#basically i am a bad how fan and so are all of y'all /j

[hersweetrevenge]

thinking about lester for once. and about how i usually don't think about him.

lester is the youngest child of a middle-class couple who could have done without having any children, never mind three. i see lester as being trudy and victor's marriage saving baby, their chance to have another go at that whole parenting thing, seeing as the twins turned out to be such hardwork. this baby, they think, will be easier. but then it turns out the sinclairs just... don't really like children.

lester falls to the wayside, because not only are his parents just not that interested in him, but the twins just take up so much of their time.

the twins take up so much of their time.

lester was destined to be overshadowed in life. how couldn't he be, when his older siblings stand out so badly?

they were conjoined twins, a quality which even now (let alone in the early 70s) is looked at with a certain sort of morbid curiosity. even after they were separated, vincent still bears the scars of "what" they were. bo is labelled as the "troublemaker" and, as they get older, he lives up to it. vincent is labelled as the "child prodigy" and, as they get older, he tries to keep living up to it. they cut a striking picture, six feet tall and hostile to outsiders. but it's not just that, they're weird. they have an interest in the macabre, they listen to loud music and as teenagers they were just about the only people under 50 who go to the matinee showings of baby jane and east of eden and house of usher the theatre puts on for the old folk in town. the twins talk to each other and nobody else understands.

lester, on the other hand, is unremarkable. he didn't need as much as the twins did in terms of extra care (which probably, ultimately contributed to his neglect). in all the ways that make vince and bo fundamentally strange, lester is fundamentally ordinary. and sure, maybe he's weird, but not in the enigmatic way that vincent is, or the intimidating way that bo is.

there's not a doubt in my mind that lester is interesting. his knowledge, his interests, his morals and his choices. all of these things make him interesting, but in comparison to his brothers -- the terrible twins -- he isn't interesting enough for people. people don't notice him.

lester needs someone who is enamoured with him, even with the twins casting their shadow over him. he needs someone who doesn't see the twins first and him as an after thought.

[1234-angelika]

Sparking Joy

an: Hey y'all! So this was actually supposed to be up last night but, this piece gave me a bit of trouble-writers block hit me hard. Nevertheless, it is finished. This is the seventh installment in the Happily Ever After series for David. As always, hope y'all enjoy!

words: 1.2k

warnings: mentions of food, age-gap couple,

summary:"We meet the people we're supposed to when the time is just right." -Alyson Noel

masterpost|taglist|have an idea

As hard as the two of you tried to keep your relationship out of the public eye, you knew eventually it would get out. However, what you weren’t prepared for, was the media storm resulting from your relationship getting out.

A couple months into your relationship, David met your family. What was left of it anyway; your mom died when you were young so, your dad raised you with help from his siblings—your aunts and uncles. That dinner, to put it mildly, was a disaster. Your relationship was not as well-received as you hoped it would be, but, over the year, your family had warmed up to him. He told you about his past at the beginning of your relationship—including his dead son and the daughter he had only recently met and began to get to know. You weren’t naive about what he did for work outside of writing. You knew what happened with Aaron Hotchner and his family, so you understood David wanting to wait a little longer before introducing you to his family.

After a year together, though, you thought it was time for you to meet his family. It had been spoken about briefly between the two of you, but you kept putting off out of nerves—your age gap with David being the most significant stressor. What neither of you had taken into consideration was the fact that she was a journalist. Which meant that as soon as your relationship hit the tabloids, she would know. And after a few frantic calls, that was how you ended up planning a dinner at the last minute for the following evening.

Tonight was going to be the night! David invited his daughter and her family over for dinner on behalf of the two of you. Initially, it was only going to be his daughter, but you insisted on inviting her husband and son over as well.

You woke up, only to be met with darkness. Assuming you had awoken in the middle of the night, you rolled over to check your phone for the time. Unfortunately, the brilliant white glow of the numbers temporarily blinded you before you made out the time, five am. With a huff, you rolled back over and tried your darnedest to fall back asleep. Finally, after about twenty minutes of trying to fall back asleep, you just got up. You started your day with a run on the trails behind your home. The 2.7-mile run gave you space to think and try and relax for the day ahead.

You took a shower as soon as you got back and then changed into comfy clothes and packed a bag for the evening before heading down to the kitchen. By this time, David had woken up and went downstairs to make coffee. He had spent the night at your place, and the plan was to go over to his place, tidy up a little, get ready and make dinner in time for you to meet the family. So, after sharing your morning coffee, you and David climbed into the car and off you went.

The thirty-minute drive went smoothly. It was calm and quiet, except for the soft music spilling from the speakers. As soon as you got to his place, you made a bee-line to the kitchen to start preparing for dinner. You loved being in the kitchen; your chosen profession reflected that. Your love of cooking and the kitchen stemmed from being in the kitchen constantly with your dad as a child. David gave you directions to help with the prep, and it got done very quickly with the two of you.

After that was finished, you and David split the tasks and went off your separate ways to tidy the house. Dining room, living room, sitting room, kitchen; each room cleaned as much as possible. Blankets folded and pillows fluffed. The tidying actually took up the most time so, by the time you were done, you only had a couple hours before Joy, and her family were set to arrive. You put the dessert in the oven to bake and then headed upstairs to get ready.

You got so sweaty from the cleaning that you needed another shower. You were in and out in less than twenty minutes—which for you was fast. Next on the agenda was getting dressed. After that was doing your hair and makeup. A spritz of your favourite perfume and you were ready to go. You went back downstairs and found David in the kitchen, working on the dinner. The dessert resting on a cooling rack positioned on the counter.

“Dave, what can I do?”

Pointing to the stack of plates and napkins, he said, “you could set the table and get the wine out and apple juice for Kai.”

Grabbing the stack, you walked out the kitchen, and just before you were out of earshot, you heard David say, “you look great Bella!”

You just finished arranging the plates and napkins on the table when the doorbell rang. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw David rushing to the door. When he caught your eye, he gestured to the kitchen. Getting the hint, you moved in there and finished up dinner—basically just plating it. You could hear David greeting his family, and you just smiled. You were glad he had people outside of the team, separate from all the bad things he sees every day. After setting the dinner on the table, you heard footsteps coming closer to the dining room. Self-consciously, you softly touched your hair—checking for anything out of place and then smoothed out the non-existent wrinkles in your dress.

You smiled as they walked into the room. David moved to stand beside you and placed his arm around your waist.

“Joy, Shawn, Kai, I would like you to meet Y/N Y/L/N.”

You didn’t exactly get a warm reception from Joy, which you could understand. It was hard bringing a new person into your life, and from what you understood about the situation, David and Hayden had been getting closer before your relationship started. Shawn, on the other hand, greeted you with a smile rivalling the one of his son.

“Hi, Shawn Struthers, big fan of your work.” He said, shaking your hand enthusiastically.

“Hello. It’s nice to meet the both of you, I look forward to getting to know you.” You said as politely as possible, trying not to let Joy’s reaction sway your confidence too much. Next, you introduced yourself to Kai, and the adorable little boy greeted you with a shy wave before going back behind his dad. Finally, you all sat down in your seats. Once everyone had food and drinks, David said, “mangia!”

Once the dinner had started, and the drinks were flowing, the conversation came much easier. By the end of the night, Joy had warmed up to you a little bit, and you had even made plans to grab a coffee, just the two of you, so she could get to know you a little better.

taglist: @multixfandomwriter @gspenc @ssa-morgan @myescapefromthislife @Kleff03 @daddy-issues24-7 @j-cat

[janiedean]

I feel bad for all the nice J*nsa shippers who like their ship for whatever reasons (tropes, pretty art, aesthetic appeal, whatever) and know it's not canon but get associated with the misogynistic Dany hating crowd who act like Jon being attracted to Ygritte is J*nsa foreshadowing because red hair (I guess Jon should fuck Edmure Tully too? Omg give me Dark!Jon getting revenge on Catelyn by seducing her brother!) Tell me something. I'm new to the fandom but was J*nsa popular before the show? And I've heard something about the OG J*nsa shippers being alienated by the new shippers who insisted it had to be canon and acted like the series is called, "A song of J*nsa #danysux." I don't find that hard to believe because I know people who are now ashamed of calling themselves J*nsa shippers. Like, at this point, it's not only rival shippers who hate it. Even Gendrya/Braime/Jon stans/etc have started disliking that ship. You know your fandom is a problem when people who have nothing to do with Jnsa have a problem with it.

me: reads this ask

me: iwastheregandalf.gif which I can't find now but

okay anon buckle up because I am sadly well-equipped to answer this ask but before I do lemme tell you dark jon seducing edmure to take revenge on cat is LITERALLY THE BEST THING I'VE EVER HEARD but *clears throat* ALL RIGHT THEN.

disclaimer: as anon says I have no issue with like the shippers mentioned by anon in the beginning and ngl I agree, I have ABSOLUTELY ZERO FUCKING STAKES in the j*nsa vs j*nerys war and the only het jon ship I gaf about is jon/ygritte and we all know where that ended up I just... have been here since 2011/adwd was over and all the fic around was just for the books under secret lj communities and asoiaf qualified for yuletide and I have... seen... things.... and I actually have like uh had... beef... with some people in there and I know things bc ppl who hated those others told me stuff so anyway *sigh* buckle up anon I'mma tell you the story of jon shipwars through the years

in order, the old gods help me here, under the cut bc this is long as fuck

when I got into fandom also given what numbers were on ao3 one ship was popular and it was sansan. no like sansan was lit. the only asoiaf ship on ao3 with more than 200 fics. jb had twenty when i checked first. jc had like around 100-ish because of the show but sansan dwarfed anything. I posted the first jon/ygritte fic on the ao3 tag and the fourth throbb fic and like the others were all reposts from lj kinkmemes. nothing was popular before the show except for sansan when it comes to huge numbers bc grrm doesn't like fic and it was all hush hush until the show made it impossible to control and that ship was the one with a huge enough fanbase it actually had numbers, so like... j*nsa wasn't popular in the way nothing else was popular until it got screentime on the show

now, that stated, j*nsa had a... fair amount of fic for a rareship which was mostly book-based and from og shippers that were there from before the show and liked it for what it was but literally none of them thought it was gonna be canon, like it wasn't huge or anything but it had a small but dedicated fanbase who did their own thing and thought it was fun/liked the idea but that was it

that fandom had their own niche of hcs that they cultivated and shit except that like... at the end of S5/beginning of S6 there was a surge in shipping for... well obvious reasons bc it was obv sansa was getting to the wall and that would have been all nice and good but a) it was the time puritanical shipping was starting to take root and the 'shipping sansa with sandor or tyrion is hella problematic' rhetoric had started to circle coming from sans*ery shippers mostly but I'mma not open that fucking can of worms here, b) while the ending of S5 had more of a theon/sansa spike, the j*nsa stuff started getting big

now here we have to mention my villain origin story ie: j*nsa fandom had this one stan whose name I won't make because honestly it's been years and if she's still around I don't want her to remember I exist who was a bnf, wrote for... the website that created the whole larry/carol thing etc who was really fixed on this thing that j*nsa was actually canon and started writing extremely popular meta about it. now you're gonna ask how do you know, I know because this person once wrote a meta named 'why robb stark is a dick' and I told her that it was really fucking bad meta and she took it so badly she kept on trash talking me on her blog/her podcast (I was apparently the insane robb stark fangirl l m a o good lord) and like that was when some sane ppl who argued with her informed me in pvt that she was basically harping on the CANON thing when they'd have been okay with like... it being crackshipping and that she was basically cultivating a hoarde of followers who were harping on them/the ogs and basically ostracizing them;

I would like to add that this person - before her tumblr got 'accidentally deleted' and remade it therefore deleted most receipts for, er, her so-called meta which included stuff like ned and cat raised sansa as a sexual object and only wanted to sell her like cattle - had at some point started a round robin fic thing where... some of the characters mocked openly said stuff that some of the og fans had said specifically targeting them and people in that side basically went harassing anyone who didn't agree with that specific notion

now never mind that this person basically coined an entire term to describe ppl who liked white guys and excused all their wrongdoings out of my conversation re robb basically lying about everything I said as if I didn't have the receipts and tried to sell shirts with it and it didn't work and like then she got kicked out of her own website because she was telling her commenters disagreeing pretty shitty insults (considering I was called psychotic for disagreeing with her that time I don't doubt it) I think at some point she stepped back from fandom bc idk wtf she's up to these days and I don't want to, but basically at that point the dam was broken and there was a bunch of puritanical shippers harping on anyone who didn't agree with j*nsa is canon endgame stuff

this also includes an incident when those ppl were like... passing themselves as throbb shippers and ended up trying to tell t*hramsay shippers off the theon tag based on moral reasons and I ended up arguing with all of them (and they were all from that crowd) which in turn landed me in contact with other og j*nsa shippers who were like detached from that fandom bc those same people harassed them away as well ssooooo fun

anyway when S6 happened everyone was high on it and whatnot but I wasn't gonna begrudge them that I mean... you shipped it for years, canon is delivering you, good for you, but then j*nerys happened

god j*nerys happened

aaand basically...... I mean personally I was there like are y'all seriously arguing about the best incest jon ship out there but like basically the j*nsa endgame side was like AH JON IS PLAYING DANY SEE IF IT DOESN'T HAPPEN, the j*nerys obv got defensive af and both sides were sort of alternatively shitting on jon/ygritte anyway and depicting any other romantic rship jon could have as abusive™ and during S8 it just got worse and like I tried to stay out of it but basically from what I'm seeing now idk how the j*neryses are doing but on the j*nsa one it's ah jon's gonna play dany anyway and she's going to go insane like in the show so SHOW TRUTHING EVERY OTHER WAY and like again denying that sandor exists or that tyrion exists and like I barely touch my corner (sansan) but I ended up arguing with j*nsa/th*nsa people on twitter who were antis and is2g it was white-hair inducing and I know for sure the sansa/tyrion shippers were harassed to hell and back throughout so FUN

and even if the show didn't go there now since everyone there banked on the jnsa endgame thing and admitting you're wrong is like... not a thing, they still haven't let go of it and attach to that ship any shred of evidence which honestly is grasping at straws half of the time (like... the sansa/alysanne parallels like guys please no) and which is why every other ship is starting to get fed up, attaching canon proof of stuff from other ships onto theirs see that batb argument and jb is platonic but jonsa is not nvm taking all the sansan stuff and throwing it on j*nsa but then denying that sansan has canon evidence (like guys I had to read sansa touching his shoulder when saying gregor wasn't a true knight wasn't meaningful and we were seeing things please) and blah blah blah

this also goes hand in hand with the fixation on like... villanizing dany at all costs and like is2g I have zero investment in dany or her storyline I don't even remember it and I don't particularly care abt her either way and sure af I'm not for j*nerys endgame but like.... some stuff I read is completely excessive esp when fixing on how she's a completely mad tyrant who's gonna have to be put down and like... guys no

(also there's some srs stannis hate in that corner which I honestly don't get why they even care abt stannis but I had to read stuff like ppl don't recognize that dany and stannis are the real villains in this saga and like........ idek)

I think most of the og shippers are gone or don't ship it openly bc they don't want to be attached to the drama but like I also think they're pissing off everyone else bc like... I mean a bunch of them also were down with sansa being paired with other ppl as long as it meant a good ending for her except those ppl were... like everyone but the ppl she has actual contact with in canon which meant that at some point sansa/gendry was a thing and like.... you can imagine why arya/gendry shippers & arya stans were fed up, and there's also this tendency to behave like sansa is the center of the entire saga which like these books is named a song of jon snow basically can we pls make peace with it and personally I've had it with both j*nsa and j*nerys people since they started with that dumbass JON/YGRITTE WAS AN ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIP rhetoric but I'm also fed up with the total ignoring that sandor exists/depicting us as delusional and honestly I also was by proxy fed up from the harassing of the sansa/tyrion shippers soooooooooooo

there were also instances of 'well theon is an acceptable choice other than jon bc he can't threaten her' which... i mean we all know what that meant and I'm not even commenting it bc it's one AM and I have no force to but I don't have to explain why it's not a progressive take now do I

there were also metas about how cousin incest being legal in half of the world means that jondany is a worse incest and j*nsa doesn't count as such and I was basically there like guys please just fucking own up to it but honestly I chose to forgot where I read that and I couldn't find the link if I tried

tldr: no one wants to admit that it's not gonna be endgame which considering the amount of fic they have on ao3 is imvho useless bc they have more content than like.. anything I ship that's not jb or that's actually like canon *cries in joncon/rhaegar but I mean renly/loras is canon and has less fic than them* so idk what's the problem with enjoying that instead of insisting it's gonna be canon when not even the show validated it while show truthing anyway when the only show truthing that can be truthed is the small council made of minorities and possibly jon eventually fucking off with the wildlings but not like that but like most people who thought it wasn't gonna be endgame had left/were made to leave by the time S7 rolled by and at this point since wow isn't out yet everyone is fandom-grasping at straws to find stuff to discourse on and we're here beating dead horses *shrug*

so that's... how it is but I would again like to point out that I don't judge ppl on their shipping, I don't particularly care about this entire feud bc I only ship jon with ppl he's not related to in whichever way and I try to stay out of this mess bc I don't really care to argue with ppl who have already decided to bend canon to whatever they want and will have to realize that it's not what grrm wrote at some point but like I have a very good memory and the above rant is as objective as possible also bc again I don't literally have a stake in that race I just think romantic/endgame j*nsa is not a thing and that ppl should stay in their lane and not harping on other ppl who ship whatever in general but especially when their ship is the most popular thing in fandom in the first place /two cents

[badger-writes]

Star Wars OC Ship Week 2021 - for light and love

uhhhh Hello! 😄

This fic and all its chapters was written for Star Wars OC Ship Week's inaugural year 2021, an event spotlighting OCxEC romances & platonic friendships helmed by @findswoman! It's also the first time I've personally ever taken part in an event week so I hope I do a good job! 😅

Whether you're a High Republic fan or you just want to see the big lizard get smooches, hope you enjoy! Leave comments and kudos if you do! Looking forward to sharing all I've written over the course of the week w/ y'all!

1 - How They Met

It all started, as these things do, in a medical bay.

Kelto Lem, a Jedi healer, had been busying himself with organizing the implements and instruments of the first aid wing in the Halls of Healing. This was light work, and peaceful, which suited him fine. Rarely, if ever, were there emergencies in the Jedi Temple of such scope and scale as to totally overwhelm the medical ward, and to the best of his recollection they had never occurred in the early morning, when dew was still settled on the trees and grasses of Monument Park. This made it an optimal time for preparing the ward for most of the day’s eventualities well ahead of schedule; this making good sense to him, he settled into this habit as a padawan and had never quite given it up. In time, it became almost a meditative practice for him - refilling stores of fresh bandages, taking stock of available pharmaceuticals and herbal remedies, refilling the kolto canisters…

And so it was in the middle of this daily routine that he was interrupted by the door sliding open. He turned to look and nearly dropped the medical scanner he was holding - for two reasons.

 The first: his guest was built like a permacrete E-Web bunker. Broad and tall, with an implied physicality that not even Jedi robes concealed, the visitor - a Trandoshan - strode into the ward with an aura of stern command, stolid orange eyes locking upon Kelto almost immediately. His emerald scales shone with a slight luster as he walked, the claws of his toes clicking against the tile floor, until he came to the edge of the biobed in the center of the room less than a foot away from the resident healer. The sheer weight of his presence made Kelto feel small by comparison - he, a shorter pale-scaled Rodian with stripes of deep blue running along his jaw and neck, who wore a satchel of first aid essentials on his hip everywhere he went and tied back his spines in a long, narrow topknot ending in a spiky pom where they escaped the hold of the strip of linen which restrained them.

The second: he was covered in scorchmarks.

“Star’s End,” Kelto said, when he could finally get his (dry, dry) mouth to work correctly. “What in the world happened to you?”

The Trandoshan rumbled, mouth pulling to one side in chagrin. It was a deep, bassy sound, and it landed straight in the pit of Kelto’s stomach. 

“A… mishap with the duelling droid,” he grunted, in the sibilant speech of his species. “I was not focused. Lost sight of my present. It seized the opportunity, as you can see,” he added, gesturing to his scorched robes.

“You were training? This early? Chee,” Kelto said, shaking his head. “And I thought my morning habits were odd - jump up on the bench, here, I’ll patch you up.”

He turned away to fetch some burn relief supplies, piling them on a tray. When he turned back, the Trandoshan had sat upon the biobed - and his tunic was resting carefully folded on the bench beside him.

“Ahghg,” he said, and everything on his tray rattled as he short-circuited.

The Trandoshan gave him an odd look. “Yes?”

“Oh, nothing. Nothing. I’m fine,” Kelto stammered. “Let me just, uhhh… set this down here.”

He let the tray’s repulsorlifts catch it in midair, so that it would hover at his side. Then he took a ball of fluff and daubed it in a squat open vial of kolto, letting the excess drip off and trying not to think too much about the barrel-chested masterpiece of physicality sitting just within arm’s reach to his right.

“So, how did this happen, Master …?”

“Knight, actually,” the patient replied. “Not master - not yet, anyway. And as I said, I was training.”

“Only a Knight? ...Well, I guess if you were a Master, you wouldn’t have ended up - err, you know what, forget I said that.”

With kolto-ball and medigauze dressings in hand, Kelto turned to his patient and gave him a quick once-over. There were injuries in areas roughly corresponding to the placement of scorch marks on the surface of his clothes, but fortunately, most of them didn’t seem too severe - the robes acting as a layer of insulation against the worst of it. Quite intentionally, he started on the outside limbs, an attempt to spare himself another hot flush provoked by looking straight on at his patient’s torso. Sskeer didn’t even flinch when he touched the wet medical fluff against an abrasion on the side of his arm.

“I train on one or two levels above the normal training setting,” the Trandoshan offered, by way of explanation. “Thus, my injuries.”

“Ah,” Kelto murmured, mostly to himself. “A masochist.”

Sskeer grunted reproachfully. “The training settings are designed to hold back. There will be no such reprieve in the field. Therefore, I train the body to anticipate the presence of harm - to become numb to its threat, and then, to surpass it.”

“So you’re fine with the pain?”

“Pain can be ignored. And my people have thick hides. I endure.” 

“Well, I’m no duelist, but in my estimation you could probably stand to bump back down a few levels,” Kelto observed, winding a bandage around his forearm. “At least until you can defeat one of those saber-happy droids.”

Sskeer hrrred. The sound landed in Kelto’s gut again. “Bold words from a nurse.”

“Bold enough to be a Knight, like you.” The Rodian retorted, flashing him a smirk - and turning away immediately when the sensation of being perceived became too much. (His cheeks were so warm - was it supposed to be so hot in here?) Falling silent, he took one of Sskeer’s wide, thick-fingered hands in his own, turning it to inspect the green welt on its back.

“I did not realize you had risen to Knighthood as well,” the Trandoshan offered as Kelto dressed his injury. “If I offended, it was not by intent.”

“It’s fine. I’d rather people forget, honestly. Most people, they see a Jedi and think, ‘wow! Laser swords! Magic powers!’ - but that’s… never really where I felt comfortable.”

“You feel your place is here.”

“It’s where my talents lie, I think. I’ve sort of been drawn to the healing halls ever since I left the creche. And… well, to be honest, I like being able to help people doing this. So… I guess it’s true what they say, about the Force having a path for us all, and all that.”

Sskeer hummed. “That is good.”

“Yeah, and I remember when I was little, Master Rancisis came by the ward and said a-- I’m sorry, am I rambling? I’m rambling, aren’t I? I’ll just shut up and tend you--”

“It’s fine.”

“Are you sure? I mean, I just dropped basically my whole backstory on you--”

“It’s fine,” Sskeer said - firmly, but patiently. “Really.”

And Kelto believed him.

It’s funny, he thought suddenly, how quickly you can get comfortable with someone else. A moment ago he could barely stand to meet Sskeer’s gaze - now, though, he could look him straight in the eye without feeling like wilting. Sskeer had surprisingly deep eyes, he noticed, for how small they were. Deep and dark. Like he could dip into his pupils and fall forever --

Oh gosh, there’s a huge green mark right on his temple. How did he miss that??

Kelto dunked a fresh puffball in the healing fluid and held it up to the Trandoshan’s brow, cradling it in his long, sucker-tipped fingers. This time, when it touched his skin, Sskeer flinched and barely suppressed a hiss. On instinct, Kelto shushed him - a habit picked up from soothing much younger patients, when he got his start tending the younglings’ skinned knees and broken bones.

“This one’s not so bad, I think,” he murmurs. “Just needs a little kolto to help keep it clean. Just put some ice on it every few hours for the swelling and it’ll go away soon.”

“And this?”

“Hm?”

Sskeer gestured again to a long line of angry green flesh across his trunk.

“OH Force,” the Rodian cried, slapping a hand against his forehead. “I completely missed that somehow, thank you so much, I’m so sorry. Gods, I’ll get right on that--”

The Trandoshan surprises him with a chuckle. “Rather absentminded for a healer, aren’t you?”

“D-don’t judge!” Kelto sputters. “I’ve been distracted.”

“By what, exactly?” Sskeer asked, with a smirk.

“... J-just lie all the way down, please?”

Sskeer leaned back onto the biobed, hands resting behind his back. Now the whole of his broad, stocky abdomen lies prone under the glowlights, throwing the long diagonal burn across his trunk into stark, unmistakable relief.

“Why is this one so much worse,” Kelto wonders aloud.

“I wouldn’t call it ‘worse’. As I said, I endure.”

“I’m sorry, this doesn’t look like a giant, stinging saber-welt to you?” Kelto peered closer at the mark, hesitantly plying the flesh of the Trandoshan’s belly under his fingers. “...Actually, wait. This is almost a first degree burn. What kind of training saber makes marks like these?”

Now it was Sskeer’s turn to fall quiet and avoid eye contact.

“...You… did something pretty dumb, didn’t you.”

“...When my performance against the droids began to suffer, I… disabled some of the limiters on the droids,” Sskeer growled, at length.

“Y-you did WHAT?”

“I thought it would motivate me to improve,” he shrugged.

“So when I called you a masochist earlier and you didn’t really deny it--”

This time, Sskeer almost snarled. “It’s no crime to seek out a proper challenge.”

“Oh, and if every adrenaline junkie Padawan jumped off the High Council Tower, you would too?”

“Will you just stop arguing and fix this?”

“I--” Kelto groaned. “Okay, whatever, big guy. Just - just hang on.”

He arranged his hands on either side of Sskeer’s wound - one above on his chest, one below on his stomach. Then he sucked in a deep breath through his snout and released it slowly, letting his eyes fall shut as he exhaled. 

He was panicking, he knew. Overcorrecting. There was no reason to take things this far when he was literally standing in a room filled with other, more practical solutions - and certainly not over something so silly as a shouting match with a Knight he barely knew. But by now, good sense and training had momentarily fled him. 

Here, in this moment, Kelto sank into the Force and let himself be guided by the simple instinct to help.

He took another slow breath in, and out, and began to concentrate.

And then…

Sskeer sensed it before he saw it. He craned his neck over his chest to see - and rose up on his elbows, watching intensely.

With preternatural speed, the hideous burn across his torso lightened, shrank - and then vanished. In its place only unblemished scales remained.

Like he’d never even been touched.

Kelto let out one final, explosive breath - and almost collapsed. Sskeer jolted to his feet and grabbed his arms, cradled his back in one arm, steadying him on his feet until he could recover.

“Nice catch,” Kelto panted, when he’d finally recovered.

Sskeer was looking at him differently, the Rodian noticed through the blur of lightheadedness. Looking with him with something like awe.

“That was… quite a feat,” the Trandoshan noted. “It seems you were correct to follow the path of the healers.” 

“Y-yes, well,” Kelto murmured sleepily, “we all have our own special talents.” 

His eyes trailed back to Sskeer’s chest, fingertips idly following their gaze down his trunk. They tickled, just slightly; Sskeer registered an unexpected, but not wholly unpleasant shiver down his spine.

“Think we’re all done now,” the Rodian mumbled. Then his big, sea-blue eyes blinked - slowly, then rapidly, like a Wookiee propeller-engine starting up - and he realized his hand was just shy of cupping one of Sskeer’s pecs.

“UM,” he said loudly, jumping away. “YEAH, so, all done. Clean bill of health. You should be completely fine within the next day or so, and then you can go get your butt handed to you by the training droids again, right? Yup, glad to help, have a nice day, May the Force Be With You and all that jizz, ahaha~”

The Rodian became a flurry of hyperactivity around the ward, re-stocking and re-checking shelves and cabinets for reasons Sskeer could not divine. To appear busy, he supposed - and discourage his continued presence.

It was, he decided, reather endearing. 

Sskeer let the flustered healer flail a moment more before saying, “I don’t think you ever shared your name.”

When he looked over his shoulder, Kelto’s face looked as bright as a Life Day orb - only much, much greener. “Huh?”

“Force healing is no small feat,” the Trandoshan observed, slipping his tunic and tabard back over his shoulders. “To have seen it performed is a privilege; for something as small as my own self-inflicted injury, and after my own stubbornness - an honor. 

“I’d prefer to thank you for it properly, and to apologize. But for that, I must ask your name.”

The Rodian stared. Then coughed, turning to lean back against the counter before him. “Uh, well… That’s … kind of you, but I - you know, we’re Jedi and all. W-we don’t really serve for gratitude’s sake.”

“For the sake of a fellow Jedi, then, and a friend?” 

“…Friend?”

A bemused head tilt. “Are we not?”

“W-well, that’s moving a bit quickly, isn’t it? I mean - we don’t even know each other’s names.”

Sskeer stared.

“Sorry. Sorry. I’m not dumb, I swear, I’m just -- panicking.”

The Trandoshan gave him a funny look. (It was kinda cute, Kelto noticed, when his nose scrunched up like that.) 

Just spit it out. Spit it out. Spit it out. You’re blowing it. Just spit it out spititout spititout---

“My name’s Kolto,” he said -- and groaned.

“Your name,” Sskeer echoed, “is...‘Kolto’?”

“Noooo, no, not ‘Kolto’ - Kelto! Kelto! My name is Kelto. Kelto Lem. I just - I’m just called ‘Kolto’. By - certain people.”

“Because… you work with kolto?” he ventured. “Or because it happens to sound similar?”

Kelto sulked, crossing his arms. “Because Torban Buck thinks he’s funny.” 

Understanding dawned. “Ah. Yes, he certainly does.”

“Mmmmgh. Well, now that I’ve botched my own introduction, I guess you know me. So you can leave me to my shame, now, I guess.” Kelto returned to the business of managing the ward - opening and closing cabinet doors slightly harder, this time.

A wide, three-fingered hand landed on his narrow shoulder, making him jump.

“Thank you, Kelto Lem,” Sskeer said. “Truly, you’re a credit to the Order.”

His voice was deep and warm. Kelto swore he could feel his breath tickling his ear.

“A-anytime,” he replied, spine locking ramrod straight.

He senses Sskeer’s presence pass by behind him, and imagines it’s what little Rodian swamp-fish feel like when big surface trawlers pass by, and catch them in their wake. “And perhaps when I continue my training,” Sskeer added, “I will remember to return here, for my wounds to be dressed.”

“Orrr you could crush those droids and never need to come back here again!” Kelto shakily returned.

“I’m sure I could, at that,” Sskeer chuckled. And the door slides shut behind him.

The moment Kelto was certain he was alone, he took a little paper cup and pours himself a drink of cool sinkwater. It takes gulping down two full cupfuls before he cools down, sinking heavily on his elbows against the counter.

“‘Kolto’,” he muttered, scoffing. “God damn it.”

[melaninkpopimagines]

BTS REACTION

Seokjin

SeokJin wouldn’t know what to say it at first. He’d stare at the picture on the phone. He tried to stop the tears from forming but he was devastated. His heart ached. But he didn’t want to make a fuss. He calmly sat your phone. He didn’t want to pry any; he honestly didn’t think he could remain calm if he saw anymore. He waited until you got back into the room. He watched you check your messages and a smile creep across your face. His heart broke into a thousand pieces. The tears finally dropped.

“Hey!” Are you cheating on me??” He yelled.

You looked at him in shock. “N-No.” you stuttered out.

“I saw the messages y/n! Someone sent you a picture of their dick and you can’t keep the smile off your face.” He yelled.

You stared at him, not knowing what to say. You were caught. Even though Seokjin’s heart hurt; but he wanted the truth. All of it. Who it was, how long it has lasted, and especially he wanted to know if you loved him.

“Do you still love me?” He looked into your eyes, desperately.

“I do so much.” You answered quickly.

“They why did you cheat on me??” He asked.

You looked down unable to answer. You honestly didn’t love the other guy and you loved SeokJin with all your heart. You didn’t know why you cheated. “SeokJin I’m so so sorry.” You pleaded.

He grabbed you. Hugging you into his strong chest. You felt his tears dropping on your shoulders. You hugged him as tightly as possible.

“I need time to trust you again.” He said softly.

He let you go and walked into the bedroom.

You sat on the couch, it was silent, then, You could hear his soft cries from the other room.

Yoongi

Yoongi looked at you phone in his hand. He had picked it up on his way to the studio for the night , mistaking it for his own. He saw a message from “William” he didn’t know a William. He knew basically all your friends especially the male ones He typed in your code, it was changed, so he sat your phone down. He didn’t know why he was uneasy anyways. He trusted you, or he thought he did until a new message popped up. He read the preview on your lock screen

From William: “baby did you get my pic?”

“Baby?” Yoongi said to himself, as he grabbed your phone and started trying to figure out your code. Thank goodness he remembered your mom’s birthday since he was looking for a gift recently, wanting to impress her.

He looked through the messages. First seeing a photo of this William guy’s dick. Then, he found out this was going on for months.

Yoongi sat back in the chair. Gripping the phone as hard as he could. He wanted to throw it across the room so fast but he held himself back. He grabbed his bag and got his manager to take him home. When he got to the apartment you shared he heard you in the living room. He walked in slowly. And as he entered the room he saw a mess and you searching for.

“Looking for this?” He held it up.

You froze. “Yoongi you took my phone I’ve been looking for it.”

He stared at you with the deadliest glare.

“Were you afraid You’d miss William’s call?” He asked.

You choked.

His glare grew in intensity. “You wasted 3 years of us for a few months with a guy who just calls your a booty call?” He asked.

“Yoongi I-” you were interrupted by your phone crashing through one of the windows.

“Fuck you. Don’t try to explain it. I read all the messages. If you were gonna cheat on me your phone code shouldn’t have been your mother’s birthday.” He said.

He started walking off.

“Yoongi wait!” You tried calling for him.

“Don’t follow me! I’m done with you. Have your shit outta my apartment by tomorrow.” He said.

Yoongi was pissed because he hated being hurt this bad. His heart was ripped out and it made him angry.

He had never so much as yelled at you before this.

But you stomped on his heart.

Hoseok

of course Hoseok was pissed off.

He saw the name pop up on your phone. What was one of his friends doing texting you so late at night? So he went to see what was up.

When he saw the message, he thought his heart was being stomped on.

He sat in the bed silently waiting for you to get out of the shower. Tears ran down his face in hot streams.

“Fuck how could I be so stupid?” He sat there thinking about all the stuff he should have seen. Y'all were so close to each other. Always touchy feely.

He should have said something but he always ignored it.

He felt like it was his fault.

Did he not make you happy enough?

Was he not good enough?

He wanted to know what he did wrong for you to hurt him like this.

He didn’t know who he was angry at; but he was mad.

He shut his eyes and sat your phone down on the night stand. When you got out of the shower you saw him laying in bed, fully clothed, his back to you. You checked your messages and saw that it was read.

“H-Hobi did you have my phone?” You asked.

He didn’t speak. She shuffled over in the bed.

It worried you but you didn’t question it. You laid down and fell asleep. When you woke up Hoseok, and all his stuff was gone.

Namjoon

Namjoon was always the type to be suspicious. He couldn’t help himself. He didn’t want to be hurt in that way. He convinced himself to trust you even when he saw your coworker with his hands all over you at one party. He just let it be. Saying to himself he didn’t want to lose you because of his insecurities. He was able to admit he was insecure. But when he broke his phone and asked to use yours to call his manager, all his fears came to light. He couldn’t breathe. His gut kept telling him something was wrong. The proof was right in his hands. He saw all the texts.

Even though he was angry he wanted to handle this calmly. Breaking up would be easier. He couldn’t stay with you. He told himself that over and over until he saw you. He handed you your phone.

“Can we talk?” He asked. You both sat down and he looked into your eyes. And it broke him.

“I saw some messages in your phone. Can you be honest with me?” He asked

You shut your eyes and began telling him the truth. the whole truth.

He sat back in his chair with his eyes closed.

You stared at him. He didn’t say a word for a few minutes.

Then he said. “I’m not gonna lie. I knew something was wrong. I love you so much. I’m sorry you resorted to cheating on me.” It broke you heart that he was apologizing for your stupid mistake.

He grabbed your hand and kissed it. “Let’s break up. You’re not happy with me. I can tell by the messages you love him more.”

That was it. Of course your heart hurt to have this happen; but it was your fault.

Namjoon hugged you and kissed your forehead. Then he walked away from you.

Jimin 

Like Yoongi Jimin would be pissed. But even more than that his insecurities would take over.

He admitted he was snooping in your phone; but that was because he heard you talking to one of your friends.

Something about “ kissing” and “amazing nights”.

You hadn’t let him hit in months. You always came home late and you were too tired. So it just didn’t happen.

So the conversation made him suspicious.

He tried to tell himself over and over that you weren’t talking about what he thought. He even asked Namjoon about it; because he felt like he was just being insecure again. You and he had so many bad memories because he’d doubt you. Always wondering if he was good enough for you. Now he saw that he wasn’t enough.

After he saw your messages, he felt like someone stabbed him in the chest.

If y'all expected him to break up with you as soon as he found out you were wrong. he tried to hold on. Forget he ever saw it. He tried so hard to turn himself into the type of guy you would want; because he loves you so damn much.

But he couldn’t.

It was too much for him. He was overworking himself. paranoid because of your relationship with the other guy. “When is she gonna leave me?” He’d ask himself every time he’d see you smiling at your phone.

He just blew up.

He broke down.

“Why am I not enough for you?” He said in the middle of an argument.

“What are you talking about Jimin! You’re doing it again!” You yelled back.

He stepped back from you.

“So you’re gonna make me feel crazy when you’re cheating on me?” He yelled.

You froze. “Jimin. That’s-” he cut you off. “Y/N stop fucking lying to me! I saw your messages! You’ve been sleeping with that guy for months now. Probably longer!” He yelled storming out.

You didn’t see him again until he came for his things.

Taehyung

To say Tae wasn’t mad and sad would be crazy. But he wasn’t throwing phones or crying over it.

When he saw your messages he could only sit down and think.

Did I do something wrong as a boyfriend? Was I lacking? Then he’s think about all your arguments. He would be thinking about all your good times together as he listened to slow jazz and R&B

When you got home candles were burning. He was sitting in the dark with Mary J blige’s ‘Be without you’ playing. You slowly approached the couch.

“Tae what are you doing?” You asked.

He grabbed your hand.

“Do I make you happy anymore?” He asked. Looking up at you. Even though it was dark, the candles allowed you to see his eyes.

You were confused. “What’s going on? Why are you asking this?” That wasn’t the answer that could save your relationship.

He kissed your hand.

“I’m not happy anymore Y/N. it’s not your fault. I’m just not happy.” He said. You stared at him.

“Let’s break up.” You said, after a moment of silence.

You watched him stand up and leave for the bedroom. You sat on the couch. The house was silent.

Jungkook

Jungkook didn’t just see messages. You accidentally called the other man’s name during sex. He ignored it. He saw some not so friend like messages and he ignored it. It wasn’t until he saw you two kissing everything hit the fan.

He was crippled by sadness.

Tears ran down his face. He clutched his chest as he stared at the two of you.

It wasn’t until he dropped his phone, you noticed he walked in.

You immediately ran to him.

You tried to grab his hand and explain yourself but he didn’t want to hear it.

He hurried out. He put on his shoes and ran out.

He Immediately went to see Taehyung who called the other boys.

All 6 of his hyungs came to your shared apartment to collect His stuff. He obviously didn’t want to see you.

While they collected his stuff, despite the death stares from the boys you were trying to call Jungkook. You wanted to explain yourself. But he wouldn’t answer your calls or your texts.

After an hour of trying to get to him you noticed you had a missed call from Jungkook, with a voicemail.

“Y/N if you wanted to be with someone else you should have told me,” he said, “I was always a good boyfriend…or at least I tried to be. I don’t want to see you again. I don’t want to hear your apologies. Stop trying to get ahold of me. I asked my hyungs to get my things for a reason.” Then he hung up.

Tears ran down your face. Every single word sounded heartbroken.

You did that to him. For a random hook up. You ruined your good thing.

A/N: This is so sad ion know

Jazzi🥔