#but Miles saved him and inspired him to keep living and now he has a beautiful daughter and a beautiful wife

[x-gon-give-it]

Headcanon, theory, prediction, whatever you want to call it,

but I think the reason that the universe Miquel hijacked collapsed, and not Miles, despite them both being “anomalies” is because Miquel was trying to change someone else’s story, as opposed to Miles who inspires other people to change their own stories.

Like, Miquel tried to force himself into a universe that wasn’t his. He took the place of his counterpart and pretended to be him, he was playing a part that wasn’t meant for him, he was changing a story that wasn’t his. And the universe rejected that.

Whereas Miles inspires people to change their own stories. His universe didn’t collapse because that’s HIS universe. It’s HIS story to tell, and sure the plot changed along the way, but he’s still telling it.

The same with 42-Miles. His story was drastically changed because he wasn’t bitten by that spider, but his universe isn’t collapsing because he’s the one still telling the story. He’s still shaping his own future.

And like how Miles inspired Peter B to have Mayday at all. Without Miles, Peter wouldn’t have gone back to his and he wouldn’t have had Mayday. But his universe isn’t collapsing because that’s a decision PETER made. No one forced him to make up with MJ and have Mayday. But Miles gave him faith and inspired him to go back and give life another try. (Don’t even get me started how Peter would have literally DIED if not for Miles. He was going to stay in Miles dimension. He was fully ready to deteriorate. He literally would have died if not for Miles saying “NO BITCH YOU GOTTA GO HOME” much less inspiring him to have Mayday, I’m just saying I’m just saying.)

And the thing is I don’t think Miquel realizes that. He’s so caught up in his grief and anger that he’s completely consumed with following canon and my never disrupting ANYTHING. He doesn’t realize that that universe collapsed because he tried to change someone ELSES story. He tried to become someone else to live their story. He didn’t try to make his own and that’s not how it works.

Idk just thinking thots tonight, And ATSV is always at the top of my brain

[adore-laur]

DEVOTION

— please enjoy harry & sawyer getting freaky in miami (inspired by this ask)💃

——

MIAMI, 1993

People are packed into the arena like sardines. August humidity suffuses the air, a cacophony of chatter overlaps, and an infectious energy pulses in the room as everyone waits for Sade to hit the stage in all their sensational glory.

In the general admission area, Harry stands behind Sawyer with his arms protectively draped over her shoulders. Her footing shifts occasionally as she fiddles with his rings. He can sense her anticipation—she's been looking forward to this concert for months. When he gifted her the tickets on her birthday, she wept and kissed him with a hunger he had never experienced from her before. As much as he spoils her, she goes the extra mile to show him her appreciation.

Once the lights go out, Harry can't wait to see her vivacious eyes and dazzling smile.

Sawyer looks ravishing tonight. Her black cropped tank top has a variety of enticing little cutouts—no bra underneath, he might add—and she's wearing low-waisted denim shorts which hug her ass most temptingly. There's a reason he opted to stand behind her—two, actually. One, he doesn't want any dudes getting a sneak peek of his girl. And two, he doesn't need anyone seeing his hardness through his leather pants.

She curled her hair with natural-looking spirals and teased it with spray. Her long, wavy mane has always been a hassle to manage in the summertime, so she cut it collarbone-length. Her front bangs are tightly clipped back, and she wears gold hoop earrings. She’s truly a stunner.

Prior to leaving, Harry watched her as she got ready for the concert. They live together in a swanky Orlando penthouse, where the simple things like her clothes hanging in the closet and makeup supplies cluttering the bathroom sink make him unbelievably happy. While he gently reminded Sawyer that they needed to leave soon for the three-and-a-half-hour drive to Miami, she applied her mascara and teased him by showing her cleavage while bent over the vanity. Despite his provocative urges, he managed to resist giving in.

When Sawyer turns to look at him now, the room reduces to just her. Lucious lips stained with pomegranate-red gloss. Skin glowing with moisture. Dark eyes filled with warmth. It’s breathtaking to behold the sheer beauty of her features. Time and time again, she hypnotizes him. He's beginning to think she can cast spells on his lovesick soul.

Sawyer taps his bicep before standing on her tiptoes to reach his ear. In an instinctive move, Harry touches her hip and leans down to better hear her.

Fanning herself, she says, "It's muggy in here. I'm going to buy a water bottle and braid my hair in the bathroom."

"I'll go with you."

"But you have to save our spot," she reminds him.

Though he nearly protests, he reluctantly nods and caresses the slick skin of her bare middle back. "Fine. You have your phone?"

"In my purse. I'll be fast."

Harry kisses the spot between her eyebrows before letting her go, keeping her locked in his gaze until she disappears past the lower seating sections. In crowds, regardless of size, he doesn’t like losing her. During baseball games, it’s less worrying since she always sits in the same section in her reserved seat, but in Miami, he's extra cautious because it's an unfamiliar city. Sawyer can stand up for herself since sass and stubbornness are intertwined in her Aries DNA, but Harry remains fiercely protective of her. She's a certified sweetheart, conspicuously beautiful, and also quite gullible to a fault—if anyone attempts to take advantage of that, they'll have to answer to him.

While she's gone, Harry observes the venue. There are people from all walks of life surrounding him. The staggered seating sections flanking the floor are filling quickly, and it's reminiscent of playing at Tinker Field, where he would watch fans fill the bleachers from the dugout.

In a few weeks, the minor league season will conclude, and Harry is looking forward to taking a much-needed break from pitching and traveling. He's thankful he didn’t have a game scheduled today, which gave him and Sawyer the chance to step out for a date. It aches to know she's missed him a little more after such a long season. Due to her full-time job, she can’t always travel across America with him or attend home games, but they’re able to make it work by cherishing their time together. Next month, they plan to celebrate their second anniversary in Seville, Spain. They'll sunbathe on the scenic beaches, relish a couples massage, and take romantic strolls through the city's idyllic parks.

And, if Harry doesn't chicken out, he'll ask her to marry him.

Fondly smiling at the thought, he watches two girls strut toward him, parting the crowd like the Red Sea. They're wearing variations of the same outfit—metallic miniskirts, frilly halter tops, and chunky heels. Based on their strikingly similar features, they must be twins. Twin One holds a Canon camera, while Twin Two laughs into her hands.

Harry waves politely before shoving his hands in his pockets. The moment a fan recognizes him, he knows it. There’s a strange shift in the atmosphere when he temporarily loses his shield of privacy. It's unavoidable when fifteen thousand people are gathered in a Miami venue. It comes with the territory of being a famous Florida sports figure.

"Are you Harry Styles?"

Here we go.

Feeling abnormal but pushing past it, he says, "In the flesh. How's it going, ladies?"

"Oh my gosh, we love you," Twin One gushes. "You're hella cute. You play for the Sun Rays, right?"

"Sort of. Our team name got changed recently. We're now the Orlando Cubs."

"Oh, cool," she says distractedly. "Anyway, we want a picture with you."

With a sharp inhale, Harry nods once. “Sure, no problem."

It doesn't bother him to take pictures or sign autographs. Most people are respectful and genuinely honored to meet him. Rarely, however, do people demand things from him, like right now. Then he feels prickles of discomfort. It makes him feel as though he's being exploited. It makes him feel fictitious.

As the girls swarm around him and touch him like he's a wax figure with no boundaries, Sawyer nudges her way through the crowd, water bottle in hand. As she processes the situation, her movements slow and her shoulders drop slightly. She has her hair in two messy braids, with the shorter layers springing loose. She looks effortless and... annoyed. Yeah, Harry is all too familiar with that look. He has been on the receiving end of those slanted eyebrows, those gritted teeth, and those assessing eyes. How will this play out?

When she sees Sawyer, Twin Two strokes his arm suggestively. Thankfully, they see her as a mere stranger rather than his girlfriend. His mind flashes back to past discussions about keeping their relationship as private as possible, and he decides not to sacrifice that for such a measly moment. No chance.

"Can you take a photo of us?" It was wise of her to ask, rather than demand. Otherwise, Harry's friendly mask would have definitely slipped.

Sawyer purses her lips as she meets Harry's gaze. "Do you mind?" he asks, his expression hinting at a secret message.

By taking Twin One's camera, she recognizes his unspoken signal and cleverly leaps into her role. God, he's thankful for her. He knows it's challenging to deal with these bizarre occurrences that pop their bubble, but she handles them all so gracefully. When they get home, he’ll shower her with affection.

Sawyer raises the camera to her eye and says, "I'll take a few."

Harry straightens his posture and awkwardly places his hands on both girls' upper arms. His muscles tense uncomfortably as their hands slither around his waist and linger near his stomach. Amid three flashes, he’s suffocated by the pungent smell of perfume and spearmint gum.

“There you go,” Sawyer says, giving the camera back and forcing a smile.

They browse the pictures before staring at Harry with a sickening amount of adoration. "It was awesome meeting you," Twin Two says, biting her lip. "We'll see you around at the next Sun Rays game."

"Cubs," Sawyer mumbles around a fake cough. Only Harry catches it, and he restrains himself from grinning proudly and kissing her senselessly.

"Nice to meet you both," he says, briefly touching his heart. "Enjoy the concert, yeah?"

They nod, blush, and giggle simultaneously before walking off, staring back at him a couple of times before fading into the sea of strangers. Harry releases a breath he didn't know he was holding and concentrates on Sawyer drinking from her water bottle. He's about to apologize for the unnatural situation, but the venue goes dark, and the audience erupts with deafening cheers.

The joy he expected to see in Sawyer's eyes isn't there. Silently, she crosses her arms and faces the stage with a blank expression. Harry curses at himself—he knows it isn't his fault and that it's just how Sawyer is. She takes things to heart and lets them stew until her skeptical thoughts overflow without a lid. The fact that she didn’t witness the entire interaction has made her understandably upset. Harry regrets not saying no to the fans.

First on the setlist is "The Sweetest Taboo"—sonically sensual, intoxicatingly groovy, and a fantastic way to open their show. Everybody dances to the exquisite beat and sings along to the lyrics. The energy in the room soars to an unimaginable level. It's contagious.

Harry grips Sawyer's hand so the crowd doesn't swallow her whole. She turns and smiles softly, finally bobbing her head to the music. Slowly, she loosens up, unfurling the passionate girl he knows lives within her. The one who loves to dance.

She looks resplendent as indigo lights glide across her face. Her body begins to move—the shape of her swaying hips and the pinch of her waist are irresistible. Harry settles behind her and follows her smooth movements, grinding against her backside. The warmth of his hands rests on her ribcage, and they dance, getting lost in the ecstasy of experiencing live music.

With each song, they forget about the world outside and fall more in love with each other.

——

Harry and Sawyer leave the arena on a high after being captivated by Sade's sultry voice and entrancing stage presence for over an hour. The parking lots are already congested with people trying to beat traffic, so they decide to wait until it calms down.

As soon as they get into the car, Harry starts the engine and turns on the air conditioning before reclining the driver's seat. With exhaustion swimming through his bones, he sighs contently. It was a magical concert, but he's not looking forward to driving back to Orlando. He'll need to stop by 7/11 for an energy drink and some snacks. Fortunately, tomorrow is Sunday, so they can both sleep in and laze around the whole day.

Sawyer unbraids her hair and removes the clips, then shakes her head cutely to let her wild curls loose. She looks tired as well. They danced the night away together, not caring who saw them. He told her to climb on his back a few times so she could get a better view of the stage. During the romantic slow-tempo songs, she hugged and kissed him sweetly, and he swears he almost got down on one knee right then and there.

"I love you, baby," Harry says, watching her take off her Doc Martens. "Tonight was divine."

A smile spreads across Sawyer's face. "I love you too. Hey, listen..." She reaches over to caress his cheek and thumb the corner of his mouth. "I'm sorry about my buzzkill attitude at the beginning."

Shaking his head, he kisses her palm. “You don't have to apologize. I appreciate how you handled those girls."

He hopes to forget about what happened. Honestly, as soon as the concert started, he forgot all about them. There was only one thing on his mind: Sawyer and the mesmerizing way she moved.

"I just... I got jealous," Sawyer confesses sheepishly.

Harry frowns in astonishment. Jealousy is a rare emotion for Sawyer. They’ve been dating for almost two years, and he can count on one hand the number of times she has been outwardly jealous. Since he only has eyes for her, there's no rhyme or reason for her to feel this way.

What a new and fun development, Harry thinks to himself. He loves how their relationship continues to surprise him.

Harry, however, has been caught having jealous fits many times before. Like that instance when Sawyer was invited to lunch by her so-called "cubicle neighbor." Harry is her forever lunch date, not anyone else. Even when he can't be there in person, he'll call her office fax number and keep her company while she munches her cucumber salad. Harry's jealousy grew when he discovered some guy was trying to steal that from him, so he ordered an impressive bouquet to be delivered to her desk the following day. It didn't take long for everyone to get the hint. Then there was that time when they were watching The Bodyguard, and Sawyer kept squealing girlishly over Kevin Costner's character. Okay, so he literally took a bullet for the woman he loved. Big deal! Harry smothered his jealousy by obnoxiously pretending to be Sawyer's bodyguard while exiting the movie theater and then proceeding to sing "I Have Nothing" off-key the entire way home. She just laughed, which was his goal in the first place.

"Why'd you get jealous?" Harry asks.

Sawyer's brow quirks. "Well, when I'm subjected to taking pictures of two pretty girls who are all over my boyfriend, it doesn't necessarily feel good."

"I know," he says, frustrated with himself. "I should've refused them. They kind of trapped me."

She pouts sympathetically before climbing over the console and straddling his thighs. "My sweet sunray. You're too nice."

Harry pulls her closer by hooking his fingers through her belt loops and tugging. "I'm sorry you were jealous."

"I shouldn't have been. You know why?"

"Tell me." Reaching around her, he turns up the volume of the radio to drown out the sounds of cars honking at each other. The cassette tape they listened to on the drive to Miami is still playing on loop. "Paradise" by Sade sets the mood.

"Because you're mine," Sawyer says with conviction.

Spreading his legs on the seat, he smirks. "Say that again, angel."

"You're mine. No one else's."

"Ditto," he replies, rubbing his palms along her suntanned thighs. "You've got my devotion."

His bodacious girl bites his bottom lip until it stings, then says, "Prove it."

"Good fuckin' lord," Harry murmurs against her mouth before diving in. He kisses her ravenously while fumbling to unbutton her shorts, eventually helping her shimmy out of them. Sawyer shoves her hand down his pants and grasps his bulge, stroking it purposefully. He gasps and slides his pants down halfway, revealing his tented boxers.

"Are you mine?" she asks, sitting right on his cock and sending shockwaves of sex drive down his spine. Her body heat is addictive.

"Yes," he says breathlessly, kissing along her flushed neck. "I'm your man."

"Then act like it. Show me who you belong to."

A shocked laugh escapes as he greedily grabs a handful of her ass. "Sawyer Alejandra, what has Miami done to you? Ay, Dios mío!"

She smiles seductively. "It's Sade's fault."

"Is that right?" Harry cranks the volume up even more before allusively sliding his hand under her top and cupping the swell of her breast. It fits perfectly, and when he teases her peaked nipple with his thumb, Sawyer's palm slaps against the window as she grinds against him. The glass is fogging with the A/C running, sweat drips down his back, and the song's driving bass line pulsates loudly through the speakers. It's filthy what they're doing, considering potential onlookers surround them. It's a good thing the car has tinted windows.

The thrill of their sexual escapade pulses through Harry's body. As he kisses Sawyer's heaving breasts through her top's cutouts, the pleasure becomes borderline intolerable. His lips search for any sliver of skin, and in response, she tugs his hair and whimpers softly. Her skimpy lace underwear is damp, and he switches his attention to her clit. He rubs it with his knuckle, causing Sawyer's hips to momentarily stutter before she leans into the movement and stamps sloppy kisses all over his face, her cherry-flavored lip gloss transferring to his cheeks, nose, and jaw. They're as sweet as sugar.

"Almost there," Sawyer whispers, running her hand across his broad chest. Her fingers grip the material of his bejeweled sleeveless top to keep herself balanced, and Harry would let her rip it apart if he hadn't spent several hours meticulously hot gluing rhinestones onto it.

After kissing down her stomach and blowing air onto her belly button ring, he teases two fingers past her wet entrance, and it's all she needs to unravel completely. As she orgasms, she leaves love bites on his neck and moans. Her body language is desperate, the arch of her back and the tightening of her thighs against his own helping her through her release.

"Nice and easy, baby," Harry murmurs, squeezing her waist. "Take your time."

From the gratifying pain she inflicts on the tender flesh of his neck, Harry comes in his boxers, his pelvis jerking as goosebumps rise over his skin in transient tidal waves. It feels equally divine and unholy what they just did. Tiredness kicks in as they both breathe heavily. Gradually, the condensation on the windows disappears. Sawyer's handprint is the last thing to vanish, and the sight will undeniably haunt his memory in the most marvelous way.

Harry opens the glovebox and finds the stash of napkins. After cleaning Sawyer and himself, he pulls his pants back up, shuts the radio off, and says, "I've made up my mind."

"About what?" Sawyer asks, sitting sideways on his lap so she can stretch her legs. In just her cropped top, underwear, and adorable ruffle socks, she's a masterpiece. And all his.

"I'm gonna marry you one day," he says. It's something he's known for a long time. He hopes that easing her into the topic will make him more confident about proposing next month.

Sawyer pinches his earlobe. "Don't say dreamy things like that."

"Oh, that’s bogus," he retorts. "You say heart-stopping things to me all the time without even realizing. Especially after sex."

"Not marriage-related things!"

"Does that mean you don't want to marry me?" he asks, fishing for a reaction.

When she goes quiet and stares contemplatively at him, Harry's stomach swoops. He knows her exceptionally well, which means he knows she tends to shy away from substantial conversations regarding their future when they're sprung upon her by his spontaneous nature. Perhaps it's too early to propose a lifelong commitment, but hasn't she imagined sharing a life with him before? The moment he kissed her for the first time, he fantasized about settling down, buying a house away from the city, tying the knot, and having curly-haired babies.

Eventually, Sawyer says, "I would marry you in this parking lot right now if you asked me to."

Harry feels an internal splash of relief and plays it cool by saying, "Please raise your standards."

"Are you saying you wouldn't want to marry me in a parking lot, lover boy?" She tosses her version of his question back to him with a frisky smile.

"I'd find you and marry you in every lifetime. How's that for an answer?"

She’s speechless for five full seconds before lurching forward to hug him, her heart hammering. "You're crazy. I love you so, so much."

"I adore you," Harry whispers. He reaches for the 'S' pendant hiding under his top's neckline and pulls it out. "I'm forever yours."

Sawyer kisses him repeatedly and says, "Forever."

During the journey home, she falls asleep with her head in his lap, holding his hand while he drives. His thumb absentmindedly strokes her ring finger, and he feels a surge of emotion and excitement knowing he will get to spend the years to come by her side.

Years filled with being deeply devoted to her.

——

[silverskye13]

Do people know how hard it is to survive the apocalypse? No really, do they? Because Joel really, really rather thinks they don't.

"The Mezalian King is dead guys," he says to nothing in particular. The universe. The sky. Everything. "Get over it."

It was the apocalypse. The world ended, and also his heart was broken, and he lost everything. The Mezalian King, that is. He lost all that. Joel didn’t.

Do people know how hard it is to survive that, though? All the empires fell, everyone died, the end. That's how the apocalypse works. The oceans dried. The fields burned. People escaped, or they didn't. It was the end of the world.

Do people realize?

It's hard to survive the end of the world. It takes a lot of effort. You’re starting from nothing. Less than nothing, really. The sky falls on your head and you dig your way out of it just to realize, wait, everything’s gone? A lot more people die in the aftermath than the explosion. A meteor falling only strikes a single town. The shock wave shakes the earth for a few miles out of it. But that’s not all the damage it does, is it? What happens to everyone who relied on that town for trade goods? You can’t gather food, idiot, the one city that wove good baskets and made good tools is gone! That river you fished in has been so diverted by the mudslide from the shock wave, it doesn’t even give you water anymore.

(This is a metaphor. The end of the world wasn’t a meteor. It was two friends finally admitting they were friends. The effect was the same, though, in the end. Now there are no friends, because everyone is dead. Or gone. Or wish they were. Anyway, back to the metaphor.)

All the water is gone. Now you’re walking ten, twenty, thirty miles to find some in the low places of the world. What happens to all the people who can’t walk, climb, delve? What happens to all the people that can? Surrounded by monsters, and other desperate people willing to do anything to save their own, and you’re not their own anymore. What happens to the King, looking out at his shore, wondering how he’s going to provide for an entire blooming desert when water has decided because of some stupid prophesy it doesn’t exist anymore? He tries his best to rule, but he has nothing. You can’t give someone gold to heal a wound. There’s no apples to guild, all the trees are dead. Terracotta does a great job of getting in your eyes, your mouth, your blood, and stinging everything when it’s crushed to powder. All those alliances you made to fill the gaps your country couldn’t, well, they’re gone. Even the clothes off your back can only go so far.

It takes a lot to survive the end of the world. You rally your people. You inspire them with your stubborn grit, your insistence the world isn’t ending because you’re here! Obviously if we were all going to die, we’d be dead. Plot armor. He’s the Mezalian King. He doesn’t die, and if he does, he comes back. He comes back again and again. Don’t worry I don’t need food, I can, in fact, starve. I don’t need water. I can thirst. I don’t need medicine. I don’t need anything. Give it to someone else. Please, please, give it to someone else.

Can’t you see I’m fine? Take care of your bloomin’ self for goodness sake!

That’s... probably what the Mezalian King said. Joel wouldn’t know. He’s not him.

Anyway it doesn’t matter. The Mezalian King is dead. His heart was broken. His kingdom was in ruins. The world ended. He begged his people to stand together, to care for each other, to walk and keep walking. They fled their burning world to other Empires in similar shambles. They walked. They kept walking. They talked about their King who couldn’t die. How could he? if he died, they wouldn’t be a kingdom anymore. They wouldn’t be a people. So he’s alive. He’s walking with them. He’s insisting they keep moving. Fetch water. Make food. Build shelter. Live. Survive. Thrive.

He’s not a King anymore. He’s an idea. The King is wrathful. If you don’t pull your weight, he will haunt you. The King is sacrificial. We have plenty because he refuses to eat. The King’s heart is broken, so his people aren’t. The Mezalian King is dead. But he’s still here. They build statues of what he looked like, and those fall to dust. They build houses in colors as close to terracotta as they can. Those fall to dust as well. They don’t call themselves Mezalian anymore, but they remember him. It’s been years. Decades. Centuries. Eons. The world is unrecognizable. It’s gods, however, are.

"The Mezalian King is dead guys," Joel, a god of sky and thunder, says to nothing in particular. The universe. The sky. Everything. "Get over it."

It takes a lot to survive the end of the world.

[stellocchia]

I got inspired to make a 2012TMNT Spiderverse AU by a Rise AU my friend @alwerakoo made, so here we go. It will be a bit disjointed because it's copy pasted from Discord.

This was born fron the idea that all of them lost one of their brothers as their origin story. Aside from Leo who is our Miles Morales pretty much.

Leo got bit by a radioactive spider only very very recently. My man almost immediately gets dragged into the life by the old Spiderman (the Splinter of this Au) only to see him get murdered almost immediately by the Shredder (pretty much the King Pin of this universe).

In his universe Splinter wasn't their dad. Leo and his brothers are just sort of living on their own. They're supposed to be in the foster system, but Donnie managed to find them a place on their own thanks to the help of his bestie April. Officially, they're under the legal charge of April's dad, but he can't really afford to support them so they're making do on their own.

They can afford it a bit thanks to Donnie's scholarship, a bit thanks to Mikey's job as a cook at a pizza shop, and a bit thanks to Raph's job at the car repair job (he mostly does the car paint job). Leo always felt kinda like the useless one, and getting bit was about the worst and the best thing that could happen to him. Because now he has even more pressure on him to succeed, but at least he can help people in his own way.

---

In the spidey!Raph universe he was bitten when he was out on a walk with Leo. Leo was also the only one that knew. Being twins they were always the closest. And, honestly, Leo took it far more seriously than Raph. At least at the beginning. You probably can see where I'm going with this.

Leo was kidnapped by a criminal to use him as leverage against Raph. In the struggle that ensued Raph wasn't able to save Leo. So now he pretty much shut himself off from the rest of his family to try and protect them.

---

In the Spider!Donnie universe, Donnie was actually the one who made the spider that bit him. He was helping a professor at the University he got to attend earlier with his project and it backfired.

Btw, it later turned out that the professor was Baxter Stockman. Because I like to keep some parts of the show and he's making mutagen for Shredder in this one too. Because it just makes sense.

Of course, accidentally working for a supervillain doesn't end well. And Mikey ends up getting caught in the crossfire. He goes to try and find Donnie and finds him being strapped to a chair by Baxter who is studying him. Mikey manages to free him, but he gets stabbed by Shredder who came in at that point.

---

In the spider!Mikey universe he was delivering pizza at Baxter's lab when he got bitten. Because even evil scientists need to eat.

He did not figure out anything was wrong until a few weeks later because his fingers are always sticky anyway and he thought the Spidey senses were just Raph's paranoia rubbing off on him.

Until he gets to meet one of his idols, Chris Bradford (secretly the villain Rahzar). Raph didn't fucking trust the intentions of the dude so he followed them. And he was right, because the dude just wanted to get the spider they think was stolen by Mikey back from him. Raph catches onto it and bursts in to get his brother back. Only to, you know, get stabbed because he's a normal civilian and not a fucking super human. Mikey manages to swing them out of there with his spider webs (because he actually produces his own) but Raph dies in the hospital. So Mikey is stuck with the guilt of having gotten his brother killed (not really, but Raph warned him not to go and he did anyway so he still feels guilty about his death) and powers he has no clue what to do with and way too many responsibilities.

---

Some more fun facts about this AU:

Mikey is the only one of the spidey!brothers that can produce his own spiderwebs biologically. The others had to create their own or, in Raph's case, steal a prototype Donnie made and act as if nothing happened.

Leo has special healing hands powers on top of the typical Spidey powers. Both because canon and because he's the Miles of this universe so he gets extra powers.

Raph is the one who has been Spiderman the longest. Leo has been dead for years now. They were in middle school when he got bitten.

In every universe aside from the Spidey Leo universe, Splinter is their dad. But in the Spidey Donnie universe they're very very distant. Splinter was a very strict dad there and both the Leo and the Raph of that universe pretty much ignored their younger siblings to try and chase his approval (in Leo's case) or get attention from him by misbehaving (in Raph's) which is why Mikey was the only one who noticed that Donnie hadn't come back the day he got bit.

Splinter is a great dad in both the Spidey Mikey and Spidey Raph universe. In the Mikey universe he actually knows about Mikey being Spiderman and trains him so he can be as safe as possible. In Raph's universe he tries his best to care for them, but Raph is shutting him out. Splinter tried giving him space at the start because he thought he just needed time to grieve, but after years he's just desperately trying to get him to a psychologist.

---

During the actual movie plot kinda thing spidey!Raph would have Peter B's role from the first movie with spidey!Leo. Both because he's the one with the most experience and generally more disillusioned. But also because that's his dearest brother he fucking lost, so he's already attached from the get go.

And being around Spidey!Leo is what makes him finally reconnect with his family.

Also thinking to maybe make Raph university aged because the idea of him having already moved out and having cut contact only to show up back in front of his family's house under the rain crying after the movie like "Dad I'm home" and having Splinter hug him so tight they can barely breathe but neither cares is just hhhhhhhhhh.

---

Also, I wanted to talk about who knows my boys secret identity in their universes.

In the Spidey!Raph one obviously Leo knew before dying. Mikey and Splinter are completely oblivious. Donnie doesn't know for certain, but he does suspect that one of his family members is Spiderman, which is why he keeps making spider themed gadgets and "forgetting about them" in corners of his room. He never tried to figure out who it actually was though.

In the Spidey!Mikey universe literally everyone knows. The only one who didn't have a chance to learn about it was Raph who died before he could. Splinter was the first one to learn about his powers when Mikey called him from the hospital where he brought Raph in the middle of a mental breakdown while ugly sobbing. The others know too though, as Splinter is training them as well so they won't have another death in the family, because Raph's loss left them all pretty fucking messed up.

In the Spidey!Donnie universe no one from his family knows. Donnie went no contact with the rest of his family after Mikey's death, he felt like they never cared anyway. (They did, but love isn't always enough to keep a relationship going). He also dropped out of university after the whole "incident" with Baxter and made himself a little apartment in the sewers which he uses as his headquarters. At the very least though, he did get to meet April and Casey, and both of them know and help him. Casey is properly his sidekick and works on the field alongside him, while April is basically their person in the chair. There is no love triangle here, they're all in a poly relationship, but Casey and Donnie still keep up the banter they have in canon. Chosen family for the purple boy!

---

I have also thought about what costumes they would wear (and borrowed ideas from actual canon Spiderman costumes I could find), so here they are:

Raph wears something like this:

Big ass hoodie over the all red suit from one of his exes (probably Slash, let's be real). Plenty of pockets in it to stash all the random gadgets Donnie creates and then promptly "forgets" about in a dark corner of his room.

It's comfy and practical.

Also, he wears normal ass jeans underneath. He looks a bit like Peter B. because it fits him.

Mikey gets this cool ass design:

Offers way more protection than Raphs as it's a proper combat suit. It was designed by his dad based on old combat uniforms he studied. He also wanted to make it completely black so that Mikey could blend into the night perfectly, but Mikey was not willing to compromise his sunshine aesthetic quite that much!

The headwear is a proper helmet from a motorbike that Mikey painted on. It hurts like a bitch when he headbutts you.

Donnie gets something like this, but with the spider glowing bright purple instead:

Fully designed by him. Hypertechnologic. There is an AI system inside. It works similarly to one of the suits Peter used in the movies, the one Mr. Stark designed.

He's silent as fuck and can dim the glowing of the spider how much he wants. Nobody ever sees him coming. He also has methallic spider legs that can pop up from the back. And plenty of vials of chemicals he worked on hanging from a belt. Everything either made by him on his own, or with April's help.

Leo at the start only has a hoodie, some goggles and a normal ass medical face mask. There is nothing to indicate that he's part of the Spidey brand. The only Spidey thing he gets are the web shooters he inherits from dead Splinter.

But later on he gets something more classic with the red and blue motif. But he takes the comfy approach Raph went for (that is his mentor after all) which includes the oversized hoodie. Basically something like this:

Also, his suit is a two piece. The top part with the mask and hoodie (they're all in one) and the bottom part with some tight blue gym pants that he got his actual Raph (the one from his dimension) to decorate for him.

---

Lastly, here's the ages for all the boys in every universe:

s!Leo universe:

Donnie is 19 (just started uni)

Raph is 18

Mikey is 15

Leo is 14 (I need more youngest Leo in my life)

.

s!Donnie universe:

Leo is 22

Raph is 21

Donnie is 20 (has been Spiderman for 2 years)

Mikey was 16 when he died, would be 18 now

.

s!Mikey universe:

Raph was 17 when he died (would be 18 now)

Mikey 17 (has been Spiderman for 1 year)

Donnie and Leo are 14

.

s!Raph universe:

Raph is 24 (has been Spiderman for 11 years)

Leo was 13 when he died, would be 24 now as well

Mikey is 22

Donnie is 19

[phoenix-flamed]

The memorial remained tall and proud, seemingly unaffected by time or the elements. As Miles stood before it, eyes transfixed upon the words so respectfully etched into the stone surface, he couldn't help but wonder who it was that had commissioned the grave marker, and just how long ago it had been placed there. No body was buried beneath the soil at its base; there had been no body to recover at Phoenix Gate, with the likely assumption being that he, like so many others, had been reduced to ash in the flames of chaos.

Which was likely a mercy, knowing what he knew about his own fate -- from the manner of his death, all the way to his cowardice in hiding that he yet lived.

A shuddered breath was drawn in and held for a few moments. Everything about the scene felt wrong, and his mind and heart both screamed for him to turn and run. He shouldn't be there. He didn't want to be there, in front of his own grave; dread, anxiety, discomfort, they all snaked upwards from his feet to his scalp, consuming him whole until a tremble rippled through his body and forced him to finally exhale again.

Against his better judgment and the tempest of emotions that raged within him, the Cursebreaker stepped closer and knelt. Gloved fingertips traced along the letters, spelling out the words as if committing them to memory. Then he spoke in a voice that was far too thin and fragile in contrast to the way he ordinarily carried himself.

"...It has been a while, my friend." Of course, there was no reply -- save for the gentle rustle of leaves, courtesy of the early morning breeze. "And longer still since I have addressed you amicably."

The man's brow furrowed. He bowed his head in silent contemplation, searching for what to say and how to say it. But there was nothing now, not as if there had been a plan prior to his arrival either. After all, what was there to say to a ghost he had spent so many summers struggling to run away from?

When his pursed lips parted next, he made sure to keep his head down to hide the old, familiar way in which he struggled to express his deeper feelings. "After father's death, you vowed that you would never again leave words left unspoken to those you love. But you... You broke that promise to yourself."

Miles shifted and sat. "As time went on, you became too busy, stretched too thin, and you fell back into believing that there would be more time. There would always be tomorrow to tell them what truths laid within your heart." Like a floodgate opening within, the words that had but moments prior eluded him began pouring out like water, effortless and flowing in a constant stream. "Your intentions had always been good. You believed in compassion, that you could use your power as Archduke for the benefit of all -- to help Rosaria in a new, more lasting way. To free it from its bindings to tradition which held it back from change, kept it beholden to war and conflict, and perpetuated a cycle of needless suffering for those born with magic."

Guilt-stricken gaze lifted to stare again upon those written words. "I hated you for that damnable optimism. For as observant and thorough as you always were, your focus was so firmly locked upon what lay ahead -- and this notion that noble suffering in the present was necessary to accomplish this better future -- that you failed to realize just how great the pain you were inflicting upon your family had become. The burden you placed upon them... between adhering to duty, and picking up where you would inevitably leave off in constructing this new foundation, it was too great. But you always likened yourself to The Founder. You would start to rebuild Rosaria with your own two hands, without the use of magic, for as long as breath filled your lungs. And just like The Founder's tale, there would be those who spurned your efforts -- yet for every one who scoffed and ridiculed, there would be another who would see your work and find the inspiration to join in, and together a new nation would take shape. It was so painfully idealistic."

Again, his fingertips traveled along that memorial stone's surface, this time heading upwards so that he could rest his hand near the top. He couldn't rest his hand upon the grave's owner's shoulder -- so this would have to do. His oceanic-hued eyes squeezed tightly closed in a futile effort to hold back the welling emotions that burned behind them.

"I... I forgive you," Miles managed to heave. Another shuddering breath was hastily sucked in, and that new tremble quaked the entirety of his being. "I forgive you. Even should the fallen refuse to, even should your family choose not to, I forgive you. I forgive myself. I cannot change what I have done... nor the suffering that my choices have wrought. But breath yet fills my lungs, and so I will join in building a better, free world."

And for a change, Miles -- no, Elwin, smiled, that warm smile that had been missing for far too long. "Thank you, my friend." After brushing away his tears, he reached down, grasping the sheathed sword that had been resting across the memorial's base. The weapon was every bit as heavy as he recalled, but it felt perfect to him, it felt right in his hands. It was a long overdue reunion with a friend, after all.

With his task completed, the man stood, taking a moment to attach the blade to his belt where it rightfully belonged. Then he turned to depart.

[defeateddetectives]

1 or 26 with sugusato for the softer world thing because i love suffering and so do you lbr (hi long time no chat)

hello hello! look at us back in our natural habitat of suffering <3 first time trying my hand at writing them so here goes! somehow this was loosely inspired by both these prompts

1. our love is a forest fire and we are the little things that live in the trees. (today is the most exciting day of our lives.)

& 26. i love you the way a knife loves a heart the way a bomb loves a crowd the way your mother warned you about, essentially. (the way a human loves another human)

x

amidst the chaos of suguru declaring war and endangering lives and all the various other harrowing details that satoru knows he should be honing in on when they're face to face for the first time in years, there exists only one realization at the forefront: he wants nothing more than to reach out and tuck that insufferable strand of hair behind suguru's ear.

suguru smiles at him and it's all wrong but all satoru can see is the summer sun behind his eyelids, reflected in the ocean, miles and years away.

suguru says his name and it makes his head spin because that's always been the effect it's had on him for one reason or another even though satoru knows full well that he can no longer afford it.

and suguru looks at him like he knows this, like it is the thing that will somehow always exist between them. they've always been celestial bodies with an inexplicable pull except now they're heading straight for collision, mutual destruction even if it takes a different toll on each of them.

geto suguru walks away from him and it's like that first time (and the infinite number of times where his mind has replayed it over and over and over again). it's there again, that bitterness of his own abject failure to keep him, to stop him, to save him, rising like bile in the back of satoru's throat.

satoru thinks again and again of how easy it would be (how impossible) -- a flick of his finger, a colossal violet void, to put an end to it.

he thinks, maybe then, all this (above all, the cursed impulse to just reach out and touch him) might finally, finally leave him.

but that in itself is a lie and satoru knows this.

they'll have to die thrice over before it will leave him.

no, he thinks. not even then.

[ariel-seagull-wings]

Fereyel and Debbo Engal the Witch

@thealmightyemprex @themousefromfantasyland @the-blue-fairie @softlytowardthesun @autistic-prince-cinderella

(This tale originally told by the Fulani people from Guinea, Senegal and Gambia is a variant of the Little Thumb type of story about a small sized hero that survives a canibal villain trough cunning and wit, and is the most likely inspiration for the Michel Ocelot animated film Kirikou and the Sorceress)

A long time ago there lived a witch called Debbo Engal.  

She had ten daughters who were beautiful girls whom all men sought after.  

And from time to time youths would make the long journey to the house where they lived hidden away in the bush.  

But none of these young men ever returned to their villages again.  

Although nobody knew the reason why. Debbo Engal knew, however.  When young men called to see her lovely daughters, she would pretend to be delighted to meet them, giving them palm wine to drink and serving them choice food until night fell.  

And then she would say, "It is too late and the night is too dark for you to walk back to your homes through the bush.  Why not stay the night here and then go home at daybreak in safety?"     

The young men would gladly agree.  

And Debbo Engal would tell them to lie down around the fire she kept burning in the biggest hut in the compound.  

And soon all would be asleep.  The wicked witch would then sharpen her large knife, creep up to the lads, and kill them silently, one-by-one, with the skill of long practice.  

Then in the morning she would eat them.  

Debbo Engal did not feed on rice or corn or yams, only human flesh satisfied her cruel appetite.          

Now in a village some miles away lived a woman who had ten sons.  And they heard of the beauty of Debbo Engal's daughters and wanted to visit them.  Their mother entreated the boys not to go.       

"It is an evil compound; keep away my sons!" she begged.  "So many young men have gone never to return and I don't want to lose all my sons at once!"     But the lads laughed at her fears and assured her that they could look after each other and that ten men would be a match for any woman.  

Besides, the daughters were said to be so very beautiful that none of the young men could rest until they had seen the maidens.          

Early the next morning the ten brothers set off in high spirits, singing and laughing as they walked along the narrow paths which led to the bush to Debbo Engal's compound.  

No sooner had they left their mother then she gave birth to an eleventh son.  But what a strange looking child he was, being scarcely the size of his mother's little finger.  

Then he stood upright straight away and spoke to her.       

"Good mother," he said, his bright little black eyes gazing fixedly at her face.  "Where are my brothers?"     

"They have gone to Debbo Engal's compound," she replied in amazement, wondering how it was that he knew he had any brothers.     

At this the little boy gave a shout exclaiming, "Then I must go after them and save them!"  

And he ran swiftly down the path which his brothers had taken.       

Very soon he saw the ten lads in the distance and called after them, "Hey!  Hey, wait for me!"     

The brothers stopped and turned to see who was calling.  And when the tiny boy ran up to them they stared open-mouthed.       P

resently, one of them managed to say, "Who are you and what do you want?"     "My name is Fereyel and I'm your youngest brother," he replied.     

"Indeed you are not for there are only ten of us," they replied.  

"Now go away and leave us in peace!"     

"I want to come with you to save you from harm," said Fereyel.     

At this the brothers were angry and began to beat him, saying, "Don't be so silly; how can you be our brother?  Now go away and leave us in peace!"     

They beat him so hard that he lay senseless on the ground. 

 And then the unkind brothers went on their way toward Debbo Engal's home.          

Some time later, one of the brothers found a piece of beautiful cloth lying across the path.       

"Look what I found!" he exclaimed.  

"Some careless person has dropped this fine cloth!  This really is a lucky journey, isn't it?"     

He picked up the cloth, slung it over his shoulder, and continued on his way.  But somehow the cloth seemed to get heavier and heavier.       

And presently, he said to the second brother, "Will you carry this for me?  It's so very heavy on my shoulder."     

The second brother laughed at him for a weakling.  But very soon he, too, found the cloth too heavy and passed it on to the third.  

And so it went on until it reached the eldest of the ten brothers.       

And when he complained about the weight, a shrill voice from inside the cloth called out, "I'm inside!  That's why you find the cloth so heavy.  

It's Fereyel, your youngest brother!"     

The young men were furious.  

And shaking Fereyel out of the cloth, they beat him again and again until once more they left him lying senseless beside the path.     

"Well that's the end of him," they said.  "Lying little scoundrel!"     

So they went on their way; for it was a long journey.  And they began to hurry since they had wasted some time in beating Fereyel.       

Suddenly one of the brothers kicked his toe against a piece of metal.  

And as he bent to pick it up, he saw that it was a silver ring.       

"Heh-heh, what luck!" he exclaimed.  "Somebody has dropped a ring and now it's mine!"  

And placing it on his finger, he swaggered happily along.  

But after a few minutes, his hand hung heavily at his side.  It was all that he could do to walk, so weighty had the ring become.  And the same thing then happened with the ring as with the cloth -- each brother taking turns to wear it, but passing it on when it got too heavy until, at last, it reached the eldest.     "There's something odd about this ring," he said.     

And was just taking it off his finger when Fereyel's voice piped up saying, "I'm inside!  That's why it's so heavy!"  

And he jumped out of the ring onto the ground.       

Well, the brothers were about to beat him again when the eldest said, "He seems determined to follow us, and he's certainly been very cunning about it.  Leave him alone and let him follow us to Debbo Engal's place after all."

 So on they went until at last they reached the compound they were seeking.  And Debbo Engal came out to greet them.     

"Welcome!" she cried.  "Welcome to our home!  Come and meet my daughters."   The ten girls were very lovely and the brothers could scarcely take their eyes away from them.  

They were led away to the largest hut, and Debbo Engal brought them delicious food and drink.       

At first, she did not see Fereyel for he was hidden behind the eldest brother's foot.       

But suddenly she caught sight of him, picked him up, and exclaimed, 

"What a charming little fellow you are!  Come with me to my hut and I will see that you are properly looked after.  Never have I seen anyone so tiny - you must stay with me and be mine!"     

The brothers were surprised when Fereyel allowed himself to be led away without protest.  But they soon forgot all about him as they feasted and drank and danced with the ten beautiful girls.    Night came.  And the brothers talked about going home.  But Debbo Engal persuaded them to stay where they were.       

"There is no moon," she said, "and you might lose your way.  There are many snakes and wild animals about at this season, too.  So stay with us and return to home by daylight tomorrow."     

The lads needed little persuasion and soon began another dance, while Debbo Engal brought more palm wine to refresh them.  At last, however, the ten boys and girls had to admit that they were too tired to stay awake any longer.  And Debbo Engal lent the brothers some mats and pillows on which to rest in the large hut, where the girls were already almost asleep.  The wicked witch went back to her hut and gave Fereyel a comfortable mat to sleep on and a specially soft pillow for his head.       

"There you are!" she said.  "Go to sleep now and do not wake until the morning.  I shall sleep on the mat beside you, my little man, so you'll be quite safe."     

So saying, she lay down and closed her eyes.  And soon the compound was wrapped in silence.       

Presently, Debbo Engal sat up and bent over Fereyel to see if he was asleep.  He closed his eyes and kept perfectly still.  

She stoop up, went to the corner where she kept her big knife, but just as she was taking hold of it, Fereyel called out, "What are you doing?!"     

Hastily replacing the knife, Debbo Engal said sweetly, "Aren't you asleep yet, little man?  Let me smooth your pillow for you."       

And she tidied his bed and shook up the pillow and begged him to sleep in peace.            

Once again she lay down beside him and once again Fereyel pretended to sleep.  So that after an hour, the wicked witch got up for the second time and took out her knife, ready to sharpen it.     

"What are you doing?!" called Fereyel again.       

Making some excuse, Debbo Engal came back to her bed and told him to go to sleep again.  For a long time after that, all was quiet.  

But Fereyel did not sleep.  He waited until the steady breathing of the woman on the mat beside him told him she was asleep.  And then silently, he crept out of the hut, and made his way to where his brothers and the ten beautiful maidens were.  Gently and silently, he changed all their clothes, putting the white gowns the boys wore over the girls.  And covering his brothers in the blue robes of the women.  Then he returned to Debbo Engal's hut, lay down again and waited.       Sure enough, Debbo Engal soon woke with a start.  And for the third time, she crept to the corner of her hut, seized her knife, and began to sharpen it.  Fereyel did not interrupt her this time, and she slipped out of the door, holding the gleaming blade in her hand.       

Stealthily, she entered the young people's hut, bent over the ten sleeping forms wrapped in white clothes, and cut their throats with practiced skill.       

"Heh-heh!  They'll make me a splendid meal tomorrow!" she muttered to herself as she lay down contentedly and fell asleep again.     

As soon as he was sure Debbo Engal would not wake, Fereyel hurried into the big hut and shook each of his brothers by their shoulders.     

"Get up!  Get up!" he whispered.  "Debbo Engal meant to kill you all and had I not changed over your clothes she would have done so.  Look...!"     And he pointed to the ten girls who lay with their throats cut.     

"The old witch thinks it is you she has killed!"     

The brothers needed no second bidding, but tumbled hastily out of the door, and began their journey home through the bush, anxious to get as far away from Debbo Engal as soon as possible before she woke up again.  But it was no use.   As soon as the witch woke and discovered that Fereyel was no longer by her side, she rushed into her daughter's hut and saw that she had killed them by mistake in the darkness.  

Uttering a fearful cry she called up the wind, mounted on its back, and flew towards the brothers who were as of yet scarcely half-way home.

Fereyel saw her coming.  "Look out!" he shouted to his brothers.  "Here come the old witch!"     

The brothers were panic stricken but Fereyel knew what to do.  Seizing a hen's egg from under a bush, he dashed it on the ground between them and Debbo Engal.  The egg immediately turned into a wide, deep river.  And the young men were able to continue on their way.    Debbo Engal was furious and turned about at once, and made for home.  But the brothers had not got rid of her so easily.  

For she came back with her magic calabash and began to empty out all the water from the swiftly flowing river. Soon there was not a drop left and she was able to continue her journey once more.       

Fereyel saw her coming and shouted, "Look out!  Here comes the old witch again!" while he seized a large stone, flung it in her path.  

Immediately it changed into a high mountain, and the brothers continued on their journey, certain that Debbo Engal could not get to them now.       

But the witch was not defeated yet.  

She went back to her home on another puff of wind and fetched her magic axe. And then she hacked and chopped and chopped and hacked until at last the whole mountain disappeared, and she was able to continue on her way.       

But she was too late.  

Just then, Fereyel saw her coming again and gave his brothers a warning shout.     

"Look out!" he cried as they saw their village ahead.       

And with one final effort, they reached their house.  

Debbo Engal knew that she could not touch them there, and went away defeated, muttering fearful curses under her breath.       

But Debbo Engal did not let the matter rest there.  

She was determined to get hold of the young men and kill them.  

Even though she had mistakenly killed her own daughters.  So she lay in hiding and waited her chance. Early next morning, the village headman told the brothers to go into the bush and collect logs.  Somewhat fearfully, they went, keeping close together, and glancing over their shoulders from time-to-time in case the witch turned up again. 

They did not see her, however, for the very good reason that she had heard the headman's instructions and had immediately turned herself into a log of wood.  

As the lads collected the logs, they stacked them beside the path.       

"Come on!" one of the called to Fereyel.  "Don't be so lazy!  Why are you standing still while we do all the work?"     

"Because Debbo Engal has turned herself into a log and I do not want to be the one who picks her up," he explained.     On hearing this, the brothers threw down the logs they were carrying and raced for home.  

Debbo Engal, who was furious that she had not yet been picked up, changed herself back into a witch, and hid in the bush still longing for revenge.   A few days later, the brothers went off into the bush to collect wild plums.  

At first, they only found trees with somewhat withered fruit.  But suddenly they came upon a bush with bright, green leaves, and luscious, juicy plums hanging from its branches.       

"Look at this; what luck!" exclaimed the eldest brother, reaching out his hand to pluck the fruit.     "Stop!" commanded Fereyel.  

"Don't you realize it's a magic tree and Debbo Engal is inside it?  If you fill your calabashes with fruit, she'll soon have you under her spell."      

The brothers dropped their calabashes and ran home with haste.  

And once again, Debbo Engal's plans were frustrated.  The next morning when the brothers came out of their compound, they saw a grey donkey grazing on the communal grass at the edge of the village.  

It seemed to belong to no one and the brothers thought it must have strayed from a nearby village.       

"What luck!" said the eldest.  

"Let's all have a donkey ride!"  And one-by-one, they climbed onto the donkey's back, until all ten of them were perched up there precariously.       

And then they turned to Fereyel standing beside them and called, "Room for one more -- jump on!"     "There's no room at all," replied Fereyel.  "Even I, as small as I am, could not get on that donkey's back now."     

Immediately, the strangest thing happened.  The donkey began to grow longer and there was plenty of room for Fereyel.       

"Hah hah!" he shouted.  "You won't catch me climbing on the back of such an elongated donkey!"     

Then much to everyone's surprise, the donkey shrank back to its normal size.       

Fereyel laughed.  "You have all been tricked again!" he said.  "Donkeys don't usually understand what human beings are saying, but this one does, so it must be Debbo Engal again.  Get off if you value your lives!"     

The brothers tumbled off the donkey's back and the animal went braying back to the bush where it changed into Debbo Engal.    And now the witch was desperate.  She had tried all her magic tricks, save one.  And she was determined to make this a success.       

"If I can only catch Fereyel, I shall be sure of the others," she said to herself, and sat in deep contemplation planning another wicked scheme.  The next morning, a beautiful maiden walked into the village.  

The villagers crowded round her and asked, why she had come?     

"I want to see Fereyel," she replied in a clear, bell-like voice.  

"Will you lead me to his house?"     

Fereyel was amazed to see such an attractive girl and asked her to come into the visitor's hut.  And then he went out and killed a young goat and told his mother to cook the meat for his beautiful guest.  

All day long her entertained the maiden, giving her delicious food to eat and talking to her all the while.  

The villagers, who had never seen such beauty before, came peeping into the hut from time-to-time, and went away exclaiming loudly at the wonderful sight.   When evening came, the maiden said she must go back to her home.        

"Will you lead me through the bush, Fereyel?" she asked.  

"It is too dark for me to go alone."     

Fereyel willingly agreed and the whole village turned out to bid them goodbye.       

It was very dark.  And Fereyel led the way along the little winding path that the maiden had told him led to her home. And then suddenly, she disappeared behind a thick tree trunk and was completely hidden.  

Fereyel stood still, alert and waiting, straining his eyes in the dark.  

And then, out slithered a horrible fat python which made straight for Fereyel and would have coiled itself round him and crushed him to death had he not been waiting for this moment.      

"Hah-hah!  Debbo Engal!" he laughed, and changed himself into a roaring fire.    The python had no time to turn around.  It could not stop its huge rippling body from dashing straight into the fire where it immediately perished.   Great was the joy in Fereyel's village when he went home and told his brothers the tale.       

And great was the feasting and dancing they had that night to celebrate the death of the wicked witch, Debbo Engal.

[ceoofsalmonpants]

IC INFO

NAME: miles hollingsworth iii.

FACECLAIM: thomas doherty.

AGE: 21.

YEAR IN SCHOOL: junior.

2 POSITIVE TRAITS: pretty and rich.

2 NEGATIVE TRAITS: reckless and impulsive.

AESTHETICS:

salmon pants, summers in Europe, skipping therapy, self medicating, being a support system for his loved ones while ignoring his own needs, avoiding his father, writers block that lead to random bouts of inspiration staying up all night writing, champagne brunches, scars from your father your mother turned a blind eye to

EVERYONE’S GOT SOMETHING TO HIDE, WHAT’S THEIRS?

After getting kicked out of my last school, I'm on the verge of getting cut off financially.

HEADCANONS.

my main difference between canon is his relationships with lola and tristan never happened. the former bc i play lola too lol and the latter bc... i plead the fifth.

frankie and hunter are 2 of the most important people in his life and would do absolutely anything for them.

he spent most of his life in boarding schools, his father’s money kept him from getting kicked out sooner than he should’ve been.

after making a threat toward a professor he didn’t mean, he was kicked out of his college shortly before winter break and now he’s being forced to attend winchester university so his father can keep an eye on him. though his father couldn’t buy his way out of expulsion, he did buy their silence. his record shows he transferred and that’s the story he’s supposed to stick to to save face.

desperate for love and acceptance in his life, he doesn’t handle rejection well. he often acts out when he feels he’s being rejected by someone he thought he had a connection with. he can also be a little too trusting in an effort to find what he’s searching for.

he’d been groomed most of his life to follow his father’s footsteps to become a business man but instead fell in love with writing. it was his way of processing his abuse and the darkness that lives inside of him because it. much to his father’s disappointment he’s majoring in film with a minor in english.

as the mayor’s son, he cares very little about his father’s position. in fact, he’s convinced his father’s corrupt.

he suffers from ptsd, anxiety, and addiction, getting away from his father was the best thing that’s happened to him but now after being forced to move back home, he’s already begun skipping therapy and has relapsed despite needing to be on his best behavior.

lives at home and hates every single second of it. 

wants to write the next great novel someday.

bisexual king and proud!

[jdgo51]

Time to Rest

Today's inspiration comes from:

Trusting God with Today

by Charles F. Stanley

Editor’s note: Dr. Charles Stanley spent his whole life exhorting others to trust in God… a challenge for all of us especially when we are too busy and overtired. Trusting Him instead of our own thinking is the way to peace and rest. Enjoy this excerpt of Trusting God with Today.

"O God, restore us and cause Your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved."

— Psalm 80:3

"'Elijah was bone tired — body, mind, and soul. Fresh from clashing with the 850 false prophets on Mount Carmel, the prophet found himself on the run from the evil queen Jezebel, who was determined to have him killed. He fled ninety miles on foot to Beersheba. Finally, he was so completely drained that he despaired of life, sat down under a juniper tree, and said, “It is enough” (1 Kings 19:4).

Perhaps you understand Elijah. Maybe now that Christmas has come and gone with all its activities, visitors, gifts, cleaning, and complications, you find yourself completely exhausted and ready to declare, “Enough!” just as he did.

Few conditions deplete our faith and joy more rapidly and completely than weariness. Thankfully, the Lord understands our limits and restores our souls.

Sometimes we need to follow Elijah’s example, taking a step back from the situation and letting the Lord refresh us. We may need a physical break like a day away from work or from our burdens. But stopping from all our activities and taking time to simply be with the Lord can help clear our minds, give us perspective on our circumstances, and provide the energy to keep going in the days ahead. So sit down, rest, and be strengthened in the Lord.

Jesus, thank You for being my rest and restoration. Amen.

God is more than willing to uphold and sustain you.

In God’s Strength

Those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength... they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary. — Isaiah 40:31

I remember meeting the late missionary Bertha Smith at the airport when she was a spry seventy-two-year-old. I’d gone to pick her up for a speaking engagement at our church, and I was amazed at how lively she was. At that time, she had the next five years of her life booked with meetings around the world.

At the end of the first long day at our mission conference, Ms. Smith was still going strong, so I asked her, “Don’t you ever get worn out?” She replied,

“I’m not operating in my strength. I am going in God’s.” That was it. No fluffy theology — just straight-forward faith. She said, “Here’s what I do: I tell God what I have to do each day, and I let Him know I cannot accomplish it in my strength. Remember that Jesus said, ‘You can do nothing apart from Me.’ So I claim His power for each task, thank Him for it, and move on.”

That may seem simple, but it works. In your weariness, weakness, tiredness, or frailty, God is more than willing to uphold and sustain you. He will fortify you with power from on high. So wait on His strength and count on Him.

Jesus, I will wait on You. Strengthen me, Lord. Amen."'

Excerpted with permission from Trusting God with Today by Charles Stanley, copyright Charles F. Stanley.

[tomorrowedblog]

Friday Releases for April 14

Friday is the busiest day of the week for new releases, so we've decided to collect them all in one place. Friday Releases for April 14 include Renfield, SAKRA, Glorious Game, and more.

Renfield

Renfield, the new movie from Chris McKay, is out today.

In this modern monster tale of Dracula’s loyal servant, Emmy nominee Nicholas Hoult stars as Renfield, the tortured aide to history’s most narcissistic boss, Dracula (Nicolas Cage). Renfield is forced to procure his master’s prey and do his every bidding, no matter how debased. But now, after centuries of servitude, Renfield is ready to see if there’s a life outside the shadow of The Prince of Darkness. If only he can figure out how to end his codependency.

SAKRA

SAKRA, the new movie from Ka-Wai Kam and Donnie Yen, is out today.

Based on the classic wuxia novel Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils by Louis Cha (known worldwide by his pen name Jin Yong), SAKRA stars Donnie Yen as Qiao Feng, the respected leader of a roving band of martial artists. After he is wrongfully accused of murder and subsequently exiled, Qiao Feng goes on the run in search of answers about his own mysterious origin story—and the unknown enemies working to destroy him from the shadows.

The Pope's Exorcist

The Pope's Exorcist, the new movie from Julius Avery, is out today.

Inspired by the actual files of Father Gabriele Amorth, Chief Exorcist of the Vatican (Russell Crowe), The Pope’s Exorcist follows Amorth as he investigates a young boy’s terrifying possession and ends up uncovering a centuries-old conspiracy the Vatican has desperately tried to keep hidden.

Rare Objects

Rare Objects, the new movie from Katie Holmes, is out today.

A young woman with a traumatic past seeks to rebuild her life when she begins working at a New York City antique shop.

Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman

Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, the new movie from Pierre Földes, is out today.

A lost cat, a giant talkative frog and a tsunami help a bank employee without ambition, his frustrated wife and a schizophrenic accountant to save Tokyo from an earthquake and find a meaning to their lives in the animated feature Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman.

Mafia Mamma

Mafia Mamma, the new movie from Catherine Hardwicke, is out today.

MAFIA MAMMA is a hilarious, action-packed comedy about a suburban American woman who inherits her grandfather’s Mafia empire, and guided by the Firm’s trusted consigliere defies everyone’s expectations, including her own, as the new head of the family business.

Waco: Aftermath

Waco: Aftermath, the new TV series from John Erick Dowdle and Drew Dowdle, is out today.

WACO: THE AFTERMATH focuses on the fallout of the Waco disaster: the trials of the surviving members of the Branch Davidian sect and the rise of homegrown terrorist, Timothy McVeigh.

The Last Thing He Told Me

The Last Thing He Told Me, the new TV series from Laura Dave and Josh Singer, is out today.

This gripping limited series follows Hannah, a woman who must forge a relationship with her 16-year-old stepdaughter Bailey in order to find the truth about why her husband has mysteriously disappeared.

Queenmaker

Queenmaker, the new TV series from Moon Ji-young and Oh Jin-seok, is out today.

After a tragic accident, a powerful fixer uses her skills to transform a civil rights lawyer into the next mayor — and take down her former employer.

Blindspotting S2

The second season of Blindspotting, the TV series from Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs, is out today.

Six months after Ashley and Miles’s prison wedding, Ashley is navigating the chaos of her life in Oakland alongside her family and doing her best to be a fun mom for her son… with mixed results.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel S5

The fifth season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, the TV series from Amy Sherman-Palladino, is out today.

In the fifth and final season, Midge finds herself closer than ever to the success she's dreamed of, only to discover that closer than ever is still so far away.

Glorious Game

Glorious Game, the new album from Black Thought and El Michels Affair, is out today.

[cielrouge]

YA SFF Books by Black Authors 

A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow: About the strength of black sisterhood set in Portland, OR, best friends Tavi and Effie discover their true supernatural identity when Effie starts being haunted by demons from her past, and Tavia accidentally lets out her magical siren voice during a police stop.

A Chorus Rises (A Song Below Water #2) by Bethany C. Morrow: Teen influencer Naema Bradshaw is an Eloko, a person who’s gifted with a song that woos anyone who hears it. Everyone loves her — well, until she's cast as the awful person who exposed Tavia’s secret siren powers. When a new, flourishing segment of Naema’s online supporters start targeting black girls, however, Naema must discover the true purpose of her magical voice.

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown: Inspired by West African folklore in which a grieving crown princess, Karina, and a desperate refugee, Malik, find themselves on a collision course to murder each other, despite their growing attraction.

Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor: Sunny Nwazue, an American-born albino child of Nigerian parents, moves with her family back to Nigeria, where she learns that she has latent magical powers which she and three similarly gifted friends use to catch a serial killer.

Akata Warrior (Akata Witch #2) by Nnedi Okorafor: Now stronger, feistier, and a bit older, Sunny Nwazue, along with her friends from the the Leopard Society, travel through worlds, both visible and invisible, to the mysterious town of Osisi, where they fight in a climactic battle to save humanity.

Bad Witch Burning by Jessica Lewis: For fans of Us and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina comes a witchy story full of black girl magic as one girl’s dark ability to summon the dead offers her a chance at a new life, while revealing to her an even darker future.

Beasts Made of Night by Tochi Onyebuchi: After he eats the sin of a royal, Taj, a talented aki, or sin-eater who consumes the guilt of others whose transgressions are exorcised from them by powerful but corrupt Mages, is drawn into a plot to destroy the city, and he must fight to save the princess he loves and his own life.

Beasts of Prey by Ayana Gray: Two Black teenagers, talented Beastkeeper Koffi and warrior-in-training Ekon, must trek into a magical jungle to take down an ancient creature menacing the city of Lkossa, before they become the hunted.

The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton: In the opulent world of Orléans, where Beauty is a commodity only a few control, Belle Camellia Beauregard will learn the dark secrets behind her powers, and rise up to change the world. 

A Blade So Black by L.L. McKinney: A whimsical and butt-kicking Alice in Wonderland retelling featuring a black teen heroine who battles Nightmares in the dark and terrifying dream realm known as Wonderland. 

Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves: 16-year-old Hanna reunites with her estranged mother in an East Texas town that is haunted with doors to dimensions of the dead and protected by demon hunters called Mortmaine.

Blood Like Magic by Liselle Sambury: Set in near-future Toronto in which, after failing to come into her powers, 16-year-old Black witch Voya Thomas must choose between losing her family’s magic forever or murdering her first love.

The Bones of Ruin by Sarah Raughley: Set in Victorian England, African tightrope walker Iris cannot die; but soon gets drafted in the fight-to-the-death tournament of freaks where she learns the terrible truth of who and what she really is.

The Cost of Knowing by Brittney Morris: A gripping, evocative novel about Black teen Alex Rufus, who has the power to see into the future, and whose life turns upside down when he foresees his younger brother’s imminent death.

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi: 17-year-old Zélie and companions journey to a mythic island seeking a chance to bring back magic to the land of Orïsha, in a fantasy world infused with the textures of West Africa.

Children of Virtue and Vengeance (Legacy of Orïsha #2) by Tomi Adeyemi: After battling the impossible, Zélie and Amari have finally succeeded in bringing magic back to the land of Orïsha. But with civil war looming on the horizon, Zélie finds herself at a breaking point: she must discover a way to bring the kingdom together or watch as Orïsha tears itself apart.

Cinderella Is Dead by Kalynn Bayron: 16-year-old Sophia would much rather marry Erin, her childhood best friend, than parade in front of suitors. At the ball, Sophia flees, hiding in Cinderella’s mausoleum. There, she meets Constance, the last known descendant of Cinderella and her step sisters. Together they vow to bring down the king once and for all.

The Cost of Knowing by Brittney Morris: A gripping, evocative novel about Black teen Alex Rufus, who has the power to see into the future, and whose life turns upside down when he foresees his younger brother’s imminent death.

Crown of Thunder (Beasts Made of Night #2) by Tochi Onyebuchi: Taj has escaped Kos, but Queen Karima will go to any means necessary--including using the most deadly magic--to track him down. 

A Crown So Cursed (Nightmare Verse #3) by L.L. McKinney: Alice is ready to jump into battle when she learns that someone is building an army of Nightmares to attack the mortal world, before she learns of a personal connection to Wonderland.

Daughters of Jubilation by Kara Lee Corthron: In Jim Crow South, black teen Evalene Deschamps finds her place among a family of women gifted with magical abilities, known as jubilation - a gift passed down from generations of black women since the time of slavery.

Dread Nation by Justina Ireland: The Civil War is over, but mostly because the dead rose at Gettysburg—and then started rising everywhere else. Fighting the undead is a breeze for Jane McKenne, an Attendant, trained in both weaponry and etiquette to protect the well-to-do. But the fight for freedom? That’s a different story.

Deathless Divide (Dread Nation #2) by Justina Ireland: After the fall of Summerland, Jane McKeene hoped her life would get simpler. But nothing is easy when you’re a girl trained in putting down the restless dead, and a devastating loss on the road to Nicodermus has Jane questioning everything she thought she knew about surviving in 1880’s America.

A Dream So Dark (Nightmare Verse #2) by L.L. McKinney: Still reeling from her recent battle (and grounded until she graduates) Alice must cross the Veil to rescue her friends and stop the Black Knight once and for all in Wonderland.

Early Departures by Justin A. Reynolds: Jamal’s best friend Q is brought back to life after a freak accident … but they only have a short time together before he will die again.  How can Jamal fix his friendship without the truth?

Fate of Flames by Sarah Raughley:  Before they can save the world from the monstrous phantoms, four girls who have the power to control the classical elements: earth, air, fire, and water must first try to figure out how to work together. 

For All Time by Shanna Miles: Tamar and Fayard, two Black teens, are fated to repeat their love story across hundreds of lifetimes, from 14th-century Mali to the distant future, as they struggle to break the cycle.

The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna: Inspired by the culture of West Africa, a feminist fantasy debut traces the experiences of 16-year-old Deka, who is invited to leave her discriminatory village to join the emperor’s army of near-immortal women warriors.

The Good Luck Girls by Charlotte Nicole Davis: The country of Arketta calls them Good Luck Girls--they know their luck is anything but. Sold to a "welcome house" as children and branded with cursed markings. When Clementine accidentally kills a man, the girls risk a dangerous escape to find freedom, justice, and revenge.

Kingdom of Souls by Rena Barron: Set in a West African-inspired fantasy kingdom, Arrah comes from a long line of powerful witchdoctors, yet fails at magic. When Arrah trade years off her life for magic to stop the Demon King from destroying the world—that is if it doesn’t kill her first.

Legacy of Light (The Effgies #3) by Sarah Raughley: After Saul’s strike on Oslo—one seemingly led by Maia herself—the Effigies’ reputation is in shambles. Belle has gone rogue, Chae Rin and Lake have disappeared, and the Sect is being dismantled and replaced by a terrifying new world order helmed by Blackwell. If the Effigies can’t put the pieces together soon, there may not be much left of the world they’ve fought so desperately to save.

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn: In this King Arthur retelling, Black teen Bree Matthews infiltrates a secret society of powerful magic wielders to find out the truth behind her mother’s untimely death.

Mem by Bethany C. Morrow: In alternate reality Montreal (1925), a young woman’s personality is the result of a startling experimental procedure, leaving her to struggle with the question of who she really is.

Miles Morales, Spider-Man by Jason Reynolds: But Miles Morales accidentally discovers a villainous teacher's plan to turn good kids bad, he will need to come to terms with his own destiny as the new Spider-man. 

Oh My Gods by Alexandra Sheppard: Half-mortal teenager Helen Thomas goes to live with her father—who is Zeus, masquerading as a university professor—and must do her best to keep the family secret intact.

The Opposite of Always by Justin A. Reynolds: After falling for Kate, her unexpected death sends Jack back in time to the moment they first met, but he soon learns that his actions have consequences when someone else close to him dies.

Orleans by Sherri L. Smith: Set in a futuristic, hostile Orleans landscape, Fen de la Guerre must deliver her tribe leader's baby over the Wall into the Outer States before her blood becomes tainted with Delta Fever. 

Nubia: Real One by L.L. McKinney & Robyn Smith: When Nubia’s best friend, Quisha, is threatened by a boy who thinks he owns the town, Nubia will risk it all—her safety, her home, and her crush on that cute kid in English class—to become the hero society tells her she isn’t.

A Phoenix First Must Burn: 16 Stories of Black Girl Magic, Resistance, and Hope edited by Patrice Caldwell: Filled with stories of love and betrayal, strength and resistance, this collection contains an array of complex and true-to-life characters in which you cannot help but see yourself reflected. Witches and scientists, sisters and lovers, priestesses and rebels.

This Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayron: In this contemporary fantasy inspired by The Secret Garden, Black teen Briseis has a gift: she can grow plants with a single touch. Up against a centuries-old curse and the deadliest plant on earth, Bri must harness her gift to protect herself and her family, when a nefarious group comes after her in search of a rare and dangerous immortality elixir.

A Psalm of Storm and Silence (A Song of Wraiths and Ruin #2) by Roseanne A. Brown: As the fabric holding Sonande together begins to tear, Malik and Karina once again find themselves torn between their duties and their desires.

A Queen of Gilded Horns (A River of Royal Blood #2) by Amanda Joy: After learning the truth of her heritage, Eva is on the run with her sister Isa as her captive, but with the Queendom of Myre on the brink of revolution, Eva and Isa must make peace with each other to save their kingdom.

Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko: In a West African-inspired empire, Tarisai is raised by The Lady and sent to kill the Crown Prince once she gains his trust. Tarisai won’t stand by and become someone’s pawn—but is she strong enough to choose a different path for herself?

Redemptor (Raybearer #2) by Jordan Ifueko: For the first time, an Empress Redemptor sits on Aritsar's throne. To appease the sinister spirits of the dead, Tarisai must now anoint a council of her own, coming into her full power as a Raybearer.

The Ravens by Danielle Page & Kass Morgan: The sisters of Kappu Rho Nu share a secret: they’re a coven of witches. For Vivi Deveraux, being one of Kappa Rho Nu’s Ravens means getting a chance to redefine herself. For Scarlett Winters, a bonafide Raven and daughter of a legacy Raven. When Vivi and Scarlett are paired as big and little for initiation, they find themselves sinking into the sinister world of blood oaths and betrayals.

Rebel Sisters (War Girls #2) by Tochi Onyebuchi: Though they are working toward common goals of helping those who suffered, Ify and Uzo are worlds apart. But when a mysterious virus breaks out among the children in the Space Colonies, their paths collide.

Reaper of Souls (Kingdom of Souls #2) by Rena Barron: After so many years yearning for the gift of magic, Arrah has the one thing she’s always wanted—at a terrible price. But the Demon King’s shadow looms closer than she thinks. And as Arrah struggles to unravel her connection to him, defeating him begins to seem more and more impossible.

A River of Royal Blood by Amanda Joy: A North African-inspired feminist fantasy in which two sisters, Eva and Isa must compete in a magical duel to the death for the right to inherit the queendom of Myre.  

Slice of Cherry by Dia Reeves: In Portero, Texas, teens Kit and Fancy Cordelle, daughters of the infamous Bonesaw Killer, bring two boys with similar tendencies to a world of endless possibilities they have discovered behind a mysterious door.

Siege of Shadows (The Effigies #2) by Sarah Raughley:  After Saul reappears with an army of soldiers with Effigy-like abilities, threatening to unleash the monstrous Phantoms, e-year-old Maia and the other Effigies hope to defeat him by discovering the source of their power over the four classical elements, but they are betrayed by the Sect and bogged down by questions about the previous Fire Effigy's murder.

The Sisters of Reckoning (The Good Luck Girls #2) by Charlotte Nicole Davis: The blockbuster sequel to an alternate Old West-set commercial fantasy adventure.

The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow: Set in the near-future, in which a captive teen human and a young alien leader—bonded by their love of forbidden books and music—embark on a desperate road trip as they attempt to overturn alien rule and save humankind. 

War Girls by Tochi Onyebuchi: Set in a futuristic, Black Panther-inspired Nigeria, sisters Onyii and Ify, separated by a devastating civil war, must fight their way back to each other against all odds.

Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst: When the goddess Bayla fails to take over Liyana's body, Liyana's people abandon her in the desert to find a more worthy vessel, but she soon meets Korbyn, who says the souls of seven deities have been stolen and he needs Liyana's help to find them.

The Weight of Stars by K. Ancrum: After a horrific accident brings loners Ryann and Alexandria together, Ryann learns that Alexandria's mother is an astronaut who volunteered for a one-way trip to the edge of the solar system.

White Smoke by Tiffany D. Jackson: Black teen Marigold and her blended family move into a newly renovated, picture-perfect home in a dilapidated Midwestern city, and are haunted by what she thinks are ghosts, but might be far worse.

Wings of Ebony by J. Elle: Black teen Rue, from a poor neighborhood who, after learning she is half-human, half-goddess, must embrace both sides of her heritage to unlock her magic and destroy the racist gods poisoning her neighborhood with violence, drugs, and crime.

Witches Steeped in Gold by Ciannon Thomas: In this Jamaican-inspired fantasy debut, two witches from enemy castes—one seeking power, and one seeking revenge—will stop at nothing to overthrow the witch queen, even if it means forming an alliance with each other and unleashing chaos on their island nation.

Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood: An Ethiopian-inspired Jane Eyre retelling in which an unlicensed debtera, or exorcist, Andromeda, is hired to rid a castle of its dangerous curses, only to fall in love with Magnus Rochester, a boy whose life hangs in the balance.

Yesterday Is History by Kosoko Jackson: Black teen Andre Cobb undergoes a liver transplant and as a side effect winds up slipping through time from present-day Boston to 1969 NYC on the eve of the Stonewall riots, delivering a story that is part romance, part gay history, and part time-travel drama, exploring how far we have and haven't come. 

[punprincess321]

So this was inspired by Certified Weirdo on Twitter with an AMV they made for ace attorney; what if Maya's family could channel a spirit accidentally? Like the spirit is trying to get into the land of the living and the Feys are just so vulnerable due to how good they are at channeling that they can be taken over. So why do I mention this idea? Well allow me to explain.

Athena and Trucy are working at the office, Athena asks Trucy where Phoenix is, Trucy shrugs says Phoenix wasn't at home when she woke up. Athena gets worried and contacts Larry and Edgeworth, asking if they've seen Phoenix, Larry of course freaks out being so extra. This leads to a mini investigation with Miles going with Trucy to her house and searching for clues having to do with Phoenix's disappearance, when they get to his room and turn on the light, the room is in disarray, the window was opened and broken, and there's even blood on the floor. Miles and Trucy immediately call the police.

Gumshoe arrives and they look around, they end up finding Shelly Da Killers calling card and with it a note which says "Given that I remember Mr. Wright's talent and help in keeping my vow all those years ago, I do not plan to harm him, however my clients will not be pleased with this news. I recommend you find me before I have to kill such a fine man." Miles and Trucy are horrified but glad that Da Killer is giving them a chance to save Phoenix.

Now who are Da Killers clients? Kristoph and Daliha of course. Daliha possessed a random medium from the Fey family and when she learned about Kristoph, she decided they had a common goal: Phoenix Wright must die. She went to the detention center and met with him, with a little work, she broke him out and they came up with the plan to get rid of Phoenix. They actually called just to gloat and Kristoph threatened Trucy saying she was next after helping to get him arrested.

News gets out that famed attorney Phoenix Wright has been abducted and everyone close to him, Apollo, Klavier, Miles, Trucy, Athena, Larry, Maya, Pearl, and even Franziska all gather and wait in worry, trying to find something that'd give them a clue when Miles remembers something, he rushes to the bookshelf in Phoenix's office and finds the cases Mia did on Dahlia all those years ago and is glad that Phoenix never threw them away, he then remembers Iris and has her brought to the city.

Using the old case files and pieces of info from Iris and Klavier about their siblings, the group manages to find a place they would be hiding, as for Da Killer and Phoenix... still no luck there but Da Killer does give them hints and even lets them talk to Phoenix who is actually having tea with Da Killer but his leg is chained to a pole and he's not allowed to remove his blindfold.

The police locate Dahlia and Kristoph, Maya and Pearl use their power to drive dahlia out of their random family member and Kristoph is sent back to jail where they force him to call off Da Killer and have Phoenix freed.

Soon Phoenix is dropped off at the office unharmed, except for a bloody nose, and everyone is hugging him tightly, even Franziska is bawling relieved he's okay.

Phoenix and Maya joke a little bit now that they both escaped Shelly Da Killer and lived to tell the tale.

[killmebythebeach]

A bunch of head cannons (Maybe too much). Also in talking about the characters.

I think Dream is that one design where his skin is just the static tv screen. He just constantly emits that fuzzy noise, Sam crafted him the smile mask that he can see through so he doesn't scare people.

George is just kind of the server itself. He's the same species as Hannah, but a mushroom and more powerful. If he stays awake too long, the server just kind of freezes. This is also a reason XD keeps him sleeping, it's his way of talking to George and he thinks the server is like his soap opera of mortals.

Callahan is sort of like the person who makes sure George doesn't get killed or dies while asleep, making sure he's surrounded by mushrooms and such. Deer hybrid <3

Alyssa joined the server because she knew all her friends were idiots and didn't want them to die immediately. But once the elections rolled around, she felt the pressure of choosing sides and ran away to the desert, only keeping contact with Ponk. She actually lives just a couple miles from Foolish's summer home. Her communicator actually died after a couple months and she had no way of charging it, so she lost contact with everyone.

Sapnap is a magma cube hybrid and can jump higher than most, his natural temperature runs hotter, and is fire proof. Bad found him in the nether when he was maybe 10-15 years old.

Sam was actually a normal creeper, but gained player like sentience from being struck by lightning. Instead of becoming charged, he gained intelligence and met the others on the server. Callahan taught him some Redstone, but from there he figured out a lot on his own. He's also a creeper centaur.

Ponk is actually a descendant of a fairy, a lemon tree. Their mask was also a gift from Sam because after the second or third time their tree was burnt, their immune system was weakened a considerable amount. Alyssa also wore her mask for them.

Bad is a size shifting demon from the nether, more specifically soul sand desert. He uses soul fire to gain strength, so because the egg died when near it, he was just a little weaker than normal. Because he's a demon he needs a tie to the overworld to stay there, he tied his soul and lives to Skeppy.

Tommy was grown in a lab to be a hero, project: THESEUS. The lab gave him small enhancements, like slightly stronger and just a bit more resilient, to make the Above Average Boy (TM). He then ran away to meet Wilbur. When Dream asked Wilbur if he wanted to come to the server, he asked if Tommy could go first to see what it was like. He also actually really likes gardening and making up funny songs to Wilbur playing guitar. He also made funny lyrics for his discs, but he's still a bit scared to take them out of his ender chest. Other than bringing attachment, Dream also exiled Tommy to see what his lab enhancements could do.

Tubbo is an adaptive hybrid! His hair was blond, shifting to brown when Wilbur found him, getting blue eyes from Tommy, growing small horns under Schlatt, parts of his skin being static when Dream was "helping" him with his presidency, and parts of his scars tinging black and green from Ranboo and Micheal. Tubbo also helped Wilbur write part of the anthem. He likes living in the snow because the Manberg flag had magma blocks on it, casting a heatwave over the country, and after L'Manburg blew up it got really hot from the exposed stone in direct sun.

Fundy can actually hold his breath for a very long time and swim very well because of Sally teaching him and his salmon genes. The yellow things on his hat are actually shells, and the stripes on his jacket are trans colors. Also with his dreams, he saw Eret was going to betray them but didn't think it was real, or didn't want to. He also saw Wilbur blow up L'Manburg but chose not to believe it, thinking his father could still be saved. He actually saw pretty much everything, but didn't quite understand what they were until after doomsday.

The necklace Punz wears is one of those picture lockets, but he lost the picture and can't remember what it was. The first time Dream paid him was when Dream asked for help and Punz made an off hand joke about getting money, and then Dream thought he was being serious. Him, Dream, and Sapnap were like brothers, and Punz got sadder every time he saw Dream pushing people away and diving deeper into darkness.

Purpled is an aliensent to see if the planet was colonizable, but then crashed and was stranded, all his communications down and his ship barely able to hover fifty feet off the ground. When Quackity blew it up, he essentially got rid of his chance of ever going home. Purpled's species can shapeshift, so he turned himself into the first person he saw, Punz. Eventually before trying to communicate with the native life forms, he edited his form a little so they weren't identical, keeping purple eyes and antennae, changing the colors slightly, and changing the voice up. When he moves away from the main SMP, Ponk makes sure to check up on him and that he has a way to check his communicator.

Wilbur came a month after sending Tommy. His father being a patron of life and his mother the goddess of death, he met in the middle being born as a human. The only reason Ghostbur was as active and present as he was was because he was so connected to both life and death. Since his corpse was decaying for as long as it was, Wilbur is now super weak, his flesh is thin and his eyes are rotted and gone. Much like Ghostbur, Wilbur in limbo saw what people said about him, and Ghostbur could hear that from the back of his head. Now Wilbur can hear what people say about Ghostbur and he hates it, not wanting to be connected to what he thinks like a shell of himself.

Schlatt is a ram (duh) and actually does the fainting goat thing. So when he died of a heart attack, no one knew at first if he was actually dead or not. His alcoholism stems from the revive book, as the possibility of tampering with death made him existential and scared, so to cope he drank. There are also a ton of other stuff other than revival in the book, but it's in galactic.

Skeppy was just a normal human, but after making the pact with Bad, Bad put a spell on him. Parts of him turned into diamond, protecting both his and Bad's lives. He however, is unaware of this. With the egg, he would just sit on it, the diamonds chipping away to make room for the vines.

Eret was cursed by the Wither Cult, giving them white eyes and a slowly deteriorating memory. Not sure what to do, Foolish dropped them off at the SMP. Sometimes they would dream about old memories from before the curse, but it was just glimpses so he could never tell what they meant. Once they were king, they made the Herobrine shrine subconsciously, not really sure what it was after. They also had a strange affinity of beacons and resurrection, some of their memories resurfacing when they tried to help Phil and Ghostbur revive Wilbur after doomsday. The reason people are more scared of their eyes than any other wierd eyes was because he generally looks like a normal human, but the wither along with their Herobrine origins creates an uncanny valley that people are shocked by.

Jack had red and blue irises before crawling out of hell, but after coming back the whites of his eyes also turned red and blue. He always wears 3d glasses so no one noticed, but he just thought no one cared enough to mention it. He also has a bunch of scars and burn marks that no one but him can see, therefore no one asks about them or thinks something is wrong, cementing the idea that no one cares about him.

Niki is a blaze hybrid (stole this from @/420technoblazeit) whose fire hair color changes based on strong emotion, something she bond with Tubbo for as a fellow shifter. A soft yellow in L'Manburg, brighter orange in Manburg, hot pink on Doomsday, a soul fire blue with the syndicate (which Techno hates), and a dead grey when she found out Wilbur was alive. She was also old child hood friends with Ranboo and Eret, leaving Ranboo for the SMP. Ranboo, unfortunatly, doesn't remember much more than her name. She also knows galactic from Ranboo, so she talks about her troubles to Shy the Enderman. She doesn't really know how to talk to Puffy anymore after Doomsday or finding out how she wants to protect Tommy.

Quackity can perfectly replicate someone's voice and, with a lot of effort, can completely change his form to another player. He also has very small yellow wings, too small to fly, so he almost always hides them. He used to constantly change his voice for jokes with Karl, Sapnap, and George, but he doesn't like doing it now in Las Nevadas, as he sees it as unprofessional. However, sometimes he uses when he visits Dream, changing his voice to people like George and Sapnap to make torture more effective.

In the In Between and Other Side, Karl actually looks like his old skin, or his natural state (the big purple one that inspired his sweater). But most of the time in the normal world, he looks human. With effort he can bring out the interdemential being thing, something only Quackity and Sapnap know about. The more he time travels, the easier it becomes to change, and he's even started defaulting to the other form.

HBomb is actually just a normal news reporter, sent to interview and record what's going on in the server, his first big story being the election. Upon Doomsday, the stress of seeing everyone alone, fighting, and disconnected, he ran away from the world, essentially becoming a cat lady. His undercover reporter persona is actually the cat maid. He eventually came back to the server to see how he could help after Doomsday, befriending Niki again and living with her in the underground city.

Techno is a piglin, so he's scared of soul fire. He forgot to tell Phil before he decorated the syndicate room, so he just suffers in silence. He also does better when around a lot of gold, like in the nether, and he feels drained and slightly weaker without it. Instead of just putting gold around the area (it would ruin his property value), he just hibernates. He has an emerald earing, like all of the syndicate, but his is a locket that unfolds into pictures of the syndicate.

Ant always wears a red hoodie, now ruined by the egg, that used to be Red's. On Red's death anniversary, him, Bad, Skeppy, and Sam would make cake and put flowers on his grave. He missed the last one because it was during the egg, but for a brief moment after Puffy killed him he saw Red. Red then promptly and bluntly told him to stop being a pussy (haha, cat) and that he shouldn't do all this just to get him back, one of Ant's motivators to make amends with the people he hurt while with the egg. Ant is also a shapeshifter, but can only turn into a cat.

Phil actually used to work under Foolish as a patron of life but then he had a son with the goddess of death, so his title was removed so he could be with her and he became an Angel of Death. Kristin noticed how sad he was after being released, so she gifted him wings. They were however, destroyed on November 16th. His chat also serves as messenger pigeons, which were used to send letters to Wilbur.

Connor is actually just a hedgehog who somehow befriended Schlatt. Even before the haunted mansion, Karl vented to him about his time travel troubles, not knowing he was a sentient player. As a hedgehog, no one really cares where he goes, so he goes outside the server limits to meet his friends from the haunted mansion.

Puffy is a distant relative of Schlatt, but instead of politics she went into piracy. With her mom, she went travelling the seas. One say, a storm came and wiped out her ship, her crew, her mom, everything but her. The reason she survived was because Foolish saw her and saved her. Unfortunately, Puffy hit hee head in the crash and doesn't remember anything.

Vikkstar is the equivalent of a big time celebrity, so of course his endorsement of POG2020 was a big deal.

Lazarbeam is literally just a ginger bread cookie.

Ranboo has actually met a lot of the smp before actually joining. He's met Niki, Fundy, Eret, Punz, and Dream at least. He also sees the inverted colors Enderman see. His suit was actually a gift from Eret before they forgot how to tailor. He got the crown from Techno after joining the syndicate, claiming he didn't want any syndicate members to look like trash.

Foolish came to the server most recently to check up on Eret, but he couldn't bring himself to leave again. When Puffy adopts him, he can't say no because he remembers saving her. His initial goal was to kill an ender dragon to claim the XD title and become a full god like DreamXD, but after realising someone already killed it he went into his totem if death phase. Upon meeting Eret, he got over it and they went on some silly adventures, Foolish now taking a more peaceful route.

Hannah is essentially a weaker George, as her power is tied to the plants themselves and not the entire server. She however has a lot more physical power because rose dryads like to fight because they have thorns. Since roses can be taken out a lot easier, she is essentially a glass canon. Also when around any plant, she can make it grow faster than normal.

Any guest on the server? Corpse, Pokimane, Lil Nas? They were all Slimecicle. That's how he knows where everyone is from, even outside of Las Nevadas. No one else knows this. He's also ancient, if he met Phil they would probably recognise eachother. There was an actual Charlie Slimecicle who was not a slime, but after being launched into orbit this Slimecicle decided to impersonate him.

Michael Mcchill is a sort of bounty hunter. He came to the server after hearing of all the crime, assuming there'd be a lot of bounties to collect. However, he soon learned that no one really cares if you commit a crime. He then took to reading news articles made by HBomb to see if there were any past open bounties. But after reading for a while about the server's wronguns, mostly Dream, he began to sympathise with them. And he's also a speedrunner, so maybe he could help with some bounties across other servers!

This was a very long post and i apologize, but it was so fun to finally write all these thoughts down! I hope you liked them! I can't even fit all the tags I want.

[earnestly-endlessly]

kind of an odd request — do you have fics where erik is grumpy with everyone else but a ray of sunshine with charles?

Hi anon, thank you for the ask. First and foremost, I'm so sorry for how long this took me but I've been searching for all the fics that come to mind that fit your request. Second, this is not an odd request because I love this trope so much. I mean, it's basically canon that he's grumpy with everyone except for his Charles, right? Anyway, I might add to this list later on, but I can't sit on this any longer and hope that you have found some fics that you enjoy!!

Fic Recs Where Erik is grumpy with everyone but a ray of sunshine with Charles

Twice as Blind – Darksknight

Summary: Erik is probably the biggest asshole on the face of the earth, and because of this, he'll probably die alone. Charles is a complete flirt and playboy and, probably, will never commit to anyone ever.

(The lesson here is that when you have two friends who are BOTH secretly seeing someone, well, it's probable that they're seeing each other.)

In the moonlight, on a joy ride – scarlettblush

Summary: Librarian AU. Charles is the young librarian and Erik is the college student who is completely besotted with him.

The Proper Care of Actors – Clear_Liqueur, Clocks, Etherei, afrocurl

Summary: Erik is an A-list action star who is notoriously difficult to work with, until the day he gets cast alongside Charles Xavier, rom-com darling who can charm the pants off movie audiences the world over and apparently even one Erik Lehnsherr. The paparazzi catch them out and about soon enough, and their real-life Hollywood movie romance becomes instant tabloid fodder.

Rumor Mill – ikeracity

Summary: Erik is the grumpiest, most foul tempered worker at Stark industries. His grumpiness is the stuff of legends.

So it's obviously the talk of the office when Erik is being made to go to the company party and he's bringing his husband. There's rumors flying round about how much of a masochist or equally antisocial bastard Erik's husband must be to put up with him. Others think he must be a meek mouse perhaps bullied by Erik.

What they weren't expecting was the confident, charming, adorable and unbelievably nice Charles that turns up on Erik's arm. What they certainly weren't expecting was how much Erik obviously adores his husband and how happy he is to let others see this.

Work/Life Balance – pocky_slash

Summary: Alex is pretty sure his weird, anti-social boss is a robot. Right up until the guy's adorable husband shows up. His adorable husband who happens to be a famous actor. His adorable husband who happens to be the very same famous actor who was the source of many of Alex's teenage fantasies.

Terrifying Domesticity – ishipitsobad

Summary: Erik is the most dangerous and notorious mafia boss around for miles, and yet the strangest things terrify him.

For example: his children, and his very pregnant mate.

Of kittens and teacups and love – Ren

Summary: Modern AU in which Charles and Erik are flatmates. Charles studies psychology and likes tea and chess and keeps bringing home stray kittens, and Erik lets him because he's maybe perhaps a little bit sort of in love with him.

Fools Rush In – LoveSupreme

Summary: Erik owns a cafe on the edge of campus and accidentally starts maybe-stalking a Biology Professor there.

Growing Pains – ikeracity

Summary: Twelve-year-old Erik Lehnsherr is an angry, closed-off foster kid with trust issues and a bad temper. Ten-year-old Charles Xavier is a lonely kid in boarding school who just wants a friend.

Logan pretends he doesn't think they're both fucking adorable.

Series

Home Together (The Finding Our Way Remix) – significantowl

Summary: Erik is not the sort of person other students strike up conversations with. His expression, his posture, every part of his manner say: Don’t talk to me. I don’t want to talk to you. But none of that stops the boy ahead of him in line with the collapsible white cane, and nothing can stop Erik from falling for him, like it or not.

Melted Ice Cream and Macaroni Art – pocky_slash

Summary: Everybody likes Charles. Nobody likes Erik. And that's really the source of Erik's doubts. Also, there's ice cream and a baby. Part of ‘the Daycare’ verse.

Walling in or Walling Out – stlkrchck

Summary: Erik stifles a sigh. Of course this is Mr. C. F. Xavier. Of course.

For the prompt: Charles and Raven are throwing a holiday party. Erik is the grumpy neighbor who is annoyed by how loud they are being. So he goes to complain, and Charles makes it up to him.

(Wise Men Say) Only Fools Rush In – wildelybroken

Summary: After reading a fic where Erik and Charles are super sluts, meet at what is presumably Raven and Emma's engagement party, and end up sleeping together, I made the following comment and just inspired myself.

"They start casually texting each other throughout the day, maybe while they’re bored or frustrated at work, and start out meeting up and sleeping together semi-frequently. And eventually they accidentally start dating without noticing it at first, not until Raven and Emma get them alone and are like “wtf you two super sluts are actually dating??” And at first they deny, but then they’re both like “holy shit, we are!” And they meet back at one of their places and they don’t have to say anything, they just look at each other and come together immediately, kissing passionately and ~making love~. In the middle of it they realise that’s what they’ve been doing for a long time now and they confess their love to each other and they live happily ever after because they deserve all the good in the world."

For Charles – Shigai

Summary: Tired of being told he has to find his 'heart', classical piano graduate Erik Lehnsherr decides to travel to Italy and drink from the famous Italian passion for music. While searching for it, he meets Charles Xavier, a graduate in Fine Arts who is basically travelling around the world perfectioning his technique, and who will turn his world upside down.

Together they will discover that, sometimes, what you thought you didn't need is what you needed the most.

Erik Hates People – Anonymous

Summary: Erik hates people- it's his rule, a way of living.

Sugar – humanitys_cutest

Summary: Erik glances at the clock for what feels like the tenth time in less than half the minutes. It feels like he's been in some meeting or other since the day started almost 10 hours ago, and he's had just about enough of listening to these pompous old men discuss what would be the best design for his building like they know anything about it. He tries as subtly as possible to massage his temples to assuage the building migraine, but he knows it's no use.

He just wants to go home.

Everyone Likes Charles – Rosawyn

Summary: '“Everyone who's met him likes him.” Cain's grin was even stupider than before. “Once you meet him, you'll see.”

It was almost like a challenge then. And damn. Erik hated saying no to a challenge.'

Still Going Strong – JackyJango

Summary: Speaking of forty-eight, Erik hates it. Hates it even more that others are aware of it. While he’s pragmatic enough to know and accept that aging is inexorable, the increase in number gives the people around him the freedom to pounce at him with questions, opinions and advice he'd fought to keep at bay all year.

Besides, Erik believes that youth is a state of mind, not a phase in one’s life.

You have a child’s mind in a man’s body, Charles constantly tells him.

But despite his age, Erik is healthy. He works out daily. His muscles are steel and he can dead-lift four hundred pounds. He can break bones without breaking a sweat. Most importantly, he can still carry Charles to the bedroom and fuck him senseless. And as long as Erik can do that, he’s perfectly happy.

All I know is pouring rain and everything has changed – hllfire

Summary: Charles meets Erik, the man he had heard about many times from his sister and some friends, on a rainy Sunday morning. The stories about Erik paint him as a distant and intimidating man, but Charles finds out that maybe the stories had been wrong.

How to Successfully Ruin Your Life – humanveil

Summary: Seventeen-year-old Charles Xavier accepts a job at his local café, expecting nothing more than a fun, new pastime. What he gets is a mysterious customer and a schoolboy crush.

Stolen – ishipitsobad

Summary: Erik is a miserable, grumpy, cantankerous bastard, and he has every fucking right to be. He drew the short end of the stick when he got the Underworld as his domain, and there isn't very much fun to be had in judging and governing dead souls who would rather be anywhere else but with Erik in the depths of Hell.

So when he meets Charles, brilliant and lovely Charles who is more popularly known amongst the mortals as Persephone, and feels the promise of something wonderful that could make his eternally doomed existence infinitely more bearable... you can bet all your drachmas Erik's not going to let Charles go any fucking time soon.

Erik Lehnsherr's Guide to Saving the Universe By Meeting Your Soul-Mate and Falling in Love in Less than 72 Hours – magneto, pangea

Summary:Army Pilot Erik Lehnsherr is just trying to enjoy his day off when a mostly naked person crashes through the roof of his car. Even more alarming, the strange falling naked person—who goes by Charles Xavier when he's not speaking an ancient dead language—brings tidings of the apparent potential end of the world, and begs Erik to help him put a stop to it.

Well. His mother has been nagging at him to go out and meet new people.

The Theory of Partnership Dynamics – Pangea

Summary: “Detective Lehnsherr, how wonderful to see you out on the job!” The fed in the front greets him as they draw nearer. He’s shorter than the other two by a full head, and he’s beaming at Lehnsherr as if completely undeterred by Lehnsherr’s paint-peeling scowl.

“What do the feds want?” Lehnsherr asks bluntly.

“You know I can’t tell you that,” the fed answers cheerfully. Then his gaze lands on Alex, and, impossibly, his grin gets even brighter. “Did you get a new partner?"

“No,” Lehnsherr says through his teeth while at the same time Alex says, “Yes.”

[jekacatrina]

Fate don't know you like I do

Hello, guys, have this super cheesy and self indulgent piece I wrote for Bakudeku day! I'm so happy to be part of this fandom and all the wonderful content creators out there, so here's my little contribution, enjoy! I wrote it super fast so sorry for any mistake or typo!

Also, the title is a song I love, please check it out, it inspired the whole thing!

Izuku wakes up to the sight of his bedroom ceiling, body aching and mind restless. He’s no longer wearing his hero suit, except for the undershirt and his pants, everything else is gone. Slowly, the yells of the crowd infiltrate his thoughts and he wishes to run away, to go to where he can’t hurt anyone he cares about.

He has to leave. He is being selfish. Izuku props himself up on his elbows.

“That’s the face of a rabbit ready to bolt,” the gruff voice startles him, and he turns to see Kacchan sitting on his desk, frowning. It adds up that they wouldn't leave him without someone standing guard.

Kacchan has changed out of his hero suit, and a dark grey long sleeved t-shirt hides the bandages on his shoulder and stomach, but Izuku is keenly aware of the wounds he was sporting as he flew around trying to keep him from leaving. By the end, his childhood friend was bleeding through them. That was Izuku’s fault; both Kacchan reopening his injuries and the fact that he has them in the first place.

“Kacchan, I'm so-“

“Save it, nerd,” he abandons the desk chair and shuffles closer.

Izuku takes him in; after weeks of agonizing over the state in which he left Kacchan, seeing him do a perfect arch in the air and stop a villain with a precise AP Shot, filled him with a relief so strong, it paralyzed him, and he was only able to stare in awe.

During the following fight, if Izuku can call it that when it was against his friends, Kacchan was everywhere; coordinating different maneuvers, and he even had a new move. Izuku told his friends they couldn’t keep up, and he remembers vaguely that he apologized, because in reality they’re miles ahead of him.

Still, nobody is like Kacchan: certain and absolute, pure will held together by his convictions. He never backs down, and he never gives up, only marches forward. Izuku never stood a chance against him, in more than one way.

Kacchan kneels by the bed, putting an elbow on the bed, close to his hips, and lazily resting his head on his hand.

“Kacchan, I can’t stay here,” he mumbles, trying to convey all his inner turmoil. He wants to stay, he is so tired and scared, but he will not risk anyone for his sake.

Kacchan frowns in response.

“You can, and you will, dumbass,” he states, surprising him by clutching his forearm. “I’m not chasing your sorry ass around anymore.”

“Then let me go,” Izuku turns his arm, grabbing him as well.

“You’re not going anywhere, Izuku.”

The name travels through his body, lighting him up on the inside, coursing through him with the violence of the first time he used One For All, equally exhilarating and terrifying.

It all comes back to him; the rain, his words, his bow, Izuku collapsing and Kacchan appearing in time to support him.

Izuku.

“You apologized,” he whispers, tears coming to his eyes. “You said all those things in front of the whole class.”

“I had to, asshole, you left before I could tell you in private,” he doesn’t look embarrassed or regretful. Kacchan doesn’t shy away from his decisions once he makes up his mind. “Only a shitty letter for explanation and that was it.” He shakes his head. “You didn’t even let me go with you, idiot.”

“You’re still dealing with the outcome of the last time I let you come with me.” The tears are running freely down his cheeks. “I had to watch how he almost took you away from me.” He scrubs his eyes furiously with his free hand, not letting go of Kacchan. “I can’t allow more people to suffer because of me.” He’s on his way to a full on breakdown, struggling to get air in his lungs, and blood roaring in his ears, the noises muffled.

Suddenly, Kacchan is hovering over him, shoving his shoulder firmly.

“Hey, Deku, scoot over,” Izuku only glances at him through his crying, baffled. “Give me some room to lay down, like when we were kids.” He’s already in the process of climbing on the bed, and Izuku manages to slide his body closer to the other end, grabbing the bed cover when the weight of his childhood friend laying down almost makes him roll over him. “Jesus Christ, you stink,” Kacchan complains.

“I know,” Izuku turns on his side, creating more space between them. Hygiene wasn’t that high on his list of priorities, not even eating or sleeping was, and he feels awful. He didn’t have the energy to shower before passing out.

“You smell like dirt and sweat.” Kacchan scrunches up his nose. “Worst of all, you reek of that goddamn martyr complex, and it pisses me off.” he turns too, and traps Izuku in his red gaze. “If you’re choosing to ignore all I said before, at least pay attention to the last part.” He’s not sugarcoating his words, he’s as brash as he always is. “We all want to fight, because we’re heroes and we want to protect everyone, including the fucking chosen one, whether you want us to or not. I’m not asking for your damn permission, and neither is any of the rest. So, you can either play nice and make it easy for us, or be a self-sacrificial idiot, making it all the more annoying. Your call.”

“I don’t know how to stop,” Izuku grimaces, reaching for him with a shaky hand, and awkwardly squeezes his arm. “I’m not ignoring all you said, Kacchan” he chooses to focus on that, gaze in his All Might covers. “I, I forgave you a long time ago, mostly because I wanted to focus on the good parts, so in a way I let go of it for me.” He forgets about his smell, and scoots closer, resting his forehead close to his shoulder. “But thank you, Katsuki.” He hasn’t said that name in ages, but that doesn’t come from any animosity on his part. Kacchan has always been and will always be Kacchan. Izuku feels him move as Kacchan places his chin on top of his matted curls, and they stay like that for a while, with their past laid to rest at last.

Kacchan speaks up first.

“Listen, Deku, everything is getting pretty fucking real,” he pauses for a moment. “Shit is really dangerous for any of us, but for you it is like a thousand times worse. Your ass is a fucking death magnet, and it’s driving me crazy.”

“One For All is a big responsibility, Kacchan, but it’s not yours.” He does his best to keep his voice low and soft, the weight of the legacy crushing him.

“The Hell is not!” Kacchan retorts vehemently. “You made it my deal the moment you told me!” Izuku winced. “What’s up with that? Wasn't that the biggest secret ever? Are you that much of a blabber mouth?”

Izuku clutches his arm harder.

“I wasn’t going to let you think I lied all those years.” He explains, and in a moment of bravery, he continues. “I’ve never been anything but honest with you, Kacchan.”

The anger in his voice disappears as fast as it came.

“I know that, idiot.” His bigger hand finds Izuku’s hip. “One for All is your responsibility, but you are mine.” Izuku is pretty sure he stops breathing. “Since we were fucking four years old, and you were this quirkless little shit that wouldn’t quit chasing after me, no matter how much I pushed you away.” Kacchan scoffs and his breath tickles him. “Well, congrats, dumbass, now you have me and I’m not going anywhere.” His heart flies to his throat and doesn’t let any word come out. Kacchan growls, clearly bothered by his silence. “All for One VS One For All is the fucking shit show for the ages, and of course you, Deku of all people, have to be right in the middle of that crap.” He talks through clenched teeth, and Izuku longs to soothe him, but there’s nothing he can say to fix the situation. “All those who fell against that fucking maniac and now you have to-” Kacchan chokes up, and punches Izuku on the arm. “Whatever, there's nothing I can do for those nobodies that came before you, but you have an advantage over them.”

“What’s that?” He whispers in a small voice, not believing he is having this conversation in bed with his childhood friend.

“You have me,” Kacchan utters, and Izuku feels like he hit him with an explosion, sweeping his feet from under him. “Just let me set something straight, Deku, I’m not going to be your fucking sidekick, you hear me? You watch my back and I watch yours. I don’t trust anyone to keep up with you.”

I don’t trust anyone else to protect you.

“Kacchan-”

“You deal with this crap once and for fucking all, Deku, and we come up on top.” Kacchan declares, Izuku can hear the smirk in his words, and he has to smile back. “I don’t settle for anything but the best, and taking down fucking evil incarnated, I’m in, Deku, I’m all in.” He disentangles them, leaning back with a vulnerable expression, and offers his hand for Izuku to clasp. “What do you say?”

Izuku wants to say no, push him away from danger and lock him somewhere where he is going to be safe, but he knows Kacchan. He is determined, stubborn to a fault, and braver than anyone he has met. If he sets his mind on protecting Izuku, nothing is going to stop Kacchan, not even him.

That’s why Izuku loves him like he does.

In this space, with just the two of them, Izuku can be honest with himself: He is scared, and he has been for a while.

Scared of not living up to All Might’s hopes.

Scared of never mastering this power.

Scared of letting down all the people that gave up their lives to take down All For One.

Scared of being the wrong choice.

At the end of the day, Midoriya Izuku is terrified of not being enough.

In the midst of all the fear and doubt, he sees Kacchan; the person Izuku admires the most, the hero he has chased since he was four years old, and the driving force behind his progress. Kacchan, who knows all of him, and understands him because he sees Izuku for who he is, all the good and bad parts.

His Kacchan, who is now offering to help him and ease his burden, risking his dream, his precious life in the process, to stay close to Izuku and protect him.

A part of him, the one that imitates All Might, is screaming at him that he has to reject the support, to do it on his own. He should hold the weight of the legacy by himself. However, the other part of him, the one that believes Kacchan is what victory looks like, tells him he isn’t All Might and he doesn’t have to be.

He is Midoriya Izuku, and he is allowed to live his life and fight his battles on his terms, just as Kacchan does.

He clasps his hand, and Kacchan smiles, without a trace of mockery or anger, just plain happiness and relief lifting the corners of his mouth. Izuku hasn't seen him smile like that in years, and he needs to say something. He means to say yes to his offer, maybe thank him, but what comes out instead is:

“I love you.”

The punched out gasp that Kacchan lets out shocks Izuku more than his confession does. He can’t believe the words he has hidden for so long in his heart escaped that easily. More shocking is the fact that he doesn’t want to take it back. Even if he is scared of many things, Kacchan isn’t one of them. Yes, Kacchan frustrates him, he worries him, and makes him nervous, but Izuku is not scared of him, never has been. He can die any day now, any of them can, and he is done with silencing his feelings.

Kacchan is not screaming or scowling, neither he is leaping out of the bed and running away from him, so Izuku would say he is mostly stunned, although he doesn’t see why. His feelings for him are a key part of the person he is. Izuku admires him, cares for him.

Izuku loves him.

“Do you mean it?” The question seems to pain him. He hasn’t released his hand.

“Yes, Kacchan.” Izuku is not hiding it, not anymore.

“After everything?”

The words strike his heart and cut deeply. Izuku doesn’t hold any grudge or resentment, and he can’t tolerate the idea of Kacchan thinking he can feel something for him despite their past.

“Because of everything, Kacchan,” Izuku replies, touching their joined hands with his forehead, shying from the red eyes. “The past doesn’t disappear, but that’s not our present, and definitely not our future.” He takes a deep breath to calm his heart. “You don’t have to say anything. I didn’t say it to get an answer.”

“Deku, you can do so much better,” Kacchan says, bluntly.

Izuku doesn't let the obvious rejection deter him from speaking with the truth.

“I don’t see how,” he stares at him, mustering a wonky smile. “You are you, Kacchan; you’re brave, honest, loyal, brilliant, and hardworking.” The words spill without filter, and he drinks the sight of his pale skin blushing. “It’s not about doing better, just who I choose, because when it comes down to it, I chose you a long time ago, Kacchan.”

Kacchan tips his head up, the blond strands cloaking his eyes. Izuku refuses to regret coming clean about his feelings, but as the silence grows between them, he starts to fidget. Little by little, he realizes the true weight of his confession, and the bridges he might be burning.

“This doesn’t have to change anything, Kacchan.”

“It changes everything, Deku,” he replies, not missing a beat.

Izuku curses his luck; it was just like him to confess his love right when Kacchan finally came back to him, something Izuku hadn’t dreamt in his wildest dreams. Dealing with these feelings much longer, when they are so powerful and consuming is not possible. Still, he should have tried, for the sake of their friendship.

A callous finger touches his chin, breaking his spiral of thoughts, and lifts his face. The fiery eyes are wide and defenseless, embers instead of the wild inferno Izuku expected.

The first touch of chapped lips is an awakening, and his first kiss is over before he can finish tasting it.

Kacchan leans back, and for the second time in his life, Izuku’s mind goes blank and his body moves on its own, chasing after him. Their second kiss is messy, they don’t have any experience, but Izuku is lost to it. He tries to commit to memory every brush of their lips and ragged gasps, how soft is his blond hair, and the feeling of fingers sinking in his curls, guiding the kiss.

They break apart, but stay close.

"You didn’t have to do that, Kacchan,” he says against his mouth.

“I never do shit I don’t want to do, Deku.”

Izuku grabs him again, bunching up his t-shirt, so full of love that he fears he is going to float away if he doesn’t get a firm grip.

“Deku, I-“ his voice quivers and Izuku kisses him again, softly and reassuringly.

“It’s okay, Kacchan, you don’t have to say anything yet.” Izuku told him because he wanted him to know, but he has had years to come to terms with it. He’s not expecting Kacchan to figure everything out right now.

“You better stick around after that, you damn nerd,” he touches their foreheads together. “Or take me with you. Two options, I’m magnanimous like that.”

Izuku giggles, the sound so foreign after the past weeks.

“Okay, Kacchan, for that I’ll stick around.”

“Or you’ll take me with you.”

Izuku is still terrified of anything happening to him, but he trusts him the most.

“I’ll stick around or take you with me,” he promises, and Kacchan nods satisfied, wrapping Izuku in his arms and hugging him closer. “I thought you said I stink.”

“You fucking do,” Kacchan says immediately. “When I think about this, the first thing that is going to pop into my mind is that my first kiss smelled like a wet dog.”

Izuku laughs until he cries, and Kacchan joins him.

At one point, his back is to Kacchan, and he’s playing with his hands. Izuku’s so relaxed his eyes are drifting close, sleep taking over.

“Hey, Deku,”

“Yes, Kacchan?” he says drowsily.

“You have magnificent taste.”

Izuku snorts, pulling his arm tighter around him.

“I’m going to sleep now,” he murmurs, and he jumps when Kacchan buries his face on the crook of his neck. “Wake me up if something happens.”

“You can trust me, Deku, nobody is going to pass through me.”

Izuku believes him with his entire heart, but he still chooses to only think and not say what crosses his mind before falling asleep in his arms:

I would die before letting anything happen to you.

[testingcheats0n]

Massive Dream SMP Fic Rec!!

Hey- Hi, I just feel like there are a ton of fanfiction that's really underrated in this fandom- so I'm going to dump it on your dash!!! Most of it is going to be Tommy-centric or SBI-centric, but they are very good!

Source: Me

Finished Fanfics:

Multi-chaptered Fanfics:

that's, like, a hundred miles by No_one_you_know

Dream would kill him. Dream was going to kill him- he was going to- no, he wouldn’t. Dream was his friend- friends don’t hit each other- Dream was supposed to take care of him- Dream /was/ taking care of him.

It hurt to breathe. It hurt to think. He couldn’t clear his thoughts as he stumbled to the family computer, pulling up a tab on google and frantically typing the name into the search bar.

The words Technoblade Watson stared back at him, the little black bar at the end of the letters blinking slowly, mocking him.

Why, of all people, did it have to be Technoblade?

in short: the one where dream sucks as a parental figure, tommy runs away, and visits his least favorite family member technoblade

Hard-hitting, but has a happy ending, though I recommend reading the prequel (in the same series) first, otherwise, it's lowkey depressing.

MORE RECOMMENDATIONS BELOW THE CUT!!

you’ll rise above (crowned by an overture bold and beyond) by azvremoon

Tommy is not sixteen. He has faced too many open wounds, dripping ichor onto blood-stained warzones, to be just a child. He is Blood and War and needless Death, an all-in-one special of everything that can ruin reality.

(Tommy is the blood god. No one should know, but this server can't stop pushing him over the edge.)

+2 more Works that were Inspired by this one

Tommy is a BAMF and Dream, Technblade, and Phil get fucked it is what it is.

Responsible Forever by SilverWing15

“You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.” /////

“So,” Techoblade says, slow and deliberate, his face shows clearly just how unbelievable he finds all of this, “you saw a boy last night, in the middle of the night, living with raccoons and eating our garbage?”

“I know how insane it sounds,” Phil says, “but I know what I saw. We need to help him, who knows how long he’s been out here?”

“Okay,” Wilbur interrupts, “let’s say that raccoon-boy is real. What is it you want us to do? We can’t go searching the woods for specific bunch of raccoons, I don’t know if you’ve noticed Phil but there are a lot of them out there.”

“Going out and hunting him isn’t going to get us anywhere,” Techno says, “we have to let the raccoon-boy come to us. He’s already come once, you know how tenacious raccoons are. If they came to the garbage pit once, they’ll come again. We just have to set a trap.”

“Those raccoons aren’t gonna know what fucking hit them,” Wilbur mutters.

Or: RaccoonInnit taken well beyond its logical conclusion

Tommyinnit is a Raccoon boi that lives with other Raccoons

Protecting the Traumatised Youth by spookyserpent

Sam blinks. “What?”

Even behind the mask, Sam has the distinct impression that Dream is grinning at him. “A week and he was begging for my attention, even after I stole and burnt his armour, even after the beatings. He couldn’t stand me leaving him because I was the only one to show up, to pay him attention. It was hilarious.”

Sam is going to be sick.

Or, Sam decides to ask Dream about his intentions and ends up becoming a big brother to Tommy and Tubbo. All the while, Dream and George fight, Niki and Jack plan child murder and Ranboo is slowly getting adopted into the SBI.

Awesamdad written back when it was possible... ahhh

Chaos In a Bottle by Lovetribable

After a realization, Tommy leaves the pillar, but instead of going to Techno. He just disappears, leaving everyone to think he's gone.

It takes a war to bring him back.

+2 Sequels and an Alternative Ending

Dadinnit!! + A Sympathetic Dream

Absolutely Anything For Them by Numanum

“There’s a lot you don’t understand, Tubbo,” Dream sighs, meeting his eyes cooly. Tubbo, back against a tree, shudders at his tone, at the look on his face.

The sword at his neck skims across his skin as Dream shifts his grip on it, and he flinches back into the rough bark behind him. Dream smiles at his reaction, seeming pleased- like the cat that’s been toying with a mouse that always tries to run no matter how many times it’s caught. And, despite this being his first encounter alone with the man, he thinks that the comparison is fairly accurate; Tubbo has never felt smaller than he does now. There’s supposed to be a buddy system to prevent things like this- he shouldn’t be alone here, stuck in this situation.

Or: Tubbo becomes a traitor to save everyone and has to struggle with his choices

Traitor Tubbo, but it has the happiest ending possible since it follows the rest of the story.

Where Did You Come From, Kit? by KadeAK (zacixn)

Hybrids are an ancient species of humans crossed with animals, blessed with the favour of nature. They used to live in peace on the SMP’s land, but ever since the dawn of humanity’s modern culture, they have become ostracised and hunted by their once-brethren. Now, the once-thriving subspecies of hybrids have been reduced to ashes, the majority of their peoples struggling to survive in a city capital that can't stand their presence.

To the members of L’Manburg, General Wilbur Soot is just another mildly prejudiced human being, stuck with a hybrid fox kit for an adopted child. However, that assumption could not be farther from the truth. As it turns out, there's a reason why he is the man he is today.

This fic is entirely pre-L’Manburg.

Part of a series, very good.

Take It Easy by sweet_magnolias

Five times Techno scared Michael, one time Michael scared him, and the resolution of those fears.

AKA - Techno learns how to be an uncle.

Technoblade's POV, so expect some Tubbo bashing on the margins of all that Michael fluff.

I suppose it’s never my time to die, is it? by Birb_Whale

The first time it happens, he barely remembers. The second time is when he realized. The third... Twice is a coincidence, three times is a pattern

“It’s not your time to die yet, Tommy”

Messed up, but not unrealistic. Purely for the Hurt/Comfort lovers.

This Wasn't Planned, But It'll Work Out by Anonymous

Dream isn't sure what to think when he finds a kid on his doorstep, but he can't just leave him there, now can he?

(He doesn't know what he's getting into, or what he's gotten the kid into, either)

Long, and angsty, with a bittersweet ending Imo.

let's play a game by Aria_Cinabun

Tommy was once a slave. That's gone now - shoved in his past with the memories of blood and gore and death. He wants to forget who he was; what he has to do to survive. Of course, the Elementalists will always come back to haunt him. They aren't the ones who killed his mother, but they're close enough. And now he and his brother have been dragged into the mess, as Elementalists with their own, separate covens, to find the Pit - the place where he'd lived and killed and hurt for the first twelve years of his life. His coven can't know. Can't know who he really is, what he can really do. Can't know anything about his past. He doesn't want a coven full of Elementalists who don't trust him; one of whom he's pretty sure despises him. He doesn't want that life. He wants the life of a pickpocket, on the streets, because nobody questions street kids, and nobody comes asking about his past and pushes him to tell his secrets that he holds closest inside. Tubbo tries to tell him to trust people. But trust is how you die.

Good fantasy AU, has SBI, and is thus fluffy.

Turn of the Tide by SilverWing15

Tommy’s fins twitch at the mention of Dream’s ancestors. Dream talks about them a lot, how they made their fortune hunting down mer pods, how they were cruel and greedy. Nothing like Dream is. They’ve both overcome their roots he says.

Tommy is nothing like the wild mer out in the ocean, who spend their lives scraping by just to survive, who kicked him out of the pod when he was a baby because he was too small. He’s also better than the pit mer, who can’t overcome their wild instincts and know nothing but fighting.

He’s different from them, he’s better than them. He’s Dream’s. //// OR: Change is like the tide, when it comes, you can only sink or swim. You would think that a mer would be better at keeping afloat.

Mermaid AU Pooog. Part of a series.

One-Shots:

Snapped by AmberRunnel

“You don’t know what I went through in that prison cell.”

Jack burst out laughing, blinded with rage and the overwhelming urge to hurt Tommy, to give him everything he deserved. “Oh, is the poor child traumatized? You want pity now?” He twisted his blade, and Tommy’s axe was sent clattering to the ground.

“If the prison was so awful, why don’t I send you back there?”

-|-

Jack doesn't handle Tommy's revival well. There's a simple solution, though. Kill Tommy, and Dream revives him right back into that cell. Problem solved, kid dealt with.

It takes a few confrontations for Jack to realize he's an asshole.

It's fucked up, but god does it hurt in a good way.

the sky is coming down blue by salinesolution

An imagining of New Milo's perspective throughout the Skyblock Randomizer adventure. What did he think of the world he found himself in, and how did Wilbur's feelings and actions change things for him? Here's my way of answering those questions.

He made the fish think, funniest shit I've seen.

You told me to be a hero (so let me die like one) by spiromachia

"You told me to die like a hero," the blond interrupted, spinning on his heel to face the others, holding his arms wide open, "So why not fulfil the ending that was always meant to be."

Across the battle field, through the chaos and destruction, a tree burned.

Even the sound of explosions and cries and bloodshed felt distant enough for the world to become silent for a few moments, each individual slowly coming to the same conclusion, each of their bodies tensing.

Tommy's face broke out into a grin as he lowered his head, glowering at the people around him, and Philza's face flashed with recognition.

"Kill me."

Or... In the middle of Doomsday, Tommy decides to ask Technoblade to be the Lycomedes to his Theseus.

Heavy and dark, but at least Dream gets it.

tomorrow night by meridies

Tommy is desperately searching for his missing brother. Techno is the reluctant psychic who unfortunately got dragged along.

or, two people, more alike than different, learn what it is to have a family at their side.

It's cute what can I say :]

maple syrup by itisjosh

"We could run," Tubbo stares at the sun. "We've got everything we've ever wanted right here. We could run."

"Yeah," Tommy agrees, feeling his head swim. "We could."

(or, tommy and tubbo run away together)

Children get away from toxic adults :)

Why’d it have to be so sunny? (The sun shouldn’t shine without you.) by AToZRainToBe

‘A realisation hits Phil in the face like a truck. “Wi- Ghostbur,” Phil says, turning to his grey-scale, translucent, actually-dead son. “You definitely told Tubbo that Tommy’s alive, right?”’

To get away from Dream, Tommy agrees to fake his death, going with the cover story that he jumped from the pillar in Logstedshire. Unfortunately, someone forgot to tell Tubbo.

Misunderstandings are one of my favorite tropes.

sugar and ice by princedemeter for Aenqa

“He is my son,” Philza says. “Mortal or not, I would see him grow strong.”

Technoblade looks down on earth, at the tiny, angry bundle of cloth and pinking, wrinkled skin. This mortal child, he thinks, lungs filled with breath from the king of gods himself, will not grow strong.

It's mostly centered around Technoblade and Wilbur with Phil being a shitty dad. Pog Gods AU.

a matter of time by meridies

Tommy is twelve years old when his wings first appear, and he is twelve years old when Phil tells him, "All it takes is time and patience, Tommy, and soon you'll be flying even better than me."

or, Tommy grows up feeling like a failure, and it takes him a while to figure out where he's happiest.

Tommy is just finding his place in the world. Powers AU.

That Time a Baby Decided to Raise a Baby by Scitrust

Tubbo wasn't good at making excuses, so when Schlatt asked him why he was leaving in the night, he made something up on the spot. That had been months ago.

At least he sort of had an alibi for that, now.

Or, in which Tubbo finds a baby in the woods on his way to see Tommy, and promptly adopts it.

Part of a collection!! Read it all.

spider lily by blue000jay

Wilbur has a body.

The freckle on the base of his left pinky finger (shared with Techno). The scar on his chin from when he was twelve and over ambitious, diving into too-shallow water. The scar on his throat from the final control room, and the puckered skin on his shoulder from the poisoned arrow that killed him next. Various other nicks and things that litter his skin from years of rebellion and living wild, a kid thrown into a vicious world with too little self-preservation.

(Resurrection AU, for when/if Wilbur comes back.)

The author knows how it's like to live with chronic pain, and it shows :(

Hands tied loose by rabiddog

"Let's run away, Tubbo." Tommy breathed; a wide grin split across his face as his hope grew. "Let's get out of here – far away. We can go anywhere, can't we? Let's just go, you and me right here, right now."

-

Tommy needs to leave. He has to get out of L'Manburg, he has to leave the Dream SMP for his own sanity, and he wants Tubbo to come with him.

But Tubbo has a family now, a better life - something that he can't give up... not even for his best friend.

Unhappy ending :(

The serpent underneath by rabiddog

Tommy and Techno sit at the memory-filled bench and talk. Technoblade reminisces, he talks, he admits his pent-up feelings, he cries. And Tommy? Tommy listens. (That's all he can do.)

-

“I’m sorry for everything, you know? For all of it. I’m so sorry about... about the first war, about the withers and the fighting, about...” Technoblade's fingers began to curl around Tommy’s blonde locks. “About Wilbur and everything after. I'm so, so sorry.”

:((((((((

Damning choices by rabiddog

Ranboo would have never expected to find himself in a horrifying situation such as that one - quite literally sandwiched between a rock and a hard place, with three lives dangling over his head and the answer on the tip of his tongue.

Tubbo, Michael, Tommy.

It's his choice. He chooses who lives, and who dies. His new family, or his first friend. But Ranboo... Ranboo already knows.

-

"Ranboo," He hissed out, voice cracking and somewhat staticky, "It's not your fault. It's not. You had no other choice; I know that, okay? I- I know that- I know- I know..."

:(((((((((((((((((((((((((((

Jealousy is a disease by rabiddog

Tommyinnit isn't new to the idea of jealousy. He understands it completely. He understands the way it runs rampage through his body each time he catches even a glimpse of Tubbo and Ranboo's new relationship, he understands that the emotion makes his heart clench uncomfortably from time to time. He sees it, feels it, and yet he doesn't care.

He doesn't care at all.

-

"You took Tubbo away from me. You took him away. You took my best friend, and now he's- now he's not my best friend anymore, and I-!"

:)

Word of Honour by rabiddog

Tommy could only stand and stare as Technoblade agreed to hand him over to Dream - as his brother traded him off like he was nothing. Like Tommy wasn't important.

-

Technoblade was a man of honour. He was a man of pride and sticking to his word. He knew that he owed Dream a favour, and no matter what that favour might be, he'd be compliant with it. Nothing would change his mind. (Not even Tommy.)

Almost canon. F.

Sweet Repentance by rabiddog

Perhaps Tommy should have told Phil about his arguably life-threatening injury the minute his father had opened the door. But of course, Tommy being Tommy, did not.

Dying seemed like a nice enough option as long as he was with his family.

-

Tommy just wanted acceptance, forgiveness, and peace. He wanted to close his eyes for the last time and finally be able to let go.

Tommy dies painfully.

A White Tulip by astervoid

He picked the white tulip from the bottom of the stem, standing up carefully as he held it pinched between his fingers. It would die now, inevitably, but Tommy relented and held the flower to his chest. What a silly, stupid thing to ground him. He almost hated that it made his breaths come easier and his steps feel lighter. Almost.

Tommy & Ranbooo chill on the bench.

lying to the authorities (again) by touchgrass

"Please tell me that my right-hand-man, my soon-to-be vice president, one of the people I trust the most on this godforsaken server, did not lie straight to my face and tell me he was twenty-fucking-years-old.”

Tommy opened his mouth to protest, but then closes it shut at the furious look on Wilbur's face. Oops.

~

It is the day of the elections and Wilbur Soot could not have chosen a worser time to realize that half his staff is underage.

The ONLY fic with this premise I've seen on Ao3.

Dear Theseus by rabiddog

Tommy had thought that they'd won - thought that they'd finally beaten Dream, and that everything would be okay. As it turns out, however, apparently Dream had called in that favour from Technoblade after all.

-

“Please,” Tommy whispered after a beat, quivering hands edged upwards to hesitantly press against the tip of the sword striking through his chest. Why, why, why? Why him? Why now?

Tommy almost wins.

A Shifting World by AplusIsRoman

How was Wilbur supposed to know it would end like this?

The smoke hung in the air and soot clung to his skin. His brother - adopted, but older by two minutes - stood back-to-back with him. The chilling cries of people and the calls of the withers rang through the air above the chasm that was once his home.

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

How could he have known this would happen?

-

Sequel to A Child's World

Age-swap AU. Has a prequel.

heart of the sea by RyDyKG

Here is the secret that he barely thinks about, a secret that he shoves deep and far down in himself:

Wilbur Soot is a siren, and he’s not exactly proud of that fact.

Wilbur-centric. Urban Fantasy AU.

He knows, ok? by Ralli

By some means, Techno has given his raccoon younger brother some cotton candy. It doesn’t end as well as either of them would like.

Very, very cute :)

that's it, it's split (it won't recover) by Jk_Kat

Tommy has always been the fighter.

He has never been the fought for, and he knows it, with every whisper Tubbo directs at Ranboo, with every glance thrown his way- Tommy knows, the way he wishes he didn't, that they think he's dead.

If they're so convinced he's still dead, maybe the one good thing left he can do for them is die.

---

Or, Tommy gets addicted to being dead and thinks that nobody cares about him. The people who very much do try to pull him back from the brink before Dream can't resurrect him anymore.

Messed up, but with a happy ending.

Hugs 'n PTSD by rabiddog

Ranboo knew from the start that the recovery process would be hard - that moving on from quite literally being beat to death would be something hugely difficult to step away from, and that's if Tommy could even manage it at all.

He knew that it would be stressful and arduous, demanding and tough... he just hadn't expected to be holding Tommy through a PTSD-induced panic attack only days after his release from Pandora's Vault.

-

Ranboo isn't typically an overbearingly protective person. But for Tommy? He just might be.

I love this author if you can't tell.

Big Men don't cry by Shiny22Snivy

The room is small and warm, almost stifling compared to the cool openness of the ravine. It’s cosy and candlelit, and a chest sits open in the corner, full of what looks to be burnt rags of a former smart suit. And sitting in rumpled blankets on a bed, cradling a mug of something steaming, sits Tubbo.

At first, Tommy forgets all about Niki’s vague warning. He’s just so happy to see his best friend again, alive and well and all in one piece. Tubbo’s okay. Tubbo’s okay, and in front of him, and suddenly everything bad in the world is gone, if only for just a moment.

“Tommy?”

And then Tubbo turns to look at him.

Clingyduo fluff.

sins of the father (i broke all my bones that day i found you) by ryter

The thing that hurt Wilbur most was when he saw Fundy tear down the walls of L'Manburg. After all, those walls had gone up to protect his son. But in this world, Fundy trusts his father just a little bit more, and it ruins him.

Or: there's only one way Wilbur never becomes the villain. It's unclear whether this was the better path.

SOME VIOLENCE WARNINGS/BLOOD MENTION. CHARACTER DEATH. SO MUCH ANGST.

Sad, but cathartic.

REVIVED TOMMY HEADCANNONS AHAHAHAHA by racooninnit

i’m dropping ALL the fucking revived tommy headcannons on you guys today get ready for some ANGST

this is different from what i usually post but it was fun

i don’t think there’s a lot i need to put warnings for, obviously there are mentions of the way tommy died and the aftermath of that (i.e. injuries and trauma), but if there’s anything that needs a warning please tell me!

What it says on the tin- not really a fic.

Unfinished Stories:

Ongoing (Less than a month since the last update):

Over the River Styx by CorpseArt

I feel like we should name him.

There’s a scuffle at the back of his mind as he rolls up, curling tight with a shiver despite the heat of the flames licking up his back.

I mean, he’s like – us, but like a worse version clearly because oh man, this is just weirdness. There’s a flare of a tangle of emotions, complicated and fearful, resentful and livid with anger. I can’t believe this is what I’ve been reduced to, stuck in the mind of this- this child.

He’s like your age, Tommy. Are you calling yourself a child?

I mean, I am one so fucking duh. Child murderer.

-

Or: trauma bonding in the most unconventional of senses.

Just- Read it. Show the writer your support, it's unique, it's amazing and there needs to be more of it.

If history is dead and gone by iregretallmydecisions

“Don’t come any fucking closer,” Tommy shouted, startling Phil into stepping back. Tommy was still looking around wildly, like a trapped animal “Don’t fucking do it.” ---- In which Tommy finds himself faced with his splintered family, while it was still mostly whole. The past is not an easy place to be when the future was not kind. His family is forced to deal with the fall out.

It's better than Rewind, but you didn't hear that from me.

Wilbur Soot's Redemption (OR Ghostbur's Retry) by luckykitty0523

Wilbur had many regrets in his life, being lost in his madness and the urge for revenge drowned leaving a shell of who he once was. It was only in his dying moments that he regained himself but it was already too late for him leaving him drowning in wishes and regrets. However waking up in another different universe where wilbur was never born and family soulmates exist, so when wilbur said he wanted to fix the mistakes he never expected this turn of events.

OR

In one world wilbur dies and he would return as a ghost missing his memory and trying to fix what he did in life but in this one wilbur dies and wakes up in another world where soulmates exist and the wilbur of that world was never born so wilbur/ghostbur takes his place and tries to make up his mistakes to the other version of his friends.

Wilbur adopts SBI + Fundy + Dream.

A Talk Long Overdue by penink

Tommy has his first therapy session with Puffy.

Tommy gets therapy.

Into the Night by Interjection

“Don’t touch me,” Tommy hisses, leaning against the railing. “I will - I will-”

They’re a hundred stories up. Wind lashes against Phil’s face. Next to him, Sam makes choked noise.

“But why?”

Tommy looks up to meet Phil’s eyes, terror struck so deep in those pale blue irises Phil thinks they must hold all the world’s fears within them.

“You’ll die,” he whispers. “And then I’ll die. But I’ll come back.”

“And I don’t want to come back.”

Others have the freedom to live. Tommy doesn’t even have the freedom to die.

But maybe they can teach him that living doesn’t have to be so bad.

---

(Superpowers AU where whenever someone touches Tommy, they both die. But Tommy will always come back to life eventually. He just wants it to end - but instead, he’s on the run, terrified of how his power will be exploited if he’s caught.

A few people reluctantly team up to save him.)

Funky SBI dynamics + a Sam that cares. Also a lot of angst.