#I’ve been on a string of reading Not Great Books

[moonchildstyles]

-

[impactedfates]

Hello. I'm sorry if this is sudden but I was wondering if you took story requests and if you do, could you make a platonic Dan heng IL story with the reader being the child of his previous incarnation Dan feng, the reader is great at telling stories and they would use the power they inherited from their mother to change the shape of pieces of paper into different people and monsters. (I was pretty inspired by the movie Kubo and the two strings) Jing Yuan is the one to tell Dan Heng about the reader even though he doesn't know them very well, but Jing Yuan felt like Dan Heng had the right to know about the reader especially after the reader had an encounter with Blade. (If this is too much that's completely understandable and I wish you a good day/afternoon and or night😊)

A/N - These 2 requests are kinda similar in a way. So I thought to mix them together in the one fic!! I hope that's alright to the two anons who requested (づ ◕‿◕ )づ This isn't my best work, love-hate relationship with it, leaning more towards hate but I hope youse enjoy this anyways (hopefully lol)

W.C: 1149

Warnings: Wrongful imprisonment, reader was forced to stop aging with a potion, hints at abuse/torture but not said.

Extra: Reader is a child and there for shorter then most characters, Reader has horns and a tail (Vidyadhara)

“Dan Heng, there you are. I’ve been looking for you everywhere”

Dan Heng looked up from the book he was reading and stared at the white haired male.

“General?”

“Please, we’re far past formalities. In any case, there’s someone I think you should meet”

The raven haired male closed his book before it away and stood up, raising a small eyebrow at the General, crossing his arms, he spoke, inquiring more about what he meant.

“Who? I don’t think I was invited to anything”

“Your kid…well more specifically Dan Feng's kid”

Dan Hengs eyes widen just the slightest fraction, slightly taken aback by the information, but he agrees to go meet the child of his previous incarnation.

Jing Yuan offers to walk with him to where they were staying, while also providing information about them to make the “reunion” a bit more bearable in a way. Their name is [Name], although not technically biologically his, they did have his genes, Dan Heng wasn’t gonna question that.

[Name] was stuck in the Shackling Prisons for a while now. Ever since Dan Feng had been banished from the Loufu, some cloud knights thought it wasn’t enough and decided to imprison his kid as well, it wasn’t until Dan Heng came back and got the banishment lifted that they came clean.

Dan Hengs eyes grow concerned, looking at Jing Yuan.

“And the cloud knights?”

“Punished, they didn’t get any permission to send anyone to the prison. I released [Name] already, so all there is left is for you to meet them…don’t feel pressured to take them in as your kid though…I know you don’t wanna be tied to your past incarnation”

Dan Heng nodded a bit slowly, continuing to follow Jing Yuan by his side as the two continued walking. It wasn’t a long walk but Dan Heng still thought hard about what he’d do.

Eventually the sounds of kids clapping and cheering reached his ears, he looked up and caught sight of a shorter Vidyadhara talking to some of the younger Foxians. Their hands folded some paper, creating a paper crane before they clasped it fully around their hand, and out came an actual bird.

“And the bird flew away to meet with their family! Then they lived happily ever after”

The Vidyadhara chirped with a smile as the kids around them clapped, urging them to tell another one. Another story.

“[Name]! There you are, I brought over your fath- I mean…your fathers reincarnation”

The small Vidyadhara turns their head and looks curiously at the General before their eyes landed on Dan Heng. Their eyes widened a bit before they slowly walked over. And koala hugged his leg. Dan Heng was taken aback by this action but did not push the kid off, instead slowly leaning down and patting their head awkwardly. He was frozen in place due to the sudden hug.

Jing Yuan chuckled at the sight, before turning to leave.

“I’ll leave youse two it then, if you need help. You know where to find me”

“Papa?”

Before Dan Heng could even reply, the kid spoke one word that made him freeze a bit more. He never did like when people connected him to his past. Always telling people he wasn’t ‘Dan Feng’

“I’m not him…sorry…I’m Dan Heng”

“Papa!”

The kid pouted at him, eyes looking at him with puppy eyes, Dan Heng averted his gaze and tried to change the subject.

“Let’s…explore the Loufu together”

.

.

.

“Papa look! It’s a dragon plushie, can I have it please”

[Name] begged their father, looking up at him as they tugged his shirt.

“Again…not your papa but…sure, any particular reason why you want it?”

“I want to be able to cuddle you at night if you’re not there”

Dan Hengs eyes widened a bit as he looked away with an embarrassed blush. He wasn’t even in his Vidyadhara form but then again, the kid seemed to adamantly believe that he was their father.

Still, without a second thought he took out his wallet.

.

.

.

“Bellybog?”

“Belobog, like bell-o-bog”

Dan Heng speaks, guilding [Name] on how to pronounce the place. He didn’t know how it happened, but one minute he brought the kid on the express, the next March insisted they bring them to Belobog to see the snow.

“They’ve been stuck in that yucky prison for who knows how long, they gotta see the snow…oh! And build a snowman, we should have a snowball fight as well and-”

March proceeded to talk about the possible games and things they could do once they landed. So here he was helping [Name] with building a snowman.

“We should give it horns!”

“Horns?”

“Like you Papa”

He stiffened a bit at being called ‘Papa’ once more, sighing out. He takes two sticks and sticks them on the snowman's head to resemble horns.

“I’m not Dan Feng”

.

.

.

“Sooo, you have a kid now?”

Came a teasing voice, Dan Heng sighed and turned his head to Himeko who was helping to feed the kid some new things. Pom Pom wanted to see what the kid would like to eat, so Himeko was helping.

“Not mine…”

“But they see you as their father, you don’t see them as your kid?”

Dan Heng was quick to shush Himeko as the shorter Vidydhara looked curiously up at the two. He thanked the aeons they were still learning a few things due to the isolation, though…he did feel bad about it still.

Himeko could only laugh softly…until a crash was heard on the other side of the train. She muttered under her breath, something about March and the Trailblazer being irresponsible and prone to cause accidents, yet a smile was still painted on her face.

“Here Dan Heng, little [Name] here just needs to try one more things, you feed it to them”

She said, gently pushing the chair the child was sitting on to Dan Heng, he made no objections, simply sighed and fed the kid.

“Papa?”

“Hm?”

“I love you, I’m happy you’re back”

Dan Heng froze his movements at his kids' words, which in fact gave the kid some time to climb onto his lap and cuddle themselves in it, wrapping their tail around their body. They slowly fell to sleep with a smile on their face.

Dan Heng took a bit to process everything but sighed, carefully standing up and bringing the kid to his room so they could have a better sleep.

.

.

.

.

.

.

“Dan Heng, you left your-”

The red haired woman's voice died down as she saw the scene in front of her, with a knowing smile, she slowly closed the door and walked away, shushing the other passengers.

What lay in the archives was a small Vidydhara resting with their eyes closed, sleeping peacefully. Their bed? A taller Vidyadhara with his arms around the kid, cradling the kid as his tail rested around him as well.

OEDNIOFBS, the more I read this the more I hate it help :sob:

For anyone who has requested before this post, apologies for taking so long but I'll be working on it soon don't worry!!

[love-hs28]

You're gonna do just fine, I promise.

Summary: Chemistry class had never been your strong-suit, and an upcoming test leads you to break down while trying to study an impossible unit.  gn!reader cw: reader has panic attack 1.1k words comfort & fluff Posted on: 6-20-24

You and Eddie were hanging out in your room one autumn evening, both trying your hardest to study for an upcoming chemistry test. Your record player spun softly in the background and the only lights illuminating your room were the lamps on your desk and nightstand, and the string lights that hung on your walls.

You didn’t struggle in school by any means, but you still had to actually put in effort to keep your grades up. You probably pushed yourself a bit too hard sometimes, because there was no reason to not be satisfied with A’s and B’s as your average scores. But, for some reason only known by God or whatever higher power there might be, this current chemistry unit was giving you absolute. hell. Eddie, for once, seemed to be getting the hang of things pretty quickly and had finished his study sheet before you had the chance to get halfway done. Chemistry had always come easy for him, most likely because he actually found it interesting and easy to pay attention to. And, despite what many people might think, Eddie was really very smart when he wanted to be. 

After offering to help you and you refusing the help due to the determination to figure it out on your own, Eddie retreated to your bed to continue reading his well-loved copy of Lord of the Rings while you stayed hunched over on your desk. 

Too many minutes go by of you trying to solve a specific word problem, and you’re afraid if it isn't solved in the next attempt you’re going to drop out of school completely. You let out a sigh and rub your hands over your face. Eddie, lying on his stomach with his elbows propping himself up, looks up from his book. 

“Sweetheart, that’s the third time you’ve sighed in the last minute. Maybe it's time for a break.” 

You sigh and frustratedly shuffle through your papers and textbook. 

“These fucking problems are killing me, Eddie. It’s like I understand what’s going on and how to solve it but forget what I’ve read a minute later. I just- I can’t fail this test, Ed. I can’t.” 

Eddie moves to sit up against your headboard. “Y/n, you’re literally the smartest person I know. I promise you, you are not going to fail the test. And hey, even if you did, I’m sure your gpa will still be, what? 3.999…” 

“I’m serious, Eddie! It’s fucking stressing me out and I just- there’s no way I’m going to learn or retain all of this by Friday.” You can feel your heartbeat start to quicken and breathing is becoming a bit more difficult as your chest begins to tighten.

“Hey, don’t freak out, y/nn. You’re gonna do great. I can try my best to help you and we’ll figure it out together okay? I promise, don’t stress about it, it’s gonna be fine.” 

You rest your head in your hands on the desk and try to calm yourself down. You can feel tears forming in your eyes, slowly beginning to fall down your face. 

“It’s more than that, though. It’s just, everything is so stressful right now and I can’t- I don’t know what to do.” You sob into your hands, the stress of the past couple weeks feeling overpowering and impossible to hold in anymore. 

“Sweetheart,” Eddie sets his book face down on your bed and gets up to walk over to you. He gently removes your hands from your face, turning the chair away from the desk and kneeling so he’s level with you. You’re really struggling to breathe now. 

“Baby, shhh. It’s okay. I’m right here, look at me. It’s okay.” He softly guides your face to look at him. Your ears are ringing and your eyes won’t focus so you tightly squeeze them shut. You shake your head, moving out of Eddie’s hold, folding over and covering your face again. 

“I can’t- Eddie- I can’t. Fuck, I can’t breathe.” Air is coming in and out of your lungs now only in short gasps and whimpers. Your whole body shakes as you repeatedly shake your head, trying to get rid of the foggy and panicky feelings. 

“Sweetheart, calm down. You’re gonna pass out if you don’t slow your breathing, angel, look at me. Follow my breaths.” Eddie gently takes one of your hands and puts it over his chest, taking deep, exaggerated breaths for you to follow. His other hand rests on the side of your face, trying to get your eyes to focus on him. It works, and after a moment of following his breathing patterns you can feel your heart and gasps start to calm down. You don’t know how many minutes pass, but your eyes never leave each other as you continue to breathe together. 

Once your breathing is manageable, your face crumples and you break down, all of the suppressed emotions of the past week coming out now that you don’t have to worry about whether or not you’re going to make yourself pass out. You sob, hiccups and everything. 

“Oh, angel,” Eddie gently guides you off of the chair and into his lap on the floor, you leaning all of your weight into him and holding him as close as possible. Your grip stays on his shirt, soaking it with tears. He rubs your back and strokes your hair, whispering non-stop comforting words into your neck. 

“I know, I know. It’s okay, love. I got you. I got you. You’re okay. It’s gonna be okay.” 

Once you calm down one final time, he gently pulls back and puts his hands on your face so you can look at him. Wiping the remaining tears away with his thumbs, he kisses you on your forehead. You rub your eyes, suddenly feeling very tired from exerting the entirety of the energy you had left. 

“Let’s take a break from studying, yeah? We can watch a movie or something. Get your mind off of everything. Or just lay together, whatever you want.” His thumbs rub loving strokes on your cheeks, eyes looking at you in an attempt to show you just how much he cares and wants you to not feel like this. 

You lean into his touch and glance over to your bed where his book lies open. “Can you read to me?” 

Eddie beams and gives you a sweet kiss. “I thought you’d never ask. I would love to.” 

He picks you up, making you giggle as he takes you to the bed, and you lie down so he’s against the headboard and you’re lying on his chest between his legs, the book in front of both of you. He reads to you while you fidget with his hands and rings and he plays with your hair. You eventually fall asleep as he’s reading, finally able to relax, his sleep following shortly after. 

a/n: hope you enjoyed!! my first Eddie fic! hopefully more to come soon 🤞haven't posted in a while and I would looooveeee any recommendations! this isn't proofread so pls ignore any mistakes 🙏 love ya'll and couldn't be more grateful for the love the last few fics have gotten. as always, pls leave requests/asks/whateva. love ya! <3

[someidiot-withadhd]

So uhm…

Sanders Sides Fantasy AU!!!

Hehe..

Please I’ve spent four days on this

Explanations and extra details under the cut! And close ups of everyone!!

Well there everyone is!

So, for some basic info, this is kinda based off of D&D but I’m too lazy to give everyone classes and stats, so they just get races!

This is set in a world that Roman created in the imagination, and dragged everyone along with him. Maybe by accident, maybe on purpose.. maybe he was just missing the others.. it had been so long since they’ve all been together, so why not take them on an adventure!

Patton: A frogfolk! He’s already one of the shortest, and even shorter now! That’s doesn’t bother him though, if anything were to bother him, it would be the memory of his past experience being a frog… But no matter! If they’re stuck in the imagination until they finish their quest, he’ll just have to do what’s needed! (And he’ll collect every shiny thing he sees on the way, even if it puts him in danger!)

Logan: A faun. Not his first choice, but whatever makes the others happy. Thankfully, he got to keep his tie, and his book. That’ll help keep him focused in this unfamiliar world. And if only his fur would stay neat, no mater what he does it’s always unruly, it’s irritating.

Virgil: Mr. Panic at the everywhere finally has a form to match, maybe. A phantom? Well that fits. Although why is he neither an animal or human? Is it because he’s left the dark sides..? No.. he’s getting paranoid again.. and why does he have a knife?

Janus: yes he may be the two-faced snake of the group, but that doesn’t mean he’s a bad guy! He’s trying to do better, honestly. And turning him into a Hydra seems kind of mean, don’t you think? No this wasn’t his doing, he never wanted to be here in the first place.. well, if he’s here he should probably make the best of it.

Roman: A dragon, just like his dreams! Of course, he never expected to be a dragon himself, but the tail and wings are really cool! And besides, why not make the best out of his forced family bonding time! It’s not like he’s scared to talk to them after they’ve drifted apart or anything! No, the great prince Roman is fearless!

Remus: oh, what do we have here? Roman and co. are in the imagination? Well why not turn this to my advantage! We’ll see how they’re doing in there, and maybe pull some strings, take this into my own hands, and twist this to my liking. And I better change to match, besides, it’ll be nice not being cold blooded for a while. This will be an amazing little adventure, won’t it, ————?

So, all the dark sides have animal traits right? Why not take this a step further, and make them full animals!

Woah, thanks for reading this far! I’m super excited about this, but still, it’s only a concept, and stuff could change!

[campgender]

i was scrolling your “life is in your home too” tag, which I love btw, and saw a post about how you learned to be a good dom from experienced expert doms by reading how they dom and some of their best scenes, do you think you could point me in the direction of some resources for me to study that too? thanks in advance, if not, thanks anyway!

(post referenced is here - link 1)

first of all tysm for this ask (+ your incredibly kind follow-up), it was a delight to receive + i’ve been wanting an excuse to talk about a lot of this for a while so i very much appreciate the interest!

as always please keep in mind that i am Just Some Fem, nothing is universal including when it comes to D/s & i can only speak to what works for me. i try to focus on starting points rather than specifics but ultimately my advice will always be limited by what i needed to hear & wasn’t told, which may not be what’s helpful for a different person. with that being said, here’s some suggestions!

i’ve posted a previous reading list (link 2) with relevant recs; particularly the practicality + sex writing sections have the kind of thing you’re looking for. specifically, The New Topping Book (2003) is a solid starting point; i definitely have my issues with it (haven’t read it recently enough to recall many specifics but i have the sense of general pervasive racism & ableism) but it did a good job at making me think & i appreciate the supportive tone they were going for

another book added to my tbr since then is Coming to Power (link 3), released by SAMOIS in 1983

other authors whose sex writing has been influential in my life: Sandra Cisneros, Natalie Diaz, Joan Nestle, Judy Grahn

the fic At The End of His Rope by Letterblade (link 4) is genuinely some of my favorite sex writing of all time & accomplishes the incredibly impressive feat of representing a broad array of dom styles & changes over time in the same piece

my “impurity culture” tag (link 5) houses the building blocks of my sexual ethic

i’ve found many of those foundations by poking around the incredible bodies of work original & archived @newsmutproject @woman-loving @gatheringbones

for me, studying sex is the same as studying poetry – reading for craft is a different process than for pleasure (not that there isn’t a great deal of pleasure to be found in such practice, especially for sadists – perhaps that’s why as a child i never resonated with Billy Collins’ “Introduction to Poetry,” like i love tying poems to chairs & beating them idk what to tell you). so, keeping in mind that these are suggestions not requirements, here’s how i read for + work on craft:

there is no such thing as too much journaling. this can take whatever form you prefer – voice memo, discord message to yourself, the noble notes app, your own personal sexy red string corkboard, a vast & stunning array of other approaches i can’t even begin to imagine. i personally have an elaborate web of spreadsheets & google docs lmao. what matters is developing a collection of ideas you want to play with + a practice of continually reflecting on past experiences.

pay attention to structure, not just content. find a scene you think is disjointed and pick at the seams, brainstorm better transitions. then find a scene that flows so smoothly it carries you with it and figure out what makes it work.

rewrite a scene you’re drawn to or affected by to suit your own preferences. i first did this when i couldn’t shake “Interlude 3” (link 6) from my head after reading The New Topping Book; you can read my variation on the theme here (link 7) if you’re interested.

write or think through a scene fantasy you have from negotiation to aftercare. obviously it’s very difficult if not impossible to fully script a scene in advance; the purpose isn’t planning something you’ll later do but rather getting used to coming up with ideas to get from one disparate moment / act to the next.

revisit a scene you’ve read, written, thought about, etc and list the physical & mental acts that are required / expected of the sub (eg, kneeling for 10 minutes; making eye contact; counting to 30, etc). then rework the scene for a sub who has the same interests & goals who cannot do 20% (or 50%, or any) of these acts.

revisit a previous scene and list the places where you think a sub might safeword & why. then rework it with the sub safewording somewhere that isn’t any of these places.

i also recommend keeping in mind that like… for me, reading about ethical sex can often be a very distressing process for the same reason that it’s liberating: because it proves that things i’ve experienced are not the way sex has to be. i’ll tell this story in its fullness one day but the first time i read S/HE by Minnie Bruce Pratt i literally had a flashback to events i’d repressed for years, it was devastating, i’m so grateful for it. hell, in the process of compiling resources for this post i cried twice editing this quote (link 8) because between reading that book the first time & now someone did “respond with scorn or ridicule” when i safeworded. so i would really encourage folks to approach this kind of work with as much grace & comfort for yourself as you can muster or borrow – if it’s really fucking hard, you’re not alone in that, & it’s okay to take your time + pace yourself + seek support.

your + others’ interest is definitely motivating me to actually write posts i’ve been tossing around for months so thank you again & feel free to keep an eye out for more shut-in sex tips in my new “tomorrow sexting will be good again” tag. would love to hear your thoughts on any of this post / these or other books / whatever really lol. wishing you all the best & i hope today is kind to you! 💓

[natalie668]

Hey i was wondering if maybe you could do something with the poly lost boys finding there mate right after they said that they can't find love? It can be for the boys or the reader. You don't have to ofcourse if you don't want to.

Here you go love, hope you enjoy this, I know I enjoyed writing it. I’ve been a bit stuck writers block wise and this helped pull me out of it ❤️ This is ModernAU! Hope that’s ok. 🥰

You sat on the edge of your best friends bed, you felt miserable; you had just finished college for the summer, and your supposed boyfriend had been cheating on you with your room mate, a girl you had to share dorms with.

“Just forget about it love, you told me his dick was small anyway.” She says laughing, pushing your shoulder after doing the finishing touches to your face.

You can’t help the laugh that escapes you, she sure knows how to cheer you up, which was why she was dragging you out 2 towns over to Santa Carla for a music fest on the beach, she’d gotten the two of you tickets weeks ago. You used to live in Santa Carla so you were happy to go back, if not to get away from your hoe of a dorm mate and the cheating prick of an ex. You guessed Love just wasn’t in the cards for you, and you believed that was okay.

“Right, get your sexy arse up, get your dress on, we’ll go downstairs order an Uber and we’ll get there in time to scout for hotties.” She says as she pulls her phone out, in minutes the Uber is on the way, and you’re both off.

It takes around 30 minutes in the car before the driver is dropping you at the board walk, the sounds and smells make you nostalgic for times of the past where you’d spend the days here with high school friends, and a lot of the times on your own.

Holding hands with your bestie, you both head towards the loud music, pulling her phone out she pulls up the QR code for your tickets and you’re let in and you’re making your ways through the crowd.

Bodies are grinding against one another, you try to avoid being stood on as much as you can, finding an open space you pull your friend into the spot, you dance together to the song playing. “Pacify her, by Melanie Martinez” is playing and you love the song so you’re singing along, your hands, a live band will be playing soon so you take advantage of the songs between acts.

You sing along to the song, dancing as if not a single person is their looking, you feel free, which is saying a lot as you haven’t felt free since you had began dating your ex.

As the two of you are so engrossed in dancing you don’t notice the four guys leaning against the nearest fenced off area. There eyes have found you amongst the hundreds of bodies in here and something clicks. Like they’ve been in the dark for the past centuries and seeing you has turned the light on.

You’re perfect as you stand their dancing, they eye you from head to toe, you’re like heaven and they have to stop themselves from running over to you throwing you over their shoulder and running. (Or flying) away with you.

David looks to the others and they turn towards you and all four of them stand their watching their angel, their soulmate. They couldn’t believe they’d found you, they had began to believe you didn’t exist.

As one, they approached you; your bestie spotted them heading towards you both, their eyes on you. With a smile she pushes you to check them out, with a grin she says she’s going to get you both a drink.

The lightest blond guy, settles a hand against my side, the moment he touched me it felt like my heart had a string attached to him, it was like when you read books on soulmates, I could tell this was it. I guess with the amount of books I read this was the closest thing to experiencing the real thing.

“I’m David, this is Marko, Paul & Dwayne,” he says as he points the other guys out who haven’t taken their eyes off me. Something pulls me into wanting their touch.

“Why do you all feel like mine,” i say unable to stop myself. They probably think I’m nuts, great job love.

“That’s because we are yours, and you my Love, are ours.” Bringing his lips to your own, you swallow your moan as you feel several pairs of hands stroke down your back, across your arms and your hand.

“You’re our soulmate, my sweet.” The dark haired one says his eyes seem to glow after saying that, you have no idea what they are or why you’re believing soulmates are true but you’re so glad you decided to come with your bestie.

Note: hope this was okay Anonymous ❤️ I know no smut but I can always try for a part 2 if need be :-)

[gghostwriter]

Entangled Strings of Fate

Chapter 1. Lighting stuck (and was caught in a bottle)

Spencer Reid x FOC

Summary: Caltech, Pasadena - Cleo considers herself a woman of logic. With an IQ of 158 and an eidetic memory, how could she not. But meeting Spencer, the boy genius to hers, had her believing in intangible theories like the invisible string and the fates. Now, if only he would notice the depth of her feelings. Set in Caltech, pre-season 1 and will progress from there. previous chapter || series masterlist || next chapter

“Luck is not chance, it’s toil; fortune’s expensive smile is earned” - Emily Dickinson

The day started off beat when the alarm for her 8am class didn’t ring and it continued to snowball since then. Rushing out the door with a piece of bread in her mouth, her bag strap broke into two. The vending machine around the corner was out of order. She stepped on gum while brisk walking to her next class. And missed the chance to borrow the last book copy of a pre-requisite read for another class. In retrospect, these could all be the fates and time setting the scene. 

“Excuse me, I was told by the librarian you borrowed the last copy of The Origins of Totalitarianism?”

A pair of eyes looked up at Cleo blankly from his cluttered library desk by the window. He looked young, younger than any university boys she’d seen around the campus. Locks pushed behind his ears, he was pleasing to the eyes. If the academic genius was the type and it was true for her. 

Cleo found herself rambling under his scrutiny. “I know I’m not supposed to know who borrowed which book due to personal privacy and the librarian shouldn’t have have told me anything even with my incessant questioning but I really do need the book for a pre-requisite.” 

“Actually yes, you shouldn’t have been given access to library records or been privy to any of those information. But I do have the copy you’re looking for,” he pointed at the mentioned book from underneath a precarious book pile. 

“Is it possible for me to borrow the copy for a while?” 

Silence.

“At least right now? I can read through it quickly and never have it leave your area of premises,” she pleaded, sitting down at the empty chair in front of him. “Please and I’ll never bother you again after that.” 

He quirked his eyebrow up. “It’s a 579 page book. You can finish it in one sitting and not compromise retention?” 

“Well, I do read fast and have an eidetic memory.”

Cleo blushed and averted her gaze. She knew better than to brag about her skills that would get her labelled as a freak of nature but she was past the point of no return. Flashbacks of the high school teasing and gum in her hair incident whirled in her mind. It could have been worse if not for her older sister, Thalia, by her side. A 5’3” terror of a protector specially when Cleo accelerated from 1st year to 3rd year which was her sister’s grade. 

The young boy slid the battered copy to her view point. “I actually don’t need it back right away. It’s more of a light reading.” 

Her eyebrows rose with intrigue. Any run-of-the-mill university student wouldn’t consider this type of book a leisure read. “I’m Cleo, by the way. Cleo Murphy.” 

“Spencer. Spencer Reid.” 

“Well Spencer, I didn’t think anyone would consider Origins of Totalitarianism a great book to pass time with. None of any college boys I’ve encountered, any way.” She started, looking around the various books on the table—from Chemistry, to Philosophy, to fictional classics in its original language. “Which begs the question, are you a genius?”

“I don’t believe that intelligence can be accurately quantified, but I do have an IQ of 187, an eidetic memory—like you, and can read 20,000 words per minute,” he rambled on. “Yes, I’m a genius.” 

Cleo couldn’t help but be impressed with his response. It was commonly estimated that one of the greatest theoretical physicist to ever walked the Earth, Albert Einstein, had an IQ of about 160 and here was a modern day genius that beat one of the greats by a mile in numerical value. A proficient reader can read 280-350 words per minute without compromising comprehension and she herself can read 625-950 words per minute, a feat on its own, but here was someone who made that skill seem so ordinary. 

“You’re taking up Political Science as an undergraduate for law school, correct?” His intelligent hazel eyes locking into hers. “And a genius too.”

She smiled. “What made you say that?” 

“Well, you mentioned that this book is a pre-requisite for your class. You also used the term personal privacy, have an idea that library information should not be shared and apologized for it to cover bases. You’ve also hounded the librarian for those details, getting on her nerves similar to how lawyers hound information to get the court hearing outcome that they want,” he paused, tapping his finger on the table like he was in further in thought. “As for the genius commentary, you didn’t seem surprised when I mentioned my IQ. You also mentioned that you read fast, probably not as fast as 20,000 words per minute but faster than the average reader. An eidetic memory and based on your favorite character keychain hanging from your bag it looks to be more popular for a 13-15 year old than a university student so you graduated earlier than average.” 

“Everything was almost right. Except the keychain, it’s not my favorite. It’s my older sister’s,” she looked at the keychain on her bag and chuckled. “I’d like to guess you’re in Caltech for a Ph.D, your interests on reading is too varied to pinpoint what but I’d say you have a BA in Psychology with how you intellectually guessed me.” 

“It’s not an intellectual guess. It’s actually called profiling,” he clarified. “And I graduated with BAs in Psychology and Sociology, recently. Currently acquiring my PhDs in Mathematics, Chemistry, and Engineering concurrently.” 

“So you’re a sophophile?”

“I prefer the term polymath,” he stated as he closed the book in front of him, seemingly wanting to focus on the conversation at hand. “Sophophile isn’t really a proper term is it? I don’t think I’ve encountered it in the dictionary.” 

“It’s more of an urban dictionary term, from the Greek origin of Sophia—wisdom and philac—love.” She explained as the 3pm bell rang. “Well then Spencer Reid, I’d leave you to your readings. Do you want to meet up for coffee tomorrow by Cecile’s at 10am? It’s this hole in the wall coffee spot just around the campus block.”

Spencer opened his mouth, seemingly about to disagree.

“As a thank you for lending me the book, I mean,” she rushed out, stuffing the book inside her bag as she stood. “And I’d like to hear more about your eclectic taste of light reading.”

He smiled, a full grin lighting up his baby face. If she thought he was attractive before, it was nothing compared to when he smiled. He was beautiful. 

Heart threatening to jump out of her chest, Cleo felt the times were trying to mark this moment as significant. A moment now engraved in her own mind. A chance meeting that altered the course of her life here on Earth as she knows it.

“I’d like that.” He replied.

And as it were pre-destined, their red strings of fate intertwined. 

———

Cleo was woman of logic, always hated the unknown and where all the impossibilities may lead. That was what attracted her to law, in the first place. Everything is clean cut, written on a piece of legislation with corresponding violations should there be a breach in right or contract. She Also liked her order and structure, clearly seen adapted to her surroundings. Her small personal collection, brought from her home library, of books organized in a Dewy Decimal System. Her number of shoes beside the entryway arranged by type, color, and height. And her  clothing arranged in the same manner. Her roommate, Raina, once jokingly asked if she had ever gone to the doctor to get diagnosed for OCD. It wasn’t that really, it was more of a result to her rigid upbringing as a member of the upper echelons of society.

Meeting Spencer has thrown her life into chaos. Her bed was made, yes, but various pieces of clothing were haphazardly thrown all around it. She was undecided on what to wear, an inconceivable act from someone like Cleo. Was it too casual to wear her favorite jeans or was it too dressy to wear her green maxi skirt. An IQ of 158 and she was unable to answer such a simple problem. Her phone rang underneath all her clutter, a reminder that she had 15 minutes left before the scheduled coffee meet. 

The walk to Cecile’s was an 8 minute walk, 6 minutes if she walked faster than usual. Which gives her a shy of 7 to 9 minutes to decide what to wear and exit her dormitory. She looked at the clock on her bedside table, 1 minute had passed since then. She sighed and reached for her own type of uniform—low rise jeans, long sleeve top, and her trusty black Converse—and she was out the door with 9 minutes to cover the distance. She disliked being late, no matter the setting, and from what she gathered Spencer was the same. 

Rounding the campus block, she spotted Spencer waiting outside Cecile’s. He had his hair, again, pushed behind his ears—possibly gelled slightly to stay in place. A polo tucked in his khaki pants that are slightly rolled to showcase his mismatched socks, scuffed black Converse, a light cardigan hanging on his wiry arms, and a brown satchel to finish the look. 

“Hey Spencer,” she greeted. Peeking at her wrist watch, she noted that she was right on schedule. A small success.

“Hi,” he greeted back with a his awkward smile and half wave of his hand.

As she stepped into the warm shop after him, she was greeted with the enticing smell of newly baked pastries and ground coffee. It was a Saturday, meaning the average university students were all asleep, hung over from Friday parties and booze. The shop was almost empty, sans one table being occupied by a staff. 

“So, what do you like? My treat,” she asked. No longer needing to look at the menu. This was her spot to decompress and people watch. Her order was always the same. She is ,after all, a woman of order and predictability.

“Just plain black coffee, filled only until a fourth of the cup.”

She thought that was an interesting choice of drink and specifications. She’ll have to ask him to explain that later on. She turned to face the cashier, a teenage boy with apparent bags under his eyes. “Hey Adam, one order of plain black coffee filled until a fourth of the cup and my usual, please.” 

“Hey Cleo, sure thing. My mom just baked a fresh tray of croissants, any interest on those?” He asked while ringing up her orders.

She laughed. “Like you’d need to ask, make it two for here and two to go.” 

“You didn’t have to buy me a croissant too, you know,” Spencer stated as they walked to the table by the window with their orders on hand. “The coffee is enough compensation for lending you the book.”

“I want to,” she insisted, sitting in front of each other. “Plus, the croissants here can rival the ones from Paris.” 

“Okay. But why two to go?” He continued to ramble on. “Scientifically speaking, pastries are best eaten after 20 minutes of cooling. They go through a process called starch retrogradation, with moisture from inside the pastry continuing to migrate outward and evaporate, leaving a moist interior and a nice crispy crust.”

“That may be true but those to-go pastries aren’t for me. They’re for my roommate, Raina, and he,” she pointed to Adam. “Is her boyfriend. Where’d you learn that interesting tidbit?” 

“From a pastry cookbook. I was trying to bake myself some pastries for whenever I need a sugar rush.” 

“You know how to bake? That’s charming,” she blushed. This specimen of a teenage boy couldn’t get any more perfect than he already was. “But I have to ask, why the specifics on your coffee order?” 

Spencer proceeded to scoop 7 spoonful of sugar to his coffee, seemingly showing her the answer to her question. 

With an eyebrow raised, she sipped her order—a flat white. That definitely answered her question. That much sugar added to coffee can have bad effects in the future, such as diabetes, when done regularly but she knew Spencer knew that so it was more a taste type of choice, she concluded as she slid the lent book across the table.

“Thank you again for letting me borrow the book,” she said. “It’s not my choice of light reading, per se, but it was a great read still.” 

“Then what would you consider as light reading then?”

She pondered over the question. With the large repertoire of books she has read ever since she was a kid, the inquiry was hard to answer with just one title. “It would depend on what I’m looking for really, definitely fiction, it is a great form of escape after all. If I’d want to stimulate my brain, I’d go for a mystery novel. If it’s for nights when I can’t fall asleep, The Little Prince in it’s original language always does the trick. And if it’s just to pass time, I’d say I gravitate towards contemporary fiction that tackles societal issues.” 

“You read in French?” He asked, clearly intrigued with the workings of her mind. 

“Oui, my family moved to France when I was a little girl due to business and my mother wanted me to learn French from the locals rather than subject me to non-native teachers. Do you also speak French?” It was also her mother who enrolled her to learn Russian, German, Italian and Spanish but she didn’t need to brag more than she already had.

He took a sip of his coffee and smiled. “I can read and understand French, Russian and Spanish but speaking it is a bit difficult. The accent comes off wrong and I’d like to think it’s because I have a lot of things to say so my pronunciation can’t keep up.” 

“I don’t see how that can stop you from speaking the language. If you’d like, we can talk to each other in French for your pronunciation practice,” she suggested. It was a great excuse to not lose connection with him. The boy who tugs at her heartstrings like no other. “Granted I can also communicate in Russian & Spanish but my accent for those two is a bit wonky at best.” 

Staring deeply into her eyes, she felt vulnerable and hoped that he couldn’t hear her heartbeat threatening to jump out of her chest.

“Oui, j’aimerais bien,” he replied. His accent sounding American still but Cleo thought it was cute nonetheless.

“Parfait,” she breathed out, unable to stop her large grin from spreading. 

[vestaclinicpod]

Audio Drama Sunday - 21st July ✨

This week was very very much girlbeingfedpancakes.jpg with so many of my favourite shows coming back from hiatus!! 🥞

👻 @tellnotalespod (S2E13) Here’s the thing: I had the absolute pleasure of meeting Leanne a few weeks ago and took the opportunity to ask when Louisa was going to gtfo of the narrative. I now see why they laughed 😭 While I am happy that Julia has pretty much forgiven Leo, I think she should take a few more mins to realise why she can’t stay mad!! And oh my god, RILEY. I’m joining the crowd of ‘I knew it!!’ screamers! If anyone can shake off a possession it’s Riley fucking Matkins but I am terrified that Leo is going to be put in a position where they have to choose between Riley and Frank. I’m worried it won’t be such a straightforward decision for them… 

🌲 @hellofromthehallowoods (159) The assumption at the start of this episode was entirely correct. I also LOVED the little extended metaphor about The Auditor being a scalpel, imagine dropping a line like that in a real confrontation 🥵 I’m so glad to have my beloved hallowoods back, even if a few of the twists in this episode made my stomach twist also (seriously, Marco!!! You have a child!!!!!). 

🧳 Travelling Light @monstrousproductions (27) I loved the depiction of alien technology in this episode, I really just want to visit this fish market and take everything in!! Very exciting to hear also that a deal might be coming soon. I have been missing my favourite little Óli these last few eps . . . I hope they haven’t been distancing themself from the Traveller :( 

🖥️ The Magnus Protocol (22) okay, so I really love neuroscience and listening to the experiment in this episode was too funny to be scary but what did make me nervous was Sam finally being driven firmly towards investigating the Institute further. I’m sure it’s going to end well. And those names at the end… why are they so familiar…? 

🧋I finished E12 of @hinaypod - what a cliffhanger!! I’m disconcerted by this CJ person even if she does seem to be protecting Laura. 

🦋 I started @remnantspod this week! I’ve only listened to the first episode so far but, my god, Eira knows how to tell a story. I’m so intrigued and excited to see where this show leads!  

🗺 So lovely to have @tales-from-the-low-city back in my ears! It remains one of the most soothing things I have ever listened to, but the music in this episode did a great job of building tension while waiting for the all clear! 

I have not yet been brave enough to listen to the first part of The Silt Verses Finale this week, but I am post-nights tomorrow and plan to spend all day listening to both parts and crying 🦀 

Also, as a special mention, it’s not really audio drama, but it is: I finished Tell No Tales creator Leanne Egan's book Lover Birds this morning. It is SO cute and so wonderfully nostalgic as I got together with my now wife at around the same age as the girls in the book 🥹 I’m filled with queer, Northern pride after reading it and if you’re looking for a summer read that will pull on your heart strings just the right amount, PLEASE support Leanne and grab a copy!! 🌈

[faithst]

PRETTY MESS ♡ SMT

synopsis you absolutely despise matthew because he somehow always one-ups you. so when he has to tutor you because of your failing grades, you hate it. though, you start to notice features about him that make him attractive through these sessions.

genre academicrivalandtutor!matthew x gn!reader, angst, suggestive [16+] wc 1.6k warnings matthew is a bit of an ass, some swears, makeout

masterlist

some people are god’s favorite. one of them being none other than seok matthew; the embodiment of perfection.

great face, great body, and great personality. he’s adored by all and to say you were envious, it’s true. since everyone treasured matthew so much, you assumed you could one-up him in one thing, and that being grades.

well.. you were incorrect, seok matthew is annoyingly smart as well and that gave you more reason to detest him. if he wasn’t such an ass to you, perhaps you would’ve been less irritated every time he achieved a better grade than you but of course not.

he was an absolute asshole to you; never failing to one-up you every moment. he had all the cables, pulled all the right strings, and had everyone wrapped around his finger no matter how hard you tried to be better than him.

he was never one to converse with you but all these back-handed compliments he gave were enough to confirm the disdain was mutual. you constantly felt frustrated at how he always maintained the spotlight and refused to share the crown. inconsiderate prick.

you yearned for the attention he has, jealousy reeking off you every moment the teachers praised him for something you could’ve achieved if it wasn’t for his smooth chatters.

arriving at the classroom, you sat down waiting for the teacher’s arrival fishing out a book to fill up the missing time. matthew eyed you as you ignored all the commotion created by other students and concentrated on your reading ‘how could you read in this environment? he thought, seating down as the teacher arrived.

“i’ve completed grading your exams and i’ll be handing them out.” he steps to each table one by one, handing the papers that revealed everyone’s grades. as you acquired yours, you were horrified to see a big C- on your sheet.

shocked at how vastly your grades slipped compared to the previous exams. you were ignorant as your grades in chemistry last time were significantly high so you didn’t prepare that much this time.

“and congratulations to matthew for getting the highest score, again.” a proud smirk tugged on matthew’s lips. you scoff, mentally blaming yourself for not preparing better. before the lesson ended, the teacher pulled you and matthew aside.

“your grades are dropping.. very badly.. so i’ve decided you should have a tutor!” he expressed, smiling as he did tiny claps. “so why won’t i let none other than my star student, seok matthew tutor you!” the teacher’s hand pulling him closer by the shoulder.

you slowly blinked, processing the statement while matthew stood wide-eyed “no sir, i can learn by myself or have another person be my tutor?” you panicked, not wanting to be weak about grades, especially to matthew “ridiculous! matthew’s the best at this subject and you could learn a thing or two.” he beamed.

“sir, i don’t think i have the time to tutor someone who is very behind in their studies, that’ll somewhat put me behind too!” matthew voiced out, you taking offense to that. “matthew, i’m certain you can make some time for your classmate and you two could also work on ‘your chemistry’.” the teacher finger-quoted, emphasising on the ‘chemistry’.

“can’t wait..” you mumble under your breath. displeasure plastered on your face. matthew sighed “whatever, i’ll be in the library after school and only for one hour. i’m busy with more important stuff than your failing grades.” you scoffed, rolling your eyes before dismissing yourself.

your mind already filled to the brim from your previous lessons, now you had to be tutored by someone you loathed. you enter the library trying to find him “you’re late.” a voice belonging to none other than the devil himself pops up behind you.

“do you want to continue doing bad or..?” he raised his eyebrows, clearly annoyed. you ignored his comments, not desiring to interact with him. “here, do this sheet and do it quickly so i can see what you’re struggling at. though, i’m pretty sure you’re struggling at everything.” he snickered, sharply sliding a paper with questions towards you.

reading the first question, none of this made sense to you at all. he saw your complex reaction “first question and you’re already out the door.” he snarked, pulling out his textbook. these remarks biting at your self-esteem every second “you talk too much, it’s annoying.” rolling your eyes, huffing out. you had no choice but to endure this.

matthew ignored you and began to explain the details, but after a while those words became fuzzy and your eyes were on the verge of fluttering shut.

“alright, one hour’s up.” matthew stood up, leaving you and your scattered notes. this went on for the following week. to be honest; you learned to just ignore his mean words which decreased by the days as you didn’t give him the satisfaction of snapping back but as accomplishing so, you have absorbed little to no information. you are so fucked.

this particular day, matthew planned to give you the exact test to see if you understood even a bit. rather than sliding the paper across the table, he laid it in front of you. “i’ll give you 15 minutes.” the gears in your brain going full-blown, writing whatever nonsense you could into the paper. eventually, you gave up and handed him a half_done_half_empty paper. he quirked an eyebrow, honestly expecting you not to answer at all although your answers were slightly off.

“your answers are dumb but at least you answered two questions.” as per usual, he brought out a few notes and his textbook, explaining the same things that you couldn’t seem to grasp. instead of the free knowledge in front of you, your gaze fell on his hands, gradually reaching up to his neck, and jawline. his features look softer than usual and less tense. your intense staring caught matthew off guard. a bit embarrassed as you’ve never looked at him so intently.

he cleared his throat “is there something on my face?” attempting to wipe off invisible smudge. perhaps it was the lethargy from memorising multiple equations but you definitely weren’t thinking straight.

“since when did your face become so nice to look at..?” tilting your head to get a better peek at his jawline, your eyes meet his and matthew’s face immediately overwhelmed with heat. quickly packing up “i think we’re done for today..” he managed to let out without any stutters, pulling his hood over his head as an attempt to cover his bright red ears.

matthew seemed less tense (well before you did THAT to him) and less rude. the thoughts of his astounding visuals surround your mind as you thought ‘was he always this attractive?’ quickly snapping back to reality. this was seok matthew, someone you despised for stealing your spotlight. though, you had more problems than a failing grade now.

the following few days, matthew seemed jumpy, flinching at the slightest brush of your fingers, unable to hold eye contact. you on the other hand, just seemed more intrigued by the boy; wanting to learn more about him (was there a real person behind that arrogant persona?)

now repeatedly asking questions, even smiling at him. matthew felt stupid as his heart skipped a beat each time he saw you smile, something he’s never witnessed alone with you. he never would’ve admit that he started having feelings for you.

unconsciously throughout the days, the periods where he tutored you slowly changed from his most hated time to his best time. he began to stare into your features; your neck, your lips, especially your eyes. he wanted to wreck you for looking at him like that.

he sat down beside you for the next tutoring session, making an effort to avoid eye contact at all costs. this came off as odd because matthew would look at you when he was teaching to get ahold of your reactions to see if you understood or not. it bothered you how you couldn’t see his features properly.

“matthew, are you okay?” you ask, a tint of concern laced your words, it sounded as if you had a reason to care “yeah, do you understand this?” he asks back, changing the subject. still determined to find out, you continue “you seem distracted.” which he was; mind trying to erase thoughts of what he desired to do to you.

“i think we should move on to this chapter.” he ignored, pacing through the notes “matthew.” you touch his hand by the slightest, his breath hitched “you haven’t looked at me this whole time, what’s distracting you?” “you.” eyebrows furrowed at the sudden confession “what?”

“because you drive me fucking insane.”

heat rapidly spreading through your cheeks. he grabbed you by the wrist bringing you to a secluded part of the library, your back facing the nearby wall and matthew towering over you. sudden embarrassment from the position, feeling powerless.

matthew tilted your chin making you look back up at him, the smirk he had got you slowly loosing your mind “god, the way you look at me.” he says, one hand on your waist as he pulls you closer, goosebumps swarming your body, amused at the sight of you vulnerable under his touch.

leaning in closer brushing his lips against yours “they’re soft.” he whispers to your ear. your hands now on his shoulders, matthew delicately peppering a trail of wet kisses to your jawline, down to your neck. stopping as he reached your collarbones, shivers exempting your body.

whining softly when he stopped; at this point, you were just as needy as matthew, now gripping on the hand that was on your waist.

fuck it.

you pulled him closer by the belt, lips crashing onto eachother as butterflies erupted in your stomach, knees becoming weak. his lips were intoxicating, eyes shut but your unsteady breathing still audible.

the little gasps and moans that escaped from you made matthew feel dizzy, eager for more. his hands curling around your waist as yours made their way to his hair to tug it softly as he groaned from the action. there was no stopping from this.

parting away to catch your breath, a string of saliva following along as it connects to your lips. matthew’s lips were red and swollen, hair ruffled and messy from your tugging. his eyes glossy with a hint of lust.

this image of matthew will forever be engraved into you mind, he looked like a pretty mess. your pretty mess.

© keiwook | 2023

[pearl-blue-musings]

Aaaah no worries. I'm socially awkward and feel like I bug people if I reply too quickly so I just...exist and reply after some time. And never feel rushed to reply to me, I get it!

He looked bent outta shape and I wanted to cuddle him SO BAD!!! Like come here baby lemme make you feel better 🥺 I hope he rests up tho! And YES HIS VA is such a cutie!!! 😩

Hmmm~~~~~~ idk what to think of, so I'll just say make it Childe related, make it a flirty sparring session and I'm happy 😊 Your writing is fabulous btw. Hope you've had a great day! - 💙

His voice actor has my heart and I’m not upset about it hahaha

But!! What if we expand a little bit on the bow and arrow thing we talked about before?

You never wanted to admit defeat or bend to anyone, your will and pride wouldn’t allow it. You were next in line to become an elite assassin within Liyue. Your travels around Teyvat had left trail of bodies within busy cities. But now, your target is out in the middle of open land. Which is not suitable for your stealth and lethal way of a quick bypass. So now you have to learn how to aim from afar and be undetected.

And that’s how you ended up in your current predicament.

Near the Chenyu Vale village, a series of practice targets are set up across a river bend. You had done all the research necessary to learn the basics of wielding a bow and arrow and set out to practice on your own. However, you’ve been unsuccessful. Not once had you hit a bullseye and you had managed to get some burns on your forearm. You let out a grunt in frustration which caused local fauna to flee and a chuckle to emerge from behind you.

“Heh, seems like you could use a hand.”

You grip the bow tightly as you know that voice too well. On more than one occasion, Childe has tried to win you over with good food, beautiful jewelry, and whatever else he knew you liked. You had originally taken a liking to him, but once you realized he’s part of the Fatui and a Harbinger to boot, you began to loathe him. Unfortunately for you, that made him pursue you harder.

You’re about to run over to the other side of the river to fetch the arrows when you breathe out, “nope. I’ve got it. Aren’t there some innocent children you need indoctrinate into working for you?”

Childe hisses at the implication before tutting at you. “Hey I’m just trying to help!” He raises his hands in defense as he watches you trek to the other side of the river to fetch your practice arrows. His arms cross over his body as he watches you in disbelief. For once he’s trying not to bother you, he genuinely wants to help you out. Upon your slugged return, he pulls out his own arrow, lines up a bow, and almost effortlessly hits the bullseye. And then he walks to the side and does it again, hitting two bullseyes Inca row. You stand there wide eyed and slack jawed as he cocks out his hip.

You pout and grunt at him. Damn him for being so good. You sign and lower your shoulders. “Ugh, fine! Can you please help me?” Childe snickers and nods, motioning for you to get in aiming position. The Harbinger looks over your technique and almost wants to puke. Who taught you?

“Okay first of all, your position and technique are terrible. Did some court jester teach you?” You turn around and elbow him in the gut. Childe retches and keels over in pain. “Okay, okay! Sorry princess.”

You place your bow down and open up your satchel. Out come all the books you’ve read up and Childe almost wants to throw them into the river. “I read these books,” you say sternly, “and they taught me everything I need to know. Well,” you start to relent, “I guess not…”.

He takes pity on you and closes your book. “Alright c’mon, get up and put your bow in your hands.” You put the books down and pick up your arrow. You take a deep breath and pull it up, all tension in your body going straight to your back and shoulders, your fingers straining on the string. Childe approaches you carefully, “whoa whoa. Hold on, let me help you.”

He gets up behind you, and gently places one hand on the underside of your hand holding the bow to steady it. His other on your shoulder to straighten it. His touch send jolts of electricity through you; had he always smelled that good? Why is his breath fluttering by your ear? And why are you suddenly nervous. Childe lowers his head to whisper in your ear to calm you down. “Okay,” he says slowly, “you need to have more strength in your base. You won’t be able to shoot anything without any strength,” he pauses to run his hand up your arm to your bicep, “here.”

You tense your arm to do as he says, but also at how close he is. The pads of his fingers on your shoulder lower down to your mid back as he keeps calmly instructing you. “Now that your shoulder is less tense, keep your core strong.” His voice and eyes trail toward your arm holding the arrow. Swiftly, he repositions himself slightly as he places a hand on your waist and the other lifting your elbow. His voice is like hypnotic honey, “you need to be strong yet relaxed. Yes, that’s it.”

Your heart is running at a mile a minute and you’re worried your composure will be lost any minute. Childe’s touch is fiery and icy all at once. You want more yet you don’t. With your eyes focused on the target ahead of you. You release a breath and widen your stance at his insistence. His body is practically pressed against you, fixing your angles with the lightest of touches that leaves you craving more. The cherry on top is when he finally tells you to, “let go.”

You release the arrow and watch it fly across the water, straight into the bullseye. You let out a small scream in excitement as it lands directly where you wanted it. Any tension you held is dropped as you do a little giddy happy dance, smile as wide as the ocean. A blush comes to the Harbinger’s face as he sees your reaction. If he wasn’t smitten before, this sealed the deal. You turn around in his fleeting hold, barely registering his hands on your hips as you look up at him happily. “That was,” you breathlessly say, “exhilarating! I’ve never felt like that before!”

“Heh, I bet you haven’t.” His hold tightens and for some reason you don’t back away. His eyes bore into yours and the space between you two lessens.

You swallow a lump in your throat and feel small. “I, I wouldn’t mind if you helped me feel that way,” you brush your nose with his, “again.”

Childe breathes against your lips, his own brushing against yours. “I don’t think we’re talking about archery anymore, sweetheart.” He leans in and just barely kisses you before he pulls away.

“We still have more targets to hit. Reload.”

[rancidpancakebatter]

Strawberries and Cream | [S.G.] [M.S.]

Pairings: Steven Grant x Black!Female!Reader, Marc Spector x Black!Female!Reader

Summary: It's valentine's day and your boys surprise you with breakfast in bed

Word Count: 3.4k words

Content Warnings: Swearing, established relationship, fluff, fluff, and more fluff

( Masterlist )

A/N: Wowowowow, this took so long! Apparently, I don't know how to write anything other than angst, so it took me like six stories until I had one with just fluff. I had a lot of fun writing this though. HAPPY BELATED VALENTINE'S DAY! (And Black History Month, that is why we're here)

You woke up on the fourteenth, thrumming with excitement. The sun’s gossamer rays crept into the room, and you basked in the honey glow, letting the warmth soak into your skin. You wrapped yourself tighter in your sheets to fight off the chill and realised you were alone.

Usually, you would wake up feeling a little clammy and pressed into the mattress by a snoring hunk of muscle who had rolled over onto you in the night. But this morning, the furnace you were accustomed to waking up under was nowhere to be seen. 

You slowly sit up and look around. There’s a different book on the nightstand. Which tells you they at least came home last night. Steven had just finished reading Don Quixote with you, and it seems your next bedtime story was Flowers for Algernon.

You heard something fall to the floor in the kitchen, then a string of curses. You would have panicked, maybe considered that your apartment had been broken into, but you recognised that voice…and the other.

“Steven cut it out. We only need one chef in the kitchen.”

“Yeah, well you forget I’ve had your food. And it’s not good mate.”

“Whatever, you don't even eat real food.”

“Cows are cute and I don’t want to eat them! But that’s beside the point. Crepes are tricky and you’ve already ruined the batter, just let me try and fix it, yeah?”

“I didn’t ruin anything. That extra egg was just- just good protein.”

“Well, now they’re gonna be too eggy! It’s gonna taste like an omelette!”

“Oh, shut up it’s fine. Everything is fine!”

Peering around the corner, watching them switch back and forth, you almost giggle. They're frantically whisking away, the mixing bowl tucked into their chest, pinned by their arm. Pinched between their fingers was the compact mirror you kept in your purse, but it seemed backseat driving was no longer sufficient.

They're covered in flour, and there's a bit of batter splattered on some of the cabinets, and across their cheekbone. Chaotic Domesticity. It was a good look on them. 

They don’t see you when you step out of the hallway, “I’m sure it will be delicious, my loves.”

Your voice startles them slightly, and they almost drop the bowl. You quickly try to discern whose fronting. His brows are high, and his jaw is slightly slack. You step around the island divider and wipe the spot you noticed earlier, hoping it might calm him down. 

“Steven, if they taste like omelettes, then I will be delighted to have omelettes. But crepes are great too. And so is that cafe down the street. Whatever works out, as long as you guys are there to eat them with me.”

He melts in your hold a little; his face tilting into your palm. But then he jerks it away very suddenly. You’re confused as he backs away. 

“Oy! This was supposed to be a surprise!” He’s upset but not with you, just in general. However, his expression falls into a frown that breaks your heart a little. “We had a whole plan.”

“It’s alright, dear. I won’t look at anything else,” You say as you throw your hands up to cover your eyes. “Just tell me what you need me to do.” 

He chuckles at your antics, and you feel a little brighter. He explains that they planned to bring you breakfast in bed today. You shuffled back to your room and closed the door that way they would feel like they would get a little more privacy.

You tidied up a bit, picking up some clothes from the floor and remaking the bed. You stepped into your ensuite, brushed your teeth, and washed your face, then you let your braids out of your bonnet and tended to them accordingly. With nothing else to do, you wandered to the bookshelf in search of a title to pass the time. 

Alice had just met the dodo and sacrificed her thimble when you heard a knock at the door. 

“Are ya decent?” You heard Marc’s gruff voice call out. 

You chuckle at the absurdity. You were currently wearing his shirt and his boxers in your shared bed in your shared apartment. He had seen you naked plenty of times. 

“Based on previous reviews, I’d say I’m more than decent,” you tease. 

You hear his laughter in the hall, and you inflate with a bit of pride. He cracks the door and loudly “whispers” through the gap.

“Steven wanted to wake you up with breakfast. Is there,” He sighs, embarrassed to ask, “Is there any way you could pretend to be asleep?” 

You chuckle, knowing Steven can hear everything Marc says right now. “Of course. Anything for my boys.”

He shuts the door again, and you feel like you’ve been transported to the days of your childhood. Those times your parents would come into your room to tell you goodnight and tuck you in. But then you would immediately hide in your impenetrable fortress made of cotton and down and stay up reading for just a little longer.

After a few chapters, you could hear your parents walking towards your door to ensure you were asleep. Your heart would pound in your chest as you fumble to turn off your flashlight and try to hide your book under your pillow so your parents wouldn’t know you had gotten lost in the Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane yet again. 

You feel a bit of adrenaline course through you as you scramble around. You're frantically searching for a bookmark and spot a receipt sticking out of a jeans pocket in the laundry. You shove it between your pages and toss the book under your pillow. Then you yank the blanket up, high above you and tuck the edge under your head. You watched the blanket cascade back down in a slow wave, like the rainbow parachute from elementary gym class. 

You scrunch your eyes closed, as tight as you can- when you hear a gentle rapping on the door. It slowly creaks open again, and your name is whispered into the air, but you don’t respond. You’re supposed to be asleep. You’re not fallin’ for that.

Your lips are folded into your mouth as you try desperately not to giggle, staying as still as possible. You can hear steps approaching their side of the bed. They set a few things down and let out a long dramatic sigh that you recognise as Steven’s. 

“I know you’re not asleep.”

You remain still. 

“Really?”

He sounds more amused than irritated, so you continue the bit. You know Marc is definitely getting a kick out of this. 

“Your food’s gonna get cold, and Marc and I worked too hard for you to let it go to waste. Now, come off it. Let’s see that beautiful face.”

Steven hears a muffled sound from the covers, but it’s indecipherable mumbling. 

“Didn’t quite catch that love.”

You huff and tug the blanket under your chin.

“I said, If you wanna wake me up, you know how. I expect a proper waking up.”

As soon as the words are out of your mouth, you pull the blanket right back over your head. Steven grumbles but doesn’t complain. The sound of fabric ruffling and hitting the floor fills the room, and you can’t fight the grin spreading over your cheeks.

The rush of cold air on your back as the covers were pulled back was well worth knowing you had won. He slides in next to you and tucks himself in. Already your body seems closer to equilibrium, just having him near.

He pulls at your shoulder so you're laying on your back, and his arms immediately worm around your waist as his head rests on your chest. Your hands naturally come up to hold him closer, one draped over his back and the other tangled in his curly hair. You released a content sigh at the feeling of him snuggling into you as your nails pass through his curls. 

You almost forgot what brought you into this situation in the first place. You are so at peace, intertwined with your lovers. But then Steven starts trailing kisses across your shoulder and up your neck. They are sweet and tender, feather soft. Each one pressed into your skin with consideration and devotion.

He reaches your cheeks, and one of his hands cradles your jaw. The way his fingers drag across your skin makes you feel like a precious stone, and the way he looks into your eyes makes you feel like a star plucked from the heavens. 

He tugs gently at your chin, and your lips part as he ever so slowly leans in. You’re sure he can hear the way your heart is racing. The way it whispers his name every pump.

His nose bumps against yours, and you feel the faint sigh that leaves his lips against yours. You nudge your chin closer, trying to close the gap, but he manages to move just out of reach while staying just as close. 

“I’m waking you up, darling,” he reminds you with a small smirk. 

You whisper out a small okay that sounds pathetically desperate even to your ears, but you can’t find it in you to care. Because now his lips are brushing against yours. His slightly chapped lips set off every nerve ending in your own. His tongue darted out for just a moment to run against your bottom lip, and you gasped at the contact.

He dipped his nose under yours, and the torment began on the other side. He kissed your cheek, and you were about ready to snap. Had you been standing, you would have stomped your foot in frustration, and Steven would have laughed at your childish response. But he was teasing you relentlessly (which was already out of character for your sweet boy, who is always so eager to please), and it was getting harder to breathe under the covers. 

His head is tilted so that it is almost perpendicular to yours. He moves his hand to cradle your cheek, his big hand almost covering the whole expanse of your face. He smiles sweetly at you before finally diving in. 

Then it happened. His lips attached around your parted lips and created a seal. He blew a big puff of air into your mouth, and your brain reacted in the same way you think it would if you had been shot. Your eyes bugged out of your head, your arms instinctively failed out, and you made a sputtering, gagging noise. Your cheeks comically inflated for a second before all the foreign breath shot out of your nose. It was like a forced sneeze.

While you were effectively stunned, Steven was full-on chortling, completely cracking up. You’re not entirely sure what “guffawing” means, but you’re sure that’s what this is. You think he might actually damage something, bust his gut or something. It would serve him right, swift justice. You had recovered enough from your initial shock to finally respond. 

“STEVEN MICHEAL GRANT! I cannot believe you did that! You not only faked me out but you- you...I don’t even know what you did! But it was horrible!”

The man you are scolding does not seem to care as he lies on his back, clutching his stomach and kicking his feet like a little schoolgirl. You playful smacked his chest as you sat cross-legged beside him in protest. You were upset, not because it happened, but because it happened to you. You didn’t want to admit how funny the joke was. Nor that you wished you had thought of it first.

His rolling laughter is cut short when his body suddenly stiffens, and his neck straightens with his chin pointing to the ceiling. The face that meets your gaze is a little hardened, tougher. His jaw is almost always clenched, and his brows are millimetres from furrowed. Sometimes it blows your mind how these two men can come from the same brain- cohabitate in the same body- when they are also so different. When they look so different. 

This is the same face, the same hair, the same muscle and skeletal structure, biologically, the same man, and yet, they are entirely different. Their goals and aspirations are much more copasetic than they were before, but they are still different. They have different tastes in music and food. They have different favourite colours. They have different hobbies and skills. They know different languages. It’s wild. 

But also they are similar in a lot of ways too. They are both shit dancers. Absolutely no rhythm to be found. But plenty of enthusiasm. They both like the smell of citrus. Neither of them really believes in multivitamins. You tried to get them to take some vitamin D (they are mostly active at night! They need it!), but even Steven thinks they're silly.

He promised to drink more orange juice. You didn’t have it in you to tell him orange juice packed vitamin C and not D and instead thanked him for making an effort.

They also both loved you. Like a lot. And that was pretty crazy to wrap your mind around too. 

Marc’s eyes locked with yours and you watched as his lips danced around his face, chasing off a smile. You gave him a warning look, but it had the opposite effect. He burst into a fit of snickers. He at least had the courtesy to try to hide it behind his hand. He sat up and tried to cover his tittering with the most obviously fake cough you have ever heard. 

“Sorry, had a little tickle in my throat.”

You roll your eyes and lightly check his shoulder with yours, “I know you were the mastermind behind that. My sweet little Steenie Baby would never do that to me. You’ve corrupted him. Truly a terrible influence.”

Marc throws his head back in a laugh (possibly an evil one, you couldn’t tell). He kisses your cheek in an effort to win you over, and you hate to say it works. He pulls you into his lap, and you settle into his chest. His arms rest under yours as he links your fingers together.

You tilt your head to the side as Marc takes his turn to pepper you with kisses and remind you how much he loves you. When he’s satisfied that his message got across, he tucks his face into your neck. There he stays, pulling your arms across your waist so he can still hold your hands while he presses your body as closely into his as modern science will allow. 

You sway along to a song that isn’t playing. Or maybe it’s not playing through the air but rather through your hearts. Perhaps the shockwaves of each throb are travelling through your bodies, having a private conversation you’re not meant to hear. A secret serenade. 

After what seemed like both forever and not nearly long enough, Marc left his hovel with a huff. 

“Steven says if we don’t eat right now he’s going to go ‘absolutely mental.’”  

You giggle and offer an apology to Steven while Marc leans over and sets the tray in your lap. It's a cookie sheet that they folded a towel around, so it wasn’t as cold or ugly. You smile as you admire its contents. A single red rose beside your plate, which was covered by a large bowl flipped upside-down, behaving as a lid of sorts. You unveiled your dish and gasped at the beauty before you.

Where you expected (maybe edible) plain crepes, you were instead presented with a large stack of hearts dyed to look pink and layered with some sort of white cream and strawberry slices. The top layer was adorned with little tuffs of the cream on the outer rim, with whole strawberries in between. 

You looked at Marc in utter disbelief, and he beamed at you, pride pushing his chest forward. “Happy Valentines Day, Sheyfele.”

You grabbed him by the cheeks and crashed your lips into his. The kiss was quick but steady and sure. “Thank you, both of you. I love you so much.”

You’re sure they can see your eyes becoming glassier, but neither comment on it. You extend the favour. 

“We love you too…Now please try it. Steven really is losing his mind here.”

It’s delicious (the sweet cream hides the little bit of egginess well), and you share bites with Marc for a while. He goes to readjust; prop up the pillows behind him. Marc had been putting his body through the wringer since he walked out his front door all those years ago. While he is definitely still young, his body isn’t what it used to be. He fluffs his, then reaches to grab yours. 

“What’s this, baby?” He holds up a book with an amused smile.

You laugh at the memory, “Oh, I was reading that this morning, but then you asked me to pretend to sleep, so I just hopped under the covers as quickly as I could.”

He hummed in acknowledgement as he thumbed through the pages. A small slip of paper fell out, and as Marc examined it closer, he felt his heart in his throat.

“Hey (y/n), where did you find this?”

You glance at the paper and answer between bites. 

“It was stickin’ out of your pant pocket.” You point to the pair hanging out of the hamper, “I’m sorry, was it important? I didn’t mean to steal it.”

You worry for a second that you might have upset him. You try to make light of the situation. “Imma strong believer in the ‘anything is a bookmark’ philosophy. You guys know my rule: use the first thing you see.”

Marc nodded in agreement, “Yeah, yeah, I know. Did you uh- did you see anything else? When you found this, I mean.”

You shook your head no. “I don’t meddle in any of the crazy shit you bring home, baby. I am not interested in accidentally gettin’ some pharao curse or getting hunted down by some god.” 

Your answer gives him relief, and he laughs alongside you. 

He tucks the paper back into your book and kisses your shoulder to grab your attention. 

“Would you like Steven to read to you while you eat?” You excitedly nod your head, and moments later, you hear Steenie’s sweet voice. 

“Alright, Alice in Wonderland; a classic. Good choice, love.” He kisses your temple, and you feel the same swell of pride in your chest that you would get when your teacher rewarded you with a little gold star. “Now, where were you?”

As you tear into your breakfast (sharing, of course) and Steven reads to you, you get hit with a feeling of gratitude. You feel at home here- with them. You feel safe and cherished. You feel more than joy; something better than happy. You feel contentment, fulfilled.

You had never been one to believe in fate before, but you thanked whoever was out there, whoever had heard your desperate prayers on your lonely nights. You thanked them for delivering…and then some. 

Your boys were also feeling that gratitude. They couldn’t believe they had found someone so truly beautiful inside and out. A woman who was damn near fearless, with a kind heart, sharp intellect, and tremendous patience. You were a treasure to behold.

Every morning they wake up expecting to be back in the dusty old flat with only books and a fish for company. But then, when they open their eyes, there you are, and it feels like the most extraordinary gift they’ve ever been given. Your love is something deserving of its own fable or myth. Your story should be told in reverie. A story passed down for centuries, like that of Osiris and Isis. 

But they also feel a little scared. They have big plans today. Plans to spoil you and fill your heart with joy. Plans to woo. Plans to convince you that they are worth it- that they’re worth you. Plans to prove to you that you are all they will ever need- all they will ever want. Plans to get on one knee. Plans to beg you to give them this chance at a happy ending. Plans to promise you yours.

Plans to pull a ring box from the back pocket of those pants dangling dangerously out of the hamper. Plans to slip the dainty gold band with a honey-warm, citrine gem- that he got on a mission last week in Bolivia- onto your finger. Plans to admire how it glows against your skin, and how despite its magnificence, it could never outshine yours. Plans that would have been ruined if you could read the Spanish receipt in your book.

Taglist: @barbecuetiddy, @fanfics-instead-of-depression, @heejinw0rld, @ilovemoonknight, @Isshecrazyorissheclever, @purple-amaranthe, @jedisstark, @rudy-the-winged-wolf, @scorpiolystoned, @wannapizzamymindposts, @whoreforklitz,

If you want to be tagged in future Moon Knight fics but don't want to do the whole taglist thing again, just comment or reach out and I'll add you to it :))

another A/N because whatever: I will be doing a little /headcannon break down thing for this because I'm kinda throwing some in there with no real explanation, but feel free to send me asks about any confusion. I love answering those!

I'm also gonna start linking those to the original fics too, so you (and new readers) can find them

[orcaab]

Ideas

I’ve been reading through some of the older SA posts and I’ve found some stuff about the bond tokens, and I just wanna put my penny on the topic. I didn’t like the ending of the series, it felt rushed, too many things were left just like that. Too many questions! So, I just wanna make this post and talk about my personal opinion on the last books. 

The bond token idea was very interesting, I would have loved to see these tokens hinted at throughout the series, but I guess they were made later to create more conflict. The tokens which were made by the Four Fallen weren’t great. I swear, I thought that Abeke’s bow did something so cool and then I reread the book and was like ‘oh, ok I guess…’ . I think that the bond tokens should give the user a supernatural ability, along with something to represent the bond which created said token.

First of all, the tokens and then some other points over the story:

Conor’s crook was an interesting choice, it kinda shows that he is still a shepherd even after everything that has happened and I truly love it! I don’t love what it does though. Giving him more keen senses is something that his bond with Briggan does just fine. It is enhanced, but it’s too enhanced for even a wolf, I mean being able to smell that one of the guard’s teeth hurt? (I think that happened), find me a wolf that can do that and ima dedicate my life to that guy. It’s not terrible per say, but it’s not great either. 

I would have liked the talisman to connect him to nature or other wolves. Example, he could communicate with them, similar to how Briggan did in Fire and Ice. Maybe even giving him some command over them. And maybe, the talisman could give him clearer visions, I know he has them now, but to gain a slight improvement would be nice. 

Abeke’s talisman was the most disappointing to me. For some reason I don’t even know, I remembered the bow having the ability to conjure arrows out of thin air. So like, you do the motion of putting an arrow on the string and boom! an arrow! But no, it just gives extra jump height. Very disappointing. This ability is the same one that Arax’s talisman had, why would her bond with Uraza produce something so similar? I think that giving her the unlimited arrow bow would have made a lot more sense, considering Uraza is a hunter, and if my memory isn’t tricking me again, Abeke accepted that her spirit animal is one. The bow could also give her better agility, or maybe the instincts of a leopard, much like the amber leopard did.

Meilin’s talisman is a somewhat failed great idea. Giving her the ability to heal was a great choice, in my opinion, but I also think that the hair pin is something that you could easily loose. Say you fell off a ship and in the churning water, you gonna find the pin? No, of course not. But it’s fine, the pin her father gave her, alright. The amount of healing that the pin gives isn’t enough to save a life (if I’m not mistaken), and the calming aura that it gives was turned away by Song as if it didn’t even exist. 

I think giving her actually strong healing could improve the token, along with the ability to somewhat cloud the minds of others, if you wanna call it that. Similar to what Mulop was doing to help the Redcloaks in The Burning Tide. But not only that, the clouding could have other emotions mixed in, so that the user could inflict a certain emotion upon someone for a short period of time. Using it would be very energy draining though. 

Rolan’s talisman is actually really good. It really represents him and his bond with Essix, and gives a supernatural power. I can say it would be cool to give him enhanced sight too, just like a bird’s, but it’s honestly great both ways.

Now some other points:

Because the tokens are so strong, I’m considering it would be cool if there being a small conflict where some people said “Ok, we saw what happened with the talismans of the Great Beasts, why should we let a group of children have all this power?” Ultimately the tokens stay with the Four Fallen and their partners, cause it’s a part of them, and they risked their lives to create them. 

If the tokens have a piece of the soul, I can imagine that the Great Beasts would carry their tokens around after their parters died, maybe even talking to their spirits. That would be so wholesome. 

Also, if the tokens can’t be broken (as far as I know), then the Wildcat’s claw and the other bond token that was lost could be found again, which could lead to another conflict, and that would be cool, I think. Where a group, or groups of people are trying to collect all 8 of the current tokens and meet the Four Fallen and the other legends. 

[biggestsimponhere]

can you please do 1 and 2 for the christmas prompts with wednesday addams? thank you if you do:)

Christmas music - Wednesday Addams x reader, ignore that I’m letting her smile, I just want her to be happy, P.S I couldn’t tell which set of 1 and 2 you wanted if you wanted the other set please request those and I’d be happy to make them <3 Also in this, Wednesday, you and Enid share a dorm, just pretend it’s big enough 😭 btw reader is GN

Christmas time. Everyone’s favorite time of the year. Well almost everyone, Wednesday Addams hates Christmas, claims there’s not enough death or something. You however love Christmas, so as soon as thanksgiving was over you and Enid started decorating your dorm. You had been decorating for about three hours. Playing Christmas music and you and Enid singing loudly Wednesday left the dorm about halfway through hour two. “Do you think we should invite our friends to see?” Enid said while hanging another string of lights. “Oh my god, yes!” You said hanging another piece on tinsel. Enid quickly finished that string of lights and then rushed out of the dorm.

You continued to hang things around yours and Enids half of the dorm. You only put one string of lights on Wednesday half (you didn’t want her to get mad, not that she’d ever get mad at you). Soon Enid came back with Bianca, Xavier, Ajax and Wednesday. “Are you really still decorating?” Wednesday said a slight smile gracing her features. “It looks like Christmas threw up in here” Bianca said laughing. “Hey! I think it looks good” Ajax said smiling at Enid. “Thank you Ajax” she said smiling back. “What do you think Xavier?” You asked raising an eyebrow at him. “Whatever doesn’t get me killed” He said raising his hands in surrender. “Okay well then thank you for that very nice compliment Xavier” you said smiling at him.

“Who put the lights on Wednesdays side?” Bianca asked. “I did” you said looking from Bianca to Wednesday. She looked upset for a second before moving to touch them. “They’re very cheap, if you’re going to hang lights on my side make them higher quality” she said looking at you. “Alright then” You said still smiling. “I think they look great y/n” Ajax piped in. “Thank you Ajax, now we have hot chocolate and cookies if you guys want to stay” You said moving back to your phone to keep playing music. “Cookies? I’m in” Xavier said grabbing one and sitting on the edge of your bed. You and Enid finished up decorating while singing.

“As much as we love you, we don’t need to hear you guys sing Christmas music” Bianca said grabbing another cookie. “I don’t know, I like it” Wednesday said, surprising everyone. “Alright then” Bianca said before standing, “Well I’ve got to go study, have fun” Bianca said walking out the door. Xavier quickly stood up, “I should probably go with her” He said walking out of the dorm. “Enid and I have a date tonight so we better go” Ajax said standing up and pulling Enid out of the dorm. You moved over to Wednesdays half of the room and sat on her bed next to her. “I saved a cookie for you” you said offering it to her. “Thank you” she said looking at you before grabbing it.

You both just sat there in silence. Her reading and you just sitting silently beside her. Soon you noticed her book go limp in her hands. You slowly pulled it out and grabbed the bookmark from her side and slid it into the book. You quietly put the book off to the side before pulling her down into a laying position. You wrapped your arms around her pulling her into you. Resting your head on here and listening to her breathing out slowly drifted off to sleep, content to have your best friends and love of your life, safe in your arms.

Again I know this is short but I need to get used to writing for Wednesday characters and some of the prompts don’t really offer that long of one- shots 😭✋

[literary-illuminati]

Book Review 23 – Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor

Okorafor has been on my to-read list for a long while, but this is the first work of hers I’ve actually gotten a chance to sit down and read. Happily, despite it being a couple years old I went in entirely blind and with absolutely no idea what I was in for besides ‘sci fi novella’.

The book is about a young girl in a near-future Ghana who, discovering a strange meteor fragment and/or seed underneath a tree in her family orchard, becomes infected by a sort of deadly alien light. It tries to protect her by blazing and killing everyone around who might be hurting her, and before she begins to learn to control it she accidentally kills everyone in her village. The story follows her travels wandering in search of the seed and the man who took it from her, her only constant companion a strange fox who seems to be the only thing unharmed by her light.

Though even if that’s the ostensible plot, it’s not really what the book is about. It’s really more of a series of vignettes, about how the culture around Sankofa makes sense of her and of the places and people she ends up passing some time with. Much of the story has a real fable-like tone, and all the myths that grow up around her are a big part of that. She’s known as Death’s anointed daughter, wandering the earth on foot and fed and clothed as an honoured guest wherever she might want to rest for a couple days, offering instant and total euthanasia to those who ask for it and reducing anyone who puts a hand on her to ash.

Okorafor’s prose does an excellent job keeping the prose feeling mythological or fable-like through the whole book as well. I’m like 90% sure the fox and a dozen other things are references to mythology or folklore that flew entirely over my head, honestly. The close focus on Sankofa does too – we never zoom out or get a bird’s eye view of the world, or even of Ghana. Almost everything’s mediated through the perspective and experiences of a particularly traumatized adolescent girl, brought up only when it’s relevant to her.

The book’s Ghana is – you know the one Gibson line, about ‘The future is already here – it's just not very evenly distributed ’? There’s miracles of high technology brushing against the edges of the screen, but those who have them have been very careful to make sure that most of what makes it to rural west Africa is scraps with strings attached. The embodiment of that is the LifeGen corporation, an American conglomerate that offers cheap drugs (apparently prototypes in need of testing, or else supplies with side effects they just need to get rid of) and the drone network used by the eponymous RoboTown to keep the streets safe and traffic orderly (in exchange for all the date the network happens to gather as it does so). While never exactly a direct threat to Sankofa, their interest in the seeds and their light makes them the closest thing to a consistent antagonist in the book as well.

Sankofa herself is a great protagonist, by which I mean she’s a densely packed bundle of trauma, guilt and moral injury who spends years of her life wandering on foot in pursuit of a goal picked in large part so she had a goal to focus on and didn’t have to sit and think for too long. Her internal monologue's really very affecting at points, and so is the contrast between the mask of supernatural authority she puts on at points and the fact that she’s is very much still just a kid.

The actual plot beats are usually pretty predictable and well-worn, but honestly my only real complaint about the book is that, having finished it, I still have no. Fucking. Idea. Why her power is called ‘remote control’.

[ghosts-and-blue-sweaters]

2 3 17 for distracting ask game :33

Name something you want to read?

Um.

So many books, Julia. BUT if I had to go with a specific one… well, I would really like to find + read a good book about synesthesia!! I’ve been having a tricky time with that. And synesthesia is a topic I’d really really enjoy learning more about, so I hope I can find some good books soon!

And also perhaps The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston :) The premise sounds quite interesting (and it’s got a great color on the cover) but. it is also. a romance novel I think. And I am NOT A FAN OF ROMANCE NOVELS. So we shall see </3

5 songs you have been recently obsessed with?

OHHH YES. MUSIC QUESTION MUSIC QUESTION. HELLO!!

1. The Anthem of Mr Dark by The Arcadian Wild

I discovered this song very recently, and I was… very much stunned by how much it resonated with me. I don’t often relate to the songs that I listen to, but this one is. special :) The lyrics are all so beautiful & poignant, and there’s a deeply rooted sense of human in the song, I suppose. The ending with the overlapping voices is so so neat to me, and the CELLO (I think it’s a cello) ARE !!!!!!!

2. Liar by The Arcadian Wild

THIS SONG IS INSANE. THIS SONG IS INSANE. OKAYOKAY. Gosh I so very much enjoy songs that have plucked guitar strings that sound emotional and/or haunting. And GOSH!!! THIS SONG!!! LISTEN TOTHE GUIATARSHEGSJSGSJGDJG. The lyric, “in the light I swear I will… deny it all” just. hits me and sticks with me So Much for some reason. Dude and the 2:43 to 3:56 stretch is my Favorite part oh my gosh. The sudden switch from fairly calm instruments to things that are Loud and Heavy makes it ram itself all the more deeper into my heart. This is such a phenomenal song.

3. No Surprises cover by nani

I LIKE THIS MORE THAN THE ORIGINAL!!! I DO I DO I DO!!! And like. just from a guitarist’s perspective this song is amazing; the chords are beautiful, the finger-picking is lovely, the strums are so so nice, and the way she blends finger-picking and strumming into One Thing is something that I admire. Every time I hear this song I think to myself, “gosh I hope I can play like this someday.” And the EMOTION in her VOICE !!!!!!!

4. Wasted Summer cover by MaybeEh

To be perfectly honest I Don’t know why I became obsessed with this one. It’s not even a Real official song it is literally a cover someone made on GarageBand. And yet it is SO GOOD!!! ??? I cannot tell you the sheer amount of times I have listened to this song. I think it’s the chorus for me. Ough… that chorus. That amazing amazing chorus. The lyrics on the screen are incorrect by the way, so I never pay attention to them 😅

5. Hmm… probably tied between Waiting To Change by Kaden MacKay & Open Eyes by Jimmy Clifton. Waiting To Change is just a generally beautiful song; I first discovered it back when it first released, and I really liked it! But then I forgot about its existence lol. I rediscovered it a few weeks ago and have been listening to it so much since :) Open Eyes is <3333333333 I WANT TO LIVE & DANCE INSIDE THE 2:03 MARK I WANT TO LIVE & DANCE INSIDE OF IT

Tell us about your favorite character?

Julia I thought you’d never ask 😏😏😏😏

OKAYOKAY SO SOMETHING THAT I THINK ABOUT is that moment when Ghostbur is talking to Phil about ghosts; Ghostbur talked about how whenever he read about ghosts, the ghosts always seemed to be able to do things that he can’t do. Walk through walls, for example, and float in the air. And Ghostbur stated that he can’t do those things, and that it was frustrating to not find any ghosts, fictional or real, that were like him.

And I don’t know man. I think about that a lot. In so many aspects Ghostbur behaved just like a normal, alive being would; he walked, he ate food. He couldn’t teleport or float in the air. He couldn’t walk through things, he couldn’t disappear (another thing I think about is how, especially during Ghostbur’s first few weeks of existing, he drank invisibility potions all the time. He always had some on hand, he was always brewing them, and he frequently drank them. It was like he was trying to make up for the fact that he couldn’t turn invisible on his own. He was just trying to be what he thought a ghost should be 😭)

AND I THINK ABOUT THIS!!! Really the only truly “ghostly” aspects about Ghostbur were his name, the greyish color of his skin, and his voice (ANOTHER NEAT THING!!! Ghostbur could alter the way his voice sounded!! Most of the time he chose to sound like a normal human being, but other times he’d make it have an echo or a reverb. It’s such a neat little thing that he can do!!) and also the fact that he can die over and over again and always come back. Ghostbur canonically died three times, and for two of those times he came right back. The only time he truly died—and never came back—was when Dream used the revival book on him.

Ghostbur was truly. doomed. Everywhere he went he was misunderstood. He couldn’t be like the ghosts he read stories about, he couldn’t be the man who’d lived before him, he couldn’t be the dad Fundy needed, he couldn’t be the son Phil wanted. Even when Ghostbur told people that he was being misunderstood, even when he told people that he wasn’t Wilbur, even when he told people that he didn’t want to be called by Wilbur’s name, he was rarely listened to. He was often brushed off or looked down upon.

Canon should’ve been kinder to Ghostbur and he should’ve been treated better & understood better by the people he interacted with, and it just makes me upset. There’s not much respite to be found in the fandom either; many people misunderstand Ghostbur in the same ways that the other characters in DSMP did.

It really genuinely upsets me a lot because Ghostbur is such a good character! He has so many layers, he’s so complex, he’s so much more than what he looks like on the surface, he’s so much deeper than anyone gives him credit for. And hardly anyone seems to know that :(

In short, he is such a complicated little guy and I will defend him until the world ends he is so very special & important to me <3

[thislovintime]

Photo 4 by Henry Diltz.

A look at some specific books mentioned by Peter over the years...

- How To Play the Five-String Banjo: "Pete Seeger’s book was very, very good. He’s a lively writer as well as a very good musician, a good teacher, good, very enthusiastic kind of all around person. So it was very good to learn from his book. And I recommend the book highly if anybody ever wanted to learn how to play folk-style five-string banjo, his is the book to learn from.” - Peter, Headquarters radio, 1989 (x)

- Naked Lunch: “In Melbourne last night Peter Tork said that Sydney airport Customs officers had seized from his bag the banned book ‘The Naked Lunch,’ by William Burroughs. A Customs officer had taken one look at the book and said, ‘I’ll have that. It’s banned here.’ […] ‘It is a good book,’ Tork said. 'I was just getting interested it. It’s sold out everywhere back home. I didn’t know it was banned here.’” - The Sydney Morning Herald, September 17, 1968 (x)

- Letters to a Young Poet: One question posed to Peter for the Ask Peter Tork column in 2008 was, “Do you think [becoming a writer is] worth a try, or do you suggest I 'keep my day job'?” From Peter's reply: “What writers I know of say is, if you want to be a writer, you’re probably not going to do very well. If you must write, then write! Do you see the difference? Rainer Marie Rilke wrote 'Letters to a Young Poet,' which I recommend on this point. (It’s a small book, and cheap at the bookstore, and free at your library.)”

 -Why Do I Say Yes When I Need To Say No?: Escaping The Trap Of Temptation by Michelle McKinney Hammond: “Some years ago there was a movement afoot to separate assertiveness from aggressiveness, which I heartily endorse to this day. 'Why Do I Say Yes When I Mean No,' is, I believe the name of one book that tackles this subject.” - Peter, Ask Peter Tork, 2008

- Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: “I recommend sitting in Zen meditation. The best book I know for that is Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, by Shunryu Suzuki. It’s all about watching your own mind rather than obeying it as tho’ it were the infallible voice of the truth.” - Peter, Ask Peter Tork, 2008

- The Sayings of Buddha: “The Sayings of Buddha (a small, inexpensive book you can find in almost any book store) always rests on the night-table beside my bed. I find that ancient wisdom, meditation and contemplation puts my mind in order and brings me great serenity. These things also broaden my scope of understanding.” - Peter, 16, September 1968

- Stranger in a Strange Land: “One of my favorite books now is Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein. It’s about the orphan child of the first Martian explorers. He grows to twenty-one years of age before he’s discovered by the second expedition to Mars which rescues him. He comes back to Earth, having been raised by the Martians — really fascinating!" - Peter, Fave, March 1968

- More Than Human: “Another writer I dig is Theodore Sturgeon, one of the greatest science fiction writers alive today. He visited our set one day and we were all very thrilled. He’s a visionary and a mystic, really one of the giant talents of the day. I hope everybody reads him. He wrote a book called More Than Human and a lot of other novels and short stories.” - Peter, Fave, March 1968

Q: "You read a book a day. Of all the books you have read, which three are your favorites and why?" A: "No, I don’t read a book a day. I sometimes spend weeks on a book. Of all the books I’ve read, my favorites are 'The Book Of [Tao],' 'Stranger In A Strange Land' and oh, I don’t know, a whole mess of other books, because they turn me on—they get to me." - Monkee Spectacular, January 1968

- The Book of Tao: “Peter also reads The Book of the Tao… all about an ancient Chinese nature philosophy with some simple, beautiful and meaningful messages in it. He studies all kinds of different religions, too. Peter has now figured out his own religion, what seems closest to Truth for him. It’s the result of much studying, thinking and sorting out. Peter was also influenced by the Oriental philosophies Zen. ‘Zen Buddhism believes in the theory of sudden enlightenment or sudden awakening. This idea is Japanese. I believe that Truth can just come to you in a sudden flash and you’ll know where it’s all at, if you prepare yourself to receive it. ‘Zen also teaches that you should just go along and live your life as best you can from minute to minute, always living in the present. You’re already there and there’s nothing else. If you can make the most of each day, accomplish and learn all you can now, you’ll get so much more done in your lifetime than if you sit around waiting for tomorrow to come. Because when tomorrow gets here it’s just another today. You end up just waiting and putting things off and nothing ever gets done. So, try to make each minute count!’” - Fave, March 1968

- Upanishads: "[Peter] starts clowning around [on set], but after a bit he settles down and starts reading a book. He sees you looking and explains, ‘This is a book of some of the excerpts of the Upanishads. Actually, these are excerpts from ancient Hindu writings. I guess you could say that in a sense they are like the Bible, only they were written many centuries before the old testament.’ Peter stops speaking for a moment. ‘Am I boring you?’ he asks gently. After you assure him that he is not boring anyone, he continues, ‘Well, the Upanishads are simply but beautifully written. I mean, they are quite easy to understand. You can buy the Mentor pocket edition for about 50 cents —′ Just about that time, Peter becomes aware of 16’s camera focusing on him. He promptly becomes a clown again, laughing and joking and holding his book myopically up to his eyes. You realize that you have just had a glimpse of the real Peter Tork — the sensitive, sincere young man who hides behind the veneer of a silly-funny Monkee. And it makes you feel very warm that for a brief moment you have glimpsed Peter Tork’s secret self." - 16, February 1968

- Autobiography of a Yogi: As Henry Diltz recalled (in Laurel Canyon: A Place In Time), “I remember giving one to Peter on The Monkees set. I did a group shot of them sitting on a couch and he was reading the Yogananda book. I always felt so good about that.”