressive as he yells at him. In cases where someone is dealing with the symptoms of PTA people and hospital staff are told that they should remain as calm as possible and to remember that the phase will pass. Meeting the person with aggression can cause even more distress because their brain is struggling to cope with the injury. Also, showing him the images and people could bring up traumatic triggers - which if you have not dealt with before - can send you into fight/flight/freeze because your body and brain feels like it’s undergoing the same trauma as it had during the actual events. So Chris panicking, getting aggressive with Piers, is all on par for how he should be acting in this situation, given his condition at this point.

Now to talk about him going back into the field.

The BSAA really fucked up on this one. We don’t know for a fact if they had sent him for a medical evaluation after finding him, but they definitely should have. As someone who works in EHS, anytime there is an injury such as a head injury, they are immediately taken off of the premises and sent for evaluation by a doctor, and if that doctor knows their shit, someone exhibiting signs of distress like that should not have returned to work as quickly as he had. He should have never been sent back to the field so damn quickly - they should have let him take the time he needed to heal properly before being sent back out like that. Chris definitely has a case for suing them if he wanted to for that fuck up. But this also led to him making a handful of decisions that led to mistakes on his end and eventually even losing Piers because of it, the person he wanted to pass on this legacy of fighting bioterroism to.

Chris' entire story in RE6 is tragic and it makes me incredibly sad the more I think about it. He’s a character who’s been through hell and back multiple times and had experienced more trauma than his brain and body were able to handle - and still continues to do so for the sake of ending what was started so long ago by Wesker and Spencer. He was thrown into one of the worst situations he could have ever gone through in the mansion incident and is now determined on finishing a fight that, right now, seems like it will never end.

Edit: I just want to make it clear that the person who made a comment about his misogynistic behavior in RE6 was not doing it with malice, they were just stating an observation. I just wanted to remind people that he is unwell in those scenes - hence why his character would be off and not like himself.

[gnome-minion]

Thinking about how much disability is a core theme of Insignia. The four most plot important characters (Tom, Wyatt, Blackburn, and Vengerov) are all disabled, or are implied to be.

Blackburn's pretty obvious. He's a paranoid schizophrenic. And though that's mostly under control, the experience and the trauma of that sticks with him. And the entire series he views himself as an irredeemable monster. He's caught in what he did when he had that psychotic break.

(Also as a segue, it impacts the way he treats other mentally ill/neurodivergent characters, he even warns Wyatt before she receives her processor that it would change the way she thinks.)

Wyatt's is also pretty obvious. Although not directly stated, Wyatt is obviously autistic. She's canonically neurodivergent, as confirmed in Allies. For the most part, her arc is growing confident in herself, and comfortable with who she is. And also learning more social skills, while never becoming something different. Wyatt's autism is probably my favorite portrayal of autism I've ever seen.

Tom's disability is more subtle. The obvious thing about him having no fingers is explored. How it can aid him (like how the cybernetic fingers can move even if he's in the process of dying), and how they hinder him (they can be taken away, they lack sensitivity, and they're not his actual finger

But also Tom is clearly mentally ill. Even before Catalyst confirmed he was- he shows symptoms of a trauma disorder as early as Insignia. And in Vortex and Catalyst it's pretty blatant.

Catalyst is where all of his erratic behavior gets more explanations. His brain had the same problems that led to his mom developing psychosis and delusions. And while he had a neural graft to enlarge his frontal lobe, I don't think that would be a cure to whatever he's got, like most psychiatric treatments, it just helps with the symptoms .

Also regarding the fact that he wouldn't pass a military psych eval, he generally lacks empathy, and has been generally implied to be a "psychopath", i think it's probable that he's cluster B as well.

Thats not even mentioning him having OSDD or DID considering he has an alter. I'm not throwing out the possibility of him having DID just cause no other alters besides Vanya are shown, cause there is some evidence he could have it in previous books.

And of course- Vengerov.

Major catalyst spoilers up ahead. But Vengerov as a child is heavily implied to be developmentally disabled in some way. After the processor was given to him around the age of 7-8ish he changed completely. Being able to recognize the pain being pushed upon him, and his own ambitions. I'll be honest I can't wrap my head around why this is, outside of a mashup of what happens when you give a young young child a processor, and the computer filling in for Vengerov where his brain wasn't developing as much.

This could easily be used to villainize Vengerov, to show he is an unfeeling, uncaring monster. But Neil's theory at the end of Catalyst changes that. Cause he points out that Vengerov was trying to basically take over the world, yes, but because he lived in a world full of awful evil people in power - he became the worst of them. If he lived in a world run by pacifists? He would be a saint. He would change the world for the better. It's not his, or anyone's nature to be evil. It's their nurture.

It's a really poignant moment. Not only for the political messaging but I think for the explicit sympathy it gives to Vengerov. It never diminishes or undercut how awful what he does is. But also acknowledges how the creation of such an evil person is a product of the system and the world around them, rather than the person's inherent "evilness"

It so wonderfully shows how much of a feedback loop this oligarchical system is. And how the world shapes people into monsters. Only getting worse and worse as time goes on.

Insignia is great, you guys.

[ninlilwinds]

When Reader gets a Brain Freeze

Ah so sorry for the request I haven't answered! I just kind of needed a break to do some of my ideas and some self-indulgence since I mostly favor the genshin men. So, I did this for some of my favorite characters, and if anyone has any requests feel free to send them in.

This was mostly inspired because I hate brain freezes in a level that is a little too much so i usually overreact. Sorry, some are longer than others! >_<

Plot: Fem! Reader gets a brain freeze

Characters: Venti, Childe, Arataki Itto, Diluc, Kaeya

Warning: Not proofread. if there are any major mistakes, please let me know. Also, use of the word dummy?? I don't know if that offends anyone...Also! This is female reader. Some can be read as platonic I think?? But they're meant to be romantic, so established relationships.

Also thank you to all who followed me! I wasn't expecting to gain this many at any point and time!! :) Enjoy!

Venti 

Venti was eating a cold drink in the hot summer when he saw you passing by.  He waved over with his usual cheerful smile and you walked on over.  

"Hey Venti." You smiled and waved.  

"(Y/N)! They made this new drink at the tavern and I just had to get it!" He showed you the drink he was holding. It had an apple slice on the side of the cup and it was filled to the brim with ice.  

You frowned, "No offense Venti, but how did you afford this?"  

Venti smirked a little with pride, " I sang a whole afternoon at Diluc's tavern to raise enough money! And for my dear windblume I shall give you a taste." He offered you the drink, "Its virgin, which makes it a hundred times better for a hot day!"  

You took it and tried, taking a good gulp of the juice. It was really cold, something you hadn't expected, and before you knew it, you felt a stinging feeling in your brain.  

"Ack-" You brought your hands up to your head and bent down in agony, taking a sharp breath in.  

" (Y/N)??" Venti bent down next to you, "What's wrong?"  

"B-brain....freezze." You closed your eyes tightly.  

Venti couldn’t help but let out a few giggles, "Ah I told you it was cold!" He grabbed your chin and tilted your head up, his face a few centimeters away as he studied your feature.  

"What are you doing?" You asked, breathing out nervously.  

He smiled, "Tilting your head back for a while helps some people. See you already feel better don't you?"  

You hadn't noticed, but yeah, your brainfreeze was gone! You nodded and laughed nervously, "Um, anyways it was good."  

"Wasn't it? Let's get you one. But be careful when you drink it." He stood up and used the wind to push you up, "Oh and...hehe, you'll have to buy it yourself. It'll be worth it I promise." , you'll have to buy it yourself. It'll be worth it I s 

You shook your head smiling, "I think you're just trying to lure me in to buy you some drink while we're at it."  

"Waaahhhh. What do you take me for (Y/N)!" He whined, hooking his arm around yours, "I won't ask for a single thing."  

And with that you two both went to Diluc's tavern to get some more of the delicious icy drink. (He made you buy him some dandelion wine too)  

Childe  

Childe and you had been walking around Liyue, where he was currently stationed, on a pretty warm day. But, you both had dressed appropriately so it wasn’t too bad... 

Childe finally had a free day so, he decided to spend the day with his dearest to spend the time, it has been a while since you two had causally hung out.  

Childe and you both kept to the shadows, trying to get away from the heat. 

An ice-cream vendor was yelling promotions and encouraging tourist to try them. You eye the ice-cream's, your eyes turning into stars. You pulled on Childe's shirt, "Childe! Childe! Can we pleasssseeeee get some icecream?" You asked pouting.  

Childe looked over to what you were looking at and smiled, "Sure thing." He walked over and bought you your favorite flavor, and bought himself another one.  

You smiled happily and grabbed the spoon taking a big bite of your icecream. Your body tensed and Childe looked at you, "Are you alright?"  

"Brain freeze..." You whispered.  

"Ah, I see." He grabs your cup and holds your arm to keep you up, "Press your tongue against the roof of your mouth."  

"Huh?" You looked up at him with squinting eyes, but still followed his instructions. After a while it slowly faded and you  sighed relieved.  

Childe chuckled, "Slow down." He handed you the icecream back.  

"Y-yeah I will now." You blushed and smiled.  

He leaned down and kissed your cheek, "Good. Now shall we continue?"  

You nodded and grabbed his hand.  

Arataki Itto 

"Alright your turn catch!" He threw the bag full of almost ready icecream towards you. The cold bag almost knocked you down, but you gripped it and threw it back.  

On this day, you had brought some ingredients to make icecream with Itto, and after you had done all the steps, all that was done was making it more solid.  

You threw it back, a bit hard. Itto grabbed it with no struggle, then peaked inside, "Is it ready yet?" 

You walked over and looked, "Yeah I think so." 

"Alright!" He pumped his fist in the air. You went and grabbed the two bowls, then scooped some in and handed him one.  

"Time to dig in!" Itto grabbed the spoon and grabbed a big spoonful and you followed his movements.  

"Ok, let's see." You both took a bite and tried out the icecream you had made.   

"Mmm." Itto swallowed and so did you. You both tensed at the same time and bent down.  

On the way down, you both hit your heads together. The strong impact made you stagger and fall to the ground, and Itto crouched holding his head.  

After the impact and the brainfreeze passed, he looked at you, "You....ok...?"  

You looked up at him with a smile, then started laughing, "Yeah, you?"  

"Something like that can't bring me down!" He smirked and then helped you up. You both looked at the icecream you had spilled from the impact and then laughed.  

"Time to make some more." You shrugged.  

Itto brought one of his arms up and placed a hand on his muscle, "I still got strength. Let's get making."  

So it was time for icecream, take 2.  

Diluc  

"(Y/N), we made a new drink for the tavern for summers. Would you care to try?" Diluc offered you a drink through the counter. It was after hours, meaning around 4 am, in the tavern. He was cleaning up and had made you the drink since you had been fanning yourself, wondering how it was hot even so early into the morning.  

"Ah sure." You accepted the drink and grabbed the straw, taking a sip. Since you were already pretty thirsty, you sipped to fast and after a while you placed the drink down on the table loudly and grabbed your head.  

Diluc placed down the cup he was cleaning, concern on his face. Was the drink not to your liking? Did something hurt you?  

"Love?" He walked to the other side, where you were sitting in the stools.  

You struggled to try to tell him how you'd drank too fast and gotten a brain freeze, but he eventually got the hint.  

He brought his hands to your head and heated them up with his vision ever so slightly, helping to ease some of the pain.  

After the pain had dissipated, you sighed, "I drank too fast."  

Diluc shook his head and brought his hands down from your head to your cheeks. He placed a hasty kiss on your lips and walked to the other side again to continue cleaning, "Would you like something warm?"  

You shook your head and grabbed the drink again and drank slower.  

He kept a close eye on you until he was sure that you were ok, then he cleared his throat, "Well?" 

"Oh! It tastes good. Refreshing." You smiled and nodded, "It'll be a hit."  

He smiled slightly, grateful, "Well, I shall put it on the menu. But I can to that tomorrow. Let's head on home, my love." He put his apron down and placed the final glass into the cupboards.  

You nodded, and you both left the tavern together. He was glad you liked the drink though, since he had been inspired by you to make it :) 

Kaeya  

You had been with Kaeya on a picnic, when you had finished all the food. You decided to place some of the ice used to cool the drinks. Kaeya had spotted some hillichurls too close, so he went to take care of them.  

You waited for him on the soft blanket, sucking on the ice.  

Kaeya came up behind you and placed his hands on your shoulders, whispering "Boo~" in your ear. This scared you making you bite down on the ice and swallow it.  

"K-kaey- ah!" You tapped your head and closed your eyes, the brain freeze becoming more of a priority than your current spook.  

He went around to kneel in front of your sitting form and looked at you with a raised eyebrow, "(Y/N)?" 

"brainfreezebrainfreezebrainfreeze!!!" You grimaced.  

Kaeya chuckled and brought his hands up to your temples, gently massaging them, "Sorry darling~"  

You shook your head and took a few calming breaths, "I'm fine. Don't scare me like that!" You lightly slapped his hand away.  

His mouth did an o shape and he then chuckled, "Ah someone's mad~ Was it that bad?" 

You pouted and nodded, "Yeah, you big dummy."  

Kaeya kissed your cheek, "Sorry." He winked, "I'll make it up to you, promise."  

With that he pulled out a flower crown made out of WindWheels Asters and Cecilias and placed it on your head, "Forgiven for the scare?" 

You smiled and touched the crown gently, jokingly saying, "For now."  

[blackjackkent]

All right, I think today we start getting Rakha into her first Major Plot Points, starting with letting the Absolute almost blow her head off.

(I'm not being as thorough in my explorations as I was with Hector in some areas like the Blighted Village because I think I know where all the important stuff is, but open invitation to anyone reading these shenanigans to please feel free to toss me a message if you think I missed something interesting for Rakha at any point. :D )

Unexpected little moment as we walk down towards the path leading to the goblin camp - the children's game drawn in chalk on the ground at the end of the Blighted Village:

An interesting, rather cognitively dissonant question for Rakha to find herself asking while standing in the blood of a dead goblin next to the chalk markings.

She suspects the answer is probably no. She doesn't sense much inherent sweetness in her nature. It is in fact hard to picture herself as a child at all. In some ways it is starting to feel more and more as if she was birthed from that pod and there was nothing before it at all.

Her attention, though, is on the growing sound of war drums from the goblin camps up ahead. Ostensibly, they are hoping to find Halsin, rescue him, learn whatever he knows, get the tadpoles removed from their heads. But with far more immediacy, Rakha wants to fight. The last few days have been quiet, filled with conversations with her strange little band of companions, exploration, questions. The beast is restless now.

They're first stopped at a small outpost outside the main camp, a place that stinks of worg dung and ale.

"Lookit, Klaw! Supper's here! Unless you got another reason to be here, feck-shite."

Kill. Make him bleed. Finish them all. So many, so many, so many... spill them on the ground...

Gale can already see the way the wind is blowing. "Let's try to be diplomatic, shall we?" he murmurs in an urgent undertone. "Goblins don't come by the handfuls but by the dozens."

Rakha barely hears him over the blood pulse thumping in her head. She wants to lash out, to strangle the nearest goblin, blow flame through the worg and cook it still alive--

"I'm looking for someone named Halsin," she grinds out between her teeth, struggling against the compulsion. Her fingers twitch at her sides.

The goblin smirks. "Good for you, mate. Now get out of my sight before my worg rips you a new hole."

Unhelpful. Foolish. Smells of rot. Kill. KILL.

She could control him with the tadpole, she suspects. She can feel it wriggling too; the inside of her skull is a squirming mess of impulses. But the beast, hungry and implacable, is strongest. And at the goblin's smirking disdain, her tenuous control slips.

Attack.

----

"Well, so much for the voice of reason," Gale says with a heavy sigh, spinning his quarterstaff in one hand.

"Did you really expect otherwise?" Lae'zel says dryly.

"No, but hope springs eternal, as the poets say."

-----

When the fight is over, she is calm, albeit soaked in goblin blood. Due to Gale's presence of mind in destroying their war drum, the goblins were not able to call for reinforcements, and they proved no match for Rakha's small group in the end, although they put up a good fight. Rakha's unpredictability always makes these moments of combat hectic at best - but the others are starting to learn how to compensate for it, how to anticipate each other's movements.

"A good thing we're all covered in gore now," Gale comments dryly as they rest under the scaffolding of the small camp, tending their wounds. "That will make us very inconspicuous in the main camp, I'm sure."

"To be fair," Wyll points out, "we were never going to be inconspicuous in the first place. Not with this one around." He jerks a thumb at Rakha with a slight grin.

Rakha says nothing. She is sitting with her knees drawn to her chest, her attention focused inward, feeling the dark urge starting to settle and feast on the blood that they spilled. The overwhelming hunger eases for now. Perhaps it will remain calmed long enough for them to find Halsin.

But she doubts it.

[kivaember]

👀!! but also, 🎯?

🎯 Have any of your readers accurately guessed major plot points? Care to share which?

Interestingly, not many people have made in depth guesses about major major plot points for APV! I am curious to hear people's theories though, if only to see if the foreshadowing I lay down it getting picked up...

Otherwise, on my P5 fic To Know Your Target, quite a few people correctly guessed major plot points, which I found really cool! I like it when people can sorta guess where the story is heading, bc it means I'm building it in a coherent kind of way. There's no better feeling for when you guess something will happen and it does!

👀 Tell me about an up and coming wip please!

Oh man I have so many!!! Okay, I have one wip that's like two thirds done... it's a oneshot (a big one rip) that's post LoR. It follows 621 hunting amongst the wreckage of the Xylem for Walter's AC, mostly because he's kinda lost on what to do with himself and also bc he wants to give it a funeral. Rusty, still horribly injured from his fall fromthe Xylem, hijacks an RLF MT and follows him there...

The fic's most about discussing 621 and Rusty's different approaches to grief and moving on and the like... and hilariously, as I was writing it, 621 ended up being a lot more emotionally intelligent than Rusty was...

Have a snippet :) as a treat!

He rounded a collapsed pile of masonry and shattered glass, some sort of towering roof structure that had caved in on the deck below. STALKER was standing in the near distance on the very edge of the deck, staring at the slowly approaching supercell. 

Carefully, Rusty piloted his MT to stand beside STALKER, and directed his visual sensors towards the incoming storm. His wipers were going a little crazy now, frantically whipping back and forth to try and outpace the heavy downpour. Beside him, STALKER moved fractionally, its half-rusted joints creaking loudly. 

“...hey,” Rusty murmured. “Aren’t you tired, Raven?”

STALKER’s head angled towards him. 

«Aren’t you tired, Rusty?»

Rusty felt his mouth quirk into a smile. A response, even if it was a mocking (he assumed). He’d take it. “Yeah. I’m pretty exhausted, to be honest.” 

«…then why are you here.»

“Like I said, I came to get you. You’ve been out here for two days. Uncle was getting worried.”

Raven took his time in replying and Rusty patiently waited, ignoring the various aches and pains lancing through his body like razor sharp glass. It was fine. So long as he didn’t bust the stitches from his spleen repair surgery, he should be okay. 

«I’m fine.»

“Sure,” Rusty said. “Just like I’m fine.”

«I wasn’t in a coma for two days after breaking half my bones.»

no, you were just tortured for weeks on end instead, Rusty did not say with some effort. “You still need to eat, right? You’re augmented, but you’re still human.”

Raven didn’t seem to have a ready response for that, so he just didn’t say anything.

“...what’re you even out here for anyways?” Rusty asked, genuinely curious. The Xylem was a marvel of Institute tech, yeah, but most of it was completely ruined from its violent re-entry. Aside from getting blown up and ransacked by invading corporate and Liberation Front forces alike, the seawater filling up half the ship would’ve eaten away at most of the technology by now. 

«…I’m looking for something.» 

“Well… if you’re looking so hard for it, I guess it must be important…” Rusty said slowly. “Maybe I can help?”

«You’re injured and should be resting.»

“You’re injured too.” Rusty’s tone grew solemn. “I know what they do in those re-education camps, Raven.” 

«…»

“You’ve been flat out since you escaped,” Rusty said softly. “Uncle said you only swung by for a day at our base before running off again. If you don’t stop to rest, your body’s just going to give out on you. It’s a pointless way to go.” 

«…»

“Unless that’s what you want?” Rusty asked, and made sure his voice was dispassionately blunt when he added: “Are you just waiting to die?”

The question lingered between them like an ominous shroud. The supercell moved close enough that its thick cloud wall blocked out the sun, dousing them in deep, dark shadow. 

«…no.»

Raven paused, and STALKER kept shifting its weight back and forth, rusted joints screeching and groaning, the AC not built to spend so much time along the seashore, getting sprayed with saltwater and blasted with coastal gusts. It looked like a corpse just barely moving, skeletal, where chunks of its ablative armour had been stripped off from its own re-entry, and the inner hull torn from the tremendous forces it had been under (had never been designed to endure, but had endured anyways). 

There was even a gaping crack in the Core, a sliver where Rusty could peer past the protective armour and see a bit of the Core block that contained the pilot’s cockpit. Red-tinged rainwater was collecting in that crack, pouring out of it like a miniature stream.

«I don’t know what to do.»

It was unexpectedly honest. Vulnerable. Completely out of nowhere. 

“What do you mean?”  

«Before everything went wrong in Institute City, Handler Walter told me what to do. I knew what to expect with each day. I knew what my objectives were. Now, I know nothing. I’m a mercenary with no money or clients, and I have no idea how to get those things myself. I got my life back, like Walter wanted, but there’s nothing in it.»

STALKER’s head bowed. 

«…I have nothing.»

“That’s not true, Raven,” Rusty said gently, taken aback by Raven’s raw honesty, and cursing the awkwardness of having this talk while they were in two separate mechs. Raven was as expressionless as they came, but he could still gauge his human face better than just staring at the side of STALKER’s cracked Core. 

“After saving Rubicon, you’ve definitely got the Liberation Front on your side,” he continued. “And, for what it’s worth, I’ve got your back too. I know you won’t trust that, considering what happened before Institute City but, I mean it. I was-”

He drew in a slow breath, before admitting quietly: “I was wrong about you. You weren’t a threat to be eliminated, and I acted too hastily in my judgement of you. I’m sorry.”

«It’s fine. You weren’t exactly wrong. I was a threat.»

“...? What do you-”

A flash of scarlet lightning lit up the horizon, followed by a booming thunder that rattled Rusty’s very bones and briefly deafened him. He couldn’t help but wince. 

«I’m looking for Walter,» Raven said in an unexpected non-sequitur, forcibly dropping the last topic. «His corpse is on this ship somewhere.»

[clarks-letterman]

Wally anon: Wait, I have to start this response by saying I watched Prom Pact (had started while drafting the last ask & kept getting distracted) & I actually really liked it dkddsm? Like, it was a Actual Movie, not just a Disney Movie™ with a clear plot & characters & doing what so many teen shows/movies in recent years have been unable to do with the romcom energy? (And ohhhhh my god, the possibilities for Ben. He is SO wildly different & Milo made a good case for why he should've been a film geek character in the newest Screams instead of Mindy (that's nothing against Jasmin Savoy Brown, she's funny as hell but the film geek writing given to her is often very. forced), just so much to think about 😵‍💫)

And if you flip him over on his back, gripping onto his hips while you're eating him out & looking him intently in his eyes, that drives him even c r a z i e r. He's panting, can't stop watching you, moaning your name, etc. completely lost to a guy smaller than him making him feel THAT good.

Exactlyyy (cause we know he can only keep up the roleplay for so long & those eye holes were a major deal breaker for him). Oh, I completelyyyy see it. 👀 It might be time for you to write something about it if you have that much of a thing for him wearing it. 🤭 (And you know when he's fucking you, he doesn't even fully take them off, he just slips the overalls down just. enough to stick his dick out)

Ugh, tell me about it. It's always "Think of the children" when 2 men just so happen to look each other's way, but if it's some truly weirdo dumbass shit between the hets they're mute. (Yupppp. Like, just be into what you're into, respectfully, & mind your business elsewhere cause literally nobody gaf like you do with trying to be in other people's business! Look in the mirror at the kinda shit you're into before pointing fingers around the gays (but no, they'd rather go down incel pipelines cause it can't. be their fault, never them) 🖕) Yessss. You're fully cockdrunk from the sheer force of both of them going at you at once & can barely register how. hot it's gotten since they've started cause you're thinking about how FULL you feel. And they'd absolutely have to carry you around everywhere after that cause you could not feel anything. down there after they're finished & make you cum so hard you pass out. 😮‍💨

You get it. 🙌 The only thing that would disappoint you about your investigating is that he can't fill you full of his ectoplasm even though he cums in you every time. 🥴

And that's where the vision of him as a killer comes in again. 😏 (Well, I'd say you lucked out pretty well with me if you want recommendations cause I have seen so. much; how much would you like me to send your way?)  Yup & the thing can't even die, just...hibernates until it's time to eat again. Very inventive creature design fr. (Hmm, I'd have to really think about who my favorite final boy is. I really like Darry, but know there are others I prefer as a result of, uh, not dying 🫣) Unfortunately so many things have relied on CGI as a crutch in recent memory, that much is certain. Saw II >>>> my favorite of the Saws fr.

omgggg Yes! I loveeeee UD. (I wish I got more out of TQ, there were many things I liked about it, but the faults were...plentiful). Probably a litte bit of both. I've seen here & there how hard male reader accs have to fight to be like, "Hello, this is not a general reader situation, there aren't many of us as is!" One would think the point would be made. 💔 I guess you could say that makes us a good team. 🫡  Will continue to do so when the ideas form in my head. 👍

Oh for sureee. He just wants to hear you. say you want it fully in you.

Absolutely. Some people just don't understand the struggle of having a big dick & a fat ass but they do! 😌 Yessss. It really is THE perfect pair of underwear to show of allllll his assets while being both form-fitting & extremely comfortable. (ooh, you'll have to let me know how that goes)

YESSSS IVE BRAINWASHED CONVINCED SOMEONE ELSE TO LIKE THE MOVIE sksjsk yeah I think it’s pretty good (probably because Disney had no involvement besides producing it now that I think about it… makes it sooo much better. plus the adult jokes were surprising to hear) and yesss Ben is sooo🫣 he could easily fill in for Mindy’s role in the Scream movies. (and yeah, it feels forced and honestly it weirdly makes Chad feel less relevant than he already is in Scream 5 and 6 because they give him nothing and force sm on Mindy)

Yesss omg he finally sees the height difference as more than having to constant look down at someone else and make sure they aren’t being carried away by rival bugs LMAO He’s worried that you’ll disappear from the height difference as you sink down and eat him out. He alternates between having his hand pushing you more against his hole and jerking himself off, even though you can do it just fine sksjs

Exactlyyy you’re riding him and hes fully undressed you so you can feel the rough denim and then his smooth skin pressing against you. It’s sooo hot and yes i will write something about it🫡 Milo has had so many random good looks that it’s crazy he’s been on a streak since day 1 lmao

Yeah I hate that hypocrisy. I’ve seen so many straight dudes into freaky stuff that’s the standard for them yet out of place for gays. It’s insane, but as long as they aren’t judging others for it idgaf if they like it. They’re gonna make you cum, pull out, then argue about who’s carrying you until they finally come (cum) to an agreement, which went soooo well just figuring out who got what hole (they both took the same one sooo)

I know it breaks School Spirits rules about ghosts, but idc. He can and will fill you with his ectoplasm to help with your findings. He wants you to have bags of it by the time you leave fr

My ask box knows no limits so send how ever many you want😮‍💨 and yessss Ryan as the killer would have worked so well (not really, I just want him to have that Stu/Billy craze.) Exactly!! Darry is so fine I can’t help but not like him and Justin Long’s portrayal of him… but he dies😪 moving up in the movies we have Buddy Hooks (played by tommy from stranger things soooo🤭) who didn’t die?! I actually have no idea because that movie was so. boring. HDD makes sense with CGI though because some stuff couldn’t be done given the budget and all, and it’s not used in place of actual sets (cough cough Marvel cough cough.) Saw II, I, and X in that order from best to worst >>>> the rest

Yeah I remember Zach (Jacob’s actor) saying about half the game was cut and so that’s probably the cause of all the faults I noticed. (Like how Abby’s death scene in glitched. She can die and still appear as a “bitten” survivor or she can survive the entire game without getting bit or dying, yet still be marked as bitten at the end of the game. The lack of polish is just really bad.) At least UD was in development for years and had dozens of reworks and delays to make it a good product. Yes ugh I hate that male readers have to fight for fem reader to be the specification instead of “x reader” meaning male or female reader depending on who the fic features (it’s usually the opposite reader of the gender of the character it’s about.) And typically “x reader” defaults to female no matter what. I know it sounds contradictory but it’s true.

And it’s in season! Wally knows the struggle of finding underwear to fit him (so he usually doesn’t wear it) and even pants struggle to contain all that. (going back to the teasing by ripping his pants/shorts) And I will! I suck at digital art but we must soldier through for the brainrot🫡 (and practice because you can get better without it)

[brzatto]

Hello! I'm the person who wrote the dissertation-length comment on chapter 2 of BCM. My essay of a comment probably speaks for itself but I really love your writing. I'm still thinking about your fic over a week later and reread your reply to my comment over and over. It took me a full evening to read chapter 2 because I would read a part, sit and think about it, then move to the next part. Even though the chapter was so long I was scared with each paragraph that it was going to end, I didn't want to stop reading. The ending was really satisfying, if the fic ended there it would be a lovely ending, but like I said in my original comment I'm so happy there's more to come. The ominous reply from you saying you might scrap what you've written and rewrite the ending nudged me to message you. I really hope you don't scrap what you've written so far! Even if it's not the direction you want the fic to go now, I think everyone would love to see the alternate ending if you're happy to share it in the event you don't use it for the fic. Kind of a "BCM 0.5" if you will. Everyone is begging for the porny carmrich writing so thought I'd throw my hat in the ring and beg for the alt. ending of BCM. xD

Also thank you for leaving such a long reply to my comment! I really liked hearing your thoughts about Carmy and Richie and would love to hear more about your writing process. Your fic was the first The Bear fic I ever read and it hasn't left my mind since I first read it back in December last year.

Sorry for another really long message I can't seem to stop typing once I start. xD

(p.s. you should post the carmrich pwp huhuhuhuhu)

of course i remember you! i always remember repeat commenters and i distinctly remember being at work when i got the email for the first comment you left me on bcm, it was a really lovely comment and it made my entire night.

i say this often to a lot of commenters but it really does mean so much to me that you enjoy my writing and it has that sort of effect on you!!! like more than you’ll ever know. i can count the number of times i’ve actually published works on ao3 on two hands and i’ve always gravitated towards rarepairs with nicher audiences in almost every fandom i’ve been in so the type of enthusiasm i’ve received so far with bcm is really genuinely touching. i always try my best to reciprocate the energy given to me in the comments i get but longer ones make me especially happy because i loooove discussing character analysis and dynamics with people and i’m always eager to know how other people interpret my characters and my writing! thanks for how much thought you put into all of your comments, i always look forward to reading what you have to say <3

as for the ending of bcm i don’t actually think i’ll fully be scrapping it, it’ll still end the same general way that i had in mind but i’ll probably end up rewriting/reworking it because a big chunk of the fic leading up to it is still unwritten and by the time i actually get close to the ending it probably won’t make much sense as it is currently word for word. i don’t normally write in chronological order, i write scenes out as they come to me (i usually envision climactic scenes very visually in my head and then write them out first lol) and then fill in the gaps/flesh out the storyline as i go. but since i got the idea for this fic and planned it out back before s2 came out and now s2 is out and canon’s been vastly expanded i’ll probably end up also borrowing some elements from s2 for my own storyline purposes just because if i’m being fully honest… i actually can’t tell you what ch3 of bcm and onwards is going to be like. i have vague notions of major plot points and the direction i want the story to take and fragments of later scenes in my docs but even as it stands now uncompleted bcm is the longest thing i’ve ever written (it’s 49k on ao3 and 60k in my docs) like… ever. i’m not used to finishing fics at all much less writing long fics (if bcm would count as one) so this is all very much new territory for me but everyone’s support and encouraging really helps keep me engaged and on track! including yours 🤍 in the event that the ending does drastically depart from what i’ve originally envisioned for it i probably will upload the alt ending separately. i’ve also sort of toyed with the idea of writing some scenes out from richie’s pov but if anything that’ll be something that comes much much later.

[rollercoasterwords]

Hiya! Was wondering if you could share a bit about your workflow for writing ? Whenever I get to the planning stages I never know where to go from there. Couldn't find if you've answered this already, sorry if you have !

sure, i can try to! i'm not necessarily the most organized writer in the world, it generally just goes something like this:

step 1: daydream

get an idea that won't leave me alone

come up with a rough outline in my head, usually centered around like. 2 or 3 specific plot points/scenes/details

start filling in that outline by essentially just...daydreaming lol. like i just play the story in my head like a little movie. go to my mind palace and play with paper dolls. u know how it is

once i've like. thought through a good bit of the story and it definitely won't leave me alone and i know i really wanna write it, that's when i move on to

step 2: rant + rave

i'll usually send voicenotes to my sister talking about the story i wanna write and brainstorming ideas--essentially just telling the story i've been daydreaming to someone else out loud

i'll also start to actually like. take some notes and try to create a rough outline on paper. this varies depending on the story i'm writing, but i usually try to divide the work into chunks somehow and then take it piece by piece.

step 3: write

with fanfic, since it's not about making something perfect and it's just about having fun, i often start writing without having the entire story completely planned out. i tend to go in with more of a bare-bones outline and take it piece by piece based on the chunks i divided it into in the last step. if i get stuck anywhere on how to get from point a to point b or what i wanna do with a certain character or something, i usually just...send my sister more voicenotes trying to talk through it lol

and that's...basically it! i'm a bit of a perfectionist while writing, which slows me down a bit, but then i usually don't spend much time editing beyond reading back over what i've written once or twice and fixing any little mistakes or tweaking phrasing. i think my workflow when it comes to writing is very much internal, in that the majority of it really is just me daydreaming/telling stories to myself in my head lol. i outline sometimes, but i don't always have much of a strategy beyond slapping down a few bullet points, so i don't really have any great outlining tips unfortunately. i feel like the most advice i can offer based on my own writing process is that i find talking to someone else really helpful--something about saying the story aloud to another person helps me figure out where it needs to go. and my sister also can sometimes point out when something doesn't make sense outside of my head lol

[onward--upward]

I *do* want to know my fic writer! 2, 12, 20, 46, 54 I begrudgingly keep it to five only thank you beloved 💖🦀

hi hey hello!!! 💖🦀 (sorry for the extremely delayed response, i just slept for like, 12 hours)

2. Do you plan each chapter ahead or write as you go?

in the beginning i pretty much write as i go! a lot of the time i’ll have a particular scene further on in the story planned in my brain, so i’ll write those and then kind of fill in the blanks around it, in a way!

but once i’m further along in a story and trying to wrap up plot points, i’ll usually write out the major beats i want to cover for a chapter so i don’t forget anything! as an example here’s some notes from the final chapters of hockey au:

12. how does receiving or not receiving feedback/support impact you?

i adoreeee feedback and support <3 usually i am very nervous after i first post something and i refresh my ao3 until i get a comment and i can relax LOL. but also i have made some very lovely friends from people commenting on my fics, which is my favourite part <3

20. Have you noticed any patterns in your fics? Words/expressions that appear a lot, themes, common settings, etc?

ouuuu!! there probably are lots, lol, but i can’t think of any off the top of my head! sometimes i’ll write a sentence and be like hmm… that’s eerily familiar. i’ve probably written that before

46. How would you describe your style? (Character/emotion/action-driven, etc)

oh what an excellent question! i would say character driven, mostly? the actual action part of a plot can be difficult for me, lol

54. What’s your favorite part about the fanfiction writing process?

everything!! no i’m just kidding. i like the routine of sitting down and hanging out in a characters world every day. but also! i love the community <3 i’ve never been that active in any fandom before i started writing for 911, and it’s been awesome getting to really engage with you guys in a way i don’t think i would have been brave enough to do without fic

thank you frida for the lovely questionsss MWAH!! 💖💖 they were lots of fun to answer

get to know your fic-writer (me)