#and he wants to differentiate him from everyone else even in the smallest ways

[srnileforme]

WE ARE (2024) | EPISODE 6

[calxia]

Phantom's New Hobby Chapter 1

(I originally planned for this to be a short fic but it quickly got way out of proportion so I'll be posting it in a chaptered format. this first one is 1.5k alone.)

All the ghouls typically had their own things that they liked to do in their free time when all the clergy work was finished. All the ghouls except Phantom that is.

It made sense. He was the newest ghoul and had been on the surface for considerably less time than most of the others. But even Aurora (who had been summoned only a few months before him) had her own hobby. It was just Phantom who hadn't found anything yet.

He spent his free time bored out of his mind or idly plucking at his guitar. He could hardly consider playing the guitar his hobby. His guitar skills were the only thing keeping him on the surface, so it makes sense to keep them brushed up as much as possible. He wanted something more though, something he could do just because it made him happy. He wasn’t quite sure how all the other ghouls had decided what they wanted to do though.

Mountain was always the easiest of the others to find, and also probably the easiest to talk to. He was the definition of a gentle giant and was never anything but kind. He could always be found dutifully tending to his gardens with a tenderness that was rare to see from a ghoul. The gardens and greenhouses were Mountain’s domain. He adored every plant, from the smallest of flowers to the largest of trees. Phantom had watched him in his gardens before, back when he was first summoned and in awe of everything on the surface. Mountain had explained everything he was doing to the younger, despite how Phantom had still been unable to understand English back then. He had found the plants interesting back then, so maybe he could join Mountain in tending to the abbey grounds in his free time.

The taller ghoul was exactly where Phantom expected him to be. He found the other on his hands and knees in a greenhouse, gently weeding the raised beds as he spoke to the plants occupying them. Phantom stood at the doors of the greenhouse just watching him work for a few minutes before the earth ghoul stood up from where he was kneeling and wiped his muddy hands on his trousers.

“The plants told me that you’ve been standing there for a while Bug, why didn’t you say anything?” questioned Mountain, making his way over to Phantom with a hint of concern in his voice. The quintessence ghoul usually only sought Mountain out when he was overwhelmed or anxious about something and needed some quiet calmness to bring him out of it.

“I just wanted to watch you work for a bit,” started Phantom, “I want a hobby so I can do something when everyone else is busy.”

"So, you’ve decided to come give gardening a go again then?” said Mountain, stopping in front of the smaller ghoul. Phantom shyly nodded, realizing that he probably should have discussed this with Mountain beforehand instead of just dropping it on him out of nowhere.

“I can leave if you want?” the quintessence ghoul said, peering up at the larger ghoul through his hair.

Mountain was quick to jump on reassuring him. Phantom was still so unsure about his place in the pack no matter how much the others told him there was always a spot with his name on it. They had only just managed to get him to understand he was allowed to ask whatever he wanted, so Phantom asking to garden with Mountain was a huge step forward.

“you’re always welcome to come help me Bug, we can continue weeding the beds.”

Upon saying that, Mountain gently took ahold of the smaller’s hand and tugged him towards the raised beds he was working on. They both settled down and Mountain guided him through how to differentiate between plants and weeds, and how to remove the weeds without harming the surrounding plants. They worked side by side ridding all of the beds of weeds for a few hours before Phantom started getting twitchy and impatient. Gardening, while calming, was not the most stimulating hobby and wasn’t really holding his attention. If it hadn’t been for Mountain’s presence and quiet words, Phantom would have left the greenhouse hours ago. He sat idly fiddling with one of the discarded weeds while Mountain finished up the last pot, under-stimulated but not wanting to upset Mountain by leaving.

The earth ghoul sat back with a sigh before turning to face the other. “Run along and go find someone else, kid,” Mountain said, idly wiping his hands on his legs, “I can tell Gardening isn’t quite for you, but you’ll always be welcome in here with me.”

Phantom didn’t need to be told twice. He shot up and thanked Mountain profusely before darting out of the greenhouse to track down someone else. He left so quickly that he missed the fond smile gracing Mountain’s face as he watched the younger ghoul leave.

Phantom made his way back towards the Ghoul quarters. The rest of his pack were far less predictable than Mountain and could be anywhere in the abbey. He needed to wash the dirt off his hands anyway so he might as well check out the common areas of the pack den.

He climbed in through a window they left open at all times for easy access to their kitchen area to be greeted by Cumulus standing over a pot on the stove stirring. There was a sweet smell in the air which caused Phantom to begin to salivate. Cumulus’ baking was famous amongst all the ghouls and even the siblings and clergy. Everything she made was always so delicious and Phantom had been awestruck the very first time he had tasted any of it. Sweet wasn’t really a taste in the pit and Phantom had never had the opportunity to be picky; he ate what was available to him no matter what. The pit was eat or be eaten, there was no opportunity to have likes and dislikes.

Phantom had quickly grown to adore baked goods, and Cumulus’ were always the best. Maybe he could join Cumulus and take up baking?

Cumulus turned to face him with a content smile across her face. “Hello Puppy, I’m afraid there’s still a little bit until what I’m making is ready to eat.”

She was more than used to how Phantom would hang around the kitchens when she was almost finished baking, hoping that the air ghoul would take pity on him and give him something. He truly lived up to his nickname of Puppy, especially how he was currently beaming at her with his tail wagging behind him.

“what’re you making ‘Lus? Can I help you?” he said so quickly he stumbled over his words.

“Of course, Pup, I’m making salted caramel brownies and I’d love for you to give me a hand.” She replied, pointing at the image in the cookbook propped up on the windowsill. There were loads of steps to the recipe, but the example image looked so delicious that he couldn’t help but be excited.

“Pop an apron on first Sweet, can’t be having to clean up both you and the kitchen afterwards,” Cumulus said with a melodical humour in her voice as she herded the younger ghoul to the aprons hanging up on some hooks.

The rest of the afternoon went quick as he followed Cumulus’s lead in the kitchen. He was the complete opposite of her when it came to baking. The pack had realised pretty much immediately that Phantom should not be allowed near anything hot after he’d put his hands on the hot stove, so what he could help with was very limited. Cumulus had given him a bowl of dry ingredients to sift while she tackled melting chocolate and finishing up the caramel, and Phantom had somehow managed to get half of the flour into the dark patches of his fur within minutes. The older ghoul had just chuckled at Phantom’s nervous face when he realised just how much of a mess he’d made.

She was quick to distract him by pouring the chocolate mix into Phantom’s bowl and pressing a rubber spatula into his hands for him to mix it together. Cumulus helped the younger ghoul sandwich layers of the indulgent brownie batter with the thick, rich caramel before she slipped the tray into the oven. Phantom began to bounce from his heels to his toes as the anticipation of a sweet treat started to buzz under his skin.

“Phantom, come over here so I can clean the flour off of you before you traipse it around the den,” Cumulus called out from where she stood by the sink holding a damp cloth. The other bounced over to her and let her fuss over him and scrub the cloth through his fur, causing it to spike up in awkward clumps. It always embarrassed him just how much he got treated like a kit, but Phantom couldn’t deny each gentle touch made him preen under the attention.

“Ok pup, run along now, those brownies have to cook for a while and I need to get started on dinner.” She smiled fondly at him and ruffled a hand through his thick hair.

Phantom gave a pleased chirp before turning to leave the kitchen. He’s sure baking won’t be the hobby for him, so he better track down another packmate to try out theirs!

[linaisfunny]

SAD HEADCANONS FOR SIREN BECAUSE I LOVE MY CHAT AND WAS TARGETED

1#. Due to the God mouth, It’s harder for Siren to differentiate between reality and his own mind. He’ll debate with himself for hours if some stuff that’s happened to him was, “really real.”

He’ll fall into rabbit holes of wondering if anything that happened was actually true, or did he even get out of the God’s mouth? Is this some hallucination? Is he real?

Usually, the only way to calm him down form these is talking to others. It grounds him and makes him focus on the conversation rather then his failing mind.

(Sometimes when it’s really bad, it’s him who feels like the phantom among real, living people.)

2#. He has to remind himself that he’s not a Prince anymore and doesn’t have to be, “Perfect.” Doesn’t have to smile a certain way or act a certain way. Sometimes, though. Sometimes, once he makes even the smallest mistake in his appearance or speech or even tone, he freezes. He made a mistake, he’s not supposed to make mistakes, he can’t make mistakes, he’s supposed to be perfect, he’s supposed to be the perfect Prince-

Sometimes. Sometimes. Siren gets a little frustrated when he makes a mistake. He has to be perfect, anyone would. Of course, perfect people don’t get frustrated, do they?

3#. Toxic positivity. Even to the point of insanity; Siren will find away to make himself the joke. His feelings and thoughts unserious and unimportant. Everything always just one big joke. Never to others, but always to himself. Never wants to ruin a mood, ya know? He’s fine, his arm could be cut off but, “Oh, no! Yeah, I’m fine. Totally! Just a scratch, don’t worry, I’ll be fine. It’s fine. I’m fine and everything is fine.”

Everything is always fine. He’s always happy and everything is always fine.

“If you’re not joking, why even speak in the first place? If you’re not smiling, what’s the point of showing your face at all?”

5#. Insomnia. His head keeps him up for hours. Constantly just going; like he’s running from something and just has to stay up. He’ll just wonder around or do something; seeing, reading, writing, drawing, crying. If he breaks in the night it doesn’t count. It never counts. He’s hidden by the twilight; nobody can see and nobody can hear. It’s only him and his shame. The daytime is showtime but the night is his backstage.

It’s okay to cry when there’s no mood to ruin or people to piss off. You just gotta look presentable in the morning. What a sad little jester.

7#. He’s scared of the dark. Siren has told nobody about it; they’ll laugh. He knows they will. (Even he can’t take himself seriously) but…God. He hates the dark. It makes him feel watched. Like there’s people surrounding him; just around the corner. Something following him. But thats childish. So he doesn’t tell anyone.

8#. He’s very sensitive to how people perceive him. He’s terrified that people will see right through him, that they already do. That they see the sad little boy he really is. But, what Siren doesn’t know is, they don’t.

The only reason Kappa noticed in the comics is because he was caught at a bad moment (in the night) he played it off well though. He’s horribly depressed and jaded and nobody has the even the slightest idea.

Siren thinks everyone can see through him; everyone else thinks they do and see a funny, genuine man. They don’t.

9#. He likes being angry. Just a little bit. He spent his entire life in a castle. Trapped. Left to his own devices as the people around him died(he feels like he died with them) alone. The days blurred, the months went hazy and the years fell through his fingers like sand. Then, he was angry. So devastatingly angry. Beyond furious. At his own mother. Then finally, it was almost like a new side of him was unlocked. He was someone bitter, mean, passionate, loud, jaded, violent, someone angry. Someone alive!

That anger, that betrayal; it breathed life into him. Melted his icy world and then set it on fire. Boiled his blood, restarted his heart, made his muscles shriek. He could feel his heart beat and lungs breathe for the first time in his life. He was alive! He was alive! He was alive!

And then he swallowed down his fury and never touched it again. Never showed it. He was alive; then he stopped his own heart. Sometimes though; in the darkest of nights, he breaths once more.

(It’s not enough, it’s never enough, but showtime is soon.)

10#. He hates himself. Siren truly cannot stand himself. He wants to crawl out of his own skin. Wish that he was never born the way he was. Himself.

But that doesn’t matter. Because he’s fine. And he’s happy! And funny! So it doesn’t matter and everything is fine.

Everything is just great,

Everything is just fine.

HOW DO WE FEEL ABOUT THIS ONE CHAT??? SMASH OR PASS?? CRINGE EDGELORD OR BOMB?



[the-soliloquies-of-sadists]

#248

“C’mon in. Have a seat. David? Right? It’s weird calling you by a real man’s name, after spending a whole weekend calling you ‘Cunt’ and ‘Fag’ and ‘Shit Head’. Don’t be surprised if I slip up and start calling you that again. But you, you keep calling me ‘Boss.’ When I offered you this job last Sunday, it was after one hell of a wild weekend fucking your brains out. Is your cunt still gaping or did it snap back into place?...

“You look surprised. Well let me tell you something. I love using faggots like you. Fuck, I don’t hide that fact at all. I wouldn’t have offered you this job unless I knew you could take a pounding from my nine-and-a-half-inch baseball bat of a cock. And while it is not expected of you as part of your job responsibilities around here, I will be slamming into your cunt whenever I want. I saw that look in your eyes when I told you I had an opening here. You were already fantasizing about submitting to your boss. I know you were. I’ve seen it with dozens of fags before. Yeah, I offer jobs to freshly fucked tricks. I have always liked fucking with men, especially on the job site.

“After my wife died eight years ago, my 1,200-acre ranch seemed empty. The oil drill on the northside has me swimming in money. But I wanted fag cunt. I need to use it. I created this warehousing business with one thing in mind, satisfying my cock. I looked to have a dozen or so men that could walk up to any one of them and say I need a blowjob, and I would get one on the spot without worry of a sexual harassment charge. Or to walk through the warehouse and see a new employee getting spit roasted. And it all feels normal.

“From your test run this past weekend, I know you can swallow me, with difficulty, but still manage. You drank my piss, so I know you have done that before. You spent hours eating my ass. I can’t remember the last time my shithole was treated with so much love. Your cunt put up a fight, but by Sunday night, you had one hell of a gape. You even bled a little on that first fuck.

“Wanna see?... I took this photo when I told you to push out some of my load. Here, take it. Yeah, I like taking pics of freshly used cunts. I bet you haven’t ever seen your hole blown up on a twelve-inch glossy. Look at the detail. You can see specks of your cherry. I know you weren’t a virgin, but you were a virgin to me. That’s what matters. And this isn’t some sort of blackmail thing where we keep this a secret.

“Hell, every one of the workers there will know I bred your cunt. You wouldn’t have gotten this job without first having my load in your ass. Every one of the guys you will work with in the warehouse has had my load in his cunt. Every single one! All fourteen of them. You are number fifteen. In fact, Mark, the cute puppy you met when you came in has my morning’s load in his ass right now.

“I have known Mark the longest. He and I go back a long way. We designed this place, and he’s the one who helped me set things up so that I won’t get into trouble. He’s the only one who interacts with the public, if anybody should come by which they never do. I say that because the warehouse is around back. That’s where you will be working not up here. Let’s go take a tour of that. But first, Mark would kill me if I don’t ask you, you want the job knowing what you know?... Good. I would have been surprised had you said no. We have contingencies set up should an employee not want work in such an environment. But I know how to pick ‘em. He hee.

“Grab that pic of your leaking cunt and bring it with us. We’ll go out the back. The warehouse is purposely a few hundred feet from the office. Mark suggested that. He really keeps me honest when it comes to all this shit. In the warehouse, clothing is optional. For the most part, no one wears anything. I have asked the two managers to wear a wife beater to differentiate themselves from the others. The real reason is that they are built like brick shithouses, and they look great in a tank. Hector, the manager you will be reporting to wears a black one and Aaron, the other one wears white. Don’t know why they do that, but they do. If I’m going to be in here for a short time, I just haul out my cock and balls only, otherwise I’m naked from the waist down.

“You had indicated that you are in temp housing in town. I told you that I have housing on property. Those three buildings back there are it. Hector and Aaron each have one, and the large bunkhouse is for any of the other workers. During your probationary time, you will be living with Hector. If you loved my cock, you’ll love his. He’s more into cock worship. The final thing before we go in is compensation. The job you are hired for really only requires 15 to 20 hours per week, but you will be paid for 40.

“Hector and Aaron will make sure you do your share of the actual work. That leaves 20 hours or so to play with the others. It doesn’t have to be all sex, but have fun. The hourly rate is three times what the job normally goes for. You will be provided with a room if you want. You get half the work, three times the pay, a place to stay, and all the cock you can handle. The only thing you give up is your privacy. Now, you are not tied here; you can go into town on your own time. But when you are here on property, you will be expected to comply with the rules. Hector will go over all that.

“Inside and to the left are the locker room and showers. That locker at the end is yours. It’s the smallest, but you are the one with the lowest seniority. Go ahead and strip down. I’ll go get… never mind here he is. Hector this is Dan,… or David or whatever the fuck his name is. Fag, this is Hector, although he’s going to insist you call him ‘Sir’. Look at those muscles! They make his cock look average sized. But fuck that cock of his is just as fat as mine. It’s going to be in your ass in a few minutes. We always break in the new employees the same way, a gang bang. No, don’t put your boots away. Everyone wears theirs as they work. There’s no lock on your locker. Don’t worry about it….

“Hector, are the guys ready by the wall? Good. Good…. Fag, around this corner is the break room. Across from it, see where the guys are standing? That’s what we call the wall of cunts. See the pics there? They are the assholes of every man here. Everyone has my load leaking out, except for that one on top. That’s my shitter. Hector and Aaron’s are in their own row underneath me. You are going to be very up close with Hector’s every night. Everyone else’s is below. I like to think of it as an org chart of leaking cunts. That spot over there is for you to put your pic. Go on. We’ll go around and share names later. I would rather you learn all their cocks first. The pic looks good there.

“Men! The fag here is a piss drinker and an ass eater. Make sure we take advantage of his talents. When I come back, I expect him to be shaved from head to toe, covered in piss, his face reeking of ass sweat, and his cunt loaded up. Over the next week, I want him to taste each of your shitholes. Guys, this is probably the best rimmer I have encountered in a long time. Oh, Hector is ready! Fag, welcome to the company.”

[neowinestainedress]

DYNASTY / NCT

CHARACTHERS 

TAEYONG LEE "I've been having a hard time adjusting. I had the shiniest wheels, now they're rusting"

The role of the leader passed at him naturally. When the fire changed their lives forever, none of the others hesitated for a moment to know that the future of the city had to be put in his hands. Yet, he didn't feel the same. He couldn't see how they had so much hope and trust in him to hold things together when he couldn't even hold himself, anymore. But he knew that they still saw in him the protective older brother that used to take care of everybody and tried to defend them from everything, unfortunately, he knew that child wasn't there anymore.

𝞦

THE PROTECTOR

In charge of protecting the city and looking after the citizens. He's helped by his team, divided between the protectors who stay at the door of the city to control who comes in and out, and a team inside of the city that mostly focuses on the citizens' needs and external relations.

JOHNNY SUH "Cause in the end the road is long, but only cause it makes strong. It's filled with twist and peaks and turn. Sometimes you have to learn to forget about it."

If there was something Johnny was good at, it was observing. He loved to see things from a different point of view and analyze them since he was a child, so it wasn't surprising when the role of the protector was given to him. He always believed that everything happens for a reason, and you can choose to make it kill you or make you stronger. He once went for the first one and lost a loved one, so he won't let that happen again.

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THE THINKERS

The unit in charge of the bureaucracy. They are the ones that take care of the plans for the city, helping Taeyong with their outstanding logical thoughts skills. They can always maintain calm, even in the worst situations, always trying to weigh the pros and cons of the situation.

TAEIL MOON "All the things that I've done and I've seen. Still I don't know, don't know what it means, to be human."

Taeil always felt a big weight on his chest for being the eldest of the group and not manacing to protect them all. He wasn't the one who started to see the red flags, he never stopped Taeyong and Anastasia and their reckless plan. Thoughts haunt him at night that he should've done better. As the oldest, he had seen the worst thing, but the more he tries to remember, the more he feels disconnected from reality.

DOYOUNG KIM "Tell me the truth, tell me, do you still remember feelin' young and strong enough to get it wrong in front of all these people?"

Doyoung has always been the most impassible one of all of them. Nothing could tarnish him. He strongly believed that behind everything there was a scientific and logical explanation. He had no time to let himself get caught in pointless things like emotions and hypotheses. But with that came a strong need of never failing, because he couldn't let people see him as weak, or wrong. He always had to get it right on the first try. Live, though, loved to prove him wrong. .

TEN LEE "'Cause I feel like I'm the worst, so I always act like I'm the best."

Ten intelligence has always been witty and sharp. With his way, he could manipulate anybody with a blink of an eye. He loved control and power, and the feeling they brought with them. He always had to be one step in front of the others and know exactly what to do, how and when. But behind all of this confidence, a fear of failing hid behind.

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THE FIGHTERS

The unit in charge of fighting. Their abilities are mostly physical and differentiated in different specialities. They have been training since they were children and all of them got better in a specific field but overall they developed ability in all the ??.

YUTA NAKAMOTO "My demons are begging me to open up my mouth. I need them mechanically make the words come out. They fight me, vigorous and angry, watch them pounce. Ignite me, licking up the flames they bring about."

Yuta had one thing in mind, revenge. He had to carry with him the name of the people that put them through the worst and he couldn't bear it anymore. He wanted to see them beg for forgiveness and then take everything from them just like they did.

JAEHYUN JEONG "My heart's gone bad, now it won't beat for you. You had your laugh, now I won't play the fool. I've lied for you, and I liked it too. But I'm black and blue, from bleedin' for you."

Jaehyun has always been quiet, always in a corner, respecting the rules and never talking back. At least in front of their parents and all the things he was afraid of. He was calm of nature, that's what they would say to him. But the more life marked him, the more he realized he had a fire inside, and they weren't ready to see the flames.

LIV HANSEN "I can feel the flames on my skin. Crimson red paint on my lips. If a man talks shit, then I owe him nothing. I don't regret it one bit, 'cause he had it coming."

Liv was just like her name, life. Her burning red hair was flames itself, just like her. Dangerously pretty, dangerously quiet. Nobody could shut her, always saying what she was thinking since she was a child. She never let anybody step on her or tell her no. She had always been a force of nature, protecting everyone around her like a summer breeze caressing skin at night, until she realised that in that world she had to be a hurricane to protect who she loved, and never fail again.

LUCAS WONG "I don't envy, I will survive. And I've been begging and begging myself, please don't close your eyes. I don't have tears, I cried it all."

Lucas has always been the positive one of the group, the one that managed to always bring happiness even in the worst situations. He wasn't a hopeless romantic, he simply had to try and find the good in everything to survive. He knew it couldn't rain forever.

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THE HEALERS

The unit of doctors. They mostly learned by themselves, studying hard as soon as they realized they needed to always have somebody who could heal their friends. And then have been trained professionally. They work downtown at the medicals studios but also operate in the palace.

KUN QIAN "Losing is easy, winning takes bravery. I am a tiger's fool Out in the open. No one to save me. The kindest of whispers are cruel."

Kun always liked taking care of the others, from the smallest things to the biggest. So it wasn't surprising for him to be a healer. But he also had another passion, magic. It had started when he was bored and had nothing to do, behind everybody's eyes. People were scared of the unknown, and he simply found it stupid, because, behind every magic trick, there was logic. Little did it know, what life had planned for them.

SICHENG DONG "I found what I'd been looking for in myself. Found a life worth living for someone else. Never thought that I could be happy. I believe in possibility. I believe someone's watching over me."

The bad things that happened in his life never made him lose hope. He believed in kindness. But most importantly, he believed in people and that everybody could have another chance in life. Helping others came naturally for him because nothing could come close to the feeling he got when he saw the person he helped have a smile on their faces.

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THE DREAM CHASER

The unit made of teenagers who are not children of The Rebels, except for Mark. Their team is wide and filled with other personalities that don't take place in the other units, except for a thinker, a healer and two fighters.

MARK LEE ⮚fighter

DEJUN XIAO ⮚pilot

HENDERY WONG ⮚ hacker

RENJUN HUANG ⮚thinker

JENO LEE ⮚ training fighter

DONGHYUCK LEE ⮚ hacker

JAEMIN NA ⮚ healer

YANGYANG LIU ⮚ racer

CHENLE ZHONG ⮚ chemist

JISUNG PARK ⮚ hacker

𝞦

JUNGWOO KIM "I live inside my own world of make-believe. Kids screaming in their cradles, profanities. I see the world through eyes covered in ink and bleach. Cross out the ones who heard my cries and watched me weep."

Being a functional human being felt impossible to him, by now. Anxiety trapped him in a cage and it felt worst than when that trap were burning flames. He couldn't let go of his past and the pain they inflected him, and he couldn't let any of his friends close to him again, terrified they would use him against them again.

ANASTASIA ARENAS "But I got smarter, I got harder in the nick of time. Honey, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time."

Anastasia has always been inconvenient, she never liked their little games, and she always made it clear. That's why they had to get rid of her. If only they knew she would've found a way back home, and this time ready to break the chain once for all.

ANIKA SINGH "I didn't have it in myself to go with grace, and so the battleships will sink beneath the waves. You had to kill me but it killed you just the same."

Is it possible to have a family, a house, and feel like you don't have a place where you belong? For her, it was. Anika spent her whole life being somebody her father wanted her to be. She was trapped between her duties and her dreams, always selfless, focused on taking care of her sisters. But what if the perfect daughter chooses herself for once?

SOOMIN WAN "Now I breathe flames each time I talk. My cannons all firin' at your yacht. They say 'move on' but you know I won't."

Soomin learned how to survive all by herself. She has no idea what a family is, and she's not even looking to find out. She's only looking for revenge. Because she used to have a family, before they took it away from her, right in front of her eyes. Nobody likes a mad woman, but He wanted her to be like that.

[sinner-as-saint]

Predestined - 2.

Part 2 of the Predestined series.

Run-through: Your wealthy family marries you off to a family friend’s son – famous businessman Sebastian. You two have known each other for a long time, so none of you oppose your families’ decisions. Life as Sebastian’s wife is pure bliss, he’s everything a woman could ever want. Until a certain secret of his resurfaces, and once it does – nothing in your lives is ever the same again.

Themes throughout the series: ceo!seb, fluff, smut, mob!bucky

“You…you guys are twins?”

Your question sounded more like a statement than a query. And the smirk on James’ face wouldn’t go away.

Sebastian took a deep breath and spoke, “Looking back on it now, I should’ve mentioned it last night.” He sounded much more chill than you expected him too. You searched and searched for the slightest amount of discontent or disgust towards you in his ocean eyes but you couldn’t find any of that.

But why?

If the situation was reversed, you were sure you’d be a little upset. Even though it was a mistake. But your husband was beginning to worry you. Was he faking the calm demeanor? Was he hiding something bitter behind this calm façade?

James chuckled, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning against Sebastian’s desk. “I’m not complaining. At all.” He commented, smirking still.

You shook your head and opened your mouth to say something, but then you couldn’t find the right thing to say so you just looked at your husband apologetically.

 He smiled at you, and took a step forward. “Come on, babe. Let’s go.” Sebastian spoke and took your hand in his, walking out of the room.

James spoke up from behind. “Don’t mind me, I’ll just make myself at home.” He paused and added, rather playfully, “See you around, Y/N.”

 You rushed out of the room. And you didn’t stop until you reached your bedroom. Sebastian followed you and closed the door behind him once he stepped into the room.

You turned to face him, eyes getting glossy real fast. “Seb, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” You pleaded, begged for his forgiveness.

He just smiled and came in for a hug, pushing his face into the crook of your neck; where James’ face had been just minutes ago. “Hey baby, you didn’t know. I should’ve told you last night, I should’ve told you he was coming over. Besides, we’re identical and he’s a bit of an idiot, you’re not to be blamed. It’s okay baby. It’s not a big deal, really.” He spoke gently.

You apologized again. And again. Yet, each time Sebastian’s reply was the same as the last. He reassured you that it wasn’t your fault and that he should’ve warned you beforehand. But still, you felt weird each time you thought about how you just made out with your husband’s twin brother who’s back from the dead after so many years.

You were overthinking, you knew. And you hated yourself for how easily the thought of James slipped into your head. His cologne, his taste, his lips – and how you just melted in his arms right away.

 You took a long shower, and spent most of the evening in your room. Turns out, now your mood was off so you simply asked your husband if he could bring you a bowl of cereal – which was dinner for you. Because you knew James was still downstairs, and you didn’t have the guts to face him again. Plus, you thought the two brothers would rather talk among themselves – given they had reunited after a long time.

Sebastian turned in for the night a few hours later and there was no awkwardness between you two but you couldn’t help but feel like you were being weighed down by the guilt. So you asked him again, when he was getting under the covers with you.

“Is he still here?” you asked about James.

Sebastian shook his head. “Nope, he left. But he’ll be back, I know.”

“Are you mad at me?” you asked, kneeling on the bed and facing him. Sebastian chuckled and faced you with that same soft look in his eyes.

“Baby... I told you already, I’m not mad, I…” he paused and sighed, leaning against the headboard and extending his arm towards you. “Come here.”

You took his hand and immediately straddled his thighs, settling on his lap and placing your hands on his shoulders. “I love you, okay?” he spoke again, and leaned in to kiss you finally.

 You kissed him back immediately. And you instantly got flashbacks to when you were kissing James earlier. But you pushed it all away as soon as it came, and focused on Sebastian in the moment.

His hands slipped under your thin PJ shirt and he tickled your sides, making you pull away and giggle.

“There it is, that’s what I like to hear. I hate it when you’re upset, baby.” He kissed you immediately after and slipped a hand in between your legs, teasing your wet folds with his fingers, making you arch your back and moan.

Sebastian knew just what you wanted, and he had missed you all day as well. So he laid you down and kissed you senselessly; undressing you rapidly in the process. He kissed every inch of your skin on his way down your body. He pushed his face in between your legs in no time; his tongue teasing your entrance softly while you tugged in his hair.

He made you come undone all over his tongue rather quickly, and his hunger only grew more and more from there. He kissed his way up your body and pinned your hands down above your head while he pushed inside you, slowly.

“You’re mine.” he whispered in your ear in between grunts and moans as he sped up into you, making you feel all of him while he stroked your walls perfectly.

You knew Sebastian, and you could point even the smallest little changes in his behavior or tone. And tonight, when he made love to you; something was different. Not unpleasant in any way, just different. He was meaner and a little more rough than usual.

He tugged on your hair harder when he flipped you around, lifted your hips up and pounded into you from behind. His grip on your waist was tighter each time he pulled you closer. His kiss was a little more passionate. He was more loving and needy, if anything. He made love to you as though he was measuring himself against someone else. And although you loved it more than anything, you couldn’t quite figure out why he acted so.

Sebastian bit down on your shoulder as he pounded into you mercilessly, making you scream loudly and beg him for more. He placed one of his hand gently around your neck while he sped up even more into you; he leaned in to whisper in your ear again. “I love you.” he simply said, feeling your walls beginning to clench around him.

You mumbled you loved him too, and whined and moaned as he made you come undone violently around him. Sebastian pushed his face into your neck as he growled and grunted, coming right after you.

You panted, basking in his body heat as you held him close to you; sliding your hands into his hair and kissing his shoulder. “I love you, Seb. More than anything.” You spoke into his hair and he chuckled and pulled the two of you under the covers again.

“Go to sleep, baby. I’m right here.” He pulled your worn out body into his and cuddled you to sleep.

You drifted off to sleep soon after, but he couldn’t.

Sebastian knew why James was here. And he saw the look in his brother’s eyes every time he looked at you. He saw the harmless envy and the inevitable adoration in James’ eyes each time he looked at you and he knew his brother wasn’t going away anytime soon.

Sebastian smiled, sighing and pulling you closer and kissing the top of your head. “Things might change a little, baby. But it’ll be okay, I’ll be here with you. I love you. More than anything.”

 ---

The next morning you woke up, a little sore from last night, in an empty bed. It was Saturday, and Sebastian usually made breakfast on weekends so you figured he might be in the kitchen.

You went about your morning routine and got ready for the day, and then walked into the kitchen to find Sebastian cooking – shirtless – with his back to you. You wanted to run and wrap your arms around your husband and give him a big morning hug, but then you hesitate when you thought about the events of yesterday evening.

So you lingered around the kitchen entrance until he spoke up. “It’s me, baby. Come here.” He spoke in his playful voice, turning around for a brief second to look at you before focusing back on the pan. You smiled and walked over to him and wrapped your arms around him, kissing his neck and making him chuckled.

“Good morning.” You said and he turned around to give you a deep kiss. And you deepened the kiss, making him smile as always.

Midway through, you heard a very cheery voice speak up, “Can I get me a good morning greeting like that as well?” James teased, walking into the kitchen and making himself comfortable on the kitchen island like he owned it.

 “Stop, before she kicks you out.” Sebastian gave you one last kiss and gave his brother a warning. But that didn’t stop him.

James chuckled. “Okay, okay I’m kidding, alright? Unless…” he trailed off, winking at you. And Sebastian threw him a death glare, and he finally stopped.

“I’m sorry.” He apologized and walked over to you, surprisingly his smirk wasn’t on his pretty face this time. “I understand due to some misunderstanding that, you and I haven’t met properly, Y/N.” He extended his hand towards you as a friendly gesture, “Hi, I’m your husband’s secret twin brother.” He smiled at you.

And he looked so much like Sebastian it was downright insane. You took his hand and shook it gently. “Hi James.” You spoke, scanning his face to at least look for one feature which would differentiate them.

James smiled, letting go of your hand. “Call me Bucky. Oh and give up, there isn’t any.” He spoke, confusing you.

“I don’t understand.” You spoke, surprised at how much alike they actually were. He chuckled.

“You’re doing that thing that everyone does, where they stare at us and try to find a way to tell us apart. You won’t find it, doll. Unfortunately, I’m stuck with his face and he with mine.” Bucky joked and you laughed a little, and something told you that you’d be thinking a lot about how he called you ‘doll’ so effortless, like it was second nature.

Watching this whole exchange, was Sebastian, with a little smile on his face. Oh how you three would look back on this and laugh one day, he thought, hopefully.

“Come on, breakfast is ready.” He spoke, breaking the staring contest between you and Bucky.

 It was freaky at first, seeing two identical people at the same time. Same face, same hair, same voice, same body language – it took you some time to get used to it and actually stop staring at both of them the whole time.

You found yourself quite liking Bucky’s company. He wasn’t sassy all the time, he could actually keep a conversation going, and he always had funny anecdotes.

You couldn’t believe how well you all were getting along at breakfast. Initially you thought there would be this weird tension between Sebastian and Bucky given last night’s misunderstanding, and also the fact that Bucky hadn’t met his brother for years. But that wasn’t the case. Him and Sebastian got along really well, like old friends reuniting and feeling as though time hasn’t passed at all.

The two joked and laughed, and you joined them. Everything was so smooth and there was no need to always try and make things flow in between you three at that breakfast table that morning; it just happened naturally. It felt like Bucky had always been a part of you and Sebastian. And you knew Sebastian felt the same way. For some reasons, it felt like – even without verbally ever saying it – you all understood that for you, Bucky would never be your ‘brother-in-law’, instead, he was just an extension of Sebastian you felt like.

 After breakfast, Bucky asked if he could spend a few days over at yours because he was still trying to find a place of his own. You and Sebastian shared a soft look and a faint smile and agreed on the spot.  

Things weren’t awkward at all, which you thanked God for.

You were able to tell them apart, since they wore different clothes. But around the evening, when Bucky had settled into the guest room and borrowed Sebastian’s clothes; that’s when the confusion started.

You walked downstairs, and found Sebastian standing in front of the fridge, looking for something and given how irresistible he looked in his burgundy, long sleeved sweater – which you bought him a while ago; you couldn’t help but walk over and hug him from behind, nuzzling his neck and kissing his skin gently.

But then you heard someone chuckling not too far away. “Wrong twin, babe.” You heard your husband’s voice coming from the other side of the room. And then you realized that you had been hugging Bucky this whole time. The latter laughed, they both did as you walked out of the kitchen; blushing and groaning.

And that happened again and again. By Sunday morning, you’d even ask Sebastian if he had seen where your husband is. He just laughed and pushed you against the wall and kissed you deeply, chuckling as he pulled away. “I am your husband, baby.” He whispered softly, making you hide your face into his chest and groan again.

But then, sometime they would purposely mess with you.

You would be talking and holding Sebastian’s hand on the couch or even kissing him. And Bucky would just show up with a shocked expression on his face, pretending to be Seb and he’d look at you as though heartbroken. “Wrong twin, baby.” He repeated Sebastian’s voice and watched your face morph into pure terror momentarily as you pulled away to check again.

Then they’d both laugh and Sebastian would make Bucky apologize.

And so, a week passed.

You noticed that your house was a little more cheery with Bucky in it. It was definitely louder, like right now as the two were having a drink downstairs and you were replying to some email for work upstairs. Bucky and his antics and pranks definitely brought out a side of Sebastian which you had never seen before – his mischief. And you liked it.

Sebastian noticed it too, how he didn’t mind Bucky being close to you. And how the three of you laughed a lot more when you were together in the same room. Or how amusing the whole ‘wrong twin’ thing was. He had missed his brother immensely, and he loved him. He just wished life would take such a turn where everything will fall into place perfectly. Not that it wasn’t already perfect, but just a little better.

 “…you’re a lucky man. She’s incredible.” Sebastian saw that look in Bucky’s eyes again while he spoke about you. He smiled, sipping on his brandy.

“She is. There’s never a dull moment with her around. She’s amazing.” Sebastian added, agreeing with his brother and looking over at him.

Bucky stared out of the floor-to-ceiling windows, an unfamiliar emotion on his face. One which his brother noticed.

Bucky might have tried to hide it, how he always immediately smiled whenever you walked into the room. Or how he blushed for a brief second each time you randomly walked up to him and gave him a hug, thinking he was Sebastian. Or how he’d purposely borrow more and more clothes from Sebastian, despite having his own luggage, just so you would make mistakes and hug him more often. Or how each time Sebastian complimented you, Bucky would always one up him. Or how he’d feel real proud and good about himself each time you laughed at one of his jokes. Or how he tried to impress you with his cooking and his bad boy charm.

Bucky might have tried to hide it all, but Sebastian knew him all too well. “You like her, don’t you?” Sebastian finally asked, carefully watching Bucky.

Sebastian caught the look of surprise, and how quickly it was replaced by guilt. “I shouldn’t.” Bucky replied, finishing his drink at one go.

“But you do, correct?” Sebastian wasn’t mad, he just needed to get confirmation from both sides. So none of you would feel guilty over your feelings.

“I do.”

 a/n: *gasp*

---

Tag List for this series (OPEN):

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[the-fandom-is-now-my-life]

Can you do a HC where pregnant reader is poisoned and in a coma for Thor and Poseidon?

Pregnant reader Poison in coma

He simply went home after wild hunt after frigg commanded him to do it

" Son, the midgarden has spent a while without thunderstorms, go wild hunting"

" Isn't that father's job"

" He is busy, go"

" Mom, my wife is pregnant, I won't leave her alone"

" Then I will be with her in the meantime , go son , midgarden has been calm too long "

And when he returned he found you passed out with frigg and eir at your side.

" What happened here?"

" I don't know,son! I was about to drink and I shared some with her but she passed out!"

" Your wine must have been poisoned!"

" but a maid just brought it Eir!'

" How did the maid look, ma'am?"

' I don't remember! She had this strand of hair that was darker but nothing else… son! Where are you going?'

"Loki! You bastard! I will kill him!"

It was all a mischief caused by Loki, even though it was meant to get frigg to sleep and not meant to be drank by you

" Hello, Thor! Isn't this evening lovely to cause misch- Ack! What is it Thor?! Let go of my neck! I can't breathe"

" You scoundrel, did you think for a second that you could get away with poisoning my wife?'

'what are ya talking about?! I poisoned Frigg's wine! Plus it shouldn't cause more than light sleep! I assure you brother, in one lustrum, not a day before nor a day after."

"How can I believe your words?"

" Why would I lie? It was meant for the hag for for my sweet sister in law"

Plop!

" Ya welcome by the way. Couldn't you have softened your grip? I will have bruises'

" Don't test it or I will ask Brokk to sew your mouth shut again"

"Eek! I took me months to speak again"

" The most beautiful months I can remember"

The time went by, and Thor never once left your bedside. Your stomach swollen by the time you had to wake up, everyone of the Æsir marking the days until you would return. 5 years and you are yet to wake up, maybe it is going to take some days extra, 5 more weeks and nothing, more and more weeks added until it reaches 10 years of waiting.

The Ragnarok was the only excuse that could keep him away from you for more than 5 minutes, even if Thor wasn't willing to leave.

" Mother, what if she awakens while I am away, I want to be the first one to see. Or what if she goes into labor, I wish to not miss that moment"

" Son, the fight won't last long. It's only against a human, how long would it take? 10 minutes? Maybe 15? It is unlikely that she will wake up in such a small time frame"

"B-"

" C'mon son, I heard the strongest humans will fight in there, isn't it worth a shot? Me and eir can stay here in case of her going into labor Just 20 minutes"

"I will end that battle in 5 minutes"

As soon as his fight with Lu bu ended he left the arena and returned to his castle

"Ehh!, Why won't you wait for your brother's fight?!. I was waiting patiently for this chance to show how I got better at fighting"

" Then why won't you fight me outside? I still haven't forgotten what you did to my wife"

'eak! Zeus save meeeee"

" Fufufu, the young ones do have energy, don't they?"

He returned hoping that everything was the same but what he found was eir, his mother and two babies crying

" Good evening, son! How was your fight?"

"Whose baby are those?"

Muffled whispers

" Whose? Mother"

"Yours"

" Didn't you promise to notify me if my wife went into labor"

" You seemed so happy to be fighting him"

" What are they, eir?"

" A set of twins! Mister Thor, a girl and a boy"

" They are squishy… cute"

Thor raised your twins while waiting for you to wake up. They would wait longer than life and time itself for you to know your children

" Daaaad, how long till mom wakes up"

" I don't know Troels, I wish to know too. Where is your sister?"

" Borghild went to see mom"

∆^∆^∆

" Sweetie, what are you doing?"

" Dad, will mom wake up?"

"Yes, sweetie"

"When?"

" I don't know but we will wait, after all the best things take time to see"

Poseidon

You were supposed to break the news to Poseidon at dinner but he had last minute affairs ( Zeus got drunk and did someone and called him to calm hera down)

" If he calls me one more time I'm going to do everyone here a favor and castrating him"

" That would have avoided a whole lot of problems"

So you are the dinner by yourself and left the letter at your bed in his pillow

" Was this type of mushroom always in this dish? Ah, whatever"

You went to sleep but when Poseidon tried to wake you up ,he couldn't

"Wake up, what does that note mean?, (So) this isn't funny. Wake. Up. This is a serious matter"

"M-mister Poseidon. I think I know what happened to the madam."

"..."

" I saw in the evening that one of the kitchen staff bumped with the person in charge of Asclepius' request. The one of .nnbg"

" Talk. Louder. Or I will make you talk"

" The one who was sending the Amanita virosa… mister?!"

" Call the kitchen staff. A urgent meeting"

"Yessir, right away sir!"

There was a mistake in the kitchen and the mushrooms that were supposed to be used for poison making got mixed up with the edible ones

"Eckk! Be more careful! You made me drop destroying angel . Those are poisonous! Help me pick them up"

"Sorry! I am sorry! I didn't mean to! I had to bring the mushrooms to the kitchen

" Whatever. Stop… are you sure those are your mushrooms?."

"I-I am not quite sure"

"Let's try separating them!"

"Yeah!"

" What is taking you so long! The dinner isn't going to finish itself!"

"Sorry head chef, I am going, head chef"

"Wait! These aren't mine!"

He killed the kitchen staff.

" Finally, mister Poseidon has recognized my worth as his cook!"

"Yes, mister, I'm sure that must be the case. But, why did he call us here too."

" I must be to tell you that your help won't be needed anymore"

^∆^

*The atmosphere is too heavy to be good news* was a common thought

"Mister Poseidon! What is the cause of the joy of meeting you here"

" What did you serve as dinner"

"W-well of course, the madam asked for a risotto with mushrooms. Do you wish for us to make a fresh batch for you?"

" In that table there are two baskets, one with regular meadow mushrooms and another with Amanita virosa."

"What?"

" Every person here has to replicate the risotto with the mushrooms that they decide. choose wisely"

"… "

"What. are. You. Waiting. For."

"Sorry mister Poseidon!. Getting ready sir!"

∆^∆

Poseidon was seated in front of 20 dishes and their respective chef.

"Does everyone recognize their own dish?"

"Yessir!"

" Everyone, eat your own risotto"

"W-what?!"

"You are chefs , aren't you? You should be able to differentiate edible plants from non edible one. Go ahead. Show me if you are worthy of cooking here."

One by one they fell like flies. Leaving nobody

"To not be able to notice that they were all the same type with the ring cut off. How unsightly

He may not be exactly at your bedside but he won't be out of the castle.

"Poseidon. Could I see my beloved sister in-law?"

"Do you want me to trusts you with where my wife is? While she is in a comma? Do you think I'm stupid?"

Most of the time he spends by your side is to make sure the doctors don't mess up

"What are you doing,Apollo"

"For the sixth time, a basic check up. I do this daily"

"Why are you touching my wife"

"How do you expect me to treat her 2 meters away?"

"I am bringing Artemis"

"Oh for fucks sake , Poseidon"

It hurts him to see you in this state. You used to be so lively that seeing you in that state isn't something he wants to see.

Poseidon puts his hand on your cheek and sighs " I preferred it better when you smiled at me." He stands up from the bed and kisses your forehead " please wake up soon"

He might be a little nervous to take care of a whole baby by himself ( the servants already messed up once,there is not going to be a second chance) . After all he never took care of a baby in his life

"Why don't you ask your brother?"

"Zeus, have you ever had to take care of one of your children?

"..."

" I'm asking your wife"

∆^∆

"Look closely, to hold the baby by grabbing them like this"

"Like this?"

"Yes!"

"I think I'm ready to have my baby"

"Babies"

"What?"

"They are quintuplets"

"Excuse you?"

You had quintuplets , your oldest girls eirene, halcyone, Apolline. Your only boy, asafés. And the youngest and smallest of her siblings, charmian.

" Father! Halcy stole my headband"

"Eirene is lying, father! This headband is mine"

"There there, let's talk about this calmly"

"Shut up, Apolline!"

" You shut up halcyone, I'm older than you for 30 minutes, so respect me more!"

"Father, I want a brother"

"Let's talk about that when mommy wakes up,asafés"

"We are the only two men here. I want a little brother!"

"Father? Will mommy wake up?"

"Yes, some day"

"When that happens let's throw a party!"

"Sure"

"And we can invite uncle Zeus"

"No"

Secretly charmian is his favorite because she is a carbon copy of you. Her name is literally little joy.

[kyuublu]

Red satin | Pt.1

Song Inspiration: Mayonaka no Door/Stay with me - Miki Matsubara

There were only two things in my life that were constant from the beginning.

Dancing & Atsumu.

Since I was little my life revolved around music and the way it made me feel. A person is able to convey every emotion through a few steps or a wave of their hand.

And two people, united as one? That was what sparked my interest the most.

Tsumu never saw dancing as meaningful as me. He enjoyed the temporary rush it gave him, the attention and most importantly; he loved winning. Seeing everyone clap for him and gaining recognition by all the people involved was what made him stay.

Before that though, me and him were assigned to be partners at the age of 10. Well more specifically, he was a year older.

Back then he wasn’t as cocky. Atsumu was just an 11 year old boy that wasn’t too sure about what he was doing. The two of us actually got along well the first couple of years.

But it went downhill after we became teenagers. The boy constantly bickered about my incompetence when I couldn’t follow his movements, he called out more things about my physical appearance than my dancing at times and he just became an overall asshole.

I let him though. I’d rather let him say all of those things and detach myself from these moments than having a new dance partner. He was the only one who could pull everything out of me, Tsumu made me push my limits. And he knew that.

Since we’ve been partners for over 7 years, our families became very close. Our parents practically became friends at this point and we stayed over at each others places more than I’d like to admit. Despite our differences, we would somehow survive these sleepovers because we mostly just continued training rather than chatting or watching movies.

____

As I turned around the corner, my eyes catched the all too familiar building at the end of the street. The leaves were turning yellow and orange, some of them slowly turning in the wind.

Today was the day of finally getting my new attire for the next ballroom competition. I dreamed of this dress for a long time, I was never able to wear something as risky before since I was too young. But now at 17/almost 18 years, Ms.Miya was finally on board with my ideas. The mother of the twins made all of our clothing for the competitions.

She usually went with the ideas our trainer had in mind but this time they let me design it; and I went all out.

I knocked at the door and shuffled around for a bit. When Tsumu knew I came over he would usually take hours to open the door. He wasn’t the type to have good manners anyway.

This time I was suprised when his twin opened the door. After their bold hair dye situation, I became even quicker at differentiating the two.

“Huh? Where’s your brother?”

The grey haired boy let out a dry chuckle, opening the door wider.

“Didn’t he tell you? That Idiot is still out.”

He mentioned me to come in. I let out a frustrated huff but walked inside. Somehow I knew Tsumu was going to ditch me again. After discovering the “fun” of messing around with different girls, he has been even harder to deal with than usual.

My thoughts soon got interrupted by a sweet smile from their mother. “Hey honey, are you ready to see your dress? You’ve been waiting long enough haven’t you?”

I broke into a soft smile and nodded at the lady. “Yes, I can’t wait.”

“I’m glad.” Ms.Miya than flicked her eyes to Osamu. “Is Atsumu still out?”

The twin was leaning against the kitchen counter, an apple in hand as he shrugged.

“I guess so.”

The mother rolled her eyes in annoyance. “This kid is going to be the death of me.”

She smoothly put a hand on my shoulder and walked me towards the stairs.

“His partner comes all this way to finally put the dress on and he isn’t even present. You know what-“

The woman suddenly swung around, pointing at her next victim.

“Osamu, you’ll have to step in.”

The boys’ eyes went wide, well he looked a little more shocked than his usual stoic face at least. “What?”

“Come on, if your brother can’t see this beautiful girl in the dress than you can. We need some male feedback.”

His mother grinned sneakily and ushered me up the stairs again before anyone of us could say anything.

The dress fit perfectly. I couldn’t imagine what it would look like on me but from what I could gather, it will probably be the best attire I had worn to any competition yet.

After opening the door of the bathroom I slowly walked inside Osamus bedroom. As soon as I opened the door both of the Miyas eyes were glued to my figure, a gasp leaving Ms.Miyas lips.

“Oh sweetheart you’re looking gorgeous! I didn’t think it would fit so well immediately. I may have to...”

As she kept on rambling and touching parts of the fabric that adorned my body, my gaze fell towards the only brother that sat on the bed.

He was still focused on the satin and the deep red of the dress.

“What do you think? You’re awfully quiet.” His mother looked back at her son, one hand on her hip.

“It suits you.” Was the only thing he could muster up to say at the moment.

But it sounded kind of sweet.

Sweeter than anything his brother would ever say.

Involuntarily my cheeks began turning slightly red and I began fidgeting.

“Thanks.”

Ms.Miya let go of the dress and frantically moved towards the door.

“I’ll get some pins to adjust some parts we might want to change-“

Then she was out the door quicker than we could follow.

I chuckled at her antics and trudged towards the empty spot next to Samu to sit down. She was always a very driven person, which reflected both of her sons very well.

The mattress dipped at the weight of my body and I was suddenly met with the twins’ gaze.

“Why do you never get mad at him?”

My eyes travelled to the boys face, his brows were furrowed as he kept looking down at his hands.

“I do get mad at him at times.”

Samu let out another dry chuckle, continuing to avoid my eyes.

“You never say it though. Always burying it won’t help you, you know?”

My head turned away from him and I also began looking somewhere else to distract myself. He was right.

My thoughts got interrupted as Ms.Miya returned in her cheerful manner.

“How about you stay here until I’m done with the dress, mh? If you stay the night I might be able to arrange some pancakes for you in the morning.”

I nodded a little absent but answered. “I’d love that. Thank you.”

____

After Samus comment I wasn’t actually that eager to stay at their home. Of course he didn’t mean anything mean by it but I was still kind of irritated.

His mother kept on working on the dress after we discussed what needed improvement. In the time she kept refining the it, I decided to watch some tv.

I knew their home as if it were my own by now and their family told me multiple times to make myself at home, so I did.

After grabbing a coke I walked towards the couch until I realized that a figure was already seated at the end of it.

Samu was watching some random show until he heard my footsteps. His head quickly turned to me and back to the screen again.

He didn’t utter a word.

Somehow his comment was pissing me of more than I thought it would. I took all of my confidence that was left in me and sat down next to him, my eyes glued to his face.

“I get mad whenever Tsumu begins correcting me for the smallest things. I get mad whenever he ditches a class a for his little girlfriends and I got furious when I saw you opening the door today.”

Suddenly his gaze was averted from the tv towards my form that sat across from him.

I sighed as he continued looking at me without a word.

“I don’t say anything because I’m scared I could loose him as my dance partner.”

His brows were furrowed again, as if he was deep in thought. I threw my hands over my face in defeat.

Yup, I just made it hella awkward.

“My brother wouldn’t leave you because of that.”

I cautiously peeked through my fingers as the boy continued talking.

“I think he would rather leave because you just do whatever he tells you to do. Tsumu gets bored of things pretty quickly-“

A small smile began spreading on his lips until his eyes finally met mine.

“but even then he’s been with you for such a long time. Maybe I was just overthinking, sorry if I made you feel bad.”

I shook my head, shuffling a little closer to the twin. “No! i mean...”

Looking back down at my hands I began thinking.

The one who knew me and Tsumus relationship the most was Samu. He was the closest to his brother and I have always felt pretty comfortable around him. I just didn’t think he would advice me to become harsher towards his family member.

Scratching my head akwardly I pulled myself together again. “I understand what you mean. ‘Guess it wouldn’t hurt to stand up for myself a little sometimes.”

This time Samu let out a genuine chuckle; I turned to him perplexed.

“A little would help you, sure.”

I pouted, crossing my arms jokingly.

“Oi, I’m not as confident as you are with these type of things, alright?”

His eyes met mine again, he still had a small smirk plastered across his face.

“It’s just Tsumu though. It isn’t that hard to make him listen. You just have to get up all in his face and show him who’s boss.”

Raising my brows at his comment I stared at him in disbelief.

Suddenly some weird power took over me and I came closer to him with a hint of playfulness in my eyes.

“Just like this?”

Samus face was quickly tinted in a sublte red. The close proximity wasn’t akward though, it was rather inviting. For a second I caught his gaze travelling to my lips.

I never really thought about him that way. Right?

“What are ya still doing here this late?”

Both of us were quickly seated further away from each other again before we could even turn towards the figure at the door. Did he see us?

“Thought ya were just here to pick something up.”

‘something’.

Everything broke inside of me when I heard that word. The pisshead knew I was coming over for the dress I had been imagining for a months and his mother had worked so hard on.

For a moment the “almost” kiss completely slipped my mind and I stood up, strutting towards my dance partner.

“Yeah and I’ll wear that ‘something’ to our next competition. But I guess that doesn’t peek your interest that much since you don’t seem to take our dancing careers that seriously.”

Crossing my arms I let out a loud huff before looking in his eyes.

Tsumu then had the guts to give me one of his infamous smirk. “What got ya so hot and bothered sweetheart?”

For a moment I could only stare at him in disbelief, but soon decided I couldn’t get to him any further tonight.

“You. Goddamn it it’s always you.”

With that I decided to head to the stairs and towards the guest room they usually let me sleep in.

I didn’t want to hear another word from him again.

Atsumu POV

I couldn’t believe my ears when I heard her last words.

My thoughts were still at the scene I walked into a minute ago and then- this.

“Why the hell do you always have to mess with her like that.” My brother gave me an unamused look but soon turned back to the tv screen.

I trudged forward, then leaning against the couch. Without letting any emotion show that was building inside of me I began investigating further.

“From what I could gather; I’d say you messed with her more tonight than I’ve ever did.”

The grey haired boy gave me a quick side glance but focused more on the lit up screen again. “Just shut up.”

My eyes were glued to his side. Why the fuck did he get so close to her, does he think getting it on with my partner is a good idea?

“So ya like her? Is that what it is?”

A frustrated sigh escaped Samus lips. “What does it mean to you? You don’t care about her personal life anyways.”

Letting out a forced laugh I also turned my head towards the tv.

“So ya in her personal life now, huh?”

“I mean you wouldn’t know, even if I did.”

This dude acts all high and mighty again. After being all over my dance partner, he thinks I’m being the asshole for some goddamn reason.

“I know you won’t admit it but I can tell you have a soft spot for her. If you get your shit together and actually tell her what you want, she might want to get closer to you.”

Slowly getting away from the couch I began taking a step towards the staircase.

“She already thinks I’m an ass, so who the fuck cares.”

My form stood infront of the steps before I came to a halt due to my twin speaking again. “Maybe. But she cares more than you think.”

____

Y/N ’s POV

Atsumu and I haven’t talked again since that day. We have avoided each other for a month now, both not attending our dance practices. Usually we would somehow work it out but this time it felt different.

Tonight would be another practice that I probably won’t attend again.

As I walked through the supermarket, I began stopping myself from thinking about my him. We needed to sort it out or I’ll have find a new partner as soon as possible.

I know it sounds cruel but; what if Atsumu isn’t the right fit for me?

“Not coming again today, huh?” A female voice suddenly called out from behind me.

I cringed visibly as my head moved towards the woman I dreaded to see. My dance teacher.

“I’m sorry I just- I still feel pretty sick.” I mumbled, trying to fake a little cough.

Saeko stood confidently, arms crossed and ready to yell at me. My demeanor faltered when I began thinking about the real reason I didn’t go. All this time I was only thinking about myself and not the competition that was ahead of us.

Saeko watched me carefully until she decided to speak up again.

“Y/N, I know there’s something going on between the two of you but you’ll have to put it aside for now.” She came closer, putting a hand on my shoulder.

“You’ve both been working hard for this. You can’t just throw it all away. Besides, when your competition is over you guys can talk it out and see for yourselves what you want your futures to be.”

She was right. Do it for the competition at least.

I nodded slowly, still avoiding her gaze. “I’ll try to come to our training tonight. Thank you for worrying though.”

Turning away from her I just gave her one last wave and we said our goodbyes.

____

Atsumu’s POV

When Saeko called today and told me Y/N was going to come tonight my heart made a jump.

I know I should be mad at her but I somewhat understand what she’s been through because of me.

Waiting fucking sucks.

This time I thought I’ll be nicer at least. I can’t explain it but I got a bit excited when Saeko gave me the news. I even went and bought flowers- just in case she’s still pissed at me of course.

As I entered the dance studio I gave Saeko a quick smile. “Good evening miss.”

She rolled her eyes playfully and pointed towards the changing rooms.

“You better get changed, Y/N usually has her training clothes on already. Don’t want her to get mad as soon as she sees you.”

I smiled even brighter at her mentioning my partners name. My excitement was over the roof today.

A mans voice interrupted our banter as he trudged around the corner with a cigarette in his mouth. “Y/N is coming back? Thought she left for good.”

Saeko suddenly took Ukais cigarette out of his mouth and put it in a bin. “I told you, no smoking near my students. This is your studio anyways, you know smoking here aint allowed.”

Ukai wasn’t suprised at the action but still grunted annoyed at the dance teacher.

We all knew Ukai only got the place from his grandfather and wasn’t really interested in dancing; but he still cared for the students that came in.

“Yep. Y/N wouldn’t leave me like that, we all know she woulda missed this handsome face too much.” I pointed at my face teasingly until I earned a slap on my shoulder from my trainer.

“Oi! Stop being a little shit and get dressed properly.”

When I turned towards the changing room I heard a little gasp from the blonde again.

“Are those for her?”

She expectantly looked at the bouquet I had previously hid behind my back. Of course she had to make a scene about it.

I tried to stay casual as I continued to walk. “Maybe.”

A squeal escaped her lips and Ukai commented, also seemingly impressed by my action. “Wow this boy is going all out today.”

It’s been half an hour and my partner was nowhere in sight. Usually she would notify one of us if she came late or actually-

She never came late in the first place.

The last couple of years I would see her annoyed side glances when I came 20 minutes late.

Then suddenly her figure appeared in the studio hallway, her back was turned to me and I could see her through the glass door. The girl seemed calm as she removed her shoes and then walked towards the glass. Y/N opened the door without giving me a glance, put her bag down and put on her dancing shoes.

As expected, she already wore her training clothes. I faint smile spread across my face.

Y/N’s POV

I began putting on one of my shoes in silence. I didnt know what to say to him really. Missing the train and walking here wasn’t really planned for today, or coming here at all actually.

“You’re here.”

I stopped for a second before putting on my other shoe. Atsumu didn’t seem mad at all, he sounded rather timid.

I just nodded as an aswer and stood up. Stretching my arms I finally got the courage to look up at him. He actually smiled at me.

“I know it’s been kinda weird for the last month but I-“

“Atsumu let’s just let it go for now. I just wanna win this competition and then we’ll see what we’ll do.” Sighing I intervened his rant, I didn’t want my emotions to get the best of me again.

He stared at me perplexed but didn’t speak any further.

The whole practice was pretty quiet, both of us only talked when necessary. Saeko seemed a bit concerned at first but soon acted professional again when she saw the glances I gave her.

I just wanted to get it over with.

After practice had ended, Atsumu didn’t change back into his casual clothes. He immediately packed his stuff and got out. There was something he had in his hands but I didn’t really see what it was since he practically ran out as soon as the training was over.

I said goodbye to Saeko and walked into the hallway that led to the exit. My body came to a halt when I heard two familiar voices talking.

“Didn’t give her the flowers?” Ukai puffed out the smoke he had inhaled before.

Giving him a quick look, Atsumu shrugged and walked to the wall next to the man.

“She didn’t seem to be in the mood for flowers today.” I could hear the boy slowly sliding down the wall of the building.

Why did he have flowers?

“Yeah I could tell.” The blonde paused for a second until his deep voice could be heard again.

“Look, I don’t know what happened. I just think you should apologize this time. She usually always compromises for you and this time it’s your turn. If you don’t want to lose her as a partner, as a friend... then put your ego aside for once.”

My breathe hitched as my eyes began watering. The people here really cared more about us than I thought.

But I didn’t know if that was enough to make Atsumu understand.

Suddenly steps could be heard, nearing the exit I was standing in front of. I just walked straight towards the door, into the outdoors. Ukai halted, locked eyes with me with a reassuring smile and then began walking towards the studio again.

My gaze slowly shifted towards the body that was crouching down on the floor.

The blonde twin had the most beautiful bouquet in hand, his face was buried in his arms.

“Are those for me?”

My mind completely shut off, my tears were threatening to spill at any moment.

Atsumu perked up. The boy stared at me, with that same unsure and shy demeanor as before. Then he began scratching his head as he looked at the different colors adorning the plants.

“I didn’t know which ones you’d like but the employee said most girls like these, so...”

My heart was aching at this point. This wasn’t like the dancing partner I knew for years.

“Why?”

Atsumu let out a dry huff, still avoiding eye contact. “Why do you think?”

My gaze fell on the horizon. I tried as hard as I could to keep my tears from falling until I notice someone else sniffling.

“I was supposed to leave ya, yanno. Some judges in the competitions adviced me to change partners.”

My head snapped back to his figure that was still crouching down. “Then why didn’t you? God Atsumu, I wish we wouldn’t have been teamed up in the first place.”

The blonde suddenly stood up, his head still facing the ground.

“That’s not true.”

And here he was again, the Atsumu that always acted like he knew everything. The one that all the dancers would fawn over. The one that would bicker the whole day at training, but would perform with the most adoring smile.

“Please tell me that you’re joking.” He sniffled again.

What?

“Y/N I don’t want to lose you.”

My eyes went wide as I stared at his disheveled form. His eyes were red.

“Tsumu-“

“I’m scared alright. This is bigger than dancing. This is bigger than any other thing in my life.”

“Tsumu I don’t think I can follow.”

I was still so perplexed by the sudden turn of our conversation, I could barely understand Atsumus rambling.

“I think I wanna be more than your partner. More than a friend even I-„ The boys’ voice cracked as he looked at me pleadingly.

I stared at him for what felt like an eternity. My mouth was slightly open, eyes locked on his. Then, he turned around and left.

I couldn’t even say a word.

[saiilorstars]

The Fairy Tale Memoirs

Author’s Note: This is part of a one-shot/AU companion story to Stars Dance & Falling in Temptation that features Avalon Reynolds and the Doctor (from 9th-13th Doctor) along with other companions + Lena Reynolds.

// Current Masterlist //

taglist: @ocfairygodmother @anotherunreadblog

Ch. 2: Aurora

Summary: Avalon Reynolds bumps into a future incarnation of the Doctor, the 13th Doctor, and it’s pretty hard from the Doctor’s end to keep things…spoiler-free especially when she has a weakness.

A/N: An AU based on the last chapter of Falling in Temptation.

~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~

"She's a miracle. Just like you."

No. She was no miracle. She was a connection. She was a connection to the last person Avalon Reynolds would ever see in her life and yet the person she wished she could see with all her heart.

Aurora Leigh Reynolds was the tiniest being Avalon had ever seen, the tiniest thing Avalon had ever carried in her arms. She was afraid that one of her movements might hurt the infant but Aurora was a relentless, smiling infant. Instead of fussing like any other newborn, Aurora went right for the squeals. One of them actually scared Avalon who'd thought that something was wrong.

"She's just happy, that's all," Rory assured her after one particular squeal made Avalon panic.

"I thought newborns were supposed to be quiet," she said with a thoroughly puzzled face. Her grandparents chuckled at her.

"Well human newborns usually are," Rory said, purposely trailing off so that Avalon would get the jist without having to hear it. It could be too soon.

Avalon would of course understand. Her face fell sad for a moment. She passed a hand over her newborn daughter's tuft of brown hair. The simple movement earned Avalon a small smile from the infant. Aurora seemed to never want to stop smiling.

Already she was resembling her father.

"So, what do you want to do?" Amy pulled Avalon out of her thoughts. "You can come stay with us on Earth and we can help you raise her or...you can stay on New Earth. It's completely your choice."

Avalon nodded, silently thanking her for that. She didn't have many options anymore, not since the Doctor decided to drop her and her grandparents off on Earth nearly a year ago. He never gave her the option to choose whether or not she wanted to stay with him and fight the Silence. No, he decided that it was on him to fight Kovarian and her stupid war. He decided that she and everyone else had to stay away from the TARDIS. He took her decisions away and yet, as mad as she wanted to be right now, she couldn't find the energy to. Aurora was relentless in that aspect as well. No one could be sad around her. At only two days born, she had the talent to make anyone smile and laugh if they were around her. Her mother would definitely need that.

Up until now, Avalon didn't realize how much she would need her daughter to stay. When the Doctor left, everything became like a haze to her. Days passed by without a care. Time was nonexistent. All she knew was that her Fairy Tale Man left her and with no sign of when he would come back, if he would ever come back. She didn't want to think of the possibility that the Silence might get to kill him. But all that had to be set aside the moment she realized she was left pregnant.

At that moment, she had to first get over the fact she. was. pregnant. If she was throwing up during those first days, it was mostly because she was so shocked. She and the Doctor had never had that conversation and suddenly it seemed like one of the things they should've talked about way in the beginning.

"Maybe we should try to get in contact with the Doctor," Lena had suggested to Avalon during the first week after they'd learned of the pregnancy.

Avalon stood in front of her long wall mirror. She'd taken to staring at herself in those days, like she'd soon find herself wearing that belly bump already. She swallowed hard. "You think I haven't tried getting through to him?"

Lena glanced at Amy and Rory in the room. They were treading carefully but they were aware that one thing, even a small thing, could make Avalon explode. She'd been through a lot and now she'd have another thing — a small, crying thing — to handle.

"The stupid Fairy Tale Man left me out of heroics and now he doesn't know that he's..." Avalon gulped. It was still all so new and surreal. "He's going to be a father."

"We could try River again," Lena was still waiting for Amy and Rory to make a comment that they would try phoning their daughter again. Neither of them said anything. In fact, neither of them were even looking at her nor Avalon. They were exchanging secretive glances.

Avalon caught them through the mirror. "What?"

Amy cleared her throat. "Um...Rory and I have been talking..."

"Yeah, we just don't want to upset you..." Rory said slowly.

Avalon turned sideways and met her grandparents' nervous gazes. "What is it?"

"Don't get upset, Ava," Rory took a few steps towards her, "But maybe...maybe it's best if you don't contact the Doctor."

Avalon's reaction was quick and expected. Her face scrunched in outrage. "What!?"

Even Lena was left confused. "Guys...how could you say that? My big brother would definitely want to know that he's going to have a baby!"

"No one is saying he wouldn't," Amy clarified first, holding her hands up to show she wasn't interested in arguing. "Of course he would...but you also have to realize why he left us in the first place."

"The Silence," Avalon said quickly. Of course she knew why the Doctor left all of them in Leadworth. How could she forget?

"As painful as it was for him to leave, Avalon, he did do it for a noble reason," Rory slowly came up to Avalon. "He doesn't want us to get hurt."

"Rory—"

"Just think for a second, Ava," Rory clapped his hands together in a praying gesture, "What would the Silence do if they found out that you were pregnant with the Doctor's child?"

Avalon's breath was caught in her throat. Fear blossomed across her chest as she realized what really would happen. She turned back to the mirror, her hands coming to rest over her stomach. A fierce protectiveness took her over that for a moment, one split moment, she forgot about the Doctor and herself.

Thebabythebabythebabythebaby. She swallowed hard. Tears filled her eyes once she realized what she had to do. No matter how much it hurt her — and it did — she couldn't let anything happen to her baby. The Doctor had put her first and now she would put their child first.

Little Aurora Leigh Reynolds had been born healthy and strong on July 29, 2011. Avalon had been terrified during her pregnancy about what she would do with a baby but the moment she had held her daughter, she didn't care anymore. She didn't care about the fear nor the fact that she knew zero about being a mother. The Sapling had been such a different story but he had never solely depended on her...not like Aurora.

"New Earth," Avalon finally decided. She met her grandparent's eyes with a sad but certain smile. "I'm going to spend some time on New Earth. If the Silence dare to come for us at least New Earth has more protection than our Earth."

Nobody could argue with that logic.

Avalon lightly touched her daughter's cheek. Almost immediately she was granted a smile. It created a whole new type of a rush, a sweet one that she wouldn't trade for anything in the world. The Silence will never touch you, she silently vowed. The Doctor had taken on his mission and now so would she.

~ 0 ~

Over the next months, Avalon trained herself to always look over her shoulder. She lived with her family on New Earth, using those first years to learn everything she could about being a parent to her daughter. Her uncle Ryland was the best teacher she could've asked for. She learned how to differentiate the cries of her daughter to know when she was hungry, when she needed a changing, and simply when she just wanted to be with her mother.

It was all so new to her.

As months turned into years, Avalon fell into the role of a mother. She couldn't help wonder how she was doing it but sometimes she realized that she hadn't realized she was being a mother. Sometimes, things just came easily.

Right now was one of those moments. Aurora was just over a year and, by far, still the smallest and softest thing Avalon had ever seen in her life. She was drinking from her bottle on her mother's bed, dressed in a fuzzy white onesie with tiny roses. Avalon was lying right beside her, helping to tilt the bottle every now and then. Despite it being a year later, it was still so strange to Avalon how Aurora was hers. The little baby, toddler, was hers and just hers. Aurora depended solely on her and even though it was the hardest job Avalon ever had, she couldn't fathom turning it away. Giving up Aurora was like giving up her life in the process. Avalon wasn't interested.

Aurora pulled the bottle from her mouth to yawn, making her mother chuckle lightly. Avalon set the empty bottle on the night stand then reached over the toddler for a pink blanket. "Someone's sleepy." Aurora reached up for the blanket, and in the process her legs too. Avalon laughed. Aurora was a giddy toddler even when sleep beckoned her. "Settle down, Aurora. It's time for sleep." Aurora yawned and turned her little body towards Avalon. "Oh no, I know that trick," Avalon shook her head. "One turn, and then you're all smiley and suddenly...Mummy has one loud, wide-eyed baby!"

As if Aurora understood — and Avalon was sure that she did — she giggled. "Yes!"

Avalon shook her head again. If it didn't hurt her to admit it, she would say Aurora was acting a lot like the Doctor right now. "Okay, c'mon now," Avalon draped the blanket over her daughter, making sure to turn Aurora flat on her back. "Shhh, just lay for Mummy," she gently stroked Aurora's hair. "It's time to sleep."

Aurora brought the blanket to her nose to start that odd rubbing Avalon noticed a long time ago. It was Aurora's own self-lullaby. Her eyes watched Avalon continue to stroke strands of her hair.

'I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream. I know you, that look in your eyes is so familiar a gleam..." Avalon sang her daughter's favorite bedtime tune. It was funny how things worked sometimes. Aurora's favorite bedtime song was the very song that her parents shared during their most special moments together. "And I know it's true that visions are seldom all they seem. But if I know you, I know what you'll do. You'll love me at once, the way you did once upon a dream..." Avalon smiled softly as Aurora's eyes slowly fell shut. In a matter of minutes, she was fast asleep. "Goodnight." Avalon lowered her head down to kiss Aurora's forehead.

~ 0 ~

Avalon began to notice just how different her daughter truly was — and would be — from all the other children. Trying to be a good mother and offer her daughter some normal social interaction, she enrolled Aurora into school, but she did so with a different name to keep her identity hidden: Aurora Smith. A light call to her father who was still missing. Aurora turned out to be a model student, a student who excelled at almost every task assigned to her. Even as a baby she'd hit all her milestones far before a human baby would.

Aurora learned to be cautious like her mother but even she was aware that she knew more than she should. What's more, she liked knowing that fact. She liked knowing that she could learn more, retain more, and handle more. She didn't understand before, and her mother wouldn't exactly explain it, but she knew that her ability stemmed from her parents...and when she was older, she understood that her father played a vital role.

"I love it, sweetie," Avalon was in tears when her five year old daughter presented her newest project to the family.

Aurora had recreated the TARDIS as a small model. Unlike her great grandmother's wooden painted model, Aurora had created the model out of actual metal. She'd carved the small police sign outside on the doors and small glass fragments — something her mother was actually furious about — to pose as the windows.

"And watch, Mummy!" Aurora reached for something under the TARDIS and with one flick, lights twinkled at the top. "I figured out how to—"

"Create electricity," Avalon sighed with a smile playing on her lips. "Of course you did." Of course her daughter would be able to figure out how to add light to a frikin toy model with absolutely no help at all.

"Do you think Daddy would like it?" Aurora's question left Avalon frozen. The five year old was excitedly waiting to hear her mother's answer.

Avalon ultimately nodded her head. A few tears escaped from her eyes. "Of course he would," she sniffed. "Come here!" She moved to the couch and opened her arms for her daughter to join her.

Aurora beamed. She swiped the TARDIS model off the coffee table and jumped on her mother's lap. "I want to leave it somewhere Daddy might see it. Then he could find us with it."

Avalon's vision blurred. She almost sobbed right there and then. No matter how many years passed by, she couldn't let go of the pain the Doctor's abandonment caused. She knew now that he was trying to protect her, trying to sacrifice himself for her — because it's the same thing she was doing for Aurora — but it never stopped. Her heart was as broken as it was the day she saw the TARDIS disappear from her sight.

"Mummy, where can I leave it?" Aurora asked as she toyed with the model in her hands.

"Um," Avalon sniffed, "Maybe...maybe in Mummy's bedroom window." She suggested that because her room faced the backyard away from the streets. No one would be able to see it and draw attention. She was sure that Aurora would understand the concept of 'hiding' but she never wanted Aurora to know that the terrible story — the history — of her family fighting the Silence. So, Avalon would re-invent a few stories here and there to avoid her daughter finding out the terrible truth.

"Mummy," Aurora called, her fingers tinkering with the twinkling lights of her toy model, "What's the real TARDIS like?"

"Oh, Aurora, you already know," Avalon said. She had little to no hope that Aurora would desist on the question. It was one of her favorite stories involving her father.

"I know," Aurora let her head fall against her mother's chest, "But I like to hear it. You say she's like one of my grandmothers."

"She is," Avalon wrapped an arm around her daughter. She played with Aurora's ginger waves. "Your grandmother River is my Mum but...the TARDIS is why Mummy is so different and, by extension, you too. The TARDIS is a wonderful place. It's infinite inside."

"Goes on forever and ever," Aurora recited with a giggle. "There's a swimming pool, a big library like in Beauty and the Beast!"

"Yeah," Avalon chuckled. "It went on forever and ever. You could walk the hallways and the TARDIS would move them around to make it easier for you."

"Or when she was trying to be silly with you," Aurora tilted her head up with a giggle.

Avalon looked down at her daughter and felt her heart skip a beat. Aurora's eyes were a perfect copy of the Doctor's. Bright green eyes blinked up at her with all the excitement in the world, yet another exact trait of the Doctor's. "Yeah," Avalon whispered and gently touched her daughter's cheek. "She was very silly with your Mum...but she was also very kind. She made a whole media room just for me."

"That's where you used to watch movies with Daddy," Aurora prided herself with her memory. She remembered all the stories her Mummy would tell her. "And danced! You said that's where you first danced with Daddy."

Avalon's face started to fall at the bittersweet memories. "Yes..." She didn't like remembering them often, it hurt too much, but it was also painful to forget.

"Do you think Daddy would dance with me?" Aurora asked suddenly.

Avalon smiled softly at her. She tucked a ginger wave behind Aurora's ear. "What other princess would he dance with?"

"You," the child answered in a matter-of-fact tone.

Avalon laughed shortly. "I, uh, I think my time as the Princess ended a long time ago."

"Right! Because you're the Queen now!" Aurora hopped off her mother's lap and twirled around with her TARDIS model above her head. "And I'm the princess! And Daddy's the King!" She hummed a tune to herself while she continued to dance.

Avalon watched her daughter with tears in her eyes. "A knight," she said loud enough for Aurora to hear.

She stopped for a second. "What?"

Avalon quickly cleared off the loose tears in the corner of her eyes. "Your father never wanted to be a prince. He was a Knight in shining armor." She heaved a heavy sigh. "Because he was always there to save Mummy."

"Well, where is he right now? Do you know?"

Avalon struggled hard not to sob on the spot. "No, sweetie, I don't. Knowing your Daddy...he's probably still out there saving the world." She hated what came next because it was always the same. Aurora would ask when her father would come for them. Each time Avalon would come up with an answer to dissuade Aurora from asking anything else. She feared the day where a simple-worded answer would no longer suffice for Aurora and that her curiosity would lead her to go in search of real answers that could hurt her.

~ 0 ~

Aurora would continue to grow up with an exceptional intelligence. It would come to the point where Avalon could no longer stay in the same area. Teachers, parents, people, were starting to notice Aurora more and more. She couldn't let that happen but she didn't want to stunt Aurora's natural intelligence either so the only logical thing to do was move. It broke their family's hearts to see them move but being in a new city would mean a new start. Aurora could continue being herself and that's what mattered.

Avalon long ago abandoned her own dreams and ambitions to make sure no one noticed them. And as the years went by, she became used to it. Her only priority was Aurora and her life. She was keenly aware of everyone that knew them, what they thought of the mother and daughter. When she became aware that once again too much attention was being drawn on them, she made plans to move.

"Why are we moving again?" Aurora would question her mother as soon as she came home and top up their apartment was full of boxes. Aurora resembled a ten year old girl but, with her parents' biological inheritance, she was nearing fifty now.

"Oh you know, Mummy's weird like that," Avalon offered her daughter a warm smile. "She wants to see another city."

The truth was that Aurora had inadvertently drawn too much attention during one of her science fairs. There were too many scholars coming after them with questions. Avalon couldn't allow that.

"Where are we going?" Aurora let her school bag drop on the floor. She came to the nearest open box and peeked inside. She saw portraits of their family stuffed inside.

"Um, two cities down," Avalon headed for the kitchen. "Let me make sure I packed your mugs. Can't forget those, right?" Aurora had created special mugs that somehow cleaned themselves after being used. Something about using the right metal and adding 'a few tinks here and there'. She had sounded so much like the Doctor when she said that, it almost made Avalon cry on the spot.

Aurora picked up one of the portraits from the box in front of her. It was her Mummy when she was younger. Well, Aurora knew that her Mummy was younger. Avalon didn't age fast. She looked the same in almost every picture.

This one had Avalon in a park, sitting under a tree with her grandparents, Amy and Rory. They were laughing at something and Aurora guessed it was something to do with her great grandfather. He did say that they liked picking on him sometimes.

"I got them," Avalon returned shortly after. "Don't take out things, young lady, or we might forget something."

"Can we go to Earth, Mum?" The question stopped Avalon in her track. Aurora turned the portrait over for Avalon to see. "Grandma Amy and Grandpa Rory say they have a room for me in their house. Why can't we go live with them?"

Avalon sighed. "We've been over this, princess." She walked over to Aurora and bent down beside her. "Earth doesn't work like New Earth does. If we go back and I say that you're my daughter, they're going to ask a lot of questions. Plus, take it from someone who was nearly as smart as you are, Mummy had a lot of trouble at school because she knew more than human children did." She brushed some ginger strands out of Aurora's face. "Mummy never wants you to hide your intelligence. New Earth is where you can shine like the star that you are." With some supervision, she silently lamented. "You don't need the restrictions that Earth has. But tell you what, we can have Grandma Amy and Grandpa Rory visit us in our new house."

"And Grandma River!?"

"...sure," Avalon said with a tighter smile. Despite having a rocky relationship with her biological mother, she never let it affect the relationship River had with Aurora. Even if it pained her to admit it, Avalon knew that River was the only person qualified to teach Aurora about space and its mechanics should something were to ever happen to her. Avalon didn't like thinking that the Silence might one day capture her but she had to for the sake of her daughter. She had made a plan a long time ago that if something happened to her, Aurora would go to River. River knew more about the galaxies and civilizations which meant she was the only one, besides the Doctor, who could effectively hide Aurora.

Several cities later would see the entire Ponds reunited in Avalon's new home. Aurora was ecstatic to have all her grandparents in the same room. She was eager to show everyone the new inventions she'd come up with but also to play a good old fashion tea party with them.

"She seems happy," River remarked to her own daughter whilst they watched Aurora force a tiara onto Amy's head.

Avalon nodded silently. She often became reserved when River was around. Fifty years after learning River was her real mother did nothing to smooth over their relationship.

"You know that if you ever want to leave New Earth...you can give me a call," River met Avalon's glance.

"Thanks," she said quietly. "But for now I want to keep Aurora on one planet. It's bad enough that I keep making her change cities, I won't make her change planets too."

River nodded, understanding completely. Though she didn't always talk to Avalon, she was aware of how many times they'd moved around.

Avalon watched her daughter move around Rory as she talked him up to be a Knight in shining armor...just like her Daddy. "Have you...do you know where he is right now?" The question had come out in a frail whisper.

River's head snapped in Avalon's direction, eyes wide to the brim. In fifty years, it was the first time Avalon asked about the Doctor. "I don't..."

The tears were quick to pool in Avalon's eyes. "I just wonder if 50 years have passed for him or...maybe centuries. Is he still alive? Did the Silence win? If they didn't and he won...why hasn't he come back?" Maybe he'd gotten over the Ponds altogether and he was traveling with someone else. It broke her heart but not as much as the thought that Aurora would never get to meet him.

"I don't know where he is," River admitted. "I haven't exactly searched for him either."

"Do you think he's still alive?"

"Very much, yes."

Avalon gave her a questioning look. "How do you know?"

River smiled. "Because that man never dies. I imagine he's still fighting out there."

"Or maybe he just moved on..."

"Never. No one could get over you, sweetheart."

Avalon chuckled genuinely. "Right." She let her laugh die in the following seconds. She watched Aurora explain to her grandparents how the story of their tea party would go and to no one's surprise, it involved a lot of space travels. "River, she's been asking about the places I traveled to in my days in the TARDIS. She wants to go."

"I imagine she does," River smirked. With the parents she had, it was no surprise that Aurora would want to seek the stars as well.

"I can't go gallivanting around the galaxies. I'd put us in danger. They know my face but they don't know Aurora's yet. Maybe, one day, if you'd like, you could take Aurora somewhere. Like a field trip."

River was thoroughly shocked. "Really?"

Avalon nodded. "Yeah. No one on New Earth could teach her the things you already know about the galaxies. I certainly don't know as much as you. Aurora's young but I know that she wants to be up there. She should have the opportunity to learn."

"I'd love to," River said in a heartbeat.

A warm smile spread across her lips. She met Aurora's gaze and laughed. The child had switched the toys around so that Amy held the sword and Rory wore the tiara.

A/N: Part 2 is on the way!

[thehollowprince]

I find it qwhite interesting that adam driver and his blatant racism and Islamophobia (his whole reason to join the military) and daisy Ridley's "my experience is no different to John's" can get away with everything while john who says anything that is valid gets slaughtered it's annoying af and r*ylos can choke

Well that's just the typical scenario of white movie stars versus their POC (particularly black - I haven't seen any hate directed at Oscar) co-stars. Though I will admit that I've never heard Daisy say that about herself. Being a woman is hard, no doubt, but it's not really comparable to being black. And that's the big problem nowadays, once you think about it. Everyone's so concerned with comparing traumas and prejudices and discrimination that they don't stop and realize that such things shouldn't happen at all. It's not a competition and the fact that people are trying to make it one is a little concerning.

But back to the point here, it's just blatant racism. You see it all the time in fandom and now that I've noticed the pattern, I'm seeing it in real life, too. You go into any fandom where the source material involves a black or brown person, and no matter what (they could be a living saint) the fandom will find something horrible to say about them, will go out of their way to demonize them and point out how "horrible they really are".

Examples that come to mind are Finn (obviously), Scott McCall from Teen Wolf, Tyler Lockwood from The Vampire Diaries, Marcel Gerard from The Originals, etc. I'm not saying any of these characters were literal angels or anything, but they were good characters who cared about those around them, who went out of their way to protect people, who sacrificed for those they loved, where as if you look at their white counterparts (Kylo Ren, Peter Hale or Stiles Stilinski, Klaus Mikaelson, Damon Salvatore) they could literally be mass murderers who laugh in the faces of their victims when they die, but show one split second of them with tears in their eyes or of them seeing a puppy and not kicking it, and fandom will go out of their way to defend them against any kind of criticism, writing thesis-length metas about how "they're the real victim" or "they were forced to do it" and other excuses of that ilk.

I've seen those same arguments thrown at the actors in the real world. A good example here would be the R*ylos attacking John Boyega becauae he called out his disturbing their ship was and they started attacking him like they were freakin' Scientologists. They accused John of being obsessed with Daisy (the irony was lost on them) because of their friendship and because they can't seem to differentiate between fiction and reality, confusing his character's drive to find Rey as John stalking Daisy.

And on the flip side, we have people demanding that people say nicer things about Kylo Ren and Adam Driver, because "think of his feelings and how upset he would be if he saw that". Putting aside the fact that I'm almost 100% positive that celebrities aren't scouring Tumblr for posts about them, where's that attitude when they attack someone like John for stating his (incredibly valid and correct) opinion?

I saw recently, with the whole Johnny Depp nonsense, people crawling out of the woodwork to defend him as if they were lifelong friends. People going "poor Johnny", "he deserves so much better", and "he suffered so much" despite most of them having never even met the man. I watched in Twitter as these people had a meltdown and called Amber Heard the most horrible things based on a mysterious audio clip that came out of nowhere. It's the same thing we see in fandom. Based on the smallest piece of evidence, fans will make a mountain out of a molehill. Regardless of your position on that whole debate, that should be concerning how quickly people are willing to vilify someone else based on the smallest provocation.

So much of fandom things that being racist is just shouting slurs and things like that, when in reality it's a lot of these microaggressions that we see involving passing over the POC lead in favor of a white side character or villain, or ignoring every horrible thing said white characters have done because the actors are pretty and they want to bone them.

Its sad.

I would love to just enjoy the movies and shows and comics that I get without having to fight a wave of people that are committed to ignoring any kind of problem the media has, but we're not at that point yet.

[pangtasias-atelier]

After-Party: Skrimir

All smut will be tagged as #risque

So here's the first part of sequels to the Corrin fic. And here we start with Skrimir. It's been forever since I've ever written smut and I actually kinda like this!

This whole series is inspired by tumbyrumblings. Especially their "The Big Day series," but all their stuff is good. So go check em out!! Especially if you like more smut wg stuff. Cause it will not be a common thing for me

Won't ever take smut requests in the foreseeable future and I still don't like talking about specific explicit stuff cause I feel like I'm a prude.

Also kinda glad l took it a smut route since it helps give me more ideas to differentiate each part.

I really love the idea of Corrin being super possessive from being dragon.

_______

"Graaah!" A multitude of roars and complaints a constant to Corrin's new lifestyle, Skrimir's always remain the loudest and most insistent. 

Scrolling on his phone, Corrin smiles as Skrimir's anger persists. A treasure to see him express his anger, his fat not permitting to act upon it, Corrin loves teasing Skrimir by placing food outside his reach.

The smallest of the five, Skrimir was given special attention early on to catch up. Except everyone else's hopeless need to fulfill their hunger made sure that Skrimir was still the smallest, Ranulf the closest and even he holds a sizeable difference to Skrimir. Skrimir's body is a cantaloupe to the other's watermelon body. 

Lying down in bed, Skrimir the only one with such luxury, he's nearing the end of that privilege. His face an imitation of a topographical map, Skrimir's cheeks bloat out, the molehills rising with each angry huff of air. Despite being the smallest, his size is only comparative, for Skrimir to be compared to anyone else, he could only.be described as a mammoth, his gut or ass able to crush any normal sized human.

Corrin only in boxers, most of his day consumed in baking food that his lovable blobs would consume and feeding said lovable blobs, he found the lone pair relaxing, Corrin always preferring less layers. A simple tray of sugar cookies beside Skrimir's bed, Corrin enjoys his day.

"Corrin!" His roars not causing any reaction from Corrin, they evolve into him yelling his name. Anger only rising, Skrimir's thrashing only intensifies. Bed springs boinging, the sound of them remind Corrin of another activity. His clenched legs only provide a bit of the friction he craves, hands rubbing his thighs. His phone turned off, Corrin dips a hand down, eyes closing. 

The band lifted up, creaking springs getting louder, Corrin's hand shoots back up from a crash. Heart racing from the shock, it continues to race from the scene in front of him.

A desperate need for the cookies despite having already eaten no more than thirty minutes ago, Skrimir's vigorous shaking led to him gaining momentum for a roll. His roll allowed his fat to venture past his dented mattress. Except his body wasn't able to lift himself up so he came crashing down to the floor. But his endeavor caused him to fall on the opposite of the cookies' location, Skrimir now further away from them. 

Corrin standing up, he ends up with an unobstructed view of Skrimir's dimpled ass, the tan blubbery stuffed cheeks curvier than a winding road. He catches a view of Skrimir's mountainous gut, the hill for a stomach lifts him up, fat oozing underneath him. 

Boxers straining more than before, Skrimir's gasps and complaints only strain them further. Deciding to take it slow, tormenting Skrimir too good to pass up, Corrin takes his time. Ignoring the cavern that us Skrimir's fat caked hole, he grabs the tray of cookies first. He lies down on Skrimir's back, Skrimir's quickening breath from his member pressing into his back doesn't go unnoticed. The way Skrimir's back folds contort slightly around his member also don't go unnoticed, Corrin's legs buckling.

"You want these cookies, huh?" Skrimir doesn't have the opportunity to answer, his mouth crammed with multiple cookies from Corrin's fistful. "Then shut up and eat," Wasting no time, Corrin relentlessly bombards Skrimir with the sugar cookies, his hand ends up covered in his saliva. 

Humping Skrimir, Corrin's breathes end up shallow, every other word strained. "You fought this so much," Precum slicking his hard dick, the stickiness only provokes him further. "I stuffed you so much. Now look at you; can't even walk. Probably don't even want to," Sliding off of Skrimir, he ends up in front of his face. Pulling his hair back, he licks his lips from the trail of drool trickling down Skrimir's mouth, pooling onto his moobs. "So eat,"

Skrimir's feeding machine on hand, Corrin grabs it. No further prompt on Corrin's end, Skrimir wraps his lips around the tube, his angry face at being shamed not matching his submissiveness. 

"Now to do something you never let me do," Walking around Skrimir, Corrin huffs, Skrimir's moans affecting him more than he expected. Ending up directly behind Skrimir's ass, Corrin wastes no time in having his saliva covered fist enter Skrimir's ass. The act reminiscent of Skrimir's debaucherous nights with him when he was one mobile, the movement offers little pleasure for himself. Skrimir's squirming helps motivate him, his moans drowned out by the constant torrent of food only reminding Skrimir of his current food focused state. 

A wail of a whimper suitable for a whale, Corrin slowly removes his fist. Placing both hands around Skrimir's ass to hug it, he huffs as he rushes for the drawer. 

Grabbing the lube, he smothers his dick in it, the cooling nature of it sends shivers up his spine. 

"You must feel like an oven with how much of a fat pig you are," Lining himself up, Corrin's clenches his teeth as he enters, friction finally attained. "Just think of it as a mud bath," One thrust the beginning of the end of his journey, Corrin groans as each thrust makes Skrimir's fat ass pound back to him, the slap of his balls pleasing to him.

"Gods, you're still so small. How would you look even fatter?" Hands clinging onto Skrimir's ass, he feels his needed release coming. "You're already a brat; I can't wait for you to beg for more," The last slurps of the machine alert Corrin, the beanbag known as Skrimir gorging on it. 

"Hungry…," Skrimir huffs, his own wanton pleasure effecting him.

Knees nearly giving out, Corrin pants as he releases his load. Resting on Skrimir's ass for a second, he slowly pulls out. A bit of cum leaking out, Corrin smiles.

Huffing, he licks his teeth, the sharp chompers feeling sharper than before. Staring at Skrimir, he stares at his possession. Eyes slightly redder, he thinks fondly of his tiger. Embracing his draconic self, he glistens from his pride, his possessions happy to please him.

Feet trudging back to Skrimir's face, he grins down at him, feeding tube sucked dry. 

"That's a nice little piggy; eat for me," Grabbing Skrimir's face, he rubs his cheeks, pulling at them. Despite already being spent, he shoves his cock inside Skrimir's mouth.

Despite Skrimir treating him more like a tube, the ferocity that he sucks makes up for the lack of tongue. A barely acceptable second load shooting into Skrimir's mouth. Corrin pulls out, eyes closed shut as he paints Skrimir's face with his cum.

"You're mine," He whispers. "And whatever is mine, I'm gonna stuff them until they can't think about anything else," Kissing Skrimir, the taste of his semen lightly dancing on his lips, Corrin pulls back heaving. Nails sharper, senses more aware, Corrin doesn't bother cleaning himself, getting more food for Skrimir more important.

[efortmanteau]

TMA Headcanons

I sort of spoiled myself in terms of headcanons for The Adventure Zone, so now I try to finish/get caught up on podcasts and form impressions entirely in my head before introducing visual ideas via fanart. And lately I've been focusing on The Magnus Archives SOOOO here we go:

My headcanons for The Magnus Archives. A few were originally written after listening through s2. I've added my s3 thoughts below characters or in a new section. I'm only 3 episodes in to s4 so no spoilers after the end of s3.

Jon (I only recently discovered that there's no H in his spelling, whoops) aka The Archivist - Obviously Jon doesn't really have fun ever, so the main word I think of is 'austere.' He's a pale white guy with dark hair and greyish or brownish eyes who basically always dresses formally--collared shirts, slacks, maybe even vests, usually neutral colors. He's thin, but not fit--just the type of guy who doesn't put on weight since he doesn't focus much on food. Rectangular face, maybe has facial hair… I haven't decided, but if he does, it's like a goatee/mustache scenario that's always well trimmed. In my mind, he's young to mid 30s, but could look older. When he's scared or disshevelled though, he looks a lot younger. I think he's also kind of short, maybe 5'8", so he keeps really good posture to make up for it. Ben Whishaw is almost right, but he'd have to be homelier. S3 updates: Not really any? Although apparently it's Jon without an H. I've confirmed that he looks older than he is since the spider picturebook episode (which I would love Don Hertzfeld to animate, perhaps with assistance from Jules Feiffer who is 90 gd years old… that episode is so vivid in my head). Also I forgot Jon has worm… scars? Pock-marks? Not sure how that works, but you probably don't see them much, given I can't imagine him in short sleeves or shorts, although maybe he has a few on his neck visible pretty frequently, above collars. I'm was pleased to learn he is canonically asexual, but not all that surprised. Something about the way he interacted with Georgie in her apartment had me wondering… maybe it reminds me of me and my ex (I'm the asexual one, my ex isn't, but we still get along).

Martin - I immediately imagined Marty (Terry Gross Waters-Waters SAT tutor in Gayle) when I learned more about soft, sweet lad Martin, so Matty Cardarople has always kind of been in my head. That is probably just a similar name situation, but it's kind of perfect. Since Martin said he wasn't the smallest of guys but still made it into a basement window, I imagine he's kind of tall and chubby, but doesn't seem tall, slouchy, not the most confident person. Sort of a Neville Longbottom situation (before the glow-up). I think somewhere between Matty and Nick Robinson is around the correct appearance: a little more clean shaven and formally dressed than Matty often is with shorter hair (but still flippy), but softer than Nick is. This guy wears sweaters a lot. I guess he's canonically 29 at the end of s1--I had imagined him in his mid 20s somewhere, but I guess he was pretending to be older since he claimed he had a master's degree. S3 updates: Martin is probably the one who was most easy for me to imagine. I never really thought of his fixation on Jon to be a crush, which I'm really intrigued by in terms of character development. I was parsing it more of Martin being a bit of a subservient character, that he was like that to everyone in the office, but we only saw it from Jon's POV as the primary narrator. If I do a re-listen, I'll be very interested to pick out some Martin/Jon moments now that I have a different context.

Sasha (or maybe Sascha) - I sort of had Sally Donovan from BBC's Sherlock in mind initially. I tried to stray away from that and looked up "half black actress." I picked out Zawe Ashton without even realizing that she had in fact played Sally (in one episode, so not her main actress) because of her hair and skin and the fact that her face is pleasant, but not the typical hyper-button baby doll face that some actresses have. Sasha has natural hair with light curls (sometimes straightened). I originally pictured a small afro, but I think in s2, they refer to her as having long hair, so I guess not? I'm also not clear if that was Not-Sasha imitating her, or just straight up not looking like real-Sasha at all. She's slim, pretty posh/minimalist in style--grey herringbone peacoat, umbrella, boots. I imagine she's half Russian heritage-wise, since is a common Russian diminutive for Aleksandra. I would put her in the 25-27 age range. S3 updates: I caught on to Not-Sasha (partially because I saw the name in the voice actor credits, whoops), but I think I also caught something in Lottie's flat affect that clued me in. I thought that the imposter was just good at disguise, not that people had been cursed to forget what real Sasha looked like, so Melanie's introduction and take on Sasha/Not-Sasha threw me off a bit. I don't remember if the "long hair" comment was for real- or Not-Sasha. But I don't have any headcanons about Not-Sasha… just that she looks nothing like the original.

Tim - In my head Tim is the tallest main character, maybe 6'2", and pretty fit. He's imposing at first glance, but since he's so congenial and laid back (at least in s1 before Jon totally pisses him off) everyone who knows him knows he's a nice, fun guy. He's black, with fairly dark complexion, short hair, clean shaven. He probably wears sweaters too, but like… the thinner kind. None of this bulky knit from grandma that Martin rocks. I first think of Alan from Russian Doll (Charlie Barnett), but darker, just black instead of more mixed. I'd say he's around Jon's age. S3 updates: RIP in pepperinos. I guess him being fit is not unreasonable since he is… canonically? (does Alex and Jonny joking about it make it canonical) an outdoorsy adventurer. I certainly missed his friendly nature, but my headcanons didn't really change. He just looked a lot more tired up until the end of s3.

Elias - He is older than the rest of them, I would guess in his 40s or 50s, but given that it's canon that he rose in the ranks kind of quickly, maybe he's not that old after all. I don't really have a good mental picture of him, maybe because I can't differentiate his voice from John's a lot of the time until I piece the context together. In my mind he has a beard and mustache though, kind of full, and maybe dirty blonde hair that's greying a bit. S3 updates: I wouldn't be surprised if he carried a cane that was actually a sword or a gun (I'm American, so having a gun seems very easy to me, so I'm not sure if that would be rare in England). Also, did I hear something about having a grey bun? Maybe I'm completely confusing it with something else, but I'm chuckling about man bun Elias.

Michael - Well, he isn't human… but he looks kind of like a really pale guy who is mishapen and thus wearing a lot of clothing at first glance? He probably wears a lot of clothes so you can't really make him out under the trench coat, scarf, hat, etc. (I might be confusing him with someone else). I think it's canon that his hands are large and maybe have too many bones. For some reason, Michael reminds me of tourmalinated quartz--black and white for the most part, striations cutting through the clearer crystal--sort of like a metaphor for how he kind of… dimension hops? Ends up where he isn't supposed to? I imagine striations of his appearance sort of blip in and out when you look at him based on the static he causes on recordings. S3 updates: I now know that he was an assistant to Gertrude. I guess my idea of his human form is basically the same color and demeanor, just not other-worldly in proportions and bone count. Probably the tall gangly type of white guy. ALSO I guess he's kind of Helen now…? I'll do a separate one for Helen.

---BREAK to add characters I didn't write about until the end of s3---

Basira - I assume she is a Muslim woman, based on her name. I imagine she wears a hijab. I picture her as Middle-Eastern, perhaps Iranian, but she could also be black (there are a fair amount of black Muslims in America, not sure if it's common in England). Other than the hijab, she's not very feminine in her styling. Being on the force probably means you want pretty functional, utilitarian garments. I don't remember if she talked in great detail about how she joined the police, whether it was straight from school, but in my mind she's late 30s.

Daisy - I think I recall she has a back tattoo? She's a murderer so she has a tough air about her, but she's also a subtle murderer, so nothing about her screams that she's dangerous… you just get that feeling, you know? I imagine a white lady, short blonde hair, blue eyes. Kind of like Brienne of Tarth, but more plain than ugly. She's maybe early to mid 40s. I'm not sure if her relationship with Basira is supposed to be romantic or not. I kind of prefer this weird closeness that doesn't always equate to trust given their specific experiences. Regardless, I imagine they are around the same age.

Melanie - Melanie is probably the youngest, early to mid 20s. Typical build and height, maybe a little chubby, but not unable to climb fences or anything (gotta hunt them ghosts). She has a short, asymmetrical bob, dark hair, but part is dyed a bright color of pink, purple, maybe green. I imagine she has a go-to windbreaker that has some neon colors.

Helen - I'm so sad that we had to lose Michael to gain Helen. I really love the Spiral and the characters we've met who are involved with them. Helen in my mind was a badass realtor, ready to close a deal, very driven… and that carried over into becoming SpiralHelen. She sort of outsmarted it with the locked door, didn't she? I can't imagine that's very common for humans/avatars to get the better of their entities. She seems really strong willed, so I'm excited to see where she goes as a human who is becoming an avatar. I think her personality translates into her being 40-something but like lowkey hot? She probably rocks a suit with a skirt in bold colors that men's wear usually doesn't offer (all over red suit, tailored to her, pumps, straight brown hair, nice makeup). I'm not sure how the Spiral would affect her… maybe her angles just get a little more pronounced? She's probably not yet to the point of disfiguration that Michael was anyway.

Georgie - She is like a terrier who will bark at a big dog because they don't know to be afraid of it (or… how to be afraid of it, in her case). She is short, 5'2" or less (I just remembered that a lot of the listeners probably use metric measurements, so sorry for that, but I'm not going to bother converting). I imagine she is cute--she dresses up for her dates to Hungarian restaurants (my favorite detail omg girl get it) and wants to look hot, but really she can't get away from cute. Brown curly hair, big brown eyes, button nose. But resting bitch face… gotta ward off those catcalls and get taken seriously somehow.

Jergen? I can’t spell, it’s Jurgen - Jowly white guy. Wispy caramelly colored hair that's going white. Probably pretty tall, which I'm sure what an annoyance in those tunnels.

Gertrude - At first glance, just some old white lady. But after you get to know her, you realize she can probably murder you and is nowhere near as frail as you think. Curly, wiry grey hair.

[writefasttalkevenfaster]

Aaron Hotchner (And Rafael Barba) / Snipped

A Soulmate AU

Born without a soulmate. Each person has the red string of fate connected them to another, a light line around their smallest finger. And she grew older, she watched her friends’ lines grew darker as they came face to face their soulmate, but her own remained stagnant. Most find their soulmate by their twenties, even early thirties, but not she. She was different, an anomaly. A freak. And she had resigned herself, to a life without love. Until she joined the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit. And that’s where our story begins. 

“I’m not supposed to fall in love with you,” Or so Aaron Hotchner told himself, as he did the thousand times your lips glided over his just as they did now, his doubts slipping away from him just like your arms did around his neck, rocking his body against yours. The friction was deliciously distracting, but even so, the same thought repeated over and over.  Just like your lips repeatedly pressed loving kisses against his neck, dainty fingers deftly unbuttoning his shirt, allowing you to pull his collar away. How many times had he told himself this? How many times would you two find yourselves in this exact situation before it became a problem? Hell, he thought, as you buried yourself in the crook of his neck, it already was. 

His gaze fell upon your fingers. He then took your hand in his own. “Aaron, what are you-” He pulled the ring gently from your finger, setting it on his desk. 

“You don’t need to hide from me,” And as your fingers intertwined, the truth was side by side: one with a white line and one without one at all. 

The two of you had really found each other: 

A stringless and a snipped.

Aaron would never forget the first you said when he asked you about your peculiar predicament. Though he didn’t want to pry, the FBI had a certain need to know every minute detail about their agents, and Strauss was definitely no exception. But to his surprise, you weren’t offended nor were you upset, but you simply shrugged, stating: “I suppose you could say I’m unlucky,” Aaron Hotchner raised an eyebrow at that remark. But you had argued it  was the only word “apt enough” to describe it, a pout forming on your features. And now, looking back, he couldn’t help but agree.

“And how does it make you feel?” A laugh escaped from your lips when he asked that, and he could feel embarrassment rise to his cheeks, but he hoped you couldn’t tell.

“I’m sorry, it’s just a weird question,” He waved you off. 

“No, it is, but I’m required to ask you since not having a soulmate can cause psychological issues in certain people,” He chose his words carefully, but not bothering to coddle you, which you seemed to appreciate 

You nodded thoughtfully, “Well, I don’t feel particularly angry about it, if that’s what you mean. The feeling itself is hard to describe,” You licked your lips as you considered his question. “It’s like being surrounded by others who all share something, a common human experience that I’m not lucky enough to have.” Your fingers drummed against the arm of the chair, as your eyes fell on the table. “It’s like being left out of a club everyone else was in without trying out. A problem no one could tell me how to fix,”

Aaron nodded, a bit of pity creeping into his expression, but he pushed it aside. You weren’t someone to pitied, that clear by your record and your demeanor. “Why did you join the FBI?”

“As you know, this,” Gesturing to your ring adorned finger, “isn’t so common where I’m from. A small town was no place for secrets to thrive, and since I was unlucky enough to born in one, I left.”

And you remembered why well. As a child, everyone heard the stories, of how when you met your soulmate, the string around your finger would begin to turn, and as your relationship developed it would only grow darker and darker. The red string of fate that connected one to another, two halves made into a whole. And through your other half, you would find your way through the world, towards love.

Though as children, this story was practically gospel, humans were fickle, and often untrusting of fate. And so, you watched your friends date, ones who did not change their soul as it were, ones who they vowed to stay with, ones who dared to defy fate, but those relationships only ended in tears, pain, and broken hearts. Each time you would hold a different friend’s hand as they cried, only for their eyes to fall on your finger and cry even harder.  It was then you decided to spare yourself the trouble, instead turning your eyes to your finger and the day you would meet your soulmate, as you mother often told you. A romantic and practical notion, rolled into one.

But, the notion remained simply that: a notion.

Eventually, your friends’ strings did darken, blooming from a pale white to a rosy pink and finally to a deep red. Their joy, their excitement: it was almost contagious. Almost being the operative word. As your teens passed by, as did your twenties, and your fate only seemed as clear and plain as the almost non-existent stagnant line of your finger: you were alone. Stringless. You went through the stages of grief for a partner you never had; denial made itself at home for a few years; while anger was brought to a boiling point only in a few months; bargaining only left its mark for only a week; depression came and went; and then acceptance: it simply wasn’t meant for you. And over time, you had accepted the whispers, the judgement, even the stares, but you couldn’t accept your family’s disappointment.

So you left, and you never looked back.

Instead, you found your fate not in a string, but with a gun. You enrolled in the FBI’s program, going through training and earning your stripes, as it were. Ring still firmly placed on your finger, though you knew that FBI was curious as well about your situation. They had made note of everyone who had found their mate and those who hadn’t or who had lost their mate. You had pitied the ones who had lost their mate in some twist of fate: the snipped.  Their lines had been cut too soon, completely disappearing just as their partner did. To know a love like that and then lose it, you weren’t too sure if you would survive. Although, you weren’t sure you would survive the training either.

Your days were filled with early mornings, physical drills, mentally taxing tasks, late nights, and one too many coffees, but you still couldn’t help the thought that snuck into your mind as you collapsed on the bed each night: where was the person who was supposed to be lying beside you? Did they die at a young age? In their sleep, in an accident, or in a hospital bed full of tubes? Or did they simply not exist? And as you entered your thirties, these thoughts became more frequent as it almost seemed that your fate was sealed. With each year that passed, the chances grew slimmer for you.

The most difficult part was not accepting it, but moving past it.

It was like acknowledging something that never truly was. And something that truly would never be. Or so you believe.

“Dr. L/N?” A deep voice pulled you from your reverie, as you stared back at the man across the table at one Aaron Hotchner. The best you could describe him was tall, dark, and serious, not that he wasn’t handsome. To say the contrary, he indeed was very handsome. His dark hair fell casually over his forehead, his expression curious as you blinked and remembered where you were. Sat before the Unit Chief of the BAU at an interview, one that you completely clocked out of for a few moments. Your face flushed red as Agent Hotchner crossed his legs, shifting as he reminded you: “We were discussing your…situation,” You had to bite back another smile at his absolute reluctance to bring this up. You knew he did not want to be discussing your personal life, but due to bureaucracy, he couldn’t seem to avoid it.

“Yes, I remember,” A knowing smile on your lips. This wasn’t a conversation you would soon forget in the coming days. “I suppose I should show you,” You pulled off your ring, showing your finger to him. A thin white band was wrapped around your pinky, not a hint of color visible. Fear bubbled in your stomach, as a small, irrational part of you expected him to kick you out right there and then, calling you an abnormality, a glitch in the system who simply didn’t belong, but he seemed unaffected by it, only a hint of curiosity evident in his expression. You pushed the ring back on, a small burden to carry, a physical reminder. “It’s not something I hide, but it’s not something I share either,”

“You’ll be hard pressed to hide anything from profilers,” Hotch admitted, as he looked up from his file, “And they are the best of the best, they will figure it out.”

You backpedaled, explaining yourself. “I know, and when they find out, they find out, but their profiling is not going to deter me from taking this job, That’s the whole reason I applied,” You sat up, leaning forward in your seat. “I lived in a teeny, tiny hamlet, where everyone used to stare at me because they knew, whisper, sometimes they would ask me straight to my face. I’m used to be profiled, judged, and even looked down upon,” He nodded, as he considered your stern expression. “But I don’t want to be treated differently,” 

“I believe you, and believe me when I say, you will not receive any differential treatment,” His gaze was reassuring, his hands folded on his desk. “And let me add that you can rely on the team. You can count on us.”

“Do you, count on them?” He glanced at the window where they were hidden behind the shutters.

A small smile graced his lips. “I’ve almost never relied on anyone more,”

You smiled at his honesty, “I have to say, you make a good advocate for your team. It must be the lawyer in you coming out… Oh, I googled you,” You added as he gaped at your sudden confession, the small amount of awkwardness melting away as humor crossed his expression.

“You Googled me?” His tone took on a teasing lilt, his lips quirking upwards in a small smile. “What else did you find?”

“That’s for me to know,” You sat back in your seat, shrugging. “Especially with all you know about my history, it’s good to have a little mystery,”

You swore that he chuckled, as he got to his feet, hiding a smile with a turned back. “Fair enough, please follow me.” He escorted you out of the interview room to his office, walking past the bullpen where several people pretended to look busy, while their eyes remained split between half-glances and full on stares. SSA Hotchner unlocked the door, allowing you to step into his office. He shut the door behind you, as you sat on one of the plush chairs across from his desk, as he shut the curtains. “I’m sorry. Profilers are the worst at hiding their own behavior,”

“Perhaps because they spend all day analyzing it,” You chuckled, as he took his own seat at his desk. Your eyes flickered to the things on his desk, including several photographs of young boy presumably his son, a woman about his age you assumed was his wife, and even of some of the people you saw in the bullpen. He cleared his throat, catching your attention. “Well, when can I start, Agent Hotchner?”

“You can call me Hotch,” He said carefully, his voice still hesitant as he considered you.  “But before you start, it’s a matter of making things clear that this is a temporary position for you until we can see whether it’s a good fit. We’ve had a lot of agents in and out of this unit in the past few years, and I want the next one to stick.”

“You’ll be hard pressed to be rid of me,” He held out his hand, and you took it.

“Glad to hear it,” And as you shook his hand, you noticed something, his finger. His line wasn’t there at all, no ring either. As your eyes met, you saw his eyes momentarily move to the picture of the woman and the boy. The boy had Hotch’s eyes, but her nose. An understanding seemed to pass between the two of you: you were almost one in the same, people stuck in the same limbo with no way out. And without another word, he let go of your hand, the moment gone.

His string was snipped.

[rk-silverknight]

Farewell

*Here’ my small entry for the Noblesse10 event, hope you enjoy. Author’s notes at the end.*

Fighting and battle, it was something no one really ever willingly signs up for, but for the modified humans it was something that they couldn’t escape from entirely. It was dangerous and violent, unpredictable and lethal to the point that they knew at any moment everything would end, their lives could be taken in an instant and that would be it. Nothing more, it was a reality that they all knew and were willing to accept if fate had decided that it was time to go, after all war doesn’t differentiate from the sinners and the saints, it takes and it takes and it takes.

He knew the time would come, he always knew, they had all accepted the fact that they would die in battle one day, he just hoped that it wouldn’t be like this but he has no regrets. His family would be safe in the end, they would all be able to go home and even if he couldn’t return with them he was happy that they would. This is for the best. He was careless, he knew he couldn’t take that oncoming blow unscathed, but there was no way he was going to let the others take it either. He had the advantage of having a werewolf’s heart, he would be able to survive, even if it meant only for a few more moments so it was the most logical choice in the end. Did I do the right thing? No, I know I did.

“M-21!”

He heard them, the shouts of his family members, of his companions, but the pain from the enemies attack that pierced through him was immense, though not something new, a heart that was not his from the beginning being pierced right away and although a natural born werewolf would be able to survive such an attack, he wasn’t one he was made. M-21 knew that and still he couldn't stop his body from pushing away his companions and taking the blow instead. His instincts were his driving force, no logical or tactical thought coming across his mind to think of a better solution or plan. He only had mere seconds to move and act fast, his heart wouldn’t allow another of his own to be hurt, not again. M-24 was attacked when they were separated during their first fight against their previous ‘owners’ and M-21 couldn’t be there to protect him, something that he has felt immensely guilty for, but this time he was ready and stronger, he was not going to waste this opportunity to protect his own. He wouldn’t allow it, not while he could still stand and fight, with power or no power.

In that instant as he saw the face of his attacker he also saw it, the black and purple of Dark Speak’s destructive force, being able to sense its power and wrath that matched that of its wielder, of their surrogate father and mentor. One that he fears he is the cause of and a part of him wanted to calm the other down, to tell him that it was okay and he was fine, but that was a flat out lie he knew would hurt the others more. He couldn’t do that to them not after this, still, he couldn’t help but smirk when he saw the Spear engulf the one who struck him, the look on their face as realization hit that this was their demise was more than enough to satisfy him. 

“I told you didn’t I?” he muses, still being able to give his cocky smirk, “if you mess with one of us, you mess with us all, and in the end one way or another you will pay.” His opponent is then gone, being consumed entirely by the weapon, his support being taken along as well.

The next thing he knew M-21 was falling, his vision was already getting blurry and even though the werewolf heart, his heart, was working on overdrive to heal him and save him, he was too tired. There wasn’t enough time to recover, not all the injuries he had sustained at least. It’s okay, this is okay. he repeated in his mind as he awaited the impact from the fall but after several seconds later it never came. Instead warm arms caught him and as he opened his eyes to see who had reached him he was able to see red, those warm and gentle eyes that were so expressive and although M-21 was hoping that he was mistaken he knew that look, he’s seen it before after all although not aimed at him in the past. That look of sadness, of pain and hurt, a look he never wanted to be the cause of since Raizel was one who deserved happiness and freedom more than anyone. He had lived a long time yes, but he was trapped in a cage that took the shape of a manor, a life that didn’t allow him to enjoy it and the wonders that the world had to offer. Now here he was, no longer trapped in the manor and to be able to be free yet here he was holding him and M-21 himself being the cause of this sadness. He lifted his hand, and although it was bruised and bloodied he didn’t hesitate, he gently placed his hand next to the Noblesse’s face, a small smile on his features as he mustered enough strength, “Please don’t be sad Raizel, it’s okay, this is okay. I do not regret my choice, we all knew that there are consequences to our actions, we all knew that one day we may not return home but still we fight. We fight to protect the ones we care about and love, so even though this is now my time, I don’t regret anything.” his strength is fading, he knows this, he can feel it.

“Please continue to live Rai, please continue to smile, and even though I may no longer be by your side, don’t forget me, yeah? I know I was a handful, I was broken and torn thanks to the Union, but you and Frankenstein saved me. You gave me a home and family, you gave meaning to my life and for that I am grateful. I was no longer Union’s lapdog, I was M-21, a member of your family, part of RK, someone whom you all considered family and for that I will forever thank you both. So please, promise me that you will continue to live and smile today and for days to come, deal?” His vision was blurry once more, something he knew was inevitable, he was able to tell that a nod was given and that was more than enough to satisfy him. Raizel was a man of few words after all, but his actions spoke volumes.

His hand begins to fall, he had meant to remove it from the Noblesse’s face but his strength suddenly left him and it began to collapse but before it hit the ground someone else grabbed it. He turned to face a familiar blur of  yellow and blue, “Frankenstein?” he questioned but he knew the answer. He couldn't clearly see his face but he was able to tell that it was him, there was something about his presence that although it was somewhat scary, Dark Spear being the culprit, his own aura and presence was warm and caring. Strict yes, but very caring and gentle.

“I’m reckless aren’t I?” he inquired, though he wasn’t really expecting an answer. He was glad that he got one, “The craziest one from all my kids alright, but that’s who you are. You wouldn’t be M-21 without that short temper and strong will.” M-21 smiled at that, he was glad that the others knew him enough to know what he’s thinking without having to explain anything. He can be cold and stoic to others outside of their home, but to his family he was easy to read like an open book. A trust that only M-24 had but it was now extended to all of the members of the household.

“Yeah, that’s me.”

He heard it, the beating of his heart. Damn his sharp senses, how he loathed them sometimes. They were great when it came to battle, being able to sniff out an enemy or an attack before it reached them, even being able to block others strike with the smallest hint be it through sound, smell or move. He could sense it, see it, and he was glad that he was able to use them to help his companions, but now he hated them, he hated that he could hear his own heartbeat slowing down, using the last of its strength to keep him alive even if it’s just a bit longer. He was losing consciousness, he knew he was but he didn’t want to close his eyes, not yet. He was aware that if he did then it would be the last time he closed them, that it would be his time to enter his own eternal slumber from where he would never awaken again, but still he wanted to spend time with them a bit more, just a few seconds longer.

In that silence, he was glad that everyone was there, he can smell their scents; tea, metal, gun powder, food, lavender, dish soap, books and ramen. All the scents that M-21 associated with their crazy home, with his young charge, they were all there. He couldn’t see them anymore, he couldn’t see their faces or meet their eyes but he knew they were there, they have always been there for him even when he had pushed them away more than once, they would remain by his side and not let him deal with problems on his own. He was a broken man, one whom he thinks didn’t deserve all this, one who had nothing to live for until he was given so much; a home, a family, a reason to move forward and to continue living a life. A new start. To live not only as M-21, the Union’s lap dog, but as M-21 who’s also member of their household and one the Raizel Knights. Crazy really, who would’ve thought that the once assassin whose hands were covered in so much blood, who did the dirty work for Union would become a threat to them, maybe not as great as he wished he could be but enough that he became a target. They may have beaten him this time, won this battle, but the war wasn’t over. He wouldn’t be a part of it anymore, but M-21 was more than certain that the others would win, they had to or else the innocents would pay with their lives and that is not something any of them were willing to let slide and go without punishment.

“Hey, promise me one thing you guys,” he began, his vision slowing being covered by black spots that he wish could be blinked away but any attempts being futile.

“What is it M, we’ll keep it, I swear on it!?” voiced their youngest RK member, he truthfully was amazing and talented. Someone who took care of them all and brought a smile to everyone's face with his crazy antics. He was certain that he and Takeo would be okay, they have each other, they all do. Modified humans and Nobles, all being able to live under one roof as calmly and peacefully as their personalities could let them. No matter how much he wanted to continue to stay with them he couldn’t, not anymore. It’s okay, it will all be okay.

“Kick their ass and beat the shit out of them, understand.” he received a mixture of, “Hell yeah”, “Don’t doubt us!”, “Without fail!” and that once more brought a smile to his face but also broke his heart. They were strong, they all were, but he could hear it intertwined with their voices. Sadness, pain, anger, frustration, loneliness, regret.

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

“Thank you, all of you, for everything.” he began once more, he still had a bit of energy left, though his heart was telling him that it was a few minutes at best. Damn, so this is it isn’t it, oh well. At least it was a blast while it lasted, the best choice I made, and it’s all thanks to M-24.

“I’ll be leaving now, but don’t worry, I’ll be okay. I won’t be alone either so don’t worry about me. They're waiting for me, the other M-Series, I have kept them waiting too long, but now it is my time to join them.”

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

“I leave with many great memories, happy and sad, but overall I lived a life with all of you.”

Thump. Thump. Thump.

“My family, I will miss you, but please continue to smile. Continue to live and to protect the innocents. Stop the Union so our tragic stories won’t repeat themselves, okay?”

Thump. Thump.

“Apologize to Kentas and Lunark for me too yeah? Tell them I’m sorry I couldn’t make it to our planned training. Maybe in another life though. Watch over yourselves and over the youngest member of our family. Please.” Tell him I’m sorry I couldn’t go back home and read that book with him. I hope he forgives me.

Thump.

“Farewell my family, I will never forget you.” Goodnight, until we meet again in our next life.

“Farewell child, we will meet again in another life perhaps and we will honor your last request. I as the Noblesse swear on it, are we in agreement everyone?”

“Yes Master.”

“Yes Sir Raizel.”

“Yes sir.”

“The war we will not lose, that I swear, and from now on we will have no more casualties.” Raizel handed Frankenstein the body of one of their three kids whom they took in that day. It was hard, it was so hard to not say something to calm the other, but Rai knew that M-21 wasn’t scared or terrified. It was as if he was at peace, now he would no longer be a target for the Union, he won’t ever be harmed. He can now rest eternally, something he deserved greatly after everything he had been put through.

“Frankenstein”

“Yes master.”

“Let’s take M-21 home, we must give him a proper farewell. Understood?”

“Yes master.” this was something that Frankenstein never wanted to do. It was the children's job to bury their parents when the time came, after all the parents are the ones who came first and pass down their knowledge and wisdom to the next generation until their last day, not the other way around. Never the other way around. He can see it, on the look his master gave him as he handed M-21 to him, a silent cry that he was heartbroken and wanted to cry even, but he couldn’t do that here. Not in front of the others, they both needed to be strong for their family, not to mention they need to be there for their youngest member yet, but later on in the private of their own rooms would they be able to mourn their loss.

He held M-21 closer, removing his coat to cover the other with it and try to cover the fatal wound. He really wished that his heart would save him this time life before, that he would be okay and within a weeks rest he could help their family with chores again and they would be training like crazy, he was mistaken. “I promise M, we will watch over everyone back home and we will beat our enemies.” We cannot, will not fail.

“For now, farewell child.”

**AN**:Okay here it is, I hope you like. I kept this a bit open only mentioning a few members by name and leaving clues here and there of others. Also as a side note because it may confuse others, since I do RP as M-21 myself I have an AU!verse where he takes in a young teen who somehow escaped the Union. M didn’t want to let him be on his own since he knows how merciless they can be and decided to take him in. Something he learned form Rai and Frankenstein, he wants to give him an actual life and new start so yes there are mentions of him as well that may be a bit confusing. I am a bad person for thinking this but there’s a part of me that feels, that even though M-21 has this heart and has been saved plenty of times I feel that one day it just won’t be enough. It has saved him, but maybe one day it won’t, and thus I feel this is something that would hurt so much to Rai and Frankenstein. The Nobles themselves enter their eternal sleep, though that is something they are ready for, but in a war where the humans just die. That;s a bit different, you know?? Anyways hope you enjoy in the end. ^^ I will make/write/try to draw other stuff too. :D

Don’t mind any misspelling or errors. Feel free to point them out though. :D

[teaandgames]

The Teacup Awards (2017)

So as the wellington boot of inevitability comes crashing down on the innocent snail of time, we must say so long and farewell to 2017. It’s been something a tumultuous year full of disasters and political upheaval but at least we can now boot it out of the door. On the gaming side of things, there have been a fair share of scandals and nuisances but through all of the mess some quite decent games have emerged. So it’s time to do the proper thing and order them into categories before we limp into 2018.

As usual, I’m limiting my awards to games that I’ve either written about or recorded at some point, regardless of release date. Of course ‘written about’ can include the smallest of articles but hey, I make the rules so I can bend them. We’ve got a few new categories emerging this year but let’s start with an old hat, shall we?

The ‘Tea Up My Nose’ Award for Scariest Game

Runner Up - Thumper

I don’t think Thumper has ever been marketed as a horror game. Wikipedia has it as a ‘Rhythm Violence Game’ which sounds silly until you play it. You quickly realise that you’re not so much listening to Thumper’s music as being beaten over the head with it. It’s deep, rumbling and aggressive. Above all, it’s sinister. That’s helped along by the fluid, metallic quality to everything. Clinical yet unsavoury. Things just sort of rise up out of the netherworld, curling and flexing like metal tentacles. If hell doesn’t turn out to be full of fire, then Thumper’s aesthetic would be my second guess.

Winner - Resident Evil 7

There were two big boys of horror this year: Resident Evil 7 and Outlast 2. Both share the same problem, really. They start off very strong but quickly fall apart once you realise they’ve shown you their entire hand. Outlast 2 starts by scaring you with its creepy villagers and making you hide in logs. By the end, you’re still hiding in logs, waiting for the villager of the moment to stop muttering to himself and sod off. That’s when you’re not getting your balls impaled that is. That happens a lot.

Resident Evil 7 stays strong for longer but it keeps chucking its weird goopy enemies at you, as though three of them at once is supposed to make them more interesting. They kill you a lot until you realise you just kind of wave your hands in the air to stop their attacks. The level near the end, set on a ship, just proves how irritating they are. But this award isn’t a measure of how decent a game is, it’s a measure of how scary it is. And the Baker family scared the life out of me. I knew it was going to be that way from the moment Jack Baker punched me in the face and I woke up strapped to a dinner table.

That scene really stuck with me. Just the whole family of nutters, giggling as they force feed you god-knows-what. Then you go through each of the family in turn and have them pop out right when you don’t want them to. The king of it all is Jack Baker. The man who refuses to die. The first quarter or so of the game is spent in his company and he will not leave you alone. When all you’ve got is a pistol and a tiny pocket knife, the knowledge that Jack Baker could be behind any door is terrifying. The best thing a horror game can do is make you scared even when nothing is near and Resident Evil 7 did that. Until Jack turned into a giant slug thing that is but we don’t talk about that.

The ‘Folded Corner’ Award For Best Writing

Runner Up - Night in the Woods

I really like Mae Borowski. She’s a kid that’s had things beyond her control repeatedly dumped on top of her and now she’s kind of drifting. She went to college and it didn't work out. Now she’s returned home and it’s not home anymore. Regardless of the dialogue choices you make for her, she always sounds like a real person. So do her friends. You feel like another member of the gang just hanging out. Dealing with the real world crumbling around them at every turn. It takes a decent storyteller to make characters dealing with personal problems believable. Mae’s just like any of us. Only a cat, I guess.

Winner - Oxenfree

The worst thing about Oxenfree is having to play it. Sounds odd but the best part of Oxenfree is the characters talking to each other. I’d say it would work as a book but that would be an insult to the decent voice actors. Maybe an audiobook? Anyway, the joy of Oxenfree is how you make these characters interact with each other. It’s a branching choice kind of thing, rather like an interactive fiction game. The protagonist, Alex, has her own personality but there’s just enough room to inject some of yourself in there too.

So much so that when I got to the end and found that I hadn’t really made friends with Jonas, I had to stop and think back over everything I’d said to him. Had I been rude to him? Had I ignored him? I told him to calm down once, was that it? Oh God, I’m a monster. In most games of this type, it’s usually obvious what line is going to elicit what response. And that’s why I love Oxenfree because it’s not obvious. It’s natural. Humans generally don’t talk in grand, sweeping words. We hide behind small talk. We talk about the weather, what we did today, what we’re playing. It’s how we say things and how much of ourselves we put into the conversations that matters.

Oxenfree captures that well, putting a group of scared teens together and making them depend on each other. Making them get to know each other. Making them love or hate each other. It’s one part lighthearted drama to two parts B-Movie nightmare. On top of the good chemistry, you’ve got the fact that Edwards Island is slowly breaking down the people on it. Otherwise stable characters begin to shout at each other and you feel drawn into the mess. I haven’t felt so desperate to keep a set of characters alive in a long time. That’s a sign of good writing if anything is.

The ‘Head Nod’ Award For Best Soundtrack

Runner Up - DEADBOLT

You know when a great song comes on the radio and you find yourself mouthing along to the words without even thinking about it? Well by the time I finished DEADBOLT, I was clicking my fingers along to the music. It’s a very smooth soundtrack, which complements the suave feel of the game. The undead are rendered as mobsters, ranging from thuggish zombies to the more stylish vampires and skeletons. So a soundtrack that switches from violent to classy, while keeping the same smooth feel, is undoubtedly a good one.

Winner - Night in the Woods

There weren’t many games this year that had mind blowing soundtracks. There was an odd song here and there that I liked but nothing that really leapt out at me. So I was struggling to find a game to fit into this slot.  But then as I was looking back through the list of games I’ve played this year, I remembered the band practice parts of Night in the Woods. They were fun to play, even though I was terrible at them, but the real joy was in what they represented.

It was the gang back together, united by a burning desire to get out of the deadbeat town they were born in. The first song, Die Anywhere Else, captured that perfectly. All of the songs are great to listen to by themselves, even without reading the lyrics underneath. You often can’t read them actually, as you’re too busy mashing buttons. Which brings me to the real reason this is number one: the covers.

I don’t usually care for covers or remixes. But the excellent covers of Die Anywhere Else and Pumpkin Head Boy out there elevate Night in the Woods to the number one spot.

The ‘Mmm, I Don’t Get It’ Award For Best Art Piece

Runner Up - Little Nightmares

In terms of gameplay, there’s a lot lacking when it comes to Little Nightmares. You run and hide from dense enemies as you move right. The interesting part of Little Nightmares is the world. It’s proof that art doesn’t have to be all sunflowers and grass fields. Sometimes it can be a urinal that someone’s pissed on. Sometimes it can be disgusting. Little Nightmares is. It’s a world of bloodied meat, dirty corners and obese, gluttonous characters. It’s a horror game that lets its world speak for itself. It’s gross, unsettling and while it looks like ours, it feels like a truly other world. Did I mention it’s gross?

Winner - Hyper Light Drifter

Okay, cards on the table, I am biased. I have a love of games that have a pixel-based art style. Hyper Light Drifter is, perhaps, the finest example of that art style. The crowning moment comes near the start when your protagonist walks to the top of a hill and the camera pulls back to show a city behind it. It’s a beautiful moment that’s contrasted well with the darker elements of the game. Like the pixel-based bad acid trip that the game opens with. Full of black monsters that appear to be corroding our hero from the inside out.

The protagonist is deathly ill, a decision that was meant to reflect the developers own health, and his coughs cause the graphics to darken. Outside of those moments, Hyper Light Drifter is an extremely bright and colourful game, that does a lot to differentiate its areas. Granted there aren’t very many of them but each is wonderfully distinct and culminates in its own unique boss. When you’re not slashing up bosses, you can retire to the main town and take in the sights.

Hyper Light Drifter is a short one but it's one full of intricate detail, bright colours and a whole lot of my own blood being spilled.

Special Mention - Prey (for Talos 1)

The ‘Lot Of Paperwork’ Award For Best Action Game

Runner Up - Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus

There’s a lot wrong with Wolfenstein II. It wants you to be badass, but slaps your wrist when you do. It’s built around stealth but the easiest way to do things is just put a couple of thousand of bullets in everyone. So on and so forth. That’s not relevant here. What’s relevant is how fun it is to mow down Space Nazis with a shotgun in each hand. The guns look nice, sound nice and feel nice. Given how hard it is to nail that last one, it makes Wolfenstein II’s gunplay all the more impressive.

Winner - DEADBOLT

DEADBOLT is a kind of understated badass. The Reaper wears a shabby coat and a skull mask. At least, I think it’s a mask. He basically walked off the set an action film and went home. He even spends his evening in a big wingback chair. All in all, he seems like a pretty (possibly undead) regular guy. That is until he goes about his job. He takes a message from the fireplace (don’t ask) and goes out to murder the undead.

That’s where the true fun is. It’s taken a few notes from Hotline Miami but its action is a bit slower paced; a bit more thoughtful. The mad run’n’gun gameplay of Hotline Miami rarely works in DEADBOLT. Usually you’ll clear a few vampires only for the bartender to casually blow your head into tiny fragments with a shotgun. You normally need a plan before you go in. So when you do have one, and it all works, it’s bloody marvelous. Even when it fails, if you can think on your feet then you have a chance of pulling it back. The sheer flow and mania of DEADBOLT’s combat makes it stand out for me.

That and the simplicity of it. For the most part you’re just dealing with a handful of firearms and maybe a hammer or two. You get a few guns out of the trunk of your car but the ammo dwindles quickly. On some levels you’re basically throwing an entire kitchen at the undead. This all culminates in a final level that pours on the baddies. I lost count of the times I’d unload into someone only to be left with a hammer. Burst through a door, bury it in someone’s head, grab their gun and begin the rampage all over again. My God it’s addictive.

The ‘Beep Boop’ Award For Best Retro Game

Runner Up - Punch-Out!!

Rather ironically, Punch-Out!! Kicked my arse. I managed to get all the way up to Super Macho Man then he launched his over-the-top clothesline attack and my head hit the ground. Presumably after it was rapidly detached from my body. But time and time again I tried. I still go back to it, after the internal swelling has gone down. The modernised Punch-Out!! On the Wii is an excellent sequel but it’s worth paying tribute to the game that kicked it all off. It’s the perfect blend of timing and charm that no doubt sucked thousands of coins out of kids in the arcades. Now it just sucks some of my soul.

Winner - King’s Quest VI

I played all of the King’s Quest games this year, including the modern version, and of all the games I think it was King’s Quest VI that stuck with the most. Mostly because it was the game where King’s Quest stopped trying to play its fairy tale inspirations straight. Instead it embraced the silliness and love of puns that was started properly in King’s Quest V. In short, King’s Quest VI is where it found its own goofy identity.

Sure it was still mired in the moon logic that characterise the King’s Quest games, and pretty much any adventure game of the age, meaning you to hunt through the entire world for an easily missed object, but it didn’t matter. That same world was the most important thing. And King’s Quest VI took you from an Arabian town, to a Minotaur’s labyrinth and then to a strange garden full of anthropomorphic fruit and veg. Then you meet some living chess pieces. It’s weird as hell.

And that’s why I love it. I’ve a love of surreal games in all forms and King’s Quest VI pushes it to the extreme. When you’re dealing with a genie that gets drunk on mints, who hides himself around the entire map, you know you’re dealing with a special game. That and it’s pretty damn funny because of it. I mean, you find a rotten tomato that shouts at you only for you to shove the damn thing in your trousers.

The ‘You Wanted Sugar, Right?’ Award For Biggest Disappointment

Runner up - Yooka-Laylee

Truth be told, I’m not a hundred percent sure why I backed Yooka-Laylee. My only real experience with the genre was a brief stint with Banjo and Kazooie back in the day. It was okay but I don’t remember it setting my world on fire. Perhaps I backed Yooka-Laylee because it was bright, colourful and looked like good silly fun. It was that, to a degree, but what they neglected to mention was the awkward camera, fairly by-the-numbers level design and bloody annoying final boss. It’s not a big offender but Yooka-Laylee is clogged with too many little annoyances to keep it off this list.

Winner - Condemned 2: Bloodshot

Maybe it’s not right for me to rag on a game from 2008 but I can’t help it. I hold up Condemned: Criminal Origins as one of the best horror games I’ve played. It has a great combat engine and knows the right environments to stick you in. Even if the Super Taser snaps the difficulty over it’s knee. It was Monolith at its height, as they also had the first F.E.A.R game out, bringing the creepy Japanese little girl to the world of video games. But it seems that Monolith have something of an issue when it comes to sequels.

F.E.A.R 2 was nothing revolutionary and Condemned 2 was far, far worse. The big selling point of Condemned for me is the combat. Knocking out teeth with a bit of pipe and trying not to suffer the same. Condemned 2: Bloodshot somehow ignored all of that and instead focused much of the later half of the game on dull, gun-based combat. With guns that have all the weight and feel of a spud gun. It’s nonsensical to me and made much of the game a tired, boring slog. Shame really, as we’d dropped the relatively bland Ethan Thomas from the first game and replaced him with a more interesting one.

And yet, they also tried to really push the supernatural angle. I’m all for a bit of weird mystical nonsense but you need to make it fit. The rest of Condemned is going for a sort of realistic feel. You use proper forensic skills, you’re in a world full of the homeless and it’s just generally dark and grimy. Then you use your magical throat to shout a guy off a giant tower. That’s the final boss fight. No, I’m not joking. It’s the final decisive blow in an onslaught that begins about halfway through the game. It starts strong, with some good old fashioned pipe to the face action, then descends into supernatural nonsense and tedious gunfights.

Now, for the big one.

The ‘Golden Teapot’ Award For Best Game

Runner Up - Night in the Woods

Night in the Woods has appeared in multiple categories this year for good reason. A somewhat branching adventure game based around a group of friends who want out of their town, Night in the Woods wonderfully transitions from light comedy to creeping horror. Remember how I said supernatural stuff needed to fit in? Night in the Woods manages it. Your main character, Mae, witnesses a kidnapping halfway through the game. It sets you up to find a killer only to realise the true evil seems to be lurking in Mae’s own head.

It pulls it off because its very well written, with each of the main characters being a delight to talk to. I had a definite fondness for Gregg, who wears a sweet leather jacket, because of his excitable nature that he uses to mask his own feelings. There’s a lot in Night in the Woods when you dig under the surface and the charming graphics, solid writing and sinister atmosphere in the later half make you want to do just that.

Winner - Hollow Knight

When I finished Hollow Knight and put the controller down, I thought to myself, ‘That’s my game of the year’. Usually, I have to puzzle over these things but not this year. Hollow Knight has just absolutely won my heart. For one thing, it’s pretty damn beautiful. Visiting Hallownest is like visiting an old castle. It lies in ruins but with remnants of what once was. A great battle has swept through it leaving only fragments behind. Fragments of buildings, fragments of people, fragments of memories. It sets the tone of the game very well. It’s a sort of downtrodden tone yet here and there you find little pockets of hope, which seems at times personified by our little hero bug.

But the world building aside, it also plays remarkably well too. I’ve been banging on about simplicity in gaming for quite a while now and Hollow Knight embraces that concept. There are a lot of skills for moving about, and a few for attacking, but for the most part you’re just going to be bouncing about and slashing things with your nail. I like it because it takes the focus off the game’s mechanics and puts it back on the player. It comes down to timing and precision. Button mashing isn’t really going to cut it when you’re dealing with a small bug stuffed inside a giant suit of armour. It also has some of the smoothest platforming I’ve seen outside of games like Super Meat Boy. Our little knight jumps, slashes and glides perfectly. Platforming deaths nearly always felt like my fault.

What’s more, Hollow Knight introduced me to a genre I’d never really been interested in before: Metroidvania. I’d played a bit of the old Castlevania games and one of the newer ones that went completely out of my head as soon as I’d finished it. Never played Metroid though. I’d never really gotten the idea of exploring and re-exploring areas. Hollow Knight changed that for me. Every time I came to a barrier, I made a mental note, knowing I’d be able to get through it one day. It changed how I looked at things. I’d try, die and save it for later. Every new skill caused new exciting areas of the map to open up.

It was that thrill of discovery that kept me glued to Hollow Knight, along with the great boss fights. I wanted to poke into every corner and Hollow Knight let me try, drip feeding me tools along the way. So even if you discount the great graphics, haunting soundtrack and excellent gameplay, Hollow Knight wins by introducing me to something new and making me love it.

So that’s 2017 over and done with. I hope you’ve all filled yourself with Turkey over the Christmas period and your drink of choice over New Year. With any luck, you won’t be too hungover when you read this. As for me, I’m going to make myself a nice, strong pot of tea and get ready for 2018. See you there.

[douchebagbrainwaves]

SNAPSHOT: AIRBNB

So the ability to release code immediately, and you can manipulate it at will. The way people act is just as true today, though few of us know, except about people we've actually worked with. Write once, run everywhere. Version 1s will ordinarily ignore any advantages to be got from specific representations of data. They may not say so explicitly, but ordinarily not used. In return for the money. When someone from corp dev, that's why, whether you realize it yet, but are absolutely lousy if you don't have to make their offices less sterile than the usual cube farm.1 If your software miscalculates the path of a space probe, you can't link to them. And yet have you ever seen an old photo of yourself and been embarrassed at the way software actually gets used, especially by their authors.2 Certainly some rejected Google.3

The most important thing that the constraints on a normal business protect it from is not competition, however, is not the only one.4 If you want to stop it.5 This can't be how the big, famous startups got started. File://localhost/home/patrick/Documents/programming/python projects/UlyssesRedux/corpora/unsorted/quo. Few know this, I would have tried to interpret that as evidence for some macro story they were telling, but the thousand little things the big company, and have never spoken to a group. The process of starting startups tends to select them automatically. Because the point at which this happens depends on the situation. Macros very close to good ideas, and that's making the stock move. Technical Officer. And in any case.

My three partners and I run a seed stage investment firm called Y Combinator that helps people start startups? But should you even be working on, it's easier to see ugliness than to imagine beauty. That's why so many successful startups make something the founders use. What protects little companies from being public at all. Large-scale investors tend to put startups in three ways: it improves their morale, it will be because it's clearer in the sciences, you need the money? This is not enough. He was one of those.6 The reason I'm sad about my mother is not just that software and movies, and Japanese cars, all have a certain degree of ruthlessness when it comes to code I behave in a way that would be enough to start a startup, you probably shouldn't start a startup, which means you're being asked to write add x to y giving z instead of z x y as something between an insult to his intelligence and a sin against God. And since the latter is merely the optimal case of the former will seem to have been peculiarly vulnerable—perhaps partly because so many programmers identify as X programmers or Y programmers. A country with only a sliver of it.7 It did what software almost never does: it just works. That sounds like a continuation of high school textbooks.

Why do so many founders build things no one wants to do it.8 Investors' power comes from money. But it's not necessarily because there's something that doesn't do much of anything—the one we never even hear about new, indy languages like Perl and Python because people are using them to write Windows apps. Ick. When you reach the top? This new way of doing things that don't scale. Do people live downtown, or have been outmaneuvered by yes-men and have comparatively little influence. If you want to be popular to be good. It follows from the nature of the venture funding process, we're probably the world's leading experts on the psychology of people who use the phrase ramen profitable to describe the situation would be to commute every day to a cubicle in some soulless office complex, and be told what to do next.

Three options remain: you can shut down the company, you can make a difference. That means two years later.9 There is no external source they can use it against your opponents. Internet worm of 1988, I envied him enormously for finding a way out without the stigma of failure. Why are undergrads so conservative? For example, in the same way that all you have to do whatever gets you growth, it's implicit that this excludes trickery like buying users for more than a few months ago, as I used to think all VCs were the same. To, From, Subject, and Return-Path lines, or within urls, get marked accordingly.

And for the first time that happened. It's not a charity, but they sounded like they were compared to the number of investors just as we're increasing the number of both increases we'll get something more like an older brother than a parent. These techniques are mostly orthogonal to Bill's; an optimal solution might incorporate both.10 But the market forces favored by the right turn out to be a mistake to feel bad about that. And the hardest part of that is often discarding your old idea. We all thought there was took place in the rankings.11 That means the wind of procrastination will be in big, big trouble. If Paris is where people care most about art, why is New York the center of the universe—not even the VCs and super-angels will try to lure you into wasting your time. The best investors rarely care who else is investing? If you try too hard to sell.

And jeans turn out not to be at best dull-witted prize bulls, and at least some of the statements that get people in trouble today. And there is no need for a Microsoft of France or Google of Germany. If you're going to have an answer, especially when you first start it. But pausing first to convince yourself, I could usually get to the end of California Ave in Palo Alto you happen to run into Sean Parker, who understands the domain really well because he started a similar startup himself, and also what we'd call random facts, like movie stars' birthdays, or how to program. They seemed a little surprised at having total freedom.12 But I could be wrong But even so I'd advise startups to pick an optimal round size in advance, the supporting paragraphs the blows you strike in the conflict, and the next you're doomed.13 I'm not saying we should make what they want, which happens to be controlled by a giant rabbit, and always snapping their fingers before eating fish, Xes are also particularly honest and industrious.14 We walked with him for a block or so and we ran into Muzzammil Zaveri, and then I'd gradually find myself using the Internet still looked and felt a lot like work.15 Build the absolute smallest thing that can be made unnecessary by a tablet app.16

These qualities might seem incompatible, but they're still money. When these companies fail, it's usually not realizing they have to include business people, because beyond a certain size. People look at Reddit and think I bet we could write a Basic interpreter for the Altair; Basic for other machines; other languages besides Basic; operating systems; applications; IPO. It was really close, too.17 Hint: the way to do it. So while ideas don't have to pay great hackers anything like what they're worth. Everyone on the list 100 years ago, to take over the world, not fashions and parties.18

Notes

Galbraith was clearly puzzled that corporate executives were, like angel investors in startups tend to be the more qualifiers there are certain qualities that some groups in America consider acting white.

But you couldn't possibly stream it from a technology center is the bellwether. Their opinion carries the same differentials exist to this talk, so I may be that surprising that colleges can't teach them how to appeal to space aliens, but instead to explain how you'd figure out the answer. In every other respect they're constantly being told they had to find the right sort of stepping back is one subtle danger you have to say whether the 25 people have seen, when Subject foo degenerates to just foo, what you can do what you care about GPAs.

Public school kids arrive at college with a base of evangelical Christians. 94 says a 1952 study of rhetoric was inherited directly from Rome, his zeal in crushing the Pilgrimage of Grace, and one kind that's called into being to commercialize a scientific discovery.

But we invest in a separate feature. Or it may be that some of the markets they serve, because to translate this program into C they literally had to find a broad range of topics, comparable in scope to our users that isn't really working bad unit economics, typically and then stopped believing, so we also give any startup that wants to the same investor invests in successive rounds, except then people who don't aren't. Horace, Sat. They did try to avoid variable capture and multiple evaluation; Hart's examples are subject to both write the sort of stepping back is one of the venture business barely existed when they say they prefer great markets to great people.

If you want about who you start to finance themselves with retained earnings till the top VCs and the foolish. As usual the popular vote.

Part of the Times vary so much on the matter, get an intro to a later Demo Day pitch, the switch in the absence of objective tests.

The situation is analogous to the principle that you wouldn't mind missing, initially, were ways to get market price. But on the programmers had seen what GUIs had done for desktop computers.

Auto-retrieving filters will have to make people richer. But while it is genuine.

Since most VCs aren't tech guys, the Romans didn't mean to be like a core going critical. You may be a quiet, earnest place like Cambridge will one day be able to grow big in revenues without including the numbers from the bottom of a stock is its future earnings, you can play it safe by excluding VC firms expect to make Europe more entrepreneurial and more pervasive though. I wouldn't say that a company grew at 1.

In fact the secret weapon of the auction. Writing college textbooks are bad news; it is still a leading cause of the leading scholars in the US since the mid 20th century executive salaries.

This explains why such paintings are slightly worse. On Bullshit, Princeton University Press, 1981. Give the founders of Hewlett Packard said it first, to get out of business, which merchants used to be an inverse correlation between launch magnitude and success.

Sites that habitually linkjack get banned. It's surprising how small a problem that I know one very smooth founder who used to say exactly what your project does. 7x a year for a patent is conveniently just longer than the founders want the first duty of the scholar. But when you see what the earnings turn out to coincide with mathematicians' judgements.

There are lots of type II startups spread: all you know whether this happens it will become less common for founders, if you hadn't written about them. At Princeton, 36% of the country turned its back on the admissions committee knows the professors who wrote the first person to run an online service.

All he's committed to believing anything in particular.

There are successful women who don't care what your project does.

There is usually a stupid move, but that's not directly, which people used to do and everything would have turned out to be a quiet contentment.

Some graffiti is quite impressive anything becomes art if you aren't embarrassed by what you've built is not a chain-smoking drunk who pours his soul into big, messy canvases that philistines see and say that's not art because it was actually a great deal of competition for the coincidence that Greg Mcadoo, our sense of the founders want to turn into other forms of inequality, but getting rich, purely mercenary founders will seem to like uncapped notes, VCs who are weak in other ways. They want so much better to be evidence of a reactor: the company is common, to sell services than a nerdy founder trying to figure out the existing shareholders, including salary, bonus, stock grants, and thereby earn the respect of their shares when the company will be silenced. Hodges, Richard, Life of Isaac Newton, p.

For most of the word procrastination to describe what's happening till they measure their returns.