#they are literally soulmates and they will suffer until they finally admit it to themselves

[peachysorrel]

Scenario where wukong somehow gets freed from the scroll but it costs his everything, he comes home to just crumble but there’s an uninvited guest in his house and he breaks under the weight of his guilt

[thisnoodlewritesao3]

Doodles and Dicks | Nishinoya Yuu/Reader

Characters: Nishinoya Yuu, Reader, and a bunch of the other Karasuno team, and Ushijima Wakatoshi

Pairings: Nishinoya Yuu/Reader

Word Count:  2364

Summary:  You'd waited your whole life to see what your soulmate would write to you on your 17th birthday; you longed for sweet messages from him. Luck wasn't on your side as ink traced over your skin. Are you meant to be upset by the dicks on your arms?

A/N: Okay, so I wrote this a little bit ago when I was on a mega fluff run, and I love it so much. You can also check it out on AO3 and give me a little love there if you want uwu

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You wanted to be mad as you stared down at your forearm; you wanted to scratch profanities into your arm in the hopes he’d subconsciously get the message. Surely you had every right to be upset, your friend said you had every right to be, yet you couldn’t be.

Every single day since you could remember you’d longed to turn 17 so that you could see sweet messages from your soulmate; you’d write how much you couldn’t wait to meet them in the cutest handwriting you could, because maybe they were older than you?

As you got ready for school on your birthday, October 10th, you couldn’t help but feel excitement at what your soulmate would say to you. You were a bundle of nerves the entire day.

And then you felt it; the familiar feeling of ink in your skin, but you hadn’t drawn on yourself, so that only meant one thing. Your face shot down and you stared with wide eyes as your soulmate doodled on himself. At first it was innocent enough, a few faces, some equations for his work. But then it got worse. You watched with excitement, too much excitement, as he started to doodle again. Your face dropped, followed by your heart, a lump formed in your throat as you watched the worst thing he could have drawn appear. A penis.

By the time it was lunch, you had so many over your arms that it was embarrassing. You wanted to bury your head into the dirt and never come out again; you felt lucky to have such comforting friends. They took out their pens and tried to write out for him to stop, when that didn’t work, they deduced that he probably hadn’t turned 17 yet.

The real question would be: when was he going to turn 17?

----

Everyday your soulmate made it slightly harder to like him.

After the third day of non-stop, rude drawings over your arms, your class decided to make a guessing game of what would be drawn on you that day. You only seemed to be able to get a break on weekends, so you could mostly relax around your family.

He’d pushed you over the edge one day when you’d woken up to doodles all over your face - the real kicker was that he could wash it off, but it would stay stained on your skin until you woke up the next morning. Your dad had snapped a picture of it, laughing softly at your scowling face.

Everyday you wrote some form of profanity back, not sure what your goal was.

About a month in you’d started to take pictures of the doodles at the end of the day, donning a tank top and shorts. Some days you’d pull a silly face, other days you’d flip off the camera to really let him know how badly he’d fucked up. More often than not, you’d circle your favourite drawing, whether it was a particularly well done penis, or a small doodle of a happy face.

You printed them out, kept them safe inside of a photo album like a sick reminder of all your suffering - you wouldn’t admit it outloud, but your favourite was the day he’d drawn on your face. It never failed to make you laugh at the scowl you were pulling mixed with the clown nose and whiskers.

It had been an entire year, you woke up on your 18th birthday with a small headache. How young was your soulmate? You were starting to worry until you felt the familiar pen ink on your skin.

Can you read this?

You furrowed your brows. Had he just turned 17 today? On your birthday? You shared a birthday with your dick-drawing soulmate?

Where do you live? I need to see you. You wrote back.

Wow! Nice to meet you too. I have practice today at Karasuno, could you meet me there?

The name was familiar, you’d heard some of the boys on the volleyball talking about them. You pulled up directions and figured out it was only a forty minute walk to you.

What time?

He gave you what information you needed to know and you sent him back an innocent smile before hopping out of bed to get ready.

----

Should you have been nervous to meet your soulmate? It felt kind of relieving, like any tension or stress you’d built up was finally leaving you; you couldn’t seem to care that he was definitely immature, that was part of the charm you’d learnt to appreciate.

“I’m not lost…” you grumbled down the phone to your friend who had been, not-so-lovingly, giving you directions. Maybe she was right, that you were just a little lost, but you weren’t going to admit that to her.

You looked around, noticing a building, Sakanoshita shop, a small group of boys huddled up outside. “I really doubt it.” She huffed.

“I’m just going to ask someone else, you’re giving me a headache.” You clicked off the call before she could berate you for ‘being so disrespectful’ and ‘you’d probably be kidnapped if it weren’t for me’ or ‘would you talk to your mother like that’. Blah, blah.

Shoving your phone in your pocket and adjusting your grip on your photo album, you jogged up to them, ignoring the slight ache in your legs. One of the boys with long hair and a goatee turned around, catching sight of you. You felt slightly intimidated until he smiled, “hello?” He called out to you.

“Do you know the way to…” you pulled up your sleeve, checking the address, “Karasuno high school?” They looked a little shocked but nodded nonetheless.

“We’re heading there actually,” a boy with short brown hair said, “why do you need to go there?” He slowly started walking, ushering for you to follow.

You quickly caught up, letting out a breath, “I have to meet someone. Well, more than just someone.” You shrugged, trying not to make it seem like such a big deal. “Just my soulmate.”

“Oh, that’s a big deal!” The third boy with grey hair smiled down at you, “I bet you’re so excited to finally meet him.” They shared glances, like they knew something you didn’t, but you didn’t read too much into it, just focused on trying to match their pace.

“I guess,” you shrugged again, “I’ve been waiting a year. Literally, a whole year.” You tried to seem more gleeful, these boys looked trusting enough, but if you needed to fight them you doubted your abilities.

“Wait, it’s your birthday today?” The first boy asked.

“And his, too, apparently. Either that or he was drawing dicks on his arm just to piss me off,” you snickered, absentmindedly tracing the back of your hand.

“Happy birthday,” the third boy smiled softly. You continued to walk with them, chatting lightly about things that didn’t mean anything. They introduced themselves to you, and so did you. It didn’t take much longer for the school to appear into view, a small hoard of boys stood at the front gate, chatting amongst themselves until they caught sight of the four of you.

You scanned your eyes over the boys, watching as confusion painted their face. “Of course you three pick up a hot chick before you even get here!” A boy with a shaved head called out, jogging over and introducing himself to you. Tanaka Ryuunosuke.

“She was actually trying to find this place.” Daichi chuckled. “Looks like she has a meeting with her soulmate.” You slowly rolled up your sleeve to reveal this morning's conversation written onto your arm. “Where’s Noya? I’m amazed he hasn’t come to meet the birthday girl.” Tanaka shrugged before turning back to you.

“It’s your birthday?” Tanaka asked, eyes widening.

“Obviously,” you rolled your eyes, “I’ve had to wait far too long to meet the boy who doodles dicks on his arm, and on his birthday, too.”

“What’s with the book?” A tall blond with glasses walked over.

“This contains almost every single day of last year, minus a month; the doodles that… Noya?” You looked at Daichi who nodded, “that Noya forced me to wear to school.”

“What school do you go to?”

“Shiratorizawa.”

They all looked surprised, opening their mouths to yell before someone came running up behind you. You barely managed to avoid the sudden attack, watching a small boy with spiky black hair expertly roll in front of you. He turned to face you, eyes lit up like a wildfire and a grin splitting his face in two. A small section of blond hair fell onto his forehead and you couldn’t help but smile - he’s so adorable.

“Soulmate?” He excitedly thrusted his wrist at you.

“Don’t ‘soulmate’ me.” You shoved the album into his arms and started ranting. “Do you know how embarrassing it is to be in the middle of class and suddenly have dicks up and down your arms?” He slowly opened the photo album, immediately greeted with your scowling face with doodles on it. “And don’t get me started on that, why would you do that?” He slowly flipped through the pages, taking his time to read each reason as to why a certain doodle was your favourite. “I was so happy to turn 17 but then you cursed me with these doodles for a whole year, I’m just happy my friends took it so well. They made it a game. It couldn’t have been worse until Toshi started betting money; that’s when it went from a game to a war.” A small blush tinted his cheeks.

“You took pictures of them for a whole year?” He asked, voice softer.

“Well, more like 11 months because I was too busy being made for the first month,” you mumbled, sitting down at his side, “but, yeah, basically a whole year.”

“Alright, birthday couple, we have to head to practice.” Daichi sighed, looking at you both with wonder in his eyes.

“Birthday… couple?” Noya asked, looking at you.

“I waited a year exactly to hear your response. So, yeah, happy birthday.” You stood back up, grabbing his hand and pulling him to his feet.

“I didn’t get you anything!”

“I don’t think anything you got me could make up for last year.” You giggled.

“You’re so cute!” He blurted out, making you blush. “I got a hot girlfriend, soulmate, everything! I’m so happy I get to meet you, this is the best day ever.” He jumped up and down excitedly, following close to you as you started to head into the school.

“Just feel lucky I’m not mad at you,” you sighed, not resisting the smile on your lips.

“So, what’s this about you going to Shiratorizawa?” Daichi pressed you further on the matter.

“Oh, right, well. I just go there. It was more for convenience but I had the grades for it, and my boyfriend at the time was going there on some volleyball scholarship.” You waved it off as if it was nothing but they all stared at you.

“You dated someone on the volleyball team?” Someone to your left blurted.

“Who were they?” Someone on your right yelled.

“You got into Shiratorizawa and I didn’t.” Someone else sighed.

“You had a boyfriend?” Noya looked sad.

“Everyone calm down,” Sugawara did his best to ease their overwhelming questions.

You took a deep breath and answered them all, “yes, I did. We were together all of middle school and for most of high school until he turned 17. It was Ushijima Wakatoshi,” another round of confused noises blew from them and you rolled your eyes, meeting Noya’s. “At the time, I thought he was my soulmate, we worked really well together. But we don’t have any hard feelings now, and his soulmate is super sweet even if they are taking it slow.”

Noya seemed to accept your answer, though he didn’t seem happy about it. How could you expect him to be?

Cupping his cheeks and forcing him to meet your eyes, you spoke, “hey, what are you worrying about?”

“He’s just…” he sighed, looking away, mumbling, “so much taller than me…”

You snorted, surprising him, “and? You’re my soulmate. Besides, I think you’re cute. Talls guys piss me off too, so you’re my sweet spot.” You nuzzled your nose against his and felt heat hit his face at record speed.

----- Noya thought he’d hit the jackpot with you. You were smart, funny, supportive, and so caring that his heart would melt.

He loved seeing you during the week, walking so far just to see him for a little while, taking silent pictures of his face in concentration during practice. He loved hearing you laugh with Kiyoko and Yachi. He listened to your endless rambling about something that had happened in your class.

You came to watch all his games, his numbers painted on your cheeks and sporting a Libero outfit that matched his, cheering so loudly from the sidelines.

When they made it into the battle against Shiratorizawa, he’d sworn that you would cheer for your school that he was surprised to see you donning his numbers again; cheering with no shame for him. He’d had to hold back giddy smiles when he heard you chastising Ushijima for injuring Tsukishima and nearly hurting Noya at some points.

The biggest shocking point was watching Ushijima stand in front of them, pride gone to the wind, you stomping your foot behind him like an angry mom, apologising for hurting them. When you were satisfied, you smacked him on the back and congratulated him for doing so good.

Noya was happy when you revealed that you planned on travelling the world after school instead of going to college. He was happy when you said he could join. Happy when you agreed to move in with him after you finished high school.

His heart nearly stopped when you agreed to marry him with tears streaming down your cheeks. He thought he might die when you walked down the aisle, a small tattoo on your wrist that had been difficult to explain. A small doodle of something you now thought of so warmly.

A penis.

[anika-ann]

Errare Humanum Est - Pt.3

What’s in a Name?

Type: series, soulmate AU series  (part 1, part 2)   x Supernatural

Pairing: Steve Rogers x reader (past?)    Word count: 1850

Summary: When angel grace fails to deal with an amnesiac, the human ways will have to do. Too bad they are rather slow.

Warnings: swearing, amnesia, Team Free Will being themselves, alcohol

The briefest guide to SPN characters of Team Free Will (at the end of the post)

Story masterlist

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An ominous silence fell on the room, until an annoyed voice cut the air.

“Awesome. Is it like… a black nothing? White nothing? Or…?”

Castiel grimaced at Dean’s wry questions.

“It’s… it’s like a really tight knot, to be honest. The memories, I can feel them there, but… there’s nothing I can do about it. I’m sorry. I couldn’t even get a glimpse. I’m sorry, Natasha. I wish I could be more help.”

Tears gathered in Natasha’s eyes, but she cautiously rose to her feet as if she didn’t trust her strength and took Castiel’s hands in hers.

“It’s alright, Castiel. Thank you for trying,” she whispered weakly, her smile forced. She turned to the brothers then, tugging at the shirt she was wearing. “I… can I keep those, please?”

“Yeaaah?” Sam answered unsurely, not following where she was going with that. “Why would you ask that?”

“I… I think I should go. Thank you-“

That had them all lunging forward, Sam speaking up first.

“Whoa! We’ve been over this. You… we can’t exactly keep you here by force, but you have nowhere to go. No money to live on. Your memory… is not okay. Castiel couldn’t find anything at the moment, but we’ll figure out a way to help you.”

“I don’t want to-to impose. I’ve- I have already-“ she stuttered, but was interrupted by Dean’s sigh.

“Look. I’m not gonna lie, I ain’t happy about babysitting you,” he announced honestly, rising from his seat, gesturing towards her with his beer as he spoke. Sam really hoped he was going somewhere with that talk, because so far, it sounded like he wanted to support Natasha’s decision to leave. “But we had much bigger problems at our hands and much more annoying too. Helping people is kinda what we do. It’s in the family.”

Her eyes were wide as she was watching the hunters and their angel, attentive and observant. She was clearly considering her options, wondering if Dean was being honest. Sam was pleasantly surprised by Dean’s speech to say at least.

She gulped before speaking up, her gaze falling on the floor. “…okay. Thank you. I’ll… I promise to repay you when I can.”

“I’m sure you will,” Sam hurried before Dean could tell something that would creep her out – like ‘having a few ideas about that’. Though Sam was most impressed by Dean’s earlier words.

“Can I just ask you something, Dean?” she quirked up then, the corners of her lips inconspicuously rising.

“Yeah?”

“…do angels count as your family?”

“You-“ the older brother started, only to shut up and realize he didn’t know how to finish. So he only pointed a finger at her in pretended warning.

Sam snorted a laugh. “I think we’ll get along just fine.”

“If you must know, for us, family don’t end with blood,” Dean finally managed to reply and Sam couldn’t help but smile sadly at the memory of Bobby, a man who was an uncle to them, if not a father too. “It’s about the family you choose.”

An honest smile lighted up Natasha’s face, her eyes soft. “That’s nice…. So, where do we start?”

“Well, I should go,” Castiel announced swiftly, casting a glance at Dean, ever dutiful to the righteous man. “I’ll… see if I can find anything on the subject of soulmates I don’t already know.”

“Okay. See ya, Cas.”

“Bye,” Sam hummed absently, his mind already racing, wondering about their next steps.

With a sound of a flutter of wings, the angel was gone. Natasha stared blankly where he had been standing just a second ago.

“…oh,” she huffed, clearly caught off guard. “I didn’t see that coming. I didn’t even say goodbye.”

Sam only laughed at that – she seemed confused, sure, taken aback, definitely, but she was processing everything remarkably well considering what a mess she had woken up into.

“You’ll get used to it. We’re really tired, so we would catch few hours. I was thinking I could lend you my tablet?” the younger hunter offered, pulling it out of his bag and holding it out to her. She eyed it curiously and Sam realized where the problem might be. “I’ll show you how to operate it-“

“I… think I might know, actually,” Natasha admitted sheepishly, biting her lip as if ashamed. Sam couldn’t help the rise of his eyebrows.

“That you remember? You don’t know your name, but you know how to work with this thing?” Dean questioned, his eyebrows high as well. She only shrugged helplessly. Dean spun to Sam then, his face saying just how done he was with this situation. “Brains are weird, man.”

“More so when angels and resurrections are involved,” Sam added, grimacing wryly. Oh, he would know, wouldn’t he? They all would.

“Not wrong there.”

Sam turned his attention back to the woman then, seeing she already turned it on, the screen lit up. Huh. Okay then.

“I just thought you might wanna… look up things. Anything that comes to your mind.”

“Like unhuman things?” she asked half-bitter, half-curious.

“Oh, you don’t wanna look for those. You might find Twilight and Teen Wolf and stuff like that. Not to be trusted.”

Natasha tilted her head to side, not understanding what Dean was referring to, naturally, and Sam rolled his eyes. She reminded him of Castiel for a moment and a new idea struck his mind.

“Natasha, can I take a picture? I’ll run facial recognition… just to see if anyone reported you missing, okay?”

She hesitated, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, but nodded. “…Okay. Thank you, Sam.”

Sam led her to a wall, switching on more lights for better illumination of her face. He snapped a quick photo of her face and started the trace. Dean had managed to tuck himself in already.

“That was… fast. I promise to be quiet.”

“Thanks. Goodnight, Natasha. If you’re tired, just wake up one of us and we’ll leave you a bed, okay?” Sam offered, internally cringing at the idea of trying to fit onto the tiny-ass sofa.

Natasha glanced at the piece of furniture, then back at Sam and at Dean, her eyebrow slowly rising, probably thinking the same thing.

“Sure. Goodnight, Sam. Goodnight, Dean.”

The only reply she got was Dean’s snort. She giggled and Sam rolled his eyes, laying down to his bed, finding a comfortable position – as comfortable as one could find on a motel room bed. He was out in no time.

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Trying to research resurrections would have probably been a good idea. Or ‘how to cure amnesia’ or something like that. But no. Not for you.

The very first thing you wrote down – and really, could anyone blame you since Sam had specifically told you to look up whatever came to your mind – was the word ‘soulmate’.

It led you straight to a world of wonder. There was everything; it started with a definition, mostly matching what Sam, Dean and Castiel had told you.

Then the photos of soulmarks appeared. Some were funny and specific, like ‘Excuse me, but I believe that the dog that just ate my snack was yours,’ or ‘I’m afraid I’m in the wrong class, ‘cause I sure didn’t sign up for Greek mythology’. Others were annoying and general, something between the lines of ‘Can I borrow your pen?’ or ‘Is this seat taken?’. There were few that broke your heart: ‘Please, don’t leave,’ ‘I just got you, you can’t do this to me.’

You weren’t sure in which category your words would fall into; probably very specific and weird for both the crossed ones and the plain ones.

People were looking for their soulmates too. Either via forums, attempting to guess what comeback they would throw when hearing the words on their skin; another option was a few agencies that claimed to be able to find the match; that felt a bit like cheating and you doubted it worked anyway.

What took your breath away and made your heart ache were links to counselling for those who lost their soulmate. It made your chest tight for a very obvious reason, yet so irrational. You might have lost your soulmate, but you didn’t remember it; on the other hand, your other half could be suffering indescribable pain for their loved one, the one they had been destined to spent their life with. For that only, you felt tears gather in your eyes.

Then again, you could have been wrong. As far as you were concerned, you had never had to meet in the first place, and they only had their words crossed out just like yours, left with a dull ache and strange sense of longing.

There were brighter sides to soulmates too – many and many people shared their meet-cute with their destined partner, photos radiating love and adoration, with the subtlest shade of hate in the comments from people who no doubt didn’t have a soulmate to begin with. Because apparently, that was a thing as well; not everyone was bound to have a soulmate, not in the literal sense of the word. The world was a truly strange place.

You didn’t even realize you had started to rub your collarbone, your mind escaping elsewhere. What was your soulmate like? You believed with your whole heart he was one and the same person, saying both of the lines written on you.

Was he sweet? Polite? Or a bad boy? Tall or shorter than you, scrawny or built like a mountain? What colour were his eyes, his hair? Did he have a nice smile, warm and welcoming, or was a grumpy man? An extrovert, an introvert? Was he willing to show affection publicly or was he shy and private? What did he enjoy doing?

What was he doing now? And more importantly… where was he?

You sighed, sinking deeper into the couch. You could wonder, but it would be no help. You needed to pull yourself together, look up things that might be actually useful to you as a human being with amnesia and deal with daydreaming later.

You wanted to remember. You wanted to know your soulmate, but you needed to know your own persona first.

Hell, you didn’t even know your name.

For some reason you had chosen Natasha, but the motivation behind your actions slipped through your fingers, the truth burning on your tongue, leaving a bitter aftertaste as you couldn’t grasp it.

Alright. For now, you would be Natasha. You trusted your instinct on that one, choosing the name despite feeling it wasn’t your own, but still with a purpose.

Figuring out your last name was the next logical step. You couldn’t recall it either, so you just wrote down ‘American last names’ to the browser, waiting for results to pop up. You surfed through them for a minute, your fingers freezing on one particular name.

The name struck something in you, a spark lighting up like a flare in your chest and you knew this was the one you should pick.

You had been brought back from death. And until your true self and your mind would be resurrected, a new person had to be born.

That person happened to be Natasha Rogers.

“Natasha Rogers…” you whispered, barely audible and a smile spread on your lips involuntarily. You liked the sound of that. “That will do.”

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Part 4

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Thank you for reading :-*

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[dangermousie]

Extraordinary You - final thoughts

Warning - this is longer than Trumpet Creeper’s Kyung’s hair.

Wow. Wow. I never thought a drama this high concept (aw, satiric high school romcom? How about a mindbending, parable-like take on religion and philosophy and free will and sense of self and existence after death instead) could ever ever stick the landing. After all, something like W Two Worlds did not (I loved W but the ending was not on par with the rest.) But it did, and it is that incredibly rare perfect drama in which I would change nothing. 

Honestly, the whole story could be viewed as a meditation of the meaning of existence, with the author standing in for your deity of choice; not a benevolent deity many religions picture, sure, sometimes actively malevolent against those that disobey - the drama plain text admits that the author punishes those like Haru that try to challenge the divine plan, but that is not that uncommon in a number of religions. 

And the end, with its giant no exit - just an endless circle of being in other stories or put away and dead entirely - comes across as surprisingly hopeful despite the bleakness because I think what EY told me (and I fully understand it is different for everyone) is that control and permanence and existence are all fleeting and illusory, sure. But then, all you can do is live enjoying your today to the utmost, and love and free will and self-knowledge as much as you can get of it, is the sole light in a bleak, cruel, irrational world and is worth everything. 

Haru and Dan Oh, the ultimate fighters, cannot escape the cursed reincarnation circle and the worlds of the stories; but what they can do is try to change it as much as they can and to never ever give up and fight for their self-determination and their right to be together; even if it is ultimately futile and ends in erasure every time, the meaning of their life, the worth of their life is in that love and in that fight. 

And I love that they take even the limitations imposed and persist through them - remember the whole question of whether the scenes and words repeat because it’s their own or the author’s? Dan Oh’s take was the incredible that it is not the author - that they remember it from story to story because that is what they really felt and wanted to express to each other but couldn’t. She has taken all the existential insanity and decided she is a person and her wants are her own and not the narrative’s.

But of course, the capricious deity punishes Haru and punishes Dan Oh by taking him away, by not letting them stay together until the last page (though that “1 year away” is largely illusory imo - I am pretty sure the bulk of that year was “skipped.”) The scene with the lights going out, and Haru and Dan Oh, clinging, knowing the end has come, and Haru telling her she was his beginning and end and to call him by his name (so it would be the last thing he hears) is - I am freaking crying at the keyboard now.

And her name is the last thing he says in this existence.

And he is gone and she is left trying to grab his floating name tag. 

The thing with the names though is very important in other than a purely romantic sense. Their names is the one unchanging thing from one world to the next; even when the author does not name them, they get the same names - give them to each other or themselves. Because the name is such a sense of basic self, basic identity. Look at the scene with the Squid Fairy and the Court Lady, which also pulled every last heartstring - names are brought up again.

But of course, their time together is all so brief because the world ends in a few minutes and we do not see them in the new story. I am glad they got this one happy memory to erase the previous horror but still - so little, so fragile, so gone. But Squid Fairy and Court Lady are on the opposite side of the spectrum from Haru and Dan Oh, who will fight and fight and fight forever, no matter the odds or the risks or the outcomes. These two have accepted these worlds and these controls and the limitations and believe it is futile to fight; but the tragedy is they cannot keep their zen fully - they still love and miss each other, they still care for others. 

Haru and Dan Oh have created their own meaning in the arbitrary, cruel, impermanent world and that meaning is each other; to seize the brief moments of happiness as they come and grab on to free will even if it is punished, even if they never know whether, once this world ends, they will get another world or another chance (but hey, that’s normal life too - nobody has a certainty about the after of death.) That is why they can continue on through sheer will, why Haru literally forced his way into the story, why they remember; they do not accept defeat. But Squid Fairy and Court Lady have tried to go to the other extreme of powerless acceptance and I can get that choice. 

You know what has just occurred to me - in addition to fate, divine and free will, the other thing this drama addresses the concept of soul mates. The concept of someone destined by the fate for you is one many people find very appealing. But this drama posits that the true soulmate is one you affirmatively choose yourself. Because the technical soulmates here are pairs that the author puts together like Kyung and Dan Oh, and it shows not just potential incompatibility but the fact that if you do not know the love is based on true free choice, it lacks appeal. But when it’s based on genuine connection and love, it can transcend deity and worlds and the end of them all. 

The ending is as hopeful as it gets in this bleak world - Haru and Dan Oh as extras and thus free to do their own thing in a benevolent enough world - college setting. When they find each other, and of course the names are again their talisman, it’ s amazing. (And they are allowed to be at least a little older though one of the horrors is that they will never really get a choice to grow old together or have a long life - many short ones is what they get. Not that everyone wants a silver wedding anniversary and 2.5 children, but the fact that they never get that choice is awful.)

But the dark underpinning never goes away either - they are still puppets of an uncaring, and sometimes actively malevolent, deity. And we do not see Kyung or Squid Fairy or Court Lady or Juda or Do Hwa - reminding us of the fact that the world ends and you may never be pulled out of the box again, be dead forever or inserted into an insane suffering set up or whatever. 

Now to get to the other characters and strands:

* It’s surprising how OK I ended up being with Kyung in light of my earlier feelings for him. He really did get better, the more liberated from the authorial straight jacket he’s become. He wasn’t perfect (he clearly had Haru’s notebook but did not give it to Dan Oh; either because Haru didn’t want him to or because he wanted to keep it, who knows) but he was miles from the old Kyung. His face as he saw the end coming will haunt me.

* I know some people were unhappy with the resolution of the Do Hwa - Juda - Nam Joo story but I loved it. Maybe Juda would have picked differently if she knew the happy ending was an illusion and all that faces them is a possible eternity of nothingness or a new storyline entirely, at the moment of “triumph.” But maybe not. Unlike her stage counterpart, it’s clear that the real Juda is practical to the marrow of her bones, not prone to throwing the world away for love, and also what she really thrives on is being needed, being the one who saves and defends and is the leader in the relationship. She was never going to have that with Do Hwa, despite his gentleness. But with oblivious to the narrative to the last page Nam Joo she can have that - she can have someone who loves and needs her more than she loves and needs them, she can defend him and lead and be the boss (when she gave him a money balancing allowance book and he meekly took it, it all made so much sense.) This said, her joke about dating the boys on alternate days wasn’t as much of a joke as it was supposed to be. I could see her being the boss, money maker, polyamorous girl pretty easily. It would have been cool.

* I am pretty sure Kyung’s stepbrother/half-brother was in love with him in Trumpet Creeper - the way he talked about him in TC, the way he wanted to stay by him until the end, explicitly comparing it to Dan Oh and Haru, screams silent love to me (which adds another level of horribleness to the reincarnation/memory wipe concept here and in reality - in some of these endless worlds, people who loved each other might end up being family, even.)

Anyway, this is now my n1 kdrama of all time.

[darquedeath4444]

The Pain We Share

Chapter SEVEN

When Sasori returned with Sakura's dinner tray in his hands, Yahiko, Itachi, and Deidara were still loitering around. He had half a mind to simply turn around and wait until they had left, but a part of him just knew they would be there until he arrived, and another part of him questioned why he cared that they were. He simply marched past them and entered the room.

Sakura had looked up when he appeared, and she watched with what he thought was curiosity as he placed the tray on the table beside her bed. Her gaze then shifted from him to the tray. She did not move towards it.

"I don't know what you like, and it's not like I'm the one who prepared it, so if you have complaints, you can just not eat it," he told her curtly. The door had closed behind his entry, but he did not doubt for a second that everyone outside was listening in.

"That is for me?" Sakura asked.

Sasori nodded. "Dinner."

"Oh," Sakura shifted on the bed. "I can eat it?"

Sasori suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. "What else do you want to do with it?"

Sakura did not reply, and she continued to stare at the tray. Just as Sasori was about to prompt her once more to eat it, she slowly reached out towards it. Sasori reached out and helped her lower the table attached to the bed frame, then placed the tray in front of her. Sakura curiously eyed the utensils placed at the side, and for a moment Sasori was worried she would ignore them and starting eating with her hands and was surprised when she hesitantly picked them up, then began to use them with surprising skill and grace.

"Where did you learn manners?" He asked.

Sakura paused with the spoon halfway to her mouth. "I am trained in a lot of fields," she told him. "It was required of me and my role."

"You did infiltration?" He guessed.

Sakura blinked up at him, then glanced at the door where Deidara, Itachi, and Yahiko were still standing around. He could not see them, but he could see their shadows from where they were just around the corner. He wondered how much they had gotten out of her. "Among other things," she said.

Sasori did not press and, instead, he took a seat by her bedside again. Sakura ate slowly, and he sensed it the moment Yahiko appeared to lose interest and wandered away from the door. Deidara followed soon after and Itachi went with him. He had a feeling the Uchiha had stayed just to make sure no one childishly barged into the room. He glanced over at the watch and noted that it had almost been an hour since he had entered the room. He scanned his eyes over Sakura's meal and noted that there was still a bit of it left.

"Why were they watching me?" The pinkette asked suddenly. "It is not as though I can escape."

Sasori shrugged. "They're idiots," he said. "Ignore them."

Sakura blinked in surprise. "Oh."

He glanced over at the clock again, deciding that his friends deserved the benefit of doubt, and concluded that they had left because they had better things to do and not because they had to in order to make it to dinner in time. "There is a meeting in a few minutes," he said. "We will be discussing you, and I am expected to attend."

Sakura turned towards him but remained silent. Sasori stood up and stretched, wondering why he had sat and watched the girl eat for an hour. "You can keep eating," he told her. "When you're done just lift that hatch thing to raise the table and leave the tray to the side. Someone'll come to get it later."

Hopefully, it wouldn't be him.

"Okay," Sakura said.

Sasori nodded. "I'll...I'll see you later."

Sasori knew he was probably a troublesome friend to have. Deidara had once told him that he was the kind of person you knew was reliable, but there was just that something stopping you from trusting them to keep themselves alive through the simplest of tasks. Even after all these years, Sasori didn't know what that something was, but as he found concerning amusement in building a mountain from his mashed potatoes, he could feel that something right there.

Usually, members ate dinner whenever they pleased, wherever they pleased, but on days with meetings everyone was required to eat together, to make sure they were all present for the gathering after. Deidara hated these meetings with a passion, simply because they were so boring, but everyone knew that the main topic of today was Sakura, and Sasori felt annoyingly compelled to give his own two cents about her, especially from what he had gauged while talking to her. 

Honestly, though, he doubted that anyone who had actually spoken to the girl would disagree that, beneath the damage years of abuse at Orochimaru's side had caused, she was a kind girl.

Soon after, dinner ended. Nagato gestured for them to move into the meeting room, and Sasori sat down in his seat with a sigh. He knew that the chairs in this particular room were better than any of the others found around their base. He closed his eyes while everyone else tried to get comfortable. Honestly, most of them disliked these meetings without even knowing why.

Finally, once Hidan had finally taken a seat, just on the edge and looking ready to bolt any moment, Nagato brought a single file into view and placed it onto the table. "I hope you're all rested," he began. "As I'm sure you know, today's focus is Sasori's girl currently sitting in one of Orochimaru's containment cells."

Sasori was careful to keep his expression blank. He could feel several of the Akatsuki glancing over at him. 

Nagato flipped open the file. "Itachi, could you go over the time of her finding?"

Itachi nodded. "During our operation against the Northern Base, we came across Sakura in one of the holding cells located on the lowest floor, which was reserved for the most dangerous of experiments. Sasori had been suffering from pain shared between the bond, with constant pain in his hands suggesting stimulation of the wound after the initial injury. The girl was heavily injured and unconscious and was sitting in a pool of her own blood. Her hands," Itachi raised his own, palm up, "were pinned to the wall of the cell with a knife, and the moment it was pulled out, Sasori's own pain immediately resided."

Konan raised her hand. "If Sasori started hurting during the operation, doesn't that mean someone did this to her while you were in the hideout?"

Itachi nodded. "That is the likely assumption.

"You didn't see anyone leaving her cell? This corridor you found her cell in is rather long, and is only one way."

Itachi shook his head. "We were still rather far away when it started," he admitted. "Perhaps her attacker was among the sea of men we managed to round up."

Konan hummed and leaned back in her chair. 

"Thank you, Itachi," Nagato said. "If there's anything you want to add, Sasori, feel free to speak up."

Sasori humped at his own name, then frowned. From the corner of his eye, he could see Yahiko trying to suppress a grin. 

Nagato hid his amusement much better, but Sasori had known him for years and could see it dancing around in his eyes as well. "Now, after you brought her back, Kakuzu looked over her, and it was established that she is definitely a chakra user, though how much of that is a result of Orochimaru's tampering is still unknown. Yahiko and Itachi also talked to her a little, as did Sasori." He linked his hands in front of himself. "Before we go further, share your opinion."

"She does not seem to have been filled in on anything too important," Yahiko immediately said. "Considering the state she was found in, I doubt Orochimaru puts much value in her."

"She might not know names and numbers, but she knows faces and places," Itachi said. "I think there is a chance we can bring her to our side."

Konan ran a hand through her hair. "There isn't really sides, I think," she said carefully. "At least not in her mind. Orochimaru was her captor and abuser, and it's possible that in her eyes, she was simply passed from one person to another."

Sasori steeled himself for what he was about to say. "I told her she would not be hurt here," he admitted. "She appears to believe me."

"Isn't that just going to screw us over when that isn't the case?" Hidan asked.

Sasori's eyes narrowed. "Are you going to torture me alongside her for information she probably doesn't even have?" 

He watched the realization hit his friends. He knew that sometimes, it was easy to forget that he and the girl currently held prisoner in their base were Soulmates. Sasori's problem had always been real to them, but they had managed to work around it. It was so much different when the other half of his bond was suddenly right there.

"For now, there is no interrogation planned," Nagato said firmly. "Nor will it be considered in the near future."

"She can be a liability," Kakuzu pointed out. Sasori found himself glaring again.. "If she is caught or captured, she can literally be used to torture Sasori from miles away."

"Sakura herself appears unaware of the Soulmate bond between her and Sasori," Yahiko said. "In fact, she seems to not know of it at all. I mentioned it, but I doubt it actually stuck with her nor do I think she understands it. Unless Orochimaru somehow already knows, I doubt he'd find out through her."

"She wouldn't tell him something that'd make him hurt her more, right?" Deidara asked.

"It's not only Orochimaru, though," Zetsu pointed out. "Wasn't she someplace else before she was handed over to the snake?"

"She said there were others like her," Sasori added. "And she also said she was no leverage against Orochimaru. I see no reason why Orochimaru should come after her in particular."

Yahiko nodded. "If she's disposable, I doubt he'd waste resources on retrieving her, especially since she currently is sitting in the heart of our headquarters."

"What are we going to do about the council?" Konan asked.

"I still haven't made any mention of her," Nagato admitted. "On that particular topic, we'll have to make a decision and stick to it."

"Hand her over like we're probably supposed to, or hide her here?" Kisame asked.

"Men like Danzo will have no qualms with hurting Sasori to get information from the girl," Itachi said.

Sasori found himself nodding. Shimura Danzo had been a long time thorn in their side. The man held a high ranking position within the council and simply put, he was dangerous. The Akatsuki suspected he might actually have something to do with Orochimaru, but they had no proof, and the man was powerful enough to shut down any official search in the upfront, then take down who every cast the doubt on him through political measures. They had never seen eye to eye, and between them, it had mostly been a game of not showing a weakness the other could take advantage of.

Especially due to the Orochimaru case, they could not risk creating any more problems. If they made the slightest of mistakes, Konan was sure Danzo and his followers would move to disband them.

"But if he finds out we had her all along, that'd sure give him a reason to pain us negatively to the public," Zetsu said.

Sasori did not think Zetsu, or anyone for the matter, wanted to hand the girl over to Danzo if only to spite him. Still, it was a valid point being made.

Sasori scoffed. "I'd rather keep her here," he said. "I'll have to watch her and make sure she doesn't get another paper cut." The moment the words left his mouth, he saw Konan casually cover her mouth, eyes smiling. Kisame was grinning, and he ducked away when Deidara tried to pat him on the back. 

Nagato managed to take the comment in professional stride. "Is there anyone here who'd like to hand the girl over to the council," he glanced at Hidan when he raised his arm, "and has a valid reason for saying so?"

Sasori's hand remained firmly on the table as he looked around. Everyone else appeared to be doing the same, but apart from Hidan, who muttered under his breath she lowered his hand, no one else made any moves.

Nagato nodded. "All in favour of her staying," he noted. "Sakura will continue to remain under watch. We will see if she has valuable information without the use of violence. Sasori, you are in charge of making sure she is comfortable."

Sasori tossed his hands into the air, knowing that it was rare for him to lose his composure like this but no longer caring. "I knew it," he muttered.

Chapter EIGHT>

<Chapter SIX

Chapter List

[texanredrose]

Everyone’s A Critic

Am I doing Freezerburn Week? Probably not, because I’m not feeling well, but this prompt I couldn’t resist. Soulmate AU based on this post.

Weiss’ brow furrowed as she quickly walked towards the exit, absolutely livid beyond measure. Thankfully, her companion for the showing happened to be just as vexed as her, though they’d made a promise not to voice any grievances until after they’d exited the theater. Hence her desire to be out of it sooner rather than later.

“I can’t believe-”

“Blake,” she said, tone sharp not because of her friend’s frustrations but because of their shared annoyance. “We have a deal.”

“That was before actually watching that trainwreck.” The Faunus’ ears laid back against her skull as she grimaced. “But the books were so good, we couldn’t have expected this disgusting catastrophe.”

However, for all Weiss’ desire to keep true to her word... oh did she have some rather pointed Opinions(tm) about this particular attempt to do justice to a well beloved series.

“It’s not just that.” They pushed out of the studio and into the florescent light of the theater’s hallways, following the throng of moviegoers who faced similar disappointment. “We can get to the myriad of ways they completely missed the point of the books later, because that in itself is a long enough list, but don’t you think we should start with how abysmal that was from the standpoint of just being a movie?” Frustration colored her tone as she quickened her pace, as if she could put physical distance between herself and the mere memory of that disgrace. “They cut so much material out, the plot is completely incomprehensible to one not familiar with the books, and even then is terribly disjointed in trying to be faithful to that. The pacing is god awful, likely because the directors merely googled which passages were most popular and poured all their effort into those scenes, which would make sense if they had all the other events leading up to them to build the tension and significance! As it stands, they’re just isolated moments when the story actually takes time to show itself, but all that is buried under layers of cinematic tomfoolery for the obvious intention of nabbing some manner of award and merely hoping every other scene can support themselves, which they can’t...”

Now that she’d gotten on a roll, the words didn’t stop, flowing from her mouth as she allowed every ill thought she’d kept locked behind her teeth go forth, with Blake nodding on occasion, knowing better than to try stymieing her diatribes once they got started. Thankfully, they usually agreed when it came to books and movies, seeking similar qualities, even if the Faunus tended towards media with a romantic streak. Once Weiss finished, it would be her turn to critique the awful, forced romantic subplot- a subplot, mind, that wasn’t resolved until the third book, and had no place being emphasized this much in the first movie- but that would be Blake’s terf.

“FUCKING HELL!”

Weiss came to a sudden stop, eyes widening as a voice she’d never heard before grabbed her attention with two little words. Ever since she learned to read, she’d become intimately familiar with those two words, seeing as they were tattooed across her left forearm in big, bold, yellow font. Her soulmate mark- and she’d especially attuned her hearing for those two words specifically, and this happened to be the first time she heard them in her life, which could only mean-

“You!” She whirled around, scanning until her gaze landed on the blonde marching towards her, and...

Okay, she’d fully intended to be more than a little cross with the foul mouthed heathen who’d permanently marked her with those very words. However, Weiss was also a mere mortal and currently being approached by a veritable goddess. Tall, with the early evening breeze sending wild blonde locks flying, lilac eyes that shone like gemstones, in a beat up leather jacket that ended at the elbows, showing off remarkably sculpted forearms that certainly looked like they’d give good hugs- crass her soulmate might be, true, but she also happened to be gorgeous, making Weiss a little more inclined to give the whole ‘soulmate mark’ concept more than her annoyance and contempt.

However, aside from being taken off guard by the woman’s looks, Weiss still had to bone to pick with her supposed soulmate, grabbing at her sleeve and pulling it back to show the mark that had essentially mandated she never wear anything other than long sleeves around polite company. “Do you have any idea what it’s like walking around with a mark like this?”

“Oh, you think that’s bad? Check this out.” Without wasting another second, the woman stopped in front of Weiss and reached up, grabbing the collar of her yellow shirt and ripping it.

Right.

Down.

The.

Middle.

And that brought to light three very important things.

One, her soulmate had decent tastes in undergarments. Two, she had the sort of abs that cosmically demanded to have something grinding against them. Three...

... the very, very long wall of neat white script curling across her chest and halfway down her abdomen, the words much smaller than what Weiss had on her arm to accommodate the sheer amount of space required, because apparently her soulmate had been within earshot since she’d started her tirade regarding the movie.

Blake elbowed her side under the guise of pulling out her scroll, stepping away to give Weiss a modicum of privacy with her soulmate- not that she needed the prompt, of course, she wasn’t uncivilized, but still- and pretended to be engrossed in checking her messages.

"You are really hard to stop when you get rollin’, anyone ever tell you that?” The blonde quirked a brow, completely nonplussed standing there with the tattered remnants of her shirt and jacket providing minimum modesty.

“It’s... been mentioned before,” she replied, scrounging for something to say. “So you’ve-”

“Had a novella tattooed across my chest my whole life? Now that you mention it, yeah, I have.” She set her hands on her hips. “And I’ve gone to every book adaptation movie released in the past ten years, thinkin’ I might meet you at one, and, I gotta tell ya- I liked most of them.” A shrug. “Yeah, sure, they aren’t masterpieces, but some of ‘em were quirky, or did one thing really well, or were just entertaining for their own sake, and I kept thinkin’ I was gonna run into you at one I liked and we’d get into this whole fight and, for all they say about soulmates being destined and all that, I have literally no desire to be shackled to someone who’s just gonna tear down the things I like, nuh uh, destiny can bite me, I don’t give a shit.” And even though they hardly knew each other- didn’t at all, really- Weiss found herself holding her breath and hoping her verbal evisceration hadn’t entirely ruined her chances of at least getting to know the woman. “But, the first time I saw this one, I knew- I thought to myself ‘oh, fuck me, this is it, this is the piece of shit my soulmate’s gonna go bonkers over, I’ve found it’, and so I- like an idiot- bought tickets to, and sat through, that piece of hot garbage forty-seven times, just to make sure I didn’t miss you.” Apparently out of steam, lilac eyes darted away for a moment as she reached up to run a hand through her hair, tongue darting out to wet her lips. “So, uh... I guess what I’m getting at is... hi, my name’s Yang, that movie was awful, so do you... want to talk about how bad it sucked some more? Maybe over dinner or a milkshake or...”

Weiss crossed her arms over her chest, head tilting in incredulity. “You saw this how many times?” Then she waved a hand. “No matter; clearly, you’re dedicated, you have good enough sense to recognize terrible when it presents itself to you, and you’re strong enough to endure torture for sustained periods of time.” 

Turning, she prepared to excuse herself from the rest of the evening but found her best friend to be... nowhere in sight, and her scroll buzzing in her purse likely provided the answer to the question of where she went.

If you don’t know how her abs feel by the end of the night, I am renouncing our friendship. Have fun. <3 -B

“Cheek little-” Rolling her eyes, she dropped the device back into her bag and offered a hand. “I’m Weiss. It’s nice to finally meet the foul mouthed heathen I’ve been looking for.”

Yang’s lips quirked up into a smirk. “Yeah, kinda glad I found the critic with a set of iron lungs, too.”

Slipping her arm into the crook of the blonde’s elbow, she turned them both towards the other side of the parking lot where a restaurant sat- not nearly as high class as she’d normally choose, but the proximity and ease with which they could reach it trumped her personal scale at present. That, and a table between them would help keep her from getting distracted. “How about I start making it up to you for suffering through all those showings?”

Much to her surprise, Yang fully meant it when she invited the woman to continue trashing the movie, and had a couple of thoughtful points of her own to address. For being just about the last thing she’d expected from her soulmate, Weiss had to admit... she actually rather liked it.

[mustlovemustypages]

2018 Letter

Dear potential writer,

*Sigh* 2018 has been a long year, has it not? Yuletide is proving to be a great distraction and I'm very excited to be participating again. Thank you for reading my letter and also thank you in advance for anything you decide to write for me! 

Below are my desired fandoms and pairings along with story ideas that I would love to see written. Please don't feel stifled by my prompts; I've also listed my general likes/dislikes at the very bottom of this letter if you decide to go a different route. 

The Defenders (TV):

Characters: Luke Cage and Jessica Jones

I will admit that my main motivation for watching The Defenders was to see more interactions between these two characters. While I loved all of the scenes between them, I wish they'd had a lot more shared screen time. 

Overall I just want these two kids to end up together. I've been a fan of their relationship before the Netflix shows came out and will continue to be a fan after they have ended.

Story ideas:

Luke and Jessica learning to trust each other again amongst the events of The Defenders, and Jessica sharing a bit more of her past with Kilgrave to help Luke understand what exactly she went through.

Seeing Luke and Jessica's on screen (or imagined off screen) interactions through the eyes of the other characters.

Jessica Jones is a walking poster child for PTSD and I would really like to see this explored more. Recovery isn’t necessary, but having Luke at least realize her suffering and talking/hugging it out would be lovely.

We may or may not be getting a season 2. Feel free to imagine your own post-season 1 with the team, especially focusing on the Jessica/Luke dynamic.

Speed (1994):

Characters: Annie Porter and Jack Traven

I'm a sucker for characters who fall in love during immensely stressful situations. Especially characters played by Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves. I'm also a sucker for action movies that have not-quite-believable but really-thrilling-anyway plotlines. Like buses with bombs that go off if driving under 50 mph.

Story ideas:

Regardless of what Jack said at the end of the movie about most relationships formed during stressful circumstances not surviving, I have chosen to believe Annie and Jack would have beaten the odds once again. I'm sure their friends, co-workers, and family would have had their doubts but would have eventually seen that the two were perfect for each other.

I'd adore post-movie slice of life stories where they buy their first place together, meet each others' families for the first time, or even do something as mundane as going to get groceries. It would be so endearingly (and hilariously) normal in contrast to their first meeting.

Annie definitely thought Jack was insane when he flagged down the bus and jumped on. It would be interesting to read that scene from her point of view as well as other scenes throughout the movie as her opinion of him changes.

It would be impossible to go through what these two characters did without it having some sort of impact on their psyche. Whether it be Annie refusing to ride the bus again and Jack offering to drive her to work until/if she recovers, or Jack having flashbacks of the helplessness he felt on that train when he couldn't get Annie unchained.

The Darkest Minds (Book Series):

Character: Ruby Daly

X-Men was my jam when I was younger, and The Darkest Minds is basically X-Men set in a dystopian world with really loveable characters.

Ruby is a precious gem* that needs to be protected at all costs, even if it’s from herself. Liam is such a sweetheart. Book 2 when he gets his memories back had me literally crying. Chubs and Zhu are amazing, and I love the little family the four of them made together. Vida was also really great, and so was Cole… and you get the point. I loved them all.

*Pun not intended but acknowledged nevertheless.

My favorite pairing from the series is Ruby/Liam but sadly Liam is not in the tagset. It would be amazing if you wrote a Ruby/Liam story but if that's not your thing, I'd be equally happy with a gen story focusing on Ruby and Cole, Ruby and Chubs, Ruby and Vida, etc. Chubs/Vida in the background would be even more wonderful!

Story ideas:

Ruby definitely struggled with her abilities and had healthy/unhealthy coping mechanisms. Expanding on this would be great and including any of the other characters' responses to her coping mechanisms would be a definite plus.

Reunions are the best. Write how you would have liked the Liam and Ruby reunion in book 2 to have played out or expand on canon to bring on even more feels. Again, I fully realize that Liam is not in the tagset so don't feel pressured to include him. Instead write about a reunion between Ruby and one of the other main characters (like Chubs)!

I wish there were more scenes exploring the dynamics of Cole and Ruby's friendship and how that impacts their respective relationships with Liam, especially because Cole and Ruby relate on a level that I don't think Liam ever quite understood. One of my favorite parts from the whole series is the scene in the shower where Cole is basically interrogating Ruby for information about Liam. It's a totally non-romantic scene but very emotionally charged and it would be really interesting to read about it from Cole's point of view.

Impluse (TV):

Characters: Henrietta "Henry" Coles, Lucas Boone, Jenna Hope, Townes Linderman

This show became a surprise favorite of mine in 2018, mostly because it's on YouTube Red and I haven't given most of their original shows much thought. Also because it tackles rape and recovery in such a raw and interesting, especially in the context of a sci-fi show.

I just need more Henry Coles. If you want to do a romantic relationship I'd prefer seeing something explored with Lucas Boone or her canon love interest Josh (who was only in 2 episodes but really seemed to "get" Henry). Otherwise, gen stories between Henry and any/all of the tagset characters would be great.

Story Ideas:

Henry will never be fully "recovered" in the sense that one can never truly recover from rape. It will always have an impact on her life. The other characters get that and try to help her in any way they can.

While Lucas is aware of what his brother did to Henry, he has no idea of the real impact. I'd love a story where he learns more about her seizures and the way her anxiety/fears manifest themselves as teleportation.

Hurt/comfort in all forms because Henry has been hurt enough for a lifetime, but she could do with a whole lot more comfort. Either within the confines of season 1 or imagined opportunities for comfort in season 2.

We get the story from mostly Henry's perspective, but I'm sure there is a lot going on in the minds of Lucas, Jenna and/or Townes as the events of season 1 play out.

The Folk of the Air

Pairing: Cardan Greenbriar/Jude Duarte

Holly Black is an evil genius and I bow down to her greatness. Starting off the first book in this series, I never would have imagined that by the end I'd be rooting for Jude and Cardan to be together but here we are.

They are the ultimate enemies-to-lovers and I can't wait to see what happens to them in the second book coming in 2019.

Story ideas:

Maybe I'm being unrealistically optimistic, but despite Jude's betrayal at the end of the first book, I think these two can work it out. Perhaps Jude helps Cardan cope with the stresses of being king and he is able to move past what she did. Or maybe he sees how impossible Jude thought the situation was and comes to the realization that he was the only one she trusted to do it.

Madoc is a horrible father. Jude basically knows this from the beginning. Still, she was genuinely upset in discovering what he had done. I'd love to see her finally release all of that pent up anger - either her using Cardan as a sounding board for her rants or even having her completely breakdown under all of the stress and him comforting her.

We get the perspective of Jude throughout the entire book, but I would really enjoy seeing some of the scenes from Cardan's point of view as his feelings for Jude change.

There is no way that Jude's sister, Vivienne, wouldn't be alarmed when finding out that Jude and Cardan kissed. Jude having to explain her changed feelings for Cardan and Vivienne realizing that Jude is in like/love would be hilarious and heartwarming.

Things I don’t like:

Alternate Universes – For the specific fandoms that I picked, I really like the universes as they are. I’m definitely okay with deviations from canon, but please don’t make Speed into a supernatural werewolf story or the fantasy/sci-fi canons take place in a mundane coffee shop setting. (I don’t mind Soulmate AUs or something similar because those can be incorporated into canon with little change to worldbuilding).

Non-Con/Rape/BDSM/Sexual Violence/Graphic Sex – I like my characters to be happy and everything within ships to be 100% consensual, no question about it (mentions of non-con if it occurred in canon is fine). I also prefer plot over porn, especially with one-shots.

OT3s – Two people per romantic relationship please. Any more than that makes me uncomfortable.

Character Bashing - Unless a character is a bad guy in canon, I don’t want to read hundreds of words about how awful they are, especially if they are one of the characters that I requested. Don’t take it out on the characters if you hate my pairings, just write gen. 

Things I love:

Hurt/Comfort – There is nothing I love more than one character comforting another. The hurt can be physical, psychological, or both.  

Happy Endings – I’m all for the realistic endings… but if they could be plausible AND happy-ish, that would be amazing.

Expanded Scenes/Contorting Canon – Feel free to expand scenes and change up canon to your heart’s content as long as it makes logical sense.

Humor/Banter/Snark – I thrive on this stuff.

Bonding/Building Relationships – Whether it be a friendship or a romantic relationship, I adore reading about two people growing closer together. When characters know each other so well that they can have conversations with just their eyes or anticipate the person’s next move (especially if it’s to the surprise/confusion of everyone around them), my shipper heart is thrilled.

Dark to Light – Seeing a character come out of a bad mindset/situation and get better is so satisfying.

Thanks again and happy writing!

- Maddy @mustlovemustypages (on Tumblr, Ao3 and FF.net)

[emmerdalebigbang]

Emmerdale Big Bang Teasers

Since it’s less than a month until the posting for the Big Bang starts, here are teasers for the 17 fics to come! 

we’ll meet again by @littlelooneyluna

Theme: AU, Angst, Violence, World War Two, Death, Homophobia, Love through the ages

Summary: in the year of 1939, war strikes and leaves best friends turned almost lovers aaron and robert in a state of shock, despite their resistance against the ever present reality of war it soon becomes apparent that there is no escape and it doesn’t take long for their world to be ripped apart as they continuously fight to keep each other close despite the lengths taken to keep them apart for good

Sample Scene

maneuver one into place by @robertjacobsugdens

Theme: Alternative universe - Crime, Heist, Angst, Humor, Enemies to lovers to enemies to friends to lovers.

Summary: Robert helped Lawrence build a legitimate business empire from the ashes of his criminal enterprises. That is, until Robert made one tiny, irrelevant mistake and the Whites kicked him to the curb. Now planning his revenge, Robert went in the only place where he could assemble a team to get back what was rightfully his. He wasn’t expecting old feelings and wounds to resurface quite this strongly. Especially not when it comes to his master thief, Aaron Dingle.

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Fanfiction Number 3 by @nooneelsecomesclose17

Theme: AU, World War One, Angst, Romance, Minor character death

Summary: It’s 1914, the war looming. Aaron is the new chauffeur at Home Farm, and Robert is newly returned from London after years away. Aaron wants a new start, with Liv, while Robert wants to reconnect with his family. Bad memories haunt them both making their relationship a challenge. With the war comes tragedy and then Aaron goes missing.

Sample Scene

Fanfiction Number 4 by @misswhimsy

Theme: AU-Canon Divergence, Angst, Fluff, Humour

Summary: After Katie’s death, Robert handed himself in to the police and has spent the last two years in prison for manslaughter. Aaron has moved on with his life, dealing with the death of his father and reconnecting with his little sister, attending counselling to help him cope with the things he’s not willing or able to share with his family. Luckily it has provided him with an interesting new way to manage his feelings and he has discovered a talent and passion for writing that he never expected. Now, Robert is out of prison, alone and unsure of his future; will he ever be able to find the happiness that Aaron has already found?

Sample Scene: 

Rumours by @beautifulhigh

Theme: Fantasy AU

Summary: Robert is a Divinus, or a “Div” if you’re feeling particularly cruel.  People who are functionally immortal: they can die through severe accidents or illnesses, or something immediate.  People with the ability to heal, to understand a person better than they know themselves, and who are rumoured to love so deeply that they will literally love you forever.

Robert hasn’t told anyone who he is, only telling Aaron after the car crash and their engagement, giving him the choice about whether he wants to live his life with a man who won’t ever grow old, who isn’t anything close to normal and secure.  Not all the rumours are good ones though, and for every high there’s a low.

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Separation Never Suited Us by @wellyfullofale

Theme: Reunion fic, Angst, Married but separated, Eventual Fluff

Summary: It’s nine years down the line and they’ve been separated for just under a year (no cheating! it was a stubborn communication breakdown, that’s all. They’re still very much in love but too stubborn to admit it to one another.). Robert left the village thinking Aaron didn’t want him and wanting Aaron to be able to live his life. Robert returns to the village for his 40th Birthday party after Vic and Chas conspire to get them back together. Aaron has a new boyfriend (ish) but they can’t deny they’re still in love when they see each other again for the first time in almost a year. Over the week that Robert is back in the village they find their way back to one another, and this time they’ll never look back.

Sample Scene

A Tale of Two Worlds by @geena-rae

Theme: Merman AU. Fantasy, Angst and fluff, Sexual content, Mild violence, Aaron has trouble understanding humans, Suicide attempt

Summary: Aaron’s an immortal being, trapped in the sea for thousands of years now by himself. He’s been lonely for so long, his only solace watching the humans who walk along on the the land. Then he meets a sea witch who makes him an offer, she’ll turn him human for two weeks and if he finds love in those weeks​ she’ll keep him human, if not, Aaron has to give her his immortality.

Sample Scene

Fool’s Gold by @strongboyfriends

Theme: Fake Dating!AU, Soulmate!AU

Summary: When Robert and Aaron meet, it’s not exactly the meet-cute people dream about, but soon enough they find themselves both needing favors – namely, favors in the form of dates. While Aaron attends a suit-and-tie gala for Robert, Robert must then face a Dingle Do. But while they are both adamant that they are not dating, fate decides to pull the strings, connecting their souls through their dreams. Robert and Aaron learn that, while their lives are just fine without each other, life is so much more when they balance each other out.

Sample Scene

Fanfiction Number 9 @escapingreality51

Theme: Firefighter AU, Meet cute, Fluff, Some angst, Mentions of past trauma, Fire, firefighter!Aaron, lawyer!Robert

Summary: Robert notices a really fit man several times, running in the park next to where Robert lives. He sees him a few times and wants to talk to him but can’t make himself do it, so he gives up, until one day he meets the man in his elevator. They embark on a very physical and emotionally connected relationship, but when Robert realises what Aaron’s job is, he gets scared and pushes Aaron away. Robert misses him and convinces himself to call Aaron when he hears Aaron was injured in a fire. They reunite and Robert tells him how his Mum died in a fire, and how he was scared of the same thing happening to Aaron.

Sample Scene

All In by @godamnarmsrace

Theme: AU: Detective Robert and teenage Aaron, References to childhood rape, Angst, Hurt/comfort, Drama/action, Homeless Aaron

Summary: When Robert and Aaron meet there’s an instant attraction, no doubt about it, but nothing can happen, it just wouldn’t be appropriate. Robert feels for the lad, who’s been on the streets and taking care of his young sister, so he does the decent thing and opens his home to him – gives him a break. Feelings grow, Aaron wants Robert, in more ways than one, in every way really, but Robert is fighting it, he fears becoming one of the monsters he hunts. It’s only when things get dangerous, pursuing Gordon has some scary consequences, he begins to realise that you really only get one life; Aaron and Liv are his.

Sample Scene

Fanfiction Number 11 by @realityisonlythebeginning

Theme: 1930s Reporter AU, Angst and fluff, Prisoner!Aaron, Reporter!Robert, Happy Ending,

Summary: Robert Sugden is a small time reporter aching for a proper job in the world of crime reporting. He thinks he’s found it when a young man named Aaron dingle is wronglfully jailed for something he didn’t do. What he finds however is so much more,

Sample Scene

Fanfiction Number 12 by @thisissirius

Theme: Greek mythology au, Angsty as hell, but a whole lotta love and robert sugden suffering

Summary: set slightly in the future; aaron’s soul is in the balance and robert’s given the opportunity to save it in an orpheus and eurydice-esque way. having to face up to things in his past he’s not proud of as he walks through tartarus/hell, robert’s accompanied by loved ones he’s lost. the obstacles are plenty, but the final test looms larger than any other. a barn on fire right by the boat that will take him back to the land of the living. all the time robert has to focus on not looking back, has to trust that aaron’s following him, will always follow him. but there’s one thing robert can be sure of; not to trust in the powers that brought him to hell.

Sample Scene

Fanfiction Number 13 by @halethesourestwolf

Theme: Magical AU, Angst and Fluff

Summary: Free from the secrets of his past, Aaron Dingle returns home to pick up the pieces of his life in order to figure out who he is, where he belongs, and how to be the kind of druid he longs to be while taking Liv under his wing. But discovering a werewolf who needs help only he can offer and falling for Robert Sugden who is complex at best and disastrous at worst, Aaron finds himself with a death sentence hanging over him as he upsets the natural balance he’s supposed to maintain whilst getting in over his head with their problems, especially when he learns both are connected to the Whites, a hunting family with endless resources, dark secrets, and a single-minded determination to wipe out all were-creatures, which includes those who stand in their way, even if it means breaking every last law of the natural and supernatural worlds to do it.

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Fanfiction Number 14 by @capseycartwright

Theme: angst, romance, infidelity, non-linear storytelling, implied/referenced child abuse

Summary: the end of a relationship is supposed to be the hardest part, but the last night aaron sees robert, it’s the first promise of a happy ending he gets from the other man. a year, to sort their problems, and they’ll meet back in paris, and give their love the chance it deserves. what could possibly go wrong in a year?

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Fanfiction Number 15 by @kayceecruz

Theme: canon-divergent AU, angst, pining, so much pining, fluff/smut, falling in love, NC-17

Summary: Begins 2014 with Robert’s return except he is alone and out to himself. Aaron is with Jackson who is still a paraplegic but did not die. Their relationship is strained and Jackson breaks up temporarily with Aaron (they agree on 9 months while Jackson is away) so that he can get more experience/sexual fulfillment and recruits Robert to guide Aaron into it. Robert is Aaron’s sexual reawakening. They start dating knowing theirs a time limit and fall in love. Then Jackson returns… a story with lots of pining, Bob and Bernice as Rob’s squad, fluff, smut, a confused but happy Chas, Cain Dingle being scary, Paddy being everyone’s dad, the village being nosies, a hopeless Robert, a frustrated Aaron and lots and lots of kissing.

Sample Scene

Fanfiction Number 16 by @aarobron 

Theme: Neighbours AU, Fluff, Angst, Smut

Summary: Robert is down on his luck when he moves into a new flat, but meeting Aaron changes everything - it brings back his family, gains him a promotion and he falls desperately in love. But it’s not all roses when Aaron’s terrified of committing to someone after his ex-boyfriend and now he’s lost the love of his life. Can Robert find it in himself to forgive him?

Sample Scene

Asking The Moon To Stay by @softrobertsugden  

Theme: Modern Royalty AU, Fluff, A little Angst,

Summary: Jack Sugden is the king of Emmerdale and has been for quite a while now. When he survives a heart attack, he realises he needs to make sure his kingdom is secured before he dies. His son, crown prince Robert, needs to marry and produce an heir and he need to do it fast. What Jack doesn’t know is that Robert’s heart is already sold to someone else.

Sample Scene