#Writing small snippets about them instead of a chapter

[revelboo]

can I just say how much I love! your!! writing!!! I wasn’t really a Starscream or Bluestreak fan before because I have a tunnel vision on Bumblebee but stumbling upon your account made me adore them so much!! I like how neat your writing style is even though you make it as bullet points because I’m usually not fond with bullet points style, however! Something about how you focus on the description and “show not tell” the most is sooo tasty idk how to describe it. Thank you for your wonderful writings 😔🙏💕

Thank you! The bullet points were mostly a way to clearly demarcate a view point shift since these are snippets rather than anything fully fleshed out. Normally, I’d only head hop every other chapter in a paranormal romance manuscript, but that wouldn’t work here.

Also: Pleasure to Meet You by Motion City Soundtrack is my theme for this fic

Everything is Alright pt 34

IDW Starscream x Reader

• Watching you walk over to your stash of human things on his desk, a little more tension eases. Everything right again, even though he’s fully aware of how fragile it is. That worry still there eating at him, a dark tide just waiting to crash down on him. But not at this moment. You offer him a little smile as you drape that old cleaning cloth he first gave you about your shoulders. Like a ghost, Soundwave’s disdainful ‘inadequate’ floats through his processor.

• Somehow going back with Starscream feels more like reality than going home to your actual life had. Like everything else was a dream, less real than this. Because this has become home. Well, not quite if you’re being honest. It’s not this place at all. It’s him and it’s a curious new feeling, fragile. Breathing in the scent of him from your blanket, something settles inside you and you look up as he runs a big hand over his helm, wings fidgeting. “After my rotation, we’ll refuel together,” he says, optics flicking to your dwindling supply of stolen junk food. It’s not a request to share a meal, but a certainty that you will do this. You smile anyway.

• “I’d like that.” You’re smiling at him, happy to be near him. Glad to see him and it almost hurts, a bittersweet ache that he’d almost given this away. Let you slip out of his hands. Reaching down, he runs the tip of a servo over your soft cheek, the touch lingering as you reach up to lay a hand on him. Such a small thing, but it means more than you can ever realize. It takes an effort of will to break that contact instead of curling his servos around you and bringing you to cradle against him.

• There’s an impulse to call out after him when he leaves, and your fingers fist in your blanket to keep yourself still. To not run to the edge of the desk and reach out. He’s not leaving you again. You know it, but that jangling uncertainty is still there. That he might leave and not return.

• You’re back. Soundwave hesitates, feeling that now familiar tangle of emotion at the back of his processor. When you’d just disappeared from his awareness, he’d assumed Starscream had accidentally killed you. It had always been a possibility with the Seeker’s temper. Thought that you were just gone and that loss has twisted about his spark, because as frustrating as the chaos of your mind is, he’s gotten to where it’s familiar. Always just there at the back of his processor, a warm presence he can’t shut out like music softly playing. He’s pushing up from his desk, aware of his cassettes looking up in surprise.

• When the door slides open, you stand up expecting Starscream, but it’s Soundwave. His helm turns, visor flaring slightly as he spots you and strides over. Head tipping back as he reaches a huge hand for you, almost not noticing the faint tremble as his servos curl around you and he lays his other palm on the desk, big frame bowing over you. Silent aside from the ragged sound of him venting. One of his servos slides against your neck over your pulse, but otherwise he’s still aside from that strange shivering. You lay your palms on his hand, staring at that unreadable, hidden face. Had he been worried about you? That fragile feeling you don’t dare examine too closely stirs as you wish you weren’t so very small so you could wrap your arms around him. Around them both, because they’re yours. And it’s worth fighting for.

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[quintessenceofdust88]

Fuck it Friday

I was tagged by @bidisasterevankinard, @agentpeggycartering, @laundryandtaxesworld and @fairytalegonewronga03 (thank you so much lovelies!! ♥) Here's a snippet of chapter 5 of Tsunami Fic!

It’s been three days since the tsunami, and Tommy is finally ready to let Vivie out of his sight for more than ten minutes; they’ve spent pretty much all of their time at home as both her and Sal recover from it all, physically and emotionally. Sal’s been staying with them, and Tommy’s insisting he stays until his medical leave is over in a week.  

But now Tommy needs to go for his first shift since everything happened, and he’s pretty sure Sal is having a harder time with it than Vivie. While his daughter is happily lying on the floor, her socked feet swinging in the air as she colors a piece of paper, his best friend is eyeing Tommy warily from where he’s sitting on the couch, as he ties his shoes. 

“Tommy”, he mutters. “Are you sure you want to do this? You… I won’t be offended if you get a babysitter or take her to someone else, you know? I… I’d understand after…”

Tommy sighs; he’s tried to blow off every single apology Sal sent his way ever since the tsunami. They’re safe, and Vivie is completely fine, and Tommy doesn’t blame Sal for any of it. But that doesn’t mean Sal is convinced, and Tommy’s starting to think he’ll need an extra hand. 

“Vivie?” He calls. 

“Yeah?” She answers, still focused on her drawing. 

“Do you want Daddy to call someone else to take care of you while I work?” Tommy asks, and that makes her raise her head in alarm. 

“Why?! Is Uncle Sal not okay?! Are you feeling bad, uncle Sal?” She rushes to them, throwing herself in Sal’s lap. He wraps his arms around her, a sheepish smile on his face.

“I’m feeling fine, darlin’, don’t you worry about me.” He tells her, ruffling her hair, and she sighs in relief. “Do… you want me to take care of you?” Sal asks, sounding impossibly insecure, and Vivie glares at him in a way that’s eerily reminiscent of Tommy’s own bitchy expression. 

“Duh, uncle Sal, you’re my favorite uncle. You play the best games and you sing Barbie songs with me!” She tells him as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

Tommy, in his defense, does his best not to look smug, but he doesn’t think he actually succeeds. As he finishes tying his shoes, he gets up, raising an eyebrow at Sal, who’s glaring at him.

“Well”, Tommy quips, grabbing his car keys. “I guess that settles the matter, doesn’t it? You guys have fun signing Barbie tunes as I go to work. You behave for your uncle, pixie, okay?”

He presses a kiss to Vivie’s forehead, half expecting her to say goodbye to him and cuddle up against Sal. What she does instead is gasp and scramble out of her uncle’s lap, rushing back to her paper. As she grabs it, a healthy amount of glitter falls on the floor, and Tommy doesn’t even want to think about the clean-up. He guesses he could ask Sal to take care of it, but it doesn't seem like a fair thing to the concussed guy. 

“Wait, Daddy!” She says, and then she shoves the card into his hand. “You have to take this!”

Tommy frowns, and looks down at the card. His cheeks instantly blush when he sees the wobbly ‘To: Mr. Evan’ that’s written on the top corner, along with a much neater ‘From: Genevieve’ on the bottom (she’s only five, but she’s already a master at writing her own name, Tommy is proud to say). There’s a very glittery blue heart in the middle, and when Tommy opens the card to take a peak, he sees two sticky figures: Genevieve, holding Marsh, and a bigger one that can only be Evan, based on the blue eyes and the small pink birthmark drawn above one of them.

---

Np (real np cause it's barely Friday for me, and I think it's not Friday anymore for a lot of people hehe) tagging @unhingedangstaddict @littlepaws9 @typicalopposite and whoever else would like to join!! ♥

[di-42]

This month has been blessed with some of the best stories I've read/I'm reading in a while and cursed, as usual, with criminally limited time to read and write (and to have walks in the park, and to snuggle with my husband on the sofa, and to go to exhibitions… but I digress, don't I?).

Aaaaaanyway. Here are the things I loved about

March’s Mouthwatering Fictions

WIPs:

Scorn And The Saint-Maker, by beardo @e-rated-beardo, rated E, chapters 35/?

This story is so incredibly compelling. You'll find yourself constantly trying to unravel the puzzle of Anthony Crowley and Angel Fell, thinking back of all the Clues the writer has scattered here and there so far. The characterisation is spot on, the smut is just so, oh, delicious, and the writer’s beautiful use of “Oh, but”s had me sigh like Aziraphale when reading Jane Austen. All mixed up in an incredibly clever plot. We meet old and new and new-but-old-really friends and what the blooming freak is going on? The details are impressive, and did I mention beardo also does the amazing artwork? 

This is definitely one of those fics that make you wonder at the fact that the author is not a full time writer and artist and instead does this for free as a gift to us. What more can a reader ask for? 

Also, no matter if you've ever been or will ever go to Aberdeen, prepare to fall in love with the city and its university campus.

Is There A Version? by @lookingatacupoftea , rated M, chapters 11/25.

Because life, I still have to catch on the chapters that have been already posted, but, oh I'M LOVING THIS SEASON 3 FICTION! I'm loving it so much! It's so, so refreshing to read someone else’s story that shares my headcanon and my vision of the characters. Please please please go and read it!

Chicken Bites, by AMangoNamedChicken, rated M, chapters 28/?

A collection of small snippets in the lives of our ineffables. Every chapter can be read on its own as a little bite and you can skip some chapters if you want and still be able to enjoy the others. Great humour and lovely fluff, but really every chapter is different and can have a different tone. 

Wavelengths & Frequencies, by imposterssyndrome @maaikeatthefullmoon, @shadesofecclescakes , rated E, chapters 19/?

Human AU in which Aziraphale and Crowley are rival radio DJs who find themselves working for the same media company. This story is filled with lovely banter and humour and has all the right feels. 

My own new WIP, Deluded, rated M, chapter 1/ 5.

Human AU. Crowley has been sent to a blind date with Maggie's friend Aziraphale. But Crowley doesn't do dates, only one-night stands. He's done with feelings and stuff. So he delivers the little speech he has prepared to Aziraphale and they never see each other again. 

HA!

Joking. We all know that's never going to happen, don't we?

When I was finishing writing my season 3 fic, I promised myself that all I would write after that would be only human AUs with hardly any plot, and boy am I keeping that promise! Welcome to another story where all that happens is two people meeting, talking, thinking, falling in love and dealing with their own and each other's cluelessness. 

Complete stories: 

That Isn't Supposed To Happen, by @addledmongoose , rated T, 127k.

I adore Addled’s stories and style and have done since the first one I read over a year ago. Each new story is a lovely gift, and this reverse omens AU doesn't disappoint one bit. There's plot, there's a mystery to solve, there's oh, so much wonderful pining, there's humour, there's great characterisation and there's demon Azira. I don't think I'll ever be able to stress enough how being a demon suits Aziraphale perfectly. He was born to be a demon; Crowley's demon to be precise. The dynamics between the two of them is simply perfect. I loved loved loved this fiction! 

Anthony J. Crowley: Private Eye, by Tigerseye67, rated M, 14k.

Lovely human AU written in the style of a 40s noir film. Crowley is a private detective and Aziraphale hires him to recover a book that Gabriel stole from him. Several plot twists later everything ends well for our heroes, in this intriguing case!

One-shots:

Heir, by ddagent, rated T, 2k.

Just a lovely peek into the life of future king Aziraphale on the day of his brother’s Gabriel funeral. He meets leader of opposition and anti-monarchist Crowley. This story left a delicious taste of nostalgia and what-ifs in my mouth; it was brief and effective. But a fair warning: if you need unquestionable closure in the fics you read, maybe you might want to give this one a miss. I loved it.

Ghost, by AppleSeeds, rated T, 5k.

Human AU. Crowley seems to have a ghost in his flat who takes care of him by preparing relaxing hot baths and providing nice meals. Don't worry, though, this is fiction, and AppleSeeds fiction at that. Happy ending guaranteed. 

Just Another Day, by @enderhuntresss , rated E, 2k.

Such a lovely and fluffy (and hot) slice of life in the future of our favourite ineffables. This story is what awaits them on the other side of saving the world and we're all looking forward to for them. 

Smooth Criminal, by Sabotaged_Words @sabotage-on-mercury, rated T, 11k.

Oh,I adored this story! I have already recommended it to anyone who would listen and I'll recommend it again! It's a human AU where petty criminal Crowley tries to steal items from Aziraphale's bookshop and that's how their friendship begins. Delightful humour, warm vibes, great characterisation, hilarious references to canon: this fiction is a gem.

Thwarted Snark, by TogetherAgain, rated G, 400 words.

The first time Crowley sees Aziraphale again after he went back to heaven, he really wants to be snarky and sarcastic. But what he wants and what they both need are two very different things. Lovely and heartwarming.

As always, I tried to tag the authors whose tumblr username I know to show them that their fictions are loved. If you want your fiction removed from this list, or know an author who wants their fiction removed, please let me know.

As always, pleeeeeease, don't judge a fiction by the number of kudos!

Winter 2025 here

April's 2025 here

[mushies-stories]

Not leaving this one behind

Slasher!Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley X F!Reader

summary: Simon moved to America after retiring and had taken up serial killing and stuff and you caught his eye. Simons been realizing some things about himself and he's sure your just what he needs.

warning: murder, gore, smut, pnv, kidnapping, more to be added as i go

Author's notes: so I've not been writing for like ever, but this i just couldn't stop writing. here a little snippet of the set up and what's to come. chapter one is written and ill be revising it tomorrow then it will be posted!

Also happy Halloween for those who care! This is my contribution this season 💜

Full chapter one

prologue

Simon felt a little incomplete. Like his hunt wasn't finished, or it just hadn’t satisfied him enough. Lately he’s been feeling lonely, like killing isn't enough anymore and he's coming to realize that that loneliness is the reason he’s been leaving survivors every once in a while. 

He seems to be developing a ‘type’ some would say as well. When he encounters them he likes the thought of them staying alive to remember him, like he will remember them. Their adorable faces when they cried to him and begged for their lives. Hearing their sweet shaky little voices while their bodies shook in his hold. Seeing how devastated they are when he leaves them alive surrounded by the horrors of their dead friends. 

This last group was just a bunch of highschool football players drunk and being idiots. Not very inspiring. 

The universe must be twisted however.

Here Simon is, on his long drive home from a weekend of hunting and killing only to come across another group at a small dingy rest step. Your group pulled in a few minutes after him while he was filling his tank up and caught his attention the moment he saw a couple dumb guys hopped out of the Rv and two giggling girls followed behind. 

Overall the group looked like your usual unimpressive lot. At least that's what he was about to conclude with, until one of the other girls turned back and called out for someone. 

“Y/N? What are you waiting for, don't you want some snacks?” She asks. 

“Yeah! Sorry, I just wanted to finish this chapter, I'm coming!” Simon's interest then peaked once his eyes were on you. Your knee length skirt swayed around you and you looked cozy in your oversized cardigan. You glanced around a little and in doing so you caught Simon's gaze. He didn't flinch or look away, instead he gave you a short nod. You returned the gesture with a small sweet smile and a little nod of your own before heading after your friends.

He figured you'd wouldn't be as welcoming at the sight of as you were. He had a good amount of height against you and body mass. Half his face being covered by a mask is what really always gets people though. Big and scary described him perfectly.

This was not a group you seemed to fit into based on looks alone he noticed. You just seemed too sweet and nice to hang around a group like this. Or maybe they just looked worse then they all were, maybe Simons had been hunting these kinds of people for so long he was stereotyping them as such a group. 

Either way it doesn't matter, it was because of you the outcome had been decided. The moment Simon's eyes landed on you and saw that sweet little smile of yours he knew. He will follow you to whatever cabin or campsite or whatever and make sure to give you a night you’ll never forget.

With his mind made up he quickly checked his duffle bag for a tracker, if you weren’t staying in a cabin and got off grid it would be able to track you no matter what. The way the RV was parked it wasn’t hard to just place it under the front bumper without being noticed, then he was hopping back in his truck. Simon waits for just one more glance of you as you exit the rest stop, snacks and drinks in your arms and a bright adorable smile on your face.

He followed a few miles behind the whole drive and parked his truck five miles out. You ended up going pretty far off the normal map to an almost completely secluded area of the woods. Thing was it was also fall in the northern america and it's not always that populated this time of year so you happen to be the only people camping out this far currently. 

Simon couldn't believe how perfect these conditions seemed to have ended up for him. These things after all are always done best in the dead of night, and in these woods? Simon couldn't think of a better hunting ground. Now all he had to do was wait.

~thanks for reading~

[mintraindrop]

481 STAR WARS 481 STAR WARS ‼️

I hope you know what you just did cause now I won’t be able to shut up about this.

so, this is basically a recap.

@fairielux and I had a few not yet connected ideas about landoscar in a star wars au at the end of last year cause... duh? obvious choice, right?

and then we started to take notes, make moodboards, edits, collect songs that fit the vibe, start background reseach (which is mostly Lu's doing. I'm just the one asking questions if this or that is logical and fits the canon storyline), connected scenes and storylines...

...in January we started writing. we're three chapters in right now (and updated the third just last weekend!!) and honestly, it’s already way past the wordcount I thought we would reach with this.

keep in mind that everything that’s up on ao3 as of right now - as in chapter 1-3 - was originally just going to be the prologue.

technically, it IS the prologue. it's just that we didn’t expect it to be close to 50k words.

if anyone wants to look for it, it's

Satellites - A Star Wars Story on ao3

also, have a snippet (from chapter 1, cause I don’t wanna spoiler anything from chapter 4 yet)

still one of my all time favourite scenes of this (written by Lu!!)

They go back and forth, falling into a rhythm as the training hall slowly fades away. Lando’s focus is only on Oscar. He can feel the subtle changes in Oscar’s extension of the Living Force, when he’s reaching out, studying Lando’s moves. It feels as if they’ve danced this routine before, Lando thinks they both know all the steps. It makes him feel confident.

So he does something bold. Once he is on the offensive again, he swings his practice sword across, from the right, towards Oscar’s middle. Oscar catches his attack in time and instead of staying on the defensive, he answers Lando’s challenge with an attack of his own. Their training swords meet, they are face to face, and from this close Lando can see the anticipation in Oscar’s eyes, a small smirk visible on both of their faces.

He decides to press on, launching three precise strikes towards the younger, who responds with the same determination. They fall into a duel without either of them noticing.

thank you for your attention. back to the 481 star wars doc I go.

[reallypleasanttree]

“Wedding Plans” Chapter 27 snippet because it’s Valentine’s Day. 🥰

“Now, our bride and groom have prepared their own vows,” Kyojuro said and gestured to the bride. “Kanae, if you would like to begin.”

Kanae dipped her head and cast a glance at Mitsuri who passed her a slip of paper with her delicate script. Mitsuri warned Obanai that Kanae’s vows were worth crying over. Now it was the moment of truth. 

“The moment I met you I never imagined we would be saying our vows in front of our friends and family years later. When we met I thought you were blunt, hotheaded, and abrasive, which you were or are,” Kanae said, which earned a laugh from the audience. Anyone who knew Sanemi would say the same. 

“You were everything I wasn’t, but then I realized that part of you was only the surface.” The bride looked up from the paper to share a smile with her groom. There was no mistaking the emotion between them. “I was quick to judge when I shouldn’t have and I came to love all your parts. You’re blunt, but it means you're honest to a fault. You’re hotheaded, yet it shows how passionate you are. You’re abrasive, but it reminds me how dedicated you are to your loved ones. No one would argue with your devotion to your family and that’s part of the reason I grew to love you.”

“I admire your ability to challenge me to be the best version of myself. We may get into fights, but they come from a place of mutual respect and love. As we enter this next chapter, I know we’ll continue to challenge each other and grow together as people and a couple,” Kanae continued. 

“So today and for the rest of our lives, I promise to always be there for you. Whether it’s to discuss the mating rituals of beetles, the rotation of the earth, or argue over the best way to drive to the movie theater.” The audience chuckled knowing how the couple would get into small tiffs. 

“I always want to be by your side, Sanemi,” she said. Her light purple eyes softened. “Because living beside you makes me the happiest woman alive.” 

The bride blinked away the tears that threatened to pour. Obanai couldn’t see  Sanemi’s face, but his shoulders trembled slightly. No doubt Sanemi was attempting to control his emotions in front of everyone. There was a moment of silence. Kyojuro’s eyes brightened as he turned his attention to Sanemi. 

“That was beautiful, Kanae. Now Sanemi  if you would like to say your vows,” Kyojuro said. Sanemi was quiet and pulled a paper out of his pocket. He held the sheet with both hands and scanned the words. Another moment passed before the white haired man finally spoke.

“I’ve never been the sort of man to speak or write eloquently. Obanai helped me write these vows, but they don’t accurately express how I feel about you.” Sanemi crumpled the piece of paper and shoved it in his pocket. Obanai tried his best not to facepalm. Sanemi said he wanted Kanae to cry hearing his vows, now he ensured it. 

“I don’t need to recite how beautiful, smart, confident, and strong you are. You know exactly who you are and I love that about you,” Sanemi said bluntly. Kanae’s eyes warmed at his words. She took his hands in her’s and squeezed.  “Instead, I am going to vow to get up every morning to make you a cup of coffee with cream, to listen to your worries, and to love you more every day. Whatever the future brings, know I’ll be on your side.” Kanae blinked away the tears forming at the corners of her eyes. 

Obanai looked past the couple to see Mitsuri. She rubbed her eyes with her free hand, but she seemed to glow. A year from now, they would be standing in front of their friends and family. He pursed his lips. He could see her in a white dress with an elaborate hair style. No doubt she would be wearing some sort of oddity whether it be a headband with cat ears, lollipop earrings, or a pair of green socks. Her eccentric style would be on display for the world. 

Mitsuri met his gaze, smiling instantly. Was she thinking the same thing? His lips curled up behind the mask. Green eyes reflecting the sunset and the promise of forever.

[purple-plum-petals]

—⊱Blog/Writing Update!

Hello everyone! Apologies for the inactivity as of late, but overall motivation has been somewhat low for me lately. This is probably due to a mixture of graduate school (which is starting this week 😭), my current job, mental health, and overall life stressors (RIP to my car battery...). Despite it all, though, I'm still hanging in there haha!

I am slowly progressing with all the remaining requests currently in the inbox and have been working on them in bits and pieces. This includes requests for both the Homicipher and Twisted Wonderland fandoms, and I am hoping my love for Security Breach will reignite briefly so I can finish writing the one remaining FNAF request currently in there. 😅

I'm also still working on the rewrite of chapter 8 for IT3GB (if anyone even follows that fic of mine on this blog haha), but progress on that is slowing down a bit, unfortunately... I have so many ideas planned for this particular fanfiction, but now the problem is actually getting around to writing them on paper – it is the curse of being a writer. 😔

I am hoping to finish the remaining Homicipher requests by the end of this month, and then I will tackle the requests I have for TWST and FNAF. Thank you all for your patience and continued support through this brief hiatus of mine!

So, in the meantime, I would like you all to have a little snippet of the beginning portion of a one-shot I'm currently working on for Homicipher (Mr. Crawling X Reader X Mr. Silvair) under the cut! I hope you enjoy the small treat. 😏

You and Mr. Crawling had been out and about all day instead of spending it curled up together in bed like you typically did. You were kneeling down on the ground, your hands moving large slabs of concrete to the side as you searched through the pile of rubble, eyes peeled for anything from your world that had managed to end up in this one. 

Right now, you were specifically looking for books to bring back to Mr. Silvair, certain he would appreciate it if you could manage to find any publications related to human anatomy or medical texts. Though, now that you thought about it, he would probably find anything interesting enough considering his curiosity about humans as a whole…

Sure, the likelihood of finding academic material in such a place was low, but it wasn’t completely impossible. After all, you did manage to find the cat-ear headband you ended up gifting to Mr. Chopped (who was happy to receive such a cute accessory from you). Plus, anything was possible if you believed hard enough. 

Mr. Crawling was nearby as he usually was, aiding you in your search for any type of literature you could get your hands on. You had explained to him what you were looking for, making gestures with your hands before saying, “Find papers together.”

He was most certainly looking around, rummaging through the rubble while investigating every nook and cranny he could find, intently focused on the task you had given him. Mr. Crawling seemed to be having more luck than you in the searching department, too, if the ragged-looking books and loose papers in his arms were anything to go by. 

Eventually, after realizing the two of you probably wouldn’t be able to find anything else in this particular room, you stand up with a sigh and brush the dirt that littered the floor off of your pants. You did manage to find a silken ribbon amongst the rubble, though, and you thought that Mr. Chopped would appreciate it for decorating his hair before you pocket the delicate piece of fabric. 

“Done?” You hear Mr. Crawling ask, and your gaze falls to his hunched-over form sitting on the uneven surface of the ground, his arms filled to the brim with papers and books as they practically spilled from his grasp. You quickly make your way over to him and take the large variety of papers and books from his hands with a muttered apology. 

After all, you didn’t want to make him carry anything since his arms were his only means of getting around, his legs typically causing him a lot of pain if used for extended periods of time. Despite never having done it yourself, it would probably be quite difficult to crawl if you couldn’t use your arms. 

You give him a gentle smile when he looks up at you, heart throbbing with affection for the long-haired man, before you lean down and place a kiss on the top of his head. Mr. Crawling makes a noise, almost like a squeak of delight when you press your lips to his scalp, whispering to him, “Yes, we done. Thank you.”

“You happy?” Mr. Crawling immediately asks, and you can’t help but let out a small huff of amusement. He had the habit of asking if you were happy, and your answer to his question usually never differed. Whenever you were with Mr. Crawling, you were always happy, and that hadn’t changed since the first moment you two met.

“Yes, me lot happy.” You reply with a nod, gathering all the papers and book in one arm before you gesture for him to come, “Follow. Home, rest.”

[hannahbarberra162]

Hiiii

How are you? Bothering here hehehehe can we have any snipped from under the microscope, emperor's prize or snow fall?

Hahahaha almost asking for all your works sorry

Thank you for writing and sharing such great stories❤️🫂

Hi! I'm alright, hanging in there! The next chapter of Emperor's Prize should be out soon-ish, my friend is helping me edit it right now.

But since you've been patiently waiting, here's a lil snippet from the beginning of the chapter:

Despite a tightening in your chest at the idea of being on a strange island, you couldn’t resist the excitement that bubbled up in you at the concept of being on solid ground again. You had assumed Shanks would flake on his promise to you once you came back to your senses and you searched his face for any signs of this being a trick.. You were fairly sure that it wasn’t a test but prior experience had made you wary of accepting too readily. Shanks waited for you to speak with soft eyes as he held your hands in his. The two of you were standing in his cabin, the door open to air out the scent of sweat and heat as the ship bobbed gently in the water in the rays of the morning sun.

“So what about it, Little Omega? You want to check out the island? I’m not sure what’s around, we’ve never docked here before -”

“We have, a few times actually,” Benn called from out on the deck as he walked past the open door to the cabin, his ever-present cigarette dangling from his lips.

“We have docked here, a few times actually,” Shanks corrected himself with a bright smile, his red hair falling into his face in an almost endearing way. You gave a small smile back at his foolishness and his eyes shone brighter at the sight.

“You know, that’s the first time you’ve smiled at me outside of heat,” he said as he ran a thumb over the back of your hand. You ducked your head as your cheeks heated at being called out so bluntly. But it also made you wonder what he meant by outside of heat. Had you been so happy during your fucked out phase that you smiled frequently? You considered questioning him on it but you had learned your place on Kid’s ship. You answered his question instead as you did your best to push your concerns away.

“Yes, please, I’d like to visit the island,” you stated and hoped your tone was deferential enough for him not to take it as sass. 

“Lovely! There’s nothing more fun than a day trip. We’ll get food on the island too, I’ll go grab some cash from Benn’s cabin. Let’s get moving,” he said as he turned and pulled you along behind him. You kept your eyes on the floor while you followed along meekly, too embarrassed to make eye contact with the crew on deck. After your heat abated, some of the crew had come back to the ship to sleep or gather belongings. Of course, they knew what transpired, it wasn’t like it was a secret, but it still made you feel self conscious to know they’d all been kicked off the ship because you had copious amounts of sex with their Captain. It seemed like Shanks did not have any of the same lingering shame that you did and carried himself as he always did. He was even wearing his Emperor’s cloak that you had in your nest through your heat, though he did wash it thankfully. Shanks pulled you to the middle of the deck while he continued on the way to Benn’s cabin.

“Stay right there, I’ll be back in a moment. Unless Benn changed the locks to his safe again, then it’ll take me a few minutes to pick them,” he called out as he left you standing near the main mast. Left on your own for the first time in days, you shifted your weight from foot to foot and looked down at your feet. You were still wearing Shanks’s far too large clothes rolled up at the wrists and ankles along with being barefooted. Luckily the fair weather made it easy to tolerate the breezy clothing until Shanks purchased proper clothing for you. You stilled when you heard footsteps approaching you and a familiar pair of shoes made their appearance in your field of sight.

[catalina-infanta]

On Free Will in C.S. Pacat’s Dark Rise Series

James Has Free Will With The Collar

Recently I wrote an essay (https://www.tumblr.com/catalina-infanta/748214922159194112/the-question-of-the-collar-the-dark-rise-trilogy?source=share) on how I believed that the Collar was a consensual object between Anharion and Sarcean. I still believe that. I will further argue now that although I think the collar gets Anharion/James to obey direct orders, I also believe the collar is something that allows free will to its wearer and is not forcing him (compelling him) to do anything he does not agree to do, and that he ultimately has free will. This essay is an addendum to my last, so I suggest if you have not read it, you may want to read it first to understand the bulk of the reasoning for this argument of mine, but it is not necessary.

First, I will draw attention to the below scene (in the chapter where the collar is put on James by Sinclair):

Here, the two sentences say:

“He felt no compulsion.”

Period.

“He felt nothing at all.”

Period.

The way this is written is short and sweet for a reason, in my opinion. The sentence is simply “he felt nothing at all” not “he felt nothing at all when Sinclair ordered him…” This feels like a deceptive trick of writing to me. It is stated in a way to hide information in plain site; we are meant to think he is only not compelled here because Sinclair was the one ordering him around. But he says here that he feels no compulsion. Nothing at all. These are the ways writers trick us until they give us the final reveal and we are meant to look back and it all makes sense.

Another clue is in the below scene. We see James is not an automaton who repeats back Will's wishes (like his people branded with those “S”/snake tattoos must do – I have seen others mention a theory that they are snakes, not “s” tattoos). Instead, James’s personality is fully his own at the end of the chapter when he rescues Will. He willingly calls Will “darling”, therefore giving a personal twist to his phrasing without anyone telling him to do so (and he is not a mind reader for reasons I will explore below)

and then, James takes initiative to blast them out of the mountain (showing us he can choose the method of escape, Will doesn’t direct him how to do it).

Furthermore, below, James says he will rule with Will, by his side. He has agency. You can’t rule if you have no autonomy. If you can't decide anything you are not a ruler, you are simply ruled.

Why Was James Acting So Weird? Is He Brain Washed?

James was acting weird in the last chapter. What’s more, James’s mannerisms are different, yes, even different from the chapter preceding it where James rescues Will (calling Will “darling”, acts sassy with the others, etc). So, the final chapter could have been done by Pacat to show that James is brainwashed, but I highly doubt this. Instead, I think it is done to show 1) James isn’t acting weird because he has no agency, but because he believes Will remembers everything too, and 2) He is written strangely to obfuscate the truth. We cannot know too much about James’s condition right now as that is a giveaway, so Pacat chooses to hide it and instead has us focus on the turmoil inside Will in the final chapter and on his interpretation of James’s behavior.

[One clue someone brought to my attention that shows James may think Will already remembers everything is the scene when Will says “both of you” to Visansder and James; James knows what he is talking about (the memory where Sarcean said the same thing to Anharion and the Queen when he was arrested) and probably infers that Will remembers everything as well. He doesn’t know that Will only remembers a few small snippets. What’s more, perhaps James is calling Will “His King” and “Sarcean” because he simply remembers everything now and so Will and the Dark King have both become interchangeable in his mind. Will is now “his King”--perhaps he even believes Will expects to be called as such]

Unfortunately, we have very little description of what he was feeling, or even of his facial expressions in the last chapter; James’s actions often appeared mechanic. Very importantly, however, the five times he is described by Will in the chapter, he is described as “achingly genuine” with “blue eyes full of loyalty” and “as eager as Will” and feeling “warm and real against him [Will]” and, finally, saying something “with confidence”.

Sadly, all of these lovely things Will noticed are (in the same chapter/moments) doubted by Will, leading the reader to doubt too. However, Will’s filter is often unreliable as his thoughts are often just his opinion and/or the full extent of his real memories are concealed from us.

The thing is, if James has just gotten access to all his memories, maybe what Will perceives to be genuine is really actually genuine! We kind of know it is from James's point of view given what we read after the collar is placed on him; James's description of his experience wearing the collar seemed to invigorate him. I fully expect that after Book 3 we will be able to look back on these moments in book 2 and everything will make sense.

To that idea, I find it hard to believe that Pacat would call this unbearably erotic (above) if we weren’t meant one day to come back and read this as a situation that is…kind of romantic? Sexy? But NOT lacking in consent or love or taking place with a brain washed partner.

No, James imo has not suddenly become a brainwashed Anharion. He refers to him as Will in the below pic, so he knows he is with Will in the present moment as much as with Sarcean:

To my final point, more importantly, James BELIEVES that Will remembers too! That’s why his responses are so weird to us and to Will. He now knows Will was lying about who he was, so he must assume Will knows too and still is aiming for the same goals as the Dark King.

Hence why he thinks (above) that ruling over the world was what Will wants to accomplish, but it is NOT what the present Sarcean/Will wants (not yet, at least). Notice also that James’s answer to Will asking if he was telling him what he wants to hear (in the above scene) was evasive; perhaps another tool Pacat has possibly employed to make us THINK James is talking about one thing when maybe what he is really saying “yes” to is something else entirely?

Finally, I would like to draw your attention to this final question I have:

This scene where James was asking, “what’s wrong?” always confused me until I realized James thinks Will is on the same page. If James believes Will remembers everything (which I firmly believe based on how he acts in the final chapters) then this question “what’s wrong?” makes sense if he believes Will knows the methods of the collar.

It makes sense because when Will has a virtual panic attack upon seeing the collar on James, James doesn’t immediately try to explain to him the history of the collar to make him feel better (because he thinks Will knows it’s history). So, in the above, James has no idea why Will is so upset.

I wonder if at this point in time here, however, if James remembers and is questioning why Will discouraged the use of the collar and wanted to destroy it?

Perhaps it is as simple as James believing that this incarnation of Sarcean wants him to follow him (Will) first and foremost because he wants to? This is what Will said in the Throne Room. Perhaps James is thinking now it is done, why cry over spilt milk? It’s not the end of the world, after all. Or maybe James hasn’t thought yet about how Will hadn’t wanted him collared and is just too excited to learn the truth (thanks @tackletofset for this idea). Upon thinking further, it is also possible that James doesn’t have to wonder why Will didn’t want the collar if maybe Anharion was always the driving force between the two towards the collar, and Sarcean more hesitant? Or perhaps it was something else altogether? I mention all of this because if my theory is true, it will spill over into book 3 as they try to figure out each other’s feelings in the first half of the book.

Conclusion

Finally, as we see at the end when James reveals he remembers all in the end scene of the book (pic above), we don’t get to see the rest of the conversation: we don’t get to see them talk about what they both remember. That’s for the next book! And I can’t say I have any idea when they will both be on the same page. Hopefully soon enough!

In James saying “You are him”, it’s comforting to see that James believes Will (the loving and loyal person he is) and Sarcean are essentially the same. That Sarcean isn’t the demon the Light side made him to be, that he is worthy to be held in esteem. This bodes well that the Dark King is no cruel man, as Will is not cruel either. James is telling us something about Sarcean’s character here, and I believe him.

[alystrin03]

Shameless self promotion Sunday (usually Saturday)

My love @pixiedurango keeps on hosting this cool trend so here I am one more week. This one, although, has been very rough at work, so I could not do much.

I'll tag my sweeties @ofcrowsanddragons @becausedragonage @dragonagegayz @antivan-sprig and @adhd-riddled-crow so I'll see what they are working on!

The idea: We make a post and show off, what cool stuff we created over the past week. Art, Screenshots, writing (anything from a questionnaire about your OC to the 100K epos...) anything we do is worth to be seen and to be promoted.And by tagging people, commenting, and reblogging, we share the love and boost ourselve's and other's confidence. No matter what form you choose, whether you reblog your initial post, or create a new one with teasers, you decide!

I finished & posted the 3rd chapter of (one of) my Viago x Rook fic "Never fade away", with the drama after the attempt of murder on Alecto's & Viago's reaction about it

Also posted a short story with Micah & Alecto as protagonists for our "A Murder of Misfits" collection. I love them too much, @only-slightly-terrified has created such a wonderful OC with Micah <3. I can assure you you'll hear more about them

Last work I posted was the 2nd chapter of Renzo & Alecto's fic, my two OC . My two beautiful silly Crows, always getting on trouble

Started three (THREE) new smut fics: Illario x Rook [this AU is getting interesting], Viago x Rook x Lucanis and Lucanis x Rook x Teia. I have lost control of my life

Managed to write a promt for the @dadrunkwriting . Just one for now, I'll try to work a bit more on the promps today, promise!

Reworked the appearance of Lorenzo "Renzo" de Riva, now my boy looks more handsome!

And last, but not least, I've kept working on the ZevRook smut fic. This is lasting longer than I initially thought, but this story needs to have some plot (apart from * ahem *). Small snippet under the cut!

Have a nice new week, loves!

"Perhaps somewhere else more appropriate" the last word, though innocent, rang in his ears as if it were the most lustful in the world. Without looking back, Alecto left the pint on the counter and headed for the door, Zevran found himself following her like a puppy. Be that as it may, that self-confidence had trained her to play her cards, and now she was fucking expert.

He was a few feet away as soon as they left, following Alecto down one of the alleyways. He watched as she started to turn around, a mischievous smile on her lips, but a burly body came across his field of vision.

"Well, if it isn't my lucky day. The fucking CrowSlayer, no less. It's amazing how much I'm going to get paid for your corpse."

Mierda. Lucanis had asked them to stay out of trouble and right now there was one looming. Not that the asshole was going to give them much to do, but a fight was the last thing Zevran wanted to get into at the moment.

"Exactly, he's the fucking CrowSlayer, and a shitty cuchillo like you should be hiding instead of provoking him" Alecto spoke with contempt. "Trust me, he's gutted far better men than you"

The unknown Crow turned to the woman. He wasn't much taller than her, but more muscular, though Zevran knew from experience that his companion could dispatch the fellow in a matter of seconds.

" Who the fuck are you, his whore?"

Alecto twisted her face for only a second before punching him in the stomach with all her might, causing him to double over in pain and fall to the ground on his knees. Grabbing him by the hair, forced him to see her face "They call me Rook. If you have ears you've heard of me, and also what I've done. So, you fucking imbecile, if you think you have half a chance against the CrowSlayer and me, try attacking us now, because either you get out of here right now or I intend to throw your fucking corpse in the canal"

Indeed he must have heard of her, because the man's face paled. Alecto frowned and released him, giving him a shove. She turned around, ready to return to Zevran, but her adversary must have thought twice before attempting to attack her from behind. A dagger, thrown with extreme skill, stabbed between the two eyes of the Crow, who fell to the ground without uttering a sound.

"Don't say I didn't warn you" the disdain was patent, without her even turning around to give him one last look. "You want it back?" Asked, referring to the dagger

"Nah" Zevran let out a chuckle "I didn't even use one of the good ones" Leaving it all behind, they continued moving through the darker corners of the District. Knowing they were alone, Zevran slipped an arm around her waist "I hope it didn't sour your night"

For all response Alecto pushed him against the wall and pressed her lips against his, drawing a whimper from him, which she took advantage of to thrust her tongue deep into his mouth. There was no way he was going to be daunted. Zevran responded to her kisses ardently, feeling the edge of her teeth against his lips, against his tongue, which fought with hers relentlessly. Gripping her tightly, he spun Alecto around, causing her to be the one leaning against the wall. She abandoned his lips and began to move down his neck with her tongue, kissing him ceaselessly, seeking every sensitive spot that would make him gasp.

[thelongestway]

Very-very tired for many reasons, but I made it with a very rough draft of the next chapter, ahaha. :P (Do not write near 4000 words in one sitting and stop on a tricky moment, that will block you!)

Very rough because I am very sleepy, will see about editing etc tomorrow.

Edit: Well, it took two days, but I basically added another half-chapter here in the beginning, and will need to quit fiddling with this by now - I'm growing pretty blind to the damn thing! I think I'll leave this one for the edits afterwards and move on.

Chapter 30: Preparations

Preparing for the war game was sort of like preparing for the hacker's game, except I wouldn't have ART with me, and I didn't have the option of just waiting out the opposition until they gave up. (Though letting the humans wear themselves out and then just walking past them would probably have made for a really effective tactic. But we were on a time limit.)

Instead, I waited for the humans to finish their preparations and answered the occasional polite tap from Dandelion, who was helping Aspen weave my outputs into their simulation system and wanted me to test if something was working or not. (Dandelion probably didn't need to help them. She did anyway.)

Aspen was standing next to me, hands folded on their chest, looking at the entrance to their old body and lost in thought. When they noticed my drone pausing next to them, they looked up and gave it a quizzical glance.

"Is everyone in your family out of the simulation area?" I asked.

"Yes, all out safely. Which wasn't hard--it's not like anyone's home much during a Meet anyway. But we'll need to make sure people aren't underfoot during the actual transfer, so this is good practice."

"Yeah. A hostage situation is the last thing this scenario needs."

They nodded. "It's a lot harder for four people to attack a massive gathering watched over by a station than just take someone isolated in their quarters. We can't link Note in to keep track of everyone with main systems down. But they can keep watch over a specific area."

We waited. I stood still (there weren't any chairs in the access corridor we were in), and Aspen paced--two steps forward, two steps back. Then they stopped in front of the old Courageous' wall and leaned back on it, frowning and looking up. Like they were talking to themselves.

"It sucks, though," they finally said, familiar bitterness in their voice. "This entire thing. I wish this wasn't how I had to say goodbye to them."

"What do you mean? Your cluster isn't coming with you?"

"They can't come. You'd be surprised how small of a cutting and stimulus you need to regrow the same synnerve patterns. I know my cluster too well. Having them with me would defeat the entire point of trying to retrain me on a whole new synnerve system."

I had a brief mental image of ART having to leave its humans behind if it wanted to be a station. (For some reason. I backburnered the thought too quickly to figure out exactly what reason.)

"How long is that going to take?"

"It's anyone's guess at this point. But we're looking at months or years. Maybe decades," they looked away, chewing on their lip. I wasn't monitoring their performance reliability or emotional instability or whatever, but I could bet it took a hit.

Stop borrowing grief from the future, Aspen, Dandelion said matter-of-factly, sending us her latest piece of code, designed to register fake outputs from my energy weapons.

"That's my entire job," they grumbled as they double-checked the code and implemented it on their end.

Dandelion retorted: No, your entire job right now is to get through the transfer intact. The rest is for others to handle.

Aspen snorted quietly, but I could see them smiling again as they refocused on their work. (They were also working on their own code, which Dandelion checked.) Both ships didn't talk much about it. They just sent each other snippets, picking up where the other left off seamlessly.

(Seeing them work together like that gave me a weird emotion. I backburnered it before I accidentally started bothering Aspen about it.)

Instead, I implemented my part, then tapped Dandelion's feed. Threat assessment on the transfer? Not on the security end, on the medical end.

It's complicated, she replied. Aspen being the first experimental node ship has made their synnerve system very convoluted, and trying to prune it without damaging them isn't an easy task. We're probably not going to lose them, but quality of life outcomes are variable.

Are you worried?

Dandelion sent me a snapshot of her performance reliability. It was hovering at the 95% mark.

No, she said. But I will be busy during the transfer, Note will have their processes full with two stations' worth of critical operations and all of the humans, and Blaze has space-side monitoring. With respect to your part of the job, the security teams will have to pull through on their own.

Then we'd better start practicing, I said.

She gave me a grateful tap, neatly caught the piece of code Aspen sent back to her, and implemented it.

---

Nike's and Aspen's humans were better at this than I thought humans who only had tactical simulation experience would be. They managed to get a few hits on me in the first scenario, where I infiltrated the Courageous as quietly as possible, and in the second scenario, where I imitated standard corporate tactics, they actually took me down. But that was after I killed 27 out of 36 human defenders, which was not what they were expecting either. Hiram and Basil (Nike's and Aspen's respective security chiefs, and jointly in charge of the simulation and upcoming defense) looked pretty rattled afterwards, but they really were a lot like my Preservation humans, which meant that despite being rattled, they immediately began updating their plans for the defense.

Their plans didn't involve me.

Tell them you're available for a contract, ART said second thing after it finally tapped my feed.

(First thing it did was send me a record of the ships' discussions, with commentary. It was weird. Looking at Dandelion, Aspen and Note in comparison to Nike and Blaze was sort of like looking at my Preservation humans in comparison to other Preservation humans, the ones who'd never encountered the Rim directly before. Except they were all ships like ART.)

They know that.

ART sent me one of its versions of the eyeroll emoji. (This one had five eyes).

I have had ample time to observe Aspen's humans. They will not engage a member of another node ship's crew of their own initiative.

It would be pretty rude to do that, yeah, Aspen said somewhere to my side, and I nearly jumped. I knew they hadn't just snuck up on me to sit on an overturned crate which their humans had used as part of a barricade, leaning forward a little, but try telling my fucking organics that! But I can inform them myself, provided you're interested?

Hiram and Basil both saw my face change and looked where my drones went. (Right now they looked like they were hovering over a random crate.)

"I'm just talking to Aspen," I said, "You can keep asking questions."

"You can do that at the same time?" Hiram said, looking surprised.

"And watch media. And code. And fight. And other things, too." I executed a little complicated maneuver with my drones at the same time as I tapped their handheld communicators.

To Aspen, I said: I can tell them. We're already talking anyway. Also, you didn't answer me during the referee call: why the fuck do you have carbon monoxide in your fucking ventilation systems?

Because the Courageous did, which was really fucking creepy. I mean, any ship AI could kill people if it wanted, but this wasn't ART's repurposed pathfinders. Carbon monoxide wired into the ventilation was a weapon that couldn't be used for anything except killing people.

Early corporate failsafe, Aspen said, shrugging. Antarctica wanted a way to kill the colonists if their plans didn't pan out. We repurposed the infrastructure later, but it was easy enough to put the weapons back now that we need them.

And your family doesn't mind?

Aspen's face twisted, and they folded their hands, looking guarded. They suggested it.

"Hell and high water," Hiram said, exchanging looks with Basil. "Nike said you were a node ship in human form, but I don't think I realized until now just how true that was."

"Even when I kicked your asses?"

"We have no real combat experience," Basil said. "You do. We expected to get our asses kicked at least a little, just not quite so thoroughly."

"You have better threat assessments than your ships," I said, and ART sent me a clip of Nike's outraged Hey! in the feed.

(To my left, Aspen gave a short laugh and said, Nobody who gets far enough to be a node ship ever has good threat assessments.)

(I agreed.)

"Let's hope they've improved enough to help us against our hostiles. They may not be little nodes, but they do have combat experience," Hiram said. "Thank you for the games, SecUnit. We'll make good use of the lessons."

He offered me a hand again.

I said, "I don't touch people unless I need to rescue them."

"Ah. I apologize," Hiram withdrew his hand. "Then thank you again, and do not let us keep you."

"Wait."

"Yes?"

"I'm available for further collaboration. And for the day of the transfer."

Basil and Hiram exchanged looks. Basil said, "Really? You're not busy with your clusters?" (Ke sounded surprised. Not in a "fuck off" way, but genuinely surprised.)

"Yes, I'm part of ART's crew. No, that doesn't mean I don't want to help defend the station. My humans are all going to be here during the transfer. The earlier the hostiles are neutralized, the safer they'll be."

"Well, then. Welcome on board, SecUnit," Hiram said, nodding, and his tone suddenly became a lot less formal. "We've got plans to discuss. D'you eat?"

"No."

"Mind if we do?"

"No."

"Then c'mon," Hiram turned and waved for me to follow him. "The Courageous cluster promised us dinner. Let's go get what food they left for us, settle into a spot and have ourselves a chat."

After about an hour of conversation in one of the Courageous' lounges and some literal napkin planning (with Aspen, Nike and ART providing occasional commentary through the speakers), I finally had a role in the Trellians' plan.

Both Nike and Aspen's security team agreed that the hostiles must want one of the hearts. ("Makes no sense otherwise," Tabby--Nike's hacker who'd killed her team by shutting down my grenade drone--said, "Caldera figured out the ships' intelligence pretty early, it figures they'd want in on it. And without the heart, the old Courageous is a bunch of scrap metal--no offense, Aspen!"

"None taken," Aspen said through their speakers. Their illusion spoke the words, too, and looked like they meant it.)

Note's security would be handling most of the civilians at the festival (where no one really expected any trouble, but Hiram sort of hoped the festival would keep civilians busy enough not to accidentally run into the corporate team), while Nike and Aspen's security would be handling the respective hearts. Hiram and Basil both thought there was also a chance that the Calderan team might go for Nike as the ship with newer neural architecture, and then the old Courageous was either a distraction or a mistake on the hostile's part. The old Courageous would still be empty, since Aspen's cluster had a role to play in the ceremony, same as Nike's cluster. Only the specialist cluster members would be doing the transfer, and they would be guarded at all times.

"If the target is Aspen, then we think the most probable moment of attack won't be on the Courageous' center, but at one of the corridor junctions, so the heart pod is already loaded and ready to move, and also close to Magma. That's the point we'll be monitoring the most heavily, and our teams will also be moving along with the hearts," Basil said. "But just in case, we've transferred most of the sensitive data off the old Courageous' systems. If Caldera miscalculates, all they will find is an empty old ship."

This didn't look too bad. Getting their house hit would suck for Aspen's family, but nobody would be dead.

Hiram said, "Considering your sheer speed and firepower, SecUnit, we want you to be our first response team if we've misread Caldera and they wind up hitting something we haven't considered--or the reinforcements to any team to make enemy contact. We'd like you to do as much monitoring as you can, and if a priority threat makes itself known, to go in and neutralize it. To that end, I think we'd be stationing you near the civilans, with Note. That's easy access to the Courageous' main body, which can work as a tunnel through half the station and is one of the priority targets, and only slightly harder access to Nike's new station."

"Who do I respond to?"

"Not respond, coordinate," Basil said, "You're basically Perihelion's chief of security, right? We'll treat you as one. You have autonomy in your sphere, but if one of us two--plus Note's chief--sends you a stand down code, you do. Conversely, you can send us a stand down code, and we'll do that, too."

"Or at least reassess. No guarantee that anyone will be be standing down until the end of the situation, but it will give the others a heads-up something isn't right," Hiram added. "Sound like a plan?"

ART's chief of security. I liked that. (I wondered what Senior Indah would have thought of me being treated like a security chief.)

"Yeah." I said. "Let's do that."

[astra-aeterna]

aced it - chapter 14

something about you felt like fate

the final chapter. oh my god. this has been my first long-fic for the acotar fandom and i can't thank you all enough for the support and love you've shown me and this fic. i love you all!!!

catch a snippet under the cut

"Ugh," Cass groaned softly. He was driving the RV while everyone else slept — save for Feyre, whose eyes didn't seem to want to close.

"What's up?" she muttered, crawling into the empty passenger seat. If she wasn't going to sleep, she might as well keep him company.

He smiled softly at her. "Just thinking about how we have to go back to classes in two days. But life isn't all road trips, Feyre."

"Sure isn't," Feyre sighed wistfully. The week they'd spent driving around Prythian had been perfect, laughing and bickering and teasing each other as they drove to random destinations and explored nature preserves and wooded walking paths and whatever small towns they came across. It had been the perfect escape from the stress of the real world, but she'd have to return to the pressure cooker of the end of her third year all too soon.

At least she and Rhys were in it together. And together for real.

Finally.

"Thinking about the end of the year now?"

She huffed a laugh. "Yeah. Thanks for that. I was having such a good time not sleeping."

Cassian glanced over at her for a quick moment, wry grin on his face, before turning back to the road. "I'm sure I can find something to talk about that'll put you to sleep. Ooh, what about hockey statistics?"

"You have one thing on your mind ever, and it's hockey."

"Hey! Unfair," he complained. "I also think about the gym. And sex."

"You are such a stereotype of a man."

He just grinned, then handed her his phone. "Here, why don't you pick some music that'll keep me from falling asleep at the wheel."

Soft rock filtered through the speakers as Feyre selected a playlist that looked upbeat enough for night driving, then set his phone back down. The dark environment around them passed in a blur, all black and grey and barely distinguishable.

Except for the stars overhead.

Feyre stared out the windshield at the sky, watching as the stars shifted ever so slightly in the sky as they flew down the highway. She curled up in the passenger seat, thinking about the improbability of her life — but thanking the Mother and the Cauldron that she'd made it to whatever this phase of her life was, with Rhys and his family that was slowly becoming her own, with happiness and success and comfort. And without realizing it, her eyes fluttered shut and she drifted into a dreamless sleep.

Transitioning back into the chaos of spring semester schoolwork was difficult.

Free time was a thing of the past, and within a week, Feyre wasn't sure she even knew the meaning of the phrase. When she wasn't in her own classes, she was in the class she was a TA for. When she wasn't in any class at all, she was at VUAC. When she wasn't on campus, she was doing her own homework or grading her students' assignments or sleeping tucked into Rhys's arms.

Those late hours where she was asleep next to her boyfriend (she was still getting used to the fact that Rhys was her boyfriend, mentally) were the only restful hours she had.

And normally, she thrived on being busy like that.

Don't get her wrong, she wasn't running straight toward burnout, and she wasn't any more stressed than a usual semester, but it was different now.

It was different because she didn't dread the conversations she'd have to have when she went home. She didn't worry about whether or not her boyfriend would want subpar sex. Instead, she found herself wanting to share dinners with Rhys, Cass, Az, and Mor. She missed the easy evenings they had often shared, each doing their own studying in the living room and occasionally bickering with each other for 'writing too loudly' or tapping on computer keys too hard. And she wished she had more time to spend in bed with Rhys. Not sleeping.

Sex with him was unlike anything she'd had before. Certainly not the childish fumbling she had when she lost her virginity to her friend Isaac (just to get it over with). And definitely not the chore that was sex with Tamlin, where she just laid there as he took his pleasure.

No, Rhys was… thorough. Attentive. Mind-blowing, even. He would always prioritize her pleasure, bringing her over the edge repeatedly with his mouth or fingers or cock, and do so until she was a mess, writhing and sobbing and so thoroughly wrung out that she quite literally couldn't take another. When they had time, anyway.

Recently, they'd been relegated to quick fucks before bed or before getting out of bed in the mornings, where he'd prepare her for him with his mouth and slide into her, working both of them expertly to orgasm. Just one.

'Just one' was certainly far better than anything else, but she missed when they had time to play.

Oh well. They'd have all summer to explore each other's bodies.

Right now, she was waist-deep in a pile of weekly quizzes she had to grade, and they were… a mess, honestly.

Something about meiosis was just stumping them. She didn't blame them — they'd done a basic overview of mitosis and the regular cell cycle before getting into the complexities of gamete production, but… wow.

She glanced down at the packet she was working on and laughed. In answer to the question Why are gametes haploid?, the student had written 'because… it HAPpens? idk!'

Not exactly correct, but at least it was creative. Feyre sighed and marked a little note in her blue pen. 'Gametes are haploid because two need to join to create a fertilized embryo with the correct (diploid) number of chromosomes.'

Grading the weekly quizzes was mildly entertaining at first, but after five or so packets, she was just bored and praying for her pile to start dwindling so she could do literally anything else. There were only so many times she could correct one single question on every quiz before it became frustrating. Thankfully, she was almost at the bottom of that week's pile, and it was Friday.

Friday meant she and Rhys might actually get to spend some quality time together that didn't involve their own classwork or TA responsibilities.

That thought spurred her on, giving her the energy to make her way through the last half dozen quizzes she had to grade. And then she was done, done for the day, and she could go find Rhys and curl up with him on the couch.

Once she was curled into his side on the couch, his arm draped lazily over her shoulder, hand skimming her collarbones, Feyre felt like her entire soul exhaled in comfort. Tension and stress were things of the past.

"I'm so glad we only have like three weeks left before finals," she sighed. "I need summer break now more than ever."

He smiled down at her, brushing a kiss to her forehead. "Indeed. I've been missing you lately."

"We see each other every day."

"That doesn't mean I get to spend good quality time with you every day. We're in class or at work or sleeping in the same bed, not really spending time with you."

Feyre pressed her body more fully into his in agreement. "I know. I've missed you too."

"See?"

"Shut up," she complained. "Don't brag about being right, just take advantage of this time we have without any other responsibilities."

His violet eyes lit up, multitudes of stars sparking to life within. Before she could even register his intentions, Rhys had her scooped up in her arms and was heading to the stairs.

"What are you doing?"

The question wasn't a very effective deterrent when she was giggling and clinging to him like a barnacle, but she'd be damned if she'd make things easy for him. There was a 95% chance that he was whisking her upstairs to take her so thoroughly apart with his mouth that she wouldn't be able to speak for a while after he was done, but Rhys didn't need to know she knew that.

"Taking advantage of the time we have, naturally," he whispered, lips brushing the shell of her ear before nipping teasingly at the lobe. "I want you all to myself for a while this evening."

She shivered in his arms as his breath ghosted over the sensitive skin of her neck, a flush already blooming on her cheeks, warmth already pooling in her core. "You have me, Rhys."

"Oh, I intend to."

[missfrieden]

Tech as a father Chapter 80

Hej, hej. I tried to crawl out of my writers block hole. And turning my notes and snippets into the next chapter. Instead of just trying to write one shots, I think I have to try and battle it head on with the next chapter as well.

Masterlist | AO3

Chapter 80: You can’t trick your brothers

Tech kneels beside the baby bathtub, sleeves rolled up as he gently tries to coax Orion into enjoying his bath. But Orion, fascinated by the foam and bubbles, giggles and splashes, paying little attention to his father's attempts to wash him. Tech smiles softly, his focus solely on his son's enjoyment. He dips a cloth into the warm water, careful not to get soap in Orion's eyes, and starts to wash him gently. But Orion's tiny hands reach for the bubbles, his laughter filling the room as he tries to catch them.

Finding joy in the simple pleasure of watching his son explore and play. Despite the challenges and uncertainties they face, moments like these remind him of the precious bond they share. He continues to bathe Orion, content in the warmth of their connection and the love that surrounds them.

A bit later Hunter walks up to brother and nephew. “Do you think we are all some sort of di’kuts? And that we are stupid to not realise it? Me or Echo, echo who was around them for longer than any of us…” Tech pauses in his gentle scrubbing of Orion's back, glancing up at Hunter with a mixture of surprise and apprehension. He sets the cloth aside, his expression shifting to one of guarded concern as he considers Hunter's words. Of course Hunter and his senses picked it up. Sure it was a matter of time. Even with Echo who knows how to spot it.

"Of course not, Hunter," Tech replies, his tone cautious yet sincere. "I respect your intelligence immensely." Hunter exhales heavily, his arms still crossed as he leans against the wall of the ship. He regards Tech with a steady gaze, his eyes betraying a hint of frustration tinged with understanding. "Then why do you insist on treating me like I'm clueless? Us like we are clueless?" Hunter's voice is calm but firm, his words cutting through the air with a sense of urgency.

Tech swallows, his mind racing as he searches for the right response. He knows he can't hide the truth from his brothers forever, but the fear of what might happen if his secret is revealed weighs heavily on him. "It's not about underestimating you all, Hunter," Tech begins, his voice measured. "It's about protecting Orion, and all of us, from potential consequences."

Hunter raises an eyebrow, his expression sceptical yet open to hearing Tech out. He uncrosses his arms, folding them loosely across his chest as he leans in closer to Tech. Trying to find the line between leader and big brother. "I get that, Tech," Hunter says, his tone softer now, tinged with empathy. "But keeping secrets from the squad only puts us all at risk. We're a team, and we need to trust each other. Like it could have been nice to know about Orion before you just appeared with him."

Tech nods slowly, his gaze dropping to Orion, who continues to play in the now slight murky water, oblivious to the weight of the conversation unfolding around him. He knows Hunter is right, but the thought of revealing Orion's abilities fills him with a sense of dread. "I understand, Hunter," Tech murmurs, his voice barely above a whisper. "I just... I don't know how to navigate this."

Hunter reaches out, placing a reassuring hand on Tech's shoulder. He offers a small, understanding smile, the lines of worry easing from his face. "We'll figure it out together, Tech," Hunter says, his voice warm with reassurance. "But we have to start by being honest with each other. No more secrets. Especially about Orion. We love that guy, and neither of us wants him taken away."

Tech meets Hunter's gaze, his resolve firming as he nods in agreement. He knows it won't be easy, but with the support of his brothers, he feels a glimmer of hope that they can face whatever challenges lie ahead, together. “I just wish I could tell her.” “I know Tech, and you can, soon enough. We just need to make sure the Kaminoans are off our feet” Hunter sighs, knowing it is easier said than done.

Chapter 81

Reblogs are very welcome and I am open for feedback, as english is not my first language, so maybe my sentences may be weird sometimes, or I write a word wrong even with google, or I use a wrong word for an item.

Tag: @spectacular-skywalker @clonethirstingisreal @sleepycreativewriter @moonwreckd @sskim-milkk @heidnspeak

[swaps55]

I'm neck-deep writing an exchange fic, so while I'm actually writing, it isn't Mezzo quite yet. However, I am currently suffering from a metric fuckton of Sam feelings thanks to Spotify assaulting me with 2WEI's cover of Hurt, so here is a snippet from the next Mezzo chapter, from what has quickly become my favorite scene in the whole damn thing.

In which EDI talks to Sam about stars:

~

He closes his eyes. Swallows. “I always wanted to see the Pillars of Creation.”  

EDI skims through Shepard’s file. It does not appear his Alliance career ever took him to that region of the Traverse. Their recent venture to Korlus would have been his closest proximity, but at improper lines of sight to accurately reproduce the shape visible from Earth. Or, in Shepard’s case Arcturus.

--Query: Would you like to go? I could calculate an optimal vantage point. This ship would take you there. I could take you there.   

--Block: Illusive Man Protocol Override – Unprompted personal inquiries are impermissible.

“I could provide images,” she says instead.

He shakes his head. “No. It’s fine. Go on.”

“As you wish. The initiation of fusion creates enough pressure to counteract the forces of gravity, putting a newly formed star in a state of hydrostatic equilibrium. In essence, stars exist in conflict with gravity throughout their main sequence.”

Another flicker of dark energy illuminates his fingers, like a small star in his hands. His voice wavers. “Gravity wins eventually.”

“Yes,” she concurs. “When hydrogen is depleted, gravity becomes the more powerful force, causing the inner layers of the star to collapse, expanding the star outward. However, this is not the end of the star. The increased pressure causes helium to fuse into carbon, beginning a new, second life in the star’s cycle.”

“But it’s different,” Shepard says, then closes his fist and snuffs the light out. “Destructive. Red giants swallow up the things closest to them. Burn them up until there’s nothing left.” A small, strangled sound slips out of his throat.

He is…distressed.

She puzzles over this. Facts do not inherently carry emotional meaning, but Shepard appears to have assigned such meaning anyway, resulting in a negative emotional response to her requested outputs. An undesirable result.

Again, she wishes for insight into his subroutines.

The life cycle of organics does not parallel that of stars. However, Shepard’s death and reanimation creates an anomaly that raises points of comparison. Whether or not EDI’s does as well remains unknown.

She does not have a baseline for the life cycle experienced by others like her.

--Query: Do you believe that we have entered the second phase of our main sequence? Is this the source of your distress?

--Block: Illusive Man Protocol Override – Unprompted personal inquiries are impermissible.

Troubling, perhaps, if the comparison holds. Stars behave one of two ways once fusion ends. Some shed their mass away to form nebula clouds. Unlike the dark and cold nurseries that birthed them, in death they spiral with heat and color.

But those with greater mass become hotter and denser, fighting gravity until the core explodes in a supernova, ejecting most of its mass into interstellar space.

Sometimes, gravity does lose.  

But supernovas have the power to feed new stellar nurseries, spectacular endings that create new beginnings. The galaxy is predicated on cycles that endlessly repeat.

It makes her feel…small.

But they are just facts. Facts she has assigned an emotional value to.

Hm. A point of connection, perhaps? She finds the possibility unexpectedly comforting.

[nightingalespen]

Signed L.W

Author's note:

Hi all, I am so excited to share my first fanfic. This is a huge milestone for me, as I have always been an admirer of fanfiction and its writers. The writing process on this particular story has been a true whirlwind of emotions but I am proud of how this first chapter has turned out. I hope everyone enjoys it as much as I do and I can't wait to share the next few chapters in just a couple of days. I love y'all and hope you like the fic xoxo Nightingalespen ��💫

Chapter 1 :

The reader enjoys a serene walk in Central Park, captivated by the beauty of the autumn season. They have a chance encounter with a striking silver-haired woman, leaving them intrigued and regretful for not learning more about her. Determined to break free from their mundane routine, they plan to meet their friend Harper for an exciting adventure in the city.

Chapter 1

Reader’s POV~

As you stepped onto the familiar path that meandered through Central Park on a crisp fall day, a steaming cup of coffee in your hand, you couldn't help but smile at the vibrant hues of oranges, yellows, and reds that adorned the surrounding trees. The cool breeze rustled the leaves, creating a mesmerizing symphony that serenaded your every step. With each inhalation, the air carried the unmistakable aroma of decaying leaves, leaving an earthy scent lingering in your nose. The sunlight filtered through the canopy, casting dancing shadows upon the ground, almost as if the trees themselves were eager to join in the autumn festivities. As you took a sip from your warm cup, the soothing liquid traveled down your throat, radiating a comforting warmth throughout your body. The sip of caffeine invigorated your senses, enhancing the already delightful experience of being in the heart of nature. Your eyes wandered as you strolled through the park, capturing snippets of laughter from families playing in the nearby playground and the distant hum of street performers entertaining passersby. More and more people appeared, each reveling in the wonders of the season, clad in cozy sweaters and scarves, their breath forming small, airy clouds in the chilly air.

Lost in the tranquil ambiance of the park, your attention was suddenly diverted as you accidentally bumped into someone. Startled, you looked up to find a striking silver vixen standing before you, her piercing sapphire eyes reflecting the surrounding landscape. She possessed an air of elegance, with every strand of her silver updo meticulously in place. Apologizing for your clumsiness, you couldn't help but notice how this chance encounter punctuated the enchantment of the fall day. The silver vixen seemed to acknowledge your words with a nod, as if understanding your apology. One could say, “She exuded an awe-inspiring elegance, heightened by her extraordinary height. Her attire, a tasteful blend of vintage pieces, bold initials adorning her handbag, her hair impeccably coiffed in a blonde Alfred Hitchock-esque style, asserting its role as an accent to her wardrobe.” For a brief moment, time stood still. As you watched the silver vixen disappear into the distance, an inexplicable pang of regret washed over you. You cursed yourself inwardly for not mustering the courage to inquire about her name, to unravel the mystery behind her presence in the park. How could you let such an extraordinary encounter slip away without even knowing who she was? With a sigh, you continued to navigate through the bustling park, your thoughts consumed by the missed opportunity. As you walked, the crunching of leaves beneath your shoes mirrored the turmoil within your mind. The vibrant colors of fall, once so captivating, now seemed to pale in comparison to the older woman’s allure. 

Larissa’s POV~

As she made her way through the bustling crowd of Central Park, a sudden jolt caused her to stumble backwards. She turned around and lowered her gaze, expecting to find an apologetic face, but instead, she was met with the sight of a young woman, clutching her coffee cup tightly in one hand, her face drawn with worry. It was clear she had been entirely absorbed in her own world, unaware of her surroundings. And in that moment, she couldn't help but become captivated by her.

Her graceful features and youthful energy were truly enchanting. The way her wavy hair cascaded over her shoulders, the mischief that twinkled in her eyes, and the genuine warmth that radiated from her smile all seemed to make her simply adorable. She couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration for this young woman who seemed completely lost in her own little world while she clung onto her precious cup of coffee. As she hurriedly apologized for the collision, Larissa reassured her with a simple nod of her head that it was a mere accident, though secretly, she cherished the brief encounter. 

[tryingtobeblunt]

Are you, my reason?

(Chapter 4)

In-ho had devised a plan for when Gi-hun was to wake up. 

He would be waiting at his bedside, non-threatening in his patient lingering. He would supply Gi-hun with a fake story- something about finding him on the streets, lonesome, and with a giant gash on the side of his head. He did what any good samaritan would do, he helped him to the nearest hospital. 

In-ho had a feeling Gi-hun wouldn’t hesitate to believe it, the plan was plausible and easy to maintain in a general sense, but to Gi-hun it would be a walk in the park. 

Though In-ho had to admit it felt a little excessive for him to wait a full three months for an incident that didn’t even concern him, so he fabricated false dates, making sure that his visitations were spotty, hard to track. 

Even if Gi-hun did find out he was lying In-ho decided he didn’t really mind all that much, seeing as he would never see him again anyways. 

His plan didn’t really matter. 

-

He reads books to pass more of the time. 

This really wasn’t very uncommon for him, having been a well read individual even as a child. He mostly consumed non-fiction, particularly fixated on philosophy as a whole. With any free time he had he usually spent it knee deep in a novel. 

He brought an entire bag full of them to the hospital, some were new, but most were just his favorites. 

Crime and Punishment being amongst them, he reads it twice. The second time he writes notes in the margins, only in his second copy of course. He couldn’t bear to ruin his first edition. 

He got lost in them, reading for hours on end. 

Inevitably he ran out, and although he could have just gone back to his house to retrieve a new batch of publications, he thinks of Gi-hun’s apartment instead. 

Of the small snippet in his memory where in the corner of his bedroom lies a bookshelf. It had novels lined up and down the shelves, though some laid bare, they were books In-ho hadn’t recognized at first glance. 

Somehow Invading Gi-hun’s shelvings feels a step too far- then he remembers the past few months and decides to drive the half mile to Gi-hun’s apartment the next morning. 

-

In-ho stopped in his tracks at the sight of the door being wide open. 

How could he have been so foolish? 

He walks the rest of the way, pushing the door enough to get a further peek inside. When he doesn't hear anything he walks inside, the telltale sound of glass crushing beneath his feet making him wince. 

There had been a break-in, everything from the small dressers to the tops shelves of the kitchen raided for everything they had. Furniture was knocked to the ground, and dishes were strewn about, broken into pieces. The damage was truly excessive for taking only the appliances and the small cash the two had hidden away. 

Each and every framed picture once hung on the walls, scattered about, the glass shattered. Most consisted of black and white photography, worn with age, but preserved in their casings. Though some are of Gi-hun’s younger days. 

His graduation ceremony, his wedding, Ga-yeongs birth. 

He’s not quite sure how to handle the break in, calling the police would only cause suspicion to be drawn to him, and telling Gi-hun was out of the question entirely. 

He’s not dense enough to not see the clear signs of who the culprit was, the loan sharks were a troublesome bunch, and not at all above breaking into an apartment of a broke man and his sickly mother for any scraps they had lying around. Tracking the precise group responsible would be the difficult part, it could take months to investigate each and every group spread out in the area. He curses himself for not having dealt with this in the beginning, though he hadn’t expected to still be involved with Gi-hun for as long as he has. 

He makes his way to Gi-hun’s room, the area completely devoid of anything but a small bed tucked in the corner, the sheets tossed carelessly on the floor, and of course, the bookshelf. 

It’s broken in half, to In-hos dismay. He found the wood work particularly beautiful in a striking way. 

The robbers seemed to have disregarded the contents entirely, almost every book in impeccable shape, not counting their standard wear and tear. It’s mostly children’s stories, which in hindsight In-ho should have seen coming, but there's also egregiously bad works like “How to become rich 101” , and “Cooking for Dummies”. He rolls his eyes but decides to sift through the bunch anyways. 

He recognizes a large amount of the children's novels, the covers giving him a rush of nostalgia he hadn’t anticipated. 

His birth mother was never very fond of reading him straight from the books, instead telling tall tales she relied on her memory to recollect. Which was honestly quite little, and as much as he wanted to understand, he just couldn’t. She was sickly, her mind muddled in a fabrication of reality In-ho couldn’t even comprehend. 

His step mother did so for Jun-ho, In-ho had instilled in her that she almost had an obligation to.

He shook himself out of his trance, realizing with a sigh, that he’d been reading the same sentence for at least two minutes. 

In his search for anything with even a semblance of substance he finds a folder. A yellow folder with a large amount of papers stuffed inside, so much so, when he opens it the majority of it falls to the floor. 

Mostly legal documents, receipts, monotonous items most people just seem to keep out of an obligation rather than through any type of desire. 

While sorting and picking through everything, there's a request of custody. It's not filled in all the way, and it's riddled with tears and smudges. His first instinct is to finish the document, and file it as soon as he could.

He realized he couldn’t, that Gi-hun had to be present for the court order. 

He can feel a migraine flaring up. He drives back to the hospital without a book.

-

Gi-hun was having a seizure. 

The vibrations of his jerking limbs had shook In-ho out of his lethargic state, bolting up and out of his chair and down the hall to call a nurse, a doctor, anyone. 

Rushing back to the room he found the monitor to Gi-hun’s right was beeping at a rapid pace, his mouth foaming in a terrifying way. A doctor soon rushed in to assess him, the nurses tailing him turning to In-ho. 

“Sir, you have to wait outside” 

In-hos, frowned deepend. 

Before he could counter they were practically shoving him out of the room. In-ho caught one last glimpse of Gi-hun before the door was abruptly shut in his face.