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solosikoasgf · 1 year

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most ardently , chapter one.

previous chapters: prologue pairing: roman reigns x oc (cheyenne monet) themes: toxic relationship, angst, power dynamic/imbalance, a little heavy flirtation word count: 1,933 author's note: thank you all for the love on the prologue!!! it's super appreciated and hopefully you stay with me as i navigate where the hell these two are going as it's always changing in my mind. honestly logistics in matches are where i'll get hung up a lot as it doesn't play a huge role in this versus how it's changed roman, so i am making shit up as i go that fall in line with current bloodline happenings. but like i said. i am making that shit up. taglist: none currently, please let me know if you want to be on it!

song recommendations: so be it - alex vaughn & summer walker, let it burn by jazmine sullivan

it had been years since roman had last laid eyes on cheyenne, and things had changed dramatically since that time. going from one title to two, to universal champion with one of the longest reigns in history, to having his family back him as head of the table, guiding the anoa'i family into a new era of greatness.

every test, every trial, every door that had been slammed in his face had been broken, with him always emerging as the victor. over time, it came to be accepted this was how it was supposed to be.

like he had known then, it was only affirmed now. he didn't need anybody. he had carried this legacy this far on his own back, of his own merit. he had long brushed off the feelings that emerged whenever fleeting thoughts of cheyenne managed to make it into his mind - whenever he had free time in the locker room before a match, whenever he sat at a dinner with his cousins rather than her, whenever the days were sunny and he passed a jogger on his normal route - reminded of her early morning walks.

none of that mattered anymore. she had made her choice, he had made his, and he had made the right one. she was in the wrong, not him.

the roar of a crowd as he disappears behind stage rings in his ears, having finished another night of asserting his dominance over another peer who felt they had the right, the nerve, to try and overstep him. he had bigger problems in his rearview - tonight wasn't about the fight, but the mind games he played before the fight occurred. he can hear paul next to him on his right, solo on his left, as staff part while he walks, much like the red sea.

"my tribal chief, we should leave soon." the elder man speaks, hurrying his steps - not daring to walk next to roman, but just one step slightly behind - the respect that roman had long come to feel he deserved. "there's a few days before the next match, and though i know you have a plan, we should discuss how to handle riddle."

roman scowls, shaking his head with a smirk. "ain't nothing to discuss. he won't be satisfied until i put his ass through a table. and who am i to deny him of that if that's what he wants?"

"you shouldn't even have to waste your time, my tribal chief."

"i know that, you know that. but some people - like matt, truly won't hear it until they get their ass handed to 'em. don't worry too hard about it." roman reassures, reaching behind to place a heavy pat on the back of paul. he goes to crack another joke when familiar laughter rings through his ears, and even though time has passed, a feeling runs through his body that makes him stop in his tracks.

he can see solo's body tense from his peripheral vision, and he shakes his head, holds out an arm to get the younger to relax, but the stoney look on his face says otherwise. just beyond solo's shoulder is the prep room, usually where the next wrestlers for the next match, the next promo, wait right up until their time to take the ring. from the panel on the side, it's time for the women's division, and that usually means nothing, he has no interest in that side.

he takes steps towards the laughter, hands curled into tight fists. roman makes no effort to placate anybody with a smile or pleasantries, coming upon bianca belair, standing in the middle of the room while two or three others buzz around her, readying her for her appearance. at first, he relaxes, thinks it can't be anything-

until one person, hidden behind a screen, comes out, hands full of garments. curly hair, sweet and innocent smile, calm brown eyes, small waist and wide hips - cheyenne monet.

she doesn't see him at first - moving towards bianca to adjust her outfit, stepping back to look at the overall before her eyes travel up beyond her shoulder, and they lock eyes for the first time. roman can't trace what he sees across her face - a flash of recognition, anger, disappointment, and finally disinterest. her eyes quickly shift back to bianca, and he quietly moves from the doorway slightly inside and to the side, waving away assistants who ask if he needs anything. bianca throws a glance, a curt nod, refocusing on her own tasks at hand.

"cheyenne, you don't know what this means to me, especially when you don't really do this anymore." bianca grasps cheyenne's hands, and the two share a warm look that makes roman just a little uneasy.

"stop, you know i'll always make time for the 'est'." a bright smile that sends a jab through roman, readjusting his position against the wall. "we can talk about it when you come back, so go. don't forget your belt - and be careful in those heels."

in a few hurried moments, bianca is whisked from the room and her assistants follow, leaving cheyenne and roman alone. she doesn't address him, and he can't decide if this makes him even more angry or wistful.

"so after all this time, you don't have nothing to say to me?" he starts, pushing himself off the wall to slowly walk to her.

"here you go - we're not doing this." her reply is short, not bothering to look at him. she starts to clean up her supplies, and he can get a better look at her - same stature, hair longer, but he feels the same draw to her that he'd always felt. as she moves he can smell the vanilla bourbon drift through the room in waves - his favorite perfume on her.

is she taunting me? did she do this because she knew i'd be here?

"i feel like the last time i saw you, i said you weren't welcome in my world again."

"this isn't your world."

"oh, but it is. i run every night of this business. this is my show now."

roman's long strides take him until he's right in front of her, forcing her to stop, eyes slowly rising to his own - to look him in the face. he wants to see the truth when he looks at her, but is met with a similar reflection of the last time he saw her. cold. empty. a part of him twinges with disappointment - had she really not felt anything?

"i don't answer to you, roman." her reply is soft, but firm. he has her trapped between the table and himself, but she still manages to pack the rest of her bag, trying to squeeze between the two to put space between them, but he stops her, shifting his steps to widen his stance- imposing, domineering. she sighs, and he tilts his head while he looks into her face more, deciding how he wants this to go.

"just hold on, chey." his voice is just slightly softer now.

"why?"

"because i want to look at you." her eyes dart up, and he can see something behind them soften, and it makes his his heart fire up in the slightest way. his tongue glides over his lips looking at her own, and he can see her breath quicken just a little, chest rising with more frequency. he hates that after so long, he still wants her. desires her. she didn't believe in him - in fact cheyenne questioned his capabilities to the point of them fighting so often, they could barely have a conversation by the end of their relationship. he would think that after all this time, his body would be immune to her.

he's pissed that he's wrong.

"there's nothing to look at." she finally responds, pressing a small hand against his chest to create space for her to move away. "just think of me as another nameless face."

"tell me the real reason why you came back."

"roman, what do you want to hear? why are you even talking to me?" she finally presses.

there's a hundred reasons he could use to shoot her down, to make her leave. they all sit in the tip of his tongue, and the wide, toying smirk he has on his face says it all as he rubs his hand across his beard, keeping his dark eyes trained on her. "i just need to make sure you're here for the right reasons." her snort of disgust drives the smirk more, and he shrugs his shoulders.

"i'll be gone before you know it." she mumbles, back to him, looking at the tv where bianca was finishing up her promo.

paul shows back up in the doorway, and roman waves him off, knowing he has to leave. he quietly comes up behind cheyenne, leaning down to talk quietly in her ear.

"things aren't the same since you were here last, cheyenne. everything you see, i run." he pauses, feeling her tense up. "i'm not chasin' you out of here. you can stay to see for yourself." another moment of silence, and he lets himself continue before he overthinks himself out of it - lets his desire come to the forefront. "maybe you'll realize you were wrong so you can be back where you belong- next to me. because once you stepped back in this building, back in my world? whether you like it or not, you're mine."

he can see her eyebrows raise, but she remains silent, and he chuckles. "so either you leave and deny me again, you do the right thing and acknowledge me and get back to how we were, or you stay here, isolated. because ain't no man touchin' you if it ain't me."

roman isn't sure if he believes his own words - physically he wants cheyenne - but mentally he battles. but it's easier to put these lines down now, to make it clear, because it's easier to have it under his control than hers. but the usual tactics that would have made cheyenne acquiesce to him do nothing now, and he's slightly surprised at how her face doesn't change, how she holds her stance, slowly turning her head to look him directly in the eyes.

"that's how i know it bothers you still, ro." her voice is soft, firm. "rather than pretend i'm not here, you come find me. you bother me while i work, you try and get close to me, try to threaten me so nobody else wants to be near me, because you want them to think i belong to you.

instead of saying sorry, apologizing, anything, you intimidate. because being manipulative has always gotten you what you want- but you know what?" she faces him, pressing herself closer in a way that surprises him, her face only inches away from his own. "it just makes me feel bad for you, that you think the only way you'll receive love is by forcing it. you never used to be like that - and that's the only version of you i miss."

the sudden softness in her voice and eyes takes him back, and a moment passes between them that's faintly reminiscent of better times: her laughter, her hands in his, tender moments in private. it hits roman harder than he expects, and he straightens, putting the cold look back on his face. "that man you're talkin' about. he's gone. so figure out where you stand, cheyenne."

he backs up to leave, with the image of cheyenne's disappointed eyes settling on his shoulders.

#roman reigns fanfiction #roman reigns fic #roman reigns imagine #roman reigns x oc #the bloodline wwe #the bloodline fanfiction #fic : most ardently

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goodluckclove · 1 month

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I'm writing a new thing!! I don't really need advice I'm just excited about starting it. They're gay and one of them's a shapeshifter the other has a culturally engrained fear of shapeshifters given that as defenders of the wilderness/ basically very local gods they tend to fuck up anyone who's in their space. I also dong know how to start books which is an issue my beginnings are always weak. How do I start a book. Do I describe the sheep? He's a shepherd btw which I think is fun because the shapeshifter often takes the form of a wolf or coyote. It's also set in a relatively high fantasy setting (no elves and shit just weird magic and a different landscape) that vaguely corresponds to the late 17 or 1800s (they've got some guns i think, they ride horses and trains might exist). How do I start a book. What do I start with. Where do I start. There's no real solid beginning I've got in mind, just a dude trying to take his sheep over a large area on his own. Help please I do actually need advice

Well you see, Ghostie, everyone knows that the first sentence of a novel is the most important part of the entire story. It has to contain the main character's name - in fact, it has to contain the names of every character in your cast - and it has to provoke intrigue and resolve it in a satisfying way without being a too long and jesus christ i can no longer keep up this bit.

I'm annoyed by people who say you need to have a super profound first line. I mean, they're good when they happen. If you can think of one that's great. But if you can't you aren't fucked right off the gate. If your first line isn't something people will get calligraphed onto canvases to hang on the walls of their boring houses (Is this a thing? Did I just make up a type of person to hate?), it doesn't mean your beginning won't be good.

You want to hook the reader. That's what all the guides say, right? They describe a person picking your book off the proverbial shelf and leafing through the first page to see if it's something they'd be interested in. That's solid, but then some go on to make it seem like you have maybe ten words before they either buy the book or toss it across the room in disgust. I'm not saying this is never true. I'm just saying that, personally, that type of person is probably not someone who'd be interested in me or my stories to begin with.

Usually when I'm considering a new book I'll skim the first few pages and then a bit throughout the middle, just to see if I like the prose. I do not put that much weight in the beginning, but it's always a good sign when the general scene feels purposeful. It doesn't have to be a car chase/diamond heist/sex scene/murder. I read someone somewhere saying that you have to start with something exciting and it took like an hour off my life I was so angry.

Here's one out of a billion angles to tackle this puzzle from - where does the story start for you? What is the inciting incident to the inciting incident? This feels like something easy to answer, but oftentimes what you come up with might feel a little inconsequential.

A beginning scene - like, for instance, a prologue centered around only sheep and coyotes - does not necessarily sound interesting on its own. But in a world where shapeshifters usually take on those forms it both sets up the world and establishes a mood. You can play with how much information you give people in the world.

Using my book as an example because I've been watching my editor @hoard-sweet-hoard react to it in real time, at one point he commented that he didn't know if the Eddie in my initial prologue is the same guy as the Edgar in Chapter One. And I was like yeah man that's the whole goddamned point of the book you tiny little king of fools. I wasn't at all that mean. I made a really good sandwich for dinner so I'm feeling extra rowdy. But the point is that I focused less on the action and more on the feeling it would create in the reader.

With that mindset the action doesn't really matter. If it's mundane it can be comforting, or tiring, or numbing, or eerie, or unnerving. If it's far removed from the world we know it can be fantastical and whimsical and sexy, maybe? I don't know. God that sandwich was good. I'm getting really into bagels lately.

Also, from purely the perspective of a writer, you might think of a better beginning midway into the draft. So you can also go back and make a weak start much stronger. You can skip the beginning entirely if it's really fucking with your life. Come back to it later. Who will stop you? Me? I don't even know how to find you. And if I did, you could easily kill me. You have that vibe and I am very clumsy.

Also also start posting excerpts when you get going because that shit sounds rad as fuck.

My bagel had egg and bacon and a hash brown patty and caramelized onion. Man has done a lot of sin, but it is almost neutralized by the insight we once had to caramelize onions. They have a unique flavor that I can only describe as eating the house of a beloved grandmother? Or maybe just the way that house makes you feel?

Yum.

#writeblr #writing community #on writing #writers on tumblr #writing asks #feeling wiggly

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b-afterhours · 7 months

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Avenue of Sins: Neon

A sequel to Avenue of Sins

SUMMARY: '90s. It's the aftermath. Jaded, Bill and Alma navigate their new lives as they try to drag themselves out of the dark debacherous trenches they had once ensnared themselves in. It's easy to forget their evils when a silver lining introduces itself into their lives but can they create a less hedonistic life that would be just as satisfying?

WARNINGS: adult content, mature readers only.

The completed first series can be read and found here.

Prologue

MAY 1993

Alma was sitting in her private office at Sheisty Sound Records alone procrastinating doing homework from her accounting class by creating a grocery list of items to pick up after work. Her first semester of night school had been going as easy as it could be for her. Making time between work, school, and her child was difficult, not to mention trying to keep a long-distance relationship with Bill. However, he had visited Seattle twice since the beginning of the year because Alma couldn’t leave due to school. She had gone to New York City for a few weeks for the holidays last year arriving before Thanksgiving and Echo’s first birthday and left before the New Year since Bill had major clients and business at Trigger Finger XXX so he wasn’t able to dote his time on his little family.

Alma rubbed her eyes harshly, still unable to get used to the new contact lenses she had recently gotten prescribed, and effectively rubbed her liner off. She sighed and silently told herself she could only fix it until she finished her homework. She had a big exam coming up before the class session was over and she couldn’t risk failing it and having to start all over. Shortly after completing it and putting her homework away in a class binder, she grabbed a compact and a coal liner pencil from the top drawer of her desk. While she was fixing her mistake from earlier, she heard the store door chimes sound which wasn’t unusual but the way she heard Ash and Ulyssa enthusiastically greet the customer she lightly chuckled to herself. She assumed it may have been Jérôme, the Québécois college student who liked to frequent the record shop, he was pretty handsome and charming. Even Alma thought so especially because he also had impeccable taste in music.

She put her things back in her desk drawer and sat back looking out the open office door deciding on whether to continue her grocery list or start early on payroll. Stuck in thought a man appeared feet away within the frame of the door with his back facing her dressed in a black bomber jacket and black jeans with his hands behind his back scanning the ceiling but it hadn’t registered for a few seconds. She blinked a few times assuming her contacts were drying out and causing her to see things that weren’t really there.

“What the hell?!” She said as she stood up swiftly going to the office doorway.

Bill turned his head and smirked when he saw Alma’s perturbed expression. He hadn’t told her he was coming he hadn’t expected to either but he also liked to mess with her so he never bothered to call ahead.

“No, hi, hello I’ve missed you?” He raised a brow at her while swinging his forearms away from the side of his body.

Alma rolled her eyes as she approached him and he had his arms out ready for her embrace. They held each other for a moment before they kissed deeply not caring if anyone saw, they never did.

“Why didn’t tell me you were coming?” Alma finally said.

“Well, I didn’t know until super early this morning,” he shrugged. “And, uh, of course, I’m here to see you and Echo but I’m here on business.”

“Business?”

Bill quickly glanced towards the cash wrap where Ash and Ulyssa were and noticed they were pretending not to stare. “Hmm, let's go speak in your office?” He took her hand and let her lead the way.

At the cash wrap counter, Ash noticed Ulyssa walk out to the sales floor with a few concert flyers and tape in hand with a pink-flushed face. Ash hopped on the counter and swung her legs to the other side meeting Ulyssa before she passed her by.

“Why do you always blush so hard when he comes around?” Ash said amused. “I thought you didn’t like guys? Or girls even?”

Ulyssa stood in front of her unamused opposed to her friend. “Listen, I can appreciate beauty like anyone else but I’m asexual, Ash.”

“Right, right sorry. But…” she pressed on.

Ulyssa sighed. “I’m not blushing because of him. But rather because of the both of them? Remember when I went to New York to visit Alma for a week while she was there?”

“Yeah, because I remembered that I wanted to go.”

“Well I told you that he has a really fucking nice place and I stayed on the second level where he had a guest room? It was pretty private but,” Ulyssa briefly grimaced as she recalled the memory, “I could hear them from my room. They’re very loud sometimes.”

“Loud?”

“Ugh,” Ulyssa rolled her eyes wishing her friend would just understand what she was trying to get at rather than having to say it out loud. “Loud, like, when they have sex!” She said in a harsh whisper.

Ash clasped her hand to her mouth to suppress her laughter while Ulyssa’s face blushed to an even darker hue of scarlet in embarrassment.

“I’m actually scared to imagine what the hell they’re doing. Not that I want to,” she quickly said. “But she can be loud and even him. Like… they’re fucking like pornstars.”

“Ulyssa!” Ash gasped. “Well, I mean did you see how they were kissing each other? I know you don’t care about that stuff but,” Ash sighed forlorn, “some people can be so lucky.”

“I guess… I mean I had a great time there. Regardless Bill is a pretty hospitable man. I just didn’t expect to have to wear my Walkman headphones to bed every night.”

“Every night?!”

Ulyssa walked away no longer wanting to discuss the topic at hand and shook her head to herself as she ripped off old show flyers from the front glass door to replace them with the new ones she had in hand.

…

Chapter One

November 1992

Alma and Echo had arrived in New York City the week before Thanksgiving and just like she had suspected the airport was a shit show and flying with an infant didn’t make it any easier on top of her anxiety. Though Bill had booked them first-class seats, they hardly got to enjoy them because half the flight she would walk the plane aisle to get Echo to settle down enough to sleep in 30-minute intervals. She hated how the other passengers stared at her daughter like a nuisance but she couldn’t blame them for feeling that way. If it had not been her and Echo but another mother and her child she could imagine feeling the same way. But this was her baby, so she stared back at anyone else who didn’t dare glance away. Reprieve from a fussy Echo finally came only an hour left of the flight.

She was glad to see that Bill was waiting at the baggage claim rather than the pickup line. He waved at them wearing sunglasses and a black shirt and jeans under a long charcoal wool coat. She happily placed their daughter in his arms for him to take care of her while she grabbed the luggage herself despite Bill's offering to do so. Though she was slightly annoyed about their journey she couldn’t help but look at them together adoringly. Of course, her daughter returned to her typical happier spirit when in his arms.

Alma watched Bill struggle with adjusting Echo in her car seat in the newly restored 1968 shiny black Thunderbird he had replaced his Impala with. Alma thought he looked crazy doing so because when the car was first made children hardly even fastened a seat belt let alone have proper car seats.

“How was Echo on her first flight,” he asked once they got in the car.

Alma smirked because she knew he could clearly see how flustered she was when she arrived. “Tell him how you gave everyone hell, Echo.”

“Ah, yeah, she’s our kid for sure,” he said kissing Alma on her forehead first and then her lips. “Let’s get out of here it’s a damn madhouse.”

Alma was surprised to see where Bill had moved to at the beginning of the year despite what he had described on the phone in the past. They had spent their time moving every year to decent yet humble apartments when they were together, never making the place homey because they knew it would be temporary and because they worked so much at the club to really enjoy being home. This place was such a dramatic change. He lived in a penthouse in Manhattan and while he could obviously afford it she was beginning to think he might have lost the plot. It was almost everything they hated about rich, consumerist yuppies as poor punk teenagers and now they were just that.

“Could you please, just enjoy it?” Bill said almost pleading when he saw Alma scan the place with widened shocked eyes as their daughter crawled away towards the black shag rug that lay atop the shiny black marbled tile.

“This is… a lot,” Alma sighed nearly looking like she wanted to cry. “I know you worked really hard for this but…” another feeling overtook her suddenly. She always felt that she didn’t deserve the things she had in her life and her teenage self could never imagine this so it was a lot to process that they could live like this. They could have everything but they liked to play like regular people when their bank accounts told a completely other story.

“Could I show you around? I rearranged some.”

Alma took a deep breath and nodded. He quickly showed the living room where they were at. Everything was decorated with black furnishings, the couches, the chairs, the coffee table, the side tables, and the fireplace pulled the setting together. The first floor was fairly open despite small dividing walls for the dining room and kitchen which were bigger than her own living room in Seattle it even had an island.

On the way to the first-floor bedrooms, Bill picked up Echo from the rug and held her in one arm while leading Alma down a hall with his other hand. On their right was a full shower bathroom of decent size and to their left was a king-sized bed facing the floor-to-ceiling windows with a view from 12 stories high of the city. Through the opened curtains a cascade of red neon light from a marquee across the block - that had just turned on - flooded the room.

“This is our room,” Bill announced. Again everything was all black except the side tables which were all white with gold hardware. The bed was immaculately made with plenty of pillows and black silk sheets. “I have a housekeeper,” Bill said as she noticed the bed. “She comes for an hour on the weekdays to tidy up in the morning after I leave but she stays a little longer on Mondays to clean clean.”

“Damn,” was all Alma could say.

“She’s a nice lady, she’s retired so she does it for some extra cash. Do you want to see how Bianca helped me decorate Echo’s room?”

“She helped?”

“Well, her room used to be my office,” Bill said grabbing her hand and leading her to a bedroom next door. “But I pushed most of it aside so she at least has a crib and a changing table but Bianca insisted on buying extra little things to make it nicer for her. Plus she helped me shop. It should be stocked up with everything Echo needs already?”

Alma looked at the large computer set moved to the left side of the wall amused that her daughter would be sharing a space with it but was also impressed by how Bill was so ready to have their daughter in his home. This man had only known about her for a few months but she had noticed that he even had electrical socket covers not only in his daughter's room but the rest of the penthouse. She had recognized the little touches Bianca had added like the pink washcloths and the Disney princess mobile above the crib.

“Did you build the crib?” Alma asked putting her hand on the railing covered with a protective fabric cover patterned with pastel-colored bears matching the sheets and slightly shook it to check its sturdiness.

“Do you think I’m good for nothing,” Bill jokingly asked. “I dare you to get in it, right now. It wouldn’t even bend.”

“I will,” she bluffed.

“Then do it,” he gestured to it.

“Okay… I won’t but only because she’s falling asleep in your arms right now.”

Bill looked down and Echo looked at him with heavy eyes trying her hardest to keep them open. He kissed her forehead and began walking her to the crib to lay her down while Alma checked the stock of baby supplies at the changing table. They had spoken on the phone the week before about what size diapers were needed but was impressed that he had gotten at least 3 sizes up from that too.

“Could I show you the upstairs?” Bill asked her a bit hushed so that they could sneak out of their sleepy baby’s room. “I told you I rearranged but really I just moved rooms,” he explained as he led the way up the stairs that were just outside of Echo’s room. It went a few steps up to a landing and then left towards a smaller flight up. She finally saw what the lofted portion that the spiral wrought iron stairs led to by the front entrance. The bedroom was just as big as the living room the only difference was that all the furnishings and decor were white. It had a loveseating area by the loft, a large walk-in closet, and an ensuite bathroom that had a deep clawfoot tub and shower. There was a small fireplace in front of the king-sized bed as well. Bill turned opening one of the windows she now realized was a sliding glass door and walked her out to the small private balcony with outdoor furnishings. Though it wasn’t quite dark yet the red neon washed across their skin lightly.

“Holy shit! Bill this is so incredible!” She said looking at the city that the sun was setting down on. “Why aren’t we sleeping up here?”

Bill smiled. “I mean we can? I just thought you’d want to be close to Echo downstairs. Our room is the guest room technically. But we can be up here until Ulyssa comes in a few weeks?”

“Oh my god. Ulyssa is going to shit herself when she sees this. You know she doesn’t know about, stuff. She doesn’t even know where you really work. It’s not that I’m ashamed of it but it’s hard to get people to understand…” Alma was holding herself uncomfortable at the thought of being judged by someone she found to be too sweet for their own good.

“I know,” Bill nodded understandably. “I don’t care about pretending but what should I tell her if she asks?”

“I trust her. Just tell her what you want. It’s just now she’s going to know I haven’t been honest with her about my life. She thinks I’m completely different from this.”

“But I doubt she’s naive, Alma. You’re basically paying her sister’s college tuition with babysitting money,” he said slightly amused. “She seems to take things as they come,” he said leaning on the balcony railing and pulling her towards himself. He was hoping that now that Alma had seen what he had provided it would make her want to change her mind about staying in Seattle but he wasn’t going to push it. He knew better.

“Um so Thanksgiving…” Bill said looking away and scratching the stubble on his neck. “I kind of offered to host.”

“So we’re going to make a whole Thanksgiving dinner?” Alma said warily. “I’ve only ever made pecan pie to take to Bianca’s place in Brooklyn to celebrate and I cheat. I buy a premade crust.”

“And that’s why she’s coming here to cook. Most likely she’ll just ask for your help or mine for whatever but she’s Italian she doesn’t like anyone else in her kitchen,” he lightly laughed.

Bill looked down at her and noticed how tired she looked while he pushed her hair off her shoulder since her long bob had grown out some. She wrapped her arms around him, rested her turned head on his chest, and sighed. He supported her upright halfway by how she relaxed her body weight on him.

“Are you happy that you’re here?” He wondered out loud.

Alma took a beat before answering. “I’m happy there I’m here with you.”

Though she didn’t answer his question he would take that. He knew how anxious she had been about bringing their daughter to NYC but he felt that she had put that aside if it meant being with him where she felt safest. He felt safe too.

“You have such a nice place, Bill. Much better than what I could imagine on the phone,” she said muffled against his chest.

“It's our place,” he said lifting her up onto his waist and walking them back into the bedroom. He laid her down and instructed her to take a nap and that he would wake her up once take-out arrived. It took everything in him to really let her go to sleep when she kept trying to playfully pull him down into bed with her.

...

They spent that week before Thanksgiving without a hitch. They took Echo to Central Park to take a carriage ride, the Museum of Modern Art so that her parents could see something interesting, and FAO Schwarz where Bill tried to buy every toy she picked up but Alma stopped him from doing so. Navigating the city during the holidays was hell for two jaded adults but they were happy to put up with it for their daughter just to see the curiosity and wonderment sparkle in her hazel-green eyes.

When Thanksgiving came they were abruptly woken up at 8:30 am by Bianca, much to their surprise they had slept in on accident. They quickly grabbed at clothes that were strewn around the bedroom floor to cover their naked bodies. In haste and still sleepy Alma tripped trying to put on her panties but caught herself on the edge of the bed. They laughed as Bill helped her back to her feet and then he headed down the spiral staircase in only a shirt and boxers and let Alma have a second. When he answered the door Bianca had curlers in her hair held down with a scarf. She was smiling at first until she saw how he was dressed.

“Shit, I woke you up?”

“Ah, overslept,” he said stepping aside to let her in.

She had a large tote which she handed to him to carry and pulled a grocery trolley behind her and went directly towards the kitchen. She began unloading supplies and pre-prepped food onto the island and helping herself to place other items in the fridge. She paused a moment noticing the photos of Echo that he had tacked on it with magnets. He set the tote bag down and peered in it only to see that it was more of the same. Bianca took a minute to check that everything was in its place and then looked at Bill.

“Okay, this is half of it. I’ll be back real soon.”

“You’re going all the way back to Brooklyn? What more do you need I can go to the store for it here.”

Bianca waved his suggestion away. “Just a few more things but I have to get ready and dressed. And so do you. I don’t ever wanna see you in your underwear like this again.”

Bill was slightly offended by that. “I’ve seen your tits one thousand times Bianca?”

“And so what? When’s the last time you’ve seen them?”

“A while.”

“Exactly. Tell Alma and the baby I said, hi. I’ll be back later, sorry to wake you up like I did, honey.”

Bill nodded and walked her out locking the door behind him. As he walked down the hallway to check on Echo before he made his way back upstairs he was wondering why Alma didn’t seem to make it down. He began to feel nervous, maybe she was too anxious to meet anyone again after having the baby. Maybe he shouldn’t have agreed to host Thanksgiving it was too much to put on her. Bill peeked into Echo’s room and saw that she was playfully reaching her arms towards the mobile above her giggling to herself.

He let her enjoy herself for a moment while he made a bottle before picking her up. Back upstairs he expected to see Alma awake but she had settled back into bed fast asleep with the duvet covering her haphazardly. He worried for nothing she was just tired. They had been up half the night. If he could guess they maybe had only slept for a few hours. He trodded back down the stairs to leave her to rest and together he and Echo went to the living room and enjoyed each other's company.

Eventually, after a diaper change, he sat on the floor with her playing along with the toys he had gotten her. He would stack wooden alphabet blocks for her but she’d dismantle them and hand them back to him one by one interested in the shapes he would build for her. Suddenly, she seemed disinterested and he watched her crawl towards a stuffed bunny rabbit that was on the opposite corner of the rug. Her first birthday would be in four days but still hadn’t walked yet. Alma blamed herself because she said that she held her too much. She could stand and walk around a coffee table but was too apprehensive to let go of the support. Bill watched her crawl back with the stuffed toy in hand and he could see how she was frustrated that she couldn’t use both hands properly. He had begun to reach out to her with his long arms until she had pushed off the floor, standing up on chubby wobbly legs, and took a first step forward. Bill stilled and held his breath as he watched her take another step and then another one with a bit more determination to close the gap between them. As she got closer to him her steps wavered a bit but he scooped her into his arms before she could fall on her bottom.

“Echo! You walked baby!” He said pecking kisses on her cheek while she giggled from the ticklishness.

For a second he thought about waking up Alma to tell her that he had seen Echo walk her first steps without assistance but ultimately decided not to. He wanted to keep that moment for himself, something just between them for once. While he spent the rest of the time guiding Echo with only the support of his finger to walk around he heard the shower start upstairs. He glanced at the clock noticing it was close to noon.

While Echo was taking a nap, Bill and Alma were trodding around upstairs getting ready to be presentable for guests. Alma was just wrapped in a towel blow drying her hair while Bill quickly showered behind her. Suddenly, Alma cut the blow dryer off, looked out towards the room, and strained to listen out. For a moment she thought it was maybe Echo crying out but she lifted the baby monitor to her ear and heard nothing and then there was a rap on the door downstairs. She turned to look at Bill who seemed to have heard it too.

“It’s Cooch,” Bill said.

“Shit,” Alma said taking the towel from around her off and grabbing a white fluffy bathrobe that hung next to the shower, and hurriedly jogged down the stairs.

When Alma opened the door, Cooch was there with more supplies, her hair immaculately curled and looking as good as ever in a tight burgundy dress.

“Oh Alma, baby,” she exclaimed while throwing her arm around her for a hug. “I’ve missed you! Are you and Bill still getting ready?”

“Yeah sorry,” she sheepishly smiled following Bianca into the kitchen. “I’ll just get ready real quick and I’ll be down to help you.”

“Don’t worry about it, honey. I do better alone,” she lightly laughed. “If I need any help trust me I’ll call for you.”

Alma nodded. “It’s so good to see you, Bianca. Thank you for celebrating with us. I’ve missed having Thanksgiving at your place these last two years.”

Bianca smiled and began taking more things out of her grocery trolley. “Thank you, baby. Me too. Now go do what you need, I have magic to do,” she winked.

Back upstairs, Alma was finally finishing up her makeup in the bathroom mirror while Bill dressed inside his walk-in closet. She was putting her things away in her makeup bag when Bill called for her. When she met him in the closet, which she had only ever just glanced in so far, she was surprised to see him in something else that wasn’t black for once. He was in dark gray trousers, a white polo shirt, and Doc Martens. She thought he looked like such a dad and while he was she didn’t dare say it because he might have changed. He gestured her over to another corner where there were a few of the old dresses that she loved but had left behind. She was surprised he had kept them. Along with those were three new dresses a short white dress with thick straps and a square neck that had a high slit and a short backless black silk dress and then a deep red crushed velvet dress that was longer with thinner straps and a lower neckline that would probably only cover half her boobs. Alma smiled, she loved wearing the dresses he would pick out for her. Living in Seattle, she started to dress a little more frumpy because of the crowd she was around. Even when she packed for New York she left a lot of those clothes behind feeling more comfortable with wearing less in a city where no one gave you a second glance and kept it moving for the most part.

“Which one should I wear,” she asked him as she touched the material of the dresses.

“Hmm, well the red one I thought would be nice for Christmas. So… this one,” he said plucking the black silk dress out and holding it against her, visualizing her in it. “Yeah, you’ll look very pretty in this.” He said leaning down to kiss her.

Bill explained to her that he was going to check how things were going in the kitchen and then begin getting Echo ready as well. So that she had time to get ready at her pace. He felt Alma grab his arm before he stepped out and she had a coy look in her eyes.

“You didn’t want to watch me get dressed?”

“Alma…” he smirked.

He stepped up to her and leaned down to kiss her before trailing down her neck. His hand reached for the robes’ drawstring and pulled it open. His other hand, which was wrapped behind her neck, slid towards her throat and down slightly below her collarbone and stopped.

“Maybe you’ll let me take it off of you later,” he said in her ear, stepping away.

“Aw I knew you were going to do that,” Alma pouted as he walked away. “Tease!” She shouted earning a laugh from him.

People had begun to arrive around 5 p.m. Queenie showed up first dressed casually in a patterned button-up tucked into high-waist jeans and her hair neatly done in two poofs and brought a bag filled with mixers since she was playing bartender for the night. From the island mashing potatoes, Alma watched Bill pull open a tall bureau to reveal the hidden bar that was inside it. Queenie gave him a high five impressed at the setup. Soon after Theo came with his daughter who had since recovered from her childhood illness yet she still looked a bit frail but nothing compared to how she used to be. She was far older but was excited to see another child there. She joined Echo who was now wearing a baby blue corduroy pinafore with a white fluffy capsleeve collar shirt and white stockings on the rug playing with the wooden blocks. Then Marcy came her red hair was permed into tight ringlets and she came wearing a chambray western-styled tunic dress with red cowboy boots on. All that was left were Bianca’s sons Lorenzo and Giancarlo. Besides Queenie, everyone else had brought a pie like they usually did when going to Bianca’s Thanksgiving dinners even Alma though she prepared her pecan pie the day before worried about being in Bianca’s way.

Queenie began passing out drinks once Bianca’s sons arrived. They were wearing blue Adidas tracksuits and their mother's eyes bugged out of her head when she saw them. She paused from basting the turkey in the oven and wiped her hands on her apron as she approached them.

“What the hell is this?”

“What Ma?” Her youngest Giancarlo snickered.

“What like you two didn’t see the clothes I had ironed and ready to wear on the couch?” She said pulling on the sleeve of Lorenzo’s tracksuit appalled. “Listen ya coulda gotten away with this mess in my house maybe. But where here at Mr. Skarsgard’s and you two lookin’ like fools.”

The boys began to laugh and then zipped down their tracksuit jackets to reveal that they were wearing iron-pressed button-ups underneath. As well as the trousers once they popped the snap buttons open. Everyone began to laugh especially when Bianca smacked both of them on the arm.

“Sorry, Ma it was Giancarlo’s idea,” Lorenzo said folding his tracksuit. “Since you like to follow along with what people say you can help me grate this stinky garlic how ‘bout that.” Lorenzo groaned but relented. She snapped at Giancarlo to take the trash out to the shoot, he couldn’t get off scot-free either.

Alma had Echo on her lap sitting on the couch next to Queenie and Marcy showing them an up-to-date photo album she brought along. She was glad she had brought it because it had distracted them from their ninety-nine questions about her life in Seattle. Inside there were photos of Echo’s first Halloween, Bill had visited Seattle for that. She was dressed as a little pumpkin and her parents didn’t bother dressing up but their trick-or-treating was short-lived because it had started to rain heavily and it was much too cold. They ate the baby's candy and watched scary movies once she was warm sleeping in bed.

The girls took turns holding Echo, remarking on her features and squabbling about who she looked like the most. Even Theo chimed in and wanted to hold her too and she looked miniscule in his beefy arms but she seemed to have liked his softness and even cuddled into him. Alma helped herself to the bar making her drink a little bit stronger than the last. Luckily, having Echo to talk about made it easier to talk about herself less but entertaining was a bit much and she was hoping the turkey would be done soon.

Bill met her there and whispered, “You alright?”

She looked up at him a smiled. “Yeah… But do you want to take a shot?”

Bill pretended to contemplate it with his lip puffed out. “Yeah fuck it,” he shrugged, grabbing the bottle of whiskey while she grabbed the tequila. “Hosting is-”

“Exhausting?” She finished for him.

“Yes,” he sighed. “And I’m running out of shit to talk about.” They both laughed, clinked their shot glasses together, and took the liquor down without a wince from either of them.

“There’s football on. You can put that on?” Alma suggested.

“Good idea,” he said kissing her forehead. He didn’t care or keep up with sports outside of reading scores in the newspapers just to have some small talk in his back pocket when speaking to certain high-spending customers or potential business partners.

“Yeah, I’ll set the table.”

The moment everyone had been waiting for had finally arrived. The turkey was done to Bianca’s specified requirements. Bill was glad for it. Because Theo and Bianca’s sons were watching a Buffalo Bills game and he kept getting confused on whether they were addressing him for something or talking about the team.

Since it was Bill’s home Bianca gave him the honor of cutting the turkey meanwhile Queenie poured the adults a glass of Pinot Blanc. Everyone was appreciatively filling their plates with all the traditional sides though with a bit of an Italian twist. Just as everyone was going to dig in Bianca told everyone to wait.

“We need to say grace,” she said. “Alma, since it’s your first Thanksgiving with all of us again would you do the honors of saying grace, please?”

The sound of everyone setting their utensils down sounded deafening as Alma sat stunned for a moment. She shot a look a Bill who lightly shrugged, he sat at the head of the table and she was to his right with Echo on a high chair between them. She couldn’t remember if anyone had ever said grace at Bianca’s dinners, rather instead she and her boys would just cross themselves and leave it at that. Alma glanced at Bianca across the table in front of her and took a deep breath. Reluctantly she clasped her hands together, head bowed.

“Um right. God… Thank you for-” Alma stopped when she heard what sounded like Bianca trying to stifle her laughter as well as everyone else. She glanced up at everyone looking at her. “You fuckers!” She laughed realizing she was being pranked. “No wonder your sons are some jokesters.”

Bianca and even Bill could hardly contain their laughter and she elbowed him playfully.

“Oh, honey. You should have seen your face! Okay,” Bianca said trying to pull herself together. “Okay everyone let’s eat!”

Everyone seemed to rise slowly from the dining table later. They were all very full and satisfied by the marathon of dishes and desserts. Alma stayed behind to put the dishes away in the dishwasher when Bianca stopped her and told her sons to come do it instead. Alma protested for a second because this was an easy job and the housekeeper would be by to take care of everything else in the morning. Still, Bianca pulled her out of the kitchen and together they sat on the couch joining everyone else, and were handed another drink by Queenie.

“Extra strong for you two,” Queenie winked taking a seat next to Marcy.

Everyone was speaking amongst themselves hardly realising how late it was getting. Bill had noticed that Alma seemed to relax some as she laughed with the girls about shenanigans going on in the club. He was speaking to Theo who suddenly looked at his sleepy daughter which prompted Bill to notice Echo deeply asleep in his arms. Echo had enthusiastically eaten a healthy portion of mashed potatoes during dinner so he wasn’t surprised that she had fallen asleep without a bottle like she usually did.

Theo was the first to go that night as he saw himself out. Then it was Lorenzo and Giancarlo, who wanted to see what their friends were up to. And then Echo, Alma kissed her little head before Bill ducked off to lay her down. The ladies seemed to swoon to see him care for his daughter. He then invited the ladies upstairs to hang out on the balcony for a little bit but mostly because he knew they would want a cigarette after so many drinks and he did too.

There was no need to turn on the balcony lighting when the red neon marquee provided the perfect comfortable lighting to host. It felt almost like being at Trigger Finger, you could see everyone just fine yet it was dim enough to imagine them in a perfect light. Queenie was talking to Bill about someone he should hire to replace Praline who was moving to Florida with a boyfriend. But he had heard through the grapevine that Queenie liked the girl and he wasn’t sure if he wanted the drama that could potentially arise from that. He would let Bianca make the final decision. Marcy yawned loudly and put her cigarette out, she told them she was going to head home but instead, she left their place to a bar near her apartment and had a drink with a gentleman whom she met from the club. He wasn’t the best looking guy but he was polite and gentle and she knew she would eventually marry him one day. Bianca and Queenie left together, they both lived in Brooklyn. On the car ride home Bianca told her that she wouldn’t hire Keiko, the girl she was trying to vouch for a job for, but told her that she should at least date her first before trying to be her coworker. Queenie had to agree even if she didn’t like to hear that. Afterward, they spoke about Bill and Alma and their child Echo. How happy they looked, especially Bill who seemed to always stare at her and want to hold her. They both felt Alma was insane to keep Echo hidden from him and while Bianca knew more of the situation than Queenie in the back of her mind she agreed.

“I guess they're both crazy, though,” Queenie digressed. “Do you think they’d ever get married? Wait, they’re together together, now right?”

Bianca chuckled. “Yes. They don’t fuck around with anyone else. Finally. Those two used to give me a damn headache with the will they, won't they bullshit. And marriage? I don’t know I think they’re okay where they’re at.”

“Yeah, it doesn’t seem to me they’d ever leave each other. Married or not.”

~~~

After making the rounds across the penthouse making sure appliances that needed to be off were off and checking that multiple locks on the front door were locked Bill walked up the spiral stairs to see Alma lying skewed across the bed. Bill smirked at her state.

“I’m still so fucking full,” she huffed.

Bill sat next to her and sighed, “Me too.” He began kicking his boots off and unclasping his wristwatch to set it on the nightstand next to the baby monitor. “So you’re not going to sexily take your dress off for me then?” He bit his lip to keep himself from chuckling.

“Fuck,” Alma groaned. “Maybe we should take a break?”

“Yeah,” Bill nodded and stood up to take his clothes off beside his underwear.

“Yeah?” Alma said surprised he would resign so easily.

He sat back down and reached over to brush his hand along the side of her body tenderly. “I think you’re starting to walk funny,” he laughed.

Alma flipped him off and then quickly pulled her dress off and tucked herself into bed only clad in a red thong. Bill followed her and held her like he always did.

Both half asleep Alma snuggled into him to feel more of his warmth. He always ran hotter than she did.

“It was nice seeing everyone like this again,” Alma yawned. “I’m glad I came. I’m glad Echo got to meet them.”

“Mhmm,” Bill said sleepily, holding her tighter. He was hoping she had felt that way and was glad that she admitted that she did. Because he was wishing that this night would encourage her to stay with him.

#my bill writings #bill skarsgard #aos

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jackstheprinceofhearts · 1 year

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my review of "last violent call" by chloe gong

(side note from the future, i forgot to make part 2 and i will at some point but idk when 🧍‍♀️ i have been distracted lately so idk 😭😭😭 i'm sorryyyy)

spoiler warning for:

these violent delights duology

foul lady fortune

last violent call (obviously)

alright so let's talk about "a foul thing" first!

some things i found to be a bit odd:

why did they keep saying how worried they were about being recognized but kept their appearances pretty much the same (besides Juliette's long hair) Benedikt and marshall's hair is the same from what I remember, and their faces still look the same (they're obviously older) and all of this other stuff but I'll get to more of that when we talk about "this foul murder"

also, why tell pretty much everyone EXCEPT rosalind and alisa who are family?? like yes I get that they are trying to protect them but now rosalind is carrying this guilt for a super long time and that made me pretty sad 😭 I can't imagine the betrayal rosalind is gonna feel when she finds out celia didn't tell her. same with alisa, I bet she'll feel pretty bad that she didn't know.

but that's enough about that, for now, let's get on to stuff I liked :)

JIOGVFDRJIDOFFDVVDSFKJVFDSJMKOVDSFKI I LOVE ROMA SO MUCH HE'S SO SWEET AND KIND AND HIS BANTER WITH JULIETTE WAS SO FUNNY AND SATISFYING AND DIDN'T SEEM FORCED

sorry, i really needed to say that omfg they were so cute in the entire novella. rdbmbbb I just love them they are so precious to me 🙏🏼no ship will ever hit as good as they do (ofc evajacks because come on it's evajacks and they are my otp) I love the way chloe wrote them in this novella as well. they were still the old roma and juliette but you could tell how they'd matured and how everything had affected them in so many ways and just fdfdkvfdk,dvfl, i loved it, man, i live for fluff but MARRIED COUPLE FLUFF??? AFTER BEING ENEMIES??? HELL YEAH it was everything i wanted it to be and more fluff and romance-wise!!!

alright, now we need to talk about roma and juliette's death, and also the connections with foul lady fortune.

so it is said in the first chapter that this takes place in 1931, the same time as the beginning of foul lady fortune, shown here in these two pictures

(top is a foul thing and the bottom is foul lady fortune)

so as you can see they start at the same time. so the start of "a foul thing" takes place while rosalind is on the train in the first chapter after the prologue. i found this to be interesting since i thought "foul lady fortune" was spread out for months but at the end of flf (foul lady fortune) Rosalind receives this letter:

and at the end of afl (a foul thing), we get a page of juliette writing that same letter.

(also side note but i really appreciate this, isn't it so nice how chloe gong managed to tie both books together SO WELL in only 117 pages???)

So because of this, I found the timeline confusing because this takes place in September in afl BUT it seemed like way more than a month in flf?? if anyone has answers on why this is or corrections for the timeline, please comment them cause this confused me quite a bit.

this might've been just me but i also think I missed a lot of important information and how flf connects to the novellas because I am really REALLY bad with names 😥 I am trying my best guys ok 😭

i also liked the introduction of new characters in this and also how much chloe was able to get done within 117 pages like god damn, she got a lot done writing this. new characters and a new plot, answers to roma and juliette's death??? angst??? fluff??? it was all there and did not disappoint.

also, i would like to say that I KNEW it was very likely they couldn't be dead because there was no body, no leftovers, no nothing. like yes i know they were supposed to be exploded or whatever but even in explosions there's gonna be uhh leftover flesh 👁

anyways, let's move on to my favorite quotes and then we can talk about "this foul murder"

alright here are the pictures i have >:)

uh oh, i have come to the startling realization that I can't add any more images 😭 and I need to send some pictures to talk about "this foul murder" and the rest of the quotes... alright I guess I'm gonna have to add a part 2 to this post 😭

let me close this by saying that "a foul thing" was so amazing and up there in my favorite books definitely!!! more authors need to write novellas taking place after the couple is together, it just hits different. but overall for this first part of "last violent call"?? 5/5 stars!!!

#gotta continue this in part 2 #lmao i'll try to get that out as soon as I can because i still have a lot to say! i didn't know there was a 10 picture limit ):#it's ok it just means i get more content to post #muahahahahahaha #last violent call #last violent call review part 1 #jackstheprinceofhearts blog #these violent delights #our violent ends #these violent delights duology #roma and juliette #ben and mars #foul lady fortune #foul heart huntsman #chloe gong #books #book reviews #<3 #rosalind and orion

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sidecharactersdomatter · 10 months

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Hi! I recently read Disenchanted rewrite and from the snippet I saw, I find it to be better than the movie. I especially love how you gave the two sisters an actual relationship with each other.

Oh my, this is really huge for my rewrite, thank you so much for your simple and really helpful feedback. While we’re at it, how about I break down the first 5 things on my fic to do list to help share why I’m rewriting Disenchanted:

I rewrote Disenchanted because I had to: This is going to be really quick, the reason I’m rewriting this sequel is because I got so pissed off by how out of character Giselle, Robert, and Morgan were depicted in the movie I couldn’t get past the first act satisfied and ended up looking at spoilers on wiki and Moderngurlz’s review. Since Disenchanted got sent to streaming and the sneak peeks ended up killing the hype, this movie never stood a chance with the Rotten Tomatoes critics and the Oscars. Hopefully, once Wish comes out this November it’ll end up avoiding the pitfalls Disenchanted ended up in. Let’s face it, no one on the Disenchanted writing team actually understood the assignment.

2. I rewrote Disenchanted’s prologue because I felt like it: Let’s just say I didn’t like the chipmunks recapping the first movie and speedrunning the whole prologue. That’s why I had Morgan and Sofie recap the first movie to make it more audibly tolerable for the readers.

3. I made Morgan the main protagonist because I felt like it: Let’s be honest, Morgan was done so dirty in the sequel, because the whole movie had Giselle be the main character (*cough* main character syndrome *cough) I really did not like how her portrayal as a stereotypical angsty teenager felt really forced and the excuse got old super fast. It also shows that nobody knew how to write an authentic teenaged character. Mirabel, Camilo, Mei, Miriam, Priya, and Abby worked because they were all given their own unique traits that made them likable to the audience, while Morgan in the first act felt pretty irritating and unoriginal. That’s why I drastically changed her personality in my rewrite.

4. I aged up Morgan’s little sister Sofia to be 6 years old because I felt like it: One of the issues of Disenchanted that ended up being executed poorly, was Giselle having a new kid, Sofia. The downside why it didn’t work out was that in the film Sofia doesn’t really impact the story since she’s just a freaking infant that doesn’t do much. The problem with writing infant characters especially under one is that they don’t really have much agency in the story and end up becoming living props. Heck, Mayday Parker from Across the Spiderverse was a more compelling character cause she was animated really well in her own movie. Oh yeah, Across the Spiderverse works so well as a sequel because it respects its characters. More infant characters that actually work in a story are Jack Jack (Incredibles), Sunny Baudelaire (A series of unfortunate events) and Grogu (The Mandalorian) In Disenchanted, Infant!Sofie existed as a plot device just to show how tough city life(well not really to me) got for the Philips and why Giselle decided to move her family to Monroeville. She existed as a plot device just so knockoff Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather could find someone to babysit. She existed as a plot device just so Edward and Nancy could give her a wand. She exists as a plot device as a true Andalasian(oh yeah spoilers that doesn’t really touched upon in the movie) to make Morgan feel inferior in her own family. Maybe they should’ve had her be played by a child actor instead of twin infants. Not only would that have given us an interesting dynamic with her older sister Morgan, but it also could have subverted the mean step sister trope, (that whole trope subversion gimmick never happens in the sequel, that’s when you know this was gonna be disappointing.). Or if they wanted the evil stepmother personality shifts to make more sense, they could’ve just had Giselle be pregnant until the end of the movie (no wait, that topic would be too sensitive for Disney to show). Or just not have a new child to keep the focus the conflict between Morgan and Giselle, not much would change. That’s why Sofie is 6 in The Fairytale of my life, and I’m going to show her dynamics with her 3 family members.

5. I gave Morgan and Sofie a really good sibling dynamic because I had to: This answers the topic above. Disenchanted is one of the prime examples that shows why a sibling age gap between a teenager and an infant does not work. One of the positive traits I wanted to give Morgan was being a good role model for her new sister and it’s going to be shown throughout my fic.

Well, I hope this satisfies your ask. I’m going to be very busy finishing Ch 2 and writing the rest of my rewrite

#side answers #ask box #answered asks #Disney enchanted #enchanted 2007 #Disenchanted #disenchanted 2022 #disenchanted critical #Disenchanted salt #Disenchanted rewrite #The fairytale of my life #This might’ve ended up as a bit of a rant #Morgan enchanted #Morgan philip #Sofia philip #Giselle enchanted #Giselle Philip #Disenchanted criticism

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kitkatt0430 · 1 year

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i have officially been sucked into Tears of the Kingdom. Any willpower to finish out Symphonia first died the moment I had the chance to save and quit to 'test it out'. That said, I'm just gonna have to swap between the two games because I do want to finish my Symphonia replay.

TotK spoilers next

So I like that TotK gives a reason why Link's been nerfed once the game 'really' begins. So after the prologue beneath the castle, it makes sense why Link's down to his three hearts/default stamina ring when he wakes up again. Admittedly, there are other things not making sense but I'm going with 'Zelda stole Link's clothes' and 'Rauru's hand flew Link up to the sky before merging with him'.

I did kind of feel like the awakening in the sky was a little too much of a parallel to his awakening in Breath of the Wild. I guess this Link just does that now. It's his thing. Waking up naked but for his underwear in strange, ancient temples and then hanging out with a ghost who is mostly non judgmental about Link's state of undress. *snicker*

I like the new powers. Fusing is super useful, rewind is also super useful, and the ascend power is pretty awesome too. I am wondering why we've got a knock off Sheikah Slate - the Purah Pad - but hopefully if I seek out Purah later that'll get explained. And despite not having the Sheikah Slate's special abilities, the Purah Pad seems like it's still pretty useful - still has the map, camera, and warp abilities, I'm assuming I'll unlock a sensor and item glossary later - so it compliments the new source of Link's special abilities quite well.

I've done 4 shrines thus far - I was hopeful that maybe the Temple of Time would be a starter dungeon, but nope. I'm hoping for more actual non-shrine dungeons as I get further into the game and that they're bigger and more complicated than what BotW had. The shrines are interesting mini-dungeons and I do enjoy having lots of those. But there's something really satisfying about a proper Zelda dungeon that the shrines don't quite manage to embody.

Anyway, I only really went as far as completing the training ground and then making a splashdown in Hyrule. So tomorrow I'll start checking out my old BotW stomping grounds and, hopefully, starting to re-fill in that map.

There have been a lot of references to previous games in the series already. Rauru has shown up in the past, previously as the Sage of Light in Ocarina of Time. Now he's a Zonai ,the previous, uh... owner... of Link's new hand, and our latest ghost friend who apparently got to know Zelda during Link's most recent long nap. Zelda geeked out over the Zonai ruins beneath the castle which included depictions of the Imprisoning War, which has been mentioned in previous games though unless it's Skyward Sword (i don't really think so) i can't remember which (so many wars as backstory in these games). The Demon King is depicted as well - Ganondorf, of course, who shows up just a little further down in the caves.

The ruins in the sky is itself a reference both to Skyward Sword and Twilight Princess, where people lived on floating islands. The bird shaped gliders remind me a bit of the Loftwings - miss those guys, such loyal and kind birds...

As far as old enemies made new go, Like Likes are back and as unsettling as ever. I'm just glad they don't make the weird squelching noise I associate with the OoT/MM version of these things.

#tears of the kingdom #totk spoilers #kitkatt0430 rambles #just talking about the game a bit

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momobani · 2 years

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P1Harmony Harmony: Set In album review

Unsolicited album review (p3!!)

I’ve been a p1ece since debut and I just get so excited about new music, no one asks for these nor cares, but I have fun doing it, so there. Hope everyone’s enjoying the album!!

Warning: long post [1.4k], I got carried away lmao.

Note - this is the first time P1Harmony has done the showcase first, then dropped the MV and then the rest of the album, the order does feel a little funny but it was actually really nice to hear two of the songs yesterday (they sang Better Together at the showcase as well as the title).

As always, I did keep up with the teasers, so it definitely won’t be a total surprise listening to the album. I feel like instead of spoiling it though, I got so hyped so I guess the teasers did their job alright. I also watched the showcase yesterday and heard both songs and I really liked both.

Bonus: Jiung helped write Better Together!!! Intak and Jongseob always have their rap writing credits but to see a composition credit is just such a joy, especially because we know how much Jiung likes writing music and how much pride he takes in it.

Back Down (+MV)

Alright first things first - holy shit the visuals!!!!! I loved the underground idk ‘lair’ or whatever you can call the hang out spot since they dropped the prologue. It’s amazing, the detail, the decor is perfect. I immediately thought of the Ninja Turtles when I saw it, and I had a good look around on the bird app and found other people had a similar thought so I guess maybe FNC was going for it? If it’s so obvious lol. But I love it so much; the guys said this album is about friendship and I totally see why there’s a sort of reference to the ninja turtles - they’re a cute bunch (of brothers) but also friends and they go on cool missions and stuff so the vibe is perfect.

Okay the song: I could tell from the few seconds we got as teasers that this was going to be a bop but omg it’s so much better than that, it’s a whole banger! (Keeho’s intro, sir, do you have something to say?) There’s something so satisfying about Jongseob’s hard ‘rr’ sound and I love the bass boom in the instrumental. (also the MV - they got super powers or something from getting electrocuted? fun!) Intak’s “bro!” took me out (actually his whole verse did but yea), then the MV transition where they jump up from the sewers to the metro was just so neat omg. I love the sort of New York setting they’re emulating, it really keeps up the reference to the Ninja Turtles. Keeho with those glasses and earrings, he actually looks like he time travelled from the 90s lol. The backpacks make them look like turtles I’m sorry I said it but I find it adorable.

RA TA TA TA!!!!!!

Tag yourself I’m the pizza person looking down in the sewer.

Jiung is out for my life, he serving too hard this era, everyone say thank you to the stylists. But also the styling is as usual so incredible and everyone looks amazing!!

Soul throwing the pizza at us, the trio against the moonlight and standing on top of the buildings? So very Ninja Turtles, my heart is happy haha (i love the ninja turtles, can you tell?)

Omg the little captions too, comic book feel, it’s fun. BUT THEN

Jiung driving (Jiung driving me insane, p1eces sound off if you’re alive)

SOUL LINES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! FINALLY

The pre-chorus is so long, what a build up, it’s like 3 different phrases? It’s dope.

The suits the suits the suits the suits also the little video game style thing when they’re “fighting” each other is so cute

Also I had this thought when I saw Keeho with this hair at the showcase yesterday - it really reminded me of something then I got it: he’s in his Rockhopper Penguin era, duh

Keeyang bridge - I love the way the instrumental gets so minimal, like yes, please we want to hear the vocals (ft Jiung losing his mind around the table lmao).

Intak’s ‘time to change it now’ - change what dude???!!! Also he looked like a cute school kid with that backpack lol I feel like I’m taking my kids to school when I see them with those massive bags haha.

The chorus of this song is so full of energy it’s definitely one of their biggest hype songs and that’s saying something.

I just checked how long the song is and it’s only 2:48?? It feels so much longer than that not just cuz of the video but like so much happens in it? anyway, interesting since it’s their shortest title track (all of the others are at least 3 mins long)

BFF

The instrumental touched my soul for a second. Speaking of which, SOUL LINES???!!!!!! YESSSSS my kid getting something after how long omg. The build up is beautiful. This is Yes Man’s younger, more playful sibling. That guitar? riff is ingrained in my heart now, no going back. Jongseob’s shimmy shimmy ah haha cute! This song is an instant serotonin boost I’m smiling so much. It’s so short though I need more!! So I’ll listen to it again sskskskskjdn

The ‘by your side’ harmony!! I want to dance, it’s so fun and cute omg. Jongseob’s singing yesss.

Secret Sauce

The intro????? i’m-

Beat is sick omg, the build up too. “future’s coming” interesting you should mention that.

Chorus took a totally different turn then I expected lol. The adlibs!!!! The gang vocals!!!! The whispering in the background behind the rapper’s verses holy shit, that’s cool.

Shimmy shimmy count x1000 aosfousduf

Taeyang please, have mercy, also that little ‘sauce’ adlib (i think it was actually Soul for some reason) before Keeho’s lines. What is that noise?? It sounded like an electronic xylophone or something wtf that was so cool

(in conclusion shimmy shimmy has me in a chokehold)

One and only

What????? The teaser didn’t do this song justice I say that like 20 secs in.

BOOM!

Funky lil instrumental, my beloved. Okay if BFF was related to Yes Man, so is this one, it’s like the funky cousin that is so loud but you love them anyway. Life of the party type of thing. BOOM! ZOOM! (i promised I’m not possessed by the music). SOUL LINESSSSSSS I’LL NEVER SHUT UP ABOUT THIS, KID’S DOING SO WELL!! The bridge, there’s so much going on in the instrumental holy shit. NANANANANANAANANA - you know a song is good when it has that.

Look At Me Now

(I really liked the Korean title, it’s something like “the child who swallowed the sun”?) just from the teasers I thought this might be one of my super all times favourite in the piwon catalog, let’s see if that’s true lol.

Jiung I’m on my last straw

THE GUITAR RIFF! INJECT IT INTO MY VEINS RIGHT NOWWWW

DRUMS HOLY HOLY HOLY OMFG

THIS GENRE IS SUCH A GREAT BLEND, ESPECIALLY FOR PIWON

Jongseob pop off my child :’)

“I’m on the top floor” - I’m somewhere in space, speeding toward the sun while listening to this song wbu (this is going to be my new 3am psychosis song lskdjosidsds)

SOUL LINES!!!

This is p1eces’ boxer/WWE theme song, y’know when they announce the contenders and stuff, and they come out to epic music? This is the song

Better Together

(heard this yesterday watching the showcase, it was lovely as a performance)

I love the rapper’s vocals!!

I feel like Taeyang really owns this for some reason - like in the chorus especially.

Piwon’s medium pop ballads are always top notch, they all have that softness and upbeat chord progression that’s like sunshine on a rainy day.

I want an acoustic performance for some reason - I totally see this with a bunch of guitars and maybe around a camp fire?

SOUL LINES!!!!

Piwon harmonies!!!!!

In conclusion, Piwon have a god tier, no-skip discography and when kpoppies find out about them it’s over for everyone. I don’t know how they do it, like every album they put out is consistently brilliant and they manage to stay fresh and do different things while keeping that distinct p1harmony flavour, I really wonder what they put in the fish cake water.

I’m not a person who likes the obsessive fan culture with voting and streaming but honestly I would hope that there’s some way to give piwon a win, they more than deserved it for this whole year, every album/title was incredible and they’ve done so much, I’m so proud of them.

I really hope the guys can have some time off since they really had such a busy year, 3 albums, a tour, extra performances and all the harmony forest stuff too, holy shit, it’s really insane, but it was also so amazing and I hope they’re proud of what they’ve accomplished so far.

anyways, I love p1harmony and I hope you do too <333

#p1harmony #piwon

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mermaidsirennikita · 2 years

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I keep seeing this in your Lisa Keyplas uquizes so what scenes got deleted?

Lol to be very clear, I don't think Lisa was WRONG to edit scenes out per se and I get why she did it, but I do think that in *some* cases she should've just released an edited version alongside the original, whereas she's replacing the original with the edited versions.

The biggest case is with It Happened One Autumn--in the original, Lillian and Westcliff have sex for the first time (her first time ever) while she is SUPER drunk. Like, she wakes up thinking it was a dream. Personally, I am fine with it; she was very into it when you read her perspective. But it's definitely dubcon. I will read dubcon; a lot of people understandably won't. Newer versions have him like, tucking her in to sleep, which is kinda incredibly unbelievable for his character, imo, but okay.

Secrets of Summer Night begins with a prologue in which Simon Hunt kisses Annabelle without her consent, and that got cut. I have no idea why this was cut. It's not a rough kiss; she's not like, alarmed or dismayed. It's a pretty standard romance novel "man kisses woman unexpectedly" kiss, and there are plenty of other kisses in Kleypas books like this that haven't been cut. But she made that call.

In Seduce Me at Sunrise, Kev kidnaps win as a part of like... It's tradition for him, but it's also really just an excuse to tie her up and steal her away to a cottage for them to fuck it out. In the new version, he still kidnaps her but it's presented in a way that's less sexualized, in a sense? Even though Win is SUPER into it either way.

There's shit she also should've cut--in Hello Stranger, the hero discusses being taught how to fuck by a sexy exotic Indian woman. This is cut from new versions after Lisa got a lot of (justified) criticism for it. She apologized, as well. I believe this started the edits, though, and it's weird to me because really, that was an edit done because of racism, which is undeniably bad and needs to be addressed in these books, and the other edits have been done to satisfy a sexual moralism that is NOT universal among romance readers. Some people do not want to read dubcon, others do. A lot of people, tbh, read romance novels and especially older ones because they're seeking that vibe out. I think you should have a choice in what to read and what to like in that sense, but I don't think the original scenes should be erased.

#romance novel blogging

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sidhedust · 2 months

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Rocket and Milky Way!

🚀 Rocket - What do you do when you get new ideas midway through a story?

Simple! The incomplete nature of my project means i can weave things in until the final project is done. So I just add it in and that's that. Unless it's SUPER foundational to the project, I don't redo anything, I just add that idea or motif in when I can in the script/imagery/whatever else. The new ideas I get tend to be small things like this instead of whole plot beats, so it's easy (ish) to weave in lol.

If it is a big idea though, I'll literally rewrite a WHOLE arc to make the story make sense. I'm not kidding, I'll scrap EVERYTHING that gets in the way of a new, better vision if I feel that strongly about its inclusion. I've already done it once or twice for the prologue, since it's the newest part of the story and a good introduction makes for a good first impression. Killing your baby hurts, but it makes the story better in the long run!

🌌 Milky Way - What is the character development like for your characters? Do they change a lot or not much at all?

I was gonna draw a Chart Of Intent to explain how each one changes in the story, but I think it's kinda subjective in my case? To me they change a ton-a lot of them start out as people going through the motions to carving out a life for themselves without fear of their truth or other people's judgement. But to an audience I feel like they may come across as static/flat since the change is gradual and there are key aspects of the characters that won't change, even when they mature/grow into themselves and their "place" in the world.

Stuff like...some characters will always be confrontational and hotheaded, they just learn to tone it down or save it when it's time to be. Or some characters will always carry a torch for/adore another even as things develop and come out about their lover/friend/father figure/mother figure. That can be annoying or exhausting to read, like drama for the sake of drama, even if it is "realistic"-I notice that in fandom, character growth only registers with the fanbase when all negative traits are scrubbed away so that's my frame of reference for all of these assumptions (that and some feedback I've received about the work before about character personalities/expression).

But I like this kind of slow, letting-characters-be-wrong-and-annoying type of writing since it gives the illusion of a living, breathing person, it allows for the kind message to sink in, and with voice acting this drama-esque way of writing REALLY brings them to life. It's dynamic! It allows character growth to feel more satisfying to watch! To me. Lol

#asks #I actually might still make a little chart since it would be handy to have floating around #just for people to find as the series trucks along lol. though this is still assuming that future me has the same plans as present me #I'm also not sure my essay even answers the question but uhhhh TLDR; Luana goes from ''I'm autistic and weird and no one likes me'' to-#''I'm autistic and weird and no one likes me! Yipee! And people actually do like me rabbit-goat-cat thing and all-''#''I'm just in my own head too much." Now copy paste for a lot of the younger cast #it (the character arcs) isn't all about overcoming ostracization but alienation is a big part of every character's arc #anyways. Little chart of intent later! I'm fighting lactose intolerance right now. big time.

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adr1annn · 2 months

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VIPER — Prologue

World count: 3308

Warning- mentions / descriptions of anxiety

Have you ever thought about changing the future? your future? I haven't, I don't believe I have.

-mmh no, no, no it can't end like that...- the sound of the keyboard could be heard throughout the room as the light from the screen illuminating it. It was around 3 in the morning and I was doing an essay for my English class. The teacher allowed us to write whatever we wanted, to show her how we have improved during this school year, and I decided to write something stupid... the multiverse theory. Look, it sounds wonderful but also unbelievable, the part of us being available to go to other universes. I prefer reality.

A yawn escaped my lips, I had reached my limits for tonight. I got up from my chair and went to the bathroom where I changed my clothes getting ready to go to sleep. I stopped when I saw my reflection in the mirror "it's long..." Here comes my best friend, the classic craft scissors. I never use them for the purpose of making crafts but they work very well for my hair. Did I know what I was doing? Absolutely not. I cut the front as much as I could, leaving the two long pieces resting on the side of my face alone. The back was long but I couldn't reach it. I had my back painted a grayish blue and the front was my natural dark brown color. I did a happy dance when I saw that my hair looked perfect as always. I turned off the light and walked to my bed which was by the window. I slept with a beautiful view of the moon, and the horrible view of the other houses, did I care? No, did I sleep well? nope, but I did have a beautiful view of the moon. I fixed my bed only to mess it up again with my body, a satisfying sigh as I felt the cold blankets touch my body. My eyes slowly closed feeling the wave of comfort wash over me – until it was interrupted by the sound of an alarm. My phone turned on and started ringing loudly, I jumped out of bed trying to find it. As soon as I found it I pressed the off button... it was already 7 in the morning... "I didn't sleep at all..." ... "That's what happens to you for sleeping so late" I could hear the soft voice of my mother behind me, I raised my head to see where she was seeing that she had opened the door to my room. An embarrassed smile slowly creeped into my face "it was super early when I started, I promise" ... "3 in the morning is not early" I flopped back into the bed embracing defeat. She approached me, grabbing the back of my hair. "Did you cut it again? You're going to be bald one of these days" I let out a small ouch, she left my room leaving me to change in peace, I headed to the closet grabbing something simple for today; some long denim shorts that were above my knees along with a long-sleeved t-shirt, it was brown with green sleeves, I looked for my shoes and put them on, green converse "perfect..." Once again I entered the bathroom to fix my recently cut hair.

I finally walked out the room jumping off the last step of the stairs running towards the kitchen, the smell of pancake had hit me making my mouth fill with drool. Dad saw me arrive and handed me a plate with three pancakes and slid the honey. Before he could say anything the news started playing, taking my attention.

"Officially today, April 25, the TITAN project begins, little information was revealed to the public, the only thing that can be known about this project is that the sectors will be officially protected after a long time. They are looking for a total of four young people" My father turned off the television before he could finish the report. "All the government does is worry us, they talk a lot and protect little... If they continue like this, Well lose another sector" My mother let out a sigh "It's time to go" I tried to eat quickly but mom had taken away my almost empty plate. I got up from the chair and picked up my backpack again, checking that everything was there.

"Did you finish your essay?"

'I didn't know how to finish it without sounding like a maniac who thinks the planet is flat"

"you already sound like that"

'haha... funny"

I said goodbye, giving my dad a hug and a kiss to my mom on the cheek. I left the apartment, I walked through the hallways full of plants and old people watching the landscape, the complex was difficult to explain but very easy to go from point A directly to point B. The building where I lived was connected to the market building. There were many like Farmacias Sánchez which was very popular for its mascot and of course good medicines, or secrets of good food, a very good store! Every morning around 6:40, the bakery inside puts out the best freshly baked bread and I buy myself three chocolate donuts, a coffee and a cup of chocolate, the best thing before a stressful day at a school for spoiled children. . I walked between the premises on the 15th floor trying to reach the stairs "good morning, Don! Do you need help with orders after school hours?" I asked running towards the stairs "if you are not busy with exams, help would be appreciated young lady" every weekend, Mr. Lee's place is filled with workers from sector A. They have something special with Asian food, and even though they have their own Asian food establishments in Sector A, they still keep coming back here. If I were them, I would also do the same. I quickly went down the stairs, jumping a few steps trying to go faster "oh look there they are!" I looked up and couldn't hold back my smile "three chocolate donuts with espresso and hot chocolate!" one of the workers said out loud, I took my wallet out of my bag, took out the 25 cred and gave it to the young woman who was holding a bag and two cups "fair exchange!" I grabbed the bag of donuts, I gently put the bag inside my backpack and grabbed the cups "have a good day" You can say that I'm a regular. As I went further down the stairs, I could see the traffic on the ground, many soldiers, more than usual... I went down and down, finally arrived but by not moving quickly I was pushed by the wave of hurried workers, I held the drinks tightly trying to ensure that the hot drinks didn't touch my skin. After a few minutes, the longest and most intense minutes of my life, I came out with both cups still full. I looked towards the bus station that was near the sector's frontier. I smiled when I saw that there were still not too many students, the same ones who arrive super early just like me to have their usual seats. I walked with a hurried step, smiling victoriously "identification" a voice that, to be honest, sounded tired and defeated could be heard next to me. I looked to the side finding Zach, one of the many soldier in charge of patrolling sector B "your coffee, Mr. Soldier" putting the coffee in his face, he grabbed it and shook his head taking some of the coffee "the donuts?" he didn't look down at me, already knowing that i had them "I brought you three this time" i took the donuts out of my backpack and handed them to zach. He looked inside the bag seeing the three chocolate donuts before smiling.

Zach, the soldier who seems like a big nerd, had to put up with my nonsense since elementary school, it was a very long 7 years... Now he is old and still alive at 26 years old... How strong! We were watching workers hurriedly run to their work bus while some soldiers scolded others for bothering them. "So, Zach—" the soldier turned to look at me with a sour expression "don't call me by my name..." he said with a donut in his mouth, he stared at me a little and hit me on the shoulder making me complain "you cut your hair, it's shorter than usual" he said, looking back at the stores "is it really that noticeable?" - "you had it a little longer" he responded quickly. After a chat the bus had finally arrived and Zach had pushed me to go to the line, we said goodbye and I got on, walking quickly back and grabbing my usual spot, I smiled victoriously waiting for the others to get on and grab the remaining spots.

Something wasn't right.

A wave of chills invaded my body, the hairs on my arms stood up, the ace was off, and the weather was not cold at all. I looked everywhere trying to see if there was anyone watching me, but nothing. Something in me knew that someone was watching me, intensely... but there was no one watching me. A shout like scream could be heard outside "like an inspection? These kids have to leave immediately!" It was the driver yelling at Zach, who was just apologizing... the truck moved, someone was getting in — but if it wasn't the driver, who was it? The sound of boots could be heard from the entrance, and the heavy breathing bothered the ear. The driver saw how someone got in and in panic he ran to the truck, Zach behind him trying to stop him.

That was when the wave of chills returned.

He was not a soldier

of course...he was a damn pilot.

-What is a pilot doing here?!-

-wait, they're real?-

-I'm scared...-

The whispers of the students were all that could be heard until the pilot tried to speak which made everyone silent, but he didn't say anything. He began to walk, looking at each student quickly, examining them. Slowly, he approached, each student he had already examined looked back, wanting to see who they were looking for. He looked at the girl who sat in the seat next to me, but he didn't look at her for long.

The opposite was for me...

He stared at me for a few seconds, longer than the others. Being district wasn't his biggest availity by the way he was looking at me up and down, a small sound came out which only sounded like a sigh, distorted by the mask. He didn't say anything and left. I let out a sigh, I was holding my breath. The students continued with the whispers until the movement of the bus made them sit properly, thanks to the sound of the bus their whispers didn't bother my ears as much. My heart was beating to the point that it hurt to breathe. I looked outside seeing Zach who was talking to that pilot and handing them a tablet. Honestly, I wish I hadn't seen that.

"Isn't that the boy in the back?" One whispered as soon as he noticed what that tablet contained, it was a photo of me. "What? No, that girl has short hair," his friend whispered back. Why was my face on the tablet?! Did I do something? No, I don't think so? I don't remember... I'm a clown at school!

That time in September during science class, I misread the instructions and made the whole classroom smell bad.

Or the time I brought a glitter bomb and it exploded in the middle of class!

Did I really make such a mess... for them to send me to the school for troubled kids? While I was thinking about my horrible ending, I didn't notice we had already arrived at school. Everyone got off, leaving me at the end.

You know that feeling when you do something embarrassing and everyone is looking at you, that feeling that forms in your stomach, you get dizzy and that disgusting feeling of nausea, wanting to run, get out of that embarrassing situation. The feeling was slowly building up, my trembling hands gripped the bag tightly, slowly walking down the steps of the bus. It felt like millions of ants were biting me all over my body, but it was just my imagination. Everyone's eyes stuck on me, I didn't do anything wrong, why are they looking at me like that. The school doors opened and I quickly looked for the elevator trying to escape all of those eyes. It felt like I was doing circles but I finally found one. touching the button multiple times, the wave of students walking to the building "open, open" as soon as the elevator opened i walked inside pressing the button to close it. I sighed in relief, my back touched the wall, leaning on it, I was breathing so fast that I felt like I was going to faint. My legs were about to give up but the sound of the elevator made me stand up

-hi-

-hello-

Silence . . . sweat, I could feel the sweat falling down my forehead, my hands were seas of sweat, just thinking about it made me sick. The elevator went up and the awkward silence increased, it was as if I could hear the dust falling and landing on me...

-I like your backpack-

-thank you...-

The door opened and I quickly walked towards my class. My day couldn't get worse, Oh, the desire to die was out the roof, but jumping off this floor would only break some bones. I was already more than late, I knew that if I opened that door, the teacher would scold me worse than the last time. My hand reached for the door handle but I stopped, silence again. Something is not right... Why is no one talking? Why is nothing okay? I was doubtful but in the end I opened it. Smiling, I entered the class watching as the teacher looked at the class with a worried expression "sorry for being late. There was an accident," I said, waiting for the teacher to scream... nothing, again. I didn't want to move, but I had to sit in my seat. Every step I took I felt like I was going to fall, my legs felt weak "a crazy man posing as a pilot stopped the bus and I couldn't..." I should've just skipped class.

"arrive early..." In front of me was the same pilot I had seen in the bus. That feeling returned to my body, my head felt light but my stomach felt heavy, going around and around only to feel the food return to my throat, wanting to vomit but I held it in. "Student number 4003" a painfully long pause, waiting for me to respond to which I only shook my head "you will come with me" I don't want to. I looked at the teacher, who obviously had many questions but she didn't dare ask them. I don't want to go with him. I looked at the pilot once more seeing that he had a miniature box, handcuffs? I had seen them before, the box encloses your hands up to your wrists preventing the movement of the user "what happens if I don't want to?" ... "We do it the easy or the bad way" not like I have many options.

A black canvas, a white circle, eyes, thousands of eyes, following you as you reach that white circle, bright and warm, your own eyes going everywhere trying to focus on the path but finding it difficult thanks to the thoughts This is how I would explain this situation. The pilot had put my hands on the handcuffs, he led me back towards the entrance holding me by the back of my neck while his other hand held my belongings. My head was too heavy, I couldn't lift it and I just looked at the ground, could it be the shame? Definitely... I looked at my feet and listened to the whispers of the other students.

When we reached the door, the strong wind accompanied by the rays of the sun made my eyes close. I opened my eyes slowly, the sun blocking my view but I could finally see it, a damn dropship "I don't understand, where are you taking me?" The pilot didn't answer and continued his way. Dropships were not uncommon, usually used for transportation of goods or military use, it was rare to see one if you didnt work for some organization or company. He finally let go of me as soon as we entered the ship. I sat in one of the small seats that the ship had. I have seen ships before but I never imagined being in one. Two knocks could be heard and the ship began to make noises moving sideways. I held on tightly to the belts. There were two long windows and I could see how the ship rose. Slowly we moved away from the institute. The pilot was sitting a few seats away from where I was, I didn't understand who was driving this ship.

An awkward silence...

If looks could kill, I would be dead the second the pilot sat down in front of me. He didn't say anything and I had given up asking questions until a voice could be heard in the front of the ship "come on... this is so uncomfortable" a somewhat tall woman came out of the pilot's compartment, she had long brown hair, a fringe that I hugged her cheeks and had a very nice smile "we weren't talking..." the pilot said which made the woman complain and sit next to me "exactly, your lack of communication makes me uncomfortable" a laugh escapes my lips quickly shutting up as soon as i felt that the two were looking at me "what's your name?" the woman gave me a playful punch on the shoulder which made me look at her again "oh my name is" –

-their identification number is 4003-

-i didn't ask you, viper-

So his name is Viper... "My name is Daniella, my pleasure 03" she said, extending her hand, giving me a smile "don't talk to them..." Viper said in a low voice, lowering his gaze to the ground "fine"

Daniella returned to the cockpit preparing the ship for landing, Viper stood up in front of the door ready to open it and get out. And I continue with these handcuffs that look like cement blocks "and we arrived!" Daniella said with a tone of happiness leaving the cabin, grabbing my backpack and putting it on her shoulder. She helped me get up while Viper opened the door "welcome to Sector C"... "excuse me?"

There were thousands of stories about Sector C, none of them talked about what Sector C was like before the accident. Speaking of accidents, Sector C is the reason we have sectors... A few years ago this place was a white canvas, a field full of animals and flowers, you know, the classic thing about a place untouched by society. The government thought it was a perfect place to do their secret projects, they were never revealed but there was a theory that they were the reason for the contamination of the forest, the animals became wild and recently the government found mutants. To save what was left, the government locked up that entire area, covering it with houses and markets, that is the sector known as B. They realized that the land was unstable and nothing could be harvested for at least some kilometers, so they made another area for the rich and left the others below, separating themselves into sector A... yes, the land is still dead but a little art and plants in jars cover everything, they recently put in fake grass!

"03, are you okay?" ... -what? Oh yes, just that, I never imagined entering the sector... it is very difficult to enjoy" everything was dark and humid, the ground was muddy and it seemed like it had a filter like in the movies "if you don't mind, could you tell me where we are going" I asked, watching how the pilot walked deeper into the forest, Daniella behind him. I didn't want to go but I also didn't know what was hiding in this forest.

"There are things that are out of our control. Forgive me but I can't tell you" it was obvious that I wasn't going to get information just by asking. I tried to look ahead but all I could see was the heavy fog and the trees that seemed to reach into the sky. A small uff left my lips as I felt my body hit Daniella's back "we arrived" there was nothing. In front of us there was a path made of wood, you could tell that it was not stable since the wood was not completely together "follow the path, someone will be waiting for you on the other side"

"you know I can easily leave rig—"

"These parts are covered with monsters, dangerous animals that I doubt you can beat in a fight, the border is blocked and access to semi-human creatures is denied. Any other questions?"

I stayed silent, it was useless to continue the fight. I turned around and followed that wooden path, still, this was scary. The sound of waves moving and the sound of creatures growling made the hair on my arms stand up. The path seemed endless until the fog slowly disappeared revealing a beautiful pink sky, white clouds with a rainbow crown. It looked straight out of a movie, finally at the end of the path there was a man, looking toward the snow covered mountains, the sound of a branch breaking got his attention making him turn around. His face, how to even describe it... He had long hair that was neatly tied back in a half ponytail, the left part of his face and down his neck was burnt slightly, he wore a white suit and a black trench coat. His gloved hands grabbed the cigarette out of his mouth and gently smiled

"hello 03"

#ask viper #hunter lastimosa #lilith smith #team viper #viper the book

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snowmuttgetsweird · 1 year

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3/6/23 (technically- it's after midnight but for me it's still Sunday till I go to sleep and wake up again. Same thing with the last post- it was technically already Sunday, but for me it still felt like Saturday.)

The pot roast came out great. I didn't actually have a bowl myself cause I've noticed that overeating tends to exacerbate the panic attacks, and I was still pretty full from a late lunch, but I taste-tested it for seasoning and to make sure the veggies softened, and it was pretty dope. I just walked to a MeeTea and picked up a green milk tea with some sago instead- super yummy, very satisfying.

SALT YOUR MEAT AHEAD OF TIME. It makes a BIG difference- just salt it generously and put it on a plate in the fridge, uncovered, 24 hours in advance. It's just an old fashioned Campbell's Soup pot roast but little things like that can really elevate it. I'd really like to convince my roommate to let me deglaze the pan with some red wine after searing the outside of the chuck roast. He's not a big fan of wine flavors in cooking, but I'll try to win him over next time.

Oh, also my roomie and I cleaned up our apartment. We've been sitting on our Christmas tree and finally put it away today. It's one of those things that just gets away from you, but I decided we needed to ride that wave of productivity and just do it today, and we ended up cleaning the whole place. We both did our sheets, our towels, I cleaned the whole kitchen (almost exclusively my domain), reorganized our pantry, etc. Vacuumed and aired out the whole place. The weather was beautiful all day- chilly, but just BARELY warm enough to be t-shirt weather, about 50 F, with intermittent showers. I absolutely love dreary, overcast weather.

Also started a new book. I'm only through the prologue, but it's interesting so far: The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. Pmuch immediately establishes an interesting magic system that got me thinking again about a character I used to RP in a freeform chat with friends named Noland- a psychic whose powerset was grounded in fun comicbook-y pseudoscience. Maybe I'll talk about him here later? I get to pretend I know something about thermodynamics and stuff when I do, it's fun to talk about.

Oh, and on Friday I "finished" a big project I've been working on for a client that I kinda had to prioritize that was keeping me from really working on the other commissions I've taken, so I finally get to get back to work on those tomorrow. There's technically still more to do, but it's all back-burner stuff I don't have to prioritize over my usual workload. I'm actually pretty excited for that. It feels good to feel like I'm making progress. It really sucks feeling sorta "stuck" on just one project or piece and not really being able to step away and work at my own pace. It usually helps me a lot to jump around between jobs throughout the day, because I can say that I touched and made progress on multiple things, and one will inevitably capture my attention that day, and then I can hyper-focus on that one until it's just done. It makes me incredibly thankful for how patient the vast majority of my clients have been- I'm spoiled rotten that way.

Big batch of pot roast in the fridge, a new book (been a few months since I was actively working through a book), more good meals on the way, a clean apartment, good weather, even a slightly rekindled interest in one of my own OCs... Not to mention another panic attack free day...

Tax stuff aside, this has potential to be a good week. Feeling tired, but optimistic and hopeful. I think I'll try to start tomorrow morning with a short walk.

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64bitgamer · 2 years

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a-really-mediocre-writer · 3 years

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Troy Otto Imagine No.2

* NOT MY GIF CREDIT TO @beautiful-killers *

request by @grxce101-blog :

“ Hey can u do a Troy Otto one where he is like super possessive of her and nick is trying to be evoke friends with her cause she seems like one of the most normal people at the ranch and Troy gets super possessive and jealous ❤️ “

CW: kinda smut but not really, fem pronouns

Hope you enjoy!!<3

—bit of a prologue really—

Things with Troy started off the same as most relationships do in the new world. He had found you in some trouble with a herd of walkers all alone a couple of months before the Clarks had turned up at the front gates of your new home.

After you had arrived at the Ranch, Troy ensured that you were with him all day from breakfast to dinner, walking you home on the nights he wasn’t busy and taking you around during the day to “help him with work around the ranch” when in reality it was because he saw you as his responsibility and had begun to catch feelings for you. It didn’t take very long for him to develop feelings for you because of all this time spent together, which he ended up admitting whilst in a fit of rage after one of the men from the militia had returned from a mission not knowing who you are and mistakenly hitting on you.

“I don’t get what the big deal is, Troy!” You yell at him watching as he furiously paces around his room which he had called you into after the guy wouldn’t leave you alone.

“He doesn’t get to talk to you like that, Y/N! It isn’t allowed- Not while I’m here!” He yells back still pacing with his hands running through his hair frantically.

“He didn’t do anything wrong! I don’t get it! Please- Make me understand, Troy! Make me understand!” You argue as you wave your hands around in front of your face furiously. When he doesn’t stop pacing you walk over towards him and grab him by his shoulders strongly, stopping him in his tracks and forcing him to look at you. “Please, Troy…” You trail off getting lost in his eyes watching as tears started to well up in the hues of blue. Troy lets out a frustrated sigh and looks down at his feet avoiding eye contact only for you to place your thumb and index finger on his chin gently bringing his face back up to face yours. You both stare at each other occasionally allowing your eyes to fall to glance at his pink lips, him doing the same.

You allow your hand that was holding his chin to slide to hold his cheek tenderly, making him close his eyes and sigh calmly allowing himself to melt into your hand.

“Are you ready to tell me yet?”

At this he slowly opens his eyes before shoving his face forward towards yours, kissing you while moving his hands to the back of your head and cheek. Shocked at this you didn’t even react which did not go unnoticed by the Otto boy, who pulls away from you after a moment taking in the shocked look on your face before shaking his head and wiping his hands over his face in frustration.

“I’m not good with words-“

You practically pounce on him, wrapping your arms around his neck pulling you up to his height and kissing him. You both held each other closely, his arms wrapped around your body, and your lips stayed connected until you needed to breathe.

“It’s okay…I’m not either.” You say to his breathlessly with a smile.

—end of prologue thingy—

You were helping out in the kitchen area of the camp the day after Troy had returned from his militia trip to the border and although you were missing him, the food couldn’t make itself.

Almost out of nowhere new boy Nick Clark appears in front of you with a small friendly smile, which you return immediately.

“Hey! Nick, was it?”

“Yeah. You are?”

“Oh right sorry,” You laugh lightly and continue, “I’m Y/N. Y/N L/N. I would shake your hand but I don’t think that these people would appreciate spreading germs or whatever in their food.” You joke sarcastically to which he scoffs.

“You seem…different? to the rest of them…Did you just get here too?”

“Not really recently, but I was taken in a few months ago after Troy saved my life from the dead.” You smile as you reminisce about your boyfriend. Nick just nods awkwardly at the mention of Troy however changes the conversation abruptly. “So…Are you with family here then? Or are you alone?” He asks you curiously, however before you can even answer his question a certain somebody called Troy Otto answers it for you.

“She’s with me.” Troy answers, snaking his arm around your waist before grabbing your hip tightly in his large hand and kissing the top of your head as he made eye contact with Nick. “Hey, Troy!” You exclaim excitedly as you had barely spent any time with him since he got back from the border. You smile up at him and he smiles back as he pulls you closer to him and leans down to kiss you properly.

“Oh right, Nick this is my girlfriend.” Troy announces proudly as he holds you tightly in a possessive or protective way- you couldn’t tell just yet. You notice Troy throwing a dirty look towards the ratty haired boy and decide to nudge him with your hip to get him to calm down a bit.

“Well, congratulations on your relationship, Y/N.” Nick says directly to you purposely ignoring that your boyfriend is Troy. You smile at him, thanking him and wrapping your arm around Troy in an attempt to get him to calm down a bit.

“Well Nick I think you are done here.” He glares at the man in front of you both and puffs his chest up, straightening his back in a clear attempt to make himself look bigger.

“Well Troy my shift is over now…” You say to him and put a reassuring hand on his chest with your other arm wrapped around him. Troy looks down at you with a stern look on his face to which you roll your eyes.

“We should hang out some time, Y/N!” Nick says loudly as you are pulled away by your boyfriend. “No she’s fine, she doesn’t need to see you, Nick.” He shouts at him harshly and pulls you away from everyone else.

“Troy-“

“I want you to stay away from him.”

“What?”

“Stay away from Nick.”

“But why?”

Silence.

You place your hands on his cheeks and stand chest to chest with the large man, staring up at him before planting a long, passionate kiss onto his lips.

“Troy what’s-“

“You are mine.” Troy whispers into your lips.

“I know, Troy. I’m yours and you are mine.” You smile up at him before enveloping him into a tight hug, your arms around his neck and his around your waist. He lets out a sigh of relief at your words and melts into the hug; then he noticed Nick watching from afar behind you. Without you noticing he makes eye contact with him and allows his hand to fall over your ass, squeezing it which makes you gasp and pull back a bit to kiss him again. His mouth trails down to your neck, causing you to bite your lip with you still holding yourself up with your arms around his neck.

“Troy-“ You say breathily as he continues to bite and suck on a single spot on your neck. “Troy- not here-“ After he is satisfied with the mark left on your neck he lets go and whispers to you, foreheads both leaning against each other and both breathing heavily,

“Now everyone will know that you’re mine.”

#troy otto x you #troy otto x y/n #troy otto x reader #troy otto fanfic #troy otto imagine #troy ftwd #troy otto #fanfic #ftwd fanfiction #fanfiction #ftwd imagine #ftwd #ftwd fanfic #ftwd oneshot #twdu #imagine

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