#i've wrapped so much of my life around this fandom for the past two years. probably an unhealthy amount. but i don't know how to let go

[glorious-blackout]

Milex/TLSP/AM Fic Recs 💖

I was inspired by @puzzlebeanficrecs' recent posts to share some of my all-time favourite fics in this wonderful fandom. This is by no means an exhaustive list as the sheer number of amazing works I've read by incredible writers over the past couple of years is too many to count, but here are some fics that I keep going back to time and time again 🥰

1) Somewhere Darker by @elorianna

Alex hasn't slept properly for weeks. His days are plagued with writer's block, and his nights are haunted by strange and frightening dreams. Progress on the second Puppets album has all but ground to a halt.

Miles is haunted too, by the nights that he and Alex have shared, and the boundaries that they've crossed. Now, he's caught in a game of pretence which neither one of them seems destined to win.

But all is not as it appears, and when a working break away from LA turns into a strange misadventure, Alex and Miles must each decide where their real priorities lie, and how much they're willing to risk in order to attain their hearts' desires.

Will they find a way to repair their fragmented relationship? Or will they remain trapped in a nightmare from which neither one of them can ever wake up...?

One of my favourite fics ever and I cannot recommend the sequel 'Baby, He Can Find You' highly enough if you haven't read it yet!

2) All's Well That Ends Well (To End Up With You) by @yellowloid

Asking Miles to marry him is something Alex has been wanting to do for far too long now. After months of meticulous planning, the day has finally come ‒ and yes, maybe he's a bit nervous, but he's firm in his decision, and he can't wait to just get down on one knee and pop the question. Nothing ‒ nothing ‒ is going to get in his way.

The universe begs to differ.

This entire series is so beautifully written, but this particular fic owns my heart. Such a perfect balance between angst and warm fluff.

3) under these lights you look beautiful by @alexturne

Miles got completely lost in his voice. There was a faraway quality to it, like he belonged somewhere else entirely, but somehow had decided to grace them with his presence and Miles felt blessed to be near him if even for a short while. The subtle elegance hidden in his slender figure, the mannerisms of his fingers wrapped around the corners of his notebook. His words were spoken softly, quietly, but without any hesitation or faltering.

Alex is an elusive poet, who has a way with words and Miles is a bartender, who is completely mesmerized.

The queen of beautiful, heartfelt AUs! Every story of hers is like an escape into a warm hug, but this may be her magnum opus.

4) you cannot turn away (but nice try) by @kisameanslight

Alex Turner thought he got over the love of his life, but then they run into each other again a decade later. Whether they’ll be able to let the past go or not, only time will tell.

I have such fond memories of following this story as it came out and being kept on the edge of my seat with each new update. Her Vampire AU 'c'est horrifique!' is equally incredible 💖

5) The 'Amerlie' Series by @lanatural-books

Welcome to the universe of Amerlie.

All parts intertwine and should take you on an interesting adventure.

I can't begin to pick a favourite entry in this series so I'll simply recommend the whole thing. Such an exquisitely written, cosy love story between our favourite two idiots.

6) Joie de Vivre by @gasdancer

"Two young men decamp to rural France to make an album together. It ~is like love."

Possibly the best Baby Puppets fic/series ever written (and there's a lot of competition for that title). I have such a weakness for stories set in France during the recording of TAOTU so of course this series owns my heart.

7) Last night, what we talked about... by @rock-n-roll-fantasy

... it made so much sense... This little story came into being because of three obvious prerequisites: 1. Baby Monkeys were the cutest band in the world 2. Especially Baby Alex 3. Indie bands get drunk from time to time -> Conclusion: At least once, Baby Alex must have got too tipsy to walk back to the tourbus, so his equally tipsy friends had to take care of him. Further conclusion: It must have been very adorable :)

Not Milex, but just pure Baby Monkeys sweetness distilled into one adorably written fic. I'm in love 🥰

There are so many more fics that I love and wish I could mention but I'd probably be here all day. Feel free to add your own fic recs and share your favourite works in the fandom - I'd love to hear about them 💖

[haztobegood]

⭐️ Annual Writing Self-Evaluation 2023 ⭐️

I love doing this every year. (2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022) I can't believe I've been writing for six years now! I looked through my past annual posts and got a bit emotional, it's amazing to see how much I've grown and changed.

1. Number of stories posted to AO3: 7

2. Word count posted for the year: 11,572

3. Fandoms I wrote for: One Direction, Music RPF (The Snuts)

4. Pairings: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Louis Tomlinson/Jack Cochrane, Louis Tomlinson/Bodyguard

5. Story with the most: Kudos: No (Birth) Control Bookmarks: No (Birth) Control Comments: Good Dogs Don’t Bark

6. Work I’m most proud of (and why): Chaos is a 100 word drabble that I'm very proud of. I tried for months to write a Louis/Bodyguard fic for the Louis Rare Pair fest and it just wasn't coming together. Putting a hard limit on the word count was a fun little challenge that helped me get the idea down on paper. At first I didn't know if I could build a steamy plot in so few words, but it worked out in the end and I couldn't be happier with it!

7. Work I’m least proud of (and why): Of the stuff posted this year, I'm not unhappy with anything, but if I had to rank everything, chapter 2 of Good Dogs Don’t Bark is at the bottom of the pack. I was in a weird mood writing-wise when I wrote that chapter and it reminds me of that time whenever I think of it.

8. Share or describe a favorite review you received: @allwaswell16 read Chaos on her podcast! I dedicated the drabble to her for inspiring and encouraging me all year when writing has been a struggle, and for being such a supportive mod for @louisrarepairfest!

9. A time when writing was really, really hard: All year! This is the least I've ever written since I started. Life has been full of big changes and it threw off my writing habits. I've also been very stuck in my head about certain aspects of writing that I never used to think twice about. I'm hoping now that life has settled and I've got somewhat of a new routine figured out, I can set some intentions and build up my habit again, because I really miss writing.

10. A scene or character you wrote that surprised you: This scene from Baking Memories made me burst out laughing when it came to me:

Looking down at his six little pies, Louis is starting to feel like a proper baker. Jack finishes up his last and says, “Alright, let’s top ‘em.” “I bet that’s your favourite part,” Louis jokes raising his eyebrows teasingly. “At least these don’t talk back when I’m topping.” “Oi!”

More under the cut.

11. A favorite excerpt of your writing: From No (Birth) Control

He picked up another potato. Twisting the paring knife expertly around the spud, the thin brown peel sliced away from the white flesh in smooth, practiced movements. It was easy for Harry to get lost in the meditative efforts of slicing, dicing, and peeling. Just two potatoes remained when Harry caught Louis’ piquant scent through the open window. Harry paused his singing and peeling as he breathed in deeply. His sense of smell was always attuned to his alpha, but this close to heat the pull was even stronger. The back door opened. The scent enveloped him, stronger than the savoury aroma of the roast, as Louis wrapped his arms around Harry’s middle, hugging him from behind. Harry melted back into his touch, forgetting about the half-peeled potato in his hand. “Hi baby.” Louis said, leaning in to drag his nose along the curve of Harry’s neck in tender greeting. “Alpha,” Harry sighed, tension he didn’t know he’d been holding meting away. He could stay like this, content in his alpha’s arms, forever. Louis licked up the side of his neck. The blatant scent marking sent shivers up Harry’s spine, and a light nip of sharp teeth over his bondmark started to make him wet. He would be half-tempted to bend over the counter, if it weren’t for the roast cooking in the oven and the twins playing in the yard. Harry bit back a whimper. “Lou, no,” he groaned. “I need to finish dinner.” With all his resolve, Harry gripped the paring knife tighter and focused his attention on peeling the remaining potatoes.

12. How did you grow as a writer this year: I've learned to be patient with myself. I have a lot of wips that I've started in 2019 or 2020 that aren't even close to being finished. I used to be so frustrated that I couldn't finish them, but now I've learned that sometimes the wip needs to sit in the dark cavern of the drafts folder to age like fine wine.

13. How do you hope to grow next year: I want to be more intentional about setting time to write. I miss having a regular writing time and want to be able to work on some of the exciting ideas I have.

14. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc): @allwaswell16 and @himynameiszayn are the most supportive friends, they were always around to offer advice, help me think of words, and cheer me on when writing was hard. I don't think I would have written half the amount of words I posted if it wasn't for them.

15. Anything from your real life show up in your writing this year: I listened to The Snuts so much this year after seeing them play during FITFWT, so it was only natural for me to write a fic featuring Jack. I love the silly Christmas video the band shared a few years ago and knew it was perfect idea for the fic that became Baking Memories!

16. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers: I touched on it a bit above, but sometimes taking a pause on a wip you're struggling with is a good thing. Give yourself grace to move on when an idea isn't coming together the way you want. It doesn't mean you need to give up on the story completely, it might just be the wrong time.

17. Any projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year: I am looking forward to writing something for @wankersday again, and I am getting closer to finishing my alien!Harry fic that's been 5 years in the making!

18. Tag some writers whose answers you’d like to read.

I tag @banaanipoika9 @louandhazaf @hazzabeeforlou @beelou anyone else that wants to do this!

[stars-of-kyber]

I do not know where this has come from but I do know that you’re probably one of the very few authors in this fandom that I know I could request to bring this to life and it’ll turn out better than my imagination.

Kate and Anthony have been together a while - they’re just getting to know about each other but one thing that Anthony doesn’t know is that Kate has dormant asthma which acts up during a stressful period and Anthony is there to witness it. He doesn’t know what to do or what’s going on, just that he is out of his mind looking at Kate going all blue in the face. I’ll leave the rest to you.

Would you please please please write it, my dear friend? Please???

You know they say flattery won't get you anywhere but with me, that's not true, complimenting me can get you very far lol

Thank you for the prompt! I love these random ideas that send me into an inspiration fit <3 and thank you for the comment I love it so much it makes me so happy you have NO idea.

You know what's funny? I've never mentioned any of this to anyone here bc it was years ago but my ex-boyfriend used to have severe asthma and one of the scariest situations in my entire life was the day his inhaler ended at work and he arrived at my house looking completely blue.

@chrissisheadisinclouds who asked for No 14 “Hey, I’m with you, okay? Always.” so I put the two together.

I have to thank @kateandanthonyaremyparents and @mimix007 for the help and support and comments I love you both so much. And to my ex who not only made me live those insane asthmatic partner experiences but has been answering my annoying asthma questions for the past three days bc of this story lol Thanks Adal, you're great!

Here is Breathe, I hope it was able to live up to your expectations.

Anthony's day was being hectic at best. His alarm didn't go off and when he'd woken up with Kate rolling out of bed to get ready for work, he was already supposed to be at the office for at least fifteen minutes. It was raining strongly outside and by the time he arrived at work, he was about an hour late. And to top it all off, thirty minutes after that, the lights went off. A fallen tree smashed some cables and the entire twenty-one floors of the commercial building went powerless, along with at least another eight around them. All employees were instructed to work at home and Anthony had to climb down fourteen flights of stairs to go back to where he shouldn't have left in the first place.

The rest of his morning had been mostly ordinary. He sat through an hours-long meeting that could have been an e-mail, answered stupid questions from people who didn't know how to do their own jobs and ate cold leftover pizza for lunch. 

It was around three in the afternoon when Newton, who had been napping quietly on his study sofa, lifted his head in surprise, listening to the click of the front door opening. 

Anthony stood, following the dog with a furrow of his eyebrow. Was Kate home early? He knew storms upset her and the wind was picking up, cracks of thunder rolling over the sky, making windows rattle, so she might have taken a half day, but she hadn't called or texted him about it. 

He knew something was wrong the moment his eyes landed on Kate. Newton had rushed to her, wiggling his chubby butt as he nuzzled her legs to get her attention but his girlfriend didn't bend to greet him as she usually did. Instead, she stood stock-still, her entire body resting heavily against the shut door, trembling softly. Her eyes were closed and her chest was rising and falling too quickly, too harshly and her breathing was raggedy and rattling on her chest. 

Her lips were blue. 

"Kate?" She jumped at the sound of his voice, her eyes snapping open and falling on him. "Are you okay?" He could hear the worried hitch in his voice the same way he could hear the wheezing in her breath. She didn't answer, shaking her head, but she reached out for him as he approached, allowing him to wrap his arms safely around her shaking body. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"Can't breathe." Kate croaked, trying to swallow a lungful of air. 

"Is it the storm? Are you having a panic attack?" His hands roamed nervously over her, trying to soothe and check for any injuries at the same time. Kate just shook her head again, her eyes turning wet as her breathing grew more and more raggedy. 

"Asthma." She whispered hoarsely. Anthony knew Kate had asthma, of course, he did, but only from the stories he heard from Mary and Edwina. His girlfriend never talked about it and in the year they've been together, two months of that year living in the same house, he'd never seen her have even a hint of what could look like a flare-up. He'd seen panic attacks and nightmares, but nothing that could indicate any difficulty breathing at all. 

The worst part is that Anthony had no idea what to do. 

He'd treated his fair share of allergy crises and strep infections. Rash and sunburns were easy. He could handle everything from scraped knees to broken bones and he had experience with how to deal with inebriation and hangovers. But none of his siblings had asthma. 

"Do you have an inhaler?" It was the only thing he knew about it, from years of films and shows about people using the little pumps whenever they felt any symptoms coming. Kate shook her head, tears streaming down her face. 

"Ended... A while back." She told him, her breathing worsening as the words came out, her bluish lips wobbling as tears ran down her face. "Didn't think I needed it anymore." 

"Okay..." Anthony's hands were trembling as they rubbed up and down his girlfriend's arms. " Hey, don't cry, alright? I'm here, I'm with you okay? Always. I'll figure it out, try to breathe as steadily as you can." 

"My chest hurts." She whispered brokenly, leaning her cheek at the palm that moved to cradle her face, closing her eyes. 

"I know love, but you need to calm down and save your breath, can you do that for me, sweetheart?" Kate nodded painfully, attempting to slow her breathing although the wheezing remained just as bad. "You're doing great, darling. Keep breathing in and out as slow as you can." Anthony guided her gently towards one of the sofas, Newton following on her heels. "Just sit here and try to breathe slowly alright? I'll be right back."

Kate just nodded, her hands burrowed deeply into Newton's fur as he climbed into her lap. 

Anthony took one last worried look at her before moving to the kitchen, fishing his phone out of his pocket. The first try went to voicemail after a minute of ringing and he dialed again. This time, after just three rings, the call connected. 

"Anthony, is everything alright?" Mary's voice was low on the other side of the line. He knew Kate's stepmother was working at the moment but if she hadn't picked up the phone, his next call would be directed to 999. 

"Oh thank God." He released all the air he had been holding back while the phone rang. "Mary, I need your help. Kate's... she's having an asthma... attack? Crisis? Flare? I don't know what it's called. She can't breathe and I don't know what to do." 

"Ok, Anthony, dear, listen to me. I need you to calm down."

"Calm down?! Mary, she's turning blue!" Anthony's voice was an octave higher than usual, his attempt at whispering turning into a squeak. 

"Listen, I know it’s scary, okay? By God, I really, really do." Kate's stepmother's voice was trembling slightly over the telephone. "But Kate's already nervous and she needs to be as tranquil as possible so you can't panic right now, yes?" 

"Yes, I... I know that. It's just..." He let the words trail out, unsure how to phrase them. 

"It's terrifying." His mother-in-law's voice was filled with sorrow and worry on the other side of the line as she spoke. "I used to sit next to her bed all night, watching her chest rise and fall after one of those crises."  

"What do I do, Mary?" 

"Does she have an inhaler?"

"No, she said she'd run out and didn't think she needed a refill." 

"Of course she did." He could see clearly in his mind the way Mary was most likely shaking her head with a sad little smile. "Make her a strong cup of tea." Anthony was already moving while she spoke, filling the electric kettle with fresh water before turning it on. "Caffeine has similar effects as the inhaler and it can help ease her shortness of breath. At least for a little while."

"Okay. Water's boiling. What else?" 

"Just keep her sitting up and focusing on her breathing. And some honey might help too if you have it." 

"And after the tea?" Anthony asked, opening and closing cupboards until he found the small half-used bottle of honey he kept for Hyacinth when she came over. 

"Once she's feeling a bit better, take her to the A&E to get proper medication." 

"Right." He stood in the silence of the kitchen for a few moments, watching the water begin to bubble over the glass and he only knew Mary was still on from the soft background noises coming through the speaker. "I didn't even know she had asthma... I mean, I heard it from you and Eddie but I... I thought it was treated or something... I never seen her have anything remotely similar to a crisis so I just assumed..."

"I don't think she'd had a crisis in a while, but I don't think Kate would have told me about it." Mary let out a tired little sigh. "She's always hated her asthma flares so much and she'd try to hide it from us until she could barely breathe. It was like those storms she was so afraid of as a girl. I think Kate tried to keep these things to herself so we don't worry about her or something like it." 

It was lucky the conversation was happening through the phone because Anthony would not have been able to look Kate's stepmother in the eye. Mary was not aware that Kate's deep-rooted horror of storms had not disappeared, but shifted as she had learned to hide her feelings better. Hell, Anthony only came to discover them by accident, when he decided to stop at her flat instead of trying to make it home in the rain only to find her curled up on the floor of her closet, her eyes glassy and her nose pressed to Newton's fur. He was quite certain that if he hadn't found her that day, Kate would have kept the fact from him for as long as she was humanly able. 

Yet he hadn't really told her about his blinding fear of bees and of not living past until it had been impossible to keep it from her without tossing their entire relationship away. He really couldn't judge her much without making himself a huge hypocrite. 

"I've got the honey." He told her, clutching the bottle to him with shaky hands. "I'll go give some to her while the tea is not ready." 

"You do that. Please keep me updated, I'll have my phone with me if you need anything."

"Will do." 

"And Anthony? You tell Kate she'd better have an inhaler on her the next time I see her." 

"Don't worry Mary." He told her honestly. If he had his way, there would be an asthma inhaler tied to Kate's work bag, one in each room of their house and perhaps one at his mother's and one at hers, just to be safe. "I've got it." 

Kate's breathing was even worse when he returned to the living room. She was making a strong effort to keep pulling air in and out slowly, but it didn't seem to be helping much. Her entire face was pale and drawn-out and her lips had turned completely blue. He was by her side in a flash, examining the bluish tips of her fingers and caressing her cheeks gently as she tried to inhale. 

"Here, take this." She opened her mouth to reply but he beat her to it. "Don't speak, you need to save your breath, okay? It's just honey and I'm making you some tea. Mary said it would help." Kate opened her mouth, this time to take the spoon he was offering her without any complaint and swallowed heavily but dutifully. "After you take the tea, we're going to the A&E, alright?" 

"No." Her voice was hoarse and you could hear the breathlessness behind it at the small word while her eyes filled with tears. 

"Katie, please, don't cry. Please," He begged, cupping her cheek in his palm. Anthony despised seeing her in any form of pain and he was terrified she'd stop breathing right there in front of him. The only reason he still hadn't dragged her into the car and to an emergency room, tea and honey and slow breathing be damned, was that he knew she'd hate him for it. But if she continued to get progressively more blue and her breathing continued to wheeze that way, he might just let her hate him, if it meant she'd be alright. "I know you don't like the hospital and you don't like having to go there, but you need to breathe, darling. It's kind of a requirement to keep living. How can I marry you if you stop?"

Kate closed her eyes to fight the tears, a little chuckle escaping her as she inhaled deeply. "You have to propose first." 

"Yeah, and I have the whole thing planned out, ring and everything." Anthony pressed his lips gently to her forehead, pushing her hair from her face. "But you need to have air in your lungs to say yes."  

The room was silent for a moment, devoid of any sound but Kate's harsh intakes of breath before she whispered, "Okay."

"Okay?" She nodded, letting her head fall forwards until their foreheads were touching. "Thank you, sweetheart." He mumbled, kissing her nose and then the corner of her lips. "I'm going to get your tea, alright?"

"Alright." With one last kiss to the top of her head, he got up. 

It was the fastest pot of tea Anthony'd ever made. Anthony was back at Kate's side with a steaming mug filled with strong tea in under a minute. 

As his girlfriend sipped, painfully at first, on the hot drink, the wheezing in her breath seemed to diminish until it was barely there, her plump lips recovering their colour bit by bit until very little blue was left on it. By the time the mug was empty, Kate looked almost like her normal self, abate for her chest rising and falling in measured deep breaths and the pained look written on her features. 

Anthony took the lilac ceramic mug from her hand and placed it on the centre table in front of them. Kate let herself fall against his side, looking drawn out and so very tired, her eyes closed as her entire body slumped into him. 

"Would you like to change before going to the A&E?" He offered, rubbing her back up and down in soft, gentle strokes. 

"No." Her reply was a husky whisper as she shook her head and Anthony could see the small bit of moist collecting in the corners of her closed eyes. He reached over, brushing the tears away before they could fully form. 

"Sweetheart, I'm so sorry you have to go through this." 

"I hate it." Kate's little angry complaint was swallowed by the fabric of his shirt as she pressed her nose to it. "It sucks, I hate it, I... I thought it was over." Her voice broke over the last word and Anthony enveloped her in his arms, one of his hands reaching up to caress her hair as the other continued its soothing up-and-down motion on her back. "My chest hurts."

"I know, love. I'm sorry." He kissed her forehead again, inhaling the flowery smell of her hair, basking in the feeling of her, warm and alive next to him, of her chest rising and falling against his.  

"I don't want to have this." Kate sounded a little like a petulant child, angry and frustrated and Anthony deeply understood the feeling. He understood what was it like to feel as if you have no control over your own body, incapable of doing something that was supposed natural. When you needed your lungs, your limbs, your mind to do what they were made to do only to find them fighting you on every turn. It made you feel weak. It made you feel powerless. 

"I know you don't." He kissed the top of her head, saying the words into her hair. "And I know you don't like going to the hospital, but I need you to do this. If not for yourself, for me. I can't see you like this, darling." 

"I don't like the inhaler." 

"I get it, alright? I'll call Uncle Nick and Aunt Georgie and ask for a recommendation for a good pulmonologist. The best one in the country. I'm sure there must be some treatment for asthma so you won't have to use the inhaler in the future. I have a very good allergist too, I take all of my siblings to her to get tested every three years. We can schedule an appointment with her as well." He pulled back to be able to look at her face, his index finger trailing over her jaw in a soft caress. "But right now, I'm going to need you to go to the A&E so you can get medicated and properly breathing since we have established that it is sort of an essential part of life and all." 

"It's a bit important, yes." Kate laughed and the sound lifted the heavy weight that had settled over Anthony's chest since his eyes had fallen on her, breathless and wheezing this afternoon.

"And I'm going to have to insist you carry around an inhaler with you while we don't have a proper, safe treatment plan." Her nose wrinkled in distaste at his request that really was half an order, half a plea. "You scared the hell of out me, Kate." 

"It wasn't that bad." It was clear from the grimace that followed her words that she wasn't fooling even herself. 

"You looked blue, darling. Like that girl that chews gum in the Chocolate Factory movie that turns into a blueberry." 

"She turns purple," Kate’s tone might have been deadpan, but her teeth had sunk into her bottom lip and she was trying to keep her laughter at bay at the ridiculous discussion just as much as he was. 

"And you were one step away from looking purple. Plus, I could hear your wheezing from the hall. Newton heard it from the office with the door half-closed." The dog in question lifted his head from where it was resting on Kate's lap to nuzzle in her hand as if to agree with Anthony and his worries. "Please, Kate, for my sanity, if nothing else."

"I haven't had a bad crisis in a while." She told him, the hand that wasn't patting Newton's fun reaching out to his, enlacing their fingers together. 

"Hopefully, for both our sakes, you'll never have another one. But just in case, so I can have some peace of mind, knowing that I won't get home to find you passed out on the floor, blue-faced and unable to breathe." 

"You're very dramatic." She giggled, pressing their lips together in a chaste kiss. "You're going to spread inhalers around the entire house, aren't you?"

"Yes." Anthony wasn't ashamed to admit it and Kate knew him too well for him to even try and lie about it. 

"I'm sorry for scaring you." She whispered, pressing her cheek to his outstretched hand. 

"Don't be." He whispered back, kissing the tip of her nose. "Just let me take care of you." 

"You do. You take care of me very well." Kate spoke gently, nuzzling at his palm in a motion very similar to Newton's when he demanded pats. "It's the reason I love you so much. Well, one of them anyway." 

"And yet, you keep fighting every step of the way." He whined as his fingers carted upwards, threading to the lush dark locks of her hair and her eyes fell shut in bliss over the caress.

"I love you even more because you keep doing it despite me fighting you every step of the way."

"You'd probably have to kill me to make me stop." He couldn't help but smile at Kate's sweet little content sigh. "But you could, maybe... Not fight it so much? You don't even have to help, just... let me do it every once in a while."

"Pot, kettle, honey." She grinned smugly, her eyebrows raising up even if her eyes remained firmly shut before her entire face contorted in a big yawn. 

"Oh, no, Miss Sharma. You're not falling asleep on me here." Anthony stood quickly and Kate whimpered at the loss of him, her body falling down to the cushions slowly and a bit theatrically. He had his hands wrapped around her wrists before she could even lie down fully, tugging her to sit up. Newton let out a grumble of complaint when he lost his comfortable resting space. "We're going to the hospital before the tea effect ends and you start turning purple again."  

"It's raining a lot." She complained, sitting up with a pout. 

"Don't worry, the car is waterproof, I checked." When Kate was firmly on her two feet, he wrapped his arm around her waist, reaching out for the workbag she had abandoned by the door when she'd arrived and his wallet and keys without ever letting go of her. 

"I'm really tired."    

"The faster we're at the A&E, the faster we can return home. We can take a nap and order some food for dinner once we're back."

"Don't you have to work?" His girlfriend finally gave up on trying to convince him to let it go, allowing herself to melt into his embrace with a weary, drawn-out sigh as he walked them to the 

"Whatever I have to do can wait until tomorrow." It wasn't exactly a lie as much as Anthony barely remembered what he had to get done to work that day. Everything but making sure Kate was alive and well had fled his brain the moment she arrived home. Anthony was not a person to take days off for just any reason and the amount of overtime he had put up for the company greatly outweighed the amount of time off he'd gotten in the years he'd been working there. He was sure his boss would understand. 

"But...."

"Hush." He told her as he deposited her safely in the passenger seat, pressing a quick kiss to her pursed lips. "Everything else can wait. You're my priority. Always." 

[knickynoo]

I'm growing disillusioned with the BTTF fandom because of the growing amount of M*mmett shippers. I'm sick of the Jennifer and Clara slander with them, I'm sick of them trying to justify this ship even though MARTY'S A CHILD, and I'm sick of how OOC they're making Marty and Doc. This is the reason why I'm sick of hearing theories about how Doc was SAing Marty, because A. it's just feeding into that theory, and B. If that theory continues to grow, it's going to discredit the whole trilogy.

I understand your frustration, and I feel it a lot myself when navigating the fandom. It does feel like the Mammett shippers are much more active and vocal lately, which is as exhausting as it is disturbing. Trying to find fanfics is an especially risky endeavor.

I'll insert a read-more because I'm going to speak honestly here, and this can be a triggering topic for some.

I've been pretty vocal about the fact I don't tolerate those shippers, and I try my best to not knowingly interact with them. I just can't wrap my mind around the whole thing--the way they're so set on trying to justify it, even though there IS no justifying it. One of the main defenses is the "Marty is almost EIGHTEEN" nonsense. Get out of here with that. First of all, he met Doc when he was 13-years-old, so I'm gonna go ahead and assume their "headcanons" involve Doc basically grooming Marty from that age. And even if Marty *was* 18, it makes literally no difference. 18 may be legally an adult, but mentally, that's still very much a kid. The human brain doesn't fully develop until mid to late twenties (and into early 30s, according to current studies!) There is just no way to make it okay.

Like. Good job, they turned Doc into a predator.

And I don't care that it's fiction. There are many dark and twisted aspects of fiction people can safely enjoy without condoning the things in real life, but I draw the line at things like this. People being so obsessed and clinging so tightly to a pedophilic relationship disturbs me to my very core, and it does nothing but put up red flags.

(I also think a part of this whole issue in fandom is connected to what I've mentioned in the past: people being bizarrely unable to process platonic love, especially when it's between two guys. Everything has to be turned into romance for some reason. No. Let people have deep friendships and show love to each other without making it weird. Let two guys hug and be affectionate and emotionally close without being that person who goes: "There's literally no other explanation for this aside from them being romantically in love." Stop, stop, stopstopstopppp. Platonic love is SO IMPORTANT.)

I'm so weary of it. I'll also probably lose followers for this (I lost several with my initial anti-mammett post) and I don't care.

Just know that there are many in the fandom who don't participate in this ship and, in fact, actively fight against it.

[kaizsche]

You are such an incredible writer, but you’re also an amazing gif maker! So, what’s your favourite gif set that you’ve made this year? Also, what is the fic that you’re most excited to write in the new year? Thanks for being such an incredible friend Kai 🥰

(literally me seeing your ask and am i copying q's answer to her own ask? the answer is yaaaaaaaaas.)

i don't really see myself as an AMAZING gif maker and an INCREDIBLE writer so to hear all these compliments from you is just straight up melting my goddamn heart vis. *teary-eyed emoji cos im in pc*

so to ask your... well... ask, i haven't been kind of productive this year, both in writing and editing stuff so i can't say i have a wide selection to choose from, but here's my ultimate fav gifset. like fr.

which predictably is a gifset from your fic which i've gotten so much interaction on and just having you message me about this was just... it honestly made me cry so yeah...

the freaking 'i know you have a lot of fic planned this year' just cracked me tf up. like... you and q know i go all ramble kai on anything resembling my fic ideas so you know what i already have in store next year...

first off, i am sooo excited to finally enter the spuffy writing fandom so there's that. i already have like 20+ spuffy wips in my docs rn but the most excited i am for next year are these two, i think: (and i'll be letting y'all take a lil peek of them)

sun and moon

“Who are you?” The Slayer demanded. Buffy could hear the restless fear simulating his heart and the cautious steps he took to back away from her. Smart Slayer. So he has honed his skills then? Knew she was different from the other vampires he dealt around the small town. Buffy grinned wickedly. It’ll be fun to dance with this one. “I kill your kind for sport, Slayer.” She let her words stew in the air, watched him put the pieces together—inch by agonizing inch.

spuffy dark fic (warning has possible incest!)

Joyce's heart stopped completely. Because standing at the door, a boy, her son she hadn't seen in years stood before her. Joyce had wanted to believe he changed—hair longer and tied at the back of his neck, still dressed in his boarding school's uniform but a few sizes bigger than she had first seen him—it was his eyes that gave him away.  It was cold and unfeeling. He regarded her as if she wasn't his mother, as if she was nothing to him at all. "Joyce."  "William—" She watched his gaze snap over her shoulder and at once, the piercing cold melted into warm fondness as did the trembling tension in his body. "Hello, cutie." "Will!"  Buffy barrelled past her, leaping in his arms and she wasn't afraid, she trusted him to catch her. William staggered a few feet back from the impact, wrapping one arm across her waist and the other held her bottom to prevent her from falling. "You're here. You're really here."  William held Joyce's gaze, a muscle in his jaw twitching as if to dare her to scold him—to remove him once more out of his Buffy's life.  "Never gonna happen, love. I'll be here forever. I promise."  Buffy sighed happily, enjoying the feel of his warmth, his hands on her. Joyce sighed in resignation, turning away from the challenge in his eyes.  "It's cold outside. Come in." At this, William grinned. "Thanks, mum."

last but not least, how could i forget tvd?

take my breath rewrite (kolena + klena) i mean how can i ever resist kolena theyre like my main otp. i go batshit crazy for them.

Elena gravitates towards the lake, stares at her reflection in the water. Hates her face and her blood more than she realizes. She loved her face and her body once upon a time. Now, all it ever does is haunt her every step and shadow surrounded by men who knew every crevice of her body. They knew her better than she ever did. (It is the face that launched a thousand year curse, damning the girls that carried it. Reduced to nothing but objects in a man’s eyes. Katherine was right. I am always right. She hears her taunting giggle and sees her twin’s knowing smirk. I told you so. Nothing could ever bring more joy to her evil doppelganger than proving that she was right.)

kolena roommates au (this was actually inspired by a spuffy fic i read LOL)

"Okay, 20 questions." "Go." "Who's your favorite?" "Favorite who?" Kol groaned. "Favorite Mikaelson sibling," and looked at her bashfully, like he was expecting her to… say his name? "Rebekah." He yelled out an indignant cry, "What a load of bollocks! You're telling me, after everything we've been through, I'm still—" "You are a favorite," She cut him off.  "Really?" He gaped at her, astonished.  "My least favorite." She bit hard on her tongue, seeing the sheer disappointment and anguish encroaching on his face. And somehow, his voice had gotten louder, belting out at a higher register than Mariah Carey. "I rank lower than even bloody Niklaus?!"

i do hope to be as productive as i was in 2022 when it comes to publishing fics cause i'll really wither and die if i don't manage to publish these four.

special fic mentions:

the song of wandering aengus

banish air from air

only, helen (tentative title)

and from your lips she drew the hallelujah

& special user mentions for just being there for me (listening, suggesting, reading) when i was going batshit crazy over my fic ideas. you're all wonderful ppl and i'm glad to have you in my life <3

@katherineholmes @qvnthesia @finnismyoriginalsin

thank you so much for this ask, vis <3 love ya 5ever

[xviruserrorx]

Title: "Back To Our Mistakes"

Another fic! For the prompt "Then Go" for @merlinmicrofic. This also serves as a direct follow up to "Turn Back Time". I'm a bit unsure about this one, I was starting to do good with these short little things and then this one just seems so rushed and way too fast paced for me. I think I tried to cram too much of a story into the little 500 words...

Merlin Micro Fic - Tumblr | Ao3 - [Prev <- • -> Next]

Fandom: BBC Merlin

Prompt(s): "Then Go"

Relationship(s): Merlin & Leon

Character(s): Merlin, Sir Leon

Important Tag(s): Immortal Leon, Time Traveler Merlin, Post Canon,

Rating: Gen

Warning(s): No Archive Warnings Apply,

Word Count: 500

“I know that you went back and that you thought you could do it all over again, but you couldn't. None of it really mattered, because it all was about saving one person.” He stopped. “Except he dies too." Or After the events of Turn Back Time Merlin returns and tries to reconciles the damage he's done all while Leon has already found himself less than angry with the version of Merlin he last saw decades before.

"Immortal & Time Traveler AU" - Tumblr | Ao3

->Previous: "Turn Back Time " - Tumblr | Ao3

Continue reading below or over on Ao3

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Merlin wanted to laugh at the rain as it fell; Irony if so—and if not—perhaps just his luck. The coat was heavy on his shoulders as he stood on the familiar cobblestone steps. An unfamiliar crack in the second step that he couldn't remember if it was there the last time or not.

Though, all he could remember was the ‘Then Go' from Leon and nothing else.

He shook his head, he'd been waiting outside his door too long. He knocked first, grabbed the key from his pocket and opened the door.

He discarded his jacket once inside and relished in the familiar comfort. It was warm, the hum of the Television played on low volume, while the smell of coffee was inescapable.

“Did you just knock?

Merlin followed the voice through to the kitchen. Leon was serving coffee in two mugs as Merlin leaned his weight against the doorway.

Leon looked at him, furrowed his eyebrows. “Merlin?”

He could lie, but it'd haunt him for the rest of his life. He tried to smile but failed. “I just came from the seventh century.”

Leon stopped, then continued preparing the coffees.

“Leon—”

“Don't.” He gestured to the kitchen island and Merlin took a seat.

Leon took a breath, then started. “It's been twenty-two years. I've met you more than a dozen times since and every version of you hadn't yet gotten to that point.”

Merlin kept his mouth shut.

“I know that you went back and that you thought you could do it all over again, but you couldn't. None of it really mattered, because it all was about saving one person.” He stopped. “Except he dies too.

Merlin pressed his eyes and swallowed.

“Once wasn't enough for you,” Leon continued. Twice seemed to barely feed that insanity. So you did it again, and again, and another time after that. And—to quote your words. No matter what you do, he always dies in your arms.”

“Stop—” His voice cracked.

“You give up and go back to past me. Then for three years you were…” He shook his head. “Empty… broken. Then one day you disappear. Jump a couple centuries and you're at my doorstep again.”

He dumped sugar in one mug, tapping the spoon on the side before laying it down. “How long has it been for you? Fifty? Sixty years?”

Merlin bit his lip as it trembled. “I lost count…” he said weakly, hiding behind a just as weak smile.

Leon rounded the counter and put the cup in front of Merlin. He wrapped an arm around Merlin as his tears began to fall.

Merlin leaned in. “I'm sorry. I'm—”

“I couldn't have stopped you, not really.” He couldn't play Fate any more than Merlin could.

“I can't,” Merlin continued.

“Then stay,” he said. “You’ve never stayed in one place very long,” he continued. “Call it a sabbatical.

He let out a weak laugh. “A sabbatical?”

He smiled, hummed, and gave Merlin's arm a squeeze. “The world can wait.”

[99-percent-cats]

Wrapping up 2023

So, this is gonna be a long post. Talking about my fanfic stats, fandom friends and future plans (or something like that lol).

Not gonna bother everyone with personal stuff, but it's been a weird year. I would've never thought I'd write ever again, but here I am, with 30 fics on my ao3 account (well, they're actually 22; there's one from last year and the other 7 are translations or the original versions. And if you count the 3 little one shots from my second account, it rounds up to 25 different stories in total!).

Some of them aren't finished (Ojisan and the Zoroark hit a spot in which I can't go past there and it's eating me alive; also, there's the ovi one, but I'll get to it next year), some of them are a continuation to other stuff I've written, and one of them is a compilation of 9 stories, vaguely intertwined. Oh, and there's that Geetarry fic as well between all the blankship lol.

I met some amazing people this year. @funable-rainy had given me sooo many ideas and it's a wonderful person! Go follow them, they're a treasure ❤️. I also had fun with @iyodbb, who's also into the same stuff as I am and we've enjoyed each other's art/writing a lot 🥰. Also EvilFCL on twitter, a kind and wonderful artist with unending wisdom and the first person I talked to in this fandom. And Ku, @unovanhunny, who also has helped me this year, and even proofread some of my stuff.

There's many more people with which I've enjoyed their company and chatting from time to time, and I'm grateful for sharing this year together. Just in case some of them prefer anonymity, I'll just say I love everyone in the KudaNobo server and I hope we will have more fun and an amazing next year!

Now, going back to the fics! It's been a challenge, but I've enjoyed trying to write in English. Translating my stuff is tough but worth it, and these last few months I've tried to just write it in English. It's a bit slow and I'm always worried I'm repeating myself or not making sense, however I've written so many things I didn't want to bother everyone asking to beta read yet another fic. If anyone wants to be my official (?) beta reader, it would be amazing, but for now I'll just keep posting my stories as they are.

I also wanted to share my stats.

You need to subtract around 10k words from my total word count because of the Submas Simp Collab. Also, my two fics with more hits also have a Spanish version, but the hit count doesn't go that much up. I'm still impressed that one fic I feverishly wrote for Rainy back in July got that many hits. I don't think it's my best piece, and it doesn't have that many kudos, but guess adding all those k¡nky tags boosted it quite a lot, hehe.

Sorting by kudos, I'm still amazed on how well some of my fics did! My most kudoed fic (39+3, if you count the Spanish version) was something I planned as a gift for a friend, but I was late for their birthday and felt so ashamed I never said a word about it 🥲. Also chubby Emmet!! I enjoyed that fic a lot, but a lot, lot, and I even wrote a sequel that I still need to translate. Hopefully, you'll see it sooner or later next year ☺️.

Last thing I want to share. Around the last week of July I joined a website called 4thewords. It's like an online game in which you fight monsters writing words, so you can get a lot done. I've been using it almost everyday since then (not that much this December, real life hit me so hard it left me with a huge writer's block), and what I like the most about it is that you can see how much time you've spent writing. The bad thing is that there's a subscription fee, but it's not crazily expensive and I don't have any other subscriptions to other services or sites, so it's my little treat lol.

In total, I've spent more time writing this year than playing Violet or any other game. It feels good, although I think I could have done way more? But I'll leave it to 2024.

So, that's basically it. I was thinking about leaving the fandom once the new year started, do some other thing, but writing has given me so much peace that I don't think I'll be stopping soon. In fact, expect more updates, hehe.

Happy new year!

[3nergy-spirit]

maybe

maybe

and just maybe

sum goddess headcanons/canon facts about her? 👉👈 I love her sm I want to give her a big hug UGH she's so pretty 😭

OHHHH YEAHHH YOU LIKE GODDESS WOMAN DONT YOU? KK I'VE BEEN WANTING TO TALK ABOUT HER FOR SO LONG HDEUJKSKDJFND

btw chan gives you air hug through the screen, she thanks you for the compliment ! ^^

im gonna make a wattpad story on her lore. if i can.

Goddess Of Unpredictability Headcanons/Canon Facts.

goddess of unpredictability/chan belongs to me.

Headcanons.

-shes literally my character how can i write headcanons about her ?

Canon Facts

-chan was in a deep sleep for many years past the multiverse before she was woken up by two little souls which are now her sons.

-if she died the multiverse would be in chaos and havoc, which is why shes immortal and cant die. ever.

-her design is based off a kitsune considering the ninetails and ears made out of magic, they can be translucent and you cant touch them or they can be non-translucent and you can touch them, they feel smooth like velvet and sharp like nightmares tendrils.

-she has many phases that she can control that changes her design

-one phase shows markings on her body like ink.

-she knows the most popular aus in the fandom

-the soul imprint on her chest is based on how her soul looks like

-you cant absorb her soul, it is too powerful.

-she was here when the multiverse started

-she was actually friends? with passive nightmare, kind of but yeah they were friends before. nightmare just has faint memories of her but she was in her shadow form so maybe he couldn't recognize her exept the heart imprint on her chest. they were children this time.

-shes around the age of the multiverse *older than everyone* but remains young forever, she looks around the age 27

-she can seduce people and put them in trances to love her before taking their soul and eating it, but this only happens to very abd people that indulge in very bad things or the 7 deadly sins. but if she seduces someone for fun they can get lost in love and might turn to yandere behaviors.

-she forgot her past life, it was...gruesome.

-she is pansexual/polyamorous and uses she/they ^^

-she doesn't like her real name so she cut the three letters out of it to make it "chan" its pronounce "shan or chan"

-her personality is very unpredictable

-shes like the balance of the multiverse

-her voice sounds very seductive, but calm like lady dimitrescu

-shes much powerful then any sans *e.g error or ink sans,*

-she cant die from reapers death touch :) like i said shes immortal.

-best songs that resemble her is the spider and the kitsune-like lion or the good child and a fox spirit, same with who is she? and killshot *by magdalena bay.

-she lures in peoples shadows, and comes out when leaded

-oh did i say she can fuse with people? especially with people with no souls :) *ink im looking at you tiny midget*

-she has shadow creatures that she uses from time to time.

-she has two sons *bloom and micro sans* that she takes care of and created and AU for them to live in as she cant take care of the them and well, protect the multiverse at the same time. yes she took care of them when they were babies

-she doesn't fight unless provoked or wants to.

-her voice changes when in her shadow form *she sounds like mangle from custom night five nights at freddies in her shadow form*

-her height is 5'4

-she likes wallking on her tippy toes like shes wearing heels, shes used to it and always does it to walk around or run more faster

-she keeps a blanket wrapped around her, its from her past childhood life that she forgot and she hates when it is ruined or holes and she takes the time to fix it.

-she has hazel eyes and brunette hair with a mix of red in it, it shines in sunshine

-she has no au. but when she goes in different aus her outfit matches with the environment but the only thing that doesn't change is her soul imprint, hair, and eyes.

-if her soul was destroyed she could still feel. considering shes more powerful and doesn't care, the soul is just there to show how powerful it is to make others fear her.

-she is seen as intimidating and smug, and as sly as a fox.

-her brithday is May 29th ^^ *also my birthday too*

-she can mimic any noise, sound, and voice.

-personally, her favorite weapon is duel knives or daggers, but she does use her hands as claws too.

-if she has her claws on they are sharp as hell, they can cut through anything

-she doesn't like singing. but she can mimic voices to SOUND like shes singing

-her theme would be a mix of uhhhh- mompoms *retrospecter instrumental* and death toll *hypnos lullaby fnf*

-her color palette is just black and white for clothes and brunette hair with hazel eyes, also with peach pale skin

YIPPEE

full image :)

PLS I LOVE TALKING BOUT HER.

ya'll can ship her and draw her but i'd love to be tagged in any art of her ^^

im also a q & a about her! i just never got asks/questions about her tho-

[adriannasharp]

For the emoji ask game: ⛔, 🎃 , and 😬!

Thank you for the ask!

⛔ Do you have a fic you started, but scrapped?

Hahaha. I have several.

1. The story of how Venus and Kunzite and fell in love back in their past lives during Silver Millennium. I got about 40 pages in and then accidentally deleted the whole thing (long story, and yes I tried to get it back to no avail). Honestly, it's probably for the best since I inevitably would have gotten very stuck and never finished it. I had only done one shots until that point and was not skilled enough to craft a big epic. I also didn't have my amazing writing group at that point to help me get unstuck. It very well might have frustrated me enough to stop writing altogether (or at least never plan a big epic again). But there were some ideas in there that I still like and might revisit at some point.

2. A post Galaxia fic that involved the shitennou being reborn and returning to Tokyo. It was going to be a decent amount of sen/shi content but mostly focused on Minako and Kunzite (big surprise there). Mainly, that Kunzite would have all of his memories EXCEPT for his relationship with Venus. I ended up scrapping it because I couldn't figure out a way for the boys to be all together and for Kunzite to NOT catch on about some history with him and Minako/Venus. Admittedly, I do want to come back to this fic because I think it would work better as two separate fics. Just remove the forgetting of their relationship and make them bang instead of actually talk like adults (may be inspired by I'll Tell You my Sins (and you can Sharpen your Knife) by winterbones, which, if you haven't read it, READ IT). For the 'forgetting their relationship' part, I plan to put that into a whole separate fic that involves Minako traveling before the rise of Crystal Tokyo and staying for several months in another country, where Kunz is her neighbour. But he has absolutely no memories of his past life. Minako is trying to figure out if it's actually him and wanting to spend more time with him but also falling down a pit of self loathing because if he's not Kunz, it will hurt more. Meanwhile, he feels drawn to her and he can't explain why. It's a fic I really want to write but probably won't get written for at least a year.

I'm pretty sure I have more scrapped fics but I've probably gone on enough. And those are the main ones that I've scrapped. 🎃 Do you write fics for certain holidays? Which is your favorite holiday inspired fic?

I would love to write more holiday fics. I've had ideas for a few before but I was always busy finishing up other projects around those so I didn't get much of a chance to write them. With the exception of Breaking Expectations, part 2 of my Minako/Kunzite fake dating AU. It was a fun Valentines fic set after they got together.

For my favourite one, I gotta say Starbucks by @caffeineivore. Technically it's autumn themed rather than holiday themed but it has a few holidays wrapped in there so it counts. I just adore it and I read it at least once a year. It's just so light and fun and wonderful and so expertly crafted. I am ALWAYS in awe of her talent.

😬 Which of your fics would you be most horrified for friends, family, or coworkers to stumble upon?

Hahaha. The smut. If I had to pick one, Experimentation. 31 days of kinky prompts and I think people outside of my fandom life would be VERY shocked to read it. In real life (and in a professional atmosphere), I give off a very straight laced impression. But the people who know me, know that I am full of smut.

Thank you again! I love getting asks and I'm doing better to actually respond to them.

[knight-gwaine]

It's Winter Solstice and I FEEL. SO MUCH.

It's been so lovely getting back into making gifsets and edits but it's time to take a pause and honor all that's happened in these past six months.

I've always been highly attuned to the moon cycles, sun cycles, and seasonal shifts so I've been getting especially restless these past two days. Sleep is inconsistent, constantly waking up brimming with ideas and potential.

Not only is it time for big shifts in the year, but also in my life. Everything feels so potent now, like I'm reaching a precipice ready to jump into a beautiful unknown where I get to rise up and into something incredible.

I miss and love being back on Tumblr so much for all the ways it reawakens my past that I buried away from myself. All my shame and fear rewritten as I return to myself, healed and healing. It feels like a portal to my past, like I'm putting messages in a bottle that will never get to my child self on my blog. Things really do get better. That phrase used to fill me with anger, like it was all a lie to make me feel better but man was I wrong.

I still can barely wrap my head around all the incredible things I've brought into my life. I still can't believe that in the eyes of younger self, my most hopeless self, that I've essentially turned every single dream she thought was never possible into a reality. I am actively rewriting what my dreams are and making my way towards them. I see the pathways opening up. I have so much potential it keeps me up at night.

So yes, I have so much I want to do in terms of fun little Tumblr edits for fandoms that fill my heart but I also have SO MUCH within myself outside of that in which I am building. It is terrifying and it is beautiful. It is a testament to my strength for that piece of me that believes I was so weak. I felt so unseen, unloved, with no value.

Now, my community is seeing me.. calling to me, inviting me to turn my dreams into reality. They want to build me up and support me. And for once, I'm finding myself let go of my imposter syndrome. I find myself believing in my capabilities and knowing my worth.

Big things are coming for me.

[guess-my-next-obsession]

Surprises

pairing: richard madden x gn!reader

warnings: complete and total fluff, maybe mentions of cheating? not really though

summary: richard comes home to a few furry surprises after being away for a few months

words: 786 (she's short and sweet)

based on a request by: @imma-too-many-fandoms

a/n: this started out as one thing and went a totally different way lmao so i'm sorry if this doesn't fit your request my dear xx

"Y/N! Are ye' home?" You heard your boyfriend of two years call from downstairs. Richard had been away for the last two months filming a Marvel movie that he could tell you almost nothing about, and although he was constantly checking in and communicating with you, it got lonely.

A few months before leaving to film, you and Richard had just made the big step of moving in together in his favorite city, Los Angeles. The house you lived in before this was modest with just enough space for you to comfortably live your life. The new house, however, was the total opposite in size. The home boasted of six bedrooms, five bathrooms, a theater, two pools, and an impressive guest house--simply put, anyone would get lonely after a while in a house of this size.

All of this to say, two weeks ago while getting groceries you drove past a shelter, and with no logical being around to stop you, you adopted an entire litter of kittens. Four, to be exact.

You ran around your bedroom gathering the quickly growing balls of fur and placed them in their playpen before heading downstairs. You couldn't see him, but heard Richard's footsteps in the kitchen. Taking a breath, you tiptoed in, your heart fluttering as you watched him take a glass out of the cupboard and pour water into it. You waited until he took a sip to surprise him.

"RICHARD!" You shouted and watched in amusement as he jumped and coughed his water out, head whipping around to glare at you. You gave him a cheeky smile and crept closer to him until your arms were wrapped around his waist. Although reluctant, he soon hugged you close, kissing the top of your head.

"Yer an asshole." He mumbled against your hair, making you chuckle. "I've missed ye', love."

"Not nearly as much as I've missed you." You pulled away enough to look up at him, studying the tiny changes in his appearance since you last saw him.

"How do ye' figure that?" He asked with a grin, making you smile until you realized this was the moment that you had to deliver the big news. He must've noticed the change in expression because soon enough, he was squinting at you and tilting his head. "What..."

"So...you remember how I was feeling really lonely with you gone?" You began, feeling his body tense a bit.

"Yes..." He replied slowly, trying to solve the mystery himself.

"Well, a couple weeks ago I did something to help with that." You felt him let go of you, his lips parted but nothing coming out. "I feel like a visual would be helpful in making my case."

"A visual?" He asked, almost appalled. You didn't think much of his tone, instead you grabbed his hand and led him upstairs to your bedroom. You heard him take a deep breath as you opened the door and walked over to the blanket-covered play pen, lifting the blanket off and exposing the four kittens. When you turned to look at Richard, his face looked more confused than you'd ever seen.

"Are you mad?" You asked, heart thumping with anticipation as you watched him try to speak.

"No, I'm not mad! I thought ye' were cheating on me!" He finally burst into laughter and pulled you tight to his chest. You sighed in relief at his reaction as he swayed you back and forth. "Dear god, ye' had my heart pounding, love!"

"I didn't mean to!" You chuckled in defense as you watched him let go of you to grab one of the kittens. Richard chose the all-black cat with blue eyes, hugging it close to his face and looking at you with a pouted lip.

"Have ye' named 'em?" He asked, holding the cat out so he could study it.

"I've been calling him 'Little Dick' because he acts like you." You poked his stomach and watched as he opened his mouth, stunned. "Now that you've got a son, I guess that makes you 'Medium Dick'."

"I'm going to let that slide, only because Little Dick is listening and I don't want to argue in front of the kids." Richard replied in a posh and righteous tone as he held Little Dick to his chest. "Now if ye' wouldn't mind, I've got to bond with our children."

"Shall I leave you, then?" You joined in, mimicking a posh British accent as you walked out of the room.

"And bring a water, would you?! You made me choke on the last fuckin' cup." He added, making you chuckle as you did as told, the entire time thanking god that you had him back again.

[themonotonysyndrome]

REDACTED verse - Meet cute

Prompt: Any Fandom | Any Characters/Pairings |“It’s okay. I couldn’t sleep anyway.”

Word Count: 2,552

Author/Team: LadyMonotone

Fandom/Original: Redacted ASMR (Lasko/Darling & Sam Collins)

Rating: T

Triggers: Profanity

Summary: Darling has a major weakness for anything and everything that's cute. Lasko has a thing for people that can bench press him in a blink of an eye. The two meet.

ConCrit: Y

Before we start off, this oneshot is for @ofthecosmos @dolls-circus and @fuzzy-melonlord because I've never obsessed so quickly over a crack ship and as a thank you for humouring my rambles about Darling/Lasko last night!

-

Darling wakes up to a peaceful morning when they feel something heavy hop onto their chest and an intense craving for chicken wraps. They groan, yet careful not to jostle too much as sleep fades away from Darling’s mind and body.

A white ball of fluff with a pair of black button eyes greets Darling with a twitch of its cotton-like tail as soon as their eyes flash open.

“Morning, Milky.” Darling rasp. When their fingers instinctively run through the bunny’s soft fur, the Werewolf smile when said rabbit flops on top of Darling. A silent demand for pets and cuddles.

Darling easily oblige with a small, fond smile; loving how receptive the rabbit is to their touches despite the Werewolf’s rough pads of fingers. Milky never fails to make a wonderful day even better whenever the bunny deigns to wake Darling up after a long night of work or nightmares. They’re very grateful for Milky’s constant companion and intuition.

After a few more minutes of petting and some cuddling session, Milky makes it known that it’s breakfast time. The little lovebug hops off from Darling and the bed to hover near the door, waiting for its owner to start their day.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming.” Darling yawns widely and stretch their back to ease the knots. It feels so good to feel the tension just melts away.

Darling went through their morning ablutions and checked their phone for texts or missed calls before choosing something sensible to wear on a warm Sunday morning. Something comfortable, something loose and definitely something sleeveless to show off their impressive guns and tattoos to the world later.

When Darling swings open their bedroom door, they watch in amusement as Milky makes a mad dash to the kitchen. Despite having a sizable cat door with a flap that allows the rabbit to come and go as it pleases, Milky always makes sure to wait for Darling before rushing to the kitchen for breakfast.

Darling likes to think it’s Milky’s way to ensure that they also have breakfast before doing anything else. Milky is awesome like that.

And so, after rinsing Milky's bowls, Darling makes sure to top it up with a generous helping of some greens and high-fibre Timothy Pellets before fixing their meal. Milky digs in as Darling lays out some ingredients and utensils on the kitchen counter.

"Chicken tenders, tortillas, red and yellow bell peppers, some red and normal cabbages... what else am I missing?" Darling murmurs, trying to remember what they used the last time they made chicken wraps. They then snap their fingers. "Oh right, honey mustard and mayonnaise. Can't forget about those." They grab the sauce bottles and throws the chicken tenders into the air fryer, and set on chopping the veggies. Occasionally, Darling would glance down to make sure that Milky is eating properly.

It's only when the bunny wanders away did Darling sits down and enjoy their breakfast with a cold glass of milk. These rare instances of a calm morning are something that Darling dearly cherish, given what these past few years had done to them. Drifting away from the Shaw Pack and their parents, Quinn entering their life because of loneliness, Sam orbiting around Darling as a good friend, and the gradual reconciliation with their Alpha can sometimes be too much to handle.

Which is why Darling fully intends on making the most out of this Sunday by pampering Milky because honestly, he deserves it for being such a champ for tolerating their bullshit.

The decision to have an emotional support animal came to Darling after they officially broke things off with Quinn. The silence of their new apartment, as well as the suffocating knowledge that they now have no one to turn to nearly snapped Darling if it weren't for their random impulse to check out the local shelter.

See, while Darling is emotionally isolated when it comes to people, they vibe really well with animals. Perhaps it's because the dogs, cats and birds that hover around the Werewolf never once judge who Darling chose to let into their life. They don't glance at them with a complicated emotion behind their eyes.

Anyway, the moment Darling stepped into the shelter, they were immediately drawn to a tiny white baby bunny falling on itself every time it tried to stay up for more than five minutes.

If it weren't for the worker rambling about the animals they care for beside Darling, they would've squealed at how utterly adorable it is. They decided there and then to adopt the little fella.

That was also the first time Darling realised how much a sucker they are for anything and everything cute the world has to offer - animals being the top of their list.

The only one who knows about their 'weakness' is Sam. He quickly put two and two together that Darling is a doting parent to their furbaby when they invited him over to their place for the first time. The chest full of pet toys in the living, little cardboard buildings scattered around the apartment, as well as a drawer full of tiny clothes spoke for themselves.

Sam rolled his eyes when Darling threatened to tell his Newborns where he hid the best liquor in his house if he didn't promise to keep this side of Darling to himself.

"I ain't gonna snitched your obsession for doilies and plushies, Darling. Relax." Sam assured the anxious Shifter. "Besides, who would even use it against you? Word on the streets is that everyone worth their salt in the underground scene of Dahlia is very well aware of your reputation. Especially more so after what you did to Quinn before he ran away."

Well. When Sam put it that way...

But in all seriousness, Darling is grateful for Sam. He's the friend that Darling has been looking for. Kind, patient but not afraid to say the words they need to hear, no matter how much Darling hates it.

Sam is who Darling wished Quinn could be, and for that, he has the Werewolf's favours until the day they pass away.

But back to the topic at hand, yes, Darling keep their immense fondness for cute things very close to their chest and to those whom they trust. After all, they don't need those from the Shaw Pack getting any ideas that they're secretly a softie.

Once Darling finish their meal and wash the dishes, Milky patiently waits for them near the door. It's a routine that Darling would take the bunny out on a walk at the park for a few hours every Sunday morning before they return home for lunch. For a prey animal, Milky is quite brave. He groomed and chinned Darling the first time they transformed into a Wolf - not afraid to claim dominance and ownership of the gigantic Wolf at all!

The bunny perks up when Darling gently goes down on their knees to display three colourful capsule backpacks designed for pets. "Alright, buddy. Choose which one you want to use today." Darling asks and coos when Milky sniffs the pink one. They then put a harness on him before loading the docile pet inside of the backpack.

Darling makes sure to grab their phone, wallet and apartment keys before heading off to the park. Since Dahlia's well-known park is nearby their apartment complex, Darling arrive via walking in just ten minutes. The early morning joggers and cyclists instinctively turn their heads towards the Werewolf when they pass by. Darling internally preens when their eyes turn wide, and mouths slightly gape in an obvious sign of attraction and lust.

Meanwhile, Milky is fascinated with the change of environment. He keeps himself entertained by either cleaning his face or sniffing in the air.

But anyway, once the pair reaches the centre of the park where the fountain is, Darling kneels to unzip the bag to let the bunny on the grass. Milky immediately hops around Darling in excitement. "So where do you want to explore today, baby? Do you want to go nibble on the wildflowers over there? Meet some squirrels? Yeah? Let's go see the flowers!" With the harness secure around Milky, Darling isn't worried about the potential of their pet running off, so they let the bunny drag them around the park.

However, after half an hour of Darling indulging their bunny in chasing after a ladybug, their phone rings.

Darling checks the name before answering the call while their other hand is still holding on the leash to the harness. "What's up, Sam? Thought you might be sleeping around this time."

"Something came up that I thought you should know. I'll catch my beauty sleep later."

"What is it?"

Sam sighs tiredly. "It's about Quinn..."

The moment Sam drops his name, Darling's shoulders go rigid as they usually do. Darling is so caught up in their call that they don't realise their grip on the leash loosened when Sam mentions that Quinn has added even more body counts from the last city that he lived in.

" - talks about the Department finally setting their priorities on the bastard. Better late than never, I suppose."

"And it needed the Shaw Pack and your Clan to lit their asses on fire and realise how much a threat Quinn is," Darling grounds their teeth. "Interference or not, I'm not quitting now. Not after everything he's done to me."

"I figured you'd said that. Just... just keep me updated, alright? I remember that Alpha of yours telling you to stay close to the Pack. How's that been going on for you?"

"Urgh, don't remind. Things are a little awkward, but at least none of them is hounding my ass about my past with Quinn. Anyway, thanks for the heads up, Sam. I'll talk to you later."

"Mn. Try to stay out of trouble, Darling." And with that, Sam ends the call.

When Darling puts away their phone, they realise that the leash is no longer in their other hand. Frozen and slowly overcome by dread, Darling glance down to find that Milky is nowhere in sight.

"Fuck! Milky! Baby! Where did you run off to!?"

-

Exam season in D.A.M.N is coming soon, and Lasko has been dealing with a mountain worth of paperwork and sheets for his D.A.M.N 101 courses to bury a man alive.

So here's Lasko, on the way home from purchasing a new board game from his favourite game shop as a way to take it easy after a hectic week. After some persuading from the Freelancer, a teasing offer to help him unwind by Gavin, a lecture on the importance of taking a proper day off by Damien and a pair of puppy eyes from Huxley, Lasko decided that this is the better alternative to whatever they're planning to do to him if he plays stubborn.

The day has been treating him kindly thus far. His ancient coffee machine finally worked again, so Lasko had something warm to fill him up before heading out of his apartment. He managed to grab a quick breakfast from his favourite cafe, and for being a regular customer, the shop owner gave him a generous discount for his board game.

And now, a white rabbit wearing a black harness is frolicking around his legs.

"O-Oh gosh, someone must've lost their pet," Lasko figured, trying very hard to remain calm as not to frighten the surprisingly friendly rabbit. When he tries to crouch down, instead of fleeing, the animal actually stays. "We need to get you back to your owner; they must be so worried. Are they around the park?" He couldn't help but ask before giving in and carefully crouching down to pet the rabbit.

Lasko quietly cheers when the rabbit sniffs his fingers. Judging by the rabbit plump yet healthy size as well as its well-groomed white fur, the owner must genuinely cherish the rabbit.

As if summoned, a voice calls out in front of Lasko. "Milky! There you are! You gave me a heart attack, buddy!"

What could only describe as a Greek deity jogs towards Lasko. His mind immediately and unhelpfully supply words like - breathtaking (hah!), jaw-dropping and star bright as they approach him with all the confidence of a model on the runway. It's rude but, his eyes are immediately drawn to their body; he did best not to whimper when the stranger flashes him a small, relief grin.

"Thank you for finding my rabbit," The stranger - wait, no, Lasko can see their powerful Aura. They're an Empowered Human - begins. When they bend down to grab the leash on the harness, they offer their hand to Lasko; a silent gesture to help pull him up. Lasko shivers at the warmth when their fingertips make contact and how big their hand is compared to his as they gently hoist him up. "I was distracted, and my pet could've gotten seriously hurt if it weren't for you. So... thanks for that."

"Ohgodcrushmeplease."

"Uh... what?"

"I-I mean it's n-no big deal!" Lasko hurries out and stammer, internally berating himself to get his shit together before the deity in human form would be weirded out. So he lets out a nervous chuckle before adding, "I didn't a-actually pay attention to where I-I was going and then when I look down there's suddenly a cute rabbit at my feet, and I d-didn't know what else to do but makes sure that it didn't run off and like you said, hurt itself, but I was surprised that your r-rabbit is super friendly and before I could do anything - you showed up. Y-You're here, and yeah..."

Normally, Lasko would've been cut off from his rambling before he could go on, but the stranger is unfazed by it. If anything, Lasko could've sworn the glimmer in their eyes is fondness.

"Still, I'm grateful that Milky came to you. He might be friendly, but he's always wary of strangers. You must be something special to earn his approval." The stranger lightly teases.

This time, Lasko did a whimper. The stranger smiled widely, delighted at the reaction they garnered.

"Tell you what, I owe you one for keeping an eye on my rabbit. You're doing anything later?"

Lasko.exe shuts down. The stranger smiles wider when it takes him ten minutes to reboot his brain to finally register their question. "L-Later? As in... the afternoon? Or t-tonight?"

They shrug. Lasko caught some coloured ink at the edge of their shoulders, and immediately his throat become dry. "Whenever works for you, Sweet Stuff. Tell you what, I'm gonna give you my number, so the ball is in your court. Feel free to hit it as hard as you like, I can take it."

Lasko has to be dreaming. If he is, he never wants to wake up just so he can be with this stranger forever.

The guys need to know about this!

-

"Darling? Wha - did something happen? You called me three times."

"Wait - were you sleeping?"

"It’s okay. I couldn’t sleep anyway. What's up?"

"I found the cutest boy in the whole universe, and I'm so gonna bang him tonight!"

"Well... at least you kept yourself out of trouble. Try not to traumatise him, yeah?"

[squeakybunni]

Earning His Trust | | Dabi x Reader

-Fandom: My Hero Academia

-Genre and Warnings: Fluff, angst to an extent; mentions of violence, minor blood warning, VERY slight nsfw mention bc reader telling him what to do makes him go awooga awooga. Manga spoilers, but nothing too severe! Just for plot relevance.

-Word Count: ~1.2k

-Summary: While tending to his wounds, Dabi comes to the realization he can trust you with the details of his past.

-Notes: SO LIKE. SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING FOR A MONTH OR SO, I'VE BEEN DEALING WITH A LOT IN MY PERSONAL LIFE LMAO- College work while being socially distant is so much PAIN but I have some free time to write abt my fav burnt boi! (No but fr he lives in my mind rent free, might as well talk abt him-) Reminder that requests are open, so feel free to leave something in my askbox !!

═════☩══✦══☩═════

This wasn’t the first time he did this. After missions, sometimes Dabi will stop by your place to seek refuge, not feeling safe anywhere else. You didn’t mind, and within a few minutes, you had a Cup of Noodles ready to go for him. Even though he’d laugh and say he didn’t need it, within a few minutes he’d shut up to eat, chopsticks in hand. The two of you would watch shows or movies until you were too tired to stay awake, either crashing on the couch or moving to your bedroom, holding each other until he left the next morning to attend to other business. However, tonight was nothing like those nights.

You heard a knock from the door, arising from the couch to open it. Nobody hardly ever knocked on your door, so you were pretty certain you’d see him standing there, hands in his pockets, asking slyly if you were lonely. Instead, Dabi stood in front of you, holding one of his arms, his blood staining his fingers, smaller cuts on his face. Before he could even think of a witty remark, you grabbed him by the collar, pulling him into your house, bombarding him with a number of questions: “What happened?” “How did this happen?” “How did you let this happen?” “Are you okay?” Your concern made the scarred man laugh laughtly, telling you, “You’re cute when you’re worried like this.” Looking at him with seriousness in your eyes, clearly having no patience for his jokes, you pointed your finger towards the couch, assertively ordering, “Sit on the couch, I’ll be right there.”

He hardly ever saw this side of you; usually, you were shy and quiet, barely even having the confidence to look him in his eye when he spoke. The idea of you telling him what to do was almost arousing, since he never experienced this from you before.

Dabi was shaken out of his thoughts when you reached for his arm, being as gentle as possible. “While I clean this, can you tell me what happened?” you ask in a hushed voice, one that he was more used to.

He moves his arm out of your grasp, leaning forward to look at you more closely. “You know, you don’t need to do this. I’m fine,” he insists, looking you in the eyes. You return the glare, pouting your cheeks ever so slightly.

“No, you’re here and you’re bleeding. I’m not just going to let you sit here and possibly hurt yourself further,” you declared, holding out one of your hands, inviting him to let you help. “Now, can I clean your arm?”

Rolling his eyes, Dabi sighed, realizing you weren’t going to give up unless he listened. “You know, you’re really annoying when you want to be, little mouse,” he scoffed playfully, placing his hand in yours.

“This is probably going to hurt a little,” you warn before gently touching a damp cloth to his arm, earning a light wince from him. Apologies pour from your lips as he chuckles breathily, leaning back onto the couch.

“You worry too much. It’s fine,” he consoles, allowing you to continue. After making sure it’s clean, you press a gauze against the cut, beginning to wrap a bandage around it to keep it secure. Dabi sits up ever so slowly as to not disturb you, beginning to get lost in thought as he watches you take care of him. Nobody had ever really done this for him, at least not recently. For years, he had been on his own, more or less. While the League of Villains were technically there, he didn’t feel secure relying on them. None of them would allow him to crash with them as long as he wanted, feed him, or dress his wounds either.

“Can I clean the ones on your face, too?” you ask, Dabi taking a second to lock eyes with you again. “Go for it,” was all he said, having no objections when you sat on his lap, taking his jaw in your hands.

“Well, damn. Didn’t expect it to go like this. You know, you really didn’t need an excuse to sit on me,” Dabi teased, snickering when you shot him a look. “You’re lucky you’re hurt,” you jokingly threatened, shutting him up by addressing the cuts on his face with the cloth.

Again, there you were, acting so soft towards him. How could he, a villain, even deserve this treatment? Nobody had dared get this close to him, and you knew what he was. You knew what he did to people. How is it that you could ignore all that and take care of him like this? Was it out of pity, or did you really love him? Why would you love him? What did he do to deserve your kindness? The way you avoid his scars with careful precision, your delicate hands on his face, trying to make his wounds better. This is a simple thing you do when you care for someone, right? If that was the case, maybe you do love him. You love him enough to trust him to stay in your house whenever he needs it.

Maybe, he should trust you too. After all, not just anyone would be so gentle with him, treating him like a human being and not the monster he thought he was.

“Mouse, have I ever told you how I got all these scars?” he blurted into the silent atmosphere, making you jump and sit back to look at him.

“No, I don’t believe so,” you answer, remembering how you’d ask and how he’d narrow his eyes and ignore you. Nothing made him shut up quite like that, and you realized very quickly to just leave well enough alone.

═════☩════☩═════

He told you everything. From his troubled family history, to the goals he used to have of becoming a hero, and his quirk not being compatible with his body. As he spoke, you held his hands, listening to every word, doing your best to keep tears from welling up in your eyes. It broke your heart to hear him explain everything that happened, wanting so badly to take all the pain away from him. You also fought the urge to smile proudly, knowing he trusted you enough to explain the things you wanted to know for so long.

You hold his arm in your hand, running your thumb over the scars so gently, comforting him as he explained. You wipe the tears from your eyes, not wanting to interrupt him.

“Wait, oh shit, are you crying?” Dabi asks, holding your chin in his hand to make you look at him. He gives you a comforting smile, chuckling breathily. “You know, you don’t need to cry. You didn’t go through it, did you? It’s still cute, though.” Whining, you lunge forward, wrapping your arms around his neck.

“I’m sorry that happened to you, Dabi,” you whimper, holding his body to yours as his arms enclose around your smaller form.

“Ah, you don’t need to apologize,” he laughs, soothed from your response. “Just call me Touya from now on.”

[atlantablack]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you’ve written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💖

tagged by: @being-luminous thanks much for the tag 💖💖

This is such a daunting challenge god, picking my five favorites god. but alright let's see here. No wait, this was actually so fucking hard holy shit

1. Remember me love when I'm reborn

In one life Harry Potter lies dead on a forest floor. Eyes unseeing and body cold. Voldemort laughs and tries to ignore the gaping emptiness that has expanded in his chest.

In another, time ripples and Harry appears in the middle of a forest. Eyes bright and death wrapped around her like a cloak.

In a life that could have been, Harry flings herself from Hagrid’s arms and wins the war. Lives her life ignoring the gaping hole in her chest where someone else’s soul used to sit.

This is the very first multi-chapter fic I ever wrote and finished. I'd also just joined a discord server that ended up really motivating me to write and where I ended up meeting @kitastrophea and @queerofthedagger in 2019, two of my best friends. so this fic really encapsulates that era of my life, of getting back into writing, and making friends that I can't imagine life without and it has a very special place in my heart.

2. a god at an altar, a beggar full of faith

The dawn was breaking the bones of your heart like twigs. You had not expected this, the bedroom gone white, the astronomical light ... - Visible World by Richard Siken

For every person that sinks magic beneath Arthur's skin like an offering, another tries to murder him, always furious when the magic harmlessly bounces off, Arthur held safe by the sacrifices of those who have died for him.

He wonders if they knew that he was aware of what they were doing. He spends a lot of time wondering why they would protect him. His father has them murdered and still more come, always in disguise, sometimes only brushing past him in the marketplace, a finger to his wrist, a hand to his back, the sweet rush of protection burrowing beneath his skin and promising safety.

He wonders how long it is until they decide to stop protecting the son of their butcher?

I wrote this for Merlin Holidays 2021 and it's one of my favorite fics I've written for the Merlin fandom. I was in the middle of resisting the urge to write marvel fic too and some tropes carried over that ended up fitting really well. I'm also really proud of the little details I winded through it and the bits of backstory I gave Arthur.

3. no (wo)man is an island

Holding someone’s soul next to your own for seventeen years leaves behind an echo.

An echo is all that’s needed to carry a voice across space (and time).

I just like this one lol we need more fem!Harry where it's also fem!Voldemort!

4. so keep up your heart, and tell me, as it shapes itself

P.S. Allen Ginsberg to Peter Orlovsky -- 1958 Tho I long for the actual sunlight contact between us I miss you like a home. Shine back honey & think of me.

Steve says, he's my friend, and Sam spends a year chasing Bucky across Europe. Spends the next year missing him.

One of the biggest reasons I started writing for sambucky was because I read this very specific trope of Sam helping Steve look for Bucky after catws and finding him, and writing my own version of that trope is just, god, this fic is like my favorite younger child. I'm so incredibly proud of it and love it a lot. Writing this also really helped me shape the way I write Sam <3

5. half in the shadows (half burned in flame)

He gets as far as New York before his body goes into withdrawal. Before he remembers that Hydra had stuck a failsafe in him so he’d go down long enough to be found.

Before he remembers that he'd run before. (He doesn’t want to go back. He doesn’t want to. He never wants to and it never matters.)

This time it does.

Last, but certainly not least, my first really huge sambucky fic. I started this thing in January and just finished it like a week ago. It grew so much larger than I ever meant for it to be and I loved every second of it. It was one of the big first things that @magicinavalon and I bonded over, and I put so much love into this fic. It's always going to be my baby in this fandom, the fic that really grabbed me and said hey, you're in it now babe. Have fun down the rabbit hole <3

tagging: @magicinavalon @yammz @kitastrophea @obsessivelymoody @jules-of-the-crown and @queerofthedagger again just because <3

[classysassy9791]

Fandom: Inuyasha Genre: Romance/Humor/Fluff Pairing: InuKag Rating: T

The conclusion for this little fic that has waited 6 years for completion. Hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think!

Thank you to @akitokihojo for being such a stellar beta for this fic, and helping it come to its completion. Couldn't have done it without you!

For @inukag-week Day 6: Transformation.

Part 1 l Part 2 l Part 3 l

Part 4 Word Count: 2,000

Can also be found on FFN and AO3

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.

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It had been a very long time since Kagome had experienced a hangover.

The buzzing in her brain soon became too much to ignore as it beckoned her to consciousness. She opened her eyes to the dimly lit room. Sunlight peeking from beneath the closed curtains indicated it was daytime and she silently thanked herself for being smart enough to close them before leaving her apartment the evening before.

Kagome wrapped the duvet around herself and tried to grasp a hold on the fleeting darkness of unconsciousness. She knew nothing would cure a hangover except time, and she would rather spend it floating through dreamless sleep than deal with the repercussions head-on. Waves of nausea added to her misery and she could faintly smell whiskey with each exhale - a scent that was intoxicating last night, yet this morning it only caused her stomach to twist further.

Her phone pinged with a message, but she didn't dare even try to reach for it, the annoyingly bright glare of her phone not exactly something she wanted to sabotage herself with. As the minutes passed by, she became more acutely aware of her brain feeling like it would swell beyond the capacity of her skull, and her dehydration became too obvious to ignore. Her tongue felt like cotton as she licked her dry, cracked lips. Damn, why did the morning after always have to remind her of what a bad decision the night before was?

She squinted and finally set her gaze on her nightstand. A surprising wave of relief washed over her. Drunk Kagome must have had an intelligent moment, for on her nightstand stood a bottle of painkillers and a glass of water. As quickly as she dared, she propped herself up on one elbow, trying to ignore the slight spin of the room, before greedily popping two pills and finishing the water. Even so, her thirst was far from quenched.

As Kagome tried to sort through her memories of the night before, she quickly registered that she had no memory of coming home last night. The last, clear recollection she could come up with had her sitting at the bar with Inuyasha and sharing a shot with the bartender.

"Shit," she groaned, hanging her head before precariously pulling her legs from beneath her blanket. Blacking out from drinking had been a favorite past time of hers back in her early college days. It wasn't because she didn't know her own limits when it came to being intoxicated, but back then, she simply didn't care. Drinking had been her favorite vice when it came to dealing with the pressures of school, boyfriends, and girl drama. It had been years since she had felt the need to get obliterated so completely.

Finally finding her courage, Kagome reached over and unlocked her phone. The red battery sign at the top meant it was almost dead, so she quickly scrolled through all the alerts on her phone. There had been way too many messages and missed calls from Hojo, which triggered the memory of the picture she had sent him. Her nausea increased ten-fold. Regret was a spiteful bitch.

Hojo was going to be the afternoon's problem. Maybe even tomorrow's problem. All Kagome knew was that it wasn't going to be a now problem.

Kagome plugged in her phone and once she was on her feet, the room swayed, almost causing her to lose balance. She stumbled out into the hallway to her bathroom to relieve herself. When she finished, she washed her hands and splashed cold water on her face just to feel something refreshing. The person's face who greeted her in the mirror no longer resembled the glamorous girl of the night. Only a woman's face awash with guilt, a wrinkled set of pajamas, and hair that was far from attractive.

From the other end of the apartment, Kagome suddenly heard a key turning in her front door. Immediately, she felt panic rise in her throat, eyes going wide. No one had a key to her apartment, not even Hojo, so unless she had been robbed last night - which she very may well have considering she had very little memory of it - no one should be coming over.

She swallowed thickly against her cotton throat and grabbed the first weapon at her fingertips - a plunger. Yeah, she wasn't winning any awards for being clever, but she was hungover and scared for her life.

Kagome crept down the hallway toward the front door and nearly lost her breath at who she saw standing in her entryway. The man from the bar last night - Inuyasha? - was making his way to her kitchen with a carrier filled with coffee and a bag from her favorite breakfast joint down the block.

"Good morning," he greeted casually, not at all thrown off by her presence as he set down his packages on the counter. "I brought you breakfast."

Rage and astonishment swelled in her chest. "What the fuck are you doing in my apartment?!"

He winced and held his hands over his ears before turning to glare at her. "If you could wait until after eight in the morning to start yelling, I'd really appreciate it."

"You didn't answer my question," she seethed, wide eyes sweeping the rest of the apartment for evidence as to what exactly happened last night?!

Inuyasha studied her from across the room and laughed at her dumbfounded expression. "Did you think I was a burglar or something? What's with the plunger?"

Kagome looked down at the plunger she held in his direction like a sword, and felt a blush bloom across her cheeks. She hurriedly hid it behind her back. "W-What was I supposed to think?"

He simply rolled his eyes. "Do you want breakfast or not?"

She bit her lip, but couldn't deny the ravenous hunger eating away at her stomach. Probably half the reason why she was so nauseous. Without saying another word, she slipped back into the bathroom to put away her weapon before meeting him in the kitchen. The sweet aroma of coffee and fresh bagels greeted her. She could've kissed him all over again.

"I didn't know how you liked your coffee, so I got cream and sugar just in case."

Kagome slowly sat down in the chair across from him, watching him slather some cream cheese on his bagel and drink his black coffee. She racked her brain as to exactly why Inuyasha was in her apartment, and then flashes of the night before came rushing back, of sloppy passionate kisses and tangled sheets.

Her heart dropped to her stomach.

Inuyasha studied the array of emotions that flickered across her face while he slowly chewed his bite of bagel and then swallowed. "Kagome, how much do you remember of last night?"

She bit her lip, shameful eyes lifting to his. "Um, well…" Her gaze fell to her person, realizing she was no longer wearing the sequined black dress she had gone out in. All the evidence pointed to a girl she wanted no relation to, making decisions that were very, very regrettable.

"We didn't sleep together."

Kagome's eyes flew to Inuyasha's, his deep voice quelling her fears. "We-We didn't?"

Amber eyes watched her carefully before turning back to his bagel. "No, we didn't. I'm not the kinda guy who beds a girl when she's drunk. Not my style."

A breath Kagome didn't know she had been holding escaped her lips. She had never been the type of girl to have one-night-stands. Her friends always teased her about it, but it was something she prided herself in. Having sex with someone wasn't something she did on a whim. She wanted to know she meant more to someone than an easy lay.

Her brows furrowed as she sipped on her coffee. "If we didn't sleep together, then why are you here?" she questioned. It would've been one thing if she had woken up with a naked man in her bed and kicked him out because of sheer embarrassment. It was another thing entirely that a man she didn't sleep with would bring her breakfast in the morning.

Inuyasha shrugged. "I was too tired to get another ride home last night, so I slept on your couch."

Kagome glanced over the breakfast bar to see a blanket and pillow on her couch as evidence that it had been occupied the night before.

"You know, you probably shouldn't drink so much."

She threw him a glare. "Did I ask for your judgement?"

He shrugged. "I'm just sayin'. Letting a stranger take you home because you're too drunk isn't exactly attractive."

Kagome scoffed. "Oh, thanks for the help," she snipped sarcastically. "What would I've done without you?"

Inuyasha grinned. "Probably throw a party to celebrate my absence."

"Probably, yeah," she hotly agreed. "I would've been just fine on my own."

"Maybe."

She frowned, flashes of last night starting to come back. They had been two heartbroken strangers in a bar who found comfort in their shared misery. Under the neon flashing lights and upbeat techno music, they gravitated toward one another like moths to a flame. But by morning they had transformed; she no longer represented the alluring woman who bewitched him, and he no longer appeared as the mysterious man who captivated her.

Now, she was simply Kagome Higurashi - a woman who was dumped by her fiance and had a mile-long to-do list regarding cleaning up their frayed relationship. And he was simply Inuyasha.

Kagome inwardly cringed. She didn't even know his last name. Or what he did for work. Or anything about him really.

Just fucking great.

"Look, Inuyasha," she began, setting down her coffee. "I appreciate everything you, er, did for me, but-"

"When we're done here, we should go on a real date."

Her mouth fell open. "What?"

Inuyasha shrugged. "Why not?"

"You have got to be joking," Kagome said while shaking her head. "One-night stands are literally just for one night, and we definitely would not work out."

He grinned. "Damn. That's a quick deduction there."

Kagome blushed. "I just mean that, last night… it was great and all, but…"

"It's daytime and the whole world's changed?" Inuyasha finished for her.

She sighed and looked away. He was right. Things were different. Last night didn't happen often for her, and bringing home a guy to her apartment never happened. If it were up to her, she'd stuff last night in a box as a precious memory and then forget it ever happened.

"I'm not saying I'm over Kikyou."

Kagome met his gaze. His eyes locked onto her, and held not an ounce of mirth. He was serious about this. He wanted to see if this could become something.

"And I doubt you're over your ex-fiance," he continued. "But, last night was fun. You're different and piss me off to no end-"

"Is that supposed to be a compliment?" she asked with narrowed eyes.

He sighed and after a moment finally stood up. "Look. You seem like a great girl. But I'm not one to beg. Thanks for the couch." Slipping his phone into his back pocket, he turned to leave.

"Inuyasha, wait!" Kagome called as she chased after him.

Dammit. This guy was so infuriating! He insulted her, and called her names, and angered her enough to make her slap him upside the head. But he also made her laugh, and feel alive, and made her want to kiss him again and again.

She couldn't deny that she wanted to see him again.

Grabbing his elbow, she made him stop in his tracks and look over his shoulder at her. "What?"

"This…" she started, fumbling for the right words. "This is never going to work. You and I."

He gave her a lopsided smile. "I'll pick you up at six."

And then he was gone, closing the door behind him.

Within a moment of him leaving, Kagome realized something: Meeting Inuyasha was either going to be the best luck she ever had, or the very worst. At least, on the bright side, he had already witnessed her at her lowest.

How bad could it be?

[harryandhishook]

Don’t touch what isn’t yours! - Chapter 16

Fandom: Dream Daddy

Pairing: Damien x Robert,  past Joseph x Robert

Setting: Maple Bay

Warning: Hospitals, talks about what happened, talks about murder

Summary: Damien has been dating Robert for a while and their life is becoming slowly more and more domestic but unfortunately, someone has been watching and doesn’t like it one bit.

Words: 3139

Requested: I remember seeing an old posts about some really dark prompts and I thought about the cult ending of Dream Daddy so I jumped at the chance … then got really carried away (Btw, I wanted to contribute to the cult ending stuff so don’t @ me for this, normally I wouldn’t write Joseph like this)

Side note: I did say every Saturday but I had a job interview yesterday as well as a very boring and kinda annoying family get together and I am exhausted, my legs are on fire because I've been working none since Monday and barely got any break :(

First // Prev // End

Days turned to weeks, weeks turned to months and it was still nothing which didn’t give much hope to anyone and even as Lucien continued to visit each and every day he could, there was still no sign of Damien waking but the teen didn’t forget, he believed in every inch of his being that his dad would wake up soon even if that soon wasn’t soon enough.

Today was no different as Lucien and Robert sat in the food court of the hospital, munching away on some vending machine snacks, watching all the people in uniform and gowns pass them by,

“Now, for him” the older one at the table started, continuing on with some game they had been playing for the past thirty minutes as he pointed to a patient with a large cast on his arm and bandages around ear, “he was secretly in a mob family, no one knew, not even his own parents but what they didn’t know was that he was secretly a rat for the police, so, his boss had him ‘taken care of’ but they didn’t finish the job, they were going to chop of his ears and break every bone in his body to send a message” Robert whispered to the boy opposite him who could only laugh,

“Seriously? That’s the best you got? I bet he was hunting cryptids like you but the one he had been chasing for years, the one who ruined his name and killed his family came back to finish the job but he was too fast and got away” Lucien counter-argued as the two stared each other down before letting out a quiet round of laughter, not wanting to disturb the people around them,

“Okay, I gotta admit, you’re getting pretty good at this, I think my persona is rubbing off on you more than I care to admit, soon you might even be able to convince people your backstory was a lot more dangerous than it is … well, at least up until recently” the rugged man joked, taking a bite from his probably very unhealthy ‘protein’ bar which to him, tasted like ass, “Come on, we’ve been here too long, better start heading back and make sure your dad hasn’t somehow turned into an actual vampire” with a scrunch of their rubbish, both of them stood quickly, throwing away their trash as they shuffled through the corridors of the sterilised building back towards the ICU and it seemed the both of them felt the strange change in atmosphere as they grew closer and closer to the room Damien was in. And it seemed the sudden feeling was for a real reason as they watched several nurses and doctors entering and leaving the room with different equipment than before,

“Robert?” the young emo asked as he held tightly onto the strap of his backpack, trying to keep calm,

“Yeah … I know kid, don’t panic and we’ll see what’s going on” the elder one whispered as he quickly wrapped a muscular arm around Lucien, pulling him to the entrance way of the Victorians room but when they noticed that no one was stopping them to talk or even give them any sort of explanation, the steps it took to make it to the door had been the most nerve-wrecking of all steps until they saw why.

Sat in the bed was the man who had been fighting through the battle to stay alive, propped up on a few pillows with a tired smile on his face as if he hadn’t just been through the worst psychologically damaging time of his life as doctors moved around him to disconnect unnecessary machinery while also checking the basic responsive and vitals of Damien which luckily were a lot better than most coma patients, almost complete speech with just a few problems, partial cognitive thought but it should hopefully improve over time and near perfect hand eye coordination which is definitely something to be proud of.

As both Lucien and Robert stood in the doorway, eyes wide and jaws practically touching the ground, Damien’s eyes landed on them and it seemed to immediately perk him up as he carefully shuffled himself up into a better seated position, his smile spread almost across the entirety of his face giving everyone in the room a growing feeling of warmth and love,

“Hello Luci” Damien’s raspy voice spoke out as he weakly raised his arm to coax his only son to him, wanting nothing more to hold his little boy again, “I’ve missed you baby boy” he whispered as the boy in question ran across the room, throwing himself at his father … carefully of course but throwing himself on the man all the same and as Damien wrapped his arms around Lucien, they both knew they would never be able to let each other go again,

“D-Dad … I can’t, I thought … I was so scared” the teen cried, tears running down his cheeks, soaking his father’s hospital clothing as they held each other close, both pouring out every emotion that had built up inside their bodies over the course of the very weird and crazy year,

“I’m right here, no one is going to take me away from you again, I promise” the Victorian whispered, his voice shaking from the severity of the happiness he felt for his son, the warmth of Lucien’s hold filled his soul with what he needed after weeks of torture and months of coma, “I love you so much my darling” a soft silence laid throughout the room as the teen pulled back to smile lovingly at his father through the still falling tears but nothing could stop Damien from placing his hands on the boys cheeks, admiring the teen the exact same way he had the first time he held him in his arms. The soft stroke of Damien’s fingers against Lucien’s soaking wet face was like a breath of fresh air for the both of them as a weight was lifted from both of their shoulders, taking this moment to really take in each other after so long,

“I love you so much dad, there is so much you missed that we need to catch you up on” he mentioned, wrapping his long slender fingers around Damien’s thinner, more fragile wrists, smiling as brightly as the day he got to meet Mickey Mouse for the first time, “It’s almost my graduation, I actually made it, didn’t think I would honestly … oh and … Ernest and I are … kind of a thing now so there’s that” Lucien explained, chuckling nervously at the last part since he wasn’t exactly the type of person to fully ‘come out’, so he hadn’t exactly told his dad that he wasn’t completely straight which he knew wouldn’t really cause much seeing as his dad was gay too but he still wanted to get that little reveal out of the way, he just wasn’t expecting a chuckle,

“Finally, I was wondering when you and E-Ernest would stop staring at each other and m-make a move” Damien commented, his voice didn’t sound too great, it was as if someone was dragging the Victorians words across a cheese grater which they could all tell seemed to be weighing on the man just a little, “Now, as much as I am more t-than happy to see you, I would very m-much like to see my b-boyfriend” he told the teen as he peeked over towards Robert who understandably was still staring wide eyed and slack jawed beside the doorway causing a raspy chuckle to force its way out of Damien’s very sore throat.

It was quite clear at this point, Lucien did not want to leave his Father’s side, being his first and only child, he wanted to be in complete contact with the man who had almost been forcibly removed from his life, however, he also understood that he couldn’t keep his dad to himself forever. So, with a begrudged look on his face, the emo shuffled away from the bed to give his future Father-in -Law a much-needed reunion,

“Robert, if you d-don’t get your ass over here, I-I’ll just have to give Lucien more hugs” he teased knowing full well that Robert would not pass up a hug from his lover who he hadn’t held in several months, so as he watched the man clumsily but hesitantly shuffle over to the bed, he couldn’t help the smile that sat on his face, “I won’t break, I-I promise” he whispered as he slowly hovered his hands closer to Roberts, trying to get just a piece of skin to skin contact with the man,

“I know … but I realized you’re not exactly immortal and losing you was one of the scariest things I could ever go through, I’m just scared that if I touch you now, I’ll wake up” he explained, voice shaking with unspoken fears and heartache as the distance between their fingers slowly disappeared, letting their hands finally touch, “I don’t know what I’d do without you …” he choked out as fresh tears fell down his face as Robert flung his arms around the goths body, pressing him as close as he possibly could as he sobbed hysterically at the realisation that this was not just some horrifying recurring nightmare that would end up being a sick joke brought on by his own fears,

“I’m here, I promise you will n-not wake up, we’re finally together once m-more, we’re never going to be apart again … h-he won’t come back” Damien whispered into his lovers ear, his fingers gently stroking through Robert’s locks to comfort the man, nothing was worse than living your fear even when the truth was right in front of you but nightmares would take a long time to recover from, at least they had each other to help the past disappear,

“oh, by the way, please grow your hair back, I’ve never seen you with short hair before … it’s weird” Robert tried to tease through tears, voice slightly cracking with each word but as he felt Damien’s shoulder shake with a breathy laugh, he knew Damien agreed.

As the time went on and the day slowly came to a close, it was time for the crushing reality to rear its ugly head again, once the hospital staff had finished their jobs around the room, they left to allow the family enough time to catch Damien up on the everyday things that had happened over the missing months of his memory and everyone in need of contacting had been contacted, it was time for the truth. A few hours whizzed by before the Detective finally showed up, entering the room with a soft smile on his face,

“It’s great to see that you’re awake, you definitely seem to be quite happy to see everyone again” the detective commented as he placed down his bag, patting Lucien’s shoulder in a friendly gesture, “hopefully this one hasn’t stopped telling you about all the gossip around here” he chuckled before pulling up a chair to sit not too far away from the bed with his notepad and pen at the ready, “okay, so, introductions are in order, I’m the detective that was working on the missing persons case about you, obviously we have most of the story now with what Mary was able to tell us, however, we will need to hear about everything that happened so we can hopefully track down Joseph, we searched the place where you were found but it seemed that we were having trouble keeping ourselves from getting lost, but, good news is, we did find a lot of evidence we can use against him and hopefully fin-“

“He’s dead” the detective was interrupted by a sudden rough voice, pausing everyone in their tracks at this sudden reveal. Damien’s eyes were locked with the detective as he held no emotion on his face, even his eyes were rid of any feeling,

“We couldn’t find any body, are you sure he’s dead? What happened?” the detective asked concerned and intrigued by the turn of events, so as quickly as he could write, he took down Damien’s story, from when he was taken, the torture he went through, everything Joseph had done all the way down the Mary appearing and saving him,

“…I tried to get out as fast as I could b-but it must have been about an hour or something by the time I found a way out but just as I got there … so did he, I thought Mary was a-already dead, I thought I was too, he held a gun to my head but I couldn’t face the idea of going down without a fight … it hurt so bad, he managed to keep me down so m-many times but it seemed like something gave me the energy t-to try one more time … I pinned him and held the gun to his head, the trigger was right there but I couldn’t do it but then he started talking about Lucien a-and Robert, telling me that they could never love a man like me, a coward … so I s-shot him point blank in between the eyes before carrying Mary up the stairs and out and that’s pretty much w-where the story ends” he finished, his eyes never once leaving the detectives the entire time as he recalled the feeling of pulling that trigger to be reunited with his family again, “he’s d-dead because I killed him” he confessed before finally turning his gaze to his son and husband to hopefully be, “I’m sorry you had to learn of w-what he did and I’m sorry you had to find out what I d-did … I hope you can forgive me …” he whispered, the emotions he had been so reluctant to show were now swimming in his eyes as he stared at the shocked faces of the two people he had never wanted to hurt,

“So, his body is still down in those tunnels? Do you remember where abouts you came out from? Maybe we can find him and try to wrap up this case” a map of Maple Bay was placed on the bed in front of the man as the detective handed him a pen, urging him to try and find where they could find Joseph so they would not have to send out an expensive search through the maze of underground walkways. For the next few minutes, Damien studied the map, the entrance that Mary must have entered through was already circled so the Victorian retraced his steps from what he could remember from his delirious state, leading him quite a few miles away from the cul-de-sac but not to the exact point so he circled the estimated area and handed back the map,

“I can’t remember completely, it’s all blurry and almost like a broken dream but I know it was somewhere around there … what will happen now? I killed him, what will happen to me?” Damien asked, fiddling with the pen he was still holding, he knew that he had went through a lot in the past few months, but he also knew that murder was still murder and that scared him,

“I am going to make sure that nothing happens, yes you did confess to shooting Joseph however from both yours and Mary’s statements, the evidence and the medical records, there is enough of a case against him that will make sure nothing happens to any of you, it was a life or death situation and sometimes it has to happen, this was a situation in which it was either two innocent lives over a mad man, I promise you that you and your family will be safe from harm from now on” the detective explained to a now much calmer Damien who seemed to have relaxed in his bed, leaning back against his pillows, breathing deeply as if his lungs had been squeezed the entire conversation until he remembered two people he hadn’t spoken to in this entire time.

Turning his gaze to his side, he expected to still see both stood far away on the opposite side of the room, staring in disgust and horror at the invisible blood he had on his hands but he wasn’t expecting to see two chest perfectly in his line of sight way too close to the bed. Peering up, he paused when he saw both his boyfriend and his son, standing behind him in a protective and sympathetic stance, trying their hardest to give the room a sense of safety even when there was nothing to be scared of anymore,

“Dears, I’m fine, nothing’s going to happen to me … especially if I have my two brave boys protecting me” the Goth reassured, placing both his hands on their arms, subconsciously begging them to relax, “I’m awake, I’m alive, he’s gone, it’ll all be fine, I promise” he guaranteed with a soft smile on his face, “Now come on, if the detective is finished than I would very much like to learn about more things I’ve missed” Robert and Lucien glanced at each other before sighing, taking one of Damien’s hands each to try and disperse their anger but the reality that all this was over and nothing can tear them apart again, it seemed that maybe everything could go back to normal … ish? “Now, the one thing I really want to know” Damien started as he turned to look towards his emo son with a gentle squeeze of his hand, “Since you and Ernest are a thing … have you taken his first kiss yet?” he asked with a knowing Fatherly smile on his face, a little cough escaped his throat but it was short and quickly disappeared as he watched his Sons face transform into a red balloon and the stuttering started,

“W-What … that’s not really … I mean … you don’t really talk about that with your dad and … well … no … no I haven’t…” he blabbered before lowering his head, hiding his shame and embarrassment from all the older men in his room, “I just … I don’t really see the need to rush into it” Lucien tried, knowing there was no way to get out of this now that all eyes were on him, “Well, we almost did but Hugo interrupted us” he whispered as if it was a secret no one was meant to know which seemed to have every adult in the room laughing at the poor boys teenage dilemmas and it was this moment the family knew they were back in one safe piece, together again.