#snippets of fic that i will probably never write

[lamentationsofalonelypotato]

@waynes-multiverse

Hi Wayne!! I was so excited to see your wonderful feedback 💚 I'm also very sorry this took me so long because April was long and May is already starting to spiral 😅

Aww, he’s already saving her. Why do I think that means something? 😂

Maybe.... 😉

Of course he did. Ben really always knows how to talk to the ladies 🙈

I know. He's soooooo charming isn't he? Doesn't he know just what to say to make a woman swoooonnn? 😒

Ooooh I’m sensing he doesn’t want her to walk home alone either. Someone already seems to have caught a little bit of feelings 😏

Pssshhhh... Girl, What? That's crazzzyyyy? Why would SB ever have feelings?

And I love that we have the same HC, Lee! I totally believe too that SB would just obnoxiously stare at a girl he likes – to the point it gets a little weird – and then cover it up with whatever stupid line comes to his mind lmao

Aww yay! I love that too! I honestly believe that the staring would be so uncomfortable- but he's just a baby (not for realsies but a baby when it comes to feelings LOL 🤣) and he doesn't know how to say what he's feeling! Well, doesn't know how to say what he's feeling in a healthy way 😭

Yep 💯 I’m already scared what Kripke will do to him in S5. At one point, is fanfic writers will have a hard time to redeem him 😅

Oh my word- ME TOO! I'm so scared that he's really gonna take him to the unredeemable place... I also feel like SB is gonna do something really bad in Vought Rising too and I'm frightened 😅 BUT that is what's fanfiction is for LOL

Ooooh? 👀 I’m guessing this is the finale at Vought Tower. I’m curious to see how you changed that ending. I always found that super hard due to Ryan (unless we pretend that kid was never there, which I’m fine with lol)

You're right! It is the finale at Vought Tower! 🤗 I don't go into too too much detail on that, but pieces of it are sprinkled through the fic 🥰 AND yes! For me it's kinda hard to write around the finale, because it's pretty set in stone. And I always give Ben the same job after in all my fics 😅 But it's funny because I just realized that I never mention Ryan in this fic at all 🤣 Whoops? Guess I forgot the brat LOL! But yes, let's just pretend he wasn't there 🤣

Oh, burn 😂

I was so proud of that zinger let me tell you 🤣

And I absolutely love her powers btw!!! 😍🌿🪴 Can I tell you a secret? My favorite superhero powers have always been either time or plant powers 😂💚

YES! Plant powers and earthbending powers are my favorite (time travel is super cool too)! I thought it was such a travesty that we haven't seen a plant supe in the Boys yet. I've got my fingers crossed for S5- if they do it justice 🤞🏻

Awwww, I hope she gets it 🥹 I honestly wanna give her a big hug. She sounds a little lonely (but maybe that won’t stay this way for long 😏)

She does deserve that though! I too wanted to give her a big hug when I was writing this. But I'm also happy you highlighted this little snippet, because that's a theme through this entire series. It comes up quite a lot 😅

And that high school boyfriend sounded like a real winner 🙄 (But good for her for locking that douche in a tree lol!!!)

Oh he was terrible 😒

Ah yes! Every woman’s worst nightmare 🙈 I’d be scared shitless for her, but knowing she has superpowers helps immensely with the anxiety. And I have a weird feeling SB will pop up, too, because he still didn’t want her walking home alone because he *cares* 😏💚 (That’s probably a curse word for him lol) And seriously, her powers are so freaking cool!!! 😍💚🪴🌿

Yep. The dreaded walk home 🫣 Oh yeah, definitely, the powers make it a little bit better, but still writing it I was anxiety city. I'm dead at "*cares* 😏💚 (That’s probably a curse word for him lol)" 🤣🤣 It's SO true- the one curse word he won't say.

Knew it!!!! Oh, Ben aren’t you just a fucking softie inside… Why you gotta be like this? 😂🙈💚

He's a big ol' softie- with a black heart of gold LOL. And I just had to drop in the touch her and die trope... because I can't be stopped. It's compulsion at this time point.

Also I love modern family, so watching Gloria beat up Jay like that on the gif was wonderful 💗

Oh, of course! Why am I not surprised, huh, Ben? 😏

He might have been taking a bigger interest in her well-being than he wanted to admit lol.

I’m sorry – you were gonna say? Before what, hmm? Oh, he’s already a complete goner, isn’t he? 😅💕 And of course he gave her an excuse and won’t admit to shit. A stroll? That’s what he’s going with. Who will buy that, Ben? You don’t look like the typical 2am stroller in the rain 😝 And it’s obvious he likes and that she’s at least attracted to his face when his mouth stays closed, but I’m honestly so fucking excited and curious to see how he will pull this off and win her over 👀 And I love his fucking argument of his attempt on her life being already a month ago 🤣🤣 Like bro, it ain’t the magic sentence you think it is lmao

Mhmm, man is already smitten.

Oh definitely... Ben always strolls in the middle of the night in the pouring rain. Doesn't everybody? No? LOL.

She is "attracted to his face when his mouth stays closed" 🤣☠️! I'm excited that you're excited to see how he wins her over! It is a wild ride, I'll say that much without saying too many spoilers lol.

And you're right, Ben is really out here like- it was a month ago, get over it! HE TRIED TO KILL HER! 🤣

Ugh, I hate when he’s a little right 🙄

He is. The one thing about the current century he understands 🤣

Whyyyyy, Benjamin?? Why are you like this? 😩

The toxic masculinity really coming in clutch at this point lol

Because dicks are hard 😏 I see myself out…

Actual footage of when I read this 👆🏻 GIRL STAWPPP, I'M DEAD 🤣🤣

Pffff, this is honestly so cute 😆💕 Yes, you use that excuse, gramps lol

I mean... imagine how awkward that is. THE POWER flickers! And Ben has supe hearing! I mean he's a little bit of a pervert, but I don't think he enjoys hearing that LOL.

Oh, Mike, you poor soul… 😂 And the fact that Butcher mocks him and he’s just oblivious to it all. Seriously poor guy lmao And of course, he was immediate cannon fodder for SB 🙈😆 But it says a lot when even Hughie had a hard time being nice to him lol But honestly, as much as she hated it, SB peacocking as her boyfriend probably gave Mike the rest. I was laughing so hard during that entire exchange 😂

The poor Mike trope is gonna trend this whole fic. Just wait til you meet Jake 🤣 And I know! Mike is one of those people who is just too precious for this world and he doesn't understand social cues like that 😭

Yep. The IMMEDIATE targeting system Ben has when he sees men who might be a little awkward and not so good around the ladies 🤣 I'm still cackling at "cannon fodder"- I love that usage here. BUT yeah, if Hughie is having a hard time then it must be almost impossible.

And yay! I'm glad you liked the exchange (peacocking LOL). It was my favorite part of this chapter- just the awkwardness and Ben being teasing and just (sexy) annoying.

Oh God 🫠🫠🫠 What I’d give to make out with this asshole 😩 (Probably had to give up feminism lol)

Ah yes, the day feminism took a vacation. I think I've seen that special, just like the "The Year Without A Santa Claus." 🤣 But oh yeah, my feminism would have to just shut it's eyes and put noise canceling headphones on.

Dead. I’m wheezing over here, Lee!!! 🤣🤣

Okay, hear me out. I love Mike's mother. She is literally my favorite side character in this entire fic. And she's just so wild, so unhinged (she's all of us). The more you see her in this fic, the funnier it is.

I’m sorry, my boy… but when exactly did we let you move in? God, he’s so fucking obnoxious sometimes 😂 So that’s his plan winning her over? Forced proximity? Why am I not surprised this is the best he could come up with. He probably thinks the Stockholm syndrome will help with his flirting lmao

Not the Stockholm syndrome 🤣🤣🤣 He really is obnoxious and the reader is just an inch away from throwing him off the roof!

I absolutely love that her apartment is full of plants!!! Total boho vibes 😍🌿 But hey, how neat! If they ever get together, she can grow weed for him 😆

Yes! Her apartment is the dream. I love plants so much- I have them all over my house so it was just so wonderful to write a reader like that 💚 And it's funny that you mention weed...

Gaaaah, I’m so hooked! I love their dynamic and can’t wait to see if she gives him a chance, and what he’ll do or how he’ll change to deserve it!!! Such a fantastic start to this series! 💚💚💚 And sorry for not getting here sooner or checking in with you more this month, friend! April was a little rough and I’m still majorly catching up with everything, but I’m so glad I finally get to read this wonderful series 🥰

Yay!! I'm so happy you like this one! It is again, another fic that was supposed to just be one chapter, but I fell in love with the reader and Ben and got turned into a series 😅

And oh no! Please don't apologize! I'm so sorry that I've been awol and haven't been able to read Time After Time! I loved the first chapter so much and I've just been running around like a chicken with it's head cut off for April and it's starting up again for May 😭 But it was so wonderful to read you comments friend! I hope that May is better for you than April 💗

Chapter 1: Are You Always Like This?

Pairing: Soldier Boy x f!reader, Reader POV

Summary:  When you decided to work with Butcher and his merry band of supe hunters to take down Homelander, you never expected to be saddled with a sullen, grumpy, jerk like Soldier Boy when the job was done. The more you��re around him the more you hate him, but you can’t help but wonder, is he really as big a jerk as you think? Reader is a supe with plant powers. This takes place in an AU about a month after the end of The Boys Season 3, in which Butcher has let Soldier Boy continue to work with him on his team. (I'm real bad at summaries, please forgive me!)

Tropes: Enemies to Lovers (Implied/Eventual), Age Difference (Reader is in her 20s), Protective Ben/ Soldier Boy, Fake Dating

Word Count: 7.4 K (OOPS)

Warnings: I'm going to label this 18+/Mature because Soldier Boy (he's a warning and everyone knows it), swearing, mentions of sex, sexual innuendo, sexual tension, violence. Ben/Soldier Boy might be a little bit OOC.

Note: This is told from Reader's perspective. Any references to the reader is made using you or your. There is minimal use of y/n. I tried my best to proofread, but nobody's perfect. If you don’t like, don’t read, but if you do like, you’re my favorite!

Internal monologue is in italics and is in first person.

A/N: I know I know, I should be working on "You Call It Madness But I Call It Love," but this idea was swirling around in my head and I had to write it.

Spotify Playlist 🪴

Masterlist

Take A Chance On Me Masterlist

You Call It Madness But I Call It Love

"Alright Butcher, I'm done." You sigh closing the file in front of you and standing from the worn wooden table covered in empty Chinese food containers and stacks of papers almost as tall as you. "If I read another word about trying to stop an electrical current, I'm going to commit toaster bath and I'm taking you with me."

It was late, past two in the morning, but Butcher had a lead on a B-list supe that had been using his electrical powers to steal cars and run a chop shop business downtown. You had been close to catching him yesterday, so close in fact that your eyebrows were still a little crispy from when he shot a bolt of lightning at your face that you only dodged in the nick of time when Soldier Boy grabbed the back of your shirt and yanked you out of the way. Unfortunately, your shirt hadn't survived, it had ripped and you spent the rest of the day wearing one of Butcher's oversize Hawaiian shirts all the while Soldier Boy told you that it was a waste to keep a pretty little figure like yours covered up.

I hate him so much.

When Butcher had initially asked you to join his team a month ago you were excited, but then you found out that you were going to be stuck with Soldier Boy. The supe, that despite Annie's arguments should be given back to the government and put on ice, was allowed to join Butcher's team after he took down Homelander. Who was currently frozen on ice, somewhere. As long as Homelander was far from you, you didn't care. The guy gave you the creeps.

But the team still couldn't figure out where the electricity manipulating supe was hiding or where he was dropping the cars, which meant you had spent the past twelve hours staring at files and a computer screen so hard that you felt like your brain going to melt out of your ears.

"Do whatever ya want kid. I'm not ya damn babysitter." Butcher grunts, his face hidden behind his own file. His boots were on the table and he was leaning back in his chair so far that you were tempted to tip him over, all it would take was a good solid kick.

You smile at him. Butcher was adept at pretending that he didn't want you around, of course you knew how antsy he got when you weren't there to offer your opinion. You figured that he just liked pushing people away and given his history you understood that.

Annie sits up from where she and Hughie are cuddling on the couch. "Why don't you stay?" Her brow furrows with worry. Annie was big on the whole, "women not walking at home alone at night thing," which normally you didn't, but you figured that whatever was waiting outside the apartment was probably less intimidating than Homelander. And you could handle it.

"Because I'd like to sleep in my own bed tonight and not that godforsaken rickety cot in the corner that Frenchie got. Can't stand that one spring that always seems so happy to see me." You pull your leather jacket off of the back of the chair and whirl it around your shoulders, before bringing your hair out from under the collar.

Hughie snorts.

"Hey, that cot is an antique!" Frenchie crows from his highbacked chair spewing a mouthful of smoke into the air. Kimiko was sitting at the coffee table in front of him working on her writing, a thick black marker clutched in her hand. MM was taking the night off, but you thought he was probably trying to avoid Soldier Boy.

"Yeah well, that cot is about as old as grandpa over there." You gesture to where Soldier Boy is sitting in another one of the armchairs in the corner watching you while puffing on a joint.

He was always watching you and due to your inability to read his mind it made it difficult for you to gauge what he was thinking, but you assumed that it was the usual macho crap he spouted 100% of the time. But he wasn't checking you out, well this time he wasn't. You had caught him staring at your butt more than once, and he'd made several comments about exactly what he'd like to do to you, but right now an emotion glimmered behind his eyes that you couldn't place.

Soldier Boy stands from the chair. He was wearing a dark t-shirt that stretched over his chest and a pair of blue jeans that fit him just right, well, if you were looking at that. You were, but it was easier to pretend that you weren't. It was easier to pretend that he wasn't the most attractive man you'd ever seen in your life.

Damn it, why does someone so attractive have to be such a dick?

 "A lady like you shouldn't be walking home alone this late." He frowns at you.

"Like me?" You arch an eyebrow.

"Good thing she ain't a lady." Butcher chuckles at his joke

You punch him hard on the arm, not enough to break it, but enough to make it hurt.

“Bloody hell woman.” Butcher rubs his sore bicep shooting you an angry look.

Not many people could look intimidating while wearing a Hawaiian shirt, but Butcher pulled it off. Not many people looked good in a Hawaiian shirt either, but Butcher pulled that off too.

"I'm serious." Soldier Boy's eyes narrow.

"Oh now you're so chivalrous?" You cock your hip to the side, planting your hands on your hips. "Didn't you try to kill me last month?"

"To be fair, you were trying to kill me-"

"Because you were trying to kill Annie. Where was the chivalry when you tried to tear me apart with your bare hands?"

"There are plenty of other things I'd like to do to you with my bare hands sweetheart." His grin turns wolfish. "I'd be happy to show you sometime, perhaps you'd like some company?"

"I'd rather spend an hour with that ancient spring than roll around with you." You tap your lip thoughtfully. “Then again I’m sure that cot is the same age as you and it can at least get it up.”

Annie muffles a snort behind her hand.

“Last time I checked everything was working, perhaps you’d like to see for yourself?” Soldier Boy smirks.

 "Can't you keep in your pants for once?" Butcher sighs, tilting the file downward to glare at Soldier Boy.

You can't help but smile at Butcher's response. Butcher might have tried to push you away, but even you could see his protective instincts. That became wildly apparent whenever you went out on a mission alone and although you would think that it was annoying for someone to think they needed to protect you, in Butcher's case you made an exception.

Soldier Boy rolls his eyes. "She shouldn't walk home alone."

You wave your hand over the wilting fern on the kitchen counter, eyes shifting to green for a moment as it perks up. It was the only plant in the house and although six people lived in this apartment, not one ever remembered to water it. "And you shouldn't butt into my business."

Soldier Boy opens his mouth to speak, but Annie interrupts his train of thought.

"Wait y/n. Coffee tomorrow?" Annie asks ignoring them. She's sitting up from the couch, her body turned towards you with both of her hands on the back cushions. 

She was one of your best friends, well, really one of your only friends. You'd grown up together and when Annie moved to New York you had decided to move and take some college classes in the city while you worked at a small garden shop after class part time.

The owner still couldn't figure out why nothing you cared for seemed to die.

You usually kept your status as a supe on the down low, and only used your powers when you really had to, which wasn't often before you joined Butcher's team. You'd only lasted two semesters before Annie came to ask you for help finding Soldier Boy and after that, Butcher asked you to join his team for shit pay. You accepted but you still worked at the garden shop part-time, also for terrible pay, but you loved it there.

Your powers made it easy to make sure nothing died and sometimes it felt like home being surrounded by plants. Caring for them was the one thing you seemed to be good at, and sometimes they felt like family.

You didn't have much family left, beside your grandmother and your older brother who still lived back in Des Moines, and sometimes it was lonely in the city. Annie was the only person who you'd been able to connect with since you moved, and now that you weren't going to classes the friends you made in college didn't really understand what you were doing with your life.

And telling them "oh I hunt down supes for a living and sometimes kill them" didn't really sound like something you could say in passing. It also did wonders for your dating life… NOT.

"Sorry babe, I'm at the shop tomorrow. But I'm off at 3 if you want to get coffee after?" You hold open the front door of the apartment, looking back at her expectantly.

You hated blowing Annie off, especially since the two of you hadn't been able to hang out outside of missions mostly because she was spending all her time with Hughie.

"Sounds great!" She beams.

And with that you disappear out down the hallway and into the night.

It's raining as you walk down the desolate streets. Cars splash water over the gum covered sidewalks that soaks through your tennis shoes and makes every step against the ground squish. But you ignore it.

You usually loved when it rained, loved to feel the cooling water pool against your skin, loved to hear the soft patter of it against the windows of your apartment, loved the earthy smell that came with the drops, but not tonight. You were still thinking about Soldier Boy.

You don't know why you let him get under your skin so much. You'd met men like him in the past and it was usually easy for you to brush them off, but not him.

I mean yes he is gorgeous, and maybe kind of charming when he's not trying to get into my pants, but I don't want just a one night fling. I want what Annie and Hughie have.

You think about your best friend and her loving boyfriend. You tried not to be jealous, but it was hard when the last time you had a lasting relationship was your first boyfriend back in high school who, when he found out you were a supe, was only interested if you had the power to shape shift into someone 'a little more busty.' The relationship ended with you locking him in a tree and the fire department having to come cut him out. He was fine, maybe a little more green than a normal person, but...

You'd heard that he got a job from the Green Giant Vegetable Company doing cameos as the Jolly Green Giant. So if anything, you helped him have a career?

Annie and Hughie were both head over heels in love with each other, knew everything about each other, didn't have any secrets, and it wasn't just sex, it was a close relationship with someone else who understood every part of you. You wanted that; and as much as you had avoided relationships in the past due to your supe status, you still hoped to find a supe that was kind and didn't think that they were a god for what they could do.

Why do so many have a god complex?

You think again about Soldier Boy. That wasn't the first time he had tried to coax you into bed and it wouldn't be the last, that was for sure. At first you had hoped that he would give up, it had been a month since you'd met, but he was still going strong, despite having a different woman in that apartment almost every night.

Maybe he's just really horny after being trapped in a lab all these years. Then again- You remember all the articles you read about him from the 80s, the ones that recorded his numerous escapades and think about his founding of Herogasm.

Maybe he's always like that, but he never comes on to Annie or Kimiko, only me. And I've threatened castration multiple times. You'd think he would care more about that than anything else.

You consider with a frown, clutching your jacket tighter around you. Rain trickled down from your hair and under the collar of your jacket to soak into your t-shirt. Your once light blue jeans were soaked to a dark navy with the amount of water that splashed up from the road and dripped down your back. For the first time in forever, you wished that it wasn't raining.

Probably should have just gotten a cab, but it's so expensive and-

"Hey baby." Someone calls from behind you.

Can't I just walk home without being hit on? One time?

"Not interested." You shout back, continuing to squish down the cracked sidewalks.

Three shadows peel off the wall of shops to your left blocking your path forward. Each is wearing a dark colored hoodie hiding their faces from view.

Is my luck really this bad? I never hear about Annie getting mugged or Hughie. And Hughie definitely looks wimpier than me.

"Don't be like that baby." The man behind you says.

You half turn your body so you can see all your supposed attackers at once. There are actually two men behind you, both wearing similar hoodies to the three now standing on your right.

Oh look they color coordinated their outfits… cute.

The man opens his mouth again.

"I'm gonna stop you right there." You hold up a finger. "I've been dealing with a horny 104 year old  geriatric man all day long. Please don't push me right now." It was an attempt to warn them, but you knew they probably wouldn’t listen to you.

No one ever does.

"Sounds like you need someone to relax with." The man smirks steeping forward to grab your arm. "I'd be happy to ease some of that tension baby."

"Look. I'm going to give you a chance to walk away. To avoid making one of the biggest mistakes of your life. Because honestly you all have the worst luck in the world." You jerk your arm away from him.

"I like em feisty.” He purrs stepping forward again while the others laugh. “Come on baby-“

He doesn't get to finish his sentence. You grab him around the throat, lifting him in the air like he weighs nothing, your eyes beginning to glow a brilliant green.

“I did try to warn you.”

"She's a supe!" He shouts struggling against your grip.

You throw him backwards into the other man standing to your right before facing the men on your left. Each one has pulled out a knife preparing to rush towards you.

"I get it. Y’all are out late, you bought matching outfits, but do we really have to-“

The first one rushes you, waving his knife through the air in a frantic dance. He doesn't get the chance to make contact with your arm. Vines erupt out of the pavement, breaking through the cracks in the concrete, binding themselves around the man who lets out a savage cry, quickly silenced while the vines continue to wrap around his body until there's nothing left but a mass of struggling green foliage on the pavement and some muffled screams.

He's lucky, could have had him dragged back under ground.

His friends stand there for a moment, eyeing one another as if they're not sure what just happened. You can practically see them trying to decide if you're still worth the trouble.

“Anyone else?”

The battle that follows is swift, the sound of cracking bones and the soft thud of punches landing echo over the soft patter of rain in the night as you dodge their blows and land your own against them. The vines continue to spread outward snatching up the men who fall to the ground in front of you, dragging each one up the street light above that sends yellowed light over the desolate streets. By now each bound body hangs from above like a sack of meat in a meat cooler, moving with the struggling men inside while the muffled cries shatter the still silence of the night.

Sometimes it's really too easy.

And as you begin to turn back someone grabs you by the hair, yanking you into their sweaty embrace. The leader's hot breath sticks to your cheeks, the cool metal of his switchblade pressing down so hard on your throat that you feel the pinprick of blood begin to form under the tip.

“What are you gonna do now bitch?” He snarls in your ear.

"Give you one more chance to surrender." You spit.

Like I'm going to give him the satisfaction of me begging for my life.

"I'm gonna enjoy this-" The man begins to say, pressing the knife deeper into your throat, but the rest of his sentence is cut off with a strangled cry as he's pulled away from you.

 What the hell just-

You turn around, freezing in shock.

Soldier Boy is crouching there in his t-shirt, jacket, and jeans over the man who just had a knife to your throat. His fist rising and falling as he punches the man in the face.

"Don’t you ever touch her." Soldier Boy snarls. His fist is already covered in blood, the man’s face a mass of bloodied tissue and bone.

"Stop you're going to kill him-" You run forward to stop Soldier Boy, but he doesn't stop even when you try to grab on to his hand.

"I said STOP." You shout louder, this time manipulating a vine to wrap around Soldier Boy's arm and restrain it.

Fuck he might already be dead.

"Let me go." Soldier Boy's eyes narrow. The usual green was replaced by a darkened pit with his rage. You'd only ever seen him this mad a handful of times, one of which was when the supe tried to zap you like a fly in one of those insect traps two days ago.

Why is he angry?

"I'm not going to let you go, until you promise not to kill him."

"I should." He snarls back at you.

"What are you talking about?"

He stands from the body, eyeing the last attacker who runs full speed down the sidewalk and vanishes into the darkness.   "I should kill him for trying to hurt you." Soldier Boy says simply.

You wave your hand allowing the vine to let go of his arm. "Where do you come off so high and mighty? You literally tried to kill me last month."

"That was before I-" He shakes his head angrily, eyes still blazing.

"Look I don't need you to protect me. Given what I've had to deal with all day I was looking forward to kicking some ass."

"You did." He smirks nodding his head in the direction of the men hanging from the streetlamp above you. “I just thought that you were outnumbered.”

"Why are you here?" You sigh pinching the bridge of your nose.

"I wanted to go for a stroll." Soldier Boy shrugs. He flexes his hand, before wiping the blood on the front of the sweatshirt of the man on the ground.

"Uh-huh. Well I don't need you to protect me." You say again, crossing your arms over your chest. "I had this handled."

"You sure doll?"

"Look I get it- you think that you're some knight in shining armor because you have this macho complex. But I'm fine on my own." You begin to step around the bodies of the men on the ground moving in the direction of your apartment, but Soldier Boy follows you.

"Where do you think you're going?" You turn to look at where he falls into step beside you.

"You shouldn't be walking home alone."

"Well you're sure as hell not going home with me."

His lip turns up in a smirk, towering over you. Soldier Boy is easily a foot taller than you, so broad that it's impossible to look past his imposing figure. It would be attractive if he wasn't so damn annoying. "Come on sweetheart, I know you want me to go home with you." He purrs with a smile. "I think you'd really enjoy it if I did. And I'll even let you tie me up with those pretty vines of yours." Ben leans in towards your face and you take a step back.

"Hard pass. So what? Is this your big move? Acting all chivalrous just to get a woman into bed with you?"

"That depends, is it working?"

"No. Now go back to the apartment, before I send you there in pieces." You turn back to squish down the sidewalk at a faster pace, hoping he will get a hint and leave you alone. But you knew he wouldn’t stop. He practically thrived on teasing you, had been the bane of your existence since you met him. And nothing seemed to dissuade him.

"What is your problem with me?" He jogs to catch up. "And don't say that it's because I tried to kill you, that was last month-"

"I think that's applicable to this week and the week after that and the week after that." You count out with every finger to further emphasize your point, but you know that Soldier Boy won't give up that easy.

"Are you always this fucking angry?" He almost laughs.

"I don’t know. Are you always this fucking annoying?" You turn to face him narrowing your eyes.

Soldier Boy chuckles at your look, running a hand through his hair that has darkened in the spray of water, his green eyes watching you curiously. They were shinning now, not the blacked pits of hate they were when he was beating the guy two minutes ago. For a second, just for a second, you see how handsome he is all over again.

"Come on, give me a real answer and I'll leave you alone." He's smiling at you now, giving you one of those boyish grins that, if it were anyone else, would make your heart stop.

He just wants sex. He doesn't care about you. He won't ever care about you. Breathe.

"Fine." You sigh. "You might say you're a supe, but you're not a hero. People like you and Homelander, you don't care about anyone but yourself. You use your powers for you and on your own terms. You were going to kill that guy-" You gesture back towards where the body is still on the ground, the man's heart beat is dangerously low.

"He was threatening you. A thank you might be nice." Soldier Boy's cheeks flush as he glares down at you with darkened eyes, his anger surging back in his chest.

"Yes he was threatening me, but I'm okay and you could have just taken him to jail. You didn't have to beat his face in."

"So you're saying if he had been attacking someone else you wouldn't have done the same?"

"I would have subdued him and then waited for the police to get there. The men hanging from the streetlight aren't dead. We aren't the law-"

"Right so those guys can get off with a warning and then go on and do the same thing over and over again." He scoffs rolling his eyes at you.

"It doesn't give you the right to kill them."

"I suppose you don't believe in the death penalty either."

"I believe in the death penalty Gramps. I just don't believe it is our job to carry it out." Your temper was flaring against your skin distracting you from the chill of the rain as it soaked into your clothes.

"Do you have any idea how many women would love to be saved by me?" Soldier Boy asks. He shakes his head as if he can't understand you.

You didn't blame him, most people didn't, that was why you spent most of your time alone.

"I'm not one of them. So leave me alone." You turn to go.

Honestly, why is this the kind of guy I attract? You roll your eyes to yourself. Oh you mean, tall, dark, handsome, gorgeous- The other little voice in your head whispers in your ear. NO. You tell yourself. Please I just want one guy who's not a total dick. Why is that so hard?

"I still don't think it's a good answer." He huffs.

"Of course you don't." You roll your eyes and begin to walk again. The streetlamps above send an eerie yellow glow over the parked cars along the road and over the crackled pavement. If Soldier Boy wasn't here bothering you, you might have stopped to admire the water as it splashed underneath the suspension bridge beyond the crowded buildings, but you wanted to get home. Without him if possible.

You glance over at Soldier Boy again. He looks normal right now, always does when he's not wearing his suit. And when he shut up you could see why people were so in love with him. It was when he opened his mouth that it reminded you exactly why you didn't like him.

You stop in front of your apartment building and force yourself to smile. "Thank you for walking me home." You say through tight lips, hoping that the false sincerity will make him leave.

He gazes up at your building with a frown. "This is a pretty shitty apartment building."

"Thank you. Not all of us inherited millions of dollars from our parents."

He pauses for a moment continuing to look up at the building, before he sighs loudly. "Look, I-." He sighs again. "I can't take listening to Annie and Hughie fucking. They go at it every night and she always makes the power go off."

You knew that already. It was another reason why you didn't like staying at the apartment, because listening to your best friend get railed by her boyfriend was not your idea of a good time.

You look up at Ben, and for a second you see a glimmer of the truth, just a flash of something that wasn't like the misogynistic attitude he usually had and it made you pause. He almost looked, sad and it made you feel bad for him. Of course you felt bad for him before, when you found out his entire team just gave him away to be experimented on and when probably the woman that he'd come the closest to loving really didn't care about him at all.

It must be incredibly lonely to come back to a world where almost everyone you know is dead. Guilt builds in your chest at the thought. I had lost my fair share of people, but not everyone in my life and I certainly didn’t learn about it on the same day.

"You know I think that's the first honest thing you've ever said to me." You say quietly shifting from foot to foot.

He half-smiles. "Maybe."

You chew on the inside of your cheek considering. You weren't afraid of him. You knew that with your powers you could take him. You were stronger than most and harder to kill. And despite the bad things you thought about him and knew about him, you kinda thought he was relatively harmless, well, you didn't think he was a rapist.

"Fine. But you're staying on the couch. And if I wake up and you're anywhere near my bedroom, I'll castrate you." You warn as walk up to the front doors and type in the code to unlock them, with Soldier Boy following behind you.

When you make it to the third floor, you raise one hand to stop him from going any further. It falls against his muscular chest and you fail trying not to admire how it feels beneath your hand.

Why am I so thirsty?

"If you wanted to grab my chest doll, all you had to do was ask-" Soldier Boy begins to say, but you raise the hand to cover his mouth.

"Shh." You hiss. "We have to be quiet or Mike will come out-"

"Who?" He asks, muffled against your hand.

You hear a door down the hallway creak open, spilling yellowed light onto the dark blue carpet of the hallway. "Shit. Too late."

Mike steps out of his apartment with a wide smile as soon as he sees you. "HEY y/n!" He crows, waving his free hand enthusiastically. "I didn't know you were getting in so late, but I wanted to give you this." Mike holds out a giant casserole dish filled with something that you can't identify. It's multi colored with multiple layers, one of which looks suspiciously like rice and the next layer looks like cake.

There's no way I'm eating that. Maybe if I force feed it to Soldier Boy he'll leave me alone.

Mike was your neighbor, your neighbor who had lived next door to you for the past 2 years and was shamelessly in love with you. And as sweet as he was, there were a few things that you couldn't get past, most namely that he lived with his mother and that he had a mullet.

One time you'd had a nightmare about it ripping itself from his head, breaking in to your apartment, and smothering you in your sleep.

Not fun.

"Hey Mike." You smile tightly at him, dropping your hand from Soldier Boy's mouth. "Yeah I'm sorry I was out with some friends."

"You should have asked me to come! I love your friends." Mike smiles so wide you're afraid that it's going to break his face. “Especially Butcher. He’s so funny. Always joking-"

Poor Mike.

Every time that Butcher had come over to talk shop, he would mock Mike endlessly. And Mike was just too sweet to realize it. Hughie was the only one who actively tried to be nice to Mike, but even he found it difficult. Annie was the worst though, she'd tease you constantly about what your children would look like and had taken to photoshopping mullets onto pictures of babies and sending them to you at inopportune times.

"Maybe next time." You cough out an awkward laugh while Soldier Boy snorts behind you.

You continue down the hallway towards your apartment, the door next to his, and hope that he'll go back into his home, but no such luck.

“My mom made this for you!” He holds the dish out towards you.

“Oh um that’s so nice of her. But I can’t except that-“

Mike's mother comes to stand in the doorway of their shared apartment. She was wearing a bright purple Mumu, her makeup caked thickly on her face and her eyes accentuated with bright blue eye shadow. “Sure you can sweetie. You’re Mike’s special friend.” She winks before trailing her eyes up and down your body. “And you’ve got such a cute little figure.” His mother does a little shimmy as if trying to get you to do the same.

Kill me now.

“That’s what I keep telling her.” Soldier Boy purrs behind you.

“Don’t make me kill you.” You mutter back, knowing full well he can hear you with his super-hearing.

Oddly enough Mike does look suspiciously like his mother, they are both the same height, exactly three inches under you, and have the same mullet, but hers is a shocking blue-gray and his is jet black.

He blushes at her words. “Aww mom.”

Soldier Boy muffles a laugh before disguising it into a cough. You elbow him hard in the stomach.

“Well thank you.” You take the casserole dish with one hand, hoping that you can open the door and usher Soldier Boy in before he makes a comment. "I've had a long day and it's really late-"

“I helped her make this one.” Mike interrupts scooting closer to you, so close that you get a lungful of his terrible cologne, the one that the super sells for four dollars and smells like baby powder and Cheez-its.

“A man who can do it all.” Soldier Boy whispers to you.

Mike looks above your head as if noticing Soldier Boy for the first time. “Who’s that? I thought I knew all your friends.”

“He’s certainly very handsome-“ Mike's mother blushes from the doorway.

“Your brother?” Mike offers.

You can see his expression turn hopeful.

Probably thinking about how he can become friends with "said brother" and that will escalate our "relationship." 

“I’m Ben.” Soldier Boy says, stepping around you to shake Mike’s hand. “I’m y/n's boyfriend.”

Your cheeks bloom a bright pink, unable to respond to the ridiculous statement that he just made.

Murder. That's what sounds good right now.

“Oh.” Mike’s face falls. “I didn’t know you had a boyfriend.” His eyes flick back to you, disappointment swimming in the irises.

You watch Mike’s hope begin to circle the drain.

“Well actually-“ You begin, but Soldier Boy interrupts you.

“Sorry I’ve been out of town for a while. We've been trying to do this long distance thing- you know how it is, late night phone calls-“ Ben trails off with a wolfish grin before dropping an arm around your shoulders. “But I just couldn’t take the long distance. Missed her too much. Phone call isn’t the same as sleeping in the same bed. Definitely not as satisfying. Not to mention there’s only so much my hand can do.”

Your cheeks bloom an even brighter red at his insinuation.  That’s when Soldier Boy does something even more unforgivable, he pulls you tighter against him and kisses you right there in front of Mike and his mother. The kiss is searing, making everything in your mind go blissfully blank. It had been so long since someone kissed you, since someone had held you this close to them without trying to kill you. His tongue teases your bottom lip and before you can stop yourself you open your mouth wider to let him in sighing softly against his lips, while you grip the front of his jacket.

For a moment you can’t remember why you didn’t want him to kiss you, why you denied yourself of this for so long. And then Soldier Boy's hand slides from your back to grab a handful of your ass.

Right.

You slap him so hard across the face that you're sure it would have broken the cheekbone of anyone who wasn’t a supe.

But Soldier Boy only grins wider, squeezing your butt again. “She knows that I like it a little rough.” He turns his lazy gaze back to Mike.

You open your mouth to cuss him out.

“Well we should probably get going.” Soldier Boy breezes. “Probably going to be a long night. If you know what I mean. But we’ll try to keep it down. Then again my girl's a little loud.” He winks at your poor neighbor who looks like he might cry, while his mother stands behind him fanning herself like Soldier Boy is everything she wants in a man.

He's ten for ten with the older ladies I'll say that.

“Oh right. Well I guess I’ll see you around y/n.” Mike turns to go.

“Mike wait-“ You try to say but he’s already vanishing through the door.

“Nice to meet you Mark.” Soldier Boy calls at his retreating figure, getting his name wrong on purpose.

You don’t even use your key to open the door you're so mad, the plants inside let you in. As soon as it opens, you haul Soldier Boy by the front of his jacket through the doorway and pin him to the wall just inside.

The casserole dish lands on your counter and by some miracle doesn’t break.

“What the hell is your problem?” Your hand is fisted in the front of his shirt, eyes blazing with anger and embarrassment.

He only grins. “You didn’t want me to play along? Sounded like that guy had been trying to get into your pants for a while. Unless he already has been or you want him to?"

You flush a deeper shade of crimson. "That is absolutely none of your business!"

“Well if we’re going to be living together doll, I’m pretty sure it is my business.”

“WE AREN'T LIVING TOGETHER I'M JUST LETTING YOU CRASH ON THE COUCH TONIGHT AND THEN YOU'RE GONE.” You shout.

“I think you’re gonna get pretty attached to me sleeping here. Maybe even  you let me sleep in your bed and even fu-“

You knock him back against the wall again. “If you finish that sentence I’m going to throw you out the window.”

“If you keep knocking me around, Mike's going to think you’re into some pretty kinky stuff.” Soldier Boy smirks down at you. “It’s actually turning me on a bit. Is it turning you on?”

“I don’t have to let you stay here.” You growl, releasing him.

“I think it’s because you like me.” He teases.

“I don’t.” You frown grows. “Okay couch is there goodnight.”

You point in the direction of the worn leather couch. You'd hauled it up three flights of stairs with Annie when you first moved in after you found a guy online selling it for nothing. And when you showed up to get it, he presumed to say it would be free if you let him take a picture of your feet. And after, when he had a black eye and a fun story to tell his wife, he gave you the couch for nothing as promised.

“No kiss goodnight?” Soldier Boy pouts his lips innocently.

“You already had one of those.” You snap thinking about slapping him again and trying hard not to think about how much you wanted to kiss him again.

Get a grip.

“Right. You liked it.”

“No I didn’t. And the next time you shove your tongue into my mouth I’ll bite it off.”

“You’re really violent for such a little thing.” Soldier Boy eyes you up and down as if sizing you up.

“And you’re really dick-like for someone who’s supposed to have the wisdom of the ages.” You turn towards the hallway intent on going to bed to avoid any more conversation with him.

"Whoa." You hear Soldier Boy say as he looks into your living room.

It was the reaction that everyone had when they entered your apartment. You had a small one bedroom apartment on the third floor of a building that you believed might be older than Soldier Boy. The kitchen and living room was mostly one room, the kitchen to the left with outdated appliances and a small circular wooden table with three chairs that served as your kitchen table and desk, and was separated by the large leather aforementioned couch that faced the wall that held two large windows. Beyond the front door was a small hallway that held the only bathroom in the apartment and your bedroom.

But that's not what was surprising.

Every open space in your apartment was covered in plants. There wasn't a single piece of unused space in your apartment. There were large standing monstera and fiddle leaf figs shoved into every corner and pots of dark green pothos bolted into the walls trailing vines to the ground so that every wall looked alive. Jasmine crept along the wall behind the tv that sat on an antique credenza between the two windows, sending the bright scent into the living room.

There was a large rectangular box bolted in the space above your sink where herbs and tomatoes hung down, probably a fire hazard, but you didn't care. The vibrant smell of mint, the spicy smell of rosemary, and soft tones of oregano and basil fused the air in your apartment with a life force that was impossible to ignore.

A large apple tree grew in a pot as big around as you next to the couch, with brilliant red apples hanging from it's branches, while a lemon tree and a tangerine tree intertwined their branches just behind the kitchen table.  The refrigerator, once white, was covered in the tangled vines of blackberry and raspberry, hanging with full fruit, while a potted strawberry plant sits prettily on top of the kitchen table, the bright red fruit enticing.

It was a lot. You knew it was a lot, but helping plants grow was the only thing you were good at, the only thing that felt right. One day you hoped that you could move somewhere and open a farmers market, but today you were stuck here, with Soldier Boy, who probably thought that you were crazy.

"I mean. I knew you had plant powers but this is-" He begins to say.

"A lot. I know." You roll your eyes. "The bathroom is down the hall." You gesture with your free hand towards the darkened hallway. "I guess I'll get you a pillow."

Ben is still looking around the room dumbfounded, as if he's never seen anything like this in his life, and he probably hasn't.

He's been in a Russian Lab for the past forty years, I mean he's probably not used to seeing anything this green.

You find the extra pillow in the linen closet along with one of the crocheted granny square blankets you made last year when Annie and you had a Jaws movie marathon, and a towel, before you move back into the living room.

Ben is still standing awkwardly by the couch as if he's not sure what to do, and it's the first time you've seen him look lost.

"Here." You throw him the pillow and the towel before you drape the blanket over the back of the couch. "One night."

"Why are you working for Butcher?"

"What?" The question catches you off guard. You were expecting him to make another pass at you, maybe check you out again. He was looking at you, but it was different, his gaze was softer, curious.

"You don't seem like you-" He gestures around the room. "Like you fit."

You blink for a second. "Um."

"I mean Annie used to be one of the Seven, Hughie does whatever the fuck Butcher tells him, but you you're different." His brow furrows together as if he can't figure you out.

"I really don't want to do this with you."

"This?" He looks confused again.

"Opening up with one another. You're here for one night. That's it." You force yourself to say, but the reality was you were still surprised, surprised that he actually seemed to care.

Stop. He's changing tactics because nothing else worked. He's pretending to care about you because he still wants to sleep with you.

"Please."

You can't answer for a second. It was the first time that he'd said that word in front of you before, or acted this way. It was also the first time that it had just been the two of you, before Butcher had been there or Frenchie or Annie and Hughie, but this was the first time that the two of you had been left alone.

Maybe that's why?

You hesitate before you answer, he was the last person you really wanted to open up to.

"I don't know, it's not all that bad." You shrug. "Before I didn't really use my powers all that much except like this." You gesture around the room for emphasis. "And when I went to college everyone was so serious about their futures and I didn't really like any of the classes. The only thing I enjoyed was using my powers at Please Don’t Die, the plant store I work at. And then Annie asked me to come help her out-" You bite your cheek. "She's my best friend and maybe I wanted to spend more time with her."

"But is it what you really want?" He cocks his head to the side, holding the pillow in one hand and the towel in the other.

You'd never seen him look so calm before, relaxed, like being here with you was washing away any anger or frustration he still had about the past. It was confusing, and at the same time you could feel your heart beginning to betray you. It was hard not to fall for him when he looked so good, eyes soft, dark hair falling into his eyes, clothes still dripping rain on your hardwood floors.

No. I will not fall in love with him, I will not fall in love with-

"Goodnight Soldier Boy. I'll see you in the morning." You turn to go, ignoring his final question.

"You can call me Ben." He almost whispers it, the sound of his voice a low rumble that sends a shiver down your spine.

"What?" You look back at him.

"You never call me Ben. But you can, if you want." He shrugs his shoulders, before he shakes his head as if he's annoyed with himself for suggesting it. "Never mind, just fucking forget about it-"

"Goodnight Ben." You feel the end of your mouth twitch up into a smile and with that you disappear into your bedroom, locking the door behind you.

And deep down you know that it's not to keep him out, but to keep you in.

As always, thank you so much for reading!

If you liked this story be sure to read my follow up fic that takes place in the future:

Open Mic Night!

Or if you'd like to read another series please try:

You Call It Madness But I Call It Love!

If The Stars Wish It So

A/N: I know it's crazy to start another series right now, but I'm kinda feeling this reader and Ben together? What do y'all think about it?

A/N: Update I've made a huge mistake and started another series.

If you'd like to be added to the taglist please let me know!

(Photos for series picture from Pinterest)

Taglist: @roseblue373 @mrsjenniferwinchester

[tinytalkingtina]

WIP Weekend

Thanks for the tag @sourw0lfs!

I know I still have a number from last weekend in the inbox, but this weekend I actually will have the time to get to them, huzzah!

Rules: Send me an emoji in an ask, and I'll write 3-5 sentences and/or paragraphs from that WIP. No limits to the amount of emojis you can request, please feel free to send multiple

🐶 B.A.D. D.O.G. (sequel to the college AU puppy play Stomeddie/Stommie fic) is nearly there! Hoping to have time this weekend to make a final push <3

🧜‍♂️ Participating in the STMonsterCalendar Mermay Bingo event, with 2/4 fics for this completed so far. Still need to work on the SFW paired buckingham/steddie fics, but been having fun doing research on waterparks and fleshing out what were supposed to be super short 300-500 word fics. They'll both probably end up closer to 1k, oops. Gonna publish the first of these probably this coming week though!

🏴‍☠️ Eddierotica: "Eddie writes the world's worst erotica about characters who are just poorly disguised versions of himself and Steve. They're not dating." continues! Loving the enthusiasm for this one, hoping I'll have more creativity in the tank to do this justice haha. For what I've been picturing as Steve's live reaction please see this coincidentally perfect photoset Djo recently released. 💥Steddie Big Bang: Secret fic is at 5.5k now, and written out some fun consequences to the worldbuilding choices in this story. This can't be publicly shared yet, so if you send in this emoji feel free to pick another fic as well, and I'll write 3 sentences for both.

Tagging some folks to join in and work on their own WIPs this weekend :D

@vthx @hbyrde36 @pearynice @queenofshenigans @onirislanding

@dame-zoom-a-lot @fkinkindagauche @just-my-latest-hyperfixation @queenie-ofthe-void @yesdangerpls

@apomaro-mellow @strangerthingswritersguild

Enjoy a SFW snippet from 🧜‍♂️ below the cut featuring Eddie's gay longing

Just as he managed to get his group seated, tinny speakers stuttered to life and began to play a jaunty naval-themed tune: it was time for the show to begin. Eddie’s heart beat faster in anticipation of seeing him again. One by one, the mermaids appeared, decked out in bright colorful tails and waterproof makeup to match. Each one was “more lovely than the last!” as the announcer proclaimed. Except that wasn’t true. Because Mermaid #5, with his fire engine-red tail, was the only one Eddie had eyes for. As he swam around, Mermaid #5’s blonde-highlighted hair swirled in the current. It made the perfect halo for his beautiful face, with it’s strong nose, sparkling eyes, and infectiously warm smile. From his vantage point in the arena, Eddie could just make out moles dotted all over his mermaid’s body. And, oh, what a body! Mermaid #5 wasn’t jacked up with bulging muscles like Schwarzeneggger. No, he was all lean lines from swimming strapped into a tail all day. He even had visible abs from some angles, like when he was picking up and tossing another mermaid to fly and flip in the air. Eddie swallowed a sigh. Surely, Mermaid #5 had to be the prettiest boy in the world. And the prettiest boy in the world would never know how smitten he was. Eddie was too much of a coward to even ask around for the guy’s name, much less strike up a conversation. Sure, the sparkling stud Mermaid #5 wore in his ear was promising, but the guy had to already be taken by someone (that hypothetical lucky bastard). Which meant he’d have to be content with pining from afar and bemoaning his fate to Chrissy evening after evening. Not that she was any help, egging on his hopeless crush and laughing at how he tripped over himself to hide whenever he spotted anyone with frosted tips coming his way.

[thegremlininyourcloset]

Hahaha I’m back

with another polllllll

a description of each wip/idea under the cut!!!

@fictfrenzy @themoonwitch-mustspeak @alpheiaa @isabxan @adragonsdance @eyeballglitter @elidiot @ikibli

oh and if you show interest in any of these I will make a note to @ you with snippets/information about them! Unless you tell me not to,

Step Left For A Better Future

Series: ain’t no easy roads

Starring: Stephanie Brown & Jason Todd

Inspired By: the handful of Steph in Titans-Tower fics in existence

ao3 link to the first chapter

pt. 4

pt. 5

pt. 6

pt. 7

Stephanie Brown knows she was never meant to be Robin. She knows she’s just a stand-in till Tim’s dad pulls his head out of his ass. She doesn’t even mind it! (Mostly) 

But she is getting pretty fucking tired of literally EVERY SINGLE asshole in the entirety of Gotham City waving that fact directly in her face.

So when the Red Hood shows up in Titans Tower, yammering about replacements and revenge, Steph is at her limit.

And when the Red Hood reveals exactly who he used to be?

She snaps. 

Notes: You’re kidding yourself if you think Jason wasn’t Steph’s Robin. Also, no batcest here or ever

Angst Level: This one is significantly less humorous than all of the Steph-in-Titans-Tower fics I’ve read. Steph’s going through it, Jason’s going through it…everyone suffers before we get any joy. 

of betterment & butterflies

(It’s a series btw)

Starring: Stephanie Brown & Young Justice

Ship: eventual spoilsecrets, probably several others because its Young Justice

When Spoiler and Robin partner with fellow teenage heroes Impulse and Superboy to rescue a mysterious ghost girl from the DEO, the last thing the duo expects is to form a team.

But, well. Then the grown-ups disappear. And then they find the Justice Cave. And then they beat Bedlam

And suddenly, the idea of a team doesn’t seem so unreasonable. 

But Young Just Us—or rather, Young Justice, if you’re anybody who isn’t Impulse—still have trials ahead of them

And none of them come without preexisting baggage.

So, that leaves us all with one final question:

Can this unpolished, unlikely, uncoordinated team of teenage dirtbags make it?

Notes: Yup! Its the Steph in Young Justice AU! And boy oh boy its gonna be a wild ride! And require a lot of consulting wikis lmao.

Angst: This is Young Justice, silly! Of course they all have issues.

finders keepers

Starring: Stephanie Brown & Dick Grayson

Inspired By: i don’t actually remember the fic

Dick Grayson has seen a lot of things in his undead life. But seeing a father leave his own goddamn daughter out as bait still manages to shake him. Luckily, Bruce imparted in him one very important rule when it comes to children who or have unfit guardians…finders keepers. This is how he ends up with Stephanie Brown

Noted: found family yaaaayyyyyy

Angst Level: quite a bit, but there will be comfort

[stoned-in-love]

Imagine post-feelings realization S4 Robotnik vowing to be "nicer" to Agent Stone.

"No more insulting you to your face, and a 66.7% reduction to behind-the-back insults."

"Okay..."

"No more sucker punches."

"...."

"No more fingers, hands, tools, or foreign objects of any kind abruptly shoved into your mouth."

"Sir..."

"No more of me pinning you to the wall, or you pinning you to the wall, or badniks pinning you to the wall, or really any sort of wall-based aggression–"

"NO!"

Imagine Stone awkwardly explaining that he didn't mind any of that treatment, and in fact kind of enjoyed it. Really enjoyed it. It doesn't need to stop!

"If you want to be nicer, maybe you could just– just start holding me after?"

Imagine Stone–blindsided by this whole conversation–just finally asking for aftercare. °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°

[reguluskeys]

Regulus writing James love letters, only signing them with a star at the end, because he doesn’t know how to properly express his emotions and is terrified of rejection from the embodiment of the sun.

James trying to figure out who wrote the letters and slowly becoming friends with regulus, and overtime hoping he’s the one sending the notes.

Regulus slipping up and accidentally quoting himself, making James realize his wish came true.

[regulusrules]

After Merlin returns from Avalon, he finds a letter on Arthur's desk, untouched. It was left to be found by the only person who ever ventured this close. With trembling hands, Merlin reads Arthur's last words.

Merlin,

I hate that you are not here. I hate that you left me in what could be my last days. But I regret my words, Merlin, you must know that I do. They were easier to cast than to think about surviving the upcoming days without your guidance. In truth, I have never truly felt this alone, for in my darkest days, you were always there with me. You were always protecting me from a monster I have long feared. Facing this now without you— it somehow feels like the end.

Still, I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you that way. But I do stand by some of the words I said, Merlin; you are the bravest man I know, and I channel my own strength from yours. Perhaps I overreacted because I always expected too much of you, and took your steady presence for granted. I know now that I shouldn't. I know now that it isn't what I owe you after all your years of love.

Forgive me, Merlin, for I also know that it is not cowardice that takes you away from me. Whatever the reason may be, I truly wish you succeed. I wish this endeavour brings you peace, for you, more than anyone, deserves it. I wish you find what you are looking for, and know that not a single cell in me blames you if the outcome of this battle turns unfavorable and I never see you again.

But Merlin, I do wish, more than anything, to see you again.

If not— you are to be my servant in the next life.

Your friend,

Arthur

[thegreatyin]

why does the scoundrel speak in first person plural :0?

i am SO GLAD you asked :)

see, the scoundrel is madly emphasis on madly in love with the one and only mr wines, a canon fallen london character that's crucial to her backstory, motivations, and just generally everything about her current state of being. wines is one of the masters of the bazaar, aka one of the scoundrel's current coworkers. it's. well. it's an Interesting bat, to say the least.

there are many, many, many things you can say about wines, both for better and for worse. it's a liar. it's a cheapskate. it's a tyrant. it's a drunkard. it's a whore. it's a pimp. it's, in the scoundrel's extremely delusional eyes, a living god.

but there is one thing (mostly) consistent about wines- its manner of speech.

wines, with few exceptions, always speaks in first person plural (perhaps better described as the "royal we", given its backstory). while this is a trait basically all of the masters slip into at some point or other, wines is the only one who does it consistently enough to qualify as a certified Character Quirk™.

so, well.

say you're the scoundrel. and you desperately want to emulate the bat you love more than anything else in the world. the bat- no, the god that saved you from a life of dull misery. the being you owe everything to. Everything. you want to give all you have, all you ever will be, in order to be Just Like It.

and thus- much to everyone's misfortune- the scoundrel talks just like its idol.

for better or for worse.

TLDR: the scoundrel talks in first person plural because she's a huge fucking loser who's purposefully trying to emulate her crush, an evil alcoholic who sucks. aren't bats beautiful?

[fiona-fififi]

Last Line Tag

Tagged by @spotsandsocks. Thank you for the tag!

Have the last line I wrote for this fic I am trying to write by adding half a sentence every three days. 🙃

“Fuck, Eddie, come here,” Buck murmurs desperately, tugging gently at Eddie's chin, thumb still trapped between Eddie's lips.

I don't know who to tag. My brain is blanking because I haven't done one of these in a really long time. So consider yourself tagged if you want to participate.

[mossterunderthebed]

[crookedghosts]

mortal AU/crossover: a challengers AU

this fic is going to need a little more TLC and I'm about to hit a busy season IRL so in the spirit of at least getting to celebrate a little of @lost-trio-week day 2 with everyone, here are some of my favorite teaser snippets from the Challengers AU (aka tennis AU aka an absolutely insane metaphor for a love triangle that spans ~7-9+ years of pining... ) I've been chipping away at! it hit 10k this morning while I was waiting for my flu shot so that's already a win in my book - and I'm excited to share as soon as its complete :)

[luvo27]

fantasy high snippet!!!! ok so this one's a Circle of Magic AU that got thrown around a bit and like here's the thing i love circle of magic i love it so much. it's where my love for crafting comes from, and it's actually where Luvo comes from!!! anyways, this snippet is a bit of the fh version of the ending of Briar's Book (warning for character death that's supposed to be temporary but the temporariness never got written):

Sklonda breathes. Her lungs rattle on each laborious breath. The time between each inhale and exhale grows longer each time. Riz sits at her bedside, not even daring to blink. He matches his breaths to hers, inhale, exhale. His eyes prickle with exhaustion or dryness, he can’t tell which. He’s not sure it matters. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Riz waits. He holds his breath. He continues to hold his breath. Too long, he thinks, his mom hasn’t had a breath of air in too long— Exhale. Riz chokes on it. He coughs, his eyes water, he bends forwards in his chair as he catches his breath. He doesn’t know how long it takes him. He rubs his eyes. They sting. He needs to sleep, he thinks. He can’t. When he sits back up, Sklonda isn’t breathing at all. “Mom?” he whispers. He leans forwards. He grabs her hand (when did it get so frail?)  “Mom,” he says again, voice trembling. Sklonda continues not to breathe. Riz’s hands tremble as he fumbles on Sklonda’s wrist. She doesn’t have a pulse. Magic can do many things, he remembers Ayda saying. If your mother dies, don’t send any of it after her. It will only drag you down. Fuck that, Riz thinks. That’s his fucking mom. Riz? He hears one of his friends say in his mind, alarmed by the spike of emotion, Riz, what’s— He knows they’re seeing Sklonda, dead in her bed through his eyes. Oh no, Adaine says, mournful. Oh no, Fig says, alarmed as she feels what Riz is planning. Yes, Riz thinks back at them, filled with vicious fury.  He has enough of his mind to send out an anchor of magic, rooting himself in the small tree on the windowsill in his room, he has just enough time to hear the door bang open, to feel Fabian grab his hand and hiss at him, “Don’t you fucking dare—” But Riz is gone from his body, sending his mind hurtling into the dark void looming in his mother. He’s faintly aware of the others arriving, grabbing onto him or Fabian, sending their magic through him, strengthening his anchor point, but he’s focused on the forest forming around him. He lands in dark soil. The trees loom far above his head, a thick fog curls around his feet. The rope of magic connecting him to his friends and the land of the living is tied tight around his wrist. There’s a set of footprints in the soil, leading deeper into the woods. Riz, Kristen says desperately, come back. Don’t— Riz grits his teeth and starts to follow the footprints. As he walks, the rope of magic grows stronger, lengthens, his friends sending more magic down the line connecting them together. They’re determined not to lose him. Riz is determined not to stop.

[sinvulkt]

Pre-OT - Cursed Noodle Vaderkin

Summary: After another reckless stunt, the Force is tired of Vader's antics and transforms him into a small dragon. It then put him on Ahsoka's path.

Era: At some point after RotS and Twilight of the Apprentice  

Characters: Darth Vader, Ahsoka Tano

Main tropes: Non consensual animal transformation (listen, i love that one), Kidnapping your fallen jedi master, Force shenanigans

---

Snippet:

Vader blinked. Or tried to. His current form did not seem to possess eyelids.

It did possess a passable set of lungs as well as six working limbs, which most people would have called an improvement. Vader did not. The sudden assault of smells, colors and heat confused his senses. Every few seconds he had to remind himself to breathe, the habit long lost in profit of going along the suit ventilator.

He had been walking in circles trying to get back to Coruscant after his last mission, only for the universe to try to stop him. First, his life support had broken under his opponent’s lightsaber blow. Then, the Jedi he had been chasing had escaped, helped by some rebels Vader had made sure would not come back. To top it all, as Vader wondered if he would die, the ventilator unable to provide crucial oxygen to his lungs, the Force had bent and twisted until it made him into this.

His reflection in water had not been much help determining his species. A porg-sized lizard of some kind, although it seemed to have wings. Vader barely attempted to move them. The additional limbs felt foreign in his mind.

Vader made another step, snarling at the branch who tripped him.

This place was filled with nothing but rats and porgs and banthas. That, and the ship he had seen landing in the distance. Vader was certain he could slither in and steal it. His current form may not have a thumb, but it would not be the first time he used the Force to pilote.

A convor dove at him, its claws scratching at Vader’s armor-scales. His wings raised by instinct as he hissed. The bird should have known better than to challenge a Sith Lord. Vader threw the Dark at it, intending to crush the impudent bird, only for his control to slip and the blow to overshoot. As it happened, all the convor felt was a breeze slightly disturbing its flight. It dove again.

Vader cursed as he slipped under a crevice. Something was wrong with the Force. He could feel it just fine, but his control was barely better than a youngling. It was as if all the midichlorians in his body had shifted. Which, looking at the paws clawing at the sandy earth of the crevice, wasn’t that far away from the truth.

“Morai?” a humanoid called.

Vader perked up. He knew that voice.

“Is anyone here?”

Memories of a young togruta laughing flashed in his mind.

Could it be…?

The convor dove again as soon as it saw Vader muzzle out of his hidhole. Vader scrambled back. That person was dead. It must have been his imagination.

Vader focused on the arrogant creature that dared make him his prey. It felt rather weird for a convor, the Light bending too unnaturally around the bird’s presence for it to not be Force Sensitive. Whenever Vader Force-pushed it, the blow dissipated before it ever reached the convor. His low control wasn’t enough to explain it.

Several seconds passed without the bird diving back at Vader’s crevice. Perhaps the accursed being had finally given up and chosen an easier meal. Tentatively, Vader dared one paw out. Boots blocked his way.

“Morai. What did you find?”

Vader scrambled back, only for fiery skin to descend on him. He definitely did not yelp as warm fingers slid beneath his belly to lift him up in the air. He bit the offending arm, but the stranger's hands held him strong.

“Ouch. You are quite a wild little one, aren’t you?” Ahsoka chuckled.

Vader stilled. His scales flattened as he bared his teeth against the truth. This sight should not be possible.

 Anakin Skywalker’s Apprentice was dead.

And yet, the buzzing bond between them whispered another true as two tattered threads reached for each other to mend. He hurried to pull back his side of the bond, but it slipped away from his grasp. Worse, their skin touching only strengthens the bond’s mending. Vader felt the moment they connected. A shiver ran down his skin as Light burned his inside. Simultaneously, Ahsoka’s eyes widened in recognition.

She held him up to her face level, lekkus twitching as she stared into what he knew must be golden eyes.

“Anakin?”

---

Plot Description:

The Force did not wish for its Son to suffer. It waited and waited, but Anakin stayed miserable under the Emperor’s thumb, barely attempting to escape. After Vader brushes with death, borderline voluntarily, the Force has enough. It calls to the rather Eldritch part within Anakin to transform him. Dragon-Vader is on the rather small side. He can be easily lifted and put on shoulders. As a Force-being, Vaderkin is very young, almost a baby. The dragon’s shape reflects that. Would it have been billions of years later, he would have been huge enough to wrap around a planet.

As per the Force terms, Vader cannot go back into human shape until he touches the light side or learns to balance properly the multiple facets of the Force. Dark and Light. Even then, he will never fully be human again, keeping draconic traits such as scales and wings. This might be of great interest to various pirates and slavers, or even to Palpatine whose apprentice suddenly became quite a bit more useful. 

Ahsoka is all too happy to see the crucial blow to the Empire through Vader’s disappearance, as well as to maybe, maybe get her Jedi-Master-turned-Sith-turned-small-dragon back. Now if only she can coax him onto the road of balance.

[noyzinerd]

I guess we're all just over here posting Sterek snippets-(Part 1)

So, I guess here's one of mine, not that anyone was asking 😅 (with more snippets to come soon, after some polishing).

A snippet from "Pseudology"

Understandably, Derek hadn't even thought twice about how Stiles had known, at the time, that Jennifer was the 'second psychotic, mass-murdering girlfriend Derek had ever dated'.

Because of course Stiles had found out about his relationship with Kate. That wasn't a surprise. He was Stiles. The boy was as curious as they came.

Derek had always just assumed Stiles had snooped through his records or something else highly invasive.

If that had been the case, Derek didn't think he would've even been that upset at Stiles for prying where he had no business prying.

If that had been the case, he would've just been grateful Stiles was able to keep his secret to himself for as long as he had.

If only that had been the case.

As Stiles' memory manifested all around Derek, building itself brick by brick in a swirl of clouds before his eyes, the scene laid out to him left his pulse pounding hot in his ears.

Boyd had long since fell unconscious under the unrelenting bite of the electric current. Erica was still able to watch through lidded eyes, however, as she had always had a higher tolerance for pain.

The crack of Gerard's fist against Stiles' face over and over again was loud enough to drown out the overworked whirring of the generator. A breathless cry slammed out of the boy in a wheeze as the Argent patriarch's fists began laying into his thin chest and stomach. Each impact landed with the devastating power of a military-trained veteran against a kid literally half his size.

The moment Gerard had thrown that first punch, Derek's body had instantly reacted. He had immediately grabbed at the old man in an effort to throw him off, only for his clawed hands to slip through the memory as if he were gripping smoke. 

Three more frantic tries proved just as ineffective as the first.

Derek could only watch uselessly as Stiles attempted to curl in on himself to soften the blows, trying his best to shield his face with his only free hand.

"Today's youth could do to learn some manners. Back in my day, you would address a man by 'sir.' 'Old geezer' would've gotten you the belt, no matter if you were at home or in the middle of the market. Seems that father of yours never took the time to properly discipline you."

He could hear the moment Stiles' ribs cracked, the snap of his bones under the skin, the plump lips that Stiles always worried between his teeth when he thought too hard were suddenly split open under the force of one of Gerard’s punches and it was awful. The more he saw, the worse it felt, and the tighter his chest got. As he watched, it was as if the knife he felt in his guts twisted deeper and deeper. The softer Stiles' grunts and whimpers got—the boy's will dropping farther and farther as the abuse continued—the more Derek wanted to do just about anything to make it all stop. He wanted to be there, not just watch, but really be there. To nuzzle up against the bloodied cheek, hold and comfort the boy, hold his hands over the blackening eye and draw away as much pain as he could into himself until the simpering cries faded into his shoulder where he would hold Stiles gently to him. Derek would rub his back and apologize for anything and everything and promise that it would all be alright. But as he stood, shifted with all the power in the world, watching the person he cared for more than life itself hurting, being tortured by the psychotic father of the psychotic bitch that had left nothing but a husk of what was once Derek, he couldn't help but clench his claws tightly into fists. The pain of his claws sinking into his own palms grounded him.

He had to focus. This Stiles was long passed. Present-Day Stiles, the Stiles of now, his Stiles needed him. If Derek managed to miss the secret of this memory, then the both of them would be subjected to this senseless beating all over again. He wouldn't be the one to do this to Stiles again. So as difficult as it was, Derek held himself back.

And Derek watched.

"The Argents will always be the last to stand amongst the filth as it washes away. We are the mighty pillars of the Coliseums while the creatures, the monsters of this world, the werewolves, are nothing more than the mindless lions. Even as the spectators sit cozy, in their stands, unaware of the protection we provide, we will prevail against the test of time. While they and all of their treacherous collaborators hide in the shadows we will do what we must to draw out the darkness and purge them all. Just as my daughter did, just as my granddaughter will. You will never understand the lengths our family will go to for our cause. Why, even if she had to sink to the depths of fornicating with the beasts, that was Kate's loyalty, her devotion." Gerard took that moment to straighten up with a crack to his back. The seasoned hunter let out a relieved sigh as he stretched out his arms and wiped his sweaty brow, like he had finished putting in a long day's work tending to his farm rather than physically breaking someone apart. There was no move to continue his attack once the old man was satisfied in knowing that Stiles wasn't going to uncurl from his huddled position on the floor anytime soon. However, that didn't stop the venomous words from continuing to spill into the air like a toxic vapor. "Not that that mindless thing would have any understanding of that. With nothing more than a few honeyed words and a wink, Kate single-handedly was able to reveal the beast beneath. So barbaric and dimwitted, he couldn't even think beyond his carnal urge to breed, spilling his secrets like a little songbird at the drop of a hat. The thing was too stupid to even look after his own kind. Led her straight to his den! See, that is what makes the difference between man and animal. Loyalty and devotion. It's what I like in you, Stiles. Here you are, beaten black and blue, yet still unwilling to rat out your so-called friends. That kind of devotion keeps you human. But tell me, young man, when the next pretty little thing tosses her hair at your 'pack', where do you think their loyalties are going to lie? Do you honestly think Scott would ever pick to save you over Allison? We already know Derek wouldn't, seeing as he would rather see his family burn in favor of any warm body he can find. What about these two? Or any other members of the Hale pack for that matter? If I were to cut them down right now, do you think either of them would rescue you? Because I'd be willing to bet they'd run with their tails tucked between their legs straight to their Alpha. They are driven solely by their instincts to feed, fuck, and flee. Face it, boy. Your loyalties are ill-founded. It would probably be in your best interest to stick with your own kind in the future."

In a whorl of misty fog, the Argent basement slowly faded away to a different setting.

The werewolf found himself now sitting beside Stiles in his Jeep as he drove himself home in silence, presumably only minutes after the beating that had occurred. Derek placed his hand carefully on top of this young Stiles' incorporeal one resting on the gear shift. It was all pointless, he knew, but at least this way he could pretend that he was doing anything to soothe the pain. Derek could trick himself, for just a second, into believing that maybe, in some way, this past version could feel even the tiniest bit of comfort from him.

God, it hurt.

Stiles hadn't said a word or shed a single tear during the entire drive. The silence was the eerie photo-negative of the chattering Stiles he knew. Even when he was furious or upset, Derek was so used to the constant stream of words occasionally mixed with tears and frustrated cries that seeing this quiet boy—gazing through his windshield with the blank stare of a prisoner of war—it scared him. It was like watching an echo of Stiles clicking on his right turn-signal to go home as if he hadn't been beaten into the ground and was now bleeding from his face. This Stiles felt wrong.

He felt wrong and hurt inside in a way Derek didn't know how to fix.

If they had been outside of the memory right then, the wolf wasn't sure he would know how to fix present-Stiles either.

[Part 2 of snippets]

[falmerbrook]

I have an idea for a skyrim longfic that I really like, but one of the biggest hurdles to actually writing it is that I straight up have to do research on the relevant lore in the same manner I used to do research for college, and it doing so gives me the ick. I thought I was done with that stuff but alas...

[nixknacks0-0]

would loooove to hear about the tina / jimmy jr. jealousy fic and also the chloise meetcute!

Haha of course, both great options

The Tina/Jimmy Jr Jealousy is on the spicier side, pretty short but still good practice for that sort of thing.

I remember wanting to explore a slightly older them, as well as digging into Jimmy's obvious jealousy. It's a really fun dynamic to write, and I'll post a snippet below for you (⁠｡⁠•̀⁠ᴗ⁠-⁠)⁠✧

He didn't look at her, but his hand was tightly gripping hers.

"Oh. Oh, are you jealous?"

"Tsk, of course I am Tina. I can't help it, I just want you all to myself. You mean so much to me, but you seem interested in every other guy you see."

He pulled her closer.

"What do I have to do to get your attention?" He asked softly.

Tina blushed, her heartbeat racing as a comfortable heat settled in her stomach. He was only a few inches taller than her, but as he pulled her tight against him and leaned over, it was the perfect height to look up at him.

There was friction in the air as their eyes met, and Tina smirked as she glanced at his lips.

I don't think anyone will be surprised at what happens next

I think I've actually spoken on the Chlouise meetcute file before, but it's always so fun.

The tl;dr is that Zeke drags Louise to the gym, she ends up seeing Chloe from across the room and not recognizing her. Of course she thinks that she's really attractive, convinces Zeke to help find out if she's straight, Zeke recognizes her and hold it over Louise's head for a while. Louise eventually talks with Chloe and figures it out, but is still way too attracted to her. Cue cute little gym rivalry between them which eventually escalates and there is tension and someone inevitably asks someone out

Tragically, I've only really gotten around to writing bits of the first act, but even still I think it is such and interesting way to bring up some rivalry action for adults who used to know each other but not really. There are a few fun surprising character moments planned for both of them (⁠ ⁠ꈍ⁠ᴗ⁠ꈍ⁠)

[uraniumshark]

Bury Me Low Snippet 1

Watching as the robot president announced the Americube, Rylie sighed deeply. She had never been a real fan of the ROBOTUS project, but it wasn’t her place to voice her worries about a project that wasn’t hers. But now it was another mess to clean up with ghost powers and then cover up. Probably. Though, then that would lead to questions on where ROBOTUS went when she dealt with it…

While watching the office descend into chaos was kind of fun, it also hampered her own work. Which she wanted to get back to as soon as possible, she was so close to a breakthrough with project REGOO.

Taking a swig of an ecto-shake, Rylie realized she didn’t know much about the scientist in charge of the ROBOTUS project—Dr. Reagan Ridley—if she was being honest. They had met in passing a few times, but both of them seemed to prefer working on their own so not many pleasantries had been exchanged. Which was fine with Rylie, she didn’t know a majority of her coworkers to begin with.

Rylie didn’t let anyone else work with her in the Ghost Department of Cognito Inc. With her ghost powers, it was more of a danger to herself if she let others in. But there was also the fact that she worked best on her own to begin with.

Thinking about it, Rylie realized she wasn't much different from Dr. Ridley. Brilliant scientists devoted to their work, work they felt would change the world. Some days, Rylie wondered what it would be like to work with Dr. Ridley and the rest of her team, but then she was reminded that she needed to stay on her own. Her powers made keeping people close an impossible task. Not if she was keeping what she could do a secret.

With a sigh, Rylie stood up and transformed. “Time to go end an evil robot president.”