#first prompt list i plan to actually complete to the end of the month hype

[foolishly-snowy]

cringetober day 1: Heterochromia

Character featured: Jarldis

[purple-plum-petals]

⊱ You Can Do Better Than Me ⊰ || Boothill X Reader

╭─━━━━━━━━━━━━─╮        Character(s): Boothill (Honkai: Star Rail)        Reader Type: Human, Not the Trailblazer (Gender-Neutral Pronouns)        Warning(s): Break-up (Miscommunication/Assumptions… Not Permanent), Negative Body Image/Self-talk (Regarding Boothill), Use of Petnames (Boothill calls Reader “darlin’” and “sweets” and Reader calls Boothill “honey” and “love”), Slightly Suggestive Ending.        Genre: Drabble, Angst, Fluff (Hurt/Comfort), Pre-Established Romantic Relationship        Word Count: ~2500 words       Prompt: “What part of ‘I want you, and only you’ do you not understand?”        Author’s Note: Hello everyone, I come back to you briefly with a random Boothill drabble because this cowboy has been on my brain for the past three months and I needed to get something written for him ASAP. I actually got both him and his lightcone on release day, so I’m still hyped about that (didn’t even need to break my F2P status either hehehe 😎). I will get around to writing a multi-chapter fic for him as soon as my summer semester is over and all of the current requests in the ask box have been answered. I’ve been managing the workload relatively well so far, but it’s genuinely been so overwhelming in terms of content/information that my brain can barely form coherent sentences after class and work. 😭 Anyways, have some self-conscious Boothill and my beloved hurt/comfort. Maybe instead of saving the horse, we should save the cowboy. Also… let me know if anyone is interested in a part two, and I’ll be happy to write it. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)             Tag-List: @anonima-2 – I know you wanted me to tag you if I got around to writing a Boothill X Reader fic, so here it is! It may not be a multi-chapter one, but I hope you enjoy this little drabble.

→ If you enjoyed my work, please reblog it if you can! Exposure on Tumblr is based on reblogging content rather than liking it, so your support would be much appreciated!  ♡ ╰─━━━━━━━━━━━━─╯

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You had known Boothill for quite some time now. You had crossed paths with the elusive Galaxy Ranger throughout the years, so many times that you eventually lost count. Three times was uncommon, five times was rare, but over twenty times? That was absolutely unheard of given the vast expanse of space. It got to the point where you both noticed how frequently you would meet, the two of you making jokes that the universe was pushing you together.

Boothill had thought for a while you were sent to capture and/or kill him by the IPC but, after a particularly intense “discussion” (where he proceeded to hold you at gunpoint, as he frequently did with most people), you were able to confirm that all of the times you two had met were indeed just an exceedingly rare coincidence. It was something you would occasionally bring up to tease him about nowadays, poking fun at the fact he had literally held his future partner at gunpoint. It was a memorable event to reminisce on when asked by others ‘how did you two meet?’.

Years had passed since that unforgettable interaction, and both you and Boothill were happy and content in your current relationship. All of that time together with him had given you insight into how the cowboy typically behaved. He could be brash and rush into trouble head-first, but he was also immensely intelligent and could think of a plan on the fly to get himself out of even the stickiest situations. He was the type of person who frequently spoke his mind, not allowing his tampered-with Synesthesia Beacon to completely censor what he wanted to say… which is why you were as worried as you were lately.

Your boyfriend hadn’t been as talkative as he usually was. He had returned from a three-month-long trek around the galaxy a few days ago, and he had been distant ever since he came back. His replies had been clipped, and he had a strange look in his eye whenever he glanced your way; he hadn’t even looked at you for more than a few seconds since his return.

Tentatively, you made your way over to where he was sitting by an open window in your home, the breeze gently blowing the strands of his black-and-white hair to and fro. You stepped closer to stand next to him as you asked, voice tender as you spoke, “Boothill, honey, what’s wrong? You’ve been more reserved than usual these past few days, and I just want to check to see if you’re ok–…”

Then, he spoke, his voice firm as he cut off the rest of what you were going to say, “…I wanna break up.”

Your heart dropped into your stomach at his words, and you felt your palms begin to clam up with sweat as you whispered, “W… What?” You swallowed harshly, stepping closer to him as you asked, double-checking to see if you had heard him correctly, “What did you just say?”

“I said I wanna break up.” He says once more, voice rough as he turns his head ever-so-slightly to watch you from his peripheral. It felt like the world had stopped moving when he confirmed what you had always hoped you would never have to hear, and you feel your eyes begin to water. He finally, after so many days, looks at you directly after what has felt like eons. Whatever expression was on your face caused him to flinch before he looked away once more, staring at his hat on the nearby table.

Boothill sighs and runs a hand through his hair as he continues to speak, his voice gentler than usual as he tells you, “I don’t think this,” He pauses, taking his hand and gesturing toward himself before finishing his thought, “…is good fer you.”

Your emotions were fluctuating so quickly that your mind didn’t know what to do with all of them. First, you were worried about your boyfriend, then you were heartbroken when he said he wanted you two to go your separate ways, and now? Now you were angry, a sudden burst of frustration filling your veins at his reasoning behind wanting to end your relationship. Your heart aches as you exclaim, trying not to pay attention to the wetness forming along your lashes, “Excuse me? What the hell are you talking about?”

Boothill is back to refusing to look at you, so you try to move into his line of sight as you ask, your hands flailing about as you speak in a desperation-laced tone, “What, exactly, isn’t ‘good for me’ Boothill?”

He turns his head to look at you, standing up from where he had been sitting as he holds his hands out, trying to placate you as he says hastily, “Listen don’t – don’t get the wrong idea, alright?”

“How can I not get the wrong idea when you suddenly tell me you want to end our relationship!?” You yell back, feeling the tears begin to trickle down your cheeks. You were angry, sure, but the soul-crushing feeling of separating from the man you loved so deeply pierced your heart like a knife. Your frustration quickly began to be tainted with sorrow, your voice coming out softly as you ask him, your mind desperate for some kind of answer as you place a hand on your chest, “Did I… Did I do something for you to come to this decision?”

Panic floods his expression immediately as he reaches out, his hands resting on your shoulders as he leans down to look at your face. He quickly tells you, one of his hands coming up to gently cup your cheek as his thumb brushes away your tears, “No, no, no, no – you didn’t do anythin’, darlin’. You’ve been perfect in every way, I just…”

He pauses, gaze traveling to the ground as he thinks of what to say. His cold, metallic fingers against your skin are comforting to you in a way you couldn’t describe – comforting in a way no one else would be able to understand. Boothill’s eyes meet with yours once more as he continues speaking with a bittersweet smile, “You could do so much better than me, sweets. I don’t want to hold you back.”

The anger you had felt was suddenly back in full force as you asked him, brows furrowed as you questioned, “How?”

Your hands come up to hold onto his, the one that was still lovingly cupping your face as you ask, leaning forward toward him as you speak, “How could I do better than you? What are you holding me back from?”

Boothill shakes his head, saying with a frown, “There’s so many things I can’t give you… I can’t give ya a peaceful life, I can’t give ya a family…” His voice cracks slightly at the word, but he continues to speak as he begins to pull his hand away from your face, “You deserve someone who’s around more often – someone who can be there for ya whenever you need ‘em.”

Boothill chuckles bitterly, removing his hand from your grasp as walks over to grab his hat off of the nearby table, and you’ve never felt so cold and empty in your entire life. You watch helplessly as he places the hat on his head, staring as he begins to make his way toward the front door as he tells you, “You deserve someone who doesn’t cause you to jump every time their freezin’ cold hands touch ya – someone who can actually feel ya.”

You step toward him, reaching out to take his hand in yours and effectively stopping him in his tracks as you say firmly, “Boothill, shut the fuck up. Aren’t you going to at least ask me what I think about this?”

Boothill sighs, turning back around to look at you as he speaks. He doesn’t do anything to remove his hand from your grasp, instead gently squeezing it in a comforting manner as he tells you, “Listen, sweets, I just think it’s for the better that–…”

“No, it’s not.” You say, your voice strong despite the tears that had begun to flow down your face. You look up at him, bringing his hand to place on your chest as you tightly hold it over your heart, telling him firmly and genuinely despite the way your voice cracks, “I don’t care if you can’t give me those things. When did I even say that’s what I wanted in life?”

“Why wouldn’t you want that?” Boothill asks, looking down at you as if you had grown a second head, as if everything he said he couldn’t give you was something that everyone would want. He looks conflicted as he tells you, trying to take his hand back as he steps away from you and closer to the front door, “You deserve to be happy – you deserve to have someone who’s there for you.”

“What if all I want is you, huh?” You tell him, refusing to let go of his hand – refusing to let him leave your life in such a way. Your hold on Boothill’s hand was tight because you knew, deep down, if you let his hand slide out of yours, you’d never see him again. You look up at him as you speak, a spark of determination in your eyes which causes Boothill’s cheeks to flush a light shade of blue, “No one else can give me you. You’re the one that makes me happy – not some dream life, not some perfect family – just you.”

“You don’t want me, darlin’ – I promise, once I’m gone, you’ll move on an’ another lucky fella will have the honor of being able to love ya.” Boothill tells you with furrowed brows and a smile, his sharp teeth peeking out from behind his lips as he tries to convince you he’s not what you want. You could feel your eyebrow twitch in frustration at his words, your tears slowing down as you refute his claim.

“What part of ‘I want you, and only you’ do you not understand?” You ask him, a tinge of hurt and frustration mixed in your voice as you reach out to firmly hold both of his hands in your own. Boothill allows you to do so with no fanfare, a conflicted expression on his face; his fingers twitch in your hold. He watches as you close your eyes and take a deep breath, hesitating for a moment before once again looking at him as you whisper, “Listen, if you want to leave, I’m not going to stop you or hold you back, but…” You pause, smiling warmly at him before continuing, “but I want you. I want to be with you, not this hypothetical ‘fella’ you’ve envisioned who would give me a perfect life.”

Before Boothill could open his mouth to try and argue again, you quickly add on as you bring one of his hands to your lips, pressing a light kiss to his digits as you tell him, “I don’t care that you’re cold to the touch – I don’t care that we won’t have a picture-perfect life together…” You feel the tears beginning to form on your lashes again as you run your thumbs along his knuckles, telling him sincerely, “I’ve never imagined a future without you in it, love.”

Boothill looks down at you, his expression a clash between his adoration for you and the heaviness of the situation. He shakes his head, bringing one of your hands to his lips as he presses a kiss to the back of it as he tells you, voice uncharacteristically quiet as he admits, “I… I don’t want to leave, sweets. I just…” He hesitates as he makes eye contact with you, raising a brow as he once again gestures to himself as he asks, “Are you sure this is what ya want?”

“I’ve never been more sure about anything in my entire life,” You tell him, letting go of his hands as you instead wrap your arms around his neck, pulling him closer to you as your bodies press against one another. His arms wrap around your waist on instinct, pulling you close to him as you press your foreheads together. You stare into his eyes and bring a hand to his cheek, placing your palm against his face as you run your thumb along the skin under his eye. He leans into your touch, turning his head to kiss your palm as you tell him with a smile, “Rain or shine, good or bad… I want to be beside you throughout it all.”

“Heh, well… I’m glad I get to be by yer side.” Boothill says, opening his eyes once more to look at you. He leans forward, pressing a kiss to your temple as he whispers, almost as if he didn’t want the world to hear him – to keep this tender moment a secret between the two of you, “…Thank you for choosin’ me out of the rest of the blokes in the galaxy, darlin’. I’m a real lucky guy to have someone as wonderful as you.”

“I’d choose you in every universe, Boothill. That’s a promise.” You reply with a smile, pressing a chaste kiss to his lips, almost as if you were teasing him.

He smirks at both your words and your actions, saying with a raised brow as he leans back, tilting his hat up with one finger as he speaks, “That’s quite a big promise there, darlin’. Sure you can keep it?”

“Oh, I’m sure.” You reply, matching his expression as you huff, “Don’t doubt me, cowboy.”

“I won’t, I won’t…” Boothill says with a chuckle. He pauses, his smile faltering slightly as he looks down at you. Your eyes were still slightly red, and the stains your tears had left on your cheeks were still present. He pulls you closer to him, nuzzling his face into your neck as he takes a deep breath in, muttering against your skin, “Aeons, I love ya… I love ya so fudgin’ much.”

“I love you, too, honey.” You reply softly, running your hand up and down his back when an idea pops into your mind. It was a mischievous one, and the mere thought of it causes a smirk to grow on your lips. You reach up and grab the hat from his head as you instead place it on yours, asking him flirtatiously, “Why don’t I show you just how much I love you?”

“Well… I certainly like the sound of that.” Boothill replies lowly, his eyes half-lidded as he gently caresses your face, smirking at his hat now resting atop your head. He leans down and kisses you, whispering against your lips in a sultry tone, “Plus, I’d like to apologize for makin’ you cry… Can I, darlin’?”

The tone of his voice was enough to make your heart start beating faster, and you could feel your cheeks begin to warm as you replied quickly with a simple, “Please do.”

[tennessoui]

oh my god literally every single prompt on that list is gold and i'd love to see your obikin take for all of them. hmmm... if i had to choose i guess first 13. co-stars au?? thank you lots of love !!!

ah bless!! thank you so much!! i'm slowly working my way through most of the prompts on that list so you might see many many more before I'm done with my ask box. I think after two more, I'll put em on ao3 to keep em more organized too. this has been soooo fun!!

13. Co-Stars AU(/7. Fake Relationship AU)(2.5 k)

“No.”

“Ani, darling, you can’t say no.”

“Don’t call me that. And secondly, I can. I just did. This is my personal life, the company has no control over that.”

“While you’re filming its movie and it’s giving you money, you’ll actually find that it does, Anakin.”

Anakin sits down heavily on the bench outside his trailer, leaning forward until he can put his head in his hands. He wants to run his fingers through the mess on his head, but they’re in between takes right now and the make-up department will definitely kill him if they have to fix him up again.

“Asajj, please. You know how hard it was to get to come out as bisexual. If the first person I date after that is a woman, no one will remember! It’ll just be completely erased, and I’ll be Anakin Skywalker, Playboy Actor again.”

“But you do like women,” Asajj points out. “So either way, you’d be confirming your sexuality.”

Anakin sighs and leans his head back against the metal of the trailer. “And it would be different if I was actually in love with Padme, but she’s just my co-star and--”

“Anakin, she’s your co-star. You’re in a blockbuster movie where you dramatically save her life and then kiss her as the credits roll. This is just business. You like her. You’re friends. Think of it less like dating, and more like going to grab lunch together. And coffee. Maybe a fancy dinner. Several times a week.”

“For how long?” Anakin asks, resigned and despairing and hating the fact that he ever got into acting.

Asajj sounds relieved. “Just until the movie’s out and sales are doing well.”

That could be months. That would be months. “And I have to?” he asks.

“Yes,” she says. “I’m sorry.”

Anakin doesn’t say it’s fine. It doesn’t feel like it is fine.

“They’re not looking for anything to be confirmed. If asked about your relationship with Padme, tell them you think she’s a great woman and you’re enjoying spending time with her. No comment on any sort of serious relationship.”

“Because a break-up afterwards might hurt the chances for a sequel?” Anakin asks drily.

“Exactly! We’ll get you a head for the business yet, Anakin. Okay, I have to go, but I’ll send you the information now, just so you know what you’ll be expected to do. We’re thinking a dinner tomorrow to start things off strong, and then slow afterwards!”

She hangs up before he can say anything else and he slumps back boneless against the metal trailer. God.

It’s not that he doesn’t like Padme. Ventress is right. They were friends before this project and Anakin knows they’ll be friends after as well. They genuinely get along, and it’s probably one of the reasons Anakin was cast in such a big name production: the chemistry between them when they’re acting is undeniable. She’s one of his favorite people in the entire industry.

“Anakin?” One of his other favorite people in the entire industry asks hesitantly from in front of him. “Are you alright?”

“No,” he says.

“May I sit?”

“Yeah,” he says.

Like he’d ever turn Obi-Wan Kenobi away.

“Are you wearing your costume?” he asks, without opening his eyes. Obi-Wan’s playing the villain of the movie, and Anakin has a hard time focusing on anything else when Obi-Wan’s around him wearing that skin-tight white turtleneck and cape combination, with his hair slicked back and fake glasses perched on his nose.

Obi-Wan sounds amused. “No, I’m finished for the day. Heading home now. You don’t have to see how silly I look today.”

Anakin smiles slightly, despite everything. In one of his better acting moments, he’d told Obi-Wan that his costume was distracting because it looked so funny on him. Really, it was just hot.

(Of course, Obi-Wan had taken his criticism seriously and gone to the director and the costume department. They had decided that it would make Obi-Wan’s character more threatening if he pushed up his sleeves in almost every scene to reveal heavily tattooed forearms. Anakin had hated himself and his big stupid mouth for days afterwards.)

“Is...there anything I can do to help, Anakin? I hate to see you like this,” Obi-Wan places a hand gently on Anakin’s knee, and Anakin has to fight a shiver at the touch.

They’d met at the script-reading for the movie, a handful of months ago. Anakin had set two clocks in his head the moment their hands grasped each other and Obi-Wan smiled charmingly up at him. “So you’re the one to kill me?” He’d winked. “Tall order.”

One clock signified the weeks it would take for him to fall in love with the older man. The starting number was pitifully small, but Anakin had been watching Obi-Wan’s movies and interviews for years before meeting him. He’d known something about the man, which of course had paled in comparison to knowing the man himself. They’d spent two weeks choreographing the steps of the final fight scene, just the two of them in a repurposed ballet studio.

Looking back, Anakin isn’t sure how he’d survived. And he had never wanted it to end.

Which is the other clock, still ticking down in his head. The moment filming ends, and they go their separate ways. They’ll probably keep in touch, but Anakin won’t see him constantly, won’t be able to lean into the weight of Obi-Wan’s hand on his shoulder, his knee, sometimes even on his cheek when he leans down in between takes to tell him how good of a job he’s done.

“Anakin?”

“Sorry,” Anakin snaps to the present. “Sorry. I was in my head. I. I don’t think so, no.”

“Oh,” Obi-Wan says, tensing his hand as if he’s planning to remove it, which Anakin wouldn’t appreciate in the slightest.

“My agent says that the executives want me to date Padme. To drum up hype for the movie. Because I guess people will think it must be good if the co-stars start fucking each other?” He runs a hand across his face. “Um. Sorry, excuse my language.”

“Anakin, I’m forty-one, I think I’ve heard someone say fuck before,” Obi-Wan sounds amused again.

“Yeah, I just. Don’t want to? I guess maybe--I mean you probably didn’t see, but I came out as bisexual a year ago, and I haven’t dated anyone since, and I just know the way the rags will write about me and Padme if we’re seen together. And it’ll be like I just. Never came out.”

Obi-Wan makes a sympathetic noise but doesn’t interrupt. It’s one of the reasons Anakin loves talking to him.

“And my agent just sent me this contract, or I don’t know, list of things I have to do because there’s no way for me to get out of this and it just makes me feel trapped. But they don’t even want me to confirm if we're dating or not dating, they just want to create rumors about it, but it’s my life. I want to do what I want to do with my life, date who I want to date.”

“Do you...have anyone you want to date?” Obi-Wan asks, hand stilling from where he’s been casually rubbing circles on Anakin’s knee.

“No,” Anakin says too quickly and then grimaces. Does he really get paid for acting? He’s always so terrible at lying.

Obi-Wan hums. “I could...take a look at whatever papers your agent sent you?” He suggests. “I’m obviously not really an expert, but I have been in the business a fair bit longer than you.”

“You’re not that old,” Anakin responds by rote, but hesitates, curious despite himself. “You wouldn’t mind?”

“I’ve nothing planned tonight except to have a glass of wine and pet my cat, Anakin. It would be a pleasure to help you any way I could.”

“Okay,” Anakin says, reaching out to lay his hand gently on top of Obi-Wan’s. He’s never done that before, never responded so openly to Obi-Wan’s touches. It’s an amazing thrill.

Obi-Wan flips his hand around until they’re holding hands, basically. In the middle of a public area. God, Anakin’s letting his crush get the best of him when Obi-Wan isn’t even gay. “Thank you,” he says, standing up and pulling away from the older man. It’s the right thing to do. The last thing he wants is for Obi-Wan to think he’s...predatory.

A harried looking crew member spots him as he stands and gestures to him to get back to the set. He smiles ruefully at Obi-Wan who gives him an unreadable expression but also a soft goodbye.

Later, in between takes, he forwards Obi-Wan the emails Asajj sent him, both the papers and the message at the top that says “dress nice for tomorrow at Delfino’s!” followed by a little smiley face he can’t believe she’d ever mean.

He knows nothing’s going to come of it, but. But he has to try.

----

Padme’s dressed to the nines in front of him. He’d compliment her outfit, but he’s already complimented her hair and her make-up, and he thinks she’ll scream if he continues to act as stilted as he’s being now.

“I’m sorry,” he murmurs quietly after the waiter leaves with their drink orders. “I know I’m being--awkward. I just.”

They’re seated in the middle of the restaurant, and Anakin knows there’s two paps already outside, taking pictures through the windows. The rest will have arrived by the time they pay the bill and leave. It’s a circus and he’s the main event.

“I understand,” Padme responds, the angel that she is. “I don’t particularly want to be doing this either.”

Anakin presses his hand to his chest, jokingly wounded. “What are you trying to say, Padme, my beloved, my dearest?”

She laughs and he does too, but in the back of his head he can hear the sound of a camera’s shutter clicking. Everything feels fake, and he feels like he’s about to crawl out of his skin.

A hand lands on his shoulder with startling familiarity and for a second he thinks it’s a very brave member of the wait-staff, before Obi-Wan Kenobi is swinging into his field of vision, pulling up a chair from god knows where and sitting right in between Anakin and Padme, never once removing his hand from Anakin’s jacket.

“Sir--” someone says in distress, “This is a two-person table.”

Obi-Wan raises an eyebrow and looks down at the table. “Well it certainly can fit three, so I would go as far as to say that tonight it can be a three-person table. Anakin, what did you order to drink?”

“The house white,” Padme supplies when Anakin makes no move to respond, instead choosing to gape at Obi-Wan like a fish out of water.

“Excellent choice, darling,” Obi-Wan says, rubbing at his upper arm absent-mindedly. “I’ve never been here, tell me. Do you serve a good seafood dish?”

The waiter stammers. “We have an acclaimed oyster platter, sir--”

“Oysters?” Obi-Wan smiles at the man, all teeth. “The aphrodisiac? What are you trying to get these kids in the mood for?”

Anakin blushes. “Obi-Wan!” He hisses, aghast. Obi-Wan’s eyes cut to him for a second before he smirks back at the waiter.

“I’ll take the oysters for the main course,” he says dismissively.

Somehow it’s that sentence that tips Anakin off, more than anything else he’s done tonight. Obi-Wan spends hours talking to the people that run the crafts table. He would never be so cold or rude naturally. He’s...playing a character, one that Anakin recognizes as being the villain from their movie (although without all the blood and murder).

Anakin only recedes into personas when he’s nervous about something. Can the same be said for Obi-Wan?

Padme, at least, looks amused. “Hello, Obi-Wan,” she says. “I see you’ve decided to crash our very romantic date.”

“Well that’s interesting, isn’t it?” Obi-Wan replies, turning to face her but keeping his hand on Anakin, although it slides down to rest on the crook of his arm. “I had Anakin send me the paperwork, mild curiosity, you know how it is, and I realized the strangest thing while I was reading over it.”

“Oh?” Padme asks.

“It never states which co-star Anakin should be seen with, just that he must be seen with a leading actor. And I don’t want to focus on the numbers here, of course, but in the rough-cut of the movie, I have thirty-four minutes of screentime. And you, my dear, have thirty-two and fifteen seconds.”

“Tragic,” Padme says, taking a sip of her water. "You may be considered more of a leading actor than I am."

“Certainly,” Obi-Wan gives her a friendly smile. Anakin is still stuck on the fact that Obi-Wan is here, that he read the paperwork, that he’s arguing semantics for the purpose of--of--

“And I suppose you’re here to offer yourself as a replacement?” Padme asks, leaning her head on her hand as she watches the two of them.

“Only if Anakin wouldn’t mind,” Obi-Wan says, turning to face him.

Anakin isn’t sure what he’s thinking right now. “But you’re not interested in men.”

“I am,” Obi-Wan says.

“But...you’re not interested in me.”

“I am,” Obi-Wan says.

“You are?”

“Excuse me,” Padme says. “I’m going to go to the restroom.”

“We’ll wait to order until you come back,” Obi-Wan reassures her, without taking his eyes off of Anakin.

Anakin bites his lip and hesitantly brings his hand up to sit palm up on the table. Obi-Wan doesn’t hesitate to intertwine their fingers again, like they had been just yesterday.

“I’m a very private person, Anakin,” Obi-Wan says quietly, all traces of any sort of persona dropped from his voice. “I’ve never come out, never wanted to. But I was so proud that you had when you did. And I--well. I suppose. You already get to fake-kiss Padme on screen, I thought that perhaps you’d like to try to fake-kiss someone else for a change.”

Anakin ducks his head and gathers his courage. He can’t not ask. A fake relationship with Padme would be awful, but one with Obi-Wan? That would be torture. Cruel and unusual punishment. He’s still reeling from the information that apparently Obi-Wan does like men and apparently he likes Anakin enough to come out for him.

But does he like Anakin enough to touch him and mean it? He has to know. He looks up at Obi-Wan’s earnest face from beneath his eyelashes. “What if I want to real-kiss you?”

Obi-Wan blinks, and a smile breaks out across his face. “Then you don’t even need to have to ask, darling. Kiss me all you want, if you’re okay with a clingy old man in your bed.”

“Not that old,” Anakin argues, smiling so hard he’s afraid his face will crack in two. “But I don’t want to kiss you tonight.”

Obi-Wan turns solemn, although his grip on Anakin remains tight. “We can go as slow as you’re comfortable with.”

“Oh, you can have me later,” Anakin says, waving his free hand in the air. “I just don’t want our first kiss to be for the cameras.”

Obi-Wan catches Anakin’s palm and brings it up to kiss lightly. “You’re right, Anakin. That should just be for you and me.”

The rough brush of his lips over his skin causes Anakin to shiver. He’s never felt so on edge, as if his body is a live-wire. “Good thing you ordered the oysters,” he mumbles, blushing bright red as Obi-Wan laughs loud enough to fill the whole restaurant with its sound.

[hugheshoe]

carter hart // lunch dates

request: 28 from the prompt list for carter hart?

28: my mom asked about you again.

word count: 1655 words

a/n: long time no see! enjoy :) (ALSO I COULD SOOOO DO A PART TWO TO THIS SO LET ME KNOW IF YOU WOULD LIKE ONE) feel free to send in any requests <3

- - - - -

Carter Hart: My mom asked about you again.

You put your phone down after rereading and analyzing the text for what feels like the 50th time. 

Your brain is currently running a million miles an hour.

- - - - -

Why is he telling you this?

Why did he text you?

Why did he use a period at the end of the sentence? What could that mean?

Why is his mom talking about me?

What if it is just a lie?

Could he be lying just to get some?

You shake your head, trying to get rid of all the bad thoughts.

It doesn’t work, though. You sigh and grab the phone again. You start to type back:

Cool

Then delete it. Sounds too harsh. You try again with:

Why?

No...that won’t work. You delete it. Maybe:

Tell her I say hi.

That will do. You hit the send button, and almost immediately regret it. You didn’t need to respond to him, you tell yourself.

My thoughts of regret are interrupted by a chime.

Carter Hart: She wants to get lunch with you.

You start to laugh out loud. 

Lunch? With your ex’s mom?

You remember how sweet she was to you the only time you met her in person, and she sent you embarrassing pictures of Carter to tease him with.

You sigh and write back:

Sure, when is she in town?

- - - - -

You walk five blocks to a hot and trendy lunch spot known for its soups and salads.

The nerves are definitely kicking in.

Why does Carter’s mom want to get lunch with me?

When you arrive, you tell the hostess your name and she shows you to a cute two person table in a room filled with leafy plants as its decor. If you were here with a girlfriend of yours, you would most definitely be snapping pictures for your Instagram feed in her.

You thank the hostess as you sit down, and pick up the menu to gaze at it as you wait patiently.

The waiting only lasts five minutes. Shauna Hart walks into the restaurant and beelines over to you with the biggest smile on her face. You get up to greet her and she embraces you with a warm hug. You know the feeling of a Hart hug. It is iconic.

“How are you, dear?” She asks as you retreat back to your seat.

“I’m well, how about yourself?” You reply.

“I’m lovely. Thank you for coming with me. Have you been here before?” 

You shake your head, “No, this was actually Carter’s recommendation.”

Her smile grows when you mention his name.

Before she can say anything, the waitress comes over to introduce herself and inform us on the specials of the day including homemade chicken noodle soup! Sounds fucking good.

She leaves to let us continue our process of figuring out what we want for lunch.

After a minute of silence, Shauna speaks up, “He misses you.”

You look up from your menu, but don’t know how to respond. The fastest thing you can think of is, “That is nice of him.”

The minute the words leave your mouth, you get a little embarrassed and start to blush.

The waitress comes back to take your orders. You order a cup of the chicken noodle soup and a BLT salad with fresh avocados. Shauna orders a chicken salad sandwich, which is advertised as one of their bestsellers. 

After handing our waitress the menus, you and Shauna get into a conversation that, thankfully, ignores the elephant in the room, Carter.

The nervousness you felt early starts to disappear with time. Shauna is such a easy person to have a conversation with and makes you feel relaxed despite the odd situation the two of you are in.

Your food comes out to the two of you and it looks amazing. You both start to dive into your meals while continuing to chat in between bites. 

Eventually, the conversation takes a turn. Shauna starts to share a story of Carter, without even realizing it. You listen, though, and the mood does not shift. It starts to feel normal and comfortable. 

The story ends up with both of you nearly in tears.

You manage to get out, “Why was he so obsessed with that stuffed animal?” through your laughter. 

- - - - -

At the end of lunch, Shauna insists on paying for your meal, too, and you thank her a million times. You check your phone and realize you’ve been at lunch for almost two hours. Time flies when you are having fun.

You say your goodbyes to Shauna, and go off your own ways.

On your walk home, the memories of you and Carter flood your thoughts. Your cheeks start to hurt from smiling at them. People probably think you are a lunatic walking through the streets of Philadelphia with a smile like the Cheshire Cat for no reason.

When you get home, you kick off your shoes, throw your purse on the couch, and walk into your room. You leap onto your bed and stare at the ceiling. You don’t know what to do.

Your phone starts to ring, but it isn’t your normal ring tone.

It’s Carter’s ringtone. You never changed it.

You rush over to the couch and rummage through your purse to pull out your phone just in time to press accept, “Hello?”

“How was lunch?”

You smile, “It was good. The food was really yummy, and it was so cute. Thank you for the recommendation.”

“Would you ever go back again?”

“Yeah, I think I would. I could get some uber cute Instagram pictures next time. Oh! And some of the drinks looked heavenly, but ya know I didn’t want to get drunk at noon at lunch with my ex’s mom,” you chuckle.

“Want to go tomorrow?”

“Yes, I would love to wha-....wait. What do you mean?”

You hear Carter let out a nervous giggle, “Do you want to go back there for lunch again tomorrow?”

“With you?”

“Yeah. With me.”

You pause before responding. It’s only been three months since he broke up with you. It still hurts you sometimes. 

Would it be okay to go to lunch with him already? 

What if he wants to get back together?

Was this his plan the whole time?

“Y/N? You still there?” The voice through your phone says.

“Yes, yes I’m still here, sorry. I was thinking.”

“Is it too soon?” He questions.

“No. I’ll go. Tomorrow at noon?”

“Yes, that works for me. I will see you there.”

- - - - -

The next morning, you wake up with a smile on your face, but the smile fades as the anxiety kicks in.

You have no clue what to wear.

What do you think he is going to wear?

Is he going to go all out?

What if you look more dressed up than him? Or what if he looks more dressed up than you?

To let out a little steam, you scream into your pillow.

“Ah, much better.” You can and hop out of bed.

You have three hours until the scheduled lunch date. 

Wait is this a date?

You tell your brain to shut up, and get out of bed. You head out into your kitchen to make a cup of iced coffee. In your head, you start to formulate a to do list to complete before heading out.

- - - - -

Carter Hart: I’m early :) I’m at a table in the middle.

You slide your phone back into your purse as you walk out of your apartment building and onto the sidewalks of Philadelphia.

You try to hype yourself up during your walk. It doesn’t work very well, but gives you a little bit of confidence and a break from worrying.

Once you arrive at the restaurant, you enter and see Carter immediately. He looks nervous, which makes you feel a little at ease knowing you are not the only one.

You walk up to his table, and he stands up to give you a hug, “Hi, Y/N, you look good.”

The hug feels so familiar, and not because you were hugging his mom 24 hours ago. Your nose immediately recognizes his smell, too. The scent makes you feel warm and happy inside.

As the gentleman he is, Carter pulls your chair out for you to sit, which you thank him for of course.

He sits down, too, and the two of you look at each other to take in the moment and process what is going on.

You giggle, “I cannot believe this is actually happening.”

“I know.”

“Did your mom actually want to get lunch with me?”

He nods his head, “Yes, of course. She loved you the first time she met you.”

“She’s a really good person. I see where you get it from,” You say to him and smile. You notice he starts to blush a little as he looks down at his menu to avoid eye contact.

To change the subject, Carter speaks up: “Which drink are you getting?”

You are about to respond when the waitress comes up for our drink orders and the whole specials of the day ordeal. You are pleased when she says homemade chicken noodle soup is being served again today.

Since you are unsure how to pick a drink because they all look amazing, you ask the waitress to make whichever she likes the best. Carter only gets a glass of water due to the season being in full swing.

While you wait for your mystery drink, you ask Carter about the season so far and how everything is working out.

When the drink arrives, you slurp it down so fast you aren’t even sure what it was. The drink calms you down, and when you place your lunch order you ask for a new mystery drink to enjoy. Carter laughs while you order it, exactly like he would when you two were dating.

[hopeassassin]

Rally’s Scribbles in the Work

So after that lovely anon blew my mind away with their kind words and wonderful support, and because I keep telling you guys about my writing plans without actually giving you even a teensy little detail, I have decided to stop being coy and actually likely get your hopes up a bit by dilvulging small details and bits of plots of what is currently going on in my G-Drive. 

This will be a brief recount of what I have currently baking in the AoMomo oven, so let’s dive right into it! Please note that the numbers are in no particular order - I just keep revisiting each of these stories and writing a bit more to them whenever I feel like it. So there’s no ranking and no importance, just a number to keep proper count.

1. “Knight of Renown” Dragons and Knighthood AU, based on that one AoMomo pic with Momo ithe Knight and Dragon Aomine that I reblogged a while back and I actually let me imagination go a bit too much in the tags. I ended up actually rather enjoying the premise I set up in the tags so I actually started writing that one out!  Completion rate at about: 5%? I’d say? Less? :D 

2. AoMomo Music AU - a dearly beloved project that I am pouring a lot of love and attentioin to. That’s why it’s coming along super slow. It’s been in the making since November and I chewed it and mulled through it so thoroughly that I’ve grinded to a halt with it. Intending for there to be 2 chapters, and I am at about 25-30% of chapter 1 currently ready currently. At the pace I’m going, it might be another full year before you actually get to see this bad boy up, but when you do, I’m sure you’ll see all the care and effort that went into making it perfect. Honestly, no joke here, I am intending for this to be one of my rare masterpieces in this tag. So I’m not gonna rush it!

3. AoMomo Car Accident AU where Daiki barely manages to save Satsuki from being run over by a hit-and-run and ends up being the one run over instead. This was my first piece of writing after coming back to AoMomo last summer and yet completion rate is a sad thing. I want it to be flawless, a perfectly agonizing, thrilling type of torturous read that gives you a great sense of relief by the end of it. Needless to say, the clusterfuck of negative feelings is a bit difficult to hold onto for a prolonged period of time and the work is coming along slowly. Planned at about 5 chapters, I have 2 complete ones and the 3rd one is at about ... 30%? Hopefully before this year’s whumptober, we’ll have a finished piece!

4. AoMomo bond character study, which went in a direction I did NOT expect nor intend. It was suppsoed to be an idea that you will see also listed below. But I started this one from their early childhood and somehow, instead of focusing on the kids and their bond and their weird interactions with each other and their first moments of realizing they are of opposite genders, it turned into something much too fun to let go of and the ideas for scenes just kept piling. It’s going to be a long one, very explorative and very in-depth character study on the bond between these two and how it changed over the years, and their first encounters with their sexuality inbetween (because that was really the main idea that I started with... xDDD;;;) Currently at 1 chapter complete, chapter 2 somewhere around 50-60% completion, and at least 6-7 chapters to come after that, soooo.... :’DDDD YEAH. THIS ONE AIN’T SEEING THE LIGHT OF DAY ANYTIME SOON.

5. AoMomo deciding to practice stuff on each other, because I am a sucker for this trope.THIS will be what the idea under previous number 4 was SUPPOSED to be like, but it instead spun out of control. So this one, under number 5, is going to be the smutty, idiots bumbling through physicality to discover that they actually have serious feelings for each other kind of piece. Chapters are planned at about at least 6-7 or so, but not my usual monstrocities! :D First we start with practice kissing, and we move our way up from there! 

6. “The Evil of Humanity” AU - a dystopian futuristic kinda mecha AU, sort of an amalgamation of some of my favourite anime in the genre - a bit of NGE, a bit of Gurren-Lagann, a lot of Darling in the Franxx rewrite and improvement, in distinctly AoMomo colors. I poured a lot of thought and love into initial outline of main moments for this one, and I really hope to make it an epic, thrilling action/adventure with a big dash of romance kind of read! Chapters currently not even planned properly, because I need to sit down and consider this seriously. It will definitely be more than 10-15 though, and they will be my usual chapter lengths so.... likely no time soon. :D 

7. Aomine Fanclub - I got a plot bunny some time ago and I shared it here and my friends were spurring me on with it, so I started trying it out a little more. I’ve written out like... maybe 30% of this one as well, but need to re-read and reconceptualize to get it back on track. The issue with this one is that I’m not really sure where I want to take it, thus it’s on the back burner at the moment.

8. KagaKuro AoMomo double-date kind of story, where Aomine is asking some curious questions of Taiga about going to America and pondering if any of his immediate friends know what Satsuki wants to do with her life. I’m really invested in this one but haven’t started properly writing it out yet beyond just sketching out the idea so I don’t forget it. (I’d say 1% complete here.) Really looking forward to using the idea of Kagami being super impressed with AoMomo perfect sync when playing as a team in arcade games!

9.Laws of Attraction Chapter 2 - You might be surprised at this, but I’m actually super invested in this one. Likely the reason why I am delaying so much working on it - I feel like all my great scene ideas are just too chaotic and I have a hard time starting the chapter flowing properly. I had like 4-5 false starts already and I’m feeling a bit skittish with picking it up. But I have such AMAZING concepts on where to take it after it revvs up the engine, so... Maybe sometime this year! Completion rate: 0% written, but at least about 30% ideas built up for the installment!

10. AoMomo college rooming together story - sort of an expansion on my fill for one of the prompts way back those years ago in AoMomo week. I really dig the concept and the trope of sharing spaces with someone you consider nothing more than a friend and then gradually learning to appreciate each other for something so much more. I am definitely doing this one some day, but not anytime soon, likely.

11. A random idea bit me the other day (read: a month ago) and I actually wrote out like... maybe 25% of it already as well. A random comment from Wakamatsu miffs Satsuki but then she realizes why he’s asking dumb questions and she comes to realize that something is wrong with the equation: either Dai-chan likes someone really close to them and she hasn’t realized, which is unlikely, or Dai-chan likes HER and is super blase about it in a way that betrays his feelings not at all, which is even more unlikely. Being a curious  individual, she sets out to find which it is! Some hilarity should ensue but mostly just some mess-with-Dai-chan fun!

12. Touou summer training camp at the sea - progress is practically 0, I wanted to write a summery piece and set my mind on this, but nothing beyond has come to me, so I’m not forcing it.

13. AoMomo cultural festival fic in second year of high school (meaning something approx end of Oct -> beginning of Nov.) with Daiki being in a distinctly Haruhu Suzumiya role at that festival (has anyone even seen this anime? I adored that episode to freaking bits, man, it’s engraved upon my soul) and singing Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell” and one more song just like Haruhi did. And Satsuki just beholding the phenomenon he becomes in no time flat while he lays bare his passion for life for all the student body to see. Shippiness will happen in private afterwards!

14. You Can Leave Your Hat On Chapter 2 - Probably like 2-3 years ago while I was still in the damn woodwork and wrestling with real life and adulting being crap, I remembered this AU premise and I got super hyped on the idea of Club Owner Dai-chan being a flirt with innocent Satsuki who got dragged to his joined and fell in love at first sight with his shenanigans. I’ve already played around for like 7k words with the second chapter of this but I’m still not where I want to be at, so it will take a while longer to flesh it out.

15. Idol Worship - a story that I promised my mate aricana some 6 years ago the premise for which I am super hyped for but not quite engaging with it yet. The idea was that Momoi finally starts gettiing the dates she has been pesting Kuroko for for years, and Daiki feeling terrible about beholding that, whilst Kise is being pestered by Horikita Mai for a date and instead ditches her with Daiki because he knows his former Teikou classmate is a huge fan of her. Mai-chan isn’t particularly happy but somehow ends up enjoying her time with Daiki and starts considering actually pursuing him instead of Kise when she sees what an interesting soul he is, with the torch that he’s carrying for some girl in his life he doesn’t really talk about but is evident from the little things he drops off as hits. AoMomo shenanigans will start to ensue properly when Satsuki realizes that Daiki is actually having a close female friend who is not her but is Horikita Mai instead, Dai-chan’s perfect woman, practically. She doesn’t take well to the news and has to grapple with why that is! And what to do with these newfound frustrating emotions!

16. Obstruction of Justice Chapter 3 - MAYBE SOME DAY, I WILL GET TO WRITING THIS. Last summer I inteded to do just that but instead, Wild Side of Justice was born. And it became a spin off of sorts on its own. ORZ. I WILL FINISH THIS SOME DAY, I do have some plans for it and I do have the desire to pursue them. I just need to be in the right headspace for it ahsjkfhkjaf

17. A PWP story of Kagami arriving early for a practice match at Touou and somehow walking in on AoMomo getting busy with each other in very unexpected and explicit ways that Kagami did not see headed his way. Because, we need more PWP in this fandom, honestly.

18. And since we DO need more PWP, recently when checking the 30 lemons community on LJ (shut up, I’m not ancient, YOU’RE ANCIENT) I was wondering how exactly a smut plot around the “Taken by the Faceless Stranger” could work for Aomomo and I came up with this Masquerade ball that they end up both attending because of their friends and meeting each other and hitting off fantastically just chatting the night and then banging in a niche in the long castle-like premise of the ball. :’DDDD Cuz it’s me and if I don’t have something like that in the works, you know i’m likely sick.

ALL OF THESE I am planning on eventually finishing one day. ONE DAY!

For now they are in various states of completion and in various stages of being cared for and improved on with more ideas added and fleshed out.

I am not joking when I say I am very invested in this fandom. I just have difficulty getting to writing out these ideas when I spend like 60% of my free time playing my mobile games. :D 

So there you have it. I didn’t want to say anything about these because 1) I don’t want to get your hopes up. You Can Leave Your Hat On 2, for one, has been in the making for 3 years, very on-again-off-again kind of way, and I just... can’t do that to you guys. I have decided against posting any incomplete fics so I don’t torture you guys and my muse doesn’t abandom me forever for them. So when something is complete, it gets posted promptly for your viewing pleasure!

And 2) If I divulge too much of the story, I feel like my hype of it may disappear completely. Ehh, my muse is a willful creature, what can I tell you... 

So let’s hope at least SOME of these get to see the light of day soon!

[maxparkhurst]

How did you create your characters? What was your process?

TMI Tuesday:  How did you create your characters? What was your process?

// <offers out a chair> You’re going to want to sit for this. It’s going to be a LONG story. For those who’re looking for a short answer: I’m actually in the middle of creating these two. Edits and tweaks are always being made to make them appear real and true. And it’s thanks to everyone on here and in-game that they’ve progressed so much. 

Now for the long version. 

<buckles seat belt> 

Evolving as an Author:

Maxinora and Augustine Parkhurst are a culmination of ideas inspired by a myriad of things. The process of creating them isn’t linear. It has a lot of pit falls, unexpected twists and turns, and a ton of hills. To understand how we got the current versions of these two, we need to go back a couple years ago. 

It’s the summer of 2012. In efforts to get me off of his account, my Dad gifted me my own. This was when I made my first ever serious roleplay character- a hunter named Evelon Holmwood. Well, at the time I spelled it like Evavllyn but...Yeah. We’re going to gloss over that fact. Now, Eve was my pride and joy for the last several years. I played this character nonstop, refusing to play or write about anyone else. In retrospect, I used this character more as therapy than anything of creative merit. 

Eve’s story was basic at best. But I got better with story-telling the older I got. Unfortunately, her story got so convoluted that I had hard time salvaging anything from it. Now, you’re probably asking: How does this relate to Max? Fear not. I’m getting there. It was around this existential crisis that a mutual friend of my boyfriend and I convinced us to leave WoW and hop on SWTOR. My boyfriend was more than eager to make the switch but I was skeptical. Leaving WoW meant leaving Eve. And was I ready for that? 

He assured me I was and helped me make a character on SWTOR. This was the first iteration of Max. A bounty hunter from Nar’Shadda named Maxinora Fenrik. My intentions was to make her a lowkey copy of Eve. At this time, I wasn’t very confident in my writing abilities and liked to stay in my lane. But, the more I roleplayed this character the more she took on a life of her own. She evolved past Eve and exceeded my expectations. Playing a new character bolstered my confidence and while I no longer play SWTOR -due to OOC reasons- I still have fond memories with this character. I enjoyed this character so much that I reused several components of her design when making Max. Some which include her name and being blind in one eye. 

I flipped between the MMOs when Legion dropped. Expenses started to pile up and between the two subscriptions I didn’t have the time to play both. In the end, WoW won my affection and I made a Blood Elf because I had friends on Horde Side. Rorien Hawkthorne was her name. A drunk artist and master assassin. She’d be the second iteration of Max. She had an older sister complex, an affinity for being melancholy, and it was my first experience with playing a character who could kept secrets- or tried to at least. Another new character under the belt and I was feeling a little more confident in my story telling abilities. I’d probably would’ve kept playing that character if not for OOC drama happening in a guild I was in. The fallout had me jump back to the Alliance where I indulged in creature comforts. It was back to Eve. 

Tumblr made an entrance in my life around then as I ventured forth with a refreshed look on my hunter. I salvaged what I could and made a half-decent story. A lot of her misadventures are still posted up on her blog @evelonholmwood​ On the side I made the third iteration of Max. A fire mage and blacksmith combo by the name of Rowan Celwick with her younger brother Thomas Celwick.  They were just two orphaned kids trying to make a life in Stormwind. Rowan was an arcane drop-out and blacksmith wannabe and Thomas...Was...Well? Thomas? A glorified side-piece? A way to garner pity for Rowan. I didn’t place a lot of emphasis on them or their characters. My main focus was Eve. But these two would be the underlying foundation of Max and Auggie’s characters. 

I eventually took a hiatus from WoW and focused on more personal writing. The details are boring so I’ll gloss over it by saying that creating a character completely from scratch was the final push in the right direction for me. Fast forward several months to a year aaaaaand BOOM! Pandemic. 

Writing is an escape for me. It’s one of my best coping mechanisms during trying times. And when nothing else works, I over indulge in some Warcraft. So, I resubbed. There was hesitance when re-entering the RP scene. I didn’t leave Eve’s story off on an convenient note. For lack of better phrasing, I wrote myself into a hole I couldn’t get out of. So, with the help of my boyfriend, I decided it was time to give Eve her happy ending and shelf her for good. 

Which put me in a dilemma! Who was I going to RP? Well, you remember the Celwicks? They became my newest project. 

The Creative Process: 

I knew the Celwick story was weak and read much like a middle-school fanfiction. Revising was a must. But there were integral pieces to their story which I enjoyed: 

Familial Sacrifice 

Juxtaposing concepts

Intertwined Fates

These were themes I could work with and evolve. Keeping these in mind, I started to deconstruct the Celwick story line. They were no longer Gilnean but Kul’tiran. This prompted a name change from Celwick to Parkhurst. And I won’t lie, I like the sound of Parkhurst better than Celwick. Thomas became Augustine and Rowan became Maxinora (Mainly because I actually HAD the name Maxinora and not Rowan). The little changes got me hyped for the characters. 

Next, I started to trim away the unnecessary details that bogged down the narrative. Things that either didn’t fit or made the timeline too convoluted were replaced. Pyromancy was a great example. The age I wanted Max to be wouldn’t yield to her understanding of Pyromancy. At least, not to the level I WANTED it to be. SO, I turned it into lament’s magic. Alchemy. (I also always wanted to play an alchemist since watching FMA) 

A girl with two professions seemed excessive as well. I had to look at why I wanted her to be both an Alchemist and a Blacksmith. The answer was simple. I just liked the juxtaposition of an intelligent woman being rough and tumble. Which made me ask: Was Blacksmithing necessary to achieve that imagine? The answer was no. To pay respect to her previous iteration, I made their parents blacksmiths. It also let me keep themes of fire in her concept. The change in profession brought on a change in her appearance. I made her a little more slender to fit with the alchemist appeal. 

Max’s aesthetic was brought on by my previous characters.  Rorien inspired more internal facets of Max while Fenrik inspired outward appearances. Max’s auburn was strictly a decision made on the fact that I had one too many character’s with black hair. There wasn’t any other reason for it. 

Designing Max was easy. The real challenge was with Augustine. Up until that point, all I had to go on for his character was Tommy Celwick and...Well. There wasn’t a lot there. He wasn’t much more than a poorly used trope and I considered doing away with him all together. But I realized that I REALLY liked the trope and I liked what he did for Max’s character.  So, I buckled down and made myself think through all the reasons why Thomas Celwick -AKA Augustine Parkhust- needed to exist. 

I decided that I needed him in order to present themes in Max’s story. He was the foil to her character. Cynic older sister? Meet optimistic brother. He also appealed to not only the three themes listed above, but also the newest one I wanted to explore: two sides of the same coin. Max and Augustine are simultaneously the same, having similar traumas, and yet different. If for nothing else, Augustine could help propel Max in the right direction. Be her moral compass, you know? With a bit of half-assing here and there, I managed to get a decent character out of Augustine. Took the cliche nerdy brother idea, physical design and all, and ran with it. Shortly after I  made their Tumblr account. In no way did I expect this BOY to take on a life of his own. Like, Auggie knocked on my brain’s door and was like, “Yeah. No. I’m not a side character. Give me my own story...” 

Which will bring me into my final point! 

The Characters Write Their Own Story: 

I’ve never been able to sit down and plan a story. My mind doesn’t work in such a structured fashion. It wanders and explores. When I’m creating, I’m watching. Watching the scenes play out before my eyes as these characters take what I’ve given them and grow into something almost independent of me. The basic pieces of Max and Auggie’s back story, along with character design, were purposeful. Yes. But everything that came after was THEM.

It’s cliche, I know, but I can’t describe this experience any other way. These two grew outside of my influence and now dominate a space in my brain. They talk, work, and interact without me. I mean...Not REALLY. But...It feels like that. It feels I’m watching through a keyhole and just recording what I see as their story plays out. 

I guess a better analogy is me being the director. I’m watching the movie in the stands as two actors improv. On good days, I’m in control and rework scenes until I’m satisfied with the results. Try this. Move here. Say this. On bad days, I don’t see anything. My actors went home. The lights are off. Show’s cancelled for the day. These days make me sad...But they’re worth it because on the BEST days...The best days Max and Auggie run the whole show, and I am watching through the keyhole as their story unfolds little by little. 

It’s truly magical. 

The last part of their creation was the voice. Character voice, for me, is like building muscle. You need to work out. Start small and work your way up in weight. Every little piece I wrote made their voices stronger; and that’s including asks and threads. Interacting with other characters helped to flesh them out as people. And while it was hard and intimidating at first, it’s started to become easier. 

Wrap-Up

My method is messy and untrained. I don’t claim to have any secrets. My knowledge of writing is mediocre at best. But I’m having fun. And that’s were the real magic of any character comes in. Fun. Because if you aren’t writing about something that sparks your soul- either with love, happiness, hatred, etc- then it’s nothing more than a forced, hollow husk. Writing is meant to evoke emotion. At least in mind. And want to express complex emotions and share them. In a perfect world? My characters -any of my characters- resonates with someone. They become the escape someone needed. That’s the ultimate goal. 

It’s thanks to all of you that Max and Auggie have come this far. It’s from their interactions with others that they’ve managed to evolve into something incredible- especially Augustine. He just kept shining brighter and brighter until I felt obligated to make him an in-game character. So, you all are just as much a part in the creative process as me. Thank you! 

And a special thanks to my boyfriend for always being a sound board for my rambling ass <3 

THANK YOU FOR THE ASK, ANON! Sorry I posted an essay...<3 

[fleetofshippyships-archive]

Fanfic Author Meme

Tagged by @diligent-thunder and @rockmarina​ =)

Okay, so I’m me, and I talked way too much, so I’m putting this under a cut to save your dashes. You’re welcome 😘

Please do not reblog this post.

Author Name: 

Fleetofshippyships + Knowyourincantations + Legendaryroar

Fandoms You Write For: 

(in order of decreasing # of fics) Harry Potter, Voltron, Merlin, Yuri on Ice, Star Trek, Star Wars and then a few one-offs that aren’t really worth mentioning.

Where You Post: 

AO3 primarily, Tumblr, trying to post more on Pillowfort, I also post on a couple of sites for knowyourincantations

Most Popular One-Shot: 

Fleetofshippyships: Potter’s Insatiable Cock (Drarry, Explicit (duh XD), 20k (viewable only for logged-in AO3 users)).

Knowyourincantations: A Decent Start to Things (Pansmione, Teen, 7k)

Legendaryroar: Finding Time for Rest (Sheith (Voltron), Teen, 3k)

Most Popular Multi-Chapter Story: 

RestraintNone of my old multi-chapter fics are available to read at this time and I don’t really write multi-chapter fics anymore.

If oneshot/drabble collections or two-shots count, then:

Fleetofshippyships: Vanilla and Sweet Spices (Drarry, Explicit, 2 chapters, 20k)

and this really doesn’t count, but technically it has multiple ‘chapters’ soooooooooo

Legendaryroar: Kinktober 2018 (Multiple ships (Voltron), Explicit (duh), 31 ‘chapters’, 26k)

Favourite Story You Wrote: 

I don’t think I ever have a static favourite, I’ve just written too many things, I too quickly move on to the next (and frequently forget some of my own fics exist XD), but recently I re-read In Pursuit of Red Wine (Dreville, Teen, 29k) and really enjoyed that again, and I am really attached to it cos it was my first longish rarepair fic, kind of proving to myself that I can write longer rarepair stuff. 

I also recently re-read Unburdened (Merthur (BBC Merlin), Explicit, 2k) and really enjoyed that too, had a total disconnect from having written it since it’s been so long, so I was able to read it without self-judging, and oh boy that was nice. 

I’m also quite proud of Healing What’s Left (Parkgrass, Teen, 2k) for some reason, I dunno, maybe the dark political backdrop of the fic, or maybe just cos it’s the first time I’ve written Daphne as the main character and I’m happy with the result and now have some headcanons about her rather than her being an unknown blank character to me. 

I also binge read a lot of my Voltron stuff recently and had big feels over that so....I also specifically enjoyed re-reading The Perks of Skincare (Klance (Voltron), Explicit, 3k) again cos I dunno, I like how I wrote Lance XD and also the Sheith fic I linked earlier is a fav for sure. Shiro/Rest is the ultimate OTP.

It really depends how soon after I write something or when I go back to re-read it as to what my fav is at any given time (or people commenting on it and hyping me up for it again).

Story You Were Nervous to Post: 

Everything. But most recently I was terrified out of my mind before posting: 

Friday Night by the Fire (Harry/Neville, Teen, 583 words) because I have a lot of fears about screwing up trying to write ace characters and somehow not even making that a focal point of the drabble made it even more terrifying,  No More Waiting (TianShan (19 Days), Teen, 2k) because it was a new fandom to write in, Harry Potter and the Maudlin Merman series (Drarry, Teen+ Mature, 3k +6k) due to my feelings of inadequacy because it would be better as long fic but I struggle too much with writing these days to write long fics and can only manage short things. I’d rather write this as a long fic, but then I’d never finish it so connected oneshots are the best I can do right now, but I still feel it’s not good enough and have a meltdown whenever I post one. And speaking of which, I’ve been sitting on the next one for months and should probably just fucking post it already.

Actually, most recently: Minding One’s Limits (Cho/Ginny, G rated, 1.5k), because I gave Cho a disability modeled off my fibromyalgia and wrote a scenario similar to something I’d dealt with myself, it was incredibly uncomfortable to write in the first place, and then terrifying to post, even though it’s so short. But in the end I’m proud I finally wrote about it a bit? I dunno, might take me a while to work up the nerve again though XD (also was my first time writing that ship, so there was a lot of nervousness over that too)

Oh, and I was a super ball of anxiety posting  Kinktober 2018 (Multiple ships, Explicit, 31 ‘chapters’, 26k) because for almost all of those it was the first time I was writing those kinks (and some were kind of squicks for me but I wanted to see if I could write them anyway cos I’m dumb like that) and in a lot of cases those ships were completely new for me to write too, in addition to trying to write and post 1 a day, so...yeah. Also that was my first time writing tentacle and human/werewolf smut so...yeah. I was an absolute mess that month and not in a fun way. But I’m still really glad I did it, it was fun =D

In summary, I’m always an anxious mess posting anything, but most especially if it’s something I’ve not written before or is personal to me XD

How Do You Choose Your Titles: 

Most of the time I’m staring down the empty title field in AO3 cursing like a fucking sailor when I choose titles XD Sometimes it’s a line/theme/feeling from the fic. Sometimes it’s totally random and just comes to me. Sometimes I just grasp the first thing that I can no matter how stupid it sounds cos it’s been three days and I still don’t have a title and I’m over it and ready to post before I lose my nerve.

And tbh, it’s only getting harder to think of titles as my number of fics increases, and I’ve now started thinking of the perfect titles only to realise I already have a published fic by that title so....TITLES CAN DIE A FIERY DEATH

Sometimes, not so much anymore, it would turn out that I would give a wip doc a name just so I’d know what it was, sometimes as a joke with whoever was reading it and cheerleading while I wrote it, and then I would refer to it by that and think of it as that so much that when it came time to actually give the fic a title, it was too late and I could not think past that stupid file name, and that’s how Potter’s Insatiable Cock happened, and how I very nearly called a Merthur fic Arthur’s Wanking Tower (saved that one at the last moment thank god cos the tone of that fic is actually really serious and emotional and wtf was I even thinking with that file name and actually I linked to that fic above XD it ended up being called Unburdened). 

Potter’s Insatiable Cock slipped through cos it’s actually relevant to the fic content and I could live with it.

But needless to say, I don’t give my wip docs joke names anymore XD

Do You Outline: 

Only if I never want to actually write the idea...once I outline, it’s over. I can’t write to a detailed plan. It stifles me. I’ll always get stuck having to try and think ahead to the plan, and then I lose the flow and nothing works because I’m a pantser/intuitive/instinctive writer not a planner. Sometimes I jot down ideas but in like, the vaguest of ways, usually more focused on emotional development than actual scenes or events or anything because then I won’t be able to write it (and I rarely stick to those vague ideas anyway). 

I can really only write when I’m staring down a blank doc with no idea where it’s going and discover it as I go (which is why writing is so fun for me). I can only finish a fic if I don’t think too hard about what’s going to happen next and just let it happen as I write. 

This of course means that editing is a fucking bitch when I finish anything, beginnings often get totally re-written, but if I plan, it just doesn't happen at all, so I’ll take the extra editing if it means I manage to write something.

I do have a lot of detailed plotty fic idea outlines...and I mourn them cos I’m never going to write them now, but they’re so goooooooooood XD

Complete: 

Online (across all 3 accounts): 381 (incl. my hidden drarry fics as they are technically online just hidden, not incl. individual oneshots/drabbles in collection ‘fics’, of which there are ridiculously many). Offline: 20 (I have the worst habit of just sitting on completed fics and I really need to stop)

In-Progress: 

Too many to name, last time I counted it was ~60 but that wasn’t even including my vld wips so...I don’t actually know. I hoard wips and just switch up what I work on all the time depending on mood/interest levels/effort required. 

Current main focuses are a 50k+ plotty Drarry (*fingerscrossed* cos this is my first time seriously attempting something long (will probably reach 80k at least) in a very long time and I put it down for a few months and thought that was it but then I picked it up again recently, yay!), and re-writing some hidden fics I can’t put them back up in the quality they’re in, I just can’t guys, they’re awful.

I’ve been thinking a lot about working on the longish 8th year Pansmione fic I started for the wlw big bang before I had to pull out of cos stupid life stuff. I might pick that up again for a bit too, couldn’t be more different from the Drarry one so it’d make a nice focus break =)

Coming Soon/Not Yet Started: 

I don’t even plan fics I’m writing, I sure don’t plan ahead to stuff I haven’t even started XD The only think I can think of for this category would be me re-writing my hidden long Drarry fics.

Oh, and there will be a Merthur oneshot coming (hopefully) soon, because @april-thelightfury115​ won my custom fic giveaway with a merthur idea. Just waiting for my brain to cooperate so I can start that and not suck XD but I’m so fucking excited to write some Merthur again, you have no idea.

Oh, and lots more Sapphic September drabbles coming too, I’m way behind and only just posted day 11 cos this month is literal hell for me, but I am still planning on finishing the prompt list, no matter how long it takes, but no plan for those, not even which ships, I just sit down with the next prompt and a blank doc and see what happens.

Do You Accept Prompts: 

Yes, I love writing to prompts, I’m take them via google form here, but I’m in such a bad space with my health I’ve been really struggling with writing lately, managed to do a bit of editing (fuck knows how), but writing new stuff is so hard, so there’s a long wait while I wait for my fibro fog to ease off to the point I can write new stuff with more regularity (and less stupid errors I have to edit out later).

Upcoming Story You Are Most Excited to Write: 

Again, I so don’t plan. But I really want to be making more progress on the long plotty drarry wip I’m trying to write. I’m still not sure I’ll have the guts to post it even if I do finish it, given its subject matter (it would make a great careers or consent fest fic tbh), but damn I’m really excited by it. Not sure I can maintain it being plotty and not revert to focusing on the relationship (which is easier for me), but I can only try and see what happens. (trying to write a non-relationship plot without planning is a nightmare but I don’t have a choice if I want to write it at all XD)

I’m also now excited for my longish pansmione wip too actually, just because it’s already longer than my Dreville long-ish fic and it’s exciting and scary to do longer rarepair stuff. I’m way out of my comfort zone with the fic itself, but I dunno, I re-read some recently and fell in love with it all over again, like, flustered lesbian-awakening, disaster for Pansy (but sure she still hates her) Hermione? YES PLEASE! and also, I am guilty of not writing female characters as much as I should because, well, canonically, they don’t have much depth and I’m very meh about them, but in this there’s a huge focus on them because they’re all determined to band together for 8th year and Hermione is making friends with them (Parvati is like, dragging her along all the time XD) where she once dismissed them so it’s scary but exciting =D I’m getting more practice with all the sapphic I do over on knowyourincantations, so I feel more confident working on this wip now =D

I’m also kind of excited about re-writing my old long fics, because they’re all 3 years old now, and my writing tastes (and skill, yikes) have totally changed, so it’s like I’m writing the story again but how I would write it now while maintaining the overall same plot, so it’s really interesting, like discovering the story all over again. Like in one (Making Malfoy Blush) I’ve gone as far as introducing a new side character to replace another’s parts because I no longer feel those parts are in character for them. It’s super terrifying, but it’s fun at the same time =) it’ll take me forever to do these though, so I dunno about ‘upcoming’ really, I only chip away every now and then when I’m unable to write new stuff but am still coherent enough to do something.

Eh, it is what it is, I can’t write like I used to, hence me being inactive more than active these days, but I’m trying to work within my new limitations instead of getting frustrated with them and just giving up entirely =)

---

Now, who to tag....I think anyone I would tag has already done it, and if not..I blame the fog if I’m forgetting someone obvious, if you wanna do it just say I tagged you so I can be nosy and take a look =)

Again, please do not reblog this post

[jiminniethemarshmallow]

Moonlight (M)

Pairing: Werewolf!Jimin x reader

Genre: Smut, fluff, maybe a lil angst idk

Summary: It’s Halloween and also the first full moon you’ve experienced since you were bitten. 

Warnings: dom!Jimin, sub!Reader, dirty talk, use of the word “bitch”, knotting, slight impreg kink

Word count: 12,360

A/N: It’s still Halloween where I live so technically it’s not late 🤷🏽‍♀️🎃 

Prompt #51: “The full moon is out tonight. You know what that means.”

You rest your chin in the palm of your hand, pouting up at your friend Jiwoo as she stands at the head of the large table.

“Okay everyone, let’s go over the plans for next week,” She announces, uncapping her pen excitedly. She stands in front of a dry erase board with everyone’s names written on it, beginning her presentation immediately. “This has to be the biggest and greatest party ever thrown, you hear me? And greatness takes time, that’s why we have to start getting ready for it now, so I need everyone to listen.”

“We’ve only been preparing for a whole month and a half.” Jooheon mumbles sarcastically with a roll of his eyes. Jiwoo catches this and addresses him.

“I like to plan ahead,” She replies in a sweet voice. “Not everyone is an unorganized, lazy procrastinator like you, sweetheart.” 

He scoffs as she continues, starting to list off names and what job everyone is assigned to. Food, drinks, decoration, costume ideas, theme management (whatever that was), getting approval from neighbors, music, etc. You’re only half listening when she calls your name, assigning you to the role of the hype person. You were responsible for handing out fliers and invitations to as many people as possible and making sure everyone knew how great this party was. After all, Halloween is not only spooky season, but also party season and you were sure to be competing with various groups of people for party guests. Your best friend Halin was also assigned to this job and she easily accepts.

“I’ll be in charge of the social media advertising, (Y/n) can handle fliers and invitations.” She announces, tweeting a photo of one of the fliers before handing the stack to you.

“I don’t know why you want me to be the publicist, I know the least amount of people out of all of us.” You huff. It was true, you’ve always kept a small friend group that you kept close to you, never really straying too far from those people, especially since you met Jimin and his pack. 

You’ve been with Jimin for a while now. You first met him a little over a year ago, found out he and his friends were werewolves 9 months ago, started dating him 6 months ago, and moved in with him 4 months ago. Oh, and did I mention that sometime within the last month he bit you accidentally on purpose, turning you into a werewolf as well? In all fairness, you asked for it. When you first started dating, you begged him to change you because you “wanted to be like them”. You hated being the boring human living in a house of wolves who lived a completely different lifestyle than you. It’s not like your human self was anything special in the first place. You explained to him that you’ve thought about it long and hard and that you wanted it, but he still refused, claiming that he didn’t want to change your normal way of life irreversibly; to which you responded that your life hasn’t been “normal” since you met him and got involved with his pack. For months you pleaded with him, until one night he finally changed his mind, biting you when you least expected it while in the consuming depths of pleasure. “That way it wouldn’t hurt so bad,” Jimin explained afterward, licking at the bleeding wound. The transformation was a slow learning experience for you and the pack, none of you knew what would happen when a human was bitten, but it’s been a month and you’re just now starting to see the effects.

For one thing, you’re a lot more aware of your surroundings. You hear and see a thousand times better than you did before, although still not as well as your wolf friends, are a lot stronger and faster than before, and on occasion you really crave rare cooked steak. Physically, you haven’t changed much, except for the shift in color of your irises, turning an even more vibrant shade of the color they were before. Of course you claimed to your friends that they were contacts when they first noticed, immediately going out to buy actual contacts to bring them back to their original color. Jimin said that you may feel more impulsive or aggressive now, but so far the worst that’s happened is that you’ve lashed out on an annoying stranger on the street one day. Oh, and the whole first week after you were bitten when you couldn’t keep your hands off of Jimin. Your sexual desire was so strong that he kept you in the manor until he was sure you wouldn’t rip off your clothes and jump him in public. He entertained your lust a few times, but for the most part he maintained his self control, watching you intently as you pranced around the house naked, trying to entice him with your body whenever you were alone and getting super possessive whenever anyone went near him, male or female. But you were over it now. For the most part.

“You don’t need to know a lot of people to hand out fliers.” Jiwoo states flatly. “All you have to do is walk around and tell people about the party. Find people our age, look for groups, that type of thing.” She says with a shrug. “I believe in you.”

Hesitating, you grab the fliers and lean back in your seat, zoning out again. It’s hard not to be nervous to bring up the party to Namjoon, your pack’s Alpha male. Although he has a heart of gold, he’s still very strict and isn’t afraid to put any members of the pack back in their place. And now that you’re officially a member, his power over you is indisputable. Anything he says goes.

You remember when you first told him Jimin bit you, although you got the feeling he could sense it right when you walked into the room. Both of you sat as he stood over you, assuming his dominant position above you as unnecessary apologies escaped your lips. He just smiled his beautiful dimply smile and reassured you that everything was okay and that the pack would gladly accept you as its newest member, especially since you were already living with them and were so close to everyone. You remember him lecturing you on how important it was for you to be more reserved now that you were also a werewolf and will start experiencing various changes. 

“Of course you can still go out in public, hang out with people, just make sure to keep yourself unnoticeable. You might need to buy some contacts,” He states, taking note of your eye color. “But as long as you keep your canines away, everything should be fine.” Were those supposed to come in? You had yet to find out. 

When he told you that you had to keep a smaller group of friends, you sunk in your seat. Not only did that mean that you couldn’t expand and befriend new people, but it also implied that you might even have to drop some friends and become more distant from the ones you were close to.

Seeing you deflate a bit, Namjoon hurries to lift your spirit. “I’m not saying you have to go into hiding, just be cautious. You don’t have to drop all of your friends, it’s just that the less people there are around you, the less chance there is for people to find out about us.” His logic made sense, of course it did, that’s one of the reasons he was the alpha. You know he’ll think about every situation thoroughly and have the clearest judgement, but that’s also why you were scared to bring up the party.

“Hey, what’s on your mind?” Halin asks, scooting her chair closer to yours while the meeting continues in the background. 

“Huh?” You snap out of your thoughts at the sound of your best friend’s voice, eyes focusing on her face. She raises her eyebrow and it prompts you finally to respond. “Oh, it’s just, uh,” How do you say this out loud? “I’m just worried Namjoon won’t let me go to the party because of...” Tilting your head, her eyes drop to the faint bite imprint that has healed nicely, the scar 100% Jimin’s non-replicable mark on you that claims you as his mate.

“Really? He’s pretty chill, I’m sure he’ll let you go.” As the only person who knows about werewolves and your current situation, Halin is the only person you can confide in with your concerns and really anything personal. She found out about Jimin’s pack the same time you did, both of you witnessing their transformations accidentally and sharing the horrifying moment when you thought your lives were about to end. But somehow you were spared by their kind leader and trusted with the heavy knowledge of their supernatural existence. 

Even though Halin is a part of the in-group with you and the wolves, she’s not nearly as connected to them as you are. She doesn’t spend as much time with them, doesn’t date any of them, and refused to live in their manor with you when offered the chance. She just had too much that she would be leaving behind in the outside world, too many people who would start asking questions; unlike you who had few connections and uncaring parents who rarely asked about your whereabouts. So she let you immerse yourself in their life style and promised to keep you connected to the human world. She was your cover when you or the boys start acting strange around everyone, without her, they would have been discovered long ago. 

“I don’t know... something makes me think Joon won’t want me out at night around a lot of people. He’s really protective of me, especially now.” You fiddle with the hem of your jacket nervously as you think of the possible rejection.

“C’mon, it’s not like you’ll be alone. You’ll be in an enclosed space, around a bunch of people, under the cover of darkness and costumes so no one will think you’re being weird or anything, I’ll be there, it’s a perfectly safe environment. What could go wrong?” Halin leans back in her seat in silent confidence and you let go of the subject to focus on the rest of the meeting again.

“Absolutely not. I’m sorry but that’s the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard.” Namjoon says, nearly laughing in disbelief. You sink in your place, shoulders moving from their tensed, anxious position to slump forward in disappointment. “So let me get this straight: you want to attend a party in an enclosed building with limited and few exits and private spaces, filled to the brim with people in costumes who will probably be drinking more than they can handle, on one of the most hectic nights of the year for our kind?”

“Well, when you put it that way it doesn’t seem as fun.” You mumble, refusing to lift your eyes up to the alpha.

“Not to mention the loud music, flashing lights, and claustrophobia. What happens if you get overwhelmed? We don’t even know to what extent you’ve changed and how that’ll have an effect on you, especially in public. I’m sorry, (Y/n), but every worst case scenario is running through my head right now and I can’t be responsible for letting you go to that party. God forbid, you hurt yourself or someone else.” He stares at you as you let his words sink in, and although his tone was gentle, you couldn’t help but feel intimidated. Namjoon has explained his case— quite clearly at that— and it was obvious that you would not be going to the party.

“I-I know, I’m sorry for asking.” You’re not going to argue with him, there’s no way you could. You don’t even know what your limits are and a situation like that is not the best time to test them. Your face heats up in embarrassment, you knew this would be his response, but you let Halin convince you otherwise and now you’ve just made a fool of yourself. A part of you wishes Jimin were here to comfort you, his presence is always calming, but you didn’t want him to know you were planning on going out without him because he would have probably said the same thing as Namjoon. 

“But,” The leader’s voice sounds, an exasperated sigh of compromise following the word. “If it’s your friends’ party and they’re all expecting you to help out, I wouldn’t say no to letting you go early to help set up.” 

“Really?” You perk up immediately, eyes bright with hope. 

“Yes, but I want you back here before it starts.” With your cooperation, Namjoon let’s you go and you leave his office with a giddy hop, skipping through the empty halls of the mansion and almost bumping into Jungkook, the youngest of the pack.

He stops you abruptly with his hands on your arms when you nearly knock him over— well, knock yourself over on his sturdy form— and you pause to look up at him, then resume bouncing in place excitedly. 

“Woah, what’s going on?” The young one asks, your excitement contagiously latching onto him. 

“Can you keep a secret?” You whisper, leaning in close. Jungkook was like your best friend out of all of the other wolves and his childlike innocence drew you in, almost like a cute little puppy. He nods at your question. “There’s this Halloween party next week and Namjoon just gave me the okay to go!”

“He did? He’s never let any of us go to parties before.” He pouts, a bit skeptical.

“Well, he didn’t exactly say I could go, but he said I’m allowed to help set up before the party.” Jungkook laughs at your reply and ruffles your hair a bit, continuing his path and silently urging you to follow, which you do.

“That’s not the same thing.” He grins, glancing down at you.

“Yeah, but I haven’t been out in so long. I just really don’t want to be stuck here on Halloween this year.” 

“Why, what’s wrong with spending time with your new pack?” He asks with wide puppy eyes, a fake look of hurt on his face.

“What do you guys usually do on Halloween?”

“Binge watch scary movies and laugh at how terrible they are.” He shrugs nonchalantly and you crinkle your nose. That was definitely not how you wanted to spend your spooky day, especially since there was a perfectly good party you could be attending, even if it was only for a little while. 

You and Jungkook continue to walk through the long winding halls of your home, decorated with redwood flooring and dark painted walls. Despite its old age, the mansion somehow keeps an updated look, the antiques blending in perfectly with the more modern furniture and artwork hung around the many large rooms. The enormity of the building can be a bit overwhelming at times, it’s high ceilings and tall door frames making everything look so much bigger and more complex than it actually is. When you first started hanging out here, you would get lost all the time and rarely left Jimin’s side in fear that you would never find your way out on your own, but eventually you became comfortable with the space. The other two females of the pack, mysterious women who were traded by a rival pack in exchange for peace, welcomed you warmly when you moved in. They showed you the layout of the place and shortcuts to help you get around, even giving you some hints on how to find the other members when you were feeling lonely— tricks that you could only use once you were bitten due to your enhanced senses. Jimin and Jungkook helped you adjust a lot too. Setting up labels and maps in commonly traveled areas until you finally learned most or all of the house you would be living in. But you still stayed with Jimin every chance you got, the two of you were practically inseparable.

When you and the young wolf reach the common area, you hear the front doors open followed by the sound of heavy bodies padding through the entrance, which you easily identify as Jimin and Hoseok before you can even see them. Your senses sharpen at your mate’s arrival and you jog ahead to meet him, turning the corner to be met with a gorgeous wolf with shining eyes, his gray-brown fur looking fluffy yet sleek on his muscled figure. The tail at his rear flicks quickly before the wolf transforms into an even more beautiful man, already fully clothed, but dirty from the forest that was just ventured. 

You never were able to wrap your head around how they managed to stay clothed. One night, Jimin tried to explain it to you while you were cuddling in bed. Apparently it had something to do with the magic that his kind possessed, preserving his human during transformations, but you could never fully understand. It was just one of the mysteries of the supernatural and you were fine with settling on the answer ‘it’s magic’ and a kiss on the forehead from your loving boyfriend. 

“Honey, we’re home!” Hobi happily announces to the house, heard by everyone in the building but still largely ignored.

“Hey, jagiya.” Jimin greets, a huge grin playing on his lips as he wipes away sweat from his forehead. 

“Wipe your feet, you dirty heathens.” You hear Yoongi shout from his spot on the couch in the next room just as his pack-mates were about to step off the long foot mat with their muddy feet.

“Okay, grandpa.” They both roll their eyes and you catch Yoongi’s satisfied hum as he listens to them drag their feet along the the surface until they’re clean enough to walk on the hardwood. 

“How was your run?” You wrap your arms around Jimin’s neck and look up at him lovingly, and smiling brightly when he does the same. 

“Refreshing.” He answers simply with an equally toothy grin. “We hunted a little, checked our borders, nothing special, but it felt so good to shift after so long.”

He takes you in his arms, lifting you up just high enough so your feet were off the ground and he could walk the two of you deeper into his home. Plopping onto one of the couches in the living room, you drop onto his lap, legs to one side of him and arms still circled around his neck. 

“Why don’t you ever take me out with you?” You whine, pouting cutely. 

“You know I don’t feel comfortable with you being exposed like that. It’s very dangerous outside, especially at night with other packs so close to us. I can protect you, but I don’t want to put you in danger in the first place, if I can help it.” He tells you this gently, though its direct, an outplayed topic that you already knew the answer to but still liked to ask just in case he ever changed his mind. He changed his mind about biting you and that turned out alright. Looking you over, his gaze lands on your bold eye color, the flecks of gold in them making you look ethereal. “Maybe eventually, when we know more about your new self.” You know he’s talking about you gaining control over your newfound power. You’re still not even sure if you’re fully transformed yet or if you even have a wolf— nothing about werewolves is a slow process, so everyone is still surprised and perplexed about how long it’s taking for everything to come in. You don’t even have canines yet, a distinct feature of a werewolf that you should have by now. Namjoon has been doing some research, but there’s still a lot to learn.

“Okay,” You accept, his answer expected. “I just missed you a lot.” Cuddling into his chest, you allow him to wrap his arms around your waist and nuzzle into your neck. 

“I missed you first.” He whispers. “You left me alone all day.” Something you learned pretty quickly about Jimin is that he is very protective of you. He doesn’t like when you go places without him for extended periods of time, and this feeling only got stronger after he bit you. When you’re uncomfortable, he’s uncomfortable, so he tries to shelter you as much as possible, which the timid and introverted part of you is fine with. But the defiant side of you does not appreciate it so much, hating how it feels like you’re always being kept on a tight leash by him. 

“I was with Halin, I have other friends outside of this pack.” You laugh, playing with the hair at the nape of his neck. 

“I know.” He says, his plump bottom lip jutting out and you lean up to kiss his pout away. 

PDA wasn’t something you liked before you and Jimin started dating. You didn’t feel comfortable with people seeing you be overly affectionate in public, and you guess  it was because of your shy nature, but ever since you’ve become a part of his pack, you’re completely fine with being all over Jimin in public. Part of it could be because werewolves don’t find it odd to be loving with their mate in front of others, so they never frowned upon it when Jimin would decide to make out with you in the middle of everyone. But you and Jimin are nowhere near as open as the couple sitting on the loveseat across from you, Yoongi and his mate Yebin, one of the females from the rival pack who had captured the heart of the beta. It seems like they’re always on the brink of ripping each other’s clothes off, just like they’re practically connected right now. It doesn’t help that Yoongi is already shameless as is. Werewolves are even accepting of the natural process of sex, specifically when one of them is in heat— once you were cooking with Jin and he brought you along to drop off the meals to the members that were still in their rooms, including bringing a whole tray full of meat and water bottles to Taehyung’s room where he and his mate, the other rival female, were fucking recklessly during his heat, paying no attention to the male who walked in casually and sat down the tray at a far end of the room, being sure to keep his distance as not to aggravate Taehyung. Everyone involved seemed unbothered while you stood with a reddened face and dropped jaw in the hallway. Of course, that was before you were also a wolf and went on a sex crazed spree for a week. 

“Come here, I wanna show you something.” Jimin pulls away suddenly and you raise your eyebrow at him, curious. His arms drop from your waist, prompting you to move from his lap so he can stand and he grabs your hand and laces your fingers, pulling you out of the room and through the manor, winding through the halls, climbing stairs, entering unused doors, until you’re lost again and have no idea where you are. This is certainly a place you’ve never been before.

“Where are we going?” Your curiosity gets the best of you and you break the silence, only to receive an even more confusing smirk from him. Eventually, you reach a ladder and he lets go of your hand to ascend, opening a hatch on the ceiling and gesturing down to you for you to follow. He offers his hand, pulling you up the rest of the way until you’re both standing on a random section of the roof. His fingers twine with yours again and he holds on tightly as he walks gingerly on the shingles until he reaches a spot that he’s satisfied with and he sits down, pulling you along with him. 

“Have you ever been on the roof before?” He places your tangled fingers on his lap as you look around in awe.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been on the roof of anything.” You state, taking in your surroundings. You can see far and wide, far past your boarders of the forest and even all the way into the small town from which you originate, it’s lights looking like dim fallen stars. But the actual stars in the sky take your breath away. You’ve never seen the night sky look so clear, not a cloud in sight and the stars shining almost as brightly as the moon. The cool autumn breeze blows by and rustles the leaves around you, but Jimin can only notice the way your hair blows around your face, the red apples of your cheeks seeming to glow in the moonlight, and his hand reaches up to move away the stray stands before he can stop himself. When you turn to look at him again, he smiles endearingly.

“Well now you have.” You both giggle. “I used to come up here all the time when we first met. I would just sit here and stare at the lights over there,” You follow his finger with your eyes back to the town in the distance. “Wondering where you were, what you were doing, if you were safe. If you were thinking about me. I thought it wasn’t fair that I was always thinking about you, but I didn’t know if you thought about me the same way. And when you found out about what I am... I was terrified. I was afraid of what might happen to you and Halin because you aren’t supposed to know about my kind, Namjoon could have easily killed you. And when he didn’t, I worried even more about what you would think about me and if you would be scared whenever you saw me. That was my worst fear.”

You stare at him in awe at his confession. Something flickers in his eyes when he pauses, then Jimin pulls you in front of him between his legs to lean against his firm chest so he can wrap his arms around you tightly. He holds you as if you would fall off the roof if the wind blew too hard, protecting you from the world that you observed from above. Jimin is a beta wolf, he’s strong and has the qualities to succeed Namjoon as the alpha one day. He only bows down to their leader and is very dominant in every way, showing few emotions on his handsome face, but you seem to be his only weakness, the only one to make his cold exterior melt into the warm, passionate, and loving boyfriend that you’ve come to know him to be. 

“But you accepted us and stayed, wanted to be a part of our world even though you knew it was dangerous. You loved me for who I was and didn’t run when I told you I wanted you to be my mate...” His rambling trails off and there are a few moments of silence. But it’s not the awkward silence that consumes the air and makes it thick, suffocating. It’s light and comfy, both of your minds swimming with thoughts. Jimin soon breaks it, though. “Do you trust me?”

There’s a moment of shock from you as you feel him tense slightly behind you, breath almost still in his chest.

“Would I have let you mark me if I didn’t?” You retort with a chuckle, trying to lighten the mood slightly to get him to relax. It works, to an extent.

“Yeah, I guess that’s true.” He’s still a bit tense and you can feel the weight of his thoughts in the tight hold of his arms. Turning, you cup his face in your hands and force him to look at you.

“Yes Jimin, I trust you.” With your heart and your life. 

“I’m sorry for coddling you, I know I seem a bit overprotective at times and I don’t mean to make you feel like a baby.” He apologizes gently, a crease forming between his eyebrows. “It’s just... I can feel when you’re uncomfortable. When you’re anxious. And it makes me want to protect you from everything, even if it’s not a threat. Our emotions are more connected now that you’re officially my mate, and my instincts go wild when you’re feeling anything remotely negative. I’m trying my hardest to get this under control, so please be patient with me, it’s a learning process for me too.”

“I understand,” You say, sweetly kissing the dent between his brows. “I’ve been stepping out of my comfort zone a lot and I guess I should apologize for that. I didn’t know how it made you feel.”

“I’ll try not to worry so much, you’re your own person and you should be able to do whatever you want without needing my permission.” He looks at you with soft eyes and you debate whether or not you should tell him about the party. You aren’t going, of course, you’ll just be there to help set up, but he still might want to know about it. But then you think of how he’ll probably want to go with you to keep watch over you for nonexistent threats, and you decide against it. He just said you don’t need his permission, so this shouldn’t be a big deal. Having nothing to say, you instead reply with a smile and a kiss, cuddling with him in silence, watching the landscape until it gets a little too cold and you both retire to bed.

The following week goes by fast, you go out everyday to hand out fliers to strangers and to hang out with Halin around town during her lunch breaks. She talks your ear off with rants about how Jiwoo keeps stressing over the party and how her job won’t give her the day off on the Friday of Halloween, but you listen intently to everything she says and even find it relaxing to hear about her struggles. A few times she asks about if Namjoon has changed his mind, either about letting you help set up or about you not being allowed to stay for the party, and each time you say no. Honestly, you haven’t asked. He was reasonable and most likely right about what you could handle, so you wanted to respect his advice and warnings and not stress yourself out too much. But the more Halin talked about how cute her costume is, who was going to be there, how much fun it was going to be and how much she’ll miss you the whole night, the more you thought about disobeying the alpha and staying for the party, even if just for a little while. You told her that Jimin didn’t even know about it and that you didn’t intend on telling him the details, but that Jungkook was aware of it and had even snuck a flier from you, so if anything were to happen, he was the safety net. 

Halloween approached faster than expected and before you knew it, you were gathered in the living room with the pack, receiving a lecture from Namjoon.

“Alright, lets get this over with.” The alpha sighs, looking at each of your faces. “Just like every year, I’m not going to stop anyone from going out tonight if that’s what you want. But please note that there will be a lot more people on the streets, especially children, so please be cautious and aware of your actions if you do choose to leave our borders. Aside from that, we’ll be having our annual movie marathon, this time it’s Hoseok’s turn to pick the movies.” There’s a collective groan that sounds around the room and Hoseok rolls his eyes.

“Whatever, I have good taste.” His lips form a cute shape that only he can produce and you just want to squish his puffy cheeks. 

“You always pick lame movies. There’s so many good ones out there and you have yet to choose one of them.” Taehyung frowns, giving the older wolf a strong side eye of irritation. 

Taehyung, Jimin, and Yoongi are the Betas of the pack, strong-minded and often a bit rough around the edges when interacting with the others, yet most of the time it’s all in good fun and they never truly intend to be mean. Being the Omegas, Jin, Jungkook, and Hobi are most often picked on, but they’re known for their playful, childlike qualities. In your opinion, Jungkook doesn’t really have an Omega personality aside from his innocence and tendency to joke around with Jin a lot, but his aggression, physical athleticism, and quick reflexes probably will earn him the status of Beta one day if he keeps up the good work. Yebin and Insook, the two other females of the pack are of different rankings; Yebin (Yoongi’s mate) being an Omega, and Insook (Taehyung’s mate) a Beta. They hold everyone together, talk sense into the males when they’re being irrational, do majority of the hunting, and protect the manor when the males go away to check borders. They’re both very sweet, but you find that Yebin is more quiet and submissive than Insook, which you guess in in her nature. Insook has been known as the pack’s mother in a way since she is always disciplining the Omegas and taking up responsibilities. But for some reason, they respect you far more than you expected, Insook even asking for your approval on various occasions since you’ve been bitten, and you wonder if your wolf will be a Beta in the pack, or even a sort of Alpha female, at least amongst the other females if that was possible. You try not to think about it too much.

“Well, you guys always pick ones that are too scary for me. Then me and Jin don’t enjoy ourselves and you tease us about it.” Hobi whines, folding his arms.

“Taehyung, you got to choose last time, give him a chance.” Insook glances at him from her spot beside him and He mumbles under his breath for being scolded, but he doesn’t move his arm from around her shoulders. 

“I’ll make the snacks! I just bought some really cute Halloween themed baking decorations and I can’t wait to use them.” Jin obsesses, thinking about all the pastries and snacks he could make. 

“Okay, I want everyone back home before the moon rises, preferably before dark. The full moon is out tonight. You know what that means.” He doesn’t have to explain what happens during full moons, everyone already knows, and they nod in acknowledgement of his request. You nod, but there’s a small voice in the back of your head convincing you that this doesn’t apply to you. You’re not a full werewolf yet, so there’s no need to worry, right? Only full wolves feel the effects of a full moon. At least that’s what you tell yourself. “I can’t stress this enough, please be safe.” Namjoon closes with this and dismisses everyone, it’s about noon so they all go their separate ways, including Jimin, who promised to go to the store with Hobi to get some last minute movie night things.

“I’ll be back later, just call me if you need anything.” He says to you on his way out of the door, offering you a small peck on the lips as he exits. 

“You still going out tonight?” Jungkook approaches you with a grin, showing off his sharpened canines that have already started to grow.

“Shhhhhh!” You hold a finger over his mouth and look around anxiously, listening for Jimin to exit the house and waiting until he is out of earshot. “Be quieter.”

“You haven’t told him yet? He’s gonna worry if you don’t tell him where you’re going.” Jungkook pushes your hand out of the way, but gives you his soft, wide-eyed look.

“I know, but he hasn’t asked me. I told him I was hanging out with Halin today and he barely questioned it. I think it’s because he feels like he’s coddling me a bit and is trying to back off, so I won’t tell him if he doesn’t want to know. I know he’ll probably just ask to tag along anyway.” You didn’t mean for it to sound like you didn’t want Jimin with you. Of course you did. But you also wanted a little independence, freedom. You rarely go out without him, it was almost as if he was your personal bodyguard or something, but sometimes you just need to do things on your own. And Jimin respects that, so that’s why he won’t intervene in your plans tonight, as long as you’re safe. “Plus, you know where I’m going so if anything goes wrong, I’ll just call you.”

“Okay, I guess.” Despite the uneasy feeling Jungkook gets from the situation, he agrees. It seems like you’ve got it all figured out and he’ll also respect your capability in protecting yourself. At least someone knows. 

“(Y/n),” Namjoon comes up behind you and you both turn to look at the leader. “I need talk with you for a moment.” He motions for you to follow him out of the room and you trail him quickly, glancing back at your friend as he looks on. Hopefully you won’t get your privileges revoked at the last minute. 

“Is there something wrong?” You ask nervously, hands clasped together in silent prayer. 

“No, but I want you to know the risks of going out tonight. I completely trust you and I don’t find it necessary to keep you locked up here if you don’t want to be. I just want you to make sure that you understand why you need to be cautious.” With a nod of affirmation from you, he proceeds. “You’re different now, you won’t perceive things the same way and sometimes that can be scary. Be aware of your surroundings and try to stick to your comfort zone as much as possible. Full moons are times when our senses enhance by 10 times, so we usually stay here, or at least within our borders to prevent anything unexpected from happening. We don’t know how you’ll be affected by it, but I read up on some old books and they say that you might experience added aggression, irritability, high anxiety, sensitivity to outside stimuli, as well as intense alertness and even paranoia.”

“Wow, you sound like a commercial for heart medication.” You mumble, both of you chuckling slightly at the comment before Namjoon straightens up again. 

“I’m serious. Just... be careful. Don’t put yourself in stressful situations if you don’t have to and make sure you’re back before the moon comes out. It’s usually not up fully until an hour after sunset, plan accordingly.”

“Okay, I will.” You nod again, receiving a long stare from him as he searches your eyes, before he finally nods back and allows you to go. 

You spend the rest of the time before the party getting your costume ready and doing your makeup. You weren’t going to actually be at the party, but you still wanted to dress up and get in the spirit. Halin told you that she would meet you at the edge of the woods at your usual spot to pick you up in about a half hour, and you rush to finish everything before you have to leave. Even though Jimin didn’t ask for you to do this, you still ask Jungkook to escort you out of the woods, a job that your boyfriend is usually glad to do, because you know that it is what he wants. You could make it through on your own, you’ve travelled the path more times than you could count, but it was just safer and easier to have someone with you. When it’s time to leave, the young wolf shifts and let’s you ride on his back until you reach the border of the trees where he drops you off and tells you to give him a call when you’re ready to come back. 

“You look so good!” You tell your best friend again as you help decorate the building. 

“Do I look as sexy as I feel?” She asks, jutting out her hip.

“Sexiest fairy I’ve ever seen.” You wink at her, smiling when she does a twirl, showing off all the glitter and sparkles adorning her skin and fake translucent wings. Her skimpy outfit shows off a generous amount of skin and you’re a little jealous of how confident she is to be able to go out in something like that. Your costume is a little more modest (just slightly): you’re dressed as a werewolf of sorts, complete with a plaid crop top and bright blue high waisted shorts, topped off with ripped fishnets, boots with a heel, clip on ears and matching furry cufflinks for effect. Your makeup outlines your face sharply and gives the impression of a snout, your painted dog nose seeming to pop out. You didn’t know what else to dress up as, so naturally this was your go to idea. Jungkook laughed at your outfit at first, saying that he couldn’t even tell what you were supposed to be, but you quickly set him straight by telling him that it wasn’t supposed to be an accurate representation. Initially you bought a matching tail, but he advised you that it was too much so you scrapped it. 

“You both look so cute!” Jiwoo comes up beside the two of you and sets down a plate of freshly made snacks in the shape of skulls and witch’s cauldrons. “I especially love the eye color, (Y/n).” 

Your smile falters for a second when you remember your forgotten contacts, but you play it off since it goes with the theme. You thank her and resume working, arranging cups and plates, hanging things from the ceiling, and covering light bulbs with colored tissue paper to make everything that much more spooky. Proud of your work, you go over to your other friends to see if there was anything you could help with.

“Uh, yeah, we need to move a few of these sofas into that room over there, this is going to be the dance floor.” Jooheon directs as he focuses on hooking up the speakers and DJ booth. 

Complying, you walk over and grab one of the arms of the large couch, pulling it with ease across the floor, then lifting it when you find that it was leaving marks on the tile. You repeat the process with the other sofa and return to find Jooheon and two others looking at you with confused and shocked faces. 

“Did you just lift those by yourself?” One of them asks, bringing your attention to the strength you were supposed to be hiding. Your eyes widen and you freeze, momentarily stunned. 

Seeing this, Halin jumps into action and comes out of the room behind you, coming to stand next to you while stretching her back.

“Pfft, no, Halin helped me move them.” You recover quickly glancing over at your best friend who nods in response.

“Oh.” They all seem to dismiss the event with your excuse and you let out a sigh of relief, looking to your savior with thankful eyes as you walk away to find something else to do. 

“Watch it, you strong motherfucker.” She laughs, elbowing you playfully in your side. 

“I forgot!” Usually you don’t even have to use your strength in public, this just came naturally. 

Within hours the entire house was transformed into the perfect Halloween venue, seating areas designated, dance floor and music set up, food set out, decorations hanging from every surface, now all that was left to do was to wait for the guests. You suppose this is about when you were supposed to leave. Set up was complete and the party would begin shortly, it’s best to get out before it becomes crowded, but things were just getting started and you really wanted to see all of the planning come into fruition. The alpha’s words echo in your head, but the rebellious side of you wasn’t listening, which might have had something to do with the full moon that was due to appear soon, seeing as the sun was already starting to set. Well, you still had an hour so why not have some fun? It didn’t take long to get home.

As people started showing up, you were assigned door duty, checking people’s invitations and making sure they weren’t carrying any contraband like alcohol, etc. (there was a bar there if anyone wanted drinks). The position gave you a view of the sky and you checked occasionally to see the sunset’s progress, and when the last sliver of light disappeared behind the warm colored leaves in the distance, you abandoned your post to enter the party with Halin. 

“There’s a lot of people here.” You state in awe, looking around at the already crowded rooms. Sure, you were the one that let all of these people in, but you didn’t really get a true sense of how many there are until you get the chance to see them all in one place. Unconsciously, you shuffle closer to your friend. 

“Hell yeah, I’m excited! Stick close to me we’re going in.” You latch onto her arm as she pulls you ahead into the crowd, pushing past people until you’re in the center of the floor. She immediately starts dancing to the music, jumping into the sway of the party easily while you stick out like a sore thumb, suddenly and inexplicably nauseous. 

In hindsight, Namjoon was completely right. As you look around, you notice that you don’t know anyone, which wouldn’t have been an issue if you weren’t so riled up already. The loud music pulses through the building and it’s almost deafening, to the point where your head hurts so much that your eyes feel like they’re about to pop out. Someone bumps into you from the back and you jump in surprise, your yelp drowned out by the noises around you. Even the scent of food and alcohol 3 rooms away wafts into your nose and practically makes you dry heave. Halin seems to notice your discomfort and moves to grab your hands, swinging your arms back and forth to the beat, and you can feel every point of contact you have with other beings, the people rubbing against you, the heat coming off of their bodies, the brush of their costumes and your own against your skin, and it’s all too much. You pull away from her abruptly and make a break for the exit, walking blindly through the people until you find yourself in an equally crowded seating room. Holding yourself, you search for a place to sit, but find that all of the seats are take, so you end up standing awkwardly as people pour in and out of the small room. 

Jimin frowns deeply. The sun went down 15 minutes ago and you’re not back home yet, nor have you contacted him. He’s parked on one of the couches surrounding the flat screen tv that is currently playing the beginning of some ridiculous horror comedy movie that Hoseok picked out, snacks splayed all around him as his pack mates talk and eat, unaware of his unease. He shifts in his spot, used to wrapping his arms around you, and he wonders where you are. There’s this feeling in his gut, an unsettling one that rests in the pit of his stomach and makes it tighten into knots. His hair stands on edge, but for some reason he doesn’t think it’s because of the full moon slowly climbing up the night sky. A few minutes pass before he allows the worry to consume him and spring him into action. Nudging Jungkook with his foot, Jimin catches the attention of the younger wolf and leans in to whisper. 

“Do you know where (Y/n) is?” There’s a hesitation from Jungkook and this does not go unnoticed, so Jimin asks again, this time louder. 

“Shhhh, go somewhere else, we’re trying to watch a movie.” Jin hisses, hand stuffed in the popcorn bowl that’s already half empty. Jimin rolls his eyes and stands, grabbing the other male’s arm to guide him out of the room to continue their conversation.

“Do you know where she went?” He tries a third time, trying to contain his rising temper. The added anxiety on his already irritated conscience makes him a little bit more aggressive than he intends. But Jungkook doesn’t seem too affected.

“Well, I know she went out to a party...” He starts cautiously. Would you want Jimin to know where exactly you were? He wasn’t quite sure if he should tell him. 

“Where is the party? I can feel how uncomfortable she is right now, I need to find her.” There’s worry clouding Jimin’s bright eyes and he taps his foot impatiently.

“I don’t know where it is,” The younger one shrugs and thinks back to where you said it would take place. “But she’s with Halin, I’m sure she’s fine.”

As much as Jimin wants to believe this, he can feel his skin almost start to tingle, his instincts telling him that you were unbelievably stressed and overwhelmed, and nothing Halin could do would be able to help that. Only your mate would be able to console your fears.

“No,” The word is almost growled and he fights to contain his wolf that threatens to come out. Right now Jungkook was impeding him from reaching you and if he hadn’t been the only one who knew where you were, Jimin would have long removed him from his path. “I need to get to her right now.” The desperation in his eyes betrays his aggressive words and Jungkook sympathizes. You must actually be in trouble.

“There’s a flier with the party info in my room-“ Before Jungkook can even finish his sentence, Jimin is dashing up the stairs and searching his desk for the bright orange piece of paper that reveals your location. Then he’s out of the door without even saying anything to anyone else.

“Hey!” Namjoon shouts, but he’s long gone. “Where the hell is he going, the moon’s almost out!” 

“He’s going to find (Y/n), he can sense something going on.” At Jungkook’s words, the alpha already knows what’s happened. You’re overwhelmed, which means you didn’t heed his warnings and were still at the party. He trusts that Jimin will be able to save you from your distress and relaxes back into his seat with a shake of his head, ignoring the questioning stares of the others. 

Taking a few deep breaths, you try to calm yourself down, but the hot air around you only makes it feel like you’re suffocating. Never in your life have you felt so... trapped. You bring your eyes to the ceiling, trying to think past the haze of your headache and figure out a way to bring yourself back from this panic. The full moon was probably all the way out by now, how long have you been in here? Calling Jungkook to come get you was probably the next logical step, but your hands fumble in your pockets and they shake so hard that you can’t see the screen on your tiny device. Distantly, you register your name being called, and look up to see Halin squeezing her way through patrons to get to you.

“(Y/n), I’ve been looking everywhere for you! Are you okay?” Her eyes are wide when she sees your shaken state, the frantic shifting of your eyes barely able to focus on her form in front of you. “Y-your fangs!”

Fangs? Without thinking, you lift a hand to your mouth and are met with the sting of the sharp point of your canine cutting into the pad of your thumb. Looking down at the digit, you observe a drop of blood form and stare at it in shock. Halin turns on the front camera of her phone and holds it in front of you so you can see yourself, shiny new teeth sticking from your mouth similar to how Jungkook’s were before you left the house today. 

“I have fangs?” On any other day, you would have been excited by the change, more evidence of your transformation signifying that you’re closer to being a full werewolf. But now it only brings you more fear, looking around at the people who don’t seem to notice. You try to cover them with your lips, but they still are noticeably hanging in front of your bottom lip, along with your eyes that seem to glow in the dark now. Suddenly you’re frozen with fear, unsure of what to do. You’ve long forgotten that this is a costume party and no one thinks your appearance is strange, you’re only focused on the fact that you should have listened to the leader and left before the party started. Regret sets into your throat and threatens to choke you with the weight of it; you’re stuck in a party full of unfamiliar faces, loud noises, bright lights, strange smells, and you can’t even think straight enough to find the exit. Your heart beats too fast and you almost think you’ll pass out from how heavy you’re breathing.

Halin is saying something to you, but her words are muted and all you can hear is the thumping of your heart and the various noises created by the other humans surrounding you all too closely. So you just stand there, thoughts running in a million directions before focusing in on one. A scent. One that triggers something in you that melts your body enough to allow you to look around. That smell, the smell of comfort, protection. Jimin. He locks eyes with you and shoves people out of his way until he’s right next to you, pulling you into his arms.

“I-It’s too much, Jimin.” You whisper into his chest and all he does is shush you quietly. 

The first thing he notices is that you’re hyperventilating, panting against his chest in big gasps, but after only seconds of being in his presence your breathing begins to even out. He’s a bit disheveled as well, but now that he’s found you he can relax. Everything around you becomes silent and all you can sense is your mate, his arms wrapped tightly around your shaking frame, his heart synchronizing with yours and calming it, the puffs of air that blow gently on the crown of your head, the hand that runs soothingly through your hair. There’s nothing else but him and you feel your body move away from the ledge it was hanging onto. 

“Are you okay?” He murmurs, only loud enough for your sensitive ears to hear. You nod weakly and then he’s pulling you out of the building by the hand, leaving Halin standing there in confusion and guilt. She lets you go, there’s nothing she can do for you anyway. 

Once you step outside the cold air rushes into your lungs, allowing you to take your first breaths of clean air. Jimin walks a distance away from the party until you’re out of sight, and then turns to inspect you. 

“Are you hurt? Did anyone touch you?” His hands roam you to make sure you’re unharmed as you shake your head, still unable to form words. When you find your voice, you look up at him.

“H-how did you find me?” You’re glad he did, but you half expected Jungkook to go on the search for you first since he knew your curfew and where you were.

“Why didn’t you come home before sunset?” He deflects your question with his own, eyebrows knit in what you perceive as concern. 

“I didn’t- it wasn’t-“ You fumble for words, unsure how to answer him. “I’m not sure.” Defeated, you sigh and slump, knowing full well that you had the chance to leave at any time and chose not to. 

“(Y/n),” For the first time, Jimin takes in your appearance. He notices your eyes and teeth, leaning in to touch your mouth and make sure they weren’t prosthetics that you added as a part of your costume. When he confirms they are real, he looks up at the sky and sees the moon peeking above the tree line. “Come on, we need to get home.” 

You walk to the edge of the trees and enter the forest, looking both ways for bystanders before Jimin shifts and you hop onto his back, holding onto his ash brown fur until you’re in front of the manor again. You both enter the house and head straight into your bedroom, not even giving the rest of the pack a passing glance as all of their ears and heads turn toward you silently, the entire room already half transformed but still completely engrossed in the movie and snacks. Jungkook and Namjoon stare at your back a little longer than the others, but they don’t say anything and return their attention to the screen. 

Neither of you know why you’ve ended up in the bedroom, that’s just where Jimin’s instincts led him, but now you were standing face to face in the locked room, staring at each other in silence. Looking into your boyfriend’s eyes, you see a swirl of emotions, something that you thought was anger that was really something more like lust. His pupils were blown, the slim irises reflecting a golden color that glows in the lighting of the room. He approaches you a step closer, looking over your costume and makeup with curiosity. 

“So, you went to a party?” He asks lowly, but it comes out as less of a question and more of a statement.

“Yes, Jiwoo planned it.” You respond with a gulp, unsure where the conversation was going.

“And you didn’t invite me? Didn’t even tell me where you were going?” His eyebrow arches as his hand raises to play with a strand of your hair that falls in front of your face.

“You didn’t ask, I thought you didn’t want to know.” Your voice is quiet and shaky, but for a different reason this time. 

“At first I didn’t, but I realized that I’m a mess without you. I couldn’t even sit comfortably on the couch when you weren’t next to me, I didn’t know what to do with myself.” His palm caresses your cheek and you lean into his touch, something sparking up inside of you when he stares into your eyes deeply. “I want you by my side. Like I said, I can feel your emotions, I can’t help but want to be there to protect you.” 

His hands trail down your skin until they land on your hip, fingers playing with the waistband of your shorts. You shiver at the prospect of what’s to come, a raging sensation burning inside of you that yearns for your mate, who is standing so close now that you’re nearly occupying the same space. 

“I’m sorry,” You don’t really know what you’re apologizing for at this point with your mind so scrambled like this. “For not telling you about the party.”

“And?” He whispers, mouth so close to yours.

“For staying out past dark... on a full moon.” Your voice has also dropped to a whisper, your arms moving on their own to wrap around his torso. 

“Why did you tell Jungkook and not me? I’m hurt.” Jimin breathes into the crook of your neck, right above his mark and you can feel the ghost of his lips there. “You seem to have a problem with authority, disobeying our alpha and keeping things from me.” He tuts at you while pulling away, fingers now at the front of your top, and with nimble fingers he pulls the knot between your breasts so that it unravels and your shirt falls open, pushed off your shoulders until it pools at the ground. “Did you forget who you are, princess?”

Your exposure sets off the untamed desire within you and before you can help it you’re launching forward and locking lips with him, moaning at the sensation of his hands pinching at your nipples. The kiss is a bit awkward with both of your canines out fully now, but you don’t mind, somehow managing to avoid getting cut by the sharp fangs. 

His fingers glide down smoothly into your shorts, putting in little effort and minimal force to rip them from your legs, leaving you in nothing but your fishnets and heel boots. You try to remove his shirt through the sloppy kiss, hands intending to pull the material over his head, but instead it tears off his body in the same way your shorts did, giving as much resistance as a wet tissue. There’s no time to marvel at your strength, though, because the beast inside you is urging you both forward until you land on the shared king sized bed in the middle of the floor and Jimin is flipping you onto your stomach. You crawl onto your knees in front of him to present yourself in just the way he likes, weight resting on your elbows and back arched to accent the roundness of your ass. Jimin sucks in a breath of air and slaps the flesh with a flick of his wrist, palming at the globes roughly as a primal growl rumbles in his throat.

“Look at you, dripping down your thighs and waiting for me to fuck you.” He coos, observing the glistening liquid that coats your legs. “Are you gonna be good for me, baby?” You hear the sound of tearing and feel a breeze between your legs, coming to the realization that he’s torn the center of your leggings and was now face to face with your heat, peppering your skin with kisses. Pressing your eyes shut, you try to stay still as he takes his time studying you, hands spreading your cheeks and thumbs opening your lips so he can get a clear view of his treasure. 

“Yes, I’ll be good for you Jimin.” You whine when you feel his tongue glide up your weeping slit, lapping up your juices.

“Do you remember who you are?” His words are spoken into your core, lips traveling down to capture your clit between them and you nearly squeal.

“Yes! I’m your bitch, Jimin! I’m your horny little bitch!” A growl of approval sounds from him when he runs his fingers up your slick inner thighs and your legs are shaking around him with the struggle of holding you up. The copious amount of fluid pouring from you signifies that you’re more than ready to take him inside you and you fight your inner instincts that tell you to beg for him and submit. But in reality, you’ve already fully submitted to him anyway and he knows it. Jimin pulls away to dispose of his pants and underwear, releasing his furious cock that strains and throbs against his hard abdomen. You peek between your legs to catch a glimpse of it, your mouth going dry and your heart jumping to your throat at the sight. You want him so badly, want to feel him deep inside you as soon as possible, and your hole tingles and aches in impatient anticipation.

“You ready for me, baby girl?” He asks, rubbing the tip between your lips to slick it in all of your wetness. “I don’t think I’ll be able to hold back tonight.” 

“Please just fuck me,” You whisper, already out of breath just from the thought of what’s to come. “I need you.”

Jimin groans your name as his final effort of resistance against his primal instincts finally break. When he starts pushing inside of your warmth, you notice a difference. He’s slightly bigger than normal, his intrusive girth stretching you farther than before, and you almost double over in shock, but after a couple of seconds your body accepts him and opens up. His hands grip your waist with bruising force and you feel him shake as his cock continues to penetrate your entrance slowly, inch by solid inch. By the time he bottoms out, you’re both panting and trembling slightly, sweat dripping down his hot skin as if he’s been consumed by a sudden fever. Your patience is short and you push back into him, whimpering and swiveling your hips to entice him into action. There’s a moment where he adjusts himself before he’s slamming roughly into you rapidly.

Your jaw falls slack as he fucks into you, his steel grip on you making sure you can’t move an inch away from him. Silver moonlight floods into the room, casting beautiful shadows on your bodies and seemingly adding to his strength and speed. You arch your back so that he can reach deeper into you, head tilting and eyes rolling to the back of your head at the depth he gets. 

“Oh my god,” Getting comfortable with the pace, Jimin goes a bit harder, making you claw at the sheets to the point where you’re surprised they haven’t ripped yet. “hngh- oh shit.” 

“You like that, baby? You’re taking me so well.” Your lover smirks at your inability to speak, taking in the details of your contorted face and flushed cheeks. Both of you are glistening, the room feeling a thousand degrees hotter now, and even starting to fog up the windows on the far wall of it. 

His hands creep up your back and to your shoulder, pushing you down so your face and chest are pressed into the sheets beneath you. At the new angle, Jimin can thrust so much deeper and you feel the engorged tip of his cock grazing your cervix in the most delicious way, more unintelligible moans and noises falling from your lips when he kneels on one knee and snaps his hips impossibly harder. The smell of sex wafts through the air and there’s no doubt in your mind that it’s strong enough for your pack mates to smell even from their position downstairs. Sounds of moans, sticky skin, and the headboard ramming into the abused wall fill the room along with your pants, and it’s so loud, your ears picking up every creak the box springs make under your weight, every inhale and exhale, every ticklish slap of his loaded balls against your labia, every grunt from him and whimper and whine from you. But none of those things compares to the overwhelming sensation of Jimin inside you, his cock filling you so completely that you don’t even have space to think.

“Jimin, more,” You’re able to pant out among the slew of continuous moans.

“You’re a greedy bitch, aren’t you?” He remarks with a dark chuckle. A hand slithers around your midsection, hovering above your clit tantalizingly, and you whine loudly.

“Please!” You cry out, on the verge of ecstasy already and only needing a small push to get you there. You’ve slid up the bed so much that you’re nearly laying flat on your stomach now, but your ass is still propped up for his use. Jimin leans over your frame and cranes his neck down to nibble on your ear, tongue dancing random patterns on your skin that make your head lull to the side. 

“Cumming already?” You nod frantically to his question, hips bucking against him in search of anything that will throw you over the edge. “Good. I want you to cum all over this cock like a good little bitch. Show me how much you want me to fill your tight little pussy with my seed.”

Finally, his fingers dip down to rub harsh circles into your clit, tingles of pleasure shooting up your body and making you scream into the sheets. God, it all just feels too good. Jimin finds it in himself to go just a bit faster, the ridges of his length brushing against you in the perfect way, and soon you’re hit with the blinding relief of orgasm. You shake uncontrollably, sound coming from you in broken intervals as you struggle to catch a breath, head thrown back onto his strong shoulder as he keeps with his pace, riding you out until your body sinks back down to earth. He moans with you the entire time you convulse around him, using your tightness to get him closer to his peak, but he slows down a bit when you come back to your senses. 

Placing gentle pecks on your neck and jaw, he rolls softly into you, ignoring the roaring monster inside of him that tells him to keep going. The gentleness doesn’t last long, however, because as soon as you’re okay to continue, he drops to his elbows and pistons into you relentlessly, dire to release the pressure that has been building at his base the entire night. 

“You did so fucking well, princess,” He rasps, voice a gravelly mumble against the shell of your ear. “I’m gonna fill you up so much, just like you deserve. Until you’re womb is swimming with my babies. Would you like that?” He asks, body moving faster and faster as the words pour out of his mouth. 

“Mmhmp, fuck, I want it so bad!” You groan, body as limp as a noodle by this point.

He makes a sound behind you, almost as if he were in pain, and only gets in a few more pumps before he’s stilling inside you, pressed all the way until he’s kissing your cervix. You feel him tense as he swells inside your walls, his tip inflating steadily and stretching you uncomfortably so. You’re no stranger to his knot, having experienced it on multiple occasions, but that doesn’t mean your body doesn’t protest it every time. Naturally, panic starts to set in when your walls are pushed to their limits and beyond. You try to move away, wiggling to escape the pain, but Jimin has you locked to his body, arms wrapped around you and molding you to his front so you can’t go anywhere while he’s still anchored deeply inside you. Soon, he starts shaking and breathing even heavier, moaning your name as the first waves of his orgasm crash down on him, his face buried in your neck as he’s overcome.

“(Y/n),” He chokes out when you continue to squirm. “Don’t move... please.” He sounds strained, grunts and deep rumbles caught in his chest as his cock spurts copious amounts of semen into your womb. You try your hardest to remain still, but fuck, it hurts. You will yourself to relax, your shaky body slowly calming under him when he leaves kisses on your skin, his hot breath soothing you under his trembling figure. 

It takes a few minutes before his knot starts to deflate, his breath returning to normal and your hearts synchronizing as he lays on top of you, holding his weight on his elbows. You can feel the load of cum start to leak out of you as soon as he pulls out, your overfilled pussy feeling worn and aching. He moves to cup your heat and you jump at his touch, surprised and unprepared for the contact.

“Don’t waste a drop.” He speaks, knowing that you’re on birth control and won’t be having his pups any time soon, but the animal in him can’t help it. Your cheeks flame at this, thinking back on the intense night you’ve had and the intensity of your connection to him, and Jimin notices your sudden shyness. “What is it?” 

“Nothing.” You roll over and he lays beside you, pulling you closer so you can cuddle up into his chest. “I just love you... a lot.” At this he grins. 

“I’m so happy you’re my mate. I’m so glad I marked you.” He stares at your scar for a moment, the teeth imprint a forever reminder that you are his. “Listen, I don’t think I can ever not be protective of you. I want you to have your space, but I can’t stand to be without you. I feel like half a person when you’re not around.”

“I don’t want space, Jimin. I want you. I think I learned that very valuable lesson today.” You laugh, looking into his eyes lovingly. “Along with the lesson to never listen to Halin again. She’s the one that convinced me to go to the stupid party in the first place.”

A hearty laugh sounds from him and you smile at the brightness in his face. “She meant well.” There’s a long pause where the both of you just look at each other, not saying anything. But then he speaks again. “You look good with fangs.”

His comment reminds you of your new appearance, as well as your costume for the night, which has now been ripped to shreds, and your makeup that has smudged all over your face. 

“Do you think they’re here to stay? Like yours?” Jimin shrugs at this, thinking of what might happen. Maybe the full moon triggered something within you and let out your wolf. Maybe it will only last for tonight. Who knows, all he knows is that he’ll love you either way.

“I guess we’ll have to see, but for now, let’s get some rest. You’re gonna need it for round 2.”

“Round 2?” You raise an eyebrow in question, but he says nothing else. “The night is still young, who says we’re stopping at two?”

“You horny little devil.” He giggles, poking your nose. “I guess you’ll have to wait and find out about that too.”

[malliebuu]

Mallie’s Reylo Fanfic Rec List:

This is in no particular order and not limited to! There are so many talented writers out there! These are stories that have really stuck with me, so I am sharing them with you all! I will add as I go.

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The Inheritance of the Resistance by @waterlilyrose

Rating: Explicit

Summary: The discovery of a new unknown Duchess of the House of Kenobi brings new life to the Rebellion Court. Having lost their old Queen Leia, Rey and Han are forced into a deeply unconventional but quietly happy marriage. Having never had a family of her own, Rey sees Han as the father figure she always longed for.

So when the disgraced Prince returns to court to make amends with his aging King, how will he take to the girl who is now effectively his stepmother?

Medieval/Tudor Reylo.

Review: This has Tudor vibes - it is unreal. I love history, so naturally historically AUs are right up my ally. I was quite impressed by the setup and dynamic. The author uses Star Wars terms in place for the historical ones. This doesn’t follow the Tudor chain of events, but veers in it’s own original direction. Ben and Rey for this interesting relationship and it is quite troubled because Rey is actually married to Ben’s father ::gasp::. Love this fiction. So beautifully heartbreaking! (complete) 

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There Shall I Be By philcollins

Rating: Not Rated (Mature if anything)

Summary: AU in which Rey, our lonely scavenger from The Force Awakens, meets Kylo Ren under very different circumstances - he's a shepherd on Jakku. Rey inherits an estate on the moon Ceathea and Kylo follows her there, works for her there, and soon encounters his hated old foe, Uncle Luke Skywalker. Will Rey ever accept Kylo's love? Will crusty old Luke Skywalker come between Rey and her true love? More familiar faces will make an appearance in this Force-free story of love, longing, angst, and anger.

Review: This story was so heartbreaking, but so good. A mix of pining, angst, drama and uncertainty. This story I read nonstop and was quite heart broken, but these two stubborn people just need a little extra time in order to figure out they were meant for one another. This story had me sighing and talking aloud with frustration! So well-written! (Complete)

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The End of Father Kylo By Sweet_Solitude

Rating: Explicit

Summary: After a filthy youth and almost suffering a great loss, Kylo turns to priesthood and leads a virtuous life. That is until he meets a girl who turns his world upside down and reminds him that he has a functioning body below his waist.

Review: Again, this one was found during my priest Kylo fazes. Don’t judge me! This has everything you would think when you think of the church and priests, though there is a little bit of something else. Yes, I am going to hell. I know this. Smut, smut! Love this kinky one-shot. If you aren’t offended by this, give it a read. ::fans face:: (one-shot)

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Fault Lines By Devil Betty

Rating: Explicit

Summary: Rey has always dreamed of a family. She starts to believe she could have it when she moves in with her new foster mother, Leia Organa. Then Leia’s son, Ben, moves back home and threatens to ruin the life Rey is trying to build. Nothing will prepare either of them for the truth. Some family secrets should stay hidden.

Review: This story is a “page-turner”. It has a simple setting, but so much happens and the dialogue between both Kylo and Rey are so intriguing. The chemistry is unmistakable and the lemons are to die for. Unfortunately, this is one minor thing that has a draw back, and both character experience a major revelation that hurts them both. Please read warnings before reading!!

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Spit and Sweat by bunnystealsyourcarrots

Rating: Explicit

Summary: In 1975, Finalizer played a gig at CBGB. The punk band gave their best, the crowd went wild, but a young girl named Rey wanted more.

God Save Them All.

Review: AH! This AU I really couldn’t get enough of because it involves our lovely Kylo and Rey, but is also peppered with sex, drugs and rock-n-roll! I mean...no on the drugs, but in all seriousness, I LOVE Rock-n-roll! So, naturally I honed in on this like no one’s tomorrow! The chemistry between Kylo and Rey is off the damn charts! Ugh, the sexual tension! I absolutely love how this starts as a childhood crush and as she gets older Kylo sees her and is completely blown away! (Uncomplete)

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Love and Comfort, Sex and Wondering If This Could Be Our Turn By AquaWolfGirl

Rating: Explicit

Summary: Anonymous Prompt: Ben and Rey are in college and best friends, and very much in love, they just don't realize it. Rey is tired of people making jokes about her being a virgin, so she asks Ben to help her out.

Review: Virgin Rey has a little delima. Ben is there to help guide her. This is actually a very sweet and sexy story! Give it a read! The author is a fantastic writer! (One-Shot)

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nolite te bastardes carborundorum By SaintHeretical

Rating: Explicit

Summary: Born on the fringes of a dystopian dictatorship, Rey has lived most of her life in the shadows until desperation drives her into the hands of the government. Her unblemished womb is her only salvation, which leads to her being placed as a Handmaid in the household of Commander Kylo Ren and his infertile wife.

Her task? Produce a healthy child for the Commander, or be banished to a life of hardship and almost certain death. A Reylo Handmaid’s Tale AU

Review: I loved The Handmaid's Tale, so naturally when I visited this story, I was drawn to that aspect. There is non-con in this, so please beware when reading. If you do not know the Hulu original series, refer to their site for a detailed description. The author, in response to this TV show, stays true, but brings originality and this is really a wonderfully written piece. The author is extremely talented! (Unfinished)

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Innocents Lost By Pontmercy44

Rating: Explicit

Summary: “That’ll scar.” Han stood behind him, nervously. He’d always been nervous around him, first, because he was a baby, and Han didn’t understand babies, and then, because he had the Force, and Han didn’t understand the Force. “Girls like scars.”

“It’s not like it matters.” Ben looked out at the thousands of spires. “I’m going to be a Jedi.”

Han grunted in sympathy, and then sat next to him, swinging his legs off the side of the tower. The urge to feel alive, to take risks and taste danger – that was what he’d inherited from his father. “Heard you got off the hook.”

“Not exactly. Community service.”

“Better than a detention block.” Han leaned back on his hands.

Ben scoffed. “It’s asinine.”

His father shifted, looking up at the stars, through the hazy, translucent atmosphere of Hosnian Prime. “What do they have you doing? Picking up orbit pollution, or something?”

“Worse.” Ben snorted. “Teaching orphans to read and write Basic. On Jakku.”

Han winced. “Only slightly better than a detention block.”

Review: Love this story! I flew through it. Very well-written! Ben has to do community service as punishment and meets little Rey on Jakku. This forbidden relationship is beautiful and bittersweet at the same time. I love this first love adaptation! The author went above and beyond with these two! (complete)

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Daddy Dearest By AquaWolfGirl

Rating: Explicit

Summary: When single father Ben Solo moves into his new apartment in Bespin with 5-month old daughter Amy in tow, he hopes to hell and back that this life will be better than the one they left behind in upstate New York. It's not long before his life becomes a cycle of work, Amy, work, Amy. One night, while trying to fish his keys from his pocket without waking his infant daughter, Rey, his next door neighbor, offers a helping hand.

Review: Daddy Ben! He is a great dad who falls for the babysitter. Interesting read; well written! You feel so sorry for Ben, but also Rey is a God send! Sweet interactions! Give it a read if you want some light hearted, fluffy interactions. Not much for fluff, but this was really a nice read! :3

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Stigmata By SaintHeretical

Rating: Explicit

Summary: Fifteen years after tragedy tore them apart, a priest and his sister band together to protect a homeless girl who appears to have been touched by God. Too bad his excommunicated nephew seems to have other plans for her.

A Reylo slow burn Modern/Religious AU.

Review: After the priest hype came out, I searched merely to humor myself. I found a few fictions that really had an interesting plot. This is one of them. Focused on Christianity and different groups within. Kylo and Leia are curious about this young girl who turns out to be homeless and has a curious development. She has formed the stigmata. This really is different than anything I have experienced. I usually don’t go for stuff like this, but there is enough angst and romance to fill my needs. LOVE it!

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World In My Eyes By Sasstasticmad

Rated: Explicit

Summary: "The bond should be dead," Rey says through gritted teeth. "Just like you.”

"The bond is only this strong because of you," Kylo Ren tells her. "You're the one who touched me. You took my hand and let me hold yours. This is your fault, not mine. (A post-TLJ force bond fic)

Review: This is after TLJ. I was obsessed for a while, which I am sure comes to no shock to anyone! Everyone was wrapped up in the force bond, which sasstasticmad delivers VERY well! There is so much continued tension between Rey and Kylo. It is quite interesting to see these two continue their interaction from opposite groups. The Resistance Vs First Order. (incomplete)

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Wolves By @albastargazer

Rated: Explicit

Summary: Rey Kenobi is a human beta until one fatal night and everything changes. With the existence of werewolves turning her world upside down, she is left with only her boss, Ben Solo, to help. Little did she know he is an Alpha wolf and the next leader of his pack, intent on claiming his rare omega.

Review: A/O/B dynamic. This story really is amazing. I have always had a soft spot for werewolves and I haven’t really had the pleasure of finding one that really stuck yet, of course, that was until I stumbled upon this little number. The dynamic between Ben and Rey is quite interesting. A horrible event leads Rey down an interesting path. Ben takes charge and attempts to help Rey. Interesting revelations emerge, however. (incomplete)

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Hatchling By g_girl143 @gwendy85

Rated: Teen

Summary: Rey's leads a predictable life as a general labourer at Niima Junkyard until an unexpected visit from the daughter she doesn't even know exists turns her world into a tailspin.

Review: This is simply the sweetest story. I binged it in one sitting. So sad that it doesn’t update as frequently, but when I do get an e-mail I am jumping for joy! This author really is talented. Love the way this dynamic is set up. There are so many intriguing questions-- you are left wanting more. So bitter sweet it isn’t complete! It really is something I haven’t seen done before. Really hope that it is completed someday! So much potential! I cannot wait to see what becomes of this new found family knit that develops on a whim, no thanks for Rey’s surprise daughter! ;)

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Kismet by @ladylionhart

Rated: Mature

Summary: Sometimes, what seems like a simple mistake is truly the first step of a fateful journey.

- Or the one where a single text message sent to the wrong number completely changes the lives of two people and those around them.

Review: Easily one of my all time favs! This is such an amazingly written, intriguing AU. It really begins like none other via text. Both parties, shockingly, continue their witty bouts of conversation until they both begin to develop feelings for one another without actually seeing one another. When they finally begin to interact on a level far from platonic, it heats up fast and you are left needing more! LOVE!

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Summer Heat By @isharan

Rating: Explicit

Summary: A lonely young woman arrives at the cottage she inherited from her grandfather on a remote lake in northern Ontario, to find her neighbor is a rare Alpha, a relic of the old days when humans were ruled by their designation. Across a long hot summer, they connect over their shared history, and she finds that the past may not be as far away as she assumed.

Review: ::Bats lashes:: What can I say about this one? Well, I am slowly dying because man is this a slow burn! This is an A/O/B dynamic, but it is so well written that it isn’t just a heat and commence screwing each other’s brains out. No, this really has amazing storyline that has you asking questions or attempting to figure out the author’s train of thought. Gosh, there are so many good things to say about this fic! Ben is absolutely a dream in this fiction too. I cannot even begin to describe because I just wouldn’t do it justice. This fiction killed me in a good way! (Incomplete)

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Serotonin and Dopamine By Pontmercy44

Rating: Explicit

Summary: He could lie and say it was because he was gentleman, but that wasn’t quite true. “I – well, I want to take advantage of you. But I know better.”

Rey looked at him for a long moment, and Ben thought she might slap him. She didn’t. She started to laugh, shaking her head as if she couldn’t quite believe it. Finally, she said, smiling, “Goodnight, Ben.”

Ben turned and walked slowly back to his car. He heard her door creak open, but he didn’t hear it slam shut. It felt as if he was walking away from his chance, from his chance to have something good and uncomplicated and nice.

Ben turned around, and went back to the door. Rey waited for him, biting her lip. He took off his stocking cap and held it in his hands in front of himself. His ears were cold without his hat, but he was in the posture of remorse and penance. "I'm sorry. I'm an ass. Can I kiss you again?"

Review: This fiction was different and reeled me in because Ben was different. In this fiction he has mental disorder that makes it difficult to form relationships. Though, Rey takes to him and Ben to her in the sweetest of ways! I really liked the development in this story. The author delivers fluffy feels too. I am not usually one that enjoys a ton of fluff, but they did right by it! (Complete)

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An empire to be won By Bitterbones @dvrksister

Rating: Explicit

Summary: The grin of satisfaction that split Rey’s face was utterly demented. “In three days time I will be wed to her son.” Rose blanched at the word son, apparently having been unaware of the familial relationship between her beloved general and the scourge of the galaxy.

Rey chuckled and continued, “It will be televised across the galaxy, and I’m certain that she will be watching; supportive mother that she is. Tell her to look on her son’s face, and see that he is gone. Tell her that the mark she sees there is my own, that it is an engagement gift from myself. And tell her that where she failed to save Ben Solo, I will raise Kylo Ren.”

[In which Kylo and Rey are betrothed as children and separated for their respective darkside trainings. Their reintroduction as adults is explosive, to say the least.]

Review: Cold Showers. I swear, these two, from the beginning, have so much sexual chemistry I had to fan myself when reading. Holy shit, this was tense. I LOVE her Kylo. This is an arranged marriage fiction, but even so there is so much going on in the world she so wonderfully weaved as well as the character interactions. You will be flying through each chapter begging for more! (Incomplete)

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Eunoia By MalevolantReverie @malevolent-reverie @meth-lab-shenanigans

Rate: Explicit

Summary: Rey Kenobi, an underachieving college student becomes tangled in a twisted web with her astronomy professor, Kylo Ren, who is hiding a dark secret. (Unfinished)

Review: Violent, dark, heart wrenching, Eunoia is the cream of the crop for dark fictions. I am a huge horror fan, so naturally I was curious to read something dark and dreary in regards to Reylo. The author doesn’t hope back, which I am quite pleased about. She really builds her word and characters fantastically. The dark character of Kylo really stays completely vile. Please only read if you can hand reading explicit content. Contains non-con!

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The Quietest Evening By MalevolantReverie @malevolent-reverie @meth-lab-shenanigans

Rated: Mature

Summary: Every so often, a girl disappears. No one knows where they go or why they’re taken, but they're never seen alive again. Rey, the police chief’s daughter, is next.

Review: This story is one of my favorites from MR. This one wasn’t nearly as graphic as the others she has written, but I really like the storyline she has built here. It was dark, contained secrets and revelations that had my jaw dropping. I really was at the edge of my seat for this one. It really got my heart pumping! If you are looking for a dark, angsty thriller this is the story for you. Please be aware there are triggers and non-con! (Completed)

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Nobody Knows By hernamewasalice @hernamewasalicewriter

Rated: Explicit

Summary: Nobody knows that the loving wife of Ben Solo was kidnapped as a teenager. Nobody knows. Not their family or closest friends. Not even their twelve year old son, Benny.

Review: Amazing story! This is another extremely dark fic, but more so the past that is associated with Rey and Kylo. Kylo has so many secrets, so does Rey. They look like the perfect couple, but really they have a more sinister start. There are parts that are tender and sweet, but the reality and hard truth of it all is quite painful. Author has an extremely fantastic beginning where she pulls you in. It is seen through the eyes of their son! So good! Recommend! Please be warned, however, there is non-con and violence! (Unfinished)

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[bentchcreates]

Beyond Light and Darkness (Part 1)

This is going to be a two-part blog feature because I want to write about the book as a reviewer, as well as the experiences I had as one of the authors of this wonderful work. Also, fair warning that this is gonna be a long-ass post because I am on a roll. Haha.

Before BLaD

Let’s start from the very beginning, just a brief intro, for context. LOL.

Kath Bute (https://www.wattpad.com/user/kathbute) is actually a group of writers on Wattpad that bonded over the community forums a few years ago, and decided to collaborate and release an anthology of stories we wanted to read.

I was actually the last Kabute to join the first anthology, Beyond Fate and the Stars. I don’t know much about the group before I joined; except that they were working on an anthology based on the 12 Chinese Zodiac (with an assigned emotion) and they were short of one writer to do the Ox. I was very new to Wattpad then and basically just happened to be active in a forum for Filipino Writers, so they asked if I wanted to contribute. And I did. It was one of the first few times people actually asked me to write a new story.

After a few weeks I came up with Seek the Ox, Find Happiness (https://www.wattpad.com/183607408-beyond-fate-and-the-stars-self-published-seek-the) and in the summer of 2016 we had a book! My very first printed book! It wasn’t until MIBF that year that I got to meet my Kabute friends in person for the first time but it didn’t feel weird at all, kindred spirits and all that. (@AlaraChan & @lunatrix)(http://bentchcreates.tumblr.com/post/151133454706/bentch-at-the-37th-manila-international-book-fair )

As originally planned, printing BFatS was solely for us to have a physical book with our names and stories on it, a dry run. And while we might’ve discussed eventually making it available for selling, logistics and other business matters were tougher to figure out once the book is done. (We’re still trying to figure out if this is possible. Hehe.) But we wanted to do it again, and we wanted to do more this time, so we decided to take another shot at a second anthology, with selling the book as part of the plan from the very beginning.

The Stories

We tried our hand at a little bit of indie publishing. We had reviews that helped us with things to improve. We learned a lot from the first take and we had a clearer vision on what we wanted to become of this. The instructions this time was almost similar to the previous one: write whatever genre you want but there will be assigned prompts to follow and a sub theme of light or darkness. Even the interpretation of these themes was free for the author to make his/her own. 

I got “A broken wristwatch, peppermints and a hug that goes too far” and in the ‘light’ subtheme. I had finished an NA romance manuscript by then and I got off easy. Others who got perky prompts and then a ‘dark’ subtheme were a little more challenged! Hah!  

*Artwork by Trix Luna. My story prompts are here. ;)*

It was quite fun to write. And in the weeks that we were planning this second anthology, my inbox were constantly filled with book ideas; as well as funny messages (and abs!) from friends that were miles away from me. We talked about the book, and then about our personal writing projects, and cheered on each other when the writing gets tough. The friendships I’ve made with this book has got to be the best payoff in this journey.

Anyway, we also decided to open the proverbial doors for two more stories – two new bloods so to speak – so in June 2016, we called for short story submissions for the anthology. Four official entries were screened in anonymity (there were 5 stories, but we later found out @RK Sanchez should’ve already been part of Book 1 so she got in) and it was what I would say was the most challenging part of this. As an old Kabute (heh) and judge, I had a hard time choosing only two over four wonderfully written stories. In the end, I had to choose those who have showed the prompts more creatively and whose stories have captured our hearts. We welcomed @Nigel Libranages and @Raine RIllera into the fold. :P

With the stories and authors completed, we set out to editing, and because we didn’t have a professional editor, nor the funds to actually hire one, we did it ourselves. Around 14 pairs of eyes went through all the stories and different people who wrote different genres offered advice and suggestions for the improvement of our stories. It was team-effort every step of the way.

*My review copy with all the original members’ stories after I was done with my first run through. heehee.*

Development Hell

Development hell or development limbo is media industry jargon for a project that remains in development (often moving between different crews, scripts, or studios) without progressing to completion. 

– Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Development_hell)

We were 14 authors whose writing were more passion projects than actual dayjobs so when each of us got a little busy in the real world, the book got lightly shoved in the backburners. Some authors weren’t able to finish their works and to this day, we’re still waiting for them to release them (*wink wink, fellow kabutes!*) Most of us had a lot on our plates, I for one had to uproot and move back in to my parent’s house, and completing a book seemed like a huge task to strike off our To Do list.

I also had fears. Being a writer who could sell his books had been a big dream of mine and when felt like I was so close to grasping it, I feared it wouldn’t be as amazing as I hyped it up to be. I had to process it for a while, to learn more things about the industry, and ultimately, about myself, before I could fully commit to taking the plunge. And when I felt I was almost ready, I did it. I can only speak for myself but knowing I wasn’t doing this on my own, that I had friends with me, achieving our shared goals together, helped quell those fears. I’m still afraid, I have to say, but it’s more manageable now that I’ve got all these lovely people behind me, as I to them.

It took a few more weeks before we got our fire back (some slots had to be refilled with new stories, we had to hold a small face to face meeting to iron out everything) and when we got to see the artworks for the cover and the genre divisions, the excitement was renewed. I almost missed the cover reveal but when we all saw it, we knew that beauty had to be shared to the world.

*BLaD F2F meeting with Bebe Kabute Irina Jean and the secret agents again! heehee!*

*BLaD Cover reveal (art by @RK Sanchez) and this pre-order promo graphic is by @Johanna Lee

At this point, Summer Feels had been launched and I got to be part of the promo team on social media so what I learned from that I pitched in. In no time, we had a solid contract, a promo schedule, a pre-order form, a slot at #FilipinoBookFriday; and a launch date. @Lunatrix and @AlaraChan were sending us updates on what the book would look like, printing schedules and all. I was so excited I have picked clothes to wear on the launch weeks before. Haha!

*#FilipinoBookFriday promo graphic. Hosted by me and @Johanna Lee 

BLaD Book Launch

What we called the book launch was just going to be a small author get together, a meet-up to see each other, collect our books and have a small meal together. I thought about working on an invitation, a graphic I could print out and stick to my journal later, when I found out Trix already made a Programme (so HYPED, I’m telling you!) and we had activities to really set off our baby to a great start.

On November 30th 2017, we met at the CBTL in Trinoma where we rearranged tables on one side of the café as if we got a reservation (We didn’t. They don’t so reservations. Or maybe not for an event as small as ours. hah). We chose that venue because it was sort of a midpoint for where the authors were coming from; Baguio was the farthest point from the North and Laguna in the South (Okay, if we count Australia as the farthest point in the South, then we’re screwed because the midpoint is probably in the middle of an ocean. XD).

We started with a short Kath Bute intro and welcome remarks from Ate Kabute; and then all authors got to introduce ourselves (we introverts get all weird introducing ourselves to people we’ve been talking to for months online!). We got gifts and goodie bags from our artist Kabutes; I even got to do an unrehearsed live-reading of The Time Banker! And then we got to the Q and A part where we got to know more about everyone else.

We also got to sign a ton of the first batch of the print books. Seeing the book for the first time is just totally amazing (the cover is more beautiful in person) and seeing stacks of it together before they are eventually distributed is even better. I took a lot of pictures of the beautiful books and forgot to take pics of the people, haha!

It was such a fun experience, and knowing it had been possible because of this dream we all had, that we were now making into a reality, is priceless. I got to write, I got new friends and now I got a new book! There was hardwork, and I know the others worked harder than I did, but we can all say it is worth it.

What’s Next?

I don’t know how to end this blog. Haha. I rambled on and on about recent history and yada, yada, blah, blah, blah, but now I don’t know what my parting message will be. Classic Bentch! Haha!

I guess I’ll leave you with a link to order our book because now I know you’re itching to get your hands on it: http://bit.ly/BLADBatch2 (Batch 2 is set for printing in January, so delivery dates might be late January-early February)

We’re processing an e-book version for international release so watch out! (Naks, ako yung in-charge dito, so good luck to me. Wahaha) And we’ve discussed the initial phases for Book 3! No further announcements, thank you! Haha!

I think it’s also better to end with a thank you to everyone who has made this possible.

My fellow BLaD authors, thank you for sharing your talents – writing and editing AND artistic skills – especially to Mama and Ate Kabute who started all of this and pushed us to bring our collective best to the world. To my other author friends, who showed support by cheering on us and buying our books!

And to God, because this is your design. Thank you.

 *next part will be my review of BLaD as a reader. It will be biased because, you know, I wrote the preface (not-so-humble-brag!) and is currently in charge of promotions, but it’s a GREAT anthology, 500%!  

[echoslammin]

Trick or Treat 2017 Exchange Letter

Dear Trick or Treater,

Echoslammin here. This is my first time participating in an AO3 exchange, and I am so very excited!

Please do not feel overly pressured by my prompts. They are merely suggestions based on ideas that came into my head on the spur of the moment. Also, if you feel less than lukewarm towards any of my pairing preferences, please feel free to do something more general. I adore all of these games, and if you're a mutual fan, I'm sure whatever you come up with will be great!

I'm not at all picky as to receiving fic vs art or tricks vs treats. My prompts are open to interpretation for whichever category you prefer.

Super Dangan Ronpa 2 | Liar! Uncover the Truth & Office Deception | Overwatch

DNW: Character bashing, issue fic, Sonia or Gundam being shipped with characters other than each other, Mercy shipped with anyone except Pharah, futa, excessive mention of body fluids and odor in smut

General likes: Humor based on character foibles, crossovers between any of the requested fandoms, video game references of all sorts (memes, poking fun at quirky mechanics, etc.), characters enjoying food together, smut - both explicit or implied

Kinks: Mutual admiration, blushing, couples undressing each other, D/S with praise kink, oral sex, one half of a pairing getting brainwashed/possessed and their partner trying to get through to them with potential dubcon (I think this works particularly well with Dangan Ronpa Despair personas or Devil!Mercy/Possessed!Pharah), I also really love just plain vanilla smut

My tastes generally lean towards fluff and romance, but don't be shy if you'd rather deal with darker themes. I don't consider myself particularly squeamish. All I ask is that you steer clear of my DNWs.

Super Dangan Ronpa 2: Sonia Nevermind, Gundam Tanaka, Ibuki Mioda, Twogami, Chiaki Nanami

As a foolish fool who never got around to playing Dangan Ronpa until 2017, I have to say that I greatly regret having missed out on all the fandom activity over the last several years. That said, I am quite hyped for the upcoming release of Killing Harmony and getting emotionally destroyed all over again.

I am most invested in the SDR2 characters and would love to see your take on them! The two that particularly stole my heart are Sonia and Gundam, and I do ship them. Intensely.  I feel that their relationship has spectacular potential for development in both AU and canon settings, and would love to see them get the spotlight.

I also adore Chiaki as an individual and find Heir Guitar to be truly delightful.

I am most familiar with the DR 1&2 game canon, but feel free to incorporate other source materials like the DR3 anime, Ultra Despair Girls, or Danga Ronpa Zero.

Prompts:

I would love to know what people think Gundam was talking about re: a trip for two to an amusement park in Hell. I know the punchline of that joke was about Sonia's not-so-virgin blood, but seriously, what was the plan?? Alternatively, dates featuring any Halloween-themed setting would be nice

Couples cooking or dining together with mention of how Gundam loves pumpkin or Twogami's discerning taste in fast food

Traditional autumn festivities in Novoselic with your gracious hostess Princess Sonia Nevermind (IIRC her birthday is on Oct. 13th)

Crossover with your favorite horror game. Starring Chiaki, of course

Liar! Uncover the Truth & Office Deception: MCs, Kazumi Kagami, May Akutsu, Reina Miyata 

As soon as I saw this otoge listed in the tagset, I know this exchange was an opportunity I couldn't afford to miss. Since downloading this app on a whim a few months ago, it has become a borderline obsession of mine. In my opinion, the colorful cast and snappy dialogue have made it worth subjecting myself to an inordinate amount of Flirt Time. I adore the MCs, both the feisty takoyaki-obsessed wedding planner and her Office! counterpart the beleaguered cat-loving workaholic. Anything that develops their relationship (romantic or otherwise) with any of the characters listed above would be fantastic.

I can't be the only one who felt that the ending of Office Deception was unsatisfying on a number of levels. Would love to see your headcanon as to how things could have gone differently.  

If writing fic, one thing I prefer is that MC remains nameless. Feel free to just stick with "she/her, they/their, the wedding planner/the leader of D-Team" throughout the narrative. No need for "___"s or a filler name.

Prompts:

Anything referencing Kazumi's career as a mystery writer

Uncover the Truth MC gets assigned to plan a Halloween or occult-themed wedding and the typical shenanigans ensue, complete with an ~Investigation Portion~

In true otoge fashion, Liar! has its share of grisly Bad Endings. It would be fun to see these explored these or see how you would have written/drawn them instead. I have to say, I would have preferred more of them to turn out like Office Deception's 6th Liar Bad Ending (if you know what I mean...) 

Overwatch: Mercy

Angela Ziegler is a character that I simply adore. I love how she portrays the classic Kind Healer archetype while still having her own unique quirks and the occasional line of snark. Rocket Angel is my Overwatch OTP, but since Pharah is not on the nom list, I certainly won't push the issue.

Prompts:

I do like slice-of-life stories and general doctor-patient interactions with the rest of the cast.

I am naturally a big fan of Devil/Witch Mercy, whether it's shown in a "cute costume" or "Mercy is an actual devil/soul-stealing witch" way 

I'm having trouble coming up with anything besides very general prompts for OW, but please know I would be happy with virtually anything Mercy-centric.

If any clarification is needed, my askbox is always open and available to anon messages.

Many thanks to you, and best wishes this fall!

[kbrown78]

Monthly Wrap Up: February

For being the shortest month of the year, I'm pleased that I was able to finish as many books as I did. I read a total of 9 books this month, however the vast majority of them were rereads, which is okay because I want to get through as many rereads as I can as quickly as possible. At some point during this month I started getting worried, because February is a good month for reading themed books (like romance, black history, and fairies)but eventually I settled on the fact that it was okay if I didn't read these books, mainly because I wanted to deal with tackling the TBR pile I have at home and I could read those books any time of the year. I don't go out of my way to read books that prominently feature romance, so why should I stress myself out over making an exception. I don't own any books with fairies in them that I haven't read, and there's only 2 that I'm interested and my library didn't have them. I could have read The Hate U Give and I've been wanting to read that one for awhile but the reason I keep putting it off is I'm scared that I'll be disappointed by it because of all the hype surrounding it (like I was for Children of Blood and Bone). I would like to try reading more books that fit the theme or topic or general atmosphere of the month, and I do have a few I plan to read on specific months (especially October) but for now I think it's okay for me to not stress myself to do something when I have other tasks that are a much higher priority (seriously I need to get through my reread TBR pile and push out more reviews). Anyway, I did make good progress through the big reading assignments. As I already stated, most of the books were rereads, but I was also able to tackle the half the books at the top of my TBR and continued to make progress in the reading challenges I'm doing (4 PopSugar prompts and 1 book that a friend of mine picked for me). This month had a pretty decent range of books, in genre, series, and ratings. There was 1 science fiction, 3 dystopian, 1 contemporary, and 4 fantasy (one of them being magical realism which is a fantasy genre I want to read more of). So while this month was leaning more toward fantasy, there was still a decent mix. Fortunately there were no 1 star books, but I did have a couple 2 star book and a lot of 3 star books, but I also had my first 5 star book of the year, which needless to say, I loved. I completed 1 series, started 3, and read 2 stand alones. All in all February was a good reading month, despite the lack of February themed books.  

Feed by Mira Grant: I initially picked this book up for several reasons. It's written by Mira Grant, which is a pen name for Seanan McGuire, and it's an unofficial goal of mine to read all of her books. It's science fiction, and I want to read more of that genre this year. This was supposed to feature zombies, and there wasn't going to be any romance. I had high hopes for this book, just based on my opinion of McGuire's books I read last year. Unfortunately I struggled with this book from the very first chapter.  My biggest issue was that I keep going into every zombie or post apocalyptic wanting it to be about human's struggling to survive but ultimately over coming the challenges. Basically a better version of the Walking Dead. Then when I read this novel, I'm extremely disappointed to find that zombies aren't only a minor part of society, they hardly come off as a threat during the entire thing. Also the fact that a post zombie apocalypse world (which is somehow more advance than our current society) was used as the setting for mystery surrounding the coverage of a presidential election didn't mesh very well. Seriously having an urban fantasy setting would have worked much better with this stories. I discussed in my monthly wrap up review of An Alchemy of Masques and Mirrors that I really disliked when I can easily guess the mastermind behind all the chaos before the characters do, and that applies to this novel. As a suspenseful mystery, this just didn't work at all. I also wasn't attached to the characters, they felt like archetypes that weren't really expanded on. By the end of this novel I was ready for things to be over with and fortunately this can be a self contained standalone, so I don't plan on continuing the series. I'll still give McGuire's other series a try, but this one I found to be a let down. Feed received 2 out 5 stars.  

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins: So The Hunger Games series was at the top of my list for book's on my TBR. Last year, since my sister was reading The Hunger Games for school, I thought it would be good to go reread it and tag it so I can do a full review on it. I hadn't read the books since high school, but I've seen the movies more recently (since they're shown all the time on TV). I wanted to see if this first in particular is as good as I remember it and how I think it compares to the movies, and I gotta say, I am so glad I read this book. I'm sorry but with the first movie at least, it doesn't even compare to the books. For those that haven't read the series or watched the movies, The Hunger Games is a dystopian series set in a futuristic North America where the country is divided into 12 districts and a capitol, and every year the districts must give one boy and girl to compete in a televised competition, killing each other off until 1 is left. Katniss Everdean from District 12 volunteers in place of her sister and things take off from there. It's a fast paced, action driven book, and while Katniss isn't always a likable protagonist, she's very human. I was surprised by how invested I got in the romance too, because romance isn't my thing, yet I found Katniss and Peeta's dynamic to be compelling. There's also so much more depth to this book then the movie gives it credit for. It takes a stab at political commentary, reality shows, and fashion crazes very well, which is what I think will really make it a modern classic. Much like Harry Potter and Twilight it was a trend setter, especially for YA novels, and while many have tried to replicate it, none have succeeded. I'll absolutely do a full review of this book once I'm done with the entire series. The Hunger Games received 5 out 5 stars and works for the PopSugar prompt “book with 1 million ratings on Goodreads.”  

Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira: I come away from this book not knowing exactly where I stand with it. It's a sad story that's does convey a message of hope and recovery, but I don't love it and I don't find myself attached to it. I think I like the writing itself and what the story tries to convey better than the story itself. Starting out I really hated the story. Laurel, the protagonist, was devoid of personality and lived to basically be a clone of her recently deceased sister. I didn't like the side characters, because they're supposed to be the cool kids but don't feel developed much outside of their toxic elements.  There was some tropes used that made the story and characters feel a bit pretentious (which was really annoying). I also really disliked the romance, between Sky and Laurel (although I had issues with Hannah and Natalie's too) because Sky is portrayed as this brooding bad boy who is so perfect. While he isn't a jerk (which is good), he is pretty flawed and at the start of the book Laurel doesn't come off as ready for a romance. Yet she idealizes him and which is something she clearly does with her older sister May. I still think there shouldn't have been a romance, but I do think things improved overall by the end of the book. Mostly that Laurel came to terms with her trauma, realized that people (even the ones you love) are flawed and dealing with their own issues, and communication is an important part of healing. Laurel started opening up to her parents more and became an active part of her group of friends. I know this book is heavily influenced by The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and it shows both in the writing format (written as letters to deceased celebrities) but also in the narrative. It's good to read a book that deals with serious issues yet still manages to give a wholesome and realistic conclusion (something I rarely see in contemporary fiction, and something that I don't think Perks of Being a Wallflower did which is why I prefer this one). Speaking of dealing with serious issues, this was a heavy book for me. For the majority of this book, I was very uncomfortable by the content, which could be the desired reaction, but there were several scenes that rubbed me the wrong way. The first time Natalie and Hannah are caught kissing by Laurel, one of them forces a kiss on her to make everything seem normal. There's an attempted date rape scene later in the book. There's physical abuse, teenage girls dating adult men, and pedophilia. Again it's a heavy book, and if you are at all triggered by that, or struggled with Perks of Being a Wallflower, I would put this book on hold. I wish that there were more realistic books out there for teenagers that don't have the main plot either revolving around a romance or recovering from rape. There's a lot more to life than just that and there are other hardships out there that don't involve sexual abuse. Writing this had made me realize just how mixed my feelings are on this book, which actually makes it a great book for discussion. I may do a full review of this book just so I can have a more in depth discussion on all my thoughts and feelings on this book, but I can't guarantee it and I don't think it will come any time soon (since I am way behind on my book reviews). That being said I can't give it a high rating based solely on it's writing and messages it conveys because I think there are several points where the execution was weak. Love Letters to the Dead received 3.5 out 5 stars and was my pick for the PopSugar prompts “book with 'love' in the title” and “a book with unusual chapter headings.”

Age of Myth by Michael J. Sullivan: I bought this book at the same I got Feed, and considering the fact that I was disappointed by Feed I was hoping that this book would be an improvement. While this was better, I still found it not meeting my prior expectations. It's a traditional epic fantasy that has a few twists to them, but there are also several generic elements. For the first third the book didn't progress in the way I expected too, which made me want to continue and see where things go. Then the story started to progress in a way I find incredibly frustrating, which is that characters do reckless and stupid things and must then deal with the consequences of that. The plot is moving forward, but in a positive way. The character where this is most applicable is Persephone. I wanted to like her, and I got glimpses of her that I did really like, which made the rest of her narrative all the more frustrating. She's incredibly naive (despite the evidence of her being a wise ruler) believing people aren't capable of bad deeds (again despite blatant evidence otherwise), and while she's the one who comes up with the plans, she never wants to be the one to implement them. Suri and Arion were both interesting but the story didn't focus enough on them for me to feel strongly about them. Raithe was quickly pushed to the side, serving little purpose to the narrative other than being the “God Killer,” which I was actually a little surprised by since I'm so used to seeing this kind of story be led by males. The friendships in this book are amazing and were without a doubt my favorite part of it. The story itself is very straight forward and surprisingly simple, but there bits that lay the ground work for a series long conflict, especially what's revealed in the last two pages. However, two pages of amazing epilogue isn't enough to compensate for the rest of the story. Age of Myth received 3.5 out 5 stars.  

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins: My memories of this book are that it was not as good as The Hunger Games and upon rereading I definitely still hold that opinion. There are some things that I remember having the same feelings about and there are some new developments. The word that, both in the past and currently, I would use to describe this book is oddly, boring. For a high octane story with mounting rebellions and a Battle Royale style game would be a suspenseful quick read, but it really wasn't. I think this is due to Katniss' passive nature in this book, and the fact that the games aren't going until somewhere between the last half and third of the book. The other thing that remained the same was that I am totally Team Peeta. When first reading this series I wanted Katniss to end up with Peeta, but I couldn't tell you why. Then rereading The Hunger Games, I was swept away by Katniss and Peeta's romance, and this book just solidified why I approve of Peeta over Gale. What really impressed me about the previous book was how much discussion there was in that book that can be applied to our current society. This book shifts to focus more on the rebellion, and it's not one of the better written ones because everything is so simplistic and Katniss is merely an observer with little information and no desire to be apart of it, even though that's the direction she's going to have to take. Also in the previous Katniss felt like a more complex character. Granted she didn't have a ton of depth but she is least felt like more than someone that existed to move the narrative forward. I knew going into this book it was probably going to be my least favorite of the series and I do think it struggled to live up to the narrative that the previous book set up. I wouldn't say it's a bad book though, just would have liked a little more action and a little more depth. Catching Fire received 3 out 5 stars from me.  

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins: Wow, this was definitely a series that went out with a bang. I still don't think Mockingjay is quite as good as The Hunger Games but it has a much better narrative than Catching Fire, at least in the later half. First and foremost, this is a really depressing book. Like there were multiple times I was on the verge of crying, with Peeta and Katniss' relationship, all of Katniss' trauma and all the character deaths. It is so sad. But there's a lot about this story that I appreciate now that I didn't when I first read this book. War is devastating and costly, and while I think the over all rebellion itself could have been more nuanced, this book did show that it's easy for a dictatorship to rise from the ashes of the previous one. I still don't really like Katniss, but man, is it hard to not at least be sympathetic to her with all the crap that she has been through and all the damage her body has received. This is a series where you don't want to get to attached to the side characters because anyone can die, but most of them I still find to be a bit more likable than Katniss (albeit a little underdeveloped). I loved, absolutely loved Peeta and Katniss' romance and even when first reading this book I was moved by how their relationship turned out. The story itself within this book is a bit boring at first, again because Katniss is being kept in a very confined, minimal role, but also because of her trauma leaves her in a hazy state. Once she becomes more active the story gets better, but things really take off when she goes on the mission in the Capitol. It's a quick scene but I remember getting very anxious when watching that part in the movies. The ending is a bit rushed because things seem to just happen quickly, but from a literary stand point it's a good tragic ending. Despite the rushed ending, it has a hopeful feel to it, as the characters slowly recover from the horrors they've endured and continue to honor the memory of those that have passed. The Hunger Games is not a series without it's faults, but it's a series that I highly commend it for what it is and enjoyed it on a personal level. Mockingjay received 4 out 5 stars from me.    

The Devourers by Indra Daas: Going into this book, I didn't know much about it outside of the synopsis and a few trigger warnings. One of my best friends picked this book for me as part of a monthly “Pick It For Me” challenge in one of my Goodreads group, and I had basically no expectations for this book. After finishing it, I enjoyed it, I'm glad I read it, but I don't think it's a book that had a significant impact on me and isn't one I'm going to think about often. That is due to mostly the writing style itself. The story is a magical realism that is written in a way that feels similar to stream of conscious, thus making it hard to tell what is truth versus speculation and even hard to say whose view point it is and even when the story is occurring. Things just exist as they are, and while this is good for evoking emotions it doesn't produce something that lingers (at least for me). So what the story is essentially about is a history professor that is approached by a man who claims to be half were wolf and commissions him to transcribe two scrolls. I was a little shaken in the beginning, both by the writing style and the mix of an Indian setting with Norse mythology. So it was a rocky start, but once I got used to it I finally found myself enjoying the story, up until the end when things get kind of weird and a little vague. My favorite part of the book was definitely the scroll's, mainly the woman's, because those were the sections that best discussed the themes of humanity, history, love, and family, which is what the book is essentially about. I will say that the trigger warnings for rape and gore are relevant because both are major parts of the story and the storytelling itself, so one should be aware of that before going into this book. As more time passes from when I finished this book, I find myself remembering less and less. It's a decent, atmospheric story but I find myself wishing it had been either a little shorter or longer, so that the story could really stick with me. The Devourer's received 4 out 5 stars and was my pick for the PopSugar prompt “book by an author from Africa, Asia, or South America” (the author is from Kolkata, India, where the contemporary part of the book is set).  

The Naming by Allison Croggon: So this series, the Books of Pellinor, and the Inheritance Cycle were the epic fantasy series that I grew up on. The best way to sum up this series, and especially the first book, is Lord of Rings but with a female lead. While that may make it sound awesome, I actually struggled with this book, which is kind of surprising considering how much I loved it as a kid. There was a lot of filler in this book. It's all basically one long journey with a few meetings and attacks along the way. This results in the books pacing just dragging, to the point where I started skimming because I have 3 more books to get through, and I want to get through this series as soon as possible. Another thing I had an issue with, and this might be a surprise, but I didn't like how similar this was to Lord of the Rings (mixed with the Chosen One trope done poorly). I'm not going to go into everything here but there were several points throughout the book where I could pin point the exact similarities between this book and at least the Fellowship of the Ring. I like Lord of the Rings, but when I read a story where the only original elements are poorly done tropes, it's more than a little frustrating. To Croggon's credit, she did try to create a more egalitarian society and put a female lead in a normally male narrative, which I do appreciate. This book also had no romance which was refreshing, although the one romantic scene in this book left me rather uncomfortable. It was disappointing for a beloved book from my early teen years to fall from grace, and while I haven't even gotten to what had been my least favorite book in the series, there's still hope that the series improves. The Naming received 2.5 out 5 stars and is my pick for the PopSugar prompt “a book you think should be turned into a movie” because I think if put in the right hands, this book can be translated onto a good movie.    

The Riddle by Alison Croggon: I'm a little surprised I ended up liking this a bit better than The Naming, but I think that's due to the fact that this book was a bit more nuanced. It's still similar in format to the previous book, namely being about a journey to defeat a returning evil with a lot of filler, but there's more major plot points, and some of those have the protagonist Maerad staying in one location for awhile. The reason I like this is because those points take the time to develop either the characters or the nature of the conflict itself. I liked the beginning, with Maerad having a normal life in Busk, and the last third, when she is imprisoned by the Winter King. There is also a turning point in the middle, where Cadavan (Maerad's mentor) questions her morality (although there was no precedence for that and I think Cadavan overreacted in that instance). I will also say that Croggon does put a lot of effort into her world building. It happens a lot in fantasy where authors want to create a Middle Earth type of setting, but don't put forth the effort to have the same depth that Tolkein did. Croggon does not do that, which I like, but I feel like I only get to see glimpses (due to the constantly moving narrative). Even at the end of this book I still don't really like Maerad as a character. She isn't as whiny or annoying as she was at the beginning of the first book, but I still really dislike her blatantly being the “Chosen One” and being an OP Special Snowflake. She also comes off as not having a much of personality. There's her being a musician, the Chosen One, and this amazingly powerful Bard, and that's really all there is to her. I'm glad that this book improved from the first one, although not by much, which makes me think that this series is ultimately going to be a let down for me. Shame. The Riddle received 3 out 5 stars.

Thank You Everyone

Keep Calm and Keep Reading

[mercedessharonwo1]

5 Questions to Ask Customers When Creating a Word-of-Mouth Strategy (and How to Ask Them)

Every brand has a story to tell. But not every business knows how to inspire its customers to re-tell its story. 

Despite the inherent difficulty, word-of-mouth marketing is the sort of self-perpetuating machine that should be the goal of every company to engineer. Rather than overspend on traditional advertising, turn to your best and least expensive marketing asset: your customers. How do you do this? By creating talk triggers — essential elements of your brand experience that customers cannot help but share with others. When done right, you can turn your customers into an army of volunteer marketers.

Rather than overspend on traditional advertising, turn to your best and least expensive marketing asset: your customers. #TalkTriggers Click To Tweet

Not all word of mouth is created equal, though. While you should obviously avoid giving your customers gloomy gossip, it can be less clear how to create positive triggers that stand the test of time — or, even better, talk triggers that can be adapted to changing times.

As Timeless as a Compass

Amid ever-changing market dynamics, any brand differentiator is always moments from irrelevance. Much like the products or services you offer, your talk triggers require constant evolution, optimization, refinement, and user feedback. Without adjustments, even the best ideas can grow stale.

Not convinced? Consider the history of the now-ubiquitous Google Maps. When Google Maps first graced our browsers, its clear superiority to MapQuest generated plenty of attention. But that superior design quickly became unremarkably common. Before long, Google pushed things another step forward by adding real-time traffic. Again, it became the talk of the web. When that chatter subsided, Google added street-view images. Lather, rinse, repeat. Today, Google Maps is more common than a compass.

Plenty of brands fail to notice — or choose to ignore — when their buzz begins to fade, however. Hype can wane for many reasons, whether it’s because of copycat competitors, customers growing accustomed to what once felt novel, or changing societal norms. Regardless of the reason, the end result is the same: Chatter about your brand dries up as other companies stir up new conversations.

Asking the Right Questions

Creating your talk triggers isn’t something you put in your business plan and file away for a rainy day. It should be an ongoing marketing project for your business. So how do you continually generate these ideas?

First, you have to ask the right questions. As you ask yourself the following questions, consider them from the perspective of your customers. How do you think they would answer?

When I buy or use this product/service, I am…

What I don’t expect from this product is…

What I’m talking about in my life right now is…

What I think I want is…

What I actually want is…

These prompts should unearth a plethora of valuable answers, but they are by no means exhaustive. Add your own to the list to paint a more comprehensive picture. Ultimately, however, this exercise is meaningless unless you seek answers from actual customers. Once you have a list of pressing questions, use these four critical feedback channels to get insight that will ensure your talk triggers stand the test of time:

Search through surveys. While they might not be the most exciting way to engage your customers, surveys are a useful way to gather data on their desires, opinions, behaviors, and much more. Considering that preferences can change in a matter of months, this tool is especially handy for charting customer expectations over time. How quickly have we come to expect a USB port in our cars while forgetting the once-standard cigarette lighters? Surveys are a great way to get a pulse on how new market trends are changing what your customers want before those preferences are outdated.

Engage using social media. Nothing can replace face-to-face stories, but it’s hard to deny the role that social media now plays in consumer chatter. As Engagement Labs Research has shown, roughly 50 percent of these conversations now occur online. While social media dialog often represents only a small subset of your customers, you cannot afford to ignore what that group is telling you.Let the simple question behind Twitter guide you: What’s happening? Follow conversations over time to get a better view of exactly what is going on with your customers. Pay attention to what’s influencing them, what’s popular, and how willing they are to engage with brands that matter to them.

Talk to your customers. Literally. Actual conversations with your customers, whether on the phone or in person, are irreplaceable. There’s no better way to maintain as close a connection, and many successful companies recognize the importance of ongoing dialogue.The founders of acclaimed technology incubator Y Combinator went so far as to make talking to a few customers every week a core objective of the company. Follow that lead and make those conversations a priority. Bring a handful of key questions with you, and you’ll gather valuable data to share with your team.

Get in their shoes. When was the last time you actually experienced your product? Better yet, when did you last experience your competitor’s product? It’s been awhile, right?Lasting talk triggers are not created in the boardroom or the lab. They are built on the ground floor, where customers actually experience your brand. Only by stepping into that space on a regular basis can you maintain a keen eye and a sharpened awareness of any gaps in your user experience. Consider bringing along other people who have varied perspectives as you experience your brand with your own eyes. You might be surprised at the insight you can glean from seeing things through a child’s eyes, for instance. That change in perspective is priceless.

Timeless talk triggers frequently become synonymous with the companies that created them. The gigantic menu, the freshly baked cookies, or the stellar customer service — countless customers associate these differentiators with The Cheesecake Factory, DoubleTree by Hilton, and The Ritz-Carlton, respectively. These brands have endured for decades because people cannot stop gushing about them. They have persisted because their stories have been shared time and time again. What tales will your customers be sharing years from now?

This content was inspired by research and case studies contained in “Talk Triggers: The Complete Guide to Creating Customers With Word of Mouth,” the new book from Jay Baer and Daniel Lemin.

https://ift.tt/2C6cu3L

[conniecogeie]

5 Questions to Ask Customers When Creating a Word-of-Mouth Strategy (and How to Ask Them)

Every brand has a story to tell. But not every business knows how to inspire its customers to re-tell its story. 

Despite the inherent difficulty, word-of-mouth marketing is the sort of self-perpetuating machine that should be the goal of every company to engineer. Rather than overspend on traditional advertising, turn to your best and least expensive marketing asset: your customers. How do you do this? By creating talk triggers — essential elements of your brand experience that customers cannot help but share with others. When done right, you can turn your customers into an army of volunteer marketers.

Rather than overspend on traditional advertising, turn to your best and least expensive marketing asset: your customers. #TalkTriggers Click To Tweet

Not all word of mouth is created equal, though. While you should obviously avoid giving your customers gloomy gossip, it can be less clear how to create positive triggers that stand the test of time — or, even better, talk triggers that can be adapted to changing times.

As Timeless as a Compass

Amid ever-changing market dynamics, any brand differentiator is always moments from irrelevance. Much like the products or services you offer, your talk triggers require constant evolution, optimization, refinement, and user feedback. Without adjustments, even the best ideas can grow stale.

Not convinced? Consider the history of the now-ubiquitous Google Maps. When Google Maps first graced our browsers, its clear superiority to MapQuest generated plenty of attention. But that superior design quickly became unremarkably common. Before long, Google pushed things another step forward by adding real-time traffic. Again, it became the talk of the web. When that chatter subsided, Google added street-view images. Lather, rinse, repeat. Today, Google Maps is more common than a compass.

Plenty of brands fail to notice — or choose to ignore — when their buzz begins to fade, however. Hype can wane for many reasons, whether it’s because of copycat competitors, customers growing accustomed to what once felt novel, or changing societal norms. Regardless of the reason, the end result is the same: Chatter about your brand dries up as other companies stir up new conversations.

Asking the Right Questions

Creating your talk triggers isn’t something you put in your business plan and file away for a rainy day. It should be an ongoing marketing project for your business. So how do you continually generate these ideas?

First, you have to ask the right questions. As you ask yourself the following questions, consider them from the perspective of your customers. How do you think they would answer?

When I buy or use this product/service, I am…

What I don’t expect from this product is…

What I’m talking about in my life right now is…

What I think I want is…

What I actually want is…

These prompts should unearth a plethora of valuable answers, but they are by no means exhaustive. Add your own to the list to paint a more comprehensive picture. Ultimately, however, this exercise is meaningless unless you seek answers from actual customers. Once you have a list of pressing questions, use these four critical feedback channels to get insight that will ensure your talk triggers stand the test of time:

Search through surveys. While they might not be the most exciting way to engage your customers, surveys are a useful way to gather data on their desires, opinions, behaviors, and much more. Considering that preferences can change in a matter of months, this tool is especially handy for charting customer expectations over time. How quickly have we come to expect a USB port in our cars while forgetting the once-standard cigarette lighters? Surveys are a great way to get a pulse on how new market trends are changing what your customers want before those preferences are outdated.

Engage using social media. Nothing can replace face-to-face stories, but it’s hard to deny the role that social media now plays in consumer chatter. As Engagement Labs Research has shown, roughly 50 percent of these conversations now occur online. While social media dialog often represents only a small subset of your customers, you cannot afford to ignore what that group is telling you.Let the simple question behind Twitter guide you: What’s happening? Follow conversations over time to get a better view of exactly what is going on with your customers. Pay attention to what’s influencing them, what’s popular, and how willing they are to engage with brands that matter to them.

Talk to your customers. Literally. Actual conversations with your customers, whether on the phone or in person, are irreplaceable. There’s no better way to maintain as close a connection, and many successful companies recognize the importance of ongoing dialogue.The founders of acclaimed technology incubator Y Combinator went so far as to make talking to a few customers every week a core objective of the company. Follow that lead and make those conversations a priority. Bring a handful of key questions with you, and you’ll gather valuable data to share with your team.

Get in their shoes. When was the last time you actually experienced your product? Better yet, when did you last experience your competitor’s product? It’s been awhile, right?Lasting talk triggers are not created in the boardroom or the lab. They are built on the ground floor, where customers actually experience your brand. Only by stepping into that space on a regular basis can you maintain a keen eye and a sharpened awareness of any gaps in your user experience. Consider bringing along other people who have varied perspectives as you experience your brand with your own eyes. You might be surprised at the insight you can glean from seeing things through a child’s eyes, for instance. That change in perspective is priceless.

Timeless talk triggers frequently become synonymous with the companies that created them. The gigantic menu, the freshly baked cookies, or the stellar customer service — countless customers associate these differentiators with The Cheesecake Factory, DoubleTree by Hilton, and The Ritz-Carlton, respectively. These brands have endured for decades because people cannot stop gushing about them. They have persisted because their stories have been shared time and time again. What tales will your customers be sharing years from now?

This content was inspired by research and case studies contained in “Talk Triggers: The Complete Guide to Creating Customers With Word of Mouth,” the new book from Jay Baer and Daniel Lemin.

https://ift.tt/2C6cu3L

[maryhare96]

5 Questions to Ask Customers When Creating a Word-of-Mouth Strategy (and How to Ask Them)

Every brand has a story to tell. But not every business knows how to inspire its customers to re-tell its story. 

Despite the inherent difficulty, word-of-mouth marketing is the sort of self-perpetuating machine that should be the goal of every company to engineer. Rather than overspend on traditional advertising, turn to your best and least expensive marketing asset: your customers. How do you do this? By creating talk triggers — essential elements of your brand experience that customers cannot help but share with others. When done right, you can turn your customers into an army of volunteer marketers.

Rather than overspend on traditional advertising, turn to your best and least expensive marketing asset: your customers. #TalkTriggers Click To Tweet

Not all word of mouth is created equal, though. While you should obviously avoid giving your customers gloomy gossip, it can be less clear how to create positive triggers that stand the test of time — or, even better, talk triggers that can be adapted to changing times.

As Timeless as a Compass

Amid ever-changing market dynamics, any brand differentiator is always moments from irrelevance. Much like the products or services you offer, your talk triggers require constant evolution, optimization, refinement, and user feedback. Without adjustments, even the best ideas can grow stale.

Not convinced? Consider the history of the now-ubiquitous Google Maps. When Google Maps first graced our browsers, its clear superiority to MapQuest generated plenty of attention. But that superior design quickly became unremarkably common. Before long, Google pushed things another step forward by adding real-time traffic. Again, it became the talk of the web. When that chatter subsided, Google added street-view images. Lather, rinse, repeat. Today, Google Maps is more common than a compass.

Plenty of brands fail to notice — or choose to ignore — when their buzz begins to fade, however. Hype can wane for many reasons, whether it’s because of copycat competitors, customers growing accustomed to what once felt novel, or changing societal norms. Regardless of the reason, the end result is the same: Chatter about your brand dries up as other companies stir up new conversations.

Asking the Right Questions

Creating your talk triggers isn’t something you put in your business plan and file away for a rainy day. It should be an ongoing marketing project for your business. So how do you continually generate these ideas?

First, you have to ask the right questions. As you ask yourself the following questions, consider them from the perspective of your customers. How do you think they would answer?

When I buy or use this product/service, I am…

What I don’t expect from this product is…

What I’m talking about in my life right now is…

What I think I want is…

What I actually want is…

These prompts should unearth a plethora of valuable answers, but they are by no means exhaustive. Add your own to the list to paint a more comprehensive picture. Ultimately, however, this exercise is meaningless unless you seek answers from actual customers. Once you have a list of pressing questions, use these four critical feedback channels to get insight that will ensure your talk triggers stand the test of time:

Search through surveys. While they might not be the most exciting way to engage your customers, surveys are a useful way to gather data on their desires, opinions, behaviors, and much more. Considering that preferences can change in a matter of months, this tool is especially handy for charting customer expectations over time. How quickly have we come to expect a USB port in our cars while forgetting the once-standard cigarette lighters? Surveys are a great way to get a pulse on how new market trends are changing what your customers want before those preferences are outdated.

Engage using social media. Nothing can replace face-to-face stories, but it’s hard to deny the role that social media now plays in consumer chatter. As Engagement Labs Research has shown, roughly 50 percent of these conversations now occur online. While social media dialog often represents only a small subset of your customers, you cannot afford to ignore what that group is telling you.Let the simple question behind Twitter guide you: What’s happening? Follow conversations over time to get a better view of exactly what is going on with your customers. Pay attention to what’s influencing them, what’s popular, and how willing they are to engage with brands that matter to them.

Talk to your customers. Literally. Actual conversations with your customers, whether on the phone or in person, are irreplaceable. There’s no better way to maintain as close a connection, and many successful companies recognize the importance of ongoing dialogue.The founders of acclaimed technology incubator Y Combinator went so far as to make talking to a few customers every week a core objective of the company. Follow that lead and make those conversations a priority. Bring a handful of key questions with you, and you’ll gather valuable data to share with your team.

Get in their shoes. When was the last time you actually experienced your product? Better yet, when did you last experience your competitor’s product? It’s been awhile, right?Lasting talk triggers are not created in the boardroom or the lab. They are built on the ground floor, where customers actually experience your brand. Only by stepping into that space on a regular basis can you maintain a keen eye and a sharpened awareness of any gaps in your user experience. Consider bringing along other people who have varied perspectives as you experience your brand with your own eyes. You might be surprised at the insight you can glean from seeing things through a child’s eyes, for instance. That change in perspective is priceless.

Timeless talk triggers frequently become synonymous with the companies that created them. The gigantic menu, the freshly baked cookies, or the stellar customer service — countless customers associate these differentiators with The Cheesecake Factory, DoubleTree by Hilton, and The Ritz-Carlton, respectively. These brands have endured for decades because people cannot stop gushing about them. They have persisted because their stories have been shared time and time again. What tales will your customers be sharing years from now?

This content was inspired by research and case studies contained in “Talk Triggers: The Complete Guide to Creating Customers With Word of Mouth,” the new book from Jay Baer and Daniel Lemin.

https://ift.tt/2C6cu3L

[byronheeutgm]

5 Questions to Ask Customers When Creating a Word-of-Mouth Strategy (and How to Ask Them)

Every brand has a story to tell. But not every business knows how to inspire its customers to re-tell its story. 

Despite the inherent difficulty, word-of-mouth marketing is the sort of self-perpetuating machine that should be the goal of every company to engineer. Rather than overspend on traditional advertising, turn to your best and least expensive marketing asset: your customers. How do you do this? By creating talk triggers — essential elements of your brand experience that customers cannot help but share with others. When done right, you can turn your customers into an army of volunteer marketers.

Rather than overspend on traditional advertising, turn to your best and least expensive marketing asset: your customers. #TalkTriggers Click To Tweet

Not all word of mouth is created equal, though. While you should obviously avoid giving your customers gloomy gossip, it can be less clear how to create positive triggers that stand the test of time — or, even better, talk triggers that can be adapted to changing times.

As Timeless as a Compass

Amid ever-changing market dynamics, any brand differentiator is always moments from irrelevance. Much like the products or services you offer, your talk triggers require constant evolution, optimization, refinement, and user feedback. Without adjustments, even the best ideas can grow stale.

Not convinced? Consider the history of the now-ubiquitous Google Maps. When Google Maps first graced our browsers, its clear superiority to MapQuest generated plenty of attention. But that superior design quickly became unremarkably common. Before long, Google pushed things another step forward by adding real-time traffic. Again, it became the talk of the web. When that chatter subsided, Google added street-view images. Lather, rinse, repeat. Today, Google Maps is more common than a compass.

Plenty of brands fail to notice — or choose to ignore — when their buzz begins to fade, however. Hype can wane for many reasons, whether it’s because of copycat competitors, customers growing accustomed to what once felt novel, or changing societal norms. Regardless of the reason, the end result is the same: Chatter about your brand dries up as other companies stir up new conversations.

Asking the Right Questions

Creating your talk triggers isn’t something you put in your business plan and file away for a rainy day. It should be an ongoing marketing project for your business. So how do you continually generate these ideas?

First, you have to ask the right questions. As you ask yourself the following questions, consider them from the perspective of your customers. How do you think they would answer?

When I buy or use this product/service, I am…

What I don’t expect from this product is…

What I’m talking about in my life right now is…

What I think I want is…

What I actually want is…

These prompts should unearth a plethora of valuable answers, but they are by no means exhaustive. Add your own to the list to paint a more comprehensive picture. Ultimately, however, this exercise is meaningless unless you seek answers from actual customers. Once you have a list of pressing questions, use these four critical feedback channels to get insight that will ensure your talk triggers stand the test of time:

Search through surveys. While they might not be the most exciting way to engage your customers, surveys are a useful way to gather data on their desires, opinions, behaviors, and much more. Considering that preferences can change in a matter of months, this tool is especially handy for charting customer expectations over time. How quickly have we come to expect a USB port in our cars while forgetting the once-standard cigarette lighters? Surveys are a great way to get a pulse on how new market trends are changing what your customers want before those preferences are outdated.

Engage using social media. Nothing can replace face-to-face stories, but it’s hard to deny the role that social media now plays in consumer chatter. As Engagement Labs Research has shown, roughly 50 percent of these conversations now occur online. While social media dialog often represents only a small subset of your customers, you cannot afford to ignore what that group is telling you.Let the simple question behind Twitter guide you: What’s happening? Follow conversations over time to get a better view of exactly what is going on with your customers. Pay attention to what’s influencing them, what’s popular, and how willing they are to engage with brands that matter to them.

Talk to your customers. Literally. Actual conversations with your customers, whether on the phone or in person, are irreplaceable. There’s no better way to maintain as close a connection, and many successful companies recognize the importance of ongoing dialogue.The founders of acclaimed technology incubator Y Combinator went so far as to make talking to a few customers every week a core objective of the company. Follow that lead and make those conversations a priority. Bring a handful of key questions with you, and you’ll gather valuable data to share with your team.

Get in their shoes. When was the last time you actually experienced your product? Better yet, when did you last experience your competitor’s product? It’s been awhile, right?Lasting talk triggers are not created in the boardroom or the lab. They are built on the ground floor, where customers actually experience your brand. Only by stepping into that space on a regular basis can you maintain a keen eye and a sharpened awareness of any gaps in your user experience. Consider bringing along other people who have varied perspectives as you experience your brand with your own eyes. You might be surprised at the insight you can glean from seeing things through a child’s eyes, for instance. That change in perspective is priceless.

Timeless talk triggers frequently become synonymous with the companies that created them. The gigantic menu, the freshly baked cookies, or the stellar customer service — countless customers associate these differentiators with The Cheesecake Factory, DoubleTree by Hilton, and The Ritz-Carlton, respectively. These brands have endured for decades because people cannot stop gushing about them. They have persisted because their stories have been shared time and time again. What tales will your customers be sharing years from now?

This content was inspired by research and case studies contained in “Talk Triggers: The Complete Guide to Creating Customers With Word of Mouth,” the new book from Jay Baer and Daniel Lemin.

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