#if there's 1 more to finish it off then i can wait. no cliffhanger from this one rly

[cheswirls]

i don't keep up w spy x family regularly so i end up reading ~10 chapters all at once which i think is a good thing bc if i had to wait week to week during some of these intense arcs i would go insane

[keigokoutarou]

“Do you like my hips?” Pt. 1.5

Simon “Ghost” Riley x AFAB!Reader

Pt. 1.5 bc I love cliffhangers *smooches*

Find Pt. 1 here! | Pt. 2

Warnings: welcome to my tit talk (literally that’s all that’s here) Suggestive content

Oh you were writhing. Shaking. Beaming with excitement in your seat as you looked at yourself in the review mirror. The ride to base had never felt so fucking long. This 20 minutes used to feel like bliss before you had to deal with the guys but today? You were sure the speed you traveled was considered reckless.

Pulling up to the gate, you stopped for the MP to check your I.D.

“No camos today again sergeant?” The MP asked, trying so hard not to eye your chest.

“Another maintenance day.” You shrugged. “Gotta get the buggies in good shape before our next mission.”

“Yes ma’am.” He smiled. “Have a good one, Sergeant.”

Oh, I will. You thought to yourself as you waved him off and headed toward the yard as you and soap called it.

Pulling in, you noticed a few other cars and began counting them out.

Price’s Raptor, Gaz’s AMG and Soap’s old FJ. You groaned in annoyance.

“If he doesn’t show today, I’m going to lose it.” You grumbled, pulling your keys and sliding out of your rebuilt rx-7 before shutting and locking the door behind you.

You almost stomped your way through the yard to the last set of buggies that needed attention.

“Swear I could hear you coming down the highway in that thing.” Soap laughed, rubbing his hands on a greasy towel.

“Funny, I didn’t think she was loud enough.” You smirked, following Soap back to the one he was working on.

“We’re about done, just need to do two more oil changes.” He sighed, rubbing his forehead to clear the beads of sweat.

“I can start on one then.” You nodded your head.

“I laid everything out already but um, don’t want to like cover up first?” He raised an eyebrow, lifting his hands up to his chest. “Lieutenant seemed pissed on Tuesday about it.”

“Oh did he?” You quirked an eyebrow. “What makes you say that?”

“Heard him bitching to himself about you ‘flaunting’ all over base after you left.” Soap shrugged.

“Seems like he just needs to get over himself.” You giggled.

“Or he needs to get laid.” Soap chuckled along side you.

“Is he even coming today?” You threw in, silently thanking Soap for leaving the opening.

“He’ll be in shortly. Said he was meeting with Alejandro, the guy we have our new mission with.”

“Ah.” You nodded. “I’ll get started then. Wouldn’t want lieutenant pouty to have my ass.”

“I dunno, he might want to.” Soap winked, turning his back to you and returning to his work.

“Oh you have no idea.” You mumbled to yourself before heading toward the truck.

Time had flown by since you laid on the creeper and rolled yourself up under the buggy with tools in hand.

“Ah, fuck.” You groaned as the bolt to the oil pan fell straight into the drip pan with oil spouting out over top of it. Rolling your eyes, you huffed and dropped your wrench and socket beside you before leaning over to look for the bolt.

“Little shit.” You hissed at the little metal knob for falling instead of staying in the socket. You leaned the opposite way, dropping into a random pan you had found to hold anything important and prevent them from rolling away.

Laying back on the creeper again with a huff, you looked at the engine oil staining your hand and like a light bulb switched, you were filled with a genius idea.

“Whoops.” You giggled to yourself as you wiped the oil on the front of your shirt and purposely made sure a smear or two landed on the tops of your breasts. “Wonder how that got there.”

Evil it was and evil you were. Maybe you had started this deadly war, you thought to yourself as you waited for the oil to drain, but Simon made his move and it would be wrong not to engage in such a fun game of chess.

You were impatient as time passed, closing up the oil pan as it finished draining. On the last turn to tighten it with all your might, you heard your favorite sound.

“She should be around here somewhere.” You heard a deep voice break the every day noise of the base.

It was your beckoned fucking call. You smiled, checking your cleavage to make sure it was ample in its beauty before looking to the sides of you to spot Simon’s signature walk.

To your left, you noticed him approaching from the direction Soap was in. Beside him you noticed another set of legs and you realized that it must have been Alejandro. Your smile turned from excited to devious in seconds. This was going to be fun.

You waited until the got closer, assuming Simon had seen you since he called out your name.

You pushed yourself off the suspension and slid out from under the buggy on the creeper. You held your hand out to shield your eyes from the sun and to catch a clean look at your Lieutenants face.

He held his hand out to you, offering help to get you up so you could properly greet. You smiled, meeting his eyes with a knowing smirk as he not so shamelessly eyed your chest. This time, he wasn’t subtle. His hand gripped yours tighter than ever and in that instant, you wondered what it would feel like grabbing at the inside of your thighs.

“Sergeant.” Simon sounded so annoyed. You were glad.

“Lieutenant Riley.” You were absolutely beaming.

“I’d like you to meet Colonel Alejandro Rojas.” He gritted his teeth, trying so hard to maintain an even tone.

You narrowed your eyes slightly in a playful way before turning your attention to the man beside him.

“Sergeant F/N L/N.” You smiled, extending your hand for a handshake. “Nice to meet you.”

“Pleasure is all mine.” He might have smiled a little to hard but you knew Simon caught it and that’s all you cared about.

“I’m excited to get a chance to work with you. Captain Price says you’re great with a Lachmann.” You ignored the tall angry man beside you, fully engaging with Alejandro.

“He speaks too highly of me.” Alejandro chuckled.

“I doubt that.” You waved off his comment. “You’ll have to show me sometime.”

Alejandro nodded, fully unaware of the part he played as pawn. Sure it was a cheap move but it was too easy. Too easy to dig the hypothetical knife just a little deeper into Simon’s side.

“Price wanted to go over some finer details with you before tonight’s big debrief.” Simon interrupted. “He’s in the large building over there, I’ll catch up with you.”

Alejandro nodded, bidding you one more small smile before walking off and leaving you with Ghost.

You crossed your arms, being sure to push your chest out just a little more as you turned to fully face him in a challenge as you looked up at your lieutenant.

“Playing dirty now, aren’t we?” His tone was shifting, dare you say to a more angry one.

“Was I?” You played innocent, almost batting your lashes at the man.

His eyes seemed to flash with excitement at the realization that you wanted to play. Not just submit to him because that would be too easy. You wanted to draw out this game with him as long as possible.

“You little minx.” He shook his head, crossing his arms to match your stance.

“Lieutenant Riley, I’m not sure that’s how you should speak to your peers.” You tilted your head to the side. “It wouldn’t be great for team morale.”

He looked at you, eyes darting between each of yours and then squaring with your chest.

“This is a dangerous game you’re playing at, Sergeant.” His voice was even now, smooth and coated in lust.

“Is it now?” You stepped closer to him, looking up through your eyelashes. “If I recall, you’re the one who started this little game of ours.” Your smirk was wicked and he loved it. “I thought about just giving into you because I’m sure you’d just love that… but giving up this soon would be a waste.”

“You look tough now.” His hands fell to his side, making a step to match yours and close the gap. His index finger found its way under your chin, tilting your face up toward him and making your lips part slightly. “I bet I can wipe that cocky smirk right off.”

“Is that so?” You were trying. So. Fucking. Hard. You almost felt like you were shaking with excitement.

“Give me one chance.” When had his face gotten so close? You could almost feel the puffs of air coming through his mask.

He was being blatant now and that earned him a sweet little gasp from your lips.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” His words were now close to your ear, breaking every rule in the book by playing this game with you out in the open. “My quarters tonight. 9 P.M.”

He stepped back, allowing you to breathe. You took an extra step at the snap back into reality.

“I didn’t take you as a beggar, Simon.” You smiled. “We’ll see about tonight.” You waved, turning on your heels in an unknown direction to put distance between you and Simon.

“Fucking hell.” He released a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding as he watched you walk away and out of sight.

[mrvlbimbo]

hello i'm such a huge fan of your works, you're absolutely one of my favorite writers here (｡・//ε//・｡). my request is : where reader secretly leaves romantic notes/messages at eddie's locker to show him that people like them admires him so much. then eddie caught them in the act of leaving another poem and you can go beyond your imagination after that. thank you so much and i hope you're having an amazing day !!!

Ughhhhhh I love this smmmmmm.

Not rlly any warnings it’s pretty fluffy, one or two mentions of masterbation, cliffhanger (pt 2 maybe)

pt 1/2/3/4

Pt2 here

It started out innocent enough, Eddie finding a heart shaped post it note in his locker with romantic song lyrics scribbled on the back of it.

He had assumed someone left it in the wrong locker, considering his was mostly unmarked and unused.

Then there was another note the next day. A pinkish cream piece of paper, the kind someone would buy at a specialized stationary store. It was tied with a red ribbon and the writing was the same color.

A sweet and only slightly creepy letter written about how pretty he was, stamped with a sparkly pink lipgloss kiss and doused in perfume.

He would be lying if he said he didn’t jerk off to the thought of it later, the sweet floral scent of the paper invading his mind all day and night.

The notes continued, each more personal than the last, always packaged so prettily. But they never gave any sort of clue about who she might be.

After a few weeks he finally came up with a plan. He would leave a letter in his locker for her to find, that way they could communicate.

Snatching a random notebook from one of his classmates, he ripped out a sheet and scrawled a note on it.

Dear secret admirer person,

Uh hi. I don’t know how to write letters. Who are you? Wait no that’s rude, first of all thank you. But I do really want to know who you are because your handwriting is so pretty and your notes are so sweet and I like the way your perfume smells. Ok bye. Do you say bye in letters? Whatever, goodbye anyways. P.S. your notes make me really horny.

He scribbled a messy heart at the bottom and signed the letter with his signature, slipping it into his locker when he left school for the day.

The next day he opened an empty locker, finding no note inside. This trend continued for the next three days, no response to his letter. He feared he had scared his admirer away.

The weekend came and went and when he returned to school that morning he didn’t bother to check his locker. The whole school was ushered into a pep rally before he even had time to bother with it.

The band played an upbeat congratulatory melody as the cheerleading team rushed in. “Give a warm welcome back to our very own Hawkins Cheer team,” someone announced.

They had been gone for the better half of the last week, at some regional competition. Bam lightbulb moment! His admirer was one of the cheerleaders.

And sure enough when he checked his locker later that day there was a brown paper package tied neatly with a red bow. It was addressed with a heart shaped sticker.

For Eddie (open in private)

It was signed with only a heart, much more carefully drawn than the one on his own note.

He didn’t bother to finish the day, leaving school with a hurried excuse so he could open his gift in the privacy of his home.

And it was worth it. Wrapped in the paper, was a small vial of sweet smelling perfume, a cassette tape, and a pair of cute pink panties.

Attached was another note.

For when you’re thinking of me

He had to know who this girl was, it was driving him insane. He figured maybe if he never left his locker he would catch her leaving the note.

Later that week, after his DnD session, he camped out infront of his locker. First he checked for a note to see if she had already struck. The locker was empty.

He waited all night, dozing off at about 3 in the morning.

He ducked behind the corner, watching intently to see who it was. Sure enough it was his girl, she hummed a song he didn’t recognize while she carefully looked around. One hand clutched a note while the other played with a heart locket around her neck.

“It’s you,” he whispered, stepping out from his hiding place.

“Jesus fucking hell-“ she yelped, jumping slightly at the sound of his voice.

“What brings you here so early?” He asked, stepping closer and effectively caging her between him and the lockers.

“I’m always here early. Cheer practice,” she explained, her eyes searching the empty hallway for an escape.

“Good to know.” One of his hands came down to cup her waist, sliding her closer to him. His other hand gripped her chin, tilting her face up to look him in the eyes.

“Yep. Yeah. Good to know,” she agreed, flinching slightly when the first bell rang. People started to filter into the hallways and they broke apart.

“Meet me in the woods behind school during lunch,” he whispered, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and kissing her cheek quickly.

“O-ok,” she stammered, but he was long gone, not having bothered to wait and hear her answer.

Taglist here

@angelsarecallin @sebby-staan @niviiera @chaoticgurl @evqans @slut-for-matt-murdock @multihaven @tinyboxxtink @hold-our-destiny @weh-heh-heh @battiebabe216 @captain-satan @avril-reblog-cave @dragon-ash13 @stxvercgersslut  @fangirl199812 @variety-fangirl @buckybeefybarnes @strangerthings64 @baddestbiddiesonly @the-obscurity @racyreverie @ches65 @onxlymnsn @e-girl-on-the-server

(Lmk if u want to be added)

[mrmustachious]

Aight before we go into the third round and I have a very real fear the best episode (in my opinion) has a good chance of going out next round, it's time for some propaganda

✨️Vote for SOS Part 2✨️

This episode is jam packed full of action, emotion, angst, beautiful shots, and an awesome cliffhanger

Ok first of all let's start with the CHASE

Guys GUYS okay the way Gordon goes off to search for Braman and we know that the Hood also knows about Braman and we're just waiting for him and the chaos crew to show up

The way we all panic with Gordon when they do show up (and hello that shot of the chaos cruiser!) and Gordon's slick manoeuvre to get away and his heavy breathing whilst he's hiding. Like we're now like ok this is real this is more than just a normal encounter with the hood. Gordon is actually terrified

But he knows the risk of what's going to happen is worth it because although he has no idea where or who Braman's transmission is coming from, he knows something is UP and he is willing to risk his life for a robot (something he has previously shown distrust in- see chaos part 1 & 2- so this just further shows the risk he is willing to take)

So he goes for Braman anyway and we think oh maybe he might make it out of there and then BOOM Braman starts singing and no surprise really because it was never going to be that easy.

Now the chase is on which is a classic in Thunderbirds. Chases always happen. And we're thinking that Gordon might get away. Barely. But he'll get away.

And this seems true when he dodges their missiles but then. THE DAUNTING LOOK on Gordon's face when he realises they were never actually aiming for Four, but were actually aiming for the wall. And they hit it. And Gordon knows he can't get away and it's gonna hit him, so all he can do is put on his helmet to minimise the damage.

And then there's nothing.

It's quiet. The only thing we hear is Gordon struggling to activate his emergency call, and John's response. John who doesn't seem to be too worried at first, but then when his baby brother doesn't respond he goes into full blown Panic

And then we get the best sequence in the whole god damn show. Thunderbird Two launches with no countdown. No words are said. Virgil and Scott exchange a look and us viewers just KNOW what they are saying to each other.

AND THE MUSIC GUYS THE MUSIC THAT PLAYS WHEN THEYRE ALL RUSHING TO THE SCENE

And let's also talk about THIS moment

This shot. My favourite shot. Fuse lit up, like he is Gordon's saviour. Like he is going to rescue him. The way this shot lingers for a few seconds in just quiet

Then we see Fuse's conflicting emotions when he sees the crumpled tb4. When for a moment you think he's going to save Gordon instead of Braman. When the side of him controlled by the Hood wins out (God I would love to have seen a chaos crew backstory as to how they started working for the man) and when he takes Braman back to the ship, he shows very real worry about Gordon's wellbeing. And we see how little the Hood actually cares about the Tracys.

Then of course we get the rescue (Penelope rescuing Gordon!!) Then the other chase with Kayo vs the hood and chaos crew. And Brains' cryptic message to forget them and finish what Gordon started and rescue Braman

Later we get the soft scene of all the fam in the hospital and a broken (but thankfully alive <3<3) Gordon, and a cute pen&ink moment.

And then we end with the cliffhanger! Jeff is alive!! And this sets up the rest of the season to go and rescue their dad!

Asgdsfs I just love this episode so much guys

Anyway I hope this reminds you all why SOS part 2 is the best episode and you are all persuaded to vote for it in the coming rounds. If anyone else needs convincing then obligatory cat propaganda post

[dinovia-grant]

Writer Asks

I was tagged by the dearest of all dearhearts, @cassiopeiasara

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 53, but full disclosure, I haven't yet moved everything I've written to AO3 yet.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? 885,181 (but honestly, OBaaT Georg is an outlier, and maybe shouldn't have been counted...)

3. What fandoms do you write for? Currently? Ever? Currently, it's SuperCat and, more recently, Guiding Light/Otalia. Stupid unfinished WIP that has haunted me for 15 years...

4. What are your top five fics by kudos? These are all SuperCat, btw. One Bridge at a Time, At the Pleasure of the Hotel de la Paix, Uncharted (part 11), At Sea, and (the shocker) Steel Blue.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? Yes, as many as I can. I've been known to respond to some years after they were written. Comments are the lifeblood of my writing. One comment at the right time can inspire so much. Sometimes, even the completion of a lingering unfinished story...

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Easily, my tears ricochet (Mirandy). My wife (Lisof9) and I took a vow decades ago (pre-dating, even) that we would always write happy, hopeful endings where the couple is together.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Everything else? See above. That doesn't mean there isn't angst. My wife taught me everything I know about chasing characters up burning trees and then lobbing grenades and feral raccoons at them. She also taught me about cliffhangers.

8. Do you get hate on fic? Once. A long time ago on an ER fic, of all things. I didn't write a word for two years after that.

9. Do you write smut? Yes. I'm kinda known for that. It is sometimes even requested, meaning the prompt is given to me because it requires smut.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? Hmm... Not really? Let me explain. One of my SuperCat stories mentions Emily Carlton from The Devil Wears Prada, and one of my Guiding Light stories has a brief cameo from a character on Saving Grace. The only true crossover I've ever written was wacky. It was Star Trek: Voyager and CSI: Miami. Decide for yourself: Wackiness. It's short.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not sure I understand the question. You mean plagiarized.? There was a rash of that happening in the early 2000s, I think, but my readers always let me know.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? I'm not sure. Probably.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Oh, absolutely! My wife should be considered my co-writer in everything because I have been known to pick her brain when I'm stuck. I've also co-written in the Guiding Light/Otalia fandom and in the L&O: SVU Casey/Olivia fandom.

14. What’s your all-time favourite ship? Oh, lord love a duck. SuperCat is certainly my once-and-future obsession. I've been writing them for over seven years at this point and, at last count, have 10 WIPs in the works for them.

My OTP Prime, though, is B'Elanna/Seven from Star Trek: Voyager because that's how I met my wife.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but probably won’t? Hide Beside Me (Guiding Light/Otalia) has haunted me for 15 years, but remember when I said comments were the lifeblood of writing? Someone commented on it last week which revived my interest in finishing the story. I have a draft for chapter 32 in my WIPs folder right now because of that. I hope I finally get to check that one off my to-do list.

16. What are your writing strengths? Research, capturing character personalities, dialogue, and romance.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Fight scenes and the fact that I'm so slow as a writer.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? Actually, I have a plan to write an Astrid/Raphaelle story in French when I feel I'm up to snuff in French again. I can't wait. I love that ship.

19. First fandom you wrote for? Ever? Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. Buck/Wilma, on my handwriting practice pad from school. I was 10. Published in a 'zine? A Star Trek: The Next Generation Worf/Deanna story. Published online? Xena, Warrior Princess.

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? Currently, there are two:

Queen of Hearts, (ST:Voy, B/7), because it was a love letter to the woman who is now my amazing wife.

One Bridge at a Time, (Supergirl, SuperCat). I'm proudest of this one because it took me seven years to write, came in at 310+k words, and I finished it. I never gave up on it. It was always in my mind. And now I'm working on a sequel to it. :)

I tag anyone who would like to answer it. Although, I would be interested in reading the answers from @shaych03 and @fewthistle if they'd like to participate.

[maximoff-pan]

hi!!!!! how about an AU scene where everyone is happy and safe (the kids, steve, nancy, eddie, etc.) and they’re just down in the wheeler’s basement playing DnD??? bonus points if there’s something going on between eddie and the reader… whether it’s an established relationship or they’re just pining besties is up to you oh great one ;)

me??? oh great one??? this is going to be fun…

pairing: eddie munson x fem!reader

word count: 1.6k

warning(s): no real spoilers except for the fact that Eddie exists in this :)

quick a/n: now, bear with me… I haven’t finished season 4 vol. 1 yet, but I fell so in love with Eddie’s character, that when someone sent me this, I just had to write it. I’m sorry if it doesn’t make a ton of sense, or if the characters are a little out of character, or if this would never happen in the show. This is more of a cute, almost au scene, but I hope you like it!

I also left it on a bit of a cliffhanger (ish) ending so you can imagine it however you like ;)

“Why is it,” you tilt your head quizzically, arms leaning forward on the large table in front of you, “that whenever there’s a campaign to play,” your voice drifts towards Eddie, “you always end up being the dungeon master?”

His stare is blank, as if offended you’d even ask that question. Gaze narrowing on you, his forehead crinkles as he brings his brows up in protest, “Because I’m the best.”

And he’s not wrong. Everyone at this table, including you, knows just how much effort he puts into D&D, spending hours planning to make it fun for each player. But as much as you’re aware of his skill as a dungeon master, you like to screw with him even more.

“Or is it,” you speculate mockingly, a mischievous twinkle glimmering in your eyes, “because you need to have control?”

“Ouch,” Steve nearly chokes on a laugh from beside you, leaving Nancy grinning widely on your other side. “Hit him where it hurts Sigmund.”

Eddie splutters at the nickname. He’s always hated the concept of Freud’s psychoanalysis, as little as he did pay attention to it in class. And it certainly doesn’t help when you’re the one behind the use of said psychological techniques. You’re trying to get into his head, trying to throw him off his game. It’s almost working. But as the gaze of many pairs of eyes turns to him, waiting for his response, Eddie does what he does best. He uses humour, pulling himself together nicely.

Being the competitive person he is, he’s sure as hell not about to fall victim to your teasing. Two can play at that game, he thinks.

Everyone watches on as a smirk spreads from one corner of his lips to the other, his jaw relaxing ever so slightly. “I thought you liked it when I was controlling.”

You scoff outwardly, a laugh bubbling in your throat, while simultaneously attempting to hide your embarrassment. This isn’t the first time Eddie has shot you a suggestive comment in order to watch you fall apart. You’re more than aware of how flirty his personality is, and while you’ve certainly adjusted to it over the years you’ve been friends with him, that doesn’t mean the flirting doesn’t get to you sometimes. 

From beside Eddie, Dustin’s reaction is much more crude, “Fucking ew,” he says, his face scrunching up in disgust, “I did not need to hear that.”

“None of us did.” Mike shoots a pointed look in Eddie’s direction, very much sharing his friend’s obvious distaste at the utterance. 

“Honestly Munson,” Max drawls, speaking for the first time today. She’s stopped picking her nails, you notice, a habit she resorts to when she’s bored. Suddenly Eddie’s offhanded wisecrack has piqued her interest, gripping the air out of the room. And much to Mike and Dustin’s dismay, she’s not about to let it go, putting their game indefinitely on pause.

“You’re all bark,” she continues, “and no bite.”

Eddie recoils, the confidence ripped from his tone. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

Steve grins wildly, catching on swiftly. “It means,” he drags out his words slowly, brown orbs glowing in devilry. “You’re all talk.”

You’re starting to realize where this conversation is going, and you’re not sure you like it. As much as you’re usually game for a good bit of teasing, seeing as you started this whole situation, this is headed into dangerous territory, especially for you. Because, while you’d be the first to admit the feelings you hold for your best friend to yourself, you’d be the last person to ever admit it to him. 

And you’re fairly certain everyone here knows just how you feel about him, and just how much those comments effect you.

Max’s voice breaks through your thoughts. “How many times are you going to say those kinds of things before you actually act on it?” Her deep blue gaze is piercing straight into Eddie. “It’s pathetic.”

“Me? Pathetic?” Eddie tuts, his eyes widening in surprise. “Those two words just don’t go together.” 

Max crosses her hands across her chest, standing now, peering over the older teen. “Oh?” She challenges. “Then prove it.”

Eddie rises from his seat, heart beating out of his chest. “Okay.” He says, but he doesn’t sound entirely convinced about what he’s about to do. “I, uh,” any semblance of confidence he had, has now completely deflated. “I can’t.”

“Can’t, or won’t?” Steve cuts in airily.

From your seat, your foot meets Steve shin, and he groans in pain. You shoot him an icy look, one that warns him to tread carefully. “Jeez.” He says. “We were only playing around.”

You know they’re only teasing Eddie on your behalf, because they know how much you like him, but it’s for that reason that this bothers you so much.

Max crooks her neck to the left, the first sign of genuine emotion making its way onto her face. “I’m sorry. I pushed too far.” She admits. “It’s just, you two spend so much time dancing around each other, I thought it was obvious.”

Eddie looks confused. You’re not.

You just want to leave.

“Thought what was obvious?” The question spills from his mouth without a second of hesitation. You’re not sure whether that makes you feel better or worse.

Max groans, and you silently pray that she doesn’t say anything else. But then again, when has luck ever been on your side?

“God Munson,” she rakes a hand through her fiery locks, eyes flicking between you and Eddie, “either you’re playing dumb to hide from your own feelings, or you actually are that stupid.”

“For our sake,” Mike cuts in dryly, leaning over to Dustin, “I hope it’s not the latter.”

You can’t handle this anymore, your need to flee reaching its boiling point.

“You know what,” the discomfort is clear in your tone, “I think I need some air.”

Pushing yourself up from the table, you ignore any of the protests that come your way as you turn your back to them and make your way out of the Wheeler’s basement. Once you reach the top of the stairway, you push yourself through their kitchen and through the back door, collapsing shakily onto the steps in their backyard.

The weather is beautiful, the sun is shining, it’s warm and wonderfully breezy, the exact opposite of how you’re feeling right now. The fresh air fills your lungs, a much needed respite from the stuffiness of the Wheeler’s basement. But your mind won’t stop running.

You hear the back door open and close behind you, but you don’t have the energy to look up, as much as you’re curious to see who has come to join you. Given the way you left, you figured they would leave you alone, but, as it appears, someone has ignored your wishes.

“Hey.” The voice murmurs. Of course it would be Eddie. You should have known the second that door opened that it would be him walking out of it. Who else would it be?

Eddie takes a seat next to you, knees bumping yours slightly, his elbows coming to rest on his thighs. “Are you okay?” His voice is soft, a tone he often reserves just for you.

You intake a questionable breath. “I’m fine.” You say, though it doesn’t sound convincing. “Just a little overwhelmed.”

He nods in understanding, thinking for a moment before he speaks.

“You know they don’t mean it right?” He asks, brown eyes desperately trying to meet yours.

You laugh for the second time today. “Oh, they definitely mean it.”

Eddie’s brow furrows. He’s trying to make you feel better, but it’s clearly not working. He’s at a loss for words. “What?” Is the only thing he can think to say.

Your chuckle isn’t one of happiness. It’s one of pain. “They do it because they know how much I—“ you stop yourself from going too far.

But Eddie’s desperate to know what you were going to say. He thinks he’s finally caught on, thinks he finally understands, and his chest rises with hope. “I need to hear you say it.” He finishes.

Relaxing as much as you possibly can, you reach for Eddie’s hand, clasping it with your own. “They know—“ you struggle, “they know how much I love you.” The words come tumbling out of your mouth and you don’t know whether you’re more shocked you actually admitted it out loud, or that you admitted it to him.

Eddie’s palm squeezes yours, his other hand reaching up to cup your chin, turning your head to face his. Brown eyes meet (e/c), in a silent dance of acceptance. All this time he’d thought they were teasing him for not telling you how he felt, little did he know you felt the same.

He never thought there was any way you could feel the same.

“Are you going to say anything?” Your voice cracks, the nerves coming back in full force. His silence isn’t the most reassuring, despite the toothy smile that has graced his features.

He puffs out a light breath of air that catches in his throat. He hums in content. “Hmm…I kind of like fucking with you, Sigmund…” he drags out the nickname with the flick of his tongue. You feel your heart flutter in your chest.

“But I guess,” he smiles, bringing you closer to his lips, so his just barely graze yours as he speaks:

“I could tell you that I love you too.”

[lollytea]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Mar tagged me in this. Thank you Mar <333

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

22

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

358,837

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Owls....for now and the foreseeable future. Other things in the past but....owls. Owls and nothing else.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

There's Sunshine in Your Smile

Atlas and the Avid Reader

A Little Change

An Exercise in Understanding

Girl Talk

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I don't, I'm sorry!! When I first started posting on ao3, I answered every comment I got, but as more came in, I realized I was running out of ways to respond and it felt like I was just copy and pasting "thank you so much omg!!!" again and again and it felt awkward and disingenuous. (I meant it tho!! I did!!)

Also I never have any idea how to respond to long essay type comments that were picking the fic apart and highlighting everything they like about it. I ADORE those comments!!! They make me happier than anything else on earth but HOW can I respond to them?? A one liner thanks feels cheap and meaningless, but a long ramble about my own stuff feels arrogant.

So I just stopped replying to comments altogether. But listen please listen!!! I do read them!!! I read every single one of them and I love and appreciate them with all my heart!!! Thank you so so SO much to anybody who's ever left a comment on anything I've written!!!

6. What’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I don't really write angsty endings. I guess atlas and pages both ended on a bit of a bittersweet note? Maybe.

That one ducktales fic Fearless left off on a kinda angsty cliffhanger, only because I never finished it. So it's technically an ending

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Man I dunno most of them are kinda open ended (or unfinished) I suppose A Little Change ended on a sickeningly sweet note. Like disgustingly sweet (because I was 19 and stupid and had no concept of subtlety) Penniless Promises ended with a marriage proposal.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

No the only hate comment I've ever gotten is this one

It kinda annoys me. I consider your first hate comment to be a special milestone in your fanfic writing history. I've been waiting years for this. And then I FINALLY get it but I have no fucking idea what it means.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I've written bits and pieces over the years but I don't post any of it. I think the last "smut" I posted was weird werewolf knotting shit in like 2017

What kind? Fuckin uhhhhh. It's always very fluffy. Usually there's nothing weird going on. Sometimes there's monsters involved but the monsters are usually massive sweethearts who just want love.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

No

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Yes. A few times. And it's always fucking wattpad. At one point, somebody put my fic through Google translate and reposted it in Spanish. I would have been completely unaware if somebody hadn't messaged me about it.

The process of getting them to take it down was a fucking circus. Their ability to use Google translate suddenly vanished the moment I contacted them.

I reported it and had to go back and forth with Wattpad support because the fic was IN SPANISH, so they just kinda glanced at it and were like "This is not the same thing that you wrote. These are different words. Spanish words." I was losing my MIND!!!!!!

They took it down eventually. Anyway...sorry I went on a tangent, I just think this is a funny story. Moral of the story is there are probably several stolen fics on wattpad and run through translators, and we have no idea. There might be more of mine on there but honestly I do not have the energy to be monitoring the stupid site. I hate wattpad so much its unreal.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

As we have just learned from the above story, yes :D!!

But also yeah, some people asked permission to translate my stuff and post it with credit. Sunshine has been translated into Spanish and Ukrainian!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No I can barely manage to write them myself

14. What’s your all-time favourite ship?

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

Undocumented Events of March 23rd. I might update it at some point in the next five years. But I had so many chapters planned that it will probably never reach the ending at the pace I'm going with it. But I love the jungle book husbands. I get back to them at some point in time

16. What are your writing strengths?

Word disease is the worst fucking thing ever but it CAN be a good thing in some circumstances. A huge meaty chunk of a fic. Something to dig into. Having a lot to say can lead to a lot to write. And the more you write, the more likely you'll get some quality stuff in there.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

I repeat. Word disease is the worst fucking thing ever. And when it's coupled with a complexity addiction, UGGH!!! It's a blight on my life. I can't just write a simple straightforward fic, without getting carried away and the ideas just get bigger and bigger. Suddenly I'm implementing more elaborate concepts, scenes that need to be handled delicately. Everything takes absolutely all of my brainpower because I'm a neurotic overthinker who can never just RELAX and write something fun. And I WANT all of it. I want to execute all the plans that exist in my head but then I get overwhelmed by how big and complicated everything has gotten and I get burned out. Which is why things so rarely get done.

I'm a perfectionist. A horrible terrible one. I struggle to write ANYTHING without carefully constructing every individual line of it. Which makes progress so slow and tedious. I get scared to even START fics because I'm afraid I'll make myself feel awful again if they don't turn out good.

My grammar is very imperfect but I'm working on that.

I can be very unnecessarily wordy and take forever to get to the point. I've reread my own stuff and even I have difficulty following it because the sentences just have so many bells and whistles for no good reason. I completely forget a huge chunk of vocab and don't realize they are simpler way to phrase things.

My attempts at executing believable emotional scenes often fall kinda flat. Writing drama is hard but I'm amazed by some people's capability to master it so I'm chipping away at it, hoping to get better.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I don't really have any thoughts at all about them. Literally none.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

I'd like to say it was Trolls but it was actually Hetalia when I was like 14. But I do everything within my power to distance myself from Hetalia, so I like to say it doesn't count. But....need to be honest.

20. Favourite fic you’ve ever written?

Currently, at this point that I am at, the ones I used to be the most proud of now feel like they were a waste of time. I'm sure that will change again in a few months. How I feel about my own stuff is never consistent. The way that this question is phrased implies a forever favourite. Something I loved then, I love now and will love in future, and that is just never the case.

But also I don't wanna be an Eeyore about it, so I'll say a trance, a dance, a romance perchance?

I really do love my fairy Willow. She's so special to me :D!!

Tagging: after writing this whole post, I now feel very weird tagging people specifically and being like "HEY YOU! Look at this post I made <33" This is like a don't look at me post. BUT I do have lots of writer mutuals. And writer followers. If you're one of them and you see this....you!!!! Tag youre it!!!!

[voidedparts]

a note flutters down through the void

it reads:

tell me about a thing. any thing you like. use as many words as necessary :)

I'm going to start writing this as I go because if I wait till the end I'll forget a lot of bits. Okay? Here we go.

I wanna talk about Lockwood & Co. (books and Tv series) and the idea of one's appearance as their armor

Spoilers for the show, and the books (all of them). Read at your own risk. THAT MEANS YOU TAIGA! (iykyk)

So this interest all really started when I finished watching Lockwood & Co. and in my sorrow for not getting another season I turned, as one does, to AO3.

And something I noticed, only two times but that's enough to pique my interest, was writers referring to Lockwood's outfit as his "armor". Most notably when referring to having pieces of it taken away. And that made me super curious. Sure, I could chalk it up to one of the writers saw the other refer to it that way and really liked it and used it themselves, but I'm not inclined to believe that idea because I feel like there's something substantial here. Even if not literally, purposely mentioned as "Lockwood thought of his appearance as his armor", if one analyzes how a character is written, one can find evidence of things like that. And even more so when analyzing the visual media of tv shows, because actors have to communicate so much through body language too. All in all, written and visual media do not do things for the heck of it. There's meaning behind everything.

And another reason for doing this is 1) Lockwood is one of my favorite characters, and Lockwood & Co. is my current obsession, so getting to analyze him and this series would be awesome for me, and 2) it got stuck in my brain and now I want to explore it because if I don't I think I might explode.

I don't know if this is going to be anything at all, but a free ramble pass is a free ramble pass, yaknow? And in my endless need to make everything cool, the ramble is going to be set up like an analysis (perhaps better than my last one, which just devolved into me fangirling over the visuals of a tv show with minimal commentary. And there's nothing wrong with that.) that hopefully makes sense to at least someone.

So let's jump right in. I think I'll start with the show because it is freshest in my mind (I'm in the middle of reading the books right now)

As I'm thinking about this, several things are coming to mind. Firstly, isn't it interesting how much we see Lockwood in his "professional clothes"? Like, and my friend pointed this out when we were watching the show, we nearly never see him in casual clothes like we do Lucy and George. Which sort of works to make him stand out (I may come back to this thought later) among the cast. The most we see is actually at the end of the last episode, when they're all gathered around the kitchen table, where Lockwood is wearing a T-shirt (most probably due to his shoulder injury and it being too much of a hassle, and probably a pain, to put on a collar shirt and tie so he just didn't bother but yaknow). Consequently, this is also the same time when he decides to open up about the bedroom he forbid the others from going into, by showing them what's behind it. Obviously in the show they leave it on a cliffhanger (😡) but in the books they tell you a bit more. So I'm seeing it as 'vulnerable visually = most vulnerability.' Almost all other times when they're at the house, he's wearing his collar shirt and tie, which I believe represents him being more at ease with Lucy and George, and if we follow the armor theory he purposely took off an armor piece (the coat) to show that relaxation. But one could argue "Void, he just doesn't want to wear the coat around the house! You've got nothing here!"

Sure, we can argue that, but I think I've got an answer for that.

Let's take a small peek at the books for a moment. In the opening for The Screaming Staircase (which is nearly perfectly followed by the show, I was impressed) it's mentioned that Lockwood is wearing gloves. They forwent the gloves in the show, probably because it didn't look or work right, but that doesn't really matter here because I'm taking both show and books as relatively identical canon, so stuff in either one can be used for the entire analysis.

Why is he wearing gloves? Well, maybe it's cold. They are after all wearing coats, and it's London, and they imply, by the dead leaves all captured on the porch, that it's fall, maybe late fall. But it's mentioned again, later (find this, I don't remember where.)

And along this idea of gloves, let's glance at the section about his coat. Many places does Lucy mention that it is long, but the one I'm particularly interested in is the scene where they are all together on the last job before Fairfax visits them. George makes the comment "That coat! It's too long! It almost killed you the other night as well." (The Screaming Staircase, 189.)

Lockwood doesn't deem to answer, but it struck me as interesting nonetheless. Why comment that? But most importantly, to me, it seems like George has complained to Lockwood of his long coat being too much a hassle previously, perhaps more than once. Yet, Lockwood keeps the coat. Because it's part of his armor. It's part of his visual identity, and that identity is his defense.

Something else I was thinking about when I woke up today (at this point I've started The Whispering Skull!) is that even when practicing with the rapier, we're lead to believe that Lockwood is not wearing the same casual type of clothes as the others. In the scene, Lucy describes George wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt, but for Lockwood it's "...sharp fencing slacks and loafers; he'd removed his jacket and rolled up his shirtsleeves a little way." (The Whispering Skull 32)

Curious, I think, is the fact that Lockwood also opens up a bit in this scene. It's not much, but he does speak about his childhood just a little. And it's directly mentioned as such by George to Lucy once Lockwood has left ("I'm surprised he told you as much as he did." 37). So, a removed piece of armor (the jacket) and a little opening up about his past? Seems pretty symbolic to me!

Also, and this is something I JUST thought of. The capes from The Creeping Shadow and The Empty Grave serve as protection (read armor) that is worn.

Even in The Empty Grave (I think it was, it's been a minute since I've read the books) When Lockwood takes Lucy to his family grave, he's got all his armor on. (Now I know a character has to have his iconic design, but trust me fr).

All in all I may be grasping at straws here. BUT I like to think that it was somewhat intentional. All in all (again) I love Lockwood & Co and I am very sad it was cancelled but if you haven't read the books you should still do that.

Thanks for coming to my ted talk!

[weirdo09]

the swing set

a s5 byler fic pt. 4

so sorry for the cliffhanger last part but i’m not….really, hopefully this is the last part. this was very fun to do :) ✨recaps✨, 1. mike gets vecna’d 2. el piggybacks to help him 3. vecna find them 4. will then piggybacks to help them 5. vecna shakes the upside down causing el to get out of said piggyback, 6. will is left to fend of himself and mike and 7. an ominous voice said “hello 001, welcome home.” all good? now let’s begin.

with the sound of the voice, will had a feeling they were in a memory. he gently placed mike on his shoulder. ‘he’s surprisingly light…’ will thought as he followed the sound of the voice. there he finds a little boy and a lady that looks like his mother shouting at him. “why can’t you be normal?!” the lady shouts, grabbing the boy’s wrist. “you’re supposed to be like your father!” she continues, slapping the boy in his face and drops him, leaving him on the floor, alone. when the lady’s out of range, the boy begins to sob. mike starts to stir due to the shouting, will gently lays him down next to the boy, keeping him in close range in case vecna decides to strike again.

will slowly approaches the little boy, his sobs getting louder and louder. once will reaches him, the boy suddenly stops crying and stares right at him, smirking. “hello again, old friend.” the boy said in an extremely deep voice. ‘oh shit…’ will thought then turned around to make sure mike’s still where he left him. thankfully, he was but will was not so thankful for what happened next.

with el and the gang, robin got her comfortable and not wet clothes and the rest of them waited for her story. once she feels comfortable, el begins. “i piggybacked to save mike and one found us.” she continues “i guess mike calls will for help because he shows up in the upside down too and we fight him but…” “but what, el?” nancy said “what happened to mike?” she persisted until jonathan put a hand on her shoulder which she took as a signal to wait for that part. “vecna seems hurt and then he… he tears the ground open and i fell out of the piggyback.” el finished, leaving everyone in a sense of wonder.(everyone that’s with her, lucas’ still with mike’s body)

with lucas, he notices that mike’s body starts to shake roughly. “hey! you guys? mike’s shaking!” he shouts while trying to keep mike still in his arms. eventually, nancy comes running down the hall to aid her brother. once she gets there, she shoos lucas away saying “i can handle this, go with the others.” and he does.

with will and mike(byler), the atmosphere shifts yet again but this time, it seems like one of will’s memories. mike’s woken up, a little dazed but still standing besides will. will whispers to him “stay close to me, don’t wander off, ok?” mike rolls his eyes. “yeah, yeah you know, i can take care of my-.” mike starts to say but stops once he sees his surroundings. they’re back at the byers’ old place and they’re outside, shouting came be heard from inside.

“hey, will are you okay?” mike whispers once he notices that will’s gone quiet. “shit, shit, shit no not this not here…” will whispers to himself, worry seething through his voice. “will, what’s wrong?” mike said, generally confused moving closer towards him. suddenly, they’re inside the house, there are joyce and….lonnie arguing over will.

“you knew, didn’t you? you knew that he was a fag and you didn’t tell me?” lonnie shouted at joyce, his face completely red. “i didn’t tell you because i knew this is how’d you react!” joyce shouted back “ he’s your son! why should that matter?” lonnie scoffed “why should that matter? why should that matter? you’re telling me i’ve raised a fucking fag and you just want me to be fine with that?” lonnie shouted, his voice getting louder and louder with each word.

will winced at his words, reliving this really didn’t seem that painful but surely, this was more than painful. mike stared at lonnie wishing that he killed him all those years ago. “you know what? get out of my house!” joyce bellowed “what the hell, joyce, you can’t be serious, you want that queer?” lonnie complained “yes, now get the fuck out of my house, lonnie! i never want to see your ass here again!” joyce yelled, pushing lonnie out the door. will started to cry “hey, will… he can’t hurt you anymore.” mike said sympathetically, will just looked at him and smiled at his thought. joyce still had her hand on the doorknob for a bit then she turned around and broke down. she just sobbed and sobbed. will turned away, laying his head on mike’s neck. “i hate him…. i hate him so much…so much.” will whispered, still crying.

mike wrapped his arms around him. “it’s ok, i’m here.” he comforted. suddenly, a little will peeled out of his room walking towards his mom. “is he gone, mom?” he said softly, sitting next to joyce. joyce looks at him and smiles, pulling him close towards her in a hug. she kisses his hair “yes, he is, baby, yes he is…” she whispered and began to cry again. “i’m so sorry, will, mom’s so sorry..” little will just wraps his arms around his mom as to forgive her. “ughhh, vecna’s such a bitch…” will whispered into mike’s ear. mike starts chucking and then will joins in. and just as some light begins to shine on this tale, the atmosphere shifts yet again.

“oh shit, what now?” mike blurts out, will reaches out a hand and mike takes it. “we’re a team right?” will interjects. “right.” mike replied.

with the gang, mike’s body stopped shaking and they start to wonder on what to do next. “are you sure will and mike are ok?” jonathan asked el as will and mike’s bodies were laid down together. “i’m sure, will is strong, he’ll protect mike.” el said confident in her brother, jonathan nodded kinda of worried about the two. nancy sat next to mike, softly placing his hair behind his ear. “i’m so sorry, i wasn’t there for you.” nancy whispers as she continues to mess with mike’s hair as a form of comfort. jonathan and her share a glance but quickly look away. “are you and nancy..ok?” el asked, jonathan looked at her. “yeah, el, we are.” jonathan assured her though el could see they clearly weren’t.

with mike and will, as the atmosphere shifts mike suddenly realizes where they are. “wait, no, no, no, please not this!” mike panics, will looks at him concerned. “what is it, mike?” will asked, mike stays silent. “i can’t- not right now…” he whispers and try’s to let go of will’s hand. will tightens his grip on mike’s hand. “will, let go please…” mike said desperate. “no, i won’t, we’re going to face this together.” “we’re a team after all.” will said sincerely. mike sighed and nodded.

the memory, a few days after will’s disappearance. the quarry….. little mike stands at the end of the cliff with little dustin protesting while troy and james pinning him with a knife. “mike, don’t please! they’ll grow back!” dustin shouts as mike looks at him and then the quarry. will turns to mike, who’s gaze is on the ground. “mike….what is this?” will asked softly. “keep watching.” mike whispered. suddenly, little mike jumps off the cliff then el appeared, pulling him up.

“michael….look at me.” will said firmly, mike obliged and look up at him. “why did you do it?” “why’d you jump?” will questioned, mike sighed. “would you believe me if i said i did it for dustin?” mike said sheepishly. will have him a stone cold stare. “michael, i’m serious.” “tell me why…” will said, mike looked away from the heat in will’s gaze. “i did it because i lost you, will…i thought that if you were gone..i- i just couldn’t handle it, ok?” mike confessed, tears rolling down his cheeks. will place a hand on mike’s cheek and wiped the tears away. he tilted mike’s face towards his. “i’m still here and you’ll never lose me again, ok?” will assured him with a smile. mike smiled back softly, his cheeks tear stained. “can i kiss you?” will whispered. mike looked shocked but answered. “yes, you can..”

will started to lean in and mike closed his eyes. their lips finally touched, both of their eyes close unaware of where they were and what was happening around them. it was just the two of them. they began to deepen the kiss, all of their emotions once left doormat began to blossom and bloom. the surrounding area glows around them, color regained to the gray of the plants and vegetation. they parted, breathe hitching. “that was-.” mike began to say but will finished it for him. “incredible, turns out you’re not a bad kisser after all.” will notes and mike frowns. “just shut up and kiss me you idiot..” mike said, chuckling. “your wish is my command.” will said in a posh accent and kissed mike again.

they continued kissing for a bit until mike suddenly remembered what they were there for. “aren’t we supposed to be killing vecna or something?” mike asked, will groaned. “why does he have to ruin everything? c’mon, babygirl, we got a monster to kill.” will said, grabbing hold of mike’s hand. mike nodded in agreement. “let’s light a bitch on fire.”

with the gang, will and mike’s bodies start glowing. nancy inspected the two. “why are they glowing?” she asked. “they’ve must’ve found a way to work together.” el replied with a small smile. “well, good it was miserable to see them apart.” nancy said. the rest noodling in agreement but that made jonathan wonder ‘did they do more than just make up?’ he thought but decided to put it aside.

with byler, the atmosphere begins to shift for what looks like the last time. “it seems that you two made up, what pity.” vecna said forcefully, he still had the injuries from earlier. will nodded for confirmation and mike nodded back. will’s left hand begins to spark and thunder begins to booms louder and louder. “you might wanna stand back for this, baby.” will whispers to mike and he backs up, nodding when he was away enough. will’s right hand begins to spark and the thunder’s noise fills the whole area. will then lifts both of his sparking hands, “ready when you are, asshole!” will shouts at vecna, who smirks at his challenge and vecna charges trying to grab on to will but he’s just too quick.

will charges a lightning bolt at vecna which lands right in his middle. vecna screams in pain and black blood splurges on the ground. a decent sized hole was left where the lightning hit. vecna snatches will’s wrist, leaving a large cut on his arm. will winced but charged another bit of lightning vecna’s way. this time it landed on his shoulders. more black blood fell. vecna started to wobble with the impact. “i’ll finish you once and for all, henry creel.” will called to vecna and called for a large lightning bolt. he combined this little bolts into one large one and charged it at vecna. will shouted as the lightning bolt hit vecna, who screamed until his body turned to ash. will collapsed on the ground in front of him and mike ran to his side.

“hey, will, babe stay with me, ok?” mike said, coaxing will to not fall unconscious. “yeah, i’m here, you’re not losing me, remember?” will rasped out and mike chuckled, running a hand through will’s hair. “we’re getting out, ok?” mike said and just as he did, the area around them began to deteriorate before their eyes. mike pressed his forehead on top of will’s as the world started to disappear until finally, they woke up.

with the gang, mike and will’s bodies started to move and then they opened their eyes. “mike!” nancy shouted while putting him in a rib-crushing hug. “hi, nancy nice to see you too but can you please let go? you kinda making it hard to breathe.” mike wheezed out. “oh, sorry.” nancy apologized “just real glad to have my baby brother back.” she teased, ruffling his hair. el and jonathan ran to hug will. “will!” they said in unison. will chuckled and hugged back. “guys, guys!” lucas shouted “max woke up!” mike and will looked at each other knowingly. ‘we killed vecna for good.’ they thought in unison, after the reunion, they all made way to the hospital to see max.

after they arrived to the hospital and made it to her hospital room, lucas went up to max and hugged her, crying. max patted him on the back and laughed “you missed me that much, sinclair?” max asked. lucas nodded, still holding her tight. will and mike stood towards the door, holding hands smiling at their friends. everything’s back to normal. no more evil monsters, no more upside down, no more evil labs, no more government corruption(at least in hawkins) and no more vecna. alas, our heroes have saved the day to live for another. our paladin and cleric have found their love for each other and our mage found out that she doesn’t just have to protect the party by herself all the time. our ranger finally reunited with his zoomer and our bard away with his love, suzie.

all is well now in the once quiet town of hawkins, indiana. though it’s unsure if anyone will ever move back but if one thing is for sure it’s that our heroes can accomplish anything together with the power of love and friendship. now, my tale has ended but do remember: the end isn’t always the end; if fact it could be the beginning, beginning of a budding romances, beginning of a road to independence, beginning to a romance put on pause and a beginning to the future of hawkins.

@atbyler @bylerislovebylerislife @adorewillbyers @adoremikewheeler @foodiewithdahoodie @runninguplenorahills @verashalurks @thebylerfiles @xhavibee @pimplepogue @yelenapines @ronanticized @over-rated-cheese

[bugsbenefit]

What are your Stranger Things 2024 predictions? Not like "What do you think will happen in ST?" NO. I'm talking: What do you think will be leaked this year? What drama do you think will take place? What rumors do you think will end up being true? What promo do you think we will get? Any scandals? Will the show/actors win awards? If so what awards or acors? I want hot tea predictions.

Sincerely, Prediction anon

ohohoho okay, now that's actually a good question

we'll definitely get some official table read content really soon, which the official twt account has confirmed. it's just kind of likely imo that we'll get those sometime this year because filming is already supposed to start in january if the most recent leaks are true

what's basically guaranteed to start with filming is softcore production teasers by the cast right off the bat. so basic, "back to shooting" instagram posts/stories, generally being on a set, getting make up done, hanging out with co-actors, and so on. we might also see some costuming/hair there, but it might also take a few months before we see concrete looks. also possible that we'll see a costume early on but then it never ends up being in the show because the picture was from fitting and the look didn't make the cut

but none of that will be too wild imo. i mean, i want to see the costuming but that's probably going to be all we'll really get, especially as 2024 starts

and in usual production fashion we'll probably also get typical teasers of things we already know will be relevant for s5 just to remind people of what's going on with the show, like "ooo Vecna ooooo". classic still shooting promo like that. but probably nothing really plot revealing

but that's all really basic. the thing i could see be the most interesting about official teasers in the early months of filming is getting a glimpse of the vibe s5 will have. like if we see more military props in a picture, how does the UD look, if someone posts a pic of like a destroyed house and so on

but yk, official teasers will hold back a lot. they'll get more interesting later on for sure but that's also where it's kind of hard to predict what they'll go for. like how they started with their evil grandfather clock teaser for s4. honestly i could see them continue that since they didn't actually answer any questions about the grandfather clock... i can also see them lean more into the "Hawkins will fall" line of s4. they emphasized it so much in the show and even in all the s4 trailers only for s4 to only be the set up for it. so in my opinion they'll go there again fr this time, now that they finally finished the build up to it (s4) and got to payoff (s5)

the most interesting will for sure be the unofficial leaks but those will also be the messiest. because pictures are always without context and text "leaks" are almost always fake, or at the very least (like, only 1% of leaks isn't fake honestly) missing context and facts

similar to how there were "photo leaks" pre s4, that had people going crazy but gave away nothing. like the byler cabin leak pic for example that i think had people think that would be a confession scene? only for it to end up being the s4 cliffhanger spores leadup and some people ended up being disappointed

and something like that will happen again for sure, 100%. like getting two characters in a leak photo and people make up their own theory on what will happen in that scene. and then it's something entirely different in s5 and those people will be mad. lmao. could happen with byler, mleven, something platonic. basically anytime we'll get a bts leak i'm guaranteeing there will be people who think it tells them what happens in s5 and it will be unbearable to wait an entire year with people around who are convinced they managed to predict an entire plot point by a still image of two actors looking at each other where we don't even know if they're in or out of character. it will happen and it's one of the worst parts of any movie/show fandom during production imo (not speculating about possibilities the pics give us tho, speculating is fun)

also the text leaks will be insane (bad). like usual, we'll get more and more as filming goes on, and all of them minus two credible sources will have the "i know someone who works on the show trust me" backing. so we'll get at leat 20 versions of "mleven is endgame and has two kids <333333", maybe 10ish versions of it with byler endgame. and that also goes for the supernatural plot. someone will say Vecna dies, someone says orderly Henry shows up and stabs El, the upside down starts spinning in circles, there's a dragon, no there's a demogoron but it's two stories tall, the school gets blown up, Steve trips and dies from hitting his nose on the ground etc. it'll be the wild west basically. also i'm expecting multiple "this character dies" leaks too, going into s5 the entire cast will be dead essentially. (most likely for this are probably Will. duh. reddit seems to Really want that guy dead. El -> sacrifices her for everyone else's sake. and Mike, which i unironically think is going to come from a) mleven hardcore believers who'll say he sacrifices himself for El b) "byler shippers" who actually only like Will and think he's too good for Mike, and c) people who just hate Mike and pick him for their "x character dies" leak since they'd like that, and we'll be left to guess which of these the original leaker is)

basically, March-ish to s5 release will be hell on earth because you'll have the people who have no experience with show production periods fall for every "leak" and be in a constant "we won" "we lost" cycle. not fun. unless your dash is normal which i'm recommending you take care of before you get the first people crying over a "my cousin who does the lights says he saw Matt Duffer say they'll kill El :((((((" leak on your dash, lmao

and tbh that'll definitely get worse once we actually get semi reliable leaks like we had for s4. because some things always end up being the opposite of what the leakers make it sound like. either due to lack of info on their part or personal bias. like how there was a leak about about the s4 sbp scene "mike confesses his love to el", and then we got.... that monologue, which was the opposite of the "cute" moment the leak described and made everyone and their mom hate the ship

funniest leak in that regard imo would honestly be a "scene of Mike and El talking about their feelings for each other <3" and then it ends up being a breakup. is that likely?.... honestly i can see that, that's exactly the way that would end up being telephoned to us in a leak😭

also i'm expecting the UD lore to get SO confusing next year. because someone will "leak" something that's entirely nonsensical. like "demodogs die when you shine a light on them", but then it ends up turning out the "light" is a blowtorch in s5 and we won't know until it releases

tbh what i'm most excited about leak wise is, yeah sure a) the costuming/outfits. that's always interesting and leaks will be the place we'll see the most of that. but more so b) actor combinations in different shooting locations. which will absolutely fan the s5 plot speculation flames. like with how there were set leaks during s4 about Steve/Robin/Max/Dustin at family video and so on (i think that's the department we're going to get the craziest theories from as well. like for example, if we got leaks of Jamie ever shooting out of studio with other actors, that would open the floodgates to speculation. honestly kind of want that. let him show up in some vision, or put his ass out in the open in the UD, i want people go crazy over speculating about the s5 vecna interactions. and same obviously goes for the relationship department, bc bts leaks usually tend to spoil either season group ups or at least a shared scene between characters. and i want to know the s5 group ups SO bad)

and tbh, i don't really know/care what the actors will do. i can only see them get awards post s5 in 2025 unless they're doing other projects on the side. same for scandal wise, i'm Assuming there won't be anything (said with a raised eyebrow and a frown), given that they all act normal, especially given they'll be busy actively filming and being instructed on promo posts etc

so my predictions would generally be:

regular socmed actor promo, mostly about bts of the actors hanging out (non work things), some costuming bts etc

i think they'll probably lean into the "hawkins will fall" slogan of s4, and i can see them carry the grandfather clock motif on as well when they start more official promo/teasers

also reminders of things that will be important in s5 semi frequently as well. like "remember when will went to the UD" and "remember how Steve and Jonathan both have feelings for Nancy" and so on

with the filming being exclusively in atlanta again i can also see set leaks getting more interesting again than they were for s4. like how they covered the irl trailer park with vines for the s4 UD. especially with things like the giant downtown replica set for s5 there's a lot of potential for us to see Something happen there. i can see them deck that prop out for the UD, or make it a "destroyed" version of downtown. etc

and obviously a shit ton of things that are baseless or straight up lies. a million mleven is canon vs byler is real ross duffer told me leaks. a shitton of leaks of A interacts with B and then it never happens. all the classic "source? i made it up" leaks that spring up around popular shows. hell on earth. i'm excited btw

[semi-sketchy]

I did it. I finally finished SatAM. The big cliffhanger the series ended on is...Snively usurping Robotnik and taking over as the next big villain? Wait did they seriously kill him? After those silly fakeout deaths, THAT is what deals him in?

I don't want to be too hard on the storylines that weren't finished, like Naugus or Sally's father, I know they were counting on a third season and didn't get renewed.

Alright, so I guess my opinion on SatAM is avoid season 1. There is nothing relevant there and it's frankly boring as all get out. Season 2 is better structured, has more continuity, although sadly the theme of de-robotization is dropped entirely half way through to go back to rebel shenanigans. They did use some game mechanics, such as the time stones, but then quickly went back to their own thing and left the source material behind. There's also a few episodes that are two stories and those are the most filler and boring season 2 gets. That said, it's not unwatchable by any means and I actually thought Antoine's torture sequence was funny, even though it was a cliché.

I liked season 2 and I see why some people really latched onto this. My biggest hangups are mostly inconsistencies, such as Tails' age, how de-robotization can be temporary it breaks all the laws of science, or how someone can even fight the mind control to begin with in Xenoblade it required the power of a god.

Aside from that, yeah this is Sonic in name only. Most obvious thing to point at is he is such a stuck up prick it isn't funny. Like he is legit so cruel to Antoine. I'm tired of asshole Sonic, give me back kind and compassionate Sonic who isn't out here to get kisses from a princess. Seriously Sally keep your lips to yourself for once she gives out like 5 kisses an episode They also called Sonic the "leader of the Freedom Fighters" in an episode, like...? Huh? SALLY is the one with all the plans, SALLY gets to do the cool stuff, at no point did I ever think Sonic was in charge. 99% of the time, Sonic is simply used as a distraction so the other Freedom Fighters can do their thing and that is SUCH a waste.

I've already said my grievances with Robotnik, he just misses everything I loved about Eggman to be generic evil. Like dude doesn't even design his own traps, he has Snively do it and you want me to believe he'd be a better villain in a hypothetical season 3?? They wanted this show to be taken over by the OCs I swear

I also assumed it was Rotor who took Tails' place as the smart guy, but no, that's actually Sally. Rotor builds stuff, but Sally is the smart one that hacks things and figures out the tech. Tails is so forgotten about, he's missing from half the episodes and is only featured in maybe 4? He's so babified and I am tired of that trope. The fact that they said he was 10 really makes me wonder how they viewed their target audience.

I'm not sure what I'd rate this. Like season 1 is a 2/10 and I never wanna watch it again, but season 2 I found engaging, like maybe a 7/10? 6.5? I guess I'll round it off to 5/10 overall, the good parts make up for the bad ones. It's not Sonic, but can be good as it's own thing when it wants. One day when I actually read all of Archie, I might get an appreciation for the cast that the show didn't give me.

Anyways, I've been using this stuff as background noise while sewing, so maybe that'll carry me through Underground. God, only thing I remember about Underground is I was actually mad there were so many episodes. As a kid I didn't understand the concept of stop watching something if you don't like it.

[theinquisitxor]

Best and Worst Series of 2022 Book Tag

I saw a booktuber do a video of these questions and I really liked them, so thought that I could answer them here! Credit goes to bookslikewhoa on youtube. Feel free repost and add your own answers!

In total I read 21 series in some shape or form:

I read and completed 7 series this year (meaning I read books 1-- end)

I finished/wrapped up 2 series this year

I started 4 series

I caught up with 3 series

I continued with 1 series

I DNF'ed 5 series

1.What is the best series that you caught up with this year that is still a work in progress? I caught up with the Atlas Six series by Olivie Blake this year as I read books 1 and 2. Book 2 is my favorite, and it's proven to be a fun read.

2.What is the best work-in-progress series that you are still catching up with? OR What is the best completed series that you are still catching up with? Probably the Wayward Children series by Seanan McGuire. I've only read the first two books, but need to prioritize getting to the rest. In fact, I didn't read one of these this year.

3.What was your favorite first book in a series this year? I have to go with Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman. I adore that book, and I reread it this year in anticipation for the sequel (the sequel was interesting to say the least-- it was quite different from the first book, and I'm still not sure if I liked it?)

4.What is a first book in a series you read this year that you think should have been a standalone, not a series? This one is tough, but I'll have to go with Book of Night by Holly Black. I found this overall very lackluster, and the story could have been wrapped up in one book.

5.What is your most over-hyped series of the year? Definitely Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson. I read books 1-3 this year, and while enjoyed the original trilogy for sure, they're not the best thing I've ever read. (I think Sanderson is a little over-hyped in general)

6.What is a series that you DNFed this year? I just finished One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig a couple of days ago, and I'm probably not going to read the sequel when it comes out next fall. Same goes with Book of Night by Holly Black and A Spindle Splintered by Alix E Harrow. I also attempted to read The Magicians by Lev Grossman, but ended up dnf'ing the book, so I'm def not reading the rest.

7.What was your favorite series finale of the year? OR What was your least favorite series finale of the year? My favorite series finale was Jade Legacy by Fonda Lee. That was such a satisfying ending to one of my favorite series and I was very happy with that book. It lived up to all my expectations.

8.What was the biggest cliffhanger you had in a series this year? The ending of House of Sky and Breath. How can you leave me like that SJM?! I have to wait potentially years for the next one, ughhhh!

I also reread The Other Side of the Sky by Amy Kaufman and Meghan Spooner (which ends with quite the cliffhanger!) and then the sequel, Beyond the End of the World.

9.What is your favorite spin-off series you read this year? Perfect question, as I read Forging Silver into Stars by Brigid Kemmerer this month and loved it. It's a spinoff of her ACSDAL series.

10.What is your most anticipated next book in a series that you read this year that will come out next year? I don't think I have any? Unless The Atlas Complex releases late next year, but I don't see a date yet for it.

11.What is your most anticipated series to catch up on with next year based on what you read in that series this year? Possibly The Expanse by James SA Corey, but primarily because that is the only series that fits this prompt. I read two more Expanse books this year, and I just want to push through and finish the series up next year. I feel like I've lost my motivation and interest in that series, but maybe starting to re-watch the show might rekindle that.

12.What was your favorite series that you finished this year? I started and finished The Queen's Thief series this year, and that has been by far a favorite.

13.What is your favorite episodic series of this year? I am currently reading The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, the first book of the Kingsbridge series. Each book takes place at a different point in the middle ages and don't have to be read in order.

14.What is a series you finally bailed on after holding onto it for a long time? I don't have quite the accurate answer for this, but I had been meaning to try reading An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir for years, but I read the first book and didn't like it. So you could say I bailed that series

15.What is the series you were most surprised you liked this year? I have to answer with A Deadly Education (The Scholomance) by Naomi Novik. I had heard mixed things about the first book, but I ultimately enjoyed it, and I went on to really like books 2 & 3. I was also a little hesitant about the premise of the series, but I also ultimately had a lot of fun with it.

16.What is the series you meant to catch up with or finish this year that you didn't? The Expanse again, I only read two books, and I wanted to finish it this coming year.

17.What is a series you finished or caught up with this year that you think is greater than the sum of its parts? Probably the Throne of Glass series by SJM. I reread this series in the beginning of the year, and while I enjoy it overall, some books are weaker than others.

If you're still here and reading, here are all the series I read this year. This is obviously more for my record keeping than anything else!

House of Earth and Blood (reread) + House of Sky and Breath

The Other Side of the Sky (reread) + Beyond the End of the World (sequel) (completed)

Throne of Glass series (reread all 7)

Expanse 5 & 6

A Spindle Splintered (series DNF)

Tess of the Road (reread) + In the Serpents Wake (sequel) (completed)

Jade Legacy (complete)

Parable of the Talents (complete)

An Ember in the Ashes (series DNF)

Percy Jackson and the Olympians (reread all 5 on audio)

Book of Night (series DNF)

The Atlas Six + The Atlas Paradox

The Scholomance (read all 3, completed)

Mistborn (read all 3, completed, partial audio)

The Queen's Thief (read all 6, completed)

Seasparrow

Moon Witch, Spider King

Forging Silver into Stars

The Magicians (DNF)

One Dark Window (series DNF?)

The Pillars of the Earth

[bookaddict24-7]

REVIEWS OF THE WEEK!

EVERY WEEK I WILL POST VARIOUS REVIEWS I’VE WRITTEN SO FAR IN 2024. YOU CAN CHECK OUT MY GOODREADS FOR MORE UP-TO-DATE REVIEWS HERE.

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147. Megumi & Tsugumi Vol. 4 by Mitsuru Si--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

LISTEN. I thought this manga was only four volumes long! Imagine my heartbreak when we are left with that damn cliffhanger and nothing else because volume five isn't even available to order in English.😭😭 This is why there was a slight delay between when I started this and when I finished it. I put the book down and stared at it with anger and sadness for a few days before finally picking it up to finish the side story.

I loved that in this one, everything seems to be coming together! There is more understanding between the MCs and their love is more clear to one another than ever before. Communication levels are high! But then THAT conclusion. Screw Megumi's father. Seriously, screw him.

Also, the side story was adorable as always. I love that couple!

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148. Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

One of the things I will always enjoy in Rebecca Serle's books is the magical aspect weaved into the contemporary and otherwise women's lit genre. It's just the barest touch of what-ifism that makes one wonder if people out there in the real world are getting to experience this magical realism.

In EXPIRATION DATES we get an MC who carries more than just her magical secret, but whereas the ability to see how long your romantic relationship is going to last is in the synopsis, the other is a spoiler that I will let you experience blind. The expectations and pressure every time the MC gets a new relationship deadline was enough stress without knowing the other thing.

I knew immediately who the MC's true love interest was going to be, but I enjoyed the journey for what it was. Sure, this wasn't my favourite Serle novel, but it was still fun and full of depth. I like that EXPIRATION DATES begs the question of "what would you do if you knew the end-date of a relationship? Would you simply go along until it's over, or would you ignore it and try to make it last as long as possible?"

Relatively short, surprisingly insightful, and with a very unique approach to love, Serle's newest novel was a quick and heartfelt read. Despite the heavier undertones, I think this would make a great summer read to carry in that beach bag.

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149. Run Away with me, Girl Vol. 1 by Battan--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

While the artwork made me a little wary, the synopsis fully pulled me in!

Reading the story from both perspectives was so sad, especially because it's so obvious that there are feelings there between the two MCs, but that societal expectations to have the husband and the kids is overriding the pure love.

While I first thought that the one character was cruel for the way she was treating the other MC, I later came to realize that it was her own form of escapism. I think this brings into focus the idea that we sometimes do need insight into both perspectives before coming to any conclusions.

Also, screw the fiancé. What a horrendous human being. He's a bully and I can't wait to see him fall on his ass.

This felt like such a nostalgic read, especially when the story starts with the life-changing line about growing up and being adults, instead of letting their love blossom beyond high school. I need more, especially after that ending!!!!

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150. Punch Drunk Love Vol. 1 by Moscareto,Okdong(Illustrator)--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Listen, one of the funniest things we could have gotten with PUNCH DRUNK LOVE is the dual perspective. I LOVED watching these two characters playing off each other without knowing.

I was genuinely laughing through a good chunk of this manhwa, especially because of how ridiculous the characters were. Plus, the classic "take off the glasses" trope where the character is suddenly way more attractive without the glasses.

It was spicy, of course, but the story around those scenes and even during them was hilarious. I'm very much looking forward to reading more of this, especially to see how the manager falls for the MC.

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151. You, With A View by Jessica Joyce--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I had heard great things about this book, so I went in wary. Expectations can sometimes be a silent killer. BUT. BUT. Joyce's YOU, WITH A VIEW was such a happy surprise (despite it being a heavier read exploring the process of dealing with grief and the bigger changes in life.)

From the very beginning, I loved the interactions between the MC and the love interest. That animosity that carried over from their teen years was GREAT. Especially because it's so obvious that it's not as reciprocated as the MC once believed. Also, the meddling, adorable grandfather? *Chef's Kiss*.

I love stories with road trips because we know we're going to get the "one bed trope" and the character growth that can only really happen in close proximity. Watching these two fall in love was perfect, especially as we also learn more about the MC's grandmother along the way.

And you know, despite the secrets living between these two characters, I DID love their communication when they had finally had it. It was honest and raw.

I also may have cried with this one because man, I never thought I'd be relating to the grieving a grandmother theme. Which I know sounds ridiculous, but I honestly thought my grandma would be around for a lot longer. And you think that you're fine, until that one moment where you're not because you're remembering again that they're not just in another country but they're actually gone. Grief is a wild process and Joyce does a beautiful job of it in this--especially because of just how important the MC's grandmother was to her. Joyce treated the topic with the gentleness and honesty that it deserves.

The love interest was also such a great character because he's dealing with his own version of grief. Life is ever-changing and it's not always for the best and these two characters show us this in their journey.

Definitely a new fan here. Will check out her next book!

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152. Canto Contigo by Jonny Garza Villa--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

CANTO CONTIGO was such a beautiful ode to not just music, but also to family and the Spanish language. The amount of Spanish in this book made me so, so, so happy--especially because it wasn't translated right after it was used.

I admittedly know close to nothing about Mariachis, but I LOVED learning more about them in this book. I didn't know there were competitions in the US between schools. That was freaking cool.

The MC had such great character growth, especially when one considers that a lot of his flaws were stemming from the pressure and grief he was still trying to overcome. I think the biggest blessing for him was being moved to a different school, simply because of how open-minded the new environment was and how it forced the MC to face the less than great parts of himself.

The representation in this book is beautiful. Not only in how much queerness lives in these pages, but in the exploration of what it "truly" means to be Mexican. I read a really great essay collection about identity and how racism seeps into what it means to be a latine person. When the love interest's identity in CANTO CONTIGO is questioned because he's Black, it reminded me of that collection. I think this was an important addition to the story because those who ignorantly assume that being Latine means you fit one specific aesthetic will have an opportunity to be thoroughly corrected.

Also, phew, that enemies to more trope? Yes, please. The tension between them was incredible, but I also loved that the love interest inspired the MC to be a better version of himself. Their love was the perfect backdrop to this story, since it pushes forward so much positive change and self-love. And please, the Trans-rep! LOVED.

I highly recommend CANTO CONTIGO. You may cry, but hey, sometimes the best books make you want to cry. Also, it might make you want to create a playlist.

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153. House of Dark Shadows by Robert Liparulo--⭐️⭐️⭐️

I have FINALLY read this book. I have had this on my shelves for over a decade.

While this wasn't what I was hoping it to be, I can definitely see the appeal. It's got some scary aspects and interesting moments, but it all kind of passed by in a blur and it took me a while to truly find my way in this story.

I am intrigued, however, to see where it goes. You know that past me collected the whole series. And if the rest books are like this one, I know I'm in for a wild time.

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154. How to Say I Do by Tal Bauer--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

HOW TO SAY I DO was pure romantic magic. I don't even know how else to write this review.

The way my heart beat for these two characters. The romance, the heartbreak, the yearning, the realizations, the communication--please, this book is a pure gift and Tal Bauer is a romance god. HOW TO SAY I DO was so exquisitely beautiful that I felt my heart beating for these two long after the final page.

And the way Bauer writes the ending? Please, I could feel the waves of love and respect weaving through the words.

I wish this book was available as a physical book so I could proudly put it as a trophy on my shelves. I wouldn't be surprised if this is one of my favourite books of this year.

I want to ask Bauer who hurt him because the way he wrote the yearning in this book is so beautiful and I felt it deep in my bones. Ugh.

Okay, I need to stop. But this book. THIS BOOK. Pure magic.

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Have you read any of these? What were your thoughts?

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Happy reading!

[stardustbarbarians]

I got tagged by @welightthefire (thank you for the tag!!)

1. How do you feel 2022 has gone in terms of writing?

Well, considering I started writing for this fandom back in February and managed to fill up my master list (as well as write two series holy cow!) I'd say it was a rather productive year!

2. What pieces are you proudest of this year? It can be a shot/blurb/headcannon, a whole series or even a specific chapter.

Too Pretty For War is the first one that comes to mind, however I am also immensely proud of Sweet Dreams and Flying Machines as well as Everything Leaves You Hungry

3. Is there anything you posted that you wish had reached more people? (No such thing as a flop here!) Shout it out, it might catch a new pair of eyes!

Truthfully, all of my fics for Daniel.

4. Can you give us a hint of anything coming before the end of the year? Maybe even a little taster?

Too Pretty For War Chapter 9 teaser incoming!

Two months. Two months it took for Athens to get a new king. It was through no fault of the kingdom’s that such a gap in leadership occurred, rather due to the fact that Princess Y/N requested that they wait until her family could make the trip from Sparta. It was not as if the kingdom was left ungoverned, Sam was just running the kingdom without the official title. 

However, that was set to change today. On the most blasted hot day of the entire summer. It was sweltering, sweat dripping off one’s skin from the moment the sun rose. There was no reprieve. Even basking in the shade was nothing more than a slight improvement. Samuel and his wife were forced to stand in the stifling heat for the entirety of the day. Once the ceremony was over and Samuel was officially king, the first thing he would do would be to demolish the long ceremony. 

5. Are you setting any writing goals for next year, or just going with the flow? If you are, what are they?

I'm just gonna go with the flow like I always do <3

6. Do you have any one shots or finished pieces you're tempted to expand on or revisit next year?

Well... I did leave the ELYH saga on a cliffhanger.... and it has been calling my name as of late.... but who knows. And I still have that bonus chapter for Too Pretty For War that I promised!

7. Is there anything new you're tempted to try out? A new style/trope/AU/another person in the fandom?

I do have an old Grease AU that I started for a different fandom and I have been thinking about revisiting it. I'm fairly certain someone else in the fandom has written a Grease fic and I'd have to ask them if they'd feel comfortable with me also posting one before I'd even think about posting mine. Oh! I also have an Indiana Jones AU I've been chipping away at for months (and another AU that I'm going to keep a secret until I've written enough to post a teaser).

8. Now to hype some other writers! What's a piece you read back in the first half of the year that you can shout out?

Westerberg: A Cautionary Tale by @t00turnttrauma Girl I still couldn't believe what you did to Sam in the 4th chapter I was shook as hell. I remember texting one of my friends being like "ain't no way she's actually gonna do it" and then you DID

9. And how about something you've read more recently?

Well, the stuff I have enjoyed the most is actually unreleased fics from @t00turnttrauma and @ofthecaravel of which I am not at liberty to disclose, but just know they're so amazing and awesome and I cannot wait until their stuff is released so I can gush about it freely. (Kim I am begging so nice on my hands and knees to take another crack at the Coven one please please please - but don't feel pressured)

10. A fun one to finish...If you could insert yourself into any fic in the fandom, which would it be and what do you think would happen?

I'd have to go with Sinister by @godlygreta because I love angst that much apparently. Also the whole vibe of that fic is so immaculate and I think about this fic all the time. (If I were to go with one of my own fics I'd pick Too Pretty For War I just wanna see Sam in a toga everyday)

Tagging @t00turnttrauma :)

[merry-kuroo]

My Top 10 Webtoons (2020-2021)

So, it’s been one year since I started Webtoons/Manwha. At first I downloaded the app to read Tower of God, then I started reading more stuff and now I’m deep into Webtoon hell lol. Anyway, I just wanted to share my Top 10 series...tbh there’s a few more I wish I could add to this list, but I’m not done reading them yet.

So...here :)

Sorry for any typos or any incoherent thoughts. I'm very very tired :)And there are spoilers for some of these series.

1.) Back to You

Honey B has the prettiest art oh my God. 😍

I’m a huge fan of time travel stories where the protagonist is trying to save someone else. In Hanyoung’s case, she decides to save the boy she was in love with Jaehyun.

I really don’t have much to say about this except that I really enjoy it, and things have been going too smoothly in the story atm and I’m expecting something bad to happen at any second. 👁👄👁

2.) See You in my 19th Life

Lee Hey is incredible. This another story where the art is gorgeous, and I like the story in this one a lot more. The progression of Seoha and Jiuem’s relationship is really sweet 🥰. I’m curious to see how Jieum’s sister and Seoha react when they find out who she truly is...I don’t think it’ll go well :’)

A Good Day To Be a Dog is another awesome series by them which I recommend too, but I like this story a lot more.

3. The Remarried Empress

The Remarried Empress is about a cool, sophisticated, intelligent woman who has to deal with her cheating idiot of a husband😡, and his mistress...who is also a idiot...and manipulative 🙄

But it’s okay because Navier has Heinrey and everything will be okay!! Hopefully...lol. 😅

This was one of the first stories I started reading when I downloaded the Webtoon app. I wasn’t too sure at first about continuing it, but the drama and Navier’s comebacks were so good that I had to keep coming back twice a week to read new episodes.

Navier will keep winning and she will get everything that she deserves 🥰

4.) Let's Play

Hilarious and relatable...Let’s Play 🎮 is definitely a story near and dear to my heart. I’m very excited to Sam’s growth in season 3!!

Look, just go read it. Then you’ll know why it’s in my Top 5 haha.

5.) My Deepest Secret

MDS is wild as hell 😳, but at least Yohan is there 😅 Season 3 has been fantastic so far, and I’m kind of scared of how the series is going to end... I don't know what kind of life Emma can have at this point.

6.) Siren's Lament

Lyra, Shon, and Ian my loves 🥰😍💕💞💚💙💛

Siren’s Lament is a beautiful story. I have a lot of respect for the author being a student and working on this at the same time haha. Props to her for managing that!

I don’t know too much about Sirens, but reading this made me want to read up more about the lore surrounding them. Siren’s Lament did a good job of adding its own unique twist to the lore.

10/10 recommend

7.) Tower of God

Yeah, boi. The anime left off on a cliffhanger, then I realized we weren’t going to get a season 2. So, I decided to read TOG from the beginning because I heard that some things were skipped in the anime (and yes quite a bit was different and a few scenes were cut).

I’m currently at the Workshop Battle. Team Sweet and Sour are my favs, but I have a feeling something bad will happen to them 😥

The amount of episodes is still daunting to me, but I know I’ll be caught up one day. 🥲

8.) The Kiss Bet

The Kiss Bet is really cute 🥰 The second season was definitely an improvement. Each chapter left a smile on my face, and I impatiently waited for the next one.

I was rooting for Patrick, but now I ship Sara and Oliver ahahaha. I’m super excited for season 3 because the drama is going to be soooo goooood. I want to find out more about Oliver and Joe’s family situation or at least see their mom.

9.) Nice to Meet You

NTMY gave me a boost of serotonin every week 😁. Like no joke. I had a big ass smile on my face after finishing a chapter. Every chapter was just tooth rotting fluff. Wyn is best boi, but it sucks that he’ll be suffering from second boy syndrome in the upcoming season 😢

10.) unOrdinary

At first I didn’t like unOrdinary...I’m not to sure what happened, but all of sudden I became obsessed with it and began binge reading it.

The fight scenes were awesome and I’m excited to see the Wellston students take down the authorities and Ember. I’m glad John is a lot better now because damn it was hard seeing him so destructive. Hopefully, things will be okay for him and Seraphina now (I doubt it. Too much is up in the air).

My favorite trio - Remi, Isen, and Blyke...I love them and they are in so much trouble rn. I wonder how they’ll get out of it.

Honorable mentions:

- SubZero

- Flow

- Her Bucket List

- I Love Yoo

- LUMINE

- Midnight Poppy Land

So yeah those are my Top 10! I hope to do another list next year because I'm sure the rankings on this list will end up changing 🥰

[cryingcow]

Yellow Dragon Wandering Chronicles [RGGO] --- Ch. 1

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Side Story | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6

[1-1] | [1-2] | [1-3] | [1-4] | [1-5] | [1-6] | [1-7]

Hello! I was planning to kick this off like a week ago but IRL stuff kicked me instead D: Anyway for tonight and for the next who-knows-how-many weeks, I’ll be posting about one of the main stories in RGG Online / RyuOnline, “Yellow Dragon Wandering Chronicles”, aka “Goda Ryuji’s Travel Log”, aka “The Yakuza 0.5 K-Drama you never knew you wanted: The Tale of the Two Most Conspicuous Koreans in Japan”! This story has a total of 6 chapters split into 39 parts (40 if you count the Side Story linked above), and seeks to answer the question, “What does it mean to live?” I’ll be posting the chapters in whole weekly / biweekly / if IRL permits on Saturday nights like this, to avoid cliffhangers. I’ve got ~75% per chapter finished, so hopefully I finish these before December lol

Spoilers: While you can read this after playing Y2/YK2, it is preferable that you have finished (or at least have knowledge of) the mainline Yakuza Kiryu games Y0 to Y6 to fully appreciate it. Since this is about Ryuji going on a roadtrip around Japan, this will also serve as a roadtrip down memory lane, especially since he visits familiar places and conflicts in Y5 and Y6 :D (some Y7 stuff is also mentioned but it’s minimal and probably not spoiler-y, tho I wouldn’t know since I haven’t played Y7). I’ll be putting notes at the end of the parts, in line with this :D

[Chapter 1: Yakuza Expulsion]

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CHAPTER 1-1

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|In this country, there are two yakuza organizations competing for supremacy in the underworld. One is the Tojo Clan, the largest organization in eastern Japan. The other is the Omi Alliance, the largest yakuza organization in western Japan. The Tojo Clan and the Omi Alliance . . . with equilibrium between these two major organizations, order in the underworld is maintained.|

|And then, 1999. Omi Alliance direct family, the Go-Ryu Clan. Chairman Goda Jin is on the verge of being named the Fifth Chairman of the Omi Alliance. Together with that, it is rumored that Jin would nominate the next Chairman of the Go-Ryu Clan. Meanwhile, there is a man considered the most promising candidate for the next Go-Ryu Clan Chairman. The man’s name is—|

Yakuza: “Goda Ryuji!! Today will be the anniversary of your death!!”

Ryuji: “Then bring it on quickly. Heh . . . hurry up or my death anniversary will be over!”

[ 4th generation of the Omi Alliance, direct subsidiary family Go-Ryu Clan Acting Captain: Goda Ryuji ]

Yakuza: “Riding on your parent’s influence has made you conceited . . . ! Die!!”

{Ryuji kicks the guy’s butt.}

Yakuza: “Hi-Hiiiii . . . St-Stop! No more—”

Ryuji: “Oraaa!!”

Yakuza: “Puhaagh!!”

{The yakuza collapses from Ryuji’s final punch.}

Ryuji: “Hmph . . . boring.”

Ryuji’s Entourage A: “Incredible, Aniki! Strong as an oni, as always!”

Ryuji’s Entourage B: “Hehe, look at this idiot. His eyes have turned white.”

Ryuji’s Entourage A: “He’s a hundred years too early to be picking a fight with Aniki. This total idiot!”

Ryuji’s Entourage B: “That’s right. This person is the son of the next Omi Chairman!”

Ryuji: “Hold it.”

Ryuji’s Entourage B: “Eh . . . ?”

Ryuji: “You sayin' all I am is the next Chairman’s son?”

Ryuji’s Entourage B: “Eh? No . . . y-you’re amazing . . .”

Ryuji: “I benefit from my parent’s influence, you say?!?!”

Ryuji’s Entourage B: “Ugiyaaah!!”

{Ryuji’s entourage collapses from Ryuji’s punch.}

Ryuji’s Entourage A: “Hi-Hiiiii . . .”

Ryuji: “. . . . . . tch.”

{Footsteps are heard as someone approaches.}

Man in Black: “It’s good to see you, young master.”

Ryuji: “. . . What is it.”

Man in Black: “Oyaji is calling for you.”

Ryuji: “Aah . . . ? What for?”

Man in Black: “He wants to tell you in person. Oyaji is waiting at Headquarters. Heh. It must be good. Probably about being the next Chairman of the Go-Ryu Clan. As long as Oyaji is the Chairman of the head family, he cannot serve as the Go-Ryu Clan Chairman at the same time. Is it possible he’s taking the opportunity to remove the ‘acting’ from the young master’s title of Acting Captain? To be the Captain for a while, and eventually become Chairman . . . I’m sure that’s Oyaji’s idea.”

Ryuji: “. . . Hmph. Took him long enough.”

Man in Black: “A car is available. Right this way . . .”

----

Ryuji: “Calling me all the way to Headquarters is as expected of ya, Fifth Chairman.”

Jin: “. . . You came?”

[ 4th generation of the Omi Alliance, direct subsidiary family Go-Ryu Clan Chairman: Goda Jin ]

Ryuji: “You met with me, it seems like you’re finally willing to give it up?”

Jin: “. . .”

Ryuji: “Hmph. Yakuza have old-fashioned ideas. Saying I’m too young—until recently I’ve been content with the half-hearted position of Acting Captain. If it’s true, I’ll immediately take charge of the family even if I have to put up with being Captain for a while.”

Jin: “. . . Too young.”

Ryuji: “Ah . . . ?”

Jin: “That’s why you’re too young. Ryuji.”

Ryuji: “Did you call me here for a sermon?”

Jin: “. . . I have something to tell you.”

Ryuji: “. . . Haw. Then say it.”

Jin: “Ryuji. I have a directive. Today, in this place you—are excommunicated.”

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-END-

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Next >>>>>>>>>

[1-1] | [1-2] | [1-3] | [1-4] | [1-5] | [1-6] | [1-7]

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