#the difference in the amount of ideas I come up with vs the amount I actually write is massive

[akelafang]

Fic idea:

After Morgause's ritual that allows Arthur to talk to his mother, the veil between her and the living world has weakened. Ygraine's spirit is able to pass through and she starts haunting the shit out of Uther in revenge for what he did to her and his treatment of Arthur since then. She also uses some of her time to spend with Arthur cause he did not get enough time with her!

[grinchwrapsupreme]

being super normal about White calling Billy "a dreamer"after the events of Maybe No Go

[nature-played-a-trick-on-me]

Moodboard

[justanotherbirdbrain-blog]

A Workshop for Creating Magical/ Fictional Crystals: A Guide from a Geologist

Hi folks, its me, here to talk about fictional writing again! Today I'm just tackling the idea of magical stones/mana stones by looking at existing minerals today and some neat properties that they have, and how you can apply these things to a fictional world. The goal is mainly to help you if you are stuck trying to come up with a unique magic system, or a unique identification/characteristic of your mineral.

First Things First: Mineral Shapes

I am exhausted, petered out, down-right fatigued by seeing every mineral depicted with having the crystal structure of calcite and quartz. There are soooooo many cooler, more interesting crystal structures, don't you think you would stop and take a look at a perfect cube in nature? It is completely unsettling.

Second: Color

Color within minerals can either be really important, or not important at all! It is your choice to decide if color is going to be something that means something to your mineral. But what are some times when the color is important? Well.... there are some elements that are called chromophores, this classification just indicates that these elements, when present, will determine the color of whatever they are in. So, if you wanted to treat mana like a chromophore, you could say, "Oh everything that contains mana turns green!" This could mean that regardless of the mineral, if that mineral is a specific color, it means it contains mana. This concept is exciting because you can just stop here and use minerals that already exist! You can also use it as an indicator for a magical ore! Chromophores are typically metals, so if you are making a new metal weapon, making the ore of that metal a unique color would make a lot of sense!

However, your mineral can also just be every color of the rainbow like quartz and perhaps that's what makes identifying your mana stones elusive and create an illusion of scarcity that your character can solve.

There are other things that can change the colors of minerals, like radiation damage, and electron exchange, but I think that is beyond what would be helpful! So lets talk about some unique color properties that happen in nature that seem magical in the first place! Maybe you don't need to design a mana stone, but you want a unique gemstone that only the royal family passes down or something (IDK).

The first one is the alexandrite effect! This is where a mineral can change color in natural light vs. incandescent light. (the mineral itself is not changing, but the lights contain different amounts of different colors that then get absorbed by the stone). Even if you don't use electricity in your fictional world, you could have the colors change in the presence of light magic. This could create fun misunderstandings about what the mineral is reacting to!

Pleochroism

Pleochroism is something that most minerals have, it is frequently used to help identify minerals in thin sections, however minerals are usually not pleochroic enough for it to be visible to the naked eye! Pleochroism is just a fancy name to describe the change in how light is absorbed based on the angle of the mineral! So if you scroll up to the first image where I showed a lot of crystal shapes, most of them have angles where they are longer and shorter! This will effect the way light travels in the crystal. Tanzanite is a popular mineral that does this.

Photochromism

This is when a mineral will change color (in a reversible way) when exposed to UV light (or sunlight), I am not going to go too into the details of why this is happening because it would require me to read some research papers and I just don't feel like it. The mineral that is best known for this is Hackmanite!

Alright! These are all the really cool color effects that might inspire you or maybe not, but now I am going to talk about how you might find your minerals within a rock!

When I see a lot of magical caves/mines, typically I see them with some variation of a geode honestly, but most minerals are not found like that! Now I am sure most of you guys have seen a geode, so I will not really talk about those, but I will talk briefly about porphyroblasts which is when the mineral grows larger than the minerals around it, this happens in metamorphic minerals!

sorry random stranger, but this is an image of garnets inside a finer-grained rock at gore mountain in New York!

Another way you might find minerals is in a pegmatite! This is when all minerals are really large! This is a formed from really slow crystalizing magma!

But something else to think about is that your mineral might just be massive, it doesn't have to have distinct crystals, it may be similar to jadeite where small grains grow together which leaves it looking smooth and seamless! A note about all of these is that you would have to mine into the rock to find these, there would not be any natural caves in these rocks! Caves are only ever really formed in limestones and maybe marbles (rocks that react with acid).

How can your characters identify these minerals?

Typically when you are out in the field you will look to see what type of rocks the minerals are found in (The overall texture of the rock will tell you how it formed). If you know how the rock formed, it will narrow down the amount of minerals you need to think about by quite a bit! Next, you are going to look closely at it and observe its crystal structure, does it have an obvious crystal? if so what is the general shape? If it is broken, how did it break? Did it fracture like glass or did it break along uniform planes. Some minerals have a thing called cleavage (breaks along planes of weakness). If a mineral exhibits this habit, it will again help narrow this down. Next we can look at color. Color can be misleading, because minerals like quartz can be any color imaginable, but minerals like olivine will always be green! The next thing your character can do is test for hardness, minerals all have a specific hardness that can help identify it as well.

After you go through all of this, your mineral might have some special property! This could be magnetism, fluorescence, reactions to acid, or any of the color changing effects I mentioned above! Other than that, your character can take it back to a lab and do a number of things to identify it, but the most typical thing would be for them to make a thin section (very thin piece of the rock) and observe it under a cross polarized microscope!

On that note folks! I hope this helped in some way in thinking of new magic mineral properties! I have other guides that explore some different fictional worldbuilding issues you might run into, but if you have any topics you would like me to cover please that I haven't mentioned already, let me know!

[queermikewheelertruther]

mileven vs byler fight

I think by now we’ve all seen that “I really want s5 to be milevens season” post, but I noticed something interesting about it.

“No fights.” Now this isn’t just specific to this post, I’ve seen plenty of other milevens say similar things and just generally being against the idea of a mileven fight.

But compare this to Bylers. I’ve seen countless amounts of posts wishing/begging for another Byler fight, a rain fight, etc. But why is this? What’s the difference between mileven and Byler’s fights?

With Byler, their arguments always end resolved. Mike apologies to Will, and they tend to have some sort of intimate moment(s) afterwards. But compare this to mileven, they don’t. Any relationship issues mileven has had throughout the series haven’t really been resolved.

These problems just kind of build up overtime and result in things like an argument “you can’t come back from.” I also feel like this is why milevens don’t want a mileven fight again. They know that it wasn’t really fixed. Their relationship isn’t doing so well by the end of s4.

As for Byler, their fights build on to their relationship, and also just their characters. As we’ve seen in s4, the rain fight encouraged Mike to join a dnd campaign again, and also attempt to bring the party back together. And their s4 fight, well I mean, all I have to say is the flirtatious bedroom scene(s) LMAOO

But milevens can clearly see that it’s not the same case for mileven. A fight wouldn’t help their relationship, because they don’t understand each other when they have a disagreement romantically.

(id also like to add that milevens arguments just… aren’t on the same level as bylers. for example, milevens ‘fight’ in s3 didn’t feel emotional. it felt like the average teen couple breaking up but it didn’t feel devastating or even that big of a deal. as for byler, they want you to feel kind of taken back by their fights. they want you to go “wow, this is a pretty serious argument that no other friendship seems to have in the show.” and for a reason too. milevens fight in s4, it was upsetting but in a specific way. they’re trying to make it feel unappealing, hence why mileven is always separated and having problems throughout the series.)

[cipheress-to-k-pop]

romantic vs platonic

Pairing: Dick Grayson x Reader (Established Relationship), Conner Kent x Reader (Platonic)

Word Count: 1k words

romantic:

Dick burrowed his face into your neck, breathing in your familiar scent and letting out a deep sigh once your fingers began running through his hair, gently massaging his head.

He took another deep inhale and twirled a lock of your hair in his fingers as he began placing kisses to your neck. It was that one strand that was always curlier than the rest.

"Your hair smells great, baby." He murmured and your eyes fluttered shut, the warmth in Dick's embrace beginning to put you to sleep. You thanked him for the compliment with a small kiss to the crown of his head.

"I love it when my pillow smells like your shampoo the next day." He confessed and you melted.

A hot blush was growing on your face and your bleary eyes took in the sincerity of his smile. Pressing a palm against his chest, feeling his faint heartbeat beneath your fingertips, you leaned close to kiss him.

“I love you.”

"I love you more."

platonic:

You sighed, letting your hair out of the uncomfortable ponytail that you had haphazardly put up so that it wouldn't be in your face while you ate lunch.

That single strand had been uncomfortably tugging against your scalp for last thirty minutes and you gently ran your fingers through the stands, bringing instant relief—

"Woah!!"

That was until someone reached out and yanked your hair so hard you almost fell flat on your behind.

"Dude, what shampoo do you use? Your hair smells great!" Conner commented, reaching out to grab a lock of your hair so he could sniff it once again and you smacked his hand away, staring at your best friend with an expression of disgust mixed with absolute bewilderment.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?"

***

romantic:

You stepped out of the bathroom, gently toweling your hair dry as you tossed some clothes in the hamper as you stepped back into the bedroom.

Dick looked up from his place on the bed, giving you a passing glance before he nearly broke his neck to look back at you in surprise, a grin growing on his face that was partly lovestruck, partly teasing but completely genuine.

"Is that my T shirt?"

You chuckled at the sight of his impish grin that threatened to split his face, choosing to ignore his blatant staring of your ass that peeked from the hem of the shirt.

"Yeah? Is that okay? I didn't bring any clothes with me." You explained, towel joining your clothes in the hamper when you had decided your hair was dry enough and you perched yourself on his lap, his hands immediately coming to wrap around your waist.

"More than okay," He chirped and you kissed his expectant lips, "You look beautiful."

platonic:

The amount of time it took Conner to recognize that there was something different about you was absolutely disappointing as you lay in wait, glancing up at him occasionally as you absentmindedly browsed through your phone.

"Is that my T shirt?"

You hid the cheshire grin on your face and instead schooled an expression of surprise, "Is this your shirt? Oh, I had absolutely no idea! I thought it was a communal shirt! Considering it was left in the dryer for the last couple days!"

He rolled his eyes, immediately knowing what you were on.

"Because you see, I know you wouldn't leave your clothes in the dryer for days so that it would impede me while I was trying to get my laundry done after the countless reminders I had given you. So I just assumed that this shirt was available for the taking. You know what the scholars say: 'Finder's keepers, losers weepers'."

You still managed to give him a smile even though your words came out through gritted teeth.

"I'm sorry, alright? I won't do it again."

You gave him a fake chuckle, "Yes, you won't because as of this moment you don't have any clothes left to launder. Considering they are my clothes now."

He glared at you.

***

romantic:

"Babe! You're never going to believe what just ha—What's wrong?" The delight in his voice immediately dimmed as soon as he caught a glance of you buried underneath the covers with your back facing him.

He knew you were awake; the frantic motions you had made to wipe away your tears as soon as he entered had told him enough.

"Baby, what happened? Why are you crying?"

He didn't even wait for a response before sitting beside you on the bed, leaning down to press several kisses to your hair. You didn't reply, sniffling and hiding your face against your pillow as you felt a fresh new wave of tears hit you.

"Oh, darling."

And then you were back again in the warmth of his loving arms. He wrapped himself tightly around you, making the heavy pain in your chest alleviate and be replaced with the content you usually found when lost in his embrace.

Before you could control it, you were sobbing softly into his shoulder while he cradled you against him, gently patting your back and raking his fingers through your hair, "Let it out; let it all out."

platonic:

Conner could only stare at you in equal parts of concern and disbelief as you continued to wail in front of him, tears streaking down your cheeks in fat droplets, each followed by an equally fat successor, all while you continued to wheeze and gasp for air in the middle of your sobs.

"And-and-and-*gasp*-then he-then he-*gasp*-he—"

"BITCH SPIT IT OUT!"

"He hung up on meeeee!" You wept, now hiding your splotchy face in your hands. He let out an affronted scoff, offended on your behalf but still sitting beside you to gently pat your back. Well, he thought it was gentle. You, on the other hand, felt the sobs being knocked out of you with each 'pat'.

When your loud wails eventually dissolved into equally loud squawks as you attempted to catch your breath, he asked, "Do you want me to beat him up?"

Finally, you were able to crack a smile.

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[ghostflowerhotpotch]

Earth-65 Is NOT in the 90s

I had seen this come up both in tumblr and in twitter, in twitter actually getting decent numbers for some reason; and while I don't think there is a lot of people making that mistake (YET) I setting the record straight.

There are smartphones in all of these pictures, Gwen has one since the first movie.

I had seen some people go with "well is an alternate universe so maybe-" and by that logic you can say this is 2099 and they are behind.

I think this just annoys me because I know exactly where the people are getting these ideas, and it amounts to people 1) Not reading 2) The old telephone game of parroting stuff without checking.

This is from the Across the Spider-verse Artbook. As you can see, it hints at being inspired by the 90s, but that vs being actually the 90s is a big difference.

And again, the LOOK in the comics, the comics are also not set in the 90s; and even if they were, the Spider-Gwen comics canon are SO laughably different the idea of that being a defence is hysterical.

[transfemmbeatrice]

beatrice muchadoaboutnothing is a trans woman: a brief treatise

thematically, i think in a play about the social vulnerability of women, having a character be a trans woman just makes sense as a way to provide depth to that idea. specifically, i love the concept of beatrice's view of men being informed by her own experiences as a closeted trans woman (it's amazing what people will say in front of you when they think you're one of them) and as someone later facing sexism and transmisgoyny.

usually when someone does a trans reading of this play/character, they look at beatrice's famous speech about wishing she was a man and interpret her as a trans man, which is perfectly valid! but this idea started for me with the simple thought that i wanted an out and accepted trans character to play with rather than a closeted one who cannot transition, just as a matter of personal preference at that particular time and with this particular text. but then i kept thinking.

as above, the concept of beatrice reading men for filth in the context of having lived among them is great. the "oh god that i were a man" speech is extremely disparaging of men and what they claim to be vs how they actually wield their power. what she wishes is that she had the power that men have automatically in her society--felt all the more keenly because there was a time when she was able to wield that power and she gave it up to be happy, to be herself, to be free in a different way. (here is where i sometimes imagine beatrice regretting ever transitioning, believing that her own happiness and health is less important than having the power to protect hero's happiness and health, because i love angst.) but now that the worst has happened, she is reduced to begging a man for help and it's demeaning and infuriating and tragic.

i also love turning on its head the line "i cannot be a man with wishing, therefore i will die a woman with grieving." being a trans person, dealing with internalized transphobia, knowing that transitioning will put a target on your back, wishing you could just be the gender you're born as--but no amount of wishing will make her not a woman. i think she loves herself and her gender but the play is focusing on points of conflict so that's what i'm talking about here.

in a play about misogyny, the vulnerability of women, and the hypocrisy of men, a trans woman has a unique perspective on both masculinity and femininity both as genders and places in society. (in the ideal version, i think john would be a trans man to mirror this experience, but that would require him to be rewritten to have actual depth and personality and all that is a different essay). there is also just a particular kind of strength that comes from having to carve out and defend your identity in that way which i think fits her very well.

lastly, a couple of other miscellaneous things from the text that can tie in:

beatrice recounting "a double heart for his single one" meaning both "i loved him twice as much as he loved me" and "i loved him as two people: [birthname] and beatrice"

benedick insisting he wouldn't marry her even if "she were endowed with all that Adam had left him before he transgressed." Adam, not Eve. in MY illustrious opinion, this is benedick saying "i don't care HOW big her dick is i'm NOT gonna marry her."

[fairydares]

loook i get why the idea of riding the "anti/pro" fandom disk horse makes people gag a little in their mouth and try to opt out entirely, but here's why i went from feeling exactly the same way to taking a firm profiction stance. I've been meaning to make this post for a while.

~10 years ago, I posted a fic for the first time and it got its own harassment campaign. The fic wasn't even sexual, and wasn't going to be (it remains incomplete). It was accurately rated T on fanfiction.net. Anyone in the Fairy Tail fandom will understand this: I literally got harassed for writing a "Lucy leaves the guild" fic💀.

After many nice comments, someone left a pretty nasty one. Hurt, I messaged them back. They acted super attacked that I'd responded (lmao) and after we argued, threatened to "rip my shitty story apart in the comments section" if I responded again. I told them "go ahead lol."

They went ahead.

Now know that it was a relatively small harassment campaign, but at the time, it was devastating. Right around then, I wound up in the hospital. After I got out, I went to excitedly check my fic, and found several reviews saying things I wouldn't repeat to my worst enemy. I was suicide-baited more than once, told "thank fuck you finally abandoned this shitty story, dumb cunt," stuff like that.

There were several accounts involved, and I can't say for sure, but I suspect at least a couple different people were involved, though probably at least half of it was one person.

All the other comments were screeching about how I hadn't updated, mostly. "NO UPDAAATEE WHY DOES THIS ALWAYS HAPPENS TO MEEEE??!!!" was one that stood out after I'd been miserable in a hospital for an extended period of time.

Idk what people think is going on when FT fic authors write this trope, and frankly I don't give a fuck. Because while I was partly writing the story out of some young, cringe feminist rage, I also did genuinely have a real story I was compelled to tell. I was inspired by another, popular fic I loved which used the trope to talk about how trying to shoulder our burdens alone really just hurts both ourselves and everyone who cares about us.

My own story was ultimately going to have similar themes, with more focus on strength, what it means, and in what contexts earning and having it actually matters. In retrospect, no wonder I wound up in hot water, because at the time "Lucy vs. Strength vs. Misogyny" was the FT fandom's Designated Nonsensically Activist Debate™. But that's partly why i wanted to write about it; engaging with the fandom had gotten me thinking about it 🤷‍♂️

Not too long after that, FFNet oh-so-benevolently granted us the ability to delete comments from our own stories (they never took my reports seriously at all, afaik). I deleted all or most of the harassers' comments (may still be a one or two up, and i'm fairly sure there's a couple comments defending my fic from the harassment) without saving screenshots, which I really regret now. I was just so mortified and full of self-loathing about the whole thing that i wanted to forget it completely. Something that had brought me joy at a very lonely, vulnerable period of my life had turned so negative, and i couldn't even tell the people closest to me about it without being made fun of for writing anime fan fiction.

I didn't understand why this happened at the time, but--after a period of trying to forget/bid out of it all with a slight anti lean (a common approach I see people use, and one which I'm not proud of adopting)--I just had to figure out What the Fuck Even Happened There. And I'm telling you, after years of reflecting, wrestling with both sides, and educating myself, that this "status quo of harassment" culture which pervades fandom goes way deeper than you think and comes out of a way darker well than you probably realize. An astonishing amount of this is, quite literally, TERF shit and evangelical shit.

Trying to be in fandom and take a stance of, "Anti/Pro shit? Ew, I'm Not Touching that," is like swimming in a heavily polluted river and being like, "Poison? Cringe. Not me lol."

You might be lucky enough to be in a less-polluted part of the river (AKA a relatively non-toxic fandom, in which case good for you!)...but tbh this rhetoric and peer-signalling will still seep in.

I can't stress enough that pro-fiction, AKA "proship", is the normal, leftist-about-art-and-sex opinion. Pro-ship is against all the horrible things you're against; in fact, pro-ship isn't trivializing real trauma by equating it with fictional trauma, or trying to apply literal evangelical/radfem solutions--which are proven not to prevent or help. Profiction/proship is literally just saying, "Fiction is fiction, reality is reality, and the two don't have a 1:1 relationship. And historically, trying to censor just things we've decided are bad has done nothing but get LGBTQ+ and POCs censored. Therefore, depictions of illegal things shouldn't be censored." That's it. "Proshippers all ship problematic ships," is a brazen lie. Many of them share other fans' disgust for those ships, they just don't believe in censoring fic authors over it.

It is also taking a stand against harassment because--and I hope my own story has helped drive this home--as with all groups who adopt ingroup/outgroup thinking, antis are defined by their tactics, not actual stances on real, serious issues. What happened to me was absolutely a result of anti, "it's okay to 'bully out' anything I just don't like" mindset pervading fandom. In a way, this was the mindset's final form. They didn't even feel the need to cite a reason the trope was "bad" or "wrong"; it annoyed them, and they viewed their own feelings as a valid enough pathway for policing to go right ahead and do so.

In the interest of offering solutions instead of just bitching about problems, I might make a "how to know if you've bought into these types of views"-type post sometime. Also might come back to this and provide some sources/citation.

[g-xix]

Pub golf Forfeit // ArthurTV

🙏 xLoving mr ATV eternally 🙏 Content: kinda fluffy ig, extra-long 5k+ wordcount CWs: Alcohol

------------------------------------------

‼️READ THIS IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT PUB GOLF IS‼️ (if you do, skip this bold writing and move onto the main story)

Pub golf is a game where you visit a set amount of pubs and get different drinks at each one- and you need to try and finish these drinks without having to lower it, as many times as possible. 

TheBurntChip has used this concept with Harry W2S, ReevHD, Theo Baker, ArthurTV, ChrisMD, George Clarkey, and more- and that is what this oneshot is based around.

KEY TERMS: "Hole" -> the name of the pub. e.g. Hole 3 is the third pub that's been visited "Par" -> Number of sips/gulps it took to finish the drink Forfeit -> self explanatory but whenever the rules are breached/smth bad happens, a forfeit card is pulled and needs to be done. 

Reminder to always drink responsibly as per usual, only drink when you're legally allowed to do so and stay safe when going drinking.

-----------------------------------

"ArthurTV and Maddie!"

I turned to look across the line, my eyes meeting Arthur's.

It was my first time doing a pub golf on the TheBurntChip channel and I was somewhat terrified. Sure, I'd known all the other boys ranging from years to just a few months- but I'd grown just as close with George Clarkey, who I had only met a few months ago, to Harry, who I'd known for years, having first met him when big brother Chris and Harry filmed their football videos together.

But one thing that all of the boys knew for certain, was that I had developed a little online crush on ArthurTV. Of all of Chris' friends, I'd never had the pleasure of meeting Mr TV in real life until that moment, when Harry had let it slip to Freezy who'd let it slip to Chip that I liked Arthur... thus Chip DMed an invite to for a pub golf video alongside Harry, Reev, Chris, George Clarkey, Theo Baker, and of course, Arthur.

Oh and as if it wasn't bad enough, Chris, my very own half-brother, knew I had a crush on Arthur.

"That's quite a interesting pairing isn't it, Maddie?" Chris snickered from the side with a grin I knew meant that he was going to have the time of his life teasing me for the next few hours. 

"Bit of a coincidence if you ask me, Chrissy." Harry sneered from besides Chris, making my insides churn.

I wasn't so much a YouTuber as the rest of the boys- I was originally Chris's one and only member of the camera crew and production. In that small bedroom in Jersey, Chris and I would sit together on a desk and make lists of ideas for football challenges, ways to execute them, different shots to make the video dramatic... Then, we would hit the pitches and try to film without the older boys telling us to bugger off so they could play on the pitches.

Then, people started noticing the voice behind the camera, leading to me making a BROTHER VS SISTER  video for the channel, which was only the start of coming in front of the camera more. As Chris hired professional camera men and got set production budgets from serious producers, I was pushed more in front of the camera, making videos with Harry and Chris before lurching into the British YouTube scene, initially gravitating towards the e-boys content, before relocating moreso to reaction content with George Clarkey and Cam Kirkham. 

And we don't talk about that Stephen Tries sketch I attempted.

The fans were pleased with my occasional cameos in videos on the British YouTube channels, always finding new ship names for whoever I collaborated with, or new clips to edit, or rumours to spread... but overall, I couldn't be happier with where I've ended up. 

Well, not where I'd ended up whilst filmed pub golf- right in the middle of Chris and Harry's teasing. 

"How's it a coincidence?" Arthur asked, wide brown eyes swivelling between Harry, Chris and I like a deer caught in headlights.

"Oh, just because I said I uhm..." I started. Shit, quickly Maddie, think of something quickly... My thoughts began racing. Of course Chris would begin hinting towards the fact I had a crush on Arthur not even five minutes into the recording."Chris pointed out on the way here that us two were the only ones that have never collaborated together before... Like, you know... on a video..."

Yes he knows you meant on a video, genius. Great, you sound as thick as a brick now. 

"Oh yeah, that is true actually," Arthur realised, his face lighting up as the thought seemed to land in his head. He was so expressive with his voice- like an animated Pixar character, seemingly straight out of the movie. His voice was so calm, and slightly husky, and somehow matched his face perfectly. "You should come onto the channel if you like watching those 90 day fiancée type of programmes-"

"Arthur's playing the 9 minute fiancée game right now, by the looks of it-" George giggled, nudging me from behind which only made my cheeks burn red, Arthur simply laughing it off before responding.

"Is it working though, Maddie?" Arthur flashed a grin with a quick wink, myself pretending to fall into George's arms and fan myself with my hands, jokefully pretending I was falling for it. 

The real joke was that I wasn't just pretending to fall for it.

Arthur's biggest asset were those fucking eyes. They had me melting with how wide and doe-like they were- his eyes seeming to light up whenever he started a topic that interested him. 

"You're not chatting her up are you, Arthur?" Reev raised his brow and crossed his arms to ask. Out of all of the boys, Reev was the most like a brother in the fact he was so protective- always trying to make sure I was safe. The others were more like brothers in the fact they'd just tease me and get under my skin at every opportunity. 

I watched as Arthur's eyes widened, as he assumed Reev was trying to intimidate him.

"Give him a break, Reev, he's just having a laugh," I defended Arthur, not letting him respond to the allegation in fear that Arthur would shake his head or say that he really wasn't interested in me. That could wait until a few more holes, when I was too peppered to care.

"Well, listen to this you two, for your couples outfit, you two will be going as... The prisoner and the policeman...! or woman!" Chip exclaimed, throwing the outfits to us. 

I looked a the policewoman outfit he had handed to me- the costume coming with a short skirt, unscrupulous tie and lopsided police hat.

This was gonna be a long video...

...

"Hole one, the rule on his hole is that you must drink it with your left hand!"

Hole one was easy. Arthur sent his pint down in one and after Harry and Reev, it was my turn to have my pint of lager. 

"You want me to hold your hair back?" He offered. I searched for a band on my wrist and almost facepalmed as I realised I hadn't thought to bring one.

"Yes please, I completely forgot to get a hairband... Just come up behind me and grab my hair, while I do it" I said, scrunching my face up with realisation of what I'd said only once it had come out of my mouth.

"What was that?" Harry asked, bursting into laughter.

"Get in, Mr TV-"

"Please, not at that at the drinking table-"

"Not on the Chippo YouTube channel, you won't, but I can think of another site where you could-"

"Shut up I didn't mean it like that..." I groaned and put my head in my hands. "Look, I'm just going to send off the pint-"

Arthur's hand wrapped around my hair, the other one on my shoulder, rubbing it and giving soft words of encouragement. I let the drink tip down my throat easily as I felt the face heat up, his words landing hot on the back of my neck and making me want to shiver, despite the fact I was holding the drink. I could feel my face burning when I dropped the glass back down, grinning with the fact I had done it in one...

"That was really good- I didn't think you could finish it in two." Harry commented, nodding his head in surprise.

"I did it in one though?"

"Counted as two points though- you drank it with your right hand." Chip explained with a devious grin. 

Of course I had been stupid enough as to forget the rule- too fixated on gorgeous bloody Arthur instead of what I was actually meant to be doing. Drinking.

"That one's Arthur's fault- Maddie was too distracted by waiting for you to come up behind her-"

"SHUT UP, GEORGE!" Arthur's face went into his hands this time, both of us clearly a blushing mess from all the comments the boys were making. 

...

"What does your forfeit card say?" Arthur asked as we travelled to the next hole, not downcast despite my mess-ups, as we were still in joint second. 

"Sing a song with your partner at one of the holes." I read it off. "Sorry for getting you roped into it..."

"No, no, that's actually one of the only one's I'd happily be roped into," Arthur shook his head. "I suppose we just need to think of a song to sing... You a fan of Harry Potter?"

"Am I?!" I repeated enthusiastically. "You have no idea how much I used to love those books, movies... Even the Cursed Child I went and saw."

"Seriously? I just get called a nerd whenever I say I like Harry Potter," Arthur gawked. "Do you have a wand?"

"Yep, Ginny's wand- black and fourteen inches." I proudly nodded. "You could see those fourteen inches later ya know..."

"Only if you're trying to see a rather bendy, sixteen inch one with waterproofing." Arthur retaliated with confidence. 

"You got Hagrid's wand?"

"Duh, it came with an umbrella."

"Of course that's why you'd get it."

"This is hole two to the left, here!" Chip bellowed from behind. I lagged behind slightly to walk with Chris and Harry- catch up with them for a moment.

"You and Arthur getting cozy, eh?" Chris wiggled his brows, looking forwards to Arthur who was petting a dog with Reev- the both of them looking completely out of place, dressed in a bright orange prisoner jumpsuit and Reev as ketchup bottle (with a hat for a lid)- though the dog seemed pleased nonetheless. 

"Just don't let me catch you two snogging after a few more drinks." Harry put bluntly, making my eyes go wide.

"Just because you guys know I like him doesn't mean he likes me back, unfortunately." I reminded them, though I could feel my heart melting as Arthur scratched the back of the dog's ear and tickled his chin, the dog happily wagging his tail with his tongue lolling out as Arthur pet him. 

"Seems to like you enough." Harry shrugged. "Like you enough to come up behind you and-"

"Seriously shut up... Did I sound that stupid when I said that?"

"Yeah."

"No"

Chris and Harry responded simultaneously.

"Okay you sounded a little flustered when you said it, but then Arthur was blushing and looked shy as well- and everyone knows he's a bit awkward around women he likes," Harry pat my back comfortingly. "If anything he looked like more of a tit than you."

"Great, thanks Harry." I responded, somewhat flatly and yet somewhat happily. 

"Maddie, your team's getting another forfeit because Arthur scared the dog away." Chip addressed me as we neared the bar.

"Like hell he did, that dog loved him!" I exclaimed, head swivelling to find Arthur guiltily wavering his eye contact.

"Theo tried to take the dog away from me by offering it something so I tried to bash him with his wheelchair but the dog got scared and ran off." Arthur explained, kicking at a pebble on the ground. 

"Did you hit Theo?"

"Yes-"

"Well then... At least you hit him."

"What the fuck, Maddie." Theo deadpanned. 

"Don't try steal Arthur's bitches I guess." I shrugged, watching as Arthur withdrew a forfeit card, his face dropping as he read it. 

"What does it say?" I asked, leaning over to try and read it. He smacked it against his chest before shoving it into a pocket, eyes wide as they met my own.

"Uhh- nothing." Arthur spluttered. "We can sort it out when we get to hole five when forfeits are actually activated... What did you say the rule for this hole was, Chip?"

"Drink with your partner holding the glass." Chip responded. 

I looked at Arthur.

"You're quite a bit taller- you're gonna have to crouch down for me to hold it." I realised, picking up the bloody mary and wrinkling my nose. "They really couldn't have picked a worse drink."

"They're foul aren't they." Arthur gave a dirty look to the glass. 

Each pair began seeing their drinks off, using a variety of methods to check whether it was too much or they needed a break.

"Do we need to do the hand-squeeze method to indicate whether it's too much?" Arthur asked, looking distastefully as Reev squeezed Harry's hand, signalling for Harry to tilt more. 

"I'm thinking we just raw-dog it." I shrugged, looking up for Arthur's reaction. He nodded in tasteful agreement.

"That's how I usually do it, anyways."

He picked one glass up. "You first," He stated instead of asking. "And open wide."

Reev gave him a neck-slap and a "Watch it, Arthur..." before I opened my mouth and tilted my head back, finishing it in one. 

"Alright, sit down so you're lower down, Arthur." I spoke through a shudder, the bitterness of the bloody mary giving me a whole-body shiver. 

Picking up a glass, I stood to the side of Arthur and held it up to his face, leaning over slightly due to the awkward angle I stood at. 

"Just come 'ere-" He reached out, steadfastly placing his hands on my hips and manspreading- pulling me between his legs so that I was closer and presumably so that he had a better angle to drink from. I felt my body react to his touch, cheeks warming and knees feeling a bit wobbly as he held his hands there for a moment longer, his grip firm but not forceful. I tried to maintain composure and stop myself from running my hands through his fluffy hair and kissing him right then and there.

"You watch your bloody hands, Arthur." Chris warned, causing Arthur to hold them up by his head as if pleading innocence. As he finally released his hold, I couldn't help but notice how the closeness between us left a lingering sensation, like an electric current still pulsating through my skin. His presence was intoxicating, and I struggled to steadily hold the glass for Arthur to down. I turned to death-glare Chris as I placed the glass back onto the table once Arthur had finished it. 

"Why would anyone voluntarily order that, that's awful... I feel like I've lost my soul after drinking that..." Arthur shivered at the bitterness. "Who knew dementors could be put in drinks..."

Laughing, I sat down besides him and leaned my head against his shoulder as if it were second nature. It felt so natural and cosy against the crook of his neck, and I felt warmed even more as he put his arm around my shoulders, watching in a comfortable silence as Chip choked on his drink from across the table. 

"You're so cute..." I murmured, and only once the words had been said did I regret them slightly. I facepalmed internally as Arthur struggled to reply for a moment, myself wondering why I had to be such a lightweight; only 2 drinks down and already I was making careless comments.

"Am I really cute?" Arthur asked after a moment, and I pulled away from his shoulder to dopily smile at him. 

"Of course you are, you have a cute little smile." I grinned, causing his lips to stretch out into a smile as he laughed slightly, eyes curving into happy little crescents as he did. "See? Cutest smile I've even seen." I giggled, and Arthur looked down with such domestic happiness in his glowing chocolate eyes I felt as though my heart were melting, simply so infatuated with him.

"Hope I'm not interrupting anything here-" Harry planted himself between Arthur and I on the bench, forcing Arthur's arm away and my head from his neck. Arthur cleared his throat and looked at the ground whilst Harry looked between Arthur and I. "What, something wrong?" Harry responded to my blank face, before grinning and giving a wink which Arthur couldn't see. 

"Prick," I hissed as I passed Harry on the walk to the third hole, causing Harry to burst into laughs and start explaining to Chris what he's done- only making Chris laugh alongside him. 

Pricks.

...

Hole three was easy- just a glass of wine and pub quiz Arthur and I managed to lose a point at for winning the quiz. 

As the smallest person there, I was also the least able to handle large amounts of alcoholic units- and it had begun showing, from the moment I went to stand up and almost fell back down. 

Arthur had to walk with his arm around me to the next pub, though I wasn't complaining- instead holding his hand and making him skip with me to hole four. 

"Long Island iced teas on this one," Chip explained. "And the rule here is that one member of the team must drink it blindfolded."

"I think I'm more sober than you at the minute," Arthur stated the obvious, as if I hadn't just made him skip to this hole. "I'll wear the blindfold for this one."

"You sure? I'm not completely gone right now, just a bit...Well..." It was a pointless proposition from myself. Arthur just shook his head, handing me the blindfold.

I slipped the material over his eyes, placing the drink on a separate table to that the boys wouldn't dump ice into his drink (which had just happened to Theo's drink), and directing him to the glass- though Chip had better ideas. 

"Maddie, could you please regulated the hand-" Arthur spoke waveringly, and I noticed that Chip had a hand on Arthur's arse.

"Oi, chip-" I reached over for the space hopper which was besides the bag, whacking Chip with it before being hit in the face with it myself.

"Fuck!" We both exclaimed. Arthur had found his glass and drank it in one towards the side, meanwhile Chip found Theo's wheelchair and he began fighting against me and my space hopper. "Chip, I don't think you're gonna win this one," I huffed as the space hopper bounced off of his side, making him stumble slightly. 

"Like shit won't I win- I've been going gym you know-" I cut off his rambles by throwing the hopper at him, causing him to stumble back and trip slightly over the curb so that he was sat on the pavement- allowing me to put my arm around his neck, squeezing only slightly.

"Tap out already, Chip..." I groaned whilst Chip shook his head whilst struggling.

"Chip isn't used to tapping out, he usually passes out before he gets the chance." Theo sneered from the side. That seemed to be enough to make Chip tap out. 

We finished our drinks after that before agreeing on a short grace period, where we sat around and chattered for a few minutes.

"The blindfold makes you feel like, ten times more drunk than you actually are." George said, the other who had worn the blindfold agreeing. 

"You should try it, Maddie- you're by far the most off your head right now- it'll be funny to see how you react to it."

That's how I ended up on the pavement, blindfold on and hands outstretched as Arthur directed me, his fingers occasionally brushing against mine as he'd insisted on walking beside me to make sure I didn't get a concussion from falling over anything.

"Watch the curb here, it's quite difficult navigating- WHOA" As soon as Arthur had said that, I stumbled, almost falling but Arthur held me up from behind whilst the others laughed from the table at my stagger. "You sure you wanna continue? I don't think it's safe, Maddie..."

"It'll be okay, I'm just gonna get back to the table and pull it off..."

I took a few more staggered steps, Arthur holding my hand to guide me whilst I was blinded, his hand warm and reassuring, and I felt confident with Arthur's unwavering presence by my side. His touch sent a gentle electrical ripples down my spine, igniting a spark that brought butterflies to life in my stomach as I focussed less on walking and more on Arthur.

But then I felt a blow to my head- not painful- but extremely forceful.

Some voices screamed "CHIP!" whilst another shouted "Maddie!" as I staggered, waiting to fall- before feeling hands on my back and the crook of my knees, gravity seeming to turn upside down for a moment, before the blindfold was ripped off. 

Arthur's face was above my own, looking forwards as he walked- his two strong arms holding me flush to his body as he carried me in what I assumed was bridal style- having prevented my fall. He looked gorgeous from this angle- his chiselled features accentuated by the soft glow of the sunshine through the dull English clouds- and his eyes, like pools of warm honey, never not making me melt.

"You okay, Maddie?" He looked down and questioned, eyes full of concern and yet also alighting sparks within me as they met my own.

"What? Of course I am... What even happened?" I asked in confusion as I looked back and saw the boys with open mouths looking between myself and Chip, who had a look of upmost guilt on his face. Arthur sat down on one of the seats surrounding the table and lowering me onto that same seat before replying. Nevermind- I was actually sat on his lap, and was NOT going to complain about it.

Chris was going to instead.

"She can sit on her own seat, Arthur-"

"She's almost been bloody ran over, she's sticking with me for now." Arthur huffed resolutely, wrapping his arms around my waist as he spoke to make his point. I felt my head go fuzzy from the touch, leaning back into his touch and resting my head onto his shoulder where it felt like it belonged... Before pulling it back off quickly as I digested his words again.

"Hang on, almost ran over? What the Hell just happened?"

"Chip thought it'd be a good idea to whack you with the space hopper whilst you were blindfolded and he knocked you off balance- you would've fallen into the road if Arthur hadn't got you." Harry explained, a small smile playing on his face. 

"Good man, Arthur." Reev nodded his head approvingly before turning to Chip. "And you, you're no better at handling your drink than her- what if she had gotten run over?"

"Good riddance, in that case." Chip sipped his water calmly, making me throw an ice cube at him.

In the end, Chip made a formal apology (which was of course easily accepted), and drew another forfeit card, having to take 3 shots to make up for almost brutally murdering me- which I thought was very fair. 

Hole five happened so quickly I didn't even register it- though that may have been also due to the knock to the head Chip had delivered. 

However on the walk between hole five to hole six, the alcohol began taking its effect on more people. 

Namely, Chris and Chip.

Chip had found the space hopper once more and began hammering Chris with it whilst Chris balled up onto the ground. "YOU STUPID BOY-" Chip was yelling between blows, Harry and Reev slapping each other between laughs. 

Then, Harry set off on his bike to the next hole as Chip let Chris get up- before we all slung our arms over each other and began the journey to hole 6, singing Backstreet Boys all the way there. 

Arthur lagged behind slightly, and though I was busy singing with Chris and Chip, I did notice they were having quite a hushed conversation, and looking our way every so often.

"Hole six- forfeits are now activated!"

"Can I know your forfeit yet?" I whispered to Arthur, and he simply shook his head with a small smile. 

"I know what it is, Maddie," Reev giggled to the side, rubbing his hands together with a look of glee on his face. 

"Is that what you two were talking about whilst we walked here?" I gasped at the realisation, looking between the two as they shrugged with all-knowing smiles on their faces. 

Hole six was easy- sambuca shots with no hands. I managed mine, though I almost choked it and chipped it when it clattered onto the table- whereas Arthur was found out for trying to dilute his drink, and was made to do two shots instead. 

Still, he didn't seem to be off his head at all.

"Arthurrr," I sang I skipped up to him, on the journey to hole seven.

"Madelyn." He nodded cordially, saying my full name before smirking as he saw my face wrinkle in disgust. "Not a fan of your full name?"

"Not when it's bloody Madelyn, I'm not," I responded, shuddering at the thought.

"Maddie sounds like you're mad," Arthur pondered. "You should just go with... Lyn."

"...Lyn." I repeated, trying to hold a laugh.

"Yeah, it's cute- just like you." Arthur grinned down, making me turn away so he wouldn't see the stupid blush that began spreading across my cheeks.

"Suddenly I quite like that name." I smiled bashfully back, and Arthur just laughed, sliding an arm around me casually and allowing me to rest my head against his shoulder as we walked in a comfortable silence.

"You're so fine, Arthur." I said after a while. "You know I like you?"

"I like you too, Lyn." He patted my head and pulled his arm away, instead slipping his hand into mine as we walked. I didn't feel satisfied with his reaction. Did he not realise I meant that I liked him romantically?

"No, I meant that like- I really like-"

"AND HERE IS HOLE SEVEN!" 

Trust Chip to ruin a romantic moment. 

just an fyi im swapping the order of the holes- everything that happened in the vid at hole 8 is now assumed to have happened at hole 7, and vice versa

"Lyn I don't think I an do another pint," Arthur put down two drinks onto the table before sitting on my lap instead of the bench, allowing me to plop my policeman hat onto his head and hug him from behind, shaking my head.

"I've been finished since hole three, Arthur- I don't care what happens now, you can just sip the whole thing and I'll be fine with that." I groaned. "I'm definitely doing this in at least three different pars..."

I did exactly that. Arthur managed his in five, alongside my words of encouragement which made Chip awhhh.

"I love how everyone hates each other and is beating each other with the space hopper between holes whilst Arthur and Maddie are too busy holding hands and being wholesome with each other, walking alone to each hole." Chip said with a disoriented smile at one of the cameras, louder than he thought he was being as both myself and Arthur watched him say it to the camera.

"Bit early to be holding hands isn't it?" Chris asked, dopily swinging his head back to Arthur and I, only just registering Arthur was also sat on my lap. "Naughty, don't be sitting on each others laps like I have no idea what's going in where when someone sits on someone's lap-"

"That's enough from you, Chris." I shushed my brother, pressing a hand to his mouth which weakly attempted to paw away from his mouth.

"On to hole eight, final hole?" Chip proposed and everyone nodded in agreement- all too ready to get this over and done with.

"I don't think I've ever been this drunk before." I admitted to Arthur as we exited the pub, hands clasped together and swinging joyfully back and forth as we walked, as though we were kids. "I feel like I'm not even walking."

"And now you really aren't even walking," Arthur said as he placed his arms on my legs and back, scooping me back into his arms, carrying me as though I were nothing. I wrapped my arms around his neck and stared up at his face I'd grown so fond of over these past few hours. 

"What song d'you wanna sing for my forfeit at the next hole?" I questioned, myself also wondering what we could sing. 

"Oh it'll come to us when we get there..." Arthur spoke lazily, jumping me up to readjust my grip causing me to let out a squeak before relaxing against his body. Did he have abs under that shirt? It felt like it. He is so fine. 

My thoughts died out as I realised this was the final hole and after this it would be all over. Thank God. 

We all clinked our jaeger bombs together, the lightweight drink easily going down in one for everyone before Chip reminded Arthur and I that we still had forfeits we had to complete.

"What is your forfeit Arthur?" Harry asked inquisitively- somehow looking as though he hadn't had a single drink, although he had in fact had the most, having ordered an extra pint for good measure.

"That's what I'm asking- he still hasn't told me, either!" I exclaimed, looking for Arthur to give his game up and show the card. "C'mon, surely you can reveal it now that it's the last hole-"

"Not before you do your forfeit-song to the bar- look- they have a karaoke machine nobody's using there, go use it before someone else takes it!" Arthur rushed, pointing at the TV screen connected to a microphone and speakers. The other boys began clamouring their agreement before pushing me up to the stage, a bundle of nerves as I stumbled up the stairs, slotting a coin into the machine and waiting for the next song to come on. 

"ArthurTV this is a GROUP FORFEIT- GET UP ONTO THE STAGE!" I shouted and held a hand out to Arthur, causing him to take my hand and get onto the stage with the help of the boys, as they cheered upon hearing the first few chords of the infamous song we were only singing a few hours ago.

I Want it That Way, by the Backstreet Boys. Of course. 

I held the mic out for Arthur to hold with me as we sang the first line.

You are... My fi-ire, the one... desi-ire

I opened my eyes and faced Arthur, the look of joy melted into his caramel eyes and making me feel soft and gentle hearted as we went to sing the next line.

Believe... When I say... THAT I WANT IT THAT WAY

I looked out to the crowd and saw that some tables had turned to face us, singing alongside the tune- and all the other boys had huddled together, arms around each other and swaying back and forth as they joined us for the chorus. 

Tell me why Ain't nothin' but a heartache

Arthur closed his eyes as he virtually shouted the lyrics into the microphone, getting so into the song I had to pause to laugh before continuing

Tell me why Ain't nothin' but a mistake Tell me why I never wanna hear you say

Arthur and I leaned it to sing the final bit of the song, heartily enjoying as the rest of the bar joined us to finish it.

I want it that way

I looked at Arthur, his own eyes meeting me own- full of a tender sort of love I had only ever seen in the movies...

Cause I want it that way...

The song ended with whistles and claps from the rest of the bar, before I dropped the microphone to the ground, wheeling around to face Arthur with a squeal and outstretched arms, as my arms wrapped around his neck, his arms found my waist, pulling me right off of the floor as he hugged me, spinning me around once before I pulled my head off of his chest and looked up at his glowing face.

My eyes only flickered down to his lips for a milisecond before I felt his on top of my own, a billion tiny fireflies lighting up and racing around my stomach as I closed my eyes, relaxing into his hands which were positioned lazily around my waist, holding me lovingly as his lips caressed my own, tuning out the world around us as I focussed on just him and I- together - his lips perfectly top of mine.

...

"What was your forfeit in the end, Arthur?" I asked, eyebrows scrunched as I sat on his lap at the table- arms around his neck and my police hat and tie around Arthur's neck. 

Theo was close to nodding off whilst Chip besides him already had. Chris had taken to the stage, wowing the bar with his drunk dancing and (not) killer vocals. Harry, George and Reev still seemed alright however, and were sat making warm conversation around the table, laughing and joking like there was nothing wrong. And truly- there was nothing wrong.

Arthur smiled slightly at my question before tugging at his pocket and pulling out the card, sharpie pen scrawled across it saying:

Give a kiss to the fittest person in the group xoxo (Doesn't have to be on the lips, Chip- we know you will anyways, but everyone else- just know you don't need to go that deep)

I laughed at the bracketed side-note before looking up to Arthur who smiled goofily down at me, looking so pleased- as though he wouldn't rather have anyone else in his arms.

My hand found the side of his face, thumb tracing his jawline and running up his cheeks before padding at his lips. Closing my eyes, I leaned it, finding his lips as we kissed once more, still with the afterglow of embers burning in my heart as I realised I couldn't be happier in anyone else's arms. 

-----------------------------------------------------

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First "I love you" (TF141 x GN!Reader Headcanons)

Since I literally can't focus on writing the series I have started, have some headcanons instead

TW: Swearing, typical COD violence and themes (mild spoilers in Price's bit), some clichè themes

Blog HQ

Ghost

Saying I love you...

You told him the first time he returned to your shared home following deployment

Sure the two of you had been together for a fair while before this, but its the first time you were alone in your shared space. It was the first time you really felt how empty home was without him.

You didn't want to distract him prior to leaving for the mission, so you whispered those 3 little words to him mid-kiss when he was home with you.

Heart full, and the breath you didn't realize you were holding all this time released. He was back in your arms. Your home was back with you.

Hearing I love you...

As with the other headcanons I write, I'm a firm believer that Simon isn't as emotionally unavailable or closed off due to past trauma as much as so much time in solitude. The last meaningful connection he had ended not the greatest, so he wasn't keen on seeking this out. It's been a while, our man is pretty uneducated in the modern romance department.

With his "lack of experience due to time alone" he is honestly a bit overwhelmed and terrified of this. He loves you, all of his heart. He loves you with the same amount of his heart as he loved them.

Sure, it's a different love altogether (familial vs romantic), but the feelings are overwhelming no less.

He clearly doesn't say it back right away (even though God he wants to). He wants to make sure he means it and portrays just how much he means it before diving right in. He wants it to be as close to perfect for you as possible.

Surprisingly, the perfect moment comes when you're falling asleep one night. You're snuggled into his chest, warm, content. Mumble a soft I love you, Simon.

His response comes naturally, a soft I love you too whispered into the darkness. Then everything just seemed to fall into place.

That night was the best sleep either of you ever had.

Gaz

Saying I love you...

I feel like with Kyle it would happen at the exact same time. Like....literally the same time. So imma just:

Saying I love you/Hearing I love you...

It would definitely come when the two of you are most comfortable around one another. Probably during a lazy night at home.

Cooking together perhaps? Little bit of teamwork, mixed with teasing comments and stolen kisses as you manuever around one another.

Or maybe playing video games (cozy couch co-op or fiercely competitive. No inbetween. Take your pick).

Flip side of the coin: you're getting wound down from a night out. Stripping out of the stupid fancy clothes you decided were a good idea to wear out. Spoiler: it wasn't a good idea. Next time let's do something more casual.

No matter what the situation is, you're doing it together and your hearts couldn't be fuller. Happily in the apartment you two share, just enjoying one another.

"I could live like this forever without complaint" you'd start, smiling over at him (even if he beat your ass at whatever game you were playing with no mercy)

"Didn't know I was dating an immortal" he'd tease back. "Share your secrets with me"

"No!"

"Why not????"

"I simply cannot share my secrets with a doof like you"

Your play argument ending in him trying to tickle you, or play wrestle you, or just anything that results in the two of you (INNOCENTLY) tangled up together. Like super clichè looking into the others eyes as you lay/sit there. Lost in the moment and realizing it's no longer "I like like you" but rather:

"I love you"

Said, by the two of you, at the exact same time.

Queue laughter, shared kisses and full hearts.

Soap

Saying I love you...

My mind automatically went to lost on a road trip trope. Like you two would plan out an entire day, wanting to visit the spot you two would hang out at all the time pre-relationship.

Except you're both too distracted by conversation and jamming to whatever playlist you had in the background to realize: your turn is well into the rear view.

By the time he realizes he's now driving on roads he doesn't recognize, it's too late. You're pretty far out of the way, and the clouds in the sky don't look super promising.

"T'hell with it! We have our lunch here" he'd propose, finding a small hill in the distance. "Our new spot™️"

So that'd exactly what you do. An improvised little lunch, in your new trademarked spot.

It was after lunch, when you both were full and ready for a food coma. You don't know what overtook you to say it. You didn't even realize you were saying it until his eyes dialted and a small smirk crossed his lips.

"You love me, aye?"

Hearing I love you...

He would have no hesitation saying it back, except for you playfully smacking him while yelling his name.

He'd be so in shock that someone as lovely as you would feel that way toward someone like him.

You!! Loving him!!

The next time he'd try to say it back, it would be interrupted by thunder in the distance, and the urgency to start packing up your things and getting home before too long.

It was when you make the journey from the vehicle to the house through the pouring rain when he decided now was the time. Watching you laugh, try and fail to keep yourself dry that it came out.

"I love you too"

"That's nice. But it's raining fucking hard so can we go inside and be cute after?"

You two were 100% cute inside after that. Lots of "I love yous" shared back and forth that night.

Price

Saying I love you...

Hear me out though, what if it were you captured with Kate (in that one mission, the one that solidified that Gaz shouldn't be in aircrafts anymore).

No matter how you feel in that moment (terrified, oddly calm, pissed to high hell) one thought would be in the front of your mind:

You've never said I love you.

Sure, you've told him the various things that you love about him. But never told him straight out that you love him in his entirety.

So as you sit, guns pointed at you. Ready to cause harm and death if needed. You find yourself reflecting on your relationship.

The ups, the downs, the victories and hardships. The way that you used to find his overbearing nature to be insufferable at times...you're now viewing it in a new light.

Maybe that's just because you're standing on death's doorstep wondering if he's going to answer today.

The crash, the chaos. You truly wonder if it's the end. Until you're pulled away from eternities grasp and brought back to reality. Face to face with your boyfriend who is clearly fighting back his own emotions. Still convincing himself that you're alive.

"I love you, John" comes out so naturally as you launch yourself at him. Ignoring the uncomfortable feeling of his gear pressing into you. He was here, he had you.

Hearing I love you...

John would 110% be beside himself. Trying to figure out how he let this happen, concerned that he won't get to you in time, letting his mind run wild with worse case scenarios.

Whether you work in the military or not -- you were never supposed to be in this type of situation.

Getting the call that you were MIA and now a POW caused his heart to stop. To grow a shade colder as he reminded himself he needs to breathe.

Won't do you a whole lot of good if he's passed out.

While he wants to call the shots and lead the charge to get you back safe, he does step back and let his teammates take point. Considering it's a glaring conflict of interest for him to be there, captain or not.

The entire time they're fighting to get to you, all he can think of is how this is inadvertently his fault. Running through everything to figure out where he went wrong. Where did he slack off? What could he have done differently?

He also vowed in this moment to keep you safe for the rest of your lives. Even if you hated him, if you never wanted to see him again because of this. He would never, ever anything like this happen to you again.

When they finally reach the front of the convoy, he's ready to pass out or punch someone out if they don't move out of his way. Much like a mama bear and her cub, you don't get between John and his love in this moment.

His team makes quick work of the enemies, as he approaches one of the doors. Heart hammering inside his chest, hands shaking slightly as tears burn the back of his eyes. Pleading to anyone listening that you be alive.

When you barreled into him and whispered those words to him he could've fallen over. His legs almost not supporting him. You were alive, you love him. You were alive. You love him. He repeated this over in his head as he held you close.

Whispering the words back, cursing himself for how his voice broke halfway through.

You were alive. You love him.

Taglist: @bloodonmyhands-1221 @v1naco @bowtruckleninja

[utilitycaster]

This is not only about FCG, but it is definitely about FCG.

Something I've always found incredibly attractive about fantasy narratives is that it's a safe space to explore heroic sacrifice. In real life, dying for a cause, even if justified, is rarely so fitting and poignant, and it usually involves ponderous discussions and arguments and above all, paperwork. And as with all things death-related, it's simply easier in fiction, where the grief comes with the knowledge that you can and always will be able to access every moment you had with the deceased.

I'm far too tired and halfway into my cocktail to split the hairs of what is suicide vs. heroic sacrifice, and if they're different, and why; but on a high level the difference is conviction.

I think a lot of people are really uncomfortable with or even scared of conviction, even in fiction. It's come up in some talks about Midst. It comes up when people are suspicious of the Volition, more so than the Vanguard. It comes up with Orym. It comes up in D&D whenever people shy away from paladins, who are built upon this as a premise.

One can argue FCG died a paladin; one can argue he always made, in some ways, a better one than he was a cleric. It comes up when people question the motives of the Volition. Perhaps it's the confidence that shakes people, the idea that these characters can't be molded into an easier, more comfortable ideology that suits the viewer. Perhaps it's a different take on the Trolley Problem than mine.

I do think in real life, at least most of the time, there are more options - often very boring and unglamorous but ultimately more effective one. In fiction, however, the heroic sacrifice isn't just rife with dramatic possibility - which is, in fiction, far more important in my mind than having a clear moral or telling the audience that they're good and smart little children - it's also a chance, as Matt says, to redefine the stakes and reframe everything that's been going on, because one character decided what their stakes were. Perhaps that's what makes people balk: the amount of power it grants you despite the prohibitively high price.

[thecrazygamingzombie]

Okay, I had to make a post about this because the amount of stupidity put on display here physically hurts me.

Let's go over all the reasons that Vaggie pulling out her wings would have been a bad idea for pretty much all of the fight!

Outside of her, the only people that can fly are Husk, Razzle and Dazzle. The latter duo were felled rather easily and Husk would be busy covering his own ass so if Vaggie took to the air she'd likely be taking to the skies by herself

the hotel was mounting a defensive line. If you know anything about tactics, when you hold the line YOU DON'T SPLIT UP THE RANKS. So Vaggie taking to the skies while nobody else could would create a hole in the ground defenses that would leave the rest of the demons more vulnerable

Vaggie was marked as a high priority target by Adam, so if she broke off from the group for ariel fights. Every single exterminator would likely swarm Vaggie as soon as she opens herself up like that. Staying on the ground was for her safety as much as everyone else's

Fighting on the ground vs fighting in the air are two very different things. Carmilla already showed she was fairly inept when it came to the former and the latter would have been even more difficult, especially since Vaggie didn't have time to brush up on both. Compounding all the aforementioned problems.

this isn't a disadvantage but: Vaggie tried to help Charlie SEVERAL times, only for Lute to keep getting in the way and keeping her busy. OR DID YOU SOMEHOW MISS THAT PART OF THE BATTLE?!

So with all that being said. What, pray tell, sort of 'much needed advantage' would a lone former exterminator taking to the skies where several other exterminators are flying around like angry hornets provide? Go on, explain to me the logic in great detail! I'm waiting! I'M ALL FUCKING EARS!!!

(come on @chaifootsteps, tell me what sort of stupid half assed logic are you gonna pull out this time to justify your braindead contrarian stance?)

[weebsinstash]

Every day I get closer to writing the "You vs YouTwo trying to steal your identity in the Spider Society" fic (which, the fic even has a name as I slowly build it, I'm calling it Imposter Syndrome because, you know, 1 Reader is starting to get depressed and feel unneeded even before YouTwo comes along and 2. Well. It's self explanatory)

But anyways I keep thinking of all of these dramatic interactions and scenes (shit I was listening to John Mulaney stand up just to write dialogue for Peter Porker, for funsies) where, thinking of either Reader being kicked out of the Spider Society and such, and them having to literally hunt you down and search for you, but. What if YOU came to them?

It's been like 3 months since you "died" after the Society mistaking you for your double and removing the dimensional watch that kept you tethered down, and there's a palpable air of depression. Spiders go to the training room you used to teach your classes in and leave flowers and mementos and share stories of their times spent with you. Maybe they even do something fucking dramatic like set up a memorial, like a plaque with your name and photo or something, but, something to help remind them to be wary of who they bring into the Society and appreciate the ones they have and so on so forth, and also like I imagine there were Spiders who were so attached to you that this entire incident makes them leave the Socety for good (like maybe Hobie equates the way you were exiled to fascist tyranny and hates Miguel more than he already does for letting it/helping it happen, for example)

But, anyways, months later, but not too terribly long for them to stsrt to forget about you, just enough time for the guilt and depression and the longing to marinate, and some Spiders are hanging out in the food court, Peter B and Jess and some of the others managing to drag Miguel out of his lab to eat and be around other people because he's just been holing up by himself almost 24/7 since you "left". Dude's a fucking mess, man, you can literally just look at him and see the dark circles under his eyes, the unwashed hair, the body odor because he fucking lives in that suit, and half the cafeteria is wondering if he's about to start crying into his stupid silly ass Miguel burger and

*FWOMP*

Some loud ass undescribable noise as the fabric of the universe suddenly shifts and, you glitch right back in and slam down on the floor besides their table. The entire room freezes as they literally had no idea you were still alive as you scramble to your feet, the first thing you notice being the food as you DIVE for Miguel's burger, snatching it right off his plate and beginning to absolutely devour it like literally gobbling that shit as the man amd everyone else is AGHAST. You've lost a significant amount of weight (like, an unhealthy amount for the time that has passed) and you're covered in bruises and scratches with tears and holes all over your suit. Your hair has knots and tangles and your Spidey suit is beyond dirty with a raggedy jacket and a tattered backpack on your body. You've just been constantly bouncing in and out of different dimensions, ricocheting all over the place this entire time, which made it hard for you to eat, sleep, bathe, do just about anything normally. One minute you're trying to swipe some food from a market because you have no money, the next you're glitching again and you're lost in an apocalyptic wasteland, or a thick jungle, or even places where shapes and colors don't operate the same as we can even comprehend it

You're constantly dropping the food because your hands keep glitching but you're clearly obviously starving, and Pavitr hands you his chai to help wash everything down, but you still pick up several beverages on the table and absolutely chug them as your friends are just stunned into silence, still in shock, quickly morphing into all kinds of different emotions. Joy you're still alive, horror and pity for your current state, guilt and anguish that all of them did this to you. Jesus, have you even been able to drink water? Like if you didn't have Spider powers you probably would have died by now and it's easy to see you're weak on your feet

And from here I see two options and I'll go with the less exciting one first:

Reader is so fucking hungry and malnourished and weak that after the Spiders make room for you to sit at their table and eat their food, you being just genuinely so fucking worn down from constantly not being able to eat and sleep properly, that you basically show up, eat the entire table's worth of food, and all but fall into a food coma right then and there because this is like the first time youve been able to sit and mildly relax for WEEKS, like here comes Spider Plushie for the save like he's trying to slide across home base, loyally stopping in front of you and directly under your head as you just kind of, slump forward, the little guy making the perfect pillow as he keeps your forehead from smacking against the table, and you're just, like O U T out as Miguel cradles you in his arms because, oh my god he thought you were gone forever, and he won't let anyone else touch you as he marches you straight to, wherever the fucking doctors in this place are

But option TWO: suddenly you pause your gorging as some burps rise up in your chest and you suddenly have some calories pushing enough energy to your brain that you finally look around, like REEEEALLY look around. The entire room is dead silent, some starting to cry with joy and relief, others still stunned, many looking absolutely confused, and your eyes eventually meet with Miguel's. He doesn't look quite as run down as you, but WOW is this one sad haggard looking dilf, and you blink at him for a minute. And then look around. And back at him. And around. And to him

And your expression morphs into something so fearful as you force out a nervous laugh, "oh, wait, it's... you guys..." And the second everything clicks for you, you're IMMEDIATELY TAKING OFF, and despite your weakened state you actually make them really work for it because wow that adrenaline kicks in as you for your life because you're thinking "shit they still think I'm the fake and they'll kill me this time if they get their hands on me" when in actuality Miguel is getting his ass on the intercom system ordering all available units to stop you so they can put a bracelet back on you so you aren't lost again, which i mean it is but isnt even a yandere thing at this point, youre literally going to die without some sort of dimensional tether. But during the chase Miguel realizes you aren't using your webs, and you're actually not nearly as fast as he's seen you before, and he realizes with a broken heart, oh Jesus you're literally too malnourished to produce your organic webs within your body, or a lot of it, anyways. You must REALLY be in bad shape

And I imagine like, the chase comes to a halt, not when they catch you, but when your physical exhaustion finally catches up to you. Sweetie you barely ate anything for the last several days, suddenly gorged on a whole spread of food, and then started sprinting and jumping and climbing and parkouring on shit. You HAVE to stop running because you're literally getting sick and VOMITING, like, your former students and fellow Spiderpeople and of course Miguel are hot on your heels and they all pause and give you space because you're literally having to throw up in a gutter with sweat pouring down your face and entire body developing the shakes as, oh no, you feel your strength leaving you as you can't even hold yourself up, collapsing onto the ground, barely conscious as something scoops you up with the gentleness of handling glass, your eyes unable to stay open as you whimper things. "Please don't kill me... I'll leave... I'll never come back..." before you pass out

Miguel has you immediately checked by doctors while the staff have to limit the amount of people trying to come and see you (because, uh, there are a ridiculous amount of Spiders invested in your wellbeing) and only he's in the room as the medical team details your current state. Severe malnutrition, sunburns, broken ribs, a finger or two in crudely-improvised splints, telogen effluvium aka temporary hair loss from illness/extreme stress, you're probably starting to come down with a cold of some sort, potentially something dramatic like pneumonia.

You sleep for like several days straight while hooked up to IVs and fluids because your body just needed to heal THAT badly. By the time you wake up you feel like you're rising from the dead, your entire body aching and heavy, taking minutes to blink yourself awake to take in your new surroundings. You've got a private medical suite that's pretty well-secured, and when you try to scratch a sudden itch on your nose, you feel a weight on your wrist after going to move your arm. Oh, it's another kind of watch, although this one doesn't have nearly all the features and buttons of the first one, and when you keep rotating your wrist over and over, you can't seem to find the latch to take it off, because, well, there isn't one

Miguel is already in the room with you, either having been working on a laptop or just legitimately sitting there watching you sleep for an unknown amount of time, even if its completely dark in the room. He's gotten himself all cleaned up and back to normal and looking like his old self again but he's honestly not even sure what to say to you. Emotions aren't really his strong suit? Where does he start, apologizing for this whole mess or promising it will never happen again?

The only guarantee for now is that you will NOT be leaving Nueva York again, or even so much as leaving his SIGHT, so long as Miguel doesn't want you to, and trust me, after being tricked and having you ripped away from him, to see you in such a vulnerable sad state because of his own actions when all he wanted was to protect you, he's got a whoooole lotta things he wants to do and talk to you about. First and foremost? Vowing that he's going to make everything up to you, starting now, by being your most devout protector

[usmsgutterson]

Hi! I’m here to send in a request for platonic crows x reader where the reader can shapeshift - The main thing I was thinking of was just kinda friendship w the crows in general and their reactions to different things they learn about reader overtime and what they first though about reader vs now. Also here’s some ideas I’ve had about reader for if you do choose to do this request that might help!

-> I feel like reader would probably be able to change their body to be able to take on like a half form of things so like they could give them-self ears or something and depending on if they have a ‘Main form’ of sorts they could probably have some of the features of that thing like idk enhanced hearing or their good at being quiet/Sneaky.

-> Also I imagine that they might get like aches if they haven’t done it in a long while just based on the fact that in a way it’s like changing your bones/Bone structure if that makes sense so if they do it too much (Like an unhealthy amount like every single day for hours on end) Or haven’t done it in a long time they’d get aches n stuff

-> and also (Last thing I promise) They would probably use smaller/Quieter forms to scare/sneak up on people and just be an overall menace rlly

And of course if you aren’t interested in doing this request that’s fine too! Just let me know ^^ hope you have a wonderful day! :]

(Also could I be an anon? If so could I be 🍒Anon?)

Platonic! Crows x gn! Shapeshifter! Reader Headcanons

Hi! You can totally be the cherry anon if you want, that's cool with me! I'm sorry it took me a bit to see this, I've been writing requests from the bottom of my inbox to the top of it lately so that I could get the oldest requests done first, and seeing this in my inbox, I just knew I'd have a blast! I was right, writing this was so much fun.

I did it as headcanons to keep the fic from breaching a 15k word limit which I knew I'd get to if I let myself and I didn't want this fic to run too long! I hope that that's all right with you and if not, I apologize and I can rewrite if you'd like me to!

Fic type- fluff

Warnings-mentions of tarantulas, flies (the reader once turns themself into a fly on the wall) and spiders

(no gif because I sadly couldn't find one of the crows on the rooftop)

Okay, so!

Your status as a shapeshifter is kind of just...known amongst the crows? 

Like, they all know about it and it just kind of exists as another one of your attributes. It’s not a big deal, and nobody has ever really made it out to be.

You’re able to enhance your hearing so that you can hear pretty far out, which comes in handy a lot on heist jobs, especially if you can make it so that you can be standing on the total opposite side of wherever you need to be for the heist and still be able to hear Kaz and Nina bickering at the checkpoint. 

You’re also able to make yourself quieter, which comes in handy a lot on jobs too, especially when you need to focus on being stealthy and go unseen and unheard. 

Now that I think of it, there’s probably a way that you can shift to match your surroundings or like, make them match you kind of, and make yourself invisible, which is actually a super cool concept and I don’t want to get sidetracked by it, so next thing!

There’s a healthy amount of times that you should shapeshift on a regular basis. You go off that and start doing it too much or not doing it enough, you get really bad aches and pains.

I feel like you’d get them all over and they would hurt as much as a really bad migraine. It happens at random and can sometimes last a couple of days, too. All in all, the pain part of it isn’t really a fun or enjoyable experience so you try to shapeshift consistently

YOU WOULD TOTALLY SHAPESHIFT INTO RANDOM SHIT TO SCARE THE SHIT OUT OF PEOPLE-

forgive the caps, I would a thousand percent do the same thing and I got excited when I remembered that that was a possibility.

You’d probably shapeshift into something like a tarantula and just spend hours relaxing in a random corner of Wylans lab weaving webs and hanging from the ceiling and being all cool, and then Jesper comes in and you go to greet him and he’s like “saints, what is that?"

and then Wylan is just like “it’s Y/N? Their favorite color is the dots on their back? How could you not recognize them?”

“Oh, I’m sorry Wylan, I’m just not so used to seeing my best friend as a bloody tarantula!” 

You probably shapeshift into a cat to be a menace to Kaz 

the concept of you just kind of showing up at his office window and then doing that thing that cats do where they nap in direct line of wherever the sun is coming in is something I love more than life itself

that’s nOT MENACING, BACK ON TRACK

AFTER you’ve sunbathed an appropriate amount of time, you, in the form of a cat, jump onto Kaz’s desk and glare at him the entirety of the time that it takes you to bring his to-go cup of coffee closer and closer to the edge of his desk, until it tips over and spills. 

that concept has made me laugh for the last ten minutes

Kaz almost hates you for that every time you do it, even though he knows you’re only doing it because he did something to piss you off first and he just considers it fair when he remembers that much. 

You also buy him a replacement coffee out of the kindness of your heart, though you never actually apologize to him

to be menacing in the direction of Matthias and Nina, you also take up the form of a spider. Neither of them really like spiders and you just kind of mess with them for two minutes before it gets old and you switch into something else.

Inej is a cat person through and through, and there aren’t many ways in which you can mess with her, nor do you want to because knife wife WILL use knives if she doesn't recognize the fact that whatever you shift into is you and the possibility, though slight, is still there.

You go to Inej as a cat the most often, though. 

You’re able to keep up with her when she’s running through the barrel on her missions for Kaz, and the naps in the sun are best when you’re laying on one of Inejs coats while she spars with Jesper

You’ve also been a literal fly on the wall to get intel for Kaz before, but that was because you’d offered, and it was exhausting. You got a lot of good intel from that but you were like “nah, never again. Not for less than a hundred million kruge. Never”

generally, it’s a very chaotic but a very fun existence, and you wouldn’t trade a minute of it for anything

[domesticated-rocks]

I still have thoughts about MHA

Spoilers up to Chapter 430

One thing that’s struck me with the ending of MHA is how open it is. The story is finished but the world isn’t. So many other big Manga finish and there isn’t really all that much left to explore. Before Boruto the world of Naruto was incredibly fleshed out but when it ended there wasn’t a great deal left to explore - sure there were certain characters and certain events mentioned. There was history you could go into. But it feels different than MHA.

With Naruto all you could do was deepen the lore add more details to things we knew the broad strokes of but with MHA there is so much more left to discuss Horikoshi has built such an expansive world that you could write in it for another decade and it wouldn’t feel full.

What is daily life like for heteromorphs and is there a mutant quirk hierarchy? Desirable vs undesirable mutations. You could write a whole separate Manga that dived into the celebrity side of heroism and idol culture, or there is a great spy film in heroes like Eraser Head. But even just slice of life style stories could be interesting because of the nature of the world of MHA.

Along with that Horikoshi managed to finish a story in a way I personally found compelling and a fitting ending (perfect, no; but good, yes) without solving all the problems and tying a neat little bow in all the plot threads. He leaves us with a world that is on its way to the perfect happy ending but doesn’t just jump to that point. We are left in a world where people are still campaigning and making changes that will eventually lead to the better world rather than a world where the bad guy was beaten and everything was sorted and I think that is great. Even if others have been left disappointed by it.

Maybe Horikoshi will write more and flesh out these aspects or if not I look forward to the fandom coming in to write fics and make TikTok series that do.

I heard it said in a writing class that a classic story “never finishes saying what is has to say” and that “great works will inspire other ideas” and I think MHA does just that. So I can’t wait to see what comes next.

Hopefully this ramble makes some amount of sense.