#NIA WRITES ࿐

[phyronia]

Evalen and Astarion spend their first day in Waterdeep. Gale throws himself into playing host.

finally finished this twelve thousand word beast of a chapter! and now i get to eat

#nia speaks #nia writes #waterdhavian hospitality #bg3 #astarion #gale of waterdeep #astarion/tav #gale/tav #astarion/gale/tav #bloodweave

[queerchaser]

CHAPTER TWO: THE BEGINNING TO AN END

You will also find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it.

Hogwarts was a magical place; figuratively and literally. The old majestic castle was full of various, mainly happy, memories carried by multiple generations, full of surprises, like many hidden passages almost no one ever fully explored and it was surrounded by one of the most beautiful landscapes, from the dark and dangerous, yet somehow terrifyingly beautiful Forbidden Forest to the Great Lake, which was home to a giant squid and a village of somewhat shy but territorial Merpeople. People liked returning to Hogwarts, it was like their second home; delicious food and feasts in the Great Hall were certainly a bonus point to their stay, but parties in their common rooms and dorm rooms they shared with their housemates, who in most cases became their best friends, even families, were undeniably the best part.

As great as Hogwarts seemed, maybe even was to some, it had its issues; the main one being the rivalry among the houses, which usually turned people, mainly ones from Gryffindor and Slytherin, against each other, friend against friend, sibling against sibling.

Asterin scanned Sirius’s face when they exited the train, facing something like his less talkative younger self, Regulus Black; Sirius gave him a frown while Regulus looked right through him, as if he, or Asterin in that matter, wasn’t even there. It stung, her heart ached for Sirius; they loved each other once, they were best friends as children and with her, they made a trio, the Black brothers and the Knightley heir. They spoke very rarely and even those conversations were limited to judgement and insults, and occasionally, Regulus threw in a snarky comment, reminding Sirius who he was; not a Black, not anymore. And it hurt Sirius each and every time, not because he wanted to be a Black, but because it was his little brother who was saying it; he had never shown a sign of it, however, but Asterin had always known right as it left Regulus’s mouth, because it hurt her too, for Sirius and herself. Despite the bad relationship the brothers had, Asterin never gave up on either of them; it took Regulus some time to stop fussing about Sirius’s temper (and his reaction to Regulus’s Sorting Ceremony), but it eventually got better as he grew older and more mature, accepting Sirius for who he was – an immature prick, in his eyes. Nevertheless, he still couldn’t swallow his pride with Sirius and Sirius gave him the same treatment back, which was why, although being friends, Regulus didn’t give Asterin a single look.

Who gave Asterin a look, though, was Severus Snape. He gave one to all of them; a nasty one. And he got one back, from all of them. He scanned them all with his dark eyes, a disgusted grimace appearing on his face, as if he just smelled something horribly off, and turned around, walking off with his friends. Asterin couldn’t help herself but roll her eyes, immediately annoyed; if there was someone in Hogwarts whom she would ban from breathing the same air she and her friends were, it would be Severus Snape, not only incredibly annoying, but also nasty and prejudiced bully Slytherin. She couldn’t stand him, neither of them could; the only one who could stand him from their whole friend group was the kind-hearted Lily Evans, who had known him even before setting foot into Hogwarts for the first time, what a poor thing.

Asterin looked around, looking for the redhead who had just crossed her mind; although it was usually quite easy to spot her and the rest of Asterin’s dorm mates in a crowd, she couldn’t see them anywhere.

“Maybe they already got a carriage,” Sirius noted, almost as if he read her mind. She nodded.

Without another word, the five friends all started walking to the carriages, as a soft, a bit colder breeze ruffled their hair; Asterin remembered she had a sweater in her bag. She buried her hand in the bag that was hanging from her left shoulder, pushing away what seemed like an anti-muggle propaganda book from the top of a warm brown sweater when she almost stopped dead in her tracks. She frowned a little from surprise, but quickly gathered herself to prevent her friends from asking questions; she scanned the creatures hooked to the carriages, dark and skinny, winged, and for some reason ones she had never seen before. She looked at her friends who seemed indifferent. Did she just never notice them before? Impossible.

Her confusion didn’t leave her even once they got on one of the carriages. The creature puffed, which reminded her of a horse – it certainly wasn’t a horse.

“Rin?” Sirius asked quietly to not catch the attention of their friends and she turned to him. Noticing his look, she realized he must not see them; she must have looked crazy, staring at nothing. “Are you feeling well?”

She chuckled a little; she actually felt a little crazy.

“Fine,” she said, sitting straight. Sirius blinked a few times, checking the place she was so intensely staring at just a second ago; there was nothing there.

Asterin fished inside her bag again, finally pulling the brown sweater out and quickly putting it on. She noticed an approving nod from Remus.

“What?”

“Nice sweater,” he smiled and she smirked, maliciously.

“I know, it’s yours,” she said and he frowned, scanning the sweater again; it was, indeed, his. The other boys scanned it too, remembering all the times they had seen it on Remus and then, suddenly, not, sometime around halfway through last year’s winter; it made them all chuckle in unison. Remus opened his mouth, half-offended and half-amused; how come he didn’t notice?

“Give it back.”

“Never.”

“Asterin Knightley, take off my bloody sweater,” he ordered, the corners of his mouth twitching.

“Take it off me yourself then, coward,” she mused, batting her eyelashes innocently, earning a whistle from Sirius, while James and Peter laughed and clapped. Remus squinted his eyes.

“Might just.”

“Go on,” she raised her eyebrows with a smirk on her lips. He copied the look on her face and leaned closer to her, while she raised her hands in the air to help him obtain his stolen possession, the smirk never leaving her face. He gently tugged on the hem of his sweater, but then stopped halfway, looking into her eyes; his smirk got wider.

“You know what, keep it,” he said as he let go of the sweater and leaned back on his seat; the boys started cheering again, on him, this time. Asterin’s mouth fell open from surprise, yet the corners of her mouth started twitching upwards almost immediately.

“How absolutely dare you?” she pressed her hand on her chest with every ounce of dramaticness she had in her; she deserved a pleased smile from Remus. She looked at Sirius sitting next to her in play disbelief and he sighed, putting his hand on his forehead, matching, maybe even outshining, her performance. The whole carriage was swallowed by the burst of laughter from the five friends; it didn’t stop until they reached the castle and as annoying and obnoxious as the other carriages found them, they didn’t care, after all, they were finally together after such an unbearably long time.

Laughter is good for the soul. – Asterin proved the statement right without even realizing; who did realize, however, was the dark creature pulling their carriage, a beautiful, yet for some terrifying Thestral, that finally felt in its normal habitat, feeling no eyes on itself. Nevertheless, the smart soul did find a way to remember Asterin’s face, knowing she would be one of those, whom its kind, from then on, won’t be able to hide from, ever again.

°

As soon as Asterin stepped inside the Great Hall, nostalgia hit her right in the face; she couldn’t believe it had only been two months since she last stepped foot inside the massive dining hall, it felt like an eternity. So much had happened during the summer, so many things she would rather have forgotten, that it almost felt as if she aged about ten years; she felt a certain linger in her chest, she was glad, glad not everything changed, glad some things stayed as they were, as she remembered them.

For a split second, she looked back, noticing Professor McGonagall lead the new first years inside the castle; their faces were so impressed and full of sheer excitement, that it warmed her heart. Her head was pleasantly spinning from the sentimentality, remembering herself and Sirius in their first year, right before the Sorting Ceremony; small and frightened, knowing what was expected of them yet not feeling the part, holding each other’s hand and eyeing their new classmates. She remembered how her stomach dropped when the Sorting Hat sorted Sirius; he was shocked, sending her a terrified look and she sent him one back, thinking the encouraging whisper she gave him after his name was called was the last thing she would ever tell him. She remembered how her eyes fell on the Slytherin table, noticing the look on Sirius’s cousins’ faces, they were both shocked; Narcissa looked outraged, offended by the audacity of her little cousin who just betrayed their whole entire family, yet Andromeda looked somehow pleased, as if a part of her expected it to happen. It was then and there that Asterin wished she would end up in Gryffindor, more than ever before, and for the first time in her life, she didn’t care what defying her mother on such a level would do to her family or her; she was sure she would rather face Cornelia Knightley for giving in to the temptation of being nothing like her family than leaving Sirius all alone. And so when the Sorting Hat sorted her into Gryffindor, she didn’t care about the scolding or the curses she would get from her mother, because she was happy to stay with Sirius – some would say it was just an act of a little child who didn’t want to leave her best friend behind, or a frightened child who didn’t want to be left alone, and they would be right. However, it wasn’t the only right statement, as the act was one of bravery and loyalty, the qualities needed to become a part of the red and gold-coloured house. And Asterin was all of those things; a frightened child with a lot of love for her best friend and a Gryffindor through and through, no matter what she was once forced to believe she was.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a giggle right next to her.

“What’s so important over there?” she snapped her head to her right, seeing the ginger-haired Lily Evans grinning at her. Her smile got wider as the girl pulled her into a tight embrace. She could smell something similar to strawberries in her hair, it brought her a strange feeling of familiarity, safety, something home-like, yet nothing like her own house; it reminded her of the smell of their dorm room and their bathroom after Lily left with freshly washed hair. Only then did she realize how much she missed all of the little things too; it almost made her feel pathetic, missing the smell of shampoo, but it was the truth and it was just about to bring tears to her eyes once again, when she felt someone else hug them both from the left.

“No hugs without me, birdies,” the blonde spoke with her deeper, yet still feminine-sounding voice, tightening their hug with her strong, Quidditch-exercised arms, which only added a bit more to the attractiveness of Marlene McKinnon.

“Or me,” Asterin heard the voice of another one of her dorm mates. She felt her hands wrap around them and gently stroke her hair, which made her smile; after all, it was Dorcas Meadowes and her dreadlocks who inspired her new look and Dorcas knew it too, as she was the one who was once trying to talk her into it.

“Don’t you dare forget me,”  Asterin could smell Mary Macdonald’s signature perfume before she could feel her tight embrace and she laughed, feeling about to be squeezed to death, but not minding it at all.

They all slowly moved to the Gryffindor table and sat down a little further back from their places last year, just as everyone else, so it created seats for the first years in the front. It didn’t last long until the door to the Great Hall opened again, revealing Professor McGonagall and the first years. She scanned the Gryffindor table, her table, eyeing the new Prefects, Remus Lupin and Lily Evans, and giving them a small smile as Sirius whistled at her; the woman didn’t even react as it became his little tradition to confuse the newcomers about two years ago, and just as they all expected, the first years that heard it truly looked confused, giving him weirded out looks or giggling, much to Sirius’s amusement.

It didn’t mark long after that year’s Sorting Ceremony started when Asterin started feeling restless. As much as she enjoyed watching the ceremony all the years before, guessing where the children get sorted based plainly on their appearance and their name (mainly enjoying clapping louder than everyone else together with Sirius when those from strict Slytherin families got sorted anywhere but Slytherin, much to all the older students’ hilarity), she wasn’t particularly interested in being in one room with the whole school; something about it felt a bit too exposing, a bit too unsafe. Everything around her frustrated her; the chatter among her peers, how the Ravenclaw boy a table over bounced his leg nervously, probably awaiting his sibling’s sorting, even Mary’s breathing beside her. Everything around her, every rustle and every sudden move, was beyond bearable and she couldn’t wrap her mind around why; she didn’t feel like herself, her palms were sweaty and she felt like every breath she took wasn’t satisfactory enough. She didn’t know what to do; lay down, walk around, hug someone or perhaps stay completely alone – neither felt right and so she just exhaled the air in her lungs through her closed lips as she twisted a silver ring on her index finger for about the hundredth time that night.

As concentrated as Sirius was on the sorting of a boy named Travers, he looked at Asterin; after all, he had already known the little slug would end up in Slytherin. She didn’t look good, not to him at least; she seemed anxious, which was rather unusual for her and something in him reminded him about their little unspoken deal from the train – they needed to talk. She looked as if she was in a trance, her eyes fixed on one spot on the table in front of her, twisting a silver ring on her finger around. Sirius furrowed his eyebrows, scanning the ring; he had never seen it on her before, also, Asterin had never worn only one ring. It was strange, everything about her was strange. He fixed his eyes on her for long enough for her to notice; she looked up at him and he raised his eyebrows. Asterin felt her heart being squeezed in her chest; his grey eyes were so genuinely concerned it made her want to crawl up somewhere and perish – she didn’t want to worry him, that was the last thing she wanted to do. She bit the inside of her cheek, her eyebrows turning slightly upwards; he hugged her around the shoulders and pulled her closer to him, trying to offer her all the comfort he could in such a public setting.

“You wanna leave?” he asked, to which she quickly shook her head, curling up into his chest, and hugging him around his waist.

“People will talk,” she said, his face forming into a grimace; did she just subconsciously quote her own mother?

“Fuck them then,” he said and he felt her chuckle, or perhaps scoff, he couldn’t really tell, as her face was buried in his shirt, hidden away from the world. He gently stroked her hair, trying to calm her down as best as he could right at that time. Everything felt strange. Asterin, who was usually very confident and didn’t care about what anyone thought about her or her friends, was now curled up in Sirius’s chest, gripping onto him as if he was her only hope for the future, her only safe space. And it broke Sirius’s heart, because he had known her his whole life; he knew her before she found herself, when she was just a little girl who was scared of disappointing her family, he knew what it took for her, for the both of them, really, to start forming her own opinions and dissociating from everything she was taught her whole life, and he knew just how much it would take to destroy it all, to make her feel like this. And it scared him, the fact the whole two months of her silence were a secret for him scared him, but beyond everything, he was afraid no amount of comfort, hugs, pretty words or stupid jokes could help the situation his best friend found herself in.

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

hiya loves, second chapter's out for you.

i don't see much activity on the first chapter, but i hope you liked it anyways (but y'all did like the ''front page'' of the whole thing, so thank you for that. links to all the chapters are always on the pinned post, aka the ''front page'').

first chapter: here

thank you and let me know how you like this one.

<3

#latibule fic #dead gay wizards #the marauders #marauders era #sirius black #remus lupin #james potter #peter pettigrew #lily evans #mary macdonald #marlene mckinnon #dorcas meadowes #asterin knightley #sirius x oc #nia writes #queerchaser

[bocchi-the-heart]

Harbor

Words: ~900

Reader: gender neutral

CW: none

Summary: Law and you stay back to look after the Polar Tang while the crew is out to party. Established relationship, talking, enjoying the silence and learning to understand each others subtle ways of caring.

(I wrote this to take a little break from thesis writing. I tried to proof-read it as good as possible, but I’m not a native speaker so I might have to re-edit it when I have time again. I just thought I should share it before I have second thoughts.)

"I think they deserve to have a little break.” you smiled fondly at your fellow crew members as they walked into the city center to explore anything the island’s nightlife had to offer, leaving you and your captain behind.

“You can go with them.” he barely looked up as he told you.

“I’ll pass.” You turned around to step closer to Law once you were finished waving at the cheerful bunch that disappeared in the crowd.

You crossed your arms and leaned against the wooden boxes next to the one Law was sitting on leisurely. You looked around to observe the harbor past working hours. The only workers who were still busy were the ones responsible for the Polar Tang, getting it ready for the next morning as agreed.

You still had your weapon close. Just as Law had noted before, the island may be pirate friendly, but since the submarine was on maintenance, if anything happened you needed to be ready to fight. Even if that hypothetical was rather unlikely it was never out of the question.

“Besides” you began without looking at him “a party without you is not as much fun.”

Law examined your face for any hint of dishonesty he couldn’t find. Considering how secluded he was by nature he had reasons to doubt your statement. Even if Law had found out before that you were one to appreciate his occasional deadpan humor.

"I'm sure Bepo would pout if he heard you say that."

You roll your eyes. "That's not what I mean, and you know it." You let your arms drop to your side to casually nudge his arm with the back of your hand. “Even you can let loose once in a while, and I miss the sight when you are not around.”

“If you say so.” Law shrugged and followed the direction of your gaze. He had to assume you simply stayed with him because it felt wrong to leave him alone.

You watched the golden waves crash against the shore before they twirled around and withdrew gently. Rinse and repeat. Your crew had probably already found their first bar, ordered drinks and enjoyed the late afternoon in their usual cheery manner.  

All while you both observed the scenery in silence. You appreciated it, though. The pleasant calm he radiated and that gave you peace. You chuckled a little when you remembered that, just a few years ago when you joined the crew, that exact silence irritated you. Back then you had no clue how to deal with Law’s taciturn nature. It took a while to understand that - at least towards his crew - his silence was never rooted in disinterest. And it took even longer to grasp that there was a value in not feeling the need to exchange the peace with unnecessary words.

“What’s so funny?” Law asked, watching the corner on your lip curl up.

“Just reminiscing.”

If you didn’t want to get into detail, he wouldn’t ask. Usually. You were surprised to feel his arm nudge against the back of your hand. 

You grinned and closed your eyes when you had decided how you wanted to phrase your thoughts. 

“I just thought about how much I like to be around you.”

"Oh."

‘Just oh?’ you thought to yourself tilting your head away in defeat. Either your subtle confession sounded better in your head, or he didn’t know how to respond to it.

"Are you really fine with missing out?" Law pointed into the direction your crew went before.

You were still learning to read his subtlest hints of worry. If you read him right, he just showed you his most genuine care by bringing this up again. Gently pushing you away with words if you happened to stay with him out of responsibility. Reminding you that you were free to join them if you had second thoughts about potentially missing out on the funny new stories they would talk about weeks after you left the place.

“I like it here.” You reassured him.

You watched the harbor become less crowded as people - except for a few shipwrights who still ran checks on the Polar Tang - returned home. The last merchants closed their stores and waved their goodbyes.

“Just don’t complain about it when they talk about it later."

You looked back and smiled before you came closer to sit next to him. "How could I complain when I get to spend time with you."

You slowly leaned your head against Law's shoulder, reluctant first to confirm whether he was comfortable enough now that there were few people around. And those who were seemed busy enough to not mind. When you felt that he let you, you got comfortable.

Law chuckled a little and you enjoyed to feel him relax. “Some people would consider waiting around here boring.”

You hummed in response and closed your eyes. “I never understood other people.”

A few moments passed like this. Law eventually wrapped his arm around your waist so you could get fully comfortable. You opened your eyes and just now you realized how cliché the situation at hand was. You watched the sunset together in silence and you resisted the urge to joke around about it.

“Me neither.” he answered so late you took a moment to remember the last sentence you said.

#law x reader #trafalgar law x reader #nia writes

[waroftheposes]

A Wish for Something New

byler - rated t - 7.8k words

1978

Mike and Lucas were arguing again and Will was ignoring them. They had been squabbling over stupid things all summer, actually. The three of them would meet in Mike’s basement, and then Lucas and Mike would spend at least an hour discussing what to do. They wanted to do something fun with their summer, but they could never just agree on a game. Today, Lucas proposed game after game, which Mike kept rejecting. The latest game he’d brought up had Mike squawking with annoyance. “I am not interested.” 

Will looked up from the piece of paper he’d been scribbling on. “Why don’t you listen to him, Mike?” 

Lucas’ face brightened with a triumphant, toothy smile. “See, Will is on my side!” He said, except his two front teeth were missing so it sounded more like “Thee, Will ith on my thide!” 

Mike gave them both an angry look but magnanimously allowed Lucas to talk. 

Lucas excitedly recounted some sort of game he’d seen the older kids playing at church. “They make each other do gross things, and if you don’t do the thing, then something really bad happens.”

Mike scoffed. “Sounds dumb.”

“It’s not!” Came Lucas’s indignant cry. “It’s fun! I watched them play it. They were mostly laughing.”

Will caught Mike’s gaze and nodded. “Let’s give it a try, it could be fun.”

Mike frowned. Will could see that he didn’t want to give up on what he had originally proposed they do (reading comics and playing cards in the basement), but also, Mike was outnumbered two against one.

“Fine,” Mike sighed finally. “We can play your stupid game. What is it called?”

read the rest on ao3

#stranger things fic #byler fic #byler #nia writes

[ohxdeer]

Motivation hit me out of nowhere, so this happened. Please enjoy.

TITLE: FIVE MONTHS. RELATIONSHIP: DAZAI OSAMU / ODA SAKUNOSUKE TAGS: Oda Sakunosuke Lives (Bungou Stray Dogs) | Post-Dazai Osamu Leaving the Port Mafia (Bungou Stray Dogs) | Angst with a Happy Ending | Emotional Hurt/Comfort | Cemetery | Suffering Dazai Osamu (Bungou Stray Dogs)

SUMMARY: “I think,” Dazai finally speaks, stopping by one of the trees and looking down upon an empty space between all the other gravestones, “I would have wanted you to rest here. Is that a creepy thing to think about?”

#bsd #bungo stray dogs #bungou stray dogs #odazai #dazai x oda #odasaku x dazai #dazai osamu #bsd odasaku #oda sakunosuke #dazai bsd #fanfic #nia writes

[mewhenimanangel]

reporting live, paige bueckers

— synopsis. you meet paige when you’re assigned to report on the uconn v. iowa game.

notes ౨ৎ: i’ve never wrote for a real person before it feels so strange…but there’s like no fics on here i had to take matters into my own hands.

also yes im rewriting history to make uconn win!

you checked yourself out in the mirror, fixing your outfit - low rise black work pants with a white button down that showed a small sliver of your stomach with black sling back heels.

you tossed your hair around to fix it making sure it was in perfect shape. after all, your job was pretty dependent on looks.

you worked as a reporter for the city's top news agency and tonight you would be attending the uconn versus iowa women's basketball game.

you were also pretty active on social media and managed to make some money that way, you were more than grateful for your lifestyle.

you called your friend, devon , to make sure she was on her way to get you knowing you absolutely could not be late tonight.

she answered the phone and you sighed a breath of relief when it sounded like she was in fact on her way.

"hey girll, are you excited for tonight? pretty big story" she said, bustling city noise behind her.

"yeah i'm excited to interview uconn after they beat iowa's ass" you smirked when you heard her gasp on the other side. "they so will not! my girlfriend caitlin's gonna pull through"

"nah, paige buckets got that easily" you scoffed as you packed your bag, ready to head downstairs out of your apartment.

your bosses had assigned you to tonight's game and hooked you up with two court-side tickets for you and a guest, along with the camera crew.

you of course had to invite your best friend to go with you.

you stepped outside the building and watched as her car pulled up outside.

"ugh i can't believe i get to see caitlin clark up close" devon squealed as you got yourself situated in the car. "ugh be calm, you literally have a boyfriend." you joked. "okay and?" she laughed as she drove off.

once you were at the stadium, you and devon met at with your crew as you found your seats inside.

the game wasn't due to start for another fourty or so minutes but it was already packed inside.

you were glad women's basketball was finally getting the recognition it deserved after you and your mom had been fans of it almost your whole life. you even played a little bit in high school.

you and devon got snacks before sitting down and getting yourselves comfortable.

it didn't feel long until the players came out and the game was started. aliyah and hailey jump started the game before kk threw the ball back at paige.

the game was a close one and you made sure to follow it closely. throughout the game you did side interviews with other players and people attending the game, which was all just leading up to the end of game interviews.

it was the final quarter and you made sure to pay close attention.

it all came down to the last few seconds when paige threw the ball off caitlin's back to catch it again and land the ball in the net, giving uconn the winning score!

you and your crew sat up as you turned your reporter accent on "there you have it folks, uconn has won this round and will advance to the final game against south carolina. what an amazing job tonight by these wonderful ladies on both teams. win or lose, it was a great watch and i'm cheering for everyone's next move."

once you were sure the cameras were off you turned around to devon and threw your hands in the air.

"bitch i told you! i tolddd you paige had this game" you squealed. "ughhh you're so annoying why are you always right" she groaned.

a few minutes later you popped some mouthwash melts and fixed your makeup before you were to interview paige.

your hands were sweating like crazy. you never wanted to come off as an insane fan girl but you were obsessed with paige.

your cameraman followed you as you walked over to paige and she turned around. "hi" she smiled and shook your hand. "hi, are you ready?" you asked her. "yeah" she smiled. you gave your cameraman a thumbs up as he turned the camera on.

you turned to paige, who was already staring at you and you took a deep breath. you're usually never nervous to interview people but god the way she was looking at you.

her eyes were trained on yours and she had a little smirk on her face, her face was glistening from the tiring game she just played and she licked her lips waiting for you to ask your first question.

you cleared your throat "i'm here with paige bueckers, who just made the winning move in the highly anticipated iowa versus uconn game! tell me paige, how did it feel to take the winning shot?" you turned the microphone to her.

she rubbed her chin "ah it was really nerve racking to be honest i mean. i could feel my team counting on me and i knew i really had to pull through and get us out on top" she answered, eyes focusing back on you.

"yeah but that was a tough shot wasn't it?" you watched her eyes drop down to scan you before meeting yours again. "yeah but i knew i could make it in for sure"

"right, bueckers get buckets i don't know what to tell y'all" you joked to the camera. paige laughed.

"yeah for sure but i really owe it all to my team" she continued before kk came up behind her. "yupppppp WE GOING TO THE TITLE GAME" she threw her arms around you and paige and the threw of you jumped in excitement before running to find her other teammates.

you laughed it off before continuing for the camera "well there you have it, paige it was lovely to talk to you. congratulations on the winning game! make sure those of you at home tune in to the final game taking place in just a few days." you signed off the camera before your crew stopped filming.

you turned to paige and dropped the reporter voice. "it was nice to meet you by the way" you smiled. "i could say the same" her eyes never left yours and you bit your cheek to hide a smile.

"well i should let you go celebrate, congratulations, have a good night!" you said, beginning to walk away.

"bye it was nice to meet you" she said before you fully walked away.

you walked over to devon who was waiting on the side. "i know damn well your heart is racing"

"shut up" you smirked.

#nia writes ࿐ #paige bueckers x reader #paige bueckers #paige buckets #uconn huskies #uconn wbb #uconn women’s basketball #nika muhl #kk arnold #bueckers get buckets

[rubywonu]

𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝘆

(n.) the act of loving the one who loves you; a love returned in full.

summary: in which seungcheol finally gathered the courage to make you his, permanently.

pairing: choi seungcheol x fem!reader

genre: fluff, established relationship

warnings: kisses, nicknames, hand is on the thigh (?), wine, fireworks.

w/c: 1.7k

edited: by @pixieskie

nia’s notes: i had to write this. it was so fun to feed into my delusions. also im tagging my moots at the bottom to help spread this fic.

today was the day seungcheol finally gathered the courage to ask you to be his for forever. he'd been thinking about it for quite a long time but only now had he been preparing for it. 

he spent weeks looking for the perfect ring but nothing ever seemed to satisfy him, after all seungcheol only wanted the best of the best for you and it showed in everything. 

he visited jewellery stores every day and spent his free time searching for ring designs on the internet. and then finally he found it. he felt a sense of accomplishment the moment he placed the order for your ring.

everything was starting to feel real and at that moment, it hit seungcheol hard. he was going to propose to you. 

he spent the next few weeks in anxiety that you would find the ring and proceeded to change the hidden location of the ring every day. the first step being completed, the next step was to propose to you.

everyone who knew seungcheol knew he was someone who proclaimed his love in a very materialistic way, especially to you. 

he asked his friends to go with him to shortlist places for the occasion and that also took quite a lot of time. he drove 6 hours every day and spent the majority of his time watching vlogs of the venues they had chosen. after a painful month of travelling all over seoul, he finally found the perfect place to propose to you. 

after that came the most tiring step of them all, how was seungcheol going to propose to you? he needed decorations, venue reservations, to fly out your family on the other side of korea, a photographer - which he later decided that mingyu fit the role- he needed to get outfits and the hardest part was that seungcheol had to do it without you noticing. 

he made calls day and night to inquire about different things that were required for the proposal. he called your family members and personally invited them. seungcheol visited the venue every day and planned the decorations with a team of professionals. 

seungcheol was glad that you didn't catch on to his behaviour since he wasn't the best at keeping secrets.

after long months of planning, the day finally arrived. as usual, seungcheol went home and told you to get ready as he was taking you on a date.

you didn't expect anything, he was always taking you on surprise dates. seungcheol laid a beautiful red dress out for you on the bed with a note. you stepped out of the bedroom and there was seungcheol. he was fiddling with his watch as he stood in front of the room. 

hearing the door open, seungcheol looked at you and his world stopped. your hair framed your face perfectly and the matching red lip made you look irresistibly perfect. with his mouth open in awe, he walked towards you and held your hand, spinning you around. he listened to your giggles as the dress fluttered around you. 

being struck by your beauty, seungcheol felt so so happy to be yours. he watched as you walked over to the shoe cabinet and took out a pair of black heels. seungcheol made it over to you and stopped you before you could wear them. he got down on his knees and placed his hand under your heel before kissing your calves. 

now was your time to be speechless. you stared at him as he worked the latches on your heels. oh, how powerful you felt, for a man to be this in love with you that he got on his knees to slip on a pair of heels on you. 

seungcheol stood and gave you his hand for you to hold as support. no words were exchanged but you felt loved and appreciated each time seungcheol opened doors for you or gave you his arm to hold while you climbed down the stairs. 

the drive was the best description of innocent love, the both of you shared glances at each other and you smiled whenever seungcheol squeezed your thigh. it felt so intimate.

you decided to break the silence. "where are we going, my love?" you smiled at him and he looked at you when the car stopped at a red light. seungcheol reciprocated the smile and placed a kiss on your cheek before answering. 

"it's a secret, cherry." you blushed at the nickname. you've heard it for a long time but each time he calls you 'cherry', your heart picks up on a few beats. 

"oh come on!" you whined one last time hoping for an answer but all he did was smile and bring your hand to his mouth to place a gentle kiss on it. thankfully, this action made you forget about your destination as you sat there flustered.

the sun began to set and the sky had a beautiful pink gradient. it made this 'date' even more magical. while you gazed at the sky, you didn't realize you were at the destination until seungcheol opened the door and began walking towards you. 

he opened your door, and again held his arm out as support. you set your dress out as your eyes roamed the place in wonder. you've never seen such a beautiful restaurant before. the ocean glistened behind the restaurant. a small path connected the restaurant with the beach. 

the red sun was on par with the horizon. the scenery to you, looked like it had come out of a fairytale. not for seungcheol though. he was too busy staring at the fascination on your gorgeously sculpted face.

as much as he hated the hours of travel to look for this place, it felt like an accomplishment when you hugged him, thankful for this date. 

a waiter came up to you and guided the both of you inside the restaurant. 

seungcheol's hand rested on your lower back, and his body warmth immediately spread throughout your body, making you feel comfortable. the table that was reserved for the both of you was perfect. it had a view of the beach and the sunset that illuminated the restaurant, making it a beautiful hue of orange and pink. 

"did you order for us beforehand?" you asked after the waiter left your favourite wine bottle on the table. seungcheol got up from his seat and opened the bottle before pouring it for you. he knew that you loved it when he served you wine.

"only the wine, nothing else." seungcheol sat down in his place and grabbed your hand over the table, rubbing his thumb over it ever so gently. 

the menus were handed to you and seungcheol didn't let go of your hand even then, you smiled at his clingy behaviour. you skimmed through the menu and placed your order when the waiter came to collect it, seungcheol ordered a dish that you seem intrigued by, it was one that you had never heard of before.

there was a comfortable silence that enveloped the both of you as you stared at the sunset at the beach. it was romantic and private. no eyes were staring at the both of you, just you and seungcheol being sickly in love. 

the dishes arrived soon after and the both of you started eating, seungcheol made comments on how beautiful you looked and you couldn't respond, all you did was shyly giggle at each and every one of them. the both of you moved on to other topics and time flew. by the time the both of you were done eating, the sun had set completely, and the moon shone in the starry night. 

you and seungcheol walked towards the beach after he paid for the meal. hand in hand, you swayed them and took a walk on the beach. you shivered slightly at the chilly wind and seungcheol noticed as he immediately took off his trench coat and gave it to you.

you were about to walk further when you realised that seungcheol had stopped walking. you turned around with a confused expression on your face when you realised that he looked...nervous. 

"cheol, is everything okay?" you asked as you walked in front of him and cupped his face, you laughed out an apology when he flinched at the coldness of your palms. 

"yeah. um." he pulled away from you and held your hands before looking into your eyes. seungcheol's nerves were spiking up and he didn't know how to control it.

"you know the day i met you was the best day of my life. i was having a really bad day, but then you showed all happy and giddy. you put an automatic smile on my face and i didn't even know who you were." his words melted your heart, and you didn't even notice you were crying until seungcheol wiped the tear off your face.  

"and then we continued to meet at that coffee shop near hybe. after a few weeks, i finally gathered up the courage to ask you out. i remember being so nervous to talk to you, and then i found out your voice was sweeter than your personality." you laughed through the tears at the corniness of seungcheol's words. 

"after we started to date, i found out the real meaning of happiness. i used to dread coming home, it was so cold and dark but when you moved in, the house started to feel like my home, and soon my home turned into our home." 

you were sobbing at this point, and then seungcheol started shedding tears. 

"i want this to last my whole life, and i hope you want that too." you were nodding by the end of this sentence. 

and then seungcheol got down on one knee and pulled out a velvet box. you knew this was going to happen, but now that it was playing out in front of you, it felt surreal. "so, yn. can you make me the happiest man in this world and marry me?" 

he popped open the box and there the diamond studded ring glistened.  a single grey diamond rested on top and smaller white diamonds decorated the band of the ring. it sparkled in the moonlight, which made it even more magical.

you nodded profusely and sobbed harder as seungcheol shakily slipped the ring on your finger. he stood up and pulled you into a hug and brought you into a kiss, seungcheol dipped you as fireworks were set off in the distance. behind you, party poppers and cheers erupted from all of your friends and families. 

you couldn't stop smiling when everyone congratulated the both of you. after the congratulations, you could see everyone talking about your wedding and seungcheol was happy that he didn't have to go through planning that by himself. it was safe to say planning the proposal was stressful but so worth it.

you looked at seungcheol who was already looking at you lovingly.

"why are you looking at me like that, mr. choi?" you asked cheekily, you wrapped your arms around his neck and he wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you in.

"why? cant i look at my wife, mrs. choi?" the both of you smiled. 

"future wife." you corrected your fiancé.

"either way you're mine, mrs. choi." 

"that i am, mr. choi."

tagging: @kflixnet . @caratsland . @pixieskie . @xomingyu . @etherealyoungk . @fairyhaos . @kyeomyun . @odxrilove . @itadorins . @ylliris-hanniehae . @wqnwoos . @slytherinshua .

#nia's writing! #nia's fics! #caratsland #kflixnet #seventeen #svt #seungcheol #seungcheol x reader #seungcheol fluff #seungcheol x you #seventeen fluff #seventeen imagines #seventeen scenarios #scoups x reader #scoups fluff #scoups x you #seungcheol imagines #seungcheol scenarios #scoups imagines

[angelic-muse]

unforgettable

a/n: i couldn't not write anything for his special day, so enjoy, and happiest of birthdays to my silly mosshead man. this was written with both anime and opla zoro in mind so feel free to interpret it as either.

pairing: roronoa zoro x gn!reader

warnings: just fluff, not proofread

summary: it's your lover's birthday, and what better way to start the celebration than to stay awake and surprise him at midnight?

...that is, if you can stay awake.

must stay awake... must stay awake.

the sentence replayed itself in your groggy head like a mantra, a broken record stuck on repeat, a toy train running in slow circles around your brain as you fought the urge to tip over the line between wakefulness and sleep.

zoro deserved more than that.

"my birthday? never really done anything for it," he'd grunted the day before after you'd brought it up. the swordsman had frowned, scratched his head. "kinda forgot it was tomorrow, actually."

and it was then that you decided to make this birthday — and all his next ones, for that matter — unforgettable.

so after some pleading with nami that then lead to careful rearrangement of night watch schedules (despite the crew's grumbling), zoro would be set to finish his shift at midnight — exactly midnight.

and what would he find when he returned to his room? you, of course, waiting for the moment he stepped through the door to shower him in love and birthday wishes, followed by a day of celebrations just for him.

well, that was your plan.

but the actual staying awake hadn't been part of it.

since your shift for night watch was the last one, just before sunrise, you were lucky enough to be able to sleep soundly all night till then. which meant you were not at all used to being awake at this time and your body was slowly but surely losing the fight to fall unconscious.

you yawned, blinking heavy eyelids as you turned to squint at the sky, the gentle moonlight washing the deck of the going merry in its milky glow. it wasn't quite yet at its highest point — still not midnight.

surely a little lay down before zoro returned couldn't hurt, right?

don't fall asleep, you promised yourself one last time as you settled into his own hammock, breathing in the lingering scent of him with a sigh. don't fall asleep...

zoro muttered angrily as he stomped across the ship back to his room, not bothering to soften the loud thumping of his boots against the planks, swords clanking noisily at his hip.

"serves 'em right if they wake up," he groused, "putting me up there at this time all of a sudden for no fuckin' reason—"

he cut short as he shoved into his room, raising a brow at the sight that met him as he rid himself of swords and shirt. there you were, curled up in his spot, sleeping soundly like a contented cat.

"the hell you doing in my hammock?" he grumbled under his breath, but zoro slid in beside you anyways, throwing an arm over your shoulders and folding the other behind his head. he didn't mind that you were here — he never did. sleeping beside you was nothing out of the ordinary anymore. he liked it, enjoyed the easy comfort and security that came with you tucked against his side; hearts beating in time, every breath shared.

it was right when zoro was beginning to drift off that he felt you stir awake. cracking open one eye, he watched as you sat up, blinking tiredly. "zo... zoro?"

"what got you up?" he murmured as you yawned and stretched your arms overheard. "m'here, get back to sleep." get back to cuddling me.

"the smell of a pirate who hasn't showered in a week," you joked groggily, rubbing at your eyes. then you froze. shit.

shit!

"no, i fell asleep!" you groaned, burying your face in your hands. how could you? you promised yourself you wouldn't, for him, and now... "fuck, fuck fuck fuck fuck... i'm sorry." you peeked back up at him, lower lip stuck out.

zoro frowned. "huh? what the hell you apologising for?"

"i was meant to stay up," you said sadly. "to say happy birthday to you. at midnight. that's why i got nami to change your watch..."

rubbing a hand across his face, zoro sat up to look at you properly, blinking sleep away. you went to the trouble of getting his night watch changed and stayed up in his room just to say happy birthday to him? seriously?

he'd be surprised, but really, that was just the kind of stupid, endearing thing you'd do.

and so he laughed.

you blinked at him as his wide shoulders shook with mirth, head tossed back. an embarrassed warmth crept up your neck and you folded your arms, attempting to glare at him even as you fought to hold down a smile. "wh— it's not funny!"

"nah," he grinned at you as his laughter died down. "it's just cute. c'mere."

you yelped in half-protest as zoro grabbed your head to pull into his chest, laying back down with a sigh.

"you don't hafta... stay up until midnight or do shit like that just for me." he uttered after a moment of quiet, brushing his fingers through your hair. "you need your sleep, and i need mine. so just... just wait until morning next year, yeah?"

"i... okay," you sighed, trailing a finger across his chest, drawing mindless patterns over scarred, tawny skin, making him suppress a shiver. "i still have stuff planned for later, though."

"yeah? let's hear it."

"i'm not ruining the surprise, silly. but... i did get you some presents and convinced sanji to bake you a cake. among other things."

zoro snorted. "bet that shitty cook did it for you more than me."

"probably," you teased, tilting your head to look up at him. "don't get jealous that he might love me more than you, it's okay."

the swordsman scoffed, turning you both on your sides with a grunt. "maybe, but he'll never love you as much as i do."

you chuckled, tucking your head into the crook of his neck, inhaling his familiar scent; steel and sweat with an earthier undertone somewhere beneath. "i love you too, even though you still smell like you've never showered."

zoro barked out a laugh, tightening a thick arm around your waist to pull you further into him. "i'll take a shower for your birthday, how's that sound?"

you peered up at him and wrinkled your nose. he grinned.

"you're gross," you muttered with a smile even as you snuggled further into him. he kissed your forehead and you could feel his own smile against your skin.

"and you still love me."

"lucky you, huh?"

zoro exhaled softly, closing his eyes. "yeah, lucky me."

slowly, quiet draped itself over the two of you like the softest blanket, comforting and warm as the sounds of your breathing lulled each other to sleep after gentle whispers of goodnight and wishes of good dreams. and he rocked you in his arms, like how the gentle waves rocked you from below, mother nature's cradle for her sleeping children as they rested in an embrace so tightly woven with nothing but pure love not even the sharpest sword could ever hope to sever it.

and that morning, when zoro awoke to his dear lover smothering his face with kisses as they pulled him from his sleep with the promise of birthday gifts, he knew with clarity, such a deep, resounding clarity it made his heart ache—

that you, on this day and every other, were the greatest gift he could ever ask for.

nia's ask box is open!

#♡ — nia writes #zoro ♡ #this is terribly unorganised and silly #and for that i apologise lmao #its currently 1am and i needed to get something out for the birthday boy #so please enjoy this incoherent jumble of words #roronoa zoro #roronoa zoro x reader #zoro x reader #opla zoro #opla zoro x reader #zoro #zoro x you #zoro x reader fluff #opla zoro x reader fluff #opla roronoa zoro #one piece #one piece x reader #opla x reader

[fazedlight]

Reflection (Kara reveals herself to Nia)

It felt like looking in a mirror.

When the frantic brunette stepped into the elevator, chattering distractedly at a mile a minute, Kara had to bite back a laugh. The nerves and the coffee and the horror of realizing that the new reporter had stepped into an elevator with the Kara Danvers brought some amusement to Kara. But Kara soon learned that there were other similarities - a passion for social justice, a reluctance to make waves - and Kara felt some kinship with her.

Nia’s average body temperature was 94F. Kara knew what it was like to hide.

Kara didn’t know that seeing her reflection would happen almost simultaneously with her own world falling apart. It wasn’t just the turmoil of anti-alien bigotry that felt like a kick in the gut. She was a stranger in Alex’s eyes - untrustworthy and suspect, drawing apprehension from the agent’s eyes whenever she wore the red and blue. Her strongest defender, the sister who protected her and stood by her… was gone.

The only other person she could be herself with - even if she did still have to hide - was busy with work. And when Lena wasn’t busy with work, she was busy with James. It killed Kara to watch them curl up together on the rare game night when Lena came by.

Nia’s hometown of Parthas was a breath of fresh air, but even that wouldn’t last long. In a town where naltorians and humans lived in harmony for ages - a town where Nia’s transness didn’t warrant commentary either - Kara found herself feeling hopeful. Until Liberty’s men came to destroy it, until she had to heatvision a gun out of her sister’s hand and received distrust in return.

The drive back home was a long one.

Her heart broke as Nia mourned the death of her mother, the destruction of her town, the you’re not even a real woman that her sister had thrown so callously in her direction. What seemed like simple similarities, like first-day jitters or an instinct for journalism, shifted to something stinging and sharp. Their stories weren’t the same - Nia had grown up in peace, Kara had grown up in turmoil - but they were both adrift in an unwelcoming world, without the people they cared about most to help them.

Kara pulled her car over.

It was Alex’s and Lena’s faces that flickered in her mind as she stepped out. The sister she had lost, the would-be lover that was in the arms of someone else, with no one left she could feel open with. She told herself - and Nia - that it was a logical decision to come out to Nia, because Nia wouldn’t be in danger, because she was a fledgling hero in need of mentorship.

As Kara turned and whipped off her glasses, as she temporarily took to the skies, she knew that this wasn’t entirely about logic. She was wrapped up in the wishes for her childhood, in the mourning of her present. If she couldn’t help herself, she could help someone who echoed her.

“I just need you to know now that you’re not alone,” she said when she landed. I just need to know that I’m not the only one.

#I think the degree to which Kara is wrecked by what happened with Alex is underexplored #and the degree to which Kara sees her younger self in Nia is also underexplored #there's a lot of pain there that occurred at the same time #S4 continues to be my favorite in terms of the writing #mel writes ficlets #supergirl #kara danvers #nia nal

[luvring]

heyy l love ur all your touchstarved hcs and I was wondering if you could write anything for ais? if you’ve done him already could you do leander? thank youu <3

GENERAL AIS HCS

gn!reader | OF COURSEE my babygirl & thank u omg IM GLAD U GUYS LIKE THEM !!🫶 i'll probably make a separate leander post + posts for the others too tbh

you see it in the demo but he's so so happy to see you get along with princess + any other pets 🙁 personally i need a scene where they go to you instead of him and he pretends to be offended.

"after all i've done for you?" he asks before squatting beside you. his eyes flicker over to you before he joins in petting them. "guess i can't blame you, though."

ais teaching them tricks and grinning and saying good job and laughing when they jump on him for a reward. him teaching princess a trick and secretly being very excited to show you because he wants to see your reaction🙁💔

ONE LAST PET NOTE but i need to know what other names he's thought of because he totally looks like he'd give a big scary pet the silliest name ever. peak entertainment for him

if you know any other languages he'd love to learn some phrases!! yes i mean insults for others and nicknames for you. ais loves using them on like,, leander,, who's like What? so he can go "Wouldn't you like to know."

would be very amused if you dyed your hair to match his. calls you a copycat but if you threatened to redye it he'd get more annoying (said lovingly)

does the thing where he leans in really close as if he's gonna kiss you then doesn't. he reaches to grab something behind you and moves away while grinning

he likes listening to you talk about your interests and makes sure to remember important details. casually osmosis's (???) your interests and opinions even if he's never touched it himself

pulling him closer by his clothes or necklaces gets him. Interested.

the pocky game. he takes huge bites and kisses you or gets so incredibly close everyone's just like oh shut up. takes the stick that's a centimeter long between his fingers and goes "i think we got an inch left"

the type of guy who if you wordlessly hugged him would be like "miss me that much?" but have a noticeably firm hold around you because he Is a little worried about why you're hugging him. if you sincerely say yes, his eyes and voice soften when he says "well, good thing i'm here now."

he's confident and totally trusts you but he also finds it incredibly amusing to walk up and kiss you or wrap an arm around your waist if he sees someone try hitting on you. asks "hey, babe, who's this?" while staring right at them. Won't be nice if the person's an ass though

not afraid of pda. you could literally be clinging on to him and he wouldn't mind.

one of the guys who'd carry your silly looking bag without hesitation

you could say "oh try this," about a silly little heart headband and he'd let you put it on as long as he can give You one. "now we match," he says with a grin. take a picture together and set it as his lock screen and he won't change it for ages

looks like a guy who will drape himself on top of you if you're in bed or on the couch. the type of guy who when you say you need to go pee says okay i'll come with you before you shove him

^ likes it when you hold him and just play with his hair or trace things along is back. he plays that game where he tries to guess what you're writing and is ? weirdly good at it ?

if you made a playlist for him he'd listen to it whenever he misses you

also if you have spotify he always checks your profile. you say "i need to know who's liking my playlists" and he's like yeah they must have a crush on you. it's literally him though

sends you shit like this and says you @ me / us / etc because he's annoying and also correct. ais at the peak of the "you want me so bad" jokes would be on top of the world

#touchstarved game #touchstarved #ais x reader #touchstarved ais #🧾nia.answers #<3 anon #i want him.... #someone remind me to add these to a masterlist #ill do it in 3 hours when im back from essay writing. oh my god #q #nia + touchstarved

[bedtimegiraffe]

I finally figured out why all the party members in Book 2 come out as so frustratingly self-focused to me.

It's not because they're all struggling with their own stuff. It's all about shelving your agenda- that thing in a relationship where you go, 'You need my support right now, so we're going to worry about my thing later.'

And MC does this constantly.

I just barely escaped death and found out a year passed, but is Kade recovered from the Shadow Court?

I just almost drowned, but it's time to comfort this owlbear cub and unpack Valax's trauma!

I just almost died twice to the Ash Empress, but is Nia coping with being corrupted okay?

Which can be okay. Shelving your agenda is part of a healthy relationship of any kind.

The problem is that no one does it back. I think Tyril and Nia kind of sum up the whole group's attitude:

But I don't think MC was ever going to be 'ready.' Someone else was always going to have to 'unshelve' it for them and make an effort to put the focus on MC.

Now, adventurers don't tend to be particularly well adjusted people. The full party has got maybe 1.5 healthy childhoods and 4 living parents between them (judged pretty generously). But it still feels like the others can't get it together enough to ask if MC is okay. Not that MC really makes it easy! I see MC as someone who is so used to pushing their feelings down to focus on whatever work is in front of them, they almost can't access their own emotions.

Which is why we had the brief glimpses of panic and the breakdown moment in Chapter 17. I think the breakdown makes sense mechanically. Kade is the one character your MC is guaranteed to have a strong connection to and this way it's not gated behind any diamond choices (like some really crucial character moments with Aerin and Valax, no I'm not bitter about it). But that makes it feel like the whole party has been neglecting MC while Kade immediately sees MC and goes, "Dude, you are not okay. Talk to me.'

And MC tries to turn it into comforting Kade! Kade has to actively argue with MC to make them actually acknowledge that they're having a hard time.

MC for some reason can't or won't talk about their own trauma and Kade (who's only been around for 5 minutes) is the one who has to actively force the issue for MC's own good. Which is not a great look for the rest of the found family.

Afterward, Mal and Nia both seem to address it without really getting the point. Mal says, "We know things didn't go the way any of us wanted." (Which could mean... anything. But I'm feeling generous.)

Protecting MC from death is not an equivalent exchange to talking about feelings! It is in fact dodging the feelings by focusing on practicalities again! Y'all better get it together in Book 3, I swear.

Overall, MC constantly delays addressing their own vulnerability and issues to focus on everyone else. And the others don't know how to do the same thing for MC, so the pattern just gets more engrained and damaging.

Except for Kade, my perfect boy.

Sources (they're fun, I promise!):

Screenshots from Neckrone Shen's playthroughs of Blades on YouTube, my go-to for whenever I can't remember something or don't have the screenshots myself.

I think @oh-so-youre-a-nerd's incredible piece 'Take Take Take' kept rattling around in my head until I figured out how to articulate why it felt this way: https://www.tumblr.com/oh-so-youre-a-nerd/736449955360899072/take-take-take?source=share

The language of 'shelving your agenda' came from the very good Cinema Therapy video about Kristoff from Frozen:

#I will choose to try and make things make sense in-universe rather than citing writing choices 100% of the time #I love the team I just think there were some windows of downtime they really could have used to check on MC (all the time on boats...) #choices blades of light and shadow #blades of light and shadow #choices blades #blades 2 #blades mc #choices bolas 2 #choices bolas #tyril starfury #nia ellarious #kade #kade of riverbend

[phyronia]

Evalen reflects on past missteps. Gale presents a gift to Astarion.

finished and posted chapter three last night! another 12k word behemoth. keeping promises on that Messy Emotions tag. mind the discussions of suicide tag too, that's for this chapter specifically.

#astarion #gale dekarios #gale/tav/astarion #bg3 #nia writes #waterdhavian hospitality

[queerchaser]

LATIBULE

(n.) a hiding place; a place of safety and comfort.

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

Enraged colourist, — but pale ghost;

Misunderstood… — by himself the most;

He cried, sang perfectly false;

—And was a flaw without flaws.

--

Too Self to stand himself alone,

Dry soul and head drunk with spirit,

Done, unable to get things done,

He died expecting to survive it

And lived, expecting to pass on.

Here lies, — a heart without heart, misplaced,

Too successful, — at having failed.

Tristan Corbière

°°°°°°°°°°°°

hello loves.

so here it is, the fanfic as i've promised. i hope you'll like it.

<3

#latibule fic #dead gay wizards #the marauders #marauders era #sirius black #remus lupin #james potter #peter pettigrew #lily evans #marlene mckinnon #mary macdonald #dorcas meadowes #sirius x oc #asterin knightley #queerchaser #nia writes

[missluthorwillseeyounow]

“Your sister found me because she was ready.”

Kara frowns. “Ready for what?”

“For the truth.” Lena replies simply. “To wake up and leave the lie behind.”

“The lie?” Lena’s words bring back echoes of Alex’s message. The Matrix still has you… You’ll find me, if you’re ready to wake up. “You mean… the Matrix?”

“Yes.”

Kara leans forward, her attention caught. “What is the Matrix?”

Lena sighs, her eyes clouding over. “I’m afraid no one can be told what the Matrix is. You have to see it for yourself. Right now, all I can tell you is that the Matrix is everywhere. It’s all around us. It’s in the air we breathe, in everything we touch…”

Lena ventures a hand between them to touch Kara’s, their hands connecting in the slightest. And even though she knows that she’s not really touching Kara’s hand, her mind feeds her the sensations of it — the softness of Kara’s skin, the gentle press of her flesh under Lena’s fingers.

Lena draws her hand away, and Kara follows it avidly with her eyes. “For you to know what the Matrix is, I have to go back to the beginning. Or at least, to where it begins for us.”

Or, the Supercorp Matrix AU

[So I found an old Matrix AU from a different fandom while I was rooting through my drive, and I thought it could be retooled into a Supercorp AU. Little did I know what I was inviting into my brain, but here we are suffering the consequences. (And now I have 2 different supercorp Matrix AUs. Great.) Spoilers ahead for the OG trilogy.]

In the movies, Neo is the One, but there are other Potentials. Each Potential displays extraordinary abilities beyond the standards of normal. Kara and Lena are both Potentials. Either one of them could be the One.

It begins in the Matrix, when Lena gets adopted by the Luthors as a little girl.

The Luthors are a picture-perfect family. Powerful, affluent, and respected. The father, the mother and the golden son. And Lena - smart, angelic and pretty, the perfect daughter - is the ideal addition to make their picturesque family complete.

Except when she's about 4 or so, it becomes apparent that Lena is not like other children.

It's immediately clear that her intellect far surpasses people four, five times her age. Lena is sharp and brilliant, able to grasp complex concepts most adults cannot. She seems to see the world around her in a different way.

The Luthors are no strangers to gifted children, their son Lex was deemed a prodigy at around the same age. At first, Lionel and Lillian take this as yet another proof of how exceptional Luthors are, and Lena is proudly displayed as their indigo child.

But Lena's talent develops as fast as she does.

Soon, she begins to exhibit strange, unexplained abilities. An expensive Waterford crystal goblet in Lionel's hand explodes when Lena has a tantrum. Once, Lillian walks into her playroom to find Lena having tea with her dolls, and when Lillian enters, all heads turn to her. Lena's and all four of her Madame Alexander dolls.

Her intellect begins to surpass what defines “normal” intelligence. She predicts and successfully foils an assassination attempt against Lionel. She prevents Lex from getting hit by a driver in a car chase five blocks away.

The last straw comes when Lena finds out that the cleaning lady's five year old son has cancer.

Lena convinces Alma to take her to see him. Five hours later, a tearful Alma brings the little girl back with something akin to wonder in her eyes. "Your little girl is an angel, Mr. Luthor. Bendecida por la Virgen. She cured my Carlos! She took away his sickness! Ella es un milagro de Dios!”

However, far from seeing it as a miracle, the Luthors circle the wagons. The next day, Lena finds out Alma has been dismissed, and a shift occurs in the Luthor household.

When Lena's abilities were within the parameters of "normal", they were good, something to be proud of. But now that her gifts have proven to be beyond that, they become alien, freakish. Something to be hidden. People would be asking too many questions, and Luthors do not permit those.

Suddenly, instead of being lauded for what she is able to do, Lena is now scrutinized and examined to find out what's "wrong" with her. It begins to strain the family that is obsessed with order and perfection.

They take Lena to various doctors and put her through all sorts of tests, but none of them seem able to find an explanation for Lena’s strange abilities.

Until they meet Rhea, an educator who runs an exclusive facility for “gifted” children.

An elegant and well-spoken woman, Rhea seems fascinated by Lena. Her teaching “methods” seem vague, but out of all the specialists Lena has seen so far, she is the only one who seems to understand and make a connection with her. At the very least, they seem to speak the same language. Rhea knows about this Matrix Lena has been talking about.

Rhea asks Lena if she wants to find out what the Matrix truly is. And when Lena agrees, Rhea takes the little girl to the Oracle to confirm her suspicions that she is a Potential.

Lena is taken to a tall building, riding all the way to the top floor with her little hand in Rhea’s. On the 64th floor, they enter a glass office in which an imperious looking blond woman sits, watching her with a piercing eye.

“Leave us.”

The woman orders sharply, slanting a glare at Rhea. She is at least 6 inches shorter than Rhea, even in heels, but her tone and her face brook no argument. Rhea retreats with a seething sneer, but she complies.

“Now, you,” the woman turns to Lena with a dark look and a raised brow. It fails to intimidate Lena, who has lived with Lillian Luthor’s pointed glares for the past three years of her life. “Do you know why you’re here?”

Lena merely blinks at her. “Because I know things.”

The woman scoffs. “So do I. Doesn’t make you special.” She gestures around her at her office with a spectacular view. “I know things too.”

Lena’s eyebrows rise as well. “Not everything.”

The woman’s glare intensifies, but Lena stares her down. After a moment, a corner of the woman’s mouth lifts, and she barks out a laugh. “You’re a smart one, aren’t you?”

Lena clasps her hands behind her back. “So I’ve been told.”

“Do you know who I am?”

Lena nods. “You’re the Oracle.”

The woman snorts delicately. “Did Rhea tell you that?”

Lena regards her solemnly. “She didn’t have to.”

The woman’s eyes narrow at her, but Lena says nothing more. She is scrutinized for another moment before the woman smirks. “Alright. Since you’re so smart, why don’t you tell me what you already know.”

Lena blinks at her, responding to the woman’s scrutinizing gaze in kind. “I know that you’re not human.”

Another laugh, this time louder. Piercing blue eyes gain a twinkle of mirth. “Very good. What else?”

“I know that you’re not real.”

The woman scoffs disdainfully. “Real is an abstract concept.”

“I know that I’m dreaming, and none of this is real.”

The mirth suddenly vanishes from the woman’s gaze, and her blue eyes stare at Lena intently. “What do you mean?”

Lena sweeps her little arms across the room. “This. All of this. Everything. It’s not real. It’s just a dream.”

The woman is leaning forward now. It looks to Lena as if she is holding her breath. “And what makes you think that?”

Lena chews thoughtfully on her lower lip. “Have you ever read Plato’s allegory of the cave?”

The woman’s eyebrows rise and an amused smile dances over her lips. “Of course.”

“It feels like that. Like the people chained to the walls of the cave, watching just shadows and reflections. Other people — even my parents, even Lex — they look around them and think that this is the real thing. But all we’re seeing are just shadows. Sometimes it makes me feel confused and blurry, like I’m dreaming, but I can’t wake up.”

The woman hums and her hands form a steeple under her chin as she continues to observe Lena.

"In the story, the prisoner who is freed into the sunlight was angry and in great pain after being in the dark for so long. Why would they go through that? Why not stay in the comfort of the darkness that they’ve known all their lives?”

Lena’s gaze doesn’t waver. “Because they would finally know the truth. They wouldn’t be living in a lie anymore. They would be free.”

A smile spreads across the woman’s face, and the nod she gives is almost approving. “Is that what you want?”

“Only if you tell me the truth.” Lena nods solemnly. “Will you tell me the truth, Oracle?”

“I’ll tell you everything you need to know.” The woman chuckles. “And one more thing. Call me Cat.”

Despite their animosity toward each other, both Cat and Rhea decide that Lena is more than ready for extraction.

The only problem is that Lena, at 6 years old, is one of the youngest children to be extracted so far. Because she’s so young, it’s decided that her family should be brought with her too. Lex, by then a teenager, is given a choice: to stay in the Matrix, or go down the rabbit hole, as it were.

Lex chooses to follow his family, and the Luthors are extracted by Rhea. They are brought on-board her ship, the Daxam. All four Luthors are taken to Zion, and told the truth about everything — the lie of the Matrix, the human harvest fields, and the fact that there is no going back.

That’s when it all goes to hell.

Lionel barely lasts three months.

Unable to accept the truth that his life of power and control was all a lie, and unwilling to believe that he now exists in a world where his name holds no weight, he somehow escapes Zion and finds his way to a human pod to try to inject himself back into the Matrix.

They search for him for weeks, and eventually they find him in the pod, impaled on the metal breathing hose stuffed into his mouth with the end sticking out the back of his head.

Lillian lasts longer, but this is no comfort.

Torn from her privileged life, her resentment begins to build and build, as she’s forced to accept her new reality.

Her perfect life was stolen from her. The high-paying job, the distinguished career, the unlimited influence, the beautiful house, the comfortable lifestyle — all gone. All apparently just a dream.

And now, Lillian has woken up to the dirt and drab and heat and toil of Zion’s underground, with nothing to show for her former life but the daughter she didn’t even ask for. The same daughter who is the very reason she’s trapped here now with no chance of going back.

She refuses to reconcile with her new reality, but she is no weakling like her husband. Instead, she lets the ugly, bitter ire fester inside her over the years, until it finally comes out.

One night, Lillian enters the rough, tiny cave that has become her unwilling home, creeps into the alcove carved into rock where her teenaged daughter sleeps and pours acid over her.

Lena’s screams wake others in the neighboring dwelling, and healers are immediately dispatched to tend to her wounds. Thankfully, Lena was turned away in her sleep, and the burns were limited to her back.

By the time her condition is pronounced stable, Lillian is gone.

Without her parents, Lena is taken in by Rhea to live with her, her husband Lar Gand and their infant son, Mon-El.

Rhea keeps Lena very close, almost jealously so. She prizes the young girl above all else in their household. Most of her time is devoted to teaching Lena, training her using the fight simulations and programs on the Daxam, instructing her on how to pilot the ship.

For Lena — who had grown up under Lillian’s growing resentment and bitterness, who had just survived a horrific attack on her by her own mother — Rhea is a godsend. Under Rhea’s maternal affection, Lena thrives. She pushes her own limits during her training, masters techniques with unparalleled speed and unerring accuracy, devours knowledge programs downloaded into her mind every time she’s plugged in. She blooms under Rhea’s freely-given praise, and works harder, starved as she was for acknowledgment and affection over the years.

As Rhea’s son, young Mon-El, grows up without displaying any unique abilities, he is often shunted to the side. Despite their age-difference, Lena makes a conscious effort to spend time with him, to give him the same nurturing Rhea is giving her.

She teaches Mon-El how to make repairs to the ship, explains how the thrusters work, how the pads keep the ship in balance. He’s most fascinated by the robotic armed exoskeletons that are kept at the dock for the city’s defense. He often asks Lena to take him to the bridge to watch them, and the two of them watch the exoskeletons being loaded, Lena leaning on the top rail, and Mon-El perched on the middle one, his skinny legs swinging in the air. As Lena smiles, the young boy boldly tells her that one day, he’ll pilot one of those.

It feels… nice. Almost like having a brother again. It feels like a second chance

After all, her own brother — well, that bridge was burned a long time ago, and Lena tries not to think about it.

But it’s hard to forget when she sees him all time, a nightmare come to life, whenever she’s plugged into the Matrix.

Lena will never forget the first time she saw her brother there.

Lex had abandoned them, had left his mother and sister in Zion years ago, as soon as he was of age. She’d tried to find him, had spent weeks, months, looking for him, to no avail.

Finally, Lena had been forced to accept that Lex had met their father’s fate. He could’ve been attacked by sentinels, gotten lost in the mechanical sewers, or worse, attempted the same thing Lionel had.

Either way, the result was the same, and the guilt and pain of it had been agony, but Lena had accepted it.

Until the day she met the Agent.

Most agents were already nigh indestructible, with their speed and brute strength, not to mention the internal communication they kept with each other through the program.

But this one… this one stayed on Lena’s tail with a dogged, malicious ferocity that she couldn’t shake off. It had been dangerously close several times already as he chased her throughout the dark, rain-soaked city streets. She couldn’t get a good lock on him, and it was all she could do to follow Jack’s instructions to the nearest extraction point.

Lena’s almost there, sliding into the booth, hand outstretched to grab the phone — when she sees it.

The Agent wearing her brother’s face, a feral smile stretching his lips as his fingertips brush the corner of her dark coat. The grin turns into a snarl as Lena lifts the phone to her ear, and he misses her by a millimeter.

It had been only a second, but… it was Lex.

Lena was sure of it. So sure that she had spent months hacking into the system with Brainy’s help, trying to find out what the hell was going on.

It takes six months of hacking into the mainframe to discover the truth. Lex had succeeded where their father had not. The son had surpassed the father.

Not only had Lex somehow managed to get himself reinserted into the Matrix, the anomaly of his presence in the code had also caused a glitch in the system itself.

It takes another encounter with Lex — in his new regalia of a generic black suit, bland tie and FBI-issued sunglasses — sneering at her as he points a gun at her head, to realize yet another knife-wound truth.

Her brother has become a virus in the Matrix.

________

Kara’s experience in the Matrix could not have been more different from Lena’s.

More than a decade before Lena was born, Kara Zorel was like any normal thirteen year old girl. She went to school, hung out with her friends, had a crush on the boy living next door. She got straight A’s, and volunteered at the local senior home.

Her quicksilver mind that could spot things others couldn’t was easily considered as part of her intelligence. She was a very smart girl, after all. Her obsession with puzzles and codes was easily filed away as a quirk or a phase she was going through until she found a new hobby.

Everything about her life seemed to be on track to become ordinary, until the day of the accident.

At least, they told her it was an accident. Kara doesn’t remember any of it. All she really remembers is waiting for a train at a subway station. She remembers her father mentioning a Trainmaster who would take them away, somewhere new. To a new home, her mother had said. [This is from the 3rd movie]

And then nothing.

Kara thinks she must have been dreaming, because she can remember being left alone in that subway station — the walls were blank and a sterile white, with nothing to indicate the presence of life except Kara herself sitting on the otherwise empty bench. She can remember the feeling of waiting, waiting endlessly for the nothing that would come — no trains, no other passengers, no one else at the station with her. She can remember running along the platform tirelessly, only to end up in the same place she’d started from. She remembers the feeling of being left behind and trapped and scared. Mostly scared.

And then the next thing she knows, she’s awake on a hospital bed with Eliza Danvers sleeping on the chair next to her.

The Danvers had found her on the train platform, curled up, unconscious, on the same bench she’d dreamed of. They’d thought she was a runaway, or a missing child, but the FBI agents who had come to Kara’s hospital room had told her that her parents were dead.

An accident, they’d said. A subway malfunction that had taken out a whole car. Under investigation, the man in sunglasses and a dark suit had reassured Jeremiah and Eliza in a monotonous voice.

With no one to claim her, no other family to speak of, Kara is taken in by the Danvers. They’re good people, kind and understanding when Kara wakes up in the middle of the night with nightmares of being trapped in a white sea of nothingness.

When Kara wakes up crying and sweating, Eliza is there to soothe her and rock her in her arms until she fell asleep again. When she tells Jeremiah that everything is too loud and bright, he sits her down and teaches her to calm her thoughts and meditate.

Alex, who had gone from being an only child to having an anxious, high-maintenance little intruder in her room, is less than happy about the situation. She keeps her distance, and gives Kara cold glares from across the bedroom or ignores her completely.

Until one night when Alex sneaks back into their room from the concert she’d snuck out to earlier, and finds Kara sitting on one corner of her bed with her knees curled up. With Alex gone for most of the night, Kara had been alone and had refused to fall asleep, terrified of having nightmares again.

With only a little bit of grumbling, Alex tosses all their pillows and blankets onto the floor, and drapes one of her sheets over both their beds to make their first blanket fort. The first of many.

Curled up on the floor next to Alex, Kara sleeps soundly through the night for the first time since waking up without her parents.

Still, despite slowly settling in with the Danvers, Kara can’t shake the feeling that something is off.

It feels as if everything around her is just a little bit off-kilter. As if the world had somehow changed in the time she’d been unconscious. Or maybe she had. Either way, it feels as if both Kara and the world around her know on some level that she’s not supposed to be here. Perhaps it’s because she was meant to die along with her parents. But by some unknown anomaly, here she is, half of her present, half of her straining to join her mother and father wherever they are.

It’s not a reflection on the Danvers. Kara couldn’t have asked for a better family to care for her. And she cares for them too. Over time, Kara gains a sister she would die for in a heartbeat, instead of a roommate who barely tolerated her presence when she first arrived. Her definition of ‘mother’ slowly expands and makes room for Eliza in her heart. She finds a man to respect and admire in Jeremiah.

Still, the feeling of being out of place persists throughout the years, always in the back of Kara’s mind.

Tragedy strikes when Jeremiah disappears.

It happens quickly, too quickly. One day her foster father is there, the next he’s gone. The only clue the police get is the last voicemail on Jeremiah’s phone.

The message starts with Jeremiah’s voice, reminding Alex that he’ll be picking her up from softball practice later, then it cuts off abruptly without warning.

Ten seconds later, another voice is heard through the other end, this time a smooth monotone. It sounds nothing at all like Jeremiah, and it sends a chill down Kara’s spine.

“The Luthor girl escaped again. She has eluded us one too many times for a human. She cannot avoid the inevitable…. Send the Brother. Next time, she dies.”

Nothing is found at the scene but Jeremiah’s phone. No evidence, no ransom note, no explanation for the strange message, nothing to trace, nothing to at all to suggest that Jeremiah Danvers was there. The blank-faced FBI agents offer no sympathy when they inform Eliza of the news in a smooth, apathetic monotone.

[[In case it’s not clear, Jeremiah got turned into an agent by the other agents who were chasing Lena during one of the times she was plugged into the Matrix]]

Their little family is shocked and reeling, but they cling to one another in their grief. Kara remembers something her mother always used to say. Stronger together, Kara. Life is hard, and we cannot face it alone. We must be each other’s strengths. We are always stronger together.

Still, life goes on. Keeps moving on, even after tragedy and loss. Sometimes, Kara feels as if the world is in constant motion, its inertia having no time to waste on a young girl who feels as if she has been left behind.

The sense of alienation increases, and Kara is diagnosed with depression. Which only serves to increase her family’s concern, and puts a near-permanent look of worry in Eliza’s eyes.

So Kara puts on her brightest smile and hugs her foster mother. She talks more, smiles wider, laughs louder, and makes more friends to go out with so she’s not at home alone in her room which no longer has Alex in it.

Alex goes to college, then med school, the chip on her shoulder large enough to be seen from space. She’s determined to find out what really happened to her father, and Kara knows how stubborn she is.

But she only really finds out how serious Alex is when her older sister declares that she’s joining the FBI, and no amount of talking from either Kara or Eliza can dissuade her.

And it’s not as if Kara has a leg to stand on. At least Alex has a purpose, a direction. Meanwhile, Kara has no idea what she wants to do with her life. She meanders around after college, a little bit lost and floundering. She’s intelligent, her professors said, but she lacks focus.

Eventually, she gets hired at Catco as an assistant to the big boss herself, Cat Grant.

All of 5’4” in heels, the woman herself strikes fear into the heart of every intern roaming the halls. It’s impossible not to snap to attention when her private elevator dings and she steps out. Each click of her heels is a reminder of the power she wields, and honestly, Kara is a little terrified of her.

But she straightens her spine and her glasses, tucks her hair behind her ear, and refuses to be cowed.

And it’s as if Miss Grant takes it as a challenge to break her, because her demands become more and more unrealistic, more and more impossible. But something inside Kara tells her not to back down, to stare her right back, and wait her out. Cat Grant is a puzzle, and Kara has always been good at puzzles.

The key comes in the form of Carter Grant.

Cat tasks Kara to pick her son up from school one afternoon, and Kara finds the young boy waiting for her right outside the school gates. He’s a very sweet boy, a little shy, but he eventually tells Kara about this comic he’s been reading about a young superhero named Supergirl.

As he begins to brighten up talking about his new favorite character, Carter doesn’t notice the car coming from the other side of the street. Neither does Kara at first. But something inside her tells her to turn around.

Maybe it was a sound, an instinct, and unconscious observation too quick for her mind to consciously process. Whatever it was, it had her turning just in time to see the car heading straight for Carter.

She barely has time to pull the boy back to the sidewalk, and the car almost clips him. Almost.

“Are you okay??” Kara hurriedly checks Carter for any injuries or signs that he’s shaken up. Other than the boy’s wide eyes, he seems to be fine.

“That- that was amazing! You were so fast, Kara! You were like Supergirl! How did you do that?”

As they walk back home, Cart gushes about how awesome Kara’s save was, how she was as fast and strong as Supergirl. Kara laughs it off, but the relief that the boy is okay lingers.

The second the front door closes behind Kara, Carter pulls out a phone and scrolls through the contact list until he finds ‘Mom’.

When Cat answers, he whispers excitedly into the phone. “She did it! She was even faster than Lena by 0.02 seconds!”

“Good. Did she say anything else?”

“She mentioned her sister. Are you going to tell the Manhunter? Is J’onn going to pull them out? Or maybe Lena can come? I like it when she comes to visit.”

A rustle of paper in the background, and Cat drawls in an almost bored voice. “Not yet. She’s not ready.”

[[In this AU, Carter is a computer program designed to assist the Oracle. Kinda like Seraph in the movies. He and Cat have a very unusual relationship. He was just supposed to be a simple program to help ward her, but he was designed to be charming in an innocent and disarming way to help distract from his real purpose. Cat developed a fondness for him, so when he tries to protect her when she’s in danger, she ends up shoving him behind her and protecting him.]]

On the anniversary of Jeremiah’s disappearance, another tragedy rocks the Danvers family.

Alex Danvers disappears.

Eliza is inconsolable, but Kara… Kara is numb, at first. Denial is always the first instinct of the human mind when a shock is delivered to its system. There’s talk of a search, trying to find out where she might have gone, her usual routine, any places Alex frequents — it all rolls over Kara’s head. They’re looking for a body, but that’s not how Alex is gonna be found.

Unlike Jeremiah’s disappearance, Alex’s is not without a trail. She is an FBI agent after all. There will always be a trail, and like in most FBI cases, it can be found in the absence of one.

In this case, it’s Alex’s computer. It’s missing.

The more Kara thinks about it, the more it galvanizes her. Kara knows Alex, knows her quirks and her habits. She didn’t have many friends outside of work, mostly people from med school she’s since lost touch with. No, anything that happened to Alex would be connected to her work, and Alex kept all her work files in that computer.

She throws herself into finding it. Find it, and she finds Alex.

For months, Kara follows every lead, every loose thread she can find, all in the hope of finding the computer. Every time she comes across a dead end, she doggedly retraces her steps until she can find another lead. The chalkboard in the kitchen that used to house her grocery list desk becomes a list of all possible locations. Her desk at Catco is a disaster of papers and post-it notes — a receipt from Cat’s dry cleaners here, the number for Annie Leibovitz’s assistant there, and Alex’s bank statements piled on top.

All the while, Cat watches her. Observes her tenacity, her ability to find patterns that no one else would’ve noticed, her keen attention that allows her to find details that other people would’ve ignored.

Finally, after nearly a year of looking, Kara finds Alex’s computer in a security deposit box under the alias Alice Liddell.

It takes her all night, but Kara manages to gain access to Alex’s documents. She finds file after file on Alex’s investigation into Jeremiah’s disappearance. Articles on similar disappearances all over the world. Some incidents are identical to Jeremiah’s, some with more of a trail. The victimology is all over the place, but in certain cases, there is a disturbing pattern.

A number of the disappearances occur in National City, and nearly all of them have one thing in common. They’ve all been patients or relatives of patients at the Luthor Family Hospital — a stroke patient and his fiancee, a woman in a car accident, a man with a gunshot wound, an old lady with Alzheimer's and her widow, even three children from the cancer ward and one of their mothers. Most of these people were deceased, but there must have been some reason Alex thought otherwise. And if she was right, then there is something very disturbing going on in the Luthor Family Hospital.

Kara keeps searching the files, and finds a certain devolution in Alex’s notes. Towards the end, she seemed more and more disorganized, her thoughts more and more disjointed. And Kara feels a terrible sense of guilt at not noticing what her sister was going through.

Throughout the files, she finds multiple references Alex made to something called the Matrix. She stumbles upon a mess of a pdf that she’d originally thought was gibberish, but upon closer inspection actually more closely resembles computer code. And in the middle of the unintelligible tangle of letters and symbols, she finds a question.

What is the Matrix?

Just as Kara is trying to make sense of the question, a new message alert appears in Alex’s inbox. Kara stares at the screen. It originated from Alex’s own email. Frowning, she clicks on the message, and her eyes widen as she reads.

I’m alive.

Kara springs forward so fast, she almost dislodges the laptop from her kitchen counter. She tries multiple times to reply to the message, but nothing happens. Kara growls, and almost as if the computer can sense her frustration, another message appears.

I’m alive and I’m out.

Kara’s brows furrow. What? What the hell?

The Matrix still has you, Kara.

Kara’s frown deepens and she looks around her, checks the computer. Is this some kind of prank?

I’m sorry I had to leave, but you can’t follow. Not until you’re ready.

Ready for what, Kara thinks.

Ready to give it all up. Ready to wake up. You told me once that you felt like everything since you woke up in the subway station has felt strange, like a dream. You were right, it is. And you’ll find me, if you’re ready to wake up.

Kara’s jaw drops in shock.

Follow the white rabbit.

The message flashes across the screen for a moment, then the monitor goes black. Kara snaps it shut and pushes it as far away from her as she can.

That — what was that? A-a trick? A hallucination brought on by the lack of sleep and her hyperfixation?

She could check it again, turn the laptop back on and click on the messages again — but suddenly Kara is gripped by fear, and denial feels more like a comfort.

She packs away the computer, stowing it under the desk where she can’t see it, and goes to bed. She doesn’t sleep until 3 AM.

But of course, Kara is no coward. She’s never been one to back down to her fears. In the morning, armed with a cup of Noonan’s coffee and a clearer mind, she opens the laptop again.

She doesn’t quite have the courage to check the messages yet, but she finds another article. This time, about the [head] of the Luthor Family Hospital, a woman named Lena Luthor.

It takes no time at all for her quick mind to make a connection, but it takes a while for the rest of her conscious brain to catch up.

Luthor. She’d heard that name before. In a voicemail, the only thing left of Jeremiah Danvers. “The Luthor girl got away again.”

Lena Luthor.

That can’t be a coincidence. Alex had been looking into their dad’s disappearance, and the Luthor name has already come up more than once, and now a female Luthor.

All the research she does on Lena Luthor comes up with next to nothing. Other than business articles and some papers in several scientific journals, there’s very little mention of the woman. So far, all Kara knows is that Lena Luthor is the CEO of one of the leading tech companies in the world, dedicated to providing accessible technology and communication devices to billions of people all over the globe — their new L-Phones are popping up everywhere. She’s also apparently a brilliant scientist and researcher, invested in scientific research to help prevent and cure diseases. She also owns and is directly involved in the running of the Luthor Family Hospital, a facility known for innovative and experimental medicine.

And for all of her work and accolades, there has never been a single photograph of this woman past the age of 6. Nothing. This woman’s image has never been recorded in any way, in any kind of media, in any event, in all the years that she has been running L-Corp. How is that even possible?

Now, Kara’s definitely suspicious.

Three days after the computer is found — plenty of time for thinking, but not too much time to do something stupid, she thinks — Cat makes her move.

She summons Kara to her office and delivers her ultimatum, in the form of an offer.

“Y- You think I have what it takes to be a reporter?”

“You’re an intelligent woman, Keira. But more than that, you can see things others can’t. You observe far more than people give you credit for. You could have a bright future here at Catco.”

Cat surveys her intently over her glasses. “It’s your choice. You can take the job, or you can keep wasting your life going down this rabbit hole.”

Cat gestures toward Kara’s messy desk, but again Kara’s quick mind gives her a nudge. That’s the third reference she’s heard in as many days. Rabbit hole. Alice. White rabbit.

Kara asks Cat for time to think about it, but really, she’s already made her decision. She uses her connect as Cat’s assistant to set up an appointment, introducing herself as Kara Danvers from Catco, writing an article about the Luthor Family Hospital.

The assistant confirms that Miss Luthor would be delighted to give Catco a glimpse into the facility to bring awareness of the work they do, and confirms the time.

When Kara arrives, she is directed to the children’s cancer center. When she sees the whimsical mural of a white rabbit hopping along a trail on the walls, she knows she’s at the right place.

Kara follows the mural until she reaches a room at the end of the hall. A soft feminine voice floats down the hallway and reaches Kara’s ears.

“To begin with, tell me, do you think that these men would have seen anything of themselves or of one another except the shadows cast from the fire on the wall of the cave that fronted them?

How could they, he said, if they were compelled to hold their heads unmoved through life?”

Kara walks closer, drawn to the sound. She stops just outside the door to what is clearly a child’s hospital room. A little girl in white pajamas and a colorful bonnet sits cross-legged in the middle of the bed, listening to the dark-haired woman sitting on the chair by her side. The woman’s back is turned to Kara, but she can see the book she’s reading from. Plato.

“By Zeus, I do not, said he.

Then in every way such prisoners would deem reality to be nothing else than the shadows of the artificial objects.”

“Quite inevitably.” The little girl on the bed quotes with a smile. Kara hears a soft, amused hum from the woman.

“Consider, then, what would be the manner of the release and healing from these bonds… When one was freed from his fetters and compelled to stand up suddenly and turn his head around… and lift up his eyes to the light, and in doing all this, felt pain…”

Kara sees the moment the reader realizes that she’s there. The woman’s head turns just the slightest, and Kara can see her sharp, elegant profile silhouetted in the light. She keeps reading, but at this point, they both know she’s aware of Kara’s presence. Kara continues to listen silently.

“What do you suppose would be his answer if someone told him that what he had seen before was all a cheat and an illusion… But that now, being nearer to reality and turned toward more real things, he saw more truly?”

Just then, the little girl’s eyes snap up to meet Kara’s, and big black eyes blink owlishly at her. “Miss Lena, we have a visitor.”

The woman finally turns, and Kara gets her first glimpse of Lena Luthor. Cut-glass green eyes are perceptive as they take Kara in, and a small smile plays on the corner of red lips.

“So we do, Zuri.”

She sets the book down on the bed beside the child and rises from her seat, a pale hand extended. "Kara Danvers, I presume?"

It takes Kara a second to reply, unable to take her eyes off the woman. There’s something arresting about her, something that could probably stop anyone in their tracks. Even the way she tips her head to survey Kara is fluid and mesmerizing.

Clearing her throat, Kara takes Lena Luthor’s proffered hand. “Yeah – uh, yes.”

The woman's smile grows. "I've been expecting you."

For a moment, the words make Kara's stomach flutter, then the 'duh' moment hits her. Of course she'd been expecting her, they had an appointment. Kara's face flushes red. "I've been looking forward to meeting you, Miss Luthor."

Green eyes gain a look of amusement and crinkle at the corners. Lena Luthor looks as if she has a secret, or like she’s in on a joke Kara doesn't know. "Not as much as I have, I'm sure."

Kara's brows furrow in confusion, but before she can ask the woman what she means, the Luthor bends down and kisses the top of the child's head, before heading out the door and gesturing for Kara to follow.

[[I just love the idea of Lena reading the Allegory of the Cave to the children like she did when she was a kid, as her way of preparing them, a way of telling them that yes, extraction will hurt, it won't be easy to accept the truth, but they will be free].

[Also in this AU, the extraction points used to be the pay phones like in the movie, except those got phased out once the machines figured out that’s what the resistance was using. So Lena developed the L-phones, and made it so one would always be easily accessible. That’s the work she does at L-Corp]]

After their tour of the hospital concludes, Lena watches Kara walk out through the double doors, throwing a friendly wave behind her. As soon as she's out of sight, she pulls out an L-phone.

"Well, she’s persistent, I'll give you that."

"Told you. Who do you think she got it from?”

“I see stubbornness runs in the family.” Lena hums in amusement.

A chuckle from the other end of the line. “You have no idea.”

"How close is she?"

Alex’s voice turns business-like. "Well, she’s made the connection to you, and Kelly’s seeing some sizeable fluctuations in the code, so I'd say she’s getting there. J’onn thinks she might be ready soon. He says she’s responding quickly for someone who hasn’t had as long to adjust. Sooner if you prepare her, probably.”

“That won’t be a problem.”

“Rhea,” Lena can hear the seething disdain Alex’s voice, and thinks her mentor is probably standing over Alex’s shoulder as they speak. “Would like me to remind you that the sooner we pull out my sister —“ Lena can almost see her glare at Rhea. “The sooner you can get back to the Daxam, and this can ‘all be over with’.”

Lena shakes her head. “I’m not pulling her out before she’s ready. The consequences could be disastrous.”

“Yeah? Try telling that to your Captain.”

They’re interrupted by an excited young voice. “Hi, Lena!”

“Mon-El?”

Alex snorts over the line. “Yeah, can you believe her? She brought the kid over just to get you to ‘speed things up’.”

“When are you coming back, Lena? I miss you! I snuck into the dock last week, but M’gann caught me. She said she’d teach me how to make shells if I promised not to go past the bridge again. And Imra asked if she could come with us the next time we go to the bridge to see the loaders, I told her yeah. That’s okay, right?”

Despite the seriousness of their situation, Lena can’t help but smile a bit at the young boy’s enthusiasm. “Of course she can. I’ll be back soon, Mon-El. Stay out of trouble, and do what your ranking officer says.”

“Okay, kid, you heard the lady. Go bother Brainy and Kelly at operations. It's about time you learn to read code anyway."

Lena can hear the boy grumbling in the background, but he obeys. As soon as he's out of earshot, Lena goes back to business.

“Start a trace for Kara's pod location, and standby. Be ready to plug in when I tell you to.”

"Copy. J’onn’s gonna try to get us as close as he can, but it's the fields. We can never be too careful. And Lena…? Try to make it easy for her."

Alex’s voice softens at her request, her concern for her sister evident in every word, and Lena understands. Just as Alex understands that there is nothing easy about the truth Kara will have to see.

"I'll do what I can."

This is not the last time Kara pays her a visit.

Under the guise of her article, Kara returns to Lena again. And again.

The first time she comes over under the guise of an interview, she stays until lunch. And then takes Lena to lunch, partly to make up for ruining her schedule, and partly because the CEO confesses that she often forgets to eat throughout the day.

They eat at Kara’s favorite lunch spot, Noonan’s, where Kara is aghast to learn that Lena has never tried any of their desserts despite the café being less than a block away from L-Corp. They end up trying nearly every dessert on the menu. Or at least Lena samples a little bit of everything, and Kara finishes it all off.

They part, with some reluctance on Kara’s end, three hours past Kara’s allotted time, but Lena assures her that it was worth clearing her schedule, considering how much she enjoyed Kara’s company.

It’s only after she’s no longer in Lena’s presence that Kara realizes she’d all but forgotten about her purpose for coming, which was to interrogate her about the suspicious disappearances at the Luthor Family Hospital, and about Lena’s possible involvement in Alex’s own disappearance.

She returns, this time with the flimsy excuse of bringing Lena lunch now that she knows the CEO won’t remember it herself. Lena suggests they go out to the nearby city park to enjoy her break there.

Lena leads her to a bench on a hill and they sit there quietly, enjoying their view of the park. Lena gives Kara a shy smile. “I like to come out here sometimes. When everything becomes… too much. Sometimes, everything around me just feels so wrong and… fake. Especially with what I do. It feels like none of it, none of this is real.”

Kara turns to look at her fully, a crinkle in her forehead, and Lena wonders if she's pushing it. “What do you mean?”

“Have you ever had that feeling where… you’re not sure if you’re dreaming or awake? And you’re not quite sure if anything around you is real or not?”

Lena chances a look at the other woman. Kara is looking back at her, eyes wide and intent. It takes a moment, one long moment where Kara is just staring at her, as if trying to puzzle her out. Then she nods.

“Yeah. All time.”

“That’s how I used to feel.” Lena holds her gaze, steady green meeting wondering blue. Kara is so close right now, so close that Lena could tell her. How easy it would be if Lena could convey the truth just by looking into Kara’s eyes. But she’s not ready yet. Lena drops her gaze with a soft laugh.

“I guess I was just thinking, if none of this is real, then none of my problems there would be real, either.” She gestures back at L-Corp with a wry smile.

Kara takes the bit, and her smile softens, blue gaze losing some of its intensity.

Kara fails her mission again that time. And the next. And the next. It feels as if she forgets her problems when she’s with Lena. For the first time in a long time, it doesn’t feel like she’s out of place. The world doesn’t feel so wrong when she’s with Lena, or at least, it doesn’t bother Kara as much. She feels like… herself.

As for Lena, she knows they’re running out of time, and that the agents will catch wind of them soon. Especially since Kara is on the precipice of the truth.

But for the first time, Lena finds herself delaying the inevitable. It’s unlike her — the Potential who has spent her whole life freeing as many minds from the Matrix as she can; the second-highest ranking officer and chief engineer of the Daxam, who seizes every situation with a level head and a calm command.

“What are you doing, Lena?”

Rhea’s voice is an imperious snap, even over the line. “You have never spent this long in the Matrix since I pulled you out. You’re putting yourself in danger for a simple extraction. It shouldn’t be taking this long.”

“No extraction is ever simple. I told you, she’s not ready.”

“I know you and that Oracle—” the word is practically a hiss in her mentor’s mouth. “—think that this woman is a Potential, but if she really were that special, she would’ve been ready a long time ago. You were ready long before I found you.”

“This is different—“

“Why? Because you’re sweet on her?”

Lena’s eyes narrow. “You know that’s not why.”

As soon as Lena’s tone gains an authoritative edge, Rhea softens. “I know, my dear. But you know how I worry about you being plugged in for so long with… Lex out there. Besides, you have been neglecting your duties on the ship. Your crew needs you, Mon-El needs you. Come back home, Lena.”

Lena relents. “I will. Soon.”

But ending her time with Kara is easier said than done.

It may be selfish, but around Kara, Lena feels lighter. Her responsibilities don’t weigh as much, and the bleakness of war vanishes in the company of someone so earnest and warm and hopeful. Kara is… resilient. In spite of all that she’s been through, she remains strong, determined, and most incredible of all, kind.

Lena watches Kara with the children — the youngest Potentials, who see the wrongness of the world around them, but aren’t ready yet to be pulled out — and watches her pull gap-toothed smiles and belly laughs out of even the most solemn ones.

She extends this kindness, even to Lena — over daily reminders to eat and take care of herself, to lunch dates she tags Lena along to because she thinks Lena will forget to eat otherwise.

Once, after a successful extraction of one of Lena’s children, a somber Kara brings a small bouquet of plumerias to the little girl’s empty room. She finds Lena sitting next to the child’s empty bed.

“I’m so sorry.” Kara plucks a single plumeria from the bouquet, before setting the flowers on the girl’s pillow.

Lena shakes her head, a serene smile on her face. “Don’t be. She’s free. She’s in a better place now.”

Kara, not understanding her words, gives her a sad smile. She takes Lena’s hand and presses the single plumeria into her fingers. “I’m sure she is.”

Every day, Lena fails to tell Kara the truth, wanting to prolong their time together. And most of all, wanting to spare Kara for just a little longer. Lena can’t bear the thought of being another person who adds to everything Kara’s gone through, of being the reason why that smile dims a little more, or worse, never appears again at all.

Her hesitation nearly costs them everything.

#supercorp #supergirl #katie mcgrath #lena luthor #melissa benoist #kara danvers #me trying to write #I've been working on this thing all weekend ugh. i just wanna yeet it out there #there's more if anyone wants it #also in case it’s not clear the kid at the end of the moodboard is young Mon-El #i should sleep. ugh. i so sleepy #i forgot brainy in the moodboard *facepalm #oh well too late to add himj #gotta sleep. gotta sleep #fuckin tumblr took away all my formatting ugh #alex danvers #cat grant #nia nal

[waroftheposes]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Stranger Things (TV 2016) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Will Byers/Mike Wheeler Characters: Will Byers, Mike Wheeler, Background & Cameo Characters Additional Tags: Pining, Literature, Light Angst, Getting Together, Queer Culture, mention of internalized homophobia Summary:

Will Byers picked up Maurice at the suggestion of a nice lady at a gay bookstore. He hadn't expected to project his own problems unto the book or the main character. He especially hadn't meant to cast his best friend as Clive Durham and as a result, break his own heart.

--

Or: Will reads Maurice and pines.

#byler #byler fic #will byers #mike wheeler #stranger things #nia writes #this fic should only be tagged pining #because it is mostly just pining #if 2016 me could see me posting byler fic i honestly think she might die

[bigmammallama5]

So a thought I've been having for a few weeks now of kryptonians and mild colour blindness. Like, if they lived under a red sun, and predominantly lived there, they probably had *some* colour blindness, right?? I mean, i guess they couldve been genetically engineered for that to like. Not happen but then I'd be petitioning for them to have a wayyy wilder sense of sight and perception of colours. Anyway it also led to mild colourblind kara thoughts and her arguing with everyone about it djdjdkf

rip you just opened one of my special interest barrels and im supposed to be working LMAO

Ok honestly I've wondered about that too bc if Krypton is a red sun planet and they supposedly had flora and fauna before the war that inevitably collapsed the planet, it would be adapted to that darker "sweet spot" for life to grow. Like would the plants be darker (blacks, deep greens, purples, reds?) and would the animals and kryptonians have altered vision and metabolism to make up for the lack of light? Like would we be seeing more bioluminescence (let kara glow in the dark, it would be funny)? Would they have better low light vision and even dark vision? Would they have heightened hearing or even echolocation?

It is canon that kryptonians started growing clones of themselves to use as basically free extra parts to extend their lives during the golden age (i may be getting a few details wrong here, it's been a minute since i looked at my notes and stuff) (The reason the civil war began is bc anti-clone kryptonians wanted to prove that those bodies were real people (and they did! bodily and mental autonomy for the win!).). SO it is very plausible that there was more genetic engineering to benefit their race and their existence on this red sun planet since most of the population was using this technology as opposed to natural birth. That would make a more interesting take on Kara's senses and powers on a yellow sun planet since she was supposedly conceived in one of these tubes (kal/clark was the first kryptonian in generations to be created (lol) the "old" way bc he had the luck of his parents loving each other and not solely together for political purposes via the matricomp).

Also it would just lead to some really cool ways to play with her powers, give a different way to play with her heat vision and x-ray vision (even her hearing), and kick off a huge social media hubub when Supergirl accidentally reveals that she's weirdly color blind.

#ask me stuff! #Nia makes different graphics in different colors to torture her for funsies. #supergirl #ANYWAYS i have also thought too much about this bc i am a nerd and i thought it was interesting sklghsf #gonna also stick this under #i need a writing tag #bc i like some of the things i said here that i hadnt thought of yet #nerd mode activate #patrick star running away with his pants down and falling dot gif