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theonetheycallhannah · 4 years

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The Treatment of Captain Syverson-Chapter Six: Sensory Integration 2

Pairing: Captain “Sy” Syverson x OFC (Shane Benton)

Summary: It’s a fine night for a walk by the water with a handsome vet holding your hand. I think that says it all.

Behind on your sessions? Want more from the author? Click Me

Word Count: Almost 1.9k (a bit shorter, hopefully y’all don’t mind by the end!)

Warnings: Basically still fluff, but also some saucy morsels near the end…not full on smut, though, so don’t get too excited. We aren’t there yet, my little lovelies. Soon, though…soon.

Author’s Note: As I said before, this date totally got away from me, nearing a whopping 6k in total. Thanks again for all the love. And in other news, I told a couple of my PT friends about this story, and one of them agreed to be my official technical consultant on the project for future chapters and even if I wanna flesh it out, modify it to include strictly “original” characters, and eventually take it to a publisher! I sent what I’ve done so far to her just before I started drafting this post, so hopefully she’ll have good insight for me! She said it was about time someone wrote a story like that! Lol! (She reads a lot, so I guess people really don’t think of PTs as the heroines of love stories. Sad, really! Most of the ones I know are lovely and loving people!) The other was just instantly excited and can’t wait to read it.

Disclaimer: Unfortunately for me, Henry is not mine, le sigh, and all mention of him, his characters, any characters from his films, or his precious doggy, Kal, are strictly for transformative and recreational use. I neither ask for, nor accept payment for the work I post on Tumblr or AO3. Unbeta’d because this is for fun and escapism.

Tags:

@onlyhenrys

@cavillryarchive

@summersong69

@titty-teetee

@bloodyinspiredfuck

@agniavateira

@oddsnendsfanfics

@omgkatinka

@thisismysecretthirstblog

@misslaland

@speakerforthedead0@tumblnewby

@suavechops

Hope I’m not forgetting anyone! If you want to be notified when I post a new chapter or work, I’ll be happy to add you to my tag list! Stricken blogs are getting personal messages from me when a new chapter is uploaded because Tumblr’s faulty tagging system will not stand in the way of me delivering what the people want!(?) lol! (Although...their lackadaisical notification system might...sorry for that. I have no control. lol!)

The lake was fairly near her clinic, not two blocks away. He wasn't wrong about her feeling up to a walk when the time came. She was looking forward to the fresh night air near the lake. It was a deep-seated part of who she was to love the water.

He'd pulled into the small, empty gravel lot at the head of the paved walking trail. It was well dark since it had just turned 10:00, and the moonlight danced off the water, calm, but with a faint shimmer from the light breeze. The stars danced, winking at them as if they knew the romance that surged between the couple was burgeoning right here below them.

"Now, last time I walked this trail, I'll warn you…I got approached by a gang. And they were…pretty vicious. I had to resort to some guerilla tactics that I'm not too proud of to fend 'em off."

"Oh no!" she wasn't aware of any gang crime in their fairly peaceful city! "What kind of gang?"

"A goose gang." He looked at her gravely. Before they both burst out laughing in hysterics.

"I thought you were serious!" she wiped tears carefully from her eyes with the back of her hand.

"I was! They are stupid territorial! I had several of them tryin'a bite at my legs at once. It was quite the ordeal, I assure you!" he said, serious, but still laughing.

"Well, you'll save me if the Ya-Gooz-ah descend on us tonight, wont you?" she teased, clutching at his arm in mock fright at the thought of a band of Yakuza Geese being an actual thing, but thinking it was a great way to keep him touching her.

"As long as you stay real close to me, sunshine. I'll protect you from the devil himself." He kissed her on the top of the head, sealing the promise and warming her from the point of contact all the way to her toes.

As they traipsed along the pavement path, they talked about everything and nothing, the gentle night wind a whisper against their skin, which had been made slightly dewy from the walk and the humidity. They had made two laps around the small body of water when they came back around to one of several benches placed at intervals on the trail running its perimeter. Without breaking their conversation, she pointed to the nearest one, indicating her desire to sit, which he understood and lead them there.

“See, the problem I have with sports at that level, especially football is the harm I’ve witnessed it do to a kid’s body. We’ve treated athletes in high school and as early as 7th and 8th grade that the coaches are completely obsessed with getting them out on the field or court again. These kids are taking more impact than their bodies are ready for. They can’t miss a game, or even practice for therapy even if they’re just riding pine. And the parents are so laser focused on that potential college scholarship for that sport that they can’t see that if their child doesn’t get better, no scout is gonna want to dole out a free ride. Not to a broken-down athlete. Did you feel that kind of pressure when you were playing football? Because I don’t remember it at my school.” She went off a on bit of a tangent because she’d just been told by Heather before she left that her torn meniscus, Jason couldn’t get in for several weeks because of his practice and game schedule limiting his availability.

“I mean, I felt pressure, I guess, but not outside of practice or the games. I’d hurt my knee my junior year early, same one we been workin’ on, and they just had me sit out a few weeks and work with a PT, but I don’t remember it being a problem to miss out on anything related to football if it was because of my health.” He sat down next to her on the fiberglass bench, which was molded to have the look of fine blonde wood, and put his arm around her shoulder. No pretense of the reach, no awkwardly sitting for a while beforehand, just continuing to touch her as he had been their whole walk.

She leaned into his shoulder, comfortably, as if they’d done this a thousand times and this wasn’t their first date. And continued their discussion.

“What has gotten into people these days? It’s like they’re not satisfied with anything. Nothing is ever enough for a single person on this good earth!” She sighed, frustrated by the neediness of people that seemed to come with her own job and projecting that on to the world…not that there wasn’t at least a measure of truth in it.

“Personally speaking, I think you’re wrong.”

“You don’t think that the world is full of dissatisfied Karens?” She laughed.

“Oh I do. But it’s not every person. You’re sitting next to one very content man right here.”

“Yeah?”

“Mmhmm.” He confirmed.

“Was it the steak, or the lobster mac?” She’d be fantasizing about them both until the next time they went there. Yeah, she was already thinking about “next time” and “they.” She was in trouble.

“Not to knock either, but I’m a hun’ert percent sure it was the company.” He pressed a kiss to her temple.

She smiled, nuzzling into him, feeling the downy softness of his shirt again and smelling his intoxicating cologne. She suddenly remembered a promise from their session.

“Oh, hey. I was gonna have a response for you…to your 'question' from earlier.” She said, mischief burning in her eyes. She kneeled up on the bench and turned his face to hers, brushing a hand against his impossibly soft beard before descending slowly in for a kiss.

It started sweet, a few languid, full pecks, then she parted her lips barely enough for her tongue to venture out to explore his full mouth. They were met after several attempts with a reciprocal openness from him. She dared, then to search him with her tongue. It was simply browsing now. Feeling no rush to complete its quest. Only a sense of the need for due diligence. She was surprised at the flavor she'd encountered. She hadn't seen him pop a mint, and she hadn't left his side all evening. He was sly. It was a sweet and strong taste. Wintergreen on steroids, with the mildest hint of vanilla. She wanted more. Of the flavor. Of him.

She let her tongue find his, knowing what would happen, somehow, even though they had never kissed like this before. Never when it wasn't rushed and needing to be…PG. Here in the dark of night, with no one but the celestial bodies as witnesses, they didn't have to worry about her job, or the public. The judgement of the outsider's gaze.

She knew, by instinct alone, that this would spark him into more than latent participation. And that's exactly why she did it. As previously stated, she was definitely an intentional beast when the occasion called and mood struck.

He did as she'd expected, his own tongue waking, beginning a playful dance with hers, exploring her mouth with more urgency and desire, pulling a ragged gasp from her lungs. She broke away to give some attention to his neck. She held him by the base of his head, thumb playfully brushing into his thick facial hair. A breathy moan that sounded very much like her name escaped his lips. This was the reaction she had been dying to get from him for so long. A surrendering bliss that only came from this kind of personal, intimate, and one-one connection. She'd gotten hints of it when she'd helped him stretch, when she heard those stifled groans he felt at the good hurt she brought him with her expert touch.

She bit his earlobe, and sealed her fate. He growled and pulled her up to his lap in an immodest straddle. Not that she cared in the empty dark. He seemed to need her lips back on his, desperate to find a purchase that would never present itself. The paradox of a kiss.

His hands roved over the back of her from neck to behind, very much favoring the latter. It was an odd sensation. Most of her experience with ass-grabbing had been less than pleasant. Either dirty old men had touched her without consent, or boyfriends had done essentially the same thing as a show of their dominance over her, also without her strictest consent. The way Sy held her was tender, exploratory, and…she couldn't help but think the word loving. "Love" wasn't a word they were ready to even bring up. But she thought he was showing it in his feather touch and hungry kiss.

The breeze was cool, and felt extra cold where she seemed to be warmest. Her position had her…very exposed to the elements, covered only by the fine layers of her underwear at some angles. She was suddenly very aware that they were on a precipice here. If they carried on much longer like this, she wasn't going to want to stop. She already didn't. And she was just out of practice enough to be unsure of where her point of no return was. Dammit. She broke away, in agony from it.

"Sy, I…I think …you should take me back." she stuttered.

"Okay." he pulled her back in for another kiss, pretending to misinterpret,which she indulged a moment but quickly escaped.

"No, sweetie." she chuckled. "You know what I mean."

"Or…I could bring you home with me." It was only a suggestion, but there was a plea in his eyes that pulled at her guts. He wanted her. And she wanted him. With every single cell in her body, she wanted every singe cell of his. But she truly felt that taking things slowly was the best option given the complexities of their situation.

"You don't know how badly I want to accept that invite, Sy." she rested her forehead on his. They were both breathless.

"It's just two little letters, sunshine. O. K. Easy as granny's peach pie."

"I'm terrible at pie crust." they laughed.

"Let's go." he said, helping her off his lap, and preparing to stand, but sitting back down immediately.

"What's wrong?" she asked, concerned. "Is it the knee? Did I hurt it?" she was already mad at herself, and at him a bit, if this indiscretion had caused him a setback…how ironic it would be!

"Nope, knee's great. Dandy."

"Did you get lightheaded?"

"No, but uhh…it's definitely SOME sort of blood flow issue. Gonna need a minute." he explained without explaining with a sheepish expression on his face…it hit her like a speeding bus.

"Ope." she looked to his lap without thinking, and immediately averted to the water again, as she sat beside him, hands clasped over the seat of the bench. His hand found hers, and covered it, asking to hold it, and getting its way.

"I had…the best time tonight, Shane." he told her, staring at the opposite bank where the maple, oak, and sycamore trees swayed to the tune of the gentle night's breeze.

"So did I, Sy."

"You free tomorrow?" he asked, hopefully.

"You tell me!" she replied…hopefully.

Up Next: Chapter Seven: Non-Productive Time

#netflix sand castle #sand castle #henry cavill #henry cavill fanfic #henry cavill x ofc #captain syverson #captain syverson fanfic #captain syverson x ofc #sigh for sy #is that a new tag i started? idk maybe...lets use it. teehee!

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dweemeister · 4 years

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2020 Movie Odyssey Award for Best Original Song (preliminary round)

Yup, it’s back (bullet indentations are not working, so this post will look very ugly on your dashboards)!

Tagging a few folks who have participated before in this annual tradition/folks who I would like to extend an open invitation to (please contact me if you’re interested so I can sort you in a group ASAP... you will also be tagged for the final unless you tell me you are not interested): @birdsongvelvet, @bitch-genius, @dog-of-ulthar, @idontknowmuchaboutmovies, @loveless422, @lvl9gay, @neverwasastoryofmorewhoa, @phendranaedge, @poncho-honcho, @sayaf, @shadesofhappy, @thethirdman8, @uncoolforelimb, and @wehadfacesthen.

Hello everybody. For my fellow Americans, I hope your Thanksgiving was a good one. For the non-Americans reading things, I hope you are doing well, as always! Many things have fallen to the wayside in this unforgettable year. So in hopes of providing some sense of continuity and normalcy, here - as you have agreed to - is the Preliminary Round for 2020's Movie Odyssey Award for Best Original Song (MOABOS). This is the eighth time it has been contested and the seventh consecutive year it has been open to involvement from family, friends, and tumblr followers.

For those new to this, my classic movie blog traditionally ends the year by honoring some of the best achievements from movies that I saw for the first time this calendar year (the "Movie Odyssey") with an Oscar-like ceremony. I choose all the nominees and winners from each category, save one: Best Original Song. It is the only category I can think of that does not require you to watch several movies in their entirety. I consider MOABOS as a sort of cinematic-musical thank-you for your moral support in various ways.

An unspecified number of songs have already advanced to the final round. 24 songs will contest this prelim in two groups - Group A and Group B. In a year when COVID-19 has closed theaters (and which I refused to go to an indoor theater even when they reopened), a year that I did not feel compelled to watch the newest releases on streaming services, there is not a single 2020 entry for 2020's MOABOS. That is, obviously, a MOABOS first - no other MOABOS edition has lacked a shortlisted song from a film released that same calendar year. And as of writing this sentence, I have not seen a single film released in 2020. Despite the lack of 1930s songs, this year's shortlisted songs might be the oldest on average. In other news, this year's field is a modest improvement from the record monolingual field of last year's (which contained only English and two Vietnamese-language entries). 2019's preliminary was the most chaotic we had ever seen, with shocking last-day stumbles and surges from certain songs ("I Dug a Ditch" from Thousands Cheer) that riled up a lot of participants. It's 2020 - will there be a repeat or even more drama at this stage?

INSTRUCTIONS Please rank (#1-12) at least six of your group's songs. Please consider to the best of your ability: how musically interesting the song is (incl. and not limited to musical phrasing and orchestration); its lyrics; context within the film (contextual blurbs provided for every entry for those who haven't seen the films); choreography/dance direction (if applicable); and the song's cultural impact/life outside the film (if applicable, and, in my opinion, least important factor). Imperfections in audio and video quality may not be used against any song. I encourage you to send in comments and reactions with your rankings - it makes the process more enjoyable for you and myself! The top five songs in each group automatically advance to the final round. I reserve the right to pick 0-2 songs from one or both groups that finished outside the top five in their respective groups to contest the final round.

The deadline for submission is Saturday, December 12 at 11 PM Pacific Time. That is 9 PM Hawaii/Aleutian Time. That deadline is also Sunday, December 13 at 1 AM Central Time / 2 AM Eastern Time / 7 AM GMT / 8 AM CET / 9 AM EET. This deadline - as we have seen in the last few years - may be pushed back if there are a large number of people who have not submitted in time. However, I very much do not wish to extend the deadline because the final round is more intensive and usually involves more participants. Tabulation details are in the “read more” below.

Please participate in the group you have been sorted into, if you have not yet been sorted into a group and would like to participate, please contact me. You can access most, not all, of your group’s songs in these YouTube playlists: (Group A) / (Group B). Again, please note that not all of your group's songs are in the playlist for various reasons.

Happy listening. Feel free to listen as many times as you need, and I hope you discover music and movies that strike your interest. The following is formatted... ("Song title", composer and lyricist, film title):

GROUP A

“Blue Shadows on the Trail”, music and lyrics by Eliot Daniel and Johnny Lange, Melody Time (1948)

Performed by Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers

This is the introductory song to the final segment of Melody Time. That segment is dedicated to the legend of Pecos Bill, and this atmospheric song leads into the telling of that story.

“Born Free”, music by John Barry, lyrics by Don Black, Born Free (1966)

Performed by Matt Munro

Winner of the Academy Award for Best Original Song

This version with lyrics appears in the end credits. The main theme in the song is introduced in the opening credits and is incorporated extensively in John Barry's score across the film. Born Free, based on the non-fiction book of the same name is about two white Kenyan conservationists who raise an orphaned lion cub and eventually release her into the wild.

“But the World Goes 'Round”, music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, New York, New York (1977)

Performed by Liza Minnelli

In this musical, USO singer Francine Evans (Minnelli) has been performing in New York City nightclubs, hoping to someday become a major recording star. This song appears as she is recording that very hit that will propel her to stardom.

“Exsultate Justi”, music and lyrics by John Williams, Empire of the Sun (1987)

Performed by orchestra and chorus under the direction of Williams

Lyrics in Latin

In this historical epic, affluent British school boy Jamie Graham (a young Christian Bale) is living with his parents in Shanghai when the Japanese invade. Jamie is separated from his parents and placed in an internment camp. Soon before the end of WWII, the prisoners are moved elsewhere, but Jamie hides and stays put. This song plays as Jamie bikes around the empty camp and continues to play as he encounters liberating U.S. troops. Jamie is dirty and malnourished when found; one can argue that this song is used ironically. It plays once more over the end credits. "Exsultate Justi" is a variation on a theme John Williams develops over the course of the film and harkens back to Jamie's past, attending Anglican services with parents.

"Farewell to Storyville", music by Louis Alter, lyrics by Edgar De Lange, New Orleans (1947)

Performed by Louis Armstrong and his band, Billie Holiday, and company

In New Orleans, the Storyville district was a den of drinking, gambling, jazz, and prostitution. The district was the home to a heavily black populace. The U.S. military, about to establish a Naval base nearby, forces the city to close the district for good. This song is a jazzy dirge to a center of jazz - a musical genre looked down upon by many of the city's upper-class whites due to its ties (real and imagined) to crime.

"Hawaiian Sunset", music and lyrics by Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett, Blue Hawaii (1961)

Performed by Elvis Presley

In a musical packed end-to-end with songs, Chadwick "Chad" Gates (Elvis) has taken a job with a tour guide agency - and this includes performing during a luau for tourists. "Hawaiian Sunset" appears as one of the dinner show's numbers.

"Is There Still Anything That Love Can Do?", music and lyrics by Yôjirô Noda, Weathering with You (2019, Japan)

Performed by RADWIMPS

Lyrics in Japanese (translation)

Weathering with You is a romantic fantasy anime about a high school boy who runs away from his rural home to Tokyo, where he meets a girl who can manipulate the weather. It has been inexplicably raining for weeks without interruption in Tokyo, so they form a business to help clear the inclement weather for special events. The melody of this song is heard throughout the film's score. It does not appear with lyrics until late in the film. The song is played under the boy's seemingly impossible attempt to save her from an unwilling human sacrifice.

There is so much plot in this damn film (it's all Makoto Shinkai's fault) - I can't explain the context of the song or this movie in a reasonable amount of space.

“Mad Monster Party”, music by Maury Laws, lyrics by Jules Bass, Mad Monster Party? (1967)

Performed by Ethel Ennis

(opening credits version) / (soundtrack version with no sound effects)

In this Rankin/Bass stop-motion animated film, Baron Boris von Frankenstein (Boris Karloff in his final Frankenstein-related role) has discovered a formula that can destroy matter. Dispatching his bats to send the news, he summons the various members of the Worldwide Organization of Monsters to inform them of his discovery. This song is performed over the film's opening credits and the various introductions for the monsters as they receive their summons.

“My Dream Is Yours”, music by Harry Warren, lyrics by Ralph Blane, My Dream Is Yours (1949)

Initially performed by Doris Day; later reprised by Hal Derwin

Singer Martha Gibson (Day) has abruptly left New York City for Los Angeles to become a star on the radio. In a film where personal sacrifice is central, she stresses over how to bring her son out west with her, the direction of her career, and her tumultuous love life. "My Dream Is Yours" is the song that makes Martha a star, laying out the film's themes in its lyrics. I was unable to find Derwin's reprise, but no matter as the reprise is rather inconsequential.

“Ride the Wild Surf”, music and lyrics by Jan Berry, Brian Wilson, and Roger Christian, Ride the Wild Surf (1964)

Performed by Jan and Dean

Ride the Wild Surf is a surfing film that, unlike most surfing films of this time, is a drama. It follows three surfers (Fabian, Tab Hunter, Peter Brown) who have come to Oahu at the end of December to ride the large waves of Waimea Bay (made famous internationally by this song, this movie, and the Beach Boys' "Surfin' USA"). This song appears in the film's closing credits. The video provided is a montage of surfing footage that appears in the film.

“That’ll Do”, music and lyrics by Randy Newman, Babe: Pig in the City (1998)

Performed by Peter Gabriel

Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song

This song begins at the end (and through the end credits) of Babe: Pig in the City, the second and last film in this series about a sheep-herding pig who perseveres amidst other animals and humans with ulterior agendas. The title is derived from the famous quote said by Arthur Hoggett (James Cromwell) to reassure Babe: "That'll do, pig. That'll do."

“Waqt Ne Kiya Kya Hassen Sitam”, music and lyrics by S.D. Burman, Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959, India)

Performed by Geeta Dutt (dubbing Waheeda Rehman)

Lyrics in Hindi - roughly, "Time Has Inflicted Such Sweet Cruelty On Us"

Song begins at 1:03:31 and ends at 1:07:51

Make sure to turn on the video’s English captions

In this romantic tragedy told in flashback, Suresh Sinha (Guru Dutt) is a director looking back on his life. Suresh is unhappily married to a woman whose in-laws look down on him because, to them, working in films is contemptible to their social class. Suresh meets a woman, Shanti (Waheeda Rehman), on accident and she is soon cast as the lead for his next film. They fall in love, but it is never consummated for various reasons. This song is the most explicit statement of that love in this film. How much of the scene's set-up is observable by the characters is up to the viewer's interpretation.

Group A participants include: @addaellis, @introspectivemeltdown, @memetoilet, @myluckyerror, @plus-low-overthrow, @shootingstarvenator, @themusicmoviesportsguy, @theybecomestories, @umgeschrieben, @underblackwings, @yellanimal. Seven others - including myself and my sister - are currently slated to be voting in Group A.

GROUP B

“Angela”, music and lyrics by José Feliciano and Janna Merlyn Feliciano, Aaron Loves Angela (1975)

Performed by José Feliciano

(English-language version) / (Spanish single version)

Played over the opening credits to this teenage drama that is partly a blaxploitation film, partly an interracial coming-of-age romance. The movie wasn't a hit, but the Spanish-language version of this song was received well in Latin America.

“Aren’t You Kind of Glad We Did?”, music by George Gershwin, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, The Shocking Miss Pilgrim (1947)

Originally performed by Betty Grable and Dick Haymes

(soundtrack version with Judy Garland and Haymes) / (modern arrangement far more faithful to how song sounds in the film)

Cynthia Pilgrim (Grable) is the top typewriting student from a business college in this period piece where the typewriter is the newest invention to sweep the business world. This song appears as Pilgrim and her boss, John Pritchard (Haymes), are about to go out on a date for dinner after talking about how society looks down on women in public without a chaperone.

“The Blues are Brewin’”, music by Louis Alter, lyrics by Edgar De Lange, New Orleans (1947)

Performed by Louis Armstrong and his band and Billie Holiday

(in-film version) / (Billie Holiday single)

After being evicted by the U.S. military from the historic Storyville district of New Orleans (the Navy had just opened a base in the area, and would not tolerate places of gambling, jazz, and prostitution nearby), the characters played by Armstrong and Holiday tour the country with a jazz band in tow. This song appears within a montage showing the passage of time.

“Dekhi Zamaane Ki Yaari / Bichhde Sabhi Baari Baari”, music by S.D. Burman, lyrics by Kaifi Azmi, Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959, India)

Performed by Mohammad Rafi (dubbing Guru Dutt)

Lyrics in Hindi - roughly, "I Have Seen How Deeply Friendship Lies / I Have Seen People Abandon Me One by One"

Part 1 (3:44-8:27) / Part 2 (2:16:29-2:20:42)

Make sure to turn on the video’s English captions

In this romantic tragedy, Suresh Sinha (Dutt) is a washed-up director looking back on his life. In the first part, the song leads into the rest of the film - which is almost entirely a flashback. In brief, Suresh is unhappily married to a woman whose in-laws look down on him because, to them, working in films is contemptible to their social class. Suresh meets a woman, Shanti (Waheeda Rehman), on accident and she is soon cast as the lead for his next film. They fall in love, but it is never consummated for various reasons. Eventually, his career crashes after a box office bomb and her career is ascendant. Leading into the second part of the song, Suresh is penniless and working as an extra at the movie studio. Shanti recognizes him, wants to help, but he refuses to revive his career on the back of her success. Kaagaz Ke Phool has elements of autobiography, and Suresh's fate has parallels with what happened to Dutt after this film was released.

“End Theme from Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart to Hades”, music by Eiken Sakurai, lyrics by Kazuko Koike, Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart to Hades (1972, Japan)

Performed by Tomisaburo Wakayama

Lyrics in Japanese (translation)

Video provided is not safe for work (NSFW) due to stylized violence

Ogami Ittô (Wakayama) is a former, disgraced executioner for the Tokugawa shogunate who wanders the land with his young son. He is intent on exacting revenge on the clan that murdered his wife. This song is played non-diegetically after Ittô has slain dozens of a corrupt governor's bodyguards and walks onward, pushing his son in a babycart, away from the dead left in his wake. This is the third of six films in the Lone Wolf and Cub series.

"Happy Endings", music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, New York, New York (1977)

Performed by Liza Minnelli and company (that's Jack Haley - who played the Tin Man and was, at the time, Minnelli's father-in-law - roughly seven minutes in)

(use in film) / (soundtrack version)

It is highly recommended one sees how this song is used in the film. Bear with me: this song is part of a movie within a movie. Within that movie within a movie, there is another movie. "Happy Endings" is the title end song to a film called Happy Endings within New York, New York. Singer Francine Evans (Liza Minnelli) has made it big as a recording artist and caps off her hit film, Happy Endings, with this song. We see Francine's ex, played by Robert De Niro, in the audience as the film ends. "Happy Endings" is a homage/deconstruction to midcentury Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) musicals. It serves the film as "The Broadway Melody" does to Singin' in the Rain (1952) or the 17-minute ballet does to conclude An American in Paris (1951).

"Here They Come (From All Over the World)", music and lyrics by P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri, The T.A.M.I. Show (1964)

Performed by Jan and Dean

The link above provides the entire film. You only need to watch from 0:00-4:11. If you like music from this era or want to hear more, this film is highly, highly recommended.

This is the opening credits song to a concert film recorded over two days in Santa Monica, California on October 28 and 29, 1964. The Teenage Awards Music International (T.A.M.I. - yes, I know it's an awkward name) Show included many of the most popular musical stars of that time - almost all of them name-dropped in this song. Jan and Dean, a surf music duo, served as hosts (and performed during) the show. You folks are lucky that this is the only original song from this film!

“Moonlight Swim”, music by Ben Weisman, lyrics by Sylvia Dee, Blue Hawaii (1961)

Performed by Elvis Presley

In a musical packed end-to-end with songs, Chadwick "Chad" Gates (Elvis) has taken a job with a tour guide agency. On his first day, he drives his first clients - a school teacher (who not so secretly is attracted to Chad) and four teenagers (one of whom becomes smitten) - to their destination.

“On the Boardwalk (in Atlantic City)”, music by Josef Myrow, lyrics by Mack Gordon, Three Little Girls in Blue (1946)

Performed by Carol Stewart (dubbing for Vera-Ellen), June Haver, and Vivian Blaine

(original soundtrack) / (Dick Haymes single)

In this rarely-seen musical (20th Century Fox wasn't very good at promoting its back catalogue compared to some other studios, and the situation is worse now that they are owned by Disney), three chicken farmer sisters (Vera-Ellen, Haver, and Blaine) decide to travel to Atlantic City in hopes of marrying a rich husband after learning their aunt's inheritance is not nearly as much as they want. They sing this song as they arrive and check into their hotel suite - which they apparently have not looked up the rate for.

Those who listened to the soundtrack version... FYI, $9.25 in 1902 is $280 in 2020.

“Personality”, music by Jimmy Van Heusen, lyrics by Johnny Burke, Road to Utopia (1946)

Performed by Dorothy Lamour

(in-film performance) / (live radio performance)

In the fourth film of the Road to... comedy series, Bob Hope and Bing Crosby's characters have just overpowered two Alaskan thugs with a history of murderous violence. As they enter a saloon dressed up as those two thugs, all of the patrons - in a town that only knows the thugs by reputation - shut up in terror. They are treated to a performance by Sal (Lamour), who is trying to find a map of a gold mine that the real outlaws supposedly have. A visual narrator (Robert Benchley) interrupts the scene before the song briefly.

“Please Don’t Stop Loving Me”, music and lyrics by Joy Byers, Frankie and Johnny (1966)

Performed by Elvis Presley

(in-film performance) / (single version)

Johnny (Elvis) and girlfriend Frankie (Donna Douglas) work on a Mississippi River riverboat as performers. Johnny is addicted to gambling and believes that another woman is spurring on his recent run of good luck. During a fit of jealousy-as-acting, Frankie accidentally shoots Johnny during a bit of musical theater (someone switched out the blanks for real bullets). This song occurs after Johnny has recovered from the accident.

"Wichita", music by Hans Salter, lyrics by Ned Washington, Wichita (1955)

Performed by Tex Ritter

This is the opening title song to this Western. It is one of many Wyatt Earp movies set before the famous Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Earp (Joel McCrea) arrives in an otherwise lawless town of Wichita, Kansas where gunplay is rampant. In a radical move, Earp orders to seize the firearms of anyone living in or entering town - which doesn't sit well with some outlaws. This song is incorporated throughout the film's score.

Group B participants include: @cokwong, @emilylime5, @halfwaythruthedark, @maximiliani, @thewolfofelectricavenue, and @voicetalentbrendan. Twelve others - including me and my sister - are slated to be voting in Group B.

Contact me however you wish if you have questions or comments regarding MOABOS' processes or something specific about a song or a few. Please let me know as soon as possible if you are having difficulty accessing one of the songs (especially if it is region-locked) or if there is an error in the playlist.

I thank you all for your support for the Movie Odyssey, the blog, and for me personally - no matter how long I’ve known you or in what capacity. You will be contacted for the final round regardless of your participation here. If turnout in one group is lagging behind compared to another, I will ask some of the more senior participants to participate in the other group, too. No pressure if you cannot get to this, although I will be checking in as the deadlines get close. Stay safe and socially distanced, everyone.

TABULATION This preliminary round uses a points-based, ranked choice method which has been used since the first time I asked friends, tumblr followers, and family to help out. A respondent’s first choice receives 10 points, the second choice receives 9, the third choice receives 8, etc. The winner is the song that ends up with the most total points. The tabulation method used in this preliminary is used only as a tiebreaker in the final round (more on how the final is tabulated when we get there).

This tiebreaker will look slightly different this year.

Tiebreakers for above: 1) total points earned; 2) total #1 votes; 3) average placement on my and my sister's ballots; 4) tie declared

#2020 Movie Odyssey Awards

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unforth · 4 years

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Hi there! I absolutely loooove the destiel fic collection and think that it's a genius way to expose fans to fics that might not always get as much attention on fic recs and when searching on ao3. I was thinking of trying to create a similar collection for another fandom and was wondering if you have any tips? Or if there's anything that you wish you knew when you started it? Thank you!

Hi!! Just for openers, sorry I didn’t reply to this yesterday, my mom’s basement flooded and took with it all my writing time, sigh. ANYWAY. On to the topic at hand. How to make a “faves survey” for another fandom, and have it resemble what I’ve made for Destiel? Well, here’s what I’ve done, hopefully some of it will be applicable to you...

1. This is the most important part: Do NOT let it become or be perceived as a popularity contest. Never release the raw stats (except perhaps to a small number of people who you trust to help you). Never announce a “winner.” Never share a ranked list. Never act as if more votes equals better. Never ever suggest in anyway that your purpose to find “the best.” Treat people and fics who get one vote with just as much fanfare as people and fics who get 50 votes. I do release a “top 20″ list just because so many people asked, but even then, it’s in alphabetical order, and meant more as a snapshot. Encourage people to vote for their favorites that aren’t already in whatever collection you end up making, and encourage people to vote for things they don’t usually see on rec lists. Aim for an expansive range of types of fics being voted for, and make it clear - no ship shaming (or secondary ship shaming, if yours is ship-based like mine, rather than being general to a given fandom) or kink shaming.

2. Keep the survey super simple. People don’t read complex instructions, and they’re not going to want to rank lists or anything like that. You can see the one I use here. Feel free to emulate it, copy it, modify it for your own purposes. I used to just do boxes but people would routinely put in way more than 5/10, and while I didn’t really mind the extras, it greatly increased the amount of work I had to do, and since the survey routinely gets a couple hundred replies that I go through, I decided to make it a little harder for people to go over the limits. Don’t bother asking for people’s names or trying to validate the results. I’ve tried. People don’t want to put their names, and validation encourages people not to submit...AND doesn’t prevent cheating...so is really pointless. Just keep it anonymous, after four rounds I can say...that works best.

3. And, speaking of people going over the limits, and cheating...people will cheat. No matter how clear you are that number of votes don’t matter, no matter how much you insist that whatever data you’re collecting will only be used in so-and-so a way...you will spot people “cheating,” for various definitions of the word cheating. People who vote for their own works. People will submit multiple surveys. People will “ballot box stuff” for their favorite(s). People will list more than the maximums you’ve asked them to. People will submit works from other ships, and - though it’s never happened to me - if you make it fandom-general I’ll lay heavy odds at least one dumbass will submit for some other fandom entirely. It happens in different permutations every time, some more obvious than others, but it happens. And the conclusion I reached is...so fucking what? In the end, since the idea is to highlight as many different great works as possible...screw it. Let people vote for themselves. Let people ballot box stuff. Let people submit multiple surveys, or list more than whatever maximums you’ve set. In the end, since every work is treated as equal and one vote is worth as much as a hundred...if they’re cheating to up the vote count, it’s irrelevant, and if they’re cheating to vote for more works, then yay! more works to include! and basically the only thing I’ve found that reduces cheating is to make it absolutely clear to people that I’d really rather they not but ultimately I can’t stop them, so do their thing I guess? And it does help. I got less cheating each time I do it, or at least less that I’m able to catch lol. (as a side note - the one exceptions is the “works for others ships.” Those you can see listed on the “INELIGIBLE” sheet of the spreadsheet I link below, but I don’t add them to the AO3 collection.)

4. Spreadsheets are your best friend. You’re going to want some way to organize the data you’re collecting. I’ve got a public version of the sheet I use that you can see here. It’s pretty similar to my “private” version, except the private version includes actual vote counts, separated by which time(s) I did the survey that the work in question got votes. I mostly use that data so I can do comparisons over the years (“this year X works were added to the collection that were never in it before!”) and because I like numbers. However, depending on how exactly you plan to use the data, you may not even need to tally vote counts, and you could do one that’s more similar to my public version. Also, if you make an AO3 collection, you’re going to want some way to track which works you’ve invited, which have been added, etc., cause otherwise it’s just a nightmare to keep track of. (a little more on this later).

5. Decide how and where you’re going to share your data - as an AO3 collection? As a public spreadsheet? On social media? Maybe you want to make a side Tumblr just for it? Or a Discord server? etc. etc. Like, I’ve got a pillowfort group (though I hardly use it) and a channel in a Discord server (thanks again to the PB folks for making space for me!) with the AO3 collection being the main portal. You want to make sure that it’s advertised enough that people know it exists, and also be prepared that short term you’ll hear basically no feedback on whether people use it, and even long term it’ll be once in a blue moon and suddenly eight people will be like WAIT YOU’RE THE PERSON BEHIND THAT THING I LOVE THAT THING. In that respect it can feel a little thankless but I’ve definitely found that people do use it, it’s just that there’s no real way for people to let YOU know they’re using it (and, honestly...good? This isn’t really about us, after all, it’s about all these fic writers, the goal is to bring attention to them, not ourselves, we’re just a go-between for the writers and the readers.)

6. For making an AO3 collection, you’ll have to invite every single work individually. Some people have their accounts set to auto-accept invites, but otherwise whether the work actually gets added will depend on the authors. Some people will never accept the invite. Some people won’t know how to accept the invite. Some people will accept the invite and then subsequently remove their work. Some people have left these parts completely and will never even see the invite. That’s why it’s important to track who has added and who hasn’t, and periodically double check it (I double check every six months or so). For the people who don’t accept the invites for whatever reason, you can bookmark the item to the collection. HOWEVER, if you do this with your personal account, every single one of those bookmarks will be listed under your personal AO3, which is why I ultimately made the Faves survey its own account - it’s entirely to facilitate bookmarking. You can also use the “Bookmark External Work” feature to link to works that aren’t on AO3, and to tag them to whatever extent you want to. Here’s some examples of how I chose to bookmark external works.

7. Things will inevitably get complicated. Authors will change their names. People who do the survey will use shorthand you’ve never heard of for some fic you don’t know. People will misspell things and you’ll either recognize it even with the typo...or you won’t. People will vote for things that list eight different ships and you’ll have no idea which one is endgame. People will vote for things that have been deleted, or they’ll tell you it’s definitely on AO3 when it’s not, it’s on some other platform. The list of random things I’ve had to deal with is stupidly long and I’ve probably forgotten even more. Just...roll with it. Do your best. Ask for help (“Someone nominated a fic abbreviated as ABC to the collection and didn’t give the author and I have no idea what it is, help me Tumblr!”). And in the end, if you’ve done everything you can think of and you still don’t know...let it go. It’s just not that worth worrying about. And sometimes if you step away and look again in a few days you’ll figure out another way to search and it’ll pop up. But honestly I’ve got a handful of works I still haven’t been able to track down, and that one work that someone submitted that’s only available in Finnish and is explicit and behind a log-in wall on a small independent Finnish-only fic archive...well, I spoke to the author and confirmed the work exists, but otherwise...whelp, it’s not linked, and I did my best. That’s all you can do.

8. No matter what you do, someone somewhere will probably get upset about it. The first time I did the survey, when it got the most traction, I actually got a little hate, and I got some anons who were like “oooooo did you know that ~x~ is cheating” and I had a little “HOW DARE YOU NOT PLAY FAVORITES WHAT ABOUT MY PERSONAL FAVE?” and just...decide how you’re approaching the survey, and stick to your guns, and if anyone is a douche, hit the block button. And, related...

9. Transparency is most important imo. Not transparency for vote counts obviously, but transparency for what you’re doing, and why you’re doing it, and what you hope to accomplish. Make sure your goals are clear from the start (mine weren’t that first time, hence some of the problems I encountered) - if it’s to highlight as wide a range of works as possible, say that. If it IS to pick a favorite, say that too. Just be clear, and honest, and above board, and it should work out okay.

10. Side note...one of the saddest things about all this is that if you do it over an extended period you’ll see authors deleting their works. As such, I personally chose to download every work that gets a vote, that way it’s at least preserved. I then expanded that into a much larger archive that I’m still adding to all the time, trying to save as much Destiel as possible. But then, I’m an archivist at heart, whether you want to branch out in that kind of direction is up to you.

...okay, that’s everything I can think of. Hopefully I didn’t scare you too bad. I don’t know what fandom/ship you’re looking at but for perspective...first time I did the survey I got about 400 replies, and then the next two times it got about 200, and this most recent time it got about 300. I chose to do mine annually, on the assumption that gives some time for people to come and go for fandom and a lot of new works to get created, and I deliberately timed it for about a month after the biggest fandom event (the DCBB) that generates fics, to give people time to read those fics and consider them in their voting. For me, that means I happen to run the survey starting on January 1st, and I keep it limited to 15 days, since usually it tapers off anyway. But you could try experimenting with different schedules, or leaving it open all the time, etc., it just depends how much time you want to devote to monitoring and updating it. For me, I mostly want to do a big burst of work and then not have to think about it most of the rest of the time, lol.

So...questions? comments? thoughts? wanna tell me I’m dead wrong? I’m all ears, lemme know how I can help!

#destiel favs survey #unforth replies #sorry if this is a mess I've GOT to do some writing so I don't want to take the time to edit it #treatlouwithkindness

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cefstickles · 6 years

Text

The Assuring of Insecurities

Hehee! Hey everyone! This is a collab with the amazing @royal-sanders on tumblr of sorts (You'll see later why), but this is by far the longest tickle fic I've ever written! I just kept writing and writing until finally I got to a stopping point! It's almost 4,000 words! WTF!? Anyways. <3 you guys and hope you enjoy!

The Assuring of Insecurities

(Ships): Pre-romantic Logince, hinted Moxiety

Words ~ 3,919 ~

Warnings!: Insecurities about physical appearance, slight angst, light crying. Lotsa Crofter's and teasing galore, and yes...tickling.

(I’m gonna tag @apologieslogan because I kind of used their prompt in this tickle fic! I hope you like it friendos!)

Six Jars of Crofter's. Roman had six jars of Crofter's and had only bought Logan one. The logical aspect sighed incredulously as he tapped the door of the jelly cupboard in annoyance. Of course the prince would want the delicious treat all to himself. Then again Roman was salty for not getting his own jam, so could Logan really blame him? Welp, he did anyway regardless if the prince had an excuse or not. But, Logan couldn't help but wonder if the prince had another reason for giving him only one jar.

Now that Logan was out of his only jar of Crofter's, he had quickly grabbed one of Roman's and leaned on the counter to spoon it into his mouth, hoping the prince wouldn't notice. Unfortunately, not a minute later the royal waltzed into the room, but thankfully his back was turned to Logan. He seemed too preoccupied with singing a disney song and fighting imaginary beasts on top of the furniture to notice Logan had already eaten a fourth of one of his Crofter's jars.

Logan continued to spoon out the treat, keeping a close eye on Roman and continuously moving out of his range of vision. His little trick worked, until he wasn't watching where he had shoved the spoon, only for it to make a loud clinking sound as it hit the edge of the glass jar. Roman stopped his tracks as soon as he heard it, and whipped around to find a petrified Logan, rooted to the floor with the stolen jar in his right hand.

Roman could tell that the jar wasn't one of his, as he saw Logan finish the one he had gotten for him yesterday. "You just couldn't stay away from it, huh Logan?"

Logan sank immediately. Those words that the prince said struck a nerve within Logan's cold heart. It was almost like Roman was shaming his addiction of Crofter's or that's what it felt like. Logan took a quick glance at his own stomach before replying. He had tried to hide what amount of weight he had gained since Thomas had found Crofter's, but he wasn't sure if he was successful. And the fact Roman had only given him one jar, raised his suspicions that the prince had found out. "For your information Roman, if you had given me more than one jar, then I wouldn't have to steal from your own collection." Logan replied coolly.

Logan heard Roman scoff, as he jumped off of the couch and begin to stride towards him. "But even you know I have my limits in conjuring objects. You should be grateful you even got one!" Roman yawned into his hand before he reached the logical aspect in front of him.

"The only limits you have is your respect for others." Logan sneered at the side in front of him. It was morning and he was not having any of Princey's crap, especially with this new found sense of insecurity that had been creeping up on him for weeks now.

Roman stopped his gait a yard from Logan and frowned. "I do too have respect for others! If there's anyone who doesn't have respect, it's you for my stuff!" Roman pointed accusingly at the held Crofter's jar that still had the logical aspect's saliva covered spoon it. "Speaking of stuff, hand it over!"

Logan, without breaking eye contact with Roman, dipped his spoon into the jar, scooped out a heaping mound, and shoved it into his mouth, practically taunting Roman with his physical answer.

"Why you...! Give it here!" Roman rushed a hand to grab it from Logan, but the logical aspect was quick to maneuver out of the prince's way, and quickly shoved another spoonful in his mouth.

"I am eating right out of this Roman. Are you sure you want to share germs?" Roman gaped as he regained his footing.

"Excuse me Mr. We-are-the-same-person! I want my damn Crofter's jar back!" He lunged at Logan only to miss again and crash into the refrigerator, causing a couple magnets to fall off.

"You have five others in your cupboard specifically made for Crofter's! Get one of those!" Logan made his way over to said Crofter's jar cabinet and motioned to all five of them. "Are you having trouble counting my dear prince?" Logan began to tease lightly.

Roman growled and whined at the same time, backing Logan into a corner of the kitchen. "But I don't want to open one that's already opened! You gotta share with meeee!"

"Well did you share with me? I believe it's only fair when the rich share with the poor." Logan began holding the jar out of Roman's reach, chuckling slightly at Roman's antics.

"What are you Patton now?!" Roman yelled frustratingly, trying and failing to grab the jar from Logan's hands. But, he gradually stopped trying when his gaze had switched to Logan's unprotected armpit. The logical aspect could practically see the wheels turning in Roman's head as he was coming up with a plan.

"Logan? Are you ticklish?" The word widened Logan's eyes as he quickly yanked his arm down and made a jump to the left shoving, Roman out of the way.

"Absolutely not!" Logan took another step backward, panicking that Roman was actually thinking about resorting to that to get the oh so precious half gone Crofter's jar back.

"I think your reaction begs to differ." It was Roman's turn to chuckle as he ran at Logan who, quickly ran behind the other end of the island counter in the middle of the kitchen. It was then the two sides began to play chicken around it.

"Give me the Crofter's Logan! And I promise I won't tickle you!" Roman and Logan were stalemating on either side of the counter, waiting for the other to make a move first.

"That's a worse lie than any of Deceit's!" Logan quickly looked for a way past the prince quickly spotting the entrance of the corridor to the common's off to the left. He ran towards it, only looking back to check if Roman was following him, which to his confusion he wasn't. It gave Logan a false sense of security, because just as he was about to run into the Commons, a certain shadowy figure of a prince rose up catching the logical aspect by surprise and by his arms.

"Aaaah!" Logan's voice cracked as he yelped when he smashed his nose directly into Roman's chest. His fear was only confirmed by the deep chuckle emanating from Roman's throat.

"R-Roman. Don't..." But his plea was dismissed by the creative aspect hoisting Logic up onto his shoulders with a hefty scoop. "R-Roman no! I-PUT ME DOWN! Fine! Ill put it down. See?! See? I put the jar down! Now release me!" Logan set the Crofter's jar on the closest table that Roman passed by on his way to the Commons. He continued to squirm, hoping Roman would take pity on him, but to no avail.

"Ah wonderful. Im glad I can finish it later. But for now, I'm more interested in this ticklish theory that you seem so insistent to decline, nerd." Roman smirked as he felt Logan's fists beat helplessly against his back as he carried him through the violent squirms, all the way to one of the couches in the commons. Upon arriving, the prince quickly dropped the nerd onto said couch and quickly sat on him, preventing escape.

Logan struggled underneath the prince's weight, but at this point he knew he was done for. His gaze wandered up to Roman's eyes which sparkled with mischief, as the prince was quick to pin his hands under his knees. "Comfortable?"

"Absolutely not." Logan gritted out. "You knew...You knew I was gaining weight and this is how you decide to 'help' me?!" Roman looked quite taken aback at this outburst.

"Help you...what?"

"Don't play dumb Roman. You gave yourself all the Crofter's because you saw how addicted I was. Well you certainly aren't helping me now, by holding me down and...tickling me against my will. I'll just face the facts because I can't win against you. Not with Thomas's Chemical Engineering degree, and certainly not with any of this!" Logan spat.

Roman quickly let go of his hands, seeing Logan had reached his breaking point. "What...what on earth are you talking about? I didn't notice you had gained weight! And if I did this is hardly the way I'd reveal that sort of information to you, Logan." The prince did take a quick glance at the logical aspect's belly, he hadn't noticed until just now that it was slightly pudgier than what he remembered.

"Is that so?" Roman could see small tears forming behind the dark rims of Logan's glasses. "Well the history of your actions say otherwise." Roman scratched his head, unknowing of what to do in the situation. At this point it looked as if Logic could be shattered with so much of a wrong word on the Prince's part. And it only reminded Roman of his own negative thinking and what he's been doing to himself. It was no wonder why Logan took something without asking. He wanted to prove a point.

"Well. What are you going to say? That I'm a hypocrite for not following my own health plan? You might as well because it's a fact."

"It's not a fact, Logan." Roman finally said. "It's actually a falsehood. Weaknesses are common in everyone. In every human and in every aspect of every human. I know because I have many of these weaknesses myself and they are hard to accept. One of them is how I look and I knew if I was in your shoes I would be just as distraught. But do believe me when I say I wouldn't go that far to shame you. Especially if it was about something that we both love. We are a part of the same person Logan. Despite how much we fight, I still care enough not to do that to you. Because you do have some feelings, whether you want to admit it or not."

Logan groaned at the thought of feelings, but shoved the thought off as he searched Roman's face for sincerity. "So...you...do not think any less of me?"

"How could I Logan? You are still my equal. Although we continue to one-up each other it's not for reputations sake. Well...maybe it's partially for reputations sake, but it's also because we have differing opinions and we want those opinions to be heard no matter what. Nothing's changed between us. I am honest to god sure of that."

Roman watched Logan as relief filled his body. "I...apologize for jumping to a conclusion. I was mostly peeved because I thought you had noticed."

"Not at all Logan. I promise that's not why I didn't get you more than one jar. I was honestly..." Roman noticeably gulped as he did his best to swallow is pride. "...honestly just being a jerk." And wanting your attention. Roman wanted to add that last part, but he kept it to himself knowing Logan would absolutely refuse any attempts at courting if he was in this state of mind.

Logan chuckled and wiped away the small tears that had almost formed in his eyes. "At least we can both agree on that."

"Hey! I still have you captured, I'll have you know!" Roman growled, this time a little more playfully.

"Yes about that, can you let me go now?" Logan struggled once again in the prince's grasp.

Roman rubbed his chin. "Hmmm...now that I think about it I'm not sure I want to. You have gotten a bit of meat on your stomach, yes?"

"Yes...?"

"And you are quite insecure about it..."

"......yes..."

"But what if I told you, you didn't have to be?"

"What?" Logan's eyes went wide as Roman began peeling up his shirt. "Wait! Wait what are you doing?" Roman caught Logan's hands as they tried to push his shirt back down, and he began admiring his stomach.

"Oh that's adorable. See here Logan, there are tons of college professors and scientists that have this sort of tum and even more. And are they treated any different by their students and peers?" Roman began to soothingly rub Logan's tummy in circles, feeling the slightly loose skin move underneath his hands.

"Ye-well...um...I suppose not...but...I don't want to be compared to Patton. I'm not cute like him, I'm supposed to be seheherious. Don't tickle." Roman stopped rubbing to look Logan dead in the eyes.

"Aha! So you are ticklish!" Roman began to pick up the speed on his stomach.

"N-no! That's not what I said." Logan tried again to protect himself, but this time it was a half-hearted attempt, and Roman could tell.

"But it's what you meant. People only ask to 'not tickle' if they are ticklish themselves! Isn't that right my dearest professor?" Roman was now drawing soft circles on his sides causing Logan to arch his back and guffaw out a strained chuckle.

"Nngh fine! I am. I'd better be getting a second Crofter's jar after this." Roman chuckled at Logan's attempts at hiding his giggles that were threatening to spring forth.

"It depends on how much tickling you want to withstand. How about this. You let me tell you all the great things about having a belly like yours, and I will give you two more Crofter's jars." Roman's hands slowed, giving Logan enough brain power to think.

"This doesn't include the one I've already eaten out of does it?" Roman groaned and rolled his eyes. "Fiiiinnneee. No it doesn't." Logan gave just a bit more thought.

"Alright. Make it quick though." Roman smirked as he leaned closer to his now accepting captive.

"Why would I make it quick? Tickles like these are meant to be enjoyed." Roman pressed in a little, now rubbing the sides of his stomach with his thumbs.

"Ehehenjoyed!?" Logan tried to stop his hands from going to protect his belly from Roman's onslaught.

"Well yes. Especially when I'm showing you, that a serious teacher like you doesn't need to be embarrassed about something as cute as this." Roman gave his tummy a gentle poke allowing a small giggle to escape Logan's lips.

"See? That's the first thing! Adorable giggles from adorable tickles. Sometimes pudge like this can make you even more ticklish than you already are." Roman began softly rapid poking his belly, sides, and ribs all over.

"Thahahats nohot a peheherk!" Logan was now squirming, finding Roman's actions both ridiculous and intriguing at the same time.

"It is if someone were to enjoy that sweet sweet laughter of yours! Like I do. And yes I do intend to hear more of it. Now, another great thing about having a belly is the amount of warmth you give off!! And all that warmth is just great for hugs." Roman pressed his hands against Logan's tummy and squeezed lightly, sending a jolt through Logan's body.

"Noho! I'm nohot Patton! Patton's the ohohohonly one that gihiHIVES HUHUGS! STAHAP!" Roman thought, continuing to squeeze the entrapped sides up and down relishing in the small squeaks he was getting from him in each pinch.

"Well Virgil would say otherwise. He's told me the hugs you give are grounded in reality and to him that is very comforting. And isn't Logic supposed to ground the rest of the aspects in reality?" Logan was smiling too much to pout, otherwise he would have.

"I hahate whehehehen youhho are rihihihght."

"No you don't!" Roman teased in a sing song voice as his fingers moved to pluck Logan's ribs lightly. "You just might maybe, possibly, slightly dislike it. But you also don't like being wrong, which is one of those weaknesses that we talked about earlier. But lately, you've done good at accepting that we are all part of a human who has faults himself. And for that I am proud of you Logan." Had Logan not been laughing so much, he would have made a sarcastic Disney reference that would have offended Roman more than anything else.

Roman continued smirking through his onslaught on Logan's stomach. "Ah! Another thing a tum is good for is more room for Crofter's!" He paused when Logan gave a slight glare through his laughter. "Alright alright! I won't do that again! I promise! I swear an oath on my sword. I'll move on to the next piece of evidence. It's good for a pillow!" Roman stopped his tickling to lay his head right on Logan's stomach, dramatically humming in content. "Ah so warm..."

"Youho ahare ridiculous..." Logan gave a small gasp as Roman cupped his love handles and continued using him as a pillow. "Are we quite finished?" Roman giggled.

"Hee hee nope!" The fingers on his sides quickly shot up into Logan's unprotected underarms and began wiggling in his armpits. "My you are just ticklish all over! More giggles for me!"

"Thihihis isshihint evehehehn pahahahart of Myhihihi abdohomehehen!!!"

"True! But, your laughter is so addicting I cannot get enough of it!" Roman took a glance at where his head was laying on Logan's stomach. "Hmmm...say Logan? Do you happen to know what a raspberry is?" Logan's eyes went wide with fear.

"Thahahahat ihihis a tahahactic used in CHILdren. NOT ohon serious adults!" Roman hummed again and took his hand out of one Logan's armpits and began swirling around the rim of his belly button with the pointer finger.

"Hmm...I think you want one." Roman teased grinning up at him from his chin's resting place on his stomach.

"DOOHOHO NOHOHOT!" Logan pushed at Roman's face, but it was too late. The prince had already blown a couple raspberries all around the logical aspects tummy. He was about to deliver one to Logan's navel, when he thought better of it.

"Say Logan is your bellybutton ticklish?" Logan shook his head violently, too overcome with giggles to accurately respond.

"Hee hee. You sure, because I'ma touch it!"

"Noho! Do not!" Logan fought against Roman's tickle attempts half-heartedly.

"I'm gonna press the button!" Roman lowered his finger teasingly to Logan's dip.

"Nahaha! Stahahahap!!" Roman slid his other hand to Logan's side to distract him from pushing his finger out of the way.

"I'm going to boop it!" Roman lowered his finger more, grinning as Logan was quite literally flailing with anticipation. The prince decided to end it quick.

(Credited to @royal-sanders beautiful artistry)

"Boop!" He shot his finger the rest of the way into Logan's navel and began to wiggle gently. Logan quickly snorted and dissolved into higher pitched giggles than normal.

"Ahh!! So it is ticklish!! Tickle tickle tickle!" Roman picked up the pace on his swirling finger noticing how pink Logan's cheeks were getting as he tried to cover up his own blushing face. "Daww...none of that Logi Bear. You can't be that embarrassed about this tickle spot that much can you?"

"Stahap teahahahsing youho MOHOHOROHN!" Roman gasped at the name.

"Moron! Though I am proud of you for learning the correct terminology and using it at the right time, but I am no moron! I oughta punish you for that! And what will it be? Oh I know!" Roman lowered his face again and held his lips right above Logan's belly button. The logical aspect quickly shook his head, the eyes sparkling with laughter were betraying his actual movement.

All too soon, Roman blew the biggest and fattest raspberry on his belly button, once again throwing Logan into giggly hysterics. It was then Roman decided that Logan had enough and began to rub the tickly feelings away, continuing to admire the pudge in the process.

"And a final thing that's good about pudge?" Logan rested his head against sofa arm, panting as he watched Roman's final movements. "There's more of you to kiss for a future romantic partner." Roman bent down and kissed his stomach once causing the breathless Logan to raise an eyebrow.

"Fuhuhuture romantic partner? Roman, Virgil and Patton are already dating. I have no chance with anyone else." Roman made a strangled sound with his throat.

"Excuse me!? What am I? Chopped liver!? I am sitting directly on you!" Logan onced Roman over.

"I am aware, but your actions especially today have shown me you are more annoyed with me than...the other thing..."

"Its called "Trying to get someone's attention" Nerd! Never heard of it? Yes I was being a jerk, but I also...wanted your eyes on me." Roman muttered out the last part quietly as if he was the one embarrassed about his actions now.

"Roman, if you want my attention depriving me of Crofter's just so I can steal it and have a cognitive distortion of my own is not the best way to do it." Logan folded his arms across his chest giving Roman a 'Look-who's-right-now?' sort of glare.

"I know! I know." Roman hung his head. "But I redeemed myself didn't I?" He looked up to Logan who seemed like he was in deep thought.

"Perhaps...I havent decided yet."

"What do you mean perhaps?! I just don't want to lose this chance I have with you." Roman pouted and reluctantly moved off Logan to sit on the couch next to him, for which Logan was eternally grateful.

"You haven't Roman. At least not yet. But, now that I know you hold certain romantic feelings for me, I need to figure out what I myself...ugh...feel."

"So you don't dislike me? Even after all that?" The Prince winced waiting for Logan's answer.

"I am more annoyed than anything. But despite all that, there might be something there...I just need time Roman." Roman nodded hopefully.

"Then time is something I can give you!"

"Wonderful." Logan deadpanned. "I do want to thank you for helping me see past what I had originally thought about myself, and also for...I guess making me laugh." Logan reluctantly shared the last part of his confession with the prince. "It doesn't happen as often as it should. Just don't do it every day, or in front of the others."

Roman chuckled happily. "Alright alright. I'll have mercy on you."

"Thanks." Logan replied sarcastically, the small smile on his face betraying the tone of his voice. "Now that that's all out of the way, may I have my reward no-?" Roman put a finger to his lips, shushing him.

"Soon. Soon my dear Logan. I don't want to get up right now."

"That's alright. I can get myself." The logical aspect made a move to get off the couch but was pulled back down by Roman.

"Nuuuuu! Stay with me!!! I'm lonely and want to cuddle. If you leave with the Crofter's jars I won't see you again until lunch! And maybe not even then because your belly will be full!" Logan rolled his eyes but sat back down and let the Fanciful aspect engulf him in a hug from behind. They were soon laying down across the couch with Roman spooning Logan and planting kisses along his neck.

It's not that Logan didn't like the shower of affection, it just felt odd that the mightier of the aspects would choose him as a romantic partner. Ever since Logan found Crofter's, the logical aspect had been slightly worried about his appearance as he continued to eat more. But if he had someone to share that love of Crofter's and the small insecurities he had with, managing his loves and fixations might become a little easier.

Taglist: @violetmcl @shadowkittycat97 @chituri (Let me know if you want to be on or off my taglist!)

#sanders sides #thomas sanders #sanderssides #thomassanders #logan sanders #logic sanders #roman sanders #princey sanders #logince #tickle fic #tfic #ticklefic #cefsfic #collab #amazing artist

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muggle-writes · 6 years

Text

do I have that book challenge

tagged by @elizabethsyson and while photos were absolutely helpful (for example, in explaining the first question) I did this mostly from memory in downtime at work so I couldn't exactly take pictures as I went, and tbh I don't trust tumblr not to eat my post if I upload a bunch of pictures at once

Do you have a book with deckled edges?

thank you so much for the picture because if that's the thing with the pages not exactly matching up, (but within a small deviation from perfectly square) yes, my copy of the first three Dragonriders of Pern books in one volume has deckled edges. also probably some other books, but I've been reading that one recently so I'm sure about it

Do you have a book with 3 or more people on the cover?.

yeah: Inverloch (Volume 1)

it's the printed version of (the first portion of) a webcomic, which I didn't know when I picked it up at a garage sale or something. I hadn't even heard of webcomics yet

and. hm. don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed the premise of the story and it was never really bad... I was thrilled when I realized it was a webcomic and still online and i could read the whole thing.

but

the major plot twist, one the author had apparently planned from the very beginning, honestly had some very unfortunate implications that would haunt me if I ever attempted a reread.

Like, it was set up well enough to be a surprise but not a shock. and it enabled the happy ending. but I probably would have preferred almost any other happy or vaguely positive ending, or even a meaningful depressing ending, I was that disappointed

on the other hand the rest of it was written well enough that I cared so.... eh. it is what it is

I'm just not sure I still love it enough to recommend, but I also wouldn't stop someone from picking it up off my shelf to read, you know what I mean? Especially just that first part, which was plenty good.

Do you have a book based on another fictional story?

D&D guidebooks are totally based on Lord of the Rings, right?

lol in reality uh

the copy of Scandinavian folk tales including my favorite fairy tale ever was always my dad's, not mine, no matter how many times I read it before moving out

my wife has several Halo books? like the video game. I'm not actually sure which came first and I haven't read any of those, but they are on "my" (our) shelf

I also have a lot of Harry Potter meta/derivatives, including that themed Haggadah I think I posted a picture of recently. But the phrasing of this question makes me think the intent is "fiction based on other fiction" so none of those quite count.

so yeah, Halo's the closest I've got. also there's a Star Trek book on that shelf that I didn't even know we had until I went looking for clocks on covers

Do you have a book with a title 10 letters long?

Sadly I don't have my own copy of Dragon's Kin, which kicks off an excellent subseries of Pern books, (nor Dragonsong but I didn't expect to have that one) but what I did find was

The Visitor (which is animorphs#2)

Do you have a book with a title that starts and ends with the same letter?

Erec Rex: The Dragon's Eye

Do you have a Mass Market Paperback book?

does my solid half of the animorphs series all on one shelf count or is this looking for specific branding?

Do you have a book written by an author using a pen name?

(immediately thinks of Lewis Carrol) um Edwin Abbot was also a mathematician but sadly not a penname, but I do I have a copy of Flatland

Oh, but I'm pretty sure I have some of the ghostwritten animorphs books, do those count? Specifically someone mentioned recently that animorphs 25 was the first of the ghostwritten books and I definitely have that one

Do you have a book with a character’s name in the title?

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and Ender's Shadow on my shelf, the rest I mostly have as ebooks. also the first Erec Rex book (mentioned above) and the entire Kirsten (American Girl) series plus the first Kit book.

Do you have a book with 2 maps in it?

the first one I found was The Malloreon Volume 1 (also has 3 characters on the cover). it's got a map of the western kingdoms before the first book and a map of Mallorea in the middle of the third book

Do you have a book that was turned into a TV show

Animorphs again

Do you have a book written by someone who is originally famous for something else?(celebrity/athlete/politician/tv personality…)

I definitely had a phase of buying books by famous people, so I have the worst bulkiest copy of Origin of Species which is printed in a terrible font (it also has deckled edges for that matter), and The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins, that I could find at a quick glance. Probably something by Steven Hawking hiding somewhere

my phenomenal copy of The Elements (Euclid) doesn't quite count because he's most famous, now, for writing those so...

(Einstein's Relativity - in translation obviously because I know very little German - is deceptively short but that was my parents' book that I tried and failed to read, not my own)

Do you have a book with a clock on the cover?

Disappointingly, An Uncommon History of Common Things does not. I do have a Doctor Who coloring book with a clocklike gear pattern on the cover which is the closest I'm finding

Do you have a poetry book?

yeah someone once gave me a book of Japanese death poems, translated of course. I've been meaning to read them. for that I have to find it, and I can't right now :/ now that I remember the book I want to go read it

Do you have a book with an award stamp on it?

not that I can find? apparently Dragonflight or Dragonquest won "a Hugo or Nebula award" (bc McCaffrey was the first woman to win one of those) but wikipedia isn't telling me which award or which book, and I don't have the dust jacket for the original-trilogy-in-one-volume copy that I have so there's no telling if it "should" have an award printed on the front

Do you have a book written by an author with the same initials as you?

ooh wouldn't that be fun. I don't seem to :/

what I do have is a book written by an author with what my initials would be if I had taken my wife's last name instead of the other way around which I guess is close enough

Do you have a book of short stories?

yes, surprisingly. The Girl Who Heard Dragons and I haven't read any of them, not even the story I got it for

oh, and First Meetings, which is a bunch of short stories in the Ender universe

Do you have a book that is between 500-510 pages long?

That's... really specific. Closest I could find was 483 pages and 513 pages (Volume 2 of The Belgariad and The Malloreon, respectively) In general I have a lot of books around 300-350 pages and a fair few over 700 pages, but not many close to 500

Do you have a book that was turned into a movie?

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, for sure. I think Flatland was also made into a movie and it was as phenomenally terrible as you would expect of a story about 2d shapes. not even shapes with faces, just shapes, and one sphere.

Do you have a graphic novel?

I was going to make all sorts of qualifications of "well... if something originally published as a webcomic is now in physical book form.... (Inverloch again) but actually I have volumed 1 and 3-7 of Tomo (manga-style "preteen protag moves in with Christian family members and has both fantasy adventures and learns the benefits of being Christian" no-subtlety series that I picked up at Family Christian Stores when they were still everywhere. also I probably still have the first six Serenity "books" but I can't find them (not fantasy: rebellious "sinful" teen moves to new school and hangs out with the Christians because she wants to sleep with one of them, eventually sees the errors of all her ways, un-dyes her hair, and converts. Also no subtlety)

I had a phase when I was "too old" for veggie tales but still thought FCS was the best place ever but if that really was the best of their "teen" content it really wasn't great

Do you have a book written by 2 or more authors?

are we limiting this to novels? I have The Great Snape Debate (meta published before Deathly Hallows, with short chapters by two alternating authors, plus they got Orson Scott Card to write a chapter to draw reader attention with the big name and hey it worked, I bought it, arguing (between all of them) both sides of "will Snape turn out to be on Harry's side after all" and also The Dragonlover's Guide to Pern which as the title implies, is more of a guide than a real story.

Oh, but I do have a copy of Invasive Procedures (Card & Johnson).

Did I miss any questions? tumblr's being particularly weird today.

anyway I suppose I should tag some fellow bookworms. @knightbusofdoom @copperscales and if anyone else wants me to edit to in so you're "really" tagged, just may me know, and if you just want to do it please do and tag me back

#tag games #book scavenger hunt #this was fun but it took a lot of time for some of them #asks and answers #there's some definite themes here

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eledritch · 6 years

Note

So reading all of you amazing works as well as following the content of other lovely Sheith shippers has inspired to finally write some fan fiction and contribute too! It’s been literal years since I’ve written anything though, and of course the story that got me really excited is going to have to be a multi chapter monster. As the master of long and complex fanfics, any advice for beginners?

Good!! I believe in you.

Sure, why the heck not :’) been awhile since I made a big writing tips post and I feel like I have some new things to offer since the last one. I don’t know if your fic is gonna be an AU or canon-compliant, but since my specialty is long and complex multichapter AUs, this is mainly gonna be about that.

First, you can check out my ‘writing tips’ tag for my own tips and tips from others on tumblr: http://saltyshiro.tumblr.com/tagged/writing-tips

The most important advice I can give to you as a writer is to READ. I don’t read nearly as much as I used to, but I still try to when I can. Reading was what gave me the inspiration and knowledge I needed for worldbuilding, which is a vital part of not just AUs, but any long and complex fic. You need to be confident about writing the world you’ve stuck your characters in. You have to know that world better than anyone.

More often than not, books aimed at children actually have better worldbuilding than books for adults. There are exceptions to this (a lot of sci-fi, like Dune & The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, for example, as well as dystopian fiction like The Handmaid’s Tale), but some of my favorite worlds remain those from children’s books. They include:

The Ever After in the May Bird & the Ever After series

The absurdist and time-period defiant world where anything goes (as long as it’s unfortunate) of A Series of Unfortunate Events

The Other World in Coraline & London Below Gaiman’s adult fantasy novel Neverwhere

The world populated by various small animals like mice, rats, and squirrels in Redwall by Brian Jacques

The medieval kingdoms of Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

The eerie surrealist circus world of The Palace of Laughter by Jon Berkeley

I’m also currently working my way through the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson, which is some INCREDIBLE worldbuilding in a high fantasy setting.

So what do all of these have in common? Well, contrary to popular belief, I don’t think you have to go Full Tolkien and write a brand new language as well as six thousand maps for your world. Nope. None of that is required. All that is required is that you LOVE the world you created. Love the heck out of it. Even if it’s a shitty world. Doesn’t matter. It’s YOUR shitty world.

The more you love this world of yours, the more you’re gonna want to write about it, and the more reluctant you will be to let yourself drop the project. The pitfall many fanfic writers (and writers in general) fall into when writing long works is that they get burnt out and tired of their own story. You can’t get tired of your story if you keep adding to the world and finding new things to love and explore within it.

Worldbuilding reflects onto your characters, too - people are in many ways a product of their surroundings, after all. If your world is shitty, then your characters might end up a little shitty, too. But - and here’s the clever thing about this - because you love your world so much, and because your characters are an integral part of that world (they should be, if they’re your protagonist/villain/etc), you end up loving your characters, too. It feels like a betrayal if you stop writing their stories, and the world you’ve created should at this point feel almost like a real place, albeit within your head and your imagination. And when that happens, writing about your world and characters doesn’t feel like a chore or an obligation anymore. It feels like an adventure.

That being said, human brains have limits and it shouldn’t ALL exist in your head. You gotta take notes, do some doodles and simple maps if you’re into that, and also use resources made specifically to organize worldbuilding. I tend to just use good ol’ fashioned pencil and paper, but I’ve heard this tool is pretty good for digital organization:

https://www.notebook.ai/

Additionally, don’t be afraid to uh....“borrow” from other worlds that have been made before. The sooner you understand that everyone kinda steals (respectfully) from everyone (i.e. the lion king is hamlet; romeo and juliet is heavily inspired by the greek myth of pyramus and thisbe), the better off you’re gonna be in worldbuilding. You can, and unavoidably will, use worlds you’ve read about and/or experienced in the past in your own worldbuilding. It becomes a patchwork of your own, and once you have a base for your world, it becomes increasingly easy to add onto it and expand with more original ideas.

It can also be helpful to do a ton of research. Say you want your world to somewhat resemble Victorian England. How are you gonna know what that was like? Watch movies set in Victorian England to understand the aesthetic and speech. Watch documentaries to get a more factual basis. Read books set in Victorian England for the language and the societal ideas. Go on a Wikipedia or Google deep dive - almost always, you will end up in a much more interesting place than you expected. Listening to music can also be super helpful to get into a particular tone you want to see in your world, or can help you find the tone if you’re not sure what you want yet. I have playlists for most of my stories.

And, finally, understand that there’s always room for growth. I know my worldbuilding can be better than it is, so with every new story, I strive to make a more vibrant, vivid, lovable world than before. And guess what? Usually, not only does it work, but I also enjoy myself while writing more.

The key to long and complex fics is genuinely enjoying what you’re writing. You may be able to bullshit and slog your way through a shorter fic, but not a 200k monster. Another important key - know where your story is going to end up.

You need a goal to work towards. Maybe it’s a scene you’ve been wanting to write since you came up with the story. It doesn’t have to be the ending, but it helps if it is. You should know the ending by at least the middle of the story. I’m pretty sure I’ve written stories where that wasn’t the case and I was just flying by the seat of my pants, seeing where my world and characters took me next...which is a valid way to approach writing, but riskier, and ultimately rather frustrating when writing fics since you can’t exactly go back and insert foreshadowing for the ending you didn’t know was coming, lol.

I find late-night brainstorms best for figuring out how I want to end stories. I’ll open up a word doc, think for a good while, and then just start typing. Type it out stream of consciousness style. It doesn’t need to be a good explanation of the events, it just has to be an explanation. (This is also helpful in long stories for writing down reoccuring elements you don’t want to forget, such as slang, societal titles, a promise a character made to another than they really need to bring up again sometime...)

For example, here is my stream of consciousness brain-spew for my fic Seal It With A Kiss (this did not all end up happening quite like this, but here it is, warning for nsfw mentions lmao):

Witch Classes: Apprentice, novice, journeyman, master/magus, archmagus

The Wastes – western desert wasteland, Keith is from Blackwater, three days’ ride from the Citadel. It’s bordered by the River Acheron to the west, on the other side of which are the lands where Keith’s father lived with his first wife. The ocean is to the north, with the island of Cobao directly south of the Citadel.

The Citadel – centrally located, perched among Asphodel Peaks, near the lowland Oscuran Woods. Capital, Altea City, is three days’ ride to the east. Shiro’s grandparents live to the south on the shores of Lake Lucanus, a major fishing outpost bordered by the Dalterion Swamplands to the south.

THE VOID: mysterious dimension (or entity?) accidentally opened by witches eons ago (oops), which created Hell and unleashed demons/monsters/old gods (Voidborn). It is made up of what witches call infernal magic – a powerful and supposedly corrupted/corrupting form of quintessence. The Void is largely unknown and inaccessible to humans. Few return, and those who do are always changed by it.

HELL: Thought to be a reflection of the Void on a more physical/less abstract plane. Hell is made up of many pocket realms, including Daibazaal (one of the largest, ruled by the Galra), and Stratonikeia (ruled by Hecate). It is populated by Voidborn, who carve out sections of it for themselves in warlord-esque fashion.

Neither Hell nor the Void are inherently “evil,” though most witches consider them so, and they are dangerous. While the most well-established Voidborn rule with law and order, many other parts are lawless chaos centered around power struggles, and all Voidborn are morally gray to an extent.

VOIDBORN: Despite their vast differences, all Voidborn derive power from human souls & quintessence. Often generalized as demons, Voidborn are secular beings with no “holy” counterpart (i.e. angels), however, they come in many forms:

SPECTERS: generally the weakest Voidborn, they lack corporeal form and often “haunt” areas with histories of death, grief, and bloodshed, frightening humans and feeding off of their fear.

MONSTERS: a large and varied group of Voidborn, not as intelligent nor powerful as demons. They are the mostly likely to directly attack/kill/eat humans and are often hunted, with trophies of their heads displayed outside remote villages to ward off other monsters.

OLD GODS: a more rare group which often overlaps with greater demons; old gods can be benevolent if appeased (i.e. through ritual sacrifice, favors, offerings, worship, etc). They define territories for themselves and over time can become deified by local peoples, since old gods have been known to protect their lands and the people within them in exchange for worship.

LESSER DEMONS: more intelligent than monsters but less powerful than greater demons and old gods, they often rely on contracts and trickery to get their way. They are known to be petty, cruel, and ugly.

GREATER DEMONS: highly intelligent and powerful, they are dangerous beings who chiefly use contracts, torture, manipulation, and possession to take power from souls, which they crave more than any other Voidborn.

*Haggar has been cloaking Keith from Krolia so she cannot find her son since Keith went to the Citadel*

Shiro was captured by Haggar, who experimented on him (gave him the arm, which is powered by infernal energy/Void quintessence and began to corrupt his soul/erode it) and used him as a gladiator, until she managed to capture and slay Kurobasanir, whose quintessence she combined with the remnants of Shiro’s soul. His soulless, empty body was left to fight in the arena as a kind of robotic killing machine, while Shiro’s self became entangled with Kurobasanir. Because Kurobasanir was dead but Shiro was alive and so determined to stay alive, Shiro’s soul (primed with the Void energy which allowed him to stand up against Kuro) took control, though he gained Kurobasanir’s memories, abilities, and personality, while losing/forgetting his own. However as time passes with Keith, Shiro’s subconscious (ironically the only part of him which is still conscious/knows who he is) begins to break through, making him more ‘human’ as he starts to remember who he is/have doubts that he is really Kurobasanir.

He is unable to shift into any other human but Shiro, falls in love with Keith (demons are supposedly incapable of love), experiences sudden surges of emotion/nostalgia and feels protective towards Shiro’s family/horse/possessions/etc, is mostly unaffected by spells that should exorcise or defeat demons, and acts differently than the original Kurobasanir according to the late incubus’s friends. Because Kurobasanir was a sadist, but Shiro is not, so when he fucks Keith in front of the other demons, they know something’s up because he’s not hurting Keith at all.

What he doesn’t remember/know, though, is that this whole thing is a trap set by Haggar in order to lure Keith, who is a cambion (half demon, half human) to her so she can experiment on him in her quest to gain immortality so she can stay with Zarkon forever without surrendering her soul/turn her own soul into a demon’s essence. Because cambion, once mature, are effectively immortal and have a soul, while still retaining dormant Void magic within them which allows for their immortality and more demonic qualities. They are also extremely rare, and Haggar only knows of Keith because Hekate (Krolia) was her mentor and mentioned him.

So when Keith and Shiro go to find Shiro at the Samhain Tourney, Keith sees Shiro’s soulless body fighting and goes to break him out of his cell in the intermission; Shiro, not recognizing him/caring about him/trained to kill on sight tries to kill him, Keith is horrified and unable to bring himself to hurt Shiro, so he is saved by Kurobasanir, who realizes the situation fully once he comes face to face with the body that was once his, realizing his (Shiro’s) soul has been transferred into the incubus’s.

Before he can tell Keith this, though, Keith is captured by Haggar (who he recognizes as Honerva) and the two are separated. Keith cries alone in his cell, thinking Shiro is gone for good and also thinking Kurobasanir betrayed him and/or will be killed or tortured, leaving him utterly alone again. Lots of time passes and Keith realizes Haggar is trying to break the bond between him and Kurobasanir, because they’re both trapped and the contract must be sealed via sex. So Keith is in agony (and very very horny) because he can’t touch Shiro, and the contract is on the verge of breaking (and causing a great deal of pain and harm to both of them, since it was broken against their will) when Hekate/Krolia shows up, kicks BUTT, and bc she’s Mom of the Year, rescues Keith and brings him to Shiro while explaining on the way what happened. She also mentions that Keith’s father left because he was fulfilling the contract Hekate had with him, which was that because he was infertile she would bear him a “human” son (Keith), who would be blessed by her and live a happy/prosperous life, but in exchange Keith’s dad would only get sixteen years with his son, and then Hecate would take his soul.

As it turns out, though, Hekate/Krolia grew pretty darn fond of Keith’s dad (he’s a human teddy bear hedge mage unfazed by demons, what’s not to love), so he’s just chilling in Hell with her and had planned to come back and tell Keith the whole story, but when he returned Keith had gone off to the Citadel & Haggar was hiding Keith from Hecate.

So Keith and Shiro reunite and they’re so desperate for each other that they basically end up fucking while escaping (Keith is VERY EMBARRASSED but Krolia is like boi I am the mistress of dark magic, I don’t care, get that demon dick, proud of u son. Plus Shiro does his best to hide Things), cue a very wild scene in which both Keith and Shiro are kicking ass while fucking, since Shiro has regained his powers and Keith is Restored By The Power of Shiro’s Dick. Amen. Hallelujah.

Thankfully they finish up by the time they find the Holts, who were being forced to do alchemy stuff in Haggar’s lab. Haggar’s druids attack them, but Keith, who has read up on Honerva’s magic/theories, and Krolia, who mentored Honerva and is now pissed at her bc she tried to use Krolia’s son for her experiments, defeat the druids and are about to destroy Haggar’s research. Then Haggar bursts in, and in a desperate attempt to save her life’s work tells Keith that she can separate Shiro’s soul from Kurobasanir if he spares her/her work. Shiro is actually the one who hesitates, since he thinks Keith deserves much better than him and should have him fully human, as he appeared in their future together. But Keith has made up his mind – he loves Shiro in any and every form, and he’s done with Haggar’s shit. Furious at the thought of what she did to Shiro and planned to do to him, Keith’s magic creates a massive explosion which destroys the lab as Krolia uses one of Haggar’s traveling crystals to take them all away from Daibazaal.

Krolia takes them to her realm of Stratonikeia, a much more chill part of Hell. Because it’s Samhain and everyone is partying, Hecate’s palace is hectic and full of drunk demons and debauchery bc demons just wanna have fun, okay? Krolia makes sure the Holts are given safe accomodations so they can rest up and receive treatment before returning home. Meanwhile, Keith and Shiro are very shaken and Keith is weak from using so much magic to destroy Haggar and her lab. He and Shiro manage to escape the party and get to a balcony or something, where Shiro tearfully apologizes for everything, saying he understands if Keith wants to break ties after their contract is over, and that he wishes it didn’t have to end like this. Keith is quiet, then tells him that nothing is ending, pointing out that apparently he’s also immortal, and that technically Shiro gets his immortal soul in return for completing the contract. Shiro misunderstands, panicking and assuring Keith he will not take his soul and will leave him alone, but Keith cups his face and says he wants Shiro to have him forever, because he loves him, and never stopped loving him. Disbelieving but hopeful, Shiro embraces him gently, and when they kiss Keith begins to show his demonic characteristics (little horns, glowing eyes, tail, reddish scales).

Epilogue – Keith and Shiro get married. In Hell. It’s beautiful. They also have the most romantic, tender, kinky demon/cambion sex ever. They’re in love and together forever :’))

I hope that helps, dear!! Best of luck in your writing endeavors.

#ask me things #writing tips #siwak #writing #worldbuilding #Anonymous

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a-super-evil-cat-who-murders · 6 years

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I’ve been tagged to do a writing recap by @positivelyamazonian (and @luluvonv but I didn’t see that post nor the notification because tumblr hates me and suffering is the essence of my existence) Now, I’ve not read too much lately, as I’ve struggled find books that interest me, and because I just can’t focus on them, even ones I love)

BTW: imma go with past year as if I just did this year, I’d be limited to the Six of Crows duology.

Best book you read so far this year

I’d have to say The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan. The final book in the original Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. This book was a ride. The tension of this book was so great I had to put it down every few minutes just to stave off an actual heart attack. I could feel my heart being crushed and torn inside me chest it was great. I was panting and hyperventilating the whole time, I’ve never had a book do that to me. Like, if you watch any of the battle episodes from Game of Thrones, the entire book is that and it is just marvelous. I knew that Percy and Annabeth and Grover would live, was pretty sure Nico would too, but the other campers I didn’t and when any of them died, and mind you all the campers are kids, Percy is like, 14 or 15 in this book, Luke Castellan was the oldest of all the campers and if I remember he was 23 in this book, the rest are children. And each time they died, and often in not pretty ways, my heart would just shatter for these poor innocent children. The plot is great so I won’t spoil any more of it, but yeah, best book I’ve read in the past year, probably the best I’ve read ever. If you read anything I write about in this post, read the first PJO series, because I cannot say enough how incredible this book is.

Worst book you read so far this year

Hhhmmmmm… I’d say The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. I’d heard such good things about Sanderson but good gods did I not like this book. The biggest issue I had with it was a lack of quality time with any characters. The book opened with an assassin character, but I spent most of the chapter with him, trying to learn what the fuck he was talking about, what the names were tied to and how his magic worked. I didn’t start getting into him until the end of his chapter. But then, the next chapter is from a completely different characters perspective, in a completely different place at a completely different time. Now this new POV character, is like 15, a novice soldier on a battlefield, so I ofc feel sorry for him and want to hold him and protect him so OKAY! I have a character I can care about, great. Then the battle happens and it’s okay, tbh ASoIaF and TLO kinda ruined battles for me. Then the battle goes awful the kid gets injured, then the battle goes well, and he’s at a medical tent when a surprise army fall upon them. So now I’m thinking “Oh gosh, did he live?” but now we’re stuck with a person who I think was mentioned in the prev. chapter, but he’s a complete asshat so now I’m wondering if the one character I liked and cared about is alive. He died and so did my patience with this book. In A Song of Ice and Fire, and The Heroes of Olympus, Martin and Riordan introduced multiple POV characters at once by having them all in the same place. If you ask me, that’s how you should introduce multiple POV characters, because in that way, even if you only like one of the characters, you still get that character, just form someone else’s perspective. It keeps you from having to repeatedly shift gears, which is the last thing you want at the beginning of your novel if you ask me.

In addition, I had an issue with him using names or words without explaining the meaning of them. He’d talk about a certain ethnic group, and say they’re from this place, but then I’d look on his map, and find no such place. Then we only get a slight description, of their place in society, but I don’t know anything about that society, so that place is without a reference point. He also used the names “lighteye” and “darkeye” but didn’t explain upfront what those descriptors mean, so I’m sitting here trying to ask what that means, but not getting anything. However, they are clearly described as rather important traits in the story, but I don’t think you should introduce such consequential, important parts of your world, and then not explain them. At least, not without good reason.

Completed any series?

Yep, last fall I just slammed through Percy Jackson & the Olympians and its sequel series, The Heroes of Olympus, both by Rick Riordan again. I also read through in 2018 I believe, Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows duology. Loved all three to death.

Anticipated read for the second half of the year?

Nothing in particular. I checked out the first Mistborn book by Brandon Sanderson (hopefully it’s better the Way of Kings), I’ve also though about reading through some history books or something, to see if those catch my interest.

A book that disappointed you

I’d say The Hidden Oracle, or just all of the Trials of Apollo series by Rick Riordan. I’ve only been able to read through The Hidden Oracle, and that was really just because of Nico and Will. Nico is easily my favorite book character (sorry to my former first place, Bran Stark) and his relationship with Will is so fucking cute and funny I just adore every second of it. However, making Apollo, the actual god, Apollo, the main character was a really stupid idea. The Olympians are by and large the most vain, sadistic, self-centered deities I’ve ever heard of, and making one of them his protagonist was just stupid; those aren’t likable traits, and a lot of the times, it seems like the inflated ego of Apollo is played more for laughs than as an actual character flaw. In addition the other main character, Meg, I find to also be rather annoying. A bratty little kid. No thanks.

I tried to read the second book, The Dark Prophecy, but I just couldn’t. The story left Camp Half-Blood, and thus, Nico and Will aren’t there. Instead we get Leo and Calypso. I never really cared for Calypso, and often found her just kind of meh... and since she hates Apollo, and the book is from Apollo’s perspective, she’s either mean and angry, or just really bland. Regarding Leo, I liked Leo, but, his character arc got resolved in The Blood of Olympus from the previous series (The Heroes of Olympus); he’s learned to fully accept his pyro-kinesis and to stop blaming himself for his mom’s death. Other than that however, Leo’s other defining characteristic is him being a joker. Constantly cracking jokes, and being an all around goofball, and a bit of a ladies boy, but all of that has been dulled quite a bit from the previous series. He’s grumpy, serious, and in a relationship with Calypso, and just lacking in the charm he had from the previous series.

I don’t know if I’ll just try and power through it in the future, because I’m sure Will and Nico will be back towards the end of the series, and because a... cataclysmic event happened in the latest book (the third i think) and... imma have to read that... but... I don’t know.

How many books for have read so far this year?

???? IDK!?!? 13?

A book that made you laugh

... Every book by Rick Riordan has made me laugh. Sometimes the normal wheezing i do, sometimes and actual guffaw, and sometimes I’m having to lie down and contain myself before I die from laughter.

Estimated read count for the year?

Don’t know, don’t care, not like I’m getting paid for it.

Tagging: @inarticulatefox , with Navi gone, you’re the only person i know who likes books ( you do like ‘em right?) and hasn’t done this yet so yeh. I tag ye.

#reading recap #the last olympian #the way of kings #the hidden oracle #the dark prophecy #percy jackson and the olympians #the trials of apollo #percy jackson #leo valdez #calypso

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phan-of-the-pen · 7 years

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I Dare You To Stay: Chapter 3

Hey guys! New chapter! I also used the song Resistance by Muse. ALSO I’m on spring break today so I’m going to have more free time!! That means more chapters!! :D

Tags for chapter: fluff, lowkey flirting

Words for chapter: ~3.8k

Fic Summary: Dan Howell is a barista working a shitty job, frequenting his shitty apartment, and living a shitty existence, hiding his asexuality and going for a PHD in self-depreciation and depression. Phil Lester is a part-time intern, part-time employee at a local weather station, trying to get experience in his field and make a name for himself, while juggling a second job at the nearby Tesco’s to give him some financial breathing room. Their paths were never supposed to meet, but what happens when they do anyways, one rainy day in Manchester?

(ao3 link)

<-- Previous chapter Next chapter -->

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After about a week had gone by, Dan was feeling much more like himself. His mental health had balanced out a little, the chemicals in his brain righting themselves to as good as they ever got, and the few symptoms that he had experienced due to his concussion had faded away. Which was good, because Dan was sure that if he forgot what kind of coffee he had been in the middle of making one more time Jaime was going to kick him out of the store until he was fully healed.

Besides the normal mishaps that happened on a day-to-day basis regardless of concussions involved, the week was relatively decent enough and lacking in any special "charm", as Jaime put it. But it wasn't like Dan was complaining. Yeah, it was good to be doing something, but having a slower-than-normal week was perfect for giving Dan's health a little bit of time to catch up. Dan also didn't have to work with Steve at all this past week, which was an absolute blessing, thank god.

Dan did end up taking the whole "limiting screen time" thing a bit hard. There were multiple times where he would subconsciously pull his phone out of his back pocket to check the time or scroll through social media when there weren't any customers around, just for Jaime to pluck it right out of his hands with a tsk. And he would groan and mumble about how "unfair" she was being, but really he was kind of glad that he had someone to make sure he didn't screw his brain up any more than he already had.

And, because staying up until 4AM on Tumblr wasn't an option anymore, he was significantly much more well-rested, resulting in a much smaller consumption of caffeine, which his body seemed to be thanking him for. Funny how things can work out like that.

It was a Monday, and he was for once alone in the shop. Steve was in some other country for holiday and Jaime had come down with a nasty cold over the weekend. And, surprisingly enough, that exhausted all of their options. The store itself was small, so it easily got by with few employees, but as it was minus Dan, Jaime, and Steve, the rest of the help were teenagers still in school that took shifts on the weekends and some nights. What was Dan going to do?—call one of the kids and ask them "uh yeah hey I know you're in the middle of class right now, but could you maybe cover for someone who called out sick?". No, Dan would pass on that.

His phone dinged in his pocket, and his chuckled. That would be Jaime, for the millionth time today already, complaining that she was "literally dying". There was no one in the shop, so Dan palmed his phone, unlocking it with a swipe of his finger. He laughed at Jaime's message and replied, biting his lip to unconsciously try to hide his smile.

>> From: my maraschino cherry

dan i cant even get out of bed to write my will

how will ppl know all of my millions go to my cat

>> To: my maraschino cherry

two problems:

1 you dont have a cat

2 i know full well you have abt 37€ to your name

>> From: my maraschino cherry

i cant believe you would be this rude to me when im dying

>> To: my maraschino cherry

if ur gonna die im getting ur paycheck

>> From: my maraschino cherry

if im gonna die im gonna haunt your ass for the rest of ur miserable life howell

Dan laughed, but a teenager that was obviously skipping school walked in the store, so he pocketed his phone for the moment. She ended up ordering a coffee but didn't stray from the counter, instead she very obviously flicked her eyes over Dan and tried to flirt with him. Fortunately for Dan, however, she could tell after a few moments of his awkward stuttering and the uncomfortable hunch of his shoulders that he wasn't interested, and she backed down, wishing him a good day and walking back out of the store, throwing a "Thanks for the coffee!" over her shoulder.

When she was gone Dan let out a sigh of relief and relaxed against the counter. He hated being flirted with. It made him way too anxious and stressed out.

This Monday was the slowest day he had seen in a very long time, possibly the most empty he had ever seen the store in the entire time he had worked here, which had been quite a while. Three hours had passed since that girl had come in, and no one else had entered the store, leaving Dan alone. He'd made himself two coffee's, had his lunch break, played several games on his phone, and even face-timed Jaime. Now though, Jaime was sleeping, his phone was nearly dead, and he still had another four hours before his shift was ending. Would he last until six? Time would only tell, that was for sure.

Dan slumped through another forty-five minutes of him lazing around the coffee shop, counting the cars as they passed by. He nearly fell asleep once, and because he so happened to be working in a coffee shop, Dan made him a double caramel macchiato with an absurd amount of sugar in it. He quite nearly chugged it, just for something to do, but settled for a slightly more reserved series of large gulps.

Afterwards, he used the key in his pocket to unlock the manager's office. Well, "office" was a bit of a stretch. It was mainly just a tiny room where the security monitor was housed as well as the filing cabinet that was sure to hold things like employee records and information on ingredients purchased and such. Dan's key didn't open that, and since his key was actually Jaime's she didn't have access to that either. The only one who did was the owner.

Dan sat at the desk, looking around for some sorts of PA system. He had never really been back here, only seen Jaime come in to turn the store's music on and turn it off every day they worked together. And frankly, even if Jaime was technically the manager, she had given Dan the temporary title when he stopped by her apartment to grab the keys to the store when she called him to tell him that she was sick, and that meant that he could choose the music, today. He'd been playing songs on his phone for the day, as some source of background noise, but with the nearing death of his phone, he had stopped the app awhile ago.

Maybe music is the key to ending this suffering, Dan thought, shuffling papers out of the way, still looking. Maybe, if I can ever find the damn thing.

Dan huffed, defeated, slumping against the chair. He absentmindedly spun in it a little, rocking from left to right, thinking. So, there was obviously no little radio or something back here, connected to the speakers, so that was out of the question. There was also no microphone or anything of the sorts that could be used to broadcast music via an outside source like a phone, which wouldn't have helped him anyways with said almost-dead battery. He sat, turning the problem in question around in his head. Dan left his head fall back on the headrest, puffing out his cheeks and staring at the ceiling. He spun himself in the chair with his foot, watching as the peeling paint above him swirled with him. When he came to a stop he picked his head up, thinking about how that was probably not the greatest for his head after a recent concussion, and his gaze landed right on the computer.

He wasn't sure about his possible success rate, but he sat up, switching the monitor on. A screen for a password came up, and Dan looked at it for a moment before putting in his employee pin. The computer beeped but the screen didn't change. A pop-up surfaced: Your password was incorrect.

Dan frowned, but then lit up almost immediately as the pieces clicked into place. Of course his pin wouldn't work; he wasn't the manager of the store and didn't have a key to this back room, so it wouldn't make any sense for his employee number to work. However, Jaime was the manager, and they had clocked in for each other more than enough times at this point for each other to know their pins.

He typed out her six-number pin and hit 'enter' but this time when the computer beeped, there was no pop-up. The home screen opened and Dan smiled. There wasn't much on the screen, but he flicked his eyes over the small selection of apps lined up on the left side of the screen and clicked on one who's icon was a blue eighth note. What was basically a souped-up Spotify opened, and Dan scrolled through the music selection available. There was a history bar, but the only thing on there was the local pop station, which was obviously what Jaime played day to day.

Dan knew that this was a work computer and everything on it was probably recorded and such, and—not to mention the fact that at some point today there were going to be customers so he couldn't choose something nuts—as a result he passed by everything in the search that was heavier, more on the rock and roll side. He finally picked with a huge grin on his face, settling on one of the band's albums and hitting play, cackling when he heard the sound burst through the speakers in the front of the store. Dan raised the volume a little—just a tad, really—and stood, making his way out of the manager's office in higher spirits than he entered it with. Dan re-locked the door behind him and made his way back behind the counter with a bounce in his step.

The next half an hour was better with music to keep him company, especially with his favorite artist easing the boredom that Dan felt. He was enjoying himself, if only slightly. Darkshines faded out and Dan had just finished texting Jaime (who was probably still asleep) that he was having a ton of fun here by himself (which was only half true; the music was good, yes, but he would have preferred some company too). Dan wasn't really paying too much attention to what was playing through the speakers, but when the almost haunting sound was taken over by a wonderful piano solo and the backbeat of a drum that Dan knew so well, he dropped his phone onto the counter and forgot about it completely. Dan grinned so wide he might have been afraid of his face splitting right in two.

He sang along, gaining confidence in the vacant coffee shop with every verse. Dan drummed on the counter to the guitar, the drums, even the rise and fall of the vocals of the song itself. Dan laughed, dancing on his feet as the chorus crashed.

Love is our resistance,

They'll keep us apart and won't stop breaking us down,

Hold me,

Our lips must always be sealed

Dan was honestly having fun at that point. One of his favorite songs of all time was on, and frankly, it had picked up his whole mood.

So, really, Dan couldn't be blamed when he didn't notice the little chime of the bell on top of the front door over the music, but he did notice that he had an audience when he spun around—still, admittedly, dancing—to find a tall, skinny man with dark, dark hair and very pale skin standing, a few steps inside the store, stopped dead in his tracks, mouth open a little and eyes wide, eyebrows high on his forehead.

Dan yelped, startled and very nearly slipping on his own two feet. He felt his face flush immediately and the guy himself had a dusting of pink on his cheeks, but it was undoubtedly much much more controlled than Dan's. His mouth went dry and he suddenly wished very much that Jaime was here, because if she was, Dan wouldn't have had his choice in music, and him getting caught dancing by a stranger wouldn't have happened, damnit.

"Uh...sorry. C-can I help you?" Dan stuttered, his face still hot. One of his hands was shaking but he just slipped it into his pocket. The guy blinked and Resistance was over, the music fading into something else, and the spell between them seemed to break, returning reality to its original state. The stranger nodded, stepping forward, a small smile on his face.

"It's okay, I like Muse too, I just wasn't expecting it," he said, chuckling, "and I'll have one caramel macchiato, please," he finished, biting his lip a little at the end of his sentence. Dan nodded, turning around and started to make the coffee, grateful to not have to hold the guy's gaze, but Dan could feel his eyes burning holes into Dan's back the entire time that he mixed the drink. He tried not to feel more uncomfortable and embarrassed than he already was. It wasn't working.

"Here you go," Dan said, handing the drink over, "one caramel macchiato." Their hands brushed and Dan flicked his eyes up from where his gaze was resting on the counter. He was looking at Dan weird. Did Dan say something? Offend the guy?

But as Dan finally met the stranger's eyes with his own, he became abruptly aware of how blue they were. A memory surfaced, one of colliding head-first with a stranger on the street with similarly gorgeous eyes, causing Dan to look the guy over. He had the eyes, the same combination of pretty and handsome that Dan remembered through the haze of his headache, the same everything that Dan had remembered. Except for the pair of black glasses perched on his nose.

In all fairness, the guy had flicked his eyes over Dan too, and was looking at him expectantly, a question that Dan couldn't read in his eyes.

"Did you...this is going to sound weird, but did you happen to, ah, run into anyone? Like last week-ish? And them possibly fall over?" Dan squeaked, his small amount of confidence burning out mid-way through his question but Dan's social anxiety keeping him from dropping it.

The man smiled, and it was blinding.

"Yeah! I was wondering if it was you because you looked so familiar, but I didn't want to say anything and seem like a creep. I'm glad you said something!" He laughed, and it was the happiest sound Dan had ever heard. He could feel his blush. The stranger who Dan did-and-didn't know stuck his hand out, that smile still there.

Dan shook it, his head still whirling. His hands were just as warm as Dan remembered them, as utterly creepy that sounded in his head.

"I'm Phil, by the way, it's nice to meet you again."

"Uh, Dan. And...yeah," he replied lamely.

Internally, he groaned. Can he really be any stupider in a social conversation? Is that possible?

Phil was still smiling, but it dampened a little and he looked concerned. "How is your head, by the way? Better, hopefully?"

"Oh, yeah, it still throbs every once in awhile just to be a pain in the ass, but I think I'm good at this point. You were right though—I had a concussion. My friend ended up taking me to the doctor's."

Phil grimaced in sympathy.

"I can't say that I'm jealous of that. I'm quite a clumsy person, so I've had my fair share of concussions. I'm glad you're feeling better though! I was wondering if you were okay like, the entire rest of the day we ran into each other. I felt so guilty."

Damn, he'd probably double over if I told him that I stayed in bed for like 48 hours straight after that fall, Dan thought, eh, it was for a different reason though, maybe not.

Instead of voicing his thoughts, Dan chuckled a little.

"The whole day, huh? That's pretty empathetic, especially for a stranger."

"Oi! You looked like you were about to fall over! It was like walking one of my drunk friends home!" Phil said, almost a whine. Dan laughed, he couldn't help it really, there was just something inexplicably funny about Phil grumbling as he was.

"Besides, we aren't strangers anymore, so you're point is totally invalid."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. I'm Phil, you're Dan. Dan and Phil. Phil and Dan. We know each other's names so we're totally not strangers."

Dan snorted and shook his head. His phone beeped on the counter, definitely just Jaime replying to him, probably telling him not to have so much fun when she was dying.

"Aw, you're ringer isn't a Muse song. I'm disappointed now." Phil said and Dan rolled his eyes.

"I don't like Muse that much, mate."

Phil scoffed playfully, and gave Dan a look.

"Really? I walked in here with you giving your own little performance of Resistance by Muse. Quite entertainingly, really, and I can bet that no one who 'doesn't like Muse that much' would do that, mate."

Dan felt a little off at that. Partially because Phil saw right through Dan's bullshit and his easy-going jibe at Dan's use of 'mate'.

"Fine, you caught me, guilty as charged and all that—I love Muse. They're my absolute favorite music group and the owners of my literal soul." At the end, Dan had gotten a bit sarcastic, but overall the statement was true. Phil smiled, but this one was different, it was slyer, like he knew a secret that Dan didn't.

"I thought so, Dan."

Dan almost choked on his own spit when Phil said his name like that. And Dan wasn't even sure what 'like that' even meant, he just knew that there was something different at how his name rolled off of Phil's lips.

Phil's eyes went a little wide, his mouth forming an 'o' like he was remembering something.

"Oh yeah! I totally forgot to pay!" Phil reached into his back pocket, and Dan's eyes totally didn't follow the movement, thank you very much. He pulled out a leather wallet and opened it up, placing his coffee on the counter so he could use two hands and was already pulling out money, but Dan snapped back to attention and waved it away.

"No no, you keep that Phil."

"Dan, I've got to pay for my coffee."

"Nope, I won't let you. It's on me, okay? I ran into you that night, you walked me home and made sure I got in safely, trust me, you keep your money, Phil."

"Dan, we ran into each other, you can't really count that," Phil said, trying to hand Dan what was enough to buy two coffees. Dan pushed Phil's hands away, giving the guy an exasperated look.

"I can and I will. Look, even if you don't count that, you still walked me home, I still owe you."

"That's not how it works."

"You did a favor for me, I'm doing a favor for you; that's so how it works."

"Dan-"

"Take the damn coffee, Phil," Dan said, and following an impulse, plucked the wallet out of Phil's hands, slipped the money back inside and shut it. Dan leaned over the counter a little for a better reach, one of his hands braced on the counter, and put the wallet into the pocket on Phil's shirt. Dan pulled back, rocking on his heels a little, and flashed Phil a little smile. Phil shook his head, but there was a smile on his face.

"You are very stubborn, Dan"

"Thanks."

Phil laughed and picked up his coffee, taking a sip. His face lit up and he looked down at the steaming drink in his hands.

"Wow this is actually really good," he said, surprise in his voice.

"You are one of those really supportive friends, aren't you, Phil." Dan snorted.

"Hey!" Phil cried, indignantly. "How do I know that fall didn't, like, scramble your brains or something? Forever impair your coffee-making abilities?"

Dan laughed again, and honestly, he couldn't help it if he tried. Phil was just too...too Phil. Dan didn't know what was about him, but now that he wasn't severely concussed, he was aware of how fun Phil seemed to be around.

It turned out that Phil had been looking around for a place to stay and burn some time before he had to get into work, so he stayed up at the counter, and he and Phil fooled around for a little, joking and teasing each other. Dan had made himself a drink (a smoothie this time because he didn't think his system could handle any more caffeine without imploding) and Phil had another coffee and a danish from their display case (which he actually paid for because he quite literally just wouldn't accept Dan waving the money away). When it came time for Phil to leave, however, the process nearly took almost fifteen minutes because neither of them would shut up. When Phil was at the glass door and they were still trading jokes, he looked at his watch and said something about running late from staying too long, and even though he didn't seem too concerned about it, Dan certainly was, shooing him out with a "Phil! Go! I swear to god if you're late to work!". Phil had laughed his way out and so had Dan, really.

When he was gone though, Dan couldn't help but feel a little lonely. He hadn't really had anyone around all day besides the very few customers that had popped in for a few minutes, and Phil's presence was a welcome change in all of it. Now that he was gone the store felt much more empty than before.

Thankfully for Dan though, soon after, things started to pick up. More and more people came in for their evening coffee, and with the customers, Dan was busy, which was good enough. When his shift was over, and two teens had come in to take over the store, Dan had forgone getting a taxi home to walk under the gloom of the Manchester skies. He stopped by a fast-food place to grab some dinner on his way back to his flat.

And if he paused and looked around at a particular corner close to home, his spirits dropping a little at the sight of nothing and nobody around him, no one had to know.

#phanfiction #phanfic #my fics #allyssaTM #phan #chaptered #dan howell #phil lester #i dare you to stay #i dare you to stay: chapter 3 #fluff #ace!dan #dan and phil #phandom #PHIL BACK LOOK AT THAT #this was really cute

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theonlyjelly-iwillput-inmybelly · 7 years

Text

Escapade-Chapter Seven

A/N: Hi, gang! Here is the second to last chapter of my first ever fic. I am excited for this chapter. We will finally see the outcome of the hardest decision Roman has ever made in his life.

You can read…

The fic in its entirety on my AO3 (the link will take you to the beginning of the story)

Chapter One on my Tumblr (this will take you to Chapter One only)

Chapter Two on my Tumblr (this will take you to Chapter Two only)

Chapter Three on my Tumblr (I think you get the drill at this point)

Chapter Four on my Tumblr

Chapter Five on my Tumblr

Chapter Six on my Tumblr

Please let me know through a message or comment if you want to be added to the taglist! The final chapter, Chapter Eight, is scheduled to be posted on Tuesday.

THANK YOU GUYSSS AAAA

Tagging people at the end.

“Well it’s a good thing we got those cookies out of the oven, Patton. Thank goodness we smelled that smoke and we were able to get them out before they caught fire.” Logan said, coughing as he stood on a chair and smacking the smoke alarm in the kitchen in order to silence it.

Patton was coughing through the thick smoke that was pouring out of the oven as well, his hands encompassed in oven mitts as he fished out the tray of burnt chocolate chip cookies. He had put in the last of the day’s many batches of cookies in the oven before they had started the game of Apples to Apples. He peered at the timer on the stove. It read 12:05 PM. He had never set the timer!

“Oh, Logan! This is all my fault. I never set the timer, so we completely forgot about them,” Patton cried, spluttering through the billowing banks of clouds that rose to the ceiling of the mind palace.

“No worries,” Logan said, hopping down from the chair once he had disabled the alarm, “Nothing life threatening occurred, so it is not a big deal.”

The logical side pushed the chair back into the table as Patton sprayed the tray with water. Steam hissed. Logan walked over and suppressed a snicker as he saw the completely charred cookies adhered to the tray.

“I’m sorry,” Patton said quietly, his voice guilty.

Logan blinked. Patton was actually feeling guilty! Over a silly mistake! He was about to explain to the moral side why he was wrong to feel that way, but something stopped him. He remembered that Patton was not always assured by logical explanation, but that he sometimes needed physical reassurance.

“There is no need to be sorry,” Logan said, wrapping his arms around Patton’s waist and gently tugging the moral side flush against his chest while nuzzling his nose into his hair, “Anyone could have made that mistake.”

Something was wrong; Patton was tense under his arms, and out of the thirty two times Logan had held Patton in this matter, the moral side had only reacted negatively twice, and that was only because he had been tired or not in the mood for affection. He released Patton when he felt him squirm. The moral side turned to face him, his head bowed.

Logan gently tilted up Patton’s chin with his finger, and was distinctly alarmed when he saw his eyes were filled with tears. Logan knew that Patton was prone to being overly emotional about little things, but he had never cried over burnt cookies before. It was alarming.

But suddenly, it hit him.

“This is not about the cookies, is it?” Logan murmured gently, pulling the man into a tentative hug.

Patton whimpered, and buried his head into his boyfriend’s shoulder, squeezing him tightly around the middle. “No, Lo.”

Logan squeezed his eyes shut as he felt aching pity clench his heart. He rubbed comforting circles into Patton’s back.

“You’re worried about Roman?”

“...And Virgil.”

Logan sighed, and gathered Patton closer to him. “There, there…” he whispered, completely at a loss for kind words to say. His throat was swollen, and tears pricked at the back of his eyes. Patton in pain was one of the only occasions in which Logan felt the need to cry. It was in a way comforting; someone supposed to be an emotionless robot was not empathetic. He felt extremely conflicted, his heart in his throat as he tried to form words that would comfort the quaking man in his arms.

They jumped when the smoke alarm started to screech again, and again a moment later when they heard a door slam open.

“Don’t worry about Virgil, worry about yourselves!” a panicked voice said from behind them.

Logan and Patton looked up and hastily separated.

Through the smoke, they saw Virgil stumbling towards them, clad in his pajamas, his purple and black hoodie thrown hastily over his shoulders. He peered through the smoke, coughing until he found the other Sides.

“What, I go to bed and you two set the house on fire, if that’s even possible?!” he yelled.

“No, Virgil! We just burned some cookies,” Logan explained, one arm still rubbing reassuring circles on Patton’s back. The moral side was giggling at the sight of Virgil who was looking around in a disheveled state. He rubbed the tears from his eyes.

The anxious side came over and peered into the sink at the burned cookies as Logan pulled the chair out again and continued his assault on the alarm. “...So we’re not going to die?”

“I can say with complete assurance that we are not.” Logan grunted as he pulled out the alarm’s battery.

Virgil sighed with relief, and glanced at Patton with a sheepish smile. His face fell when he saw Patton discreetly wiping away tears.

“You alright, padre?” he asked, gently squeezing the moral side’s shoulder.

“Of course, kiddo! I’m fine. Really, Virgil,” Patton added hastily as Virgil skeptically arched an eyebrow, “I just got a little overwhelmed, you know how it is sometimes...Logan’s taking care of me.” he said, whispering the latter half of his sentence. Virgil nodded, correctly interpreting that to mean that Patton was going to vent to Logan once Virgil himself left.

“...Well, I’m going back to sleep,” he said, squeezing Patton’s shoulder one more time before releasing him, “I was just starting to have a lovely dream before that fucking smoke alarm went off...”

When the anxious side returned to his room, Logan turned back to Patton.

“There, you see? He’s as snarky as ever. He’s alive and well. You don’t have to worry about him.”

Patton wrung his hands, his eyes darting away from Logan. “But...I’m worried he’ll go after Roman or something...not good.” he whimpered fretfully.

Logan gently pulled Patton back into his arms as more tears threatened to spill out of the moral side’s eyes. He ran his fingers through the short hairs along Patton’s nape, and slowly began to oscillate from side to side.

“I highly doubt he will do that. Virgil is aware of his limits, and I believe that he is too frightened to go anywhere near the Dragon Witch’s territory, and he feels that way for good reason. He hasn’t left the commons at all; we’d feel that happening, remember? Listen, he is close.”

Patton and Logan were quiet as they listened for Virgil. Logan was right; Virgil’s heartbeat was very close, and had been the entire day, which was the truth as the anxious side was in his room and had not left the commons. They knew he was close because they didn’t have to listen very hard to hear his heartbeat. Patton could feel Virgil’s anxiety over Roman, and as the clock struck quarter after midnight, he could also feel his exhaustion. Virgil’s heart-rate was getting slower and slower, suggestive that he was falling asleep.

“If he hasn’t gone already, then the chances of him leaving later decrease. He will be fine, and I am willing to bet that Roman is conquering the Dragon Witch as we speak.” he murmured, and Patton was finding it hard to tell whether the logical side was just saying these things to make him feel better.

But Logan was being genuine.

Patton gave a watery chuckle. “I guess I’m just a little stressed.”

“I agree, dear.”

Roman’s mind was working unusually fast. As his hands roamed Virgil’s hoodie, he took in all the details. Virgil was clothed in his old outfit: an over sized, completely black hoodie, a mere black T-shirt beneath, and ripped black skinny jeans. The fantastic patchwork hoodie he now sported was completely gone, the artfully torn purple shirt totally absent.

He looked up and saw that Virgil was still staring into his eyes.

That had been the first clue that something was off. Virgil could never look directly at him for longer than five seconds, even though Roman knew that the anxious side loved him very much. It was simply something Virgil could not do. But here, Virgil had been staring into his eyes for the entire confrontation.

The Virgil he knew and loved couldn’t do that.

“Is this truly what you wish, Prince Roman? You will allow me to kill him so that you may live?” The Dragon Witch asked.

Roman was shaking, even though he was merely acting. “I will do anything to live.” he responded. He spat out the words as if they were rotting in his mouth. He felt totally disgusted in saying them.

The Dragon Witch’s eyes narrowed. Her face broke into a cruelly gleeful smile. She burst out into throes of evil laughter, her gravelly voice shaking the very earth. “Then stand aside!” she roared, great spouts of smoke and ash leaping out of the castle behind her, the magma oozing out of the walls like blood.

“Wait!” Roman shouted, his hand held up, “Just...Just let me say goodbye to him.”

The Dragon Witch snorted impatiently, and slammed her claws into the ground. Roman’s knees buckled under the force. “Yes, yes! Hurry along with it! You mortals with your love...Hmph!”

Roman fell to his knees once again, and cupped Virgil’s face with both of his hands. The anxious side was looking at him reproachfully, tears pouring out of his eyes. A plan was growing in Roman’s mind, along with a realization.

This was not Virgil.

Roman carded his hands through Virgil’s hair. His eyes glanced up and saw that Virgil’s hair was its old brown. Not purple! And the shadows beneath Virgil’s eyes looked to be made with Virgil’s old eye pencil, not his new powder. He ran his fingers along Virgil’s jaw, and could not feel the fresh scar from the confrontation with the goblin in his kingdom a few days earlier. No scar could ever disappear that fast. Roman laughed aloud, but quickly made it sound like a sob. This Virgil was a fake, a mere hologram! An extraordinarily realistic hologram, but one nonetheless. The Dragon Witch must have conjured him based upon the picture she had built of him in her mind’s eye.

The last time she had seen Virgil was when all four of the Sides were venturing in Roman’s kingdom on a ‘family bonding event’ as Patton had called it. They were exploring, none of them expecting to be attacked. The Dragon Witch had swooped upon them, screeching. Roman had forced the others to sink away to safety.

That was when Roman had blinded her, and that was when she gave him his permanently disfiguring scars that ran like mountain ranges along his back.

She hadn’t seen Virgil since he had changed, so all she could do was conjure this incredibly life like dummy. Roman had been convinced at first, it was so realistic. But he wasn’t fooled for long.

Roman tenderly kissed fake Virgil’s forehead. The skin beneath his lips felt so warm...so real. Roman’s heart ached with that familiar love he always felt when he kissed Virgil. He shuddered; it was unnerving, how easily his heart and his mind could be manipulated. “I’ll see you soon, love.” he whispered.

He backed away, and turned his head aside. He couldn’t watch the Dragon Witch eat something that was meant to look like his boyfriend, even though he knew that Virgil was no doubt back in his room, sleeping peacefully.

...Wasn’t he?

The Dragon Witch lowered her head so that her jaws were just behind Virgil.

“Look at me, Prince!” she snarled.

Roman looked up, and he locked eyes not with the Dragon Witch, but with fake Virgil. The figure was completely white, and tears were pouring out of his eyes. Roman could hear his panicked moans, and the figure was shaking violently, trying desperately to dislodge his bonds. Roman squeezed his his eyes shut and covered his ears when he heard Virgil begin to scream his name in strident, frenzied tones. Something inside him twisted and broke, even though he knew that the figure was not his boyfriend.

Right?

Roman looked at the Dragon Witch, trembling uncontrollably.

“You, Prince Roman, are an utter coward.” she snarled.

She opened her jaws wide, rows of yellowing teeth glistening in the glow of the magma. Roman could smell her revolting breath. The rotting scent of her insides seared his nostrils.

He gripped his sword, and let out a harried sob.

Snap!

A high pitched scream.

Silence.

The Dragon Witch bit down, her eye closing in delight. She heard Roman’s feet shuffling; he was probably falling to the ground. He would never go home, she knew. He could never face his friends again. And he would never know that this was a ruse! The boyfriend was a fake! He-

A terrible war cry filled the air. The Dragon Witch opened her eye just in time to see Roman lunging forward, his eyes ablaze with rage as he brought his sword, point down, between her eyes.

A horrible sound of metal piercing through flesh and bone filled the entire courtyard.

Roman grinned as he stared into the frozen Dragon Witch’s eye; it had swiveled onto him, utterly horrified.

“You thought you could fool me?” he hissed, “I know my boyfriend when I touch him.”

The Dragon Witch let out an earth shattering roar. Her limbs convulsed wildly. Out of her jaws fell purple dust; the fake Virgil had disintegrated as her powers began to wane. The wind bellowed and raged, intermingling with the Witch’s reverberating roars.

Her muscles began to spasm uncontrollably as her nerves began to die. She groaned and thrashed wildly, gagging as blood from her wound seeped into her throat. Roman had impaled her directly into her powerful brain. There was no way she could survive. The Dragon Witch was dying.

Roman was about to strike a triumphant pose when one of the Dragon Witch’s flailing limbs snaked out chillingly close to him. With an ungraceful scurry, he ran out of harm’s way to watch the death throes of the Dragon Witch unfold.

Purple lightning was snaking over the serpent’s body; her powers made tangible. Rocks crumbled and fell all around her as she thrashed and slammed into her castle. Horrible cracking filled the air as the structural integrity of the castle’s spires was compromised. They began to sway several hundred feet in the air. Searing purple light shone like beams from between her scales, and her eyes and mouth filled with the chilling purple light. She was inflating like a balloon, her screeching becoming higher and higher in pitch.

Roman darted behind an outcrop of rock just as the Dragon Witch exploded in a blinding flash of purple light that was certain to be seen for miles. Roman clutched his ears and cried out in pain; the noise was deafening as the explosion echoed in his ears, and the sound of the castle collapsing filled his very being. Huge boulders were falling all around him, throwing up sprays of lava and dust. Scattered scales, chunks of horn, and teeth rained down all around him. He froze, too terrified to move.

Over the terrifying noise, he heard something familiar; the thundering of hooves!

Roman opened his eyes and peered beyond the outcrop of rocks. The castle was collapsing, spires of rocks falling from the sky. Deep, cold fear filled his chest, and he felt himself unable to breathe. But one thing caught his eye; Maximus charging towards him just ahead of the rock, a panicked whinny rolling from his lips.

Roman shouted, and waved his hands frantically. His voice was lost over the din, and his form was lost to the great swaths of dust and rocks being thrown up into the air. Miraculously, however, the horse saw him, and swerved his course. As Maximus careened by, Roman jumped, and landed on his back in a less than graceful fashion. Holding tightly to the horse’s mane, he scrabbled wildly until he was relatively situated in the saddle. He seized the wildly flopping reins, and slapped them to urge Maximus on.

“Yah, Maximus!” he shouted, and dug his heels into the horse’s side.

Maximus galloped and galloped, not stopping until they were well out of harm’s way. They tore ahead of the disaster zone, rocks and dirt pelting down upon them. Roman could barely breathe. Maximus would not stop, not even when Roman pulled on the reins. It wasn’t until they reached a tiny stream did Maximus screech to a halt, nearly flinging Roman several feet. The horse had seen his shadow reflecting in the stream, and had reared up in panic.

“Maximus! Calm down!” Roman said, sliding off the horse with difficulty. The steed was bucking and whinnying with fright, his eyes rolling as he thrashed. Only until Roman began singing Flynn Rider’s part in ‘I See the Light’ did the stallion calm down enough for Roman to touch him.

“We’re safe, my valiant friend. She can’t hurt us anymore,” he whispered, stroking the horse’s forelock and maintaining gentle eye contact, “And you certainly got us out of harm’s way.”

The horse looked as though he was about to whicker pridefully, but his ears suddenly pinned back. He snapped his teeth sharply, and stamped his hooves in a threatening fashion.

“Woah! Woah, boy!” Roman said, stumbling backwards, his feet scrabbling in the stream. He raised his hands in defense, shaking, utterly shocked at Maximus’s behavior.

The horse puffed sharply through his nose, and looked pointedly at his wrist. Roman followed his gaze, and saw Virgil’s favour, thoroughly drowned in ash, but there nonetheless.

Roman understood immediately; Maximus thought that Virgil was dead. “Maximus, didn’t you see? That wasn’t Virgil.”

The horse tossed his mane and snapped his teeth again. His head snaked forward and waved from side to side, an extremely aggressive act for a horse normally so pacifistic.

“You don’t believe me?” Roman snapped, approaching Maximus again and placing his hand on the horse’s broad chest, “Listen. I don’t know if this will work, but listen.”

Horse and man went silent. Roman closed his eyes and focused hard, listening for Virgil’s heartbeat, praying.

A soft steady heartbeat, lessened by sleep, filled his ears. Just as it did so, Maximus’s ears pricked up.

“That’s his heartbeat, Max,” Roman whispered, relief and pure joy surging through him as he recognized Virgil’s heartbeat. He gazed in jubilation at Maximus, who huffed through his nose, relenting; Roman had tried to somehow convey what he was hearing to Maximus, and it appeared that it had worked.

“That’s him! That’s my boyfriend!” Roman shouted, turning to the east and letting out a whoop. He jumped up and down while screeching riotously, splashing water in every direction, He didn’t care in the slightest. Virgil’s heartbeat pounded in his mind. He was alive!

Maximus waited patiently for Roman to stop jumping around and screaming like a banshee. After all, the Prince still had a lot of adrenaline to blow off. However, the horse didn’t have to wait long.

A little while later, Roman trudged out of the the stream, dripping wet and tired, yet his eyes shining with joy. He went over to Maximus, and gently hugged his neck.

“Do you understand what happened, Max? You’re not mad?”

Roman took the time to explain anyway that he had to act like he was willing to let Virgil die so that he himself may live. He had to make the Dragon Witch a deal she could not refuse, and one involving her potentially ruling Thomas’s mind was one she could not put down. This would throw the Dragon Witch off guard, and allow Roman an opportunity to kill her. It was the only scenario in which Roman would live, and thus he would have a chance to kill the Dragon Witch, a feat he knew he could accomplish. Surely if he could blind the Dragon Witch, he could kill her as well?

Finally, Maximus blustered, and nudged Roman forgivingly.

Roman sighed, running an exhausted hand through his filthy hair. With a jolt, he remembered the letter he had written for Virgil. He quickly dug through the saddle bag until he found the letter, snug and sound in the waterproof bag along with the books.

Roman looked up at Maximus, his eyes wide and bright. “Looks like I won’t be needing this anymore, old friend.”

Roman gently tore the note in half once, and then again. He let the pieces fall into the stream. The pieces trickled away, potential thoughts and actions washed away into the night. Now, they could be replaced by potential words and action.

Roman smiled as he felt a great burden lift from his shoulders. “Let’s go home.” he whispered.

Going home was postponed until the next day.

Roman and Maximus were both exhausted, and, after going back to the rubble of the Dragon Witch’s castle to retrieve Roman’s sword (that had somehow survived both a magical explosion and an avalanche) and one of the Dragon Witch’s teeth as a trophy, they set up camp and quickly fell asleep.

As the sun rose in the east hours later, the first warm rays filtering onto Roman’s face, the Prince still did not wake. For the terrible wind that had plagued them on the journey had entirely ceased, as if the absence of the Dragon Witch finally allowed the world to breathe in peace.

It wasn't until Maximus stood to stretch and nose the saddle bags did Roman awaken. It took the creative side a few moments to really remember where he was. But when he realized that he could finally go home, that he could finally see Virgil again, he was in an absolute rush to gulp down breakfast and get going. He had the grace, however, to let Maximus digest before he mounted the horse one final time, and they galloped off into the sunrise.

Roman threw his hands into the air, squeezing his eyes shut and releasing a curious mixture of laughter and screams of joy. Sheer relief and a deep love of life was pulsing through his veins, making goosebumps erupt all over his arms. Despite the early hour, he was ecstatic at finally going home.

@celiawhatsherlastname @monikastec@jordandobbertin @greymane902 @lostgirlgwen @kittenvirgil@iamahumanwaitnothatsalie @logan-logic @jet-black-hearted-girl@gay-ace-trash @shadowjag@thestoryoferissur @lexboydfandompanda

#escapade chapter seven #escapade #sanders sides #prinxiety #logicality #my fics #logan sanders #patton sanders #virgil sanders #roman sanders

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dykephannie · 7 years

Text

REALITY OTP CH. 1

MASTER LIST. PLAYLIST. NEXT CHAPTER. PREVIOUS CHAPTER.

click here for my twitter to receive sneak peeks into next week’s chapter and special behind the scenes info!

summary: Avid fangirl Gracie Green expected that the most extraordinary thing to happen to her at Summer in the City was meeting her long time obsessions Dan Howell and Phil Lester. This proves to be untrue when a fatal virus sweeps through the convention, killing everyone except for Gracie and the very two people she was there for. The odd threesome must travel across Europe to escape an evil tyrant who has claimed the crown for herself, and face not only the dangers of this new, post-apocalyptic world, but the feelings and secrets uncovered by the life threatening journey.

Because after all, it’s the harshest conditions that reveal the deepest truths about us, truths we’re not even willing to admit to ourselves.

important note: This is a PHANfiction, as in a fanfic in which Dan and Phil will enter some sort of relationship other than friendship by the end of the story. Please do not be turned off by the presence of the original character, she is merely a platonic companion of Dan and Phil. Perspectives will switch between the three per chapter. Thank you, and enjoy.

chapter word count: 2.2k

tw: mention of fatal illness

GRACIE

The end of the world generally starts off normal for most people.

They get up, out of bed, get changed, brush their teeth. Go to school or work or get back into bed and they go about their business until the fireballs start raining and their school or their work or their house ends up a heap of ashes for some Katniss Everdeen type to stumble across twenty years after the End only to discover their rotting bones and the useless keepsakes that were the only part of them to survive.

That’s not how it went for me.

Today, August 11th, 2020, had been a day long awaited for almost a year, from the moment I sat at my computer screen after hours upon hours of waiting, eyes burning from the bright light in my dim room, finger hovering over the mouse, refreshing constantly, until the moment of satisfaction finally came. Two tickets to Summer in the City, confirmed for Gracelyn Green. Today, well, it was anything but normal.

I had called Eliza immediately, my squeals echoing around my small room, hers doing the same, if not a bit more subdued than mine. That night I started at my desk, pencil scratching against the paper, etching the outline of the familiar curls and cheekbones, suddenly inspired by the prospect of seeing that face, desperate to make a worthy gift. I remembered I had stopped at the eyes. It was the first time I had realized that those eyes didn’t quite look right. From then on in every drawing I did of him, I was never quite satisfied with the eyes.

That very same first drawing was hanging above my head, those eyes filled in with constellations. I had been staring at it all night, unable to sleep, a cocktail nerves and excitement brewing in my stomach. It was strange how one could plan a moment for six years yet still be caught so off guard when the moment drew near. I picked up my phone, just as the 5:59 shifted to 6:00. It was go time.

The blue morning light was streaming through the gaps in my blinds as I pushed aside my duvet and strode across the room to the outfit meticulously selected and draped across my couch days earlier. I called Eliza, sticking my phone under my cheek as I pulled up my ripped jeans.

“Hello?” my best friend grumbled, voice heavy with sleep.

“You're not awake yet?” I chirped, running a brush through my blonde waves.

“It’s six am, Gracie, no rational person is awake right now.”

“Come on bitch, since when are you rational?”

I heard Eliza sigh on the other end as I shifted my phone back into my hand and wandered down the hall and into the bathroom. My house was quiet save for the squeak of the floorboards under my toes and the click of the bathroom door closing. And the house stayed quiet as I spoke to Eliza behind the door, struggling to get my eyeliner just right and the morning tangles from my hair.

At around 10, Eliza pulled up in her Range Rover, honking loudly.

“Do you have your workout clothes?” my mom called as I pulled the door open extravagantly.

“Yes mom!”

“Because you have an hour of karate and then two of jiu-jitsu on the last day of your convention!”

“I know mom!”

“Have fun, be safe!”

“I will!” I shouted, closing the door behind me and shouldering my heavy backpack, full of two nights worth of clothes. Our parents had decided that 17 was mature enough to stay in a hotel alone, which meant we wouldn’t have to drive back and forth every day of the convention.

“You look cute,” Eliza said drily as I buckled in.

I glanced down at my blossom sweater. “You like it?”

“Definitely a statement.”

“That’s rich coming from you.” I leaned over and knocked the bill of her ProSyndicate snapback resting on top of her coily black hair. “You’re just as much of a total nerd as I am. More, in fact.”

“Yeah yeah, at least I don’t draw creepy fanart.”

“At least I don’t have a Call of Duty gaming channel.”

Eliza stuck her tongue out at me, dark eyes flashing in the sunlight. “How am I supposed to handle staying with you for three days straight?”

“We’ve been friends with me for eight years, I think you can manage.” I frowned. “Plus, my fanart isn’t creepy.”

Keeping an eye on the road, she reached over and pulled out the drawing of a couple lying together on a couch, long limbs intertwined, eyes closed, content and happy. “That’s creepy, Gracie.”

“It’s not,” I insisted. “It’s art.”

Eliza knew it was useless arguing with me. She leaned forward and connected her phone to Bluetooth, playing some old Lana Del Rey song.

“Is this necessary, Lize? Shouldn’t we be getting pumped up and excited, instead of listening to, like, the most depressing artist ever?”

“Well what do you want to play?”

I grinned manically, grabbing the aux cord before she could object and clicking on the playlist at the top of my Spotify.

“You’ve got to be joking,” she groaned.

“What? You like Muse!”

“Yeah, not in this context.”

It took us about an hour to drive to the ExCel Convention Center, and by the time we found parking, we had an two hours to get to the meet and greet line. The line ate up about an hour of that time, but after showing our tickets at the door and ceremoniously draping my lanyard around my neck, Eliza and I were in.

And holy shit was it glorious.

Crowds of people milled about the bottom floor. Some were dressed in dull colors despite the bright hues in their hair and the glittering piercings in their ears and noses. Others wore flowing, flowered dresses and high heeled tennis shoes, accompanied by ambitious cat eyes and smoky eye shadow. There were people in band shirts and onesies, flower crowns and combat boots. Within seconds I spotted a group of squealing kids a few years younger than me, dark black whiskers on their cheeks and familiar faces on their shirts. I was too excited to cringe, too electrified by the sea of people just like me.

And the convention center itself was magnificent. Balconies and floors stuffed with merch booths and advertisements for the newest YouTube Red shows, accosting us with either Jake or Logan Paul’s ads as soon as a corner was turned. I would’ve lived here if I could’ve, even if it meant sleeping uncomfortably close to one of the Pauls’ giant robot faces.

“Where do you want to start?” Eliza asked.

I laughed out loud. She already knew the answer. I made a beeline straight to the merch booth of my choice, bringing Eliza with me.

“Can’t we visit MatPat’s store first? They have a new Game Theorists shirt design and I want to support them but they’re limited edition…”

“Nope, not happening.” We were already in line, and a familiar face was already coming into view.

“You’re a bitch,” she grumbled, drumming her fingers against the table at the booth.

I shoved her shoulder. “Shut up, he’s coming!”

A tall man with light brown hair approached, smiling when he noticed my excited gaze. “Hey Martyn!” I told him. Practice for the real thing, practice for the real thing. “Could I get one of the new posters and a whisker hoodie in a small?”

“Sure thing.” He reached underneath the table, handing me the hoodie and the rolled up poster. I handed him my money.

“A selfie too?”

Martyn smiled and leaned across the counter, pressing my change into my hand as I snapped the photo, sending it immediately to my Snapchat story.

“Thanks dude!” I told him, collecting my merch and striding away from the merch booth, trying to mask the shaking in my hands.

“Did you just call Martyn Lester dude?” Eliza hissed as we walked away. “What are you, American?”

“Please stop reminding me of that, I’m like ten seconds away from dying of embarrassment.”

We browsed the gaming tent next, on Eliza’s not-so-polite request, only for me to watch her pick up everything within sight and promptly put it down after glancing at the price tag. I had a Princess Peach sweatshirt slung over my shoulder by the time she eventually settled on a DS pack with the new Animal Crossing.

“Mario? Really?”

“We’ve played together since the Wii game came out!” I said defensively. “It’s basically our childhood!”

“We never did beat that last world.”

“We should get on that.” I glanced at my phone. It was almost time. “C’mon Lize, we’ve got to get upstairs!” I told her, grabbing her by the wrist again and tugging her towards the nearest staircase before she could even put her change in her wallet.

We ran to the end of the end of the meet and greet line, almost colliding with a smaller girl with a flower crown clutching a colorful book in her hand nervously.

“So sorry,” I stuttered, putting my hand on her shoulder to steady myself.

“Oh wow!” she exclaimed. “You’re sunshineboyes!”

My face heated up. I had been spotted a couple times at VidCon last year, getting identified by the URL of my tumblr blog, which boasted nearly 30 thousand followers due to my fanart. Getting recognized always caught me off guard. I was just a girl that liked drawing YouTubers, not one of the YouTubers themselves.

“Oh, uh, hey there!” I said. Eliza raised her eyebrows, turning to her phone. “It's nice to meet you!”

“I love your art so much,” she gushed. “Is that some of it in there?”

She pointed at the folder in my hand, I opened it up, flipping to my favorite drawing. The lion filling up half the frame glared back at me, across from the large blue eye and pale face and dark hair on the other side. “Uh, yeah. These are the ones I’m giving to them.”

“Wow!” she squealed. “They're even more incredible in real life!”

“Thanks, you're sweet.” I figured that was closest to the ahhhhh ty! ilysm!! sentiment I could get to in real life.

“Can I get a selfie?” She already had her camera open.

I leaned my head against hers, smiling widely as she snapped the photo. She opened up tumblr as soon as she brought her phone down.

“Tag me in that, I’ll follow you!” I told her. Her face positively lit up.

“Oh wow, wait until I tell my group chat that Gracie’s following me!”

I blushed again, turning back to Eliza, who was still glancing down at her phone, amused.

“What?” I hissed.

“Nothing, nothing. It’s just funny, that’s all.”

We chatted amongst ourselves for another hour, waiting as the line slowly grew larger behind us, and my hopes slowly grew higher. My heart was nearly hammering in my chest, and I had to concentrate on taking deep breaths or risk hyperventilation. I couldn’t gauge how excited Eliza was in comparison to me. Eliza claimed to only causally enjoy the pair I positively obsessed over. But I didn’t think it mattered. Meeting someone famous on any level had to be exciting.

Even more exciting, I realized as the line started to move, if they had taken up nearly six years of your life.

After another couple hours I could see the corner of a plastic tarp littered with SitC and sponsor decals, two tall, unmistakable shadows cast over it. My heart was lodged in my throat, no matter how hard I tried to swallow it down, and the warm bursts of excitement throughout my chest had turned to cold fear pumping through my veins, a cold fear that no amount of positive meetup descriptions could ease. Because what if mine went wrong? What if I accidentally blurted something out that I definitely didn’t mean to blurt out? What if instead of my totally fine fanart, I packed that one NSFW thing I did and then almost immediately deleted in fear that my mom would do a random computer check? What if I hugged them wrong? Or tripped over one of them and broke my face? Or broke their faces?! I would never be forgiven. I would go down in history as the girl who gave NSFW art to and broke the money makers of --

“Gracie!”

I blinked out of my spiral of panic. Eliza had her hand on my shoulder. “We’re next.”

The girl in front of me had just disappeared behind the tarp, and my heart had just risen even further than I would’ve thought humanly possible. I was so close. Literally a couple minutes and ten steps away from a dream that had been six years in the making…

When a loud crackling noise sounded through the convention center from the speakers in the ceiling.

“Attention Summer in the City guests and staff. Please remain calm. We have just been notified of a fast traveling, fatal virus spreading through London. We are putting the ExCel Center under quarantine. Attention Summer in the City…”

It took just a second to process before the ground under my feet began to spin. Eliza was clutching my arm tightly, nearly cutting off the blood flow with her sharp nails. The shadows were disappearing behind a closed door. Screams were echoing through the center, drowning out the calm drone of the PA system.

But honestly I barely registered the fact that my death might be creeping up on me with every breath I inhaled.

I was just pissed that I wouldn’t get to meet Dan and Phil.

#ohhhh boy here we go #i'm so nervous about this guys #i'm so excited to share this with y'all #(as i've literally been working on it for over a year)#but i've been feeling very subconscious about my writing as of late #and this is the biggest thing i've ever done with the intention of posting?#i don't know i hope at least someone will enjoy it #and to that someone...#welcome to the crazy wild ride that is reality otp!#reality otp #phanfiction #phanfic #phan #phan angst #phan fluff #phan smut #(eventually lol)#franfic

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heshein001 · 7 years

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92 Questions Tag

Tagged by: @sonofqueen

Answer the questions and tag 20 people.

20 people? Really Urgh.

@dantecain @lonelyblueshark @mazurah @julei-zu @sugarofthesouth @wrenstep @perendhil-loki @humblydefiant @kii-nam @marmaboy @scarlet-geek @clefabledude @princesswytch @spookyscaryexoskeletons @dailyrowlet @kauriart @thesparklingpariah @fyeahmerrill @dark-limit @eightbigpaws

No pressure, don’t feel obligated, I just wanted to put 20 names down as per the ‘rules’, and to be honest, that was hard enough.

THE LAST: 1. Drink: Water. Dull I know. 2. Phone call: That I made? To my Dad. That I received? From a haulage company in Lithuania. 3. Text message: From my Dad. I convinced him to start watching Game of Thrones, and I got an update telling me he was halfway through season one after having had the DVD set for one night, 4. Song you listened to: I Don’t Know What the Weather Will Be, by Laura Mvula. (though if we want to count songs that I ‘heard’ on the TV as well, it would be It’s Raining Men by the Weather Girls. ) 5. Time you cried: A few weeks ago, a couple of days after the passing of my mother.

HAVE YOU: 6. Dated someone twice: Nope. 7. Kissed someone and regretted it: Not especially, no. 8. Been cheated on: Not that I am aware of. 9. Lost someone special: My mother passed only a few weeks ago. My Nana (Mum’s Mum) died when I was young, maybe about six or seven, then the year after that my Grandad (Dad’s Dad) died, then a couple of years after that, my Mum’s Dad died. 10. Been depressed: Yes, clinically so. 11. Gotten drunk and thrown up: I don’t know? I have only been drunk once, and while I woke up on an unfamiliar couch dressed as a pirate with a bucket next to me, there was nothing in the bucket. Don’t know if I had been during the night before though. LIST 3 FAVORITE COLORS: 12. Purple 13. Reds 14. Blues IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU: 15. Made new friends: Erm... I guess? Not entirely sure. Acquaintances, yes, not sure if I’d call many of them friends. 16. Fallen out of love: Nope. 17. Laughed until you cried: Not that I can recall. 18. Found out someone was talking about you: Yes, at work., when I saw some emails between managers. Wasn’t particularly pleased, given I was being shafted for something they had missed as well. 19. Met someone who changed you: I wouldn’t say so. 20. Found out who your friends are: I guess? I mean, I have a small social circle anyway, so mostly it was just “yes, I still like you.” 21. Kissed someone on your Facebook list: Nope.

GENERAL: 22. How many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life: All except one of them, I think, and the random one added me, so she must think she knows me from somewhere. That isn’t to say I’ve seen many of them in years, but I have met them at some point. 24. Do you want to change your name: I quite like my name. It is an odd quirk that my initials are BMW. 25. What did you do for your last Birthday: Not much. I share my birthday with my Dad, so inevitably end up spending time with him. My Mum was also in hospital, so that prevented anything big. I think we went round to my parent’s and had a Chinese with my Dad and my brother. 26. What time did you wake up: I half woke up at 8:00am when the dog came to demand food, but went back to sleep after my other half dealt with that. I got out of bed at around 11:30am. 27. What were you doing at midnight last night: Sleeping, I think, though it may have been in a state of half sleep whilst still chatting with my partner. 28. Name something you can’t wait for: Erm... Not really sure. Nothing comes to mind. I’m a patient sort of chap. 29. When was the last time you saw your mom: Depends what you mean by saw her. I saw her, physically, the day before her funeral, in the chapel of rest, about two or three weeks ago. When she was actually herself, however, and not laid up in a hospital bed, I’d say it was back in May. 30. What is one thing you wish you could change in your life: More money. It sounds shallow, but it would make like life easier and more comfortable. 31. What are you listening right now: The hum of the computer and the tap of my fingers on the keyboard. Also the odd little bubbling bloop sound from the fishtank. 32. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom: Yes. I had a fairly close friend in school called Tom. 33. Something that is getting on your nerves: My damn foot. I’ve done something to bugger up my left foot, it is swollen up and the heel is sore as anything, can barely put weight on it. Painkillers and anti-inflammatory are helping, but gods it is sore. 34. Most visited Website: It is either tumblr or the BBC news. LOST QUESTIONS 35. Mole/s: I have one on the back of my neck I am aware of, probably more. 36. Mark/s: I’ve got some dints in my head from being pulled out with forceps when I was born. I have a couple of marks on the top of both my feet where they have scarred after the skin was rubbed away, which occasionally still open up. 37. Childhood dream: Can’t remember. I had nightmares about werewolves though. 38. Haircolour: Fairly standard and boring brown. 39. Long or short hair: Short, I guess. 40. Do you have a crush on someone: No, my fiancé excluded 41. What do you like about yourself: I like my eye colour. I also like to think I am fairly mature and am responsible, making me good in a crisis. I also like to think I’m quite good with kids, for the most part. 43. Bloodtype: No idea. 44. Nickname: None that I know of. 45. Relationship status: Engaged. 46. Zodiac: In the Western Horoscope, Gemini. In the Chinese Zodiac, Rooster. 47. Pronouns: He and him etc. 48. Favourite TV Show: Game of Thrones is one of the few shows I go out of my way to watch. I also have enjoyed Once Upon a Time, Queer as Folk, Doctor Who, and then a few older things my partner has introduced me to, such as Miss Fisher. 49. Tattoos: None, and no plans for any. 50. Right or left hand: Right handed. 51. Surgery: None. 52. Hair dyed in different colour: I have in the past had it dyed lighter, but not in any recent years. 53. Sport: I don’t play any sports, and the only one I don’t mind watching is tennis. 55. Vacation: None planned currently. Was in Finland not that long ago. I’ve been fortunate enough to enjoy holidays to quite a few places: France, Spain (including associated Balearic and Canary Islands), Greece, Germany, Turkley, Norway, Canada, Dominican Republic, Italy, various parts of the UK and Channel Islands, Belgium, Finland. 56. Pair of trainers: I think I have one pair in the wardrobe? MORE GENERAL:

57. Eating: Nothing right now. A bit ago, bacon and egg sandwich. 58. Drinking: Water. 59. I’m about to: Attempt to write an RP post. 61. Waiting for: Nothing comes to mind. 62. Want: Not to have to go to work tomorrow. Also for the dog to stop farting. 63. Get married: In the near future. 64. Career: I did train to teach, but didn’t finish the course. Work in an office now, which is OK, but hardly the most fulfilling thing. Can’t find any better alternatives though. WHICH IS BETTER 65. Hugs or kisses: Hugs are more universal. 66. Lips or eyes: Eyes 67. Shorter or taller: Doesn’t matter to me, though I am slightly taller than average myself. 68. Older or younger: I tend to get on better with somewhat older people generally. I am a very old soul, however. 70. Nice arms or nice stomach: Arms, if I have to pick. 71. Sensitive or loud: Sensitive please. 72. Hook up or relationship: Never really done hook ups. Relationships are more my thing. 73. Troublemaker or hesitant: More hesitant for sure. HAVE YOU EVER:

74. Kissed a stranger: Not that I can think of. 75. Drank hard liquor: Yes, a few kinds. I’m not a big drinker, though. 76. Lost glasses/contact lenses: No, I don’t think I’ve ever lost a pair of glasses. 77. Turned someone down: Once that I can recall. 78. Sex in the first date: It depends on the person, I guess, but as a general rule, I don’t think so. 79. Broken someone’s heart: Not that I am aware of. 80. Had your heart broken: Not really. 81. Been arrested: No. 82. Cried when someone died: Yes. 83. Fallen for a friend: Yes, which then evolved into what it is today. DO YOU BELIEVE IN: 84. Yourself: Depends on which way the wind is blowing. 85. Miracles: Not as a general rule. 86. Love at first sight: It is a nice idea, but no. 87. Santa Claus: No. Not as you mean it, anyway. 88. Kiss on the first date: If it goes well, sure. 89. Angels: A nice thought, but no, I wouldn’t say so. OTHER: 90. Current best friends name: Well, my best friend is my fiancé, so does that count? 91. Eyecolour: Blue. 92. Favourite movie: No idea. I’ve seen so many over the years, but haven’t been to the cinema especially to watch one in a while. None immediately come to mind.

#meme

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shielddrake · 7 years

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Rebel of Sky City Ch. 1

Minecraft Story Mode Countdown – Day 5

Disclaimer: Minecraft? Nah, not mine!

Chapter: 1/?

Author’s Notes: So, I’m joining in on the Countdown to 2 for Minecraft Story Mode. I didn’t write anything for the first four days (I’m not so good at oneshots) but I absolutely had to do something for Episode 5. It’s my favorite! This will be a somewhat longer story (not sure how long), so it will definitely go beyond the countdown. This is just the first chapter.

This is based on a Sky City AU by sky-city-princess, so who was so wonderfully kind to let me use this premise, and whose Tumblr can be found at https://sky-city-princess.tumblr.com. Definitely go check it out!

Chapter One

Jesse cringed as her stomach rumbled for the second time in half an hour. Her quill paused as she carefully glanced up at her tutor, wondering if he heard it this time. Ivor was busy messing with a few potion recipes, but his smirk told her that her stomach could be heard from multiple blocks away.

“Sounds like a little piggy’s getting hungry.”

Jesse glared up at him. “Are you calling me fat?”

“Not at all.” Ivor still didn’t look up from his work. "Finish your test and then we can have lunch."

"Tests suck," Jesse complained as she started working again. "It's not like I'm going to get to use these recipes anytime soon. Mother won't let me."

"Don't remind me," Ivor complained, his long nose crinkling in annoyance as he slapped the potion recipe onto the finished pile. “I still have to wait another week before The Founder will be available to supervise my brewing."

She chuckled. "Don’t know why. It's not like you're going to blow anything up. You're too good at potions, Ivor."

The royal brewer let himself smile at that comment.

"Please no talking during tests, Young Miss." This lighter voice belonged to Reginald, the Captain of the Guard of Sky City. He stood behind Jesse by the door leading out of the classroom. "You need to focus."

"Sorry."

Jesse sighed, glancing up at the iron blocks on the ceiling before she went back to finish up the recipe for bread. She then moved on to the next, which was supposed to be mushroom soup. This test was really more of a review than anything. Jesse had most of these memorized ages ago and she was confident she could craft any of these blindfolded, if she were ever actually given the items to do so. But according to her mother, the future leader of Sky City was never to forget a recipe. The people were going to depend on her for both resources and already crafted items, so she needed to know these by heart.

She finished the mushroom soup recipe and continued on to the last one, which was for a pickaxe. This one was easy. Two sticks in the bottom middle and exact middle, and then three pieces of material along the top tow (in this case, she was using stone). She put the completed recipe in the pile with the rest and put down her quill.

"Done!" Jesse declared. "Finally."

Ivor looked at her and then up at the clock on the wall. "Well, that was faster than last time. You can probably have a longer lunch this time before the afternoon test. I'll grade these in the meantime, see if your speed compromised the quality of your recipes.”

Jesse groaned, not only at the Ivor’s comments, but at the fact that the practical exam would be that afternoon. She was expected to actually craft the items, but that wasn’t so bad. What was annoying was that she was only allowed to craft under the direct supervision of her mother.

"Did I hear that right?" Speaking of whom, Jesse turned to see her mother, Isa, more commonly known as The Founder, stepping through the door into the classroom. "You finished in record time?"

"That's what I said, Founder," Ivor replied, picking up the pile of recipes. "Jesse's getting faster and faster all the time."

Isa smiled at her daughter. "That's good to hear. Perhaps you will have lunch with me before your practical?"

"Yeah, I'd like that," Jesse answered as she stood from her chair.

Jesse, Isa, and Reginald left Ivor to his own devices as they headed for the dining room in Sky City's palace. Jesse kept her pace behind her mother while Reginald walked behind both of them, always watching their backs. If Reginald wasn’t on guard duty for The Founder, he was doing so for Jesse instead. Very rarely was a different guard assigned to her, much to her irritation. It wasn’t as though Jesse didn’t like Reginald—far from it—but it would be nice to talk to someone else for once.

As they passed by the windows, Jesse glanced out to look over Sky City proper. It was a sizable city on an even more sizable piece of floating land. According to her history books, her mother had built outwards to include several of the smaller islands into the city foundation, but that was many years ago, before Isa became too busy with citizens' requests to spend time expanding the city limits.

With the Eversource providing anything the city could need, most of the buildings were made of iron blocks and stone, with the occasional wood to make up entrances, borders and stairs. It was a sparkling, clean city, and Jesse's eyes were nearly blinded by the reflected luster from the sun. She couldn’t help but chuckle at the various egg motifs scattered around the city, from banners to the buildings themselves.

Leave it to Mother to honor Benedict even if she has to stay in the basement, Jesse thought. Mother can be so silly.

The citizens almost looked like dots from so high in the palace. People were busy either talking with each other or working on booths under the supervision of Reginald's men, and there were a lot of booths to be built. The guards were relaxed but vigilant as they watched over their charges. The laws were strict in Sky City, and they were confident no one would dare cause trouble.

Jesse couldn't help but smile as she saw the number of booths. It was time for the Spring Festival, and the celebration would take place in a few days. It was in celebration of the days getting longer and the weather getting warmer. It was a time of dance and revelry. It was one of the rare times the citizens of Sky City were allowed to participate in such merriment. Despite this, Isa still insisted on all building and crafting to be strictly monitored, regardless of what the end result was used for.

Sky City can sure be short on fun sometimes, Jesse thought sadly.

Even so, it was really nice to see children run around and play, mostly tag and hide and seek. A few of children had the rare ball or other toy to play with, which no doubt came from a petition to The Founder from the children’ parents. Most of them played together though, and Jesse felt a pang of jealousy.

Must be nice to have friends to play with, she thought morosely. You don't need to craft anything to have fun then.

The Grand Garden was in the center of the city, well guarded by six of Reginald's men. A long line of citizens stood on one side of the fence, waiting for their daily ration of food. The people were well fed; it wasn't as though anyone went hungry. However, Isa's imposed limits on crafting and building make it so that most people were only allowed to eat when they were given food. If a person was hungry before their designated ration time, they would just have to deal with it.

There were some people who had their own personal gardens, and sometimes they would be willing to share their crops. This was before someone dropped a block of dirt into the Void some years ago, however, and The Founder was more and more stern about approving those kinds of petitions so resources wouldn’t be wasted in such a way ever again. And so, waiting in line for food was the more common practice these days.

Jesse's stomach clenched, her appetite escaping her.

"Mother, why can't the people craft their own food again?" she asked her mother, for about the billionth time in her life. "Or grow their own food? Or raise their own animals?"

"Jesse, we've been through this many times now," Isa said. "Building is dangerous, and crafting is dangerous. It's better for the people to have someone watching over them so they remain unharmed. It's for the good of the people."

Jesse let the topic drop. Yes, mother and daughter had their fair share of arguments over the rights to build being restricted.

The trio arrived in the dining room to see their lunch already waiting for them. Isa sat at the head of the table and Jesse sat to her right. Reginald took his place to The Founder's left, although he remained standing.

"What's for lunch today?" Jesse asked as she looked over the table. "There's a lot here."

"Beetroot soup, bread, and pumpkin pie," Isa replied, taking some of the soup for herself.

"Pumpkin pie? Isn't that supposed to be for dessert after dinner?"

"I thought I'd give you a little reward for finishing your morning exams.”

Isa gave her daughter a smile, clearly trying to be encouraging. Jesse smiled back. Her mother might be strict, but she did have her own little ways of showing her love. Nevertheless, the thought that Jesse could so easily receive a special treat just reminded her how the citizens had to wait for their food.

Regardless, Jesse was hungry and she did have the practical exam that afternoon, so she dug into the beetroot soup and bread with ferocity. Reginald smiled as he watched the two women eat, happy to see the two of them enjoy a meal together. It was always nice to see the two of them spend time with each other, something that was becoming more and more rare as Jesse was growing older and Isa was more occupied.

The peace, sadly, was short-lived. After finishing her soup and receiving a plate of pumpkin pie, Jesse simply stared at the food. Reginald could see her biting the inside of her cheek, and he sighed to himself. Over the years, Reginald had plenty of time to learn Jesse's quirks and behaviors, and he knew this was a sure sign that she wanted to say something Isa wouldn't like.

"Do you have a lot of things to craft for the festival, Mother?"

"Many things, but they are all manageable," Isa replied. "Why do you ask?"

"I was just wondering..." Now Jesse was biting her bottom lip. "Well, if you weren't too busy, maybe we could go enjoy the festival together? Just for a little while?"

Isa sighed loud enough that the guards on the other side of the palace probably heard her.

"Jesse, we've been over this," she answered. "It's dangerous out there. You could be hurt by someone who doesn't agree with the necessity of our laws."

"I know, I know. There are plenty of people who want to be able to craft whatever they want without your permission, and will do everything they can to make that happen." Jesse had heard this explanation so many times she could recite it herself. "Even do something like hurt me. But not everyone's like that, right? Most people are nice."

"I'm not willing to take that chance," Isa disputed. "You're safer in the palace."

"What if Reginald went with us?" Jesse offered, waving her hand at the Captain. "He could protect us from anyone dangerous."

Reginald barely kept his face from flushing. "I'm honored by your confidence in me, Young Miss."

"That would simply inform them that you are my daughter, and that would cause more problems," The Founder debated back. "I'm not about to let that happen."

"Well, you have to tell the people about me eventually! Now’s as good a time as any.”

“Jesse—”

“I've lived in the palace all my life, Mother!" Jesse argued, her pie forgotten. "You're always telling me that I'll need to serve the people when you step down. How can I do that if the people don't even know who I am? And I don't know them?"

"You will learn soon enough," Isa said, her tone serious and final. She wiped her mouth with a napkin and stood, Jesse following suit. "My decision is final, Jesse. Put it out of your mind.”

The Founder was on her way out of the dining room when Jesse spoke up again.

"What if I don’t want to?"

Isa paused but remained silent, and a moment later she left the room without giving her child an answer. Jesse sat down again and put a hand to her forehead. Reginald tried to give her an encouraging smile, but Jesse wasn't even looking at him.

"Young Miss, you don't need to worry so much," he said finally after minutes of stillness between them. "Your mother is simply thinking about what's best for me."

"What she thinks is best for me might not be what I need. Did anyone ever think of that?" Jesse let out a long groan of annoyance. "Mother never lets me do anything. Nothing helpful anyway. I learn how to build, how to craft and all this stuff, but I can’t even go talk to the someone on the street?”

Reginald put a hand on her shoulder. “She’s just trying to keep you safe.”

"I guess so." She started poking at her pumpkin pie, which by this point had lost all its heat and had become a crumbly mess. "But what does that have to do with me not meeting the people? Does anyone even know I exist? That The Founder has a daughter?"

The Captain of the Guard sighed. "I know it's frustrating, but--"

"And what about when Mother has an audience with someone?" Jesse interrupted. "People come into the palace all the time to petition for resources, but I'm never allowed to be there. I'm always stuck in my room! As if anyone would try anything in the palace when they’re surrounded by guards."

Reginald didn't have a response to that. Truly, it would be helpful both to the people and to Jesse herself if she could be involved in the petitioning process, at the very least. It was one of the most common thing Isa did these days, and it would give Jesse experience she would no doubt need when she became leader.

"I'm not even allowed to visit Benedict anymore!" she ranted on, throwing her arms in the air. "She's stuck down there in that basement all by herself! She's probably just as lonely as I am!"

"Yes, being the Eversource might be just as tedious as being the Founder's daughter," Ivor's voice called out as he entered the room. "Sometimes I think you should team up with that chicken and run away.”

"Ivor, please don't start that again," Reginald begged. "It's hard enough to convince Jesse not to do anything rash--"

"I'm not being rash!" the young woman debated. The two men stared at her following her outburst, and Jesse immediately deflated. She crossed her arms on the table and hid her face in them. “It’s just…I'm tired of being by myself all the time. Mother never lets me hang out with anyone other than you two. I don’t have anyone to talk to or anything. I...I’m really tired of being so alone.”

Reginald lowered his gaze for a moment before giving her a pleading expression. "Your mother loves you and she doesn't want anything to happen to you. None of us do. You know that, right?"

"I know,” she said, her tone much more quiet and respectful this time as she lifted her gaze to him. “Sorry for biting your heads off.”

Ivor let out a groan. "You two can be sentimental later. It's almost time for your practical exam, Princess."

"Don't call me that, Ivor!"

That put a smile back on Jesse's face, and Reginald was happy to see it.

#mcsmcountdown #mcsmc day 5 #minecraft story mode #mcsm #mcsm jesse #mcsm lukas #Sky City!AU #Sky City!Jesse #mcsm au #fanfiction

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strongestpersoniknow · 8 years

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92 truths

rules: once you have been tagged you are supposed to write 92 truths about yourself. At the end choose however many people you want to tag!

I was tagged by the lovely @sugdone Thanks babe! I love things like this, even though it takes me ages to do them. 💖

LAST …

[1] drink: water

[2] phone call: unknown number so didn’t answer!

[3] text message: my brother

[4] song you listened to: Skies The Limit - Fleetwood Mac

[5] time you cried: watching the special tribute to Philip Seymour Hoffman on THG: Mockingjay Part One blu-ray.

HAVE YOU EVER…

[6] dated someone twice: no

[7] been cheated on: no

[8] kissed someone and regretted it: yes!

[9] lost someone special: I thought I had, but perspective changes with time. So not yet.

[10] been depressed: yes

[11] gotten drunk and thrown up: oh hell yes and it was awful cos though I was off my tits, the sober part of my subconscious was aware and fully ashamed of the rest of me. It will never happen again.

LIST 3 FAVOURITE COLOURS:

[12] any shade of blue

[13] purple

[14] dark red

IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU…

[15] made new friends: yes

[16] fallen out of love: no

[17] laughed until you cried: listen, I only have to really laugh for a couple of seconds and I’m crying! It’s bad. No joke.

[18] found out someone was talking about you: ohh yes

[19] met someone who changed you: maybe

[20] found out who your true friends are: yes

[21] kissed someone on your Facebook list: not in the last year.

GENERAL…

[22] how many of your tumblr friends do you know in real life: none

[23] do you have any pets: not any more

[24] do you want to change your name: my middle name for sure.

|25] what did you do for your last birthday: the usual - spent it with family

[26] what time did you wake up: today I automatically woke up at 6am, but that’s not when I got up 😁

[27] what were you doing at midnight last night: re-watching Line Of Duty

[28] name something you cannot wait for: Getting final series (series 5) of Ripper Street on blu-ray. Hurry up and come out!!

[29] when was the last time you saw your mother: Er, ten minutes a go 😂

[30] what is one thing you wish you could change about your life: have endless amounts of money

[31] what are you listening to right now: Problematic - Five Star

[32] have you ever talked to a person named tom: several.

[33] something that is getting on your nerves: a lot of work colleagues and new manager. Oh, and certain fandoms.

[34] elementary: ??? I went through primary school, yes. I think I quite liked it.

[35] high school: secondary school as we call it over here wasn’t bad. It had ups and downs of course.

[36] college: I stayed on at my school’s sixth form and got my A Levels. Some good memories.

[37] hair colour: brunette.

[38] long or short hair: long hair, (short never seems to suit my face shape). And it’s really long right now.

[39] do you have a crush on someone: fuck me yes. It’s rare when I don’t.

[40] what do you like about yourself: my eyes; my wit; my ability to attract people as friends; my compassion towards all animals

[41] piercings: one in each earlobe and belly button pierced

[42] nickname: TJ/T/Taz

[43] relationship status: it’s complicated

[44] zodiac sign: Leo

[45] pronouns: she/her

[46] favourite tv show: so many omg. Top ones are Desperate Housewives; Being Human (UK); Elementary; Ripper Street; Ally McBeal

[47] tattoos: none but maybe one day

[48] right or left handed: left

FIRST…

[49] surgery: none

[50] piercing: earlobes

[51] best friend: laura. We made it through primary to six form and into our early 20s. She didn’t make a great first impression and then she disappeared and I haven’t seen or heard from her in over a decade

[52] sport: I have no idea

[53] vacation: somewhere in Ireland visiting family

[54] pair of trainers: urgh they were probably pink (I hate pink)

RIGHT NOW…

[55] eating: nothing

[56] drinking: nothing

[57] I’m about to: fall off to sleep omg

[58] listening to: NCIS blaring from the living room tv (I’m in my bedroom)

[59] waiting for: the want to go to bed

[60] want: so many things. But right now I’ll settle for food.

[61] get married: no thanks

[62] career: never been a career-minded gal. Sorry society

WHICH IS BETTER…

[63] hugs or kisses: hugs

[64] lips or eyes: eyes

[65] shorter or taller: taller

[66] older or younger: Depends

[67] romantic or spontaneous: hmm tough one. I’m not so comfortable with either. Maybe spontaneous, but not too sure.

[68] nice arms or nice stomach: I am a sucker for arms, so yeah gonna say arms

[69] sensitive or loud: sensitive but not in a Bedazzled kind of way lol

[70] hook up or relationship: relationship. The other is so not me

[71] trouble maker or hesitant: hesitant

HAVE YOU EVER…

[72] kissed a stranger: he kissed me. I was just working to work in the morning and he came out of nowhere and kissed me!

[73] drank hard liquor: yes

[74] lost glasses/contact lenses: don’t wear either so no

[75] turned someone down: all the time

[76] sex on first date: no

[77] broken someone’s heart: I doubt it

[78] had your own heart broken: at the time I thought so, but no

[79] been arrested: no

[80] cried when somebody died: yes, my grandmother

[81] fallen for a friend: several times

DO YOU BELIEVE IN…

[82] yourself: hardly ever

[83] miracles: sometimes

[84] love at first sight: no way

[85] santa claus: nope

[86] kiss on the first date: sure, why not? If I want to then I will

[87] angels: not really

OTHER…

[88] current best friend’s name: Z

[89] eye colour: brown

[90] favourite movie: Clue

[91] favourite flower: anything but sunflowers. Fucking HATE sunflowers, you have no idea. I do love cherry blossom a lot. But I really hate sunflowers! Hate them.

[92] favourite season: autumn.

tagging @3ofme, @scrapyardboyfriends, @heartneverliez, @robertssofttouchxaaronssoftlad, @robronforlife, @zetamitchie, and anyone else who wants to have a go.

#this has been in my drafts for a few days so answers based on when i was doing it #it takes me a while to complete then post these things but i love them all the same #also there was a number missing in original post so i had to add a couple to make up 92

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azanycollectormilkshakeworl-blog · 6 years

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"Palmer Tennessee Cheap car insurance quotes zip 37365

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