#lmao I WROTE THIS LAST YEAR ITS JUST BEEN SITTING IN MY DRAFTS

[inkdemonapologist]

My BatDR Take That Used To Be Hot But I Left It Out On The Windowsill To Cool So You Should Be Able to Eat It Now Without Burning Your Tongue

its not actually that hot, is what im saying

Anyway my BatDR hot take is that BatDR's story is not fundamentally worse than BatIM with one exception; an exception that, for BatIM, covers a multitude of sins:

BatIM has a theme.

I can't presume the intentions of the creators, but if I had to write an essay on the themes in BatIM, it wouldn't be hard to pick one out: the cost of obsession, or even just, the ruin Joey brought on the studio. In the very first chapter, Henry asks "Joey, what were you doing?" and every single thing in the rest of the game revolves around that central question: what WAS Joey doing? Each audiolog is a snippet of the studio's path to this messed up state; each character you meet is someone ruined by Joey. The major antagonists echo Joey's flaws -- obsession with Bendy as more than a cartoon, obsession with perfection, obsession with fame and greatness and legacy -- but even without that, they're also each a picture of how the lives of people caught in the path of Joey's dream were ruined by it. Bertrum, for example, doesn't match the concept of rubberhose cartoons, but as yet another person screwed over by Joey, he fits the central question of the story, so he feels like he belongs here. Ultimately, in a narrative sense, the Ink Demon isn't the story's monster -- Joey is; the Ink Demon is just the consequence of his reckless ambition.

But what's the theme or central question of BatDR?

You can... try to pick out a theme. There's some promising options, because it feels like the story WANTED a theme, stating its emotional intentions more overtly -- "there's always a choice" to leave the darkness and chose hope; family and the struggle of living in a heavy legacy's shadow; or even just good old mewtwo-brand The Circumstance's Of One's Birth Are Irrelevant, It Is What You Do With The Gift Of Life That Determines Who You Are.

I think, even WITH the clumsy execution of Joey's "arc" and Audrey's lack of real choices, any of those could work about as well as BatIM. But unlike BatIM, the majority of the game doesn't tie in. Joey's tour can be considered relevant -- a picture of the family legacy and the "darkness" that Audrey doesn't yet know she's inheriting -- but like, the audiologs and hints and environment of BatDR are mostly teasing the question of What Is Gent Up To, and the takeover of Gent is detached from Audrey's choices, her family, her legacy, and Gent never really becomes a relevant threat to those things in this game. The Cult of Amok and the Ghost Train have nothing to do with any of these ideas. It might've been neat if Audrey had ever considered, "Did my father really drive all these people insane?", a hint of actually having to wonder about the darkness in her past. Even Wilson only barely brushes against these concepts; he doesn't like Joey and he also is trying to escape his family's heavy legacy, but it doesn't really reflect on his actions and we don't find that last part out until he's about to be dead.

There's also the question Wilson poses of "real" people versus ink creations, and what counts as valid "life." It would be an interesting theme with a lot to build off of in this setting, it ties into Wilson more as Wilson seems to represent the opinion that Inky Things Aren't Really Alive, which could've tied to Audrey (as an ink-person who has yet to accept that part of herself) and maybe given Wilson a reason to think it's fine to sacrifice her, it could've even tied to Gent (who don't even seem to value human life) -- but after Wilson asks the question, it doesn't tie into the direction things go. He smooshes a little Bendy, we see hints of his disregard for Betty, and then everyone continues with their plan to destroy the Ink Demon without any further moral quandaries about inky life.

The thing is, when you compare an element like, say, audiologs, there's a lot of differences you can point to -- but I don't actually think Lacie Benton's audiolog is notably better, taken on its own, than Grace Conway's or Kitty Thompson's, and yet tons of people were intrigued enough to flesh out Lacie. None of them are big plot points or compelling characters on their own; Lacie and Grace both give us a little note on what it's like working in the Studio, and Kitty shares a little bit on how Gent's expansion is affecting people. But when Lacie talks about Bertrum trying to make a creepy animatronic, that ties back into Joey's ill-fated schemes that are the point of the whole story. The question we're asking through the whole game is "what happened here?" so the fandom is interested in who Lacie is and what her life was like and extrapolates a whole person out of a couple sentences. But that's not the question in BatDR -- what has Wilson done to the Cycle and the Demon? Why? Who is Audrey really, and why is she here? Telling us new things about the Studio's fate seems strangely irrelevant to those questions, just an attempt to create a Mystery To Speculate On like the previous game did... but what question you're asking and how it fits into your story's main theme, like, matters. I absolutely believe that one clock animator guy would've been in EVERYONE'S crew if he'd been introduced in BatIM, but the context makes a difference; fleshing him out feels less relevant here.

The explanations of how and why Wilson did everything he did are baffling and handwavey, but in and of itself that's not a worse problem than anything else in the franchise -- I STILL don't understand why the Ink Machine needs pipes in the walls or even how it works, there's no good reason for Sammy to believe the Ink Demon will "set him free," most of Alice's motives don't make sense, etc etc etc. But the thing is that in BatDR, the wibbly bit is the closest thing to a central question we have! Wilson, what were you doing? The theme doesn't really explore or connect to that question, so the explanations that are finally tossed our way feel lacking in a way that BatIM's handwaved elements don't. There's a lot about Joey's motivation in BatIM that we can't know, but the heart of it resonates -- Joey wanted something, he was willing to exploit people to get it, and he became obsessed and prioritised that dream at any cost. We'll weather a thousand logistical inconsistencies if it's got heart.

But all of that said.... to be honest, I don't think Lacie overtly fits that theme anyway. Even, like, Sammy is iffy -- we don't really know what happened to him, only that he didn't used to be made of ink and worship Bendy, and now he does. We assume Joey's nonsense had something to do with what happened to him (though the books later assert his influence was indirect at best), because when there's a pattern, we can fill in the blank. So many fan creators found a place for Lacie, Grant, and Shawn in the cycle as butcher clones or lost ones, so many people imagined that Wally must be the Boris we meet, because that would've fit the pattern, the idea that the point of what we're seeing is the downfall of the studio. It's not actually that BatIM did a great job tying everything together -- it's that BatIM gave us a compelling idea and that was all it took to make everything else SEEM like it could find a place to fit. This is what I mean when I say BatIM's theme covers a multitude of sins. There's a LOT of characters in BatIM that don't make sense. There's a lot of inconsistencies and things that just sort of happen without any real reason. Characters don't really have "arcs" so much as different states they happen to be in at different times. But because there's a central question and the story doesn't wander away from it, our pattern-loving human brains will slot in all the pieces and do all the work to make the story feel at least somewhat coherent.

The things that happened in BatDR aren't a whole lot less coherent than BatIM imo, they just don't tie into a bigger theme or any of the questions the story's asking, making "how do they fit into all this" feel irrelevant, making it easier to forget entire sections and harder to get invested in audiolog characters. I think a lot of the other criticisms people have for BatDR's story are very valid, but I also suspect that if BatDR had a more successful theme/central question, then a lot of its flaws would be easier to overlook -- just like BatIM.

[s-che]

for the tarot ask game -

The Hanged Man — What other creative pursuits do you have? OR What current trends in game design are you most interested in?

Judgement — Talk about a game you’ve made that taught you a lot.

The RPG Designer Tarot Ask Game

The Hanged Man — What other creative pursuits do you have? OR What current trends in game design are you most interested in?

Before I started writing games, I was also a whole-ass poetry and prose person. I got published in a couple of small journals / magazines, and you can find some of that stuff up still — but honestly it's been long that I'm not gonna bother linking. Weird to go back to stuff I wrote pre-COVID, tbh. I also used to do wire/clay/wax sculpture (miss this a lot!!) & wrote a couple of one act plays which got put on by a local theater company when I was in high school but that is ANCIENT history.

My biggest non-game creative pursuit is definitely prose writing, and I do have a finished novel that I should probably remember to query around some more. its about a kid from Ohio who runs away to join the circus in like. 2011. and it sits sort of somewhere between Catherynne Valente and Terry Pratchett voice wise and is. and is a condemnation of american empire et c etc. Working title: The Major Americana.

Writing prose is definitely where I think I found my voice — you wouldn't get something like [three dudes go bowling] or gun cowboy or LESBIANS BUILT THIS FARM if I hadn't written Major Americana first (or, like, concurrently — I started writing MA when I was literally nineteen years old and didn't have a draft I was content with until last summer, five whole years later).

I'm also like. A graduate student. That's sort of creative sometimes.

Judgement — Talk about a game you’ve made that taught you a lot.

Talked about Queen of the Moon already in another post, so here's this: Beneath Pirate Flags was the first hack I ever actually released anywhere, my first time working in ndnm/bob tech, and also the only way I ever learned how to hack/write iteratively well. The first version of that game had a lot of good aesthetic ideas, but it was also ripping bits from Wanderhome and Dream Askew / Dream Apart without really thinking about how those things worked in their context.

Over the course of the next, well, two full fucking years (lmao) I started digging deeper into games and got much better at pulling them apart and figuring out how and why certain things worked in certain ways. And the result was that I had to go back to Beneath Pirate Flags not once but twice for from-the-ground-up rehauls and retoolings of the game. But in that process I ended up coming to much better systems for the story it's trying to tell — not just reskinning the mechanics of another game with the sort of shit that comes up in pirate adventures.

[cinnamon-bunni]

hm... 4, 7, 11, 12, 17, 21, 22, 24! happy new year, bunni!

4. Total number of words you wrote this year That's hard to find tbh....I didn't end up posting a lot of fics, so i dont only have to just check my statistics on ao3, but all of my possible fics ive written this year in my wip docs as well. the total i got was 58,171 words (~35k of it being WIPs and not posted)! so definitely not as much as i wrote last year which was (i think over 100k), and also not including all of my notes ive written. i did not do a lot of writing this year, so hopefully next year i'll wrap up all of my big fics and post them all <3

7. longest completed fic you wrote this year Again, i did not write a lot this year, much less finish them lmao. if you were to ask about uncompleted fics, we would have a different story--but alas, the longest completed one was Once More, With Needles, sitting at 4,414 words!

11. fandom you enjoyed writing for the most this year hm....obey me, I suppose. its hard to say really, but enjoyment from writing specifically, i'd have to give it to obey me. what can i say, the cast is just really fun to write (even when levi is impossible to write, like what the hell man i have rewritten your part in my undead fic like 3 separate times and am continuing fixing it, like what the hell man i trusted you and then you dont behave for me). like this year specifically i realized how much i love each and every character--those like lucifer reminded me as to why i love the game and the characters, and people like mephisto and raphael randomly won a spot in my heart. theyre all just so so fun to write <333

12. favorite character to write about this year lucifer!!! even though i only have like, one fic that features him thats out and finished lmao; hes such an interesting and complex character, yet is one whose mind i can easily slip into when i need to write when its his pov. idk, sometimes i find myself struggling to write characters like levi or even asmo sometimes--mainly from my own failures to pay attention to their canon interpretations and making them not out-of-character--but lucifer is surprisingly one i can always rely on to be easy and fun to write!! he is angst galore and so emotionally constipated, hes great <3

17. fics you’ll continue next year Heart Melts for sure!! i originally wanted ch3 to be out before the new year, but ive been drafting and redrafting all of my future chapters (i am trying my best to make it a psychological horror in order to match the tag that i put on the fic, but idk if its going to live up to the hype that people have for this fic ^^;;) so i sadly didnt get time to finish it. maybe by the end of January ill have it out--heres to hoping its done by then! and maybe i might continue Dirty? I didn't even update it this year lol--its def one i dont wanna leave discontinued, as i have all of the chapters planned out, but i just have many other projects that i wanna focus on and also i really wanna rewrite it, so ive been debating doing that first or just to finish then rewrite it. in a perfect world, i'll update that one too lol

21. most memorable comment/review I have two that come to mind!!! in all honesty all comments make me sooo happy, but these ones specifically is just,,,idk man, they just hit a certain way that itches that scratch in my brain that needs validation lmao i love rereading these all the time <3 theres these comments for Messy Makeup:

(make me go insane from them saying i wrote multiple fics that were their favorites <33) and of course there's this banger of a comment from @/snugglebunnies!!! idk if youre reading this but thank you thank you thank you for inspiring me so much with your fics!!! i love them so much, and this comment was just incredible! from the fic Heart Melts:

(love when people leave quotes, no matter how long or short!!!! such deep analysis is what i live for!!!!) and of course, sending out so much love to everyone who leaves a comment on any of my fics, no matter how big or small they are <333

22. events you participated in this year i didnt participate in any events this year! i tend not to do events tbh, theyre not really my style, as i dont do well with due dates unless i have months in advance lol;; usually i might do one, maybe two, events a year, but those are usually simple gift exchanges or something. nothing caught my eye this year, and ones that did i just didnt have the time to do, sadly. but! i do plan on doing the sonic big bang next year, which will be my first ever "bigger" event ive been in! exciting, but also really nervewracking as ive never posted sonic content and idk how well i'll do staying on schedule. but its still something i really wanna do (have a great fic planned for it!) so i still wanna give it a shot and do my best on it lol

24. favorite fic you read this year from this year is really hard to say--i think all of my favorite fics were found last year lmao so its a struggle to think of one. @heleentje's BOTW fic Moonlight has been a fantastic read (even though i havent finished it yet;;; i promise will soon!!) and just hits all of the right notes for me!! The batman fic Performance Piece is also definitely up there for me, as it captures so well what i want in my own writing when it comes to writing characters, especially when it comes to inner-dialogue (i might just go back and reread that one again lmao)

as of posting, i have about twenty minutes left before the new year. so happy early 2024!! 🥳🎉💝

[euphoricfilter]

I would never have guessed that you consider Smut as one of your weaker points, bc for me it was really good while I was reading it, means that once you are more confident about it, Babe you'll kill it.

YES blowjobs are better when you are reading them than seeing them, but for me it applies to majority of things in sex lol. The pegging HAHA sorry it's something I have seen its usual on pet play.

But after reading that I'm excited to see you experiment with those new themes you talk about. The request sounds interesting Lmao, take your time tho, wouldn't want you to stress because of it. Gonna be stalking your page until then.

Also the title is perfect haha <3

i’m gonna cry, thank you 😭

writing in itself is still relatively new for me so there are definitely areas i can improve on. i ‘started’ this blog at the end of january this year (i’d had it for a while i just never uploaded) with DTIK and i literally uploaded the first chapter like a week after i wrote it and that’s where it all started and my experience is like the last 10 months. i had written in the past when i was like 13-14 but it will never see the light of day, it was very much the unrealistic, mafia bangtan but i was convinced to write an empowered woman that didn’t need men, which they don’t, but my writing was so crusty i can’t read it now without giggling. i have 60 something drafts of wattpad 😭 of crusty old fics.

i think the first time i wrote smut was 4 months ago? maybe? it could be 5, i know i was still in china at the time because i remember i’d said i wanted to add smut to the last chapter of TBAH but then i was like yeah idk how to write this in part 9 and then an anon was like “i think it’s time they fucked” and i was like yeah you’re probably right. and i remember sitting there thinking what the hell am i supposed to say, this is kinda awkward and i was stupid and thought an ot7 fic would be a good place to start. writing smut for 8 people is so freaking hard so i had to split it up into subunits 😭 and then i started writing “smut” in DTIK but they haven’t actually had sex yet so it doesn’t really count and then helping hands came along + rope bunny and that basically all my experience so i’m happy i seem to be good at it 😭

my skin crawls when a bj post comes up on my twitter, i scroll past them so quick THE NOISE I ACTUALLY HATE IT 😭 it’s so much better when you read it 😭 i’ve read some out-there smut, and i think ‘wait that’s kinda hot’ and then i think logically in real life what that would be like and i want to cry because it would be foul

don’t be sorry about the pegging 😋, it’s actually not something i’ve thought about putting in a fic before but also it reminds me of that rumor that prince william is into pegging so i can’t take it seriously

IM SO CLOSE TO FINEIHINF THE REQUEST. i’ve edited to main part, and it’s like 50/50 it’ll come out tonight if i could just hurry up and write the sexy lil smut scene but also i have ptsd from wattpad smut so i always try to make sure it’s nothing like that and there’s a decent amount of detail to fuel the reader’s imagination 😋

i always think about, what if someone stalks my page because recently i went through a few of my old posts and it’s kinda crusty ngl, the other day someone liked a post i made months and months and months ago that literally only had the tag of the au so only people that followed me at the time could see it and i was like oh someone liked that but they would have had to have scrolled so far down, i don’t post a shit ton on here but they would have been so deep into my page i wanted to cry because i can’t remember half the stuff i post and there’s definitely some dark stuff crawling in the depths of this blog but that au was cute so i’m glad they liked it 😭

while we’re on the topic of my writing weaknesses, titles. i’m so shit at naming my fics it’s awful 😭 i changed “open” like 3 times before it became that name because i cant name my fics for shit it’s so bad 😭

[marvelslut16]

Idiots in love

Pairing: William ‘Bill’ Weasley x reader 

Synopsis: (Y/N) has been in love with Bill ever since she met him their first year at Hogwarts. Will she finally tell Bill how she feels, like Mrs. Weasley hopes she will, or will Fleur and Ginny’s assumptions about (Y/N)’s love life get in the way. 

Word count: 2.9k+

Warnings: Angst. Dumb asses pining after each other. Fleur, if she counts lmao. Brief mentions of death. 

A/N: This has been sitting in my drafts for months, I wrote it as a self indulgent piece since I can’t date Bill in Hogwarts Mystery and I wasn’t sure if anyone would actually read it. It's cannon divergent. Also, tell me if you want a part 2!

My first fic of the new year! Hopefully I'll be way more consistent and inspired this year. Thank you to everyone reading any of the fics I write, I love you all!

“Molly, he’s happy with her,” you roll your eyes at the older woman who had become like a mother to you over the years. 

You met her at Kings Cross Station the morning of your first year, she helped you cross the barrier, your parents are muggles who are afraid of anything different. You were in Bill’s year, the two of you becoming fast friends on the train ride. Through your years at Hogwarts you two became inseparable, both becoming Head Girl and Head Boy together. You two always studied together, explored the castle together, went to Hogsmeade together, you did everything together. Well, except one thing, you didn’t fall in love together; you fell for him, and he fell for that foul, loathsome Emily Tyler and now Fleur Delacour.

You spent almost every Christmas Holiday under the burrow’s roof, along with most of your summers. The burrow was your real home, and the Weasley’s were your family. After you and Bill had graduated Molly and Arthur insisted you use their first names, both convinced you and Bill would finally get together. But that didn’t happen, you both went separate ways, barely even owling over the years. He went on to be this fantastic cursebreaker for Gringotts, getting sent all the way to Egypt. And you, you became the astronomy professor at Hogwarts, you thrived in the subject and Professor Sinistra transferred to Uagadou.

“But you’re perfect for him,” Molly nags. You loved the women with your whole heart, but she really needed to learn when to drop matters of the heart. Especially when the topic of discussion was set to arrive soon. 

“Not everything works out how we want it to,” you sigh as you hand her a clean dish to dry, you had wanted to clean the dishes the muggle way. “Especially when it involves one's heart.”

The two of you are waiting for everyone to arrive, Arthur is picking the kids up from the train now that it’s summer holiday. You had apparated to the burrow after the students boarded the train, now officially a part of the Order. Dumbledore and Sirius are dead, but that just means that everyone needs to fight harder. 

“I just want you to be happy,” Molly’s eyes are soft and sad as she looks at you. 

“I am,” you smile through the lie. There’s a pop from the living room, assuming it’s just Charlie you continue. “I don’t need a man Molly, my students make me happy.”

“Mum,” the unmistakable voice of William Weasley calls as he walks towards the kitchen. “I have great news, Fleur and I are engaged! We want to get married this summer!”

You accidentally drop the plate you're washing back into the soapy water, causing some to splash your shirt. For a split second you see Molly’s face fall before she puts on a bright fake smile as she turns to her eldest. You refuse to turn and see him, you thought you had enough time to prepare yourself to see him again, but you didn’t. He refused to see you after he got hurt during the battle of the astronomy tower when he was in the hospital wing and ignored you in the few weeks following.  

“Oh, wow,” Molly tries to come up with a response that won’t upset him. “This quickly?”

“I can’t take the chance, not now,” his mood is hard to read from his voice. He almost seems too defensive when he responds. “Not with everything happening.”

Your heart stops its thumping for a second, you didn’t realize it would hurt this much to see him happy. You want more than anything for him to be happy, but you also know that his mother and sister will never approve of Fleur. And he’ll never be fully happy because of that. But maybe you're wrong, maybe you don’t really know him. Maybe you never did. 

“I can’t believe I signed up for bloody astronomy again,” you can hear Ron complain through the open window before Molly can respond.

“You know you love me,” you holler out the window as Ron and Ginny get closer to the house. They’re the only two at Hogwarts now, they’re growing up so fast. 

“Yeah, yeah professor,” he mutters as he walks through the door before grinning widely at you. 

Even though you had seen Ginny hours ago, the younger girl runs up to you and throws her arms around you. You laugh as she pulls back and makes a face as some of the soap suds transferred to her shirt. 

“You just saw (Y/N),” Ron rolls his eyes at Ginny’s actions.

“Yeah but that’s different,” Ginny defends. “At Hogwarts I can’t talk to her about boys, or eat dinner with her, or ask for Quidditch tips.”

“I’m always up for talking about boys,” you grin down at the red headed girl. You laugh and apologize to Molly as Ginny pulls you from the kitchen and up to her room. 

You don’t glance at Bill, you can’t. You’re too scared that all of the feeling you have bottled up will resurface with just one glance. You miss the way his eyes soften at your interaction with his sister, and how they trail after you as you get pulled past him. You sit with Ginny as she fawns over Harry for close to an hour, interjecting occasionally when she asks for your opinion. This is what you always imagined having a younger sister would feel like. 

“What about you?” she asks with a teasing tone in her voice. 

“What about me?” you laugh lightly as your eyebrows furrow in confusion. 

“You and professor Snape,” she’s smirking. 

“Severus?” you laugh before your face pulls into a disgusted look only Ginny can see. “We’re coworkers. Dare I say friends. And he’s a part of the Order, we have to at least tolerate each other.”

“Mhm,” she sounds unconvinced. “He smiled at you the other day! In the Great Hall, where people could see! He never smiles!”

“Ginny, we’re friends,” you try to get through to the stubborn teen. “Plus he’s known me since I was eleven, that would be gross.”

Before Ginny can respond there’s a knock on the open door, you turn around and see Bill for this first time in years. His red hair still falls to his shoulders, and he still has that fang hanging from his ear. There are scars down his cheek now, those and the fang make him look bad ass. Your heart stutters as your eyes meet his, the heartache that disappeared when you were gossiping with Ginny resurfaces with just one look.

“Dinners ready,” he says before turning and walking back down the stairs. 

Dinner is loads of fun, the two eldest Weasley’s joining the group since there’s a small Order meeting afterwards. Dinner is full of Charlie joking with you, something you're happy about since Ginny wouldn’t be able to bring up Severus again. You ignore the giggles and the French accent that poke holes in your heart as Bill only pays attention to Fleur, who showed up at the Burrow when you were upstairs. 

After dinner you agree to show Ron and Ginny some Quidditch moves you had picked up over the years, borrowing an old broom left behind by one of the other boys. Remus and Tonks appear in the front yard, signaling that the meeting would start momentarily. Ron thanks you as he continues to practice the moves as you fly to the ground. Ginny follows you, wanting to get a drink from the kitchen before it's closed off to the youngest two. 

“Are you going to take his last name, or is he going to take yours?” she teases. 

“Ginny, not now,” you sigh, not sure how to get it through her head that you have no feeling for the potions master without revealing that you’re in love with her oldest brother. You aren’t sure who’s worse, her or Molly. 

“Alright, whatever you say Mrs. Snape,” Ginny wiggles her brows in your direction as you head for the kitchen. 

“Mrs. Snape?” Severus’s monotonous voice comes from behind you two. Ginny’s eyes widen before she takes off running, and a strangled sound leaves your lips.

“Ginevra Molly Weasley, that’s a month of detention next year!” you yell after her. You take a breath before turning to stare into Snape’s obsidian eyes. “Ginny saw you laugh at my stupid joke in the Great Hall a few weaks ago and now she’s convinced you have feelings for me.” Severus raises his eyebrows at you before looking in the direction Ginny ran off in. “She’s just a kid Sev, don’t hold her delusions against her.”

“Weasley’s,” he mutters before heading to the kitchen himself. Dumbledore had told a select few in the Order the plans for Severus to kill him so Draco didn’t have to, and since the Headmaster was already dying nobody was as mad as expected. “Don’t you have feelings for the oldest one?”

“Be quiet!” you hiss, as look to make sure no one heard. He smirks before walking into the room where the meeting is to be held, leaving you standing confused in the hallway.

The meeting is small tonight; Remus, Tonks, Charlie, Molly, Arthur, Sev, yourself, Bill, and Fleur. The rest had prior engagements unfortunately, so it was essentially just family and Severus. 

Molly uses her magic to pour you a glass of tea as you sit beside Sev, the only open seat. You smile a quick thanks before lifting the cup to your lips. The warm liquid soothing your tired throat, students liked to talk over you during the last week of school so your throat was a little raw. 

“Do you want a cookie with that, love?” Snape’s monotonous voice is slightly louder than it normally is. The term of endearment comes as such a shock that you spit out the tea that's in your mouth, landing across the table on Fleur. 

There was no denying that Severus’s question was directed at you, he’s holding the plate full of Molly’s cookies right next to your face. The room goes deathly silent as the seconds pass by. Ginny, who was getting herself some pumpkin juice, drops the glass she was holding, it shatters when it hits the ground. Molly, Arthur, and Charlie abruptly stop their conversation to stare at you and Sev in shock. Remus furrows his eyebrows as he looks between you two, Tonks looks like she's holding back a laugh. A flash of pain seems to cross Bill’s face before it goes blank, and horror crosses Fleur’s when your tea lands on her. 

“I’m so sorry!” you cover your mouth, thankful the liquid wasn’t warm enough to burn. Bill doesn’t even turn to look at his fiancee, just stares at you. 

“Are you alright?” Snape has a small smile only you can see. You aren’t sure how to respond, especially as you stare at the amusement dancing in his onyx eyes. 

“I knew it!” Ginny yells, finally breaking the few seconds of silence, seconds that felt like years. You flick Sev’s leg under the table, and he has the audacity to grin larger.

“Thanks honey,” your eyes narrow slightly as you grab a cookie off the plate, passing it to Bill without looking away from the man in all black. 

The rest of the meeting is awkward, and as soon as it’s over you pull Sev out of his chair and outside. The cool night air cools your burning cheeks and he lets out a laugh that he had been holding in.

“What was that?” you pull at the ends of your hair. 

“We made your precious Weasley jealous,” even though he’s smirking, there’s no change in his inflection. 

“And now they all think we’re together!” your voice is high pitched and squeaky. 

“Good luck with that,” he disapparates before you can respond.

“I hate you!” you yell at the spot where Severus was just standing.

“You and Snape, huh?” Charlie’s voice cuts through the silent night. 

“Not bloody likely,” you roll your eyes, before plopping onto the ground. Charlie joins you as you lay and stare up at the stars. “He heard Ginny saying she thought he liked me, and he knows who I like, so he decided to run with it. He’s actually fun when you break through his cold exterior.”

“You still love Bill,” it isn’t a question. No matter how many times you denied it while you three went to school together, Charlie never believed you. 

“Yeah,” you sigh, turning to look at him. He’s already facing you so you continue, “your mum kept going on about how I should be the one with him this afternoon. She won’t drop it.”

“I love my brother,” Charlie makes sure you keep eye contact with him as he continues. “But he’s being stupid. I agree with mum, you should be the one marrying him.”

“He’s happy without me,” your voice comes out sadder than you thought it would, guard finally down. “We’ve barely talked in years, and he wouldn’t even let me see him after the attack. He doesn’t need me, nor does he want me in his life anymore.”

Charlie just sighs, annoyed that neither you nor Bill could see the truth starring you both in the face. You love each other. Charlie just lies next to you in comforting silence, staring at the night sky until he has to head back to Romania and you off to bed. 

A single tear slips down your cheek as you lay down in the bed that once belonged to Charlie. Ginny enters the room without knocking, and you quickly wipe away the tear. 

“Why didn’t you tell me!” she practically screams. 

“There’s nothing to tell, he was messing with you, Gin,” you look her directly in the eyes so she knows you aren’t lying. 

“What aren’t you telling me?” she sits beside you on the mattress. 

“I’m in love with Bill,” you whisper, finally saying the words out loud. Sure you had agreed with Charlie earlier, but you had never said the five words out loud before. It feels like a weight is lifted off your chest, until a new wave of heartache hits you. “I have been since we were in school, and it hurts Ginny. Fleur, she’s perfect, I couldn’t possibly compete with her.”

“You’re so much better than her, (Y/N),” Ginny grabs your hand, causing you to look up at her. “And he’s a fool if he doesn’t see that.”

“Thanks Gin,” you smile sadly, squeezing her hand before she heads off to her room. 

--

“Zank you,” Fleur’s French accent is the first thing you hear in the morning. Ginny comes up behind you as you stand in the hallway, and puts her hand on your shoulder. Today is the day you forget about all of this foolish childish love you have for Bill. 

Molly watches you closely as you sit down at the breakfast table, Ginny plopping down beside you. As you talk to the young girl about Quidditch over breakfast, a black owl flies through an open window. You roll your eyes as it plops a letter beside you, you give the owl some of your toast before it flies out of the window again. Ginny looks over your shoulder as you open the letter, the rest of the Weasley’s not-so-secretly watch you read it. 

The letter isn’t anything special, just Severus letting you know that you had left a book at Hogwarts. You know full well he’s being his dramatic self, going out of his way to send an owl, just so he can say he was right. He even added a p.s, asking if Bill had gotten jealous yet. You laugh at the ridiculous question, causing Bill to excuse himself and walk outside. Fleur doesn’t move from her seat, causing you and Ginny to make a face at each other.

A few moments pass before you decide to follow your old best friend against your better judgment, but someone should check on him. He’s in the backyard pacing like a madman, running his hands through his long hair and pulling on the tips. 

“Bill?” you ask softly. He whips around and looks at you, once again his face is hard to read. Your eyes, however, soften as soon as they see what Fenrier Greyback did to him. “What’s wrong?”

“You and Snape?” his voice is hard and cold. “He hated us growing up, and you just pretended that never happened and you're with him? He hated you!”

“It’s none of your business William!” your voice is high pitched, you’re angry. He doesn’t talk to you in ages and now all of a sudden he thinks it’s okay to judge your relationships. “We were annoying kids back then, of course he hated us.”

“You could do better than him!” his anger seems to rise at the use of his full first name. 

“We’re just friends!” your voice is shrill, and you're sure everyone inside can hear you two clearly. “Not that it’s any of your business anyway! Severus was letting me know I forgot some of my belongings at Hogwarts. You have no right to judge who I choose to spend my time with and who I befriend, not when you haven’t tried to talk to me in years Bill!”

With that you turn and head away from the burrow, not wanting to face anyone right now. Especially any of the Weasley's, and most of all, Molly. Bill calls your name as you walk away from him, but you don’t turn around. You can’t. William Weasley has broken your heart multiple times since you met him, and you aren’t about to give him the satisfaction of watching himself break your heart all over again.

Part 2

Permanent tags: @crimson-knuckled-queen​ @rexorangecouny @mrs-malfoy-always​

[blinkaftermidnight]

how long does editing take? do you always outline the whole fic first?

I'm usually never an outliner - at least, not right away. When I get spooked and start to think I won't finish a fic, I'll outline the rest (which is what happened with i'll be waiting on you forever - i outlined something like chapters 14-21 to make sure I knew where I was going since I was already in deep). Outlining can be useful, but I think it's a chore and sometimes it frustrates me when I have to alter an outline while I'm in the middle of writing. That may be why I'm a little unhappy with how the s3 fic is progressing, because even though I like the ideas in my outline, I feel like I'm not nailing the execution.

Editing can vary. I'm sitting on a fic that's like 50k that I've edited twice and I'm still not satisfied with it, and I'm not sure how to fix it, and it's been like a literal year since I started almost. If I'm happy with the overall story/how things turned out, editing goes pretty quick, and it's just a matter of catching typos/inconsistencies or adding little details that make the whole thing work better. I normally enjoy editing. i'll be waiting on you forever has actually been a really easy editing process, especially compared against fics like the exes fic or the soulmate AU (where I literally rewrote the entire last chapter after I posted the first four).

Usual editing process: I do a full read through after I've taken a little break from the finished first draft. Sometimes I'll do a second full read through, depending on how I feel about the fic - if I feel good, one is enough. Before I post every chapter, I read the preview of the chapter on AO3 to catch last minute typos or inconsistencies or sentences that don't make sense (and the AMOUNT of stuff I've caught while doing this has proven to me that it needs to happen, and I will not post a chapter without reviewing it right beforehand).

I've done one full read through for the confederate AU. I'm still not sure I'm satisfied with its ending as it is, so I may do a second full read through at some point. I have another fic I wrote that I've just started the full read through for. And I'm eventually going to attempt to reread that 50k fic I mentioned above - since it's been a while, and I like some parts of it a lot - and see what I can do about that. That 50k fic is actually the only fic I've ever committed to rewriting in its entirety to better be able to try to fix it. Not sure if that's working

Sorry that I wrote you a novel lmao

[astranva]

honestly, im not technically writing im just editing my wattpad fic bc i wrote it in like march and i havent updated said fic since feb so i need to update these bitches

not to mention the fact that i have three other ones im working on (2 of which are published and one is sitting in my drafts)

i rlly need to finish writing this christmas break scene and get to the good part (its remus lupin fic i have issues) where shit happens lmao but i also need to work on my hermione one (that is basically just sirius black as a female falling in love with hermione so golden era wolfstar) which ive been working on since last fucking year and then had to rewrite it bc of my *horrid* writing so yea lmao

also idk if u even like the marauders so idk why im telling u this i just needed to tell someone so they can get on my ass to write

bc i managed to write an 18 page short story for school yet i cant do this ?

lmao

🪩

mirr (nickname for mirrorball), you’re doing productive queen shit rn, are you kidding?

ugh not updating a fic in months sucks so bad, it’s almost always so hard to do so because it feels like you lost your train of thought for the fic, but i hope you’re feeling inspired, bub!

honestly, work on whatever you’re most inspired to write about just so you don’t go through a block.

nah, tell me anything you want, mirr, i love knowing what you’re up to!

sending you creative though process, good vibes, and love 💖💖 you got it, bub!!!

[neo-shitty]

toffee!

ah yeah, i think quarentine has given people some opportunity to actually just sit with the person they are, rather than be rushing around for the person they want to become. its good you got smth good out of isolation! ah thats great! hope you had fun and ur partner in crime speeds back home so you can get out more hehe.

ah yeah ty, good suggestions.

hmm good point, i was sort of putting it separate to the whole not-sexualising thing, but yeah. mmm yeah i totally agree, some of the enhypen fics/imagines *shudder* and even reading innie stuff is just a bit *icky* cos everyone still thinks of him as our agi ppang. yeah def would be good but sadly this just seems to be the world we live in. :(

ah yes the holy masterlist (not sarc) i have actually read in the rain and gladius maximus before, but ill go look for in class! oooh thats good! character development lol. hmmmm yes champagne problems was the angst to end all angst, that shit hurt. it was actually one of the first of your fics i read and i recall almost crying over the whole thing, it was so heartbreaking, i can see how it almost made you want to drop angst. good that youve allowed yourself some lee-way tho :)

hehe thats so cool. okay here we go, ill try not to be mortally offended (/hj)

cheese - yes same, i liked it but that was all there was, it wasnt a super standout track. it was rlly underwhelming for me but some of the hook is super catchy so there is Redemption (tm) in store for cheese maybe

thunderous - mmm, yeah at first i totally agreed, i think they suffer from too much good music syndrome, that all their other tracks are such fucking bops its hard to stay at that level of perfection. the choreo was beautiful tho and tbh, the track has grown on me since ive been watching all the vids abt it. its my brothers favourite track

domino - YES GODAMMIT IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE TITLE TRACK. the raps, the vocals, the vibes, the fucking domino sound in the back? i would have streamed that shit on repeat. but tbh, as good as it is, it doesnt have that sort of grandness/oomph that skz seems to like in their title tracks so i can see why they chose thunderous (tho domino would have been so good) *sigh*

ssick - yeah same, not my fave track by a long mile, the crowd cheering was a ?strange? choice and the chorus was a bit bare/empty, plus like i mentioned earlier, it was kinda funny to me for some reason but ill still play it if im playing thru the whole album

the view - ahh one of those not like other girls (/j) i honestly think its just a good party song, just a bop to play in the background when nobodys rlly paying much attention. its pretty generic pop music but catchy

sorry, i love you - hehe yeah i thought it was going to be sadder as well, but i rlly loved the fact that they all just got to sing, which almost never happens, i dont think ive heard felix sing for a long time, so i enjoyed it. wasnt rlly a standout track but i just casually like it. looking forward to the fic haha

silent cry - this song i swear, some bits are rlly good and then others are just? why?? it does sound like a dance song tho idk. definitely not one of my faves either

secret secret - YES its so good! its such a chill song and i love their vocals in it. the combination of lo-fi/fake strings backup stuff and their heavenly vocals just makes it *chefs kiss* im listening to it rn and just... its so beautiful. it gives me pumped up another day vibes ya know? like my pace is edgy get cool, this one is energetic another day i feel like. overall i love it

STAR LOST - ah thats so cool! i didnt know that! on first listen this song had a similar vibe to secret secret but then the beat came in and ahh its such a good song. i can totally imagine them putting this song to a concert footage vid, this song is so sweet.

red lights - LMAO YES ITS SO AWKWARD WHY DOES IT GO ON FOR SO LONG ah thats good! yeah good point, its quite intense hehe. but that is my fave trope and this is lowkey my favourite track on the album so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ just the combination of hyunjins and chans voices, the backing music, the lyrics ahh red lights my beloved

surfin’ - yes lmao its always a shock, i feel like they should have put gone away in between them, but its such a fun cute song, i cant get rlly mad. yeah, as an aussie i think im contractually obligated to like beaches lol. sand im not such a fan of, but my familys rlly into fishing and my brother loves bodyboarding so we stay at a beach house at least twice a year and we live like 5 mins from 3 different beaches (hehe all aussie cities are on the coast lol) so thats cool. do you like beaches?

gone away - ah gone away my beloved, i love this song sm, its just so pure and showcases their vocals and lyrics so well. yes the pitch change is very out of the blue, i feel liek they went directly from seungmins soft vocals to hans powerful ones which was an interesting choice, but hey, im not complaining

wolfgang - YES IKR ah im so happy he got to be included in that era and song. yeah its such a full on song i cant rlly listen to it if im in a quiet mood but its very motivating :)

hehe mood, i hope they do! ahhh no rest, but at least you wont have to pull a blink and wait a year for any word from the group lol. im not rlly into nct but im excited for them! ah hopefully youll be able to sneak some rest into that chaotic schedule, with enhypen (idk if u stan but yeah) squeezed into it haha

<3 w.a. 🐺

i wheezed at partner in crime, it reminded me of smth. i have a lee know fic in the drafts that i wrote 'in honor' of him (and his departure-ish). i'll tag you when i finish it, if you want. it's a rather hilarious one.

oh my god. based on my experience on the collabs i've joined before, writing explicit shit for '01 & '02 is not accepted (nct's maknaes) but with enha's hyung line '01 & '02 somehow it's okay? i do a double take every time i see fics like those i mean, technically, it's legal but still what the fuck. maybe it's just not for me at the moment. not at us venting our frustration about this. it's just something that's so accepted here that i am (in all honesty) slightly uncomfortable about. but oh well. that's kpop writerblr for you.

man i could've linked all the fics in the ask instead so you wouldn't have to go looking for them! i think i saw you like in class the other day (the fic i renamed into sharp-tongued, god it took me a while to remember the new title). describing champagne problems as an angst to end all angst is one way to put what i was feeling back in december. it just hurt to write and admit?? if that ever happened to me i would prolly cry :d

okay back to the album talk! i love how you answered with more thoughts. i love exchanges like these! i am a victim of the cheese hook and it's now one of my favorite tracks in the album. PLS, TOO MUCH GOOD MUSIC SYNDROME. that's on our self-producing kings 😌💅 also, your brother has taste! as i am typing this, domino's currently playing in my head and i realized that too, that it doesn't have that 'vibe' of a skz title track. honestly, this could be a title track of another group. ssick is starting to grown on me because i found the beats cool kdjsk not the not like other girls 😭 the view is the generic pop that i don't like but i get why a lot of people enjoy it. sorry i love you scratches a certain itch that i find myself singing the first few lines every time i remember it. i too would want to hear felix sing more!

> a mini junction on the album talk bc i got side tracked. on that topic, i want skz to switch positions at some point like i know those allrounders are capable of doing so. specifically, i want to hear seungmin rap!!!! (yk in the recent weekly idol he talked faster than changbin in a challenge and changbin is like the fastest rapper in kpop that's active atm if im not mistaken. my dandy boy has some potential and i want it UNLEASHED.)

back to album talk. silent cry is basically sad music to twerk to. secret secret is definitely one of my favorite tracks :( i loved how you compared the tracks HAJSAH i burst out laughing bc yk what, you're right! i want to make a star lost edit of skz but i simply do not have the time i want to cry. i love the song so much. ok, my dreaded track, red lights. idt i have played the track since we last talked. my friend sent me the lyrics tho and i'm itching to write a twisted au out of it. idk if you're comfortable with yandere but somewhere along those themes. the obsessive type of love that's sweet at first but turns rotten. IMAGINE IF THEY PUT GONE AWAY BETWEEN ASHJA it's like going from 50 shades to the notebook.

i was about to ask if you lived near the coast and you literally mentions it here god im so stupid. yes i LOOOOOOOOOVE beaches so much. living in an archipelago is fun :( i live in a part of the country that's more island than city so every time i want some vitamin sea it's accessible. i heard the waves in australia are great :( anYWHOOO gone away :(( every time it plays im compelled to skip it because it makes me sAD AND NOWADAYS I DONT HAVE THE TIME TO BE SAD. contrary to you, i dislike my quiet moods because i tend to overthink a lot.

i have this little analogy about how there are stays that enjoy songs the generic pop + mellow songs and then there are other stays that enjoy the noisy tracks. in my mind, it's like a perfect balance that makes me feel like all the tracks are loved in the end. just by different people.

PULL A BLINK. bro i fucking hate yg entertainment. they have the biggest kpop girl group LOCKED in their basement when they could be (and i mean this in the most business-like way not morally) milking money of the quad. they're yg's biggest hope at not being bankrupt atm so it's a damn fucking mystery to me as to how they aren't doing anything. (jk i just realized lisa solo album soon, but i still need a ot4 cb hELLO)

i stopped looking forward to the teasers. rest > kpop boys. i don't want to sound like a cult member but have you tried checking out nct? are they just not your thing? (i get it tho, that's one hard group to get into). and yes i do stan enhypen!

wow i love how long these asks are! they're like online penpals. but i also want to ask about you! how have you been lately? are you feeling okay both mentally and physically? how's the weather there? do you have anything that you want to talk about? maybe an interesting book you read? feel free to bring up anything you want to share! i'm getting conscious about talking about myself HAJHSJ

and yet another long answer B) i am sooo sorry T___T should these ask exchanges feel draining to you, feel free to stop sending them in AAAA

[dannydouni]

I got tagged by @faceless-dude for smth. And like. All I want to say is that you so much. Cuz I’ve had this sitting in my drafts for months and I didn’t know when would be a good time to post it. Or like update it or like just when I should do anything with it. So yeah. Thank you so much for helping me get the chance to post this :)))

“I’ve had this in my drafts for some time now probably since the Canadian thanksgiving and like only touched on it a few times, and well I never got to post it cuz I got well uuuhhh... shy I guess and at that time a lot of things were going down and stuff. And because of that I just felt like it had no meaning whatsoever anymore. So I thought I’d edit it a bit so it fits better and so I can finally post it and stuff.... sometimes it’s nice to get something out there after having it written down for so long. And well what better time to post it than now XD on New Years!. Anyways here it goes”

Hey guys, friends especially, ITS A NEW YEAR!!!!!! I just wanted to pop in and say that...well...thank you. And while I don’t really mean this directly to anyone so far (details for ppl that I know on this app will be written later on in this post). I know it’s usually super cheesy and just cringe and stuff but I honestly couldn’t care less about that stuff when it comes to the people close to me and to the people I love and care about. So I would like to take this opportunity to thank y’all. First and foremost. What the actual fuck guys. Why lmao. Out of everyone in this world you bunch picked the weirdest, ugliest and just straight up stupidest dude out there to be friends with XD, y’all do know there was much better than this out there right XD. I legit have no competition since I’m just so bad LOL. But still, for some reason, with all the shit I just listed y’all still decided it was a good idea to be friends with me. Y’all still decided it would be a great idea to stick with me up until now. Y’all still decided that I could belong with other people that I could fit it with you guys. That I could.... have genuine, real and just straight up amazing friends. I have absolutely no fucking clue how this turn of events happened. But I can say this with full certainty. You guys have changed my life. You guys are probably the main reason I’m still kicking around to this day lol. You guys are the reason I keep going and keep living and just keep enjoying the tiny gifts that life has to offer sometimes instead of pain XD. I still don’t and probably will never understand why or how god or life decided to be nice to me the few times I met one of you but I’m honestly so eternally grateful that I just... I have no words almost.... I just don’t know what to say sometimes. It’s honestly so out of this world how amazing and nice some of you are even tho I’m like the complete trash of this world XD. In all honesty.... without you guys I’d probably not even be here lmao... I’d probably would’ve just went on with my life with nothing to wish or hope for other than for the next day to pass even quicker than the last.... or just for days to just over as soon as they start... I won’t say more cuz that’s shit is personal and I’m not about to write that in public 😎. But like I know for sure that without you guys. I would not be here right now. So thank you. Thank you for everything. Thank you for all the memories you’ve given me, the countless nights you’ve made me die of laughter, The countless times you’ve made me choke and almost die from how funny something would be, the countless times you’ve made me think “damn I don’t ever want to wake up from this dream if this is not real”. Just thank you, for talking to me, for letting me vent, for letting me be there for you when you were there for me, for being my rock to lean on, for helping me go through the toughest of times like if it was a normal day. Thank you guys so much for treating me like an equal, for being friends with me, for playing with me, for inspiring me, for teaching me new things and helping me with anything I could ever ask for. Thank you guys so much, and while words will never be able to fully explain what I fully mean or what I fully feel. But I hope that this at least will give you an idea of how greatfull I am for you guys... i hope this will show you how thankful I am for you guys. I love you guys so much that the word love just can’t even express how much you guys truly mean to me. You guys have changed my life for the better and even tho I will probably never be able to repay that I’m hoping that I can do something to at least return how much y’all have done for me. And even tho a lot of the people I mean by this message are not on Tumblr I have a few that are and it is for that reason that I will thank you and write something for you guys here too. So here is the part for the specific people.

@frogb, Genny :)

Genny :D

GENNYYYYY >:D

Good God..... how are you even real XD well to start off, a quick intro :).... probably my only irl friend that is actually active on this app and of course MY BEST FRIEND FOREVER IN THE WORLD AND THE #1 PERSON IN MY LIFE >:), I want to take this opportunity to just thank you again (I know I’ve said a a bunch of times and you probably hate me for saying it a lot XD, that along with sorry :(((( I can’t really control that Lmao but I’m getting better at it right :D). You....you’re my best friend :)... you have changed my life for the better way too many times cuz. I’ve honestly lost count dude. I’ve lost count. I just want you to know that even tho I said that the first thing I wrote on this post was meant for a bunch of people. I was really mainly thinking about you when I wrote it. Ever since you’ve been part of my life. You have made sure to change it completely. And only for the good and for the better. I don’t think you have a genuine idea of how much you’ve changed my life and how much you’ve made me happy :)... thank you Genny thank you so much for being the best thing to ever happen to me. Genny you truly are the best most amazing, kindest, nicest, loveliest, most wonderful, most talented person I’ve ever met. Look I won’t write my full thing here since...well I’ll say the rest to you directly. But well .. Genny... I love you... I love you so fucking much alright :D thank you for being the highlight of my life. Thank you for being you Genny and thank you for being here for me and just being my best friend in the world :)

@ritsu-in-a-maid-dress , heyyy duuuudee buddy chum buddy pal XD (don’t ask lmao), I know we like met only a few weeks ago actually idk maybe at the point when I actually decide to post this it’ll be months or like a year 😳 (and if it is HOLY SHIT WTF I HOPE I ACTUALLY TOLD YOU SOMETHING IN THAT TIME CUZ DAMN) and well so far, you have been nothing but an amazing, way too nice, handsome friend that has somehow probably one of the sweetest hearts out there. You’re actually so fucking funny and have made my day much better sometimes just from the very few talked we’ve had lmao (correction now it’s actually been quite a few 😳and honestly they’re getting to much better and funnier so thank you so much for making me laugh :D (oh and I will never forget that one call we had for 3 FUCKING HOURS DUDE!!!! THAT WAS AWSOME!!!) ) and while at first I was very shy to even talk to you. I’m happy that I can comfortably say hi without any regrets or anything lmao. I will tell you something I’m very thankful for in dm too cuz it’s kinda private :) so yeah.... thank you so much for being you and being my friend :D

@quellfy yoooooo duuuudde I don’t think we’ve ever really interacted on here but I’ve talked to you on the server and well I can know from there that. You’re just such an amazing and kind person. And that every time we talk I have a great time :)) I don’t know a lot about you but I do know that you’re an amazing artist who has amazing art (yes even when it’s not sad “pointing at alluka in snow drawing” amazing) and that you’re such a kind and I nice human being who’s been just super nice and good to me :)) so thank you. For being my friend and for being such an amazing human being :D

@faceless-dude yooooo I don’t think we’ve properly talked before but like :))) I really think you’re an amazing person and just super talented. Your art is something I’ve never seen before and I really really think it’s unique and just amazing. Thank you for your wonderful wishes. And yeah dw. I plan on keeping that promise >:) Gen will get her booties kicked just like you asked XD

@kur-upira we probably only interacted a few times. But in those few times. I could tell what kind of person you are and how much of an amazing person you are :D. I can tell you that just from those few times. I was able to see how much of a beautiful, talented (yes holy shit. I cannot stress this enough. I love your artstyle and good god it’s so good everything from the actual drawings to the shading to the colouring. It’s amazing dude. I really mean that. It’s one of the most unique and most beautiful artstyles I’ve ever seen), friendly and just amazing human being you are :))) thank you for those few interaction (which probably took me whole days to respond to because of anxiety and bs XD sorry about that lmao) and yeah. I would absolutely love to get to know you better and to interact more with each other :D

@starrynarwhale, I know we like pretty much only interacted like twice with each other but from those few times. I knew that you were a wonderful person :) not just an amazing person. But a very talented one too :D (your art is amazing dude. It’s really great. Not only that but like. Can I just say that. Your frog gon fridays are godly dude. They’re always so fucking cool and wholesome 🥺🥺I love them so much. Amazing) you seem like a very kind and amazing person so yeah :)) I’d love to get to know you better :D

@catboyyouko yooooo. I know we probably have only interacted once but let me tell you dude. You’re a wonderful, amazing, nice, kind and extremely talented human being. (Dude you don’t understand. Your art is fucking amazing. Not only that but your comics are so goddamn great too. Not just in an art way but in a story way too. It’s just always so amazing) oh and also like... I see that you vent a lot and stuff and just wanted to let you know that if you ever needed someone to talk to or vent to. I’m here for you. I feel like you’re such an amazing person and I would love to get to know you better :) so yeah. If you ever need anyone to talk to. I’m here alright :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE. I LOVE YOU ALL SO FUCKING MUCH

And if I didn’t @ you I promise It’s just cuz I’m too scared to bother you and @ Ing this many ppl has already made my anxiety skyrocket.

[shuahoonie]

ragnarok. [tom holland]

PAIRING: tom holland x female!reader 

SUMMARY: you and tom used to be something, even if it was never acknowledged. however things change, and people change. so what happens when you bump into him after avoiding each other for years? 

WARNINGS: swearing! lowkey sad lol! some cheesy scenes! sexual innuendos! the ever so classic ‘bffs pining for each other’ trope! lol

WORD COUNT: 4k ish lol

SONG INSPO: the night we met - lord huron // do i wanna know (cover) - hozier 

A/N: ok so i have a lot to say so bear with me!!! one, i have put off writing for quite some time now, well publicly that is, so this may come out like shit. next, the title has no correlation to this fic, but do you guys remember that one line in thor: ragnarok when thor was about to meet the grandmaster? the one when the soothing voice says, “where once you were nothing, now you’re something.” yeah... that’s how i got the inspiration for the title and the prompt mainly. you’ll know what i mean lmao. also, i was heartbroken when i wrote this ok? and it’s been sitting on my drafts so i might as well just put it out there right? heh. enjoy i guess.

gif credits to @peteparkrrs

“Where once you were something, now you’re nothing.”

You groaned and whipped your head back in frustration as the blank page from your laptop practically screamed at you. You didn’t know why you were writing-rather trying to write, a piece that wasn’t for work, nor why you were in the coffee shop that you perfectly avoided for the past two years. 

One thing’s for sure though, you felt like a whole other being just took over you and started to pick up things that you stopped doing a while ago.

“This is a hundred steps back from what I’ve been achieving,” You sighed to yourself. You stood up to order a cup of iced coffee this time. The green tea lemonade wasn’t really working out and you know your body craves the caffeine more than ever.

Not really paying attention to the barista, as you were too busy eyeing up the selection of pastries, you started giving them your order out of sheer reflex. “Hi, can I get a medium iced-”

“Oh, hey, Y/N! I haven’t seen you here in a while.”  The barista greeted you. You looked at the person who cut you off and realized it was the owner of the cafe herself.

“Oh, uh, hi Alyssa!” You greeted her shyly. You weren’t expecting to see Alyssa, especially when you’re trying your best to not be reminded of the past, but it was also quite foolish of you to think of it that way since she owns the place.

“So, same as always?” Alyssa asked you, in which you just nodded shyly. “Okay, so that’s a medium iced latte with caramel shot and a spinach and feta hand pie, yeah?”

You let out a soft smile, admiring how Alyssa still remembered your usual order. “I can’t believe after all these years, you still remember my order.”

“Of course, you were a regular,” Alyssa answered while ringing your order at the till. “I haven’t seen you here in a while, though.”

You cleared your throat, though you were expecting that you’re going to get asked this question eventually. “I was traveling for the past year for my work and I also had to force myself to find a place downtown since it was much closer to work,” You explained as you reached for your wallet. 

It was mostly true though, you moved to the centre of the city because the north side was too much for you. Too many familiar faces, too many memories.

“Well it’s nice that you still remember this place,” Alyssa smiled. The cafe was the gem of the Northside. It’s a local cafe located near the library, usually, you’ll find students who are in deep with studying, couples on a date, business workers who just stop by for a quick cup of coffee, or just old friends just meaning to catch up. “Oh and don’t worry, this one’s on me.” 

“Aly, that’s not really necessary,” You said, waving your one hand in dismissal while the other was ready to hand Aly your payment.

“Y/N, it’s totally fine! Think of it as a token of appreciation, yeah?” Alyssa reassured and you just smiled sheepishly, totally flustered.

Alyssa handed your order and in which you graciously thanked her. Aly just laughed and said that it was the least she could do. 

There was a small pause. Aly asked, clearly hesitating, “Hey, so, I’m not sure if this is too invasive and you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, but I haven’t seen you and Tom in here for a while. Did something happen?”

You froze at Alyssa’s question. Of course, she remembers Tom as well, you and Tom were practically inseparable a few years ago and this used to be your hangout place whenever you both had free time- hell, you made a lot of memories here. 

You and Tom were here when you both decided to bail on your prom dates. 

“Are you still cold, darling?” Tom asked as you held his coat tighter to your body. You were still wearing your prom dress when you entered the cafe, you were supposed to head straight home but Tom lured you in with a cup of coffee.

“I’m fine, Tommy.” You answered and gave him a small smile. “Shouldn’t we feel at least a tiny bit guilty?” You asked Tom as he handed you your drink. 

You muttered a small thanks as you held the cup to your lips, taking a sip of your coffee.

You were silently thanking every god out there for letting you both find this cafe that was still open, especially at this late hour.  

“Yeah, but they both left even before we bailed on them,” Tom pointed out as he quickly scanned the area for an open table. “If anything, they bailed on us.” 

He found an empty table near the fireplace, gladly following him. “Maybe they thought we were boring?” You suggested.

“Darling, please,” Tom sighed “Tom Holland is never boring.” He grinned.

“Yeah, because Tom Holland is a giant dick.” You shot back.

“Correction,” He held his forefinger up “Tom Holland has a giant dick.” 

You rolled your eyes and said, “You are disgusting.” Tom just smirked at you in response.  

You and Tom spent so much time studying here. It even got to the point that you had to spend your birthday, studying at a cafe.

“Happy birthday, darling” Tom hummed as he sat the plate down on top of your growing tower of psych books. 

“Tom,” you groaned, all of a sudden feeling shy. “I told you that I didn’t want to celebrate my birthday especially since I have a huge midterm tomorrow.” 

It’s not that you hated birthdays, you actually like birthdays. You like giving meaningful presents, writing cards and going the extra mile. You like every aspect of it. You just didn’t like celebrating yours. Birthdays eventually lost its meaning to you since it didn’t hold that much value as it did when you were younger. 

For you, it was just another day.

“Oh c’mon, y/n,” He pouted “I kept my promise and even gave you a shitty birthday card like you insisted. The day’s almost coming to an end, we have got to at least acknowledge it somehow.” Tom placed a single candle on the slice of chocolate cake that was currently sitting on top of your notes.

After carefully lighting up the candle, Tom pushed the cake towards you and said: “Make a wish, darling.” 

“This is stupid.” 

“It’s your birthday and I don’t want to hear another word. Now close your eyes and make a wish.” He demanded. 

You rolled your eyes playfully but proceeded to close your eyes anyway. You racked your brain for anything, actually considering of making a wish. 

Once you opened your eyes and saw that gorgeous smile that was plastered all over Tom’s face, you suddenly felt selfish for wishing such a thing. 

“So,” You raised an eyebrow at him. “What did you wish for?” He asked inquisitively.

“I’m not telling or else it wouldn’t come true.” You proclaimed with a teasing smile hanging off your lips. But really, all you wished was for this to last longer. 

You loved that you had someone like Tom and you know it was entirely selfish to wish that you could keep him in your life. Yet you couldn’t help it. 

You and Tom were also here when he needed someone to hold on to, as he found out that his grandma died. 

You told Tom that you’re going to be there for him, no matter what happens. 

But Tom needed to be with himself for a short while, and you granted him that. You gave him time and space in order for him to grieve. 

So when he texted you saying “let’s meet at our usual place,” You were already grabbing your keys and your wallet, ready to walk out of the door. 

The cafe was quieter than usual because of the nonstop-pouring rain. You quickly ordered a small latte before spotting Tom, slumped over one of the booths. 

You quietly slid next to him, waiting for Tom to say something. But he didn’t. He just took a quick glance at you before tilting his head back, though this time, he sat properly. 

Not long, he moved closer to you and left absolutely no space between the two of you. He returned to his slouching position and rested his head over your shoulder. He then reached for your hand, always finding comfort with how intensely warm your hands were against his.

With fingers interlocked with yours, he spoke quietly “When you leave, you’d say goodbye, right?” 

For someone who found love and comfort with the constant flow of words, it was ironic when you found yourself lost for it. 

“Yeah,” you managed to breathe out. “But I would never leave you, Tom. Not now, not tomorrow, not ever.” 

“I hope you don’t” He replied. “because I wouldn’t know what to do if you did.” 

There were two promises that were made that day: You’d never leave and You’d say goodbye when you leave. You knew you broke a promise, but your pride wouldn’t let you admit that to yourself.

Alyssa knew that you and Tom spent most of your time here since she was mostly working whenever you both drop by. You snapped herself back to reality but found yourself in oblivion as you tried to find words in reply.

Alyssa seemed to pick up the tension that you were in and she immediately took all of it back and said her sorries. “I’m sorry, Y/N. I was just curious about what happened between the two of you. I was so used to seeing you both together and-”

“It’s fine, Al. If I’m being honest, I don’t know what happened either.” You replied, a sad smile playing upon your lips. “I guess some people aren’t meant to stay in your life forever.”

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry.” Alyssa apologized profusely.

“It’s alright, Aly.” You reassured Alyssa before grabbing your pie and coffee “Thanks for the coffee.” 

You went back to your table. You were in a small booth near the bookshelves and the fireplace. It was also pressed against the glass window from where you can see the people passing by. This used to be your table. 

You took a sip from your coffee and placed your attention back to the blank page that was staring right back at you. You recognized this feeling way too much; the peculiar feeling within you and writing.

You hated it. You hated this. You thought it was foolish of you to assume that everything was okay, that you were okay.

So you shut your laptop off, and instead pulled out your journal and pen. 

When you feel like your thoughts are getting the best of you, you focus on one thing and just write about it. 

You thought about your drive here: How many red lights did you encounter, how long it took you to drive here, how you saw that one dog owner who nearly lost their dog as the leash slipped off their hands. 

Scribbling made you feel that you were finally at one with your thoughts and drowned everything around you. You drowned the sounds of the coffee machine, the faint music playing from the speakers of the cafe, and the soft chattering of the people in the background.

Tom entered the cafe for the first time in two years, along with his best mate, Harrison. Tom didn’t know why, but he avoided this cafe at all costs. So it came as a wonder when Alyssa saw Tom prancing across the counter.

“Oh, hi Tom! Fancy seeing you here.” Alyssa greeted.

Tom was caught off guard when he realized that it was Alyssa who was at the till. “Uh, hi Aly! How are 'ya?”

“I’m well, you?”

“I’m fine,” Tom answered politely. Harrison just gave Alyssa a polite smile. 

Tom hardly dragged Harrison to a cafe, this one especially. They have been friends for as long as they can remember but it was just never their thing. Sure they usually grab coffee together but never here since they all knew this was both of Y/N and Tom’s thing.

You, Tom, and Harrison were all friends. You all grew up together, went to the same school together, and hung out all the time. You and Tom just happened to spend a lot more time together so you two were a lot closer. 

It wasn’t a big deal for Harrison though, he liked you two together. He never felt out place whenever you three are all hanging out because you’re all equally whack whenever you’re all together. 

However, he definitely took pleasure in pestering the two of you with the question: “Have you two finally moved to the “boning each other” stage yet?” 

It earned a handful of smacks from the two of you. Haz found no pleasure in that area just so everyone was clear. 

Harrison definitely wondered what happened between the two of you. He expected that you two should’ve been dating now but something happened and all of a sudden, everything changed. 

He tried asking Tom about it but he would always just dodge the question and then would move on to something else.

He also tried to ask you about it but you always gave the same answer, “Maybe life intended it to be this way.” 

Haz tried stopped asking after that.

“Fancy anything, mate?” Tom asked Harrison.

“I’ll just have a large vanilla iced coffee, thanks,” Harrison answered.

Alyssa nodded as she attentively entered his order at the till. She then turned her attention to Tom and asked for his order.

Tom scanned his eyes over the menu. Nothing really changed much, except for the seasonal drinks that usually come and go throughout the year.

“Iced coffee with extra cream and no sweetener?” Aly asked Tom. 

Tom became flustered, not knowing that Alyssa still remembers his order.

“Uh, yeah. Thanks.” Tom said, watching Aly in astonishment. “I’m surprised you still remember.”

“Yeah, well, you and y/n were regulars.” She replied absentmindedly. Alyssa then realized what just came out from her mouth and quickly apologized.

Tom brushed it off quickly, saying it wasn’t really a big deal. Tom instructed Haz to look for an empty table as he paid for their coffee. While waiting for their order to get made, Tom suddenly heard the familiar line from their favourite song. Well, what used to be their favourite song.

“I had all and then most of you, some and now none of you.”  

You had this odd feeling wrapped around you. You felt uneasy and wanted to leave the cafe immediately. So you gathered your things and slung your backpack on your right shoulder while you held your coffee on with your left hand. 

While you were making your way towards the door, you heard the line from the song that brought too many memories and stopped dead from your tracks. 

This song brought that very specific memory that still crushed your heart into tiny little pieces. 

“Hey, I’m sorry I couldn’t take you to the dance.” Tom apologized as he handed you the dripping plate. You wiped and neatly put them back in the cupboard.

“It’s not a big deal, Tom.” You replied as you continued mindlessly wiping the dishware.

You were in your third year in university and the student org was throwing a huge winter ball. Considering you were part of the org, your attendance was mandatory.

It wasn’t until the morning of the dance that Tom had to cancel on you. He had to take a late shift at the bookstore since his coworker called in sick. Tom hasn’t stopped apologizing since.

“It is a big deal!” He exclaimed, “You already bought a dress and everything! I know because Harrison was complaining about how you’ve managed to drag him across the mall, by the way.”

“That little snitch,” You grumbled, “remind me to smack him next time, yeah?”

Tom chuckled as he turned off the faucet and watched you finish clearing the stack of plates.

“You shouldn’t have to skip the dance for me you know?” He said softly.

“I know, but I wasn’t going to the dance both dateless and miserable.” You replied. “You know I only come to these things because you were always there to make it insufferable.”

You didn’t really mind as you were not entirely thrilled to go to the dance anyway. You can always just return the dress and get your money back. You also wouldn’t have to spend at least 3 hours of getting ready. The whole process of getting ready was exhausting enough for you, but as if every god heard your prayers, you had a reason to ditch the dance. 

If anything, this situation was a total win for you.

Of course, you had to make up an excuse for ditching. Saying that you “had to take care of your little sibling at the last minute and none of the sitters could pull through.”

“Oh, what would you do without me?” Tom sighed dramatically as he pulled you close to him and wrapped his arms around your waist.

You rolled your eyes playfully before you looked up at him, “Don’t flatter yourself too much, Holland. Your head can’t possibly fit that big ego inside ‘ya.” You said as you softly patted his cheek and broke out of his touch.

“Take me back to the night we met.”

Tom shook the whole feeling off when he heard Ally yell their orders. Not forgetting to thank her, he grabbed the coffee as soon as possible and whisked his way to find Harrison.

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do, haunted by the ghost of you.” 

“C’mon, darling.” Tom reached for your hand as he stood up and gave you that heart-melting smile he always carried with him. 

“Tom, what are you doing?” You asked with a bemused smile but went along with it anyway. 

You and Tom just finished watching the first Harry Potter film. Since you weren’t going to the dance anyway, you two opted for a movie marathon instead while your little sibling was sleeping soundly upstairs. 

The excuse wasn’t a total lie. 

“Don’t say I never do things for you.” He joked as he grabbed the throw blanket and tied it around your waist. 

“And what exactly are you trying to do?” You teased. 

“Shut up.” He mumbled and connected his phone through the speakers, careful with maxing up the volume. 

As the soft melody slowly filled the room, he held his hand out in front of you and said, “Y/N, may I have this dance?” 

You playfully rolled your eyes but you couldn’t stop smiling at the whole gesture. You took his hand briefly and soon enough, you had your arms wrapped around his torso while his arms were wrapped around your waist. 

With your face slightly buried against his chest, as you two slowly moved through the song, you softly mumbled: “I like this song.”

Tom chuckled softly. “Yeah, I like it too. Wanna know where I found it?” 

“Where?”

“On Harrison’s Spotify playlist. The name of the playlist was ‘when the time finally comes.’“ Tom answered. 

“Oh, that’s cute.” You commented. 

“That’s not even the ringer. Wanna know what the description of it said?” 

“Shoot.” 

“The description said, ‘for my two best mates who are blind enough to see how much they’re attracted to each other. you know who you are.’“

You wriggled yourself back to reality and quietly whispered to yourself that you are not going to do it now, and not in this place. 

With your head down, you brisked up your way towards the door and accidentally bumped shoulders with someone.

As you looked up to apologize to the person you accidentally bumped into, you just wished you didn’t. 

Because then, you were staring into a familiar pair of eyes and it took the colour out of the both of you.

“Take me back to the night we met.”  

“Y/N,” Tom breathed out, completely astounded at the sight of his best friend- ex-best friend, standing in front of him.

You were equally shaken on the inside and felt like you stared at him for the longest of time. He looked older. He was definitely not the same boyish-Tom that you last saw. He had his hair swept back, making it impossible not to stare at his annoyingly perfect face. You also noticed that he was wearing glasses and you couldn’t help but wonder if he actually has prescriptions now or is he still wearing them for his fashion statement. 

At that moment, you felt your heart clench a little. You miss the feeling you get whenever you’re around him. You miss Tom. 

But things change, and people change. 

When you found out that your work entails you to live at an entirely different continent for a year, you felt like you were thrown with a bucket of cold water. 

You didn’t have the heart to tell Tom, but you had to. You owe him that. 

“Hey darling,” He greeted through the phone. You can sense the smile on his face and that is enough to form tears in your eyes. 

“Hey Tommy,” Your voice was strained, as you were fighting back your tears. “Listen, remember when I told you about the writing gig I had been obsessing on for months now?” 

“Yeah, what about it?” He asked, “Are you okay, y/n? You sound like you’re-”

“-crying, I know. It’s just I’m so excited you know? Can you believe they’re flying me to New York?!” At this point, you didn’t hold back. Tears were streaming down your face and you were praying to make the pain go away.

Tom was silent for a while before he finally mutters, “New York?”

“Mhm.” You hummed in agreement, holding back your sobs. “Apparently, they want me to settle in as soon as possible so my flight is booked for tomorrow.” 

“Is this your way of saying goodbye?” 

“No.” You answered almost instantly. “I have the whole afternoon to kill so maybe we can grab breakfast together? Spend a couple of hours together before Harrison joins us for lunch.” 

“Yeah, sounds good,” Tom said quietly. 

“Okay. Bye, Tommy.” 

“Bye.” 

Tom didn’t show up for breakfast. You tried texting and calling him but, he didn’t answer. You figured maybe he slept in and would be joining you and Harrison for lunch instead, but you were wrong. He didn’t show up at all. 

You were trying to keep a tight smile, at least for Harrison, but he knew. Harrison knew what you were feeling and instead just offered a shoulder for you to lean on as you waited for your flight to board. 

You didn’t want to leave but you weren’t also going to put your future in jeopardy. It was an opportunity you couldn’t just simply pass up, especially not for someone who didn’t understand what it meant to you.

“Tom.” You barely said his name, as if it was going to burn your lips with acid as soon as it left from your mouth. 

No one said another word after that.

Though you can hear the small chatter from the people inside the coffee shop, there was a deafening silence between the both of you.

The uncertain feeling crawled up on your skin and no matter how you shrugged it off, it wouldn’t leave you alone. Boy, it drove you mad. Mad at how he can just stand in front of you, with a sad look in his eyes, as if all of it was your fault. Mad at how quickly you can melt and probably forgive Tom on the spot if he asked so easily.

Tom didn’t have any right to feel sorry, yet you felt like he did.

[teriiiwrites]

2019 Writing Wrap-Up

I typically do this on my main rather than here because I always forget this exists, but not this year! 

Another year where I didn’t end up sharing a single thing I wrote in its entirety so I’m sticking with my trend there lmao. Good to know that some things never change. But I have taken the first steps towards that - namely, starting this blog to give myself a place to talk more about writing. 

Now, onto the stats!

Total for 2019: 104,374 words!

I actually wasn’t expecting to even near the 100K mark this year, so the fact that I passed it was a pleasant surprise. It’s significantly less than I hit in 2018 (over 170K), but I’m still very proud of what I accomplished throughout the year. 

My focus over 2019 was based a little less in silly concept story ideas (which I still love dearly and want to do more of this next year) but I tried to focus a little more in diversity. In the types of stories, the characters in them, and how they were written. I did my best to push my boundaries with it, which often led to taking longer with my writing and probably is one of the reasons the word count of the year wasn’t as high as last year. But I felt it was important for me, and I’m glad that I worked on what I did. 

The longest piece I wrote was my WIP NaNo novel, Castle on the Hill, which hit 57,037 words. I’m hoping to work a little more on it in 2020 and maybe finish up a first draft over the summer, when I have a little more time. 

With that, here are some of the highlights:

~~

“They say the British are starting to listen to our people there! That they might consider changing some of the voting laws!” He preaches with the pride of a man who has always believed in the good of the British, but it is confusing to hear him speak like this.

Wasn’t it only months ago when his father spoke of the evils of the British invaders? Of the unforgivable things they’d done? How is it that, now, he draws his own family closer to the center of their spiderweb?

(A Wanderer on a Scorched Path)

~~

That night in the motel had turned into a week, which turned into a month, and so on until all Laine’s memories of her early childhood involved Do Not Disturb signs and vending machine dinners. 

(A Walk Down Memory Laine)

~~

In hearing of her success, the townsfolk quietly cheered for her, disregarding their previous contempt for the malicious girl who’d tormented them. She was all at once one of theirs. Hadn’t they laughed with her, waved at her, made faces at the small girl who had seemed so unlike her family? And perhaps all of their attempts at kindness were being paid off. Finally, here was a Grey who would break the curse of her cruel family and be a decent sort. 

(The Grey Manor)

~~

A familiar coach split the crowd, curtains drawn over the windows. It was almost easy to believe that the Greys were inside, eager – if Greys could be eager – about reuniting with their youngest. But there was only one Lady Grey left. 

(The Grey Manor)

~~

It was during one of these heavy snowstorms that the Visitor arrived in town. None could claim to know where she came from, and fewer still knew her name. Even the details of her appearance never quite matched up – some said she was an old woman, with hair like straw and wearing rags better fit for carrying potatoes than being worn. Other claimed she was no older than thirty, that the apparent age was only due to her gravelly voice and wild, fair hair. They said that though her clothes were faded and tattered and too large on her tiny frame, one could still see the frayed ruffles and faint design of what once must have been a fine gown. 

(The Grey Manor)

~~

Years had passed since the doctor’s apprentice had last been to the Grey Manor. He’d been one of many who had taken a thrill at the abandoned house while Lady Grey had been away. He now considered himself above such superstitions. Yet the effect of the snow-covered cemetery and the sprawling, leafless ivy across the outer walls could not be blamed wholly on the overcast sky. 

(The Grey Manor)

~~

The doctor’s apprentice made his way deeper into the house, but the Grey Manor felt more fit for ghosts than the living. 

(The Grey Manor)

~~

“Good afternoon, Clara!” I greeted as I waved for her to take a seat before my desk.

“Doctor,” she responded in kind. She pulled back the chair and fell into it in one fluid motion. “Things are on the up-and-up!”

As much as I appreciated her enthusiasm, having supervillain clients typically meant having to gently discourage their flavor of ‘on the up-and-up’. 

(The Desk of Dr. Isselhardt)

~~

“I think I’ll start off with a vacation. I was initially thinking of revisiting the city I grew up in, but finding a kennel for my hellhounds would be a nightmare, and I just know none of my friends would take them in.”

I had met Jekyll and Hyde once, when I’d bumped into Clara on my morning jog in the park, and I couldn’t blame them.  

(The Desk of Dr. Isselhardt)

~~

The angelic child screamed like a demon, yet Camila adored her more than she’d known she was able. 

(Quinta and Her Cat)

~~

Amara leaned back against the door, staring at the ceiling. “Your Guardians don’t seem as sympathetic as you make them out to be.”

Deirdre kicked out her foot, but only caught the edge of some piping. “They have to choose their battles. They’re strong, but not so strong as to fight all of them.”

“Legal skirmishes between the elite is apparently a higher priority than the oppression of thousands,” was Amara’s reply.

Deirdre didn’t respond; she had nothing more to say. 

(The Great Guardians)

~~

One of the aliens is moving quickly towards me, and I realize my impression that they are humanoid was a little premature. Though its head, neck, and torso are vaguely like mine, the bottom half of their bodies are more like a spider. A gray, spider centaur. With no face.

A small part of my brain asks why I'm not terrified. I have no answer for it. 

(Alien Abduction)

~~

Sir Michel had been in Eastcairn Keep only once before, but the imposing walls of stone were as familiar as if he had grown up here. The halls were cold and impersonal, as though acknowledging that they'd been around long before Sir Michel had arrived and they would stand the same long after he was gone. 

(Foul Play)

~~

"I have a sister." Andromeda's voice was soft, but it carried as though all of the forest had quieted to listen. "The kingdom is in no great danger of losing an heir."

Sir Michel chuckled at her naivety. "Princess, if you believe that your father will allow for this - "

"Then let him come to tell me himself."

Never before had Sir Michel been interrupted by a woman. His laughter caught in his throat, and, for a moment, he was too stunned by Andromeda's audacity to respond. 

(Foul Play)

~~

"The King is busy running a country, as one day your future husband shall."

"And I suppose you think that by carrying me back to the Keep, you'll be given the position?" Andromeda asked bitterly. She brushed a loose braid behind her shoulder. "You, a man with nothing but a meager title, sitting on the throne? No one with sense could expect such a fate for you, yet here you are."

"Yet here I am," was the knight's weak response. He couldn't understand how it was that he spoke far louder than the princess, and yet his words didn't seem to carry half as well or ring half as true. 

(Foul Play)

~~

"One of your men killed Tihomil, but not you. The trial is not fair."

"We don't fight fair when it comes to your life." 

(Foul Play)

~~

Andromeda pushed herself away, pulling her dagger with her. When she lifted a part of her skirt, Sir Michel saw that it was strapped to her leg, a place no honorable man would've thought to check. When she bent down again, her face was no more than a foot from the knight's.

"I don't fight fair when it comes to my life," Andromeda hissed. She wiped the blood staining her hands onto Sir Michel's breastplate, trailing red across its center. 

(Foul Play)

~~

As his vision began to tunnel, Sir Michel the Righteous' last sight was that of the princess stealing off into the night, her movements as feral and graceful as something too wild to be contained in the Keep. 

(Foul Play)

~~

Josef Weber was a quiet and privileged man, and the two together gave him the appearance of being far prouder than he actually was. This view was encouraged by the fact that he surrounded himself with few friends, and that those he kept were similar in stature and wealth to himself. 

(Castle on the Hill)

~~

The night sky was illuminated by fireworks, casting a scarlet glow over the small, German city of Heidelberg. Its castle stood imposingly atop a hill, awash in the red, mimicking fires that had taken the structure from what it had once been to the ruins that now overlooked Old Downtown. Crowds of thousands had flooded the streets, watching the annual celebration in awe as the fireworks reflected in the Neckar River below. 

(Castle on the Hill)

~~

“Shouldn’t you be running back to Hulmarra? I thought you were loyal to your lady.”

Theren’s laugh was abrupt and loud, but when he stopped, his voice was coldly stern. “We’re loyal to two things. Gold and discretion. It just so happens Lady Iltazyara is well equipped with both.”

Verna smirked. “Only those two things? If I paid you to kill your sister, would you do it?”

“That price would cost far more than you have,” Theren said with a condescending smile.

“You’d be surprised how much I have at my disposal,” Verna taunted.

“Then we can talk later.” Theren winked in her direction and grinned broadly at the impatient look on Rowan’s face. 

(The Virtuous Seven)

[jejublr]

Seatmate!Hoshi

A/N: Anon and Cinderella Anon requested for Seatmate!Hoshi this time! I’m sorry I haven’t been updating bc of school but I have my drafts saved so don’t worry! I’m still writing! To those who are back at school, I hope you guys are doing great! To those still on summer vacation (and to all of you in general): STAY HYDRATED!!!

This one was really fun to write because, let’s be honest, Kwon Soonyoung is everybody’s bias wrecker. Even if you don’t have him as a bias, he’s somewhere lurking on the top of your bias lists don’t lie to me. This one’s a long one so I hope you all enjoy and have a great day~! ^^

How do I start with this guy

Calls himself 10:10 because of his slanted eyes cute

This kid is also pretty hyper ok

Once got into detention because he randomly stood up on his desk in the middle of a lesson to shout “IT’S 10:10″ when the clock strikes 

Often has random dance offs with Junior!Seokmin and it’s the most hilarious thing to watch

Has a lot of friends from every grade because he’s so fun to be around

Cares a lot about his underclassmen and is the one of the nicest upperclassmen around

Everybody knows Soonyoung’s really good at dancing

And I mean, real good

He even has his own YouTube channel NaegaHosh where he dances his own choreos to pop songs

Most people at school follows him and even the teachers stalk his videos lol

Soonyoung is basically in everyone’s good book

Well, everyone’s but yours

You see, you’re childhood rivals

You can say you’re a pretty chill person

You have your own group of friends you usually hang out with but you’re on good terms with people in general

Nobody can deny that you’re an equally talented dancer

You may have a different style from Soonyoung but your dancing is just as captivating as his

While Soonyoung’s style is leaning towards breakdance, you style leans towards contemporary ballet

And it gets pretty heated and entertaining to see you both try out-do each other during the end of year talent shows

For few years in a row, the winner would either be you or Soonyoung

Usually you guys take turns

People are so tired of it tbh

“Just kiss already.”

Your friends like to tease you that your resentment is just internalized crush

But you’re in deniaaallll /guitar rift/

Anyways, you decided early on into the year that you will beat Soonyoung once and for all by winning for the second consecutive year

The story starts in the early morning of your Junior year in high school

So the system in your school was they always pick people randomly to be put into a new class every year

So you can be friends with everyone

And guess what? 

You’re in Soonyoung’s class

For the second consecutive year

People were groaning internally because here we go again

Being in the same class with you both was like being in a real-life drama

Because everybody knows you’re childhood rivals

And imagine the tension of sitting behind two people who are always ready to rip each other to shreds

The teacher was aware of this and tired of this s*** so she decided to sit you guys together this year

What was she thinking lmao

You guys might wonder the backstory behind this age-long rivalry

It began once upon a kindergarten

You never really had any beef with Soonyoung

He’s pretty hyper as a kid; got his hair stuck up everywhere and always the one to break it down on the ol’ kindergarten dance floor

Ok dark secret here; but you had a crush on Soonyoung back then bc he reminds you so much of your hamster Cici omggg

You let him steal your sandwich and borrow your color pencil during art as a result of this crush

This crush went on until that time in second grade when your school held Nutcracker 

And he totally stole your role as the Nutcracker bc you were sick during the dress rehearsal

By the time you got better the night before the show, they had given the role to Soonyoung

So you got stuck playing a candy cane tragic

IMAGINE THE BETRAYAL

That night marked the day you got your first heartbreak and sworn to make Kwon Soonyoung pay one day

Yeah, you’re a pretty dramatic bitter child and you continue to carry that bitterness up till this day

Anyways

It’s that time of the year again

Tension is in the air, looks shared between people

It’s the annual talent show

People are sharing nervous glances bc when are they finally gonna lose it

And by “they”, they meant you and Soonyoung

When you saw the form pinned on the bulletin board this morning, you never wrote your name faster

But guess what? By lunchtime, Soonyoung already had his name scribbled under yours

It’s officially on

“Watch your back, Kwon.”

“Good luck.”

Funnily, you were both dragged into the principal’s office by the time school’s out

“This year, you won’t be participating” the principal said

“What.”

“People are getting discouraged signing up for the auditions bc they know that in the end, the winner would only be between the both of you. That’s why I decided to remove you both from the competition this year.

“And no, Soonyoung, if you think you’re entitled just because your internet name Hoshi means star, you can find your way out.”

You were about to snicker when she went “Y/N, you will not find it funny when I tell you that you two will work together to create and perform a dance to be showcased during the talentshow. While you’re not participating, you and Soonyoung both

You went 0_0 w hat

“I’m not going to work with them!” both you and Sonyoung said in unison

The teacher was like “lmao get over it kids, it’s 2K17″ and then sauntered off like a bo$$

You realized you didn’t have a choice but to do as she said to be able to perform this year

And you see no point to arguing

So you both begrudgingly agreed to do the collab

At first, you and Soonyoung wouldn’t meet in the middle

You try to find faults in each other’s dancing, to 

You ended up trying to sabotage yourselves

Also, you still didn't have the right music to dance with so you and Soonyoung were a complete wreck

Also bc you kept arguing which song to pick smh

It came to a point that one day, Soonyoung went up to Senior!Jihoon 

“Hey, can you whip up some swaggy beats for my performance for the talent show?”

“Tell me a reason why I shouldn’t hit you with a guitar right now.”

“I’ll buy you a burger.”

“I can buy a burger.”

“I’ll buy you a hundred burgers.”

“Deal.”

So that’s how Soonyoung had gotten himself the perfect remix for the dance the next Monday

When you listened to it for the first time, you knew, it’s perfect

Because somehow, Jihoon was able to mesh songs to create one that would work perfectly with you and Soonyoung’s style

And so you two began to work

And you couldn’t help but observe Soonyoung as he worked 

Because you’ve never seen someone do something so passionately

Soonyoung gave his all in his dance and it’s something everybody can see

Watching Soonyoung work his magic woke up something in you

Funnily, you don’t feel intimidated at all

For once, you embraced the fact that you now work with Soonyoung, not against him

So you ended up enjoying it a bit

So you’re finally done with the last steps of planning the choreography

It’s time for you to test it out for yourselves

So you played the music and danced

And you both had gotten so wrapped up in the music and with each other that when the music ended in a crescendo, you suddenly found yourself tangled in his arms

And you were so close in each others arms and he could see the specks in your eyes and suddenly he could feel his breath hitch 

Because Oh no, you’re actually really attractive. How could he not see this?

And all of the sudden, he became hyper aware of how close you both are, his hands on your hips and your warm breaths mingling

It wasn’t until you pulled away that he went woah

Because what was that???

You on the other hand

You tried to play it cool, but inside?? 

You can’t deny you and Soonyoung have a tension chemistry 

But God forbid if your age-old crush was revived 

You thought it was the time you spent together that drew you closer

I mean, you meet the guy in class then spend the rest of the afternoon choreographing and dancing with him

You’d expect yourself to be at each other’s throats 

But you grew comfortable with his presence???

It’s like you started to care about each other

You never really showed it but it’s there

Like that time it was raining by the time you both finished

You had forgotten to bring your umbrella and he basically forced you to use his instead as he dove right into the rain

(The next day you gave it back to him with a small thank you note slipped inside)

He thought it was cute

And that other time when you noticed he looked rather pale and tired

So when you went to the convenient store near the school on your break, you bought him an extra carton of milk and bread

He looked confused as heck when you gave it to him

“I don’t want you to collapse a week before the show, Kwon.”

You totally didn’t blush

You also noticed the change in Soonyoung’s behavior 

When you caught him starring at you in class one day, you were like “What are you looking at, nerd?”

He said “Your hair looks nice today.”

“My hair looks nice everyday, thank.”

And while he didn't say anything in return, you swear you heard him whisper “Yeah it does.”

It’s so confusing bc what’s happening? Why is he suddenly like this? Does he..like me????

And while it’s a nice change from having to bicker everyday, you started to wonder what happened that triggered this change

Bc this is not the standard Soonyoung behavior

Also maybe bc you miss the bickering a little bit

But practice went on like usual

Before you know it, it’s the day of the show

Everyone’s freaking out

And you were too bc this reminded you too much of the first time you performed on stage

The adrenaline and the nervousness coiled in your stomach like a snake strangling its prey

In a way, this does count as your first dance

Your first time dancing with a partner

Your heart skipped a bit when you saw him in the dressing room, made up and dressed in all black

And you stopped in your track bc he looked good

You missed the look he gave you as he scanned you head to toe

He had to stop himself from blushing bc oh my god it’s happening, he’s going to dance with this attractive person

He must’ve sensed your nervousness bc he turned to you

“Hey, don’t sweat it. You’ll do great. I promise.”

Those little words gave you a boost

You can say it’s like his way of saying “good luck”

But who needs luck when you got Kwon Soonyoung amirite

The stage dimmed and it’s just Soonyoung and you and the music

Your body seemed to move on its own, giving up all control to muscle memory and to Soonyoung

You memorized the routine like the back of your hand

Soonyoung’s touches and your eyes teasing, almost sensual, writing a story only the two of you knew

And to say that you wow-ed the audience was an understatement

You bombed the place

You were so in tune with both the song and with each other that what was supposed to be a three-minute dance felt like mere seconds

Before you know it, the song was over, you’re in his arms and you’re both breathing hard

It just felt..fleeting

The show was easily a success

Nobody thought you would work so well together after all those years of rivalry

But it just proves how two great dancers could overcome boundaries if they had enough will

Your friends and family crowded you when the show was over,

They went to congratulate you and tell you how amazing the performance was

But you could only think about Soonyoung

You wanted to thank him for the hard work he’s put into the performance and for all the times he took care of you

You tried to swallow the sinking feeling realizing that it’s over now

You’ll go back to your live before the dance and he’ll go back to his

As the tension was revolved by the time you spent working together on the dance, you knew there was no more reason for you to start something against him

Because you’ve grown so accustomed to him, and him to you

It’s like a routine you couldn’t shake off

It was at that moment that you realized you liked having Soonyoung around

Speaking of Soonyoung

You found him propped up on the edge of the stage, the lights from the projector up in the projector room far ahead in the the auditorium casting white light on him, his silhouette a giant background on the stage

Your silhouette joined his as you plopped down next to him

“What are you doing?” you asked him

“I like sitting along in a theater like this. Makes you feel small.”

“I had fun” you admitted

His lips quirked into a lopsided smile, his bunny teeth showing

“I had fun, too.”

You joined in as you took in the view

How the place seems so vast with the empty red velvet seats

“Hey, Y/N.. about that Nutcracker incident?” Soonyoung started

“What about it?”

“Can I pay you back with a kiss??”

FFFF WOT

And you expected him to suddenly say “SIKE.” and for someone to jump out of the curtains with a camera but it didn’t come

Instead, Soonyoung was looking at you with what seems to be apprehensiveness 

And the realization hit you like a truck

Bc he literally just asked you if he could kiss you to make up to all that childhood bitterness

At this point, Soonyoung looked ready to apologize and disappear from the face of the earth but before anything

You dove in like a hawk

You didn’t know what to expect when your lips finally locked but the kiss was chaste, almost shy even

The kiss felt like your dance; brief, fleeting, teasing

But it brought a certain fulfillment in your heart

When you pulled away, Soonyoung’s cheeks were colored red and he couldn’t stop smiling

“Oh. Oh.”

“What??” you feel yourself heat up in embarrassment 

“...Can I kiss you again??”

“Oh my god.”

So at the end of that night, Soonyoung walked you home, with your pasts melting off like candy with every step that you take and laughter that you shared

And in the end, the kid who once stole your sandwich and role in that grade school musical ended stealing your heart, too

[omgjovialrpgsblr]

Four Souls, Two Crowns, One Knife

I am deciding to put chapter one here because I no longer feel like using deviantart or wattpad(i haven’t used it in like years lmao)

It’s not perfect and it’s a first draft, but I just feel like putting it on here and seeing if anyone likes it. 

A New End, And A New Beginning

The 31st of Clurons

“Tourmaline!”

Loud knocking woke her up, and it took her a minute to realize that no one was actually in her room. If someone had gotten into her room, she would have been concerned.

“What is it?” Toumaline yelled. “That wall isn’t a door for a reason. You can’t just ring me up when you need me.”

“It’s Lady Harriet!”

Tourmaline scared the dignitary as she burst out of the room. “Take me to her.”

When they had reached Harriet’s room, she was in front of the window, looking outside.

Tourmaline snapped her fingers and the window shut. Harriet jumps backwards and notices that the two ran in. Harriet said nothing as she looked at them. Her eyes were large, and her pupils had shrunk.

“What is the issue,” Tourmaline looked at  Dignitary Clarimond. “She seems fine.”

Harriet switched her glances between the two, still not speaking.

Clarimond shook her head. “She woke up, clutching her chest, and in a lot of pain. Then she hastened to begin writing a bunch of stuff down, completely oblivious to what I was saying to her.”

Harriet blinked, still switching between looking at the both of them. Her lips briefly parted before shutting again.

“May I see what you wrote?” Tourmaline asked.

“… It’s’ on the bed.” Harriet opened the window back up and leaned onto the windowsill.

The fairy scanned the pages as Clarimond hovered behind Harriet.

“Pain. Throbbing. I was stabbed. It seems as if it was a dream, but it seemed so real. I can’t remember anything about where I am now, but I can remember an entirely different life.

“I blinked and found myself facing a nearly identical reflection. It wasn’t a reflection, there was another me beyond the mirror. Not a mirror. I could partially see my own reflection in it. Blood. She looked pretty. Inquisitive. Quiet. Clone??

“Pain. Warmth. Cold. Dead. Living again.”

The rest of the entries seem to describe some sort of dream Harriet had. Next to the entries was a book titled Grimoire of the Universe.

“Harriet, where did you get this book?”

She looked back, her face lacking emotion. “I don’t remember how I got that book.”

“I see. So this writing of yours, was it a dream you had?”

“Logically, it would be a dream. But it feels more like this is the dream. Did you read the page I was on?”

“Um, what page was it, dear?” Tourmaline regretted closing the book immediately.

“It was about Twin Souls. I don’t remember the page number.”

Tourmaline reopened the book and scrolled until she found something resembling this. She read as much as she could in the few seconds she had the page open.

“I see. It would fit your symptoms. Confusion. More apathetic. A disconnection with reality. Does your chest still hurt?”

“Not as much as when I woke up.”

Chapter 1

Harriet and Clarimond sat on her bed, with a plate of cookies next to them. The woman instructed the young girl to keep her in here for the time being. Something was definitely wrong, but she couldn’t remember what.

“What is that twin soul page about?” the girl asked. “She took that book out with her.”

“It said something about a condition that is best described as when one has two bodies, but in different realms. When one of the bodies die, the portion of the soul in the other body takes a toll. It begins losing functionality for a very long time. It’s common for those with the condition to have amnesia for several years, at the most. One case lasted only a week. This is only one symptom, among several. Some symptoms include lacking the ability to express emotion, being confused, being unreasonably calm. All related to trauma in general.”

The girl hadn’t blinked during that whole time. “So you had another body you lived in?”

Harriet wondered who this girl is that keeps talking to her. Judging by her armour, she is some sort of knight. But why is she guarding her?

Harriet nodded. “What’s… What’s your name? Why are you wearing all this?”

“Clarimond. I am the dignitary to the princess of Delacruz Castle. I am here for you, Harriet Delacruz.”

Princess? Is this real? Harriet’s heartbeat quickened as she pondered how logical any of this was.

Well I am here. This doesn’t even feel like where I normally live. Oh!

“Can you do me a favor, Clarimond?”

“Yes?”

Harriet closed her eyes. “Slap me. Do it without warning.”

“I am not slapping you. The last time I slapped you, you got an actual bruise and we had to cover it up with makeup.”

“How hard were you slapping me?!”

Clarimond shrugged, and held her hands in the air as she spoke. “I don’t know? I’ve slapped people harder, so it makes me wonder about what would happen if I actually tried slapping someone to death.”

“Jeez,” Harriet slapped herself and felt sharp pain. “Okay yep I’m awake.”

“That is the worst way to test if you are awake, but I’ll let that slide… Any other questions for now?”

Was it worth asking more questions? The current information was already a little overwhelming Harriet.

“What country is this?”

“Otror. You were meant to be the next in line, until you became ill.” Clarimond looked out the window and her lips curled up. ”Your father was wanting you to… Nevermind that. You’ll understand later.”

Next in line? That is the most logical thing Harriet could come up with.

“Sorry. Anyways, your father is also in the middle of meeting with several ambassadors from other kingdoms. It would be best if we kept this news about you under the covers until he has more free time.“

“What news, exactly?”

Clarimond grips her hands together. “For the past three months you’ve been acting out of sorts. On numerous occasions you acted as if you were another person entirely. You switched who you were so often that everyone was just convinced you were faking an illness. For the past month you’ve been in a coma. You being awake again will startle him and would likely distract him from his duties. Harriet, what’s wrong?“

“…”

“Harriet?”

“I can’t leave this room then, can I?”

“Well, anyone who happened to see you would certainly make a scene, and then word would reach everyone in this castle. If you want to come out, it’d have to be at night.” Clarimond sighed. “I can’t decide what you do, but part of my job is to keep you safe. So technically you can go out at any time, I would just advise against it.”

There likely isn’t any television in this world, and possibly even mass-produced books. “I can’t sit still in here for days on end. I would go mad. Are there books or anything?”

“Your teacher has all of your books stored in his room. I am pretty sure he will end up speaking to your father at some point if I go see him to get the books. However, if you want me to risk it. I can do that. There is a chance he’ll listen to what I say.”

Harriet nodded. “Please do that for me. If me going out would cause that much trouble, then at least that would keep me entertained.”

“I will do that then.” Clarimond gets off the bed and heads to the door. “Is there anything else I can get for you? If I make any more trips it would get suspicious.”

“I’m fine, thanks. I appreciate it.”

Clarimond brought back multiple textbooks, and no novels. After studying a history textbook for an hour, Harriet learned more about her situation. Her country, Otror, was often at war with other countries. Only one country had remained its ally over the centuries. In fact, “ally” was stretching it. This kingdom had dense forests, which contributed to their country’s prime exports being wood, meat, and medicine. Her father, King Jamir, had been ruling the country for the past 20 years. He is nearly 60 years old.

“Clarimond, how old am I?”

“Oh, you’re 17. Why?”

“Oh,” she laughed. “I was just making sure I wasn’t thirty or something.”

“Ah. By the way, you normally call me Clary when we are in private.”

“I see…” The idea felt uncomfortable. Clary sounded too informal. “I’ll try remembering that.”

Harriet felt something from outside the room. Clarimond’s head turned toward the door as well. “It’s just Tourmaline. Probably just checking up on you.”

Tourmaline came in through the door, as if she wasn’t made of physical matter.

“Harriet, how much do you remember?” The fairy asked.

“None.”

“What about your other life?” she asked quickly, stuttering on the word ‘life’.

“I have only vague memories of it. I only remember obvious differences between our worlds. Like the technological differences for example.”

“I see. Well then.” The fairy pulls a book out of her jacket. “I have a present for you to celebrate your awakening.”

Harriet moved to open it when Tourmaline shook her head.

“No no no, do not open it here. Open it at the country house.” She smiled as sweat moved down her cheek. “As your fairy godmother, I will make sure no one knows you left your room. Just make sure you are inconspicuous on your way there. As soon as night falls, you should leave out the front door. Not the secret one, understand?”

Her face moved from an innocent smile into a frown.

“Promise me, Harriet.”

The princess shook her head. “Tell me why first.”

“If I told you,” their faces moved closer to each other. “You might panic. And that wouldn’t be becoming of the next in line for the throne, now would it?”

Clarimond put a hand on Harriet’s shoulder and nodded.

The frown softened slightly. “Thank you. I know I told you that you might be next in line, and I’m sure you know this already. But I want you to assist her in the arts however you can. Your job has become more than a simple companion, my dear.”

“I understand completely.”

“Thank you, my dear.” Tourmaline kissed Harriet’s forehead. “And you, be careful and trust her. Trust me who trusts in the both of you, if you have to.”

“Is something wrong?”

The fairy paused before she answered. “Not yet.”

Chapter 2: The Lord of the Dark

It was mostly isolated. No one in the castle, and no one on the streets, disturbed the two as they traveled.

“She mentioned for us to not get noticed, but there’s no one to even be noticed by.”

Clarimond nodded. “It should have occurred to us. No one is going to be outside at night on this day of the week. Tomorrow everyone’s getting back to work. We lucked out. But this also means if we see anyone…”

“Let’s keep an eye out then.”

After a half hour’s walk, they reached a country house to the side of the town they had entered. Harriet stopped and Clarimond put a hand on her sword.

“Something wrong?”

“I feel as if I’m being watched.”

Clarimond looked toward the nearby woods and motioned for Harriet to go inside. After Harriet entered, Clarimond locked the door.

“Something wrong?” a boy near the corner of the room asked. “Oh.” He stood up and looked at Harriet. “Someone’s finally woken up.”

Clarimond drew the sword out. “Luca, how did you know that?”

“You’ve made it easy.”

A girl about the same age as Harriet descended the stairs leading to the second floor. Something about her seemed familiar.

She rested her hand on the handrail and continued. “You’ve been gone for over two months. I doubt your father would let you go outside the country… So the best assumption one would make is you were sick, right?”

Then why did he specify “woken up”? Harriet noticed.

“You’re not that smart,” Clarimond said. “I am keeping an eye on both of you. And telling Lesley to keep a better eye on you two.”

“That would be smart,” the girl walked closer to the two, holding a finger on her lips. “So where were you, if not sick?”

Something about her face seemed familiar.

“Well I hope you have the book you borrowed,” the girl said.

“No,” Clarimond shook her head. “You can get your damn book later. We’re too busy for that mediocre garbage.”

“I suppose then, just make sure to bring back my grimoire back when you are finished with it.”

Something sparked in Harriet’s brain.

“Where did you put the book?” the girl asked. The grimoire.

“I don’t recall,” the other Harriet said.

The girl shook her head. She gripped the knife, and after a moment’s hesitation plunged it into Harriet.

Harriet opened her eyes to find herself kneeling, clutching her chest again. Clarimond had her sword pointed at the girl.

“I’m fine. Just a flashback, is all.” Harriet stood back up. “Let’s just get to our room for the night.”

When Harriet shut the door behind them, she opened the window. “Who was she?”

Clarimond stopped in the middle of unpacking her bag, which contained several knives. “That woman was Princess Arianna. Half a year ago we captured her and made this her prison. She is incapable of leaving, but it seems she’s found some people to do the scouting inside out castle for her. She’s from the kingdom of Floile. It’s to our northern border.”

“Yes, I know that part. I read it earlier. It’s exports are mainly teachers, and a lot of minerals. Over fifty percent of it is just water, and they have to excavate caves using convoluted magic that lets them dig underground. We kidnapped her from a country like that, and why?”

“She is the next in line for the throne. If her parents die, then there will be a power struggle for whom is the next in line.”

Harriet leaned further out the window. “And Luca, who is he?”

“Oh he’s her brother. But no one cares enough for him to be next in line. Everyone has their eyes on ‘Lady Arian’. She’s the one who convinced her father to invest more in local resources below the ocean. And now the country’s economy has been in boom since.”

Arianna stepped into the room and leaned back against the door.

Clarimond put her hand near her sword. “You are getting to be annoying.”

“You can’t forgive me for being curious? You’re both gone for months and then the second I make plans you both show up again.”

She puts her sword tip near Arianna’s neck. “What are you talking about?”

Something loud resembling an explosion turns everyone back to the window.

Clarimond flied past Harriet out the window from the opposite direction. Harriet looked back again to see Arianna in her face. Pain sparks out in her stomach and she falls to the ground.

“You’ve lost your touch. Do yourself a favor and stay here.”

The pain felt familiar…

[zeonghan]

12

aaaww heck yeah time for mod velvet to S H I NE BITCHESS - mod kimchi :’)))

lmao sorry i have totally strayed from the prompt and wrote a really angsty short fic lmao it gets fluffy in the end

p.s. sorry this took ages i didn’t see it in drafts until today rekt also this is so scrappy im sorry times three lmao  - Mod Velvet

Remember Me In A Year

Seventeen: Minghao Type: Fluff / Time Skip Scenario Fanfic Ship: Minghao x Reader /  Jun x Reader Word Count: 1833

ft. seventeen members, sehun, minhyuk, shownu, jungkook, bambam, yugyeom, lalisa, jisoo, tzuyu, nayeon, seungjun

Mod Velvet

January

Minghao remembered how snow dotted your hair and coat. Gently he had brushed it off, but you hadn't noticed. Your eyes were glued to your cell phone screen, rapidly typing with only your thumbs. The name at the top read: JunJun.

"Is he coming?" Minghao had leant over to get a better look but before he could even catch a glimpse of the conversation, you pulled your phone to your chest with an alarmed expression. "Junhui, I meant."

Minghao had felt attacked. You weren't the type to hide things, especially from him.

"He's busy today, he asked to take a rain check," You replied with a smile that seemed to ease the tightness in his chest. "I have to go as well, right now. I'm helping my mum prepare for new years. See you, Monday?"

"Yeah, it's okay," Minghao smiled, small creases forming around his eyes. "See you then."

Minghao stood patiently as he watched you take off in the other direction because every now and then, you would turn back and give him another wave with a wide smile plastered on your face; he lived for that smile.

February

You never turned up that Monday. And Minghao hadn't seen you since.

No one was to blame, work was always in the way and besides, both of you had other friends. A lot of other friends as it seemed.

Now, it didn't happen often, maybe once or twice a year, but by luck or by sheer determination, the whole group would find a time, day and place to all gather together. Minghao recalled this day as crystal clear because the snow was beginning to fade and he bought expensive, red shoe laces that he never used.

First, he arrived early at the bowling alley and the staff told him he couldn't enter until the one who had made the reservation arrived. That was Jun.

While he was waiting, a few others arrived; Jeonghan, Minhyuk and Sehun. They were all tall and handsome, walking with a kind of confidence that made them untouchable. Minghao envied that, perhaps if he had been more like them, you would have noticed sooner.

The next group to arrive was a few of his colleagues; Soonyoung, Seokmin, Seungkwan and Jihoon. Whilst the former three were joking loudly, Jihoon had earphones in and his hands were in his pockets. Typical. The next were Jisoo, Hansol and Seungcheol, then Jungkook, Mingyu, Wonwoo and Yugyeom.

Then the two of you arrived. Minghao remembered because he was happiest to see the two of you. Jun had his arm around your shoulder and you were wearing his scarf.

Minghao had given Jun that scarf as a Christmas present, but he didn't mind.

While you and Minghao sat, waiting for your turn, he showed you the shoelace he bought. They were red and thin. You play around, tying one end to his pinky and the other to yours. Then you had taken his end off of his finger and slipped in into Jun's.

The shoelace broke when you tried to untie the ends.

March

For two nights you had stayed over at Minghao's. You wouldn't tell him why but he didn't need to know because you were happy.

On the last night, both of you leant out his window together to try to get a glimpse of his neighbour's cat. It was sleek black and green eyed. The two of you joked that it looked like Jun. That night, Minghao noticed that everything went back to Jun.

And he should have seen it coming.

April

Minghao had begun to think that summer was on its way.

The two of you strolled down the park, a drink in hand from a cheap coffee shop. You had your arm wrapped around his and he was holding your shopping bags. Between yourselves, you shared jokes and stories about how your life had been as of late.

That was when you told him.

"Minghao," your steps faltered as you began with an edge to your voice. "I like somebody."

"Who?"

"Promise you won't laugh?" You held back an embarrassed grin.

"Just tell me," Minghao smiled back.

"Jun."

Minghao told you he was happy, and he was.

That night, snow fell again; an April miracle. But Minghao had a cold nose all night.

May

Minghao had put in a good word or two, but the relationship wasn't budging from friend zone.

He was happy that month.

June

This was the first time Minghao understood the magic of summer as he watched you fall in love slowly with Jun,.

You and Jun had shared a kissed and you had gushed to Minghao. He responded with the right reaction, the right kind of cheerful smile, the right kind of racy jokes. And yet the two of you knew that something was beginning to feel awkward.

Minghao thought it'd be best not to address this and move on. The following week, he asked Jun if he would want to go watch a movie with some friends. Minghao called "sick" last minute, and you and Jun watched a movie. But it was an action film with a shitty plotline and romantic subplot.

Late at night, Minghao answered a call from you.

"I wish you were there."

His heart sang so loud the heavens could hear.

July

Minghao and Jun had met for drinks one Friday night.

The two talked a lot about you. Minghao talked about how kind you were and Jun told him about how pretty he found you.

"They've got a great body, you know? Like, it's just like my type," Jun laughed. "I like them, you know?"

"You've got a funny taste," Minghao joked. "Yeah, though. They're pretty, I guess. Good to hang out with."

"I'm going to ask her out."

August

It was still scorching hot, Minghao remembered because he had sweat through two t-shirts in one day.

You and Jun had been dating for a month now. It made Minghao wonder if it could have been him.

September

"I haven't seen you in a while," Minghao pulled you in for a hug.

You, Minghao, Jun, Lalisa, BamBam and Mingyu were supposed to have dinner together.

Shyly you had pushed away, eyes darting towards Jun. "Sorry."

Minghao remembered the time you had hid your cell phone from his eyes. The feeling stung as much as it had the first time.

October

Minghao was okay with just being your friend.

Until it happened.

November

He doesn't remember the smell. Everyone says they remember and hated the smell, but he doesn't.

What he remembers are your hands that twitched and your face that paled. He remembered sleeping in fold-out chairs beside your hospital bed and the feeling of resent towards Jun.

Jun had called it quits with you after a week of your comatose. Minghao had never punched anyone until the moment he had said, "I can't deal with this. I can't take care of her if she's fucked up somewhere."

Smack.

The whole ward had fallen silent except for Minghao's heavy breathing. Soonyoung who was usually a joker had stepped up to scold both of them. Tzuyu drove Jun home and Minghao stayed at the hospital for five days straight. The last Minghao heard was that Jun had moved to live with his uncle Heechul in Seoul with a job in politics.

You woke up on the last day of November.

December

Minghao had patched it over with Jun through a few texts and facetimes. Mostly because Mingyu insisted.

"I don't want to be blunt, Minghao," Mingyu began. "But I think you like them."

"Who?"

"You know who." Mingyu said. He looked over his shoulder and look towards Minghao’s couch where you were wedged between Jisoo and Hansol watching Drake music videos and creating Tupac theories.

January

You and Minghao kissed on New Years.

You were in his room. Everything was hushed and softened by the dark. Minghao took your hand in his, there was something about the moment that let both of you know it was alright. It was awkward and weird but it made Minghao feel like he was flying.

The two of you never talked about it afterwards.

February

Minghao held your coffee and his own, standing on the edge of the park, waiting for you. The snow had begun to thin out and Minghao remembered because his shoes were soaked in the melted puddles.

He had finished his coffee and trashed your cold one by the time you walked around the corner, tightly wrapped in a coat. When your eyes met, a smile spread across your face and Minghao thought the wait was worth it.

You began running and Minghao opened his arms. When the two of you had collided, you kissed him.

How could he forget that?

March

You held each other's hand underneath the table during dinner. Nayeon sitting next to Minghao noticed but Shownu sitting next you didn't - he was too busy eating.

Many things had changed since last time they all hung out at the bowling alley.

Jun was not with them, Mingyu and Wonwoo were engaged, Jeonghan and Sehun had had a falling out over a boy named Johnny and Chan graduated university. Seungcheol moved to Seoul, Seungkwan finally got his driver's license and Chanyeol moved back from Seoul.

And you were all his.

April

Minghao couldn’t help but keep count of the days.

The day you shared a bed, the day you bought him flowers, the day you watched a movie all day, the day you tried to exercise but had ice cream instead, the day you met his parents and the day he met yours.

Summer was on it’s way.

May

Three months.

Minghao remembered the first time you two had sex. He was twice sure to be careful. For the sake of the mood you had tried to put on music but it was only distracting.

Minghao still remembered being happy.

June

Jun came back from Seoul for summer. It was awkward at first, but Minghao had missed Jun.

After all, they had been best friends.

Beside, Jun had started seeing someone in Seoul. A pretty, tall boy named Seungjun. Minghao remembered seeing a picture of him briefly on Jun’s background.

You weren’t upset, and Minghao remembered thinking that was all that mattered.

July

Summertime was magic. Minghao remembered thinking the same thing the year before.

When he told you this, you laughed and it was like a weight was lifted from Minghao’s chest.

“You remember thinking that from a year ago?” You asked.

“I remember a lot of things from a year ago,” Minghao replied with a toothy grin.

“Will you remember me in a year?” You leaned in.

“Without a doubt.”

[oceangl1tter]

unpopular opinion: mac and cheese is only proper if you eat it with a small tiny spoon that can only fit one mac at a time

derivations://

I don't really know what's the point of writing all of these poems besides wanting a personal comfort and having an easy way out. Or is it an easy way in? I can't seem to stave myself off of it even though there's no return profit. My ability of spacing out lines in a purposeful way is really not something I could show to a potential employer or anyone around me. Or maybe that's just the South Node appeal calling to me. I want to find a way that could commercialize what I write. Package it in plastic wrap and present it to customers in an aesthetically pleasing way. But shouldn't the words be enough?

There are so many things I want to learn but it still feels like I'm going nowhere. The website I try to code looks like graphic design is my passion but unironic. I'm only 15% into the course and we've only slightly cracked into front-end development—(the visuals, so not back-end/ server-side coding). The process is like puzzle pieces that you mix and match together or a recipe book (and you have all the ingredients) but anything I make ends up freezing into a catatonic mess blaring with random RGB hexcodes I subbed in. I assembled an IKEA drawer with my housemates and ____ a few days ago and sometimes.. things just don't fit until they're in someone else's hands; I was talked down like a baby about finding "holes that fit into other holes" and while mentally infuriated, my fingers fumbled around like I was dealing with a Rubix cube blindfolded or something—but really, I'm just allergic to Swedish design. In a laughter I tell everyone in the room that I thought and asked myself what language Swedish people speak; at least it could boost my alibi of just being dumb and not dumbfounded by Swedes.

The things that I'm excited for deflate my sense of purpose but they really do send a rush of discovery. I turn to Reddit to scratch these itches. Watching people's motion reels are both a blessing and curse. I look at aesthetically pleasing sketchbooks that got people into the dream _______ I never knew people could have. I unfurl my optimism yarn until there's none left. Scatter small pains. I recognize that I just don't have the ardor and would rather be hidden in observations than cast my rod; but I do try! But I know when it's not enough—when it's not right. I think I should make things pretty until I realize that unpretty things are perfectly fine. I have ideas, that's all. Am I any different from my dad? Art for the sake of beauty has a single purpose of gratifying. My first draft for visitation was devoid of any real emotional labor and just caked on a cold stew of edgy, depraved imagery. It's fucking empty! How is that any different from my art/motion design things that I follow along by way of YouTube tutorials? Yeah I make a cool thing. Why do I give a fuck about this cool thing if it has a temporary purpose of gratification. Slightly pretentious. I also talk as if I'm fucking Picasso. Just kidding, Picasso would not fuck me. I also would not want to fuck Picasso. Actually, I don't know what I want. Maybe I just want to git gud. Not to denounce any of the great, amazing creations I see that take hours/days/weeks/months/years to do. I just don't know if I'll ever be satisfied. Also, I'm probably just jealous doing all this thinking in a glass room. I needa just get out. I needa be okay with starting out. I need to be okay with being bad with things I find important to me. I need to be less careless with things I don't think I'll be good at. Maybe I should apply this to everything else in my life.

When I was enrolled in Abacus class a millennium ago, we transitioned from the physical Eastern calculators to paper print-outs the size of half of an index card. The transition was to ease into calculating with simply a mental image of the abacus with the help of muscle memory. We would stand in a line, all of us next to eachother, and we'd hold up the card in front of us as equations flashed on a light blue screen. Crying because I just couldn't get it. Held that card up, my arm tired and shit, with nothing to wipe ‘cept that paper sheet. The instructor pulls me aside and I tell her that I can't do it. I don't think I've changed since then. At least I can calculate groceries now in my head though.

hear me out://

A few days after I find out, I'm having a lil tear session in the dorm showers. If the shower drain could talk, its narration would probably go like this:

day 273

-she hasn't even turned on the shower on yet and she's already crying lmao

I don't know why it hits me. One moment I feel fine and the next I feel a bit of a bitter twinge. Maybe of how much I had poured my heart out in ways I hadn't before; perhaps as an atonement. My impulsive Xylitol javelin-throwing had other reasons. Perhaps an affirmation that everyone I had ever ______ _______ . In hindsight, it didn't turn out that way but who else would listen so ardently? so selflessly? pay to be the audience? even if it was divisive? sit here past twilight in an empty building? and silently watch a tantrum unfold? I've written and shelved, written and shelved. Some things have a passtime. Other things I wouldn't want to return to.  Now, it's obviously different. The occupations of the mind are different. There are no words left unsaid but there are gestures I wish I had done better, I could still do better but I deem too late. I don't try to find replacements because there can be none. —- E And L Five Ps: Final reflection://

St.Vincent's crooning in her Strange Mercy album takes me through Winter. I "steal" a concept from her 6th track, Strange Mercy, that explores the concept of how it can be "cruel to be kind". It's the perfect tenderness I need to raise frailty back to life and to properly transition the deadness of Winter to a more sweet and dewy fragility, one more aligned with Spring. For my first revised poem, I returned back to ‘visitation’ and tried to establish the poem’s center of gravity. After re-reading it again, I realized that many of the images I wrote, though they were descriptive, masked the poem from progressing in its work beyond creating a sense of atmosphere. I knew that the poem needed a spine to hang its imagery flesh off of but I did not know where to start, so I went back to my critiques and looked for lines people read as most interesting.

The first line "in winter, the sound of your skin is screaming" was the one that stuck out the most, so I took that line on its own and brainstormed on how I could ground my poem with this line. I asked myself questions like: Why winter? Whose skin is screaming? Screaming in what way? Why the sound of skin? I initially had chosen winter because I wanted to fit it into the theme of frailty, decay, and death but nothing had really transformed from beginning to end because of it.

The original poem would still stand on its own even if I took out the season. I found that it would be more interesting to use negation and have it play a more integral role, so I changed the season to Spring. This created many doorways. From the poetry collection I read, Half-Lit Houses, I noticed that the poet describes the “outside” world before zooming in and I compared it to my poem, where I start off already “zoomed-in”/magnified and the reader is thrown in with no context.  Every line that follows is then trapped in having to connect to it, too magnified for the reader to navigate the bigger picture. With this in mind, I did not stick with the original format of this line opening the poem-which took some time to actually do because I really wanted to force it to be for its unsettling effect.

Another critique I got was what work the title was doing and how it connected to the rest of the poem. I’m not sure why I thought of visitation the first time I wrote this poem but after changing the poem’s descriptors from subtle decay (“quiet unmoving/and breathing”, “patient’s kneading”, “a carcass”) to more physically present feelings (“Lacerate”, “savory blood cracked”, “wailing at Hospital Walls”), the poem was no longer the ghost it originally was and instead birthed a more visceral feeling, a beast, alive and begging to be heard. I wanted to mask the setting up until the end which would make that final connection of visitation hours at a hospital. Had the scene been introduced earlier in the poem, I think it would be more of a dark cloud looming than the delicate freshness I was trying to go for—the kindness of the grass and the cruelty of its blades. The setting in the first few stanzas is left open and how it moves to the hospital location is not explicitly clear but it's the drifting airiness I like that are reminiscent of Spring days and walks surrounded by rustling, blooming trees.

This poem came out rather naturally after figuring out its premise but I made several alterations to the movement of the words just before the last stanza. I knew it would be revolving in an arc, circular as if blown away only to return back, and I wanted something that would encourage an analogous reading—cognizant of the way ones eyes would read it when scanning.

The poem itself pulls from different memories; some I was not there for, and others I noticed. My favorite line of the poem is: "He stands there."

circadian rhythm://

I knew, relatively, the parallelism but I didn't know exacts until my dad told me to scan his medical reports for a checkup. There's a likeness of timelines. The event I pulled from happened on 1/1/2001, 9 months after my birth.

Coincidentally (or not), it's winter.