#but they'd eventually treat her with great kindness

[fruit-salad-ship]

Have you considered, Gladiator AU, Grey and Peach sparring and then it gets a little spicy before they realize wait Plum is watching.

Gladiator AU is building itself, with your suggestion in mind, lets see here...

So Peach got sold into the arena life as a young child, starting with helping warriors gear up, feeding people, feeding animals, moving bodies from the pit, removing gear. A lot of things a child shouldnt have had to do, but she started to pry, ask the fighters questions, practice wielding a sword at a young age, and while she failed, the people who came and went would either be cruel, or leave her with a tip or trick, and so she gained a lot of infomration in a short period of time about fighting and the nature of men, most of which was negative. Her brutality grew it had to for her survival, for her safety, and she snapped at her boss one time too many. They put her in the Arena as a half time joke, put a woman in, theres no way she'd come out alive right? But she did, and she kept doing it. Never given personal space, no room of her own, no door to lock at night to feel safe behind, or posessions to hold dear. She lived to fight, and fought to live, a vicious circle of expecting not to come out of the pits in one piece. If she was the meanest thing in the room, no one would touch her, no one would mess with her, she was safe for a moment.

Her biggest battle to date she won, and the person hosting, a young and quite pretty socilaite from a powerful family offered her a gift, asking her to remove the helmet so she could see the face of the victor. Plum, unaware of this gladiators reputation, watches a woman reveal herself, and is instantly fascinated. Not often you saw this happen. Peach asked for her freedom, still under ownership of the colleseum, and Plum obliged that in the only way possible at the time. She bought up Peach's contract, a hefty price for one warrior, but she'd becoem quite infamous and so the price tag went up. Peach was devestated at first, from frying pan to fire, she was still not free, but took this as a next step at the least. For what it was worth the pay was better as a personla guard, and the chances of death far lower. She was shown to a small room, a bed and some simple furniture, and asked to go to the head of Plums security detail for gear and further instruction. That being Grey. Now Grey was at teh fight, he saw her win, and was just as shocked to see her reveal herself. When Peach finally strode into the barracks to find him he was ready with gear, but first wanted to see Peach fight first hand, with a better sword and less distraction.

The rest of the staff found it impossible not to watch the two clash, Peach was quietly confident, and Grey saw her get a little hot under the collar as he caught her off guard, smacked a shield hard into her ribs to stagger the woman back a few paces. He was good, but she was quick, and the two found it an even match for what felt like an hour or two. It was a draw, both dripping with sweat, but...smiling? They'd met their match. Peach proved herself, and Grey earned her respect. Late nights were the worst, Peach found it impossibly boring being a personla guard, safe sure but dull. This life was slow compared to the arena. After a week of nothing happening, no attackers, no intruders, nothing but boring patrols and mindless drills, Grey threw the new hire a bone. A rematch to kill time, something Peach jumped at. Yet again they seemed to come to a stale mate, skills though different seemed evenly matched. With no one watching, Grey decided perhaps he could have a little fun with the newbie, instead of being on the defence, really swinging wide and heavy out of no where after being so controlled and collected. It got Peach on the back foot, being unprepared, block after block taken well, but a cheap shot, Grey kicking dirt up in her face forced her to raise a shield to try to block anything coming in. It was not enough.

Peach got tackled down, sword clattering across ornate tiles, still struggling to see, the painful compression on her chest of an impossibly heavy body marking defeat. "You cheat!" Grey laughed, knelt to keep her pinned, watching her squirm, getting a cheap shot in at his ribs with her fist, enough to get some of his weight off her. The wrestle for control was tough. It was the slew of swearing and metal gear scraping that awoke their boss in the dead of night, her elegant little form creeping back to her balcony to see a familiar sight in the dead of night, light from sconces picking out the flash of silvers and golds.

Meanwhile Greys got Peach's arm brace held, stopping her moving, she undoes the strap and frees herself, it gets thrown, but he's not giving her the option to get up and retaliate, grabs the front of her chest plate and keeps her pinned, unable to stop her loosing the straps, kicking his chest so he and her gear gets pushed back. She's down to a shirt, but does not quit. Grey has one key vulnerability, she knocked his helmet off at the very start and his gear isnt covering his neck. Peach takes a leap off a stone pillar, valting to get up to his height, legs wrapping around his neck, taking them both down to the floor. He had not expected the move, huge form brought to its back. She unsheathed the small dagger on HIS belt and held it, one hand on the back of its hilt at his face, not striking, but making it clear he'd have been dead if this was real.

He laughed and she was able to sit back, still atop his chest, both panting from the exertion of the fight. "I guess theres worse ways to end up with a gilr on top of me." Peach felt ther face heat up, slapping him on the arm hard. "Dont be an ass just because you lost." "Wouldnt call this so bad a loss." Grey's grin was cheeky, and forced her to start to get up. IT was at that point they both heard a twig snap, looking to the home they were suppose to guard, in the tended gardens their boss watching, wine in hand looking very smug. Plum sauntered a little closer, Peach getting up at speed, taking several steps back, realising she was out of gear, this looked way worse than it was. "Dont let me interupt you two, you were having fun." Grey grunted getting up, his gear weighing him down, feeling Plums hand brush his cheek as she walked past, not stopping to see him, continuing to see the new girl, who'd become quite nervous, standing to attention, flinching from the light touch that took note of the bare skin on her side, exposed now her gear was thrown to one side. Sure, maybe the young royal was revelling in her rather expensive addition to security, she planned to let Peach go free sure, but just not right away. Had to enjoy having her around for a little while right? "You're wasted under all that armour." Peach said nothing, mortified by the turn of events, even Grey ambled over and shunted her shoulder in a jovial way, not enough to knock her out of her now very stern and controlled behaviour. He could joke around, he wasnt the new hire, she however was not about to step out of line anytime soon. Both Plum and Grey let her grab her things and go, back to the routine, shuffling off fast out of embarrasment, leaving the old friends in a quiet moment. "So she beat you." Plum hooked her arm through his instinctivley, having him walk her back to her room, an act he did freely without request. "Seems that way. The Gladiator in her is surely a force to be reckoned with. She refuses to give in even when she's on the back foot." "Mm, a good addition then. You approve?" This week had been Grey's chance to test her, see just how hard she'd work and if she would be capable of the work with Plum. She had been compliant with every job he'd given to her. "No question, she'll fit in well here."

[vampiric-tempt]

I NEED to know HCs on introducing them to your family for the holidays

Bring the drama.

*insert gif of that guy in The Office staring through the blinds, staring mincingly.*

↳˳❝ bringing the mk1 cast to meet the family₊˚ˑ༄ؘ

headcanons w/ liu kang, kung lao, raiden, johnny cage, kenshi, tomas vrbada, bi-han, kuai liang, reiko, & shang tsung

a/n: not even going to lie, this was very difficult for me to do for some reason. Maybe it's because of my writer's block, but I tried lovely anon, I hope you like it 🥺🫶🏼

Liu Kang ➤ He's not worried at all. He's really composed and knows exactly what to say and do to make sure he makes a great first impression. When you introduced Liu to your parents, they were stunned by how well-mannered he was especially with the tattoos that covered his arms. He gave them compliments, buttering them up and winning them over easily.

"My, he is so lovely! When will we being getting grandkids?" Your mother asked.

You awkwardly laughed hissing at her to be quiet and Liu Kang smiled lovingly as he watched you and your family bicker. He was definitely given the nod of approval from your father.

Kung Lao ➤ Kung Lao was very prideful and boasted about how much he would cherish and love you. To say your parents were a bit skeptical at first, overtime they realized how much you brightened up whenever Kung Lao would talk to you. He was also very respectful to your parents, treating them as if he would any elder, just like Madam Bo. However, I feel as if Kung Lao would have beef with y/n's brother if they have one.

"You're my sibling's boyfriend? I thought you'd be better?" Your brother would tease with a shit-eating grin.

And thus, the rivalry between your lover and brother began. Of course it wasn't too serious, they'd often challenge each other in a lot of things and Kung Lao rather liked the competition.

Raiden ➤ He definitely bought flowers and chocolates for them. His hand squeezing yours as you two arrived at the house. Raiden was definitely nervous, but he tried his best to ensure his first impression went well. Your mother thought he was the sweetest man ever as he helped you and your mother cook for dinner, but your father on the other hand was not impressed. He believed Raiden was too kind and wasn't enough to be beside a person like you. Although, it did not affect Raiden at all, he was determined to prove himself to your father that he was capable of protecting you. Eventually your father realized he could protect you (knowing he could fight), but he was baffled by how innocent Raiden looked.

Bi-Han ➤ Your parents were beyond stunned by how TOO well-mannered the man was. Bi-Han is very independent and proved that he could handle himself, but with his professionalism and blunt emotions, your parents came to worry that he lacked a bit of personality and even questioned how you managed to get someone so strict in nature. However, Bi-Han, deep down inside, did worry about his impression on your parents. They were YOUR parents after all. His lover's, his life. Even so, it would take time for your parents and Bi-Han to warm up to each other, both ends trying just for your sake.

Kuai Liang ➤ Um excuse me. They want grandkids already. He was a perfect spitting image of a great husband. Your mother and father were so pleased with his looks, personality, and ideologies. Your father was so proud. Both Kuai and your father giving each other a firm handshake of approval and admiration. Kuai Liang had no issues with your family at all, it was as if he was already a part of it and he never felt more happier.

When you two finally had some time alone, he hugged you from behind, kissing the nape of your neck. "They're lovely, your family." He says.

You lean back into him with a satisfied smile. "I know. . .they think you are too, my love."

Tomas Vrbada ➤ Tomas felt uneasy about the whole thing. He was nervous, especially due to his past and the vast difference of his childhood compared to yours. Your parents, however, were in awe by how pretty he was, his grey hair and pearlescent eyes were just unique to them. They even thought he was very sweet. Tomas did his very best to gain your parents approval and luckily, they thought he was good for you.

Tomas couldn't help, but smile, his arm pulling you into his side. "This is a lot different from what I expected." He'd say, kissing the top of your head. "But I'm glad to have finally met them."

Johnny Cage ➤ Firstly, there really was no need for an introduction. After all he was THE Johnny Cage. They were glad that you would be taken care of financially, however, there was skepticism when it came to his flamboyant and cocky attitude. They feared Johnny would break you heart and cheat on you like many terrible celebrities'.

But what you didn't expect was Johnny to become serious during dinner, raising his glass for a toast. "Mr and Mrs (L/n), trust me when I say I will love them and cherish them with everything I have. . .and every step of the way." Johnny told them with full sincerity. He then looked to you with a gaze filled with nothing but love

It was a bit shocking for you, seeing Johnny be serious for once. He just vowed he'd be there for you every step of the way and that made your parents feel better about him, small smiles reaching their features. As for you, you became even more enamored with the man.

Kenshi Takahashi ➤ Of course, they were happy to see how well-mannered Kenshi was. He demonstrated a great attitude, but when they found out about his yakuza past, their trust drastically dropped. They worried you'd get caught up in things that could potentially lead to your death. But after awhile, when Kenshi became an FBI agent, they were grateful for the change. Unfortunately, your parents still held concerns.

"Your lover having a job like that, how will he be around to take care of you?"

Kenshi was saddened upon hearing this but it did not stop him from loving you. He promised he would not abandon you, his arms wrapped tightly around you the night you told him.

Shang Tsung ➤ Shang was surprisingly very respectful and gained your parents trust fast. He would charm them over easily with his cunning use of words as he drank wine with your parents at the table. It was a wonderful night of just talking about each other's interests and goals, Shang obviously hiding his true words with fake but impressive cover-ups. And if y/n has little siblings, Shang would mess with them, pranking them randomly on purpose just for shits and giggles.

In the end your mother went to you, her hands grabbing yours. "He is a lovely man, I think he looks a bit fruity. But whatever makes you happy my sweet child."

"Mother?!"

Reiko ➤ An immediate dislike for them. Your mother was beyond worried, perceiving him as dangerous and thinking he'd be the type to harm you. But you had reassured her that he was nothing from the sort and was rather really passionate about his love for you. But Reiko and your father developed a pissing contest on who could provide more protection over you. And your father does not like Reiko's disregard of seniority as he only held loyalty to General Shao. However, in Reiko's point of view, he believed he was demonstrating strength by challenging your father. Additionally, Reiko would boast about how perfect you are for him and accidentally making it come off as if your were his trophy spouse, making your father and mother dislike him even more. Your father ESPECIALLY.

" I think that went well!" Reiko says with a proud grin.

You pat the side of his arm awkwardly. "Reiko, babe. . .let's talk."

╰┈➤ masterlist

[jasmines-library]

it's me hi! I'm the problem it's me!

Sorry this was the swifty in me, i couldn't help it.

But how you doing? I hope you are great. I was just wondering if you could write Winchester boys x nervous cause I'm going on my first date yn. But since uncle is going out with a girl *wink, wink* they let her go alone cause if it was a boy we all know that they'd definitely wouldn't let her go. But you know, just Dean giving her tips to get laid cause it's Dean and sam telling her it would be completely ok.

Just something happy cause I'm sad.

Thank you!!💜💜💜

Somebody Told Me

Hey i'm doing great thanks for asking! I hope you're doing well too. This one was cute to write: thanks for being patient while I tried to get it out to you.

Summary: When nervous about your first date, Sam and Dean give you some pointers.

Warnings: None

Word Count: 800 (short and sweet)

"No. No way. You're not going."

Dean Winchester had always refused to let you go on dates no matter how hard he you had tried to convince him. And it was never because he was being cruel or unreasonable; it was because he couldn't fathom the idea of his little sister growing up. He was so completely used to having you and Sam by his side that when the pair of you began to become more independent, he became more reluctant to let you go. In truth, he was also scared. Scared that you would leave him or get hurt. His upbringing had always put him on edge, and the hunter life left little time for romance, although your brothers tried to fit it in anytime they could. But Dean wasn't just scared about you being hurt physically. He couldn't bare to see you heartbroken like he had been with Cassie, or Sam with Jessica. He wanted you to find your special person, he really did, but you had already been through so much that he was hesitant to let you wander into situations that could put you through more.

"Why not?" You whined, throwing your hands up in the air.

"Because I'm you're older brother and I said so."

"But Sammy said-"

"I said she could go, Dean." Sam added. He was glad to see you trying to get out there. Growing up sheltered made it difficult for you to keep friends, so he was eager to let you go on the date. Dean glared at him from across the room "I'm her older brother too, Dean."

"Yeah, but I'm the oldest so what I say goes."

"Why can't she go, Dean? She's not a baby anymore."

"I know that." Dean said, a little bit too loud for his liking. He felt guilty for not letting you go, but you were his little sister and he wanted to protect you. He knew exactly what 'boys could be like'; he was one. "It's just that I don't want some dumb boy going and-"

"It's not with a boy." You said meekly.

~

"You ready to go, Sweetheart?" Dean called out down the hall of the bunker. It had still taken some convincing and a lot of Sam's influence to persuade Dean to let you go on your date, but eventually he had let up.

You walked out of your room, a nervous grin on your face. Keeping your head low and your eyes on the ground you walked toward your brother.

"What's the matter?" He frowned.

"Nothing..."

"Don't tell me you've changed your mind." He nearly groaned.

"No. Nothing like that... it's just... what if she doesn't like me?"

"Oh kid. She's going to love you. Why would you ever think she wouldn't?"

"... I don't know."

"She's going to love you, kid. She's the luckiest person to even be going on a date with you." Sam reassured you.

You blushed at his kind words.

"The thing is...i've never been on a date..."

Realisation crossed Dean's face. He walked forward and wrapped his arm around your shoulder as he walked you toward the car. "Well, it's simple. Kind of."

"Treat her how you would want to be on a date. Flowers are always a good start." Sam said.

"Flowers." You noted. "Right."

"And compliment her. Tell her how beautiful she is. That's a good one for if you want to get-"

"Dean." Sam shot his older brother a look and you laughed.

"You're going to be fine, Kiddo." Sam clambered into the front seat.

Your pair of brothers continued to give you tips and reassurances as he drove towards the town. You sat in the back, clutching a bouquet of flowers you had picked out from the gas station on the way. As you neared the town your stomach began to flutter as anxiety washed over you. Sam noticed the way you tapped your foot anxiously and picked at your skin so he reached over the backseat to lay a gentle hand on your knee.

"She's going to love you, Y/N."

"Yeah." Dean added "Just be yourself. And if she doesn't appreciate you for who you are- which i'm sure she will, i'm just saying if - then you have two older brothers who will make sure she realises what she's missing."

You chuckled, opening the door of the car as it rolled to a stop.

"Go get her, Sweetheart."

Dean watched you proudly as you made your way over to the girl, presenting her with the bouquet you had brought for her. She grinned brightly and wrapped you up in her arms. Dean's heart swelled with pride. You were going to be just fine.

⛤ Supernatural Taglist:

@defnotashleyr

@aestheticdaisies

@xxrougefangxx

@hell-o-kittys

[sakotisssss]

ranking of yugotalia ships?

im gonna do the most common ones + some rare pares

serbcro

sorry so basic but it’s just too good. they both are just so toxic it actually ends up working. they match each other’s freak but not in a good way. but it’s very interesting and i like thinking about how different their dynamic would be at different points of history. its different than serbbos because there isnt a clear power dynamic and i think they are both equally fucked up but in different ways. they dislike each other, but partily because they're way more similar than you'd think. to both of their dismay, they can understand each other in ways no one else can. this is only if its done right, i dont wanna see drazen as the twink and vuk as super manly. thats just not them.

2. serbmace

this is the only serbia ship (and general yugo ship) i dont see as insanely toxic. i think it would only be a short time thing, probably during the balkan wars before ww1 but generally they have good relations and i think vuk would enjoy being the protector and mace being protected. but i also think she's the only one that can make him shut up. its just so cute, both of them having like a small crush on each other throughout time and i think they'd work well.

3. croslo/serbmonte

im putting them in the same catagory because i feel kind of the same way about both of them. i think these are two ships that historically would work great, with cro and slo growing up together and monte always kind of wanting to be "one" with serbia. however, i feel both monte and slo are just fed up with the two of them in the modern day and do not get along at all. but the reason its not higher up is because i feel like this works better as a sort of sibling type of relationship rather than romantic. a lot of the times monte and slo cant stand serb/cro but at the end of the day they grew up together and both cro and serb kind of consider them their only genuine friend. still one of my favorite dynamics to read about

4.

sloserb

this ship is hilarious i support it. i lowkey feel the same about bosslo

4. bosherze

okay unpopular opinion, i know i know. i really do like the ship, i think its really cute especially in ottoman times with enis trying to constantly rizz up idriza and eventually her falling for him. i like how he's overly affectionate and she secretly loves it. he def wants to be the protector but idriza really is. but WOW is this ship toxic, especially in modern day, and in a more tragic way. the fact that they really dont like each other nowdays just doesnt sit right with me, and the bad beef between them is quite recent and personal. its intresting tho, two people that were forced together and ended up falling for each other only to be torn apart 30 years ago and now back to really disliking the other but still forced to be together. its genuinaly tragic, but i think its probably the ship that is the funniest. the scenerios of them make me laugh so hard, this ship is like a black comedy. both of them deserve better as enis just hasnt really been ever treated right and idriza literally has to run the entire house and gets no credit for it (ofc she's bitter). fr its the parents that should have divorced a long time ago.

5. monteherz

@danidandandadididan put me on to this and im obsessed. they would be such a better match, but history just didnt let that happen. sad.

6. montemace

ehhhh

7. monteslo

tall masc guy with tiny twink. boring and overdone. next.

8. crobos

no, would not work. they literally cant go two seconds without backstabbing each othe and its just ehhh. their friendship is really funny though

9. serbos

no, just no. unlike serbcro, where they've both traumatized each other, serbos is just a complete power imbalence. they have a lot of bad blood, and unlike serbcro have always been on oppisite sides. this is just vuk traumatizing enis. not a fan from a historical or a ship perspective. it just icks me out.

[celestial-citrus]

Citrus if you want to talk more about your story and nobody has asked yet, will you tell me about Farron?

Beloved revenant scoundrel

Literally the best gremlin.

Died at 17, revanant for 200+. 6'3. Can fly and use limited amounts of magic. Has a crush on Blair.

In what would be the 1800s in our history, Farron's mother Juniper lived on the streets, being kicked out when she was found to be pregnant with Farron. As many desperate women did, she turned to prostitution to put food in their bellies. Farron wasn't fully aware of their situation, as his mother tried her best to provide enrichment for her son and keep his little mind off her issues.

When Farron was barely ten, a gentleman approached his mother and offered to help her leave the brothels and get on her feet. Jumping at an opportunity to leave her horrible work behind, she immediately accepted and went to live at the man's residence with her son. She ended up marrying the man, and things seemed well enough. He had a decently sized house with a great deal of other people, mostly women.

Soon after the wedding, the rose colored glasses came off. The man's kind demeanor dropped, and his true nature was exposed. This was a branch of a cult. He was their leader, most of the other women were also his wives, the same destitute souls seeking refuge that he preyed on.

Juniper was horrified once it all came to light, realizing she trapped them in another prison. Most of the other wives had been kept there a while, bitter and backstabbing. Infighting was rampant, especially amonst the children in the house. She was the freshest meat and treated with contempt.

Barely a year into being at the house, Juniper gave birth to a girl who she named Treasa. She was a tiny beacon of hope to Farron and his mother in those dark times, they were both simply terrified of her being abused by the rest of the "family."

Farron noted if people started looking too anxious or angry, one day they'd disappear and not return. He was given no explanations, and his mother would just tighten her lips if he asked.

Eventually, their luck ran out. The other wives could never shake their hatred of Juniper, and spoke ill of her to the husband. She was unfaithful, sowed discord in the house, spoke poorly of their beliefs. All nonsense, of course. He had heard enough.

Late one warm night, Juniper was dragged out to the barn and tied to a stone table, all the older members of the household beat her with whatever objects they could grab hold of, before setting her on fire. Farron heard the commotion outside, and ran to the barn, despite being warned against even approaching it. Throwing open the doors, he beheld what they had done, and rushed towards her body, but not before being caught by the neck with a noose and hanged, just off to the side of his mother's corpse.

They cut Farron down, dragging the remains of Juniper along side and tossing them into a shallow grave in the garden. Treasa had woken up at that point, and saw what had been done. In a sheer panic about being left alone, she grabbed the first deadly substance she could find, (she knew where they kept vials of poison,) and drank it, dying next to her mother and brother, and cursing the household and their entire family.

Barely hours after their deaths, the divine powers that be raised Farron to life. Hair blazing shades of red and violet, sclera inky black, and irises an electric teal. He stumbled out of the grave, still damp with his mother's blood. Seeing his sister's cold body along side them, he snatched the wood axe from its resting place and butchered every single person in the house. After the bloodbath, he buried his mother and sister properly; dragged the other corpses into a pile, burned them, and then their home.

Still clutching his weapon, Farron fled the town, confused and despairing. Blind rage had clouded his senses and he was faced with reality. All his family was dead. He was a murderer. Also, he came back from the dead. Apparently also can fly now. What a combo.

Farron wandered off into the wilderness, unsure what to do, or where to go. He flew north for a long time, until he came across the ruins of an old castle. Something about it shook him out of his stupor, and he decided to explore. Peeking around, he arrived at a set of strangely intact wooden doors. Upon entering, he was greeted by rows upon rows of bookshelves, seemingly an archive or a library. He went deeper in, and at the center was a great lectern with a strange man, scribbling madly upon a scroll. He didn't notice Farron for a while, but once he did, the man was startled, yelling at Farron in an unknown tongue. Farron was bewildered, naturally, and tried to communicate with the man. They managed to cobble up a small amount of understanding, eventually learning the man's name was Bridei, and he was trapped here. Farron assured him he would get him out, but Bridei responded in the negative. Enchantments kept him here, and Farron was not powerful enough to break them.

Slowly but surely, Farron began teaching Bridei the 'common tongue' (English) and they were able to go back and forth. Turns out they both had all the time in the world to learn, neither able to die. Farron became a sort of errand boy for Bridei, as he was able to leave. He learned Bridei was a few centuries behind on everything, grabbing him fountain pens and inks instead of crude feather quills and the like. Farron brought books, soaps, live specimens, anything Bridei needed for his research. Bridei was trying to learn how to reverse the curse placed on him long ago, but to no avail. Things got hairier once his wife trapped him there in the library out of jealousy.

Speaking of her, Farron managed to evade Morven for a while, hiding in the books when she made surprise visits—he tried keeping Bridei's new trinkets out of sight as to not arouse suspicion. He had learned Morven does not treat visitors kindly, especially ones that bring items to help Bridei's escape. But, as things go, he got caught at some point.

Morven had seen a red flash near the castle, going on high alert. She followed after and spotted Farron, his arms full of inkpots. After cornering and interrogating him, Morven attacked him so brutally with her magic, he limped off to a cave and hibernated for almost a century, also losing the majority of his memories, aside from his own name. Every so often he would wake, hobbling off to a different location for safety. He accidentally slipped onto a boat, which took him across the sea to Dál Riata, where he hid in an attic for a long time.

About a decade before the present day, he was awoken by a newlywed Fiorella Wellington, who was inspecting the attic of their newly purchased home. Unsure of her intentions, he floated into the air threateningly, also hissing for some reason. Fiorella wasn't fazed by this, simply deciding he was lost and also her new son now, and took the confused boy in as her own. Her husband, Lance, barely spared the boy a second glance, accepting him as their own. Fiorella's three stepsons were wary at first, but warmed up to the lad soon after, the four getting into shenanigans quite frequently.

In the present day, Farron is a bright and mischievous lad, permanently stuck at 17. He fools around with his surrogate brothers, Percy, Ross, and Dustin, up until Dustin goes missing and life takes a dismal turn.

Farron accompanies Ross and Percy on their journey to find out what happened to their brother and what is causing all the shady crap to go down around the globe.

[sol-consort]

Smut for super earth! 🫡

Sir yes sir 🫡 Smut for democracy!

Launching Helldivers 2 smut in 3...2...1

C-01

[heavy smut, dom/sub, blood, slight humiliation, exhibition, penteration, aphrodisiac, objectification, use of military titles in bed, obedience kink]

[Dark themes, parody of fascism]

[Reader is a helldiver and gender neutral]

“Welcome aboard, helldiver, and great job out there” the ship master held her clipboard as she went over your mission report, “the samples you've collected will be put to great use.”

Droplets of red follow your trail as you make your way towards the ship management screen, cape drenched in blood and sticking to your body. The ship master was polite enough not to comment on the limb in your steps, or maybe it was stoic professionalism that let her ignore the shortness of your breath.

Looking over the list of new weaponry you've unlocked, it was hard to make a decision on what to spend your requisition slips on, especially with the pain in your leg. It has already been treated by the onboard ship medic and is technically service ready, but you've exhausted your government assigned monthly allowance of painkillers, and the doctor wouldn't prescribe you any.

Rations were running tight at the moment. They cut back on helldivers' luxury medical comforts in order to fund the fight for democracy and boost the research for the upcoming mech suits. Just what kind of enemies would require a mech suit when they usually throw you bare at bile titans, you wonder.

And so, having exhausted all other options, you reach inside a deep pocket under your armour and take out the stem injection. tilting your head to the side to expose your neck, with experienced hands, you quickly stab the substance right over where your vein should be.

A shudder runs through your body as waves of adrenaline quickly pass through every single one of your blood streams. Your armoured grip on the monitor almost cracks the screen, wasn't it for the reinforced glass.

Finally, as it washes down your body, a sigh of relief is all that's heard as you fix your posture. Back straight and all the pain evaporates from your leg as the stem forces your body to immediately replace the cells with new ones. Pumping the blood faster by pushing your heartbeat to the edge of the dangerous zone, tricking your immune system into thinking the damaged cells are a threat so they'd attack It faster.

With nowhere for the excess energy to go, the dosage leaves you restless. It was meant to be taken amidst a battlefield where you can find release through spreading freedom in the name of democracy at your enemies, in the shape of an RS-422 Railgun, of course.

With no shooting ranges or infiltrating enemies to take out your energy out on in the safety of your own destroyer ship. The blood rushes wherever it could go. You feel the heat pooling in different parts of your body, filling whatever place it could find.

Eventually settling between your thighs, making you hyper aware of the rough texture of the under-armour padding pressing against you. The smallest movement grinds the fabric more and more against you with every breath you take.

How sensitive your thighs suddenly feel, your how blood wasn't the only wetness seeping into your armour.

You don't make a single sound, pressing your lips tightly shut as you endure the pleasure building up. For it wasn't much different than enduring the pain of a chest wound on the battlefield while laying on the ground, holding back the waves of terminid scouts with nothing but a pistol as your teammates calls for airdrop resupply.

You've signed up your body to be given for the cause long ago, for the future of super Earth and all of its civilians. So you've learned to endure and obey all commands, like the excellent little soldier you are.

Pushing your weight off of the desk you were leaning on, you head towards the navigation map at the end of the ship.

One step after another, the pleasure intensifies. Your own legs have never felt more energised and light before despite your brain twisting every average sensation to squeeze out any resemblance of sexual gratification it could from it.

The way your under-armour hugs your body. The way the padding presses between your legs, against the inside of your thighs and right over your chest. The straps securing the metal plates to you start looking sinful.

Another step, your body is screaming at you for any relief from the overwhelming pressure building inside with nowhere to go.

A final step, and you've reached your destination. The familiar sight of the map greets you, showing super Earth in its centre with the two enemy factions creeping in from the borders of the galaxy. The automatons stick to the borderlines as their red territory crawls its way upwards the map. While the terminids are swarming towards the home planet of Lady Liberty herself at an alarming speed.

“Your fellow helldivers are fighting on the frontlines for our freedom as we stand here.” The ship's executive officer found his way to your side, looking over the dwindling liberation percentage on the yellow territory.

His orders remain unspoken, yet were orders all the same. Go join the fight.

You're not even sure if he can give you orders. Are you even the captain of your own ship? It was handed over to you alongside the armour from another Helldiver who failed to evacuate in time before the shuttle took off. Yet you haven't even met the pilot of your supposed own ship.

It's been endless missions after missions, and anything in between is spent in stasis in cryosleep. It's to prevent helldivers from being at less than their optimal physical age whilst cutting down on unnecessary costs like food rations, symptoms of traumatic experiences that rear their head during idle times, and off shore leave.

These few minutes spent at your own destroyer are the only waking moments where your fighting instincts aren't pushed to limits alongside your sanity. a glorious sacrifice to upkeep the daily privileges and rights of humans everywhere.

The democracy officer must have noticed the trembling of your fingers as you picked the next destination, the way you were squeezing your thighs together and leaning your weight against the circular map.

He must've seen this case before in many other soldiers like you. That's why you didn't question it when his hand went under your cape, wrapping around your back to help steady you. His voice took a softer tone as he ordered you to follow him.

Helping you walk and letting you lean against him made you realise how strong he must be under his uniform to be able to endure the weight of a helldiver clad in full armour. His hand kept you in place, and you didn't resist as he led you through the staff quarters. Unlocking his door with a simple face scan, you were surprised with what you saw inside.

How long has it been since you've seen a bed? And an actual bed stood here in front of you. It was nothing luxurious, the usually army manufactured steel frame with a thin white mattress above.

it looked uncomfortable, but compared to your standing cryo freezer, it looked like paradise.

“Now, I assume you know the rules and regulations set in place about fraternisation amidst ranks, helldiver?”

You were nudged towards the bed. In your current state, it didn't take much to get you tumbling over and face first onto the mattress.

“It's highly encouraged.”

To boost troops' morale and help cure homesickness or any deviation thoughts about returning to civilian life. rule C-21 was put in place to allow soldiers to aid each other when it comes to stress relief activities, no matter its nature.

Of course, like any other activity that involved sexual Intercourse with another human, it required an immediate report in the aftermath to the ministry of healthcare in the form of paperwork. In the case the activity could result In a child, an extra paperwork is in order to request a permission slip that you could forward to the ministry of population regulation in order to start your work towards getting pre-pre-approval for the right to create a child, with additional screening and tests required to pass through plus an additional wait period depending on how many other people are requesting the permission to repopulate during this year. All fall under the rule of C-01. Failure to do so might result in having the right to your reproductive organs revoked for not meeting the standards of civility expected of every loyal citizen to uphold the constitution of managed democracy.

Surrendering all control to your democracy officer, you obediently parted your legs when his hands lifted your hips up to get you to lay on your knees instead.

Face down, ass up, with your captain cape falling off to the side.

His fingers made quick work of the straps, keeping your armour secured before undoing the belt to your pants and lastly the zipper to your under armour. It was more time effective to only remove enough parts to be able to push your lower armour down to your knees, revealing just enough of your intimate parts and leaving the rest of your body covered.

“You're dripping. You've made a mess already.” With two fingers, he trailed them up the inside of your thigh, scooping as much of your wetness as he could manage. Trailing his fingers up and pressing your own sticky wetness against your tight hole, circling the rim with his fingertips to get you to relax and open up to him.

You laid there helpless with an iron grip against the sheets below. Anticipating the feeling of being prodded open on his fingers. His other hand cupped directly between your legs, with a leather glove holding your most intimate parts like it was nothing.

Not being able to resist much more, you found yourself grinding down on his hand. The friction of the leather and increased sensitivity of your body only made the sensation more addicting.

You didn't care for the fact you were his captain and he was technically your inferior, the electric pleasure shooting through you with every press against his big gloved hand was slowly clouding your brain of all senses of rationality.

He only kept his hand there as you did all the work. desperately pushing against it in search of release. It wasn't enough, but he didn't make any effort to help you go faster, preferring to keep you squirming in neglect.

It was nothing more than a temporary nicotine patch, akin to a band-aid against a gushing wound. Just enough to give you a taste of pleasure and have you pathetically grinding and seeking more.

without a warning, his two fingers pushed inside you, covered in your own leaking wetness and nothing more. Pressing you harder against the bed and the hand cupping you, forcing sounds of pleasure from your throat that got muffled by your helmet.

His fingers were wet enough to reach further inside, fucking in and out of you at a steady pace that grew faster and faster. it was clear now why he was neglecting your genitals on purpose, he wanted you to cum while getting fucked by your inferior officer instead, because that's what good soldiers do.

A third finger joined soon enough as his other hand let go of you, now covered in your own wetness and pre-cum. In a rare tender moment, it went to hold one of your closed fists on the sheets, entangling your fingers and reassuring you that he's here.

The three fingers were brutal, not giving you a second of rest as they explored your insides with a purpose.

The more the pleasure grew, the harder it was to think. All you cared about was the feeling of being filled and thoroughly taken care of.

Paying no mind to your kneeling knees that were getting numb, much like you had to crawl through dirt and kneel during combat to get better accuracy on your machine gun, you could endure staying in this position for hours.

You were made to fight, your body honed for combat, endurance, and stamina. Every scar littering it is a living proof of every death you escape with nothing but its claws scraping your skin as you lived to be sent on another mission immediately after.

And rightfully so, the democracy officer could be as rough as he wants with you and you'd still take it, because that is your purpose in life.

It was decided for you, like everything else in your life. You don't need to ponder or get curious about anything. You don't even need to think because your government will do the thinking for you.

You don't even need to touch yourself, just say the word and the closest democracy officer will bend you over the nearest surface and fuck your brain out In front of everyone, even with other helldivers in the room.

The armoury is already placed in the middle of the ship after all, exposed for all to see much like your dignity each time you get ready for a mission. It's not like all your officers and engineers haven't seen you naked while changing equipment.

There is very little courtesy offered in times of war.

So it won't be any different to have you pressed against the armoury wall, thighs wrapped around him as he fills you with his cum before zipping you up and shoving you into the nearest landing pod so you won't miss your next mission.

Landing on the planet with legs all wobbly and stuffed to the brim with his cum. Feeling it slowly leak down your legs and stain your armour as you fight for your life while simultaneously trying to finish your mission and avoiding the falling meteors.

Having to work with the teammates who just watched you take a load inside. Who heard the sounds you make while struggling not to finish embarrassingly soon with so many people watching you get fucked.

Then join them like it's nothing. Feeling their eyes on you the whole time and knowing they know what the growing stains between your legs are.

Their touches start to linger. They squeeze your thighs whenever one lends you their stem injection after you run out. Grope your back as you help them reload their weapon before another breach arrives. Using you to their heart's content in the evacuation shuttle as a way to vent out the aftermission adrenaline from their bodies while the Falcon 1 pilot enjoys the sound of your gagging.

That's the humiliating fate that you could be subjected to. That's the life of a soldier you signed up for.

Instead, you're here, laying on a semi comfortable bed.

Having the luxury of getting prepared beforehand, of being taken on a subjectively soft mattress instead of the cold metal floor. The privilege of working with such professional helldivers that would never do such a thing during missions. I mean what's next? Helldivers throwing down eagle strikes right before boarding evac shuttles or using the reinforcement as stratagems by throwing you into hordes of enemies? Don't be so absurd, these things never happen, you're just imagining things and if you keep talking about it you might be given a mandatory trip to a freedom camp for re-education, as a work bonus.

Taking you to his own quarters, giving you the privilege of privacy and going out of his way to be kind to you. Your democracy officer must really care for you.

Just don't think too hard about how he's the one who calls down the strikes on you if you ever wander outside your mission zone too far, charges of treason and all you know how it is.

How about, don't think too hard ever again? Stay the way you are and endure everything life throws your way. Saying yes to every order, saying no to every break, keep showing up to be such a good little obedient soldier.

Three fingers pull out of you with a wet pop as your insides clench around nothing. You stop yourself from whining because it's not becoming of a ship captain. Instead, you wait patiently with your ass in the cold air as you hear the sound of a zipper being pulled down.

Something big slots against your back, rubbing its head up and down your gaping hole, giving it a wet tap or two as your thighs quiver.

At this moment, you've never wanted something in your life more than you wanted this big mean cock inside you.

To feel it stretch you out and finally push you towards your release. Afterall you can't cum on your own, you must wait for permission in the form of your democracy officer's cock fucking you until the lights in your brain turn off.

Very early in training, you're taught never to beg. Be it for your own life against an enemy or anything else, for death is preferable to cowardice. Cowardice is treason, and treason is bad.

Even when every nerve in your body feels like it's on fire from the anticipation, even when you're being deliberately teased and toyed with for nothing more than another's amusement.

You're a helldiver, and your job is to endure and follow orders. That's the only thing you're good for.

“Good job, soldier.” His praise is shortly followed by the head of his cock spliting you open, the delicious stretch of being filled with something so large as you spread your legs even more.

“Thank-” you attempt to stutter a reply, but the air is pushed out of your lungs as he bottoms out inside you. You've never been this full in so long. The less than ideal lubricant amount makes it burn deliciously, what was supposed to be pain gets turned into overwhelming pleasure by the stem in your bloodstream. You keep clenching around him as you adjust to his size. “Thank you, Sir.”

His body is fully pressed against yours. One of his hands moves your arms behind your back and is holding them in place. Forcing you into a submissive docile position while his other hand grips your hips, no doubt leaving marks on them by the end of this.

Every thrust pushes you up the bed, moving your entire body before he pulls you back down with his grip against your hands and hips. Bouncing you back and forth.

Your panting and moans would've filled the room, wasn't it for the helmet muffling them for everyone except yourself, making you hear your own cries crystal clear. Every hiccup and groan digging into your ego and self image. Thankfully your ego was used to the bruising from being put in place each morning as you stood up and swore allegiance to super earth, repeating how you're nothing more but a servant for democracy, carved stone to be stepped on for a brighter future in the ladder of liberty.

His thrusts were powerful and deliberate, a steady pace that didn't leave you any room to meet them or wiggle away. Making you completely at his mercy, how clearly he is in charge as he moved and manhandled you however he wished.

You wonder, just how many details about this encounter will go in the report? Will he have to tell them how he fucked you? Describe In details how your insides felt as they milked him dry, spamming and squeezing around his cock with every thrust as if this was your first time getting properly dicked down.

Will he have to specify how he prepared you beforehand? How he didn't use any lube, just your own sticky wetness instead because he knew how much of a slut for pain his helldiver is.

Is it note-worthy to mention how obedient and patient you were the whole time and didn't whine or make a fuss? How you still adorably addressed him as sir despite outranking him, how you let him tug and throw you around like you were a common whore instead of an honourable disciplined soldier.

Or does he only have to refer to the time-period in which he defilled you on his bed? And management can just pull the surveillance and security cameras footage, the same one in the corner of this room right now. Because you never know when a cowardly robot or a nasty bug could infiltrate the helldivers' ranks. So there are cameras everywhere to ensure the safety of the collective, no exceptions made ever.

For privacy is a small price to pay for liberty and freedom! Or are you so selfish to prefer having your entire crew killed without warning by a bug? Just because you didn't want to give up something as insignificant as personal space? Shame on you, Citizen.

As we all know, it is the people with nothing to hide who have nothing to fear. Could you imagine what people might get up to on their own time if it wasn't public knowledge for all to see? That's why it is important for the government to monitor everyone! It is for the safety of the collective.

For the many shall suffer for the sins of the one.

by now most of the stem injection aftermath has been fucked out of you, as the adrenaline wears off you're growing more and more exhausted, brainless and limb.

The same brutal pace that he used with his fingers, only instead it's a thick cock making your brain melt and insides spasm now.

You're so close. The relief you've been so desperate for is just out of reach.

collecting your remaining brain cells to try and form something coherent between all the moaning and whimpering, you manage to make a full word at last.

“Sir-I” a hoarse cry is forced out of you, his cock pressed against a rough patch of skin inside you that lights your nerves up. Almost pushes you over the edge, biting your lips you force yourself to resist the painful temptations to cum.

You attempt again “I'm close, officer. Permission to-” it's burning and clawing at your core from sheer intensity, threatening to burst at any seconds. You put all of your self control into holding it back as tears collect in the corners of your eyes.

You're pulled by your arms to sit up on your knees. Manhandled by your officer like It was nothing despite all of your armour. Much like you ragdolled whenever a charger flung you around as you attempted to dodge being crushed by its claws.

Immediately, your body collapses back onto his chest. Your head lays on his shoulder as you meet his eyes through the tinted windshield in your helmet. Releasing your arms, both of his hands wrap around your waist to keep you up despite your weak knees.

“Permission granted.” His own voice is breathless, unlike the collected tone you've grown used to greeting you whenever you approach the map. The same voice praising you at the end of each mission, encouraging you before the start of another, that same voice was giving you allowance to cum, a silent order that you will obey like all of his others.

You look him in the eyes as you cum, your executive officer watching waves of Intense pleasure going through his captain's body, making you spasm and make a mess on his bed.

Your overstimulated trembling body is used like a fleshlight as he thrusts his cock in and out of you.

Up and down, in and out, seeking his own pleasure, which arrives shortly after.

Filling you to the brim with his cum as he stays inside, a ring of white forming around his cock as it attempts to leak out.

With the stem fully worked out of your system, you're suddenly aware of how much your knees hurt. How numb they are by now.

A hand goes under your armour, gently rubbing your stomach. The harder it presses down the more your insides convulse around the cock plugging you, involuntarily attempting to push it out to make space for the cum threatening to overflow.

Moving down to your hips and thighs, the hand squeezes them tightly just as the democracy officer gives one final thrust forward that steals your breath before pulling all the way out and watching the cum leak down your legs.

Before your insides could close, the same two fingers thrust back in and keep your hole spread out. The other hand continues to rub and squeeze your thighs reassuringly as you push all the cum out.

Aware of his eyes watching you through this whole thing, helping you get it all out with his fingers. It's almost humiliating how you had to be guided and ordered through this whole thing from the moment your ass was up until the second you're having your insides cleaned by your inferior officer.

After what feels like an eternity of probing, you're finally pushed forward to fall on the bed. Your knees give out instantly as the blood rushes to them. Your arms ache, and your thighs are all sticky and wet.

Even now, laying on a bed, in a puddle of cum, you're reminded of how more comfortable it is than being frozen to sleep each night in your cryo chambers.

Your racing heartbeat slows down. The officer leaves the bed for a moment before coming back with a warm wet towel, wiping between your thighs and cleaning you out as you lay there.

He fixes your armour back on afterwards, pulling your now ruined underwear back up. Making you wear the mess you've made. Your pants follow after, then under armour padding and finally strapping the armour pieces back into place.

The screen monitor on your wrist flashes, an invitation request to join on a mission from a fellow helldiver.

You just laid down, but it seems the world can't give you a break. With no time to relish in the bliss that follows an orgasm, that luxury too must be sacrificed. Pressing the option to accept the mission, the coordinations get sent to the entire team as the destroyer prepares to make the jump across the galaxy.

The democracy officer extends his hand to you, and you hold on to it as you slowly get up from the bed. Taking the towel and wiping away any stains on your armour.

Your body pulses with soreness and aches in pain. You can't tell where the blood ended or cum started in the mess that is your cape, proudly showing off your helldiver status as captain on the back.

The democracy officer cups the side of your helmet to turn your head towards him. There's a look in his eyes that you can't place. It's too perfect of a poker face to make any details from.

He knows you can't feel it, and yet his hand caresses the side of your helmet with softness all the same.

Knitted brows above his glistening eyes as he attempts to meet your gaze behind the tinted window on your helmet. Searching for a pair of human eyes behind the endless dark void of the helmet.

Do you remember the colour of your own eyes? The destroyer doesn't have any mirrors.

Is he looking at you with pity, or is it pride? These days, you can't tell these two emotions apart, be it in yourself or others.

He tilts his face closer to yours, eyes fluttering shut. time slows down, and you could count the wrinkles on his hardened skin. Just what kind of life did he lead? What is the price for surviving this far? What is the cost of keeping one's life during a war? Did he pay for it with his sanity or heart?

Chapped lips press against the cold metal of your helmet, a small kiss. tender and fragile like a single snowflake amidst a hail storm. No one will bear witness to it, and yet it's beautiful for having existed at all.

It's over, just like that. Barely having lasted a second. A vulnerable show of intimacy.

“You did well.” There's more he wants to say, more questions he wants to ask, more time he wants to spend holding you. Give you a proper bath and bury you in his chest as he works out all the knots in your muscles. But it's clear he can't, not without repercussions, not with his position as your inferior.

Especially not with the camera watching.

And so he steps to the side, waiting for you to finish before leaving with you. His uniform was as pristine as ever, except for the few wrinkles standing out where he held you against his body. Still, he looked more put together than your dishevelled state. Thankfully your crew have never been anything less than professional no matter what state you showed up in.

He speaks one last time, the same reassuring hand going under your cape to pat your shoulder lightly “I'll take care of the paperwork. The galaxy needs you to save it, helldiver.”

You're reminded of each time a fellow helldiver waited for you to reach the shuttle before boarding, each time one hugged you after a successful mission, tight enough to almost lift you off the ground as they laughed from the sheer joy of being alive.

Each time someone watched your flank for you, fistbumped you after an especially difficult fight. The weight of their heavy helmets on your shoulder during the evacuation take off, stealing some seconds of rest and dozing off cuddling to your side.

A stranger behind a mask, holding your hand and reassuring you that everything is going to be fine, knowing that making it out alive is nothing more than optional bonuses in all of your assignments.

His touch doesn't linger, and the world becomes colder after it's gone. Like someone turned off the sun, a familiar freezing numbness barrows in the hollows of your heart, urging you to forget the sweetness of Eve's apple and move on.

“Thank you.” Is all you manage to reply before the announcement chimes, requesting all helldivers to report to the hell pods. A timer starts counting down from 30 seconds on your wrist monitor.

Walking ahead of your democracy officer, your cape trails behind in a show of authority. Another Helldiver is off to save the galaxy and defend super Earth.

[ask-lock-shock-and-barrel]

Can we see some of Shock's visit to her mom, like how she got her haircut?

((So I don't quite have the time or spoons right now to do a whole comic/story about it right now, but here's a brief lil write up below the cut:

So for context, Bronagh is living in what is essentially a mock human-world set up for ghosts and spirits in the Halloween realm who need help adjusting to their new afterlife in this realm. So picture apartments, townhomes, cafes, parks, various recreational things that you might see in an average human city without much Halloween influence. Some residents are temporary, others might be long term, or even lifelong with very few trips outside the community.

And when Shock first gets there, she's surprised to see her mother is genuinely more at ease, happy, and put-together (she can't remember the last time she ever saw Bronagh wearing makeup or having her hair styled). It's a happy surprise for sure, but then Shock discovers several things from the human world that she has little to no experience with (like automatic sliding doors, electric elevators with buttons, the beds that fold up into the wall, electric appliances that dont run on lemons). She then also witnesses her mother socializing easily with her apartment neighbors, something she herself is not that great with, so when Bronagh tries to introduce her daughter to the nice neighbor ladies who she swaps recipes with every week, Shock is more than a little out of her element.

Bronagh takes Shock around town for sightseeing and mother-daughter fun but eventually notices her daughter's anxiety in an environment that is just so different and un-Halloween. When Shock admits insecurity over feeling like she doesn't fit in a place that feels so normal, Bronagh reveals that she herself was a nervous wreck when she first got there, and she doesn't blame Shock for feeling out of her element here, it's just a lot to get adjusted to. And Shock also realized that this is probably how Bronagh felt when she woke up in Halloween Town, and struggled to get used to the macabre everyday setup of the realm, making the experience more relatable for both of them. So with the air cleared, and knowing her mother is happy and healing, Shock decides to open herself up to this new adventure.

Shock also made the choice to cut her hair at a hair salon during the trip because it was Bronagh's treat, and Shock realized she actually did sort of like having short hair. Even if it first came from her hacking it off in a blind bout of grief. So choosing to cut it again in a positive light, with her mother's support, makes her happy. And she was long overdue for a trip to an actual hair salon stylist who wasn't using sewing scissors.

She also probably brought home souvenirs for her bros, the kind that would be considered boring or average by humans, but for little ghoulish halloween kids, they'd be fascinated. ))

[romanoffsbish]

Seasons Greetings

Wanda Maximoff x Fem!Reader

WandaReader x Natasha Romanoff

Requested by: anon | 1,198 Words

Sunshine/Grumpy prompts

“We're so different. I wouldn't want to pull you down.,”

Natasha quietly observed you and Wanda from the kitchen, the witch was happily cuddled into your side while your arm was securely draped over her as you watched a marathon of movies. The redheads heart ached for the kind of love you two shared; more specifically she wanted it to be something shared amongst the lot of you. She knows that's something you both want too, however, even with your guys persistent offers to take her out on a date, doubts had crept into her mind and held her heart tightly in its grasp.  It didn't matter how many times Clint would encourage her to accept, her mind felt she didn't deserve either of you sources of light.

You'd always reminded her of the Spring—full of an unbridled vibrancy and it was as if everything you had touched seemed to thrive. Your kindness knew no bounds, oh and your smile—your radiance was unmatched, just the way you beamed reminded her of a rainbow. They'd always been something she admired after a storm, the way something so simple yet so beautiful, could come to fruition from a place of darkness gave her immense hope. Which was something you also did every time you'd treated her like a human worthy of love. From the day she first saw you she knew she'd wanted you, her flirting was shameless, but she just couldn't get passed all of her reservations.

Wanda got to you first though, and after much thought she knew that was the best for you. The witch was another story for the redhead, she was much like a beautiful Summer's day; bright as can be, and she possessed this natural warmth that could melt the coldest of hearts—it had already worked wonders on hers, and to her that was cause for a great deal of fright. Her nurturing nature was something that Nat knew she could fall into if she would just let her walls fall down, which is why she boarded them up even higher to protect the both of you.

Natasha had always seen herself as no more than a cold Winter's night, the kind where you find yourself stranded in a desolate cabin with little access to much of anything. The small fire would flicker in the fireplace, but there was no warmth to it—it was more just a placeholder to combat the loneliness. At one point it might have even been that this was her truth, but to you and Wanda she was nothing like that.

Natasha was more like a rainy Fall day, sure it could be seen as an inconvenience, but to the people like you it was a welcomed occurrence. The world was enclosed in a layer of darkness, but with that came this new level of vibrancy. First to be seen amongst the trees littered in colored leaves that now no longer looked dull. Raindrops falling helped to aide them on their journey to the ground, a natural cycle of life, and it was always such a beautiful sight to see.

Natasha was truly just as beautiful too, and though she carried that sort of darkness within, the both of you were able to see straight on through to her heart. Although it was surrounded by metaphorically spiky vines it still beat just the same as both of yours did, and that, along with your lived experiences with her was more than enough to tell you that the whole broody assassin stick is just a front. This—if it was going to work, would require patience, fortunately for her you two had an abundance of it, and that's exactly what she needed all the while figuring out her heart.

Natasha had been shutting you both down for months, her answers were never a definite no, but it was never a yes either, and she could see how defeated you'd look, and Wanda's hurt was never not readily on her face, and now she felt like she was stringing the both of you along. She knew she would eventually have to decide to try, or to finally let y'all go, but today just wasn't that day. So now that she's stared at you both for the last half hour she decided it best to sneak herself back up to her rooms. But just as she expected as soon as she went to breeze past the common room you'd called., "Natty, come here please, we have a quick question to ask you.," and when you flash her that smile she knows she'll do just about anything you ask.

Natasha stood before the both of you with her eyes nervously flitting between both of yours while her hands fidgeted about. This nervous side of her was usually hidden away, but the two of you'd garnered more of her trust than even she expected you ever would, and if she was to be honest it isn't that scary after all., "Natty, this isn't an interrogation, relax.," she sighed, then her hands dropped to her sides, her eyes focused in on your lips as they moved.

"Nat, we wanted to take you out to dinner tonight.," Wanda stated matter of factly, and that nervous pit in Nat's stomach began to twist so she decided to speak her truths., "We're so different. I wouldn't want to pull you down.," Natasha admits, her eyes downcast to the floor to avoid seeing either of your reactions., "Fine, I'll do it myself then.," you mused, and before she could question what you meant she was squealing as you pulled her into your lap, and Wanda giggled from beside you when she saw Natasha's perplexed face., "Natalia, you make both of us extremely happy, no amount of your brooding will change that.," she further teased the redhead, her soft fingers moving to push the hair from her face, and the simple affection had the woman in your lap blushing brighter than her hair., "We want you for you Natty, you're our very own safety net."

No more words were needed when she responded to yours by shifting in your lap, burying her face in your neck as one of her arms wrapped around you, and her other extended out towards the witch to hold her hand., "Rest Natty, we'll wake you when it's time for our dinner date.," you softly cooed against her temple before pressing a kiss to her hairline. Once you heard a soft set of snores your body relaxed, and you turned to look at your girlfriend who was already staring at you with a bright smile., "We've done it Y/N/N.," you giggled as she pecked your lips., "Yeah, we sure did Wands—our very own perfect storm."

—

Days around the compound had never been better after the news of your joyous budding relationship spread like a wildfire. The one reminiscent of the sun while the other half was her sweet rainbow now with the addition of a storm cloud it was almost too perfectly aligned. After all, without the break from the sun the world would likely burn, and without the storm there'd never be room for the rainbow to shine.

————

[hoes4hoseok]

enhypen as sour

...so i said i'd finish my work before posting another but i couldn't help it I PROMISE I'LL FINISH IT EVENTUALLY THOUGH. thanks for reading, y'all!

ni-ki as brutal

"they'd all be so disappointed, 'cause who am i if not exploited?"

some maknaes give me such unmistakable teenage angst energy (as i showed by choosing hueningkai for jealousy, jealousy)

&& ni-ki is not an exception imo!! he's also actually seventeen i kinda had to ✋

anyway yeah ni-ki's life is great in some ways but it also sucks in other ways, just like olivia depicts in the song

like yeah he's in a big k-pop group but also he's been through so much 🤧. this obviously does not mean that he's in any hurry to grow up, but y'all get my point (i hope)

sunghoon as 1 step forward, 3 steps back

"which lover will i get today? will you walk me to the door or send me home crying?"

sunghoon is not the type to stay with you if he doesn't like you

but in this case, he's conflicted. (ultimately, he does not like you enough to not toy with your feelings, but alas...)

&& yeah, he might regret it soon after acting cold, but that doesn't matter because he'll act nice but do it again & possibly repeat until the end of the relationship

oh god, heartbreaker sunghoon, y'all!! it's a concept!! that i live by!! (i'm not okay.)

sunoo as deja vu

"a different girl now, but there's nothing new, i know you get déjà vu"

sunoo would totally do the same activities with multiple partners 😭

he wouldn't think it's a big deal though?? he'd associate the things with good times, not people

it would suck but there's not much you can do about it

on the CONTRARY...he'd probably be pissed about you doing the same stuff with other people

especially if the break-up was on you

he'd complain to his friends about it & they'd be on his side in either situation (so would i, sorry y'all)

heeseung as enough for you

"don't you think i loved you too much to think i deserve nothing?"

this scenario is a real tragedy to imagine so i'm sorry about that 😭

just as with any relationship, if you were with heeseung, he would have to love you just as much as you do him.

&& if a relationship with him fell apart it would feel particularly bitter because there would be little warning signs along the way that you didn't think were a big deal

like the whole line about him not complimenting her makeup ✋🙄 (come on bro,, it's not that hard!!)

the real tragedy is that he didn't want more from you...he just didn't want you

anyways 🤠 like she said!! you'll find someone who does find you exciting :)

jake as happier

"i hope you're happy, but not like how you were with me"

it would be so hard to hate jake after a break-up 😭 especially if he was kind about it & took your feelings into account

even more so if it's been a while since the two of you called it quits & you should have moved on but you haven't

because tbh who would be able to?

&& seeing him with someone else would leave you conflicted because how could you possibly be upset with him? or his new partner?

so you'd kind of have to suck it up :( & hope he isn't as happy as he was with you :(

jay as favorite crime

"know that i loved you so bad, i let you treat me like that"

so this song is about partially blaming yourself after a heartbreak, because you "let" them treat you like that

getting dumped by this man would be so devastating

again, it would be slow -- even if you tried your hardest to hold on because you wanted him so badly, he would end up letting go in the end

it's such a horrible feeling. i don't wish it upon anyone.

anyways...before you know it 🚨 wee-ooo wee-ooo 🚨! ur heart is broken! 💔🚔 (sorry i just felt compelled to do that idk)

jungwon as hope ur ok

"somehow we fell out of touch, hope he took his bad deal and made a royal flush"

as i said in my txt post, this album only has 11 songs, so this one is also assigned to soobin

&& tbh i have a pretty similar reason for choosing it but i think jungwon would be the one thinking about his old friends & acquaintances (rather than his friends thinking of him, which i said for soobin)

he seems to have a really kind heart, & the reason he's the leader of enhypen is because he's so caring

oh wow 🤧 got myself in my feels about him thinking of his i-land buddies 🤧 i'm gonna go now

txt version ☆ emails i can't send version ☆ masterlist

[pizacat72]

since you’re asking everyone about kiara, I thought why not ask you!

1, 2, 3, 8, 12, 23 and 26: if you were a writer for the tlk franchise what’s one thing you’d wanna explore for kiara’s character?

alrighty, this one's gonna be a doozy!

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

Kiara's really sweet and kind and very fun loving!!! She feels like the ideal person to be friends with. I um, also might have a tiny crush on her that I may or may not have realized recently 😅

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

I love that she united the two prides. Seriously, that takes some strong forgiveness and compassion skills. Kiara prefers to talk things out rather than fight and I really appreciate that about her.

3. Least favorite canon thing about this character?

I really don't like that they made her want to be queen in Can't Wait to Be Queen. It was just so out of nowhere and completely unnecessary.

8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

Honestly, I'm not sure if I can even think of anything. She's generally treated pretty well by the fandom!

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

This one's been rattling around in my head for a bit but she and Kion have sworn to haunt the other if one of them dies first. Feels like something they'd do and I like the idea of ghost!Kiara annoying old!Kion.

23. Favorite picture of this character?

Gotta be this one. I love this scene so much.

26: if you were a writer for the tlk franchise what’s one thing you’d wanna explore for kiara’s character?

I'd honestly want to explore her not wanting to be queen more. I think it's because she sees her dad throw himself into his royal duties so much and it makes her sad bc she doesn't know he's doing it to protect his family. I'd also want to explore how she could potentially grow into accepting being queen eventually while also not losing her sense of self in the process.

Thanks for the ask!!! She's really great hehe :D

[lex-n-weegie]

Dorbrak of Izganda backstory and character details

Basically me dumping all the info related to Dorbrak into a singular Tumblr post. This includes spoilers for the main series, mainly spoilers for the backstory of Senshi. If you're chill with that, read on ahead!

☆♡☆♡S/i uses any pronouns!♡☆♡☆

Writing Taglist(this counts lol) [pm or send an ask off anon if you’d like to be added or removed from my taglist]: @amessageonthewind, @nerdstreak, @eggsywifey, @swapthewoz, @queenieboo22

Dorbrak was a dwarf born out of their mother's infidelity, and was thus given a mocking name which meant “a loving fool” in dwarfish. Her time growing up in her town wasn't that great, but she had gotten along great with one other dwarf: Senshi. The two became quite close friends, until one day when he left. She somehow was able to stay behind for a couple more years, facing ridicule and mockery every day until they came up with a bogus reason to send her out. With nowhere to go and nothing to do, she decided to finally go after Senshi and find out what he was up to. It took another few years, she had even died at one point, but she eventually found the dungeon he had been trapped in with his comrades. She continued to venture deep inside, somehow managing to survive the monsters until she met up with the orcs. They took her prisoner and that was when she finally met up with Senshi again. He was touched that she spent years looking for him, and eventually fought for her freedom alongside his own. After that, she decided to always stick by his side, leaving the dungeon with him and happily deciding to go back in with him when he had changed his mind. She knew something happened to his party members, but all she had gotten out of him was that a monster picked them off one by one, and he was the only one who lived. She never pushed for more than that, even if she got the sense he hadn't told her the full story.

She taught Senshi everything he knows about baking, and he in turn taught her everything he knew about cooking. Together they became passionate about food, and they continued to bond over hunting and eating monsters. One night, while making some bread, she expressed thoughts of leaving the group and letting Senshi do his thing “alone and happy,” pointing out her name meant something. He replied he always thought it meant she was “fool” of love, and from that she finally confessed the romantic feelings he had developed for him since they were kids. He returned the feelings, and the two began dating from then on. They're affectionate with each other, but they don't overdo it on the PDA. It's mostly hand holding with a cheek kiss here and there, sometimes a kiss on the lips if they feel like it. In fact, no one had known they were a couple until Marcille asked if they were crushing on each other. Despite how many years they've been together however (a little over 40 years now), neither have thought about the idea of marriage. Dorbrak and Senshi think a wedding would be fun to cook for, but that's about it. Parenthood is similar, they both think they'd enjoy it but it would involve having to give up their lifestyle for a few years until the child could go on adventures with them as well. Marcille does push for it slightly, but never in an overbearing way, moreso in an excited “I think you guys are an adorable couple and I want to be a godmother” sense.

Dorbrak is a very kind individual, they treat everyone they meet with the same level of sweetness one could expect from a mother. When she cares deeply about someone, she's always checking in on their well-being. Have they eaten, do they need to eat, are they bored and need company, do they need anything in general, etc etc. Sometimes she’ll even be careless about her own wellbeing, putting herself in harm's way for silly reasons. That alongside the meaning of her name has led to people assuming she's not that bright, and while that might be true socially, she knows just as much about monsters and cooking as Senshi does. She just doesn't fight as well as he can, and she usually prefers to stay out of the fighting anyways. She does have insecurities about her attachments to Senshi, as she honestly hasn't had any friends besides him until Laios and his party came along. It's a sore subject in general, but overtime as their attachments to the other party members grow the insecurity lessens and lessens until it's eventually gone. Other than that, he's not ashamed of who he is and will happily express his true self daily.

True name: Dorbrak of Izganda

Age: 110

Race/Gender: Dwarf / ???

Birthplace: Eastern Continent / Izganda

Family: Estranged Mother

Physique: Height, roughly 135cm / BMI 34

Likes: Monster cuisine, Senshi

Dislikes: Undereating, being alone

Intelligence: 2

Magic: 1

Strength: 5

Constitution: 4

Baking: 5

Favorite thing to cook: Bread

Opinions on the party

Laios Touden: “A sweet guy who loves monsters, just like myself! I hope to teach him a bit of baking.”

Marcille Donato: “A bit picky, but able to push past it, good for her! Very interested in me and Senshi's love life, but nothing too far. She's got a good head on her shoulders.”

Chilchuck Tims: “I am absolutely enamored by his knowledge of traps and dungeons! I want him to teach me a little, but I seem to bother him with too many questions. He's a very talented lockpick.”

Senshi of Izganda: “My darling! He's always been by my side when I had no one else, he fought for me when no one else would, he's the most perfect partner a dwarf could ask for. I love cooking alongside him!”

Itutsumi: “A very picky eater, which I understand to a degree. It doesn't seem to be an issue of texture or taste or anything however, which is admittedly silly. Despite that, she's been surprisingly kinder to me than others. I really appreciate her company and how she helps us all out.”

The Orcs: “I'd say we have a good relationship. We'll trade resources from time to time and they've always been amicable. They didn't really treat me badly when I was younger, they just did what they thought they had to. They're nice overall.”

[innytoes]

25 and Willex (bonus points if the child/dog/friend is Reggie?) (If you're still taking prompts for this 😁)

Every year for Halloween, Willie went back to the group home where he'd stayed to volunteer to take the kids trick or treating. Not only was it a way of giving back - of assuaging the guilt he sometimes felt, wondering why Caleb had picked a chaotic, messy fourteen year old over any of the sweeter, smaller kids - but it was amazing fun too.

He got to dress up, run around with a bunch of kids, and also maybe keep a list of houses to come back and egg later, if they were weird or stuck up about 'those group home kids begging for candy'.

Besides, being 18 at the Hollywood Ghost Club on Halloween sucked. It wasn't even like he could use his fake ID, the bartenders all knew him. And Caleb was super strict about stuff like that during business hours. So he helped out at the group home, and then went to the staff party at the Club the day after, when they were closed and nobody cared too much about whether or not a certain son of the owner swiped a Bloodtini. Or skated off the railing. Or tried to dunk the green grilled cheeses in the chocolate fountain.

And okay, so maybe this year his costume was a little obscure, but he'd procrastinated getting anything, so he ended up raiding Caleb's old costumes from his 'I did other stuff on Broadway too you know' closet, and some of his own, and a trip to the dollar store, and he was pretty pleased with himself.

Except clearly someone recognised him.

"OH MY GOD, ZEKE ZILLIONS SPACE COWBOY?" someone across the street screamed, before dragging someone by the arm over to them.

"See, I told you he was a real character," Willie told the four nine year olds he was chaperoning. They rolled their eyes at him.

"Oh my god oh my god," A boy about his age said. He was dressed up as a zombie, though for some reason he was also carrying a wok. His friend was also a zombie, but had on a long pink wig, giant fake pearls, and a pink dress. He had great legs. "Zeke Zillions Space Cowboy was my absolute favourite cartoon as a kid. Can I please get a picture? Pretty please?"

"Sure can, Pard'ner," he said in his best Zeke Zillions impression, and the guy straight up went 'EEEEeee' like he was an early twothousands internet fangirl. After his friend took a bunch of pictures, he thanked the kids for their patience.

"By the way, number 42 is handing out full-sized candy bars," ZomBarbie said.

Throughout the night, every time they crossed paths (ZomBarbie and the Wokking Dead were accompanied by a witch, Kurt Cobain, and a tiny ghost buster), they'd wave at each other, as his fan shouted out a 'HI ZEKE!'. Eventually they ended up at the same house, waiting for the kids to get back.

"Sorry about Reggie," ZomBarbie said. "He's um, kind of a fanboy for that show. Like, writes-fanfiction-and-goes-to-obscure-fan-meet-ups kind of fan. I think you just made his year."

"That's okay, I'm glad someone remembers good old Zeke," Willie said. He was definitely going sleuthing on AO3 later. He wondered what the ships were. "The show meant a lot to me as a kid, what with the obvious queer-coding." Hopefully, a cute boy in a dress would understand that.

"Yeah," ZomBarbie said. "My parents didn't allow me to watch it. Too worried I'd turn out 'fruity'." He motioned to himself. "Clearly they succeeded," he said sarcastically.

"You do really pull off that dress, though," Willie said, waggling his eyebrows. His zombie friend went adorably flustered, from what he could tell under the zombie makeup.

Before he could flirt any more, the kids came back, complaining about how this house was handing out toothbrushes and toothpaste. "Can you put them on the list, Willie?" one of them, the girl dressed as Coraline, asked.

"Handing out toothbrushes is kind of dorky, but not an egg-able offense," Willie told her. "We reserve that for bigots and assholes."

"You have a list?" ZomBarbie asked, as they walked to the next house. His kids and the little Ghost Buster were comparing notes, it seemed, pointing at different houses.

"Yeah, lot of people in this fancy-pants neighbourhood don't take kindly to poor foster kids showing up," Willie said darkly.

"Carlos said something about that white house with the American Flag outside complaining about him going back to his own neighbourhood," the witch said darkly. "We live two blocks from here."

Willie glared, and made a note of it. "You wanna join me?" he asked, mostly to ZomBarbie, but quickly looking away at the rest of the group.

"My tía would kill me," the witch said, before smiling slyly. "But I'm sure Alex wouldn't mind going."

ZomBarbie spluttered a little, but managed to squeak out a little 'okay!'

Jackpot.

Behind him, he heard the guy's friend sigh happily. "And once again, Zeke Zillions saves the day, dispenses justice to evil doers, and captures hearts."

[snobgoblin]

✨️ships involving Ace and if i think they would work or not✨️

(I'm gonna try to keep this devoid of my personal opinions but I will elaborate on those in a rb)

Snace- it depends on what you mean by "work"... be healthy? absolutely not, Ace treats Snake horribly and theres a power dynamic there, with Ace being Snake's sort of "boss". but they're friends, anyway, so they get along. it could work, just not... well. I could definitely see it working way better with the later seasons characterizations than the early seasons... the early seasons... would be a hot mess. later seasons are a lot more silly though and Ace doesn't mistreat Snake in those SO... I think for this one it depends on your definition of a relationship working and also it depends on the version of Ace and Snake... they definitely have interests in common anyway

2dace- I could see it working. they have interests in common like video games and spray painting, but this one depends on the phase, too, because Ace can definitely dish it out but he can't take it, and if it's early phases 2-D... Ace would get tired of him pretty quickly. but then if it's phase 3 2-D who struggled a lot more than usual with headaches- Ace definitely wasn't the right guy to have around for the headache thing... it's definitely a timing thing with this one, I think. it could work well but it's a bit delicate bc they both kind of have strong personalities

Russace- this one's my favorite... I think this one would really end up benefitting both parties. Ace is a lot like Del, who Russel misses, and Russel offers a sense of understanding Ace has been chasing his entire life... I could go on. PLUS they're both american. so there's that. I think they'd work great

Acedoc- (I'm a hard believer that Ace is Sebastian's kid but let's ignore that for a second. assuming they're not brothers...) I really don't know if this one would work... I think they'd tear each other to shreds to be honest. they both have extremely strong personalities, and they both like bossing other people around. they're good friends, yes! but god I can't help but feel like they'd bite each others heads off being around each other for too long

Nuace- there's a lot to consider here... Noodle is a powerpuff girls fan (her favorite is Mojo Jojo) and she seems to like Ace well enough, she said he has a good heart, but he's a bit clingy. and, she went to the kentucky derby with him alone. you would think this is positive right? HOWEVER... I know Noodle. and I know she hates chaos. and I know she hates when someone doesn't stop talking. and I know she hates it when someone doesn't do what she says... and I know Ace would absolutely get on her nerves after a while. this would be a great one to start with but it would crash and burn eventually

[greatwesternway]

what did the indoor exhibits think about the outdoor ones before they all came inside? did they even know there were other engines out there?

The indoor exhibits knew the outdoor exhibits existed, but they didn't really think about them much beyond the way one might think of the people who work at your job but on a different shift.

A thought occurs to me though that some of the older locomotives that were kept indoors might be a bit concerned for the ones outside, if they'd had any experience with being left to the elements. Aside from the Rocket replica, we've put off researching a lot of the other pieces of smaller equipment the MSI has since Pioneer doesn't need to know anything about the guys inside beyond what it would occur to him to ask for Pilot's benefit. You saw my stack of books; this is why we go back and edit the letters every time we update, so we can add in stuff we learned in the meantime.

Anyway, those guys might harbor a worry for the engines outside, but there's not much to be done about it. The exhibits outside are too big to be brought indoors. These little old engines simply wouldn't conceive a way that the bigger machines could be brought inside... until they dismantle that wall and haul 999 and 727 in. Sure, they had to cut off 727's wings to get her through the door, but they put her right to her new use and both of the girls were now safely indoors.

2903 coming inside didn't seem so farfetched now, but U-505 and Pioneer's train are surely too long to bring inside. They'd take up an entire gallery to themselves! Which was true. They were building the Henry Crown Space Center by then so the indoor exhibits probably assumed they'd build annexes for Pioneer and U-505.

That they started digging instead would have been a surprising turn of events. But they did and Pioneer and his train were indeed given their own gallery. They lowered them into their new parking garage exhibit and everyone agrees he's a fine ambassador for the museum.

But Pioneer is very light, as far as trains go. The idea that they could drop something as heavy as U-505 in a hole on the same kind of pulleys they used to lower Pioneer in? Iffy proposition, the small exhibits might have thought. 2903 by this time had been moved to the IRM, but had he still been here, they might have assumed this was why he hadn't been moved inside too. This is the reason given for why he was donated and it was true at the time. U-505 is much heavier than 2903 is, but he is also (not to disparage 2903) a much more valuable exhibit. They were already saying that Pioneer's exhibit was the model for how they wanted to treat U-505. So they sent 2903 off to his new home and began planning yet another logistically complicated move for U-505.

It did take ten more years for them to get U-505 underground as well, but they did it. And that was truly a feat! It just goes to show how great their museum really is. Like, there's not a standard operating procedure for lowering a U-boat into a subterranean exhibit. The MSI not only presents science and industry as it happens, they make their own.

The exhibits themselves may not necessarily appreciate it on that level, but they do recognize the dedication of their museum to their care and maintenance that everyone was eventually brought in, even the most unwieldy of them and even if they had to send them to a new home to ensure they'd no longer be getting rained and snowed on.

[ichabodjane]

Hi! May I send you a random ask?

I noticed your recent post about Arondir. The show doesn't tell us very much about his life. Do you have any headcanons about him?

Hope you have a great weekend!

Hello!

Yes, of course you can send me a random ask! Especially if it's about cinnamon roll Arondir.

Some of my headcanons about him, in no particular order:

-He as an only child.

-Even by Sindar standards, he has always been a bit of a loner, perfectly content with his own company and some plants.

-He's seen Galadriel a couple times before the battle in the Southlands. Once during the War of Wrath, rallying troops for a renewed assault, and once after Beleriand was destroyed, organizing and leading refugees to safety. (Side note: I absolutely love that when he tells Theo her name, he uses the Sindarin pronunciation, a soft "dh" (in linguistics, called the "breathy d" yes really) sound rather than the harder dental stop "d". It's such a subtle difference but Ismael nailed it. Real talk, I would watch an entire season of Ismael Cruz Cordova and Morfydd Clark speaking to each other in any of the Elvish languages.)

-He fell for Bronwyn like 2.5 seconds after meeting her (this is also Ismael Cruz Cordova's headcanon). He saw her working in her garden, singing to herself, and it was the first thing he'd seen in years and years that reminded him of his lost home. The next time he saw her, she was treating a patient and was so gentle and kind. And he was just a goner. She was a young newlywed; by the time Arondir came back through, her husband was gone and everyone was gossiping about why.

-Obviously he was hesitant to try having a normal conversation with her, because he's a quiet person in general and also she's a Southlander human. He's not really supposed to make friends with them. So for weeks or maybe months, he would just leave bundles of helpful and/or rare herbs where she'd find them. Like near her house or at the well behind the tavern.

-Eventually he worked up the courage to talk to her. He asked her a question about something she was making. Or maybe Bronwyn was the first to start a conversation, confronting him about why he was leaving things around her house but not talking to her.

-Sometimes they'd run into each other when she was in the fields and the woods, harvesting plants. They would talk about plants and healing and other things while Medhor followed at a distance, occasionally trying to give Arondir significant looks, which Arondir completely ignored.

-Arondir and Medhor are pretty close. I think Medhor would have to care about Arondir more than a little to keep his relationship with Bronywn a secret. I like to think Medhor saw Arondir on his own a lot and took it upon himself to integrate Arondir into the rest of the group stationed at the Ostirith watch tower. Like Medhor just sat next to him at dinner one night and started talking and he's never shut up since. Arondir is generally fine with his chatter. He likes to keep a mental timer of how long it takes before Medhor changes topic. It's usually under a minute.

-He really likes spicy food. He really really likes watching Medhor try and fail to eat food as spicy as Arondir eats it.

-Much like Samwise Gamgee, all Arondir wants is a bit of peace and quiet and good tilled earth to tend with the people he loves. AND HE DESERVES IT. HE DESERVES IT SO MUCH.

[beatrice-otter]

Planning a Peaceful Campaign

And here is the other yuletide fic I wrote! This one was for Quasar, a pinch-hitter who was not signed up and so wouldn't receive anything without treats. They were the only one of the pinch hitters I could write for. This was my only treat this year; other writing projects got in the way. (Including my late pinch hit for sedoretuex which was fun but did take a lot of time). I knew I wasn't going to have much time for treating given how much stuff I signed up for this year.

This was quick to write but I enjoyed it; and it's always fun to use bits of history trivia I already know. In this case, "spending a lot of time at a particular noble's house to force them to entertain the entire Royal Court (and thus spend a shitton of money) so they won't have the funds to cause future trouble, but also can't complain about their impoverishment" was a common tactic of late medieval/early modern royalty in England. And also, in the medieval period, if someone is abruptly a major player in politics and neither they nor their parents had that kind of power/position/money before, and it's not a case of "the monarch just happened to love this person," and you wonder how come they're such an important/rich person all of a sudden? The answer is usually "tax fraud," which was a booming industry in late medieval England at all social levels.

Title: Planning a Peaceful Campaign Author: Beatrice_Otter Fandom: Curse of Chalion Length: 1424 words Rating: Gen Written for: quasar  in yuletide  2023

At AO3. On Squidgeworld. On dreamwidth. On Pillowfort.

It was a good thing, Iselle reflected as she watched her Chancellor and his wife lay out their luncheon, that all four of them were known as excellent riders with a love of speed and the skill to accomplish it safely. Days like this, when they'd managed to outride the rest of the court and find a place to picnic by themselves, were the only truly private speech they'd had for months.

"You know, this isn't going to work for too much longer," Bergon said. It was his turn to walk the horses to cool them down, and Iselle turned to watch him. The light sheen of sweat from exercise on a warm summer day gave him a very appealing glow, pleasantly reminding her of other things they might be doing to work up a sweat. "We're giving them too much practice, and I know for a fact that dy Garnez has sent for his younger brother, who I'm told is one of the best horsemen in Almesca, to attend us."

"There are other ways of slipping off alone," Iselle said.

"None as enjoyable as this one, though," Betriz said.

"Speak for yourself," Iselle said, ogling her husband. Betriz laughed.

"And eventually we'll be back in Cardegoss for the winter," Caz pointed out. "There, all the spyholes and things are under our control, and the servants loyal to us."

"And then next spring we get to start this whole circus all over again," Iselle said with a sigh. "You know, if you'd told me as a child that I would grow tired of travelling and wish to stay home, I would have declared you more mad than Mother." Who, of course, had not been mad at all, but only seemed that way.

"It isn't the travel, though," Bergon said. "It's being constantly on show."

"Well, that and the fact that we can't stay anywhere we actually like for too long," Iselle pointed out. Hosting the entire court was an immense honor … and also a great expense that could not be refused. Feasts, revels, all the sorts of entertainments a royal court might expect, redecorating the Royina and Roya's bedchambers in the latest fashions, and other costs piled up into a tidy sum. It was a delicate balance: staying just long enough with their supporters that they received the honor but were not too badly impacted, and then overstaying their welcome with the less honorable and loyal nobles without making it obvious that they were simply there to drain their coffers to lessen the trouble they could make.

"When you get pregnant, that'll be an excellent excuse to stay in Cardegoss or Valenda," Betriz pointed out. She sat back and admired the spread that had come out of their saddle bags. "There! Isn't that nice."

"It is, thank you," Iselle said, taking a seat on the blanket next to her friend.

Bergon tied off the horses to a bush—the only tree in the meadow was the one they were sitting under—and joined them. Caz said a blessing over their meal; when he'd first become her tutor, back in Valenda, such things had often been omitted or done by rote. No longer.

For a few minutes things were quiet as they all worked their way through the excellent spread of cold meats, cheeses, and pasties.

"So," Iselle said as they sated the initial appetite the ride had given them, "we leave the castle of Gipendio in two days to head to Irebar, where dy Rubanco has his primary seat. Is there anything we need to wrap up here?"

"No, madam," Caz said.

"I'll be sorry to leave," Bergon said wistfully. "Dy Lopeira is such good company." The two of them were well on their way to becoming fast friends.

"Well, he's invited to Cardegoss for the winter, and he'll probably come," Betriz pointed out. An invitation from Bergon and Iselle was not quite a command, but few would refuse without an overwhelming reason.

"Best soak up the camaraderie with him now," Caz said. "There'll be little enough of it in dy Rubanco's household."

Bergon grimaced, and Iselle sighed. dy Rubanco had not been involved in dy Jironal's wild march across Cardegoss to capture her and Bergon, but he had been a friend and loyal follower of the previous Chancellor. He'd been as close as dy Jironal had allowed anyone who wasn't family. dy Rubanco had, of course, professed all proper allegiance and disavowed his former master, but there were rumblings and rumors that Caz didn't like. In particular, there was a great deal of hostility to Ibra circulating in Irebar, with just enough plausible deniability for dy Rubanco that they couldn't do anything about it.

"How long do you think we'll have to stay?" she asked Caz.

Caz shrugged. "He's got deep pockets. On the other hand, part of that may be because of favors dy Jironal did for him. In particular, my clerks have turned up some discrepancies in the tax records for the area. By quite a substantial margin. In particular, a number of grain mills and smaller manors seem to have quietly vanished from the Chancellery's records over the course of Orico's reign."

"Can we get him to repay some of what he should have been paying all along?" Betriz asked.

"Probably not," Bergon said. "With dy Jironal dead, all he has to do is say that he paid his taxes through in-kind gifts we now can't trace."

"Or that there were a series of bad harvests, and it was only supposed to be a temporary reprieve, and he had no idea the Chancellor altered the records," Iselle pointed out. 'I had no idea the Chancellor's actions weren't legal or legitimate' was, unfortunately, a very popular defense in Chalion these days.

Betriz opened her mouth, probably to outline how to get enough proof of collusion to be worth doing something about, and then slumped with a sigh. "And if we went after him for it all, that would spoil the new beginning we're trying to create. Too bad. We could use the money."

"We could indeed," Caz said, making a face.

Iselle hummed agreement through a mouthful of pastie. Between wars they'd lost, tax breaks for his relatives, and funds diverted to those relatives and allies in one way or another, the treasury was rather threadbare. And the fact that Orico never traveled, staying at Cardegoss where the Roya's purse funded all the feasting and entertainment, didn't help. The roads were in a terrible state, major aqueducts and bridges that should be maintained by the Roya were in a state of disrepair, and there were so many neglected areas of the country where a small amount of attention and money would bring things into greater prosperity and stability.

"Still, getting the tax rolls properly updated will make a difference going forward," Caz said. "And mean that he has fewer funds to make trouble with."

Bergon sighed and took a swig of watered wine from his flask. "And we won't have a moment's peace or privacy while there for however long it takes to get everything straightened out and drain his current coffers."

"He's known for his elaborate spectacles," Betriz pointed out. "I've heard he has a court playwright who is rather good."

"And he'll be kind enough to loan us servants who will be happy to sleep at the foot of our beds so they can be attentive to our whims day or night," Iselle said. "And report everything to him, no doubt." Including not just her conversations and her visitors, but also the state of her menses, no doubt. She made a face.

"Well, we'll just have to deal with it," Bergon said pragmatically. "If nothing else, our enthusiastic marital intimacies will be better gossip than the things he's spreading around now."

Iselle made a face. Being known to be devoted to her husband and, er, enthusiastically trying for an heir was definitely better than the alternative; she still would rather not have people gossiping about her at all. But that was too much for a royina to ask for. "Months of no privacy, on display like an animal in a cage. Well, it's certainly a less expensive method of bringing him to heel than any other I can think of; it has that advantage."

"Less expensive for us, that is," Betriz said.

"No point letting tomorrow's problems spoil this lovely day, though," Bergon said.

"Hear, hear," Iselle said, saluting him with her flask. "And it is such a lovely day."