#i had a good week so the creative juices are flowing lol

[vampirecatboy]

what if i took Rhys and made him a cowboy outlaw

he's still extremely scottish but

yeehaw ye wee cunt

[woeswrites]

Yandere Will Graham

Warnings: Yandere themes, Obsessive behaviors, Brief mention of rape/rapist, Dubious consent (mention of sex while under the influence), etc.

Notes: I am trying to be active again (fingers crossed). Headcannons are a really easy way for me to get the creative juices flowing. Don't be surprised if a few more come out after this one lol.

You were a recent survivor of an attack

No, it wasn't the Chesapeake Ripper

It was just some other wannabe serial killer trying to get his rocks off

He had a dumb, stereotypical name too

The midnight slasher? midnight butcher?

Something like that

The media wasn't very creative with it

Whatever his name was, he'd clearly had a type

Young men

All of a similar stature

With the same hair and eye color

All known to known be up at all hours of the day

It was a pretty open and shut case in Will's eyes

He was a plain and simple lust killer

Most likely white and in his 30s-40s

Classic closet case turned homicidal

He hadn't seen why the FBI was so stumped on the whole thing

The only real trouble was the lack of DNA evidence

He'd been real good at cleaning up after himself

Will knew he'd slip up eventually

This wasn't the type of guy to be so well organized for long

Well--

Does being murdered by your most recent victim count as a slip up?

Because that's exactly what happened

He was called to the scene with the rest of the team

The sight of you trembling, covered in blood, and standing over top of that creep was his first impression

You met his eyes and he was unable to pull away

Something about your tear blotched face held him captive

Jack tasked him with asking you questions about the events at hand

Normally this would have annoyed Will

He wasn't the talking type

Let alone someone sensitive enough to make such a traumatized person feel comfortable

But something in him didn't mind so much

Maybe it was the way you looked so vulnerable

Or the fact that no matter how much he pushed the idea away, he saw himself in you

An innocent man turned murderer under the right circumstances

"I'm Will Graham and I'll be asking you some questions."

"God, okay. I'm Y/n. Can't really say it's nice to meet you."

Will tried to start off slow

Ask the basics before moving onto the more pertinent information

You'd answer to the best of your abilities (considering the circumstances)

It took Will a second to jot down your responses

He'd get a little too caught up in your features to notice you'd stop talking

"Sorry, what was that? You got off work at 9?"

There was something admirable about your attempts to infuse your story with a bit of dry humor

Likely a coping mechanism

But Will found himself smiling a bit at your quips

By the time he'd finish up with you he'd felt a little attachment form

Sure the case was over on his end

But it didn't stop him from asking Jack about you

At least a couple times a week

"How's things going with that self defense case? Y/n's...?"

Will showed up the next day with your case fill on his desk

The sticky note stuck to it warned about annoying Jack with too many questions

He'd spend all night re-reading the details

Without noticing he began slipping in and out of re-enactment mode

Imagining you on top of him

Knife in hand

Crazed look in your eyes

He tried to shake the image away

He shouldn't be doing this

It wasn't right

You could've died that night

His guilt ridden thoughts did nothing to lessen the tent that had formed in his pajama pants

He tried to push the idea of you out of his head

Usually he'd have more control over himself than this

His resolve was strong at first

He'd hidden the manila folder away in the depths of his lower drawer

Telling himself he'd drop it

That worked for a couple of days

That was before he started dreaming of you

Events that he hadn't preformed himself took ahold of him

He became your attacker that night

He chased you

He ripped apart your clothes

He was the one who you fought off

He's the one who you thrust that knife into

And he loved every second of it

Wait--

No, he couldn't

This was just his empathy disorder

Yeah!

He was just in character

This definitely wasn't him

He would never want to do any of that stuff

And he'd prove it

He had memorized that file from front to back at this point

It wouldn't be weird that he'd known your address

He was an FBI consultant

It was basically warranted

Will found himself picking out his best clothes that night

His newest jeans, tailored shirt, the works

Not for any particular reason

And his bed was definitely not littered with rejected articles of clothing

This was just going to be a simple checkup, it's not like it really mattered what he looked like

He showed up on your doorstep with the nicest bottle of wine he could find

"Will? Is that you?"

"Uh, yeah it is. Would I be able to come in?"

You welcomed him in, albeit a little confused

"I thought my case was cleared..."

"That's not what I'm here for. I just wanted to check in on you."

You smiled at this

And Will felt his heart ache

You'd invite him to join in on your sorry excuse for a dinner

He'd never accepted anything so fast before in his life

It didn't take long before the two of you got into the wine he'd brought

It was innocent enough at first

Just drinking and talking

You'd mention how life was after the attack

Will shared a little about his experience with GJH

Its the first time he had ever felt so utterly connected with another person before

But then the two of you got a little more than tipsy

And Will found himself leaning in

One kiss turned into another and another

Will felt a sense of static overtake him

Every touch between the two of you sent shivers up his spine

He felt the strong urge to consume

Before either of you knew it your clothes were now in a heap on the kitchen floor

You woke up the next morning with a splitting headache

Oh-- and an FBI agent in your bed

Shock was an understatement

That was when the memories of the previous night flooded back

Will woke up at the loss of warmth

Last night was the best he had slept in years

You wrapped tight in his arms, bodies perfectly intertwined

His heart sank at the look of regret on your face

"We definitely shouldn't have done that. I think you should leave Will..."

He couldn't just leave now

Not knowing what he did

That you two were made for one another

He'd try to calm you down

"Y/n let's talk about this."

You weren't having it

Mentioning how inappropriate this all was

You'd shove his clothes into his arms

Will tried to console you

Not realizing why you were so worked up

You both did just have the best night of your life after all

You'd back away but he'd continue approaching

"C'mon I know you don't really want me to go. Let's just take a second before we make any rash decisions"

"We aren't doing anything. I want you to go. Now."

Something about him coming over while you were still recovering from your distress and it all leading to this...

It just didn't feel right

Will tried to approach once more but you pushed him away

He couldn't help the smile that made its way onto his face

"Push me. Go on, make it hurt."

You were absolutely bewildered

He reached out and grabbed ahold of you

His grip was almost crushing

Like he was holding on for dear life

"I won't leave you alone that easily. Fate brought us together for a reason. You feel it too right? We're one in the same. We're each other's destiny."

He looked crazed, sweat slipping from his brow

It felt just like that night all over again

The knife in your hand as your attacker bled out

Only now Will took his place underneath you

[ecoamerica]

Watch the 2024 American Climate Leadership Awards for High School Students now: https://youtu.be/5C-bb9PoRLc

The recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by student climate leaders! Join Aishah-Nyeta Brown & Jerome Foster II and be inspired by student climate leaders as we recognize the High School Student finalists. Watch now to find out which student received the $25,000 grand prize and top recognition!

[seaweedbraens]

I think I’ll go ahead and come off of anon xD. Mostly cause I have thoughts and would like to have someone to talk to lol.

Tbh, my emphasis on her fatal flaw being self sacrifice is probably a bit of a knee jerk reaction to how it tends to be portrayed in the fandom at large. ‘Cause it seems a common thing to portray her hubris as arrogance and I don’t think she’s very arrogant at all.

If I remember correctly she never really tries to place herself above anyone else. Heck, at the end of TLO she says that Percy saved the world and he corrects it to “us”. She’s even the first person to give credit to Tyson at the of SOM.

How it does manifest the majority of the time tho (at least in my opinion) is via reckless overconfidence. There are 3 instances which are usually used as examples to her nearly dying from her fatal flaw. The sirens, the sphinx, and Arachne. Of those the ones that are more overtly arrogance are the the latter two (tho I personally hesitate to include the sphinx because the dialogue to me sounds more like she’s having a neurodivergent breakdown but that’s another discussion). Everything else tho? The sirens, the manticore, the sky, the helicopter, fighting after getting stabbed, etc? Heck, volunteering for quests in general? Either reckless overconfidence or her just moving without thinking in defense of someone else.

TLDR, it’s not that I think she isn’t prideful, I just think she’s more likely to die to protect someone else.

Also, I think it’s kinda funny you say she’s not one to forgive when I personally think she’s one of the most forgiving people in the series. She forgives Luke and her dad, after all, even if, as you said, she never quite forgets. The only exception is probably Hera, which, I mean, is fair xD

- (Formally) A’s oath anon.

PS. I do write actually! Nothing for PJO yet tho not for lack of trying. I’m still in a bit of a writing rut unfortunately. Not to say I’m not interested in a collab with @glove23. I just don’t know how effective I’d be.

oh my GOD i love this!!! completely agree on her pride manifesting as reckless overconfidence, it's very much a sense of "i could do it and i could do it BETTER" that reminds me of the sirens' vision she had in the sea of monsters. honestly, her explanation of it hits the nail on the head - i think she says something along the lines of "but sometimes you just see the bad stuff/what if i could take everything down and rebuild it from scratch' which is so interesting to me!! i've said this before about her more emotional reactions, but annabeth, the supposed 'logical one', acts more on raw emotion than just about anyone. she gets angry and mad and JEALOUS, and she doesn't even attempt to hide it - that's what contributes to the way i write annabeth, which is pretty much as an emotional disaster. i love her so much

GOOD CATCH on her being forgiving; i really do think ive been confusing canon!annabeth with the version i have in my head?? either way, thank you for reminding me! annabeth is better than me frfr

i'd love to see what you've written, or if you ever get around to writing for pjo! i understand writing ruts, and i wish i had more advice on how to get those good ol' creative juices flowing, but all i can say for now is: don't force it. when you get into the mood, the words will f l o w.

@glove23 could probably help w that, tbh. they've been writing fics EVERY WEEK for what feels like 90 million years. i could never.

[melodygatesauthor]

Regarding my February Challenge

Alright all, it's been a good run, but I'm burnt out. BEFORE YOU PANIC (I totally assume people were grabbing torches and pitchforks at this point /j) I am still planning to do the following fics:

Marc Spector/Reader - Exes to Lovers

Kylo Ren/Poe Dameron/Reader - Love Triangle

Revenant/Reader - Jealousy

Santiago Garcia/Reader - Pretend Relationship

Kylo Ren/Reader - Clothes Wearing

Steven Grant/Reader - Had a Crush as Kids

Steven Grant/Reader - Walked in on

Santiago Garcia - Forbidden Relationship

I really wanted to give it a good run, and I think 13 fics constitutes as a good run lol, but I'm tired y'all and I'm getting stressed and burnt out. So here's what's gonna happen with the fics above (below the cut to save space)

For the next several weeks, every Wednesday I will be posting a new one-shot with those prompts until I'm done. I'm still going to be calling them part of the Feb fluff and fuck and they might still be v-day themed...it's ok lol.

The health of the future fics depends on this happening. I found myself getting stuck on fics that were less interesting to me and thus the entire thing would come to a stand still because I just didn't want to do it.

ALSO, my chaptered fics have suffered because of this. I've cut back on posting for those and the chapters have been shorter and I'm just not happy with the work I'm putting out in some cases and that's not who I am as a writer.

So what did I learn? Even as a writer who has averaged 90k words a month, this was an unachievable task. I had a lot of fun coming up with the challenge, the ideas, and it DEFINITELY got the creative juices flowing for a while so I'm not disappointed at all. I wanted to make more fics in fandoms I was less familiar with, and I did that. I've opened myself up to more communities through this.

I also have a few requests to work on!

What's going to happen with the prompts you aren't using? I'm so glad you asked.

I'm going to make a post with all of my prompts that I'm not using so if anyone wants to then they can.

Thank you for coming along on this learning journey with me! I'll post the prompts tomorrow.

Love,

Mels <3

[andiwriteordie]

I just read your new byler Christmas fic and I am obsessed! I guess I just wanted to let you know that I love all of your writing and I was wondering if you had any tips on writing in general? Like, how do you write so much? You are a productivity god <3

ahhh!!! thank you so much!! 😭❤️ i'm so glad you enjoyed it and that you enjoy my writing!!!

ok, so here are a few things i can think of that i like to do when i write:

writer's block is everybody's worst enemy, right? i have this kind if internal understanding that i'm just going to write whatever i feel inspired to write to keep the creative juices flowing. like there are some days where i absolutely hate what i'm writing, so if you have to switch gears, then absolutely don't feel bad about doing that! (that said... be careful bc that's how you end up with 20+ wips... like me lol)

for longer fics, i've realized it's a really good idea to outline what you want to write—and the more detailed you are, the better. this is a PAIN IN THE ASS because it takes forever, but it's so worth it. i spent about a week outlining i know better (but you're still around) and i was so annoyed, because i just wanted to jump into writing it! the entire outline ended up being about 90 pages though because i just went through and wrote out as much as i could think through about the plot of each chapter. and so, i hit writer's block when writing chapters 10-14, and i really relied on the ideas i'd written down and for myself and was able to push through and finish those chapters!

so, this is a very niche and highly nerdy thing that i do, but it's something that i think has helped me in terms of characterization and writing perspectives of different characters. i usually use the enneagram type descriptions as a base point for writing characters. i enjoy the enneagram a lot when compared to things like mbti, because it really focuses on the core motivation behind what people do instead of just external actions or character traits? so, for writing fanfics, i'll try to go through and identify what characters are on the enneagram (i.e. i believe mike's a 2 and will is a 9), so then when i'm writing things, i'll try to think through and do some research about that personality type and how they'd interact with other people, why their interactions are that way, etc. this, ofc, is just a starting point, but i've found it incredibly helpful as a baseline that i can then adapt to specific characters and their unique experiences!

anyways, i hope those helped! that's all i can think of right now, but if you have more specific questions, i'd be more than happy to answer any of them! 😊

[sarasa-cat]

This past week has been a creative rollercoaster and I'm not the sort of person who enjoys or seeks out rollercoasters.

This past Monday: Cranky as fuck with the fact that a project that has been plaguing my brain since 2018 finally needed to be addressed. Why? Because it was taking up space in my brain and demanding attention, which meant that it was acting like a demanding 5 year old (or one of my very communicative cats) who wouldn't leave me in peace while I was trying to focus my mind on work for *OTHER PROJECTS THAT ARE MORE IMPORTANT TO ME*. Like, flm, amiright? Lol. orz.... I didn't have any answers but addressing and acknowledging the fact that I was frustrated as all hell left the door open for me to allow myself to notice interesting synchronicities that would stream through my environment during the next five days.

This past Wednesday: Downright ugh with the fact that the important-to-me creative projects I was trying to focus on (when not being interrupted by the demanding nonsense mentioned above) were all feeling stale because I none of these other projects have been given the attention they needed over the past N years (for a large value of N) and just looking at them felt like standing in a bed of weeds where a once cultivated garden had been. And not a nice bed of flowering weeds. A noxious and itchy allergy provoking mess of weeds that looked sort of pathetic. Acknowledging that sense of ugh--staleness in words was a very good thing because THAT allowed my brain to step back from the fact that the situation was precisely what it is (as described in this paragraph) which then primed my brain to do two important things: (1) just let go of the state that the projects were current in or have previously wanted to go in and (2) redesign this (actually very familiar-to-me) space in a new fresh way based on a rush of "let my environment talk back to me" inspiration that occurred on Thursday.

Yesterday, aka, Friday: Some totally random synchronicity sparked an "ah-HA!" in my brain to address the first bundle of problems from Monday (which is the project I absolutely never asked for that keeps annoying my brain like a 5 year old or a persistent cat while I'm trying to work on other things). Actually, it was a series of "Ah! Ah-ha! Ah-HA! Oh, and also AH-HAA!" but by then it was pretty late and I officially called my workweek done (for reasons of personal sanity and household sanity+harmony). So, I jotted down a series of notes in my phone's notes app while epic gaming was occurring in the TV/Media room (just reread those notes right now and they still make sense, phew, relief). And then another moment of "OH lol, ah-huh? Hm!" hit very late in the evening while on my professional instagram account, which led me to order a book that literally arrived on my doorstep while I was brushing my teeth this morning. (Not sure how I feel about all of the implications there, but let's just ignore that for now.) Skimmed through book today over coffee and contemplated... Hm.

Today, Saturday: And now I just feel sort of exhausted from the emotional rollercoaster of this past week because I am not the kind of person who likes rollercoasters or seeks them out and I normally prefer to just be in a steady state of Focused Flow where the Inspiration is Juiced But Steady.

We have a 3 day weekend and, for reasons, I want to focus on all of the household/adulting/chores/family-time stuff that belongs in a weekend -- or, better yet, a 3 day weekend! Which means we have time for extra activities that we keep putting off! Also, my weekends are all about me recharging my well of inspiration, which means spending my down time doing random things -- reading whatever I feel like reading, maybe playing video games, or maybe being lazy and just seeing what my brain decides to do to fill in the boredom.

Also, I have some fanfic plans for the weekend as the Final Fantasy Kiss Battle is going on over on dreamwidth.

And I think I have taken enough notes such that I can pick up my train of thought on Tuesday when the time comes to poke at (1) Projects I Consider High Value but also (2) The Project I Never Asked For That Won't Leave Me Alone So, Fine, Whatever, I Guess It Is Mine Now (with biggest stereotypical 1980s/90s-youth Gen-X epic eye-roll here).

[ecoamerica]

Watch the American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 now: https://youtu.be/bWiW4Rp8vF0?feature=shared

The American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 broadcast recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by active climate leaders. Watch to find out which finalist received the $50,000 grand prize! Hosted by Vanessa Hauc and featuring Bill McKibben and Katharine Hayhoe!

[fandomregression]

are you planning to update your stranger things agere fic anytime soon? i am so desperate for more little!robin content

i want to but i've been struggling to write for about a week. i had a week long migraine that only started letting up yesterday afternoon and it's a crazy week at work because we're suddenly three people short-handed, so writing has been on the back burner. once i get the good good agere creativity juices flowing again i'll update, but unfortunately i'm forced to be an adult lol

[jungwnies]

*head peaks out behind the door*

hehe hi maeby baby, sorry i’ve been a little mia these few days i have been busy preparing some stuff

i don’t remember if i have mentioned this before but not too long ago i started a small business (i made air dry clay stuff >.<) and i signed up to be part of this event in my city where a bunch of small businesses come and they sell their products (my sister is also going to be selling second hand clothes that we’ve been trying get rid of for months now) so basically i make the pieces, wait for them to dry, sand them, paint them and then varnish them non stop so I can have as many products as possible 🤧

im a lil excited but also nervous like i hope people buy stuff hagshs (pls)

also on a little side note my birthday is on august so I’m trying to come up with ideas for my “party” which is just a get together with my friends buT I’ve been suffering cause last year I managed to invite like 6 friends and it was perfect but this year like i think only like 2 friends are in the city so low key im sad about that ;(( (i fee like it sounds like a stupid problem but for real like where did all my friends go lmao)

n e ways, hope life has been treating you good

take lots of care babyyyyyy

mwa mwa mwa

-🧸 anon

hiiiii sorry i replied late, i read this a few days ago and completely forgot to respond because i was in the city ㅜㅜ

starting a business (not going to lie) seems like a lot of work so i wish you the best on your journey and i hope your business gets a lot of recognition and sales! also clay pieces? i wish i could sculpt but i can't for the life of me, my creative juices just don't flow there but i'm sure yours are so cute and if i was there i would definitely buy some from you LOL

i hope people buy stuff from you as well you deserve that <3

i don't know if you're birthday has already passed or not but happy birthday and also same idk where my friends have gone but i do hope you have or had the best birthday ever even if it was just 2 friends i was there in spirit ! it'll be fun as long as you find ways to manage that with only two people in attending + my spirit LOL

also yes life has been a treat and i actually went to go see a broadway show like a week ago and it was really cool and fun and now i want to see more but i also want to see seventeen so i'm not sure which to pick LMFAO

[thatseventiesbitch]

@einsteinsugly said: You're welcome! I've been around so long, I've even read your deleted fics. I don't remember much, don't worry. Just a sequence where they didn't want their son to have the initials ELF.Oh, and out of sheer curiosity, are a couple of your projects outside of the T9S verse (I remember you mentioned one within it)? T9S is too OOC for me personally to write in a positive light, as my Zombie verse clearly shows, but another perspective would be interesting.Because although I do feel Eric and Donna would probably pull through having a kid so young (if they decided to keep the baby at all), there would be some major bumps along the way. And if those major bumps aren't smoothed out by the time Leia (Lucy in my Zombie verse, bc Leia's so OOC) is a tot, they're going to have to deal with a kid who has some emotional scarring. Nowhere near the caliber of Hyde, but to the caliber of Donna, most likely. Which is why Donna wouldn't go through with a pregnancy so young, imo, unless the cat's let out of the bag and she's pushed against a wall. She doesn't want to repeat history, if you will.Anywho, I released my main Two Worlds Apart universe (which is mainly E/D focused, but since they get so close to J/H, J/H are prominent too) out into the wild when T9S was announced, bc I can write (and most ppl within this fandom can too) a far more satisfying universe. And since I concocted it in 2020 and it involves an accidental pregnancy in the mid 80s (with their first daughter Kate), it makes more sense, to me. And my other E/D Little Women verse, also with an accidental teenaged pregnancy, takes place in the 1860s. With much less reliable birth control methods and other...circumstances, to say the least.Yeah...my ideas are all over the place (some things are finished and settled, others are not), and mainly stuffed into one main verse. Eric's an 8th grade history teacher on the South Side of Chicago and an amateur photographer/documentary filmmaker, and Donna's a journalist (and later co editor) for the Chicago Sun-Times. And they bash their heads together and work together a lot. And Jackie, with her talk show and all, does some great PR for whatever projects they concoct.

Oh my god, yeah I went through my FF.net profile a few weeks ago and cleared out a few old, old stories. Honestly, it’s just hard for me to re-read those stories I wrote in high school without cringing. But hey, for a kid they were damn good! And I could have had worse hobbies than writing stories all of those years. I didn’t feel I was doing anyone a disservice by taking them down though, lol.

Oh yes, I have a whole folder full of story ideas that are in various states of completion. Most of them have nothing to do with That 90′s Show. I did get back into the fandom a few months ago when I saw the news of the spinoff and my little Eric & Donna lovin’ heart was so happy to see that they ended up together with a kid, and that Topher and Laura will be guest starring. That set the creative juices flowing again, I guess. So I’m actively working on a long fic that incorporates the That 90′s Show universe (what we know of it, so far) but it’s still a fanfic and I’m taking my liberties like anyone else! I just cannot stomach the purported Jackie/Kelso storyline, for example. Jackie and Hyde are so much more fun to write, so that’s what I’m writing. Naming her Leia is also throwing me for a loop... struggling hard to come up with a way that Donna would ever in a million years agree to that lmao. I am glad the original showrunners are the ones producing That 90′s Show - I wouldn’t want it any other way - but shit like this reminds me how frustrating they can be with the details. They always were.

To be honest, I have always kind of headcannoned that Eric and Donna would have an unexpected/early pregnancy. Prior to That 90′s Show being announced, I also had several story drafts sitting around where they dealt with Donna being pregnant. I talked about that a bit in an essay I write about That 90′s Show’s premise. In short, I totally agree that there would be some major bumps along the road. That’s what makes it an interesting concept to explore in fanfic! I think Eric and Donna have the foundation to weather something like an unplanned pregnancy, but hey, lots of other interpretations exist as well. I imagine that a lot of folks are going to be inspired by That 90′s Show - even if they’re not watching or not fans of the direction it’s taking. If that results in more fanfic goodness for me to read, I’m going to count it as a win!

I’m adding your Two Worlds Apart story to my reading list! It sounds fascinating. I’m from Chicago and can totally imagine the characters ending up down here.

[lostlittleturret]

[ quick life update below! Tldr, this month has not been kind but it's getting better and I'll finally get some responses out that I owe this weekend c: ]

[ so, as I have posted previously, my sister was diagnosed with breast cancer. earlier last week, she has both breasts removed and so far, all is look great! She's recovering pretty quickly but will still need to go through chemo. But so far so good. Hoping it stays that way. I got to see her and some other family two weeks ago... and my parents had "sinus issues"...it was covid that they never tested for, bc that same week, a day before we were about to leave I got sick, and day of us driving back home, I tested positive. -A- so I had spent all week being a useless potato on the couch and bed lol. But I'm feeling MUCH better and productive! Hoping to get those creative juices flowing and bust out the responses I owe. Been dying to write for so ding dang long. Can't wait!! Thank you all for being so patient 💖💖💖 ]

[get-your-fics]

Okay so! For your joker request thing!!!! My time has come!!!!! I once read this freaking fantastic fic on a website long gone and I’ve tried to find it ever since but essentially reader was an actress in Gotham schmoozed at a party with Bruce who she was kind of dating but not really into since she thought he was a rich playboy etc etc and walks home and gets kidnapped by the joker and forgive me this has been literal years but there’s some non con some Stockholm syndrome going on after being kidnapped and then she’s kind of torn between joker and Bruce both after getting to know Bruce better she kind of actually likes him but finds herself still drawn to the joker and at one point Joker carves his name into her thigh with a knife and like clearly if that’s not what you’re into whatevs I just wanted to help with getting creative juices flowing with the concept! I feel bad that it’s from an old fic from a dead website I can’t find anywhere but the concept is good and you asked for ideas and here it is ! Also zero pressure if this isn’t at all your thing just thought I’d send it in!

Your Switchblade Smile and Your Battle Wound Scars

Pairing: Keoghan!Joker x reader

Word count: 768

Warnings: Stockholm syndrome, kidnapping, violence, blood kink, allusion to non-con

A/N: the part where he carves his name into her thigh was actually what i was most inspired by from this lol, so i decided to write my interpretation of that. thanks for the idea!

“Good news, pudding.” He snuck up behind you, placing his hands on your shoulders. “Today’s the day I set you free.”

You whined at that, shifting against the rope binding you to your chair. Weeks ago, you would’ve been thrilled at his announcement, but now it only made you scared. You’d grown so used to the dark, to the restraints holding you down like an embrace. What would you do without them, when he threw you back into the chaotic world on wobbly legs like a newborn fawn, round doe eyes wide the same way he’d found you?

What would you do without him to guide you through it, the way he had since he’d taken you?

He chuckled at your distress. “Don’t worry, dear. It won’t be forever.” He rounded the chair to stand in front of you, taking up the whole of your vision. “But I need to send a message to Batman. I need him to see what I’ve done to you.” He brushed his fingertips along your cheek in a strangely soft caress, tilting your face up to look at him. “How I’ve shaped and molded you in my image.”

You leaned into his touch, closing your eyes. He retracted his hand, and your eyes shot open. You tried to follow him, but the rope held you back. His eyes raked over you from head to toe. The dim overhead light cast grim shadows across his face. Before, you would’ve found him menacing, but now you were only comforted by his presence.

“How about I leave you something to remember me by in our short time apart?” He whipped out a switchblade, the light glinting off of the sharp edge.

You barely even flinched. After everything he’d done to you during your stay with him, a knife paled in comparison. Besides, you trusted him now. Any pain he caused you would only be for your benefit, even if you couldn’t see the bigger picture the way he did.

He got down on his knees in front of you, pushing up the hem of your shorts higher on your leg. You spread your legs wider, giving him easy access to wherever he wanted.

He looked up at you and grinned at your compliance. “This will only hurt a little bit.” Then, he brought the knife down on your leg.

You squeezed your eyes shut as white hot pain burst through your leg, setting your nerve endings on fire. You gritted your teeth to keep your screams in, nearly biting your tongue off in the process. Your hands scrabbled at the arms of the chair, and your nails scratched at the metal. The rope dug further into your wrists, chafing and rubbing the skin raw.

“Stay still.” His tone was soothing, a stark contrast to the pain he was inflicting on you. “It’ll be over soon."

Your head started to swim, your vision going blurry as you teetered on the edge of consciousness. In the very back of your mind, there was a voice that sounded a lot like yours screaming at you that this was wrong, that this shouldn't be happening.

“Stay with me.” You could hear him over the ringing in your ears. You thought he slapped you, but you were too out of it to be sure.

You pushed the voice down and focused on your breathing, drawing in deep breaths before exhaling through your mouth. Your chest rose and fell at an even pace. He was testing you, breaking you to see how strong you were. You couldn’t let him down.

When your vision cleared, he was done. You stared down at your leg. Carved along the entirety of your inner thigh, stretching from your knee almost to your crotch, was the name ‘Joker.’ Your entire leg throbbed as blood trickled from the crude lines down your skin and pooled on the seat beneath you.

He cackled, his high-pitched laughter filling your ears and echoing in your head. There was a boyish, almost childlike sense of glee in his eyes. “Now you’re stuck with me forever, sweetheart. There’s no getting rid of me now."

You sat up a little straighter, proud that you were the reason he was happy. He lowered his head and swiped his tongue along the cuts, reigniting the sting in your leg. When he looked up at you, your blood coated his lips a bright crimson, and he licked it away.

“You were so good for me.” He settled in between your legs, his hands creeping towards the apex of your thighs. “I think you deserve a reward."

[mango-bango-bby]

Mango my beloved here i am with my mafia request.its just a bunch of random things i thought of but I hope that you like it lol but my creative juices are not flowing atm. Also i hope its okay if i send in both a sfw and nsfw requests. Okay i chose these prompts but its completely fine if you want to keep some out! 💎 🍙 🍭 ”🧁 = “You’re so pure and beautiful”. Dabi and hawks are probably rivals but the only thing they can agree on is that reader is to pure for this world and needs to be protected. You can also make the reader kinda scared in this if you want and she carries always carries a plushie with her for comfort. Hawks carves his name on one side into you with his feather and dabi burns his name on you. Hawks gives you a ankleband or a collar with his feather so he knows what youre doing and where you are. They do let reader walk around if they want but most of the time they would want to do everything for you. What you want to go into an other room? Sure princess here let me carry you. You want to eat? Sure thing doll sit on my lap and il spoon feed you yk the good stuff. When they kidnapped you they gave you your own room to adjust faster and i see hawks as a bit of an overprotective yandere so for the first few weeks they probably had some sort of chain around your ankle so you wouldnt run away. These are just random ideas on how they would be haha hopefully you can make something out of it XD also can we use princess and bunny as nicknames thank you!

-🍪🍼

♡ Two Is Better Than One ♡

(A/N: Guess who is back with more headcanons!! This request just had so, so many ideas in it that I decided headcanons would fit better than a full on fic. But if you have an idea for a fic related to these headcanons,, please do request it!! I loved making these 💖)

Content Warning ⚠️: Yandere, possessiveness, mafia au, some mentions of violence, the third and forth headcanons include marking and injury to reader please be aware of that one!!!

Summary: What it’s like to be the darling of mafia bosses Dabi and Keigo (Yan!Dabi x GN!reader x Yan!Hawks)

❥ Mafia!Hawks, mafia!Dabi, mafia au

Masterlist ➸ ♡

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

♡ Dabi and Keigo spoil you so much! You’re their precious darling after all. They have a lot of money as they’re very powerful in the mafia, and half of that money is spent on you. A lavish room, designer clothing and jewelry, anything you want! Keigo gives you so many gifts in hopes that that will make you less afraid of him. Dabi just gives you gifts to see you all pretty and surrounded by pretty things.

♡ They’re both very possessive however they don’t mind if you walk around the secluded mansion that you and they live in (as well as a few of their underlings but they aren’t allowed near you). You can go wherever you want with permission, although you are never allowed in the basement. The basement is where Keigo and Dabi do their ‘work’ so you’re never allowed to even look down there.

♡ Dabi and Keigo have only ever hurt you one time and that was the same night that they took you. They both decided they wanted to mark you with their names, but knowing how much it would hurt they tried to get it over with as soon as possible. They took turns marking you, Dabi burning his name into your left thigh as Keigo comforted you. And after that Keigo carves his name into your left thigh with one of his sharpened feathers as Dabi tried to comfort you. They spent a few minutes afterwards giving you words of encouragement and cleaning up your wounds slightly.

♡ Of course after that you were terrified of both of them. Dabi had wanted to stay with you but Keigo was the reasonable one for once and convinced him (not easily) that you needed time. However they had left you in your already decorated room, one of the things in that room was a rabbit stuffed animal. You had held it against you the whole night and after that it became your comfort item, often being with you during your first few weeks/months of captivity.

♡ They had given you your own room as a place where you could go calm down or hide away from the screams from the basement or looks from their underlings. You can even close the door and lock it, although Dabi and Keigo both carry keys on them. The room is very comfortable most of the room was soft and padded, because of that it almost feel infantilizing. Things like stuffed animals, pillows, blankets, silk curtains, and even a soft yet extravagant bed canopy are all in your room.

♡ Dabi keeps a chain around your ankle for the first few weeks. It’s long enough for you to walk around your room in however that was all. Keigo thought you could walk around on your own although Dabi thinks otherwise, him needing to know that you won’t try to run away. Even the ankle bound is expensive, soft padding on the inside to make sure it wouldn’t dig into your soft skin.

♡ Dabi and Keigo aren’t to strict, although there are a few things that they won’t except. Don’t ignore them, don’t try to escape, don’t go down into the basement, and don’t speak to any of their underlings. Speaking of which if any of their underlings talk to you, you’re meant to call for Dabi and Keigo right away. They’ll take care of them, they’re never supposed to interact with you.

♡ They’re very sweet to you, often taking you with them everywhere they can. Even in meetings, sitting on either Dabi or Keigo’s laps. Although if they think you’ve been bratty or misbehaving lately, you get to sit in the floor next to them although they’ll allow you to rest your head in one of their laps. Either of them is probably with with you at all times, unless they’re ‘working’.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

Thank you for reading, darling!!

[gallavichthings]

This week’s interview is with an author who, despite not having written anything recently, lives forever in our hearts and minds. Let’s give a warm welcome to Kerri, aka horror_business, aka @damnnmilkovich, author of, among others, Dismantling Summer, a witch in wicker park, and the classic The Casanova Catering Conflict.

GT: Tells us a bit about yourself

K: My name is Kerri, I’m obsessed with my two cats, Grimm and Ghoul, and I have a lovely fiancé that I’ve been with for almost nine years. 

I work full time as the general manager of a restaurant which is why I haven’t written anything in awhile since it swallows me up fifty-five hours a week lol. I did most of my writing when I worked reception at a tattoo shop....there wasn’t much to do when the artists were in a session because it was an appointment only shop so that’s when I started dabbling in writing and posting.

I really love music and I know that sounds cliche but...I can’t even count the amount of live shows I’ve been to. Easily close to if not over 100. I’ve been going to concerts since I was 14, I’ve travelled to different states for festivals multiple times and went to warped tour every single year. I’m super into pop punk, metal and 2000s emo (because I am a 2000s emo kid...#imold). When covid hit and concerts stopped I was devastated, it’s like the only thing I *do*, music festivals are the only vacations I really take from work. But concerts are back baby and I got tickets to three shows already for the fall!! Vaxxed and ready to mosh!!

GT: I'm happy for you! I'm excited to go back to concerts as well, and I'm not even anywhere near as much of a music fan as you are! Does music inspire your fics?

Also, you're absolutely not old, I'm way older and I'm not old either 😜 No age for fandom.

K: Music is absolutely a huge inspiration for me. My fic “Dismantling Summer” was inspired by the song “The Boys of Summer” by the Atari’s, and the title of that story was taken from a song by The Wonder Years. Most of the chapter titles from Casanova Catering Conflict are songs lyrics or song titles lol. Music is meant to inspire you and motivate you and I guess it really got my creative juices flowing.

GT: What else inspires you to write?

K: I mean really just Ian and Mickey and their stories. Shameless is the only fandom I’ve ever written for and it was their love and development that really inspired me. I wrote all my fics before Ian and Mickey had their happy ending in canon and they deserved the type of love and support that I believe I represented in my fics.

GT: What kind of fics do you write more often?

K: Most of my work is AU’s. I have four one shots that are canon compliant but my longer, chaptered fics are AU’s. I would really describe my work as like feel good fics. Like I stated before I tend to lean towards more AU’s and I’m light on angst. There’s still some angst and sadness present but I feel like it doesn’t last long and I move on pretty quickly. They deserve to be happy at all times lmao.

GT: Agreed. Do you have a preference for writing Ian or Mickey?

K: I tend to write more from Mickey’s POV then Ian’s, tho I do switch it up! Dismantling Summer is all Ian’s POV, a witch in wicker park is all Mickey, but in Casanova Catering Conflict I switch the POV between chapters.

Mickey is my absolute favorite character ever, not just from shameless either, from anything, so I think that’s why I like writing from his POV more than any other. I just love getting into his head and trying to figure out what he would say and how he would react to certain situations.

Mickey’s a complicated guy, but he’s pretty easy to understand once you *get* him. It’s so easy to portray Mickey incorrectly, he seems to be a pretty misunderstood character (especially for the show writers lmaooo). Even tho I tend to write Mickey a little softer around the edges than he is in canon, it’s because I write him as someone who has realized his full potential and has accepted his sexuality so a lot of his anger in that regards has already dissipated, so I can write him as the confident, driven man he is and not the terrified, ashamed boy that he was.

GT: Lol tell me about it

What's the most difficult thing about writing them?

K: There’s a LOT of trauma to wade through with the two of them, not just as a couple but as individuals. So I think one of the hardest things to navigate is how to write them carrying these burdens still but to not make it their whole story. Their trauma has defined who they are as people and it’s defined their entire relationship so it’s hard not to dwell on Ian’s mental illness and exploitation as a teenager or Mickey’s abusive and oppressive upbringing since there is SO much to be explored there, but I think fic should be about them healing and growing and having a beautiful future for themselves regardless of these factors that have tried to do EVERYTHING to keep them from being happy.

Yes, writing dark and depressing and heavy stuff can be fun and enjoyable and we allllllll love the angst, but we love the healing just as much lol.

GT: That's absolutely true.

And what's the best or most fun part of writing them?

K Their chemistry. Their passion. Their love. They’re funny and sarcastic and smart and wild. They’re complicated and multifaceted and just all around great characters to work with and write about. But the best and most fun part of writing them is just writing about their love for each other and their families.

GT: Do you include other characters from the show when you write?

K: Occasionally. I’ve had Lip, Fiona, Debbie and Mandy have quick appearances in some fics, but for the most part I just stick to ian and Mickey

GT: What about OCs?

K: I don’t tend to do much with OC’s. The two used and somewhat fleshed out were Charles in Casanova Catering and Mickey’s mom in a witch in wicker park.

GT: Tell me a bit about your writing process.

K: I am probably the least organized writer out there lmao. I don’t exactly have a writing process. I don’t outline, I don’t really have plans, I just have vague ideas and scenes and maybe some quotes that I want to eventually get to so I have to connect the dots, a lot of my ideas come to me as I’m writing. I tend to write in order, don’t bounce around a lot and I would usually post the chapter as soon as it was done and work on the next one afterwards. I’m extremely undisciplined and lazy with my writing technique but hey! It got the job done lol.

GT: And done well!

Can you tell me a bit about your history with fanfiction? When did you first get in touch with it?

K: Oh jeez. The first time I read fan fiction was back when I was like 15/16. It was for this band that I was absolutely obsessed with. This was before like....shipping real people was frowned upon (for good reason) but I’m old, remember, so this was before ao3 when I got all my fic from livejournal. To this day it’s still some of the best fics I’ve ever read....I can remember some of the stories vividly! Wish I could go back and read them but there was a huge purge on livejournal years ago and all was lost.

I fell off from fanfic for years after that and didn’t get back into it until I started watching Shameless in 2012 and got into the fandom on here in like 2014. That’s when I fell back into reading fic and the first time I’ve ever written anything for fun in my life. So....thanks Shameless for unlocking a passion and talent I didn’t know I had lol

GT: What are your favorite seasons of Shameless? Or episodes. Or both.

K: Season two and season four have special places in my heart. Season two is just.....ugh....really the true beginning of Ian and Mickey’s story. It’s fun and cute and exciting and they’re ADORABLE. In general, season two seems a little lighter than the other seasons....if you can say that about shameless at all lmao.

And alternatively, season four is another favorite because of how *heavy* it is. The storylines are depressing and dark, but it’s compelling and heart wrenching and the development and life changes that happen to the characters shape the later seasons. Plus, season four is THE BEST Mickey season hands down, no questions asked.

Favorite episodes tho....ugh that’s so hard!!!! Weirdly 1x04- “Casey Casden” because it’s just pure chaos in the best way.

4x11 because.....come on....king Mickey.

7x10...dock scene supremacy.

The wedding episode!!!!! ❤️❤️

GT: Casey Casden, yes! That's one of my favorites too, but people don't usually mention it.

I actually agree with all of yours.

What did you think of the ending?

K: Overall, I think it was somewhat of a missed opportunity. There was so much potential to have old characters come back for Frank’s funeral, Fiona and Sheila and Mandy for example. It just would have been nice to have that catharsis. It was too open ended, we didn’t get closure on a lot of shit that was happening. Just seemed rushed.

But, as far as Ian and Mickey’s storyline goes, I was pleased. They have the business and the apartment and their communication skills have gotten sooo much better. They have a bright future ahead of them and I’m thankful. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

GT: What are your headcanons for their future?

K: Mickey and Ian have a beeaaautiful future together. The business takes off and they buy that new truck and hire a few guys like they were talking about. They find a nice, homey apartment that they both feel comfortable in with an extra room for wayward Gallagher’s....and eventually a child! I don’t think they would go the surrogate route, I truly believe they would adopt, and not just because they’re afraid of genetics, but because they truly want to help.

They thrive, they’re comfortable and have a little extra cash to take a vacation once every few years, they’re happy, they’re IN LOVE!

GT: It's perfect.

If you could go back and change one thing in canon, what would it be?

K: 3x666 😭😭😭 that changed everything

GT: What do you think would have happened otherwise?

K: I mean, so much would be different, Mickey’s entire storyline in s4 wouldn’t have existed because Svetlana wouldn’t be there. Would Ian still have run away? I mean his mental illness was going to make itself known eventually, but it probably wouldn’t have been AS traumatic if he was around his family and not in the army and stripping at clubs. Would Mickey have ever come out? Would he ever have the courage to stand up to Terry like that?

Everything would be different. So, as much as that episode truly fucking sucked, it shaped their whole story.

GT: I can't rewatch it though. And I specially hate how the correctional rape was completely shown while loving sex scenes between them get cut or have weird angles.

K: Oh absolutely!! It’s a terrible episode to rewatch and the showrunners are being blatantly homophobic, you can’t show their loving, intimate moments but can fully show the most traumatizing? K.....

GT: Tell me about your experience as a reader then. What are your favorite tropes?

K: I’m a sucker for a good ol’ friends to lovers au, anyttttthiiing that has to do with supernatural stuff like werewolves and vampires and witches etc lol. I love college au’s for some reason?? I’m really fond of au’s mostly but I looooove canon divergent fics as well. I always need some slight angst !! Because the resolution is always so sweet.

Really just anything lmao, as long as it’s well written and catches my attention from the jump I’m gonna enjoy it. There are so many good fics that have been written for this fandom like we’ve truly been blessed.

GT: We have!! Such a diverse collection as well!

What kind of fics do you avoid?

K: Anything with a big power imbalance, like student/teacher or boss/employee (SHITW is exempt from this rule) because it just sketches me out. Age gaps, many underage fics (kinda hard to avoid these all the time since they started their relationship as teenagers :/) or anything that’s just like...... icky 😂😂. Also, not to be a douche, but anything that’s not well written or doesn’t have paragraph breaks or just not using proper grammar I can’t do it lol.

GT: What are some of your favorite fics and/or writers in the fandom?

K: Ahhh so many!!! It’s hard to choose, I feel like my favorites are the fandom favorites lol. My favorite authors are pretty well known.... @loftec, @palepinkgoat, @thevioletjones, @goodkwuestion​, anomalously, andchaos, mellow_yellow, delgay.

My favorite fics? Oh man this is gonna be hard to list them all, but the ones I frequently go back to are...

LIFE, OR SOMETHING!!!

Our stubborn love

This is the road to ruin

Is there somewhere

Rookie Mistakes

OSHA Compliant

Until It Bleeds

Ahhh so many more!!

GT: I know, this fandom has so many great fics, it's nearly impossible to make a list.

What about your favorite from your own?

K: a witch in wicker park is definitely my favorite and the best thing I’ve ever written lol. It’s just....ugh....that fic was entirely self serving and I wrote it for ME which is why I think it’s so great. It’s not my most popular work, but it’s the most well written and evocative piece I’ve ever produced.

GT: How do you feel about comments?

K: Love getting them, terrible at leaving them lmao. I go back and read some of the comments I’ve received every so often just to remind myself that people like my stuff and I contributed once upon a time. I still get new comments on my old works too and that’s always nice to see.

I need to get better at leaving them, I used to be so good at leaving comments too!

GT: What kind of comments are your favorite to get?

K: Any comment is great!! I obviously love the big, long ones where they point out everything specifically that they liked and point out metaphors that I wrote or descriptions that were really good. But even just the ones yelling at me are good too lol.

GT: What's next for you? Do you have anything in the works?

K: I unfortunately just don’t have the time or the energy that I used to when I wrote all my fics, life is getting in the way. I have a few WIPS and even some completed chapters of a story that will never see the light of day, and I still have sooo many ideas floating around in my head so the creative thoughts are there but the drive isn’t.

It’s sad because it’s something I really, truly enjoyed, but it’s been so long since I’ve written anything that the idea seems intimidating now. I’m not ruling it out completely, but as of right now I have no plans to re-enter the fic writing game. :(

GT: I totally get it, it can be daunting to write when you haven't for a while, especially long fics. If you do write some more, I'm sure there will be plenty of people excited to read anything you have to offer, but if you don't, we'll always be grateful for what you've already given us. 💜

Ok, that was my last question. Send your fans a message now. 💕

K: Thank you so so much for your support and your continued love of my work!! The fact that triple c is something that is so cherished and recommended to this day is insane to think about. Thanks for the patience and the kind words and the interest. I can’t believe the comments and kudos I continue to get on everything even tho I haven’t published something in about three years. It means more than you know 💕💕 thank you!

And thank YOU so much for contributing so much to the fandom and doing these writers spotlights. It's so nice to actually be reminded that people care, you’re doing something special here!

[rosedevents]

When inspiration strikes ...

I’ve been on a roll with my writing over the past week or so and whenever that happens, I pretty much have to go with it.

This week, I had some comments from a reader about how they were sick and that someone who gifted them a work deleted that work. I said I’d write them a gift, fully thinking that was some sort of distant future promise. Well, once the creative juices started flowing it basically went like this:

Too bad Draco can’t help them feel better ...

Oh! What if I did a story about Draco taking care of Hermione while she’s sick?

What would that look like? Would she be hopped up on medication? Would it be like when people videotape their family members after dental surgery? 

Oh ... wouldn’t it be much funnier to have Draco be hopped up on something?

LOL, what if Draco is in the hospital and Harry is there with him because they’re auror partners and Hermione walks in and Draco’s all drugged out …

And then my mind was whirling and I couldn’t really focus on work that afternoon. In about 2-3 hours, minus work and making dinner and all that, I had a gift story: “we’re-alive sex.” 

Hopefully, the wave of inspiration is going to carry over into this week. Here’s what I’m working on:  

Just posted Chapter 12 of The Enchanted Smutbook. I feel like I haven’t been giving this story enough love, distracted by shinier objects or something. I’d really love to sit down one day and knock the whole story out. Maybe today is that day ... 

Starting on Chapters 12 and 13 of The Curse of 100. The comments blew up on this story last week, probably because I posted two chapters. I really love the engagement I’m getting so I’m going to shoot for two chapters again this week. 

Starting on Chapter 13 of The Slytherin Toy’s Christmas Wish. I cannot believe the OG story got updated over the weekend. Luckily the writer said it was fine for me to copy cat, because I am pretty far down the road by now. I’m struggling with how to make this story work how I want, though. I could also use a day – or seven – just to focus on this story and knock it out. 

Starting on Chapter 4 of New Year’s Eve Wedding Week. My poor Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fans have been getting the shaft since I jumped into Dramione. (The couples are actually very similar - Jemma and Grant/Hermione and Draco. You’ve got a super brainy, good girl with a bad boy who can be twisted every which way. I could probably tweak  my stories from each fandom to fit into the other.) I was super excited by what I came up with for Chapter 3 and need to find some inspiration to get to the actual wedding chapter. My sideplots are driving me more than the main plot, and that can’t be good. 

Takes deep breath, makes more coffee, gets back to writing ... 

[wheresmynaya]

I can't remember if you've already talked about this but how do you writer "filler" chapters? I really wanna get back to writing vb au once I'm less busy (it's been almost a year and I'm still stuck on chapter 2 ndjshfjs 😔) and I know what the next main plot point is but I feel like there needs to be a lil bit of filler (like establishing more character dynamics n stuff) before that

Oh yeah, good question. It's still something I struggle with at times lol.

There's a couple things I do, but it depends on what the plot point is that you're trying to get to. If you're able to break it down into smaller plot points you can use those as your stepping stones instead of trying to come up with space holder

For example, I had to get to a scene with Brittana arriving in Lima. I couldn't just go from them bantering on campus to suddenly them in a completely different place so I broke down the transportation part. I added a scene with them on a plane then I broke that down further and added a scene with them going through the check in process. I didn't spend ages on it - it was maybe a page and a half - just enough to get them from one place to another. Mix in a little dialogue and scenes like that will feel completely natural and breeze by. If you're really good, you can use that dialogue part to further character dynamics so that filler ends up furthering your story progression instead of just being filler.

Or you don't have to have filler at all. Depending on what plot points you have to move between, you might not even need a filler scene. Instead, you could use a time jump? Change the day, change the weather, change the time: all things I've done before when I get stuck lol. I just call it a day in the story and move on.

Another example, QB!Britt has a game on Friday. I don't feel like going through the entire week leading up to the game and I don't have anything interesting to throw in because it's just a boring old school week. So instead of starting the chapter with it being Monday, I time jump and say it's Thursday. That way I can write about football practice or team dynamics which can both further character dynamics. It's not a whole lot on story progression but it helps in other ways; filler doesn't feel like filler AND you get to the scene you need to get to without getting bored or frustrated.

Sorry, I'm not sure how helpful this is but I hope something here gets your creative juices flowing! Good luck!

[hologramband]

Never The 1

(gif crds cryinghimbos) 

Alive!Reggie x Fem!Reader

Word count: 4.5k

A/N: This is taking place after the boys cross over, I like the little theory where “crossing over” means just “crossing over” back to life or something, idk we gonna roll with it tho lol. 

The song I use in this is  “Never the 1” by ROSIE

The hallways were busy as you and Flynn walked side by side to your next class. This dreary Monday was almost over, just one class stood between you and hanging out with your friends. 

You knew how to sing, but you never thought you were any good, so you tended to keep to writing lyrics here and there, but mostly helping with Flynns sides of things when it came to advertising the bands events and other things, helping the band in a few different ways. 

“So, (Y/n), how have things been going with you and Dylan? Is he starting to be more okay with you spending more time with the band?” Flynn started a conversation while waiting for you to switch your books at your locker. 

Dylan was your boyfriend of seven months, things had been good between the two of you until you started wanting to spend more of your time with Julie and the boys the last month or so. You had an image issue before you met Dylan, never really being confident in yourself, you liked hiding in the background. Julie and Flynn had always included you in everything they did, but something just finally clicked with Dylan, he made you feel special. 

When the band took off you were ecstatic, growing close with each of the boys, especially Reggie, your personalities meshing really well, and Alex, him becoming like a brother to you.

You still made time for Dylan, hanging out with him when you weren’t helping the band, even invited him to practices when you went, but for some reason he wasn’t a fan of hanging out with your friends. 

“Eh, he’ll come around eventually. He can’t expect me not to have any friends other than him.” You shrugged your shoulders and closed the locker door, the two of you changing topics and continuing to class. 

When you get there a smile instantly grows on your face, this was your favorite class of the day since you shared it with both Flynn, Julie, and the boys. 

“(Y/n)! Hi! Are you coming to practice today?” Reggie smiled as you sat in your seat across from him. 

“Well duhh, wouldn't miss it.” You smiled back and looked around at the rest of the group, falling into a conversation with the rest of them. 

Your phone buzzed in your pocket, signaling you got a text from someone, looking down you saw it was Dylan. 

-Hey babe, something came up so I, won’t be able to go to Julies with you after school, sry :/-

You frown at the message, he hasn’t been to a single practice yet, “something” always coming up, but send a short reply saying it was okay before the teacher, Ms. Adamson walked in and started her lesson. 

“Alright class, for the next project I want to get your creative juices flowing,” She clasps her hands together and moved to the board, switching her powerpoint slide to the instructions to the new assignment, “by the end of the week I want you all to have an original piece prepared to present or preform for the class.” 

You felt your eyes widen and your body stiffen, the main reason you haven’t ever let anyone hear you sing was due to your crippling stage fright. 

You glance around and see the rest of your friends smiling and high fiving each other, seeing this as another opportunity to bring a light to the band. 

“Is this a group project?” Luke raised his hand and asked, only to be met with a smirk and a shake of the teachers head. 

“Unfortunately, Mr. Patterson, this is an individual project, consider it a time for everyone to showcase what talents they have and are keeping hidden,” Ms. Adamson laid her hand on your desk and sent a subtle wink your way. 

She had walked in on you one day in the music room while you were messing around with some new lyrics for the song the band was working on.

You sunk in your seat a bit more and looked to see the rest of your friends looking your way, slight confusion on their faces, meaning they also saw the wink your teacher had sent your way. 

The rest of the lesson was focused on the details of the project and her giving ideas on what could be done other than music, such as spoken word, a painting, etc. You spent the rest of class figuring out what you could do other than sing, but had a feeling Ms. Adamson would accept nothing else from you. 

The bell rang, signaling the end of the day and everyone stood from their chairs and collectively walked to their lockers, getting ready to walk to Julies for practice. 

You made your way to your own locker, smiling when you saw Dylan standing to the side of it. 

“Hey, Dyl.” You went to give him a kiss, but he moved his head so your lips landed on his cheek instead. 

“Sorry I can’t come today, I bombed a test in math so Mr. Douglas is making me stay after with a tutor for the next week to fix my grade.” He shrugged his shoulders and his eyes were darting from place to place. 

Deciding not to comment on his weird behavior, pushing it off as just embarrassment of failing the test. 

“No worries, you’ll make it to one eventually,” You smiled at him and saw the crew walking towards you, everyone always walked to Julies together after school. 

Dylan noticed your gaze shifting and stiffened at the sight of all of them. 

“Hey,” You placed a hand on his arm, confusion growing, “everything okay?” 

He simply shrugged your hand off. 

“Yeah, yeah, just gotta get to the library, see ya.” He left a chaste kiss on the top of your head as he rushed in the opposite direction of your friends. 

“What was all that about?” Alex commented as he swung an arm around your shoulders. 

You were still in shock that he ran off like that, but again blamed it on the bad grade, as dumb as it was. 

“Not sure,” you mumbled, quickly changing your attitude, “you guys ready to head out?”

With nods all around you all started the short walk to Julies. 

--

Practice went great, the band trying out new songs that Luke and Julie had written, you fixing a few of the lines so the song flowed a bti better. 

During one of the breaks, everyone decided to sit and talk about the upcoming project. 

“What are you guys gonna do? Not being able to play as a band?” You wiggled your eyebrows at the group and they all kinda shrugged. 

“Oh I know what i'm doing! “Home is Where My Horse Is” will finally get the recognition it deserves!” Reggie stretches his arms along the back of the couch that the two of you were sitting on, setting his feet on the table in front of him. 

Laughter erupted from everyone, already knowing that was what Reggie would do. 

“What about you,” Alex turned the attention to you, “Ms. Adamson sent a pretty pointed wink your way when explaining it was gonna be individual.” 

You felt your cheeks burn a bit and you shrugged your shoulders. 

“Eh, you know how she is, I’m sure I’ll come up with something.” You looked around and realized that your answer hadn’t satisfied the group. 

Your phone again buzzed with a text from your mom saying you needed to get home. 

“Oh, sorry guys, mom needs me for Dinner,” you stood quickly. 

“Ah, saved by ‘mom’,” Julie winked. 

You laughed as you gathered your things. 

“I’ll walk you!” Reggies exclaimed as he jumped to his feet, meeting you by the garage doors. 

This was a pretty normal experience for the two of you, Reggie and you always enjoying the walk together, being more open with just the two of you rather than the whole group. 

“Lets go, partner,” you winked at the reference to his growing love for country music. 

It wasn’t a terribly long walk, but after the sun went down it was always safer to have someone with you. 

Another thing that happens when the sun goes down is the reminder that you forgot a jacket, a slight chill running down your spine. You had hoped that you covered it up with a couch, but within seconds an extra layer of warmth was thrown across your shoulders. 

Reggie had taken his flannel from his waist and given it to you, you thanked him as you pushed your arms through the sleeves. 

“So, how are things with you and Dylan? You seemed upset earlier when we got to your locker.” Reggies glanced at you.

“Oh, you know, it’s fine, he’s just been a bit distant lately, i’m not sure what’s going on but i'm sure we’ll get through it.” You shrugged and looked at your shoes, suddenly finding them very interesting. 

“There’s something else, c’mon, (Y/n),” Reggie slightly bumped his shoulder into yours, causing you to look up at him, a slight smile from the action on your face, but falling instantly. 

“Um,” you look back at your shoes, “it’s really nothing, silly really.” You shrugged your shoulder again, stopping as you got to your driveway. 

The real reason you had been so shocked when Dylan walked away earlier was due to him not telling you he loved you, he had always said those three words before parting your side, no matter the circumstances, for the last four months of your relationship. When he didn’t say them this afternoon it took you by surprise. 

“Well, you know i’m always here right?” Reggie moved a finger under your chin, forcing you to look up in his direction. 

“No matter what it’s about, whether you need to rant, cry, or share something really cool, I’m always here to listen,” He smiles down at you, causing you to crinkle your nose and smile back, bringing him into a short hug. 

“Thanks, Reg. It really means a lot.” You pull away and walk the last few steps to your house, hesitating at the doorway, turning back as Reggie spoke again.  

“Have a good night, (Y/n),” Reggie smiled at your retreating figure, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“You too, see you tomorrow!” You waved and walked in the door to your house, pulling his flannel a little tighter once the door closed, then shaking the thoughts that were entering your head away. 

Reggie was just a friend, plus you had a boyfriend, Dylan might be distant right now, but he was still there…

--- 

The next few days had gone by quicker than you anticipated, it now being Thursday and you still didn’t have a plan for what you were going to do in class the next day. 

You had tried writing a few lyrics, but nothing felt right, you couldn’t find the right inspiration for what you wanted to do, you honestly didn’t even know what you wanted to do. At this point your game plan was to fake being sick so you wouldn’t have to stand up in front of the class, gasping like a goldfish out of water. 

You sat in your last class of the day, all your friends talking about what they were doing tomorrow, Alex had a drum solo with a few lyrics he had come up with, Luke singing one of his songs he was able to whip up within an hour, Julie doing the same, Flynn had made a really cool beat she was going to freestyle to, and Reggie had Home is Where My Horse Is. 

Ms. Adamson had given you the day to work and finalize your projects for tomorrow, and you were starting to feel overwhelmed. 

The bell rang and snapped you out of the anxious trance you had been in.

You walked to your locker and tried to figure out what you were going to do, you had under 24 hours to figure something out now. 

“Hey, (Y/n), you coming?” Reggie and the rest of the group were at your side, waiting to see if you were going to walk back with them. 

“Um, I think I’m gonna stay back today, I really need to focus and figure out what I’m going to do for tomorrow,” You ran a hand through your hair and let out a breath, “Plus I think Dylan is tutoring in the library so I might see if he can help or something, I haven't really much from him lately.” You lightly laughed at how sad that sounded, and shook your head, waving to the group as you walked towards the library.

“Let me know if you need anything!” Reggie called out and you sent a grateful smile his way. 

You didn’t see Dylan when you walked in, so you choose a secluded spot in the corner, trying to get some work done. 

After 30 minutes of staring at the blank paper, you give up, deciding to call it a sick day tomorrow and pray that something comes to you this weekend. 

As you pack up your things you scan the room again, curious if maybe Dylan had just come in without you noticing, but frown when you don’t see him. 

You start drafting a text to him that you were looking for him, but stopped when you heard a book fall from the shelves a few rows away, and a moan that sounds quite familiar. 

Slowly, you walked down the aisle paralleling where you heard the noises coming from, and froze by what you saw through a break in the books. 

Dylan was here after all, but he had his hands all over someone else, lips on someone who wasn’t you.  

A tear escaped from your eye as you turned away, deleting the text message you were going to send and starting a new one. 

-Hey, I was looking for you in the Library. I found you… I left the bracelet you got me on the table by your aisle. -

You removed the small charm bracelet the boy had given you after your three month anniversary and placed it on the table, hit send, and blocked his number. 

Tears were flowing freely now, as well as your thoughts.

Did he ever care? 

Was I just a joke to him? 

Did he ever love me? 

Why wasn’t I enough? 

You found yourself in the school's music room, taking a deep breath as you sat down, pulling out your song journal. 

Inadvertently, Dylan had given you just the inspiration you needed for your song. 

Your fingers flowed freely on the keys, finding the right melody for the emotions you were feeling. You played and wrote the notes down, some lyrics came now, but you were focused on the melody. 

The janitor eventually came around and told you that you had to leave, and you rushed home, not wanting to forget the lyrics you had in your head. 

You skipped dinner and ran straight to your room when you got home, the tears starting again as your phone flashed with a text, not due to the sender, but the picture on your lock screen. 

Angrily you opened your phone and deleted all the pictures of the boy you had loved, not wanting the reminder that you had trusted him flashing  in your face anymore. 

While deleting the pictures you ran across one of you and Reggie messing around in the garage, the next one of Flynn and Julie with their arms wrapped around you. 

You smiled and set your lock screen as the picture of the girls and you, your new background the picture of you and Reggie. 

Feeling a bit better, you went back to work on writing the lyrics that you had been thinking of. 

When you finally finished, you saw the clock flashing 4am at you. 

Having all your emotions finally written out on paper made you feel worlds better, and you found sleep easy after, but just too easy at that. 

When you woke up the next day you saw that you had already missed the first few classes of the day. 

Reggie, Julie, and Flynn had all called and left text messages asking where you were.

Cursing, you got up and dressed, throwing the first things on that you could find, one item happened to be Reggies flannel he had lent you the other day, giving you a sense of ease when you breathed in his cologne.  

When brushing your teeth you saw your reflection and gasped, no amount of makeup would cover up the red puffy eyes that blessed your face. 

With a sigh you splashed some cold water on them, helping a little, only being able to tell now if someone was really looking. 

Not having the time to focus on this you gathered your things and ran to school. 

You walked through the doors and took note of the time, and made your way to the lunch room where you found your friends at their usual spot. 

“Well, well, well, there she is,” Flynn called as she saw you approaching. 

You smiled at the girl and sat down, trying to keep your head down, hoping they wouldn’t take notice of your appearance, but to no avail. 

“Babe,” Julie turned your face towards her, “what happened to you?” 

Before you could answer you felt a hand on your shoulder, turning to see Dylan standing there, anxiously rocking back and forth on his feet. 

“Um, can we talk?” He scratches the back of his neck, looking from your friends to you. 

“There’s nothing to be said,” you whisper and turn away from him, but he just sat in the empty seat in front of you. 

“You haven’t been answering my texts, just let me explain, please.” He was getting stressed, you weren’t giving in like you typically did. 

“They won't go through, I blocked you,” you shrug, “and there's not much to explain, you lost me the second you decided to make out with Sara in the library, sure was a pity you got caught, wasn’t it?” You shot daggers with your eyes as you spoke, a slight gasp from Flynn came from your side. 

Dylan felt the hostility from the band and shifted in his seat, why he was still here was beyond you, but the bell quickly ended the conversation. 

You stood and tried to walk away, just for Dylan to catch your wrist and turn you towards him. Before he could get a single word out you felt yourself word vomiting.

“Why wasn’t I enough for you?” the question that had been ringing in your head since you caught him finally came out, a single tear running down your cheek.  

His mouth opened and closed a few times, and you just nodded and pulled your wrist away from him, only a few steps away before Reggie had you pulled into his arms in a tight hug, soon joined by Alex and Luke, then the girls. 

They pulled away and you wiped your tears, smiling at them. 

“C’mon, we gotta get to class.” You muttered, Reggie slinging his arm around your shoulders, not an abnormal thing, but it was just what you needed in this moment. 

Class was going by quickly, the rest of the band performing their pieces, Reggie just sitting down from singing HIWMHI.

“Alrighty, last, but certainly not least we have (Y/n),” She smiled at you and you stood, making your way to the piano in the corner, the band questioning this since they only thought you knew how to play the guitar, just wait until they hear you sing. 

You clear your throat and start on the keys, taking a breath and letting the music take over. 

“Met you in October

You talked sweet and a little slow.

And I thought, mmm 

I think I, mmm”

It was obvious to almost everyone in the room that this song was about Dylan, what most of the room wasn’t aware of was that this was a break up song. 

“Warm eyes and your hands cold

You sang soft like a sore throat

And I thought mmm

I think I mmm

Cause I know you're dangerous

I saw through your games and played them

And I hate myself for letting you in”

You look at Ms. Adamson before continuing to the chorus, he eyes already gleaming with pride that you chose to sing. You tried to send a mini apology for the curse word that was coming in the next part.

“Now I could write 10 songs 'bout 9 ways you fucked me over

Only took you 8 second to forget 7 months together

We were up till 6 in the morning

5 ways a week

You said 4ever then left before I counted to 3

Loved you a little 2 much but I was never

I was never the 1”

You took a deep breath and played the keys a bit before moving onto the next part of the song. 

“You mеt me on a Friday

I dressed up likе a first date

So you'd think, "mmm

I think I mmmm"

And I knew we loved when

You stayed past 2 am

And I thought mmm

Does he think mmm”

You looked up and opened your eyes, making eye contact with your friends, Julie and Flynn having small tears in their eyes, knowing this song was written with fresh heartbreak. 

The boys all had looks of shock written on their faces, this being the first time hearing you sing, and the emotion ripe in your voice just making it that much better. 

Reggie had a hint of a smile on his face, pride radiating from him watching you blossom in front of him.

“And I knew you were dangerous

I saw through your games and played them

And I hate myself for letting you in”

You closed your eyes and launched into the chorus again, really letting the emotion carry you through the rest of the song. 

“Now I could write 10 songs 'bout 9 ways you fucked me over

Only took you 8 seconds to forget 7 months together

We were up till 6 in the morning

5 ways a week

You said 4ever and left before I counted to 3

Loved you little 2 much but I was never

I was never the 1”

You took your hands from the keys and repeated the last line again, just your voice filling the crowded classroom. 

“Loved you a little 2 much, but I was never, I was never the 1”

You held out the final “1” and then stepped back from the piano, applause breaking from across the classroom. 

You shyly courtesy and quick step it back to your seat, your stage fright quickly returning. 

“I would like to thank you all for your participation today, and another thanks for being vulnerable with everyone in the room. Everyone was absolutely amazing, I'll have grades up by Monday, have a good weekend!” Ms. Adamson dismissed the class and all your friends' eyes turned to you. 

“WHY DID YOU NEVER TELL US YOU COULD SING?” Luke exclaimed with wide eyes and flailing hands. 

You giggled a bit and shrugged your shoulders.

“Girl, that was so good, did you write it all last night?” Julie shook her head in amazement. 

“Uh yeah, inspiration hit and I just wrote until it was finished.” You shrugged and wring your hands together, not wanting to focus on the moment that inspired it all. 

“Um, are we going to the garage to hang? I can go get my things,” You tried to change the subject by standing and starting towards your locker, Reggie hot on your heels. 

“(Y/n)! Wait up!” You stopped and waited for the boy to catch up, continuing as soon as he was by your side. 

“You really have a great voice,” Reggie gushed as he looked down at you. 

A blush crept on your face as you shook your head. 

Reggie leaned against the neighboring lockers to yours as you gathered your things, looking up at him when you saw his muscles tense. 

You then followed his gaze to see him looking at Dylan walking on the opposite side of the hall, arm slung around Sara, like he used to with you. 

You returned your gaze back to your locker, a new rush of emotions flowing through you. 

Reggie lightly rested a hand on your arm and pulled you into his chest much like he had a few hours prior. 

“He’s an idiot for letting you get away,” He mumbled in your hair. 

“No,” you pulled back slightly, “I’m the idiot who thought someone like him actually loved me.” You wiped a stray tear, Reggie then grabbing each of your hands in his own.

“Don’t you ever think like that, he was rude, careless and just plain stupid for not seeing what he had right in front of him.” 

You look up at the boy in front of you. 

“(Y/n), you are the most beautiful girl I know, inside and out. Your thoughtfulness for everyone around you is absolutely amazing, you care for so many people, you do so much, and don’t ask for anything in return. You are a whole package, and anyone who doesn’t see that is blind.” Reggie finished and wiped the tears that fell while he was talking. 

You leaned back into his chest and wrapped your arms around his torso, feeling grounded, safe,  in a way you never did with Dylan. 

“Thank you,” you muttered, leaning back and feeling butterflies in your stomach, “Um, Reggie, I don’t want to start anything right now, I need some time to figure me out-” you started, but were interrupted by Reggie shushing you. 

“Hey, don't stress about this, you take all the time you need, I promise you I’m not going anywhere.” He smiles down at you, you return it tenfold. 

“Hey! (Y/n)! What would you think about a feature on our next song?” Luke comes running up beside you and Reggie, ending the moment that was occurring. 

“Um, i’ll have to think about that a bit,” You smirked, Reggie grabbing your bag and placing it on his shoulders, wrapping an arm around you as the group walked out of the school. 

“By the way,” Reggie whispers in your ear, “I’m loving the way my flannel looks on you.”