#I’m still working on it but for now I really like this interpretation!!

[asmolfolk]

Feelings.

Wanted to do this quick and fast short-fic as I saw some people talking about “Cyborgs can still feel” and I wanted to disclose a headcanon I have. Ofc, I think it’s more up to interpretation “if his sensories work or not” as some people can interpret as he doesn’t while others can interpret as he does feel. - Fandom - Honkai Star rail. Character - Boothill. Genre - Fluffy and "comedy" (?) -

He never thought he would want to feel again.

That’s the truth about Boothill, “All about him”. He never thought he would ever visit the mechanic that helped him modify his body. He made all sorts of modifications all around his body, he didn’t even consider himself human… Or even alive anymore. When his family died… When no one came alive from that whole mess… He wished he died together with his family.

And, it’s true that: A part of him died together with his whole family. He never thought he could ever wish to feel, wish to touch or even just wish to have someone around - to be able to feel their touch.

It was only when YOU came around that he changed minds.

The first and only modification he made after you two got into a relationship was: To fix his sensors, to make him be able to feel your touch… To feel the little kisses you would give to him. Not only that, but also made some little adaptations of his model. (Especially ones to help in cold weather.)

So, basically. You made him WANT to feel again, to be human and less... Dead? He knew he wanted to feel alive... For once. [Imagine u die, how would he react-]

Extra.

“Never thought you would back off your words, mister.” - The scientist and his mechanic, Cynthia said with an amused expression - “Thought you would try to back off of any relationship and keep with that tough act. Hah. That bitch owes me 10 dollars.” “Di’ya seriously made a bet out of this? Ya’ll are crazy” - Boothill would say, rolling his eyes while the mechanic slapped his hand - “MOTHERFUDGER!- THOSE SENSORS ARE TOO HIGH!” “Never offend your mechanic, Boothill… I could do worse. Would you like to have a baby shark playing everytime you shoot something?” - That was enough to make Boothill silent - “And yes, I’m a bit crazy but… Who isn’t? You are too.” “Maybe.” “You eat bullets, that’s crazy enough for me.” “Daughter of a really nice lady, you eat motherfudger dices!” “…I started that as a way to get nice rolls on RPGS but now it is an addiction” - Cynthia would end this discussion bringing a new topic - “So… Who’s the lucky one? Never did I thought you would be with heart eyes all over somebody.” “I don’t have- Heart eyes. Don’t know what ya’ yappin’ about.” “Oh come ON! I’m a Love guru, you CAN trust me!” “…Nice lady, how many diplomas do you have?” “I faked all of them, so I don’t know.”

[hugmekenobi]

S3: The Bad Batch (5)

Chapter Five: The Return

Gif by @theworstbatch

Series Summary: Ever since Eriadu, Clone Force 99 had been a fractured squad. Months have passed but you're finally back with the Batch but Omega is still out there and you won't stop until you find her again.

Chapter Summary: Will a mission to an Imperial facility be the thing that allows you, Hunter and Crosshair to reconcile?

Masterlist for S1 and S2

<Previous Chapter

Genre: Friends (idiots) to Lovers (we're in the lovers stage now)

Chapter Warnings: Canon-typical violence, again we have my interpretation of headspaces, limited use of y/n, fluff, reference to past character death, angsty conversations, PDA (kissing and some brief spicy thoughts), brief innuendo, mentions/ references to scars and torture, reader, Hunter and Crosshair are all a lil mean to each other, me making up how the Force works, I give some of Crosshair and Hunter's past fights some more lore, fun family teasing dynamics

Word Count: 8K

Author's notes: Had a lot of fun incorporating reader into this one! Hope you like it too! And the work for Ch6 will begin today too!

Omega released a content sigh as she opened her eyes upon feeling the warmth of the sun on her face. As she took in the familiar walls and gave Lula an affectionate squeeze, part of her still couldn’t believe she was really here again.

“Looks who’s awake!” Wrecker called out jovially.

“How’d you sleep?” Hunter enquired as she came down.

“Better than ever.” She replied. 

“Delivery from Shep and Lyana.” Wrecker chucked her a piece of fruit.

“Another one?” Omega remarked lightly as she caught it. It had been a few days since they’d returned to Pabu and Shep and Lyana had been incredibly accommodating in the provision of clothes and food since she’d been back.

“They’re happy you’re back.” You said cheerily as you handed Wrecker and Hunter their mugs of caf and sipped from your own. Since being back, you’d all slipped out of your armour and for you this had also meant allowing the warm Pabu sun soak into your skin so there’d been occasions where you’d removed your top layer and gloves. You’d stopped hiding the scars from your torture, but it had meant you needed to fill Omega in on certain events.

“And so are we.” Hunter added with a smile as he slipped an arm around your waist.

“Where’s Crosshair?” Omega asked as she looked around the ship.

“He wasn’t on the ship when we woke up.” Wrecker replied.

“He’s… still adjusting.” Hunter added.

“I’ll check on him.” Omega said breezily before she departed the ship.

The three of you shared a mildly concerned look as she left.

--

Crosshair watched his shot go wide yet again.

“Greetings, Omega!” AZ shouted with a cheery wave to the girl standing in the distance.

Crosshair glanced her direction but quickly went to focus on shooting the fruit out of AZ’s hand again but released a low groan as he saw that his hand continued to quiver, making his grip and aim unsteady.

Omega made her way down to the beach cove and gave Batcher a few dotting pats before she came to crouch beside Crosshair. She noted the bowl of fruits on the rock he was positioned behind. “Shep and Lyana found you then?”

“Their ability to do so is uncanny.” Crosshair responded dryly.

“I know what you’re doing, Crosshair, but you can’t keep hiding. You need to talk to them.” She advised, the ‘them’ referring to you and Hunter.

“I’m not hiding. I’m training.” Crosshair deflected as he readied his rifle and got the fruit in his sights, but his shot missed. He stared at his hand in anger and aggravation. What good was a sniper who couldn’t make a simple, unopposed shot?

“You know, I’m sure AZ could look at your hand for you.” Omega suggested.

Crosshair exhaled a sharp sigh. “I’m fine.”

Sensing his wall was well and truly up on the matter, she changed tact, “So what skills does this require, besides good sight?”

“Being a sniper is more than just looking scope. It’s about patience. Reading the environment.” He half-turned his head. “And knowing when you’ve got eyes on you.”

Omega looked up past his shoulder to see the three of you watching them from the top of the cliff edge.

“They don’t trust me.” Crosshair stated matter-of-factly.

“Give it time. But you will have to talk to them.” Omega reminded him with a soft pat on his back.

Crosshair only gave a non-committal hum before he went back to his rifle.

--

“Not sure it was a good idea to give Crosshair back his rifle.” Hunter commented.

“Omega trusts him. That’s good enough for me.” Wrecker replied. “And well, he hasn’t tried to kill you yet.” He added, looking to you.

“Oh, yes, that’s a great comfort, Wrecker. Thank you so much.” You replied, voice dripping with sarcasm.

Wrecker raised his hands in appeasement. “All I’m saying is that it might be an idea to talk things out again.”

“Cause that went so well last time.” You muttered.

The sound of a ship approaching interrupted further discussion.

Hunter glanced up to see Echo’s shuttle and he whistled down to the other two but as he got up to leave, he noticed the stare you were giving him. It was pointed but there was something else behind it that he couldn’t quite label, “What?”

“ ‘What?’ he asks like I can just give a simple reply as to how whistling is attractive.” You mumbled, avoiding his gaze as you rather hurriedly stepped past him.

Hunter smiled at your back and fondly shook his head in your direction before he caught up to you and Wrecker.

--

“It’s Echo!” Omega cheered as she saw the ship fly overhead.

“Perfect.” Crosshair grumbled.

“I have tabulated your shooting accuracy. Your target success rate was at 53%. Well below your average.” AZ helpfully informed him.

Hearing that only made his mood worse. Crosshair did not respond to the droid, instead he just trailed behind Omega as they made their way to the top of the island.

--

You grinned as you saw Echo and Omega share a brief hug.

“What? No hug for me?” Crosshair quipped as he approached.

Echo scoffed, “That depends how good your intel is.”

Crosshair grunted in return. At least that felt somewhat normal.

--

The sun was setting as the six of you took your seats around Shep’s table, the golden glow adding some much-needed softness and warmth to the atmosphere. He’d been kind enough to let you all use his residence as a place to gather and think- there had been numerous offers of setting up places of your own since you’d all returned but until this business with Tantiss had reached an official conclusion, it felt too much like tempting fate to accept.

“They were using clones for testing, taking samples. Most were held in the detention wing, but I never saw what was in the vault.” Omega told the rest of you. “Even Emerie wasn’t allowed access.”

“Emerie?” Echo repeated.

“She works for Hemlock. She’s a clone, like us. Like me.”

Echo reflected on that for a moment before he addressed Crosshair, “And what about you? Anything else to add?”

“I was a prisoner. Not much to tell.”

You and Hunter both narrowed your eyes at him. He was holding something back.

“We’ve been searching for this base for a long time. Accurate intel’s hard to come by. We need to know all we can before making any moves.” Echo said.

“We have Nala Se’s datapad, but it isn’t working anymore.” Omega slid the device over to Echo. “If we can get it online, we should be able to pull more intel on Tantiss.”

“It could have schematics, entry points.” Hunter theorised. “Maybe even the coordinates of the base itself.”

“Imperial encryption will be a problem, especially without Tech.” Echo said, his tone solemn.

The mood shifted and your eyes couldn’t help but drift over to the empty seat at the end of the table. Regardless of everything else, it was obvious the loss was felt by all of you.

“Plugging it into an Imperial terminal will bypass the encryption.” Crosshair stated after a moment of heavy silence.

“Where do we get one of those?” Wrecker asked.

“I know a facility. Remote, understaffed. It shouldn’t be a problem to infiltrate.”

Hunter debated the risks in his head, “Crosshair, Echo and I will go to this remote facility. You three will stay here.” He looked to you, Wrecker and Omega.

You frowned at him.

“We’re finally together and you want to split us up?” Omega argued.

“Yeah, I’m with the kid on this one.” You piped up.

“We just got you both back. I’m not going to risk either of you getting captured again.” Hunter replied firmly.

Your gaze softened, “Hunter, not that I don’t appreciate the concern, but there’s no way I’m letting you go to an Imperial facility with just two other people. No matter how understaffed it might be.”

“With me, you mean.” Crosshair muttered, the double meaning behind your words was not so subtle. “One of these days you’re going to have to trust me.”

“Give me a reason to.” You snapped back. Hunter’s gentle squeeze of your knee stopped you from saying anything more.

The others all shared in fretful looks of concern.

Omega spoke up to get her argument in before one started again between you, Hunter, and Crosshair. “And I left all those clones behind. I need to do this, Hunter.” Omega implored.

Hunter glanced between Wrecker and Echo who both nodded. He then faced you, and he could tell by the resolve in your eyes that he wasn’t going to win this one. He gave a resigned but agreeable nod of his head.

--

The tension between the two clones could be cut with a knife as they passed each other on the ramp.

“Don’t hold it against him. He’s only worried about you.” Crosshair explained to Omega as Hunter moved out of earshot. He picked up the next case of supplies.

“I know.” Omega said begrudgingly. “You think I should stay behind too?”

“You’re capable, but you are still a kid.”

Omega only scoffed, “I’m older than you are, little brother.” She taunted.

“Never going to quite get used to that.” You said to yourself, sliding your gloves on and long-sleeved top over your head before grabbing your limited pieces of armour from the pile of supplies. You reapplied it as you passed the two of them. But the smile and quiet laugh Crosshair allowed himself at Omega’s words wasn’t lost on you either. You boarded Echo’s ship but saw Hunter standing in the doorway watching as Wrecker walked towards the two of them. Is that-

Hunter offered a rigid nod by way of reply.

“I don’t know if this’ll still fit, but, uh, here.”

Crosshair turned to the sound of Wrecker’s voice and opened the case he held out for him, but he wasn’t expecting to see what he did. And whether he’d want to admit it or not, the meaning behind the fact that they’d kept it after all this time touched a part of him. “My old armour.”

“Yeah, it never felt right to get rid of it.” Wrecker admitted before he boarded the ship.

--

With all of you properly kitted up, the ship came out of hyperspace and entered the ice planet’s atmosphere.

“On approach. Reading minimal life signs, if any.” Echo announced.

The ship landed and the group of you got ready to disembark.

Echo gave the scanners one last preliminary glance, “No heat signatures inside of the depots, and nothing on comms. There’s no one here.”

As you followed the helmeted example of the others and pulled your hood and mask up, and made your way out, you couldn’t shake the feeling that you’d been here before. Something about it felt eerily familiar but you couldn’t fathom why. You dismissed Hunter’s questioning glance and continued further down the steps. Clearing your mind, you studied Tech’s datapad with Hunter.

“Hey, it does fit.” Wrecker said with a laugh as he half-turned and saw Crosshair come outside in the old black and red 99 armour.

You, Echo, and Hunter all looked too, and the sight automatically transported you back in time, but it was now clouded by a lingering darkness.

Crosshair grunted as he fiddled with it and his eyes caught the ice vulture screeching in the now clear and serene sky. This place certainly looked different in the sunlight and without the violent snowstorms, and he only wished the outcome from this mission would be more successful than last time. Your voice pulled him out of his thoughts.

“You said this outpost was remote, not abandoned entirely.” You didn’t bother to hide the element of accusation in your tone.

“Well, I didn’t get daily intel briefings in my cell.”

You rolled your eyes at the unsurprising uncooperative response and watched as Hunter moved past you and closer to his brother.

“I get the feeling there’s more to this place than you’re saying.” Hunter said, the distrust in his voice seeping through.

Batcher’s barking disrupted any potential reply and you all turned to see what had got her riled up.

Hunter pulled out his macrobinoculars, “The sensors are giving off a high-frequency tone. She must be reacting to it.”

“What are the sensors for?” You asked Crosshair.

“Perimeter detection against local raiders.” Crosshair responded, already fearing but knowing where this path of questions might lead.

“You didn’t think to warn us about these raiders before?” You countered heatedly.

“No, they were all dealt with.”

“And how do you know that?”

“Take a guess.” Crosshair snarked.

You only shook your head and scoffed.

The answer didn’t please Hunter either and he found himself standing opposite Crosshair once again only this time he felt himself feeling more confrontational than he’d been before, “Just following orders?”

“If you’re scared, why don’t you wait on the ship. I’m sure someone could offer you some… comfort.” He added with a barbed nod in your direction.

You glowered at him and found yourself uncaring if one of their typical fights ensued. You’d seen them both in hand-to-hand many times and you knew who would come out on top in that scenario.

Hunter took half a step forward after the comment, but Echo pushed them both back.

“Hey, kill each other later. We’re here for a reason. Let’s crack into the datapad and get out of here.”

Omega watched the rest of you head to the base, but Crosshair was yet to follow, “I said talk to them, not argue with them.” She chastised.

Crosshair only sighed and muttered, “They started it.”

Omega released an exasperated breath of her own at the lack of from all three of you and made her way to the base too.

--

As the group of you approached the doors, you saw that the doors were blocked by multiple layers of snow.

You couldn’t help but smile behind your mask as you saw the way Batcher excitedly joined Wrecker and Hunter in the digging process.

With Batcher’s assistance, enough snow was dissipated, and you were able to make your way to the doors.

Wrecker pulled them apart and you all entered the facility.

Omega made her way over to the sound of beeping and took up position by one of the consoles and turned the power and lights on, “The power to this outpost has been nearly depleted by the sensor beacons.”

“Then we need to divert all power to this depot.” Echo directed.

“On it.”

“No one else thinks that’s a risky idea?” You tugged your mask down. “We don’t know if there was more that they were meant to keep out.”

“Nothing showed up on the scans, we should be fine.” Echo replied casually before he signalled to Omega that she should keep going.

Echo took up position by another console and took off his helmet like the rest of his brothers.

“So why’d the Empire abandon this place?” Wrecker wondered aloud.

“I guess it served its purpose.” Crosshair said.

“Hmm. Sounds familiar.” Echo said flatly.

You and Hunter watched as Crosshair moved away from the rest of you towards a darkened section of the room.

--

Crosshair shone his torch around the space and saw the collection of discarded clone helmets and he remembered what it had been like when he’d first arrived here. He remembered the respect Mayday had shown him. A respect and understanding that he hadn’t experienced for a long time, and he knew he couldn’t leave them like this.

Hunter observed his actions. He knew his brother and he wouldn’t behave like that for no reason. Whatever had happened to him clearly held more significant than he was letting on.

You too studied Crosshair carefully as he respectfully but solemnly placed the helmets on the crates. Whatever you were sensing about his place was lingering around him. A quick tap on your shoulder brought your attention back to Hunter who jutted his head back towards the rest of the group.

--

“That should do it.” Omega said as the sensors officially powered down and the power diverted so now the entirety of the outpost was lit.

You all crowded around Echo’s position as he plugged the datapad into the system, “Ah it’s working.” He began to digest the copious amounts of information on the screen. “Look at this manifest. There are even more clone prisoners on Tantiss than we thought.”

You all simultaneously turned towards Crosshair who had emerged from the other room.

Crosshair didn’t say anything, instead he noticed Batcher’s agitated growls and the way she was looking outside.

“Where are you going?” Hunter queried as he saw Crosshair heading towards the exit.

“To check the perimeter.”

You and Omega both went to follow them out, but Echo stopped you both.

“Uh, let them work it out. We have to finish this data transfer.”

“But-” You began to object.

“You three rile each other up too much. This won’t be solved by you all looking for ways to score points.” Echo reminded you sensibly.

You may not like it, but you knew deep down that he was right. You watched the two of them fade into the distance before you turned back to help with the datapad.

--

“Are you going to be my shadow everywhere?” Crosshair asked, removing the toothpick from his mouth, and turning around to face Hunter.

“I know you. There’s more you’re not telling us, and I’m done waiting. Start talking, Crosshair. What did you do to finally get on the Empire’s bad side? Betray them, like you did with us?” The last words were said with particular feeling behind them.

Crosshair glanced down at his hand as the tremors started once more. He curled his hand into a fist and shook it out.

--

“Any schematics on there?” Omega asked Echo.

“None that I’m seeing. Just medical records. I think this is all we’re gonna get. At least it’s something.”

You registered a faint rumbling that reverberated around the outpost, and you noticed Batcher anxiously pacing and sniffing the floor. “Batcher?”

Omega turned upon hearing you and she recognised the unusually tense behaviour being exhibited by her dog. “Something’s wrong.”

--

When he’d been met with stony silence, Hunter had closed the distance between him and his brother, “You thought we’d take you back and not ask questions? I don’t think so. Tell me what changed.” The lack of reaction from his brother was infuriating and it got the better of him. He shoved Crosshair’s chest. “What happened, Crosshair?”

Crosshair avoided Hunter’s intense stare as he went through all the possible outcomes of this interaction, but it all came back to one key detail- he wasn’t able to avoid this any longer, “I killed an Imperial officer.”

Hunter was taken aback. It had been a growing suspicion in his mind, but hearing it be true was an entirely different matter.

“So, yes, I did betray them after they betrayed me.” Hunter may have gotten him to say it, but he wasn’t the only one who knew how to push the correct buttons. “Oh, don’t pretend like this is all about me. I tried to warn you, Hunter.” Crosshair turned his back to him. “I risked everything to send you that message. You ignored it.” He turned again so he could see his words finding their mark. “You let Omega be taken to Tantiss. She went through what she did because you failed.” His emotions started to take control as he shoved Hunter back, “You’re angry because she escaped with my help, not yours. And as for (Y/N)-”

“Don’t-” Hunter snarled.

But Crosshair was in full flow now and although part of him knew he’d regret saying them, he couldn’t help himself as the words spilled from his mouth in a way that he knew would cut his brother deeply, “She thought she hid them in time, but I’ve seen the marks around her wrists from binders that were secured too tightly. I’ve seen the scars on her back. Whatever hell she went through is on you too.”

Hunter clenched his jaw so hard that his teeth hurt. White hot rage coursed his veins and all he could see was red but before he could act, Batcher’s distant barking got his attention. It was then he felt the ice beneath them shaking. “Move.” He yanked Crosshair forward just as- what could only be described as a giant ice wyrm- erupted through the snowy ground.

The resulting impact of the ice cracking had seen to it that the ship collapsed further into the snow, but they couldn’t worry about that now, the two of them scrambled to their feet and sprinted back to the base.

--

You all watched anxiously as the other two made their way back with the creature hot on their heels.

When they got close enough, you all retreated further inside, and they managed to dive through doors just before Wrecker shut them.

There was a deep bellow and growl from the creature as it crashed against the doors.

“I guess we know what the perimeter sensors are meant to keep out.” Omega said agitatedly.

Echo felt your standard ‘I told you so’ stare being trained on him. “Not the time.” He groused.

“ ‘We should be fine’ I believe is what you said.” You remarked, raising your eyebrows at him whilst Hunter and Crosshair got to their feet. “I can’t get the ship-” There was another harsh growl and the entire base shook, bringing all of you to your knees.

“Great, what now?” Wrecker grumbled as he turned his torch on.

“I can’t get the ship out of the snow with that thing out there.” You finished your previous sentence as you stood up. “We have to restore power to the sensor beacons.”

Echo jogged over to where Omega had originally rerouted the power. “There’s a fuse box for the reserve energy grid in the back of this compound.”

“One of us needs to get over there and reset the grid manually.” Crosshair said.

“I’ll do it.” Wrecker volunteered immediately.

“And I can get the defense system reactivated once the power’s back.” Omega said.

“We’ll have to draw the creature beyond the sensors before they reboot, or we’ll be trapped inside the perimeter with that thing.” Hunter reminded everyone.

“I’ll do it.” Crosshair said to him.

“Not alone. We’ll do it together.” Hunter replied firmly.

“You sure about that?” Crosshair challenged.

Echo saw you getting ready to also volunteer to go so he placed a hand on your wrist to subtly tell you to stop, “We’ll spot you both from the tower.”

You shot Echo a questioning look but nodded all the same. Brotherly bonding? You guessed, although you wished it was under different and safer circumstances but then again, this felt pretty fitting for them.

Echo gave you a small nod.

Hunter gave you his macrobinoculars before addressing all of you, “Then let’s get to it before it tears the place apart.” Hunter ordered.

--

Helmets and coverings were back on as Wrecker opened the door and you all waited for Hunter’s signal.

Satisfied that the cost was clear, Hunter made the first move and all of you went to your decided positions.

--

“Three o’clock!” Crosshair shouted as he saw the wyrm angling towards Hunter who was a few metres ahead of him. He drew his rifle and opened fire, but they weren’t making contact, the ice was too good a cover.

Hunter turned his head to see the animal explode from the ground. He was able to dive out the way of its jaws but as he landed, he felt the ice crack beneath his feet, and he plummeted downwards.

--

You put down the binoculars and inhaled deeply before releasing a slow, calming breath. You tapped your comm. “Did you just fall through the ice?” You asked, already knowing the answer.

“I’m fine.” Came his reply.

He may have been fine, but you could hear the slight strain in his voice. A series of annoyed grumbles left your mouth- how many times was this man going to fall through/from things?

“Why? Why is there always a huge monster?” Wrecker’s voice said through the comms as he made his journey across the show. “Echo, (Y/N), do either of you see it?”

“An excellent question.” You muttered to yourself as you and Echo continued to scan the area for the creature. “We don’t have a visual.” You said into your comm in answer to Wrecker’s second question.

--

“Can you get outside the perimeter from down there?” Crosshair called down to Hunter through the hole in the ice.

Hunter scanned the tunnel ahead with his torch. “I’ll follow the tunnel north. Find out.”

“We’ll track you from up here.” Crosshair said. The ‘we’ now referring to him and Batcher who had joined the fray after seeing Hunter fall.

--

You and Echo continued to search for the creature from your posts.

“Target spotted. It’s right on your tail.” Echo said into the comm to Crosshair. “About a hundred meters and closing.”

“Got it.” Crosshair acknowledged. He came to a stop and drew his sniper. He fired at the oncoming shape in the snow, but the result was the same as before and his trembling hand wasn’t helping matters. He shook it out yet again and repositioned his stance just as the wyrm resurfaced. His shots kept hitting the creature’s shell until one of them finally hit the inside of the mouth, causing it to retreat back underground.

“I think I just made it angrier.” Crosshair mused into the comms.

“Fantastic.” Hunter replied dryly as he continued to run through the tunnel.

--

After finally digging through all the snow that had been blocking the entrance, Wrecker finally made it inside, “Okay, I’ve found the fuse box. What’s next kid?”

“Good. Now prime the breaker.” Omega instructed.

--

“You’re about 400 meters from the perimeter.” Crosshair said into his comms for Hunter’s benefit.

You kept your sights trained on Crosshair and the area around him, “No sign of that thing.” You said into your comm, but you weren’t sure if that was a good or bad thing.

--

As they passed the perimeter, Crosshair followed Batcher’s lead this time as she sniffed the ground before letting out an excited bark as she began to dig.

“We’ve found a weak point in the ice. We’ll try to break through.” Crosshair said to Hunter, giving Batcher a praising pat.

“You’ll try?” Both you and Hunter said together.

“Glad you two heard me properly.” Crosshair retorted.

“Crosshair, I swear if-”

“I’ve got him.” Crosshair reassured you with more sincerity than he’d anticipated as he and Batcher began to dig through the ice.

--

“Alright. Breaker’s primed. What next, kid?” Wrecker asked as the screen finally lit up.

“Cycle the navigator. That should be to the right of the main breaker.” Omega replied.

Wrecker did as she said.

--

“Things are getting close in here. Am I gonna have a way out or not?” Hunter asked as the sounds of growls and ice cracking echoed around him.

“If you end up where we hope you do.” Crosshair responded.

“Boom! Power’s online.” Wrecker interjected.

“Hunter, should I activate the beacon?” Omega asked, her hand hovering over the button.

“Wait! We have to make sure the wyrm is past the perimeter.”

--

Crosshair shot into the ice to weaken it and create a bigger opening.

The sound of falling ice and light shining into the tunnel grabbed Hunter’s eye and he made his way under the opening that Crosshair had caused.

“Get up here!” Crosshair urged.

“Not yet. Where’s the wyrm? I can’t find it.”

--

The sound of him refusing to get to safety sent a wave of anxiety through your body but you focused up and helped Echo look around but neither of you could see anything.

--

“It’s past the perimeter!” Hunter said into his comm as a deep bellow sounded in the tunnel and he saw the wyrm emerge ahead of him.

Crosshair pressed his own, “Omega, activate the sensors!”

“Bringing them online now.”

Once Crosshair saw the sensor activate, he reached the end of his rifle down into the tunnel for Hunter to grab onto to pull him out of there. He helped him to his feet just as the wyrm shattered through the ice and the three of them began the run back to the inside of the perimeter.

They dived across the boundary and were relieved to find that the wyrm refused to go any further. It let out an aggrieved howl before moving away from them.

--

You put the binoculars down with a deep sigh of relief as you saw them sitting within the safety of the perimeter.

--

Hunter joined Crosshair in taking off his helmet so as to allow more oxygen to enter his lungs after that rather strenuous task. He then glanced over to see a restrained but warm look on Crosshair’s face as he stroked Batcher.

It was then that something seemed to tentatively slide into place. This mission, weirdly enough, had helped to fill in the gaps. It had brought a sense of normality back and when it had truly come down to it, Crosshair had helped get him to safety.

Crosshair felt Hunter looking at him. He angled his head to meet his stare and as his brother offered a small but sincere nod of gratitude, he gave one back in return.

--

You tugged your hood and mask down and shielded your eyes from the sun as you saw the two oncoming figures and their animal companion.

Echo and Omega came to join you and the three of you watched as their return journey was interrupted by Wrecker running up to them and embracing them both in a needed- but rather one-sided- group hug.

You chuckled as you observed the scene ahead of you and, despite your own worries about Crosshair, it felt good to see that there was room for reconciliation- at least with his own brothers anyway. You weren’t sure how you fit into the equation yet.

“See? They always work it out. And I don’t even see in blood this time. That’s progress.” Echo stated light-heartedly.

“I think the worst I saw between them was after the stampede of Reeks. We wound up having to fix more injures than what we started with.” You reminisced with a smile. The stressful part memory of the incident was pushed to the back of your mind as you remembered that by then, you and Hunter were both experiencing the same feelings for each other. Of course, you hadn’t exactly known that at the time, that information had come out much later.

“Do you know what that was about?” Echo asked you.

You fully looked at him now. “No? I’d left to get more medical supplies. I’d assumed Crosshair just called him an idiot for coming down there after I fell in.”

“I mean, that phrase was certainly used but not in the way you thought.”

You didn’t like the teasing insinuation in his tone. “Then why?” You asked carefully.

“It definitely had nothing to do with the fact that he was the first one down there to get you out and took a horn to the rib for his troubles…”

A tossed your head back and humiliated groan left you, “No…”

“Crosshair saw a lot from you two, he always knew just what to say to get the reaction from Hunter that merely proved what we all already knew.” Echo chortled, “Well, almost everybody.”

“Are you kidding me?” Embarrassment graced your face.

“I mean it was so obvious by that point…”

“Yes, Echo.” You mumbled as you exhaled a short, sharp breath.

“The fact that a wounded Hunter still chose to have it out with Crosshair rather than admit it was something else that caused him to come to your aid without an ounce of strategic thinking…”

“Thank you, Echo.” You said through gritted teeth as you saw the delighted grin on Omega’s face as she heard all of this.

“Didn’t you put it together that after that moment you two started ending up in a lot more tiny spaces with conveniently ‘broken’ doors?”

“Alright, you’ve made your point.” You interjected hastily before he could carry on. The obliviousness and- quite frankly- idiocy that you two had conducted yourselves in for the longest time was an element of your relationship you’d rather forget.

Echo merely shot you a knowing smirk, “You never said I was wrong.”

“I’m moving away from you now.” You gave his shoulder a playful shove.

Omega watched you jog away from them but the emotions she was experiencing were far more conflicting. “Do you think the intel we recovered will help you and Rex?”

“We still don’t know the coordinates of Tantiss. But between the datapad and all you and Crosshair have told me, we’re closing to finding and freeing those clones.” Echo replied.

“I wished I could’ve done more to help them.” Omega reflected with regret.

“You did all you could, kid.” Echo laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “And you did exactly what you’re supposed to do. You got out of there.”

--

You managed to give Crosshair a genuine smile of thanks as he and Wrecker passed you by.

Hunter regarded you curiously, “You didn’t need to meet me, I was-”

You placed a hand on his chest and brought yourself closer to him. You didn’t know if your headspace was because things had gotten unnecessarily nerve-wracking or because you’d just been reminded of how much time the two of you had wasted but, in all honesty, you didn’t really care, “I’m going to be unprofessional right now.”

He was too busy getting carried away with the feeling of your body pressing against him to properly register your words, “What-” The rest of his question evaporated as he instantly found himself on his back in the snow with you straddling him and it was a position he didn’t mind being in one bit. His hands instinctively came to rest on your hips.

Stop falling through things. That’s four times now. You scolded affectionately as you traced your lips along his jaw and nudged the side of his nose with yours.

“Is that an order?” He rasped into your ear, teeth grazing the sensitive spot behind it.

“A very firm one.” You murmured before planting a brief but sensual kiss to his lips. You got to your feet, pulling him up with you at the same time. You feigned a look of seriousness and propriety, “Now, if you’ll excuse me, Sergeant, I have a ship to recover.”

Hunter found himself not quite wanting to be revert back yet. He kept a hold of your hand and as you went to leave him, he tugged you back to him and kissed you passionately. His hands caressed your back and tangled themselves in the fabric of your top and he used your surprised gasp to deepen the kiss.

You parted from him when your lungs rather inconveniently insisted that they have some air. You stroked a hand through his hair as you saw the emotions behind his eyes. There was more behind that action than just a response what you’d just done. You couldn’t be sure as to what that could be but the only time, he hadn’t been around you was when he’d followed Crosshair outside the first time. “What did he say?” You asked, your voice quiet and soothing.

“Nothing.” Hunter replied quickly. They’d been words designed to strike a nerve and they’d been said and used in anger, he shouldn’t have let them resonate.

“Hunter-”

His relationship was on the mend with Crosshair, and he knew that process still had to start with you both. And… and he wanted that for you two. There’s be no sense in bringing it up and causing further strife when he’d already had your reassurance on the issue. “It’s nothing. Not really.”

You searched his eyes for any lingering hesitation or reluctance, “Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.” He confirmed. Hunter angled his head towards Echo’s ship “Go rescue the ship so we can get outta here.” He said with a fond grin.

“Sir, yes, sir.” You saluted him humorously before you stepped away and made for the ship.

--

Crosshair had watched the two of you from afar. What he had witnessed wasn’t wholly different to how things had been before Kaller but there was something more to it now. What he had seen between you both was pure and unfiltered. There was no hiding, there was no denial or deflection anymore. There was no question or doubt to be had in the intensity and genuine nature of the feelings- in the love- the two of you shared and if he had any shot of fitting back in, he needed to make things right with both of you.

He took a deep breath for courage and headed in your direction.

--

You gently lowered the ship onto more stable ground and released a few tired breaths.

“Not bad. Guess there’s some benefits to having you around.”

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Crosshair come to stand next to you, but you didn’t look at him yet, instead you nudged the toes of your boots through the snow. “Uh huh.” You answered distantly. “Surprised you’re wanting to stand so close to me.”

The way your posture tensed as he approached had not gone unnoticed, “I think we should talk.”

“Oh, do you?” You replied hotly.

Crosshair exhaled an irritated sigh, “Seriously? This is me trying here, can’t you meet me halfway?”

You breathed heavily and fully turned to face him. You crossed your arms as you signalled that he was to go first.

Crosshair cleared his throat before he started to speak, “Seeing that poster… seeing what you truly were and knowing that they all- that he- knew that day on Kamino… I was brought back to that time and all I could think about was how could he fall in love with a Jedi but not the Empire.”

“The two aren’t the same, Crosshair.” You replied sombrely.

“Believe me, I know that now.” Crosshair remarked wryly.

You uncrossed your arms and spoke to him candidly and kept your voice steady, “We can’t get past this if all you see when you look at me is that wanted image of me. If all you see when you look at me is the things that I’ve done. If all you feel when you look at me is hatred because you think my people committed treason.” You stopped as you felt the emotions rise in your throat as they threatened to overcome you. You swallowed roughly before going again, your voice still steady but it had dropped in volume, “If you think I should’ve died along with the rest of them that day… then- then the friend that I had is truly gone.”

Crosshair’s eyes flitted to the ground, then to your lightsaber before he looked back to you, “I really thought the Empire was the way forward… for all of us. I can’t- I can’t speak for how I would’ve acted back then. I wish I could, but I can’t.” He swallowed harshly, “But I can tell you how I will be now.”

“And?” You asked quietly.

“I- I might need some time to adjust but- but as far as I’m concerned, you’re still the same person we met on Devaron that got our asses out of a tricky spot and who fit in with us like you’d been a part of things since the beginning. I won’t turn on you.”

You narrowed your eyes slightly as you studied him but there was no deceit behind his words. No deception or trickery in his face. He meant what he was saying, and it filled you with hope. “Really?”

“Really.” He confirmed before half a smile tugged at him mouth, “Plus, even if I wanted to, I don’t fancy my chances with the rest of them if I tried something.” He joked.

You visibly relaxed. Being at odds with him was never something you wanted to be and if he was open to starting afresh then you could be too. “If it helps, since I chose to leave the Order, technically speaking, I’m probably not even counted as a Jedi anymore.”

Crosshair hummed out a short laugh, “It’s something, I guess.”

“Believe it or not, a wanted ad was not how I planned for you to find out so, for what it’s worth, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you in the time after Devaron.”

He dipped his head in acceptance. “Probably did yourself a favour.” He mumbled sheepishly.

“Probably.” You agreed with a soft laugh.

There was a beat of mildly uncomfortable silence between you before Crosshair spoke in an attempt to ease some of the lingering awkwardness, “So, you and my brother…”

“Don’t start.” You said with an exasperated grin as you held out your hand to him.

Crosshair faltered for a second, but he willed his hand to stay steady as he mirrored your actions.

As you clasped it, you were hit and overpowered by the familiar sensation you had been questioning since arriving and it all connected to the clone in front of you. You withdrew your hand swiftly as the realisation hit you, “It was here.” You said with a shaky breath.

Crosshair was caught off guard by the intensity of your reaction and the words that followed. There’d been no way for you to hear his conversation with Hunter and he hadn’t said anything to anyone else. “I don’t know what you mean.” He denied uneasily.

But you knew now, he couldn’t lie to you about it, “What happened to you to get you to Tantiss. It was on this planet.” You said, titling your head at him, concern, and compassion in your gaze.

The certainty in your voice told him that there’s be no point in lying to you. Crosshair gulped. “How’d you know?”

“I felt it. Months ago, I felt it. I didn’t know that it was you, or what exactly was going on, but I sensed something.” You paused for a second, “I felt the cold and the isolation. And- and the pain. A lot of pain.” You said gravely as you fully comprehended how things had gone for him.

Crosshair avoided your stare. “Well, I made a lot of choices that led me to that.” He said with plenty of self-deprecation.

You laid a delicate hand on his shoulder, “Crosshair, you should never have to experience that type of pain. What you had to go through…” You trailed off with a knowing sigh before continuing, “I’m sorry, really I am.”

Crosshair looked at you with a different type of intensity, “You didn’t either.”

Your breath caught in your throat. You had not been as careful as you’d thought you’d been and it was your turn for denial to spill from your lips, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You may not be a Jedi, but you’re not the only one who can pick up or notice things people think they’re hiding. Sharpshooter, remember?”

You fidgeted with your gloves and found yourself unable to look at him. “They tortu- I did some things- made some choices that I-” You scrambled trying to find the words to explain what he’d seen.

Crosshair shook his head at you to get you to stop, “I’m not in a position to judge, I was wrong to do so when we left that moon.”

You saw the sincerity in his face and nodded gratefully.

You two shared in the quiet of a new mutual understanding before you puffed out a short breath to reset and you activated your comm, “The ship is good to go.”

“And, uh, everyone is still in one piece?” Came Wrecker’s tentative reply.

Crosshair shared in your eye roll. Evidently the others had been even more sceptical about this moment than he’d been.

“Yes, Wrecker. Civilised conversation is a possibility sometimes.” You kidded in return, “Now, can we please leave this planet?”

--

Crosshair waited for Hunter to emerge from the base as the rest of you boarded the ship. As he saw him getting ready to walk past, he called his name, “Hunter?”

Hunter paused and glanced back at him expectantly.

“I… thought I knew what I was getting into with the Empire. I thought I was being a good soldier.” Crosshair admitted, keeping his back to him in case the look on his face was the one that he feared he would see.

Hunter took a second to find the right words, “Nobody really understood what was happening back then.”

Crosshair lifted his head in surprise at the accepting tone in Hunter’s voice. Maybe there truly was a way forward. He turned around, “I’ve done things. I’ve made mistakes.”

“I have regrets too, Crosshair. All we can do is keep trying to be better.” He found his eyes being drawn to yours as you waited by the doorway, but he brought them back to his brother. “And who knows? There might be hope for us yet.”

Crosshair stole one last glance up at the ice vulture screeching in the sky. Hope? Not a sentiment he had been overly familiar with these past few months, but he needed it. He started to walk towards the ramp.

Hunter paused to stand by you as you leaned against the entry way. The supportive and loving way you were looking at him made his heartbeat that little bit faster but there was also a mischievous gleam in your eyes that sent warmth thrumming through his veins. “Stop that.”

“Am I not allowed to look at you, sir?” You queried, a teasing lilt to your voice. A delighted smirk graced your face as you saw the way his throat bobbed as he attempted to remain composed.

He caged you against the wall, “You can’t play that game right now.” He warned, his voice a low rasp.

Your own breathing hitched as his body pushed against yours. “What game?” You managed to murmur.

“Oh, well, if this behaviour is going to continue to be a running theme, you can just leave me here.” Crosshair said with light-hearted mocking. “I don’t know what’s worse, dealing with you two now or dealing with how you to were before all this became... official.”

“You get used to it!” Omega called from the belly of the ship.

“We hardly ever interrupt them now!” Wrecker added.

“Cut it out!” Hunter barked as he stepped away from you and gathered himself.

You also took a moment to straighten up and shake off the lingering anticipation in your veins.

“Yeah, plus he’s a lot more relaxed since they finally worked up the courage to actually make it real!” Echo’s voice entered the conversation.

“I’ll bet.” Crosshair remarked with a smirk.

“Get your ass on the ship.” You retorted with a good-humoured shove to his back.

Crosshair chuckled quietly to himself as he half-stumbled into the ship.

“Back to professionals?” Hunter advised as he shook his head in response to the antics of his family.

“Probably a good idea.” You agreed with a pleasant grin before the two of you fully entered the ship just as the ramp came up and it took off.

--

It may have been at your expense, but that small teasing moment had symbolised that the mending of the relationships you all had once was indeed possible. Finally, things were starting to feel more like the used to be.

Next Chapter (to be posted)>

Tagging: @noeasyisnoisy, @andreaaxy, @dominoeffectsworld, @arctrooper69, @nightmonkeysstuff, @notgonnaedit

[physalian]

I don’t know if you’ve written about this, but I really like the way you explain things, so I’d like to ask.

What do you say about writing a book with different perspectives. Like.. a book starts off from one perspective. But then the whole book goes on with the other character’s perspective. (The 2nd pov belonging to the main character)

But what do you say about switching perspectives in general? How can it be executed well?👀

I kind of did this on this post about what style of POV and narration you want to do, as well as the troubles of head-hopping, but what you're asking is a bit different, I think. So, two things I’d want to know:

How long are we following the first character before we switch over?

Do you intend to make this first POV the prologue or in any way clear to the reader that this isn’t the actual protagonist?

Asking because doing this runs the risk of bait-and-switching your readers. I’m going to assume First Narrator remains a character in the story and most of the time when this happens, the opening narrator ends up being the villain/antagonist. The bait-and-switch confusion will happen if you’re not clear that this is temporary, because readers expect the first narrator to be the protagonist—even in ensemble casts where you rotate narrators. Otherwise, your readers are going to be wondering:

A) When is First Narrator getting another POV? B) Why isn’t First Narrator getting another POV? C) Why did we start with First Narrator? Couldn’t you have just worked whatever information is given in that POV somewhere else?

All that goes out the window if you make it clear this one-off narration is a prologue. Prologues kind of have no rules. They can be a message from the future narrator, like in Twilight, or a classic “reader beware this story might make you one of us” fourth-wall break.

It could be the set-up of a mystery, like in police procedural shows where episodes begin with the crime, then cut back to the main cast here to solve it. The meta-context of a prologue lets your readers know this bit of story is an outlier from the rest of the book and we should not expect something similar again, nor be disappointed and confused when it doesn’t happen.

—

Now then. Multiple narrators.

I have never written a story, except a couple one-shots, where I only have one narrator. Regardless of what POV you write in, there’s benefits to both sides. If you only have one narrator, you are locked onto that character and only that character, save for whatever visions/videos/journal entries/dream sequences the narrative allows to quasi-follow another character. This forces you to keep your protagonist active in the story and make them the avenue through which all information is given, for better or for worse.

Multiple POV, however, lends itself to feeling more… cinematic. You run the risk of your protagonist getting lost in the shuffle, but now they no longer must be present for every scene. They can be asleep or in another location or otherwise occupied. It also gives you the chance to flavor your writing with the personalities of your other narrators. I have a character in ENNS who’s autistic, and how I write his POV is very different from the rest of the cast.

It also lets your characters be biased and unreliable in how they describe things, which you can take to some very interesting ends. Narrator A might loathe Narrator B and in A’s POV, they’re just nasty toward how they interpret B’s actions. When we cut back to B, it’s a whole different ballgame.

Now you have “A said, B said, and the Truth”. It also lets you get rife with dramatic irony in a way that Single POV can’t. The amount of information the reader can learn from multiple characters that the actual characters are clueless about can be entertainingly frustrating.

Check out the POV post for a recommendation on how to go about it logistically, but generally, even with an ensemble cast, you still have a “lead” character, one that stands just a little bit higher than the others as an anchor point for the audience.

Even in TV shows like Teen Titans, where they’re very much an ensemble cast, they have entire seasons with arcs for one character, and every episode tends to have the “character of the day” as the anchor of that episode’s story. I’d go one chapter in your lead character’s POV before switching over to other narrators, for the sake of endearing your readers to your hero, instead of confusing them by cutting away too soon. Go any longer than one chapter, and you risk confusing your audience that wasn't expecting multiple POV, without banner style headings.

[ameamedraws]

More yugioh sketches but this time it’s me figuring out how to draw the yugis

[frnkiebby]

7

he’s so goddamn cute i stg~🎃

(the game)

[bravevolunteer]

i know no one asked but here are my updated thoughts on mimic

[easeupkid]

sometimes i really am as dense as a brick

[w0lfwren]

all my friends funnyposting in my dms while i’m mourning a dead man.

[alienssstufff]

smth smth builder’s signature styles whatever - I love how instantly recognisable it is to be in a Bdubs build whilst not be jarring. This shot of both sides of the river is a wonderful example

The custom trees. Are so freaking tall in compare to the default, yet their presence doesn’t feel obstructive. You don’t feel ‘blocked out’ from the environment as the deliberate thinness of the trunks, what height the leaves on the pine start at give just enough breathe room to: look through, catch glimpses of the other side, and be invited to Go Through It.

He says it in his commentary, a lot of what he builds is heavily grounded in realism. This area is not meant to be the centre of attention, the purpose of these trees is to Immerse and act as transition as one leaves the rest of the minecraft world and into Bdubs’ ‘more natural’ one — where the trees are grey, and the water is clear.

I’m so fucking serious this random cut of the river is my favourite part in the entirety of this forest, I like how still it looks, I like how clear it is yet how dark it is not only to imply depth but that illusion that the river is reflecting its surroundings how you can even say the river is a dark green! Being able to come to these interpretations for something so simple to me perfectly captures what he wants in builds like these.

And it STILL doesnt feel out of place because he does something like THIS. The way the stream gets progressively more and more opaque until it meets the actual main river is genius work. It gives the impression the water in Bdubs’ place is fresh in compare to the saltier, deeper water of the larger river it transitions.

😭And a final thing, I know the white glass he used was done to suggest rushing water but I swearrr he has like a sixth sense in how to place them perfectly. (Forgive my shitty camera) From this distance if you squint you can see these dark and lighter shadows made by the trees, and by putting where the white spots are placed now highlights these small rays of sunshine poking through the leaves and shining on the river and I think that’s unintentionally the coolest thing.

whhwwh idk how to end this, I just really liked this new video for reasons above and wanted to tell the world why.

BdoubleO100 you never miss. Forever and ever.

Here’s a shaky picture of Etho on his horse if you’ve made it this far :]

[prans-micellar-water]

I have some thoughts brewing abt my gender and sexuality that I might feel ready to share soon. Idk idk

[ham1lton]

i’m with the band.

pairing(s): lando norris x singer!reader

warnings: v slightly angsty? but happy ending.

summary: pop band CHANGE! has just released their anticipated third album; however, fans notice that the songs seem to tell an unsavory story….

author's note: i didn’t know whether u wanted me to do a happy song or sad but i like drama. i refer to y/n’s bandmates by their roles. so guitarist, bassist and drummer so you can add their names in! also this album is loosely based on SAWAYAMA and 5sos’s album youngblood. listen to them both if u haven’t!! incredible albums. if you can name all these songs that have been mentioned then MWAH!!! 😍

liked by harrystyles, landonorris and 3,388,728 others.

changeband: thank you so much to the best, coolest and awesomest fans in the fucking planet. shoutout to everyone who showed up to our listening party in philly last week! you were metal as hell and we loved meeting everyone of you. no more fomo for the rest of you all now that our newest album is now out! please stream and buy and recommend to your friends and family and colleagues and even that annoying neighbour that everyone hates. we love you and we love this album!! here are some behind the scenes pics of us making and brainstorming this baby!

user1: this album is sooo good!

user2: ooh y/n got her masters in cuntology with a concentration in motherlogical studies from the university of servington… that NOTE in dynasty??? oh goddddd.

-> user4: DYNAAAASSSSTTTTYYYY 🗣️🔊

user3: the casual photo dump like they haven’t released the album of the CENTURY?

user8: you guys have come such a far way from working minimum wage and having to pool money for a recording booth omg. i’m so proud of you guys 🥺

*liked by changeband.*

user5: the way guitarist is eating this album. whoever greenlit her guitar solos i want to kiss them on the mouth.

user28: bad friend is my fav! both the acoustic vers and the normal vers!! PUT UR HANDS UP IF UR NOT GOOD AT THIS STUFF!!!! 😍😍

liked by messyass1, messyass2 and 278,727 others.

ham1ltonshaderoom: girl band CHANGE! have released their new album ‘babylon’ and it has sent twitter in flames after the first tweet (pictured above) went viral. especially after the songs ‘lie to me’ and ‘want u back’ both contain lyrics that have sent fans of the power couple lando norris and y/n l/n spiralling. what do you all think of the drama ham1ltons?

user1: i do think it’s slightly suspicious… not necessarily a break up confirmation but it’s interesting. especially as she didn’t even bother to confirm or deny whether or not they’re still together on jimmy fallon….

user2: why do we speculate into these celebs lives? if they broke up, who cares and if they’re together… who cares?

hater1: who gives a fuck. she can’t even sing.

-> user3: you clearly gaf if you’re commenting under y/n related posts???

loveislanduk: don’t worry y/n! if need be, you can always find a new man on the island!

-> user98: messy asf 😭

user6: is tkl supposed to be y/n talking about how lando was super adored and that although he could have any girl, she’d be the only one who really loved him?

-> user4: tokyo love hotel is a homage to drummer’s japanese heritage not a lando worship song?? also it’s a metaphor for their heritages as three of them are women of colour who grew up in the west and saw their cultures exoticised.

-> user6: ‘yeah your fascination is my world’. that could be interpreted as her saying ‘your obsession is my boyfriend’.

-> user4: girl yeah but that’d be a lazy one would it not? lando ain’t that special 😭 i think that it’s reductionist to make everything she writes about a man and not her.

user44: calling the album babylon after the bible story? maybe they started with the idea of creating this amazing relationship and then grew apart? they stopped speaking each other’s language?

-> user56: maybe you need to put this energy into analysing your resume and figuring out why you’re still unemployed….

user65: idc if she broke up with that troll because that’d mean drummery/n will thrive!!

-> user9: um… u mean guitaristy/n??

-> user34: both wrong. bassisty/n is the best version!!!

————————————————————————

CHANGE’S INTERVIEW W/ JIMMY FALLON (transcript)

JIMMY FALLON: welcome, everyone! we have a special treat for you tonight. please give it up for the current leaders of the world charts, the incredible band CHANGE!"

(audience applause as the girls take their seats)

FALLON: alright, alright! now, there have been some rumours swirling around about your latest album and its connection to some personal matters. especially in regards to y/n. care to shed some light on that?

Y/N: well, jimmy, first of all, thank you for having us. i’m aware that there have been some rumours, but you know how it is. people love to speculate. our music is definitely personal, and yeah, it does reflect some of what's been going on in my life but i want to set the record straight. the songs on our album are inspired by a variety of our experiences, including relationships, but they're not always directly about any specific individuals. sometimes i’m inspired by other forms of media or my loved ones’ experiences. that’s the joy of making art, it can be whatever you want.

DRUMMER: yeah, and y/n is such a talented songwriter. she has this incredible ability to channel her emotions into our music and make you feel whatever she wants.

BASSIST: exactly. we're just here to make music that connects with people, and if our songs happen to resonate with someone going through a breakup? then we've done our job.

FALLON: is it true that you’re performing two songs for us tonight? can you confirm which ones?

GUITARIST: yes! we’re performing ‘want u back’ and ‘frankenstein’. both of our newest singles from babylon.

FALLON: well, you heard them, folks! get ready for an amazing performance from CHANGE!

————————————————————————

————————————————————————

liked by bassist, guitarist and 1,272,973 others.

yourusername: we’re fine y’all perfectly fine please don’t call paw patrol.

user1: OH THANK GOD.

landonorris: she’s lying. i’m in my lemonade era…🍋

-> user23: you wish you could be that iconic. you’re in your dogwater era.

-> landonorris: UNPROVOKED???

user3: we needed this confirmation.

user8: PARENTS AREN’T DIVORCED WE WON 🙌

landonorris: now can you release the bonus tracks please please please 🙏🏼 ‼️😩

-> bassist: no :)

-> guitarist: yes :)

-> drummer: one of them is lying… guess who and i’ll send the whole album plus excluded tracks.

-> landonorris: … um 😅 guitarist?

-> drummer: WRONG ‼️ but i’m scared you’re gonna complain to y/n so i’ll send them over to you 🙄

user27: at least we’re back to having lando being CHANGE!’s biggest fans. what did he think of ‘exile’?

-> yourusername: he cried so hard he threw up.

-> user27: real shit.

————————————————————————

taglist: @cuteskz @molten-m122 @dangeroustacoalienbiscuit @booksandflowrs @mxdi0 @k1arsworld @alexmarie29 @luckyladycreator2 @23victoria (let me know via ask if you’d like to be removed).

wanna get tagged in any future works? sign up for my taglist!

[alcoholfreenayeon]

WHAT IF you are at a bar or something and Sana and Miyeon come to entice you back to their place 😈😈 (sana and miyeon x male reader) 🤭🤭

A/N: It’s finally done bestie, hope you enjoy🤭!

I want that

CW: male!reader x Sana and Miyeon, NSFW, Smut, somewhat hardcore, hint of fluff.

You were sitting alone at the booth, your glass empty and watching the tv, some soccer game going on but you weren’t really paying attention. Feeling someone gaze at you every now and then, it was the average day at the bar, not too crowded but you wouldn’t say it’s empty either. Your friends had left a few minutes earlier because they all had some reason or the other. Work, partners, whatever. It didn’t matter though, you liked your own company at times, it gave you some time to reflect on things.

As you contemplated between going home or having another drink, you were interrupted when someone asked if they could sit with you. Looking up at the person, you saw an absolute goddess, she was easily one of the most beautiful woman you had ever seen. You were too much in awe to reply but the girl just politely smiled and took your lack of objection as a yes and sat down.

“You don’t mind if my friend joins right?”, she asked sweetly.

“Uh, no”, you replied still awestruck when you turned to look at the friend and nearly fell out of your chair. Like the first girl was absolutely stunning but her friend, god you found her so irresistibly beautiful. Your mouth open while she sat down.

“I’m Sana and this is Miyeon”, the first girl introduced.

“h-hi, ahem, Hey, I’m Y/N”, you replied, losing your voice for a second.

The girls giggled and smiled prettily at you. They seemed really calm yet somewhat excited while you were losing composure like anything, you couldn’t even decide which one of them to look at. Somehow you managed to not seem like a complete idiot and weirdo and made some conversation.

Everything was going smoothly over the next few minutes, you were even managing to gain some confidence when felt something brush your foot and then saw Miyeon glance at you for a second, her cheeks slightly flushed before she looked away, smiling. You suddenly realized your own heart was beating quickly for some reason and cleared your throat trying to calm yourself down.

“Do you wanna come with us?”, Miyeon asked out of the blue, suppressing a smile. Sana giggled and gave her a nudge.

You felt dumbstruck, was this a joke? What did they mean by that because you totally thought you were interpreting that in a few different ways, all of which seemed greatly appealing but you couldn’t help but also think that maybe you didn’t understand what Miyeon asked. “Uhm…what?”, you choke, not knowing how to respond.

“I don’t live very far from here, the bar will close soon, maybe we can continue our…fun over there”, she said innocently batting her eyes at you while smiling so prettily.

Now, you’ve definitely heard of people getting killed like this but surely this was not the case, like seriously there’s no way these beautiful girls were some sort of deranged psychopaths after your kidneys or something. Your brain was practically shouting at you to proceed with caution but your heart whispered oh so convincingly that this was heading exactly where you never in your wildest dreams would have imagined. Unfortunately for your brain, your heart had you sold and any thoughts to take caution fell on deaf ears.

“Oh that sounds great, but I can’t drive since I’ve had a few drinks”, you manage, you could feel adrenaline pumping through your body as you thought of all the possibilities.

“That’s ok, we can just take a Uber, that’s okay with you right?”, Sana offered.

Sitting between the two girls in car, you wonder what you’d done to be so lucky. However, your thoughts are interrupted when you feel Sana put her hand on your knee before slowly starting to pull it upwards, onto your thighs, teasingly.

You freeze, not knowing how to react, understandably so and that’s when Sana leans in and whispers, “Does this excite you?”

You nearly whimpered and just as you are about to turn towards her, Miyeon’s voice stops you, “Unnie! You are so greedy, you can’t have all his attention.”

Before the words even sink in, you feel Miyeon grab your cheeks with both hands and she begins to make out with you sloppily.

This had to be heaven right? Like, surely life can’t get better than this, you think to yourself.

You begin to kiss her back and she seemed surprised for a moment before continuing but with more aggression. At the same time, Sana was practically in your pants and made some cheeky comment probably but you didn’t hear it, you were too engrossed with making out with Miyeon.

This continued for a few minutes before Miyeon pulled back, her cheeks slightly flushed and she was smiling mischievously while Sana was biting her lips and tying up her hair. You were trying to breath normally even though you felt out of breath but you didn’t wanna let the girls know that. Fortunately, before anything else could happen you had arrived at the destination and the three of you got out. You offered to pay but the girls insisted that they would.

“You can give us something else in return”, Sana said leaning towards you, clearing the last doubts of where this night was headed.

You were breathing hard now, as Sana noisily sucked on your tip while looking up at you. After a few moments, she stopped sucking, winked at you and then practically swallowed you all the way to your base. That took you by so much surprise you couldn’t do anything except move your hands on her head, inhaling sharply.

This continued for far less time than you would have liked but you had to make her stop or else she would end up finishing you there. You somehow manage to pull her off and Sana pouts a little but doesn’t complain. You pant and try to reset but before you can completely recover you feel another pair of lips taking in your cock. At this point your heart feels like it could explode. Miyeon struggles to take you as deep as Sana but makes up for it by somehow having more enthusiasm than her wanting to straight up suck the life out of you.

You end up making her stop after a few minutes too and take another few seconds to calm yourself down. It was getting harder and harder to that though, between feeling so desperate for your release and the fact that Miyeon had been kissing you for the past minute.

You become distracted when you see Sana lay on the bed on her stomach and look back at you seductively and you can’t help yourself and you get on top of her, she squeals excitedly when she feels you climb on her, arching her back. You were feeling feral now after being close to cumming twice and weren’t going to go easy at all.

Entering her took both of your breaths away, you sighed shakily, trying to compose yourself while Sana’s eyes stooped dreamily while she bit her lips. She didn’t let you off easily though and almost immediately started to push back against you forcing you to grab her shoulders and hold her down. She giggled at that but that turned into a gasp real quick when you began pounding her hard. She gripped the bedsheets tightly, panting as you filling her repeatedly. It only took you a few minutes of fucking her before you felt her clench and cum, letting out quiet moans as she came.

You smirked, she has been acting really cocky for a while now so it felt good to see her be so helpless now. Giving her only a few moments of rest before you begin pounding her again. You place your hand on her cheek, raising her head a little and to your satisfaction, Sana follows your lead and gently bites your fingers, whimpering as that only drives you to become rougher.

It was becoming harder and harder for you to focus on anything else but you felt Miyeon climb on the bed too, looking at you and Sana somewhat enviously. But you were not able to focus on that for too long. Especially when Sana was whining now as she was getting close to cumming once again which of course made her pussy tighter as she squeezed and clenched. Just when you thought you were about to reach the point of no return, Sana cums and you somehow manage to hold on. Both of you panting hard, a blissful smile on Sana’s face as she was slowly getting down from her high.

You turned to face Miyeon and found her pouting, “Did you really like her so much that you couldn’t even look at me?”

“Uhm….”, you tried to find your words but you had no defense.

“No”, she put a finger on your lips, “Don’t make excuses….if you really want to prove me wrong then do it through your actions”, she said while pulling you on top of her. “If you really mean it, then, Ruin. Me.”.

Those words turned on something inside of you, not that you needed encouragement to fuck her.

Pinning her hands either side of her head, you waste no time and enter her and it was honestly, quite possibly the best sensation you had ever felt. You begin to thrust immediately, ramming as deep as you can each thrust, stretching her slightly. You weren’t sure how long you would be able to last considering you were already quite on edge from Sana and the fact that Miyeon was staring at you so intently didn’t help at all.

At the same time, you felt her fists clench as each thrust was literally seeming to take her breath away. The two of you fucked for…..minutes?….an hour?….you didn’t even know, it felt like a decent amount of time but it wasn’t enough. Like you didn’t want this to ever end. You just wanted to keep fucking her for forever. At some point Miyeon broke through your grip and freed her hands, wrapping it around your shoulders, trying to pull you closer.

You were panting with each thrust now, trying not to cum, aware of how dangerously close you were to your release, ready to pull out any second.

That’s when Miyeon, grabbed your face, staring at you a moment too long and gave you a deep kiss, “Stay in me, don’t pull out, fill me up…please”, she whimpered practically while at the same time wrapping her legs around your waist tightly not giving you much of a choice really. Not that you had any problems with that. You began to pound her faster, both of you moving in perfect rhythm.

That’s when Miyeon cums, managing a strangled gasp as she shakes with pleasure, her convulsions send you over the edge as well and you practically explode inside her, wave after wave of your cum filling her up. As you both came together, it felt euphoric and eternal yet at the same time it also felt like it only lasted for a second. You both were panting heavily, looking at each other and you hesitated a little bit and leant in, kissing her passionately for a few seconds before you pull away. Miyeon blushes a little when you pull away, slowly letting go of you, almost like she wanted to hold on for a bit more.

Sana scoots over, “oh, you both seemed to enjoy it a lot more, Y/N was she really that much better than me?, she said smiling mischievously.

You freeze, glancing at Miyeon who looked like she would slap you if you gave the wrong answer. You fumbled over your words without saying any real answer which caused both girls to giggle which made you realize they were just teasing.

“Well, it’s quite late and us girls need our sleep”, Sana said suddenly, signaling that was time for you to leave. “Especially, after you tired us out so much”, Miyeon added with a giggle.

You were handed your clothes by Miyeon, a bit puzzled because you were pretty sure that’s not where you had left them but maybe you just were lost in your excitement and forgot. Regardless, you bid them goodbye and went on your way.

As you waited at the bus stop, you reflected on everything that just happened. For some reason, your thoughts were lingering back to Miyeon repeatedly. You lie to yourself about why that is, knowing full well the truth but you just felt too proud at the moment to admit it, even if it was to yourself. Luckily for you, the bus approached before you truly lost in your thoughts and feelings.

As you sat, you couldn’t help but feel something squish in your pocket. You search to find a small piece of paper scrunched up, curious, you unscramble it and find a series of numbers. No, a number, a phone number below which was written ‘M’ with a heart next to it. Looking out of the window, you smile to yourself, excited, your heart fluttering, perhaps you are going to have to revisit your feelings sooner than you thought…..

[annymation]

Reimagining the characters in Wish

(Part 3- Star/Aster)

ITS THE MOMENT WE’VE BEEN WAITING FOR!!!

HERE COMES THE BOYYYYY!!!

Ahem… so yeah welcome to part 3

If you haven’t seen them yet, here’s the links for part 1 and part 2 where I talk about how I’d rewrite Asha and the villains respectively.

Star may be the most challenging character to reimagine since… All I have is the personality displayed on the Star we DID get, a song we all collectively headcanon as Asha x Star love song (At All Cost Demo), and my imagination… In a way that just makes things more fun too.

Now remember there’s no definitive version of this character, he never came true so there’s limitless ways we can interpret him.

Some may imagine him mute, some may imagine him as a wacky character like the genie, others may imagine him more soft spoken like the blue fairy, some may imagine him as Asha’s love interest while others may prefer them as just friends, or even have him look like her grandfather, there are no wrong answers.

So here’s how I imagine him to be like:

The Star 💫

What’s a Wishing Star?

- Before we start talking about our star boy, I think it’s important we establish what a wishing star even is, so let’s begin.

-Star is an entity from another plane of existence, a wishing star, a being whose only purpose is to listen to the wishes from mortals that can see him and other wishing stars through their night skies. They listen to the wishes from mortals and provide some guidance in subtle ways.

- A wishing star is born, or rather, gains consciousness, once someone looks to them and makes a wish from the bottom of their hearts, once the star receives their first ever wish they are no longer just a celestial body of gas, they become a new wishing star, they gain a purpose, and develop their minds just like how a human would.

- As the years pass the star becomes more wise, more equipped to help the person who wished upon them for the first time.

- For a wishing star to grow up it may take a while, that’s why most people wish upon bigger ones who are already fully developed and clever enough to know exactly how to help.

- It’s not a wishing star’s job to GRANT a wish immediately, in fact, they’re incapable of doing that, their magic can only go as far as the hope and perseverance that resides in their wishmaker’s heart.

- Things that the mortal would consider just luck could actually be the works of a wishing star putting them in the right path.

- If the person loses hope in their dream then there isn’t anything the star can do, but if they remain determined then the star can help them go far.

- So a wishing star job is to just… stay in the sky, look down upon their wishmakers, give some subtle magic intervention here and there…

-That is, when they’re wished upon at all, otherwise they just stay there doing nothing.

- However… In some rare occasions, wishing stars can do a lot more than just give a subtle magic intervention from the distance. Sometimes, when someone truly well intentioned makes a wish with all their heart… The wishing star gets the power to do some extraordinary things.

Personality

- Star, or Aster as I’ll be calling him in this rewrite, which is a non-binary name meaning “star”. I’ll be referring to them with (He/they) pronouns.

- Aster is a very young and inexperienced wishing star, in fact, counting with Asha’s wish, Star only got TWO wishes in their whole life. And he’s still working on granting that first wish he ever got 18 years ago.

(Haha I’m sure that’s not foreshadowing for something really sad)

- Because of that he’s often treated by the other stars as sort of a younger sibling or a little kid.

- I think I should just get this info out now: Aster is NOT the north star, that big, bright and iconic star we know from the Disney movies, nope, Aster is actually a small itty bitty little star that you can barely see, that kind of star you probably wouldn’t pick to wish upon, most choose the brightests and bigger ones.

- So who’s that big, bright and iconic star? Well, in the beginning of our story… That star doesn’t exist, like, it’s literally absent from the sky… After all, we're seeing that star's origin story :)

- We’ll get to that when we get to that, back to Aster tho.

- Aster is a lot different from the other wishing stars, while they’re these benevolent and wise entities, Aster is more of a naive and curious teen who’s fascinated with the world below them.

- No one wishes upon him EVER so he gets a lot of free time to just watch humans do human things and animals do animal things, and he loves it.

(He’s like Ariel and Quasimodo lmao)

- When he gets to earth he’s very excited to help Asha, showing appreciation for her wishing upon him through a lot of physical contact, often hugging her and holding her hand without him even noticing. (Asha at first is confused but she gets used to this behavior pretty quick)

- Although Aster is naive and overly excited they’re no fool, he can be very clever and creative when it’s necessary.

- He’s also not a fish out of water like Ariel when he’s on earth, they understands human customs and how things work, since he watched everything from the sky… Although nevertheless they’re delighted to see everything up close.

- He may be smart, but at first, they don’t really know how to guide Asha in the right path to make her wish come true, after all he’s a very inexperienced wishing star, and freeing a kingdom from an evil sorcerer king and queen is no easy task.

- But regardless he doesn’t let his own insecurities get to him, and remains optimistic they’ll figure it out, together.

His personality is reminiscent to Disney guys such as: Quasimodo, Peter Pan, Prince Philip (yes really, rewatch Sleeping Beauty, that boy has a lot of personality), Alladin and Hercules.

Main Traits:

- Optimistic and kind

- Naïve

- Protective

- Curious

- Energetic

- Secretly very insecure

Powers

I think it’s important to establish his abilities before we get to his backstory and all that jazz.

What he CAN’T do

Just like how Movie Asha did in her job interview, let’s get his weaknesses out of the way first.

- Sooo… don’t get mad but… Star won’t be a shapeshifter in my version. I don’t want him to feel too much like Maui or the genie. So he’ll stay in the shape of a princely looking boy the whole way through.

- He can’t teleport, would make things too easy, also there’s a plot reason I’ll explain later.

- Can’t materialize real things out of thin air, only things made of star dust so they don’t really have any utility other than to create fun visuals during music numbers or when he’s explaining stuff.

- Can’t hurt anyone, this one is VERY IMPORTANT for plot reasons I’ll talk about later on.

- Can’t make a wish come true with the snap of his fingers, he’s a star, not a genie.

Weakness: Dark Magic, hopelessness and Asha getting hurt.

What he CAN do

- Stretch and re-shape his body. He may not turn into animals but his body can regenerate and squash and stretch around (haha get it? Like the animation term), like he’s made of star dust. Have this piece of concept art as an example:

- He can Fly and make other people and objects fly too

- Unlock doors, may seem random now but I’ll explain in a minute.

- Bring plants to life, and make them grow bigger, and I mean like “make a flower the size of a house” bigger.

- Make animals talk, but the animals only keep talking IF they so desire, if that’s not something they wish for then the magic fades away with time.

- Tho he naturally understands animals and any other living thing in their own languages.

- He can feel other people’s wishes, not all the time tho, he has to make a conscious effort to see what’s that person’s deepest desire.

- His body is warm like a small sun, so he can give warm hugs… that’s a power, yes.

- Aster may not teleport, but they can move really REALLY fast

- Uncorrupt wish bubbles, I mentioned in part 2 that Magnifico twisted most the people's wishes, those wishes that are changed are called “Corrupted wishes”, Aster can change those wishes back to what they originally were.

- Create dreams, is that too much like the sandman from rise of the guardians?… Im still keeping it.

-Get inside drawings, This is just for a scene I imagine Aster shrinking and walking around inside Asha's sketch book, I think that's cute.

- Make a human disguise, I'll elaborate more on this when we get to talk about his design.

- He can grant wishes “but Anny you just said earlier he can’t—“ yes yes I know… he just grants them in his own unique way.

What gives him strength: Hopes and dreams

(Undertale reference? More likely than you think)

A wishing star purpose is to serve as a guide, that provides some magic intervention so that the wishmaker has the means to get to their goal.

As such, the stronger Asha’s hope, perseverance and passions are, the stronger and more limitless Star’s magic becomes. Like his magic abilities are charged up by Asha’s beliefs, the more she wants something, the more he can do for her.

Now, let’s talk about how Aster and other wishing stars that come to earth function, and to do that, we gotta go waaaaay back to another wish granting character in the Disney catalog.

The Blue Fairy- What can we learn from her?

- We all know the blue fairy from Pinocchio, she is in a way the closest thing we have in the Disney canon that resembles the concept of Star, so I’m considering them as both the same kind of entity, they’re both wishing stars.

(not the same character tho, and I’ll get to that soon don’t you worry)

- You would think a character we see so little about doesn’t provide a lot of context, but she actually gives us a pretty good idea about what wishing stars can and can’t do.

- First thing she says when arriving is:

“Good Geppetto, you have given so much happiness to others. You deserve to have your wish come true.”

- From that, we can interpret that wishing stars only assume a human form and help those who are truly pure of heart and have spread kindness to others. Like Asha.

- Geppetto wished for Pinocchio to be a real boy, a human boy, but the blue fairy couldn’t grant that wish, because the only one who could make himself a real boy was Pinocchio himself.

“To make Geppetto’s wish come true will be enterely up to you. Prove yourself brave, truthful and unselfish, and someday you will be a real boy"

- So, am I saying that Aster will just fly up to Asha and say “it’s all up to you to save your people… GOOD LUCK! 😊” sparkle some magic on her and leave?

- Well no although that would be funny, he’s not gonna do that, in fact, Aster will act way differently compared to the Blue Fairy.

- Although Aster can’t immediately make the people of Rosas “Have something more than this” he will do everything in his power to help Asha with anything she needs, and stay by her side the whole way through… Not at all what the Blue Fairy did.

- Lets say the Blue Fairy did exactly what a wishing star is supposed to do.

-She didn’t let herself be seen by anyone except Pinocchio and Jimminy Cricket, she only gave Pinocchio a few instructions and then left it all up to him, and even then when she went a bit beyond that to inform him that Geppetto was inside a whale she did so by sending a note… Almost like she couldn’t go back again to tell him personally… Interesting huh?

(I know the reason is because the animators would lose their minds if they had to draw that sparkly effect on her dress a third time but let’s pretend there’s more to it okay?)

- So we have her being the best role model of a wishing star… and then we have Aster...

-Doesn’t even know where to begin with helping Asha, chooses to stay on earth more than a day instead of just giving cryptic advice and leaving, was seen by multiple people aside from just Asha and Valentino, and worse of all, falls in love with his wish maker… yeah dude broke several rule… And the other stars ain’t happy about that.

- You could say the scale of Geppetto’s wish and Asha’s wish are way different, one just wants a son and the other wants to defeat two evil monarchs.

-But the stars don’t see it that way, to them every wish should be treated equally and it’s not their purpose to mingle with humans and change the course of their history.

- So you see, while the Blue Fairy could go back to the sky and then reappear anywhere she wanted… Aster won’t have that privilege.

-If he goes back to the sky he’s not coming back down, because the other stars won’t allow it, not after he broke their rules.

- Aster knows all that, because he can hear them talking to him, warning him to stop and go back to the sky… Aster keeps that information a secret from Asha for as long as they can…

- He knows after he’s done helping Asha they’ll never see each other again, but that’s fine, he’s willing to break every rule to help her…

- Oh also there’s a scene in Pinocchio where the Blue Fairy opens a lock to free Pinocchio from a cage… that’s why I said Aster can unlock doors… okay moving on to our boy backstory.

Backstory

Yup, Aster has a backstory. And it all started in one fateful night:

An elderly man was taking a walk, carrying his granddaughter in his arms, she was just a few weeks old, but he couldn’t wait to show her how beautiful the stars looked that night.

He sat with her on a thick tree branch, and even though she couldn’t understand him, he was so happy telling her the names of each constellation.

In that moment, it seemed like everything was perfect.

But then that moment ended… He heard screams, and smelled smoke.

The elderly man ran back to his home, only to find it completely engulfed in a fire.

His granddaughter was now crying in his arms as he watched some neighbors trying to put down the fire, but to no avail.

His son and daughter-in-law were in there, he lost them both in an instant, the pain he felt in that moment was immeasurable.

In that moment of sorrow all he could do was look up, between the thick smoke he saw it… a small star.

With all his heart, Sabino wished upon it

“I wish my dear granddaughter, Asha, never feel such pain and sadness as I’m feeling in this moment”

A new wishing star was born.

Those words were the first thing Aster ever heard, it took a few years for him to even know what they meant, but as Asha and him grew older, he started to understand them.

He tried his best to make Asha as happy as she could be with the little that he was allowed to do.

Sometimes giving her inspiration for her drawings, other times sending her nice dreams after a bad day.

But he felt like he was failing her, no matter what he did, Asha would still go through sad times… Specially after her grandfather passed away.

Aster treasured every happy moment that he saw Asha experience, her making new friends, getting better with her drawings, dancing during wish ceremonies. Aster would shine brighter every time she was happy.

Point is: They were connected the whole time, and Aster already knew Asha even way before she wished upon him.

To be clear he wouldn’t just stay up there looking at Asha all day, he was also interested on everything else on earth in general.

But then, we have Asha’s 18th birthday, the day she had to give away her wish.

Aster knew what was really going on in Rosas, about what happened to most of the people’s wishes, and although that also saddened the other stars they all agreed they couldn't intervene unless someone from Rosas wished for their help.

So you can imagine how happy Aster was when Asha wished upon HIM, of all the stars, she looked at him and asked for his help! What are the chances?

If you could listen to them, you’d hear all the stars collectively whisper “oh…this might not end well…” as Aster flies down to earth going "YYYYYPIIIEEEEEEE!!!"

A Star Who Wishes To Be Human

- I’ve made it very clear that Aster is different from the other stars, for the reason that he’s so young and so fascinated with life on earth.

- But there’s more than that, see, I mentioned before Aster can’t hurt anyone, and that’s not because he’s some holier-than-thou pacifist, it’s because his magic literally CAN’T hurt living beings.

- Because his magic is made of ✨hopes✨ and ✨kindness✨ and ✨everything nice✨, so even if they literally make a sword with his star dust, all it’ll do is give Magnifico some tickles.

- And Aster hates that.

- He wishes he could be more useful to Asha… wait, “wishes”?

- That’s silly, a star is not supposed to “wish” for anything, to have wants, that’s a human thing... And yet here he is wanting to protect Asha in any way possible.

- This drive to protect Asha runs even deeper than just the wish he received from her grandfather or the wish she made, Aster feels as if it's a wish that comes within him.

- Aster would question why they feels this way, is it love? Can’t be that right? A star can’t fall in love…

- The same way a star can’t taste food, or smell the flowers, or feel temperature…

- But Aster wishes they could, Aster wishes he knew what food tasted like, what was the smell of the flowers and the morning dew, but most of all… Aster wished he could feel Asha’s warmth, the same way she feels when they embraced.

- This would be Aster internal conflict for most of the movie. They’d realize that they can’t be with Asha forever, but Aster wanted to at least confess his feelings before they went to enact their plan to defeat the king and queen, that’s when we’d get “At All Cost”.

- Soooo a bit of a spoiler to this rewrite, I’m basically telling a story all out of order at this point, but here goes, Aster does become human by the end, after the king and queen are defeated, the stars realize that punishing Aster for breaking their rules wouldn’t be fair after he did so much good, and also because some of them can’t stand him so they decide “hey, let’s leave him there” and just ask him to return his magic back to the sky.

- Once Aster accepts, his magic would be turned into a brand new star, that shines brighter than all the others, because it carries all the magic that Aster accumulated by helping Asha and all of Rosas. And thus we’d get an origin story for THE wishing star.

Design

Aster has brown skin, sparkly freckles and blond hair that shines and moves almost like a candle.

He dresses up as a prince, with the classic cape we see in classic princes like in Snow White and Sleeping Beauty.

They choose that form because he recalls that Asha used to read a lot about princes that would help princesses in need, so he thinks it's fitting to at least looks like one to help Asha

"But I'm not a princess"

"I know, you're just pretty like one!"

A itty bitty detail I didn't mention until now: Aster would be hand drawn animated, while everything else would be 3D, and his animation would change as the movie progressed.

By change I mean he'd start in a very sketchy looking animation, like it's being drawn very frantically to reflect how excited he is to help Asha, but as the movie progresses he'd be drawn with more detail and with more fluid movements.

This would serve to both represent his character development, showing him becoming more mature and learning what it means to be human, and also a reference to how Disney's animation evolved over the years.

He can make a human disguise, as I mentioned earlier, but that would require him to keep his magic hidden somewhere, in this case, a round stone that holds his cape together on his chest.

Once his magic was all kept inside this stone he'd turn into a 3D animated character, however his movements wouldn't feel... quite right, like he'd be animated in a different frame-rate compared to everyone else, so you could tell he was struggling to make himself move like a human, and people would be able to tell there was something off about him.

In the end when he turned into a human for real he'd become 3D animated with the right frame-rate, and his hair would no longer be blonde, but rather brown, like his eyebrows (Tangled reference? yup)

Final Thoughts

This was DEFINITELY the hardest one to translate my thoughts into words! My gosh this took so long to write.

Don't know if you could tell but I'm very passionate about this scrapped idea of a human looking star falling in love with our protagonist, and no it's not just for the ✨aesthetic✨.

I don't think it's wise to throw a romance when writing a story just because you feel like it, a romance needs to progress both the story and the characters involved, think of it like how Naveen learned with Tiana the importance of working hard, while in turn showing her that life can also be fun. They complete each other, and I want the same for Asha and Aster.

Asha needs to learn that she shouldn't feel guilty for wishing more for herself, she worries too much about others and what others may think of her that she forgets her own self worth, and Aster shows her that she not only can wish for things for herself, but she can also accomplish anything she sets her mind to. From becoming an amazing artist that can give movement to her drawings to the leader of a rebellion against two evil monarchs, she can do it all.

Meanwhile, Aster needs to learn that what Asha's grandfather wished upon him is an impossible task, for Asha to always be happy, that's impossible, because sadness is a part of life, its a part of being human, and that's what he learns, what it means to be human, to fail, get up and try again. As a wishing star Aster always knew that humans had to fail a bunch of times before having their wishes granted but he could never imagine how hard that actually was, and Asha's perseverance even with all odds against her is what makes him love her even more.

I talked a lot about why Aster loves Asha, so I should probably mention what Asha sees in him too. Asha get's a lot of laughs from Aster's innocent reactions to natural things on earth, like how dazzled he is seeing the sun rise for the first time, how he just stops and starts chatting with animals and plants like a damn disney princess, or how he randomly starts rambling about how some constellations don't look at all like the animals they're named after "Like, seriously, why did they name that one a lynx? That's obviously a snake hehehe"

But most importantly she loves how caring he is, how he's supportive and passionate about her interests just as much as she is, and how he makes her feel safe, and in turn she wants to protect him too.

I'm honestly debating with myself how I want Aster to go about the information he has known Asha all his life, like, I imagine he'd probably want to hide the fact because he didn't want to talk about the sad tragedy that led to her grandfather wishing upon him, yes Asha knows about the fire but he doesn't want to remind her and make her sad, because remember, at first he doesn't understand that sadness is just part of life.

But then like, would he pretend to not know her? Or would he be like a ghibli character and just nonchalantly say "Oh yeah, I’ve always known you" and never elaborate on that until the story demands it?

… Great, now I just had the idea of Aster functioning like Haku from Spirited Away, like they don't remember where he knows Asha from because he forgot what their previous wish was now that he’s granting a new one, let's say stars can only remember one wish at a time, then as he gets to know her better he starts to remember what his first wish was, and things start to make more sense.

I don’t know, like that’s cute but might be a bit too complicated, y’all tell me, I’m throwing ideas and seeing what makes sense, this whole thing is me asking for feedback after all.

Honestly I think the idea of Aster knowing Asha the whole time works because it not only gives a better explanation to why a star came down from the sky to help her, but also gives more sense to the lyrics “you still amaze me after all this time” in At All Cost.

Welp, I think that's all I got, thank you so much for following along with this series, and don't worry I'm not over yet, there are a few characters to talk about before I start sharing the actual script of this rewrite.

Thank You For Reading!

[eyebagshawty]

Hey, I really like your works! I wondered if you could make something about suicidal reader and astarion, gale, halsin and anyone you feel like.

But only if you're comfortable with it. Some general hurt/comfort would be ok. Best inspiration 💛

Blurbs for Male Companions Comforting a Suicidal Tav

Pairings: Astarion, Gale, Halsin, Wyll

Warnings/Tags: some canon typical violence, suicidal thoughts/ideation, suicide attempt, angst, comfort, some are durge Tav, probably a dead dove do not eat situation

A/N: As someone who struggles with this type of thing daily, I really enjoyed expressing my interpretation of this; it was therapeutic in a way. These are blurbs, so it may not be as developed as I would like, but I hope you guys like it! Let me know if you want a part two with the ladies :)

Astarion

Marcus had kidnapped Isabelle. The sweet cleric had welcomed your party into the arms of Last Light Inn, and somehow you were too weak to save her. It was your fault.

Your. Fault.

Astarion had comforted you after, saying you couldn’t have known you would need every last bit of your magic to give your help. You couldn’t have known you would need to rest. It was just as much of a surprise to him, to Shadowheart, to Karlach. But the more you stare at Nettie’s wyvern toxin — more of a keepsake at this point than a tool for battle — the more you decide you should’ve known. Jaheira’s expression after Last Light had fallen, it’s burned into your memory. You had promised her your only intention was good, but there was still something in her eyes that showed blame.

As you watch your companions move around camp and settle next to the fire, your left hand subconsciously lifts your dagger from its holster; your right hand coming up to your mouth to open the seal of the wyvern toxin. Where could you even go from here? There was no moon lantern, but no reason to go back. You don’t even have anywhere to go back to if you think about it.

You really are a monster, the tadpole your own scarlet letter. The dagger is slathered with the wyvern toxin, and as you smile at your lover from across camp the dagger makes a shallow slice into your thigh just out of sight.

“I think I’m gonna head to bed guys, we’ve got a lot to plan tomorrow about where to go from here,” you mumble, your eyes slightly glazed from the poison entering your system. Your companions nod in agreement, each one heading to their tent to prepare for bed. Astarion, however, watches you. His brow furrows, and he’s about to offer for you to sleep in his tent again, but you’re already in front of him. “Hello love, I know it’s a bit early into, well, us. But I was wondering if I could sleep with you tonight.”

Astarion gently takes your hand in his and kisses your knuckles. “Of course my sweet,” he whispers. But the closer you get to him, the weirder you smell. He can smell the familiar bouquet of your blood, just a trace of it, but there is a sour note in there. “Are you sure you’re feeling alright?” As he looks back up to your eyes you let out a sob you’d been holding since earlier that day. His eyes widen; he isn’t good at comfort but for you he can try. “Darling what’s wrong?” He prods, needing to help you in your state.

You feel you can’t verbalize it, so your tadpole nuzzles up to his, asking for entrance. He accepts, and the images of your actions, your thoughts, your feelings flood into his mind. After the connection breaks you crumple to the ground, the poison entering the later stages.

Astarion’s thoughts immediately clear as he stares down at you in horror. He gathers your body into his arms and runs to Shadowheart, your seemingly now small and delicate form writhing within them. Shadowheart stands as she sees him running. “What happened Astarion?” She sternly quips, her eyes softening at the sight of you.

“They… it was one of those winged horrors. It poisoned them. Please help them. Please.” Astarion looks down at your eyes as they twitch and gaze blankly towards the sky. Shadowheart eases an antidote and a greater health potion into your mouth. Once you have your faculties about you once more, you lean your face into Astarion’s chest and weep. “Shh my love, let’s get you to bed.”

He lays you down gently to the various pillows in his tent, his every vein screaming to run. He isn’t ready for this kind of care and work a relationship requires. What am I thinking? It’s Tav, not some sorry bloke from a tavern. Get yourself together.

“I’m sorry. That was a pathetic idea for me to have, I know you might not want to explore this any further and I’ll still help you with-“

“Don’t be ridiculous, darling,” he mutters as he strokes your cheek with his fingers. “I’ve been right where you are before. Nowhere to go further but nothing to go back to, hmm?” You nod and he gives you a sad smile. “I find that I’m more happy than ever to be alive right now. Well, unalive but that’s no matter. I have you. We will find a way to get that damned moon lantern. I’ll bite everyone in this camp to take a break for a day. Whatever you need. I’m here and I… I love you.” He definitely didn’t think of saying the L word now of all times, but as a surprise to him it feels perfectly right.

“I love you too. Please just hold me.”

And so he does.

Gale

As you wake to the blinding light of the sun, restraints tug at your wrists. The memories of the last night come flooding back into you. The fear in Gale’s eyes as you bit at him that he had tried to hide, the way you kept failing to break through the urges to speak to him. He was so sweet to you. He didn’t deserve it. You love him.

“Glad to have you back with us my love,” Gale whispers into your ear as he frees your wrists and ankles from the restraints. He helps you to your feet and leads you to the fire. “Breakfast is ready. You told me your favorite is an omelet with bacon and some tea?”

“Yes, but you didn’t have to do this for me. I was being dreadful to you,” you mutter, looking down at the food.

“Of course I did. Our love knows no bounds, right? Now, eat. Baldur and his gate are waiting for us.” He kisses your head and you force a smile, shoving the food into your mouth as if you aren’t sick to your stomach with yourself.

-

The fight in the astral prism had put everyone off kilter. When you had found out the protector in your dreams, the person you needed to trust with your life, was a mindflayer, you only wanted rip each tentacle off its face and eat them as it watched. You did trust it. You were just so deplorable you thought its intestines would look beautiful around its neck to hang outside of your tent as decoration.

You can’t stand yourself anymore. Not just your actions, but your body. The urges make your body hurt, make your head pound and your stomach wretch. You never see a person in the mirror, you see a diseased sack of flesh squealing to be kept alive.

Gale holds you in his lap, leaving soft kisses on your neck as he reads one of his unusually large tomes. You feel disgusting. You will never deserve something nice like this. “I’m going to go see if I can spot the city from that building over there love,” you whisper as you kiss his cheeks and stand up, your stomach twisting as he gazes at you with loving eyes. He can’t love this, can he?

“Do you want me to tag along? I love a good tower as much as the next wizard,” he asks softly as he rubs your sides with his warm hands. You shake your head and force another smile. His brow lightly furrows but he shakes it off and presses a kiss to your lips in parting.

You find yourself sitting on the edge of the tower roof overlooking all of Baldur’s Gate. It has been a couple of hours, and you decide you don’t want to know any more about Orin or the makings of the absolute. Something in your mind tells you it will be the end of a lot of things if you find out. You shakily stand, letting out a ragged breath as pebbles skitter off the edge from under your feet. You close your eyes, exhale, and lean forward, when you fly through the mist into Gale’s tent. You let out a broken cry as warm and strong arms wrap around you, smelling of parchment and tea leaves.

“My love, I’ve felt the immanence of our situation for a while, and when Mystra abandoned me I thought I was as good as a newborn gnoll, destined for nothing but madness. But darling, what were you thinking?” He mutters into your hair.

“The urges won’t- nothing will stop. At my core I’m evil, something to be exhausted. I can’t-“

“Tav, I wouldn’t be as in love with you as I am if these things you said about yourself were true. I would give up my tressym to Astarion if it meant I could relieve any of your pain. Don’t tell her I said that though, Tara would never let me hear the end of it.” You let out a quiet chuckle, his dry humor always helping. “Now let’s sleep, no matter what this packed and unforgiving city does to us we will get through it together.”

“I love you, please, please don’t leave.”

“I would never dream of it.”

Halsin

Orin has captured Gale, and you feel helpless. Did you really not know your friend well enough to see that a shapeshifter was in his place? You have known him for months at this point. And yet, it was your fault for not checking in with him. For getting in that petty fight over the crown of Karsus that made you both ignore each other.

As you and your party trudge once again through the sewers, Astarion and Shadowheart both bombard you with questions about their personal needs within the city.

“Shadowheart, I understand we need to go to the House of Grief but Gale could quite literally be dead right now,” you assert softly, trying to show that she means just as much to you.

“Ugh, Gale. Of all times we have to be in a pickle it has to be over him and right now,” Astarion mutters to himself. You try to push down your frustration but the smirk on his face pushes you over the edge combined with his next words, “You’re the one that’s supposed to be making the rounds, darling. I can take Shadowheart to the house, and you and bear boy can find the bootmuncher.”

As shameful as it is for you, tears burst from your eyes as anger and anxiety take over. “So go. I don’t care anymore since you have never gone out of your way for us. I… fuck!” You slam your sword onto the ground and walk yourself back to cool off.

As Astarion builds up his retort, hurt and defensiveness flashing across his expression, Halsin steps in front of you protectively. “Calm down, Astarion. This does not need to be a fight. Let’s just break for the day. Come, my heart.” As he takes your hand comfortingly in his, you feel a gnawing dread seeping into your bones. This was all your fault, and you keep burning bridges with people you care for and you don’t know how to stop.

At the end of the day you find yourself in the middle of the woods, further from camp than Halsin liked, but it was your privacy; you asked for it and he would respect it. You stared down at your sword, your hands jaunting out to hold it at an awkward angle towards your chest. It had been like this for around an hour; you couldn’t even do this correctly, thinking about how everyone would grimace if they found you like this . Fuck it.

As the knife glides through your padded armor, a large hand places itself on your shoulder. It’s warm, and it smells like herbs and cinnamon. “My heart, please. This is not the way. We’ve come so far on this journey, together, and almost nothing has ever gone wrong. Silvanus guide me, please speak. I need to hear that you are okay,” Halsin chokes out, his voice thick with concern.

“It’s just… I would have known if Gale was acting weird. If I hadn’t pushed him away. I’m doing the same to Astarion, I’ll do it to all of them. When someone goes Illithid it will be on me. Hells we’re taking a break and he could be anywhere.”

“As much as we all love you little one, there is no leader. Nobody could have seen that coming. I had choice words with Astarion, and he would love to speak with you. Everything is handled, I just need you to understand that we can take the weight off of your shoulders occasionally. I love you with everything inside of me. Please know that you are loved.”

The sword clatters to the dirt, and Halsin brings you into his arms; a bear hug in every sense of the term. “I guess I will need Astarion to sew this back up,” you mutter, finger the frayed threads above your heart.

“That sounds like a great idea, little one. I’ll put on some tea for when you’re done.” He kisses your head and walks you back to camp, his arms never leaving your waist.

After a cathartic conversation with your resident vampire, a big brown cave bear awaits you in your tent with blankets and tea.

Wyll

On the dock overlooking the Chionthar, a blade glares up at you from your worn fingers. The Netherbrain is dead, your friends are free from the things that bind them, but you don’t know if it’s the same for you. Nobody forced you to create the Illithid plot with Enver Gortash, nobody forced you to kill Alfira. Her face will haunt you forever, what you did to her in a cold sweat during the middle of the night.

Sure, you had given up Bhaal’s inheritance, but it was still your skin that was covered in blood. It was still your face that bit and spit at the urge’s victims. It was with your eyes that you looked down at Alfira’s cold and eviscerated body. Wither’s had resurrected you in the temple, but you still felt shame creep into your veins. You weren’t a new person, you just forgot.

You saw Wyll hugging Karlach, her new Illithid form unusual but still distinctly her. You want to be with him, you need him like breathing, but the guilt and regret is gnawing at your flesh like a newborn gnoll. Maybe he would be better off taking his role as grand duke by himself, the whole city would whisper of the mad adventurer that had to fight for forgiveness to their complicit nature in the plot. As the blade begins to take its final drink from your wrist, Wyll looks up and shouts your name.

An eldritch blast knocks the blade into the sea, and warm hands wrap gently around your wrist, and a handkerchief is pressed to the small nick. He smells sulfuric but sweet like cinnamon apples as he presses a worry-filled kiss to your head. It comforts you but it shouldn’t; you don’t deserve this. “My love, what is wrong? The netherbrain has fallen, Karlach lives, what could trouble you this much?” He whispers into your ear, making sure the others know this interaction is private.

“I can’t live with myself. I may have forgotten a good extent of my past, but I remember everything from that point on the nautiloid onward clear as a whistle. It’s too much to act like I’m this hero,” you whisper back, tears streaming down your cheeks.

Wyll lifts up your left hand, a ring glinting in the morning sun. He kisses the knuckle wearing it, and looks up into your eyes with a bittersweet smile. “I did not choose you to be the love of my life, my sun and stars, because I thought you were evil my love,” he kisses your cheeks and puts his forehead to yours. “That wasn’t the you I see before me, this wonderful creature who sees past my horns, past Astarion’s vampirism, past Gale’s orb godssakes,” he chuckles and you let out a quiet laugh.

“I just don’t want to be that again. Ever again,” you whisper as you glance at your joined hands. Wyll brings a hand to your cheek and kisses your lips with a tender touch.

“It will take time. Just like I have newfound bumps in weird places, I need to get used to those. It’s being human. Now come with me, future Ravengard, we have beers to slam with our friends.”

He helps you up, and pulls you into the tightest hug as if you could disappear. You walk into the brightening dawn to the Elfsong Tavern, making sure tease him about becoming the grand duke the entire way.

[moonsgemini]

dress - rafe cameron

summary: she’ll always wish she could enjoy the midsummer’s celebrations instead of working at it, but her secret moments with the kook prince make the bad tips worth it

warnings: rafe x pogue!reader, typical classist stuff but not from rafe, fluff, angst, mutual pining, alcohol, kissing

wc: 3.5k

an: this is based off of dress by taylor swift but my own interpretation of it I guess. If you guys want a pt. 2 with smut let me knoooow, I’m such a s!ut for rafe cameron pleaaaase

our secret moments in a crowded room, they got no idea about me and you

Midsummer was probably her least favorite day of summer. You’d think that being a bartender on the day that the whole figure eight came to the country club would bring in lots of tips right? Well wrong. During midsummer’s the drinks were complimentary and there was just a tip jar for cash tips. Kooks don’t usually carry around cash, or really tip for that matter. Also seeing all the kooks dressed in their pretty dresses and cute flower crowns made y/n go green with jealousy. She desperately wished she could attend as a guest and get to dress up and enjoy the food. Y/n would be dreading this shift if she didn’t have something to look forward to.

She had looked over herself in the mirror a million times, making sure her dress still looked as good on her as it did in the dressing room mirror yesterday. The tag was securely tucked into her side because she may have run up her credit card to be able to afford it so she had to return it after. Bartenders didn’t have as strict as a uniform as the waiters did. Her manager allowing them to wear black dresses for the night, and of course she was going to jump at the opportunity to wear something nicer than her boxy polo uniform and tennis skirt.

Her makeup and hair had been done to the best of her ability, without it seeming like she was trying too hard. Y/n would never admit to any of her friends or family that she was dressed up in order to impress a certain kook prince. The same kook prince she had spent months crushing on, and he never helped make the crush go away because he would shamelessly flirt with her every time he was at the country club. It was more like banter, she had a feeling he never really meant anything he said. But it felt so good to feel wanted.

When Rafe would see her around the outer banks he would smirk at her or give her a nod as to say hi. At parties sometimes he’d go up to her and make some small conversation. Teasing her about what drink she had or making sure that she didn’t give her number to that guy that was flirting with her. They’d be making conversation and she would take a step towards him wanting nothing more than to be wrapped in his arms and his scent. But then her friends would come and think they were saving her from the kook prince and pull her away, sending a glare Rafe’s way. She’s look back at him apologetically and he’d just give her a tight lipped smile and walk to the other side of the party.

Rafe really liked her, he liked making her laugh and smile. He wished he could make her quit her job and just come live with him, he’d take care of her. She’d never have to worry about bills or rent ever again. His friends always made fun of him for flirting with a pogue but he didn’t care. They’d say he was scraping the bottom of the barrel, that he had already gone through all the girls from figure eight so now he was entertaining a pogue. Rafe never let them get away with their jokes. He’d glare at them and punch them in the arm or kick them in the shin. He’d defend her honor saying she’s different and she’s a better friend than they’ll ever be.

All Rafe could do was think about her while he was getting ready. He knew she’d be there and he wanted to look extra nice. Tonight felt like the night he would actually ask her out. Y/n was a good listener, she was always there for him. At first he thought it was just because she was stuck behind the bar so she had to listen to him, but then he’d see her at parties and she still had that look in her eyes. That look that she was listening to him, actually listening to him. He felt like he was on a cloud with the way she looked at him like he was the most important thing in the world.

When she arrived to the country club she started getting all her things ready, the guests would start arriving in a few minutes. Stocking up on scotch and the best wines, she knew those would be the popular drinks tonight. As she worked diligently her mind wandered to Rafe, like it always did.

She wondered if he’d be the same as always despite his family being here. She wanted nothing more than to spend the night with him, but not while she served him drinks. She wanted to dance with him and drink with him, and then go home together at the end of the night.

Guests had started arriving, her eyes looking out for the dirty blonde. She was so excited and a bit anxious to see him all dressed up, knowing he’d look extra handsome. An hour had passed and she still hadn’t seen him. The country club was now filled with kooks and her tip jar only filled with about $20 when she’s certain she’s made twenty martinis and poured just as many scotch’s.

As she was handing Mrs.Weatherby her glass of merlot smiling at the older woman her eyes caught her favorite blue ones. Rafe stood across the room with Kelce and Topper. He wasn’t paying any attention to what Topper was saying as he watching y/n from across the room. When their eyes met a lopsided smile formed on his lips. Her cheeks felt hot as he looked her up and down, as much as he could despite the bar being in the way.

Y/n begged with her eyes for him to come over, to save her from the boring night. He knew her better than she thought as he started walking over, saying something to the guys that he’d be back. But as he was crossing the room his dad stepped in front of him.

Ward put a hand on his son’s shoulder, “Rafe please, don’t start drinking yet. This is supposed to be a nice night okay? Lets take it slow.” He turned him around to walk out toward the patio.

“Yeah sure dad.” He muttered not wanting to make a scene. He followed him out but looked behind him to catch the eyes of the girl he was infatuated with.

His heart sank a little as he saw her bright eyes dull a little with sadness. She tried her best to put on a smile and not show her disappointment but he knew her better than she thought. Ward had no idea of Rafe’s crush and even if he did he probably wouldn’t care. He’d probably be disappointed in his son for liking someone like her, then he’d tell him that she probably only wants him for his trust.

all of this silence & patience, pining & anticipating, my hands are shaking from holding back from you

The first few hours of the night their eyes just met, hers pleading him to come over and talk to her. Give her something to think about tonight before she went to bed. His eyes begged her to forgive him for not giving her the attention she deserved, especially in that dress. He hoped that she wore it just for him, it made her look ethereal. Rafe’s legs ached from trying to stop himself from walking over and kissing her with everything he had.

As the night went on she was always on his mind. He hated this stupid midsummer’s stuff, mostly because he couldn’t share it with the one person he wanted. It was filled with snobby people and teenager’s getting drunk on booze they had snuck in.

Rafe kept getting stuck in conversations with his dad’s colleagues, Ward wanting him to be more involved in the business. Or he’d be with Topper, Kelce, and some other guys having a meaningless conversation about lacrosse or surfing. Whenever he got the chance he’d look over at her and she’d have a smile on her face handing some old dude a drink. He knew it wasn’t her real smile, then her eyes would look over at him and that’s when her real smile would come out.

“Uh I’m gonna get a drink,” Rafe said trying to excuse himself from his friends. His dad would be fine with him having a drink now, it’s been three hours since the night started. Three hours of his fingers tingling with the want of tucking that hair that kept falling in her face behind her ear.

“I’ll go with you dude. I need a refill,” Topper said holding up his empty glass. Rafe held in the urge to roll his eyes, he wanted to go alone.

y/n was wiping down the bar when they approached. She looked up meeting eyes with her favorite boy, but then she looked over to his left and their Topper was

“What can I get you guys?” She asked looking between them, smiling at Rafe.

“Long island,” Topper said placing his empty glass down.

“Can I get a rum and coke please?” Rafe asked, resting his hands on the bar.

“Of course,” she nodded with a grin.

Rafe watched her as she prepared the drinks. Topper was trying to talk to him about who knows what, he couldn’t care less. He couldn’t pay attention even if he wanted to with that dress she had on. It fit her so perfectly, he wondered what it’d feel like under his hands. What it’d feel like to push it up as he touched the expanse of her thighs. Wondered what it’d feel like to hold her waist as he kissed her. If her skin was as soft as it looked.

“Bro you’re not even listening,” Topped said as he hit Rafe’s shoulder.

“Long island,” Y/n places the drink in front of him.

“You’re right I’m not.” Rafe rolled his eyes.

Topper took his drink without even thanking her, “Whatever dude I’m gonna find Sarah.” Finally Rafe was alone with his girl.

She placed his glass in front of him, “So where have you been all night?”

“Uh my dad didn’t want me to drink earlier,” He shrugged. He knew it was a half assed excuse.

“You don’t need to order a drink to come see me.”

He ran a hand through his hair, “I-I know but my dad thought that I was just coming over for a drink.”

She laughed bitterly not at Rafe but at the whole situation, “When I’m with you I forget I’m a uh pogue.”

“That doesn’t mean anything to me,” He reached out to touch her lightly. She leaned into his touch slightly, yearning to feel anything from him.

Her manager walked in, “Y/n, take your fifteen.” Taking over he place behind the bar, Rafe pulled his hand away from her.

“Uh yeah,” She gave him a tight lipped smile before walking to the back room. Rafe sighed and walked back out to where his friends were.

if I get burned at least we were electrified, I’m spilling wine in the bath tub you kiss my face & we’re both drunk

Y/n stood in the back leaning against the wall. She hated this town. She hated the labels everyone put on each other, it made her life so much harder. It was so easy when she was around Rafe even if it was a few minutes at a time. But then there was always something that reminded her of who she was and where she came from. It was either Ward, her friends, Rafe’s friends, her bosses. Someone always had to remind her where she was and who she was.

She rolled her eyes at herself. She walked into the back, in search of a bottle of wine. She found one she thought she’d like, popping it open and pouring herself a glass. Y/n felt like she deserved it, especially after tonight. The night wasn’t going exactly as planned, so she might as well drink.

After three full glasses of red wine her break was over. It probably wasn’t the smartest idea to drink while on the clock because now everything looked a little fuzzy.

“I’m back,” She slurred to her manager.

Lisa eyed her suspiciously, “Are you drunk?”

“No never,” She gave her a toothy grin trying to hide her tipsiness. The alcohol affecting her more and more as the seconds passed.

Lisa sighed, “Y/n you can’t be like this here right now. You know how bad this would look. If you get one of these jerk offs orders wrong and they smell that merlot on your breath they’ll have you banned.” Lisa tried her best to look out for the girl because she knew she didn’t have anyone that was looking out for her.

Her eyes watered at the thought of losing the only job she had been able to get on this whole island, “I-I can’t lose this job. I need this.”

Lisa sighed, “Go home. I’ll cover for you, and you can still keep the tips okay? Only because I care about you.”

Y/n sniffled bringing the older woman into a hug, “Thank you Lisa, I owe you.”

“Get home safe okay, call someone.” Lisa said rubbing her back. She walked (stumbled a bit) to the back to grab her bag.

even in my worst times you could see the best of me

Y/n didn’t know who to call, her friends were all at parties probably drinking as well. Her parents weren’t in her life. The one person who could help her had been watching her from across the room. Concern written all over his face. She looked at him with teary eyes and he was already taking long strides towards her. She met him halfway, the tag from her dress itching her side.

“Rafe,” Her voice was shaky as she hugged herself looking for some comfort. She knew this was all her fault, she shouldn’t have had that wine. She felt like she was always making mistakes like this.

Rafe’s hands held her face, “What happened? Did someone do something?” He asked with worry and a bit of anger. If one of these kooks made his girl cry they’d have him to deal with.

“No no I did something. I-I drank some wine on my break. I’m drunk Rafe and Lisa told me to go home. She um she said she’ll let me keep the tips today but uh can you take me h-home?” She asked barely taking a breath.

He brushed her hair back, “Hey breathe, I’ll take you home okay baby.”

“I’m sorry Rafe, I-I shouldn’t take you away. I feel so stupid.”

“You’re not stupid. I’m glad I get to get away from this shit, especially if it’s with you.”

Ward had been watching the interaction from outside. He eyed as his son held the bar tender who he felt was trying to hard to look like she fit in with them, her dirty sneakers gave her away. In her defense you can’t really bartend in heels.

He walked over to them before they could leave, “Uh Rafe, what are you doing?” He didn’t spare a glance at the disheveled girl.

Rafe stood up straight, “I’m taking her home dad.”

“Who is this? The bartender? You can’t leave now. There’s still some guys I need to introduce you to.” He treated her like she was nothing.

“No dad I’m taking her home, this is more important.” Rafe wrapped his arm around her shoulders to lead her towards the exit.

Ward grabbed his arm as he tried to walk past him, “Don’t disappoint me son.”

He shrugged his shoulder to get him off, “You’ve made it clear plenty of times that it’s too late for that.”

They didn’t make a big scene but some people had been watching. They watched as the oldest Cameron led the girl outside, a pogue. Tomorrow word would spread all across the island just how cozy they were. Ward would berate Rafe about it but right now he didn’t care, he just wanted to get his girl away from everyone.

Y/n couldn’t believe Rafe had done that for her. He dropped everything for her, she really did feel like he was a prince.

only bought this dress so you could take it off

Rafe kept glancing over at her as he drove to her house. He was worried about her, she looked so sad and he hated seeing her sad. Her head was leaning agains the passenger window just looking out into the darkness.

“Sweetheart what’s wrong?” He finally asked breaking the silence.

She sighed looking over at him, “I feel like an idiot.”

“Why?”

“I put on this stupid dress that I can’t even afford and I got too drunk while I was working. I took you away from the party.” She shook her head at herself.

Rafe pulled into the driveway of her small house, her grandma had left it for her after she passed a few years ago. It was the perfect house for her but now she had to work overtime to keep up with bills.

“Lets talk once we get inside,” Rafe turned the car off and ran over to open her door.

They walked into her house, Rafe had never been there. This is the most time they’ve ever been able to spend alone, without anyone being able to interrupt them or pull them away from each other. He liked her house, it was very her. Warm lighting and pictures everywhere. She sat on the couch setting her bag onto the ground.

“You look amazing, this dress looks amazing on you.” He said as he sat next to her. She leaned over and rested her head on his shoulder.

“I wore this for you. I wanted to impress you, instead I embarrassed myself.” She closed her eyes thinking about the events of the night.

Rafe turned to her, “I would drop everything for you. I have been dying inside to spend this night with you.”

“Really?” She asked looking at him with stars in her eyes.

“Yes, baby. And this dress does look amazing on you. You look perfect. I’ve wanted you since the first day we met at the club.” He tucked her hair behind her ear.

Her face flushed at the compliments, “But why? I’m just me. I don’t have anything, I can’t even afford this dress. I’m just a bartender.”

He shook his head, “None of that shit matters to me. You actually listen to me and you care about me more than my shithead friends ever have. I only go to those stupid parties to see you.”

“Rafe, I care about you so much.”

He couldn’t take it anymore, he leaned forward and captured her lips with his. They were slightly swollen from the few tears she had shed earlier in the night. Her lips tasted like merlot she had downed. They moved in sync as if they had been doing this forever. He smelt like expensive cologne and she wanted to drown in it, she wanted to drown in him. His lips felt so good against hers, she had been dreaming about this moment for ages.

Her hands slid up his chest and into his hair. Pulling at the dirty blonde locks to encourage him. Rafe’s hands slid up and down her waist. Finally feeling the dress he had thought about all night. As the kiss grew more passionate he grabbed her hips and tugged her towards him. He pulled her to sit on his lap, her legs on either side of him. His fingers slowly slid up her thighs pushing her dress farther up, almost fully around her hips. Y/n’s thighs were just as soft as he imagined. His mind was racing with thoughts of everything he wanted to do to her.

The small whines that left her lips encouraged him to keep going. One hand moving behind her to give her ass a squeeze. He pulled away to press kisses against her neck making goosebumps rise on her skin. Her hands moving back and forth from tugging his hair to pulling at his blazer to get him impossibly closer.

“Baby,” He mumbled against her neck. She just hummed in return, too lost in the feeling of his lips on her. Tasting her like she’s always wanted him to.

“I want to keep going, but I know you’ve drank tonight. I want you to be be a hundred percent sober when I do everything I’ve always dreamed about doing to you,” He said looking up at her. He almost regretted his words and took her right then and there when he saw her swollen lips and hazy lust filled eyes.

She took a deep breath to get herself to focus. Her senses were overloaded on Rafe, “Okay, can you stay? Please?”

He leaned forward giving her another kiss, “Of course, I’ll always stay.”

[ironunderstands]

2.1 was so good holy shit (spoilers, obviously)

GOD THEY ATE AND IM SPECIFICALLY GONNA TALK ABOUT HOW WELL THEY WROTE RATIO IN THIS BECAUSE IM FOAMING AT THE GODDAMN MOUTH IT CHANGES HOW YOU VIEW EVERYTHING BUT IN A GOOD WAY.

so, let’s start from the beginning in 2.0 I want to walk you through my experience of it

ratio mean to aventurine, everyone gets mad. I feel weird about it, pre-2.1 I come to the conclusion that he got used as a plot device in that scene, since being racist contradicts his core motivations and the dialogue is awkward and has no real reason behind it, I chalk it up to bad writing but ultimately forgive it because 2.1 seems centered around Aventurine so they need setup for that

2.1 drops, my bsf plays the update throughout the night and we are losing our shit. He gets to the part where Ratio “betrays” Aventurine. I fucking lose it, I try to reconcile this with my preconceived notions of ratio, they don’t match up at all, his behavior that whole time doesn’t in the slightest. I am confused, I wonder if I have been wrong about him this whole time, if his whole speech on the Space Station and his character quests were some kind of fluke. I mean it could be in character? Knowledge of how a stellaron works could save millions if not billions of lives, invaluable information which Ratio would have trouble turning down because of its value. It still feels deeply wrong, Ratio isnt a backstabber, and he wouldn’t so easily bargain with Sunday over information he has no confirmation of (and could likely obtain in some other way).

The story continues, me and Haseeb (aforementioned best friend) are still pissed, I’m losing it because my favorite character just did something so unforgivable and out of character and I feel like a complete and utter idiot for interpreting a character to be a good person when they so clearly weren’t. Well, I (luckily) was so so so so so so so wrong about that, as it was all a setup, a plan devised by Aventurine to distract Sunday and forward their goals. I’ve never been happier, and suddenly every weird behavior, every “this doesn’t make sense” goes from “bad writing” to perhaps one of my favorite retroactive twists in fiction.

Ratio belittling Aventurine for his background doesn’t make any sense, I mean we literally saw the guy give a whole ass speech about how he believes all people deserve access to knowledge and that everyone is capable of being creative and having intellect, but that they just have to try for it, and if they are incapable of it, he DOCTOR Ratio is there to lend a helping hand. To cure the galaxy of stupidity, something which he views as not the lack of knowledge but rather the misuse and misinterpretation of it, how he depises the Genius Society because they mostly do not try and use their intellect from the betterment of other, and actively guide/encourage other scientists (and in Hertas case the researchers at the space station) to view knowledge as some sort of prize or commodity rather than tool. This notion is what causes Screwellum to acknowledge that Ratio is more like a medical doctor than a scholar. And this notion is something Sunday Isn’t Aware Of.

Sunday doesn’t know who Ratio really is, he may have heard of his various exploits, but Ratio has a reputation for arrogance, bluntness and insensitivity, something which Ratio plays up to the nines. The 2.0 scene with Aventurine goes from seemingly massively OOC for Ratio to him actively playing up his negative reputation to play into Sundays perceptions of the pair for their plan. Ratio->

a) makes it seem like Aventurine fucked up and he’s mad at him for losing the cornerstones, something which Sunday would see and go “hmm they don’t like each other

b) this “oh I can drive a wedge between them” notion gets worse (although in their case better) when Ratio brings up Aventurine’s (not entirely accurate) background. Sunday now thinks he has leverage over Aventurine and even more of a chance of getting Ratio to betray him. Ratio also makes it seem like he just learned this information by stating he “did his homework” and this supposed unfamiliarity with one another would give Sunday more confidence to try and drive a wedge between them

c) this makes it seem like the IPC are unaware of the Families constant surveillance, as it looks like they are having an important conversation in a private room, which would make Sunday think they are unaware of his eyes and ears everywhere

Now let me qualify this notion with more evidence because you could still try and argue that the deal Ratio and Aventurine struck was post 2.0 argument

Topaz (my glorious Queen). At the end of the 1.4 (or was it 1.5?) Belabog quest she has a conversation with Aventurine in which he requests for her help in Penacony, and we do not get a confirmation on if she said yes or not. Until 2.1, in which the the Topaz (and Jade) stone in in Aventurines possession, meaning she took him up on that offer prior to 2.0 because how else would he bring multiple cornerstones there, which we know there are many because Ratio says he lost the cornerstones, not just his own. Topaz would not give this item up easily or on a whim in between 2.0 and 2.1, meaning she would have to be let in on his plan prior, meaning the plan was formed prior. Since Ratio was also assigned to this mission keeping him in the dark would make negative sense and actively undermine their collaboration, something which he brings up in their fake argument

2. The Final Victory Lightcone. I originally thought this scene to be after their argument for complicated reasons, the most important of which being the minor snippet of conversation we see between Ratio and Aventurine during the first time we meet Acheron. Aventurine mentions 3 chips, Ratio doubts him, and the lightcone description starts with Aventurine questioning his doubt and firing three shots, a perfect correlation that made me place the order of events in that way. However, we get to see the snippet of conversation between Aventurine and Ratio in game, right before they meet Sunday, not prior to the lightcone events. However, they are still clearly connected for aforementioned reasons, just in a different manner, let me explain. Now we know the three chips reference not bullets but the three cornerstones, and Ratio openly expresses his doubt because the family is always watching (something which I will get into) and because a part of him does doubt this plan will go well. However, Aventurine prior reminds him of the events of the lightcone with the three chips. My interpretation is that Aventurine took that gamble in the lightcone to convince Ratio to go along with his crazy plan since if he can win a game of Russian Roulette with an unwavering smile on his face he an insane gamble means nothing to him (ratio doesn’t buy it because it’s ratio but the sheer audacity or you could say the “charming audacity” makes him go along with it). In my opinion this scene only makes sense pre-penacony, due to the timeline of events, which is why I believe it the reason for the events in it has to be Aventurine trying to convince Ratio to join in.

3) The family is always watching. During the 2.1 story quest it gets brought up several times in many different ways that it seems like the family has eyes on everything and everyone. Sunday’s fuckass bird is everywhere, and the man himself (minus being a goddamn biblically accurate angel) is covered in eye shaped shit and possesses close ties with the Harmony, which lends itself well to a character that knows things considering the Aeon itself is a conglomeration of many different perspectives. He fucking perception checks Aventurine, when the crew goes to look for info on firefly they learn the dream pools monitor people’s vitals and everything, even producing a dialogue option where the trailblazer states they feel like their every move is being watched. Topaz gets stalked by bloodhound members upon arrival, I could go on. TLDR Sunday knows almost everything that’s going on in Penacony, this is what leads him to believe the traitor is within the family, and his access to knowledge is something the IPC 100% knows about. I mean they have been presumably attempting to try and get it back for a while, and they would reasonably extensively try and learn everything about it. The Family notoriously hates negotiating with them so the IPC either learning and/or coming to the conclusion that the Family is watching their every move isn’t a ridiculous notion. If this conversation was genuine, if Ratio truly wanted to discuss this matter with Aventurine, why would he do it in a likely wiretapped, not very soundproof room where any passerby could hear Ratio loudly exclaim that Aventurine lost the very important cornerstones and that he is also one of the most despised groups in the galaxy because that would really do numbers for both their reputations. If you think about it, this not being staged is an incredibly stupid blunder on Ratio’s end (minus the deliberate OOCness) because of all the places Ratio could set up a very important meeting he does it in one of the worst places ever.

4) The dialogue in the scene. It’s awkward, it’s so awkward and the whole “also my family died I didn’t get an education” seemed so tacked on the first time I watched it. Knowing now, it seemed so tacked on because it was, Aventurine had to shove the info in there somewhere and their incredible conversational skills decided that was the best part in there. Ratio fucking leaving before Aventurine is even done talking goes from a “huh weird” to a “wow he is really playing up this arrogant scholar role”. And if Ratio is playing the arrogant scholar, Aventurine is playing the dumb, helpless, blonde to a T. Losing the cornerstones and acting nonchalant about it, letting Ratio insult him so callously and letting the insults slide, talking absolute nonsense at the end about random things that don’t matter, sadly lamenting into the distance that he’s alone again. Bro is playing it up and I live for it. They also and play up these personas in their little adventure prior to meeting Sunday, Aventurine asks stupid questions like wondering about the species of the bird that make up the statues and talking about how he wants to play in the sandpit and even insulting Sunday a bit, behavior that would make Sunday think him unprepared and unserious rather than cold and calculating. If Aventurine does that well, Ratio plays up his arrogant, uncaring scholar persona to the nines. He insults any and every decision or thing Aventurine does, loudly sighing of how happy he is to finally have some peace and quiet when Aventurine leaves his sight for 0.00008 milleseconds, pointing out his sarcasm, beefing with a random Pepeshi bodyguard no reason, pointing out his sarcasm, just the exaggerated way he talks in general, and suggesting he admit Aventurine into the Genius Society (even Ratio wouldn’t stoop so low as to suggest Aventurine was worthy of that).

Moreover, this is really, really tragic because I do think there are several moments of genuine banter and fun the two share “Ratio, you’re huge!” was not added to the script to enhance the plot guys. And obviously Aventurine knows most of Ratios behavior is acting, however he has such severe trust issues, and Ratio is so damn straightforward and blunt that he worries the man was serious about some of it which just breaks my heart. Soft Ratio please add it give me one conversation, the note at the end of 2.1 doesn’t count it’s too short.

Ultimately, knowing what I know now I can’t help but view the 2.0 conversation with Aventurine as being anything but staged, it simply makes no sense otherwise, and it happily obsolescent Ratio of his sins. This was a bit incoherent I honestly just wanted to rant (if you couldn’t tell haha) but I hope you enjoyed it regardless. I need sincere Ratio more then I need oxygen and I’m not afraid to say it.