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cassieopeauh · 1 day ago

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Stake to the Heart

Pairings: Mary (Sinners) x Fem!Reader (Established relationship)

Summary: Mary goes off to seduce and kill a drunk guy to feed herself and Y/n. Y/n waits in the woods for Mary to come back with dinner .A vampire hunter sees Mary and Y/n and goes after Y/n to kill her. Mary kills the hunter but Y/n is badly injured. Will she survive??? (Jk she lives I’m not cruel enough to kill off Mary’s forever gf)

Word Count: 2k-ish

Warnings⚠️: Lots of gore yall. Blood. So much blood. Gunshot wound. Silver bullet burning away constantly self-healing flesh. Strangling. Stabbing/Staking. Throat ripping. Eye gouging. Description of a dying/dead body. Reopening newly healed wound and cutting away flesh in order to remove a bullet. Punching. Kicking. I think that’s it. Maybe just a smidge of suggestive content I don’t remember.

A/N: idk if all of what I wrote conforms to the sinners vampire lore/vampire rules. For the sake of the plot let’s ignore any minor plot holes plz 🙏. Also reader’s appearance is unspecified but is written as a woman.

The humid Mississippi air hung thick beneath the Spanish moss that dangled from the branches of the oak and sweetgum’s that lined the empty dirt road. Two figures cloaked in shadows strolled along at a leisurely pace with their hands intertwined.

“You smell them magnolias darlin’?” Mary asked her current company.

You tilted your head up and towards Mary and her pale pink clad frame. The white buttons adorning the front of her dress reflected the soft moonlight peaking through the clouds.

“Yes, what about it?” You asked keeping your eyes on hers and waited for an explanation while you both kept your pace towards your destination.

“Means we’re gettin’ close is all. Front of the buildin’ is lined with em.” You nodded with a hum in response as you took in a deep breath to savor the sweet smell of magnolia blossoms.

The two of you were on your way to a bar on the outskirts of the town you were in. Those who got blackout drunk and tried to stagger their way back made easy victims of themselves for bloodthirsty creatures like yourselves.

“Now when we get there, I don’t want you goin’ after the first drunk fool you see. You leave everything to me and I’ll make sure you get to feed.” She spoke in a low voice with a slight smirk while looking at you.

It wasn’t that you were incapable of catching your own prey, even though you were only a vampire of 5 years you were still capable of taking care of your vampiric needs. Mary simply had a tendency to provide feeding opportunities for you herself. Using this as a way to keep you away from the handsy men in situations that required seducing prey and luring them into the shadows and ripping out their throats.

You smiled a bit knowing that there was no arguing with her over this, yet finding comfort in her protectiveness.

“Alright Mary, I’ll be waitin’ on you behind the buildin’ in the woods. Don’t you be late now” You untangled your hands to wrap your arm around hers and lean into her side as the cicadas droned on in the trees.

“I would never keep you waitin’ darlin’.” She said with a smile as she gave top of your head a quick peck.

With the summer wind in the grass and the lightning bugs in the trees the two of you carried on towards your soon to be hunting grounds.

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“Heyyy there prettyyy girl!” A drunken man outside of the tavern called out to the two of you in a slurred manner.

Mary shot a sly smile at you before turning around and sauntering over to towards the man.

You gave her a nod and then turned to walk behind the building and into the woods where you would be waiting for her.

“What you two fine ladies doin’ walkin’ around— heyyyy? Where’s your friend off to?? I’ve got enough to go around—“ His terrible flirtations were cut off abruptly.

“Oh don’t you worry. See, I just wanted to talk you alone. I don’t really like sharin’.” The man was too wasted to notice the way her eyes flashed silver as she came close and rested her hand on his chest.

This would be all too easy.

Mary had been all too focused on charming the man into taking him somewhere more private to notice the cowboy hat wearing bouncer that had been watching the two of you from his post. With a look of distain, he walked off in the direction you had gone just minutes before. A holster on his belt and a wooden stake inside his jacket.

————————————————————————

Dry pine needles mixed with oak leaves crunched under your feet as you walked into the woods line. Far enough into the shadows that anyone from the road couldn’t see you, but you could see them.

You found a nice dry spot to lay down and take in the night as you waited for Mary. A whippoorwhil call echoed into the darkness around you. Crickets and cicadas created that familiar nighttime southern orchestra of insect noises.

You closed your eyes and listened to the spring peepers sing out to the world from their homes in the nearby marsh.

You were so enraptured with the sounds of the night that your enhanced hearing didn’t pick up on the quiet calculated footsteps behind you.

One loud crunch had you whipping your head around to the sight of the barrel of a gun being pointed at your head. The gun was held by a man dressed in a leather jacket with a cowboy hat atop his head. His eyes showed pure distain.

Your reaction time was too slow to move completely out of the guns range.

BANG.

The hiss from the tip of the pistol mixed with the sounds sizzling flesh, coming from where the silver bullet was lodged into your right lung

You let out screams of agony as your writhed in pain on the ground while clutching and clawing at your chest. Trying and failing to pull the metal out of your wound.

“You filthy bloodsucker” his spat out in a gruff voice as he pounced on you to hold you down, while pulling a wooden stake from inside his jacket and attempting to stab you through the heart.

Through your tears of pain you realized what he was going to do and fought back. Grasping the stake and pushing back as he tried to push his weight to drive it into your chest. From your position underneath him you knee’d him in the stomach and knocked the stake out of his hands in his moment of pain.

Slashing at his face and attempting to bite his exposed flesh caused him to shove a rag in your mouth. You tried to break free and get up, but he punched you back down. He wrapped his calloused hands around your throat and pushed his thumbs into your trachea, his breathing ragged.

“Your fuckin’ kind killed my girl” He spat in your face. Your lack of oxygen from your airway being cut off along with the fact that one of your lungs currently had silver burning away the flesh as it tried to mend itself left you helpless as your vision started to cloud at the edges.

The man reached back for his wooden stake and tried once more to drive it into your heart, but your arms shot up once again and tried to keep the stake from piercing your skin. You cried out as the man’s strength overpowered you in your weakened state and the stake pushed slowly into your chest.

Blood seeped around the splintering oak and stained your dress.

Just as the man was about to shove the stake the rest of the way past your rib cage and into your undead heart, a guttural growl of rage erupted from the darkness.

It was Mary.

Not even a second later the man was torn off of you and pinned to the ground just as he had done to you. Teeth ripping at his throat and sharp nails gouging out his eyes while holding his head down.

The man let out screams of pure agony as his body shook and then stilled as he took his last gurgling breath with blood spurting from his torn arteries.

You laid where you were, vision slowly coming back into focus. Crying and tensing from the excruciating pain you were experiencing. Your sounds of pain from behind the rag called Mary to your side and away from the man’s corpse.

“No… no no no. Darlin’ you have to stay with me. I… I just gotta-“ With shaky hands, Mary pulled the stake from the shallow wound in your chest, running a hand through your hair as you yelped in pain.

She quickly tore off a strip of her dress and stuffed the cloth into the wound, attempting at packing to stop the bleeding while your vampiric flesh ever so slowly knit itself back together.

Seeing the filthy rag lodged in your mouth she pulled it out and allowing you to better breath and speak once more.

“M-Mary.. g-AH.. ughnn.. the silver… there’s goddamn… ghhh..s-silver in my lung-“ Each pause in your words was punctuated by another whimper of pain.

“Alright- okay- just.. just let me get it out now… ju-just stay still baby.” She spoke as her hands drifted below the stake wound and tore away your clothing to get a look at the pink flesh from the freshly healed entry wound.

With shaky breaths and teary eyes she looked up to meet your eyes as she realized what she would have to do.

You nodded to her and threw your head back with your eyes screwed shut in anticipation.

(Major gore warning ahead)

Mary extended her claws out on her dominant hand. With her pointer finger acting as a scalpel, she cut into the soft flesh in a circle and tear it away.

Screams ripped through you, hurting your burning lungs even further. Your body moved against your will. Instinct to survive trying to move yourself away from the ungodly torture.

“No… baby… I’m so sorry baby… you gotta stay still.” Her unoccupied hand pinning you by the hip to stop your writhing. Mary let out a small sob as she continued to dig her way towards your lung.

Blood. Your blood. It coated her hands. Mary had never hated doing something more than in that moment.

Finally, she felt something small and hard within your flesh. Just as she clasped it inbetween her fingers, she too felt the burning sensation caused by the silver.

Mary cringed in pain, but didn’t dare let go as she pulled the metal from your body and quickly tossed it in the direction of the man’s corpse.

Your screams had stopped but you continued to cry. Mary tore off yet another strip from her ruined dress and packed it into the wound she created.

“I… I was waitin’ for you and… and he got the jump on me… Mary I was so scared.” Your voice quiet. The last part nearly inaudible.

“Shhh.. shhhh… it’s okay… I should’ve never let you go off by your self I should’ve never… he could’ve…” Her voice trailed off.

She bent down to gently embrace you. Tucking her face into the crook of your neck and running the hand she had just used to cut you open over your hair.

“I ain’t never gonna let somethin’ like this happen to you again.” Her voice was steady this time and deadly serious. Her grip on you tightened just a bit.

You brought your hands up around her shoulder and neck and shut your eyes. Heart occasionally skipping a beat as the aftershock of what had happened set it.

“I love you Mary.” It was the only thing you could think to say in the moment.

Her grip relaxed as she pulled back to look at you, her eyes glinting a slightly reddish silver. With closed eyes, she leant forwards and let her forehead rest against yours, noses brushing against each other.

“I love you too darlin’.” She connected your lips in a slow and loving kiss.

She was never going to let anyone hurt her girl again. No matter the cost.

A/N: I might make a part two to this if I can find the time between my summer classes and life 😔

#mary sinners x reader #sinners 2025 #sinners #Mary x reader #sinners x reader #mary sinners #wlw #Mary sinners x fem!reader #sinners movie #sinners fanfiction #hailee steinfeld #Mary x fem!reader #hailee steinfield x reader

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eldritchtoast · 2 days ago

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ROZALIE STEELFORT

Character Bio

Bio

Gender Female [ MtF]

Age 43

Race Tiefling

Height 1,75m

Sexuality Bisexual

Class Sorceress

Background Acolyte

Alignment True Neutral

Deity Bhaal

Weapon Dagger

Voiceclaim Lest [ Arcane ]

Backstory

Being the youngest of two sisters born to wood elf and cambion parents, Rozalie didn’t have as much of a recollection of her biological family as her older sister Elyr does. She vaguely remembered living with her father in their cottage in the woods, but most of those memories are gone by now and more so facts she can recall. After her father was assassinated by a Bhaalist assassin, Roza found herself extremely susceptible to the murder god’s influence, even if she herself didn’t know that was it at the time.

After their father’s passing, both her and Elyr got taken in by a paladin living in a temple of Mielikki near Baldur’s Gate. The sisters lived relatively normally while there, however there was always this strange force in the back of Roza’s mind compelling her to venture into the Shadow Cursed lands. Most times, either Elyr or their guardian would be there to stop her before it was too late, however on one such occasions, no one noticed fast enough and she found herself walking straight into the forest in the direction of Moonrise Towers.

She eventually found herself face to face with Ketheric Thorm. The undead general looked after Rozalie for most of her formative years, using her as a way to cope with the loss of his daughter for the second time. However, Roza knew Moonrise Towers wasn’t her one true purpose, and soon after, she found herself in the cult of Bhaal’s lair underneath Baldur’s Gate, who indoctrinated her into the cult.

Roza found herself living pretty well among cultists, be it because of her hellish ancestry or just her sheer will to survive at all costs, and by the time she reached her early twenties, she was appointed as a head recruiter, prowling the streets for vulnerable people to be taken into Bhaal’s clutches the same way she was. She learnt to be everything her current target needed, be it a mother figure, a support system or an object of desire, which helped her understand how to manipulate people more and more, which in turn allowed her to sink her claws into increasingly powerful targets.

Before she knew it, thirty years since her original disappearance had gone by. She was the cult’s High Priestess and engaged to the chosen of Bhaal himself, the highest position she could achieve while not being a bhaalspawn. And things would have been as perfect as they could get in her situation if it wasn’t for Orin the Dark Urge. After the albino Dragonborn, Roza was the next on the deathbringer’s list.

Left for dead in Moonrise Towers, Roza was found by Ketherick, who wasn’t about to lose a second daughter. She was handed over to Kressa Bonedaughter to be revived and tadpoled, however instead of being sent out on the nautiloid, she stayed in Moonrise Towers, where she conspired her revenge against Orin until Thorm was defeated by a group of tadpoled adventurers, with who she teams up with on the way back to Baldur’s Gate.

Character Ties

The Dark Urge • Love Intrest

Unlike most Bhaalists, Roza decided that a good strategy to get the Bhaalspawn’s favour was to be a meddlesome but necessary thorn on his side. The two were roughly the same age when Roza was welcomed into their ranks, and even though they revealed in screwing over one another for a while, the two eventually grew up to be a very responsible duo looking after different parts of the cult. It wasn’t long before their competition for Bhaal’s favour became their personal banter, after which blossomed their bloody romance. The two eventually got married and had a daughter together, in the days before the plan of the absolute. The Dark Urge worshipped the ground in which Roza walked, and in turn she was just as determined to make sure the child of Bhaal would achieve their full potential.

Enver Gortash • Ally

While Roza loves how she thrives in the underground cult, having someone who is just as much into mind games as she is was a breath of fresh air. Roza and Gortash play a game of cat and mouse with each other where they try to one up the other’s plans at any turn possible. The two of them along with The Dark Urge become a nightmare of a throuple during the days before Orin’s betrayal.

Orin • Sister Figure

When Rozalie arrived to the cult of Bhaal, Orin was already there. She unintentionally took the changeling under her wing, looking after her like she was her little sister. The two were very close, but fell off after Roza became engaged to the Dark Urge due to Orin’s hatred of the Dragonborn. Orin was outraged roza would belittle herself so much, while Roza thought Orin lacked foresight and ambition.

Ketherick Thorm • Father Figure

Out of all parental figures she’s had, Ketherick is the one that shaped Roza the most. The two had a codependency for each other- Roza lacked parental guidance and Ketherick had not gotten over losing Isobel after her resurrection, and so it only made sense the two would find a sort familiar comfort in each other. Ketherick’s death shook up Roza, however she knew her main purpose was to serve Bhaal’s plan, which would eventually lead to his death either ways.

#Rozalie Steelfort #baldurs gate tav #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #oc #original character #oc x canon #dungeons and dragons #dnd #durgetav #tavtash

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wutheringheightstillpendalhill · 1 day ago

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Cards and Crushes 🪬 R.Reynolds

WC: 5.4k

Bob Reynolds x M!Barnes!OC

tags: fluff, light angst

Blinking once. Twice.

The world gradually shifted back into focus as reality reasserted itself, the young man's consciousness slowly returning to the present moment like a boat drifting back to shore after being lost at sea. With deliberate effort, he turned his head toward the rhythmic sound of hands being clapped beside him, the motion both cautious and uncertain, as if testing whether his body would still respond to his commands. Bob

Human Bob.

Not the Sentry who had held him tightly by the throat.

Not the Void that had held him in a chock hold as he watched Tony die over and over again.

Just Bob who had fought the darkness to save them.

Ellis struggled to part his lips, desperately trying to form words to address the other man, but before he could manage to vocalize his thoughts, the entire group found themselves engulfed in an overwhelming wave of chaos. Journalists and photographers swarmed around them like hungry vultures, their voices rising in a cacophonous chorus as they shouted questions and called out repeatedly to "the wayward adoptive son of the deceased Stark Billionaire." The PR team frantically attempted to establish some semblance of order, their professional composure starting to crack under the mounting pressure of the situation, while their hurried instructions and urgent directions became lost in the growing commotion. Meanwhile, the rest of their misfit family stumbled along in bewildered silence, their expressions a mixture of concern and confusion as they watched the scene unfold before them, unsure of how to react to this sudden invasion of their privacy.

Valentina swiftly shepherded the group back into the protective confines of the Watchtower, her movements precise and purposeful as she guided them away from the media frenzy. A profound emptiness began to take root deep within the younger Barnes' chest, expanding with each passing moment like a void threatening to consume him from within. As he deliberately tuned out the persistent cacophony of voices that still echoed through the corridors, fragments of memories from what felt like another lifetime entirely flickered through his consciousness, each one a sharp reminder of how much had changed and how much remained painfully familiar.

The thoughts swirling through his mind became a persistent echo, an inescapable realization that he had somehow found himself thrust back into the role of an Avenger - a position he had deliberately stepped away from, a mantle he had consciously chosen to leave behind. The weight of this unwanted responsibility pressed heavily upon his shoulders, each moment amplifying his desperate longing for the peaceful sanctuary he had found in Wakanda. His heart ached for the serene landscapes and the gentle rhythms of life there, for the warm embraces of his sisters, for the steadfast presence of the Dora Milaje warriors who had become like family, and for Shuri's infectious laughter and brilliant mind that had helped him heal. The stark contrast between that life and his current situation only intensified his yearning to return to the place that had truly become his home.

In the aftermath of the devastating Avengers schism of 2016, Wakanda had become more than just a refuge for Ellis - it had transformed into his true home, a sanctuary where he could finally begin to heal. T'Challa, with his characteristic wisdom and compassion, had not merely offered him shelter; he had welcomed Ellis as a brother, extending to him the full privileges and protections of the royal family. This gesture of unconditional acceptance had meant everything to Ellis, especially in light of the profound betrayal he had experienced from those he had once considered his closest allies and confidants.

The revelation that had shattered his world hadn't just been about his identity - it had been about the web of deception woven by those he had trusted most implicitly. Every person who had claimed to be family, had been complicit in maintaining this life-altering secret. The betrayal cut deepest when his father, Tony Stark, finally confessed to having known the truth about the Winter Soldier's identity in relation to the youngster for years. This knowledge hadn't come to Tony through chance or investigation, but directly from Steve Rogers himself, during a period when Rogers had sought Stark's assistance in dismantling the remaining Hydra operations. The weight of this prolonged deception, the realization that every meaningful relationship in his life had been built on a foundation of lies, had left wounds that even Wakanda's advanced healing technologies couldn't fully mend.

Having barely entered his freshman year of high school when the fateful battle against Loki erupted across New York City, Ellis found himself thrust into a world far beyond the typical concerns of a teenager. Tony had first noticed the mysterious ethereal glow emanating from his adoptive son's hands during a particularly tense moment, and rather than responding with fear or hesitation, he had simply nodded with understanding and directed the young man toward where his newfound abilities could make the most difference. In those crucial moments, Ellis hadn't stopped to question the situation or contemplate the implications of his involvement - his mind had been singularly focused on following his father's lead and protecting those who couldn't protect themselves. His actions were driven by an pure, unwavering desire to honor his family's legacy of heroism and to step into the role of guardian that seemed to call to him so naturally.

Now, after what felt like an eternity but was merely two months since that fateful day when half of New York City had been violently thrust into the impenetrable darkness of the Void, he found himself seated across from Bob in contemplative silence. The weight of those terrifying events still hung heavy in the air between them, a shared trauma that neither could fully articulate but both understood intimately. The passage of time had done little to dim the vivid memories of that catastrophic incident that had forever changed the city's landscape and left its inhabitants grappling with an entirely new kind of fear.

"Do you have any fives?" Bob asked with careful deliberation, his eyes scanning the array of playing cards fanned out in his hands. He held them close to his chest, maintaining the serious concentration of a chess grandmaster contemplating their next critical move. Ellis took a moment to consider the request, a playful smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he studied his own cards. After letting the tension build for a few dramatic seconds, he finally looked up at Bob with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes and delivered his response with theatrical flair: "Go fish."

Bob let out an exaggerated sigh and rolled his eyes dramatically before reluctantly reaching for the deck to draw another card. "This is complete and utter bullshit," he muttered under his breath, his tone carrying a mix of frustration and resignation that made Ellis struggle to suppress his growing amusement. As Ellis casually surveyed his own hand of cards, a knowing smirk playing across his features, he couldn't help but notice Bob's increasingly evident disappointment with their chosen game. "You know," Ellis suggested with gentle persuasion, his voice carrying a hint of playful wisdom, "Go Fish really does share quite a few similarities with Sevens... I'm just saying, we probably should have gone with my original suggestion and played Sevens instead." The words were delivered with a characteristically sly grin, his expression a perfect blend of friendly teasing and genuine amusement at their current predicament.

Bob, ever the picture of tranquility and composure, responded with a characteristically measured shrug that seemed to embody his peaceful nature. "I have to say, I definitely prefer Go Fish to most card games," he mused thoughtfully, his voice carrying the gentle warmth that had become his trademark since overcoming the darkness. After a moment's consideration, a subtle note of playful suspicion crept into his tone as he continued, "but now I'm starting to wonder if you've figured out some clever way to cheat at this too... You know, Ava specifically warned me about playing cards with you. She was quite emphatic about it, actually. Said you've got an entire arsenal of tricks up your sleeve, and the more I think about it, the more convinced I am that she might have been trying to save me from myself here." His eyes narrowed slightly, though the friendly twinkle in them betrayed his mock seriousness.

A comfortable silence settled between them, the kind that only exists between people who have faced extraordinary circumstances together. Ellis took his time before breaking it, his expression carefully neutral as he asked, "Got any 10s?" Bob's resigned sigh spoke volumes as he reluctantly surrendered two cards, prompting Ellis to offer what he hoped was a consoling explanation. "If it makes you feel any better, I only really pull out the tricks when Walker is playing... and honestly, I can't take credit for any of it. My sisters were the ones who taught me how to cheat without leaving a trace," he admitted, a nostalgic smile playing across his features. "But believe me, you should have seen me when I was younger - fucking Rogers used to be able to read me like an open book, consistently outplaying me no matter what I tried. Those were some humbling days, let me tell you."

The memory brought a faint smile to Ellis's face, though it was tinged with a hint of melancholy as he recalled those simpler times. He absently shuffled his cards, the familiar motion providing a momentary distraction from the complex emotions stirring within him. "Your turn," he said softly, redirecting his focus back to their game.

"You never talk about them anymore..." Bob murmured thoughtfully, his voice gentle as he studied Ellis with a concerned expression. There was no judgment in his gaze, only genuine curiosity and care as he seemed to contemplate the weight of his own observation. A moment of heavy silence stretched between them before he added softly, "The Avengers, I mean. Your old team."

"What do you mean?" Ellis responded, his voice barely above a whisper as he drew in a sharp, unsteady breath. His fingers tightened almost imperceptibly around the cards in his hands, and he deliberately kept his gaze downcast, baby blue eyes meticulously tracing the familiar patterns of black and red print as though they held some secret answer. The simple geometric shapes of hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades became an anchor, something concrete to focus on as he tried to maintain his composure.

Bob's gentle inquiry hung in the air, weighted with unspoken understanding of the complex emotions it stirred. Ellis felt the familiar tightness in his chest, that mixture of longing and hurt that always accompanied thoughts of his former team. His hands moved mechanically through the motions of organizing his cards, buying precious seconds as he wrestled with how to respond to such a deceptively simple question.

“There’s not much to say..” he shrugged.

He knew his terse response wasn't entirely fair to Bob, who had been nothing but supportive since they'd first met. The truth was, talking about the Avengers meant confronting a tangle of memories that still felt too raw, too complicated to unravel. Every recollection was a double-edged sword, carrying both the warmth of family and the sting of betrayal.

Finally lifting his gaze, Ellis's eyes met Bob's steady stare across the table. In that moment of connection, he could see the depth of emotion in the other man's expression - a profound mixture of sadness and understanding that spoke volumes without words. Years ago, when Ellis was younger and more guarded, such an intense look would have made him uncomfortable, perhaps even defensive. But things were different now. After months of sharing living space with Bob, of late-night conversations and quiet moments of mutual support, of learning to trust again despite his past experiences, Ellis found himself drawing comfort from that knowing gaze. The warmth that spread through his chest wasn't just familiarity or friendship - it was the deep-seated assurance that came from knowing someone truly saw and accepted you, scars and all. It was the kind of understanding that could only develop between two people who had walked similar paths and faced similar demons, and it made the young Barnes feel grounded in a way few other things could.

"I loved them," Ellis muttered softly, his voice carrying the weight of years of complicated emotions. Bob slowly nodded in understanding, allowing the heaviness of the confession to linger in the air between them. After a long moment, Ellis cleared his throat as Bob attempted to redirect the conversation back to their game. "Got any threes?" he asked, his voice slightly unsteady. With a wordless pass of a card across the table, Ellis continued, his words barely above a whisper, "I thought they were my family and I loved them more than anything... trusted them with everything I had..."

Cards held tight in his hand, Ellis turned to meet Bob's gaze with unwavering sincerity. His voice was soft but steady as he spoke, carrying the weight of years of emotional growth and self-discovery. "I've come to realize that while my sisters will always hold that special place in my heart, there's room for new bonds to form and strengthen. With Bucky... with my dad..." he paused, letting the word settle in the air between them, "I know we have a long road ahead, but I'm finally ready to build that relationship, to give it the time and patience it deserves."

His chest quivered visibly as the words continued to flow, each one carrying the weight of deeply held emotions finally finding their voice. Bob, sensing the vulnerability of the moment, reached across the table to grip Ellis's hand firmly, offering silent support and understanding. Ellis drew strength from the gesture, his voice growing stronger as he continued, "And you know, I'm learning that family isn't just about blood or past connections. It's about the people who choose to stand by you, who see you for who you are. You, Sam, Joaquin... you've all become such important parts of my life. I may not be ready to call it love yet - that word carries so much weight for me - but I know that what we're building here, this friendship, this trust... it means everything." A small crack in his voice betrayed the depth of emotion behind his words as Bob gently set his cards down on the table, giving Ellis his complete attention.

Ellis paused, absently shuffling his cards as he collected his thoughts. The weight of his confession seemed to linger in the air between them, a testament to how far he'd come in being able to open up about these deeply personal matters. After years of keeping his emotional walls firmly in place, the simple act of sharing these feelings with Bob felt like both a victory and a relief.

"I'm sorry..." Ellis breathed, fidgeting with his cards as a nervous laugh escaped him. "Here I am going on about feelings when you asked about the Avengers." He straightened his back, trying to compose himself, though his fingers still trembled slightly against the playing cards. "You know, game nights were always interesting with them. Monopoly especially - it got completely banned from the tower after a while. Tony and Clint would form these elaborate alliances, coordinating their moves specifically to bankrupt Steve. They'd trade properties back and forth, deliberately build hotels on spaces just before Steve would land on them... it was ruthless." A ghost of a smile crossed his face at the memory. "Bruce was always the banker - probably because everyone trusted him not to cheat, though we all knew he secretly slipped extra money to Nat when he thought no one was looking. And Thor..." Ellis shook his head, the smile growing more genuine. "Thor only played once. He got so frustrated with the concept of Midgardian real estate that he brought Mjolnir down right through the middle of the board. The pieces went flying everywhere - we were finding Chance cards and tiny plastic houses for weeks afterward." The nostalgia of those memories washed over Ellis like a bittersweet wave, and he found himself unconsciously rubbing the spot on his arm where Natasha had once drawn a tiny spider in permanent marker during a particularly intense game of Risk. Even now, years later, he could still hear Tony's theatrical protests echoing through the common room, claiming that alliances in Risk were "fundamentally unethical" - all while secretly plotting with Bruce to take over Australia.

"I miss them," the words fell softly from his lips, barely above a whisper. His hands trembled slightly as he continued, voice thick with emotion, "I hate them for leaving me, for making me feel abandoned and alone. But even after everything that happened, even knowing how it all ended... I miss them so much it physically hurts sometimes. It's like there's this constant ache in my chest that never really goes away, a hollow space where they used to be..."

Ellis drew a shaky breath, his eyes fixed on the cards in his hands without really seeing them. The familiar weight of grief and longing pressed against his chest, a constant companion he'd learned to live with but never quite gotten used to. In the thoughtful silence that followed his confession, he could feel Bob's steady, understanding presence across the table - a reminder that while some bonds were irreparably broken, others had grown stronger in their place.

"I used to have a crush on you," the words tumbled out of Bob's mouth before he could stop them, hanging awkwardly in the air between them like a delicate soap bubble threatening to burst at any moment. The sudden confession seemed to freeze time itself as both men sat there, cards forgotten in their hands, the plastic-coated rectangles lying limply between their fingers. Ellis's eyes widened in genuine surprise, his mouth slightly parting as he processed the unexpected revelation, his baby blue eyes searching Bob's face as if looking for some hidden meaning or explanation. The comfortable atmosphere they had built during their card game shifted dramatically, replaced by a palpable tension that seemed to crackle in the air between them. Meanwhile, Bob's complexion steadily deepened to a vibrant shade of red, the blush creeping up from his neck to his cheeks like a rising tide, spreading across his features until even his ears had taken on a rosy hue as the full weight of his impulsive admission settled over him. His hands fidgeted nervously with the edges of his cards, the repetitive motion betraying his growing discomfort. "I... I..." Bob hesitated, his usually steady voice wavering as he struggled to come up with words, each attempted syllable seeming to stick in his throat before it could fully form.

"Seriously?" Ellis let out a surprised laugh, shaking his head in disbelief. Bob responded with an awkward nod, his cheeks flushing even darker. "You're literally a year younger than me," the older continued, genuine bewilderment in his voice. Bob shifted uncomfortably in his chair finding his voice once again. "Look, you have to understand what it was like back then," he explained, his words tumbling out in a nervous rush. "In high school, you were this... this larger-than-life figure. The mysterious Ellis Stark, Tony Stark's enigmatic son, the youngest Avenger anyone had ever known. Every single person in school had some kind of feelings about you - the girls would spend hours discussing what it might be like to date you, the guys all either wanted to be your best friend or secretly wished they could be you. You were this untouchable legend walking among us mere mortals," he admitted, his fingers anxiously picking at his nails as he steadfastly avoided making eye contact with Ellis.

Ellis felt a complex mixture of amusement and sympathy wash over him as he observed his friend's obvious discomfort, noting the way Bob's fingers fidgeted and his gaze darted nervously around the room. The situation struck him as both touching and slightly absurd - here was Bob, someone who had become such an integral part of his daily life, someone who knew his struggles and fears intimately, confessing to having once placed him on an unreachable pedestal. The idea that Bob - the very same person who now sat across from him during these late-night card games, sharing deep conversations about their hopes and fears, exchanging knowing looks over inside jokes, and offering unwavering support through difficult moments - had once viewed him through such an idealized, almost mythical lens seemed almost incomprehensible. It served as a poignant reminder of the remarkable journey their relationship had taken, evolving from that initial distance of hero-worship into something far more meaningful: a friendship built on mutual understanding, shared experiences, and genuine trust. The contrast between Bob's former perception of him as an untouchable celebrity and their current comfortable companionship highlighted just how far they'd both come. "When I saw you in the vault I was so nervous seeing you.. felt like I was back being a teen seeing you giving interviews with the other avengers or seeing your pictures in the papers," Bob explained in a rush, his words tumbling out with an earnestness that spoke to the lingering impact of those earlier impressions.

"I hated those interviews," Ellis muttered, his voice tinged with a mixture of discomfort and remembered anxiety. "All those cameras flashing, reporters shouting questions, having to carefully choose every word... it felt like being under a microscope. The whole time I'd be thinking about how one wrong statement could end up splashed across headlines the next day."

Bob offered a gentle, understanding smile that spoke volumes about their shared experiences. Ellis studied his friend for a long moment, taking in the way Bob's earlier nervousness had gradually melted into their usual comfortable dynamic. A playful grin slowly spread across Ellis's face as he leaned back in his chair, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "So, about this crush," he drawled, his tone deliberately light and teasing. "Should I be flattered? Please tell me you weren't one of those kids who had their walls plastered with my magazine covers and press photos?" The gentle ribbing carried no malice, only the warmth of friendship and the easy banter they'd developed over time.

Bob groaned and buried his face in his hands, the tips of his ears turning pink again. "No, no wall posters," he mumbled through his fingers. "But I may have... collected some of the trading cards. You know, the official Avengers merchandise ones?" He peeked through his fingers to gauge Ellis's reaction, looking both mortified and amused at his own teenage enthusiasm.

A laugh escaped Ellis as he shook his head in amusement. "Oh man, I remember those trading cards," he said, running a hand through his hair. "They were actually pretty well designed, weren't they? Had all our stats and everything. I still have my complete set tucked away somewhere - even the limited edition holographic ones Tony insisted on having made. Though I have to admit, it was pretty surreal seeing my own face staring back at me from a trading card."

Bob smiled sheepishly, his earlier embarrassment giving way to nostalgia. "I think I already told you this but I distinctly remember spending weeks trying to trade for your special edition card - the one from the Battle of New York collection. Never did manage to get my hands on it though." The admission seemed to further lighten the mood between them, transforming what had started as an awkward confession into yet another shared memory that strengthened their friendship.

After a moment of contemplative silence, Ellis's lips curved into a gentle smile. With practiced ease, he activated his powers, his form dissolving into a swirling cloud of light yellow smoke that lingered briefly in the air like an ethereal reminder of his presence. The wisps of colored vapor danced and twisted for a few heartbeats before dissipating completely, leaving Bob alone in the suddenly quiet room, the empty chair across from him a stark reminder of their meaningful conversation.

Several heartbeats passed in silence before Ellis materialized back in his chair, his form coalescing from wisps of yellow opaque smoke that danced and shimmered in the air around him like fragments of captured sunlight. As the last traces of vapor settled, a playful glint sparkled in his eyes, suggesting both mischief and anticipation.

"Hold out your hand," he commanded softly but firmly, his tone carrying that familiar mix of gentle authority and quiet determination that left absolutely no room for Bob to argue or hesitate. His eyes remained fixed on Bob's face, watching expectantly for compliance.

Bob hesitated for a moment, a mix of curiosity and trust playing across his features, before extending his hand palm-up across the table. His eyes remained fixed on Ellis's face, trying to decipher the meaning behind that enigmatic smile that seemed to hold both playfulness and significance. The gentle overhead light cast soft shadows across their faces as they sat in this moment of anticipation, the earlier weight of their conversation giving way to something lighter, yet no less meaningful. Ellis reached into his pocket and withdrew something small that glinted in the light - a trading card, its holographic surface catching and scattering the room's illumination in mesmerising patterns. As he placed it carefully in Bob's waiting palm, the special edition Battle of New York card revealed itself, its pristine condition suggesting it had been carefully preserved over the years. Bob's eyes widened in disbelief as he recognised the very card that had eluded him in his youth, his fingers trembling slightly as they closed around this unexpected gift.

"Is this...?" Bob's voice trailed off in wonder as his eyes darted back and forth between the holographic trading card gleaming in his palm and the young man sitting across from him. The expression of pure amazement on his face made him look years younger, like that starstruck teenager he'd once been. "Happy Birthday, Robby," Ellis said softly, his voice warm with affection as he watched his friend's reaction. Bob's gaze flickered briefly to the oversized clock mounted on the kitchenette wall - the one that Yelena and Walker had adamantly insisted on installing, claiming it would help everyone keep better track of time during their late-night gatherings.

02:38.

It was the morning of his birthday.

He blinked once. twice.

Bob stared at the card in quiet amazement, overwhelmed by the thoughtfulness of the gesture. The fact that Ellis had not only remembered his confession about the trading cards but had also kept track of his birthday touched him deeply. A soft smile spread across his face as his fingers traced the holographic surface, the memory of his teenage admiration now transformed into something far more meaningful.

"Thank you," he whispered softly, his voice thick with emotion. Ellis ducked his head slightly, a faint blush coloring his cheeks at the heartfelt gratitude in Bob's words. "I got you a couple other presents too," Ellis admitted with a small smile, fidgeting slightly with the edge of his sleeve. "But Yelena and Ava have this whole elaborate birthday dinner planned for later today, and they've been working really hard on it. Plus, I know for a fact that Alexei would literally throw me straight out the nearest window if I showed up without saving something for you to unwrap at the party. He takes gift-giving ceremonies very seriously, you know how he is..." Bob chuckled at that, clearly able to picture the exact scenario Ellis was describing. The mental image of the large Russian man's dramatic reaction to someone disrupting his carefully orchestrated gift-giving plans was both amusing and entirely plausible. The comfortable silence that settled between them was broken only by the soft shuffling of cards as they resumed their game, both men sharing knowing smiles at the thought of their found family's endearing quirks.

After playing two more rounds, which Bob managed to win with a combination of luck and skill that left Ellis shaking his head in amused disbelief, they decided to call it a night. The cards were carefully gathered and returned to their worn cardboard box, the familiar routine of cleaning up marking the end of another evening spent in comfortable companionship. As the late hour settled around them, Ellis offered to walk Bob back to his room, a gesture that had become something of a tradition between them after their late-night card sessions.

As they arrived at Bob's door, the older man paused and turned to face Ellis, uncertainty written across his features. A shy, almost hesitant expression flickered across his face as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, clearly wrestling with something on his mind. After a moment's deliberation, he finally spoke, his voice soft and tentative in the quiet hallway. "Can I ask something?" The words came out carefully measured, each syllable carrying a weight of hesitation that suggested whatever question he had in mind wasn't entirely easy for him to voice.

Ellis tilted his head slightly, a gentle expression of encouragement on his face as he waited for Bob to continue. The soft glow from the hallway lights cast shadows across their faces, lending an air of intimacy to this quiet moment between friends. Bob's fingers absently traced the edge of the trading card he still held, drawing comfort from its presence as he gathered his thoughts.

"Can I... would it be okay if..." Bob trailed off uncertainly, his words catching in his throat as he struggled to voice the question that had been lingering in his mind. His fingers fidgeted nervously with the edge of the trading card as he tried again, the words coming out hesitant and fragmented. "I was wondering if maybe..." he faltered once more, clearly wrestling with how to phrase whatever it was he wanted to ask.

Ellis regarded the other with gentle understanding, his head tilting slightly as a warm, encouraging smile played across his features. "I don't bite, you know," he said with a playful lilt to his voice, the words carrying both reassurance and a touch of cheekiness that was characteristic of their comfortable friendship.

Letting out a heavy breath of air, Bob gathered his courage. Time seemed to slow as he leaned forward slightly, his movements cautious and deliberate. His heart thundered in his chest as he pressed a chaste, feather-light kiss to the corner of Ellis's lips, the contact brief but carrying the weight of years of unspoken feelings. Almost immediately, he stepped back, his gaze dropping to study his feet with intense concentration, a flush creeping up his neck to color his cheeks. His voice emerged as barely more than a whisper, soft and slightly tremulous in the quiet hallway. "Goodnight."

Time seemed to stretch endlessly in that suspended moment as Ellis stood frozen, his mind racing to process what had just happened. The ghost of that gentle touch lingered on his skin as he watched Bob's retreating form disappear behind his bedroom door, leaving Ellis alone in the dimly lit hallway with a storm of conflicting emotions swirling in his chest. His fingers unconsciously rose to brush against the spot where Bob's lips had met his skin.

“Goodnight.. Robby..”

#marvel mcu #marvel #bob reynolds #bob thunderbolts #male original character #mxm #robert reynolds #sentry #thunderbolts #marvel cinematic universe #bucky barnes #yelena belova #john walker #ava starr #alexei shostakov #bob reynolds x reader

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tm-trx · 2 days ago

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Pit Babe 2, ep 5

Live Reactions:

(warning: may will contain inconsistent punctuation/capitalization, stream of consciousness, and rampant speculation)

Kim is NOT happy about Kenta snooping around looking for Tony’s lair

aw Babe’s so happy to show off his ring

so everyone's using the scooters now; still such a weird visual with fully suited up race car drivers

uh oh that didn’t go over well

Well this is frustrating - there are feelings on both sides and yet neither is willing to break the stalemate and move past friendship.

you’re not fooling anyone Pete lol

yet another suspicious reaction from Chris that probably means nothing

family cookout - so domestic - I love it.

Why does this whole ‘Alan’s old and creaky’ feel like both a PSA and foreshadowing at the same time.

yay more racing

that’s a new one: give up your boyfriend and i’ll let you win first place

Did that asshole really brake to give Babe the win??

Chris’s turn to seduce Pete now?

What just happened?! is Pete a touch telepath now? what’d he see?

I mean yes Chris is right, sometimes it’s okay to just keep things physical; but not sure it’s the best thing for Pete in this situation.

What’re you looking for Chris? and what did you find?

Come on Charlie, how do you stay cold in front of that cute little face?

nice; Kim to the rescue

so Kenta’s not the secret operator then

one-sided love sucks rocks

not sure instagram is the most reliable source for investigating secret special senses but okay

how is Willy falling for this - hah nice he’s not

oh. shit.

and of course that’s when Charlie walks in

Final Thoughts:

current Tony Mole count:

Willy (still the likeliest candidate)

Chris (I know it's more likely that he's Way's brother, but he could still be in deep cover, so he stays on the list)

Tony making an army of enhanced Alphas is kind of terrifying. It’s the next step up from what he was doing before. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s got military contacts waiting for him to succeed. This whole plotline smacks of old skool The Sentinel fic and I am here for it.

Are the Sonic/North fans happy with the developments or frustrated? I’m not super invested in them and I was frustrated.

Pete and Chris are in a workplace romance novel and I’m loving it. I need to know what that was when Pete touched him. And what was Chris looking for on Pete’s computer? It looked like he found the profiles of the kids Tony stole. So maybe he was looking for information about Way? That would support the “Chris is Way’s brother” theory.

I was so confused about how Pete had the chemical already, when he’d literally just asked Chris to look into it, and then I realized I missed a line. Now Kenta going to that specific company of Tony’s makes sense.

On the one hand, Charlie needs to work through his jealousy issues on his own; it’s not Babe’s responsibility to constantly reassure him. On the other hand, Babe’s erring on the side of caution a bit too much when it comes to what he’s telling Charlie. I’m always going to prefer couples teaming up against an outside force over this. That said, I can’t help loving possessive!Charlie when he sees Willy.

Was Kim shadowing Kenta on the sly the whole time or was he the getaway driver that got left behind? I loved the way that whole scene was filmed. The spin! So dynamic.

So that last scene. oof. I had a feeling the show would go there. The way Pavel delivered that “Charlie” line was perfect and gave me chills.

Will this week be the week I finally go back and rewatch season one? Tune in next week to find out!

My Pit Babe 2 recaps: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4

#pit babe 2 #pit babe the series #pit babe 2 spoilers #pit babe 2 recap #thai drama #bl drama #ql drama #tmtrx watches dramas

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breathescoffee · 2 days ago

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@ofownsadiner

{My brows furrowed and amusement creased my lips as I heard Luke's threat about turning off the radio. That voice inside my head told me to keep my mouth shut. That I had poked the bear enough for one car ride, but I justified with that "devil on my shoulder," so to speak that there was no fun in that. Getting a rise out of Luke was too fun to ever pass up} You do know that I am intelligent enough of a woman that if you turn the radio off, I can just push the button to turn it back on again, right? {Not that I would do that, but again, it was fun to poke the bear. Riled up Luke never failed to bring me amusement. I didn't say anymore after that. Instead Rory and I just amused ourselves and passed the time of the drive singing along to the songs on the radio. Okay, so it wasn't a perfect ride home, especially since I think Luke was on the verge of ringing my neck by this point, but given the circumstances of the day and evening, it could be worse} Actually, yes, I have rather enjoyed the games. I always was a "game" aficionado. {I grinned playfully as I teased Luke in response. By now the truck back to a stop; prompting us to exit the vehicle. Once I did, I made sure to help Rory from the truck to the front door. After her accident and injuries, I wasn't taking any chances} Let's get you situated on the sofa first and then we'll come to a decision about food and the movie of the night. {I explained as I unlocked the front door and then helped Rory to the sofa. Once she was safety seated and resting, I removed my coat and put my purse down} You know, kid, I bet if you bat those cute little lashes of yours and ask Luke nicely, he'll head back to the diner to make you a cheeseburger and fries, or pretty much anything you might want. {I said with a grin. Knowing Luke could hear me loud and clear currently. Of course I was just teasing... Well, mostly teasing, I should say because after all Luke did for us today and tonight, I wouldn't expect him to go back to the diner and cook too. Nah, we could always order pizza or tacos, or maybe both. It was whatever Rory wanted and I'd make it happen}

Continued.

@BreathesCoffee

Care; the dependable guy; it was the name Luke had earned when it came to Lorelai. For years he had showed his frustration when it came to her tenacity to break his own rules, But when push came to shove he showed up for her, for Rory. He watched her daughter grow up through the years, he thought of Rory as his own sometimes; especially when he was the one to make her chicken noddle soup when she was sick, or when he was the one to take care of her when she had chicken poxs, he had only wanted to led a helping hand to the brunette. She was a single mother; she had to work, so I ordered to help during the night since I had staff that could run the diner for me. Tonight was one of those cases; I had a diner, I had dropped everything for Lorelai. I saw the way she was shook, I saw her palms shaking, there was no way in hell I was letting her risk her life attempting to get to the hospital on her own.

I couldn’t bare the thought of getting a call had I let her. I was happy I stuck to my guns and helped Lorelai. Rory was her everything. The devotion she had for Rory; it was the kind of unconditional love everyone asks for. Standing in the hospital, I felt the nerves she was radiating off; I felt the way she was pacing against the floors, I swore you could feel it shake.

I meant it when I said I wasn’t going anywhere; a hint of a smile that pulled at the corners of my lips. I was the guy that stayed; I cared about her; in more ways than I cared to admit. But I did; I couldn’t bare to see her alone or sad especially like a time like this. I was a shoulder to cry on, a hand to hold. If she desired to; and let’s just say that offer doesn’t always come. Hearing her gratefulness; I had offered a single nod of my head with a smile. A real one; not the half smile that felt forced.

“ Lorelai, Caesar can manage for tonight and tomorrow morning if I need him to, I own the diner but I can step out if needed. You want me here so I’m staying.” It was a declaration; no butts about it; Luke wasn’t going to accept the female taking a cab home; especially if she was feeling destressed; or needed a hand. Once we entered the empty room; I had mumbled a “ Thank you” To the doctor before my attention was drawn down to the brunette; she did sit down; what a relief to me. Because she definitely was aiming to sport a hole into the floor; seeing as she patted the open chair for me. I had lowered myself down into the chair besides her.

“ She’ll be fine, she’s a tough one like you.” A reassurance, a way of saying Lorelai did right by Rory; she was a fighter; more strength than any kid I knew. Extending my arm out; I had handed a gentle hand on her knee; a way of saying I was here as long as she needed me to be.

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becauseimanicequeen · 1 year ago

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In Defense of Ji from To Be Continued

(Or “Let’s Look at Characters From a More Non-Binary Perspective”)

I’ve been thinking about writing a post like this since the 5th episode last week (but haven’t gotten around to it). But after reading a couple of comments with the general consensus that Ji’s actions were at the risk of becoming irredeemable, I felt like there was no time like the present. Better late than never, right? (This is a long one, so I’ll put most of it after a break with a TL;DR at the end.)

(Btw, that purple light between them is so well placed. They're clearly not communicating, symbolized by that line being drawn between them. And the purple, a mix of blue (trust and loyalty) and red (love and fate), symbolizes the mysterious and unresolved feelings they're both having (or are beginning to have) towards each other. )

The response to Ji and Achi that I’ve seen has been interesting. The little response I’ve seen (since I haven’t seen this series being talked about that much, or perhaps I’m just bad at searching for it) was utter annoyance with Achi the first few episodes until we were shown that Ji made Achi cry in the past and (mostly) everyone I’ve seen writing about this turned on Ji all of a sudden.

(It’s hilarious to see how easily viewers change their opinions. I mean that genuinely. Some of that is more entertaining than many QLs I’ve watched.)

My mindset isn’t that binary, though. (I don’t see things in either black or white because that’s too limiting for me.) That means that I’m neither for nor against either Achi or Ji. (I can definitely like one character more than another, but that doesn’t mean that character is “better” than any other. And in this particular case, I like Ji and Achi equally.) It just annoys me a bit when a character gets torn to shreds for an isolated scene or situation (akin to the whole Non vs Jin situation in DFF, which got waaaaay out of hand).

(Obviously, this is by no means a call for deep analysis of characters–essay style–every time anyone wants to say something about a character. But I do feel like taking an isolated situation out of context means that the meaning, however differently all of us interpret that meaning, gets lost.)

Based on what we’ve seen so far in To Be Continued, both Achi and Ji have made mistakes (in the past and present), they are both terrible at communicating, both are clearly confused and/or terrified of their feelings (especially towards each other), and it seems like no one wants to be the first to fess up. That’s the general situation of their relationship in the series so far.

A discussion on who’s at “fault” for Ji and Achi’s current situation based on what I just listed is pretty much unnecessary because they’re both equally responsible. However, since it’s so easy to play the blame game and spread it like wildfire on the internet just because there’s a character one doesn’t like or see eye to eye with, I thought it was a good idea to include it in this post anyway. Especially since my answer is based on my non-binary way of thinking. (Spoiler alert: it’s not either/or, it’s both/and.)

(I’m putting fault between quotation marks because I feel like its connotation is too negative when something like responsible would suit better. But since fault is often thrown around when playing the blame game, I’ll stick to that word.)

If we look at Ji and Achi’s actions (the ones we’ve seen so far), I feel like 3 moments stand out:

Achi pestering Ji in the first few episodes even though Ji said he wanted nothing to do with Achi. (Present)

Ji asked Achi to introduce him to Pear. (Past)

The mixed signals both of them are giving each other. (Past and present)

I’ve previously written a post about Achi choosing not to respect Ji’s boundaries (even when clearly stated), so I won’t go too deep into that. What I will mention here, however, is that it doesn’t matter how desperate Achi is in trying to keep Ji close. Breaking someone else’s boundaries is not okay. Whenever someone needs space, it should (ideally) be respected.

Achi is being way too pushy in the first couple of episodes, and he’s not even communicating why that is. I think he says once (or twice?) that he’s missed Ji all these 10 years they’ve been apart and that he wants to know how Ji's been, but that’s no excuse.

If you doubt that some space would make any difference, look at how Ji reacted during that whole montage of Ji finding those bags with food (or whatever it was) that Achi hung on his door in ep. 5. And those notes they write to each other when exchanging those bags is probably the best line of communication they’ve had since they got to know each other. That’s how much can change if a person’s boundaries are respected.

(Sure, you could argue that it was a result of Ji showing respect first when he thanked Achi for coming over with food in the scene before the montage. Sometimes you need to first give what you want to get, and that “thank you” to Achi might've made Achi realize he could back off without being terrified of losing Ji (or whatever his reason for being so persistent is).)

When it comes to my second point above (Ji asking Achi to introduce him to Pear), it’s very interwoven with the third point (the mixed signals both of them are giving).

In the whole montage of them going on that day trip and playing games and stuff in the past (ep. 3), you can clearly see that there are feelings involved from both of them (whatever that may be; friendship, fondness, curiosity, love, whatever). But every time Ji looked at Achi (especially when they were at one of those lookout points with a beautiful view), Achi turned away. I mean, if you look at that whole jacket scene, you can see that he literally steps back and avoids Ji’s gaze.

Ji doesn’t seem to mind though, it’s not like he’s surprised or worried about it. But it still doesn’t change the fact that Achi is giving him mixed signals. Achi is both hot (giving Ji his jacket when Ji’s cold) and cold (stepping away and avoiding Ji’s gaze when Ji is looking and smiling at him).

And then there’s the scene on the pier/jetty at the end of episode 4 (which is also from the past). This happens after Ji asked Achi to introduce him to Pear (which I still believe was very innocent at first because Ji seemed genuinely interested in her, and there’s nothing wrong with that).

On that pier/jetty, Ji is tentatively trying to figure out how Achi is feeling because he can sense the tension (at least that’s how I interpret it). Ji does so by first asking Achi if he has feelings for Pear (because that could be a logical explanation for the tension), but Achi says he doesn’t. That’s when Ji has this look on his face:

It’s like he’s trying to think of another reason for the tension, which I think is what leads to the moment when he says that Achi’s got pretty eyes, nose, and lips.

I feel like he’s being genuine here. At the same time as he’s trying to figure out what the tension is all about, he’s also giving Achi an opportunity to clear things up, to be honest with Ji, and for both of them to get closer.

Then Ji lays his head on Achi’s chest as if to listen to his heartbeat (perhaps listening for an answer rather than being told, because we already know that their m.o. isn’t communication).

Achi is swayed for a moment, but he still chooses to change the subject and ends up leaving the pier/jetty (once again giving Ji mixed signals, especially after looking at Ji with heart eyes only moments before).

Achi’s reaction is probably based on a fear of being rejected since he thinks that Ji is interested in Pear, so it makes sense. But, even though his actions make sense, he’s still choosing to participate in giving off mixed signals.

(I mean, if someone looked at me with hearts in their eyes and then avoided me like the plague when I wanted to get closer, I would ditch the bitch. But, this isn’t about me…)

What’s interesting (and something I think some viewers are forgetting) is that this scene from the past is mirrored in the scene in Ji’s bedroom earlier in the same episode (which is in the present). In the present, it’s Achi who says that he thinks Ji’s eyes, nose, and lips are pretty (confessing to Ji only when he thinks Ji is sleeping, which seems to be his m.o., btw).

But then he repeats it when Ji asks him what he said.

I feel like Achi is trying to bring back that moment from the past because he knows he missed an opportunity to be honest about his feelings at that moment on the pier/jetty. The difference is that this time it leads to them kissing (a kiss that should never have happened until they had cleared up their shit, btw, but who can stop these two confused, love-sick, adorable idiots? Well, the screenwriters can, but what would be the fun in that? I digress…).

This time, Ji is the one who breaks the moment. He knows just as well as Achi where those words came from. He remembers that moment on the pier/jetty in the past just as well as Achi. And I swear that he remembers the rejection too.

It’s possible those memories were too much for Ji. It’s also possible that he realized the kiss wasn’t a good idea (he has shown previously that he’s not okay with Achi just kissing him, like in ep. 2). And as we saw with the previous kiss, it takes Ji a moment or two before he realizes what happens an/or realizes the implications of what’s happening (it took him a moment before he pushed Achi away in ep. 2, and the same here in ep. 4 before he pulled back).

So, who’s at “fault” here? Who’s at “fault” for creating more tension (and hurt feelings) between them?

Is Achi at “fault” considering he brought up the past when mirroring that moment on the pier/jetty? Is he at “fault” considering he initiated the kiss in Ji's bedroom (he was the one who leaned forward first and the one who held onto Ji with both hands/arms)?

Is Ji at “fault” considering he rejected Achi? Is he at “fault” considering he told Achi to leave his bedroom after the kiss (clearly needing some space)?

And don’t come at me with the whole “but Ji hurt Achi’s feelings by hitting on Pear, not to mention taking her to the same movie that Achi took Ji to.”

First of all, was that a conscious choice of Ji’s? Possibly. Was this the best way to go about it? Debatable. But it should be said that Ji got interested in Pear before he started sensing the tension between him and Achi. It was all good feelings before that (and it could be that Ji didn’t think his relationship with Achi was beyond friendship, because delusion and confusion are every teenager’s middle names).

Secondly, on that same pier/jetty in that same scene in ep. 4, Ji mentions that he doesn’t like romantic movies, whereas Achi says that it might be because he’s never been in love. Is it then so far-fetched that he takes Pear to that same movie (which I assume is a romance) to test out if he sees the movie with new eyes now that he’s with Pear? Not really.

(Could he have chosen another romantic movie? Sure. Was there another romance playing at the time? I have no fucking idea because this is fiction and they didn’t tell us and we’re probably supposed to read between the lines that it was a romance and that Ji was influenced by Achi’s words and I’m totally getting off track here…)

Thirdly, and probably the most important point: Let’s not forget that there’s actually a possibility that Ji is bi (the same goes for Achi who had some sort of relationship with… what’s her name, Mona?).

I know it’s difficult in this generally binary-thinking world to understand there’s a possibility of something in the middle of black or white. You’re either gay or straight, right? Wrong! There’s such a thing as bi- and pansexuality. And since we’re living in such a binary-thinking world, it’s easy to be hella confused as bi- or pansexual.

(I won’t go into the bi-hate that viewers spew out in comments and reactions to QLs, especially when the lead roles are bi (and especially when they are together with or hook up with the opposite sex), but it’s so fucking annoying. I want to write a post about this one day, or reblog someone else's post who might’ve written about it better than I ever will, so if anyone knows a post on this, send it my way.)

If Ji is a bi character, can you blame him for being confused? If he’s not bi but is having his gay awakening, can you blame him for being confused?

Can you blame him for asking Achi to introduce him to Pear, especially since Achi has never expressed his romantic interest in Ji and Ji seems genuinely interested in Pear? Can you really blame Ji for trying to figure out what the fuck is going on with Achi when he notices the tension between them?

Can you really blame Ji for not being able to read between the lines (has anyone forgotten he’s a teenager?)?

And I’m not saying all this to say that it’s Achi’s “fault” either. He’s just as confused as Ji. And none of them are brave enough to take the first step to clear things up either.

Again, it’s both Ji and Achi’s “fault” that things are the way they are. They are both responsible for their situation.

There’s still much to be revealed in this series, so a lot of it is still up for speculation right now. Clearly, however, something happened that made them go their separate ways and be out of contact with each other for 10 years.

If I were to put my money on a bet, it would be that they split because of a misunderstanding on both their parts. What that misunderstanding is, though, remains to be seen.

(If I were to guess I think they hooked up, Ji was confused and needed some space to process, and Achi took it as a rejection and left the country (since we’ve seen that his mother lives in the US). But I'm probably wrong.)

Ji's actions, so far, are not irredeemable (he’s not even on the verge of being irredeemable). And if they were, Achi’s actions would be just as irredeemable.

It’s easy to play the blame game, especially in today’s world. It’s a lot more difficult to be open-minded. But the latter will always be more rewarding.

TL;DR: Both Achi and Ji have made mistakes, they are both terrible at communicating, and both are clearly confused and/or terrified of their feelings. No one is at “fault” for their current situation because they’re both responsible for it.

*stepping down from my soapbox*

#to be continued #to be continued the series #they are both responsible for their current situation #they are both idiots #they are both terrible at communicating #and I love them equally #my shit

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employee052 · 7 months ago

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idk, crowsx3 design??? sdkjfh

the heads are all made of porcelain, and can rotate like that one horror short film with kevan brighting voicing in it

#artswin #quick sketch up #idk #tsp #tspud #crowscrowscrows #crowsx3 #the stanley parable #stanley parable #the stanley parable ultra deluxe #ik im probably not the first one to come up with this but i have an idea for smth so i wanted to make a vague idea for a design first #my current idea rn is that. at least for my au. since theres three crows. there needs to be three sort of proctors for the game #and since proctors are people who oversee exams/officer with responsibility at a school #what im thinking is that narrator and curator are both proctors who “oversee”/“admin the game" (according to oxford)#or “one who is emploied to manage to affairs of another”/“person who takes charge of or acts for another” according to wikipedia #they both at least have control over the game (ie. narrator writing the script n stuff/curators museum etc)#but they need a third.#in 2013 tsp 432 goes missing. sees that the wheel needs to keep turning #the crows see him understanding the situation. and how he wants to keep the game going. so they appoint him as another proctor #thus timekeeper. who gets added on to manage the settings and time in ultra deluxe #i have more to say but idk just yet sdkjfhskdf #i feel nervous just bc idk if im stealing someones idea or concept for this. or even getting it wrong even if its just an interpretation #maybe later ill explain idk sdkjfkjsf

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reallyhardy · 1 year ago

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Sorry what’s up w the Ethan slater stuff? I know him only from your posts / SpongeBob stuff

HI HELLO please buckle in

yep -- the same guy from the spongebob musical, and my posts abut the spongebob musical.

he blew up completely and now the general public knows him as 'ariana grande's new boyfriend' - their relationship seems to have started off the back of co-starring in the upcoming wicked musical film adaptation.

it's just been like. a monkey's paw curling sort of a way for him to get catapulted to fame, as i had always really enjoyed him as a performer (as spongebob, yes, but also in the other roles i'd seen him in,) and my biggest hope back around 2017 was that he would continue in and be really successful in theatre, get a lot of broadway roles, maybe take on some existing parts i thought he'd really suit, like seymour in little shop or ogie in waitress.......... but instead he booked the role of boq from wicked in a massive hollywood film production instead, where he met ariana grande. THE ariana grande.

and then yeah. at some point, he and grande broke up with their respective partners, (slater leaving both his wife AND newborn son) jumped into a new relationship, and now the whole wider internet knows who he is but certainly not for the right reasons.

there's been speculation regarding whether or not grande and slater had cheated on their previous partners before their relationship began with various sources coming out of the woodwork saying "yes they did" and others saying "no they didn't" -- humans are all perfectly capable of making stuff up, the media especially, so i simply don't know who to trust and i admit it had completely shattered my whole good impression of him - PLUS it gave the wider internet an absolutely awful first impression of him, resulting in, yeah, the (frankly, unflattering, sometimes downright cruel) memes of him popping up on twitter and, as i discovered yesterday, in non-theatre youtubers' videos who would literally never have heard of him if not for the slater-grande romance 🥲

FULL COVERAGE of the situation as it was happening can all be found on the lovely @notasimpleslater's blog under the tag 'ozgate' if you want to delve deeper!

#loren talks #ethan slater #months later let's call this my actual full response/reaction lol #i think at the time this was going down at the end of 2023 i was sort of just Freaking Out like my blood was boiling lol #i was parasocially furious with both of them #ofc now i do realise i'd put him on something of a pedestal #having seen his cute posts about his then wife an former childhood sweetheart plus posts welcoming his new son #AND having watched a youtube mini-series he'd made with his then-brother-in-law. i was SO invested and then.#i was like OH. he really DESTROYED his family huh.#but ofc! every situation is nuanced. we don't know what went on behind the scenes #wrg to his relationship. or what grande's was like with her ex-husband #since everything came to light there's been articles stating that slater wants to work with his ex-wife to share custody of their child #and that he's been spotted backstage WITH his son at spamalot on broadway (his current production)#so it sugggests he's not trying to be an Absent Father #which tracks with some of his own artwork as he and nick blaemire DID write a whole musical about the strained relationship between #a father and son and i just feel like. that suggests something about his personal character. and makes me HOPE he'd want to #be a present and loving parent regardless of circumstance.#anyways.#it's simply not my business BUT. seeing his face #popping up every now and again #it does just. feel extremely weird haha #there's a part of me that's like oh but that's musical spongebob my bestie what's he doing here #as for ariana i really have never had a strong opinion of her #but i have to say hearing her songs out and about these days...... :') i could do without it

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scientia-rex · 2 years ago

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A whole lot of people think that whatever it is THEY feel entitled to, they feel that way for a TRUE and JUST reason, and not like those OTHER people who feel entitled to things they DON'T deserve!

Every human being should be entitled to water, food, shelter, medical care, and education, in that order.

You are not entitled to my time, my attention, my energy, just because I happened to post a thing and you exist. Yes, I posted it on the Internet! Yes, I need to accept that the natural consequence of that is people responding to it. But you don't deserve a reply just because you think you ought to get one for being such a good little tumblr user who engaged with my content, because I am not primarily a content creator and I don't have to abide by those rules.

You aren't my boss. You don't pay me. So think about customer service rules--those apply to your beloved content creators who do make their money off Internet engagement--and then think about how you'd talk to a woman sitting at a bus stop who made one comment (generally into the vicinity rather than to you specifically) about the weather and then went back to reading her book, because those are wildly different rules.

#get pissy about it and get blocked #I have both the ability and the inclination to use my block button liberally #a lot of people who don't currently make their money off Internet engagement nevertheless one day hope to #or get their interpersonal validation off the Internet and therefore treat it similarly #but I am not in any of those situations and listen I'm even rude to my actual paying boss sometimes #when I can get away with it and he has it coming #so DO NOT try to be entitled with me and be SURPRISED when you don't like the response

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thechaoticfanartist · 1 year ago

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i once heard someone describe it as ‘pre-grief’. their pet was very elderly and didn’t have long left so they were experiencing that grieving-before-grieving a lot. giving the feeling a name like pre-grief made it easier to process and live with.

Pre-grief is probably a very fitting name for what I'm feeling. I still probably wouldn't want to call it that though because I don't want to think it'll happen, I'm just terrified it will.

#basically what happened is my dad is currently in the icu. i had to call 911 on him a few days ago.#both the hospital and the family is staying in contact with me and my twin because we can't visit him. they're saying his vitals are good.#which is good news. but he's also not been that responsive. my grandparents even said he was unresponsive.#which... yeah is not that great.#especially in the state i found him in. although my twin found him first.#it's just been a terrifying situation all around and im scared he's going to die despite his vitals being fine.

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whydoifeelthisquiet · 2 years ago

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I just saw someone post about Gaza, describe the horrors going on there, and call for action. And some of the comments were saying “I’ve followed you and loved you for so long, I’m so disappointed you don’t support Israel”…WHAT in the cognitive dissonance is wrong with people?????

#abby doesnt shut up #that’s such a soulless response plus this person has raised awareness of the whole situation both sides #tw current events

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ekingston · 5 months ago

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SO HERE IS THE WHOLE STORY (SO FAR).

I am on my knees begging you to reblog this post and to stop reblogging the original ones I sent out yesterday. This is the complete account with all the most recent info; the other one is just sending people down senselessly panicked avenues that no longer lead anywhere.

IN SHORT

Cliff Weitzman, CEO of Speechify and (aspiring?) voice actor, used AI to scrape thousands of popular, finished works off AO3 to list them on his own for-profit website and in his attached app. He did this without getting any kind of permission from the authors of said work or informing AO3. Obviously.

When fandom at large was made aware of his theft and started pushing back, Weitzman issued a non-apology on the original social media posts—using

his dyslexia;

his intent to implement a tip-system for the plagiarized authors; and

a sudden willingness to take down the work of every author who saw my original social media posts and emailed him individually with a ‘valid’ claim,

as reasons we should allow him to continue monetizing fanwork for his own financial gain.

When we less-than-kindly refused, he took down his ‘apologies’ as well as his website (allegedly—it’s possible that our complaints to his web host, the deluge of emails he received or the unanticipated traffic brought it down, since there wasn’t any sort of official statement made about it), and when it came back up several hours later, all of the work formerly listed in the fan fiction category was no longer there.

THE TAKEAWAYS

1. Cliff Weitzman (aka Ofek Weitzman) is a scumbag with no qualms about taking fanwork without permission, feeding it to AI and monetizing it for his own financial gain;

2. Fandom can really get things done when it wants to, and

3. Our fanworks appear to be hidden, but they’re NOT DELETED from Weitzman’s servers, and independently published, original works are still listed without the authors' permission. We need to hold this man responsible for his theft, keep an eye on both his current and future endeavors, and take action immediately when he crosses the line again.

THE TIMELINE, THE DETAILS, THE SCREENSHOTS (behind the cut)

Sunday night, December 22nd 2024, I noticed an influx in visitors to my fic You & Me & Holiday Wine. When I searched the title online, hoping to find out where they came from, a new listing popped up (third one down, no less):

This listing is still up today, by the way, though now when you follow the link to word-stream, it just brings you to the main site. (Also, to be clear, this was not the cause for the influx of traffic to my fic; word-stream did not link back to the original work anywhere.)

I followed the link to word-stream, where to my horror Y&M&HW was listed in its entirety—though, beyond the first half of the first chapter, behind a paywall—along with a link promising to take me—through an app downloadable on the Apple Store—to an AI-narrated audiobook version. When I searched word-stream itself for my ao3 handle I found both of my multi-chapter fics were listed this way:

Because the tags on my fics (which included genres* and characters, but never the original IPs**) weren’t working, I put ‘Kara Danvers’ into the search bar and discovered that many more supercorp fics (Supergirl TV fandom, Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor pairing) were listed.

I went looking online for any mention of word-stream and AI plagiarism (the covers—as well as the ridiculously inflated number of reviews and ratings—made it immediately obvious that AI fuckery was involved), but found almost nothing: only one single Reddit post had been made, and it received (at that time) only a handful of upvotes and no advice.

I decided to make a tumblr post to bring the supercorp fandom up to speed about the theft. I draw as well as write for fandom and I’ve only ever had to deal with art theft—which has a clear set of steps to take depending on where said art was reposted—and I was at a loss regarding where to start in this situation.

After my post went up I remembered Project Copy Knight, which is worth commending for the work they’ve done to get fic stolen from AO3 taken down from monetized AI 'audiobook’ YouTube accounts. I reached out to @echoekhi, asking if they’d heard of this site and whether they could advise me on how to get our works taken down.

While waiting for a reply I looked into Copy Knight’s methods and decided to contact OTW’s legal department:

And then I went to bed.

By morning, tumblr friends @makicarn and @fazedlight as well as a very helpful tumblr anon had seen my post and done some very productive sleuthing:

@echoekhi had also gotten back to me, advising me, as expected, to contact the OTW. So I decided to sit tight until I got a response from them.

That response came only an hour or so later:

Which was 100% understandable, but still disappointing—I doubted a handful of individual takedown requests would accomplish much, and I wasn’t eager to share my given name and personal information with Cliff Weitzman himself, which is unavoidable if you want to file a DMCA.

I decided to take it to Reddit, hoping it would gain traction in the wider fanfic community, considering so many fandoms were affected. My Reddit posts (with the updates at the bottom as they were emerging) can be found here and here.

A helpful Reddit user posted a guide on how users could go about filing a DMCA against word-stream here (to wobbly-at-best results)

A different helpful Reddit user signed up to access insight into word-streams pricing. Comment is here.

Smells unbelievably scammy, right? In addition to those audacious prices—though in all fairness any amount of money would be audacious considering every work listed is accessible elsewhere for free—my dyscalculia is screaming silently at the sight of that completely unnecessary amount of intentionally obscured numbers.

Speaking of which! As soon as the post on r/AO3—and, as a result, my original tumblr post—began taking off properly, sometime around 1 pm, jumpscare! A notification that a tumblr account named @cliffweitzman had commented on my post, and I got a bit mad about the gist of his message :

Fortunately he caught plenty of flack in the comments from other users (truly you should check out the comment section, it is extremely gratifying and people are making tremendously good points), in response to which, of course, he first tried to both reiterate and renegotiate his point in a second, longer comment (which I didn’t screenshot in time so I’m sorry for the crappy notification email formatting):

which he then proceeded to also post to Reddit (this is another Reddit user’s screenshot, I didn’t see it at all, the notifications were moving too fast for me to follow by then)

... where he got a roughly equal amount of righteously furious replies. (Check downthread, they're still there, all the way at the bottom.)

After which Cliff went ahead & deleted his messages altogether.

It’s not entirely clear whether his account was suspended by Reddit soon after or whether he deleted it himself, but considering his tumblr account is still intact, I assume it’s the former. He made a handful of sock puppet accounts to play around with for a while, both on Reddit and Tumblr, only one of which I have a screenshot of, but since they all say roughly the same thing, you’re not missing much:

And then word-stream started throwing a DNS error.

That lasted for a good number of hours, which was unfortunately right around the time that a lot of authors first heard about the situation and started asking me individually how to find out whether their work was stolen too. I do not have that information and I am unclear on the perimeters Weitzman set for his AI scraper, so this is all conjecture: it LOOKS like the fics that were lifted had three things in common:

They were completed works;

They had over several thousand kudos on AO3; and

They were written by authors who had actively posted or updated work over the past year.

If anyone knows more about these perimeters or has info that counters my observation, please let me know!

I finally thought to check/alert evil Twitter during this time, and found out that the news was doing the rounds there already. I made a quick thread summarizing everything that had happened just in case. You can find it here.

I went to Bluesky too, where fandom was doing all the heavy lifting for me already, so I just reskeeted, as you do, and carried on.

Sometime in the very early evening, word-stream went back up—but the fan fiction category was nowhere to be seen. Tentative joy and celebration!***

That’s when several users—the ones who had signed up for accounts to gain intel and had accessed their own fics that way—reported that their work could still be accessed through their history. Relevant Reddit post here.

Sooo—

We’re obviously not done. The fanwork that was stolen by Weitzman may be inaccessible through his website right now, but they aren’t actually gone. And the fact that Weitzman wasn’t willing to get rid of them altogether means he still has plans for them.

This was my final edit on my Reddit post before turning off notifications, and it's pretty much where my head will be at for at least the foreseeable future:

Please feel free to add info in the comments, make your own posts, take whatever action you want to take to protect your work. I only beg you—seriously, I’m on my knees here—to not give up like I saw a handful of people express the urge to do. Keep sharing your creative work and remain vigilant and stay active to make sure we can continue to do so freely. Visit your favorite fics, and the ones you’ve kept in your ‘marked for later’ lists but never made time to read, and leave kudos, leave comments, support your fandom creatives, celebrate podficcers and support AO3. We created this place and it’s our responsibility to keep it alive and thriving for as long as we possibly can.

Also FUCK generative AI. It has NO place in fandom spaces.

THE 'SMALL' PRINT (some of it in all caps):

*Weitzman knew what he was doing and can NOT claim ignorance. One, it’s pretty basic kindergarten stuff that you don’t steal some other kid’s art project and present it as your own only to act surprised when they protest and then tell the victim that they should have told you sooner that they didn’t want their project stolen. And two, he was very careful never to list the IPs these fanworks were based on, so it’s clear he was at least familiar enough with the legalities to not get himself in hot water with corporate lawyers. Fucking over fans, though, he figured he could get away with that.

**A note about the AI that Weitzman used to steal our work: it’s even greasier than it looks at first glance. It’s not just the method he used to lift works off AO3 and then regurgitate onto his own website and app. Looking beyond the untold horrors of his AI-generated cover ‘art’, in many cases these covers attempt to depict something from the fics in question that can’t be gleaned from their summaries alone. In addition, my fics (and I assume the others, as well) were listed with generated genres; tags that did not appear anywhere in or on my fic on AO3 and were sometimes scarily accurate and sometimes way off the mark. I remember You & Me & Holiday Wine had ‘found family’ (100% correct, but not tagged by me as such) and I believe The Shape of Soup was listed as, among others, ‘enemies to friends to lovers’ and ‘love triangle’ (both wildly inaccurate). Even worse, not all the fic listed (as authors on Reddit pointed out) came with their original summaries at all. Often the entire summary was AI-generated. All of these things make it very clear that it was an all-encompassing scrape—not only were our fics stolen, they were also fed word-for-word into the AI Weitzman used and then analyzed to suit Weitzman’s needs. This means our work was literally fed to this AI to basically do with whatever its other users want, including (one assumes) text generation.

***Fan fiction appears to have been made (largely) inaccessible on word-stream at this time, but I’m hearing from several authors that their original, independently published work, which is listed at places like Kindle Unlimited, DOES still appear in word-stream’s search engine. This obviously hurts writers, especially independent ones, who depend on these works for income and, as a rule, don’t have a huge budget or a legal team with oceans of time to fight these battles for them. If you consider yourself an author in the broader sense, beyond merely existing online as a fandom author, beyond concerns that your own work is immediately at risk, DO NOT STOP MAKING NOISE ABOUT THIS.

PLEASE check my later versions of this post via my main page to make sure you have the latest version of this post before you reblog. All the information I’ve been able to gather is in my reblogs below, and it's frustrating to see the old version getting passed around, sending people on wild goose chases.

Thank you all so much!

#fandom #plagiarism #AO3 #speechify #word-stream #Cliff Weitzman #writers on tumblr #fan fic writing #AI plagiarism #independent authors #Ofek Weitzman #please share

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