#and like if in the future something else happens where I need extended time off she will be equally as not understanding

[trans-xianxian]

hmmmm I drafted an email to my boss abt how her text regarding my time off request after my mother's death made me feel very uncomfortable and how I felt like it was unprofessional should I send it

[delfiore]

—MONTAUK.

pairing: alexia putellas x reader

synopsis: you remember how it used to be whilst dealing with how it is now.

word count: 2.1k

a/n: alexia baby come home the kids miss you 🥲 this was the clairo - bags fic i promised months ago but now the premise feels completely different and i've changed the title also lol. a lot happens to one's state of mind in 3 months.

After.

Under normal circumstances—as much as normal was nowadays—the silence in the apartment would feel like a blanket of comfort. It meant you were having a rest from your hectic days training and playing matches, it meant you could finally relax with the love of your life; it meant peace.

Now, the silence was deadly. It was sucking up the life in every room in this apartment, and it was draining the life out of you too.

The door clicked, and you shifted in your spot on the couch, quickly shutting off your phone on which you had bullet points typed out in the Notes app—bullet points of things you wanted—needed—to say, to lessen this inevitable pain. You cracked a smile when you heard tiny feet pattering on the floor, just as the little Pomeranian came to greet you with loving licks.

Nala was oblivious to the cracks that had been forming in her home, that have been left unamended for too long with the thinking that they would go away with time. You dreaded thinking of the day when the little pup came home from a walk and you weren’t there anymore. Would she miss you? How long until she starts to forget you?

“I got us dinner.”

“Cool,” you said, breathing in deeply. “You wanna eat now, or . . . ?”

“Sure.”

You helped her unpack the food without another word, the only sound heard was the clanking of plates as you pulled them out of the cupboard and set them on the kitchen island.

Alexia didn’t say anything either, just gingerly put the food on the plates. You felt her stiffen slightly as you walked towards her and placed a soft kiss on her shoulder.

She offered you a small smile—a forced smile—and brought the food to the table.

You cursed yourself and wished you hadn’t done it.

Before.

“And that concludes the tour of our facilities. Any questions?”

“No, I’m good.” You were way too excited to think about anything else other than the Barcelona crest on your chest.

“Great. Then, how about we go meet your future teammates? Some of them should be in the weight room.”

Patri greeted you initially, first in Spanish, then in English once she realized you weren’t catching on. Jana and Salma followed suit with friendly handshakes and quick hugs. It left the captain to be the last. And there she was; la Reina herself.

You were surprised to find that she was rubbing her hands together, waiting for her turn, almost like she was nervous. As you came to know her, you understood that she was in fact nervous when meeting new people, a polar opposite to the confident leader she was on the pitch.

But you saw the way her hazel eyes fixed on you, and as you approached her, a lingering smile played on her lips. Your heart suddenly leaped in your chest, and your cheeks felt embarrassingly warm, which you hoped she didn’t see.

You had admired her from afar, looking up to her as a role model in the game, but now that you were seeing her up close, something stirred inside you. There was something so endearing about Alexia’s shyness where you had expected assertiveness. It made her feel more down-to-earth, more like your teammate rather than a mythical figure up on a pedestal. One look at her and you understood why people had talked so highly of her—how could they not?

Extending a hand towards her, you had made your greeting, but she pulled you in for a firm and generous hug.

And that’s how they started—the butterflies, the attraction, the yearning—and they never went away.

After.

You decided that you were going to do it after dinner. Doing it during dinner is just tacky and downright disrespectful. You’d hate to be crying into your takeout after telling your girlfriend you wanted to break up.

When you snapped out of your train of thought, you realized that it was way too quiet. Alexia was eating on the other side of the table, scrolling through her phone as she did.

“Did you see Claudia’s banger of a free kick today?” You asked, smiling slightly.

Alexia looked up briefly from her phone. “Si. Really good.”

A curt answer. You nodded, and silence ensued again.

You didn’t talk to Alexia much these days. You used to be able to talk to her about anything, even in the beginning when the both of you were still testing the waters to see where you stood. When did it become like this?

Before.

Practice was going swimmingly. You found yourself catching on quickly with the rest of your teammates. Alexia has made it her mission as captain to make you feel welcome. “Anything you need, ask me,” she would say in English. You wanted to, but every time you thought about talking to her, your hands would sweat and you needed to practice what you were going to say to her. You weren’t scared that she wasn’t going to understand you, but because you knew you’d make a fool out of yourself tripping over your words.

“Hey, Alexia,” you said after practice, “I don’t know the city that well, and—well—since you do, would you be willing to show me around?”

“Si, claro.” She answered and looked around the field. “Maybe I can ask some of the girls to come with? They might know things to do that I don’t.”

Later she would explain to you that she panicked and that she knew she would be weird about it, thinking it was a date when it really was just a little outing between teammates. You wished she had treated it like a date, though, and was slightly disappointed when she mentioned bringing your teammates. Still, you had a great time watching Mapi banter with Lucy and Mariona while Alexia played the role of the disappointing mom trying to restrain her children.

You were grinning thinking back on the day when you came home. Her bashful smile after she offered to drive you home was so unlike anything you had pictured in your head before coming to Barcelona. You loved her calm nature, something that made her such a reliable captain, but also an endearing human being.

After.

You stayed seated by the dinner table and you watched her load the dishes in the washer. The scene was void of music that she would sway her hips to or a hearty conversation about a random fact she learned from one of your teammates. Now it was just robotic, lifeless movements, and your heart squeezed at the thought of what it used to be.

The end is near.

Somewhere, somehow, you gathered the courage to speak up. “Wanna watch a movie?”

And to your surprise, she turned around and said, “Sure.”

For a second, you let yourself hope that there was still something salvageable from this ruin. Then you realized that you had been here many times before, and everything accumulated and led you here to this moment.

Before.

“Really?! You’ve never seen Mean Girls?”

Alexia shook her head and chuckled. “I didn’t watch a lot of movies, Y/N. Growing up, all I had time for was football.”

“Yeah, but . . . I mean, it’s Mean Girls. That’s just a crime,” you clicked your tongue. “We’ll have to catch you up on all the classics.”

The discussion had been prompted by the imminent movie night at one of your teammates’ places. The movie of choice was Mamma Mia!, and you had been most excited to rewatch it. You and Alexia arrived together after an outing in town, and since you did so late, you both were in charge of stocking up the snacks.

“And by that, I hope you mean . . . you and me,” Alexia stuttered, leaning against the kitchen counter, waiting for you to fill your bowl with popcorn.

Your lips curved up. “Yes, I mean me and you. Just me and you.”

Your captain grinned too, like a devious little kid. “Good. Just making sure.”

“¿Qué diablos está tardando tanto? (What the hell is taking so long?)” Patri called from the living room. “¡Más te vale no estar besándote en mi cocina! (You better not be making out in my kitchen!)”

You let out a surprised laugh, as Alexia cursed under her breath, wishing silently that the girls in the living room would just shut up and stop snickering. Once the bowls in your hands were filled to the brim, you turned to her with a knowing look.

“I wouldn’t have minded, you know.”

“Mind what?”

“If we were making out,” you said before leaving Alexia in the kitchen to soak in your words.

She found a seat next to you after taking a minute to calm her racing heart so that you wouldn’t notice how crazy you drove her. She felt like a teenage girl having a silly crush, but there was nothing silly about the way you looked at her. And when you put your head on her shoulder midway through the movie, she knew she was gone. Patri saw it too across the couch apparently, and her knowing grin made Alexia want to bury herself inside a hole. While she wasn’t particularly into romcoms, she was already looking forward to watching Mean Girls with you, her fleeting heart hammering in its cage at the thought of getting you alone again.

After.

The silence was deafening. You didn’t dare to look over to Alexia to gauge her reaction. The screen continued to play the movie, blissfully unaware of an earthquake that had suddenly roared to life in the space on the couch between you and Alexia.

You swallowed. She hasn’t spoken for hours.

Then, she turned to you and said, “Okay.”

Okay.

You drew a sharp breath and nodded with finality. “Okay.”

The movie was still playing, though. It was one of your favorites, but it made you cry every time you watched it because you were so touched by the story and its main characters. It was about a man—grief-stricken with the loss of his relationship—who decides to get his memories of his girlfriend wiped, but during the process, he relives everything he shared with her and slowly rues his decision. You used to enjoy it because their story was fictional, but now it all felt like one big joke, like you were one of the characters in the movie, inching towards a certain endgame that you couldn’t escape.

You wondered if there were a different script written out for you and Alexia.

“Let’s finish the movie though, yeah?” She said, finally looking over to you.

You hadn’t expected that look on her face when you looked back at her—it was something almost like desperation.

Like it meant something to her.

You nodded. It was the least you could do after dumping her. What kindness, after the neglect she had shown you, what kindness.

Before.

Alexia was shaking when she brought the two glasses of wine out to her living room, where you sat. Nala, the ever-excited little puppy that she was, followed her like a personal little cloud.

“I heard it was going to be a sad movie, so wine it is.” She said, handing you your glasses.

“It’s a cult classic, trust me. It’s one of my favorite movies ever.”

“Well, I liked Mean Girls, so I trust you.” The truth was, she would have watched any movie with you, as long as it was with you.

You were right, it was quite sad. When she looked over midway through the movie, she could see a glossy streak running down your face. You laughed it off and wiped your tears away, embarrassed that you had cried in front of her, but Alexia thought you were the prettiest.

With feather-light touches, she reached over and brushed the tip of her fingers over your cheekbone. She knew there was no going back if she went ahead with this. She wondered if there was a script written out for you and her already, and she was just following it on its path.

Her lips brushed against yours softly, and only once she felt that you started to kiss her back was she brave enough to put her hand around your waist and pull you closer.

You were grinning so wide when she pulled away, that she thought it might have been a prank and you were somehow in on it. But you put your arms around her neck and pecked her lips again.

Whatever script it was, Alexia was sure it would be one of fairy tale endings and happily ever after, because that is what you believe when you’re in love.

a/n: the movie is eternal sunshine of the spotless mind btw. made me ugly cry.

[viktoriaashleyyx]

This is a pro Tamlin, anti Rhysand self insert revenge fic. All characters belong to SJM, but she wasn't treating them right. Tam x reader, Tam x Rhysands Sister (OC), First person narrative. This will also reference Elucien and Neris in the future but we aren't there yet. Contains slight violence, poisons, broken bones. Also profanity. I'm not sure what else to tw if I miss something let me know. This is my first fic. I honestly don't know how to find word count, but it's roughly 4 pages on word docs. Criticism welcome. Rhysands Sister is back and she's pissed. Rhysand gets his ass whooped and Tamlin gets shown love. Enjoy.

Ch 2. Ch3 Ch4 Ch5 Ch6 Ch7 Ch8

Chapter 1:

I crash landed on a stone surface. A balcony of sorts? It was well built if it was, considering how long I've been falling, I'm shocked I didn't crash right through it. I know now that making a deal with the gods is a lot like making a deal with a damn djin. 

“Who goes there??” A booming male voice barked. I could hear swords drawn. Fuck where am I? My ears were still ringing, vision blurred, and chest heavy from the impact. I blinked my eyes open to find a winged male looming over me. Another illyrian? Have I finally made it home? Fuck, then that means I am in the night court. Damnit, 7 fucking courts in Prythia and I just happen to land here. At my brother's court. 

This ones expression shifted from threatening to complete shock as his gaze landed on my eyes. “Sky?” 

At my brother's court and at his fucking house, Freya has a sick sense of humor. I slowly sat up, ignoring the hand the illyrian extended to me. 

“Your wing!” He gasped. So thats what that throbbing pain was. My wing seemed to have been snapped in the fall. “You need a healer, go get Madja” he commanded the other brute. 

“Don't bother” I dismissed, standing up slowly. I pulled a small glass vial out of my pocket, a healing potion, I always kept a few on hand, never know when you're gonna need it. I downed the bitter red liquid as I've done a thousand times and grabbed the dagger off my hip. I put the handle in my mouth and bit down on it as I grabbed my own wing and straightened out the bone. I held it right for about a minute until the potion worked its magic. It hurt like crazy but I was careful not to show these idiots, the fear and shock on their faces was satisfying if I am being honest. 

“I'm guessing you are Azriel and Cassian, though I can't tell which is which” I admitted, trying to seem just polite enough to leave. 

The one next to me spoke first “I'm Azriel, he's Cassian” okay, Azriel short hair, Cassian long hair “this is Mor and Amren and she is Feyre, High Lady of the Night Court” 

“So my brother is dead?” I had hoped my excitement would come off as concern. 

“No, no, they rule together, as equals” Cassian spoke

“Got it” this conversation is dragging. I need to leave. 

“It's so nice to meet Rhysands sister, we thought you were dead, I'd heard so much about you” Feyre gushed, “Rhys is out on important business at the moment but he should be back soon.” I had no use or interest in this small talk. 

“How old are you?” I looked at her as if to study the young thing in front of me. I was never good at pleasantries. I spent a good while in isolation and I tend to just blurt out the questions on my mind. 

“I am 21” Feyre replied sharply, yep I angered her with my lack of class. 

“Ew, 21 years? Ugh, my brother always did like them unreasonably young.” I'm just gonna keep going with it, hopefully she'll throw me out. 

“My age is not a disability” Feyre snapped. 

“It's adorable that you think that.” I'm in too deep. Oops. “Anyway, I am sorry I crashed into your home, I had little control, but I would like to leave now.” 

“You will apologize and bow to your high lady.” Cassian growled. Azriel stepped in front of the door. 

“She is not my high lady, I am not a citizen of your court, in fact, I am starting to feel like a prisoner.” It's not lost on me that I have bore the title of Queen, multiple times. In both cases I have dismantled the monarchy entirely, setting up a system in which the people vote on who leads them. Her title meant nothing to me. I bow to those deserving, not the one who rely solely on birthright. But she doesn't need to know this. I have more important things on my mind than to argue with a child "I will request one more time, you move and allow me to leave.” 

“Or what?” Azriel snapped. Unmoving. 

I did not want to show this much of my hand just yet, knowing this magic is not native to Prythia. But, if they want to twist my arm, so be it. A swirling purple circle opened up under me and I fell though, closing it quickly behind me. Portals were my favorite magic to do, in more cases than once it ensured my freedom.

Landing softly on my feet, I took in my surroundings. Cool air, rolling green hills, and the sounds of birds chirping in the distance, the Spring court. I was finally home. I eventually spotted the manor I spent so much of my time at as a child. Mother didn't make me train with the illyrians as she did my brother because she feared the treatment I would receive, also by the time I came along she had befriended the ladies of the other courts. We would spend weeks here at times, the children would play together and the mothers would discuss adult things we didn't care about. One of those things being alliances, and what better way to encourage an alliance between Spring and Night than by an arranged marriage.

I didn't mind them encouraging me to play with the cute blonde shapeshifter. He was kind and silly and only a couple years older than me. The other kids, mainly Autumn boys, were rough and volatile, and I just had no interest in what they considered fun. When I would get flustered by my wings knocking things over and getting in the way, the youngest Spring boy would remind me how beautiful they were, or how powerful they made me. The few times he would get a chance to practice his fiddle, I would dance and twirl, even if it was just the arpeggios. He was the 3rd born, and I the second and a girl, they didn't expect either of us to become High lord. 

The manor was about a mile away, I shot up another portal to the door, I was tired after all and, if I'm being honest, a little excited to be back.

When I reached the door it was broken in half and wide open. I creeped inside, cautiously. It looked to be abandoned. Dirt and dust coated the walls and floors, priceless artifacts shattered and books thrown from the shelves. I noticed claw marks in the furniture. “Please just be alive, after everything, I can’t be too late.” I whispered to myself. My heart sank as I looked around. 

Further into the dilapidated manor, I heard muffled voices coming from the kitchen. “Get out.” a tired weak growl. I ran to the entrance and just as I rounded the corner I saw my brother's boot kick in the chest of.. Tamlin. He began spitting up blood. 

“WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?” I hissed at my brother. 

Rhysand whipped around towards me, Tamlin looked up from the floor, eyes wide. 

“You're alive??” Rhysand darted towards me and I shoved him to the ground, rushing to Tamlins side. I knelt down beside him, held his head up from where he laid on the floor and pulled another glass vial out of my pocket. 

“It'll be bitter but swallow” I commanded gently. He didn't argue, he took the healing potion and I kissed his forehead as I laid him back down gently to address my brother. 

I stood tall. Nothing but pure rage in my violet eyes toward my brother. I always hated how much we looked alike. “THIS is the ‘important business’ you told your wife you had to take care of?” 

“I thought he killed you, he hurt my mate.” Rhysand admitted, no remorse. 

“And I finally make it back home after 300 years in exile to find you kicking mine” I state through gritted teeth. 

Rhysands eyes narrowed “your what?” It was obvious he wanted me to retract my statement, not going to happen. I didn't waste my time away, I knew I was more powerful than all of Prythia, I had to be, in case I had returned to Amarantha still terrorizing the place. 

“You heard me.” I maintained his gaze. In a split second he lunged for me and I reached my hand out into the small portal that appeared to my side. I grabbed one of the curved blades I was gifted by the warriors I previously trained with. These blades were specifically enchanted to drip poisons into the wounds they create. This one? Bloodbane, or as Prythians call it, “Faebane.” I slashed him across the face in a controlled move, just enough to leave a scar and allow the poison to sink in. 

He screamed in pain and looked back up at me. My eyes fell entirely black and cracks formed across my face as I spit my curse at him, lifting up his chin with my sword to make him look me in the eye “IF YOU, OR ANY OF YOUR LACKEYS, ENTER THE SPRING COURT BORDERS AGAIN, ALL OF THE AIR WILL BE DRAWN FROM YOUR LUNGS, AND IF YOU CANNOT GET OUT BEFORE YOU PASS OUT WE WILL FEED YOUR BODIES TO THE PIGS.” I relaxed, my face returning to normal. “Now get out.” A portal opened below him and he fell, leaving him only halfway up the steps to the House of Wind. 

I turned my attention back to Tamlin, he had sat up, the healing potion having done its job, looking up at me with a million different emotions on his face, shock, fear, concern, confusion and relief. I sat down next to him, draping my legs over his. He embraced me like I was going to disappear any minute. “You're alive. Or I am dead, I do not care as long as I have you in my arms again.” he sighed as we just sat there on the floor. 

I awoke the daemati powers I hardly used as I pressed my forehead to his. A gentle knock on the walls of his mind, and he allowed me in. I shared the memories I held dear for all these years, of us playing in the fields of Spring, the days he would spend with me in the gallery his mother gifted me, watching me paint, the mischief we would get into and the giggles we would share. His face relaxed into a soft smile as I kissed his cheek.

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

@ladythornofrivia asked to be tagged❤️

[vaguely-concerned]

Thoughts upon finishing Master and Apprentice! A good double read with Padawan; the ending of that leaving Obi-Wan slightly hopeful about his relationship to Qui-Gon makes for a very sad yet hilarious ‘Local Padawan loses last little bit of hope he didn’t even know he still had’ sort of vibe to the beginning of this one, which is set one (1) year later and Obi-Wan is So Done with Qui-Gon’s whole deal by this point (correctly btw). Also if you can’t tell already I will not be objective or free from bias in this because I love Obi-Wan so much and some of the stuff Qui-Gon pulled made me incandescent with rage on his behalf <3 let’s go

- 'oh obi-wan, you're so mature for your age, I keep forgetting you're only seventeen years old,' qui-gon says, word for word, repeatedly, in master and apprentice, apparently willfully deaf to the industrial-sized warning bells about their relationship dynamic that should probably be setting off in his head. qui-gon believes in vibing with the living force and being in the moment right up until the moment requires him to pay attention to the kid he's raising for more than oh, one and a half minutes of self-effacing inner monologue and then he's like 'well unfortunately there is simply no time for that right now there are prophecies to be pondered'. (the fact that the admission that obi-wan has essentially been left to raise himself emotionally and the resigned reframing of that as 'and maybe that is a good thing!' is part of the olive branch they extend to each other towards the end... will my sadness never end)

- most of all it's so heartbreaking to me that qui-gon seemingly never understands just how much obi-wan as a person is rooted deeply in shame. I don't think that's a feeling that's particularly prevalent in qui-gon's own inner world so he doesn't recognize how central it is in obi-wan's psychology and completely misunderstands and misaligns with him again and again and again and then gets annoyed with obi-wan for that, thus making the shame even deeper. doubly painful because he does see the way rael lives so much of his life out of shame now and feels sad about it, but can't see the way he's contributing to obi-wan doing so. this is what fucks me up so bad about the generational trauma in star wars -- no one here meant to be cruel. for all his faults I do think qui-gon does love obi-wan and doesn't mean to hurt him. but the original sin of the prequels as far as I'm concerned is qui-gon tenderly drying away obi-wan's tears as he's dying even while completely failing to see him, his eyes too fixed on anakin's future to actually be with obi-wan, who's there right now and needs him.

these are simply very different people trying and failing to understand each other, and the harm that can still happen in that… 'if you love me, you don't love me in a way I understand', all the way through the disaster line, even when the love is there, it is there, that’s what hurts the most, it just doesn’t reach where it’s needed, there’s a connection that doesn’t happen. (ironically I think ahsoka doesn't doubt that anakin loves her, it's just uh everything else that went down. so y'know family curse broken! new even more fucked up curse achieved now with more child murder. I mean there already was some child murder in this family but anakin upped the game exponentially) 

- a lil guy who's basically tarzan except the gorillas are replaced with protocol droids and then he becomes a jewel thief is one of the funniest star wars concepts I've ever heard and I hope pax and rahara get to pop up in more star wars media, they’re great fun. (also an idea I think would be super fun to make a character/campaign around in Edge of the Empire or something, everyone playing different droids and then one person being robo-parented lol) 

- was not prepared to have rael posit a theory of what essentially seems to be the jedi version of predestination in his despair, but I do love to see it haha. especially interesting since he, qui-gon and dooku must be among the people alive who've studied the prophecies in most depth, and they've all reached different conclusions -- dooku decides to join the war of light and dark on the side of dark for some reason, qui-gon (possibly the stubbornest fucker the jedi order ever produced) 'turns towards the light not to win some great cosmic game, but because it is the light', and rael in the middle falls into the depressed apathy of 'it doesn't matter what we do here, the outcome is already decided; for there to be true balance there has to be as much dark as light in the world so we're fucked'. but in the end he does take qui-gon's words to heart and turns towards the light rather than accepting dooku's offer, even if he might not believe it makes a difference in the long run. man I love rael. hobo-looking sonofabitch living in a castle for eight years will just suddenly fling out some deep jedi theology huh

- master rael 'I'm gonna make up for the big terrible mistake I made on accident by making an even bigger more premeditated mistake on purpose' averross (affectionate)

- the added layer to dooku’s fascination with prophecy after reading dooku: jedi lost — that his best friend in the world was a seer who couldn’t turn it off and it destroyed him……….. dooku you’re not getting him back if you just understand what he saw you know that right

- the more I read of master and apprentice the more I realize that the reason yoda and qui-gon don't get along is that they're two of the judgiest bitches the jedi order ever produced. They’re like two cats scowling judgmentally at each other from opposite sides of the room pretending to live and let live while going ‘you’re wrong tho’ internally. 

- I dunk on him constantly (not entirely without affection, however grudging), but Qui-Gon is genuinely a really interesting character. He’s so… he’s so. He’s infuriating but he’s infuriating in an equidistant sort of way. You feel me. He’s pissing everyone off equally and he just doesn’t care because again, he’s the stubbornest judgiest bitch around and thinks he’s right all the time. I would be free to just enjoy his ornery ‘no actually I’m right about this’ ass and the chaos he wreaks so much more if Obi-Wan didn’t have to live with the emotional consequences of it lol. 

- poor rael closing in on fifty with his puriteen middle-aged little brother clutching pearls about his getting laid once in a blue moon fhdskjahfas. again a really interesting insight into different ways of interpreting the jedi code, though, I love seeing the jedi not be an ideological monolith. to be fair to rael, having sex sometimes does seem to be the indulgence he has that causes the least conflict with his principles or loyalties so you know what honestly force speed you my friend why not. (and then there's qui-gon 'noooo sex is only okay if you're In Love (implied: like I was)!!!' jinn lmao. I wonder what he'd think of anakin and padme's relationship, would that pass the 'being sufficiently purely in love' test for him) I do like how consistently it’s shown that rael doesn’t mean to be cruel or unkind in anything he says, he always notices something landing too close to home and then pulls carefully back from it instead of pushing on. He seems to be the emotional intelligence powerhouse in this lineage (as long as he doesn’t have his feelings too tangled up in something, at least). 

Dooku: jedi lost also shows us that dooku absolutely knows rael is out there in the galaxy laying pipe and is, at worst, softly amused by it. So in this little family unit it’s only qui-gon losing his mind over it fjsdkafa I’m so used to having qui-gon be the wild card maverick compared to obi-wan ‘*in tears* but what are the RULES master’ kenobi, it’s so fucking funny that within the context that raised him he’s the stick in the mud 

I guess. the book also had a plot and it was not bad! some interesting insights about how the republic interacted with the big corporations and just how fucked everything already was by this point. I'm a pretty character-driven reader so that's what sticks with me for the most part

- obi-wan’s big teenage rebellion here being that sometimes. Occasionally. When he really loses his temper and gets hot under the collar. He’ll say something slightly passive aggressive out loud instead of keeping it contained inside his head. And qui-gon still can’t handle that gracefully AT ALL he snaps right back fdjskfhas. (I guess he also snitches on qui-gon to the council but well, you know, qui-gon was breaking republic law pretty brazenly at that point I think that moves beyond teenage angst and into ‘...master that’s a wholeass felony’ territory). Obi-Wan does go for a couple of low blows, but like. Nothing that’s not actually true, is the thing. And mostly he blames himself for not being good enough, because surely if he were qui gon wouldn’t treat him like this. Augh. hngh. Pain. suffering. 

- I am not one of the people who think everything would have automatically been just hunky-dory if only qui-gon lived and could have been anakin's master (in fact I would have given it a 50/50 chance of going exponentially worse way faster; being more similar as people is not always a guarantee that a relationship will go smoother and qui-gon is an incredibly difficult man to be close to for any length of time), but the way this book basically presents how the dynamic between dooku, rael and qui-gon could have gone on in the next generation too... it would have been incredibly unfair to obi-wan (as always I think that's just an universal constant lmao) but I think the odds of it turning out okay would have been better if you had him in the mix to run crisis control for both qui-gon and anakin, as he does for each of them individually as best he can anyway. at least he could have been free to be anakin's brother and friend purely in that scenario, without all the added mess of grief and having to take on a parental role there so young. he does basically fill that role in ahsoka's apprenticeship, after all.

- qui-gon finally hugging rael before he leaves the planet (and especially since when they were younger he wanted to, but held himself back from it)... that's still his big brother even with all the shit that's happened since ;_____; when someone teaches you how to swim (literally and symbolically) that shit stays with you I suppose

Relatedly: DOOKU getting hugged, and gladly. What the fuck. Are you all seeing this shit. I’m gonna cry or laugh I’m not sure which one why am I emotionally invested in the galaxy's most problematic grandpa now this sucks

[adorastarot]

What to expect from Scorpio season 2023?

Scorpio season is basically upon us! Can you feel it? Autumn is here, and the weather has cooled down. We had a storm the past 2 days and a lot of flooding but today the sun is shining and the trees look absolutely stunning, so it seems like the perfect time for this reading!

"We are in the eye of the storm. We are going through intense times and Scorpio season will bring our attention, even more closely, to personal and collective shadows, shining a light in the dark and illuminating something we normally don’t see or don’t want to see."

How to choose a pile: Take a deep breath and close your eyes. Ask the universe if there is a message that you need to hear right now. You may either hear a number or be drawn to a pack once you open your eyes!

If the message doesn't resonate then it may not be for you.

♡ Private readings and extended readings are available - Check out my Ko-fi

♏♏♏♏LET'S GET TO IT♏♏♏♏

Please like and reblog <3

Pile 1!!! Welcome to this reading! Can I start off by saying that your energy feels sooo light! I know I spoke about the trees in the intro but your energy truly feels like a red leaf falling off a tree in the sunshine by the river. Your energy is impeccable. Even if you aren’t feeling it right now or if times have been rough for you after the eclipse, know that Scorpio season is going to be good for you and you may even end up feeling more like yourself right now. You may feel like dancing in the rain during some gloomier days or having a picnic during the cooler but sunnier days. 

8 of pentacles, 4 of wands, the sun, temperance, the tower, the lovers

This may be due to your work life picking up. Work is going to be crazy for you in the best possible way! You may find yourself working at home a lot, even if things have been a bit stagnant for you, know that it’s about to change! Some of you may also be going on holidays at the very end of scorpio season - to a warmer country?! If so, don’t worry too much about your finances - things will work out for you. Work and finances may naturally preoccupy you and that’s ok pile 1. It’s about what you do with these worries. Don’t lock yourself away and stress by yourself. It’ll be ok for you to rely on others and request their help. 

This season, it will be important for you to practise restraint and moderation. Things will happen really quickly, the job situation will improve quickly - but the downstide of this is that you won’t have time for yourself and you will need to find balance. Your family life may improve too - but again you may feel like you are spending all of your time with other’s and none with yourself. So finding balanc will be very important. Out of the blue you may find that a soulmate of ours comes into your life?! I asked for a clarifier and we go the 3 of swords - for some of you this will be an ex creeping back into your life and you will need to tell them to go away - for others it will be a new soulmate who will help you heal from an ex.

I felt an eye roll coming in as soon as I started shuffling my cards for you pile 2 AHAHAHAH what’s gotten you so frustrated?! I feel like you are simply done with everyone else’s sh*t and you just want a break! Because you deserve one! Your energy feels soooo moody right now but that’s ok. Youdon’t need to try to be happy for someone else. If you feel like eye rolling, just eye roll! If you feel like face palming, do it! 

2 of swords, 6 of wands, the devil in reverse, the chariot, 4 of cups and page of cups

My dear pile 2, during scorpio season, the future is truly in your hands - what do you want to achieve? Do you have any plans? If so, then it is truly a blessing that the future is in your hands right now. Whether you take this season to work harder than ever or to take a breather - there is no wrong decision. You may have started a project during Libra season or at the very leats you’ve laid out the work during Libra season. You may not be where you want to be by the end of Scorpio season but by he end of Sag season? You are going to be an expert I am sure of it!

With the devil coming out in reverse for you pile 2, it will be important for you to establish boundaries and to not take any sh*t from anyone! Make sure you work on healthy boundaries especially since people will want to be around you, but you may need some “me-time!. If they are your friends, they will understand, No, you don’t need to reply to messages on the same day, nor do you need to hangout with your friend sif you are busy and if it will make you anxious. Focus on building healthy relationships. Even if you are’t sure what your healthy boundaries are yet, take the time to discover yourself and date yourself this month! Your energy may be quite low just before Halloween, so plan accordingly.

Do you feel like you are the only one who is getting rained on right now? Like the rainy clouds are following you around and bad luck just keeps chasing you. You may been feeling a tiny bit aggressive or just snappier than usual, but don’t worry this won’t last forever. Try to listen to your body and understand your need. What is making you feel this snappy? How can you move away from it? Even if all it takes it going for a run and exhausting that energy. Regardless of what it is. You are going through it and you need to be gentle with yourself.

The star, the hermit, the emperor, 8 of cups, 7 of wands, king of wands

Look at these cards! Scorpio season may be rather uneventful for you - at leats to start with. You may feel like retreating and spending quality time with yourself. Doing what makes you happy. You may feel very hopeful for the future, or at least for the end of the year. You may not want to get in trouble with anyone and just naturally avoid conflict this season. For some reason pile 3…I feel like you will be very comfortable in your body this season. This may translate to you buying some clothes that you wouldn’t usually - whether is an interesting fit for you, or a different colour, whateve ryou choose will definitely bring attention your way. You may even go underwear shopping which will without a doubt make your confidence skyrock! 

Things will go very smoothly for you until around the end of the month. Between 30/10-01/11 you may feel like everything is happening to you and not for you. You may break a couple of glasses, damage your favourite blanket or shrink your new clothes. During this time just be aware of your actions and follow instructions pile 3. You may want to get out of your comfort zone and try something new as well, just don’t let your clumsiness get in the way of you discovering a new hobby.

[crushedsweets]

Got any cool hip creepypasta headcanons?!?😱😱

DEPENDS... its hard without any specific prompts but yk what anon im capable of talking out of my ass no matter what.

this'll be talking about the main 12 i usually talk about, so if i say smth like 'so and so is the ONLY one who does this', they aren't actually the only one

toby rides a bike everywhere. he just steals random ones if he sees one he likes or knows hes hella far from home and doesnt wanna walk. brought home a pink beach cruiser once and natalie laughed her ass off. . .

the proxies (tim, brian, toby) have a cabin that tim and brian treat more like a safehouse rather than a home. tim and brian share an apartment near the city though. toby is the only one who lives there full time. they all have to pitch in for the bills, but toby has to scramble to get the majority bc again.. lives there full time.

the cabin only has 2 bedrooms, 1.5 baths, a connected kitchen/living room, and an attic. the small bedroom is filled to the fucking BRIM with random bullshit that they keep as storage but its just ridicoulous. like boxes filled with random shit toby steals (i kinda hc toby as a kleptomaniac too), tables, dressers, clothes, etc. a lot of it is also stuff that like, jeff or nat dropped off being like 'keep this safe for me' and it eventually just devolved into a storage room. the master bedroom is where tim or brian sleep IF they are at the cabin. toby made the attic his bedroom, but he falls asleep on the couch or in the master bedroom if the other two aren't home. he just likes that the attic is someplace nobody else really wants to go cuz.. why would they need to?

tim owns a busted rusty reddish colored pickup truck. he totally named it something like sheila and calls it a 'she.' brian prob just has a basic little grey honda. does not name it . .

natalie has huge issues w her gender. not in a queer way(well sort of in a queer way bc im projecting) but in a like. 'fuck this shit im fucking tired' because growing up, she was always a daughter, sister, niece, etc before she was her own person. she grew up in a house of men, and her extended family was largely ran by shitty, loud, sexist men that constantly ostracized her for being a girl. toby is legit the only dude she's fully like Ok. I'm ok with u. ur just fucking stupid. and she pokes fun at him being a mamas boy and says thats why shes ok with him. she stopped talking to him for like a month the one time he made a gender roles comment that he got from his dad.

natalie used to play volleyball and basketball growing up cuz again, grew up with boys and she was always really tall (like 5'7 in 6th grade, 6ft by highschool). sports and art were her ONLY outlets, but she was always degraded and shamed by her dad and brother for art. her dad loved that she played sports though, one of the only things he was supportive about . until she got a little older and he decided that being a tomboy wasnt as endearing on a teenage girl.

i cannot explain how close jane and her parents were. she was an only child in a upper middle class house to a lawyer and a real estate agent so she was always spoiled rotten, taken care of, always told how beautiful and smart she was. hence why losing them is the most fucking detrimental shit to ever happen to her. she literally worhsips her parents. she's wore mothers wedding dress to her own wedding. her uncle(dads brother) walked her down the aisle holding a framed photo of her dad. she almost refused to walk during her university graduation because her parents couldn't be there, despite the years worth of hardwork and dedication she put into it.

mary(janes wife) was janes bestfriend in highschool. it was one of those crazy homoerotic female friendships. they were eachothers first kiss even when they thought they were straight ("oh lets practice kiss for our future bfs!").

my idea of ben kinda combines the idea of ben the kid who drowned, and BEN the experiment to put souls into a digital afterlife. ben bought majoras mask from some creepy neighbor at a garage sale, and the neighbor had like. this completely absurd theory that he could put himself into a game or something. so he ended up tricking several kids into buying the same majoras mask cartridge, killing them after they beat the game together, and their souls DID get trapped in the cartridge but it didnt do much for his theory... WHICH MEANS that BEN is a culmination of several people, kids and teens raging from like 7-19, but the ben we know is sort of like.. the only one who escaped the cartridge (he was the last one killed and the reason the man got caught for murder)? but he was stuck in said cartridge for about like 7 years before he was 'reawoken' so traces of others souls are in him. ITS REALLY COMPLICATED it makes sense in my head but idk. he has a lot of identity issues that come packed with having his childhood stolen from him.

he's so close to sally because he relates to her on that level. while their trauma was different, being a kid taken advantage of and fucking murdered is insane. despite coming from completely different time periods (sally died in the 1900s, ben died in the 2000s), ben can only find himself truly relating to sally on an emotional level. sure, him jeff and toby can laugh and play video games and wrestle and stuff, but sally is the only one who can even begin to understand what it's like to be a dead kid.

sally and ben kinda make a lot of comments about humans and stuff LOL. most of it is in the 'you ungrateful pieces of shit you THREW AWAY YOUR LIFE' but sometimes it's something more bittersweet. 'you lived to adulthood, you have so much, you can do so much, please keep going, there's so much left for you, don't let it go' etc etc. they can sometimes be the wisest in their perspectives of life, death, mortality. but theyre both so bitter and traumatized and hurt but it that it's mostly overshadowed by envy. that's why the two of them can be so close, even if they dont really sit and like.. philosophize about life. lmfao

ben has gotten into several like police and governemnt systems and removed so many cctv footage of everyone getting in trouble, or even wiped their shit from systems. he is like the main reason none of them are in jail unironically.

jeff is the only one who truly enjoys murder. he's a sadist at heart and has a fetish for all this blood and guts. toby and natalie did have their own periods in life where they killed for relief/as a power trip(toby only ever did it under orders, natalie took some sleezy guys home from bars). the rest of them either aren't killers, or don't do it by choice (brian and tim).

i was gonna ramble about nina next but im kinda embarrassed that i just spoke so much about them BAHAHAH OK THANKS ANON

[frau-kali]

On Self Awareness and Cognitive Dissonance

So @jaynovz made this really interesting and excellent post about Silver's crazy decision to go to Charlestown at the end of S2. I thought I'd toss out my two cents as to why he might have done it. And also discuss some related stuff. Buckle up, folks!

So first, let's begin with THE SCENE:

Silver: I've had my fill of adapting lately, doing your bidding, keeping the crew in line for you. Flint: I wasn't the only one who benefited from that. Silver: It certainly seemed that way.

Here Flint refers to Silver's position among the crew, which Flint sees as a benefit to both of them. As we see:

Flint: I need your help. They need your help. Silver: Oh please. Don't try to convince me to do it for the sake of their futures. Flint: For the sake of your own. Those men listen to you, they care about what you think, what you want them to think. Where else in the world is that true? Where else would you wake up in the morning and matter?

I could talk endlessly about this whole scene, particularly about Silver's incredibly amazing lie and how he acts during it and his bitterness toward Flint, but that's beyond the scope of this. Instead I wanna focus on self awareness.

With these few words, Flint basically drags Silver kicking and screaming to self awareness land. He is suddenly exposed to the fact that he actually means something here. And by his reaction, I think it's fair to assume this is one the few times, if not perhaps the first time, he's been in a position like this. Based on his past actions and his desire to remain anonymous (see refusing to show his face during the schedule thing, it’s safer to be anonymous), I think his previous modus operandi has been to position himself behind some powerful figure and work in the background to help them achieve their shared goals of getting lots of money. Said people were also probably not as smart as him so he could easily manipulate them as well. We see him do this with Flint a bunch, too, working in the background to help him. And that's what his position on the Walrus crew starts out as.

But then he becomes the centre of attention. They start to like him, which he didn't even necessarily expect when he started his gossip monger plan, he just wanted them to need him, despite his proclaiming that he’s a hard man not to like. But no, they get attached to him. And he, unbeknownst to himself, becomes attached right back.

Now, it's entirely possible that he's been in similar situations in the past just like this one, but because he is very good at repression and lying to himself, he was able to walk away without any real trouble. Maybe he realized afterwards that he actually liked those people but it didn't matter because he'd already left and he tells himself it’s for the best anyway. Silver is likely carrying around some heavy trauma related to emotional attachments to other people, given how he tells Muldoon that “we’ll take care of you” is the most terrifying part of everything that’s happened after losing his leg. And, considering everything else, that sure is saying something.

But here, he has hitched his wagon to James Flint, a man after his own heart. Flint is a lot like Silver, a brilliant liar and excellent manipulator, able to bend people to his will and look damn good while doing it.

Then he does it to Silver, too. And it's all while Silver is in the middle of pulling off his own master class in lying, some of his best work, by being outraged and angry that the gold he actually stole is gone and trying to extricate himself from Flint and the crew. Except Flint won't let him.

Flint's request for Silver's help doesn't, I don't think, extend merely to the lovely speech Silver gives to swing the vote in his favour, either. During the voyage to Charlestown, Silver continues working to convince the men of the dangers that lie ahead, presumably at Flint's behest. Scott does indicate to Billy that Silver is using his storytelling powers to “help the captain” when Silver is addressing the crew.

So Silver stays because he has come to value his position on the crew. However he doesn't yet realize how attached to them he's actually become. Jay is right, he could’ve easily deserted after the vote, run off to hide somewhere until Flint is gone, but he doesn’t. And he's still lying to himself about why. He thinks “yeah ok, Flint, you won this round. I'll stay and go on the voyage so as not to arouse suspicion from you and everyone else, and I’ll take the scouts along because I don’t trust them not to fuck this up, but I am leaving after that.” The real reason he stays is because he values his position, he actually likes that he matters, but he is still convinced he’s going to leave because he also wants the money. I think he probably would’ve left, too, but he’s trying not to think too hard about the newly exposed self awareness and continuously telling himself he doesn’t need this and he sure as fuck doesn’t actually care about these people, even as he stays. It’s like he’s torn between how he wants to be and how he actually is and he cannot bring himself to go no matter how much he wants to.

That’s also not even going into how, during the voyage, he is exposed to how much power he actually has over the men on the crew when he gives the scout a fucking look and said scout kills their co-conspirator because of it. And then that same scout tells Silver that all the men know he cares about their best interests and Silver is just fucking taken aback by the level of regard these people have for him. This is on display again when they all stand up in his defence after Vane’s men come to grab him.

When Vane’s men attack the ship, Silver could swim to shore with the remaining scout and if they kept their heads down, they'd probably be ok. They could likely swim far enough away to not get caught, especially at night. Silver surely knows this, too.

Instead, he cuts the forestay and saves the crew. And then he refuses to give up a list of names, once again saving the crew. He has, against all his own cognitive dissonance, become attached to them enough that he endures torture and risks death for them. Now, I don’t think that he ever thought that he would lose his leg, I don’t think that he made space in his mind for the possibility of being tortured either, he knew that one of the men had grabbed the keys during the scuffle when they took him away and he thought that he could stall long enough until they broke in and saved him because he’s good at talking his way out of trouble. I also have to say that it is such a nice moment when he says this to Vane’s man: “The question you should be asking yourself is, where are his keys and has he seen them since he took me away from my men?” They are his men now, his brothers, whereas before he always set himself apart from them.

And it's all because Flint made him see that he valued his position enough to stay and go on the journey to Charlestown in the first place. Silver even gives Flint credit for this in 305 - “Such a waste, it seems to me, knowing that it doesn't have to be this way. That the man who talked me into giving a shit about this crew, he could talk those people out there into anything. If he wanted to.”

Or that’s how I read it anyway. The way Silver’s attachment to the Walrus crew is developed over the course of season 2 and the final culmination of him refusing to betray them is one of my favourite things about his story and I have a lot of feelings about it. I could be wrong in my interpretation, of course, but thank you all for coming to my Ted Talk :)

[fic-heaven]

Hi chickie. I saw the other day on a random TikTok that some soldiers eat steak and lobster when they are about to do a dangerous mission that will probably cost them their death. Can u write something like that with someone of your choosing?

Steak n' lobster (Gus x reader)

Angst.

🐥You know who imma'bout to choose uwu.

Btw I didn't know it meant straight up death?? I thought they ate this when their deployment extended or smth but I don't know.

Very short short!!

.

"Say, where is this mission happening exactly?"

"Do you really need to go solo?"

"Is the captain aware your knee is still recovering...?"

"Mi vida, you'll text or call me whenever you can, right? I don't doubt your habilites, no, no, no... I'm just..."

Worried. He was worried.

Normally you'd tell Gus all about your missions, even stuff you were not supposed to share. But this time when he bombarded you with questions about this particular mission you were assigned to accomplish alone so far from the base and this bloody country, you didn't give him clear answers insisting you couldn't share much about what your unit was cooking. In truth you weren't lying.

Price had strictly ordered you to stay quiet about the matter, specially about the fake death you had to play in order to keep the enemy off your radar so you could spy on them. Your captain knew of the "unprofessional" relationship you had with Gustavo Rodriguez, and as much as he supported your love for each other he pressed you to NOT tell Gus a word about this or else... You never asked what "or else" implied. But when the topic waltzed around Gus, you made sure to straighten your back and obey as long as you two could still remain side by side.

Thanks to SpecGru's alliance with 141 both parties shared a base facilitating your collaborations immensely. Sincere this wasn't SpecGru's main HQ, one of it's leaders amongst some squads resided here and that's how you and Gus met.

It fist started with a tease during a rescue mission, later he invited you to share dinner with him on his table, one thing led to the other and you two shared a bed countless nights after that. It's been over a year and a half and your bond did nothing but strengthen. But this mission... You were sure It'd break him... And you were feeling guilty as hell for accepting, but you didn't have any other choice. This was your job after all.

"Gus. Baby..." You breathed out in a slight warning tone when your lover shot you the seventh question about this mission.

His eyes were calm but concerned as he sat next to you on your table in the far corner of the mess hall where no one could disturb you two, his food was long forgotten as his gloved hands approached taking yours, his thumbs brushed your palms in encouragement for you to continue. "Dime."

How could you tell him? Price had forbidden you from speaking a word about your future fake death and yet. You look at your lover's eyes, so warm and full of open affection and concern, his discomfort about not knowing where you'll be heading and for how long was clear in his golden irises. Gus' characteristic playful demeanor was non-existent when it came to your safety, soldier or not, you will always be his princess, his love, and later in a few months, with little luck, even his fiance.

"There are some things we have to do in this line of work... Some... Unfortunate decisions have to be made, and sometimes not by ourselves but by our superiors..."

The Rican didn't like the way this was going, olive skin went clammy with sweat as the thousand bad thoughts he have been having this whole morning projected in real life. You couldn't meet his intense stare but you did squeeze his hands reassuringly as If reminding him that you were here, that you were real, as if whatever you were about to say would change his life for the worse.

You opened your mouth to continue but suddenly Soap made presence in your table, here to bring you your food tray and the sight was enough to rob the words from you mouth and for Gus to abruptly stand up with a scandalized look.

Steak and lobster.

"You can't. I forbid it." He scoffed, his voice shaky. Golden eyes glared daggers at the food tray Soap was nudging your way in silence.

"Gus-"

"NO!" The loud yell from the Rican followed by the loud clash that came from his fists colliding against the table rattling the trays echoed through the mess hall, a thousand heads turned your way.

But the only stare that caused you stress at that moment was Price's. The captain was leaning on the wall right behind Gus, his face was enough to get the order right. There was no time for your last meal, you had to sail right away.

"Forgive me, love..."

[bfdifan26]

i literally didnt wanna talk or think about Anything else last night despite all the awesome shit that happened in that episode. like truly im so happy just in general i LOVE how it tied like the entire first half of tpot together and it really solved something going on in all teams while also showing future developments to be expected like goddamn ICE CUBE LOOKING AT BOOK HELLO? REMEMBER WHEN I SAID THEY COULD BOND OVER BOTJ BEING TREATED HORRIBLY IN THEIR RESPECTIVE TEAMS.. THIS IS KIND OF EVEN BETTER!! ive seen people super excited about book and pricetag and im gonna need some more time . the only time im cautious about liking two characters together is when the show (this goes for any media tbh) deliberately does it clearly and puts it in your face to specifically make you want to like it. so i gotta see more of them first. but yeah i really loved everything else i loved hearing fanny speak again and i loved seeing blackhole really just talk about everything that had been terrifying him and kinda holding him back throughout like his Entire time in the show. and i said this but i LOVE pillow and i particularly loved near the end and start where she actually did something for book. i will forever hold onto the idea that she’s just her favourite and she is obsessed with her CUZ ITS TRUE . pen eraser tb and tv were adorable as they always are and gb is also wonderful. LASTLY FOR WINNER LOSER AND CLOCK THOSE THREE i am SO happy it’s so rare for the show to do such a deliberate and carefully written extended storyline which again they pretty much tied up all the ongoing things for each team BUT THESE TWO!! WINNER AND CLOCK!!!! i dont actually have much to say cuz im not exactly the biggest fan of them but im just so happy to see their relationship left off on a positive note as well as the closure for what happened with winner and loser not just for clock but for the fans. literally all they needed was a long understanding conversation and it happened!!! though i m sad clock is gone for good now. For other reasons. that i’ve already agonised about enough. anyway

[farity]

Lessons in love

Pairing: Aegon Targaryen and OFC of House Tyrell

Summary: Aegon finds a wife 

Warnings: Smut

.He’d heard that Tyrell women were not fond of wearing a lot of fabric, so Aegon Targaryen, oldest son of King Viserys and Queen Alicent, was surprised when his betrothed, the Lady Marlenya Tyrell, showed up wearing enough fabric for two gowns and enough gemstones sewn in to ransom a small kingdom.  

They were meeting in person for the first time since they were still in the nursery, and frankly, Aegon didn’t remember her at all. 

Her father led her towards the dais where the ailing Viserys still sat the iron throne.  Aegon stood next to him, his mother sitting next to his father.  It was to be a private meeting, to finalize the details of the upcoming royal wedding, only parents and the betrothed couple, but he heard a sharp intake of breath from somewhere behind him and knew it was his sister, who couldn’t resist peeking at hew future sister-in-law.

He knew Marlenya’s mother had died two years before, but little else, although he appreciated her elegant walk and the graceful curtsy she gave his family.  She was tall and slim, probably the same height as him, and her blonde hair was artfully curled amidst a spray of white gemstone roses and other adornments.

“Lady Marlenya, we are most pleased to receive you.”  His father had stood, extending a hand to help her up the steps of the dais.

“Your Grace, it has been far too long since I had the pleasure of being in your presence,” she replied smoothly, taking his hand.

Aegon wanted to laugh but when he looked at her, she was looking at him quizzically.  “Welcome to King’s Landing, Lady Marlenya,” he said when the king patted him on the back to push him forward.  He didn’t know why this stupid ceremony needed to happen.  They were betrothed, they would marry in two days, what else was left to discuss?  

She fixed a smile on her face and stepped closer to him, the subtle scent of flowers and something he could only describe as sweet cream like his favorite dessert, had him leaning forward for more.  She curtsied and when she rose, he was so close that he might have reached out and brought her in for a kiss.

“My prince,” she said quietly, and then stepped back to take her father’s hand again.

* * * * * 

He was hungover.  

Not only that, there was a reddish mark on his neck that she knew, from her brother’s escapades, was a love bite.  That he would appear in that state at their meeting was practically an insult, not that her father would even think of mentioning it, he was ready to throw her in Aegon’s bed and then throw Aegon on top of her.

Queen Alicent seemed to be very nervous.  She probably knew what the prince was like and feared him making a scene.  The king seemed oblivious, and if he noticed anything, the illness that was clearly making him rot from the inside out, took up most of his thoughts.  

Dinner was a long affair, with Aegon sitting next to her, the king and queen facing them, her father at one end.  Her mother would have been sitting at the other end.  How she missed her wise counsel.  

Marlenya felt something on her thigh and looked down to find Aegon’s hand, squeezing gently.  Across the table queen Alicent was studying her closely, so she merely smiled back as she covertly brought down the small knife set out for her and pressed the tip to the back of Aegon’s hand.  “Prince Aegon, tell me about Sunfyre,” she said brightly.

He looked surprised and looked from her down to where she held the knife and back up.  

“I want to know everything,” she added, smiling at him, and pressed down on the knife a little.  Not enough to draw blood.  Just enough to warn.

She felt his fingers extending, lifting off her leg, and when she brought the knife back up, he removed his hand from her thigh.  “Sunfyre is the bravest dragon in Westeros, Lady Marlenya, I cannot wait for you to ride with me.”  He smirked at her, his double meaning clear.

I should slap that idiotic smirk off his idiotic face.

“You must call me Mar.  Marlenya is an old family name but sometimes it is cumbersome.”  She smiled at the king, who seemed to be half there, half not.  Milk of the poppy, she thought.

“Mar is such an unbecoming nickname,” her father said.  

“But only one syllable, father,” she replied, “so much easier to remember.”  She placed her hand on top of Aegon’s and immediately found her wrist in his grip.

“I must show my betrothed the dragon pit.  Excuse us.”  Aegon pulled on her wrist, tugged until she stood and then dragged her after him out of the dining hall.

* * * * * 

“You will conduct yourself in a manner that is respectful to me,” Aegon gritted out, pushing her back against the wall of the hallway leading to the dragon pit.  He still held her wrist in his hand and found that they were eye to eye in the darkened hallway.

“Do you mean as respectful as you being hungover and with love bites on your neck?”

Aegon inhaled, the sweet, beguiling scent of her filling his head.  “I do as I please, Mar, and us being married will not change that.  I thought you were learned, but obviously I’ve been misled.”

She tried to pull her wrist free, and in response, he grabbed her other wrist.  There was color on her cheeks now, and he suddenly wanted to have her.  Against this very wall.  He slipped one thigh between hers before he took her mouth with his.  

She tasted even better than she smelled, Aegon thought before he let go of her wrists and lowered his hands to grab her ass.  He felt a couple of half-hearted slaps on his shoulders before she dove for him, one hand fisted in his hair, the other holding onto his back.  When she moaned, he felt himself harden, and pressed his thigh between her legs.  She gasped, and he took the opportunity to slip his tongue into the heat of her mouth.  

Aegon realized she was completely innocent, reacting with pure instinct.  She might never have been kissed, he thought, and felt a primal joy in thinking he might be her first in everything.  Her movements were impulsive, not the smooth reactions of a woman used to being with a lover or the practiced arts of one from the Street of Silk.  

He pulled away suddenly, watching her.  The heavy-lidded eyelids, the reddened parted lips, the uneven breathing, he was so very familiar with the signs of a woman’s arousal, and, he moved one hand to reach under her skirts.

Mar blinked as she felt his hand slipping between her thighs, and then shoved him away.  He smirked at her.  “You liked it.”

To her credit, she didn’t deny it, but he watched the serene expression go back in place, and then she smoothed her skirts and turned, leaving him alone in the hallway.

* * * * * 

Mar half expected Aegon to slip into her guest chambers last night.  She had never felt such a rush as she had in his arms, and had he been a little more patient instead of trying to shove his hand between her legs, he might have convinced her to do much more.  She was used to awkward boys who barely had wisps of hair on their jaws, not this libertine who probably knew every trick from every whore in King’s Landing.

When he’d kissed her she’d tasted the wine he’d been sipping, the fruit that had been part of the meal.  She’d been startled when she’d felt his tongue and now couldn’t stop thinking about it, the sound of his breathing, the silk-like softness of his hair.  Kissing was so many things at once, and she’d never known any of them until yesterday.

There was a knock on her door and she looked down, making sure her dress was perfect, before she opened it.  “Father,” she said, kissing his cheek.

“Everything has been agreed to, including that troublesome clause your mother insisted be put in the marriage contract.”

Ah.  She knew exactly what he was referring to.  On her deathbed, her mother had made her father swear that he would not take out the clause, that it was for Mar’s sake that it should be included, son of a king or not.  

“Wonderful, so tomorrow at ten?”

Her father smiled sadly.  “Yes, my sweetheart, and then I shall leave you with your new husband.”  He walked into the room, took a turn around the seamstress’s form currently wearing her daughter’s wedding dress.  “ Marlenya, I don’t know how much your mother told you about marriage, but I think you know well that happiness is something that no one can guarantee.”

She watched him, the man whose spirit had slowly been drifting away since her mother’s death.

“Your mother and I were strangers, as you and Prince Aegon are.  She had a willingness to understand, to forgive the little things, and although ours never was a great love story, I do think we were happy together.  And I miss her very much.”

“I miss her, too, father.”

She accepted his kiss on her forehead, held the tears back until he left the rooms.

* * * * * 

Mar was grateful there was not to be a bedding ceremony.  The idea of being touched and disrobed by several of the Targaryen males was not something she’d been looking forward to, and as king Viserys was soon to retire for the evening, she allowed Aegon to lead her into his bedchamber.

The wedding had been grand, the food perfect, and throughout the singing and the playing of instruments, Aegon had been tapping his fingers on the table.  She wanted to think it was impatience for the wedding night, but he didn’t look at her at all after he brusquely brushed his lips over hers at the end of the ceremony.  He spent most of the wedding feast talking to his siblings, raising his glass at various lords who went up to congratulate them.

Prince Aemond was very formal, quiet, but princess Helaena was friendly, if a little odd.  

Aegon hadn’t taken a single sip of wine.  She’d been afraid he would be drunk out of his wits and instead it was the complete opposite.  Mar didn’t know if it was a good sign or a terrible one.

When they walked into his room, he shrugged off the embellished jacket he had worn, kicked off his boots, and sat facing the fireplace.

She allowed the maid to place the rather ridiculous lace robe on her, a frilly confection that she thought looked more like a joke than something to entice a man.  She took a deep breath and stepped around the screen.

“Aegon?”

If he heard her, he gave no sign.  She walked up to where he sat, standing behind him.

“Husband?”

He turned slowly and looked at her from her head to her feet.

And burst out laughing.

She felt the cold trails of humiliation and embarrassment going through her, and then anger started taking over.  It began warming her skin, from fingertips to toes, and she tore off the robe, bunched it up, and threw it in his face.  “At least one of us is making an effort,” she snapped, and turned, naked.

Aegon grabbed her arm before she could walk away.  “What do you call what happened in the hallway?” he asked, his laughter slowly dying down.  He dropped the robe on the floor and held her at arm’s length, eyes roving over her.

“You mean when you tried to grab my . . . my, my womanly parts?”

“Your womanly parts,” Aegon repeated, smirking.  He looked down at her breasts, lower, licked his lips.  “It is called a cunt, wife, I was trying to grab your cunt.”  He placed a hand on her bare hip, let his hand drift up to her waist.  “You are very soft,” he added, pulling her closer.  “and you smell so very good.”

“I suppose that is not what you are used to.”

“I am used to women who only open their mouths to suck my cock,” he said against her cheek.  She looked away from him, wondering if he would make her do that.  He’d let his other hand drift down to grab her ass, and was pressing his nose to her neck.  

Really, it was her own damn fault for getting naked near him.  “Did you read the wedding contract?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Aegon replied, “I read your little stipulation.  I have been warned.”  

“And you have agreed.”

He began walking her backwards to his bed.  Their bed, now.  “In exchange for having House Tyrell’s complete obedience to the crown.”  He met her steady gaze.  “And yours as well.  Lay down.  I wish to deflower you.”

Mar shivered, but laid back on the bed, watched him remove his clothes before he stretched alongside her.  She refused to look anywhere below his waist, but he had strong shoulders, well defined arms, and she remembered his kiss.

“Should we not blow out the candles?” she asked, panicking at realizing they were not to be in complete darkness as she’d imagined.

Aegon leaned down, brushed his lips over hers, traced her lower lip with his tongue.  “Try to catch my tongue,” he whispered, ignoring her question, and began kissing her.

She had no idea what he meant, but once she felt the tip his tongue enter her mouth, she tried to grab it with her lips.  “Good,” he said, “keep doing it.”  It was nigh impossible since tongues were slippery things, she realized, but then he caught hers, bit down gently with his teeth before releasing her.  She touched his tongue with her own, felt him make a small sound and then his hand cupped her breast.  

She gasped when his thumb brushed over her nipple, and the sharp sting of pleasure went directly to her lower belly.  He did it again, and she arched against him, squeezing her thighs together.  He kept doing it, sending lashings of pleasure that had her squirming until he kneed her legs apart, moved to take her nipple in his mouth. 

Mar bit down on her lip, her fingers threading through his silver hair.  What he was doing to her felt so good.  He felt so good.  He was swirling his tongue, letting his teeth lightly graze her, and as the pleasure in her lower belly grew, Aegon looked up, “you taste like cream and honey,” he murmured.  “I wonder what else you taste like.”

She had no idea what he meant, but when he started to slide down, she felt her face grow heated.  “Wait, wait.”

He stopped, looked up at her from between her legs.  “What is it?”

“What are you doing?”

“Nothing yet,” he raised his eyebrows.  “did you have any requests?”

She thought he might be laughing at her, but between curiosity and the fact that everything he’d done until then had felt good, she chose to shake her head.

“Good,” he said, and a moment later, was dragging his tongue up between her legs.

* * * * * 

She knew nothing, had seen nothing, had apparently been told very little, Aegon thought as he feasted on her. She’d moaned loudly when he’d first swept his tongue between her legs, pleasure and shock making her thighs shake on either side of his head.  He took his time, each lick slower than the one before.  There was cream and honey here, too, mixed with the darker tastes of her arousal.  

Aegon felt his cock harden painfully, but the night was young and more than anything, he wanted to discover every sound she would make for him, watch every tremble of her body beneath him.  He crept up, leaving wet kisses and bites up her stomach.  She was breathing hard, her need unfulfilled, and opened her eyes as he stretched next to her.

He kissed her, making her taste herself on his tongue, swallowed her gasp.  “You taste so good,” he whispered in her ear, and reached down to cup her.  She instinctively closed her legs, but he hooked a leg between hers and spread her open again.  “Did you like me eating your cunt?”

Mar looked from his eyes to his mouth and back up.  “Yes,” she whispered, face bright red, squirming as he slipped two fingers inside of her.  He felt how small, how tight she was, and his cock throbbed with the need to be inside her.  She’d grip him tightly, he thought, fingertips seeking.  He felt a slick little spot, began teasing it, and watched her face.  “Oh,” she said, and her hips began pulsing in time with each movement of his fingers.

“Tell me,” he said in her ear, “tell me what it feels like.”

“I don’t know.”

He stilled his fingers inside her.  “You must tell me, or I will stop.”

She whimpered, “it, ah, it feels like, something stretching me,” she managed.

“Good,” he started moving his fingers again, “what else?”

“Oh gods,” she panted, “please do not stop.”

He sucked the lobe of her ear between his teeth and crooked his fingers inside her, watched as her back arched in response.  She was beyond reason now, hips rocking as she sought a pleasure she did not yet know.

She reached up to grab his hair, pulled him closer until her lips touched his.  She kissed him, moaning as his fingers steadily built up the need inside her.  He pressed against the sensitive bundle of nerves between her legs with the heel of his hand, rocking it against her, and her hand tightened painfully in his hair.  She ended the kiss, her breathing coming in little puffs against his mouth.  “Now,” he said, fingertips picking up speed, “let go now.”

He felt her inner muscles start their rhythmic pulsing, clenching around his fingers, and she tensed, pressing her forehead against his shoulder as she screamed raggedly, thighs clamping together.  He dragged out her orgasm until she was sobbing and finally she went limp against him.

Aegon licked the tears falling down the sides of her face, removed his hand from between her legs.  She had curled up on her side toward him, and as he tasted her salty tears, he pushed her onto her back.  Watching her as she came undone in his arms had been a rush, but his cock was throbbing painfully and he couldn’t wait any longer.  Kneeing her legs apart, he reached between them, and started to sink into her.

She gasped with every inch he drove into her, and if she didn’t stop clenching around him he was going to come before he was fully inside her.  “This will hurt a little,” he said when he felt resistance, and snapped his hips, tearing through her maidenhead.  “Fuck.”  He felt her stifle a gasp against his shoulder.

“What?” she breathed out, “what’s wrong?”

“Quiet,” he said, more harshly than he meant to.  “Fuck.  Just be still, please.”

She was, thank the gods, very still and very quiet, and he pulled his hips back slowly until he was barely inside her, then plunged back in.  He moaned at the feeling of her gripping him.  He loved to fuck, to lose himself inside a woman’s body, forgetting everything else as he took his pleasure.  He pulled back again, looking down into Mar’s face.  Unlike the whores he usually bedded, whose practiced whines and rehearsed moans he knew by heart, Mar was only biting her lower lip, curiosity and a little fear mixing in her eyes.  When she caught him looking at her, she reached up to stroke his hair and the tender gesture surprised him.  

He was her first.  Her only.  Something primal and male surged through him and he began thrusting hard, the need to have her overriding every other thought, and he hooked both arms under her knees, opening her up further to him.  She gasped at the deeper invasion, and gripped his wrist.  “You’ll get used to it,” he growled out, driving harder inside her.  He was so close, the world starting to melt away, and then he felt it, the white hot fire that blinded and deafened him, and gave himself over to his release.

* * * * * 

It was the first time in a long time that Aegon hadn’t fallen asleep after taking a woman.  He also hadn’t had much to drink, which probably contributed to the fact, but when his brain finally started working again, he found that he was half on his new wife and half on his side.  At least he hadn’t crushed her beneath him.  He turned over, grabbed a spare candlestick and threw it at the door connecting to the antechamber, where the servants slept.  A few seconds later, two older women came in.

Mar gasped, trying to cover herself, but Aegon rolled his eyes.  “They’ve seen it all,” he said, then turned to one of the maids.  “Please attend to my wife.”  He went to the bathing chamber while his wife and his bed were cleaned up.  

When he returned, wearing a black robe, the maids were gone, the bed had fresh linens, and Mar was sitting by the fire with a cup of wine in her hand.

“Oh good, you're still here.”

“Was I supposed to flee in terror?” 

He smiled at her, walked over until he was looming over her.  “I haven’t finished debauching you yet.”  He undid the laces of her nightgown, and when she placed her hand over the neckline, he simply took her hand and placed it back on her lap.  “Now these, I wish to make a complete study of,” he said, cupping one breast.  “They are quite exquisite.” He squeezed gently.  “Drink your wine.”

She took a long sip and then took the hand he offered, let him take her back to the bed.  He took her cup and refilled it, then stood behind her, placing the cup on the little table beside the bed.  He slipped one side of the nightgown off her shoulder, pushed her hair aside, kissed the pale column of her neck and felt her shiver.  He nipped and sucked at her neck, hands on her hips, felt her breathing stutter.

He slipped off the other side of the nightgown and the whole thing puddled at her feet.  Instinctively she crossed her arms over her breasts and he bit down on her neck, making her yelp.  “Turn around,” he said.

When she did, he moved behind her again.  “Hands on the bed.”

She turned to face him.  “What?”

“Turn around, place your hands on the edge of the bed.” She stared at him for a moment.  “Now.”

* * * * * 

Mar’s head was swimming, She wasn’t used to drinking so much wine but the maid had made her drink a cup and then Aegon had made her drink another and now she was leaning over the side of the bed with her bottom in the air.  Whatever depraved thing he was about to do to her, he could-

She inhaled sharply as she felt his tongue start lapping between her legs.  The moan escaped her throat before she could stop it and her fingers clenched in the bedcovers.  He’d done something like it to her earlier but this was different and she felt her thighs shaking from the pleasure spreading through her.  When he stopped, she almost whimpered, but then heard his robe pooling at his feet, him kicking it away.  Aegon held her hips again and she felt him, that part of him that had torn through her earlier.  

This time there was no pain as he slipped inside her, began rocking against her slowly, and the friction between her flesh and his felt like a low simmering fire.

He reached down and cupped her breasts and she gasped as he squeezed gently.  “Here,” he said, grabbing her hands and placing them up on the bedpost.  One of his hands went back to her breasts, fondling and lightly circling her nipples, and the other splayed low on her belly.  “The things I will show you,” he whispered, and lowered his fingers to begin teasing a spot between her legs that made lights appear behind her eyes.  

Mar moaned, defenseless against the endless pleasure.  Aegon’s fingers kept swirling, and she felt her hips rocking against his hand, out of her control.  “Aegon,” she breathed out.

“What do you need, Mar?”

Damned if she knew.  “More,” she managed, the only word that came to mind.

His lazy thrusts became hard snaps of his hips, the hand on her breast gripped her flesh, and her hips kept rocking, seeking.  There was something just ahead, something she’d felt earlier, and she wanted it badly.

She heard the sound of his flesh slapping against hers, the sound of him growling against her shoulder, and then she heard nothing but her own scream of pleasure as she fell, the sweet fire crashing through her at last.

* * * * * 

He didn’t know how but he managed to drag them both onto the bed, pulled at one of the sheets until they were both under it, curled himself around her.  

That last orgasm had nearly buckled his knees.  He was fairly sure he couldn’t feel all his toes yet.  It wasn’t like Mar knew what to do or anything, so he was rather surprised.  He’d done all the work after all, he thought, looking at her sleeping peacefully.  He smiled, remembering that ridiculous robe she’d appeared in, her affronted face when he’d laughed.

Naked, Aegon thought as he drifted off to sleep.  She’d soon learn that naked was always best.

[naveenkumarchandra]

A Message from a Senior.

Recently I got a chance to revisit and relive all the wonderful memories, of the years spent at easily the single most important place of my life, our beloved institution, IIT Roorkee.

This also gave me a chance to meet some wonderful juniors, very enthusiastic, very energetic and very optimistic, something which we seniors lack. It was very refreshing indeed.

Yet, amidst all the optimism, I also witnessed a line of stress and anxiety running through most conversations, it was perhaps natural for them to be, and perhaps we too used to be the same and like it so happens all the time, looking at things retrospectively brings in a bias and we tend to be more forgiving of our own times. Yet, I felt this and so this message.

All of you are very young, very energetic, very talented and indeed very responsible and thus the stress too must be coming from the reality of your times. The issue though remains this, being at IIT Roorkee, one need not focus on anything else but one thing, to become the best version of themselves and to instil leadership abilities in them, because remember, you would be expected to lead no matter where you go, public or private sector, you would be required to take the lead and guide others.

I would not lie and say that we weren’t stressed in our college days and didn’t bother about things that bother you but experience teaches us and thus I am trying to pass on my experience. One thing which served me really well was trying a variety of things first hand, things which really piqued my interest and things which were appealing to me and were not just in fashion or were being taken up by everyone else. I tried start-ups, working for seniors and then building a couple of my own, probably the best decision I ever took as they taught me more than any book. I tried coding, because it’s very empowering and makes you future ready. I tried research in my core subject as well. All of these activities, not only showed me various directions to take but also various dimensions of myself. Finally when I did decide to go for civil services, it was a sound decision taken by conscious knowledge gathering about all things which appealed to me.

Apart from this, what did bother me was how first years and second years were under a lot of stress regarding their career and jobs. While some amount of stress helps, undue stress and anxiety and that too at a stage where you are supposed to enjoy yourself the most and experiment as much as possible, makes me a little worried. You are at a place where you have in front of you the best of the best, facilities, people, environment, utilise this experience and experiment, fail as much as you can and learn.

It’s not exaggeration when I say that the guy with one of the lowest CGPAs (he had exactly 5.0) in our entire batch is more successful and yes happier than almost everyone in the entire batch, a guy who was written off by most and had his degree extended by one year is now in Foreign Service, a person who decided to skip placements and prepare for Civil services without any coaching or help, a decision for which he was mocked, is happily serving in the IAS (having cleared the exam in 1st attempt), a person who decided to go into his core in his first year itself is still working there and is now one of the foremost young stars in the field.

No one has the right or the authority to tell you that if you don’t do this or that you’ll be left behind. It’s you who decide. No need to participate in any rat race, no need to pursue programming if computers don’t appeal to you, no need to look for random internships if you don’t like the field or the sector, no need for you to leave your core subject if that’s what you wish to do and just because you’ve been told that your core subject is not the future. The only thing you need to do is learn as much as possible about different things, enjoy life & live each and every moment. Trust me, you’d do well in life, in time, career, money, comfort, will all fall in place but this time, in the institute would remain a missed opportunity and a huge regret.

Wishing all of you the best. Rock it!!

Naveen- 2015 batch

[skylarmoon71]

Harry Wells (Flash) - Earth 2 - Chapter 6

“It seems counterproductive.”

“Would you stop complaining? It comes with the job. Technology is growing, Harry. You shouldn’t be simple minded. You’re a scientist after all.”

Harry is arguing about a change that you were informing him about at your job. He’s never shy with his criticisms of your earth. Of course he’ll forever see earth 2 as superior.

It’s become a habit for him to drop by after you get off so you both can visit star labs. You suppose having a device to travel between states was handy. Especially with how expensive gas is.

“How is Jesse by the way?”

“Off running around with West.” He grumbles.

It’s always adorable how he reverts to an overprotective dad. Deep down he likes Wally, you figure it’s the idea of any guy being with his baby girl that messes with him.

“You’re almost cute when you make that face.”

His frown deepens at the comment and you giggle.

You nudge his arm as you both come to a stop at a crosswalk.

“Portland is a lot weirder than I expected. Last week there was a news report where a guy’s insides were liquidated. Seems like stuff that would happen back in Central City.”

Harry hums.

“How amusing that you left one freakshow to jump into another.”

“Gosh I hope not.”

The light changes and you both begin walking again.

Harry’s strides are slightly bigger, but he still manages to maintain a reasonable pace. You steal a glance. His taste in dark clothing hasn’t changed, nor has that perpetual frown. There’s something comforting about the transparency that is Harry Wells.

The both of you have developed a very solid friendship. Not something you expected given your introduction.

Harry has been nothing but sweet in his own grumpy way. While you visit the team regularly, it feels like he’s been spending most of his time looking after you. That’s why you assumed it was a request from Barry initially. But it’s clear that Harry recognized the pain you’ve been through and he’s extended a hand. Loss was never easy. Being a hero has given you a fair share of trials. He knows that better than anyone.

Given that you’re both now pretty mundane compared to your superpowered friends is just another reason why you might have gotten so close.

“Harry, do you ever wish that you had a superpower?”

“I’m a genius, what else do I need?”

“You’re such a narcissist!” You laugh, smacking his arm.

It’s somewhat comforting. In a weird way that’s maybe the answer that you wanted. Some kind of clarification that just being you right now is enough.

Harry has picked up on your momentary silence.

“Do you miss it? Your speed.”

You lift your hand.

“I’m not sure. It’s always been tied with so much pain. I don’t miss that feeling. Always hurting, worrying. I wasn’t supposed to be a speedster, so It’s not like I’m messing with some cosmic plan. I do miss..being a cop.”

Fighting for others. That’s always been a part of you.

“I applied for another job at the university.”

That catches his attention.

“Given my background in Criminology they were practically begging me to come. It wasn’t easy to let go. Now I feel as though I can still help. Even if it’s just lecturing future agents.”

It may not be as exciting as chasing bad guys, but it’s worth it.

“I think you’ll do great.”

You smile.

“Thank you Harry. "

[vivinavina]

Sage of Swords Chapter 2: Scars of War/Don’t Be Afraid/Prayers Repeated

Author rambling on the second chapter of my TotK AU fic, Sage of Swords. You can read the chapter here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/48501826/chapters/123298054#workskin

So, chapter 2 thoughts. First off, oof, poor Link. A comment said it best when they said Link was doing Bad. Y’all, Link is doing bad, and will be getting worse because her entire world just fell apart. Like, when Zelda got poofed away in the main game, she was totally unharmed, suddenly super safe, and surrounded by a world literally tailor-made for her. Zelda fits in the Ancient Hyrule way more than she does in the modern day. And she can inherently feel that all the things she loves—her friends, the people, etc—are safe because Link is there to protect them.

But Link was literally molded by the modern Hyrule. All Link’s skills are geared towards surviving modern Hyrule, her ability to socialize tied to that open, trusting Hyrule where everyone is banding together happily to survive and thrive. And it was surrounded with things that feel comfortable to Link. She traveled all over Hyrule before BOTW, so things are familiar, if only in that nostalgic way she can’t quite place.

Here in the Ancient Hyrule, she is alone, surrounded by strange people and locations, and she doesn’t have any reassurances that anything else will survive something that nearly killed her. Because keeping the things she loves safe is her responsibility! So she’s dealing with the fallout of all that mess, unaware that the people who could help her are right there!

Sonia and Rauru’s chapters felt a bit rough, but they were really necessary and I had to keep extending them because there were things I needed to include, but Link was not in a mental state to narrate on them. Things like the look of Link’s arm brace and Secret Stone. I do like the portrayal of Sonia with traits more traditionally shared with Link, the impulsivity and fearlessness to run towards trouble, while Rauru is the more measured, thoughtful of the two. They’re definitely not supposed to be perfect analogues, and the characterization will be worked on through the future chapters. But, I hope I illustrated Sonia’s a bit with being the first to run to Link’s aid, and being the one to try and help Link even as she actively gets a sword pointed at her. I probably should have increased the amount of dialogue between them, but it also didn’t feel right to break up what they were doing to speak… eh, I’ll make a note that those sections will be the first on the list if I’m looking to rewrite.

Link’s Secret Stone is fun. I won’t elaborate too much on the mechanics of it besides that it makes sure the Gloom doesn’t kill her. A lot of people write Link’s Stone power to be similar to Zelda’s, or manifestations of the Champion abilities, but I decided to augment her resilience. If surviving near death who knows how many times, her determination and ability to survive are one of Link’s most important traits.

Fun fact, looking up the kanji I wanted to use for Link’s Stone, I found that both the words for healing and courage can both be pronounced yu. This is probably wrong, but I’m going with it. As for which one specifically is on the Stone, I leave it up to interpretation.

The distress signal idea spawned pretty early, just as something Link would do while distressed. But I sort of elaborated the idea, with the Sheikah Slate in BOTW being able to pick up the signal happening nearby it and pinging it off all the other Sheikah Tech or important magic items (Master Sword, Secret Stones, etc) like signal towers. And then that morphed into the idea of Link sending out the signal and it bouncing off of… nothing. Right now Link thinks she’s in a land far away from Hyrule, far enough that it can’t pick up Sheikah Tech to get the distress signal far enough to reach her friends. And… she’s technically right…?

[shamanofthewilds]

Everything is going to be okay.

No matter what, the ones who care about you will remain.

Never let your head hit the pillow angry and upset. Soothe before your rest.

The dark thoughts in your mind are not you and they do not get speak about or anyone else.

Life is strange, people are different, words can be mean so many things. And no matter what mistake happens, know that it will pass and that it will be okay. Fear of regret and fear of rejection can sometimes lead to a life behind a window.  Even when those fears are all too real.

So please, listen to yourself ...but most of all, listen to when people say I love you. I want to help you. What can I do for you. They’re not empty words, they want to help, be okay in accept help and remember that you do not have to suffer alone. Hold their hands. Or be one of the few who extends their hands out and embraces that person with so much love.

The world is far too cruel. Too many people we love are being taken away every day. Too many what ifs and I should haves when we see a tragedy happen to close to us. Please...write to your loved ones. Tell your friends I love you. Get the things off your chest and work on building a beautiful future with those who love you.

It will be worth it, in the end, to think of a moment where you won’t have to say ‘I wish I was kinder to them’ or ‘I wish I reached out when I wanted to’.

Take this time to think about the people who might need a reminder. Write your grandmother a card, call your friend, text a parent and just talk in a way that show you’ve always cared. And never stop from there. We cannot let these people in our life fade away when sometimes it is up us to keep them from feeling lost. The only hope here is that you , as well, feel a hand on your shoulder to keep your present.

I do it for you all right now. I am happy you are here. I am overjoyed you exist, and nothing about any project, interest or love you have right now is embarrassing. You are being a human to the fullest extent and that is to celebrate creativity of all forms. You are so very loved, if not by those you wish, but by the people who appreciate your every day help. To the trees who require your breath to exist with you. Or to yourself...where you let yourself rest, enjoy something you like...and smile because you know if you cannot accomplish one big thing. You were able to keep this day going.

I am proud for all of those out there who keep try and actively working on themselves to make themselves better.

My heart goes out to those who had no one, and were unable to find the will to go on.

Be kind, within safety, to those near you. You may never know what it is they suffer with.

[ultimateplaylistmaker]

Tell me about your aus please

Okay I have a lot of aus, most I haven't even talked about on this blog (always feel free to just ask me for a random au I haven't talked about I can absolutely supply) This will get long so UNDER THE CUT

Harbinger Naegi/Harbinger Disciple Nagito/Harbinger Apostate Ryoma

This is my main swapped mastermind au, with Makoto being THH Nagito being GBD and Ryoma being NDRV3, the au starts with first off Izuru starts the tragedy by himself, Junko had plans for it but he did it first, so the timeline is a bit faster so the school has less chance to prepare, which leads to Makoto being sent outside into the tragedy for like 20 minutes to go grab something that got left behind, during this time he sees multiple deaths and locks eyes with Izuru, this spreads a seed of despair into Makoto.

That leads to him getting more and more upset about how they're locked inside with all this food and water and clean air but no one else gets this, so when he gets lucky and overhears Junko's plans, he usurps the killing game, thanos snaps her memory instead of kirigiri's. Desperate to prove himself and his friends of DESERVING of the gifts they were got by proving themselves able to not kill each other and thus good people, this immediately plunges into utter chaos when the first murder happens as Makoto is torn between his bitter despair and anger at injustice and his love and care for his friends. Chihiro must embrace the hope within themselves if they want a chance for this to end in any way that isnt pure tragedy.

Nagito watches this on tv and becomes OBSESSED with Makoto as Makoto has very much become the embodiment of how Nagito views the world, so they end up teaming up when Makoto does not in fact do the Junko suicide play and instead escapes, upon learning about the jabberwock island recovery plan, sabotages it by giving makoto a back door in, seeing the thing as pointless as it doesnt create hope or despair, what hope is there in just having your past mistakes and actions erased? what hope is it to just give a small apology and never have to think about what you did? theres no growth here! only ugly stagnation unworthy of hope and despair! Peko needs to fight for her right to simply exist.

Ryoma was a surprise for me but he made the most sense in this set up, he gets saved from suicide by Makoto and Nagito and borderline adopted, when makoto and nagito usurp tsumugis' killing game (long story and this is already so long) ryoma volunteers to be the next mastermind, unbeknownst to makoto and nagito, he has plans of his own, which should hopefully end all of these killing games for good. Kirumi however, wonders if good intentions can really make up for cruel actions.

SCP Au

SCP au has very little so far, but it's the idea of DICE as a faction of gamers against weed or AWCY from the SCP universe

Log Horizon AU

This is one I am desperate to work on, basically it's the world of the anime Log Horizon (which is the best mmo isekai anime) and how through being a cheater in the game irl has resulted in upon getting isekai'd kokichi having powers that no one else has, and just generally about how I think the cast would change and adapt to this world

My DR Lore

This is my 2 million page extended worldbuilding of the danganronpa universe, which is basically my pet project and where most of my headcanons come from,

Serial Shuichi Au

Oooo this is a fun one, it's designed to be a dark twist on the traditional phantom thief detective au with kokichi and shuichi by having shuichi be a serial killer that targets criminals and kokichi who is just trying to keep DICE safe and is heavily suspect of that blue haired detective that seems certain that he's connected to the murders

Eldritch Makoto Au

This is a crack au about Makoto being an eldritch being who forgor they weren't actually human.

Frozen Egg Au

This is another crack au about Makoto being sent like a hundred years in the future via cryogenic frozen

Slay The Majesty Au

Slay the Princess but its Oumota

Fae Ultimates Au

Fun playing with how Hajime is the only normal person around, by making the ultimates all fae

Robo Dictator Au

I just think Kiibo should get to do the robot apocalypse and be gay about it, as a treat

Schrodinger’s Kichi Au

Is a fucked up au that I adore where Kokichi possesses his own dead body and no one is comfortable about that, except for korekiyo, he thinks its sick as hell

Shuichi Enoshima Au

Funny bait and switch au about Shuichi being the son of Junko she threw into a dumpster but then got rescued and never learned that hes adopted

Remnant Impact

This is a joke about the Remnants on social media, and eventually they made a genshin impact knock off and it got named after that because that was HYSTERICAL

Kokichi Stans Au

This one's a commentary on stan culture, and how BATSHIT it must be in the danganronpa world by having Kokichi have to deal with his most dangerous and erratic fans

Closet Stocks Au

I genuinely don't know what's going on here either, I sure get anons sometimes

Danganronpa/b/o'

Omegaverse go brrrr

You Destroy My World Au

World Destroyer Shuichi that's a twist on the tired pregame stalker shuichi by having kokichi misunderstand the situation and try to understand what's going on as the world destroyer tries to wake him up

Chiaki Isekai Au

We need to put Chiaki in more video games, put her in portal, put her in animal crossing, let her be in game

Obligatory Homestuck Au

You can't fight the homestuck

Hope’s Peak Destruction Au

My ishiouma au where Kokichi and Ishimaru team up to take down hope's peak and kiss about it

Obligatory Pokemon Au

Gotta catch em all

Dice Hax Au

DICE hacks into Kiibo's inner voice and chaos ensues

Full Talent Swap Au

I took every talent in the series outside of a few from the other more niche books and reassigned EVERYONE

Obligatory Warriors Au

Meow

Obligatory Minecraft Au

Don't mine at night

The Pony Au

Can you tell I like putting characters into other universes?

Pararonpasight Au

Okay now you can definitely tell I like putting characters into other universes

Oumelette Au

Sometimes you are trans, and due to funny shared terminology confusion, also a system but youre in a killing game so you don't got time for that right now

[catachan-jungle-fighter]

John Geist as a Dark Souls NPC

Introduction: "Hail and well met, watch your step around here... I've set out traps to keep the beasts and more hostile fellows away from me."

If you set off a trap on the way to meet him: "Are you alright? I heard one of my traps go off a few moments ago. If need be, I'll treat any injuries that happened."

If you are wearing Geist Clan Raiding Leathers: "Hail Brother/Sister, it's a hellish place we've come to, eh? Far from the grace of the Good Mother where our soul can go to rest."

If you are carrying Geist Clan Blades: "...How'd you get your hands on those blades? Those aren't meant for those outside of the Clan to carry, hand them over and I won't have to claim your life for wielding those."

If you are wearing Swamp Rat Clothing: "Hail Cousin, good to see a Swamp Rat out in these Forsaken lands, sit and I'll bring out some food and drink so we can have a Festival."

If you are carrying Swamp Rat weapons: "You better not have killed any Swamp Rat's for those weapons, if you found them then feel free to wield them because the Rat's would be pleased to see their blades ending more foes."

If you strike John: "By the Kind Mother, what the fuck are you doing?" (Non-Hostile at first hit)

If you continue attacking: "Well, I'll end you here and now then Mad Man."

-

John's Quest: He wants the help of the player in hunting down three traitors to the Geists, each one carrying stolen relics of the Jungle Geists in the form of high-tier weapons, each of them having been declared Exiles and unworthy of the Grace of the Mother.

The first of the Traitors is a former Master Smith who had murdered a member of the Matriarch's Circle, the woman having stolen the legendary Warhammer of their Clan before her Exile, and now has been sentenced to death for the theft of a weapon belonging to someone who helped shape the Geists into what they would become in the future.

The second of the Traitors is a former Raid Master of the Jungle Geists, who had been exiled for the action of not purging several individuals who'd gone on to kill many more souls before they were killed by a Adjutant of the Matriarch, this man having then murdered the Adjutant and stolen his Axe which was his sign of office.

The final one of the Traitors would be someone John saw as his brother, a former Clan Huntsman that had turned against what the code ordered of them and let his targets flee the justice ordered by the Matriarchs, his 'adopted' brother having taken the blades and armor of their shared father figure with him as he was exiled.

-

After the Hammer is handed over: "The Hammer of Movark... a legendary weapon among my Clan, thank you for aiding me in reclaiming this from the hands of that Exile, may she rot without returning to the Mother's Embrace."

If the Hammer wasn't handed over and you lie: "Ah... so the Exile lost/destroyed/hid (depending on your lie) the Hammer... by the Mother, that Hammer is a relic of the Founder of the Geists... I'll think of something.

/

After the Axe is handed over: "The Axe of Tears, a weapon that has ended many lives in the duty of the Matriarchs, I knew the Adjutant that once wielded this weapon before they were murdered... a good man and a better warrior."

If the Axe isn't handed over and you lie: "DAMN! These Exiles are disgraceful... I got to hope I can recover at least one thing, or else I face my first and only failure."

/

If you've lied the first two times/Pre-Battle: "I'm... I'm not too sure about this now... I've never felt doubts like this about the Will of the Matriarchs... but now I'm not sure I wish to harm my brother... my friend."

If you handed over the relics the first two times/Pre-Battle: "This Final Exile shall have to face justice, they are a fool who betrayed the Circle and deserve their end, at the very least they should be glad I'm the one handling this and not any of the others... they'd extend it for a week of just suffering."

-

You hand over the final weapons and the armor/Post-Battle (lies): "I'm going to stay here... he may have lost the Grace of the Mother, but I'm going to observe the Rites of Passing for my Brother, go on ahead I'll find you later at my camp." You see John kneel down beside the body, gently moving the bloody form and trying to make it look more presentable.

You hand over the final weapons and the armor/ Post-Battle (Truth): "Damned Fool... my duties in these lands are complete now with his death and the recovery of my Father's armor and blades, I will have to return to my Clan soon but I will prepare something for you at my Camp as a gift before I leave." You see John walk away from the body of his fallen brother, uncaring of the remains.

-

(Truth ending): You enter the camp to see John dead, a blade driven through his heart and a message besides him that reads 'I thank you for your aid in these final Rites of my Clan, we were the last members of the Geist since the Fall of the Gravehold... may these weapons aid you far more then they did my Clan, I have purged the curses from their steel so feel free to wield them as you wish'.

Arrayed around his body are the weapons and armor you helped him recover from what you now know weren't Exiles, but those that fled with what they could carry of their former home, each of them shining with a light unseen before.

(Lies Ending): You enter the Camp to see John looking devastated, the former gregarious warrior is silent and still compared to how he was filled with life before, and when you ask him what's wrong he says "I've failed in my duties... I was ordered to give the last Rites to any who fled from the Fall of the Gravehold, but I've not found any of the relics... I've failed in my duties and I've failed my Clan..." John stops speaking as he points to a chest, and upon opening it you see a shield that seems to have been shaped from the scales of some great beast.

"The Shield of the Gravehold, a Relic that I carried with me all the way to these cursed lands, far from the Mother and her embrace. It'll aid you far more then it could me, I've already removed the curse from it and added what blessings I've could to it." John says as you pull the Shield free of the chest, the broken warrior turning his back as he examines the blades and armor of his Father, sighing softly to himself as he removes the curses from them as well with ease.

"Come back to visit me and I'll have some equipment and armor ready for you, after that... I'll find something to do with myself."

-

You offer John a place to stay: John accepts it with a ease that makes you uncertain, until you notice how he had began to weep silently at the thought of being near other people who'd wish to be near him.

When you return to your Shrine, you find John engaging in a discussion with the Firekeeper, the two discussing various things about each other's faith and the way they lived before you arrived in their lives (or unlives).

John shows you the final gift he had readied for you, the armor of the man he saw as a father was polished and painted in a dark blue, along with the blades of his Father that had been sharpened to a razors edge and polished to a mirrors sheen.

You didn't offer John a place to stay: You find John outside the Final boss arena, the man covered in infected wounds and near death, but before his death he gives you something...

The Curse Breakers Gift (Amulet)

A Gift from the final member of the Jungle Geists, it was given to Mark him as a outcast among his Clan by the Matriarchs, for his very presence was enough for the Curses that hid the truth of things from those he called his Kin to begin to weaken and fade and for his touch to shatter them completely. It seems to carry some traces of his ability, making it harder for you to be cursed.