#i feel bad because i didn't add lucas here

[sunflower-lilac42]

✧ 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐞 || flowers au ♔

summary: violet’s first public cry for help and connor’s first time dealing with her own thoughts when it was this bad

warnings: depression, offing of themselves, stress, feelings of not being good enough, toxic thoughts, the lot

notes: so this is sad... but anyways. i didn't realize how much i've written for this au today but i am absolutely in love with connor and violet like actually its a problem. i've had so much fun with this au and i hope you guys have been too. i really wanted to incorporate mental health because i feel like violet is a person who wouldn't be picked out of the crowd to have mental health problems which made her perfect for this. i really hope to bring awareness to this and if you ever need anyone to talk to i'm here. feel free to ask anything for the au because i love hearing from you guys and i hope to answer some questions if you have any. add yourself to the taglist ➵ taglist!

reference links: choreography ➵ here! | violet's costume ➵ option 1! ; option 2! | the male costume ➵ here!

au masterlist | nhl masterlist | main masterlist

She knew what she was doing when she posted that video. She wanted help but couldn’t say it. It was too hard. So she did it in the only way she knew how to, dance her feelings out. 

The day before she had gathered three of her closest friends from the dance program and went to one of the studios to hammer out choreography to ‘Rescue’ by Lauren Daigle. She had heard it when scrolling through TikTok and it had always been one of her favorite songs, and it described how she was feeling. 

She knew this would raise flags for everyone, especially her brothers and Connor but she didn’t care, isn’t that what she wanted? She wanted help but was too afraid to ask for it. Teaching them choreography didn’t take long, they were all in college and they picked up choreography quickly. 

As soon as she posted the video she would see calls and texts start to roll in. Ollie wasn’t home when she posted it, which she was grateful for. She hadn’t posted in a while so for her to come out and post this song after a month or two without posting, she knew it would be alarming. She posted the video and immediately locked herself in the bathroom, she was trying so hard not to relapse. She had been so good, 5 years of being clean, and she was close to throwing it all away. 

She didn’t know what brought this overwhelming, numb feeling on. It could’ve countless reasons but the only things that were coming to mind were the thoughts of guilt that she was replacing her best friends with new ones. The thoughts of guilt that she was replacing her UMich team with the UofI team. The thoughts of everyone loving and praising Adam, that’s all she heard ‘Adam this’ and ‘Adam that’. Luca was doing well too, and what was she doing? She hadn’t posted in months, she hadn’t seen Connor or even really talked to anyone in a couple of weeks. She had been doing poorly on tests and homework assignments. 

‘That’s what happens when you major in four different things and get a minor in three others’ ‘Adam is doing so well in the NHL. How come you’re not doing anything like that?’ ‘At least Luca’s doing something in school, all you’re doing is band. That’s not very impressive is it?’ ‘You’re such a disappointment.’ 

‘They hate me.’ ‘I’m not good enough.’ ‘They wish I was dead or I never existed.’ ‘They would be better off me.’ ‘They don’t need me.’ ‘Why are they friends with me?’ ‘I wish this would end.’

Their thoughts bled into her own, and she couldn’t escape the feeling. Why was this happening? I was doing so well. When do I get a break? She was frustrated. Frustrated at herself for letting this happen, frustrated at the Universe for making her feel like this, hadn’t I done enough? What did I do to deserve this? Why me?

It was a never-ending cycle that she was stuck in. And five years after believing that this was over, this feeling, these thoughts, came rushing back within weeks. Why? How? When? What? 

She was listening to her phone ping for minutes before she finally got the strength to throw the blade onto the ground and reach for her phone. 

Connor had been sitting in his apartment when he got the notification that she posted. He didn’t know where they were in their relationship. He wanted to be her boyfriend and could only hope she reciprocated the feelings. Sure it was a little weird that he had notifications on for when she posted but the girl thought it was sweet and blushed every time he was one of the first likes on her post. 

Connor’s eyes went from happy to sad from the very beginning of the video. He had known about her struggles since October, when she had come to visit and she thought if they were going to be in a relationship somewhere in the near future she would have to tell him. She was comfortable with him and it was just an easy relationship between the two of them. 

He listened to the lyrics, not focusing on the video. He noticed it quickly, her cry for help. He had paid so much attention to the girl because he loved her even if he didn’t know yet. The two were soulmates in every life, every world, every universe, and everyone who knew could see it. He didn’t waste any time swiping out of YouTube and into his messages to text her.

‘V, are you okay?’

‘I saw your video… you looked sad’

‘Please answer me, I’m worried’

‘Violet, please.’

‘Violet’

That’s when he panicked, rushing to call Ollie, “Ollie?”

“Hey, Connor. Why are you calling me?”

“Are you at your apartment?”

“No, I’m out with some friends… Why? Are you and Violet up to something that I shouldn’t come back?” He could hear the suggestiveness in her tone.

“Ollie this is serious. I need you to get to your dorm as fast as possible, please.” He was desperate, he needed to make sure she was okay.

“Connor, you’re starting to freak me out. What’s going on?”

“I don’t know if she ever told you this or ever wanted you to know this but Violet was diagnosed with depression when she was 11 and there’s been a shit ton of other stuff that’s happened with it but she’s been clean for 6 years.”

“ I’m not the brightest person and you know that too so I’m going to need a little more info here.”

“I’m scared she’s going to hurt herself again.” Connor’s voice was blunt with the tiniest bit of tears in it.

Ollie’s eyes widened, jumped off the stool at the diner she was sitting at, and rushed to her car. She drove to their dorm with caution because if she got pulled over, it would hurt everyone. Halfway home she got a notification from Connor that everything was okay. 

As she was driving, Violet had called Connor.

“Connor?”

He let out a big breath, “Oh thank god. Violet, are you okay?”

“Yes but no. Connor, I’m really scared right now.” She kept stealing glances at the metal that sat not far away from her, she would have to crawl to get it but the voice in the back of her head was haunting her, “I don’t know-”

“Hey, can you take a deep breath for me?”

“I don’t think I can, Con.”

“That’s okay. How about you want to tell me what you did today?”

“Not really.”

Connor sighed but tried not to let her hear, how on Earth could he calm her down? He took a minute to think, “You want to listen to what I did at practice today?”

She needs a distraction, “Yeah.” Connor started to ramble about what he did because he knew that she loved his voice, she loved to listen to him talk. She loved everything about him, truly. 

“And then I came home and guess what I had for dinner?”

“I don’t know. Chipotle?” 

“How’d you know?” She giggled a little, “Lucky guess.”

He didn’t have Chipotle for dinner, but did she need to know that at this moment? No.

“Can you take a deep breath now?” 

She nodded and took a deep breath in, her gaze and mind far away from the strip of metal that sat a few tiles away from her. She continued to breathe until Connor started talking again, “That’s good. Did you eat dinner yet?”

“No.” Her voice sounded small, afraid that he would be mad, “That’s okay! Do you want to ask Ollie if she’ll get something for you?”

“Can you?” 

“Of course, pretty girl. Give me two minutes.” Connor texted the girl that everything was alright and asked her to pick up something for Violet for dinner.

“How are you feeling?”

“A little bit better. I’m still scared though, I don’t want to do it, Connor. I really don’t.” Her cries started again, this time a little less harsher than before.

“Hey, no, no. Please don’t cry, sweetheart. It’s all gonna be okay, do you want me to come down?”

Violet violently shook her head, “You can’t. You have a game soon, I don’t need you to miss work for me. I’m not important enough for that.”

“You know I wouldn’t usually tell you this but shut up. You are so important to everyone. You’re important to your friends, Ollie, Jared, Mikey, and Justin. You know every time you’re with them it makes their day? Your followers, love it when you post a video. You’ve seen the comments, and even though there are the negatives the positives outweigh all of them. Adam and Luca wouldn’t be where they are without you. They love you so much, V.” Violet sniffles at Connor’s words. 

There was a silence before he spoke, “And me. I-I. Ever since I’ve met you, V, I’ve known that you were the one. I know this sounds stupid but you were the best part of the day. Screw the draft, screw the number-one pick, when you ran into me with your flowers and whatever was in that present for Adam. You apologized so much.” He choked out a laugh with a sob hiding in it, he was so close to crying. 

“And then I said it was okay and you gave me that smile. The fucking smile that made me lose it and still does. You bring so much joy into this world, V and I don’t think anyone would be happy if you left. If you want me to, I will drive down there. I’ll be there in two hours all you have to do is say the words and hold on.”

“Yes, please.”

Connor packed a bag as quickly as he could, taking no time to start his car and driving down to Champagne. He hung up briefly just to tell Luke Richardson that he needed a few days on personal leave, before calling Violet back as he listened to her make soft conversation with Ollie as they ate dinner. 

He got down there in record time, knocking on their door. Ollie was the one who opened it as Violet had gone to lie down on her bed. 

“Hey, Ollie.”

“Hey, Connor. She’s on the bed,” Connor peered around the girl to see Violet lying there watching the TV, “I’ll leave you two alone.”

Connor stepped in and Ollie stepped out and he approached her, placing a hand on her arm, “Hey, V.”

Violet all but launched herself at the boy, hugging him tightly, “It’s okay. I’m here. You’re fine.”

And that’s how they spent the night, Connor’s arms wrapped around her as they listened to the background noise of the TV. At that moment, Violet knew that things were gonna be okay, she wasn’t totally back to her normal self, but this was a step in the right direction.

𝑻𝑨𝑮𝑳𝑰𝑺𝑻 ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

if your name is crossed out it means i couldn't tag you

@ivy-34| @itsnotgray | @daisysnhl | @love4ldr | @dancerbailey3 | @love4lando

[alwaysmoncheri]

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐄𝐈𝐑𝐃𝐎 𝐎𝐍 𝐌𝐀𝐏𝐋𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐓

pairings ❧ steve harrington x reader

summary ❧ the party finds a strange girl in the woods, leading to a series of stranger events

warnings ❧ female!reader, cheesy & sappy steve, shit writing, mentions of psychiatric hospital, mentions of sex

word count ❧ 2k

additional notes ❧ none | i appreciate you ´･ᴗ･`

When I get home that night, I lay in bed so many thoughts swirling through my mind. What happened to Will? Is he okay? Why didn't he make it home last night? And Steve. I couldn't stop obsessing over Steve. Why does Steve want to become close again? Why is he perusing Nancy? Why not me?

The thoughts make me sick.

Suddenly I hear a crash from inside the house. Instantly, I stand up and grab my hair brush, making my way towards the sound. I raise my arm up, ready to attack the unexpected visitor.

That's when I hear a muffled, "Shit!" emanating from the garage. Still armed with my raised arm, I fling open the door. I'm met with my brother picking up his bike off the ground.

Dustin jerks his head in my direction with wide eyes. He was caught.

"Dustin, where are you going?" I ask with eyebrows raised and head tilted down.

"Shit," he mumbles under his breath, "The party and I are finding Will." I start walking towards him intending to grab my own bike, "And there's nothing you can do to stop us."

"Relax, little bro," I roll my eyes, picking up my bike, "I'm coming with you." 

And whatever you do, don't go looking for Will.

|☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆|

Dustin and I meet up with Mike and Lucas, then bike to Mirkwood road, where we last saw Will. We reach a taped off section of the woods and set our bikes down. I hear a rumble of thunder in the distance and raindrops start to fall.

"Hey guys," Dustin says, a single raindrop falling on his face, "Feel that?"

"I think, maybe, we should go back"

"Yeah, Dustin's right, we shouldn't be out here in a thunderstorm." I say, agreeing with my brother.

"No, we're not going back, jus' stay close," Mike says determined in finding our friend, "Just stay on channel six, and don't do anything stupid!"

"Mike! Lucas! Come back!" I yell as they make their way further into the woods, "I told Hopper I would watch over you guys!"

"Hey guys, wait up," My brother shouts, running after them, "Wait up!"

"Damn it!"

And I run after them.

|☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆|

The rain pours down on us as we make our way through the dark woods. I tug my jacket tighter to my body, a shiver running down my spin when the breeze rushes past. This may not be my brightest moment, but someone has to watch over these kids.

"Will!" Mikes screams into the woods.

"Will" I yell, "Where are you!"

"Byers!" Lucas shouts, over the noisy rain.

"I've got your X-Men 134!" Dustin offers, "Guys, I really think we should turn back!" He adds.

"Seriously Dustin?" Lucas says frustrated with his friend, "If you wanna be a baby, then go home already!"

"Guys, c'mon! This is no time to fight! Our friend is missing!" I yell at the two.

They ignore me.

"I'm just being realistic, Lucas!" Dustin defends himself.

"No, you're just being a big sissy!" Lucas counters.

"Did you ever think Will went missing because he ran into something bad? And we're going in the exact same spot where he was last seen? And we have no weapons or anything?" Dustin rants.

"Dustin, shut up." Mike says.

"I'm just saying, that seem smart to you?" Dustin finishes loudly over the rain.

"Yeah, we really shouldn't be out here guys. We didn't come prepared." I add.

"Guys shut up, shut up!" Mike says, the trees rustling nearby, "Did you guys hear that?"

The forest rustles all around, each of us frantically searching for the source of the sound. Suddenly, in front of us, appears a girl in a yellow t-shirt and a buzzcut.

"Holy shit..."

|☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆|

Having successfully brought the girl to Mike's basement, I don't fully understand how we did it without being caught. We stand around her, eyes wide and breaths heavy, as she sits on the couch, too shocked to speak.

"Is there a number we can call?" Mike asks, "For your parents?"

"Where's you hair?" Dustin gasps, "Do you have cancer?"

"Did you run away?" Lucas asks.

"Are you in some kind of trouble?" Mike asks.

"Is that blood?" Lucas asks, reaching his hand towards the girl.

"Stop it!" Mike says, swatting Lucas's hand away, "You're freaking her out!"

"She's freaking me out!" Lucas says gesturing to the girl.

"I bet she's deaf." Dustin says before clapping his hands in front of the girl's face.

She flinches.

"Not deaf." Dustin says, over to us.

"Alright, that's enough, alright," Mike says, stopping the boys from anymore questions, "She's just scared and cold." Mike turns to get a clean shirt and pants.

Thunder rumbles loudly, causing the girl to jump back, scared and squeeze her eyes shut.

"Hey, it's okay. You're safe with us." I say softly to the girl and she looks up at me a little more at ease.

"Here, these are clean, okay?" Mike comes back, handing the clothes to the girl.

She stands up and starts taking off her shirt. All the boys start yelling and covering their eyes. I chuckle and gently bring the girl's shirt back down.

"Over there," I point, "That's the bathroom, honey, privacy. Get it?" I tell the girl before walking with her to the door.

I'm about to close the bathroom door when the girl suddenly puts her hand up, stopping me from doing so.

"You don't want it closed?" I ask.

"No." She responds shortly.

"Okay well, how about we just leave it like this?" I ask leaving the door open with a few inches cracked, "Is this better?"

"Yes." She responds again.

"Okay, sweetie, let me know if you need anything." I say giving her a soft smile before walking back over to the boys.

"This is mental." Dustin says.

"At least we know she can talk." I offer, shrugging slightly.

"She said "no" and "yes." Mike's three-year-old sister says more." Lucas responds slightly annoyed.

"She tried to get naked." Dustin points out.

"There's something seriously wrong with her," Lucas says, "Like wrong in the head." Lucas adds pointing to he head.

"She just went like..." Dustin says before going through the motion of taking off a shirt, knocking his hat off in the process.

"I bet she escaped from Pennhurst." Lucas says pointing at Mike.

"From where?" Mike asks annoyed.

"The nuthouse in Kerley County." Lucas says like it's obvious.

"You got a lot of family there?" Dustin asks with a smirk.

"Bite me." Lucas responds, "Seriously though, think out it. That would explain her shaved hair and why she's so crazy."

"Why she went like..." Dustin says, making the same motion as before.

"She's an escapee is the point," Lucas says, "She's probably a psycho."

"Like Micheal Myers." Dustin concludes with wide eyes.

"She's not like Micheal Myers, Dustin." I say, but I'm ignored.

"Exactly." Lucas agrees, "We should have never brought her here!" Lucas adds frustrated.

So you just wanted to leave her out in that storm?" Mike asks, equally frustrated with his friend.

"Yes! We went out to find Will, not another problem." Lucas argues.

"I think we should tell your mom," Dustin says.

"I second that." Lucas agrees.

"I third that." I say, raising my hand up.

"Who's crazy now?" Mike questions us.

"How is that crazy?" Lucas whisper-yells back.

"Cause, we weren't supposed to be out tonight, remember?" Mike sighs, making a point.

"So?" Lucas says.

"So, if Mike tells his mom, then she tells our moms." I say with a shrug.

"Oh man." Dustin says worried.

"Our houses become Alcatraz..." Lucas says.

"Exactly. We'll never find Will," Mike confirms.

"Alright, here's the plan," Mike begins, "She sleeps here tonight."

"You're letting a girl—" Dustin starts.

"Just listen," Mike cuts him off, "In the morning, she sneaks around my house, goes to the front door and rings my doorbell. My mom will answer and know exactly what to do. She'll send her back to Pennhurst or wherever she comes from. We'll be totally in the clear! And tomorrow night, we go back out. And this time, we find Will."

Mike's idea doesn't seem terrible. Dustin and Lucas glance at one another before giving Mike a nod. I follow suit and nod as well. With that, we leave the Wheeler's house.

Dustin and I bike back to our house in the middle of the thunderstorm. Not the safest choice, but what other option do we have. Thankfully our mom is once again, sound asleep on the couch.

I'm in my room getting ready for bed. I start to cross my room to get into bed when I hear two taps on my window. I freeze in place, and wait, maybe it was just rain.

Two more taps. When I walk over to the window and open my curtains, I'm met with a mop of familiar brown eyes and a sheepish smile. I quickly open the window and pull the soaked boy inside.

"Steve? What are you doing?" I question, holding his forearms, slowing moving my hands up to his biceps, "It's pouring outside!"

"When has a little rain ever stopped me before?" He says, running a hand through his dripping hair and then moving past me to sit on my bed.

"Oh no, you are not sitting on my bed with wet clothes, Harrington," I shoot him a pointed look, hands on my hips, "At least take off your jacket." I say gesturing to his jacket before plopping down on my bed.

"Tryin' to get me naked, sweetheart?" Steve responds while shrugging his jacket off placing it on my chair.

"For the love of g—"

"I'm kidding, I'm saving that for Nancy tomorrow night." He says cutting me off, sitting in the space next to me.

My stomach drops.

"What?"

"Tomorrow night, party at my house. I'm inviting Nancy and Barb." Steve says nonchalantly.

"Tommy and Carol will obviously be there and, I'm inviting you now." He shoots me a soft smile.

"Oh.”

"Yeah, I know right," Steve continues, "So, I'll definitely be getting to home base with Nance." He says almost giddy.

"Any tips, Henderson?"

"Did you just ask me, a girl who's never had sex in her life, for tips...?" I ask, sitting criss-cross.

"Not that, I mean tips for getting Nancy to like me." He says as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

There's a pause.

"Wait, you've never had sex?"

"Nope," I say casually.

"Like, no one ever..." He cuts himself off.

"No," I say more embarrassed, shifting uncomfortably on my bed.

"Oh," Steve says looking down awkwardly, "Shit, Henderson."

I fidget with my hands placed in my lap and decide to change the topic, "You want tips for getting into Nancy's pants?"

"That's not what I said."

"No, but it's what you meant."

"(Y/n)...please," Steve whispers.

I sigh.

"Okay, but you can't break her heart, Harrington." I say, pointing my finger at his chest.

"I won't, you know I won't." He says.

"Do I?" I respond.

"C'mon, you don't really believe that crap about me, do you?" Steve says, sadly, almost as if he cared what I thought, "It's all rumors and shit."

"I don't really know who you are anymore Steve." I say looking down to my lap.

"Then let me show you," He says softly, bringing his hand up to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. My heart is racing. I start to feel hot, shamelessly thinking about something entirely different than his pure intentions.

"Come to the party, you won't be disappointed." Steve says confidently pulling his hand back.

I raise my eyebrows at him.

"And I promise, I won't break Nancy's heart." He finishes.

"Okay, fine." I give in.

"Great, you won't regret it," He grins, as he stands up, grabs his jacket and walks over to the window.

"See you tomorrow, Henderson," Steve says, giving me one last glance before climbing out my window into the pouring rain.

"Bye," I say, "And Steve?"

"Yeah?"

"Nancy already likes you, like a lot," I say softly, "Just have patience with her."

"Thanks (Y/n)." Steve smiles before pulling his hood over his head, "I'm so lucky to have a friend like you."

Friend.

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[sammyche]

motogp grid a/b/o

i saw someone do it with f1 so i wanted to do it for motogp. i didn't do everyone because for some of them i really have no idea.

feel free to add those who are missing or correct me if you have any other opinions on the matter.

marc - omega. he is the omega that defy every stereotypes you could have about omegas. he is unashamed about his status, he is here to win and he is not afraid to ruffle some alphas feathers. he’s thrill seeking and loud, you wouldn’t believe he makes to coziest nests.

marco - either omega or beta. if he is an omega i think he’d hate to have that in common with marc but at the same time he admires him a little bit. he looks up to vale so much and he hates that marc is vale’s mate. 

alex m. - beta. a chill one that had to control his batshit crazy of an omega brother so after dealing with marc all these years you really can’t phase him.

luca - alpha for sure. just like his brother except he doesn’t have the charisma that his brother has and he doesn’t mind it. he’s pretty chill. never using his alpha voice, respecting omegas and all that jazz.

pecco - alpha. also a pretty calm one but he can get angry when pushed too far, he has his limit. he really came into his role as an alpha, looks up to vale so much.

jorge m. - omega. just like marc he really doesn’t care about sparing with alphas, he even uses his scent as an advantage to rattle his opponents. 

aleix - alpha. he looks like the cool alpha, taking care of his pack but he is quick to anger especially against other alphas. he is a bit of a traditionalist so you’ll never see him act other than like a gentlemen to omegas.

fabio - beta. he really is the balance between aggressiveness and sweetness. You sometimes would think he is an alpha especially on track but he really is the nicest outside. Likes to hand out with marc and acting like his pup.

maverick - alpha. wanted to become the second vale so bad so tried posturing a bit. Has calmed down a bit in the last couple years.

enea - omega. he looks and is pretty sweet. could be your textbook omega but he is very cunning when he wants to.

joan - beta. he is a sweet and nice beta. doesn’t like conflict at all. 

special mentions 

vale - alpha. of course, how could there be another way. pack alpha of the grid for the longest time and still alpha of the vr46 pack. always had a flare for drama that’s why he mated the most talented and craziest omega.

jorge l. - alpha. clashed a lot with vale in his time. tried to become pack alpha but in the end he conceded that title to vale. 

dani - omega. he literally taught marc how to not let your heat affect your racing and how to tame and control your pheromones hence creating a monster. was the most successful omega before marc.

[thestrangestthing89]

Inversion of Tropes - Part 2

The mercy kill trope/trauma porn trope This typically happens just as a character heals from trauma or when they aren't in a romantic relationship because they can't seem to figure out what to do with a character who is single. There will probably be more to say about this next season with regard to El's arc. I suspect she will be going on an independent journey and worrying more about reclaiming her childhood than any adult or teenager appropriate things. She missed a huge part of her life and her recovery from this is an important part of her story. So I don't expect them to suddenly kill her off just as she's getting to the point where she can have the life she wants. It's honestly so awful and frustrating when shows do this. I will probably write more about this post S5. This show has also never been unnecessarily violent. Any of the violence actually serves the plot and none of the characters have ignored any of the trauma they've gone through and pretended it didn't happen. Shows like Walking Dead and Game of Thrones like to do this. Everything is brutal and excessively violent in the name of "realism" but they never show the aftermath of what it does to the characters. It's trauma porn. It's for people who have become so desensitized to violence that they can't recognize that this isn't actually realistic or sophisticated storytelling. Stranger Things hasn't gone to an extreme with this and they have started to show ways that all of this trauma have impacted everyone - bad grades, attitude problems, etc. They don't unnecessarily torture their characters in the name of entertainment.

Unnecessary exploitative shots This isn't exactly a trope but it's so prevalent in tv and movies that I thought I'd add it here. Often, with male directors especially, there are so many creepy, lingering shots on the female characters in particular that end up being exploitative. We don't see that here. Even with Nancy in S1 who takes her shirt off. We don't get lingering shots of her in a bra that feel violating. The camera focuses on Steve most of the time and through most of the scene she is shot from the shoulders up. In the hands of a lot of male directors, there would have been more shots of El floating in her bath that could have easily been exploitative and many wouldn't have hesitated even though she's young. The scene that sticks out the most to me is the scene in S4 when she's in the freezer. She is fully covered and even though she's in white it's not see through or cringy in anyway. I am so relieved to see things like this because most directors wouldn't have hesitated to take advantage of her here. It's not just with the female characters either. Steve takes his shirt off and the focus isn't on him or lingering. It's on Nancy, Max, Lucas, and Dustins reactions. And Steve is an adult so it wouldn't have felt as creepy but it still would have been unnecessary. Same with Billy. We mainly see the reactions of the moms at the pool and the camera doesn't stay on him.

1d villain/villian who gets a redemption arch trope Billy, Henry, and Brenner could fit this and none of them are one dimensional. I don't think we are going to see a redemption arc for Henry. We saw one for Billy in S3. He's an abusive, bully but he "redeemed" himself by sacrificing himself for everyone. However S4 flips this around. We see Max's side of things and she doesn't forgive him. That one good act doesn't erase what he did to her. This is where she starts to get closure and heal. Forgiving him isn't forced on her in the name of healing. It's done in a realistic way where she has complex feeling about her relationship with him. We see her re-write their relationship into a more sibling dynamic that wasn't true. But she acknowledges that it wasn't and that it was just the grief talking. El goes through a similar thing with Brenner. She doesn't give him her forgiveness but she gets closure. She is ready to move on from this part of her life. But what he did to her was unforgivable and even though he called it love and called himself her father she knows better now.

The ugly girl turned beauty queen trope Makeovers on this show have been done for character development, particularly with El. But she never gets turned into the "hot girl". The closest they come to this is in S1 when she is wearing the pink dress with the blonde wig. The boys pick this out for her so she can look "normal". She is referred to as "pretty" and this is clearly something she wants - to be like everyone else. But she finds throughout the season that this isn't her. Her dress gets dirty and she loses her wig but she is still reassured the she is "pretty" (I'm pretty sure they use this here to mean normal and not attractive). El also goes through other makeovers to find herself and never once does she get dressed up to be "hot". None of the other female characters do either.

The antagonistic siblings trope For whatever reason this trope is prevalent in a lot of 80s movies. But we see the opposite happening with Will and Jonathan. Jonathan loves Will and takes care of him and supports him. He's never resentful of the role he plays in his life. We do see this trope play out a bit with Mike and Nancy. They have a typical sibling dynamic. The younger brother is annoying and bugs the older sister. Which is why I think they are going to invert this next season. They gave us what's familiar and now they will twist it.

The manic pixie dream girl trope This person is quirky and not like other girls. She is usually one dimensional and there for male character development and doesn't get a story of her own. Robin seems like she will fit this when she's first introduced. But then we see she isn't there for Steve's development and wasn't introduced to be his girlfriend. Instead we see them develop a friendship and she has her own storyline that isn't dependent on Steve - with Vicky and Nancy - and she helps the group out with the supernatural stuff and the Russians. She is smart and useful to the group.

The girls hate each other and are enemies for no reason trope This is usually done because the (usually) male writers can't figure out that girls actually get along IRL. So when we were first presented with this trope in S2, it seems like El and Max will hate each other. But El's jealousy is related to her trauma and isn't random. It was a realistic way to show that this girl was isolated and clingy with Mike. But she gets to know Max and they are BFFs now. They have such a great relationship that is beneficial for both of them. I am so glad they inverted this.

The cool guy gets the girl and wins trope I'm obviously talking about Steve. He isn't getting the girl at the end of this. I think this makes people angry because they don't know what to do with his character. I see a lot of criticisms directed at the writers for sidelining him or treating him badly but they aren't. He just simply isn't the star of the show. And that's ok. It's not his story. But people are so used to the straight, white, conventionally attractive male being the center of the narrative that they often place him here when he doesn't belong. (I wrote about his here). His role is as a secondary character. He is there for support and this doesn't mean that he's being sidelined. The audience gets resentful about it because they've never seen someone like him not be the center of attention so they fixate on him and complain he's being mistreated when he isn't. It's not his role to play the hero here. But it's not surprising that the part of the audience that doesn't relate to the nerds ends up fixating on him. They are used to being the lead and they think that's where someone like him/them belongs. So they overinflated his relationships and role within the group (he is not a mentor or a goddamn babysitter). It's hard for people to see something different. So they lash out at the writing and make HC's "correcting" things. But the actual narrative isn't going to change here. He's not the hero of this story.

I honestly wasn't expecting this to be so long. My point is this - this show has always, always done the unexpected thing. They give you what you what's familiar and then flip it upside down. So when I see people saying things like "they'll never break up Mike and El" it's entirely based on those people being so used to that narrative they don't know what other story to expect. It's the one that we are "supposed" to get. But they won't give this trope for the same reason they haven't given any of the others. This isn't a superficial story. It's not meant as casual, escapist tv. They are calling out storytelling as we've seen it. They are flipping the script and giving us something new.

[wheeler-fan]

Well I see ur last answers on Byler and Mileven post and I would like to add my perspective on both of these ships realistically (because I like to poke my nose into others businesses /jk)

Well honestly speaking I love Byler, but here I'll try to be as unbiased as possible. Realistically speaking, both ships have their own pros and cons. Mileven did looked cute around 1-2 seasons (if we see it from general audience perspective) and while Byler (for me atleast) looked so much cute and healthy in season 2.

But look let's forget the fact that Mike can't say ily to El for a moment. Their ship still won't make sense, because Mike (when he asked El out) was around 11-12 yrs (as much as I remember). He cared and loved El but not romantically. He showed a genuine care for her because he suddenly founded her in woods (plus he thought she might know about Will). At this time I don't think he had crush on her. El was the first girl who had talked to him without being mean, so that is also the reason for him to act more soft towards her. But since it was first time for Mike to talk to a girl, so the other people around him (like - Lucas and Nancy) thought that he liked her. And Lucas was the one who was pushing this idea that Mike might be in love with her, and after sometime Nancy also confronted him about this. And since surrounding does affects you and it was his first time being friends with a girl, he later thought yes that might be the case. And El didn't even knew what a friend was, so how do we expect her to know the meaning of love is? In conclusion I think that both El and Mike likes this idea of being in love and they do love each other but as I said not romantically. They both don't act like themselves around each other and in last season they both lied to eachother. Both of them need to explore themselves and what they like and then should be in a relationship with someone they like.

While for Byler, I do believe it is much better than Mileven but again Mike still needs to find what he really feels and think. And as for Will, he does know that the kind of love that want is "not normal" in the sense of 90s. He do love Mike in a romantic way but he still tried to fix Mike's and El's relationship, because he cares for both of them. I'm not a Mike hater but him in season 3 and 4 just gives me mixed feelings. Mike outted Will and he during the time when he was supposed to find his "girlfriend", he started talking about how Will didn't talked to him the whole day. Which is actually kinda umm, weird? Like bro u are supposed to find ur girlfriend, so don't change the topic lol.

I'm still looking out for Mike's character development in season 5 because he has so much potential and he is more than "El's boyfriend".

I to be honest wouldn't mind if Byler doesn't becomes canon (actually I will but that's not the point here 🥲) but if Mileven becomes endgame then tbh it would be a kind of a fanservice. Like let's take bylers a side, the large number of audience are general audience and other are Milevens. Most of the general audience are homophobic and they go with basics . Not forget to mention that people still say in this date that "wait people ship Mike and Will??" El is a character who needs to be independent, her story doesn't revolve around finding a boyfriend but it's revolve around finding herself and learning the normal world. Mike is just boiled down to being El's boyfriend but he is more than that, so many people find him relatable and it's not a bad writting if something like this happens. If see from Will's perspective, then his story doesn't fully revolve around finding a partner but it still plays a important role in his character (since he thinks that he can't be loved by someone how he wants). I'm such huge fan of Will and I want what he feels is good for him, I just want to see him happy. I still hope that he comes out to Mike and Mike to comfort him, them having a heart to heart while comforting each other.

Mileven as a ship held a big potential in past but it wasn't taken serious as it should've been. Same goes for Byler, it have potential to be a good friends to lover story and duffers are giving us bit of hints but we will only what is gonna happen to them in season 5.

At the end I want all my three babies to have a happy ending which they deserve (⁠〃ﾟ⁠3ﾟ⁠〃⁠)

I'm gonna be honest with u right now, this is one of the best explained views on a byler pov I've seen!! It was really nice and you've got a point!! i love nice byler fans with all my heart i swear❤️❤️

The first thing i want to say is the fact that we all are getting so mad sometimes about these ships probably bc no one wants to be in a situation where we get to know that we believed in some delusions for years 😭😭

I personally see mike with el, I don't know if things are gonna work out for them but i hope so, yet the most important thing for me is a happy ending for my fav character- Mike, and if you're the one who has right, if byler actually's gonna be endgame, as long as mike is actually happy i think I'll be happy too (well i really hope so but i want mileven to be endgame please lord😭😭😭)

But even skipping the part about who does mike actually love in a romantic way, can i ask u something? Can you really see it, how mike and el break up and then immediately mike goes to his best friend and his ex gf brother and they become a couple? I know that you would really like that to happen but the question is do u really see it happen?😭 Because i just can't I'm so sorry i don't know how it is supposed to happen, we actually don't have much time it's the last season 😭

And I have another question like this is kinda personal but I need to know, do u have something like this sometimes, that you're starting to stress- ,,what if my fav ship actually won't be endgame? what if I'm being delusional?" Don't get me wrong I'm asking these questions to myself all the time because i have to be honest with u it's stressing me out that there's so many byler shippers like it have to mean something right?😭😭😭

[love-byers]

breaking down mike's apology to will

mike goes into will's room on his own and closes the door, he intends on having a private conversation

"thanks by the way."

"for what?"

"for knocking some sense into me i mean i was being a total self pitying idiot."

mike has clearly thought about this a lot since the roller rink day. it was a big day for mike. i encourage you all to rewatch the airport/roller rink scenes knowing A) mike was being a self pitying idiot and B) will was knocking some sense into him during their fight

"i didn't say it."

"you didn't have to."

what will said to mike made him realize he was being a self-pitying idiot, without will having to flat out say it

"which is why you decided to be a douche to her all day? [...] you were! you were! you were rolling your eyes, you were moping, you were barely talking you basically sabotaged the whole day!"

"well she was lying to you, mike! straight to your face ever since you got here! and i've been a total third wheel all day it's been miserable. so sorry if i wasn't- if i wasn't smiling."

[...]

"and us?"

"we're friends! we're. friends."

"well we used to be best friends!"

(tense silence)

mike had been a dick to will all day, right from the second he landed in cali. it's likely that this is because will had been pushing him away over the 6 months and it hurt mike's feelings. so when he gets there, he acts like he doesn't care and pretends to ignore him because he feels bad for himself and want to give will a taste of his own medicine. (it's also because he likes will and doesn't know how to act)

however, mike wheeler is a dumbass and couldn't keep the act up. seeing will mope and not talk got under his skin in a way he couldn't ignore. wills moping. wills not talking to him. it makes mike feel bad. and he lashes out at will because of self pity. self pitying idiot.

will implying they're not best friends anymore made mike realize he'd been a jerk to will for pushing him away when in reality will feels the same way mike does about this. but he's mike wheeler so he self pities more because he realized he was being self pitying

"hey, also, about the- about the last few days-"

mike went right from acknowledging his self pitying behavior to the last few days, aka the time period where he was acting weird. remember, mike went in will's room knowing what he was going to say.

"you don't have to say anything. i was being a total jerk to el..i deserved it."

"no—no you didn't deserve anything."

remember when mike said "which is why you decided to be a douche to her all day?"

will says he was being jerk to el because he thinks that's why mike was being weird. he thinks that's what mike was about to talk about. he thinks this is about el, but it's not. and i know that because:

"listen, the truth is, the last year has been weird, you know?"

mike goes straight from talking about being a self pitying idiot, to the weird past few days, to how weird he's felt since will moved. which means all three of those are connected. mikes behavior was because of how he's felt since will moved. if will didn't cut him off when he said "about the last few days" mike would've explained how his weird behavior is because of how he's felt since will left.

and how has he felt? well:

"and you know, max, and lucas, and dustin, they're- they're great, they're great, it's just...it's hawkins, it's not the same without you."

i was being a self pitying idiot –> i've been weird to you the last few days –> it isn't the same without you and you're different from my other friends 

home isn't the same without will to mike. not only was he hurting because of the move, but will was pulling away and not reaching out so it made everything hurt worse. mike was will-less for a whole six months and felt bad for himself.

"and i feel like maybe i was worrying too much about el...i don't know maybe i feel like i lost you or something. does that make sense?"

let's add to it:

i was being a self pitying idiot –> i've been weird to you the last few days –> it isn't the same without you and you're different from my other friends –> i feel like i've lost you since you moved

we don't need to Prove that mike was being weird because of how he felt after will moved, because he tells us himself

[givehimthemedicine]

waiting // an el/max angst ficlet

this is an evil fic that you should not read. dedicated to a personal attack on @elmaxjunkie 😈

"It's almost over."

El had thought Max was napping. She keeps her unseeing eyes shut most of the time, and she can barely move around in her hospital bed, so it's hard to be sure when she's awake.

El lifts her chin from her hand. "What is?"

"Everything."

"We can stop it," she insists, although that's just vague optimism. They have no plan yet. They still don't even know what's going on.

"No."

It's not the word, but its firmness, that makes El's brow tighten towards a frown. Max is talking like she knows.

Pain medicine makes her talk funny sometimes, but usually it's in a sleepy silly kind of way. El reaches for her hand.

"We are going to do our best," she promises.

"You're going to do your best."

El isn't sure if this is a statement or question or correction or challenge.

She's become used to speaking in the plural, so used to others sitting in the other chairs around the bed, even though they're empty right now.

"Yes."

"Mm," Max makes a vague little noise. "I know how good your best is."

El stares, gaze dropping to the casts. Again unsure.

She thinks of getting up in the middle of the night to rearrange objects in her bedroom that were forming a shadow she did not like. She wishes she could do that to that sentence. In fact, to Max altogether, today. She's seemed in a funny mood, and not ha ha funny.

A silence passes. El looks around the room for a change of subject.

The ticking second hand of the wall clock becomes faintly audible to her as soon as she glances at it. It's ten minutes past when Lucas usually gets here.

El loves Lucas, but she treasures the time she gets to spend alone with Max, especially since coming so close to losing her.

She doesn't know exactly why, but in a surprising first, El wishes he would hurry up and get here.

"Lucas should be here soon."

"He isn't coming."

"Oh."

She listens to the sounds of muffled voices and beeps from other rooms while she tries to figure out how Max would know about a change in plans.

"I know it was you. Who brought me back."

El doesn't know what to say. It's not something she wanted kept a secret. But she also hasn't said anything about it, because it would sound like she wanted to be thanked.

"Lucas wouldn't have," Max adds.

"He couldn't have."

"He knows CPR. He could have. But he didn't."

Oh. CPR, yes, that's something she's heard of. People without powers have a way to restart hearts, too. She had forgotten.

If Lucas thought of that, he might feel bad. He shouldn't, but he might.

"He was.. stunned," El comes softly to his defense. "He did not know you could be helped."

"I don't hold it against him. He did right."

El blinks, searching Max's face for help understanding her meaning. Closed-eyed and expressionless, there is no help to be found.

"What?"

"You shouldn't have brought me back."

El frowns. "Don't say that."

"I was finally free. If you cared about me, you would have let me stay."

"Max, no," she shakes her head. "No. You have your whole life-"

"We both know you did it for yourself. Not for me."

El's stomach drops. "What?"

"You said you'd protect me. Isn't a life like this what you should've protected me from?" Max answers coldly. "I'm worse than a prisoner. Stuck with needles and hooked to machines, no say in any of it. I thought you loved me. This was the last thing I ever thought you'd do to me."

"I do love you," El shakes her head desperately. "You will get better. It is bad now, but you are getting better. You only have to stay here until you heal-"

"How do I look in my gown?" Max asks acidly. "As good as you did?"

El freezes, wounded. Blinking fat tears down her cheeks.

It's not the same.

It is similar, that's why she hates it.

She hates this whole place every day for what it reminds her of, but she comes every day for Max, and she tries to look around as little as possible on her way to Max's room. 301. That's not Max's number, it's just the room's number. The pattern on her gown is little squares, not little snowflakes. Hospitals and prisons are two different things, normally. It's not the same.

Fluorescent lights on white tile make her feel sick.

At least she had been able to see the lights. At least she could move.

It is not the same.

"Please - Max, this is not -" she tries to slow her shallow breaths. "You will go home as soon as you are strong enough. I'll help you. I'll take you outside myself, I promise."

She remembers how fresh air had smelled and how warm the sun had felt on her face on her first day outside. She wants that for Max.

Her eyes take inventory of all the tubes and braces and casts, wondering whether she could deliver on a promise to break Max out of here right now if that's what she wants. Wondering how exactly she would do it, whether she could do it without hurting her, whether she could take care of her at home.

"You brought me back to make it look as if you saved me. When the truth is... you chose to prolong my suffering, just to hide your failure."

Suspicion seeps into El's horror. Even with medicine, it is not like Max to say things like this. Either she is more furious than it ever seemed possible, or..

El tries to take her hand away, and the cool fingers around hers tighten.

"Condemned me to your idea of hell.. if only for a little while. All so you could play the hero."

El stands. "Stop." Her voice doesn't sound as authoritative as she wishes it would.

"But this is what you wanted. You forced me back into this broken body. Just to lie here in agony, alone in the dark. Waiting to die again." Max's voice is growing distorted and wrong. "Counting seconds until the end of the world. Just waiting. Waiting for it all to be over -"

"Let me go!" El pulls, but the grip on her hand grows impossibly strong.

"You would not let me go. And now, you will wait with me."

"Let GO!"

She shoots out her free hand, but nothing happens, because she is sure this isn't Max, but.. what if it is? And if it is, does she really deserve to be hurt even more, just for saying how she feels?

"Eleven." Max's eyes open, milky white but aimed directly at her. They look wrong, even wrong from the new normal-wrong.

A chill runs through her.

"It's time."

There's a distant rumble, the kind of tremor that has become commonplace in Hawkins these last weeks, whenever a little more ground is lost to the growing rifts. Only this time it grows slowly louder -

"El?"

El rights her sideways head, finding herself sore-necked in a deep slouch in a very uncomfortable chair at Max's bedside. She pulls herself up, shaken.

"Hello, anybody there?" Max asks, uncertain and jokey. Her normal voice. Her brow is creased, eyes searching vaguely in El's direction.

"H-hi. Hi, Max," El rubs her own eyes. "Sorry, did I wake you..."

"No, it's fine." Small and a little scratchy, but right. "You okay?"

The fingers sticking out of the end of her nearer cast flex a little, which El recognizes as the closest thing Max can manage to reaching out to her.

She's sad to find herself eyeing them with caution for a second before slipping hers into them. They're cool. Weak and gentle.

"I'm okay."

"I'm here for you too, you know." Max says, with a quirk of half her mouth that has to do with a smile, but is complicated. "Not good for much, but I'm here."

El works hard to make the smile she gives back a convincing one, remembers Max can't see it anyway, and gives her hand a light squeeze instead.

Max, in the condition she's in, still trying to comfort her nightmares...

That is what that was. Right?

Those awful words - those weren't true.

El reaches over and tugs Max's sheet up to her shoulders. Max smiles softly at the gesture.

A selfish act disguised as one of caring, she thinks.

No. She does care if Max is cold. Of course she does. It's not just so she doesn't have to see that gown. ...It's not just that.

Those awful words - maybe they weren't all false.

When she'd placed her hand on Max's heart, she really hadn't stopped to think what it would be like for Max if it didn't all work out.

El looks out the window where the air is hazy with a drifting smoke plume. The rift itself isn't visible from here, but at the rate it's spreading, it will be soon. Closing the blinds would only be for her own benefit.

Saving Max's life can not have been the wrong thing to do. But if they fail - if she does fail - and the world does end, her last thought will be sorrow for letting Max die twice.

If the world ends, she owes it to Max to hold her hand when it does.

[withacapitalp]

Masterlist/About Me

Since there's almost 300 of you now....how tf did that happen....anyway! I'm Liam here's all the stranger things fics I've written. I'll add my headcanons when I'm not feeling minority lazy lol Under a read more because I appreciate y'all's time lmaooo anyways!! Feel free to send me prompts and thoughts and general things because I love hearing from the people who follow me!!! If you just want to look for a tag it's under "Liam writes"

A New Perspective- Series primarily told from Wayne's perspective with him watching Steve interact with the kids and deciding the kid is actually not as bad as he thought. Steddie endgame

A Father By Any Other Name- Wayne Munson didn't hate Steve Harrington. He just really, really, really, didn't like him. A conversation he witnesses between Steve and Dustin might just start to change that though.

Scrapes, Sprains, and Headaches- When Lucas gets hurt learning how to skateboard, Wayne Munson gets another glimpse into how wrong he might be about Steve Harrington. He also is starting to see the beginnings of what might be a big big problem.

Just a Little Bit of Truth- Wayne goes to Steve's house, gets a little closer to the truth, and definitely needs to have a chat with his nephew.

Awkward Conversations- After his conversation with Jim, there's nothing Wayne wants more than to go home and finally talk with Eddie about everything that had happened. He decides to stay to the end of the party, which turns out to be both a frustrating and illuminating option. Featuring Murray Bauman being Murray Bauman, Steve being an angel of epic proportions, and Wayne and Eddie finally talking everything out.

Who Can Understand?- While everyone else goes to one of Eddie's shows, Wayne and Steve have a little talk.

Well I've Been Afraid of Changin'- Eddie likes Steve. Steve likes Eddie. It should be so simple at this point. But it's really, really, not. (CURRENTLY A WIP)

Days, Weeks, Months- Takes place immediately following S1 Steve's perspective on falling in love and dealing with the aftermath of whatever the fuck just happened. Stoncy Endgame

The Day After- The morning after Steve helps to destroy a demon who had been trying to kill Jonathan Byers and Nancy Wheeler, he goes to school. He didn't want to go. He didn't know why he did it. He just went. It was startling to see how the rest of the world didn't change.

The Weeks After- Steve loves Nancy. It's safe and it's good. It's normal. Steve knows he wants to spend the rest of his life with her. He knows he wants to buy her a house, wants to watch her age gracefully into the gorgeous woman he can see her becoming. Steve knows that he has an overwhelming urge to protect her, to keep Nancy safe from the very real danger they all know exists out in the world, even if she's usually the one protecting him. Steve just also wants all of that with Jonathan too. But that’s not inherently wrong. It doesn’t have to be. He wished he could believe that.

Stranger Things Daily Drabble- A daily prompt fill of just about anything Multiship like literally pretty much everything.

House and Home- Three weeks after getting kicked out of his parent's house, Eddie brings Steve to a decrepit house on the edge of Hawkins to show him how much he loves him Expanded from STDD prompt!

Empty/Full- Chrissy Cunningham is a Good Girl. She gets perfect grades, has the perfect boyfriend, and does exactly as she's told. She's doing everything she should, and she's utterly miserable. She just wants something to help her sleep. Just a little extra to get rid of all of the voices in her head and the pain in her stomach. Eddie Munson has a better plan. HELLCHEER

[chidoroki]

182 Days of TPN - Day 168

Chapter 168: "Dad"

I know this is the same room Isabella & Peter were seen having their discussion in back during ch165, but to just have two plain chairs in such a large, empty room seems so extra. Regardless of that, I do like the panel of the trio here, even though they're surprised to find no one here due to the fake footage Peter fooled Vincent with that lead them there.

Dunno how all the kiddos are hearing Peter's message since the teams seem to only have one person with a communication device but whatever. Perhaps he's speaking loud enough for everyone to hear.

Although I have a hard time believing the Ratri men were able to tie up the Adam clones without a fight, I guess anyone will yield once you hold them at gunpoint. Also, the absence of Hayato in this panel is a nice hint to his role next chapter.

While the demon guards don't cause much of a problem during the rest of the story, it still would've been better if the kids killed them off instead of put them to sleep. I get that they didn't wanna kill if they didn't have to, but it would've been one less thing to worry about. Hearing about Sonju & Mujika's execution definitely adds to the stress. Not as much as their deaths could have, but we're thankful Peter was stupid enough to actually wait three days.

Along with all the citizens who drank the evil blood being killed, the Ratri clan and the higher-up demons taking control of the government, let's add the plan to assemble a ton of new Lambda farm into the mix as well. Talk about a big time panic. The premium farms don't sound so bad now huh?

Oh Vincent, you dunno these kids as well as you thought if you honestly believe they would shoot the adults in front of them. Emma, Ray, Don & Gillian couldn't manage to fire a shot at Andrew back when he held Dominic & Alicia hostage after the shelter raid. You're best bet would've been Oliver. This goes back to that old post of mine wondering who, among the kids, would be able to shoot at another human, but I still believe Ray could manage it, if only as a last resort.

The thought of Norman firing at another person was always a toss up for me though. Of course he showed no mercy towards demons during this WM phase, so even with the clear difference between demon and human, I wouldn't have been completely surprised if that cold persona of his came back with a vengeance once he heard Vincent get shot. Peter's been a thorn in Norman side ever since Lambda, so having this bastard personally hurt one of his friends just adds fuel to the fire. Norman (& Ray) did often mention taking down Isabella & Krone back during their GF days if they wanted to escape successfully, so they have level of brutality, it's just been real lowkey. Thankfully none of the children need to get blood on their hands. They've suffered enough already.

Please never say those words with your mouth. No one in this world considers you as that.

Hell yeah Oliver, let him know what's up!! I love that he, Zack & Gillian feel so strongly about the word "dad" because of the relationship they had with Lucas. The same can be said about Ayshe & her father but I can ramble more about all that next chapter.

Favorite panel/moment:

If you've been around me for a while, then you already know how damn hilarious this panel of Norman is to me.

I mean, in context, it's pretty serious, but thanks to a silly edit I've made years ago, I can't look at this panel anymore and not laugh like an idiot. So, now's the perfect time to upgrade it from a noticeable bad edit I made in the car on my phone once upon a time to something more worthy to use every time I lose my mind.

[hecatesbroom]

For the fic titles ask game: number 9 for "the finish line" and "it's still the same old story", number 11 for "i'm tired of wanting more / i think i'm finally worn", plus a bonus - one question among these you really want to answer for any one of your fics! :)

Ooh different fics in the same ask, that's fun! Thank you! <3

9: Were there any alternate versions of this fic?

the finish line

Not exactly, but also kind of? I started with the introspective bits in chapter 1, but there was no setting yet. Eventually I added in the bits where Dorothy is looking at Lucas and holding back her tears, because I thought framing this in an actual scene would give it more weight — and would make it easier for people to connect to the emotion.

I was originally planning to leave it at that, but felt so bad for Dorothy (and honestly also a little for myself, because I'd properly broken my own heart 😂) I had to give her a hopeful ending. So I added chapter 2 as a fix-it (and an apology) for the pain I inflicted lmao

it's still the same old story

Ohh my Maude fic! Thanks for asking about this one! :')

Yeah, there were two! The original version of this didn't include the movie theater — it was just the introspective bits. And while those worked fine on their own, I thought I could increase the tension and weight of the story if I added an actual scene to frame it. Kind of like the finish line, haha.

Though after writing the movie theater scene, I felt like a different setting might suit this better — so I started a half-baked attempt at another scene, one where they're having a movie night at home. It was fine, and I think it could've worked out well, but my mind was already set on the initial setting and I couldn't get the new one to work. So I ended up going with the first (ish) option eventually!

11: What do you like best about this fic?

I'm tired of wanting more / I think I'm finally worn

Ooh, this is a hard one. In terms of technical details, I had a great time with the way this is structured. Going through Dorothy's life year by year, opening with a similar line each time. I gave myself a few rules to stick to (open every part in the same way, sketch her life at that moment, and tie it all in with the physical weight of it all) and I think it ended up working really well :)

I also like that this gave me the opportunity to explore how to write about different types of exhaustion and fatigue, and distinguish between them. It's a topic near and dear to my heart, so let's just say it was nice to be able to put my knowledge to good use for a change!

And for the bonus question (thank you for that!) I'll add on to #11 with another fic :)

Farewell to a Daughter (in C Major)

I tried to include some symbolism in here, and it was so much fun weaving it in! There's Sophia's gray dress, of course, but there's also the second to last line -- where she finally dabs at her eyes with a black handkerchief, essentially giving in to the notion she's been struggling with throughout the entire scene: she's mourning, instead of celebrating.

My favourite part of symbolism in the entire fic might be the title, honestly. The tragedy of Farewell to a Daughter, contrasted with (C Major) at the end -- putting Sophia's feelings against a cheerful tune that is, in fact, the key Mendelssohn's wedding march is played to. But of course you knew about that already, haha.

[bellysoupset]

OMG could we get a fic with Jonah and Luke where one of them is sick and the other is stuck being a begrudging caretaker because for some reason there is no one else around to help? Do they end up becoming more sympathetic to the sickee, or does this fuel the fire of their frienemy vibes? Also in the concussion fix Jonah is a total sympathy puker so it would be fun to play with that dynamic when he has to take care of a sickee. I love love LOVE your writing so much and your new characters’

I LOVE THIS ASK! Bad caretaker is such a Vibe. Thank you so much! There's a mention of scat, but we gloss over it real fast.

Lucas was not too proud to admit when he had fucked up. Today, specifically, he had fucked up Big. BIG. Time.

It was his high school class reunion, except well, he had grown up rich, which meant fancy boarding schools and what not. Bella had taken one look at the hot embossed invitation, raised her eyebrows and started cackling at him.

It didn't matter how much he begged she tagged along, she had shaken her head vehemently and said "being stuffed in a fancy hotel half world across from here, with your rich prick ex-friends? Sounds like hell, thanks."

Which was why they weren't currently speaking, because he had gotten pissy over it - high school and his family were always a delicate matter, his girlfriend wasn't exactly the most gentle person. That in itself was bad enough, but to add salt to the injury, Jonah was tagging along.

Jonah was the son of some maybe-probably-corrupt plastic surgeon and they had done all of school together, so their rivalry and frenemies status went back all the way to kindergarten. Once they had RSVP from the same location, their boarding school people had sent them matching travel plans, much to their chagrin.

Jonah was easily the person Lucas knew for the longest time, having met Vince and Bell in college, but that didn't mean they got along at all.

Finally, to wrap this package of shit up, Lucas was fairly sure last night's teriyaki chicken had been bad. He had initially thought his lunch wasn't settling because of nerves, but as he sat next to Jonah on the first class seat, the more he was growing aware he had been very, very wrong.

His gut was burbling under his hand, like boiling water and letting out all types of gurgles and whines. He was so grateful Jonah was going out of his way to ignore him, with headphones on, because he wasn't sure he could survive the humiliation.

His intestines cramped and he pressed his lips in a tight line, fighting not to groan. He clenched his fists, looked out of the plane's window. Fuck his life, fuck his family for saying he should go to this stupid party for appearances, fuck him for being unable to say 'no', fuck, fuck fuck-

His stomach gurgled and Lucas clutched at it, clawing at his seatbelt desperately and rushing up. He nearly lost his balance, had to grab on the seat to ground himself and Jonah looked up, one perfectly manicured eyebrow raised.

"Atwood?"

Lucas winced, "I'm fine."

"Uhm," Jonah shrugged, slipping his headphones back on and turning his attention back to his book.

Lucas rushed through the rows to the bathroom. First class or not first class, no airplane bathroom was ever decent. It was definitely bigger than the tuna can he had been one when flying to Vince's family's house, but still claustrophobic and smelling like bleach.

"Jesus fucking chr-" Lucas groaned, sitting down on the toilet and clutching at his gut. He was bloated, much more than he remembered ever being before and it gurgled fiercely under his hand, pressing against his button up.

He sat there for thirty minutes and by the time he managed to make it out of the bathroom, he was starting to feel shaky on his legs. Whatever, he had played with an upset stomach before, he'd live.

He made it back to the seat, falling on it with a groan and turning his face when Jonah threw him an inquisitive look. Lucas curled up around his middle, looking out of the window to the passing clouds... His gut grumbled again and cold sweat started collecting on his brow. A cramp seized his intestines and now, to make matters worse, nausea joined in.

He licked his dry lips, planted his forehead to the cold plane window and a flight attendant came over a minute later, "Mr. Atwood?" she called, all polite, "is everything alright? Can I get you anything, sir?"

Humiliated, Lucas straightened up and shook his head, "just... Just a water, please."

Jonah turned to face him, "what's wrong?" he said dryly, squinting. Lucas rolled his eyes.

"None of your businesses."

He only had... What an hour more of flight? He could do it.

The nice flight attendant from before came back with a water bottle, but he didn't have time to drink it, beelining back to the bathroom once more.

Fifteen minutes later, he felt empty. With a rumbly, crampy belly that kept sending up burps, but blessedly his lower guts were empty. He fell back down on the seat and chugged at the water, already feeling dehydration start to get to him, if the way he was shaky and dizzy was anything to go buy.

The water quelled his insane thirst and soothed his parched throat, but did nothing good for his stomach. It had been already grumbly and unhappy, but now with an entire water bottle chugged in it... Yikes.

He muffled a belch on his hand and noticed Jonah inching away from him, a big frown on his face, "disgusting, Lucas."

"Sorry, I can't help it," he groaned, cupping his bloated stomach right where it now sported a curve, "my gut's upset."

"Well, keep it to yourself," Jonah rolled his eyes, then opened a pleasant smile as the cute flight attendant came back. Bright smile that immediately diminished at her words.

"I'm sorry, it seems there's some bad weather in the alps," she explained apologetically, "we're going to have a delay of about an hour."

God, no, Lucas almost said out loud. Jonah made a face that voiced his thoughts.

"An hour? But our party-"

"We're contacting other airports to check if we may land there. We'll also be making arrangements for your transportation from there..." the poor girl was definitely older than them for about a handful of years, but she sounded so small, Lucas felt bad for her. It wasn't her fault.

"In the meantime, would you like to take a look at our dinner menu?"

Lucas shook his head no, while Jonah nodded enthusiastically. He ordered fish with some lemon cream or whatever. Lucas reached in his hand baggage and fished out his own headphones, crossing his arms to his chest and forcing his eyes carefully on the horizon and the stormy clouds.

He prayed for no turbulence, because the uneasy feeling in his stomach was getting worse and he wasn't sure he could take being rattled around like some kid's toy.

Jonah poked him and Lucas forcefully teared his eyes away from the window. The sky had gone dark, be it because of the weather or the sunset.

"What?"

"You should eat," Jonah said, in his driest voice, "you remember last year's fundraiser, don't you? They never serve anything decent in those parties."

Lucas would normally be touched by the hint of concern he heard in Jonah's voice, moved by all the shared history they had, but not tonight. Just the thought of eating something made him want to hurl.

"Not hungry, told you my stomach's upset," he said, more snappy than he meant to sound. Jonah squinted at him.

"Do not barf, Atwood," he said strongly and Lucas groaned, planting his elbows to his knees and hiding his face in his hands. The smell of Jonah's dinner certainly wasn't helping.

"I'm trying not to, you're not helping."

"Uh-" He could hear Jonah's slight hesitation, "well keep trying."

"Thanks, go fuck yourself," Lucas sighed, biting down a burp that stung his throat, all acid.

Five minutes later the plates were taken away, more water bottles passed around- The plane shook and Lucas planted his hand over his lips.

Fuck.

"Don't," Jonah glared, like he could boss Lucas' stomach into behaving.

A rolling belch passed through his lips and Lucas shook his head, "false alarm."

"I hate you so fucking much," The other man groaned, looking away a little frantically, in search of another empty seat. There was none.

"I'm not trying to make you hurl, trust me," Lucas groaned, rubbing his stomach and starting to feel antsy in his formal attire. This had been a horrible idea.

He could've been home, curled up with Bell, while she rubbed his upset tummy. But nooo... He let out another wet belch and gulped down, feeling his stomach's contents slosh. All that water.

"Jonah-" He moaned, reaching to squeeze the guy's arm. Jonah glared at him, alarmed.

"Atwood, no. No-"

"I think I need a bag."

"Lucas-"

"Now," he gagged in his hand and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to will his stomach in place. They'd get murdered for tossing cookies in the first class-

He couldn't help it. The next burp that he attempted to fight off, but that came out anyway, brought with it chunks of his lunch and Lucas snapped his mouth shut, trying to hold the puke in but-

He retched.

Vomit covered his black slacks and he heard as Jonah frantically called out the flight attendant, for more than one bag, cleaning supplies, a parachute-

Lucas whimpered as his stomach squeezed again and more vomit spilled between his fingers, since he was keeping his hand vehemently planted over his mouth still.

"Oh dear-" the flight attendant from before squealed, coming back with an already open blue barf bag. Lucas grabbed it with a shaky hand and then buried his face in it.

Faintly, he heard Jonah gagging harshly to his side and the flight attendant attempting to sooth him. His friend rushing up and all but stumbling to the bathroom, in a ridiculous attempt to save his dignity.

Lucas puked again, now allowing his body to get rid of all its contents. Please, let it be the last one.

It wasn't. His little barf bag was getting full when Jonah returned, looking grey in the face and woozy.

"Fuck. You."

"Ugh-" Lucas groaned, burping in the bag wetly, "Jonah, I need anothe-er-" he burped again, hiccuped, "fuck- anotherbag..." his words slurred together, thick with the nausea.

"Here," Jonah held it open in front of him, taking the other one with a retch of his own and snapping it closed, placing it on the ground. Lucas's initial spray was mostly contained to his lap, some chunks on his italian shoes-

Jonah gagged again, turned his face away and whimpered. He heard Lucas let let out another torrent of vomit, wondered how in the fuck did that much even fit inside of him.

"Jon-" Lucas called to him, "Jonah."

"Don't-" he groaned, eyes squeezed shut, wrapping an arm around his stomach that was flipping around. He regretted dinner, regretted ever fucking meeting Lucas.

"Jon, dude, you need a-" Lucas cut himself with another gross burp, one that sounded like he was about to hurl again, "a bag."

"Fuck, I don't need your-" his stomach surged up to his throat and he bit down his lip so strongly it nearly bled. Jonah squeezed his stomach. He cursed, "just- Just stop."

"I'm trying," Lucas sounded exhausted, his voice distorted by how sick he was feeling, "I can't- uGhuurp- Fuck. I'm- Fuck-" suddenly Lucas was standing again, ruined pants and puke bag clutched in his hands, his face milky white.

Jonah gagged, but his confusion nearly overrode his nausea, "the fuck are you doing, Lucas?! Sit-"

"Bathroom," Lucas, clutched at his gut with his other hand, "God, move Jonah, get out of the fucking way-"

He promptly obeyed, wincing away and trying not to feel like an asshole as his stomach calmed down now that Lucas and his puke covered pants and bag were gone.

"Mr. Banks...?"

"Ugh," Jonah groaned, gulping down, "Amy, right...? Amy, can you bring us something to clean up, please?"

By the time Lucas was back, now with wet but clean pants, Jonah was comfortably settled on his seat and the flight attendant rushed to his friend, trying to dot on him. She brought some pepto and more water, though now Lucas only took the smallest of sips.

He sat back down gingerly, whole body shaking and leaned his head back, "I feel awful."

"Teaches you to stop eating from garbage places."

"Just because it's not a Michelin restaurant, doesn't mean it's a garbage place," Lucas moaned softly, then leaned in and planted his forehead on Jonah's shoulder, causing the other man to stiffen.

"Atwood? What are you doing?"

"I feel miserable, please don't be a dick for five minutes?"

"You made me hurl, who are you calling dick, dickhead?" Jonah rolled his eyes but relaxed back against his seat, "if you vomit on me, I'm going to murder you and I'm not joking."

"Not gonna hurl," Lucas grumbled, his voice hoarse, "empty."

"Sure," Jonah rolled his eyes, not buying it, "get some rest, we'll be on the ground soon."

"Yeah, can't wait to puke on the dean," Lucas bit back sarcastically and Jonah winced in sympathy.

"Please, as if I'm letting you go to the party when you can barely stand. I'm not that much of a dick."

"Could've fooled me," Lucas sighed, yawning and muffling a burp against Jonah's tux jacket, "don't tell the others."

"Hell no, I'm telling everyone."

[planetbiomes]

okay hi!!!

(im asking from main btw! polyamorous el here!)

so, idk if u saw tags under your posts but im absoultely invented in your stranger things spiderverse au AND SO HERE COMES THE QUESTION

i love dustins backstory, but u didn't tell anything about his relationship with el so im curious how it works for him! bc we already know that mike will try to stand far from will bc we doesnt want to lose him but it will be too hard for both of them, but what about dustin? will he catch some feelings for el? and if he'll do, will he try to not pursue any romantic relationship with her bc he would be scared that what happened to suzie will happen to El as well?

asdfg

sorry kinda excited about it. anyway, love your little comic <3

OMFG HIIII SOMEONE WHO IS AS OBSESSED WITH HENDERHOP AS ME??? A DREAM COME TRUE 🥰

Also I completely forgot to add Henderhop to their backstories so my bad! ^^’ I do want to expand their backstories with more comics in the future! But for now I’ll just ramble here 😛

In Dustin’s universe, he’s really good friends with Will and El, he knows Mike through Eddie, and seeing his good friend as another Spider-Man is endearing to him so he visits Mike in his universe a lot to get away from most things-

However in his universe he and El are good friends but never get the chance to talk considering she is still with Mike, at first- he was never interested in relationships after everything that happened with Suzie, it was too hard to bare at the time. He was out of it for the most part- he drifted away from Mike, El, Will and all of his friends. However when he went into the Spiderverse with Mike and met this El- they sort of began to bond. Mike and Will had their own problems trying to avoid each other, but realized that avoiding the problem won’t fix anything, they try to make amends as best they can together. With Lucas and Max trying to fix things as well they are sort of stuck in the middle and decided to support each other, Dustin began to open up to El because she was the only one who was there to listen and genuinely understand. She told him what she went through too, they finally found someone on equal footing with each other.

It began to shift into a more complex friendship, he would visit her universe just to talk, and she would do the same.

They both agreed to keep their relationship strictly as friends, until Dustin would be up at night thinking about her, his feelings became mixed and it troubled him, he confronted El saying how scared he was to loose her as well.

He could never imagine the world without her in it and it scared him. “The world needs Spider woman. But what happens when I need her more?”

She felt his anguish, but from what they’ve seen from Will and Mike, trying to avoid anything and each other doesn’t solve anything, it hurts more to stop.

“Then why stop?”

She told him that Spider man or no, they are people too, sure they aren’t normal but who cares? They have each others backs and understand each other more than anyone else in the world. Maybe that’s worth more than something?

Yes they do get together! And they stay together! They have minor bumps in the road in their relationship but they communicate and pull through it together, they understand everyone around them more than they know, what they see around them makes their relationship stronger, and they teach each other a lot of things, El’s relationship with Hopper gets stronger because Dustin tells her to keep the people she loves the most close to her. And in return, she tells him to open up to his close ones, allowing him to build up the courage to talk to Steve.

They are just such a cute ship and I think they would be the most healthy relationship but that’s my opinion lolll

Also they would do the iconic upside down Spiderman kiss except Dustin would jump back onto the ground so they can do the kiss <3

And they hold hands the most out of everyone, the first time they talked they held hands as sort of support and understanding of each other, it became their connection to hold each other tight and never let go. :)

Hope that answers your question!! Sorry it’s long but I love to talk about their stories aaaaaaa I will make more art of them and of the others as well because I love them too much- thanks for the question :D

[crystalelemental]

One more for funsies: Cynthia Sweep. Some of these are Real Stupid.

Vs. Acerola I started this adventure with the weakest link: Sygna Suit Classic. Because oh man, is Kommo-o kinda bad at this point. She needs such a grid expansion. Her multipliers all involve paralysis, so while I initially went Lucas, this didn't work, and I had to shift to C!Elesa to tank a sync. SC Jasmine does a great job of keeping them alive, but also topping off Cynthia. One thing that is nice is that Cynthia has Head Start, and you have two trainer moves that give -1 sync cooldown, so you fast-ramp. It still took three syncs and we had to survive the foe. Thank god for Elesa's debuffs. I really hope she gets a grid expansion soon. Please do the Viral Hit thing, and like...Brainpower. Her DPS needs better multipliers, yes, but I feel like sync is what she needs to lean into.

Vs. Olivia So, I found something out. Lodge Cynthia is kinda really good with Cyrus. His Sharp Entry only needs one Dire Hit+, and her trainer move giving accuracy means Hydro Pump is a sure thing. Add in Winona, and you have a surprisingly strong off-type clear. ...if you EX Cynthia. Yeah, trying this without EX was a lot more challenging. Cyrus has to be really on his game to accomplish his goal. Flinch rate can do it, but his DPS isn't quite where it needs to be off-type. Also Cynthia's real squishy against physical attacks. Thankfully, the EX once again works out, because now you have reason to get Safety Tether. With EX, this actually went great. I'm really happy with how this turned out.

Vs. Kahili I wanted to try focusing on characters Cynthia would mostly have a connection with (please ignore that first set, I did what I had to). So this one focused on the E4. Aaron is a nice option for buffing needed offenses, and eventually defenses. Bertha's got the bonus trap damage, and is really good. The main thing here was that Aaron could flinch. And a well-timed flinch on Kahili right at the end stalled out for Bertha to take her out. I did think about Cynthia taking sync and trying. But Bertha's stronger with conditions active.

Vs. Hala Yeah I wasn't about to give up this team. I opted for Hala just because the others weren't great picks. Jasmine and Lodge Cynthia are too bad against physical to take Close Combat, and Aaron is Ice-weak. I saved him for fourth because I wanted to try this team without the permanent conditions. Turns out, they do it just about as well. I really, really love this team. Goth Gals is so fun. Even if it always comes down to Lillie's ability to tank a sync.

Vs. Kukui In retrospect? This was stupid. But I wanted Caitlin's every alt here, and there's only two so I had to be particular. Aura Cynthia is not, as it turns out, a great support for base Caitlin. But I did what I had to. Survival was real, and Lucian's debuffs really helped on that end. Caitlin herself does pretty respectable damage, even with sync. It wasn't great, but hey, we won.

[corujalesbica]

After the nightmare

It was a cold Friday night when Eddie left his trailer to go to Wheeler's house. Yeah , he was late to the end of the campaign, but he could deal with the little shits complaints later. In the moment , he was smoking a cigarette , wondering if nights like this were truly real. Quiet was uncommon for him. There was always a party to sell drugs at , some rock to listen too or a D&D game to play. It wasn't bad , it was just... different. 

   By the time he got there , Dustin and Lucas were already arguing while Mike talked to his girlfriend. The new kid , Will Byers , was drawing something. He had never been to the Wheler's basement , mainly because his parents wouldn't approve of a guy like him there , but they were out of town for the weekend with their youngest kid. And because the rest of the party wasn't coming, the teens insisted on the game being there. Eddie agreed , after all , it wouldn't be that bad to see everyone again. 

  It had been a few weeks since Mike's girlfriend aka super power girl defeated Vecna. He had talked about it with the other survivors. Even tried writing his fucking feelings down. At least in form of music. 'Cause shit. He was a survivor of something now. Sometimes he could see it all again at random. Like he would just be walking and it was like the world went dark and he could see blood. But the nightmares were always worse. So real. And so , so fucking scary. 

  It was weirdly nice though , to know that other people  would always understand what happened like he did , and be there for him. Sice it all happened , they got together a lot of times To support each other , to cry and to laugh. He felt... cared about. And he always loved to see Harrington. 

  It was no secret that Eddie was the towns weirdo. Would it be so crazy to add queer to the long list of reasons why people didn't like him ? I mean , not that they knew. Even for him that was too dangerous. He usually had crushes on girls and boys that he kept for himself. It was just easier to be a lone wolf. And also more metal , he thought. 

  But Steve was somehow different. He was close in a way Eddie didn't quite understand. Caring like no other boy he'd met in his life. And so very fucking handsome. Ever since the beginning,  since he'd met the actual Steve Harrington and not the asshole everyone painted him as , Eddie had the urge to get to know him. To talk to Steve. To touch him. 

  When he entered the basement , it took people a few seconds to realize it. When they finally did , Dustin shouted : 

  _ Finally! If we were waiting any for you any longer, the Demorgogon would've gotten here first and killed us. 

  _ Haha, very funny , kid, joking about the monster that nearly killed you a dozen times. 

  _ Why are you late again , anyway ? _ Mike asked. 

  _ None of your business. You should be more worried about how your  characters are gonna defeat what I'm throwing at you today. 

  When he said that , they did share a worried look. But before anyone could say anything else , Eddie decided to ask : 

  _ Where are the grown ups ? I only see you brats here. 

  _ Nancy and Robin are in her room, Steve brought me here but he is upstairs watching TV or something. And Jonathan is outside smoking with Argyle. _ Dustin said, sitting down. 

  _ Well , well , well. Guess I'll go talk to my fellow babysitters while you guys set up the game. 

  Without waiting for a response, he went upstairs wondering how he didn't see Steve in the living room when he came in. 

  _ Hey Stevie. _ He nodded in his direction. 

  _ Hey , man.  

  The silence lasted for about two seconds. Then they started talking about Dustin and the gang , joking and complaining. Eddie loved interacting with him , because he always listened, no matter what they were talking about. People who did that were rare. 

  After some time chatting with him , he finally went back to the basement and six hours later , still not finished with the campaign, they called it quits for the night because Dustin fell asleep on top of Lucas. 

  Apparently they were all gonna spend the night there , and Eddie (a litle hurt for not being invited ) started mentally preparing for his walk back , since his uncle was with the car. But Steve offered him a ride since he was taking Robin anyways. It was past midnight and Eddie didn't wanna end up eaten by an upside down monster , not after all they went through to kill Vecna , so he took it. 

  Robin and Steve spent the whole time arguing with each other. They were so close they seemed like siblings which was kind of cool, Eddie guessed. He would join the conversation uninvited every now and then due to his lack os capability to shut up ever. 

  When they got to Robin's house , he was nearly falling asleep in the backseat of the car. 

  _ Hey , are you alright ? _ Steve looked at him worried. 

  _ I'm good , I'm good. Just not excited to go back to the trailer just so I can have nightmares and shit dude. 

  _ Oh _ He paused. _ I've been having lots of nightmares too. Maybe...

  _ Maybe what ? 

  _ Nevermind. 

  _ Don't you dare leave me curious , Harrington. I get enough of that trying to figure it out if Dustin's got a real girlfriend or not , babe. 

  _ Well , I was just thinking you know... Since you're alone , and I'm alone tonight and we both have been having bad nightmares why don't you stay at my place for the night ? 

  Eddie considered the offer. It wouldn't be bad to have company. The trailer was unusually quiet because his uncle was traveling. What the hell? A cute boy was inviting him to his house. Who was he to say no ? 

  _ Yeah , that doesn't sound bad. 

  _ Alright then. 

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

    Steve tried to not say anything while he listened to Eddie rant about this new song a band had released or something. What was he doing ? What was fucking happening to him ? His heart was racing and he felt this weird kind of warm feeling when he thought about Eddie. It was almost like the feeling he had before, when looking at Nancy. But Nancy never looked at him the way Eddie did. He tried to take a deep breath. Steve though Eddie was a nice person , so he was just trying to protect this nice person from nightmares that he knew were terrible. Just that. Right ? 

  It was one a.m. when they got to his house. He unlocked the door and entered,  spreading his arms. 

  _ Welcome to the Harrington's home. _ He paused _ Or just one Harrington since my parents are never fucking here. 

  _ Not bad , not bad at all. Do you fancy people have anything to drink around here ? 

   _ Of course. 

  They drank their beers watching TV and chatting. He was still impressed at how natural it was interacting with Eddie. He always thought it would be awkward, but it never was. It was nice. But... Steve kind of wanted more. He was painfully aware of Eddie's hand lying beside him.  His voice cracked when he laughed, like he couldn't contain the joy. It was getting late, and Steve was tired. He was also tired of pretending his feelings weren't real , just because other people might not like them. Maybe it was time to do something. 

  So in a wave of courage, he turned to Eddie , leaned in and...

  _ Where are we gonna sleep ? I don't mind sleeping on the sofa, but I'm assuming you have a room. 

  _ Hum , yeah. I mean, yes, I do. _ Steve laid back again. _ Do you wanna.... Hum, go upstairs? 

  _ Sounds good to me.

  Steve was pissed with himself. What was he fucking thinking ?  He was just gonna kiss Eddie Munson ? And then what ? They couldn't date, could they ? He was something of a popular guy who found out he didn't have to be , and found people who loved him beyond that. And Eddie... Eddie was the outcast. The drug dealer , the rock and roll guy and according to pretty much everyone , a bad influence. 

  He was so much more than that, though.  When they talked , Steve could see how passionate he was about absolutely everything. It was almost beautiful to see him talk about what he loved. One day , Steve hoped he would talk about him that way, too. And the way Eddie was himself so much and showed it ? Like to not be who he was would hurt him way more than the bigoted townsfolk ever could. Steve was fascinated by that and even envied it a little. 

  They sat on his bed , now both in this awkward silence. 

  _ So...

  _ So... Do you have a spare mattress I can sleep in ? Or maybe a guest room since this place is so fucking huge ? 

  _ Hum , yeah, actually, I have both. But hum... 

  _ Sad you can't use the "there's only one bed" thing to sleep near my amazing self , Harrington? 

  Actually he was. 

  _ I just thought we both would have fewer nightmares if we slept in my bed. You know , knowing someone's there and all that shit. But whatever, man. 

  _ No , no , no. _ Eddie said , his eyes widening like he was surprise with the answer _ I would be very much pleased to sleep near your majesty , Steve Harrington, King of Hawkin's High. I think he is kind of cool, and not that much of an asshole. 

  _ Is that so ? _ Steve responded, smirking . Then maybe I should say that Eddie Munson, the Hawkin's High one and only freak , is kind of a cool person, too. Is he a weirdo? Oh yeah , but that's what makes him cool. 

  Eddie paused at that , like no one had ever told him that he was cool (which was probably not true since his D&D party adored him so much) and all of a sudden, the room was warmer and Steve felt electricity running through his veins. Probably 'Cause Eddie freaking Munson grabbed his shirt and kissed him. 

  It was obviously an impulsive decision, but by the time Eddie could've stopped to think about that, Steve was kissing him back. Eddies hands on his shoulder and his on Eddies hips. He thought he could stay the rest of his life like that. And he was so glad Eddie kissed him , when he had the courage to fight monsters but not to kiss his a guy. 

  There was no super romantic declaration or conversation about it at that moment. They were too tired , besides , they understood each other like others couldn't. They knew. So they fell asleep in Steves bed. Yes it was a cold night after a devastating adventure. But they were warm under the blankets , hugging, and while they had each other, things would be at least ok.

   While Steve had Eddie's smile and passion around him and Eddie had Steves caring and brave personality near him, they would make it day by day. Apart from the fact that they didn't know one another for that long, their love was as unstoppable as it was unpredictable and would burn for as long as the stars in the Hawkin's night sky would shine. 

_ By Robin to @tragedy-at-its-peak , love you tons

[sunnyie-eve]

16 | Rave'N

Series: Valentine Addams | Wednesday

Paring: (Xavier Thorpe x OFC Addams! Tyler Galpin x OFC Addams!)

Word Count: 1949

Warnings: jealousy, opening up about secrets

15. Asking.. | 17. Under Arrest

The day of the Rave'N, I spend time with some of the girls and get ready alone with it was time for the dance. "Coming." I say going towards the door opening it to see Xavier smiling as he eyes me head to toe.

"It's very you." He says as I come out of the room to join him in the hall. 

"Thank you. I love what my mother picked out." I mess with my dress. 

"You look beautiful." He puts his arm out for me to link mine with his. 

"Just this one." I link my arm with him as we walk to the dance. Everyone we passed would stare at me and said I looked great which surprisingly I liked. 

"What's Wednesday's plans tonight?" He asks me. 

"Her and Eugene are spying out the monster's lair." I tell him having no idea her plans changed last night when I said I was still going with Xavier.

"You look gorgeous. So gorgeous!" Ms. Thornhill says as Xavier and I head inside the dance. "Welcome to this year's Rave'N." She smiles. 

"Welcome to the Rave'N. You look amazing, Valentine. Glad you decided to join the fun." Weems smiles as we enter the dance. 

"Thanks." I give her a smile back then stop when out of view. 

"Done with the act?" Xavier laughs as I remove my arm from him. 

"Yes." I look around at the decorations, "White is a choice..." I chuckle. 

"Look at you!" Enid rushes over to me, "I love it. You look amazing!" She claps her hands.

 "You look amazing too. I love the jewels." I give her a genuine smile. 

"Thank you. Enjoy yourselves." She goes back over to Lucas.

"Well look at you." Ajax walks over to us with his date. 

I grab him by the arm roughly and pull him away from his date and Xavier. "Ouch. You're going to rip my arm off." He groans. 

"Why did you stand Enid up? You're lucky I didn't go looking for you to breaking a limb for breaking her heart." I glare at him. 

"I didn't stand her up... I sorta stoned myself while in the shower. I was embarrassed so I've been ignoring her." He sighs looking over at her. 

"Embarrassed? She would understand if you took the time to go talk to her and explain what happened. Instead you did the worst thing you could do. I don't normally care for others feelings but Enid is an exception. Explain to her and apologize or I will, and I mean it, will rip your snakes out of your head." I stare him down. 

"I will. I promise." He tells me and I believe so we go back to our dates.

"I got you a drink." Xavier smiles as I sit at the table with him. 

"Thank you." I look over at Enid looking a little sad.

 "You threaten Ajax?" Xavier laughs. 

"I did. Said if he doesn't apologize and explain everything, I'll rip his snakes out of his head." I mess with my drink. 

"Damn, that's a bit much don't you think?" He tilts his head. 

"No. I've tried killing someone's remember. That's why I'm here at this school." I remind him. 

"I forgot you used to do terrible things." He nods his head. "I'm glad to be here with you." He adds as I look around again. 

"It's not as bad as I thought." I make him laugh. 

"Let's have some fun." He stands up putting his hand out to me.

"Yo, check it out. Wednesday totally busted out of her cocoon." Ajax comes over motioning at her coming in with Tyler. 

"What the? Excuse me." I get up going over to her as she goes to the punch bowl. "I thought you were going to spy on the cave with Eugene. Yet here you are with Tyler..." I tilt my head confused. 

"Change of plans. When I heard you were still coming with the potential monster, I had Thing take an invite to Tyler. He also stole this dress for me." She explains to me. 

"Why ask Tyler though?" I look over at him standing alone awkwardly. 

"Because you like him, he likes you, and Xavier hates him." She explains to me. "Go talk to him. I brought him here for you." She tells me so I go over to him.

"Look at you." I walk up beside him making him turn to face me. 

"Wow, you look... beautiful." He smiles. 

"Thank you." I smile back. 

"Your date is looking at us." He looks over at Xavier with Wednesday before they walk off some. 

"Who cares. I told him I didn't want to ask him originally but I'll still come with him." I explain to him. 

"Can I show you something?" He motions out of the room. 

"Sure." He takes my hand leading us out of the dance to the trophy case.

"See that woman right there?" He points at one of the girls in the fencing photo. 

"Yeah?" I look at him confused. 

"That's my mother." He looks at me. 

"She came to Nevermore?" I turn my whole body to face him. 

"Yeah, I found that out looking through files. My father kept it from me." He sighs. 

"She's pretty. I see where you get your good looks from." I look back at the photo, "That's my mother." I point at my mom. 

"I see where you get your beauty from." I see him smile down at me. 

"Thank you." I look up at him. "Sorry, you don't know much about your mother. It must be hell. Especially when your father never wants to talk about her." I look back at the photo. "It is. Makes me feel alone." He sighs looking at his mother so I take his hand into mine. "I'm glad you felt comfortable with sharing this information with me." I squeeze his hand. 

"You're the only one I would tell this too." He squeezes my hand back. 

"Why did you agree to come with Wednesday?" I ask letting go of his hand walking backwards making him turn to face me. 

"To see you and hopeful to talk to you.. About the other day, I'm sorry. It's like I said, you make me feel like I'm losing my mind as well." He looks down at the floor. 

"You don't have to apologize. I understand that it could be confusing for you since I don't know things compared to most people. But I'm getting there, I think, to understanding my feelings." I let him know.

"We should go back before Xavier thinks I kidnapped you." Tyler makes me laugh agreeing. 

"Xavier told me what you did last year." Wednesday speaks up as we walk back to the dance outside the entrance. I look at Tyler and leave him to explain to her while I go find Xavier. 

"Where did you two run off to?" Xavier eyes me rudely.

 "Just a walk and talk. I was curious why she asked him and why he said yes." I kinda tell the truth. 

"Was his answer she wanted to keep an eye on you with me, and he wanted to see you too and piss me off?" He says annoyed. 

"Are you going to keep this attitude all night now that they're here?" I cross my arms. 

"Depends if they try to ruin our night." He rolls his eyes. 

"Well you're ruining our night right now. We're all supposed to have fun with each other. Wednesday is my sister and Tyler is my friend."

I watch the two come back in and go to the dance floor and I could tell Xavier wasn't going to leave this table at all. Wednesday sees me looking at her annoyed so she walks over pulling me out of my seat to join her and Tyler. 

"If I have to be here, you will enjoy this stupid dance." She says making me smile and we dance together while Tyler watches us. 

"Get in to it." I grabbing Tyler's hands making him dance with us while Kent, Divina, Ajax, Yoko and Enid joined us letting loose. "There you go." I laugh as he moves his body to the music. 

Enid grabs my shoulder and we dance together laughing. "He can't take his eyes off of you." She whispers to me then bumps me towards Tyler.

I end up going to take a break and see Bianca sitting alone, "Why aren't you with Divina and Kent on the dance floor?" I sit next to her. 

"I went to go check on Xavier because he was alone at the table. We had a tiff about you." She looks at me. 

"Why?" I ask confused. 

"He wanted me to use my powers to forget about you." She looks away from me. 

"That's funny coming from him since apparently you were using your powers when you two were together. For the record, I don't believe you ever did. I could tell you really liked him. Xavier's just a stupid teenage boy." I make her look back over to me. 

"You're lucky." She says making me tilt my head, "You don't care what people think of you." She sighs. 

"Actually, I think I do now and that scares me. I'm not used to caring." I sigh getting up going back. "Are you done whining?" I walk up to Xavier. 

"I don't want to interrupt your fun with everyone and Tyler." He gives me a rude smile. 

"Are you serious? I said I would still come with you if you wanted me to but you haven't left this table all night." I walk away from him and he grabs my wrist pulling me closer to him. "If you kiss me again, I will smack you so hard you'll feel the sting for months." I get myself free and going to Tyler. "Where's my sister." I ask him. 

"Went out for a second." He looks around. "Where's Xavier?" He asks. 

"Being grumpy still because I'm having  fun with you." I roll my eyes. 

"Maybe he should have joined so you'd have fun with him as well."

"It wouldn't be the same." I say making him lock eyes with me. 

We didn't even notice Wednesday join us and everyone else for the last song. "It's the last song come on." Enid shakes me to dance before joining the others. 

"Come on." I sing trying to make Wednesday and Tyler to dance with me but they don't just staring at me. 

Wednesday and I notice something drip on Tyler's shoulder and we see red. He looks at well then up before the sprinkler go off raining red. "Thank god I didn't wear white." I laugh as everyone runs. 

"They couldn't even spring for real pigs' blood. It's only paint." Wednesday tells us. Someone bumps into me and I almost fall and lose Tyler as people run around more. 

"Wednesday! Are you okay?" Thornhill asks as she has a vision. 

"Eugene is in the woods. He's in danger." Wednesday says making us run off to find him.

We run for through the woods shouting for Eugene and finally hear him so we run towards his voice then his screams. We end up finding his bloody body laying down on the ground. "No." We get down next to him and I get a vision of him laying in a hospital bed recovering. "He's still alive. My vision was him at the hospital. He's not dead." I let her know and I see some relief on her face. 

"Oh my god. Is he alive?" Thornhill randomly runs up to us. 

"If we get him to the hospital he'll stay alive." I tell her.

[tommytranselo]

honestly the more i think about henry the more i wonder how the fuck he lived that long. redundant post but like

the shower option in chapter 11. he walks into the bathroom, checks himself out in the mirror, says his silly little "gotta do better than that, old timer" line, THEN shoots. this exact kind of drawn out gloating got him SHOT six years ago; has he learned nothing? was he really so dead certain leo was unarmed? idk, i can maybe cut him some slack on the grounds that perhaps he didn't realize leo was in there at first, or maybe he figured not spoiling him was the best way to not get shot (stupid imo but whatever), but still. this seems to be a problem for him. and with contract #13 in early 1945, he averages close to 1 per year; leo would've been 19 or 20, probably. so clearly he's doing well for himself on that front, but i don't see how! and if you hide under the bed he'll check there and vito asks "why do you have to be so damn thorough?"...something doesn't add up. henry's only an idiot half the time? his brain works till he gets somebody at gunpoint then the adrenaline kicks in and he's compelled to be a total dumbass?

and then the absolute bullshit that is the gas stamps mission; as little effort as possible went into that. the jewelry store heist seems to have been joe's plan. the sand island hit was a simple plan, but it seems like it should've been solid (i guess murder really is his strong suit) if not for them standing super obviously in the window and blowing it. my point here is...has he gotten other people arrested or worse with his shitty planning? like in the 14 years of working for clemente before he met vito, how many times has stuff like this happened? who else's lives has he ruined like he did vito's?

and you know, i can excuse him being dumb in 1951 because he's had a very rough few months and also probably an earth-shattering epiphany wrt his priorities, so i'll cut him some slack. he's entitled to a little stupidity. i won't even hold the drug dealing against him because dumb as it was, it was motivated by feelings that warrant that kind of bullshit. but was something going on in 1945 to make him act like that or is he just like that all the time. was it clemente & luca being up in arms about sidney pen surviving a previous hit? was that it? was he just under a lot of pressure at that specific point in time and made some bad decisions, or is he just always this much of a dipshit and never suffered the consequences until he came into contact with vito "doomed by the narrative" scaletta who's just so cosmically fucked it completely overrode even henry's unbelievably potent lucky bastard energy just by virtue of being near him