#Modern!Tommy Fiction

[peakyscillian]

Family Ties | Modern!Tommy Series.

Summary: The Shelby’s will do anything for family. Warnings: Smut, 18+ Minors DNI, Mature themes, use of the word 'Whore/Slut' Part: 10 Pairing: Modern!Tommy x Fem!Reader Requested: No Notes: If you read a series/story and you like it or even love it, please comment, like & reblog so writers know they're getting the interaction they deserve! It means so much to see someone reblog your work! I also want to thank everyone who has shown me so much love on my work!!

Family Ties | Modern!Tommy Series.

Masterlist | FT Masterlist

Part Ten - Present Day.

You were laying in bed watching the time tick past, Tommy was sleeping peacefully, you had tucked into his side, praying for the night to slow down.

"Sleep darling" his voice was gruff coated with sleep, his fingers tickling against the bare skin of your waist.

You hadn't told him about Sam's parting question, feeling so humiliated by it, but you knew that was the main thing keeping you up.

Tommy pressed his lips to your forehead "tell me what it is" he asked softly, you nodded biting at your lip.

"When I left his apartment, he..he asked if I was going to give him some kind of special welcome back" you swallowed, feeling the tears press at your waterline.

You felt Tommy's body stiffen, could see him trying to keep his anger at bay, he took a deep breath "Fucking prick, that's not going to happen. I promise" he sat up slowly, you moved next to him, his hands cupping your face.

"We will be in there, I've got men ready, Arthur is ready to kill him, Sam is not getting near you" he tried to reassure you, you nodded.

"You say stop we stop" he confirmed once again, some kind of mantra he’d been using for the past few days, "but for now, lets sleep, eh?" he lifted the covers to let you slip back under, you wrapped your arm around his waist. 

Snuggling back into his side, the comforting beat of his heart lulling you into a light sleep. 

-

Tommy was in the kitchen at the betting shop the next afternoon, he'd left you with Polly, Ada and Esme.

You'd been on edge all morning, even your favourite breakfast place by the river couldn't calm you, he'd had second thoughts, thought about pulling you out going about it in a different way.

You'd immediately noticed his shift in attitude, took his hand, told him you would be fine, you could do it.

He'd gathered his men, ready to lay out the plan. Finn and Isaiah had called up the club, enquired about any new girls, and had booked you out for the evening with his men. 

Tommy was going to be there, back of the booth away from prying eyes. 

“If you see anyone touch her, try to book her. You tell me, Arthur or John. No one is going near her, understand?” All the men mumbled their agreement.

Finn cleared his throat “is this a good idea Tom? Is it going to work?” He asked, John's hand connecting quickly with the back of his head.

Tommy was in his face, finger pointed “you got a better idea, eh? Let us hear it then” Finn rolled his eyes, not giving Tommy an answer, “you don't want to come? Want to stay home and act like going to a strip club isn't something you do?” Tommy stood back, his little brother was soft, and wasn't up for the kind of life this family had created.

You would be scolding him right now, would be telling him to leave Finn alone, let him live his life the way he wanted to live it. You had a soft spot for Finn, you’d come into his life when he was just thirteen, Finn had taken to you the fastest out of all the siblings, he didn’t have any reason not to trust you, he had loved being around you, you'd even persuaded Tommy to turn a room into his own so he could stay over whenever he wanted. 

Tommy stepped away, lighting a cigarette “do what you want Finn you always do” he sighed, Finn slumped back in the chair, he just cared about you, couldn't lose you like he'd lost his mum.

Everyone left the kitchen, leaving Finn and Tommy alone, “I promise you she is going to be fine” Tommy took a seat opposite his little brother, Finn nodded “She takes care of us Tom”, Tommy smiled slightly “I know, and she’s going to still be around, do you think I’d let anything take her away?” he asked, trying to reassure Finn, “No” he shook his head, “I’ll be there tonight, I’ll make sure she’s alright” Finn added, Tommy nodded standing up giving him a brotherly pat on the back before he left the room. 

-

Tommy pressed a kiss to your lips, sitting a few roads away from the club. You’d hardly said anything on the drive over, his hands cupped at your cheek “Remember we’re all fucking there okay? Finn has even told me himself he’s going to make sure you’re alright” he smirked, you couldn’t help the small smile, of course Finn had your back, “I love you, remember that as well, fucking lost without you” he pressed another kiss to your lips. 

You relaxed into his kiss, fingers stroking through the short hair at the nape of his neck, “I love you too, Tom” you rested your forehead against his, giving him a final kiss. 

You grabbed your bag, took a deep breath, Tommy squeezed your thigh, you gave him a smile before opening the car door, “Y/N?” Tommy spoke softly before you closed the door, you popped your head back into the car, “Thank you” he smiled, you nodded “Anything for family, Thomas” you replied, giving him another smile as you closed the door. 

Lydia greeted you with an excited squeal as you walked back into the club, you were surprised to see her still here, bundled into a tight hug you laughed lightly “Lyd, I didn’t expect you to be here”, she shrugged leading you through the bar to the familiar back corridors “the money is good” she answered, as you nodded “Thats why I’m back need the money” you put your bags down on the dressing table. 

You had made yourself up, hair slicked back into a high ponytail, the outfit you’d picked was sexy but not over the top, small black shorts, high heels and a small crop top, you felt out of place so unnatural in this environment. 

Making your way through the club, scanning the room for familiar faces, Lydia had told you Sam would be in later, he had a few things to sort out before he arrived, that relaxed you slightly.

A few hours later you heard the unmistakable voice of Sam, his hot breath fanning across the skin of your neck as you served someone at the bar “my favourite little whore is back” he chuckled, you moved away from his body “Y/N, your booths order is ready” Summer smiled taking over from you.

Sam’s hand circled around your wrist “Come find me after, still need to welcome you back” he sneered, you nodded feeling sick to your stomach. 

You adjusted your top as you grabbed for the round of drinks checking the ticket number, you smiled knowing exactly who’s table that was.

“A round of shots, gentlemen” you shouted over the music with a beaming smile on your face, “Ere’ she is, hello sister” Arthur draped his arm around your shoulder.

“Hello Arthur” you dropped a light peck to his cheek “Looking stunning as always, y/n” he chuckled.

“Oi!” Tommy looked up from his phonee,yes locking with yours, as he shouted at his brother.

-

So we've made it full circle back to part one! I hope you've enjoyed it this far, there's so much more to come!

-

Taglist

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[look-at-the-soul]

Straight to the heart

Tommy Shelby x reader (Nurse)

After spending day and night for two weeks with nurses in the house while taking care of my grandma I couldn’t stop this idea running around my head.. this is set around S3E6… sending love and blessing to all the medical staff out there! Edit: Granny is doing so much better now, she can’t wait to go out already lol and now she says she misses us being with her all the time 🥺

Please note I’m not related to the health department, just what I read/watch.

Gif credit to @thesoldiersminute thank you for always keep up with my ideas!!! ☺️

Walking into the intensive care unit, Y/N was asked to immediately attend a new patient who arrived recently, she would only cover the night shift. He had surgery a few days ago and the doctors didn’t know yet how his body would react.

Y/N felt bad for the poor man, he was severely beaten, the damage in his brain still unknown, he was under high doses of medication. Most of his levels were out of proportion.

Right there he looked so helpless, vulnerable even. And even though the bruises and lightly swollen skin, she could see he owned some kind of privileged looks; thick lashes fanning over his cheeks, sharp cheekbones made him look like he was sculpted by a generous Greek God. If it wasn’t for the metal helmet on his head, she would swear he was only sleeping.

Sighting, she wrote down his records, adjusted his medication and left to attend her next patient. For the rest of the day, Y/N repeated the same actions without anything extraordinary or out of normal happening.

“Good luck on the night shift, Y/N” Jackie wished as she picked up her belongings.

“Why would I need luck?”

“You don’t know about that man at the 32?” Jackie squinted her eyes at her colleague.

Y/N shook her head as she organized the paperwork of the day. How would she know? She barely knew this area of the hospital. She wanted to stay out of any gossip or saying that was going around, but Jackie still decided to share the piece of information she heard in the hall. Letting Y/N know he was the infamous gánster from Birmingham known for cutting people’s eyes.

“His sister said he’s a war hero, but I know he’s a criminal, he deserves it.” Shaking her head she added; “his family requested a private room.”

But to Y/N all patients deserved to be treated equally, not taking into consideration their past, mistakes or anything else.

“Have a safe walk back home.” Y/N wished Jackie, hoping the other nurse would leave soon so she could resume the night visits to every patient, she had a long night ahead, starting with a young boy who had an accident at one of the factories.

Walking into Mr. Shelby’s bed close to midnight, Y/N noticed him sweating, shaking a little. Touching his forehead, she realized that he had a high fever. Rushing back to her unit, she grabbed towels and a bowl that she then filled with water.

Checking on his temperature, the thermometer showed 40ºC, so without wasting any more time, Y/N proceeded to provide medication to bring down his temperature. With a damp cloth, she pressed his neck, chest and forehead.

He was mumbling something she couldn’t understand, it was probably something that didn’t make sense, or another language she didn’t know… but as she moved to wet the washcloth one more time, his words were clear;

“Don’t leave me.” His hands got tense. “I need you.”

His frown grew deeper and when he opened his eyes abruptly, one of his hands accidentally hit Y/N above her right eye.

Y/N removed the covers from his body, as well as the upper part of the hospital gown.

Pressing the wet cloth against his hot skin Y/N got lost in the freckles on his chest, it reminded her of the previous night full of shining stars.

“Mr. Shelby, you’re alright, take a deep breath for me.” His breathing was erratic, his gaze lost, nothing he was saying made sense, he was talking about saving his mother and a Prussian boy, he then mentioned the name Charlie. “You’re at the hospital Mr. Shelby, take it easy.”

As Tommy looked around, he took in his surroundings, the pale skin of the nurse attending him contrasted deeply with the small crimson river of blood coming out from her eyebrow.

“There you go, that’s it, deep breaths.” Y/N smiled relieved that the fever was going down. Checking his eyes, his reflections seemed to be perfect, as well as the rest of his vitals. He tried to touch the metal around his head, but Y/N moved gently his hand down.

She helped the man to sit up slowly in the bed and after adjusting the pillow in his back, she offered him some water, to help his system fight the temperature.

“Are you feeling better?” Y/N asked after a few more minutes.

Tommy nodded, still altered by the mixed nightmare he just saw, his mother asking for help, she was dangerously close to the river and when he tried to grab her arm to move her away, he saw Charlie drowning, as he was about to save his son, the Prussian boy appeared from nowhere and sent him to the ground.

“It’s late, you might want to have some rest.” Y/N announced gently changing the pillow since it was soaked.

“I can’t go back to sleep.” He murmured after a few seconds. “My head ‘s pounding.”

“I can give you something for the pain.” But his hand stopped Y/N’s intentions to walk away. Gently and in a caressing motion, she placed his hand between hers, one on top and one under. “Is going to be alright.”

“Can you stay here? With me?”

And with that Y/N was able to see the bluest eyes she had ever crossed paths with, so transparent, so full of fear, so vulnerable. He locked his eyes with her and she got lost in a deep ocean, soft waves crashing against her.

So broken.

Empty even.

In the war she had seen endless horrors, men without a leg or an arm, people who lost their eyes, but nothing compared to what Y/N saw in this man’s eyes.

“Right, just let me call the doctor and I’ll stay here for a little longer, all my other patients are sleeping.” Y/N took the empty chair resting close to the door and brought it closer to the bed.

“Lucky they can.”

Y/N chuckled and in the process, she found the ghost of a smirk in his lips.

“I could give you something to sleep.”

“Oh, so you don’t have to deal with me?”

Y/N looks at him scandalized. “No, I meant it so you can rest.”

“That’s for the weak.” Tommy stated taking a deep breath.

“Are you sure you don’t want something for the pain?” Y/N tried again suppressing a yawn.

“I’ve the heart of a horse.” Tommy winced as her cold hand came to circle his wrist, she looked at her watch and then wrote down something in a chart. She then checked again his temperature. “How long have you been a nurse?”

Her features turned into a bittersweet expression.

“I volunteered as a nurse during the war, to be close to my husband.”

Tommy fixed his gaze on her. “The Somme?”

Y/N nodded. “Blackwoods, but he never came back.”

“Sorry for your loss.” Tommy offered Y/N his handkerchief, which she found on top of the cabinet with the rest of his clothes.

“Thank you, I hear you’re a hero.”

Tommy chuckled tilting his head.

“That’s overrated, I saw more men dying than I saved. Now you, on the other hand are a real hero, Miss?”

“Y/N Y/LN.” She smiled gently.

“Pleased to meet you, Thomas Shelby.” He extended his hand with a groan.

“How did you end up here with an injury like that?”

“I stumbled.”

Y/N didn’t believe that for a second, but she was glad to see that even in a situation like that, he felt like joking, it was a good sign.

“The door must’ve been heavy.” She joked, immediately regretting her own words. ”Sorry.”

“Bad choices brought me here.” Tommy admitted, his hands instinctively looking for a cigarette. “Can I have a smoke?”

Y/N stood up to take a cigarette and light it for him. “Hopefully you won’t make those again, you were very lucky this time.”

“You’d be surprised, sometimes I think trouble simply enjoys following me around.”

“You’re like a magnet then.”

She then decided to stay silent as she saw him with his eyelids closed, maybe tiredness took him finally in, that would be good, because then she would be able to close her eyes momentarily and…

“Has anyone came…?”

His deep voice pulled her from snoozing. Y/N nodded and informed him that his sister visited the previous day. And his aunt the day he had the surgery.

“Do you want me to let someone know?”

Tommy shook his head at first, closing his eyes. Who would give a damn about him?

“Jeremiah, Jimmy he’s a preacher.” He whispered after a few minutes.

“I know him, we’ve worked together helping people in need.”

Why that didn’t surprise him?

“That tells me I’m in good hands.” He ran his cigarette over his lower lip, while a light shade of pink covered her cheeks and neck.

“Thank you for helping me keep my eyes open.”

Tommy then winked. “Anytime love, you know where to find me.”

Y/N told him she would get him a new gown and take a quick look at the other patients, but she would be back before he could realize she was gone. In her absence, a doctor entered and after evaluating the information in his chart, asked a few insignificant questions and left him alone. Tommy wondered if she would be back soon.

“How was your round?” Tommy asked eyeing her by the corner of his eye.

“Fine, most patients are fast asleep except for one.”

“Sorry to keep you up, it gets boring here.”

Y/N’s eyes sparkled. “What are you talking about? The fun has just begun, you need to stay for a few months.”

But Tommy being Tommy, he had another ideas.

“I’ll be out of here this week.” He stated firmly.

They stayed in a comfortable silence, until Tommy saw the nurse leaning forwards, at the end of his bed, close to his feet, within seconds, he realized her breathing changed and she was fast asleep, forehead resting on one arm, at some point, she turned her head to the side, so her features were facing him, and he finally noticed the mole close to her lips…

The following morning, Jeremiah entered the hospital room, a beaming smile on his face, Tommy motioned him to be quiet, pointing at the sleepy nurse.

The poor thing worked the previous night taking care of a patient at home, then her regular shift at ER and finally she was asked to cover the intensive care unit as well.

Looking at the feet of his bed, Y/N was peacefully sleeping in an uncomfortable position that would probably hurt her neck and back, she assured him over five times she wasn’t tired first, then that she didn’t need a pillow, she wasn’t going to fall asleep, but in the end, her body claimed some rest. Her lips were partially open, her features relaxed, she exuded calmness through every pore.

A peace he would kill for.

“Looking good Tom.” Jeremiah whispered, walking around the bed, to the opposite side were the nurse was sleeping.

“Now everyone will shave the side of their head too.” Tommy joked.

Before Y/N fell asleep, she got her pocket mirror, helping Tommy to take a look, it disgusted him to see the helmet, and the dark circles under his eyes, paler than he usually was, but Y/N assured him, nothing of that mattered, he was alive.

But Jeremiah couldn’t hold back the laugh at Tommy’s comment, and Y/N woke up.

“I’m so sorry I fell asleep!” Y/N quickly apologized and walked out from the room, returning a few minutes later after a quick trip to the bathroom to refresh herself and as she walked over to the bed to check one more time for Mr. Shelby’s vitals, she overheard a conversation that concerned her.

“Jimmy, I need you to bring me some papers, the keys to the first drawer are on-”

“Mr. Shelby you can’t work right now.” Y/N looked between her patient and his friend, her whole body protesting for sleeping in that position.“You need bed rest, physical therapy and nothing that stresses you.”

Tommy chuckled and his head hurt from the effort.

“I’m sure Polly can manage for a while, you need to follow her orders.” Jeremiah stated before touching Tommy in the arm, followed by a wink. “He’s a bit stubborn, just so you to know.”

He thanked then Y/N for taking care of his friend and left them after that.

“I didn’t mean to sound bossy, sorry Mr. Shelby.”

“Call me Tommy, please.” Making an effort to look at her, he found a deep frown. “What’s the matter?”

“The doctor prescribed Morphine to your own judgment?”

“It’s for the pain.”

She knew this kind of high dosis could represent a big threat for the patients, it should be administered by someone who knew what they were doing, but it wasn’t her place to discuss that, so she only shook her head.

“Thank you, for not letting my nightmares hunt me last night.” Tommy whispered. “And sorry for that.” He then pointed out to the now clear cut on her eyebrow.

Y/N smiled brushing it off and left to do a quick check on her patients. Later, when she returned, she found Tommy sleeping, and just like he did the previous night, she let him sleep, hoping the nightmares would leave him alone.

***

When Tommy woke up again, he didn’t found Y/N back, no, there was a rude and grumpy, old nun making noise, disturbing the small peace he was able to reach.

After a heated argument, Tommy didn’t hesitate to point the revolver at her, he just wanted to scare her though, in that condition he wouldn’t be able to shoot properly, but it worked, because she mumbled he would be burned in hell and left. A doctor came in shortly, sweating, worried he would kill him there.

“Where’s Y/N?” Tommy asked cleaning his weapon with the sheet covering his lap.

“She has the day off, until tonight, she covers the ER Night Shift.” His apple bobbed up and down. “I’ll ask the nurse to check on you.”

“I don’t want anyone but Y/N.” Tommy resisted the urgent feeling to press his forehead, the headache was unbearable.

“She attends the emergency un-”

“Perhaps I didn’t make myself clear, Doc… Y/N is from now on my personal nurse.” He removed the security button of his gun. Feeling dizzy, he could see the doctor moving towards the door.

The intensive care unit looked oddly quiet that night, she shouldn’t be here without permission but there was no one to ask around, so she’d only stay for a couple of minutes and go to work at the other side of the building.

“Ah, I see you’re awake now Mr. Shelby, I brought you some tea that will help you with the pain, is strong so I added some milk and sugar.” Y/N smiled.

But the smile soon was followed by a shock, when the Director informed her she would now work as private nurse for Mr. Shelby, but she didn’t even try to gainsay against the new instructions, she just asked a few minutes to move her belongings over the intensive care unit.

“I hope you understand, the other nurse didn’t think I was a nice patient.”

Y/N couldn’t help but roll her eyes at him. “You pointed a gun at her, Tommy.”

“Yeah, yeah, she mentioned I was going to hell.” He retrieved the cigarette case and match from under the blanket, motioning for her to light it for him.

“How are you feeling?” She noticed the helmet was gone, and he could move freely now, slow but better.

“Like shit.”

Y/N looked at the cigarette between her fingers, Tommy cleared her she could smoke in her shift now. “Last night, when you had that nightmare… you mentioned someone… Charlie.”

Tommy ran his tongue over his lips, blinking at the thought of his son.

“I was trying to save him, he’s my son, now it’s just the two of us… his mother passed away.”

The air abandoned her lungs, her heart sank down, the worst pain this man was going through wasn’t for the head injuries, the emotional felt deeper.

“Everything I do, is for him, ‘cause I don’t want him to suffer what I went through.” He admitted.

Tommy threw the covers to the side, determination in his eyes.

Scandalized, Y/N rushed to his side, “what are you doing?!”

“I can’t stay in bed, have things to do.”

But her hands on his chest, held him firmly.

“You need to take it easy, it takes time to heal and recover.” Shaking her head, Y/N covered him again. “You hired me to be your nurse, and as such you’ll have to follow my orders.”

With an evident groan, Tommy allowed her to adjust his pillow, taking the revolver in the process.

“And I’m keeping this somewhere safe.”

“Fucking hell.” He scoffed.

***

Of course, he wasn’t out in a week like he said, Tommy needed medical attention and professional equipment to monitor his progress, the doctors didn’t even care he was using his pipe when the pain was too much.

During the following days, Y/N stayed by Tommy’s hospital bed day and night, helping him to stand up once the doctor cleared him out to walk around, she read out loud endless books and news to him, somehow she was his eyes and ears.

She earned completely his trust, he talked to her about things he didn’t dare to say to anyone else. And never complained about how difficult and headache he was as her patient, he lost all his dignity when she had to clean him up in the beginning when he couldn’t move, and kept his nightmares at bay some nights.

Staring into the ceiling, he didn’t even remember what day it was, memories were a bit blurry, but he had enough time to plan, to think, to realize things.

In the loneliness of those cold walls, it was all silent. Just him and his thoughts.

Where was his family? He had gave them all; everything they needed, everything they wanted… money, stability, power, luxuries, properties.

And they had only be around a few times for short and sporadic visits.

No one offered to spend the night with him, just in case he needed something during the night. All he heard was excuses to leave as soon as possible. They had other things to do.

The obscene amount of money he spent with whores to warm his bed for a moment and for what? They wouldn’t even dare to look a man ill in a hospital bed. They were empty, it was nothing more than a chore for them.

Not a single whore was appealing enough the effort now.

Deep down, he felt disappointed.

And heartbroken. If he ever had a heart.

All of the people he helped down the road, weren’t able to pay him a ten fucking minutes visit.

A knock on the door pulled Tommy away from his thoughts.

Y/N entered brightening not only the room, but his life as well.

“Good morning sleepyhead.” She chirped.

“You kept snorting, I had to recover my sleep-hours.” He lied.

“I did not.” Her voice faked indignation towards his words, touching his arm playfully with the package of the gauze.

“Why do you keep sleeping in the chair, when I asked them to bring in a couch for you?” He smirked accepting the biscuits she made for him.

“Trust me, if I take the couch, you’ll never wake me up.”

As she leaned to clean the spot of his surgery, Tommy turned his head and stared into her beautiful eyes, straight to her heart and soul. Wondering if she would allow him to kiss her, almost asking for permission. His hand came to rest to the side of her head, fingers intertwining in her hair… closing his eyes, he let his lips fan over hers, barely touching, teasing, burning and waking up every nerve in her body.

And when their mouths finally collided, time stopped and the fucking world could’ve exploded and they wouldn’t have noticed.

“Just what the doctor ordered.” The corner of his lips turned upwards and small lines formed around his blue eyes as he pulled in his nurse for another kiss.

“Tommy…” she whispered trying to catch her breath, easier than trying to ask her heartbeat to normalize.

“Tell me this isn’t a one side feeling?”

The feeling of his hands cupping her face close to his, made ir harder to shook her head. “No, it’s not that… is just that this isn’t professional. I’m your nurse.”

“Perfect, you’re fired then.” He joked, pulling her down for another kiss.

He would be forever grateful with her for those days when she was all the company he got, for the long talks, and making his most miserable time feel lighter. For encouraging him to walk again and do his exercises.

For being there for him.

He never imagined tragedy would take him to the place where he would meet love and compassion in the same person. He would get his head smashed a hundred more times just to be with her.

After getting more kisses, because he swore the doctor prescribed them, Tommy gave her the envelope with her payment and she almost fainted she saw it. It was more money than she could expect to see in months of working non stop.

“This is too much, I can’t accept it.”

“Y/N you stayed with me when I needed it the most, didn’t ask questions… no amount of money could ever really pay what you gave me.”

He was determined to go back home, promised the doctors he would take it easy and after watching his health improvement, he was discharged earlier than expected. But of course he was planning to have someone taking care of him.

***

Y/N couldn’t believe this was the correct address she was given. Taking a double look at the mansion before her, she swallowed hard.

But the address written on the paper Tommy gave her, was correct. After finishing her shift at the Hospital that day, she would be joining him at home.

Knocking on the heavy door, Y/N waited smoothing her uniform a petite woman in a black and white uniform opened the door. The look the woman gave her up and down made Y/N feel uneasy, worried there was something wrong with her.

“Mr. Shelby hired me to.-”

“I know who he is, I don’t understand why they sent someone lik-” shaking her head, she moved to the side as Polly approached them.

“Thank you so much for showing up earlier, he has been asking for you, I’m Polly.” She gave the nurse a candid smile and looking then at the maid, she added; “Mary please prepare her something to eat.”

“That won’t be necessary Mrs. Gray, I had breakfast after finishing my shift, but thank you.”

Polly guided her around the house, wrapping an arm around her waist. “Thank you for taking care of our Tom all of this time…” Showing her where was the kitchen, the bathroom, everything she might need.

“Is alright, don’t worry about that.”

“I’ve work to do, but I’ll give you a phone number where you can find me if anything urgent comes up, there’s also a driver and a car outside in case you need to use it.” They both walked a long hall, the house was decorated immediately. “My nephew has been talking about you.” She gave the nurse a knowing look. “Something changed, but not something physical, something inside, you gave him his heart back.”

As Polly opened the door to Tommy’s bedroom, Y/N found him playing with his son in bed, bare chest moving the child up and down in the air, his small giggles echoed through the room.

The image didn’t only made its way through her eyes, it went straight to the heart.

*******

And sorry it got long! I couldn’t stop writing for these two… your feedback is always highly appreciated and treasured ♥️ it means the world to me! Thank you for reading.

Master list

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[divinekangaroo]

modern day Lizzie would write the most intense published pornography under her maiden name and make all her money doing that

and she'd be doing the school run in a goddamned hated minivan because there's like six or eight or maybe ten children to wrangle if not more by then and tommy tells her to stop complaining and pile em in the back of a pickup with a tarp over instead if she's so against it and she'd be all how dare you when you drive to work every day in a two seater fucking 1977 fully restored jaguar that the children aren't even allowed to look at much less ride in and john has a motorbike and i don't even get--

and she'd still blush like fire and have to forcibly compose herself when Tommy absently licks spilled whiskey off her fingers at a club dinner or John ties a knot in a cherry stem with his tongue when showing off to other dads at a school kids birthday party

[moral-terpitude]

Yay, I did something productive!

So...I lost the post that I shared before about being added to my taglist, so here’s a little handy dandy link if you’d like to be added.

It’s an anonymous google form. You won’t have to put in an email or anything identifying, it’s just easier for me this way.

I’ll put the link in my Masterlist too.

*gif for attention cause it cracks me up*

[intersex-support]

Image description: [Poster with intersex inclusive progress pride flag in the background. Text reads: Every Body Free Screenings. Boston, Thursday June 22 at 7pm. AMC Boston Common (175 Tremont St). Minneapolis, Thursday June 22 at 7pm. Showplace ICON at the West End (1625 West End Blvd). Philadelphia, Thursday June 22 at 7pm. PFS East (125 Sansom St Walkway). Chicago, Monday June 26 at 7pm. AMC River East 21 (322 E Illinois St). Los Angeles, Tuesday, June 27 at 6:30 pm. AMC The Grove (189 the Grove Dr). Q&A following the screening with Academy Award nominated, Emmy winning director Julie Cohen, producer Tommy Nguyen, and participant River Gallo. New York, Wednesday June 28th at 7pm. AMC Lincoln Square (1998 Broadway). Introduction by Academy Award-nominated, Emmy-winning director Julie Cohen.]

Summary of the film:

"Every Body is a revelatory investigation of the lives of intersex people. The film tells the stories of three individuals who have moved from childhoods marked by shame, secrecy, and non-consensual surgeries to thriving adulthoods after each decided to set aside medical advice to keep their bodies a secret and instead came out as their authentic selves. Actor and screenwriter River Gallo (they/them), political consultant Alicia Roth Weigel (she/they), and Ph.D. student Sean Saifa Wall (he/him) are now leaders in a fast-growing global movement advocating for greater understanding of the intersex community and an end to unnecessary surgeries. Woven into the story is a stranger-than-fiction case of medical abuse, featuring exclusive footage from the NBC News archives, which helps explain the modern-day treatment of intersex people."

I just got back from watching an early screening of this film and it was beautiful, powerful, and meaningful in ways I did not expect! Met so many intersex people in my city and it was just really really, incredible.

Really recommend watching this film for any intersex people. This is the link to rsvp to the free screenings.

The film will also be available in theaters on June 30th.

So, so excited about this!

[ethereallocs]

Siren Pt.2-Modern! Aemond Targaryen x Fem Reader

Pairing: Aemond Targaryen(Bass Player) x Fem Reader (Lead Singer)

Word Count: 2.3k

Content/Warning: !!🔞PLUS!!, Smut, P in V penetration, Spanking, Ass-play Virginity loss, Ass-Licking, Choking, Balcony, Grinding, Exhibitionism, Degredation and Fluff/Aftercare.

Author’s Notes: Now I know I’ve used “The Summoning” by Sleep Token for inspiration for another fan-fiction of mine (Taste of the Divine). But since I’ve heard this song and recently rewatched HOTD I cannot let go of the fact that this song fits Aemond so well. So I’m using it again for this, in my mind it definitely fits better in this scenario so I hope you enjoy reading it just as much as I enjoyed writing it. Oh he has a bit of an ass fetish…

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the HOTD characters nor the song being used. They are used only for creative purposes.

After the bands opening night and the events that transpired later on Y/N was conflicted. She would be lying if she said she wasn’t attracted to him or that she didn’t like him. But one thing about band romances is they hardly ever end well and nothing but drama replaces what once was love. They were now touring in Europe; London, England to be exact. Y/N and the crew were riding on their tour bus to their destination. Aegon, Tommy(electric guitar player), their back up singers and Y/N were up front either sleep, on their phones, or singing. Aemond was in his room, he had isolated himself from the group when he did what he did and hadn’t spoken to Y/N since. He was ashamed of himself, he’d never done something so irrational, but she…she did something to him and brought something almost primal out of him.

He figured she’d never want to speak to him again and awaited the worst to come when or if she decided to tell the rest of their bandmates what happened. He decided to finish a song him and the band had record without Y/N. It was actually written for her, but he’d never admit it. Without warning a knock was heard at his door. “Come in..” And in she came slowly finding a place to stand as awkward as it was. “So I wanted to talk about what happened the other night. Why have you been avoiding me? You don’t just come into my room do… those things to me and then pretend I don’t exist.” She was frustrated for several reasons one of them being that she had been try to get that high feeling again and failed miserably every time. The other because she thought he used her for his own pleasure and basically threw her away like some old toy.

She got slightly distracted hearing the song playing and it sounded really good. “Wait who is that singing?” She wondered he sounded familiar and then it finally came to her. “Aemond…that’s you..” he sighed softly closing his laptop and turning to face her completely. “Yeah…me and Aegon were just fucking around. It’s nothing serious…and to answer your question I’ve been avoiding you because I took things too far with you. I should’ve never touched you in that way and you were intoxicated it was shitty of me and I’m sorry. You didn’t speak to me after that night and I just assumed I had gotten the wrong idea.” She huffed and sat at the corner of his bed trying to find the words to say. “I…I wasn’t mad at you…I just…you..you made me feel something I’ve never experienced before and I didn’t know how to say I want more or tell you I like you back.”

“Wait you like me back? So why the fuck did you tell Aegon the kiss between us on stage meant nothing?” She rolled her eyes and sighed laying back on his bed. “Because I didn’t think you liked me and because I know how band relationships end. They are never a good idea to get into…it just makes everything else difficult.” He listened attentively placing a calloused hand on her thigh squeezing softly before he climbed on top of her to give her a kiss.

“Band or no band you’re stuck with me you know that right? And you had Instagram and Twitter going crazy with that kiss. They’ve been what’s the word stanning over us ever since.”She pulled him in making his lips crash into her, but they were quickly interrupted, when Aegon came crashing through the door, eavesdropping obviously. She ducked and rolled off the bed running back to the front of the bus with everyone else. “Hey Bro, Y/N? What the fuck were y’all doing in here?” He mocked them with kissing and moaning sounds laughing at their obvious embarrassment.

It seemed like the bus ride dragged on for hours and finally they were here at the venue and Y/N was super excited for tonight she had something very special planned for tonight’s performance. As usual the concert goers can rushing in, the place was sold out and every seat was filled. This was going to be perfect she thought. She walked out on stage as usual relishing the chants and cheers as her band played behind her. She raised her hand signaling them to stop and she looked to Aemond with a grin on her face. “So everyone I’m sure you all know Aemond. The best damn bass player in King’s Landing!!!”

They all cheered and she laughed calming them to let her speak. “Well, I’ve got a surprise for you and him too. I just learned on my way here that he is multitalented and him and the band recorded a song. And I’ve only heard a few seconds of it so this will be a first for me and you all. So..without further ado, I welcome to the stage Aemond Targaryen!!!!” The crowd went wild chanting his name and he looked to her in horror she walked to him and placed her hands in his ear whispering. “Your going to do great babe.” She kissed his cheek moving in his spot so that he may take hers.

He stood in the spotlight the light was blinding, but he put on a brave face for her and flashed a smile to the crowd. Aegon signaled the group with the clicks of his drumsticks and they began to play and a voice almost angelic left his lips. Leaving Y/N in awe.

I've got a river running right into you

I've got a blood trail, red in the blue

Something you say or something you do

A taste of the divine

You've got my body, flesh and bone, yeah

The sky above, the Earth below

Raise me up again

Take me past the edge

I want to see the other side

See the other side

The crowd loved every second and still he left Y/N speechless. She had heard him messing around before, but she never thought such a beautiful sound could come from him until now. She felt herself being taken away with the music. Is this what love felt like she thought. He looked back to her and she sang background vocal improvising and he winked at her looking back to the crowd as he continued. His mind filled with thoughts of nothing but her as he sang. Calling to her the way his heart did so silently. The songs tone switched and there was a breakdown she had not expected. He walked toward her with his mic in hand and Vhagar on the side of his waist gripping at her hips and pulling her close.

Oh, and my love

Did I mistake you for a sign from God?

Or are you really here to cut me off?

Or maybe just to turn me on

'Cause these days

I would be lying if I told you that

I didn't wish that I could be your man

Or maybe make a good girl bad

I've got a river running right into you

I've got a blood trail, red in the blue

Something you say or something you do

The taste of the divine

You've got my body, flesh and bone

The sky above, the Earth below

Nothing to say and nowhere to go

A taste of the divine

She shuttered feeling his fingers trailing up and down her spine. He pressed his forehead to hers, chest to chest. Her heart skipped, his lips hovering over hers. He pulled away leaving her wanting. She was unbelievably turned on and it was easy to tell. Her pale cheeks were a rich red and her legs rubbed together trying to find some form of friction. He passed the mic to her kissing her forehead before scooting her back into the limelight where she belonged.

Tonight was another successful performance their were already headlines about the two of them from TMZ to MTV. They were sleeping at a hotel tonight due to their fans stalking the tour bus. Y/N gave him her room key and she went up to take a well needed shower. He let himself in and heard the shower running. He found himself looking around the large room. Checking out the large terrace that was attached to her room. A rather tantalizing idea popped into his head. Shortly after she returned from the shower wearing a crop top and black shorts that stop right above the cuff of her cheeks.

He moved in his seat pulling at his pants trying to remain calm, but she made it oh so hard to. He stood to his feet, seeming to levitate toward her. His hands found their place into the dips of her waist. Pulling her into him. “I should have my way with you for that little stunt you pulled, my little siren.” She blushed biting into her rosy bottom lip. She needed to stop before he devoured her very being. “You tease me and your not even trying. Can you feel what you do to me?” He groaned pressing his sweat pants covered hard on against her hip.

His hands slid into the back of her shorts gripping on her round flesh growling at how well it filled his hands. “Perfect..” He spoke in a hushed tone pulling away to look into her eyes. Her eyes low and filled with lust. His lips crashed into hers and she moaned into his mouth, practically melting into his arms. He picked her up by her ass cheeks and carried her out to the terrace where a table and two chair sat. He sat down with her straddling his lap. “I want you to rub your pussy against my dick.” She looked at him with embarrassed expression. “Out here?” He hummed. “Mhmm…” He positioned her perfectly pulling the back of her shorts down to cuff under her cheek. His hungry hands kneeling them like dough. Pushing and pulling them apart the cool air hitting her skin.

Soon she began bucking her hips against him his cock rubbing against her sensitive clit. His left arm wrapping around her to pull her against him and his right laying harsh smacks against her plump ass. She whimpered and moaned, the red tint flushing to her welting skin. He moaned at the sight and bit into her neck; pumping up into her hips. He spanked her until she was sore and sat her on the table pulling her shorts off the rest of the way. The cool feel of the table caused her to shiver.

He looked to her sweetly before flipping her so she stood on all fours and he stayed in his seat. He smiled at the view spreading her cheeks apart seeing the delicate pink flesh of her pussy glistening from the light hitting her slick. He licked his lips like he was starving. But that tight hole of hers was what he really wanted. He buried his face between her ass and his tongue lapped over the tight flesh of her ass her back arched involuntarily. His eyes rolled at the taste of her. She gasped and moaned holding onto the edges of the table his tongue greedily lapping at her ass and dipping into pussy every now and then.

“Gods…you taste so good..” he cooed as she mewled from the sudden suction of her clit. He smacked her ass again letting his thumb rub against the rim around her asshole. While he looked back at the mess she was already making. “Your such a dirty little slut aren’t you? You’re making quite a mess on this table I wonder if anyone can hear you.” He smiled wickedly and turned her to face him. He stood in between her legs pulling his cock from his pants letting the thick head rub between the slit of her gorgeous cunny.

She writhed in pleasure seeing her like this drove him insane he couldn’t take much more. “Are you ready, my love?” She nodded sweetly. “Please, Aemond…I need it…” she whined and he smiled kissing her to dull the pain as he prodded at her entrance slowly letting it give way around him. He buried his head into her neck and gasped. “You feel amazing, little siren.” He stayed still letting her adjust to his length and girth which was above average. She felt like she was going to break, she need him deeper. “M..More…” he looked into her eyes..”More? Well aren’t you greedy are sure you can handle more?” He laced his fingers around her throat giving her the right amount of pressure before he filled her completely.

She winced but moaned her eyes rolling back. “Good girl you take me so well..” He began his assault pumping into her mercilessly her pussy gripping him like a vice with each pull. “Oh fuck..Aemond…” She called out his name like he always imagined. Was this dream? It couldn’t be it felt too real; too good. “That’s it baby let me make you feel good, baby girl. Let the world hear how good I make you feel.”

She grunted like an animal nails digging into his back the knot in her stomach tightening. She was so close to her release, but he popped her thigh denying her of it. “Please, I can’t hold on anymore..” He hushed her “Just a little longer I want us to cum together.” He continued hitting that spongy spot the drove her crazy, feeling her legs trembling uncontrollably. “Come baby cum on my dick, give it to me.” She screamed creaming all over his dick smearing it with her arousal his seed spilled instantly inside her.

The rode out their orgasms and he carried her inside. He showered with her a got her dressed in a large t shirt leaving soft kisses along her lips and neck. He carried her to bed and they spooned for the remainder of the night until they fell asleep.

To be continued…

@pet1t3 @proudlittlewitchbitch @xlaurenlintonx @jadianasithandjedi @ellxpsismm @chainsawangel @aemondslefteyeball @baebunnyxo @ammo23 @valeskafics @boundlessfantasy

[ecstasyhighway]

YOU & I | an ellie williams fanfic series

this is a fic that will be posted and mostly updated on wattpad @ecstasyhighway this ff is heavily based off of you the netflix show and inspired by a ff on here which i cannot remember who wrote it but if yk lmk so i can give proper credit.

there is not smut in this little part here but its a filthy ah fic that will become darker as it goes on.

MEN DNI - 16+ i fear (im 17 so if u feel uncomfortable reading from a minor who will be 18 at the end of the year then u dont have to read this i really dgaf.)

ch 1 ch 2

silly story and more ff info under the cut

Ellie had seen you walking around the music store she worked at... her attention automatically shifted from the customer in front of her to you. Your hair, your curves, your eyes. Everything about you was just...

"hello? did you hear me?" the woman raised her voice slightly to get her attention,

Ellie snapped out of her thoughts and focused on the clearly irritated woman in front of her.

"yea my bad, what was that..?"

The lady rolled her eyes and started asking questions about guitar lessons for her son or daughter or some shit, she wasnt really paying attention to the nonsense floating from her mouth.

"yeah, im not the one you go to about that, uhhh my buddy Jesse is in the back, he can help you"

"thanks" and with that, she headed towards the back, muttering words under her breath.

Ellie's attention quickly turned back towards you. She examines you closely. Watching you grab a vinyl from the shelf, Call Me If You Get Lost, is what you had grabbed. Ellie wants to walk over to you, and talk to you but shes scared. What if she says the wrong thing? What if she freaks you out? What if you think shes a weirdo.. She turns away to stop looking at you, her cheeks are red and shes shaking, she is just so nervous and she's not even planning on talking to you... She puts her face in her hands and begins to calm herself down.

"Hi! hello"

A voice chimes from behind her, she turns around and a lump forms in her throat.

Its... you.

———————————————————————————

YOU & I | ellie williams.

this is a DARK fanfic. Based heavily off of the show you on netflix and inspired by a fanfic I saw on tumblr. This story has adult themes, sexual themes, stalking, thoughts of killing (no actual killing just thoughts), themes of hate, ellie has slight mental issues (obv shes stalking) age gaps (only 3 years and they're adults). idgaf how old u are this is dark and you have been warned, i am not responsible for any type of reaction you may have to this as ive given you a warning. I will give warnings at the beginning of chapters that might be too dark. again you have been warned.

important - ellie might be a tad ooc, shy!ellie, switch!ellie if you squint. this is a lesbian ff.

MEN DNI I WILL FIND YOU.

reader is afab and 20

ellie is 23

modern au

jessie, dina, joel, tommy, maria, most of the main tlou cast is in this (not everyone will be mentioned or even really have a place in the story, just know they are present)

based in New York (obv)

i am not a professional writer, im simply a girl who writes shit when shes bored, do not expect me to have an upload schedule. I get drained v fast and i want to enjoy writing, its not a job with deadlines. so with that my grammar might be bad, spelling might be ass and if there is any math it will probably be wrong, it might be written in third, or first person i be fuckin up with that but yall will be fine.

YOU & I | ellie williams.

story created and written by @ecstasyhighway

tlou and the characters belongs to Neil Druckmann and Naughty Dog

the story of "YOU" belongs to Netflix

Story was ib by a ff i saw breifly but i don't remember who wrote it so, if yk pls lmk so i can give proper credit

THIS IS FICTION. DO NOT DO THIS SHIT IRL BRUH ITS ACTUALLY WEIRD ASF. AGAIN THIS IS PURELY FICTIONAL. thank yew

uhhhh yeah enjoy ig and i do appreciate any supportive criticism as i am not a professional writer and shit could just be wrong.

also im new to tumblr fanfic writing so yeah 😭.

[telekinetictrait]

"A happy ending was imperative. I shouldn't have bothered to write otherwise. I was determined that in fiction anyway two men should fall in love and remain in it for the ever and ever that fiction allows." (Maurice – E.M. Forester, written in 1913, published posthumously in 1971)

i forgot to do a full body screenshot of the second 1920s look :( but the headshot will be under the cut! argh!!!!!!

23 years left :)

1800s directory / 1900s directory

cc links under the cut!

see my resources page for genetics

keaton : get together hat / base game hair / get famous suit + shoes

kit : base game hair / chere-indolente's newlyn fisherman cableknit / cyber-frog-cc's modern man trousers / seasons boots

levin : coeurdavide's boaters for the boys / i don't remember where the hair is from sorry :( / cyber-frog-cc's modern man shirt and trousers / mmoutfitters' fancy feet shoes recolor

lonnie : i don't remember where the hair is from sorry :( / linzlu's 1910's mens set (download here) / get together shoes

maxwell : historysims4's mr hat + antoine hair + not so formal outfit

neil : happylifesims' 1930's fedora hat / twentiethcenturysims' swan suit / base game shoes

norris : cottage living hat + outfit / seasons boots

oberon : johnnysimmer's kyrie hair / vroshii's vintage vest and pants / get together shoes

odie : johnnysimmer's kyrie hair / twentiethcenturysims' tommy knicker suit / get famous socks / vintage glamour shoes

patrick : base game hair / wyattssims' tucked button up with long sleeves / simstrouble's robby trousers / base game socks + shoes

phocas : all base game!

reiner : johnnysimmer's ramdi hair / madameriasims4's retro polo / wyattssims' high rolled pants with rope belt / base game socks + shoes

ryland : paranormal hair / happylifesims' harold lloyd turtleneck / paranormal pants / base game shoes

shelton : sheabuttyr's andre afro / paranormal open suit / makesims' rolled corduroys / i don't remember what pack the shoes are from but i know they're from a pack

sylvain : qrqr19's moonstone hair / base game earrings / serenity-cc's faux fur coat + terra jeans / discover university shoes??

terell : ceeproductions' sponge curls / aniraklova's vice city shirt / base game pants + shoes

tyodor : dbasiasimbr's afro mohawk / base game earrings + necklace (magic earring ken, anyone??) / bustedpixels' decades glam rock conversion / wistfulpoltergeist’s night city gloves / vampires leather pants / base game boots

ulrich : okruee's adonis hair + flowers / base game necklace / definitely not grunge revival top + pants + sneakers

upton : johnnysimmer's will hair / bustedpixels' vintage adidas jacket / nucrests' comfy loose joggers / base game sneakers

thank you to @chere-indolente @cyber-frog-cc @coeurdavide @mmoutfitters @linzlu @historysims4 @happylifesimsreblogs @twentiethcenturysims @johnnysimmer @vroshii @wyattssims @simstrouble @madameriasims4 @sheabuttyr @makesims @qrqr19 @serenity-cc @ceeproductions @aniraklova @dbasiasimbr @bustedpixels @wistfulpoltergeist @okruee @mossylane and @nucrests !!!

as promised, heres what would have been the second 20s look (miles)

[scarletlich]

Heyo you offered to talk about the memes in the Chinese dsmp community and yup here I am to listen bc this is cool (also the fact that tommy is sometimes legit called child is fucking hilarious to me lol)

I will first add a slight disclaimer, I have been less active lately in Chinese dsmp community (wow back in the day I was part of a translation team too...) so my memes may be a bit outdated.

For some context, I'll explain a bit about how bilibili is structured. Here's a screenshot from Dream's 1v4 Manhunt Finale. As you can see, there are bullet comments on top of the video (if you scroll down there will also be comments below the video like on YouTube), sort of like chat on streams. Some of the bullet comments have lots of likes, such as the one with a yellow thumbs up next to it (it says ***At this point Antfrost is secretly doing something***).

The ones I have been keeping up with the most on bilibili were Dream's manhunts and Technoblade, so there'll probably be more of their memes in this list.

muffinhead 松饼脑袋 this actually means pancake head, one of the initial translators mistakenly translated muffin as pancake but it stuck and is now a meme. Also theoretically they could've used 头 instead of 脑袋 but that also stuck.

Dream's opening "only X% aren't subscribed": 白嫖不分国界 "getting/taking things for free is an international activity". When you watch a video on bilibili without leaving a like or coins (which you get for free by logging in) or subscribing it's described as taking something for free.

There's a specific type of meme called 空耳 (lit: empty ear) which is how people mishear English. These are a bit hit or miss for me since I am a native English speaker as well, but here's a couple more common ones:

"leave me alone" sounds like 李云龙 Li Yunlong (1919-1965) who was a general in the People's Liberation Army and there was a movie made about him in 2005 I believe.

In the manhunt where the hunters get enchanted diamond armor Bad excitedly chants "shiny squad! shiny squad!" but viewers in the bullet comments misheard this as "Chinese squad". After seeing that comment I couldn't unhear it either.

半条命 "half a life" Every time Dream has half a heart left somebody will come up with a fancy title to describe the scenario, and people will spam 封印解除 "the seal (on his power/skill) has been broken". Examples of titles: 半条命：亡命天涯 "Half a Life: Death at the Cliffs/Edge of the Sky" 半条命：山谷危机 "Half a Life: Danger in the Canyon" (these are pretty mediocre examples, there are better ones but I can't think of them right now)

D道站 (since dream is also shortened to D) is a pun off of 地道战, a 1966 classic Chinese movie about the Sino-Japanese War, it means tunnel warfare and is used for whenever Dream tunnels around during manhunt.

They also have the dudududu meme, of course. They call it 松饼处刑曲, "muffin" sentencing (like sentencing a crime) song

Techno was a known fan of the esports donghua (donghua is to China as anime is to Japan) The King's Avatar 《全职高手》 and talked about it onstream before, he even read the entire over thousand chapter webnovel. In fact, fans found his comments on the English translation and he was in the novel's Discord server (it was linked to his Discord account iirc so it was him). He also once made his nick on hypixel OneAutumnLeaf referencing 一叶知秋, the main character's original username. (Sidenote I remember getting salty when people were commenting "webnovel? just say fanfiction" it's not fanfiction! it's original fiction! just because webnovels aren't a thing in the US... no need to say it in such a disparaging way... anyway...)

Of course Chinese fans would know about his memes with Sun Zi (Sun Tzu but modern transliteration) and The Art of War, as well as when he intentionally misquotes. The Republic-era author 鲁迅 Lu Xun is also often misquoted as a meme so these jokes often appear 鲁迅：这个我熟 "Lu Xun: I am familiar with this (experience of being misquoted)". Sometimes people comment on how incredibly long the English translation of Sun Zi's lines are.

中国文化传播大使 Techno is jokingly called Ambassador of Spreading Chinese Culture because of his usage of The Art of War, and to be honest he really truly understood the concepts he quoted lmao, he used them very well.

日常和粉丝互相80 Techno and his fans bully each other on the daily

There was that time Techno described Dream as a 刑天 Xingtian, a Chinese mythological warrior who was beheaded and then basically has eyes where his nipples are and a mouth on his stomach, so Chinese fans sometimes call him the green Xingtian, they also call him 晴天娃娃 which is actually a Japanese thing, they look like this:

Skeppy often starts and ends his videos with things like "like or die tmr" and the bullet comments will spam 永久反弹 which means "eternal reflection", its basically just a "no u"

On funny interactions/bullying between Phil and his "sons" or Wilbur and Fundy, commenters like to spam 父慈子孝 which is a Chinese idiom meaning "compassionate father and filial son(s)"

I might add to this post in reblogs if I remember any more memes unique to Chinese fandom. I am not active on lofter dsmp circles (which you can think of as equivalent to tumblr) or weibo (analogous to twitter), only bilibili (similar to youtube) so that's where my memes come from.

[look-at-the-soul]

The Photoshoot-Part 42 The Date edition

Cillian Murphy

Series Master list 2014, 2015

A/N: I want to start this chapter by celebrating @peakyscillian for 1.5 k followers ! Congratulations dear Lau! I hope you get a lot more! ✨🎉💐 so I was inspired by your amazing dating series but I made my couple go on a date. ♥️

Especial notes: 1) You don’t have to follow the series to read this part, the only things you need to know is Cillian’s wife, Yael is a photographer, the story is set in September 2015, they met at a Photoshoot Cillian did at the end of filming S2 of Peaky Blinders and they are struggling with infertility at the moment, Cillian decides to take her on a special date as he needs to get in the skin of Tommy Shelby.

2) For this part I got the amazing help of two people who actually know about horses, my dear Cia (holacia2) & @notyour-valentine I can’t thank you both enough for all the input you shared with me -the one who knows nothing about horses- you made me imagine everything while writing, thank you for making this possible (you will find your names through the chapter as my way to thank you for your support) 🥰

Her whole body ached, specially her legs after that barre class. Cillian had convinced her it would be a good thing to go back to do the things she loved the most. It wasn’t easy for her, but at least she wanted to try, for him.

Taking her bottle of water, she took a big gulp, just as a voice called for her.

“Hello!”

Turning around, she found another woman smiling at her.

“Hey.”

“It’s good to see you back,” but looking at Yael’s puzzled look, she touched her arm, “oh! I’m sorry we never talked but we’re in the same class, I’m Liv.”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Yael.”

“That’s such an unique name, never heard it before…”

Yael chuckled, the amount of times she had to write it down because people couldn’t understand it…

“I missed coming over, now I’ll feel so sore tomorrow.”

“No pain, no gain… or so they say.” Liv laughed. “I’m heading for a coffee, do you want to come?”

To her own surprise, Yael found herself nodding. There was something so charismatic about that woman, she had a light blood and nice energy around her.

“Sorry if I made a face before, I don’t have friends here, all the people I know is friend’s with my husband…” Yael apologized as they were waiting in the queue.

“No worries, we never talked before.” She mumbled while checking the menu. “Where are you from?”

“The UK.” Yael answered ordering the same coffee she always got. “Are you Irish?”

“Nope, I was born in the UK as well, but we moved over here since I was a toddler, so I’m basically another local.”

“That’s really nice.” She waited until Liv ordered to walk to a table. “Thanks for reaching out, all my close friends aren’t here… and I could use one right now.” Her eyes watered in a snap, her pain right there in the surface.

Liv reacted the only way she knew. “Oh darling, what’s the matter? We can sit outside the terrace is empty.”

“Sorry, I’m just all over the place.” Taking her sunglasses from her bag, she decided to hide beneath them. “God, what you must be thinking of me right now, how embarrassing.”

“Nothing bad, just that you need someone to listen.”

Liv moved back in her chair as their coffees arrived, and offered Yael a napkin.

“You know, I could use a friend too, but I’m too shy at the class because all of those ladies look me upside down.” She made a face and rolled her eyes. That made Yael chuckle.

“Most of them look like frustrated ballerinas.”

“But I mean it.” Liv looked at her, feeling like she was a good person. “Whatever is bothering you…”

The day was beautiful, Yael noticed, the sun up and bright, the terrace had big trees in front of it, surrounding the locals.

“I really appreciate your kindness, but it’s a little bit recent and the last thing I want to be thinking of is that. Maybe I’ll tell you another day.” She gave her new friend a try of a smile, it was just too personal to share. “Did I interrupt your reading?” Yael asked taking a look at the book poking out from Liv’s bag.

“Not at all, I always have a book with me, as I’ve to wait in the boring queue at school to pick up my kids.” She then went on to take a bite of the muffin, “Oh! This is so good, you should try it!”

Yale accepted one small bite and offered some of her own to Liv, but with that small detail she realized how Liv really was a good person, without knowing her, she was willing to share her food. She liked her already.

“I love reading as well, maybe we can exchange books or something.” Yael proposed.

“I’d love to do that! Let’s make this a regular, class, coffee and books.” Liv suggested with a huge smile.

And Yael couldn’t agree more, they spent some good time chatting about their lives, another things they enjoyed to do, their families… As they waved goodbye to go on their respective days she hugged Liv and thanked her one more time for her kindness, feeling like a nice friendship was starting, she felt so grateful for meeting someone like Liv.

***

“So I was thinking, maybe I could invite her somewhere? A little dinner to celebrate Liv’s belated birthday?” Yael asked Cillian from the en-suite, running her eyes over the bottles of shampoo, body lotion and other toiletries they would need. “Love?”

Cillian’s eyes were lost in thoughts, sitting by the end of the bed.

“What? Yeah.” He shook his head a little.

“You’re not paying attention.”

Cillian scoffed. Busted. “You’re there talking in your underwear… how am I supposed to focus?”

Yael blushed, suddenly aware, feeling self conscious, she took the leggings she just bought from the shelf and then threw the fluffy sweater over her head, it was longer than a usual jumper, so it covered her bum perfectly, her dark curly hair was now dry, so she did a quick messy bun at the top of her head.

He loved to listen her talk about her activities, especially now about the new friend she just made, until now he didn’t think of how lonely Yael was, of course his family was close and that was such a relief for him, but it wasn’t the same, soon he would be gone for months to film the upcoming season of Peaky Blinders and having a friend close could make things easier for his wife.

“Are you sure these are fine? You said comfortable clothes…”

“That’s perfect.” He smiled, glad that she had been taking her barre classes constantly, listening to her little stories of her new friend, and the excitement over the secret date he had been planning.

Walking towards the bed, Yael left the things she was holding next to her weekend bag, then quietly made her way to sit on his lap, passing her arms around Cillian’s neck.

“Hi.”

His hands linked automatically around her waist. “Hey you.”

“I want to thank you for all the things you’ve done over the last days… I haven’t been on my best and-”

“You have nothing to thank me for.” He fixed his blue eyes on her features.

“I know, but really,” she tried to distract herself with the top button of his denim shirt, his lotion filling her senses. “You’ve been cooking most of the time, listened to my stupid fears over the treatment and I know I didn’t make it easy.”

She brought her lips to met his in a small peck.

“Without you and your support I wouldn’t be able to hold it together, I just want you to know I really appreciate the extra effort you’ve put to make things easier.”

Cillian’s fingers moved in slow circles over her jumper, he wanted to do more, do anything to take her pain away.

“I’d like to do a bit of thinking of our options, investigate more to make a decision of what’s the best road for us, both IVF and adoption are long and tired process and I don’t want to feel pressured.”

Cillian smiled pleased, she always dedicated a huge amount of time before making an important decision, she helped him be less impulsive, think of all the possible scenarios and outcomes.

“We’ll do this on your pace, take all the time you need.” He kissed her, feeling her worries melting away. Her lips telling him a lot more than words could.

“You’re seriously the best husband ever.”

He chuckled. “Ah, that’s because I’ve the best wife.”

“Does it means I’m your favorite?”

Cillian arched his eyebrows, “of course you’re my favorite wife!”

And they embraced each other in a tight hug, feeling some kind of weight was lifted from their shoulders, their journey wasn’t easy, but they got to face it together and that was exactly what they needed. Support, teamwork, union…

“Will you tell me of this secret plans you have?”

“Not yet.”

Yael looked at him with a pout.

“Just a little hint?”

Cillian groaned and made her stand up. “Fine, Tommy needs to come out from the wardrobe for the new season, I need to remove the dust from him.”

Yael squealed as she felt his hand sneak down her back, then to her bum to give her a squeeze and a wink.

“Are you going to tell me what will happen to him?”

But he was already shaking his head before she could finish. “No, you asked for a hint of the plans not the script.”

“Ah, I won’t tell nobody.”

Cillian stopped at the top of the stairs, holding the bag in one hand, bringing her close by the waist with the other. “You’ll have to ask Thomas Shelby.”

She was surprised by the sudden brummie accent, his deep voice making her purr internally, a tingle running up and down her body. But she still tried to get him to speak as they drove to his sister’s house, Yael was extremely excited for the small change, for getting out of the house since some days were harder than the others.

Scout didn’t pay them any attention as they walked out the door, he was busy chasing after Sienna, bumping the stuffed animals with his nose.

“Do you know why is he so mysterious?” Yael squinted her eyes at Orla, keeping her voice down.

“No, he never tells… once he took Evan to Aspen for snowboard lessons and didn’t say anything, until he saw Joseph Gordon-Levitt and freaked out.”

“I swear if he takes me to a shooting camp, I’ll come back walking.” She joked wondering if she could switch places with Orla’s husband.

Orla suppressed a laugh as her brother walked out of the bathroom.

“Enjoy the weekend.”

Over an hour later, Yael saw they were entering a huge ranch, it seemed like a private property full of big trees, a huge structure in the back.

“Where are we?” Her mouth was hanging open by the sight before her eyes.

“This is a horses sanctuary.” He smiled proudly, offering his hand to help her out of the car.

Before Yael had time to react, two women approached the car and as they got closer he greeted them.

“This is Val and this is Cia, let me introduce you to my wife, Yael.”

“It’s so nice to meet you!” Cia welcomed her in a short hug, followed by Val.

“I’m so glad you made the reservation.” She stated.

“When I started to prepare for my role in Peaky Blinders, I came here to take riding lessons, they showed me how to mount a horse, to caress them, well everything.”

“It’s nice to meet you, this is such an amazing surprise.”

Cillian took her hand while they walked around the property, they explained it was a business ran by a family and they were both in charge on the riding sessions.

“This is where we train the young horses we get.” Cia pointed to an big area protected by a tall fence.

“This is beautiful.” Yael breathed out, taking a look around she felt so much peace.

“Wait until you see the horses, that’s the real beauty of this place.” Val offered guiding them to the large stable.

Yael squeezed Cillian’s hand when they entered it, feeling so small in such a huge place, she kept looking everywhere like a child in a candy store.

“This is Thunder,” Cia pointed caressing the first horse. “That one is Sonny, he was born here on a sunny day that’s why his name, and that beauty over there is Star, Penny, is living here temporarily,” she touched every single horse on her way with such a love oozing, and the most impressive thing was they equally gave it back. “Oh, bless you Moose.” She chuckled as one of them sneezed.

“Badger, usually kicks in excitement don’t get scared” Val started to explain just as they hear a loud kick, the hit on the wood echoed and Yael jumped in surprise. “There it is, he’s like a kid with hyperactivity.”

“Where’s Toni?” Asked Cillian remembering the one he used to learn to get used to horses while preparing for his role.

“Oh he’s at another fascility right now, working with children with special needs.”

“I came here to learn how to ride for the series.” He explained to his wife. “They take such a good care of them here, help them heal if they’re sick and show them how to be gentle with people, I met a boy with Down Syndrome while riding and his father told me it helped him so much with his skills and self esteem.”

“Would you like to give them a snack?” Cia asked, barely holding her excitement.

Yael doubted and took a step back, she had never been around horses before.

“It’s alright baby, here, let me show you.” Cillian took the apple slices from Cia’s hand and showed her how to do it. “It’s just like a big dog.”

“Yeah like ten times bigger!” Yael replied with a nervous chuckle still unsure, would the horse bite her hand?

“I’ve been told they can feel our emotions, our fears…” He understood her reluctance, at the beginning he was scared of riding a horse too. Cillian started caressing the muzzle of the horse to show her nothing bad would happen.

“If you don’t want to touch him in the face, you can caress his neck, they are very gentle.” Val offered from the opposite side.

As Yael nodded, she moved automatically to walk around to the other side, to stand next to Val, but her husband caught her right on time.

“It’s the other way around love, you never should walk behind the horse, he could kick you.” He explained so tenderly guiding her by the shoulders.

Yael chuckled nervously, it made sense. After touching the horse with just her fingertips, she realized he was so soft, but firm, moments later, she had completely warmed up to Harrison, smiling up whenever he made a little sound or move his ears, an indication that he was enjoying the petting and attention.

Cillian stepped back, watching his wife taking in the horse, the sparkle in her eyes didn’t go unnoticed to him, he was relieved to see her happy, enjoying the moment, Yael even asked to give Harrison another snack and laughed loudly when his nose touched her hand, it had a funny texture. They showed her how to brush the horse’s hair, it was surprising they had so many tools and it was a way to show some love and respect for the animal, the most beautiful thing about that sanctuary was that, they didn’t do it for the money, they wanted people to understand and value the animals.

But when the horse looked into her eyes, something changed inside of her. It felt as if the horse knew her battle. It was an indescribable moment, she was lost for words.

“Shall we go for a little ride?” Cia proposed and then Cillian winked at his wife.

Yael looked at every single person around with panic written all over her face.

“I tell all the couples that this is the test of fire, if they can ride together, they can live together.” Val encouraged them.

“The look on her face is screaming she’s scared he will throw her.” Cia joked.

“I’ve never been on a horse, and he’s usually making jokes and pranks…” Yael tried to explain.

Cillian faked indignation. “I’d never do such a thing.”

Val and Cia laughed, every single man who said that, did exactly the opposite to his wife.

“Don’t worry, you can ride with us, Cillian can ride by himself.” That seemed to calm Yael, because she accepted the boots Cia offered.

But it wasn’t just like that, let’s go and ride, boom, you’re on the horse, no… they spent a good amount of time showing Yael how to get on the horse, she had a good pliability by her years practicing ballet, but taking the impulse and swing your leg to then land carefully on top of the horse was a completely different task. And she failed several times on the saddle they set up to practice, but she got the chance to learn to control her body as well.

“Alright, keep your back straight,” Cia instructed Yael once she was on the horse, she could tell Cillian’s wife was so tense by her posture, “relax, it can feel a bit weird at first, let the horse guide you.” Cia was sitting behind Yael, holding the reins while she was holding onto the hom tightly.

“Ready?” Asked Val, she would guide Harrison by foot, to help Yael feel more comfortable with the ride.

“Are you sure he’s not going to run?”

“Harrison is very good, he’s such a gentleman and you’ve got Cia to control the pace and moves, don’t worry I’ll guide him slowly too.”

“Baby, you’ll feel a little pull at first.” Cillian warned Yael from his own horse, he was past that initial scary moment now, but he knew it was all new to her.

“Oh my freaking God!” She expressed in a panicked tone as the horse started to move. “Why didn’t you invite Evan to do this?” Yael closed her eyes tightly.

Everyone laughed, both Cia and Val were used to reactions like this when it was someone’s first time riding, it depended on the trust and bond the person could build with the horse.

“Try to not press your legs so much.” Val pointed out.

And finally after a few seconds, Yael opened her eyes, it felt a bit strange, the position she was sitting on, the movement, the way everything looked with the back of the head of the horse so close… but when she looked to her right and found Cillian smiling at her riding close, there were no words. She knew she would do it all over again.

“Eyes on the road please, you’re making me nervous.” She admitted loud enough for him to listen.

But this time, Yael laughed with them, she had started to feel comfortable enough to caress the horse’s hair and neck -trying not to lean too far-, but she was past the shock now, Cia even showed her how to take the reins, giving Yael instructions on how to make the horse take a left and then a right, showing that she was in total control.

“Oh wow, the stable looks so tiny from here.” Yael stated, looking how far they had moved.

“Do you wanna go back now?” Cillian asked, stopping his horse right in front of the other.

She nodded and they started to ride back, Val had to go back earlier to attend other customers. The view was absolutely breathtaking… as they got down from the horses, Cia suggested them go to the picnic table a few meters away from them. She gave the couple a look as they walked away, hoping the details Cillian requested would work, perhaps she should propose the romantic idea to the owners.

Reaching the picnic table under the tree, Yael gasped surprised as she saw everything; the table set for two, lemonade, tea, a pie, a basket with fresh fruits… she was touched by his gesture, her heart could explode from all the love she felt for him.

“This is beautiful, thank you.” She brushed her lips against his.

Cillian sighed relieved that she liked his plans.

“Had to compensate for the scary moment of riding a horse.” He chuckled.

She offered him a bite of one of the sandwiches and Cillian took it, looking right into her eyes, a soft smile decorating his lips. Taking a sip of his lemonade, Yael brushed a small leave from his hair, a lot of things were on her mind, but right there, looking at Cillian with the sun kissing his skin, the wind moving his hair, he was all she could focus on.

They enjoyed the food, it had been a long day and they would be staying close for the rest of the weekend, more riding lessons waiting for them. He needed to get into the mindset of his character and riding a horse was a fundamental part of Tommy Shelby.

“I’ve been thinking on what Val said earlier… about riding together.”

That caught Cillian’s attention, he fixed his eyes on her.

Taking a deep breath, Yael took his hand, looking for comfort, trying to ease her nerves by his touch. “I’d like to go for a ride… with you.”

Cillian was taken by surprise, the last bite of his sandwich stuffed into his mouth, but he was on his feet in seconds, taking a couple of cookies in his hand he offered his free one to his wife.

“Let’s go before you change your mind.” He celebrated pulling her excitedly, she laughed because of his eagerness.

Moments later, they were riding a beautiful dark chocolate horse named Brownie, but Cillian took her on another route, enjoying the calmness, riding together, he sitting behind Yael, his arms around her waist taking the reins, her body pressed gently against his chest, now knowing what to expect from the movement of the horse, trusting Cillian totally to take her wherever he wanted to.

She didn’t know how long they have been riding, but it surely helped her to clear her mind and heart, without realizing soon they reached the beach and the atmosphere changed completely as the sun was starting to go down,reflecting beautifully against the sea gifting them a breathtaking sunset.

One of his hands sneaked around, to wrap around her stomach, his thumb running small circles over her sweater, Yael bit her lower lip lightly thinking of this beautiful moment with her husband, of how much she had learned of herself in the last hours about horses, about riding, about trust.

“I want to try, Cill either way… IVF or adoption, whatever it is, as long as I have you by my side.” She didn’t have anymore doubts left, everything he did for her that day had been cathartic.

Slowly, she turned her head around to look at him, finding so much love in his eyes, she saw him nodding, now that she said it out loud it felt easier, lighter.

“Thank you for today, thank you for this beautiful date.”

Cillian brought up the hand that was holding her to cup her cheek, leaning his head forward, he captured her lips in a tender kiss. The sun lighting her features, making her glow.

He would take her on a hundred more dates.

****

Next part

A/N: Thank you for reading ☺️✨💐 I loved writing this part so much, I wanted them to have a moment of peace, romance, you already know it, your thoughts help me keep going and it’s the best payment I could get ✨

I read somewhere Cillian took a friend to do snowboarding while preparing for his role in Inception, I took inspiration from there too

Tag list: @lyarr24 @runnning-outof-time @cillmequick @gypsy-girl-08 @datewithgianni @cloudofdisney @lespendy @onlydeadcells @fastfan @winchestergirl22 @stevie75 @prettylittlehoneyeyesxoxo @esposadomd @strayrockette @forbidden-forest-witch @elenavampire21 @forgottenpeakywriter @peakyscillian @moral-terpitude @babaohhhriley @queenshelby @heidimoreton @ange-thoughts @shelbydelrey @shaddixlife @sloanexx @cilliansangel @rangerelik @already-broken144 @alessioayla @paprikabadger @dolllol2405 @conversationpits @itsilvermorny @lafell @imichelle-l-rigby @yrli8 @cutecurly-hair @mrkdvidal1989 @hyperfixationsonshuffle

[the-paper-monkey]

who's cecilia 👀

For the ask game

So, Cecilia is Tom Riddle Sr's lady friend (perhaps fiancée) as seen in HBP. This fic is written from her perspective, where, while doing charity work, she happens upon a young boy in an orphanage who shares her ex-fiancé's name and appearance. This leads her and Tom Sr to become reacquainted, resulting in canon divergence. I have written 10k or so of it, but I'm not sure how much I'll keep as I think a lot of this pre-Merope writing can be boiled down to a couple of scenes. I'm also still working out characterisation for Tom Sr and Cecilia as they're almost OCs with the amount we know about them.

A scene:

“He’s the spitting image of you,” Cecilia marvelled, looking between the solemn little face in the photograph and Tommy reading a book in the very same chair, his feet just as far from the floor.

“Yes,” Tom said. He looked conflicted—a strange mixture of pride and anxiety. “But who’s to say that we’ll look the same when he grows older.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he remained identical. The resemblance is uncanny,” Cecilia said, assuming his concern was Tommy taking after his unsightly mother. She nudged his shoulder with her knee and smiled. “The same handsome face as his father.” It came out more flirtatious than she had intended. Without thinking she had spoken to him as she would have when they were at Cambridge together. But they no longer had that intimate relationship.

Before the embarrassment could take hold, Tom was speaking again. He didn’t look appeased by her words; if anything, his expression had grown more troubled. “Perhaps it would suit him better to be plainer.”

Cecilia was surprised that he would say that of a son. She could imagine herself thinking it, if she had a daughter with Tommy’s cherubic, doll-like features. Knowing well the unwanted attention that would come frighteningly early in childhood. Never had she thought that a boy might suffer the same disadvantage, nor had she ever the impression that Tom was displeased with his own features. But Tom would know better than her, she was sure. Besides, she knew nothing of the past half-decade of his life. They were all but strangers to each other.

Tommy shut the book with a loud snap.

“What did you think?” Tom asked, jovial again, poor mood forgotten.

Tommy glared at him and scuttled off to hunt down more books between the narrow aisles of the library. Strange creature, Cecilia thought. She wondered if all children were as odd as Tommy. She’d scarcely spent any time with them since she was one.

He returned a short while later with a stack of nine books including, Cecilia noted, the novel that he’d just finished reading. Much to her surprise, he plopped himself down on the floor beside his father and set them all out.

SHERLOCK HOLMES was embossed in gold on the leather of each book.

“You’ve read all of these,” Tom said, glancing curiously down at the titles.

“I hate them,” Tommy said without preamble. “They’re all cheats.”

“Cheats?” Tom repeated, sounding amused. “How so?”

“You can’t solve the mysteries before Holmes in almost all of them. I’ve checked. They keep too much a secret. That’s cheating.”

It was the most Cecilia had ever heard him talk. That he was entirely ignoring her existence did not escape her notice. Perhaps he spoke more to his father when she wasn’t there? It was only now that she observed his accent—the coarse twist of his vowels, the careful emphasis that he placed on the ‘h’ in Holmes so as to not drop it like other Cockneys. It surprised her. Her impression of Tommy had never been of an image-conscious child but, in this regard, it seemed he was.

“I suppose that’s true,” Tom said. Cecilia knew that he had little interest in fiction. She doubted he’d ever engaged critically with a novel in his life—compulsory English classes exempted. His preferred form of entertainment was the latest edition of Reviews of Modern Physics or, on occasion, visiting the pictures to watch Charlie Chaplin fall down thirty times.

[red-riding-wood]

As The World Caves In

Moodboard by forgottonpeakywriter

Wrote this on a bit of a whim because I was inspired by this song. A modern AU in which the reader and Tommy are in the British infantry in a fictional war. It's nothing but angst, folks. Maybe a bit of fluff?

Pairing: Tommy Shelby x F Reader

Fandom: Peaky Blinders

WARNINGS: war violence/themes, minor blood, romantic relationship, language

WC: 1454

“That’s it?” John’s tone was far from steady now as he breached the silence that hung, poignant, in the air between the members of your squad after the command had come over the radio.

A piercing blue gaze met yours, and Tommy nodded, no less in a state of shock than any of you. “Twenty minutes,” he repeated. You could feel the pain in that gaze as he tore it from yours to look to each of his soldiers. “Twenty fucking minutes. Make them count.”

You loosed your headset, and switched it off, not wanting to hear the frantic radio traffic.

Twenty minutes.

You’d spent more time thinking up silly fantasies about being back home, about living back in domesticity, about sharing a peaceful life with Tommy. A life that now, you would never have.

Before you could meet his gaze again, you peeled yourself from the group and disappeared between a couple of the caved-in buildings, chest heaving with a quickening breath and your heart slamming against a now seemingly-delicate ribcage. You couldn’t handle the quiver in John’s tone, the unusual silence of Arthur, the blue eyes that used to warm the emptiness in your chest but now wove your stomach into knots and chilled your flesh colder than the brisk December air.

You barely heard your name called past the hot roar of blood in your ears, and you ducked into an opening in the crumbled brick of one of the building’s walls, M4 clutched to your chest beneath trembling fingers.

The building did little to counter the cold; its windows were shattered from gunfire and its walls were cut like Swiss cheese from the bombs that had landed not even a week ago.

Twenty fucking minutes, you thought.

You had spent more time taking lives. Spent more time destroying these very buildings to combat enemy forces.

At last, you found the closest thing to a sanctuary; the walls had held out in this building, and your eyes caught on the bright red of a vintage record player, nestled in its own little haven between a kitchen island and a desk with nothing but a few scattered pencils and a hairbrush.

Make them count, he’d said.

You stopped as an idea struck you, and you let your rifle fall to the floor, the weight leaving the strap around your shoulder as if it had been a chain tethering you to this wretched place.

And you decided that, if only for those twenty minutes, that you would have the life you dreamt of.

---

Tommy couldn’t remember what his last words had been to Arthur and John, and he couldn’t help but keep glancing at his watch as he wound his way through the abandoned buildings in search of you. You hadn’t been answering your radio, but he refused to shed it until the faint sound of an old song began to play through the drywall, and he paused, headset falling from his ears and his panted breaths stilling.

He called your name, shouted it from lungs aching from the biting air of winter and a throat bitter with the faint tinge of bile. A few furnishings were loudly shoved to the side as he muscled his way through a door that had been blocked off, and clambered over them through a narrow hall.

He held his watch up. Four minutes.

The music was coming from another doorway, shut to the dark hall; daylight spilled from beneath the frame, and the tinny notes of a record player began to form a cohesive song now, a song that he recognised as the first one he had ever danced to with you. When he inhaled, threads of juniper and smoke met his lungs.

As he stepped past the threshold into the barren kitchen, his aquamarine gaze snapped to you and the bright yellow dress that hung a little too loose around your frame to be yours, at the hair you’d let fall over your shoulders as if you were not a soldier but a girl, at the eyes that stared back at him as if you’d been waiting for him for a century.

“What is this?” he demanded, and you swallowed, fighting back a tear as you stepped forward.

Your eyes flicked to the clock on the wall as it ticked, and you reached a hand out to the sergeant. “Come here,” you said, your voice quiet and broken. You couldn’t say much more past the knot in your throat.

Something about his countenance softened around sharp features, and he dropped his headset to the floor alongside your rifle.

A calloused but warm hand met yours, sending a pleasant shiver through your body. The cold air bit at your bare limbs, but you pulled him close, the scent of him now inhaled past the juniper of the burning candles you’d set along the dining table.

A hot breath fanned across your lashes as his forehead tipped to yours, and you reached a hand to the bone of a hollowed cheek, to the dark, chestnut locks of hair that had grown out shaggy from years of service. And his eyes bore into yours as the world became blurry with your tears.

“There were still some things around,” you breathed, your breaths becoming one and your head growing light. “I found this dress in one of the closets. It was the only one there was.”

A smile pulled at his lips, and he chuffed out a laugh. “I hate yellow,” he said.

“I know.” You smiled sadly, trying not to glance at the clock in your peripheral, trying to keep your gaze locked in his as he swept the tears from your eyes. You studied the way his hair fell across his forehead when his gaze left yours to sweep across the dress once more. 

“You look beautiful,” he said, and chapped lips brushed yours, your heart still slamming against your ribcage.

The clock ticked again, and your breath came shattered against the face you cupped in your hand. His fingers came up along your back, thumb moving back in forth in a lulling motion.

“In the bleak midwinter…” he breathed.

You blinked another onslaught of tears from your eyes, your lashes sticking together in the frigid air.

It was difficult to remind yourself, in this moment of pain that shot through your chest too viciously to not be real, that you had died already, that all of this was an afterlife, that none of this really belonged to you.

But you mirrored his words, your voice breaking.

The two of you barely stole a kiss before the air was ripped from your lungs, and you staggered falling against the table; his hand cupped your hip, dirtied fingernails digging into the fabric of your dress in an attempt to stabilize you.

Pressure erupted in your skull, and you couldn’t hear the music past the roar of bricks falling around you and the ringing of the shockwave. Caught in a swirl of smoke and debris, bits of drywall landed across Tommy’s hair, and shards of glass bit into your side as the two of you clung to one another on shaking legs and gasped for air. Blood ran in a line from his ear down the edge of his jaw, your fingertips growing sticky. Fear like nothing you’d ever seen glimmered in the blues of his eyes, eating at a heart that ached with yearning and tragedy.

The clock was gone now, the candles snuffed out in the cloud of ash that pervaded your burning lungs. Firelight gleamed against the side of Tommy’s face as a gout of flame engulfed your vision, and you uttered his name as if it were the only thing that could save you, but no sound came past the chaos around you.

A thumb ran up and down along your neck soothingly, and he said something back to you, but you furrowed your brow, looking to his lips to try and read what he said.

Keep your eyes on me.

The last of your breath was expelled from your lungs in a tremulous cough, and your fingers tugged at the lapel of his jacket in an attempt to bring him closer despite the searing heat that whelmed you.

The pencils and the record player struck you, but you kept your eyes glued to the twin blues that stared desperately back at you as if you were the only thing that could’ve saved him.

And before the flames could swallow you and the world could fully cave in around the darkening edges of your vision, his screaming soul was the last thing you saw in those piercing blues, reaching for yours in the inevitable darkness.  

---

MASTERLIST • REQUEST

Please let me know if you would like to be added/removed to any of my taglists and notified of new works!

Tag list: @eclecticwildflowers @emotionalcadaver @evita-shelby @minaethrym

[jadedvibes]

In honor of spooky season, sweater weather, and all things autumn, I'm hosting my first writing challenge! I started writing nearly a year ago because I was inspired by the beauty of the season, and I thought why not organize something where others could join in and celebrate the many aspects that make this time the best.

For the challenge, I'd like you to incorporate some fall vibes and activities into a fic or moodboard. It can be anywhere from taking a stroll down a leafy street with your fictional fave, baking together, cozying up by the fire, wearing their flannel, visiting a pumpkin patch, or watching a scary movie; anything that reminds you of this enchanting time of year plus a little catch I’ll describe below 🍂🎃🧡

This writing challenge will open today and has no deadline.

Rules, guidelines, and optional prompts are under the cut! 

Rules: 

Must be 18+ or older. 

You don’t have to follow me to participate.

There is no deadline, follow your muse. 

No incest/pedophilia/necrophilia/bestiality/ddlg/water sports/💩

Please tag any and all potential triggers with proper warnings e.g. (Fluff, smut, dark etc.) 

Original works or must be able to be read as a standalone if it’s part of a series.

If you want to withdraw at any point, it’s no problem just lmk!

Guidelines:

There is no minimum or maximum word count.

If your fic is over 200 words please use the “read more” function.

You can write for any Marvel character, in universe or in any AU. I’ll also read for whatever SS and CE character you’re into except Jeff Gillooly and Tommy Lee. You may also write for Steve Harrington, Eddie Munson or a Top Gun: Maverick character. No RPF, please. Also no OFCs, reader inserts only.

Send me an ask letting me know that you want to participate, then tag me when you post and tag your fic or moodboard with #fallinginlovewritingchallenge 

And the catch that makes this a challenge is – the words “falling in love” MUST come up in your entry at least once if you’re writing. You can change it to past or present tense e.g. (“fell in love” or “fall in love”); whatever variation you need to fit the vibe you’re creating.♡

I will read and reblog your work before adding them to a masterlist!

And feel free to send me an ask or dm if you have any questions or if I can help you better understand the season. I'm so excited to see what you all come up with!

Please note that you don’t have to use the prompts and au’s, they’re just there for inspiration and more than one person can use the same one ✨

Prompts:

“You’re comfy.”

“I’ll be here to protect you.”

"Here we are, home sweet home."

“Stop flirting.”

“Are you sure?”

“Do you like what you see?”

"Let’s go somewhere, just you and me.

“Your hands are warm.”

“I can’t sleep, can I stay here?”

“I’ve been waiting all my life for you.”

“I know you still love me.”

“Fancy seeing you here. 

“I know what you need. Hold on.”

“I’m scared.”

“Are you… jealous?”

"Baby, I could do this all day."

“I can’t think straight with you.”

“Give me a chance.”

“Am I too late?”

“You’re dangerous.”

AU’s:

Vampire

Werewolf

Roommates

Coffee Shop

Florist

Baker

Bookstore

Soulmate

Modern

Neighbors

Thank you @bucky-barnes-diaries, @maladaptivexxdaydreaming, and @treatbuckywkisses for helping me, encouraging me, and listening to me ramble about my ideas!!

Tagging some pals that might be interested, but absolutely no pressure! ♡

@writing-for-marvel @summerofsnowflakes @tuiccim @sweetdreamsbuck @poppunksnowwhite @jobean12-blog @sunshinebuckybarnes @beach-daydreaming @weekendgothgirl @navybrat817 @mrsmischief209 @sgt-seabass @yarnforbrains @traitorjoelite @sweetascanbee @musingsinmoonlight @sanguineterrain @late-to-the-party-81 @sexyprise @intrepidacious

[trulybetty]

Reservation | (Dieter Bravo x OFC)

Pairing: Dieter Bravo x OFC Warnings: alcohol, minor drug reference, past relationships, drunk behaviour, terrible dates & some added angst Summary: Bryony Morgan finds herself unexpectedly encountering Dieter Bravo during a date with someone new. Emotions resurface, revealing the unresolved tension and complicated connection between the two. AO3: Linked

A/N: Gold Rush is giving me a headache at the moment, Tommy and Charlotte are arguing still while Joel is moping on his way back to Jackson. So these two are a welcome distraction while my brain works through the next couple of chapters.

Reservation.

"The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing." - Blaise Pascal

The restaurant was highly sought after, opened for only six months, and the buzz around it was already momentous. Bryony had her name on the waiting list, scheduled to dine there four months away. So when her date, Lucas from legal, asked her out leading with "reservations for two at Sabor Asiático" and not only reservations, but at a prime time of Friday night at 8pm – unlike the 3pm on a Wednesday afternoon reservation Bryony had managed to book, she would be lying if she said that hadn't been a factor in accepting the date.

There was nothing wrong with the man, far from it, he was charming, fun to talk to, shared an interest of modern fiction and knew the territory of her work in production wasn't a 9-5 situation, much like his career in entertainment law. It was more the fact she was still in self preservation from her break up from just over six months ago.

Cricket, not her real name – Bryony had been sworn to keeping that to herself – one of her closest friends since arriving in LA from London, and conveniently a sought-after Hollywood stylist, had convinced Bryony to go on this date. She'd even provided her with the outfit she was wearing as part of their argument. A green sequined pencil skirt that caught the light in the atmospheric restaurant's lights, and a dark wash denim shirt rolled up at the sleeves.

Playing with the silver watch at her left wrist Bryony smiled, listening to what Lucas had just said while nodding in agreement. The evening was going well, her attention equally divided between the conversation and the tantalizing array of dishes the waitstaff kept delivering to their table. She was halfway through a story about a production mishap when she caught sight of a familiar face over Lucas's shoulder.

Dieter Bravo.

She knew him at once, despite the hat pulled low over his face and wearing sunglasses indoors at night. The man was a character, and his presence was hard to ignore. He was sitting at the bar, slouched over a drink, a clear picture of disarray. He was alone, but his aura radiated such an intensity that no was daring to approach him.

Feeling her heart rate pick up, Bryony turned back to Lucas, hoping the surprise hadn't registered on her face. "You were saying about your latest case, the one with the indie production?" she asked, steering the conversation back on track. Lucas gladly picked up where he left off, oblivious to the former love interest who had spurred Bryony's reluctance in even attending their current date.

Bryony stole occasional glances at the bar, watching as Dieter went through one drink after another. He never looked in her direction, but she couldn't shake off the feeling that he was aware of her presence.

Lucas was a gentleman throughout the evening, asking her about her interests, laughing at her jokes, and never once interrupting her. He was everything she should want in a partner, but the ghost from her past sitting at the bar had effectively hijacked her attention.

As the evening was winding down, Lucas excused himself to use the restroom, this was the moment Bryony had been dreading. Alone at her table, she was all too aware of Dieter's presence at the bar. She felt a rush of emotions as she watched him. Anger, sadness, regret - all these feelings she thought she had moved past, suddenly resurfaced.

Busy looking down at her phone, scrolling through her emails, she felt as opposed to actually seeing what she thought was Lucas returning from the bathroom.

“So... who's the suit?”

"Bravo," she breathed out, looking up at the disheveled man sat in Lucas' seat.

Dieter looked down at her with a smirk that did not quite reach his eyes, he'd lost the hat. His shirt was untucked, hair tousled, and the smell of alcohol lingered on him. "Daff," he drawled out in that deep, rumbling voice, a nickname only he used for her. "What a pleasant surprise." He drained the glass he had brought with him from the bar, “So, the suit?”

Bryony tried to keep her tone casual, "A date, Dieter. Unlike you, some of us still have a social life."

He scoffed, a bitter smile playing on his lips. "Right, a date," he echoed, before he picked up Lucas' drink, inspecting it briefly before knocking it back, “White wine spritzer, not what I expected of the suit.”

"Let me guess," Bryony quipped, refusing to let Dieter get the best of her, "You were expecting a straight whisky or a dry martini?"

Dieter let out a low chuckle at her words, the sound of it sent a familiar shiver down her spine. "Maybe. Though I suppose the spritzer is fitting. Light, fizzy, and lacking any real depth."

The words stung, and she felt herself bristle. "That's a pretty arrogant thing to say about someone you've never met."

He shrugged nonchalantly, "I call it like I see it."

A tense silence fell between them. Bryony found herself studying Dieter, taking in his disheveled state. He looked worse than she had ever seen him, his usually sparkling eyes now dull and bloodshot.

"Are you okay, Dieter?" she found herself asking, despite herself.

He avoided her gaze, looking down at the empty glass in his hands. "Do I look okay?"

She sighed, resisting the urge to reach out to him. "You look like shit."

A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Well, you always were one for honesty."

She didn't respond, instead choosing to focus on the tablecloth. The silence stretched between them, the air charged.

Finally, she broke the silence, her voice barely above a whisper, "Why are you here, Dieter?"

He looked up at her, his gaze unwavering. "Maybe I missed you." His words were slurred, his eyes glassy. But Bryony could tell he was being honest. Dieter had never been good at lying, especially to her.

She snorted, shaking her head. "That's not fair, Dieter. You can't just... You can't just show up like this. Not now."

He shrugged again, seemingly unaffected by her words. "Life's not fair, Daff."

He was right. Life wasn't fair. And it wasn't fair that even after all this time, all the pain, Dieter still had the power to affect her.

“Is everything okay Bryony?”

She looked up at Lucas who had returned and was engaged in a one man stare down led by Dieter. She pinched the bridge of her nose regretting now even agreeing to coming on this date.

“Everything is fine Lucas, Dieter was just leaving.”

Before Bryony could say any more, Dieter had already turned to her date, "I'm Dieter, Dieter Bravo. I'm sure you've heard of me." He was being loud now, bordering on obnoxious. She didn't miss the way his words slurred together, and how his usually piercing gaze was glazed over. A sense of dread filled her; he wasn't just drunk.

Bryony saw Lucas stiffen, his pleasant smile faltering a bit at the sheer audacity of Dieter's behaviour. He was being a complete ass, and she knew he was doing it intentionally. It was a side of Dieter she sadly had seen often.

"Dieter, maybe you should go home," she suggested, trying to keep her tone even. He merely chuckled, leaning back in his chair.

"And leave you with this bore? Never."

His words were sharp, cruel, and aimed to provoke.

“Maybe you should listen to Bryony.” Lucas said as he gripped the back of what was once his chair.

"Right," Dieter drawled, his voice dripping with mockery. "Take advice from Mr. 'White Wine Spritzer' here." He was standing now, looking down at the two of them, clearly spoiling for a scrap of some sorts.

"Dieter, this isn't the time or place," Bryony attempted again, reaching out to lightly touch his arm, trying to bring him back to reality.

"Oh, when would be a good time, Bryony?" he spat out, shrugging her hand off his arm. "When you're done playing house with the suit?"

"That's enough," Lucas spoke up, his tone firm. Bryony could tell he was struggling to maintain his composure.

"And who's going to make me, you?" Dieter taunted, taking a threatening step towards Lucas. It was clear to Bryony that the situation was quickly spiralling out of control. She needed to defuse it, now.

"Dieter," she began, her voice carrying a hard edge. "You're making a scene. You need to leave."

For a moment, she thought he would refuse. But then, he let out a bitter laugh, throwing his arms up in surrender. "Fine," he spat out, turning around to head for the exit.

It was a mess. A messy, complicated situation that they found themselves in. Bryony sat there, watching Dieter's clumsy retreating form until he stumbled out of the restaurant, a heavy feeling settling in her chest. The chatter and clinking of cutlery around her felt far away, a murmur compared to the pounding of her heart.

As the door swung shut behind him, she turned back to face Lucas, who let out a low whistle, shaking his head in disbelief. "Well, that's one way to make a dinner interesting."

"I'm sorry, Lucas," Bryony said, genuinely apologetic.

“You left out the part where you knew Dieter Bravo.” Lucas said as he sat.

“Did I?” Bryony responded, evading the accusation, “Must have slipped my mind.” She conceded, skirting around Lucas' inquisitive statement. She maintained her poised smile, deflecting his searching gaze with a neutral expression.

"Seems like a rather significant detail to 'slip your mind', don't you think?" Lucas responded, his voice carrying a lighthearted note that belied the sharp curiosity lingering in his eyes.

"Dieter and I…" Bryony began, only to pause, contemplating just how much of their shared past she was ready to disclose. "Our paths crossed professionally. For a while." It was a calculated response, straddling the boundary between honesty and ambiguity.

Lucas shrugged, leaning back in his chair. "Hey, don't worry about it," he reassured her. "I mean, it's not everyday you have a Hollywood bad boy crash your date." He caught the waiters attention for another drink, “It's going to be a great story to tell Monday in the office. Post-Oscar syndrome, I suppose.”

Bryony's smile faltered momentarily, the glass of wine she was about to sip from paused at her lips. Something about Lucas' lighthearted enjoyment of Dieter's evident downfall rubbed her the wrong way. Sure, she and Dieter were no longer a thing, but it wasn't like her to revel in another person's struggles, especially someone she'd once cared for.

Lucas’s laughter faltered as he caught sight of the look on Bryony's face. Her normally sparkling eyes were shadowed, and the smile on her lips didn't quite reach them.

"Something wrong?" he asked, his tone falling flat in the face of her quiet displeasure.

Bryony carefully placed her wine glass on the table, meeting his gaze head-on. “I’m not fond of the idea of our date, or Dieter, being a topic of office gossip, Lucas.”

He blinked, clearly taken aback by her words. "Bryony, I didn't mean—"

"I know what you meant," she cut him off, her tone firm but not unkind. "I just...I value my privacy. And despite everything, I respect Dieter's too."

Lucas looked taken aback, his smile faltering. “Bryony, it's just office chatter. It's not like it’s a big secret. The guy’s been all over the tabloids. He's a train wreck.”

Bryony drained her wine glass, reaching for her purse at her feet. Pulling out her wallet she threw down four twenties, more than enough to cover what she'd ordered. Feeling a rush of adrenaline, Bryony stood, offering Lucas a short smile.

“I think I'm going to call it a night, I have an early phone meeting tomorrow morning."

Lucas stood as well, his face a picture of confusion. "Bryony, I didn't mean to-"

She shook her head, cutting him off. "It's okay, Lucas.” she shrugged on the aged leather moto jacket that had hung on the back of her chair. “I'll call you.” she offered, knowing she likely wouldn't and then noticing the eyes of the patrons on them she turned on her heel and kept her sight looking forward until she was out of the restaurant.

The evening air was cool on the flush of irritation that had risen on her cheeks, pulling out her phone she fought with the lock screen to grant her access to her Uber app to order a ride home.

"Decided your date was too boring, huh?"

Bryony turned around, there he was again, as always. Leaning against the brick wall, attempting to light a cigarette. His hands were shaky, and the flame from the lighter flickered in the slight breeze, never touching the end of the cigarette. Watching him struggle was almost heartbreaking. The Dieter she knew was suave and put-together, a stark contrast to the man in front of her.

“Dieter,” she called softly as she approached him. His head snapped up, the earlier smirk nowhere to be seen, replaced by a hollow look that didn’t suit him.

“Daff,” he replied, the nickname sounding more like a plea than a greeting. He continued to fumble with the lighter and the unlit cigarette, frustration creeping into his features.

Bryony sighed, stepping closer and gently taking the lighter and cigarette from his hands. His fingers brushed against hers, the contact sparking memories of happier times.

"Here, let me help." Her voice was soft, soothing, like it always used to be with him. With practiced ease, she lit the cigarette, she placed it between his lips, the orange glow illuminating his face in the dim light. He looked at her, an emotion that looked suspiciously like gratitude flashing across his face before he quickly masked it with indifference.

For a moment, they stood in silence. Dieter took a drag from the cigarette, exhaling slowly. It was a quiet, intimate moment. The clamour from the restaurant seemed a world away.

"Thanks," he mumbled, taking a deep drag and blowing out a stream of smoke. Bryony nodded, folding her arms as she studied him.

"So who's the suit you're with? Another lucky man who gets to play the knight in shining armour?" Dieter asked, his tone dripping with disdain, it was as if he couldn't stop himself.

Bryony’s eyes narrowed. "You don't get to do that, Dieter. You don't get to show up, ruin my date, act like an absolute jerk, and then question my choices."

He scoffed, leaning back against the brick wall of the restaurant, "Always so defensive, Daff," he shot back, the use of his old nickname for her cutting through the tension. "But then again, what else can I expect? You've always been quick to guard your heart."

He made it sound like an accusation, but Bryony recognized the hurt in his voice. She stepped back, her arms hugging herself tighter as she averted her gaze from his. His words had hit too close to home.

"Perhaps the last person I trusted with it took that trust for granted," she bit back, her voice barely more than a whisper. The silence that followed was deafening.

Dieter took another draw from his cigarette, the smoke swirling around him before it dissolved into the night. He stepped forward, closing the distance between them. "I never asked you to fight my battles, Daff," he said, attempting to shift the blame away from himself.

His words hung in the air between them, a bitter reminder of their past. Bryony met his gaze, her eyes welling up with tears she refused to let fall.

"No, Dieter," she said quietly, shaking her head, "I was the one who mistakenly believed I could."

Dieter took a last drag of his cigarette before flicking it into the darkness, his figure barely outlined by the sparse streetlights. He sauntered over to Bryony, trying to emulate the swagger he was known for, but she could see the strain in his movements. "I didn't ask to be saved, Daff," he said, his voice raw.

His words resonated in the cool night air, a painful reminder of their past. Bryony's gaze met his, the faint city lights reflecting in her teary eyes. Yet, she refused to let the tears fall.

"I never signed up to be your saviour, Dieter," she responded quietly, her voice steady despite the emotional upheaval. she retorted quietly, her voice steady despite the whirl of emotions she felt. "I thought I could help you navigate through your chaos. But, instead, all it did was drag me down with you."

He winced at her words, a brief spark of regret flitting across his features. It seemed, for a moment, that her words had made an impact on him.

"Damn it, Daff," he muttered, dragging a hand through his tousled hair, making it stand on end in a way that was too reminiscent of the Dieter she once knew. The one that would rumple his hair in thought or frustration as they worked through a problem. His eyes, intense and cloudy with emotion, were locked on her. "I just...I don't know why you're wasting your time with that suit," he complained, his voice strained.

The remark came out more as a bitter sputter than a reasoned statement, as if picking a fight with Bryony, his ex, was a safer territory than confronting the issues that led to their breakup. As if needling her about her choice of date was less painful than admitting to the fact that he, in his relentless pursuit of success and the next high, had lost her. It was typical Dieter, always deflecting, always turning the focus away from himself and his own failures.

It stung, this evidence that he was still the same Dieter she'd walked away from. And yet, it also made her heart ache in a way she hadn't expected. He was still floundering, still trying to navigate the consequences of flying too close to the sun. He was still the man she had loved, albeit a broken version of him.

Bryony felt a flare of irritation. "What, you think I can't go on a date?"

"I didn't say that," he replied, shaking his head.

She studied him for a moment, her gaze flickering between his eyes and the lit cigarette. "Wait a minute," she said, her voice barely above a whisper, "Are you... are you jealous?"

"Jealous? Of him?" Dieter scoffed, gesturing vaguely in the direction of the restaurant. His laughter, devoid of its usual warmth, echoed hollowly in the quiet night air. "You've got to be kidding me, Daff."

Bryony stood her ground, her arms crossed over her chest. "Well, it seems like it to me."

He shook his head, his grin fading as he took a long drag of his cigarette. "Oh, Daff. Always so quick to make assumptions."

"And am I wrong?"

Dieter fell silent, his eyes darting away from hers. The quiet stretch between them was a silent admission. Bryony sighed, her heart heavy.

"You're drunk, Dieter," she finally broke the silence, her voice steady despite the turmoil inside her. "And I bet you're high too, aren't you?"

He blinked at her, taken aback. "What does it matter to you?" he retorted, bitterness seeping into his words. "You're the one who left, remember?"

"I left because you gave me no choice," she fired back, her voice thick with emotion. "You were spiralling, Dieter. You were self-destructing, and I couldn't watch you do it any longer."

Silence fell between them again, as thick and tangible as the tension that crackled in the air. Dieter's gaze was fixed on her, a mix of surprise and hurt flashing in his eyes.

"I didn’t mean to ruin your date,” he finally admitted, his voice barely above a whisper.

Bryony offered him a small, melancholic smile. "Dieter, trust me, you didn’t ruin much. The date wasn’t going spectacularly even before you showed up," she admitted, a hint of her usual light-hearted humour creeping into her voice.

There was a pause. She didn't know why she was being so candid with him, why she was sharing the awkwardness of her date with the man she had walked away from six months ago. Maybe it was because some part of her still felt comfortable around him, some part of her still saw him as the man she used to confide in, to share her day, her worries, her laughter.

Dieter's eyebrows arched in surprise, but there was an understated shift in his gaze, a glimmer that hadn't been there before. He remained silent, simply studying her. For a fleeting moment, Bryony caught a glimpse of the old Dieter. The man she had fallen for when his fame was a manageable storm rather than a destructive tornado. The man before the Oscar win that had catapulted him into a level of celebrity neither of them had been prepared for.

Before Dieter could reply, a boisterous group of women spilled out from the restaurant. Decked in matching sashes and adorned with tiaras and feather boas, it was apparent that they were part of a bachelorette party.

Upon spotting Dieter, their squeals of delight reached a new decibel. "Oh my God! It's Dieter Bravo!" one of them shrieked, rushing over and pulling her friends with her.

Caught off guard, Dieter had little choice but to be swept up in their enthusiasm. Within seconds, he had been engulfed by the group, their tipsy chatter filling the air. They swarmed around him, the bride-to-be hanging onto his arm as her friends fluttered around them, pulling out their phones and snapping photos.

But he adjusted quickly, his demeanour shifting as he slipped into his famous public persona. His grin was wide and charming as he wrapped an arm around the bride-to-be. The somber Dieter Bryony had been speaking with just seconds ago was replaced with the notorious party boy persona. It was a side of Dieter she knew all too well, one she'd seen countless times splashed across magazine covers and online gossip sites.

"Now, isn't it a bit unfair?" He teased, looking down at the blushing bride. "I didn't even get a chance to make an honest woman out of you before you decided to walk down the aisle with another man." His words were met with a chorus of laughter, the women hanging onto his every word.

“Ohmigod,” one of the women exclaimed, the words slurring together. She nudged Bryony's shoulder a little too hard in her excitement, causing her to stumble slightly in her heels. “It's Dieter fucking Bravo!”

“It is indeed,” Bryony responded, regaining her balance and giving the woman a polite smile.

Before she knew it, the women were thrusting their phones at her, their eager faces expectant. “Can you take our picture hun?!” one of them implored, her speech slightly slurred from the copious amounts of alcohol they had obviously consumed.

Bryony found herself juggling a number of phones in her hands, managing to prevent any of them from clattering to the ground. With a resigned sigh, she began taking a multitude of photos. She watched from behind the lens as Dieter flirted shamelessly with the bride-to-be, whispering something in her ear that caused the woman to giggle and flush with delight. The sight twisted something in Bryony's chest, but she quashed the feeling down, focusing on capturing their moment of revelry.

Once she had taken an ample number of pictures, Bryony handed back the phones to their respective owners. Her efforts went unnoticed and unthanked, the women too preoccupied with their celebrity encounter to offer any gratitude. Bryony watched as they swarmed Dieter again, their laughter and cheers drowning out the quiet hum of the city night.

“Alright ladies, let's make this a night to remember!" Dieter's voice boomed over the noise, his charm shining as brightly as the city lights. The women erupted in cheers and laughter, the party growing louder and more raucous.

As the laughter of the women and Dieter's booming voice echoed behind her, Bryony silently slipped away. It was an ironic end to her evening, leaving Dieter yet again, but this time to his adoring fans. The vulnerable, real Dieter she had shared a few moments with was now overshadowed by the infamous party boy persona.

It wasn't her place to fix him. It wasn't her job to save him.

She just had to keep reminding herself of the mantra she'd been retelling herself for the last six months in hope that one day she might start believing it.

[commonguttersnipe]

Fanfic request:

Monty Python time travel AU where the Pythons accidentally time travel to the future from the 1960s/1970s BUT, instead hearing about the young Six Idiots fans talking about how the Six Idiots are "this generation's Monty Python", they INSTEAD hear about some young Monty Python fans (who are called Georgie and Shreyan respectively, and who are totally not based on us hehehe.......yeah) talking about the new (in universe of the fanfic ofc) biopic that's currently filming that day (in the present day), which is coincidentally also the day that the OG/Young Pythons end up on (in the present day). Btw uhh, the cast for fictional 2nd biopic is based on your fancast from a few months ago, which is this:

Also also, the fictional 2nd biopic is being directed by a somewhat annoyingly ambitious but with somewhat good intentions (if a little extreme in portraying said intentions) director who has Ollie Plimsolls-like vibes + who's a massive Python fanboy, or as he calls himself a "Pythonist" (who's funnily enough also played by Reece Shearsmith, idk it kinda fits imo) called uhh "Smithee J. Allense" but who was technically nearly nominated for a BAFTA for his avante garde surreal comedy drama short film about fish people. Nearly.

The Pythons (except John who's a bit salty about hearing the new biopic) are at first surprised about hearing that there's a new biopic about them but then quickly get interested in the concept (though the OG Young Pythons aren't aware of/don't know about the previous biopic "Holy Flying Circus" (2011), which becomes a sorta running gag in the fanfic for comedic effect as other people try telling them that but they get cut off from explaining further or one of the Pythons ignores them just as they were explaining HFC to them).

The catch is that, in order to not bring too much attention to themselves and causing massive hysteria or something, the fans Georgie and Shreyan help the Pythons get into disguise as "regular people"-looking Agents with "regular people"-sounding names/alias of the modern day Old Pythons in the present day, so that the film crew of the biopic knows that they're kinda important but not too much, and that (the Pythons in disguise that is) they're there to check on how filming is going and all that jazz.

So the Pythons in disguise are:

Graham - becomes "Tommy"

John - becomes "Julian"

Eric - becomes "Derek"

Jonesy - becomes "Russell"

Terry - becomes "Jerry"

Michael - becomes "Mickey"

So the gang (in disguise) go to where the biopic is currently filming rn, which is being filmed at the BBC unsurprisingly. In fact, the scene they're currently filming is a studio set reconstruction of when the Pythons met up at and started throwing ideas at each other for their future sketch show MPFC at the Indian restaurant (which was called the "Light of Kashmir Tandoori" restaurant) in 1969.

The Pythons (in disguise) are at first nervous in case they might get caught in the act, but they thankfully easily evade getting exposed by using the fake ID cards that Georgie and Shreyan made for them back at their house (just incase).

After Smithee excitedly greets them (not knowing that they're actually fr the real Pythons, albeit the Young versions), the Pythons as the Agents of the Old Pythons get to see/watch what the scene where the Pythons (played by the biopic actors, or as John-as-Julian sarcastically calls them "the Sexified Pythons", since well...they're played by sexy actors, although Eric-as-Derek does really appreciate that he's played by Dan Stevens) meet for the first-but-not-really-first-more-like-a-proper-second-introduction-of-the-whole-troupe-but-it's-called-the-first-for-the-sake-of-plot-of-the-biopic time, the Pythons politely step in/interrupt to add their thoughts on it so far.

Whilst some of the Pythons-in-disguise, like Eric, Terry & Michael, appreciate what the actors are bringing to the table (not literally ofc) in terms of the actors acting as the Pythons, the others, like Jonesy and Graham (though Graham does like some aspects of Taron's energy to the role) (and deffo not John, though John tries to deny it but the others doubt that) feel that the performance is sorta lacking in a way, and that they need to really get into the spirit of each respective Python. So to help, each of the Pythons go with each biopic actor and help them REALLY REALLY get into the spirit of themselves, (like for example, Graham helping Taron get Gray's character, Jonesy helping Tom, John begrudgingly helping Henry though overtime John does take a liking to Henry, etc) to which we do get to see these side plots unfold as they are. Also the other Pythons jokingly tease John that Henry Shields looks so much like him that he might as well be his long lost son lol 😆.

After that happens, they'll all ready to go and get the scene done proper. And everyone had a clap, even the Pythons. Then, as everyone's having a bit of a celebration, Michael goes to where the lunch/breakroom is, in which Young Michael bumps into Old Michael, who's just so happen to be there as he supposed to record his lines for the biopic as "The Narrator". Young Michael is a bit shocked when he sees Old Michael but tries to act normal as "Mickey" but doesn't mention that's he's Old Michael's agent so that he'll try not to blow his cover (btw young Mike is wearing a fake mustache w/glasses). He and Old Michael have a lovely chat together.

Then, suddenly, Young Michael accidentally rubs off his fake mustache due to there being biscuit crumbs on there. Old Michael is shocked from this, and so faints and falls to the ground. Young Michael is shocked and nervous. He calls the others and tells them hurriedly that old Michael has fainted. An ambulance is called. Young Michael feels really guilty about this. To be continued.....

Any thoughts?? I wanna know what your favourite part is!!!

Thanks!!!

This needs to be a film, holy flying circus!!

It’s like a mix of all our ideas!!

We need to write this!!

[fictionalcanadianshowdown]

Tommy Tukyuk is from Yvon of the Yukon, an animated children’s show. He is an Inuk teenager who discovered a Frenchman who had been cryogenically frozen in ice for 300 years. Because of this, he now has to help the man adjust to life in the modern Yukon

Min-Gi Park is from Infinity Train, a cartoon anthology series. He is a hard-working and down to earth musician from Powell Lake, BC