#and i just realized my fic ideas are like and X years later...... we re-open the wounds to make the pain worse!!!!! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

somewhataveragefangirl · 2 years

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Okay so the thing that was making me too busy to write or draw has ended! I'm editing my Aloy x Erend one-shot again! Because of that! here's a sneak peak to my first draft of the flashback of Erend’s marriage proposal to Aloy!

Erend proposes to Aloy!

Author's Note: This takes place at least 3 years after HZD, whatever events of HFW have already taken place, and Aloy now lives mostly in Meridian. Erend has a focus now as we saw he had one in the first HFW trailer.

ALSO this is literally from my barely edited first draft! There will be grammar errors! And still contains some [Insert stuff here] notes!

The final draft will definitely look and read differently! Please understand this does not reflect on my final draft writing quality!

This is also my first big Tumblr post with a fic so if it's formatted weird please forgive me (^▽^;)

And now without further ado!

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Aloy thought back to Erend’s proposal.

Talanah had dragged her out of town for a Lodge Hunt, which ended with Aloy drenched in blaze. Instead of just rinsing off in a nearby lake, Talanah had insisted they visit a local bathhouse.

As repayment for her getting drenched, Talanah had helped Aloy re-plait her braids and even gifted her some Carja Silks to wear home as her armor was still drenched and in desperate need of repair. Aloy had fought it every step of the way, but in the end, she was glad she had gone along with Talanah’s plan.

She returned to her house later than she wished, the sun already beginning to set beyond the Forbidden West. On approach to her home, she noticed the door open a crack, which was unusual as Erend had made her an Oseram lock. She activated her Focus, expecting an intruder, instead, it was just Erend, which wasn’t uncommon these days as they spent most of their evenings together, the uncommon part was his pacing.

She pinged his Focus and she watched as his form whipped around to her direction as he received her signal with his Focus.

The first thing she noticed as she entered her apartment was that he had pulled her meal table away from the wall to the center of the room, and on it sat all of Aloy’s favorite Carja and Oseram foods as well as a few traditional Nora foods, where he had gotten those she had no idea.

“Aloy!”, he said on seeing her, his face lighting up into a huge grin. He was missing his traditional armor and was instead in just his Vanguard tunic and trousers. “You’re back! I was wondering if Talanah would ever bring you all back.” He laughed nervously, lifting his arm and rubbing the back of his neck nervously. “Well, now that you’re here, would you like to have dinner together?”

They’d spent the evening eating and talking. She learned that he had been the one to make the traditional Nora food. He told her that now that the Nora were free to leave their Sacred land and return as they wished, some had been visiting Meridian to visit the memorial. Erend told her of how he had noticed them on his rounds. When he mentioned to a few that he had wanted to surprise her with some traditional food, many had volunteered to help him please their Anointed.

She had grimaced at the mention of her Nora title, and Erend had noticed, she was grateful when he stood and pulled her out of her thoughts and seat to take a walk around the city. As they walked they reminisced of their many adventures. They spoke of their travels to the ruins of the Metal World, their journey out to the Cut as well as the Forbidden West, and the final defeat of Hades and Silens. As well as Aloy’s continuous work at Gaia Prime. Erend also spoke fondly of their more calm adventures, the times they had traveled out to a Vantage point simply to watch the sunset or stayed in Free Heap to get away from the busyness of Meridian.

As they were laughing at the memory of the first time Erend had ridden a strider, Erend had stopped to admire the view, he put his hands on the railing, staring out into the distance, still smiling but distractedly. Aloy realized they were on the middle of the bridge to the Palace; she hadn’t even noticed as this was a common path they took whenever she joined Erend on his rounds of the city. Out in the West, the final rays of sunlight could no longer be seen peeking from behind the mountains, above them, the moon was already high in the sky, its full-faced light shining down on them.

“Aloy, we’ve had so many fun times together, I know I’ve definitely gotten my two minutes”, he said referencing her words after they had fought Dervahl, “and while I don’t know Nora customs all too well, this isn’t really Oseram traditional either, I was hoping it would be alright if I ask for more of your time” before she could ask what he meant, he held her hands in his and continued, “These last few years together have been amazing! Sure, we’ve both had our fair share of struggles, both ups, and downs, but it’s been us, side-by-side against whatever the world has thrown at us, and I was hoping that it could always be this way. If I’ve learned anything from our time together, I know it’s you I want to spend my life with. So,” he got down on one knee, leaving Aloy speechless, “Aloy Rostdaughter, will you do me the greatest honor and be my wife?”

[They kiss]

#ereloy #ereloy proposal #erend x aloy #aloy and erend #aloy/erend #hzd #horizon zero dawn #horizon forbidden west #hfw #my fic stuff #my fic post #fanfiction #fanfic #erend proposes to aloy #I'll probably add more tags later #aloy x erend #my writings #a carja wedding fic

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elvish-sky · 3 years

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Say That Again {Legolas x Reader}

A.N: Do I really like this fic? Yes, I do. Will I possibly be re-writing it and turning it into a multi-part? Yes, I will. Thank you so much to the two Anons who requested this- I kinda went a little off of your exact requests, so I hope that’s ok, but I was super inspired by them. I’m very proud of this, and I really hope you all like it!

Requested by Anons on Tumblr: Can I request a Legolas x reader fic where the reader is an archivist for the library in Mirkwood and Legolas begins to visit more often just to see the reader? Over the months, they get very close and eventually end up confessing/sharing a small kiss, and the reader whispers, “I love you.” afterward. Legolas, having not heard those words directed towards him in a long time, is breathless. then, shyly, he tells the reader to say it again😶

and

Hey! I love your writing, by the way. I know you probably get a lot of these, so no pressure, but I was wondering if I could request a Legolas x reader fic? maybe where the reader is like an archivist/librarian for the woodland realm, and Legolas is doing research on the sickness in his homeland. together, they both find that Sauron has returned, and become really close over the time they’ve spent together. maybe the reader could join the fellowship with him? it’s just an idea based on a fic I read a while ago. you could do what you like with it, but I thought you could turn it into whatever you like. Thanks!

Word Count: 1,431

Pairing: Legolas x Reader

Warnings: Fluff, other than that I think that’s it.

****

Say That Again

You sat curled up in your favorite chair in the back corner of the library and began to read, taking a break from your work. You were an archivist for the Library of the Woodland Realm, and you loved your job. Books were one of your favorite things in life, and so it was only natural for you to work in the library. Not only was it full of tomes of knowledge, but it was also absolutely stunning. Like everything else in the kingdom, it embodied nature, with smooth sweeping arches of stone and vines trailing along the walls. There were cuts in the stone to allow sunlight to brighten the dark, and the dust shone in the sunbeam on your table that was also illuminating your (h/c) hair, making it glow.

You looked up as someone plopped into the seat across from you. Legolas, Prince of the Woodland Realm, had started visiting the library rather suddenly several weeks ago, looking for answers about the blight and darkness that were spreading through the forest. Shocked at first about how much he cared about the forest, and then even more so at how interested he was in you, it had been rather awkward at first. He was the prince, and you were just another elf, of no importance. Despite your differences, you had become fast friends, although you had wished for more since you had first laid eyes on him, years ago.

He slammed a thick book down onto the table. “I think this one may contain the answers!” You glanced at the title. Blights of Nature and Their Causes. As much as you did not want to get your hopes up, this one looked promising.

“Where did you find this?” you flipped open the cover, admiring the pretty endpapers. Whoever had authored this book had clearly taken the time to make sure it was presentable.

“In the ‘Ancient Lore’ section, the top of the last shelf.” You could tell he had been in the far reaches of the library, he was absolutely covered in dust. You absentmindedly reached out to brush off his shoulder, making him blush, but you quickly withdrew your hand once you realized what you were doing.

“What were you doing back there?”

“I figured that we’ve had no luck looking in the places where it would make sense to find answers, so I looked in a place where it wouldn’t make sense.”

You chuckled at his explanation. “That may be the least-well thought out reasoning I have ever heard.”

“Nevertheless, this one might be it. I mean, it mentions blights in the title! What’s happening outside is definitely a blight.”

You could understand his excitement. You had been looking for some sort of explanation for weeks, and the darkness was only spreading. You bent over the book, head bowed next to his as you poured over the pages together.

Sometime later, you awoke, hearing a gasp, to find your head resting on Legolas’ chest. You were somehow lying between his legs with the book resting on your stomach as he peered at it over your shoulder. “What is it?” you responded to his cry, blinking groggily. “I think I’ve found something.” Your eyes scanned the page he was on, flying across the words as you searched for what he meant. They came to a rest on the line A spreading of darkness in a forest, and an infestation of dark creatures, often herald the arrival of dark sorcery.

“Dark sorcery?” you glanced up at him, your worry mirrored in his eyes looking back at you.

“It makes sense,” you could feel his mind spinning, sense his brain questioning, searching for an answer. “But what sorcery is strong enough to corrupt the Woodland Realm?”

“I do not know,” you replied. “But I fear for all our safety against one this powerful. We must learn who is doing this.”

“I know of someone who may be able to answer our questions.” Legolas strode into the library the next morning with a purposeful air. You looked up from your work. He was wearing a tunic and leather boots, like always, and his hair loose except for those two small braids on either side of his head. He looked, to put it simply, absolutely wonderful. But then, when did he not?

You were sure that you didn’t look half as put together- you had spent the whole night after he left-which was admittedly not much, he had stayed pretty late- pouring over ancient manuscripts and old texts, trying to find mention of any sorcerers powerful enough to corrupt a whole forest. You had found nothing, and looked rather worse for wear.

“Who?” you were frantically attempting to rein in your unruly hair as you spoke.

“Gandalf the Grey. I sent him a bird last night and he replied, he has found something most troubling and thinks it may be related. I’m traveling to Rivendell today on unrelated business and he’ll be there, so I’ll ask him then.”

Now you were busy brushing out your clothes and picking lint off of them. Legolas looked at you, eyes drawn from where they had been steadily focused on the wall behind you by your frantic movements. “Y/N, what are you doing?” He grabbed your hand. “I’m just… nothing.” You looked down in embarrassment, eyes firmly fixed on his boots. “You’re primping, aren’t you?” “Well, it’s not fair for you to just tramp in here looking perfect all the time!” You stepped back from him, realizing what you had just said. “Well, you- uh- you don’t look perfect, per se, more like… well put together!”

Your self-conscious stammering had just made you feel worse. “Look, Legolas. I’m sorry. I very much did not mean to say that.” “It’s ok, Y/N. I do look pretty great.” He did a little twirl to show off just how great, and you felt the blood rush to your cheeks again.

“Now, Y/N, you might want to go upstairs and grab some things for the road if we want to be out of the forest by midday.”

“Wait- I’m coming?”

“Of course, Y/N! You didn’t think that after all of the help you gave me you wouldn’t be included when we finally get our answer?”

Sheepishly, you nodded.

“Ok, well, go pack. I’ll put these books back and be waiting ready to go.”

“Thank you, Legolas!” you exclaimed as you turned to the door. “Love you!”

“What did you just say?” Legolas spoke, and you spun to see him, face pale with shock, leaning against your table.

“I said thanks.” It had been a passing comment, and you didn’t remember saying anything else. Until you did. “Oh, shit!” you clapped a hand over your mouth and internally smacked yourself. If he did not dislike me for my oddities before, he’ll hate me now, you thought.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Legolas. It was just a slip of the tongue, it meant nothing…” you trailed off as he stepped closer to you.

He grabbed your chin in his hand, gazing into your eyes. “Say that again.”

“It meant nothing?” you were so very confused.

“No, Y/N. The other thing.” He looked mildly exasperated with you now but was still gazing at you with that peculiar expression on his face.

“I love you?” you stammered, wondering if that was, in fact, the right thing to say.

“I love you too, Y/N.”

With this, his hand on your chin guided your lips to press against his. Finally, you thought as you melted into the kiss, surrendering yourself to him. You had wanted this for so long, and now it was finally happening. Your hands were tangled in his hair like you’d wanted them to be ever since you’d first met him. One of his was supporting your neck, and the other was wrapped around your back, pulling you closer into him.

Panting, you broke away. “I should go pack. We want to be on the road soon.” He nodded, seeming to come back to reality. “I’ll be waiting here when your ready, melleth nin.” He said the words to your retreating back, and as you heard them you smiled. Spinning around again, you strode back to him and grabbed his shirt to pull his lips down to yours. “We can wait ten more minutes, right?” “Of course.” He kissed you again, and you lost yourself in him, his arms wrapped around you, holding on to each other as you would be for the rest of your lives.

Everything tag 💖: @entishramblings @boyruins @itgetsatadhazy @anjhope1

Legolas tag: @sheriffgerard

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dirtyoatmeall · 3 years

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Bokuto’s Cool Sister (Tsukishima Kei x Reader)

A/N: Here is an actual fic! I have a list of shit to write I’m slowly working through, next will either be more head canons or a one shot. I’m re-watching AOT rn to get caught up with the new season so sorry about being absent! Luv u guys a lot

Pairing: Tsukishima x Bokuto sibling reader (No pronouns or gendered language used toward reader, not referred to as sister just used for title purposes), Bokuto x Akaashi, Kenma x Kuroo

Word Count: 2k! (longest ever!)

Warnings: Mentions of underage drinking (everyone at least 20), mentions of secs

~~~

You groaned as you neared the door to your apartment, seeing that the door was not cracked open a little for you to nudge open like you had asked your brother to do as you pulled into the complex. You remember him vaguely mentioning friends coming over, and you can hear music faintly coming from the apartment, but he always checks his phone, especially when you're coming from the store.

You try to balance the milk on your knee to open the door, and just as you think you have it, the door doesn’t budge. You close your eyes and take a deep breath. Your brother never locks the doors, why would he now? His car is in the parking lot and you can hear noise inside, so he’s home. Instead of putting groceries on the ground and fishing your keys out of your purse like a normal person, you make the decision to kick the door, not very hard, but hard enough to be heard in the apartment.

“Kou! Why is the door locked? Will you come open it for me, I have groceries!” You can hear your brother tumbling towards the door, apologies flying out of his mouth a mile a minute. The door swings open, revealing your brother, grimace on his face. “Sorry! I totally forgot you were at the store, I think ‘Kaashi might’ve locked it.” You sighed, not being able to stay mad at your brother’s friend.

You walk in, jerking your head in the general direction of the parking lot, “I have some more in my car, can you go grab it?” He nods, grabbing his key ring and jogging out. Both of you had the spare key to each other’s cars, which turned out to be more convenient then you originally thought.

You move toward the kitchen, yelling out a greeting to your brother’s boyfriend. “Akaashi! Next time you come over to fuck my brother let me know before so I can have my keys out, or just leave the door unlocked and go in his room!” You had a joking, yet scolding tone of voice, imagining his flustered state at your words. What you did not expect, was a hyena-like laugh to come from the direction of the living room. You were almost positive your brother said Akaashi was here.

You place the groceries on the counter and make your way to the living room, freezing in the doorway. Akaashi was there, but so were 3 other people. Akaashi was red, shaking his head that was resting in his palms. There was someone playing on a gaming console on the couch who had their legs thrown over the lap of the laughing one, and one on the other couch, tall and blonde, who looked weirdly familiar, who had a faint smirk on their face. You grimace, you didn’t realize your brother had actual friends over, he usually just meant Akaashi or the occasionally Hinata. “Oops sorry ‘Kaashi, didn't know Kou was having other people over.”

He lifted his head, face still slightly flushed and smiled. “It’s fine (Y/N)-san, do you need help with the groceries?” You shook your head, pointing behind you in the direction of the kitchen, where you could hear your brother rummaging around. “Nah, I made Koutaro get the rest. If you guys are staying for dinner let me know and I’ll make something instead of making him go to the food truck for me. By the way, who are the rest of you? I literally thought Kou was lying about having friends.”

The blonde one snorted, you narrowed your eyes slightly, he looked so familiar, you just couldn’t quite place it. The one playing the console seemed familiar too, you think you might’ve seen him on Twitter. The only one you didn’t recognize was the first to speak. “I’m Kuroo Tetsuro, we all played volleyball together in high school, I’m surprised he hasn’t talked about us before.”

You nod in understanding, “Oh so that’s where. I’m sure he has, I just probably wasn’t paying attention to what he was saying. I mean you guys seem kinda familiar, more the other two than you, were you like benched a lot?” The quiet one next to him looks up to see his reaction and snorts at the disbelief on Kuroo’s face. “Yeah, Kuro wasn’t very good.” The half blonde says, giggling softly as Kuroo gasps and yells at him. “Kenma!” He turns to you, “I was the captain and a very good player actually.” You laugh as Kenma behind him makes a face that says ‘That’s what you think.’ Before Kuroo could whine some more, Akaashi speaks.

“Kenma-san is a YouTuber, which is probably where you’ve seen him. He and Kuroo-san played for Nekoma, I’m surprised you didn’t remember them from that, you remembered Lev-san.” Kenma actually laughs at that, and Kuroo is pouting as Akaashi continues, a cheeky smile on his face that told you he purposefully sprinkled that last little tidbit in.

“Tsukishima-san, aren’t you a museum-studies major?” The blonde on the loveseat across from the other three nods, and you snap your fingers, finally realizing where you know him from. “Oh, that makes sense! I think we’ve had a class or two together. I’m an archaeology major.” Tsukishima’s eyebrows raise in surprise, but before he could speak, your brother finally comes in from the kitchen.

“(Y/NNNNN), I put everything away, we were going to go to Onigiri Miya tonight, wanna come?” You nod and swat at his had when he ruffles your hair before plopping down to his boyfriend. You go to leave your brother and his friends, taking one last glance at Tsukishima, who seemed to have the same idea, he averted his eyes the moment yours met, and you smirked to yourself on the way to the kitchen to re-put away the groceries. You loved your brother, but he definitely did not know where to put things, your thought validified as you pull the eggs from the pantry, switching it with the instant ramen packets in the fridge. Good thing he was a great volleyball player. ` Later that night, you join the boys for dinner at Onigiri Miya. You take two separate cars, you driving your brother and Akaashi and Kuroo driving Kenma and Tsukishima. Kuroo made a joke about racing there, which you took as a personal challenge, much to the dismay of Akaashi. You would’ve won too, but you had to pull over to kick Koutaro in the backseat for playing Nickelback. He buys your food as an apology, and Kuroo’s food because he won (you venomed him later for your share of food, which he promptly venomed back to you with angry faces in the description.). The 6 of you sat in a corner booth, you were sandwiched between Akaashi and Tsukkishima with Kuroo between your brother and Kenma on the other side.

The table was loud with jokes, laughing, and yelling as everyone ate their meals. You snuck drinks of ‘Akaashi’s’ margarita when the waitress wasn’t looking (You were 20 and Akaashi submits to peer pressure from you easily). “(Y/N), are you not 21 yet?” Kuroo asked as he watched you nudge the drink toward Akaashi as the waitress talked to the other table. You turned to Kuroo, cheeks just barely flushed. “Hm? Oh no I’m not, I’m two years younger than you guys, I turn 21 in a few months.”

Kuroo hummed in understanding and got a suspiciously mischievous look on his face. “Oh, you’re the same age as Tsukkishima, and you guys have similar majors, how interesting” Your eyebrows furrow and you snort. “So do over a thousand other people Kuroo, its not a super niche subject.” You turn to Tsukkishima and continue, “Hm I didn’t realize we were in the same year, I thought you were older, must be your grumpy grandpa like disposition.” Akaashi explained what disposition meant to your brother and Kuroo snickered before he was shut down by Kenma, who has been doing an excellent job of roasting Kuroo at every chance he gets. “You laugh like everyone doesn’t call you old man behind your back.”

You laughed for the umpth time that night, Tsukishima watching you, he could really see the sibling resemblance when you laughed. You throw your head back and laugh loudly, from your gut much like your brother. Tsukishima looks away from you, catching Kuroos eye in the process, the blonde rolls his eyes at the smirk on Kuroos face. Out of the 5 of them, he was the only one not in a relationship and Kuroo has been trying to set him up since Bokuto and Akaashi finally got together at Akaashi’s graduation.

Tsukishima looks at you again, watching you take a sip of the margarita, and subsequently watches it almost come out of your nose as you laugh at something Akaashi said to Bokuto, clutching the former's shoulder, hand over your nose. There was no doubt that you were pretty, and you did have similar interests. His thoughts were interrupted by you turning to him, knee-knocking against his thigh. “Have you taken Anth 267?” He nods “I took it last quarter.” He replies and watches you sigh in relief. “Oh thank god, I’m having trouble meeting her insane essay expectations. I usually have ‘Kaashi read through mine but would it be ok if I sent them to you? Or at least bounced topics off you?” When he agrees you smile, unlocking your phone and sliding it towards him, a new contact open. “Oh great, here, why don’t you put your number in?” As he fills it out, his eyes involuntarily flit to the text message appearing at the top of your screen. From: That Sunny Bitch

Ew you think Tsukki’s hot? He’s a good volleyball player but he was a meanie in high school 😝

He held back the urge to smirk. That must be Hinata based on the name. He quickly finished the contact and gave your phone back before giving his to you, and you quickly typed in your contact info, as well as snapping a quick contact photo. It was super close to your face with your tongue out, a good tell of your personality. You give his phone back and the two of you talk more about school and classes before everyone gets ready to leave.

Your brother stands up first, and you take advantage of his large frame and chug the rest of the margarita down, smiling big at Akaashi who chastises you about drinking it so fast. You all wave to Osamu as you leave, and before Tsukishima can get to Kuroo’s car, he turns to the group, smirking. “I've got to run Kenma by our apartment to grab his charger, we’ll meet you guys.” You nod, handing your keys to Akaashi and turn to Tsukishima. “You can sit in the back with me Tsukishima!” Though you might be promoted to passenger if Bokuto makes bad music choices again.” You glare at your brother as you finish the sentence, and he whines about how his taste ‘isn’t that bad!’

The car ride back to your apartment is short, and you spend it chatting with Tsukki, as you’re now allowed to call him, and you spend the rest of the night with the boys, playing games and watching movies until early morning. Kuroo and Kenma leave first, and Kenma made your night when he looked you in the eye and said goodbye. Tsukki left about an hour later, his roommate picked him up. Akaashi ended up staying over, and you were glad your bedroom was on the other side of the apartment from your brother’s. You fell into bed content with the day, happy you were able to meet your brother’s friends.

You awoke mid-day, and you browsed your notifications before dropping your phone on your bed when you read one text message, heat spreading over your cheeks. You definitely do not remember changing his contact name.

From: Hot classmate Tsukki

Hey, how about we go over your essay over some coffee tonight?

#my writing #haikyuu!!#haikyuu #haikyu #haikyuu x you #haikyuu tsukishima #tsukishima kei #tsukishima x y/n #tsukishima x reader #tsukishima kei x reader #haikyuu x y/n #haikyuu x reader #tsukishima x you #tsukishima kei x you

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pappydaddy · 4 years

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Opposites (s.h.)

A/N: This is for the request asking for a Steve x Reader where the reader was like Jade West from Victorious (also known as one of my bi awakenings). I am sorry for the delay, this Thanksgiving was crazy (I’m Canadian) and there was so much to do! I tried my best to write the reader like Jade without having her not vibe with the kids bc we all know that the kids come first with Steve. Now, without farther ado, here is the request! Hope you like it lovely Anon!!

Edit: I changed the name bc there are so many fics under the name Opposites Attract😅.

pairing: steve harrington x fem!reader

show/movie: stranger things

requested

warnings: fluff??

masterlist | taglist | wips | navigation

- not my gif -

Opposites attract. Something everyone has heard before. It can be applied to magnets or to relationships. While there was no denying that when it came to magnetic pulls, opposites did indeed attract, but Steve was never too sure about it in a relationship sense. He had always gone after girls who fit his lifestyle. Parties, the popular crowd, the girls who fit in to societies expectations. It wasn’t until he had met Y/N that he had realized that maybe everyone was right. Just like magnets, opposites attract did apply to relationships as well. He could not think Robin enough for introducing the hard headed, sometimes (all the time) scary girl who Steve would have never approached. A goofy guy such as Steve paired with the rocker chick who intimidated nearly everyone? Steve had never thought that would be possible outside of the movies.

Now, here Steve sat on Dustin’s couch as he bounced his knee, the party bickering all around him as they tried to figure out what they were going to do today. “Why would we watch movie’s all day, we always watch movies, Dustin!” Lucas exclaimed from where he sat on the floor next to Max. Dustin looked up from the pile of VHS tapes he had already selected before hand.

“Because movies are awesome and clearly the best option right now,” Dustin answered as if it was obvious. “Nobody can agree on one place, so the logical solution is to stay here and watch a movie.” He shrugged, shuffling through the tapes once again, ignoring Lucas’ groans of protest. Steve tuned them out the best he could as he watched the front door, willing for it to open revealing the two missing members of the party.

“Dustin has a point, Lucas.” Max piped up, not even looking up from watching the titles of the movies Dustin was debating on.

“Why,” Lucas asked simply, turning his head to face her in an exaggerated fashion. “Just why,” He repeated. “Why do you think it’s better to sit here and watch movies all day as opposed to going to a bowling alley?”

“I’d rather watch movies than go to a bowling alley, but we are clearly forgetting the best option brought up,” Mike inserted himself into the conversation again, banging his pointer finger against the coffee table before continuing. “The Arcade. There is a huge re-opening deal and a ton of new games!”

“We’re not going to the Arcade, it’ll be too crowded to have fun as a group!” Dustin turned Mike’s idea down once again.

“And sitting in a dark living room all day watching movies will be a fun group bonding experience?” Mike snapped back, sending the three boys into a tailspin of bickering. Steve and Max both heaved out sighs at the same time just as the front door opened, Robin walking in first followed by Y/N. The two girls ceased their previous conversation, blinking at the chaos ensuing.

“Finally, what took you two so long?” Steve leapt from his spot on the couch, rushing over to the pair, his eyes wide with relief. Instantly, he wrapped Y/N in a tight hug. The girl tensed for a second before melting into his hug, patting his back with one had. She wasn’t much for hugs, not being an overly affectionate person in general, but she couldn’t help but to lean a bit closer to Steve whenever he was affectionate towards her.

“Sorry, Stevie-boy,” Robin apologized half-heartedly, plopping herself down in the spot he once occupied. “Y/N got caught up trying to decide which Stephen King book to buy and then she saw the Stephen King display they had put up.”

“Ended up getting Cycle of the Werewolf, it came out a few years ago, but I was too wrapped up in the release of Cujo to focus on his book releases,” She told him, not even waiting for him to ask. She pulled out of his grasp, reaching into the bag she carried to hand him the book. Steve shivered slightly, not understanding how she could read or watch Stephen King’s books without getting the slightest bit scared. “But I couldn’t pass on the great deal they had on, they had Danse Macabre for half off so they could get make room for another shipment.” She pulled the second book out of the bag, walking passed Steve who read over the back of the book he held, eyeing the words as if they would jump off the page at him.

“That’s great, Y/N, but we need you and Robin to help us decide what to do for the rest of the day,” Dustin interrupted the girl, earning a glare from her (which he ignored). Y/N sat on the middle cushion beside Robin who dug through her own bag to retrieve her own book: Dark Companions. “Lucas wants to go to a bowling alley-”

“I would rather stab my eyes with rusty scissors then go to a bowling alley.” Y/N cut him off, flicking through the pages of her new book. Dustin laughed in victory as Lucas gave Dustin a warning look in return.

“We didn’t get to hear what Robin thought.” Lucas pointed out, hoping that Robin would be his saving grace, but his hope was quickly shot down.

“I’m with Y/N,” She stated, looking up from her book. “I hate those places, they are a cesspool of germs. Kids pick their noses then use their booger covered fingers to pick up a ball.” She turned her nose up at the idea. Lucas slumped back in defeat, Max sending him a sympathetic smile despite her internal happiness that she didn’t have to go to the bowling alley. Steve hid his own excitement as he sat down on the other side of Y/N, slinging his arm over her shoulders as she began to read her book.

“How about the Arcade, huh? You guys can watch us play awesome games and not touch anything!” Mike brought up his idea, trying to sell the girls on it. Robin shook her head instantly.

“Arcades are my personal hell,” Y/N grumbled, flipping the page. “Kids running around screaming and the noises from the games. It’s nauseating.” She cringed at the thought of it.

“So that leaves watching movies here then.” Dustin smiled brightly, showing his still missing teeth. Mike and Lucas groaned, flopping back on the floor dramatically, missing the way Y/N’s face twisted into a scowl and Robin’s nose turned up once again.

“Sitting here all day watching movies?” Robin asked.

“I would rather stuff myself into a wood-chipper.” Y/N commented once again, her eyes never lifting off her page. This prompted Lucas and Mike to shoot back up, smiling widely at Dustin’s defeat.

“Hey, isn’t there that band stopping by to preform a little outdoor concert, super low-key and free?” Max finally brought up the idea she had been sitting on the whole time. She knew that Robin and Y/N would have backed her up, but the boys would have shot the idea down immediately. Y/N and Robin slowly lifted their heads, intrigued by Max’s idea.

“So? What band would be coming to Hawkins to play a free show? Are they even worth seeing?” Mike lifted his upper lip in a grimace as he got ready to shoot the idea down.

“Yes, they are,” Max narrowed her eyes at the boy. “It’s a relatively new rock band, kinda like Def Leppard meets Guns N’ Roses meets AC/DC. They are playing free shows in smaller towns to build a name for themselves, all their earnings come from their merch sales.”

“Now that,” Y/N finally closed her book, setting it on the coffee table as she uncrossed her legs. Leaning her elbows on her knees, she clasped her hands together and pointed her pointer fingers at Max, a smirk playing on her dark painted lips. “That sounds awesome.” She unclasped her hands to high-five Max, the red-head beyond happy that her idea was chosen.

“It does sound really cool,” Robin nodded, sharing a look with Y/N and Max. “I’m down.”

“You know what,” Steve finally spoke up, bobbing his head, a goofy smile on his face as his eyes gazed at Y/N as she leaned back under his arm, looking up at him. “I’m in too. I could use a good concert.”

“You’re just agreeing because your girlfriend wants to go!” Mike accused, earning two glares from Y/N and Steve. He shrunk back under Y/N’s hard glare.

“Come on, guys,” Steve encouraged. “You guys could actually like their music, you might even find a new interest or meet some new people,” He tried to sell the reluctant teen boys. They hummed, actually listening to him. “There really isn’t any harm in going.” They nodded, muttering their lack-luster agreements in choosing the concert.

“Forget all that mushy, positive shit,” Y/N waved her hand at Steve’s sappy selling of the concert. “Just go and live outside of your comfort zone, taint your innocent, pure souls. You will thank me later, trust me.”

“Are you corrupting my kids?” Steve asked her as the boys all hollered ‘yeahs’ and hopped around the room as if they were tough. Max and Robin rolled their eyes at them, but Y/N looked back up at Steve, a sparkle in her eyes.

“Yeah, someone had to undo all the goofiness you instilled in them - make ‘em cooler.” He smiled down at her, pressing his lips against hers softly as the boy’s continued on. The roudiness melted away as they shared a loving kiss. As their lips pulled away reluctantly, parting the sweet kiss. Steve was never more sure that they were living proof of opposites attracting.

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cno-inbminor · 3 years

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hello, kay! i hope you've been taking care of yourself well and that life has been kind to you for the most part. i want to ask, how do you feel about kita shinsuke? your akaashi is exquisite and incredibly characterized that i always find myself coming back to your stories should i need my keiji fics, and i realized that it would probably be really interesting (and beautiful) to meet kita through your words. no pressure, tho! as always, i am grateful for whatever you write. ♡ all the love x

you’re an absolute sweetie -- i hope you’ve been well too! i’m honestly at my wit’s end but we’ll survive somehow, right? ahahaha // i’m still incredibly flustered whenever someone mentions how much they like my keiji characterization -- he’s one of the ultimate comfort characters for sure! so thank you for giving my keiji fics that honor <3

i’ve definitely developed some love for kita over time! i love anyone who’s incredibly dependable -- my love language (that i’ve recently re-discovered) is acts of service and i can see him embodying that!

i got carried away: here’s ~1.7k of some hazy kita appreciation, or some strangers-to-lovers ideas sprinkled together. my brain has died from finals, but i hope you like this anon!

the first time that kita shinsuke even crosses your mind, you mistakenly think, “he’s certainly a bit dull.”

it’s not that you forgot he existed by any means -- the boy certainly carries a presence and emanates it in a calm, quiet manner. you just can’t remember him saying anything that wasn’t related to speaking out loud in class or social pleasantries. he’s certainly not much more than a blank canvas to you, and the only splotch of color thrown on is that he’s a member of your nationally recognized volleyball team. other than that, you know nothing else.

it all changes when you two are paired for classroom cleaning duties your third year.

when your homeroom teacher announces your name after his, you glance away from the window to the boy sitting diagonally in front of you to your right. his back sits upright, elbows bent to indicate he’s probably sitting with his hands linked on top of his desk, legs still and placed together underneath the wood. besides the two-toned grey and black hair, you would think he’d be the perfect poster child for japanese education.

the first morning of cleaning duties, you’re sprinting through the halls in your slippers, hoping that the student council president isn’t anywhere near your classroom. the subway was absolutely packed and nobody seemed to be in the usual pace of the morning rush, which caused some delays and for you to cut it very close. you slide open the class door with all the force you can muster, panting and out of breath with apologies falling off your tongue. unbeknownst to you, your brain had been expecting kita to give you a small smile and ensure that it was okay for your two minute tardiness -- instead, you were at the receiving end of a blank yet heavy stare, and seemingly scathing words of, “don’t be late next time.”

your second thought of kita is that he’s too rigid and austere for a seventeen year old. bitterness festers in your chest as you practically stomp towards your desk, setting your stuff down before you head to the erasers in front of the chalkboard. even though there isn’t much dust left on them, you’re searching for excuses to calm down and be a little more level-headed.

you’re so caught up in your thoughts and staring out into the open sky that you don’t register kita’s presence looming near. but it’s his timbre voice that startles you out of your stupor, though they’re nothing more special than, “you can sweep the other half of the classroom. i’m getting started on the desks,” and he walks away.

in gliding the bristles over the wooden floor, you take another peek at your partner for the time being. it’s hard to miss the way he methodically cleans each wooden surface, leaving no corner unwiped, no speck of dust lingering. something about it is somewhat endearing to you, a rather drastic juxtaposition to how you were feeling not too long ago. maybe you were wrong about him -- kita shinsuke might still be a little boring to you, but he’s just...diligent.

in home ec, you’re partnered up with ojiro aran (which proves to be in the best of your luck). but he’s good with small talk, and it’s not like you two have never spoken before. so three weeks later over the folding of meringue into the other batter, you decide to pop the question of, “what’s kita-san like as captain?”

aran can’t contain his muted surprise at your inquiry, seeing as you two rarely ever get into the details of his volleyball playing, much less so about his team. but it doesn’t stop him from giving a truthful answer, “he’s no nonsense, keeps everyone in line. we have some rowdy underclassmen and no one scares them more than shinsuke.”

“a hardass?”

“when he needs to be,” aran chuckles. “but he’s very thoughtful and goes out of his way to care for everyone. the guy lives and breathes by routine.”

there’s something that stirs within you, a small flame being lit, one that flares the next morning when kita walks by your desk and greets you, “good morning, l/n-san.” seeing as he usually never does, you stumble over your reply and shock, all the while berating your heart for beating as fast as it is. kita’s just being polite and using social pleasantries, nothing more.

but he does it the next morning, and then the next, and even incorporates, “how are you?” into his line of words on days you two clean. little by little, you get to know more about him -- not a lot, but enough to correct yourself for ever thinking that he’s a dull, austere, mean human being. you tell yourself it’s nothing more, especially when you start looking forward to their games and join the student cheering squad. it’s nothing when you eagerly await for the moments that kita gets subbed in; absolutely nothing when he looks away from the court and into the crowd, catching your eyes and allowing his lips to slip into a demure smile before turning back around. the pounding of your heart and sweating of your hands aren’t related at all, just physiological effects of the game.

and before you know it, graduation comes around and you think you’ll never see him again after this. you’re laughing and taking pictures with your classmates, later spotting aran over the crowd of families. he catches your waving arm and bounding figure, bright grin on his face as he congratulates you. “i’ll miss you all,” you confess and aran affectionately pats your head. “same here. have you seen shinsuke?”

your brows furrow. “no, why? is he looking for me?”

“you sound confused by that. weren’t you two friends?”

“i wouldn’t overassume that...but i doubt i’m on his mind right now.”

aran only nods and adopts a pensive look, taking a moment to think before confessing, “you meant something to him. after all, he greeted you every morning, right?”

you nod. “but what does that have to do with anything?”

aran’s parents interrupt and attempt to drag him away before he can answer, but he beckons for them to give him another minute. quickly, he pulls you into a one-arm hug, telling you over the bustling crowd, “you were part of his routine.”

you’re stunned, frozen in your tracks as aran and his family walk away. their departure creates some space between everyone, and you find yourself looking straight into the golden eyes of the man that had been plaguing your thoughts for months now. he doesn’t back down, not out of defiance though -- rather, he seems to be trying to convey that he sees you, acknowledges your existence and long wedged a placeholder for you in his life.

but the spell is broken when one of your relatives tugs on your arm for you to leave and go home for a big lunch celebration, and that’s the last you see of him.

at least for the next two years. you have a part-time job at osamu’s onigiri shop, having met the man in some cooking classes over the years. while you’re up front most of the time, you occasionally help out in the kitchen during rush hours. evidently, you missed any of the information on the exact source of the rice, remembering nothing more than the fact it was special and held a certain place in osamu’s heart -- because when kita shinsuke walks in to make a special, personal visit, your brain splutters and ceases all deep cognitive functioning.

he looks well, happy, strong, more than he did back in high school. the same air of confidence still surrounds him and encases the entirety of the shop, and instincts nearly have you dropping to your knees so you can hide behind the counter and catch your breath.

“oh shinsuke, you’re here!” osamu calls out from behind you, popping out of the kitchen to help with the rice bags. the most you can muster is a gentle bow before messing with the cash register, pretending to be busy organizing receipts and bills. you tune out most of the conversation cleaning counters, checking customers out, wiping down tables, and anything else that’ll take your mind off the guy your heart could never seem to forget.

but osamu bidding goodbye to kita snaps you out of your reverie. and instead of walking towards the door, kita’s figure approaches you until there’s nothing but 5 feet of wood between the two of you. “it’s good to see you,” he greets softly, a gentle expression casting onto his face and tone.

“i-it’s good to see you too, kita-san,” you barely reply in time, doing everything you can to fight the blood rushing into your face.

“i’d like to take you out for coffee when your shift is over, if that’s okay.”

oh.

“oh, well, yes, but um, my shift doesn’t end for another hour and--”

“oh, you’re good to go for the rest of the day,” osamu calls out with his head popped out the kitchen door, sending a knowing look towards his former captain. in fact, you remember that the owner had been somewhat insistent that you come work today of all days and you never knew why...until now.

that fucker.

shinsuke’s eyes glimmer as the realization hits you, the same demure smile as the one he sent you all those years ago during a volleyball game sitting on his lips. excitement bubbles within you, and you attempt to tease, “only if you can untie my apron for me?”

there’s no hesitation in his demeanor as he walks around the counter and plants himself right in front of you, mere centimeters between the tips of your shoes and his. you can’t bear to look away as an arm reaches around easily undo the bow at your lower back. neither do you miss the ghosting of his fingertips at your waist that burn through the cotton of your t-shirt, and you’re just thankful that no customers are around to witness this heated, intimate moment.

“lead the way, captain,” you can’t help but say. something dark and dangerous crosses his eyes, sending a thrilling shiver down your spine. and you think that yes, yes indeed, you’d like to see those eyes more often if you can.

#kita x reader #kita shinsuke #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu!!#kita #kita shinsuke x reader #anon #sweet child

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inheritorofmemories-archive · 3 years

Text

Andromaquynh Tomb Raider AU

I keep seeing those Indiana Joe fics and Mummy au post for joe/nicky and they are all very nice and cool but you know which galaxy brain idea no one has explored yet? Tomb raider AU for andy/quynh. Luckily I have nothing but time on my hands so strap in.

I re-watched the first tomb raider the other day (yes, the 2001 movie. Yes it’s 20 years old.) and the Croft universe can actually fit pretty well with Andy and Quynh with some tweaks and changes. I’ll preface this post by saying that raiding tombs and any ancient place really is not ethical At All and stealing artifacts shouldn’t happen in any way and the black market for cultural goods is an enormous spider web with ramification all over the world that is actually incredibly nefast to pretty much everything from sciences to culture to human societies and economy (look it up, it’s way bigger than just a stolen vase sold in a small market) so I’ll refer to this AU as Tomb Raider but know that what I really mean is Andy and Quynh protecting ancient sites and relics from companies and museums and the likes.

Go under the cut to read the rest of my detailed idea of what it would look like.

As much as I like the sci-fi and magic elements of the series, I really think a more grounded feel for this AU would fit them better. So no gods or illuminates or magic relics, sorry. Instead, I see this as them being adventurers who decide to put their skillset to good use and protect sites and places and objects and cultures from capitalism, stealing, overexploitation, appropriation and destruction.

Andy is Lara Croft obviously. She’s the daughter of an archeologist who mysteriously died during an excursion and fueled her will to go in the same field as her parent. Because we like complex characters in this house, I want Andy to start by actually raiding and selling from ancient sites at the beginning of her career because she's young and never learned better before she comes up close to the direct consequences of that particular market and she decides she wants no part of it. It allows for an exploration of real-world issues but it also gives her a deeper backstory and a proactive choice in being the character she is because I’m a sucker for the idea that you are not born good but you chose to be. After that, she'll keep the exploring part of her job but instead of stealing relics she’ll find lost places and give the coordinates to scientists. Daytime she uses the fonds of her family to support initiatives to protect places and restore art and goods to their rightful owners, the rest of the time she goes on cool adventures all over the world to get her hands dirty when legal means cannot get it done.

This is where Quynh comes into the picture. She’s one of Andy’s associates but not really they're in love and married. In the series, Croft has numerous allies that help her out either by giving tips or identifying objects, etc... I can totally see Andy going to Quynh for information about a particular site or object and them sticking together for the rest of the adventure and not leaving each other. Or, even funnier, Quynh has her own little business of going in the field to get things done, they run into each other and then keep running together. I really want Quynh to be a marine biologist and environment activist that also has a background in law because I think she deserves the right to legally bankrupt assholes, as a treat. Andy is exploring an underwater temple when she runs into Quynh doing plant analysis right there, they realize the site and the entire ecosystem is endangered by X industrial complex throwing their waste in the water and they bring it down while flirting and then it takes a year of adventures together and Andy who keeps finding excuses to go seek Quynh's counsel before they get together. And then, power couple who by daytime do activist work and advocate for the protection of sites and the environment and who by night dress in black and go sabotage factories, steal info to leak as whistleblowers and give various object and art back to their owners.

As a side plot that (kinda) follows canon, one of their mission goes wrong and Quynh doesn't get out with them, she's missing and they cannot find any trace of her for months/a few years and they think she's dead until Lykon locates her and they find out she's in prison somewhere. They go break her out and there's angst because Quynh believes she was forgotten by them until they talk it out and also deal with the trauma by going to therapy and bringing down the corporation that had Quynh thrown in jail. Power of love and bombs baby. After that they are much more careful but they keep doing it because they believe in the good of their work.

Also, a thing you don’t see really in the movies but is very present in the game series, about half the story if not two-thirds is spent on resolving enigmas and mysteries, not action. Sure Croft knows how to shoot and is a good fighter but the most important part is her brain and knowledge and associate in various fields (and that she seeks the help of, she's not a mary sue she has limits and has people who assist her). She thinks more than she fights and I really want to see that on Andy and Quynh, them thoroughly researching a subject, planing their op, getting info on people, going to recover intel and tools and associates and also using legal means to get things done and only going to the illegal method in last resort, and even then I want to see stealth mission with no big fight like Sudan in the movie rather than going in with a boom. Basically, show how important their brains are to the overall plot.

I also really want to add Lykon to the mix because their dynamic seems really cool from what we've seen in the movie and also from fanon and he deserves nice things okay. So he’s the tech genius that comes in the team a few years later when they're well established but technology starts to evolve and they're not the best at navigating it but Lykon is, he's the best at electrical systems and robots, internet and all the new tech. He'll help them break into places and do recon op. And then they become this tight-knit family of multiple doctorates and scientists and activists that also have a side business no one knows about (except the world knows there are people protecting the environment and cultural goods from destruction and their nickname in news press totally is The Old Guards okay).

And to end it beautifully, Andy Quynh and Lykon are a badass team for 20 years until Lykon decides to have a family so he cannot keep getting in danger and he retires to teach (happy AU, no death) and Andy and Quynh at 40 and some years old stumbles upon Nile who is starting in the field of archeology and art history and they’ll work together, thus passing the torch down to the newest generation. And you can even have a crossover with Indiana Joe and Nicky doing their things in their corner and they met on one mission, Booker can be a forger they hire from time to time to get false papers, all of them can meet and work together to fight Big Bad Guy Merrick, the possibilities are endless really once you get into the Archeological Actions Cinematic Universe (which is a genre on its own apparently).

Maybe one day I'll get to write this who knows, but I really needed to get the idea out of my head so this post shall be enough for the time being. Feel free to write or draw something from this, there's never too much Andy/Quynh content. And also, add to this post! These are just my thoughts and ideas but I would love to hear more if you have them, consider this an open discussion board about this very specific AU that has been living in my head since late summer.

#andromaquynh #andy x quynh #immortal wives #andromache the scythian #quynh #lykon #tog #the old guard #tog au #the old guard au #andy & quynh & lykon #em speaks

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anextraordinarymuse · 3 years

Text

Thoughts on 1x01: Pilot

So @jonesgirl88 and I have been struggling to nail down the timeline of Signed, Sealed, Delivered (Katie likes puzzles and I'm an analyzer, but it's also helpful for fic writing purposes). I went back and re-watched it all from the very first episode, and, well ... I have Thoughts™.

First, and unrelated to anything to do with Oliver x Shane ... Oliver had some great one liners in the pilot. "I have a government service pay level higher than you can count", and "It's Shakespeare, peasants." Perfection!

Okay, at the time of the pilot we learn that Shane's dad has died some time in the last 14 months. We also learn that her dad is the reason that Shane is a rule breaker now despite being a rule follower at heart (she went to see him in the hospital, was turned away because it was outside of visiting hours, and then her dad died in the night before she could work things out with him/apologize/say goodbye). So, Shane's rebellious streak is fairly new when she meets Oliver. Also, Oliver and Shane are (at heart) more alike than either of them initially realizes.

Charlie and Kelly (the letter and characters that the pilot story follows) and their story foreshadows Oliver and Shane's story, but you only start to understand that on a second watch through. (Actually, in many ways, every story in every episode mirrors Oliver and Shane and their journey to each other to some extent). Examples: Charlie is working at a job that is just a job to him and is stuck in a rut when he meets Kelly (this is Shane; she tells Oliver that their job is "just a job, not some woo woo spiritual journey."); Kelly isn't really living her life because she's dying and has mostly accepted it, but changes her mind and wants to live after she meets Charlie (this is Oliver; he's alive but not living, and it's only Shane's arrival that makes him want to change). Kelly and Charlie spend one day together and then are separated for a year - a year in which Kelly has to put in the time and the effort to change and get better (health-wise) before she can meet Charlie where he is when she meets him. He's ready to jump in feet first immediately, but Kelly isn't.

Shane is ready to jump in feet first immediately when she meets Oliver, but Oliver has work that he has to do before he can meet her where she is (not just Holly, but in figuring out how to let himself move on and learn to live again).

Shane picks up on the fact that Rita has feelings for Norman as soon as meets them despite the fact that Norman is totally clueless. When they're in the bar toward the end of the episode, Rita asks Norman to dance and he redirects and asks to play shuffle board instead. The camera shows us both Shane and Oliver's reaction to that: Oliver's expression is more subtle, but they both know that Norman is missing the point and a chance right there by declining. After Norman and Rita walk away, Shane says "she has a terrible crush on him, you know that right?" And Oliver replies "that's very insightful, considering she absolutely terrifies him." Who says which line is very telling here (as we'll soon start to see): Shane has a terrible crush on Oliver, and she terrifies him. Mostly because she is unwilling to let him stay frozen: Shane expects more from Oliver than anyone else he knows and won't let him remain stuck. We can safely say even from this pilot episode that Oliver isn't the biggest fan of change, and can be very resistant to it (but will eventually warm up to change, given time).

On a side note, and I've already mentioned this before, but Oliver and Shane have absolutely zero concept of personal space from the get go. 90% of the time they stand close enough to touch each other for absolutely no reason. (Their arms and shoulders often brush or touch each other). And in almost every shot where it shows the four of our postables standing together, Shane is alone on one side of Oliver and Norman and Rita default to the other side, or Shane and Oliver are next to each other regardless of where Rita and Norman are standing. The only time Rita or Norman stand or sit between Oliver and Shane is when they aren't getting along; otherwise, there's literally nothing (physical) separating Shane and Oliver. This blocking visually establishes the connection between these two, and it does it right from the start.

Here's examples of what I mean about the blocking.

Example 1:

Example 2:

Example 3:

Example 4:

Oliver and Shane start healing each other from day one. They start giving up little pieces of their pain and trauma immediately. Oliver tells Shane about his wife; Shane tells him about her dad; she calls him out on not facing the truth and finding his wife; he calls her out on not wanting to open her birthday card and face her pain. But at the end of the episode, they both rise to the other person's challenge: Oliver gives Charlie a sewing kit that he took from the hotel in DC that he stayed in when Holly left him (literally giving away a piece of his pain); Shane opens her birthday card from her father and uses the $20 inside to buy coffee for herself and the others. Shane and Oliver are each other's catalyst for change and healing.

Oliver's change is also reflected in the fate of the DLO. At one point in the pilot the DLO is being shut down because it's no longer viable/has outlived its purpose. At the end of the episode, rather than being shut down the DLO is actually expanded (or, you know ... it grows/changes). Oliver is the DLO, and both needed Shane's arrival and presence to move forward.

Remember a few paragraphs ago when I said that Oliver and Shane both witnessed Norman's missed (or given up) opportunity to dance with Rita? Well, Oliver doesn't miss or pass up his chance to dance with Shane even though we learn later on that he apparently doesn't dance. Shane has already challenged and goaded Oliver several times in the episode by this point (even pleaded with him at one point) and he has ignored several of them or resisted her ideas and influence, but he still doesn't let this opportunity go without answer. In fact, it's interesting that in a professional capacity Oliver is rather resistant to Shane and her influence: he won't keep reading the letter, he won't just deliver the letter to Charlie even though they're standing right outside his house ... Oliver won't step out of bounds despite all of Shane's pleading and prodding. But personally? Oliver blows right through his self-imposed boundaries. During their first meeting Oliver says he won't call her Shane, but he proceeds to do it twice later in the episode (once even calling her "my dear Shane"); she tries to leave and he immediately goes after her and doesn't accept her attempt to quit; we only find this one out later, but apparently Oliver doesn't dance ... yet he dances with Shane the first time she asks.

This is a masterful way to introduce us to the division and dichotomy that exists in Oliver (and that becomes more apparent as we go, specifically between Holly and Shane). One of my favorite things about this show is how they establish Shane and Oliver's connection not just from the beginning, but through multiple mediums and layers.

We'll explore all of this more in episode two.

#sholiver #shane x oliver #oliver x shane #if you didn't already know it by now I should mention #that I'm an analyzer and have absolutely zero chill #and don't know how to write a short meta or analysis on apparently anything

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heauxplesslydevoted · 4 years

Text

Cat & Mouse

Summary: A re-imaging of the restaurant scene in chapter 2.

A/N: OH2 is supplying us with such good content. The fic ideas that have popped into my head are just *chef’s kiss*

Warning: Just a teensy bit naughty

Tags: @ao719 @x-kyne-x @paulfwesley @ramseyandrys @choicesobsessedd @a-i-n-a-a-s-h @sparklinglilac @cream-ray @perriewinklenerdie @barricades-of-freedom @dr-brianna-casey-valentine @doroshi-desu @aworldoffandoms @thatcatlady0716 @drakewalker04 @canknot @lapisreviewsstuff @akacalliope @senseofduties @badchoicesposts @ethandaddyramsey @the-soot-sprite @chasingrobbie @zodiacsign1 @choices-lurker @miyakokurono @trappedinfandoms

~v~

The restaurant Governor Rivera picked is amazing, Naomi can’t deny it. Everything at Chez Pierre feels luxurious, pleasing her senses. The view is spectacular, the Boston skyline lit up beautifully this time of night, the drinks are great—Naomi has never had such an amazing raspberry margarita before—and the food is unlike anything she’s ever had.

The conversation is flowing freely, as well as the drinks. The governor smiles warmly at her, but the older woman’s gaze is intense. “So Naomi, what does Edenbrook’s bright future look like to you?”

Naomi gulps. She wasn’t expecting to be put on the spot like that.

But she squares her shoulders and looks the governor head on. “I think it lies in our community.” She glances around the table, making eye contact with her fellow doctors. “That’s why we got into this line of work. To help people. Those same patients go back into the community and help others. That’s how a town like Boston grows and prospers. By taking care of its own.”

The governor smiles at her words. “How touching! I should have you write my re-election ads.”

Naomi chuckles good-naturedly at the compliment. She silently thanks her parents. If it weren’t for them dragging her to various parties, galas, and fundraisers growing up, she’d be completely lost in the presence of such a powerful politician. “You’re too kind, Governor.”

She locks eyes with Naveen across the table with, who winks at her, approving the answer. She winks back, as if they’re two co-conspirators in a scheme.

But she feels Ethan’s knee brush against hers and she freezes, her spine going erect and a chill coursing through her a the simple touch. He pulls his knee away before she can fully revel in his touch again. She turns to look at him, but he doesn’t look back, keeping his eyes fixed straight ahead.

Did she just imagine that? He did touch her, right?

What happened to him wanting to have boundaries? What happened to keeping things strictly professional?

She smirks to herself. Fine. If Ethan wants to play games, she can play them just as well. And win.

She slides away from him slightly so she’s able to move a bit more freely. Out of the corner of her eye she sees Ethan lift his wine glass to his lips. As soon as he takes a sip, Naomi curls her leg around his, sliding her heeled foot along his calf. Ethan chokes at the contact, spitting his Cabernet back into the glass.

Naveen frowns, looking at Ethan with concerned eyes. “Ethan, are you alright?”

Ethan nods furiously, a bit too enthusiastic to seem realistic. “Y-yes. The wine just went down the wrong way.”

“I know it’s delicious, but please don’t hurt yourself,” the governor teases. “Slow down.”

Naomi’s foot doesn’t leave his leg. She continues to lazily run it up and down the back of his leg and Ethan sucks in a large breath to stay calm. “Yes ma’am.”

When everyone resumes their conversation, Ethan shoots Naomi a glare. She gives him a coy smile in return, feigning innocence.

A few courses pass and they’re finally into the thick of their meal, with the server coming out to serve everyone filet mignon and garlic potatoes.

“So Naomi,” Governor Rivera starts, “tell me a bit about yourself.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Let’s start with the basics. Are you a Boston native?”

“No, I’m a transplant. I’m from DC, actually.”

“Interesting. So what made you choose Edenbrook for your residency?”

“It’s one of, if not the best hospital in the country. I wanted to learn from the best and become the best.”

“How’s that gone for you so far?”

“Excellent. I performed an emergency surgery with one of the greatest surgeons of this generation,” Naomi says smiling at Harper. “And I get the privilege of working under Dr. Ramsey, who is absolutely amazing at what he does, and he learned from Dr. Banerji. It’s a literal dream come true. I can’t imagine working at a different hospital with different people.”

“And what about you, Ethan?” Governor Rivera asks. “Where are you from?”

“New York. I went to Columbia for undergrad and medical school, but I’ve been in Boston ever since.”

“How long has that been?”

“11 years now.” He feels Naomi’s hand settle on his knee. A few seconds pass, and she doesn’t move a muscle. Instead of bringing attention to it, Ethan continues talking. “But it feels like forever. Boston is my home, even though I wasn’t born here.”

“It’s amazing to hear just how much Boston means to those who weren’t even born here. I’d love to be able to quote one of you guys on that.”

Naomi’s hand leaves Ethan’s knee and travels north. She starts tracing a nonsensical pattern on his thigh, but again, she doesn’t give anything away. Ethan watches as she just smiles politely at the Governor. “Oh now, you can quote me only if we get something in return.”

The governor laughs. “Naomi, you are an absolute delight! I wish more young people had your wit and charm.”

“It’s a gift not everyone has,” Naomi says. Her hand venters up even higher, her delicate hand gently palming Ethan through his trousers. “But I’m willing to shoulder the burden.”

Ethan coughs loudly, and looks down at his lap. He can feel himself turning beet red due to Naomi’s ministrations.

“Son, are you alright?” Naveen asks. “Do you need some water?”

Ethan shakes his head, and coughs again, trying to disguise a moan. Jesus Christ, is this woman really going to give him a handjob at the fucking dinner table? “I’m fine.” The words come out gruff and shaky, and Ethan barely believes them himself.

Deciding enough is enough, Ethan grabs Naomi’s hand, rougher than he intended, and she instantly stills. Seconds later, she recovers and switches gears, lacing their fingers together. Now Ethan is 100 percent sure his face is bright red, holding her hand feeling much more intimate than whatever it was they were just doing.

Ever so subtly, Naomi knocks her fork off of her table. “God, I’m so clumsy.” She reaches down to retrieve it, but Ethan beats her to it.

While they’re both crouched down on the floor, pretending to grab the utensil, Ethan takes the opportunity to talk to her. “Whatever game you’re playing, Rookie, you need to stop it.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Dr. Ramsey,” Naomi replies, innocently. She sits back up in her seat, leaving him dumbfounded.

Naomi - 1, Ethan - 0.

So is this the game they’re about to play? Ethan nods silently to himself. Fine. If Naomi wants to play with fire, he is willing to light the match with her.

He sits up, and adjusts the napkin in his lap. Another course is placed in front of them, a charcuterie board covered in cheeses, salamis, and crackers and various spreads. Naomi and Harper marvel at all of the options in front of them.

Ethan decides that it’s the perfect opportunity to exact his revenge. He glances down and zeroes in on the high slit of Naomi’s forest green dress. Jackpot. While she’s talking to Harper about some sort of jam that’s on the board, Ethan slowly slides one of his fingers up and down her leg. The contact catches her by surprise, her breath hitching slightly, but she doesn’t do anything else, nothing to alert the other guests at the table to what they’re doing.

His hand goes further, curling over until it’s fully squeezing her thigh. Naomi doesn’t move a muscle, happily chatting with Harper as if nothing is going on. Ethan is impressed. He didn’t expect her to have such a strong poker face. So he ups the ante. His nails dig into the soft flesh of her inner thigh, scraping along the skin. He can feel the goosebumps popping up on the disturbed skin, and Naomi squirms a bit in her seat, but again, he’s the only one who notices.

He frowns slightly to himself. She’s good. Too good. And his competitive streak has been triggered now, Ethan won’t be able to rest until she breaks.

Ethan’s hand travels higher until he reaches the thin lace of her underwear. He absentmindedly toys with the fabric for a while before pushing it aside. He watches as Naomi rocks herself side to side, her elbows pressed on top of the table. But Ethan doesn’t take it any further, rather he de-escalates the situation, placing his hand back on her knee. His thumb runs across the skin in a soothing manner.

This was only supposed to be about her, but Ethan realizes just how much he’s missed touching the younger woman. As quickly as the thought crossed his mind does he push it away. This was supposed to be about torturing Naomi. She’s supposed to be the loser, not him.

Naomi rests her cheek on her open palm and leans forward, pretending to be interested in whatever story the governor is telling them. A few well placed nods and polite chuckles buy her time, but all Naomi can think about is Ethan’s hand. His big, strong hand that is currently touching her. When she kicked this thing up, she wasn’t expecting him to actually play along.

She needs to get away from him, and the table. There’s only so much more “subtle” writhing she can do in her seat before she starts looking like a crazy person.

So Naomi clears her throat, getting everyone’s attention. Grabbing her small clutch, she stands up. “If you’ll all excuse me for a second.”

They lock eyes and Ethan watches her form retreat from their table and head towards the back of the restaurant where the restrooms are.

He silently gloats. Ethan – 1, Naomi – 1.

A minute later, his phone dings in his pocket. He discretely pulls it out and checks his notifications. He has a new text message from Naomi, with just a single word.

Dr. Naomi Valentine: Bathroom.

All of the blood rushes from his head upon reading the message. She seriously wants to do this, now? While they’re at a dinner being hosted by the governor? Ethan waits a few more seconds before getting out of his seat as well. “I apologize, but I have to make a phone call.”

“Is everything okay?” The governor asks.

“My neighbor is watching my dog,” Ethan lies casually. “He keeps sending me texts, so I should definitely call and check in.”

“Of course, of course. Go right ahead.”

Ethan smiles, grateful that the lie worked. “Thank you.” He excuses himself from the table, and when no one is looking, he weaves through the tables of the restaurant, making his way towards the back.

He looks around to make sure no one is paying attention to him. They’re not, everyone so caught up in their own dinners and conversations. He slips into the bathroom, unnoticed and locks the door behind him.

The bathroom is cozy, dimly lit and smells like ocean salt and fresh flowers. At the sound of the lock clicking into place, Naomi looks up and locks eyes with Ethan in the bathroom mirror. She doesn’t move in inch, challenging him to make the first move.

“Naomi Valentine, you are an absolute temptress.” Ethan says, slowly moving closer to the younger woman.

“You don’t expect me to believe that little knee touch earlier was innocent, do you?” Naomi shoots back. “You started it, Ramsey. I merely kicked things up a notch.”

Ethan keeps moving closer to her until he’s crowding her space, trapping her between the counter and his body. He buries his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling the jasmine scent of her perfume before placing a delicate kiss on the spot.

“You’ve spent most of the night teasing me,” Ethan murmurs. “Now that I have you all to myself, I don’t know if I want to tease you senseless or absolutely devour you.”

Naomi can’t help but visibly react to that, her entire body shuddering. Fuck, was he always so good at dirty talk?

“You can do whatever you want,” Naomi replies breathlessly. She’ll probably regret the desperation once the fog clears, but right now, she doesn’t care.

That’s all he needed to hear. Ethan spins Naomi around and effortlessly lifts her onto the countertop, the bottom of her dress bunching at her waist. Before she can react, he crashes his lips onto hers, kissing her.

It’s unlike the one they shared at Donahue’s the night before. That was tentative and chaste, with Naomi having to do all of the work. But this is different. This is all consuming and it stokes the flames growing in the pit of Naomi’s stomach. Naomi can feel the kiss from the crown of her head to the tips of her toes, electricity coursing through her veins.

Naomi grabs Ethan by the lapels of his green jacket and pulls him closer to deepen the kiss. One of his hands flies to her hair, pulling, getting tangled up in the mass of soft curls. She moans into the kiss. She always was a sucker for a bit of hair pulling.

Ethan takes advantage of the moan, his tongue sliding into her mouth. It curls against hers, fighting for dominance that he knows she won’t give him so easily.

His lips move across her jaw and down her neck, his beard tickling the path he created. Her head falls back, giving him more access and Ethan kisses along the side of her neck, before sinking his teeth in.

“Fuck, Ethan–” the words die on her throat as he drops to his knees in front of her. His fingers hook into the waistband of her black lace thong, and he yanks it down hurriedly, ridding her body of the material. He throws one of her legs over his shoulder and bites the soft skin of her inner thigh.

She isn’t sure where her will power is coming from, but despite everything single cell in her body dying to cry out at the sensation, Naomi manages to keep it together as best as she can. She grabs a fistful of his hair and holds him there. Ethan pulls back and runs a long swipe of his tongue against the mark, attempting to soothe the bruise. She curses quietly to herself as heat pools in her belly.

Ethan spreads her thighs apart further. A please growl escapes the back of his throat at the sight of her. “Look at how wet you are,” he murmurs. “How wet you get for me.”

She whimpers at his words. God, she just wants him to touch her already.

“What do you want me to do to you, Rookie?” Ethan asks.

“Please…”

He’s amused by her eagerness, her desperation. He huffs, not quite laughing and his warm breath on her thigh makes her squirm. “Please, what? Use your big girl words, Naomi.”

“Just fucking touch me already!” Naomi snaps, her patience nonexistent at this point.

Ethan chuckles. “Good girl.” He drops her leg and pulls himself up. “You want me to fuck you?”

“Yes.”

Ethan takes a step back and coolly appraises Naomi. Her hair is tousled, her eyes hooded, lips swollen. He’s never seen something more beautiful.

“No.”

Naomi’s eyes snap up and she looks at Ethan, confused. What did he just say to her? “What?”

“You heard me. N. O. No.”

“But–”

“You think you can tease me all night and I’d let you get away with it?” His blue eyes sparkle with mischief and Naomi doesn’t know if she wants to yell at him or cry in frustration. “Absolutely not.”

Naomi shakes her head, trying to sober herself up. Is he really saying no to her? He came all the way to the bathroom just to tease her?

She hops off the counter and fixes her dress, ignoring her weak knees and wobbly feet. “Are you fucking kidding me, Ethan?”

“Come on, you know I don’t kid around.” Ethan leans forward and presses one more chaste kiss onto the corner of Naomi’s mouth. He chuckles at the dazed look on her face. “We should head back. I don’t want it to look suspicious that we’ve been gone for so long.”

Ethan doesn’t spare Naomi another glance or give her a chance to respond, turning on his heel and walking out of the restroom.

It takes her a minute to recover from the shock of the situation. After fixing her hair and reapplying her lipstick, Naomi exits the bathroom. But before she returns to the table, she stops a passing waiter and lets them know that it’s Harper’s birthday. Naomi might as well fully commit to the lie and use it as her excuse for being gone for so long.

Naomi walks back to the table, a waiter carrying an ice cream sundae covered cookie trailing her. She sings happy birthday with the rest of the table to a very flustered Harper, and casually slips back into her seat, avoiding eye contact with Ethan.

It isn’t until they’re on the 7th course of their meal does Naomi remember that Ethan never gave her panties back.

Ethan - 2, Naomi - 1

#playchoices #choices: stories you play #open heart #open heart 2 #dr. ethan ramsey #ethan ramsey #ethan ramsey x mc

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clnriswood · 4 years

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ARCHIE ANDREWS X READER

Big Little Town: Part One

Story synopsis: The once young reader used to be best friends with Archie Andrews before her abrupt move from Riverdale following her father’s unexplained passing. Now, years later, she returns to finish high school, only to discover that the young boy she’d once had a crush on is both her neighbor, and a not-so-young boy anymore. Together they re-kindle their friendship (and something more) and uncover the truth behind her father’s death and the return of his killer to Riverdale.

a/n: I’m so so excited to embark on this probably eight part journey! I really hope you’ll stick around for a fic packed with angst and mystery, haha! Please do tell me in the replies if you’d like to be added to a tag list! I’ll be updating as soon as possible. <3

It’d been years since she’d set foot in Riverdale. Despite her departure five years ago, the small town hadn’t changed a bit, and apparently neither had the near constant grey cloud cover. It seemed picturesque how quaint yet familiar everything was. The leafy viridescent trees that lined the streets, the tips of the fresh grass that peered out between the cracks in the sidewalks, and the Columbian style houses with their neat lawns and creaky stairs, one set of which the girl currently lurched across. She held a large brown box in her hands; within it were stuffed photographs, candle holders, and whatever other miscellaneous items her mother could cram inside them. As she made her way through the bright red front door, the smell of old wood and must went shooting through her lungs.

“Gee, who lived here before?” she said aloud as her mother followed close behind, setting a box down and staring into the abandoned space.

“A little family,” her mother shrugged, “the Coopers, I think?”

The girl shrugged and blew a piece of hair from her mouth, her muddy converse bringing tracks with her as she roamed the desolate soon-to-be living room.

“Doesn’t sound familiar,” she voiced loudly, seeing how much echo would feed back to her ears.

“They had a girl your age,” her mother continued, adding, “you’re mudding up my floors, honey.”

The girl stopped in her tracks and stared down at her feet, scraping them awkwardly on the edge of the cobblestone fireplace to rid herself of some dirt.

“Betty,” her mother finished. “Her name was Betty.”

“Knock knock!” an airy voice came instantaneously.

The two looked up in surprise, confusion crossing their features as they stared at the girl in the doorway. She had smooth blonde hair that was slicked into a neat ponytail, and her blue eyes were like giant ocean orbs against her pale skin. She wore a pink knit sweater against a white collared shirt, like something out of some horse girl catalogue.

“I’m Betty, actually,” the girl laughed shyly, procuring a bag with the familiar Pop’s Diner logo on it.

The girl raised her brows with surprise, “hi Betty.”

“I heard you guys were moving in today so I thought I’d bring some ‘welcome to Riverdale’ donuts to, you know, say hello,” she continued with a bubbly tone.

The girl, feeling awkward, hung her mouth open, able to only respond again, “hi.”

Her mother hit the girl lightly against the chest with a scoff of embarrassment. She stepped forward and extended a hand to Betty, exchanging the sweet treats for a polite handshake.

“This is my daughter, (Y/N),” she said, “she’ll be starting at Riverdale High soon!”

(Y/N) grumbled quietly to herself, clearly not thrilled at the idea.

“That’s great,” Betty beamed, “I can’t wait to see a new face around!”

“Oh, we actually lived here a few years ago,” the girl’s mother explained. “But we moved away when-”

The words seemed to stop there, getting stuck to her throat like glue. Betty’s blue eyes widened with confusion, so the girl took a nervous step forward and quickly swooped in for her mother.

“We moved away a few towns over, but Riverdale never stopped being home, so we came back in time for my senior year and my mom’s new job.”

“Oh,” Betty’s shoulders relaxed, her ponytail swinging to the side, “that’s great.”

“Yeah,” the girl forced a smile back at her new acquaintance.

“So, is it just you two then, if you don’t mind me asking?” Betty asked.

“Yeah,” the girl took another step, holding her mother’s arm and giving it a light squeeze, “my dad passed away a few years ago.”

Betty seemed weirdly unphased, saying, “mine too.”

“Oh?” she perked up.

“Yeah,” Betty said, more flat now, her blonde brows knitting at the thought of something that troubled her. Then, realizing she’d fallen silent, she beamed again, her glossy pink lips splitting. “It was really nice meeting you both! And (Y/N), I uh, left my phone number on the bag, if you ever want to talk.”

The gesture warmed the girl’s heart, and she smiled, for real this time, seeing the black ink scribbled on the paper.

“Thank you,” her and her mother voiced in unison.

“Of course,” she giggled, “see you soon, I hope.”

As Betty turned, her cute shoes tapping the old floorboards and her ponytail swinging, she waved at someone who was outside. Her voice drifted along behind her as she greeted the girl’s unknown neighbors with a bounce in her step.

“Hey!” she called.

A muffled male voice called back, but despite its, well, muffled-ness, something in it sounded familiar.

“I’ll see you at Pop’s later?!” Betty said from the top of the moss covered stairs, her head turned towards someone that was out of view.

Again, a male voice chortled back a positive reply. This time it sounded even more familiar, and the girl felt a weird tingle in her stomach, unable to place its speaker. But she didn’t have to think very hard about it, for Betty turned, giving her, and her neighbor, one last wave.

“Bye (Y/N), bye Archie!” she said before turning and skipping down the steps.

“Archie?” the girl repeated cluelessly.

And then, practically as the name rolled off her tongue, her heart lurched from up in her chest to down into the floor. Her mother’s eyes widened as they came to a mutual realization, and before the girl could even process the idea, her mother was wagging a finger at her with this huge knowing grin.

“Archie Andrews, that boy you liked in middle school, Archie Andrews?” she smiled wider, going in for one her annoying tickles and sending the girl stumbling backwards.

“Nuh uh,” the girl retorted, turning her head away to hide the visible red that was flooding through her face, “I know plenty of other Archie’s.”

“Ok, name one,” her mother challenged, hands moving to her hips in a very mom like way.

“Archie-” the girl started confidently, but her brain immediately short circuited, “-Andrews, OH MY GOD!” she covered her mouth with her hands and went running to the staircase, her mother yelling indistinguishable mockeries up at her as the girl went bounding up the carpeted stairs two at a time until she reached her white bedroom door. Her hands grabbed the brass handle, turned, and slammed the door behind her with such force that the empty room rattled around her.

Back before she left Riverdale, the red headed boy from her year had been practically the only friend she’d had. Being the weird introvert with the recently deceased father didn’t exactly help her case, making it all the more strange when the popular soon-to-be-jock decided to start trailing by her between classes and in the courtyard, usually followed closely behind by a highly optimistic blonde in a ponytail.

“Betty,” the girl realized, slamming her hands into her forehead when the pieces came together.

Pre-pubescent Archie Andrews was just about as middle school fantasy as it could get for a girl. He had these skinny arms and flashing white teeth, and oh my god did the fiery hair make a statement, the girl recalled. He used to force her to catch footballs with him at lunch, so, in exchange, she’d make him listen to her guitar playing after school while they waited for their parents to arrive. It was a blossoming but short lived friendship, for the death of (Y/N)’s father was followed shortly by her departure from the small town and its small town redhead. But the thought, the actual thought that he was less than sixty seconds from her at this moment, sent a combined panic and excitement through her, one so strong she felt she could throw up. The last time she’d seen Archie was before the summer of eighth grade, when she’d left without telling him she was actually going. Giving the sudden life altering change she was going through, the last thing she could handle was officially departing from the boy she liked. And so she waved at him from her mother’s car, the poor redhead totally oblivious it’d be goodbye forever as he waved back from the sidewalk, clutching the guitar she’d thrust goodbye into his hands.

And now he was right there, right across her window and through to his, she thought, raising her head in despair and feeling her throat tighten at once. Because, sure enough, he was literally right there. Archie was standing upright in his little room, and he was staring directly at the girl with a look of mingled confusion and shock written over his large brown eyes. Except it wasn’t actually Archie, she thought, unable to think a single coherent thought as her gaze fixated on the absolutely jaw dropping man that stood a few dozen feet from her. No, skinny little Archie was not this tall, muscular, sharp jawed creature who wore tight fitting tees that clung to his bronzed god-like chest. No way that was Archie that stood frozen like a mirror image to her. But that hair. That hair. There was absolutely no denying that those fiery locks could belong to anyone but him. These thoughts all took about three second to travel through the girl’s mind, and by the third, she did the only thing she could think of and dropped to the floor.

“Oh my god!” she squealed into the flowery carpet, her nose squashed against it uncomfortably.

“What the hell am I doing?!” she spoke to the floor like it would reply.

Obviously he’d seen her drop dead to the ground, but now that she was here she couldn’t exactly get back up, so she took the only acceptable alternative and just lay there like an idiot. If she waited long enough he was bound to get sick of waiting, right? Feeling her phone buzz against her thigh, she reached her nimble fingers into the back of her jean pocket and procured her phone.

new instagram notification: @archiebandrews has started following you.

“NO!” she screamed at her phone, so loudly there was no doubt Archie himself could hear it from his room.

Archie Andrews would like to send you a message.

This was it. This is how she was going to die.

[ Archie is typing… ]

(Y/N), I know you’re still there.

[ Archie is typing… ]

That floor hasn’t been washed in months.

The girl practically spat the carpet from her mouth, her hair getting tangled as she rolled up from the ground. Feeling like her body was on fire from the blaze in her cheeks, she dragged herself up, crossing her fingers that the boy couldn’t see her rosy flushed face from where he stood. He was closer to his window now, clearly his intrigue had brought him slowly forward. Seeing her rise from the floor like a pathetic phoenix would from the ashes, his brows lifted with a keen curiosity, and he found himself stepping closer yet, so he could get a better look at her. Feeling as though she might as well do the same, the girl approached the dirty glass frame nervously, stopping when her muddy converse touched the walls. Archie Andrews wore dark blue jeans and a loosely tucked white tee that curved around the unfamiliar ripples of his chest. His auburn hair was parted kind of in the middle and kind of to the side, framing his high cheekbones and square jaw handsomely. Some of his red locks fled from the neat array of others, one in particular falling across his forehead and curling attractively upon his defined brows. Everything about him was so different and just so, endearing; even the curvature of his rounded pink lips into their inquisitive half smile. And just as she studied him, he’d studied back.

The last time he’d seen the girl she’d had braces and choppy hair, the result of her hacking relentlessly away at it following her father’s sudden and mysterious passing. She hadn’t grown much height wise, but certainly everything else had. Her long straightened hair lay flat against the curvatures of her now rounded out chest, her cheekbones rested higher on her face in such a way that she possessed an attractive maturity, and her brows and collarbones had a matching sharpness to them that defined her features well. She wore tight fitting light wash jeans, torn patchily at the knees from her own falls, and a black tank top, matched with a chunky black belt similar to the one Archie himself wore around his sturdy hips.

It was...bizarre. It was like they were just recognizable enough to each other to be unmistakable, but also grown enough that it seemed they were like strangers.

It was Archie who finally, after what felt like years but in reality was a few seconds, withdrew his phone. The red headed boy stared intently at his screen, typing away quickly and sending a buzz into the girl’s palm. Broken from her daze, she lifted her phone, seeing on it his invitation to join him and his friends at Pop’s in the evening. She lifted her gaze to the auburn haired boy next door, letting out a long and heavy sigh. Honestly, she’d just gotten here and she wasn’t too good at the socializing thing, but it was impossible to resist those glittering brown eyes. Seeing the doubt playing through her mind, Archie tucked his phone back into his jeans, fingers lingering in his pockets as he softened his expression further.

The boy tilted his head sweetly, mouthing “please?”

The girl’s heart seemed to pound so hard she could feel it smacking around her own chest, and so she nodded reluctantly, parting her lips to say yes but instead finding them hung partially open. And then he cracked that smile, that disgustingly perfect smile with the sharp canines and massive dimples, and she knew: it really was him.

#archie andrews x reader #archie andrews fic #archie andrews imagine #riverdale x reader #riverdale imagine #archie andrews #archie andrews fanfic #riverdale fanfic #betty cooper x reader #betty cooper fanfic #fanfic #writing #imagines #archie x reader #archie fanfiction #riverdale one shot #riverdale fanfiction

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metaphorical-love-for-a-car · 4 years

Text

Sunshine After Rain-- Connor (RK800) x Reader (Part 5)

Summary; After the death of your little brother, Cole, your dad hated androids. He blamed them for Cole's death. Hank couldn't stand to be around them. How the hell are you supposed to tell him that your soulmate is an android?

Warnings; swearing

Word Count; 2.3k

Notes; A big thanks to everyone who has stuck around and read this fic!! It was my very first reader insert, so it isn’t the best... but I still love going back to it and seeing how far I’ve come since. I’m glad that I was able to re-upload it to this blog, all these years later :)

Connor squinted up at the gray sky as snow slowly fluttered down. He glanced around his surroundings. The small pond had frozen over, and almost all the trees were barren. He walked along before him until he came across an open area. "You've been avoiding me, Connor," Amanda hummed. Her eyes were as cold as the snow beneath their feet. "And at a time like this? We are on the verge of a civil war. The machines are starting to rise up against their masters. Humans will have no choice but to destroy them." Connor explained that he thought Kamski might have the answered they needed but was wrong. He avoided her gaze, like a child being reprimanded by their mother. He then started asking her questions. She avoided all of them. His voice began to rise alongside his frustration. "I expect you to find answers, not ask questions. You're the only one that can prevent this war from coming. This is your last chance, Connor. Don't forget what you are and let meaningless people prevent you from completing your mission."

You bobbed your head to the beat of the music. The headphones covering your ears silenced the world around you. Bending over, you shoved a handful of files into a drawer. When you sat up, you saw Connor standing in front of you. You paused the music before pulling the headphones off. "Hey, Con. What's up?" He glanced around as if he were making sure no one was listening. He sat on your desk and leaned forward.

"I need your help."

"On a scale of slipping laxatives into Gavin's coffee to committing treason, how big of scheme do you have going?" You leaned back in your chair, crossing your arms. A small smirk twisted the corner of your lips. Connor raised a brow at you.

"I need you to distract Perkins while I sneak into the evidence room." You hummed, intrigued by his request.

"Alright... I'm just gonna not ask any questions in case things go south and I get interrogated." You pushed yourself away from your desk, imagination running wildly.

You slinked off into the kennel as Connor made his way to the other side of the room, waiting for your distraction to come. A tennis ball bounced its way through the bullpen. A few people raised a brow at it but overall did nothing. Connor frowned, was that your idea of a distraction? Without warning, a group of younger dogs barreled into the room. They were all barking and fighting over the ball. You poked your head around the doorway, tossing another ball in Perkins's direction. The dogs thundered toward him. He shouted and tried to brush them away. Several officers circled the dogs in an attempt to grab them, but the pups evaded their capture. You noticed Connor slip into the evidence room and put your fingers to your mouth. A sharp whistle echoed through the precinct. The dogs looked in your direction. "Attention!" you called out, marching to the group. The group younger dogs sat, looking prim and proper. You picked up the tennis balls and turned to Perkins. "Sorry about that. Playtime can get out of hand," you said with a shrug. He grumbled something about keeping the dogs under control.

"Don't let it happen again." You mockingly saluted him.

"Sir, yes, sir!" You turned your back to the man as he put his phone to his ear again.

You herded the dogs back into the kennel before separating them into their pens, making sure each one was secured. You quickly walked out, hoping that you were able to give Connor enough time. As soon as your marched out of the door, you collided into someone. “Shit. Sorry, I— Connor! Did everything work out?” He nodded, glancing over his shoulder.

“We need to leave. I need your help with something else.” You raised a brow at him, not moving. He sighed.

“I need new clothes. I discovered where Jericho is, but I need to get out of my uniform in order to blend in with the deviants.”

“Okay.” You glanced at your watch. “Dad is probably at Chicken Feed right now. We can go borrow some of his clothes, I’m sure he won’t mind. I mean, he pretty much wears the same two outfits over and over again.”

The two of you slipped out of the precinct before anyone could ask where you were off to. When you arrived at Hank’s house, you quickly raided his closet. Pulling out anything you thought might possibly work for the situation, you tossed piles of clothes onto the nearby bed. “If you find anything you like, just try it on” You threw a shirt over your shoulder. “Anything of his is probably going to be pretty big on you, but it should be good enough for tonight.” You turned and gave him a smile.

“Thank you.”

“No problem.”

You chilled on the couch while he changed. Several minutes passed by before you heard the door creak open. Connor sheepishly walked around the corner, tugging on the clothing that hung loosely around his body. He almost looked embarrassed by his appearance. “Now you’re lookin’ like a deviant,” you joked.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, totally! Just need a finishing touch…” you trailed off, looking around you. A smile crossed your face as you spotted it. A gray toboggan with a little puff on top sat on one of Hank’s bookshelves. You accidentally left it and had been meaning to pick it up, but this seemed like a better opportunity. You snatched it up and secured it over Connor’s head. “There! Perfect,” you said with a laugh. You tugged Connor into the bathroom where he could get a look at himself. When he saw his reflection, he grinned. You put a hand around his arm. “Connor, I don’t know what’s going to happen when you get to Jericho, but I just…” you sighed, “I just hope you do what’s right. Who knows? Maybe androids deserve a chance to be free.” You carefully watched Connor’s expression, staring into his brown eyes. He looked sympathetic for a second, but it was washed away by determination.

“I know what I’m doing, (y/n).” You nodded, giving him the benefit of the doubt.

“Stop by my apartment when you’re done, okay? Just so I know you didn’t get destroyed or anything,” you said in a joking tone while being completely serious. Connor nodded, his grin returning.

“I will be fine, (y/n). There’s no need to worry about me. I can always be repaired.” You rolled your eyes. You patted his shoulder.

“I know that. Now, go get ‘em, tiger.” You pecked his cheek. His eyes widened for a moment, and he almost looked like he was short-circuiting. Connor quickly turned on his heel, but you noticed the deepening red tinting his cheeks as he left.

It was nearing midnight. You were on your fifth cup of coffee. You were fighting back sleep with a broom, wanting to stay awake for Connor. You were curled up on your couch and having a Disney movie marathon. You figured that singing along to the songs would help keep you alert. It worked... for the most part. Your eyelids drooped as your head slumped over. Suddenly, someone knocked on your door. You jumped to your feet and answered it as fast as your tired body would allow. You perked up the moment you saw the RK800 standing on your doorstep. "Connor! Did everything go okay?" His eyes were wide and frantic.

"We don't have much time. They're going after anyone they believe I have emotional attachments to. I need to get you somewhere safe," he quickly explained. You nodded, slipping on a nearby pair of sneakers and a jacket. You locked your apartment door behind yourself as you followed Connor out. The two of you quickly jogged out of the apartment complex.

As the building started to fade into the background, you felt a hand wrap around your arm. You furrowed your brows. The world around you stayed in its usual gray hues. A terrible realization sank to the bottom of your gut. This wasn't Connor-- not your Connor. You stopped in your tracks and tried to wrench yourself out of his grip, but the android was stronger than you. "Let go of me, jackass!" You swung your fist at its face. The imposter caught it easily. With a swift movement of its leg, it knocked you to the ground. You wheezed, trying to regain the breath that had just been knocked out of you. The android kneeled beside you, holding you to the ground. Its eyes narrowed. It leaned close to your face.

"I'm not sure how you figured out I'm not the deviant RK800, but no matter. You're sleep deprived, causing your moves to be sluggish and highly predictable."

"Predict this, motherfucker." You jerked your head forward, headbutting the android. Alas, androids do not feel pain the way humans do, so it just blinked down at you.

"I recommend you do not continue to resist. I will not hesitate to harm you in order to complete my mission." The android stood, hauling you up to your feet. You thrashed around, hoping that something you did would at least loosen the thing's grip so you could get away. The RK800 had enough of you. Without warning, a fist cracked down upon your face. You yelped in pain as your head recoiled. Blood slowly trickled from your nose. When you looked back at the android, it held a gun to your forehead. "As I said, do not resist," it growled.

The android shoved you forward. You stumbled but managed to find your footing before you could fall. You glared daggers at it. "(y/n)?" You turned to see Connor, the real one, standing with his arm outstretched to an android on standby. Worry filled his features. The imposter held its gun to your head. It taunted Connor, telling him that its time for him to decide who he is and what matters most. He was clearly overwhelmed, eyes flickering between you and the imposter.

"Connor, look at me." His eyes landed on you once more. "You don't have to worry about me. Just do what needs to be done. It'll be okay." Connor turned his focus to the other RK800. He tried to explain to it that there was more than just the mission, but the android just wasn't giving in. It pressed the gun closer to your temple, causing you to flinch. You were beyond terrified. You didn't want to die, but you also didn't want to jeopardize everything the deviants had worked towards. You closed your eyes to keep the tears that were threatening to form at bay.

"If I surrender, how do I know you won't kill them?"

"I'll only do what is strictly necessary to accomplish my mission. It's up to you whether or not it includes killing this human." A second passed where no one dared to move. "Enough talk!" the android suddenly shouted, "It's time to decide who you really are. Are you going to sacrifice your so-called soulmate's life, or are you going to sacrifice them?" Connor didn't even hesitate with his choice.

"Alright, alright!" He held his hands up in surrender, backing away from the android on standby. "You win."

You opened your eyes. Why was he giving up so easily? Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed a swish of movement. The RK800 had moved the gun away from your head. You took your chance and leapt at it, trying to wrangle to weapon from its hand. The android shoved you to the ground, and Connor barreled into it. The two faced each other off. Two equally powerful androids, each blocking the other's advances. You watched the two struggle for a moment, mind racing wildly in an attempt to formulate a plausible plan of attack. You noticed neither of them was holding a weapon and immediately began searching for the gun. As soon as you spotted it, you dove for it and hopped to your feet.

"Enough!" you shouted, aiming the gun in their direction. The two androids looked at you and slowly stood. You chewed on your lip. They looked exactly alike.

"Good job, (y/n), I don't know how I'd have managed without you. Get rid of him, we have no--" You pulled the trigger. The bullet ripped through the android's forehead. It fell flat on its back. Connor gaped at you.

"How did you know that was the fake?" You wiped away the blood that had gathered around your top lip with the back of your hand, grimacing at the sight of it. You tucked the gun into the waistband of your sweatpants.

"That son of a bitch talks a lot more than you usually do." Connor quickly swept you into his arms. He placed his forehead against yours, closing his eyes.

"I'm sorry, (y/n). I shouldn't have let you get wrapped up in this mess." You cupped his face with your hands.

"Hey, don't sweat it. I mean, the worst that happened to me was getting punched in the face, but I'm okay. We're both okay." He opened his eyes and stared into yours. Connor slowly leaned forward, pressing his lips against your own. The kiss wasn't hungry or overly passionate. It was gentle and sweet, almost innocent. When the two of you parted, a smile crossed both of your faces. "I guess this means you're a deviant now, huh?"

"Yes, I suppose so."

~*~*~

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nocturnalf1 · 4 years

Text

Lance Stroll x reader

I am going to write these so you can have them look normal with interactive fics. Nothing will be in ()

I also tried my best to research the names of everyone like Race Engineers and such. It can be kinda hard with some teams so if they are wrong or outdated, SORRY!

Language Warning! Its fluffy but theirs a fight. Hope you all like it!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Are you okay Y/N” she hear her race engineer, Mattia Spini ask.

“FUUUCCCCKKKKK! I’m sorry guys.” Is all she can say as she pushes the visor from her helmet up.

“Not your fault Y/N, P1, P1″ Their was a pause as she does what he said before being told to switch the car off and get out. Marshals checked on her as she stands up and puts the steering wheel back in the car.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Lance, the track is red flagged, Box Box” Lance hears Brad tell him. Did someone crash?

“What happened?” Lance asks as he turns into Catalunya’s pit lane.

“Uhhh, Stand by, it’s a Renault and a AlphaTauri. I’ll keep you updated when you get out of the car” Brad responds. Lance didn’t know how to feel about the situation. You never like to hear about a crash, even more when they aren’t sure about what happened.

Getting out of his car once the team put him in the garage, he puts his steering wheel down and heading over to his dad and Racing Point Team Principal, Otmar.

“Whats the Red? Who crashed?” Lance asks and Otmar looks up from the screen. “They say it was Ocon and L/N. Both drivers fine but L/N seems upset. Car might not make it to qualifying” He says and Lance relaxes a bit. He and Y/N had been dating for 5 months on the down low. Lawrence knew of course as did his mother but other than that, nobody really knew.

The TV cut to Y/N who was storming down the pit lane. Passing her Garage and past McLaren’s, she makes it to Renaults. Lance jogged out to pull her away from Ocon because obviously things were about to get heated. Daniel was talking to his strategist as he watched her go by and he stepped away to check on his friend. (Lets be honest. Daniel would see the reader as his sister even if he just met them)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You are unbelievable! You would think that after years of us Karting together that you’d know not to hit me anymore” Y/N argues at Ocon as he turns to her. The two french drivers never got along. Even in karting as children, Pierre and Charles always pulled the two away from arguments and near fights many times before.

“You can’t just slow down and let me passed and then speed up again. That was your fault” Ocon nonchalantly replied with a shrug. Y/N was steaming.

“I was told you were on a timed lap so I got off the racing line! You had no reason to try to cut in front of me!” She yells back and Ocon gets in her face. “Y/N, you have to stop blaming crashes on me. Its getting old” He taunts. Ocon never could understand that some things were his fault especially when it comes to them meeting on the track.

“You will never learn, will you! Get the fuck out of my face!” She yells and shoves Ocon. Ocon went to get in her face again when they were both grabbed.

Daniel was in front of Ocon, preventing him from walking forward while Lance grabbed Y/N from behind. He wrapped his arms around her and she almost hit him before she turned around and realized it was him.

“Let’s go N/N. Let’s go get you cooled off” Lance says as he places his arm over her shoulders as she wraps her arms around him, hugging him as they walk. The walk to his motor home was short but it felt like it had taken forever. The stress of the entire weekend was weighing down on them both, and red flagging the first practice isn’t how Y/N wanted the weekend.

“Just breathe beautiful. All we can hope is that your car gets sorted and Ocon gets a penalty” Lance says opening the door to his motor home and holding her hand, helping her up the stairs.

“It’s just so stressful Lance. My whole team just worked so hard to give me a good car and there’s a 99% chance that I won’t even be able to race this weekend. It’s not even my fault either” She rants. He understood her pain, the worry of crashing in practice and not making it to the race.

“Just relax. Come sit and relax. You can stick with me this weekend if you aren’t able to drive. Just don’t stress, there’s more races and Ocon WILL get a penalty” Lance reassures as he hands her a water and sits down. She sits down next to him and wraps her arms around him.

Lance grabs her legs and places them over his encouraging her to get more comfortable on him lap which she does.

“Are your sure your dad won’t mind me being here” she asks and she rests her head on his chest. Lance just rubs his hand on her back.

“Y/N, I won’t lie, I don’t quite care what he thinks right now. You’re my main priority right now, I’ll take whatever shit the team wants to give me later” He says making her feel a little better about his statement. She didn’t think he would get in trouble but she did feel the need to ask.

It wasn’t long before Y/N was asleep. Lance took this opportunity to turn on the tv and watch free practice. He never actually saw the incident and decided now would be a good time while she napped.

With only 5 minutes left in FP1, the screen cuts to a replay of the incident. Y/N moves out of the way and Ocon passes before she goes to re-enter the racing line before Ocon goes to cut in front of her and crashes her. Why would Ocon come off the racing line?

Lance looks down to the sleeping girl on his lap before returning his attention back to the tv. It was Ocon and L/N arguing. It showed everything. Y/N pushing him, Ocon trying to push her back, along with Daniel and himself coming between them.

He turned the tv off and decided to just take a nap to get his mind off things before FP2 that afternoon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Lance? Are you in here?” Lawrence said as he walked into his sons motor home. He saw the fight but after pulling Y/N away, he disappeared. Upon making it inside, he see’s the Racing Point and AlphaTauri drivers on the couch together. He smiled at his son. Formula 1 was rough on him, especially with fans coming to dislike him.

He felt bad waking his son but he doubted that Lance would want to miss practice and so he sucked it up and woke him up.

“Hmmm. Oh hey, is it time for practice?” Lance asked his dad to which he got a nod in reply. Lance rubbed Y/N’s back in an attempt to wake her up which worked. She gets up and stretched before following Lance and Lawrence out of the motor home.

As they walked back to the garages, Lance held her hand. It kinda shocked her. Lance didn’t want many people to know since he gets so much hate, but now, she realized that they both just needed to support each other in this stressful weekend as they walked.

Cameras followed as they made their way down the paddock and all they could do was smile. Y/N might not have made it to the race, but she got did get to support her boyfriend from the sidelines and celebrate a point finish.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope you all liked it. I have plenty of driver reader ideas so lmk what you guys thought of this. Anyways, I have school tomorrow so I better get to bed. Much love!

#formula 1 #formula 1 fanfiction #lance stroll #daniel ricciardo #esteban ocon #f1 oneshot #f1 #fanfiction #fanfic

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collecting-stories · 4 years

Text

Past Life - Tony Stark

A/N: This was difficult, writing Tony Stark was a challenge for me but I was happy to have to challenge. Practice makes better right? Maybe?

Request: Hello, I am so happy you are re-opening your requests! I have been loving your work! I would like to ask if I could request a Marvel fic where Tony cheats on fiancée!Reader and he regrets it but she is already happy and has moved on with Steve (married and expecting)? Angst and fluff would be great :) - @belovedcherry

Pairings: Past Tony Stark x reader ; Steve Rogers x reader

///

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should!” Steve called from the kitchen of your New York apartment. It wasn’t the Brooklyn of his youth, naturally, but it was still Brooklyn and he was happy to settle somewhere that felt a little more like home than D.C. had felt. You were almost out the door, shoes on and keys in hand as you listened to Steve’s footsteps get louder.

He came around the corner, drying his hands on a stripped kitchen rag. A frown was set on his face as he regarded you, fully ready to leave the safety of the apartment, summer dress emphasizing your 6-month of pregnancy.

“Its the corner store Steve, I’ll be back in thirty minutes tops. Less if Martha doesn’t want to ‘feel the baby kick’ and give me terrifying baby tips.” You promised. “We need milk.”

“I can get it.”

“You can do the dishes like you promised and I can get it. Because I am still fully capable of getting milk. Besides, Sam will be here in like, an hour.”

Steve sighed, a clear sign that he wasn’t pleased with the suggestion you had offered. You placed a hand on his cheek and kissed him, slow to pull away once he kissed you back. He was smiling when he opened his eyes to look at you, “fine, but I’m still not thrilled.”

“I’ll be back before you know it,” you promised, “I love you.”

“I love you too,” he replied.

You had met Steve at what turned out to be the very messy end of a long engagement. You had been working for Nick Fury at the time, and was still working for him in D.C. when you met Steve again, single that time. It was during the appearance of the Winter Soldier and Hydra’s exposure that you and Steve grew close, opening up for him a possibility of love that he thought had ended when he went down in the plane.

The corner store at the end of your block was a favorite of yours. The woman who was usually inside owned the store with her husband and had enough children that you were certain she’d had every medical occurrence known to doctors. And those unknown too. She was happy to recount the numerous scares she had during her mothering years, even more so when she realized, three months ago, that you were expecting a baby yourself.

“Hey Martha,” you greeted, grabbing a basket by the door and walking into the store. You were by the cooler in the back when the bell above the door sounded.

The new customer walked in, taking off his sunglasses and looking around the small store. As he scanned the area his eyes landed on your back. It was crazy to say that he recognized someone from behind but he had known you long enough that you were unmistakable to him, even after the years he’d gone without seeing you.

He called your name and watched as you tensed before turning around.

“Tony?”

His eyes went wide, “you’re pregnant?”

“Oh, uh, yeah,” you laughed nervously, subconsciously rubbing the underside of your belly with your free hand, “I uh, I got married earlier this year.”

“I had no idea you were...seeing someone.” He said, clearing his throat as he tried to process the information that was running through his mind. The last time he had seen you was the night you packed and left, telling him you couldn’t handle the partying and the cheating anymore. There were no more chances left for him, you claimed. “I, I’ve been getting myself together.” He mentioned, offhandedly.

“I heard. I saw what you did in Geneva. I’m really proud of how far you’ve come Tony.” You replied. Despite the messy breakup, catching him cheating on you and his partying habits getting out of control, you had always cared about him. There was a part of you that knew you would always love him, just in a different way. That piece of your heart that he had staked a claim in once upon a time belonged to Steve now and you wouldn’t change that. “I always knew you could do incredible things and it’s good to see that. To see you reaching that potential.”

“Thank you.” He thought about making a joke, easing off this topic and deflecting to something lighter but his mind was fogged. Seeing you, and seeing you pregnant, was throwing him for a loop. He’d imagined it before, he’d imagined what it would be like for the two of you to get married, to have children together, to grow old. Somehow, even when you walked out on him he still thought that you would come back. That everything could be fixed. “So...pregnant?”

“Yeah, six months along.”

“Boy or girl?”

“I don’t know, we decided to let it be a surprise.” You replied. He had seen Steve after the two of you got together, you knew he had. You knew all about Geneva and Bucky and how it ended between Steve and Tony. You also knew that he didn’t say anything about your relationship. It was newer than and Steve was a much more private person than Tony had ever been. He didn’t need to brag about seeing someone and you weren’t just arm candy for him to parade around.

“We,” Tony repeated, eyebrows raising, “so who’s this ‘we’?”

“It wasn’t planned Tony, it just kind of happened.” You said, avoiding the direct answer. You could still remember Steve telling you how broken Tony had looked when he realized that Bucky had killed his parents.

“What just kind of happened?”

“Steve and I.”

“Steve...” he trailed off, looking at you as the pieces fit into place and realization dawned on his face. “No, no.”

“Tony-”

“No. You are not having a kid with Steve fucking Rogers.” Tony exclaimed, “you have got to be kidding me!”

“Tony, please-”

“How long have you been seeing him? Were you with him when-”

“Yeah, yeah we were together when he was in Geneva.” You admitted. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, it’s not like we were talking at the time Tony.”

“I’m not the same person I was back then.” Tony commented out of the blue, “I don’t party anymore...I don’t do drugs, drink.”

“I know Tone,” you replied, shifting to walk passed him. The conversation had shifted to something you didn’t want to discuss. “I have to go.”

“Wait,” he reached for your arm as you moved, “please can we talk?”

“There’s nothing to talk about Tony, there’s nothing I can say that will make this easier.” You said, pulling away from him and crossing your arms under your chest. You were regretting more and more not just letting Steve come to the grocery store.

“Why him?”

“Don’t do this please. We’re in a grocery store Tony, I don’t want to do this with you here. I don’t want to do this at all, in fact.”

“I deserve an explanation.” He insisted.

“No, you don’t deserve anything. You cheated on me, over and over Tony. I put up with it for years and said nothing and now I’m happy and moved on with my life and you seriously want me to stand here and justify myself to you? I’m not sorry that I'm not sitting around here waiting for you to decide to get yourself together.” You said, harsher than you had intended. “I’m sorry, I have to go.”

“Wait, please-”

You were out the door before Tony could stop you, leaving behind the milk you were supposed to be getting. You’d send Steve out for it later, right now you wanted nothing more than to be home with your husband and put this moment in time.

Taglist: @thinkingsofamadwoman @mixedwiththemoon @titty-teetee @queenmissfit @marvelismylifffe @iluvmesomemarvelndc @absentmindeduniverse @his-paradox @medievalfangirl @glopsifum @my-life-as-a-fangirl @gigilame @mysticthinking @real-fbi

#Tony Stark x reader #Tony Stark imagine #Tony Stark fanfiction #Tony Stark angst #marvel fanfic #marvel fanfiction #marvel universe imagine #marvel imagine #marvel cinematic universe imagine #collecting stories imagine

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redvoid-40 · 4 years

Text

Chapter 9 - First Phase

I know this fic isn’t as popular as my headcanons/one-shots but this chapter has been sitting in my Drive for a while now so I’ve decided to post it instead. =.=

Hope you all enjoy it! As always let me know your thoughts and if you have any requests! :)

Fanfic title: ??? Word count: 3097 Fandom: Naruto Pairing: eventual Gaara x OC, cannon pairings Genre: Friendship, Adventure, Hurt/Comfort Warnings: None

Previous chapter / Next chapter

No way. I thought the written exams would end with the Academy!

Shin was freaking out at the prospect of a written exam. Sure, she had gotten average scores when she graduated at the Academy, but it was mostly thanks to her Taijutsu. Her grades in written exams were nothing to be proud of.

“Don’t worry, Shin-chan.” Hajii reassured as they waited in line to get their numbers. He had his pinky wrapped around hers. “I’ll be able to carry us on this. Just do your best, all right? You too, Ao-nee.”

Aoni looked at her from her brother’s other side. “Hajii is a real nerd, Shin-chan. I’m sure his grades will make up for ours.”

“But what if they score our tests separately?” Shin asked.

“Then why would they demand that we take the Exams as teams of three?” Hajii pointed out. “At least in the beginning I believe they will only look at us as teams instead of individuals. It’s important to test teamwork, and it also makes it easier to cut down on the number of applicants.”

Shin hummed as she thought about Hajii’s words. It made sense.

“I guess you’re right.” She spoke as she pulled her seating number. “I’ll see you two later then. Let’s do our best and pass this!”

Aoni and Hajii nodded. “Good luck!”

---

There were actual tears streaking down Shin’s face as she looked down at her test in despair. Ibiki’s rules chanted in her mind like an anxiety-inducing mantra as a finger looped around strands of her hair.

“The teams will be qualified - or disqualified - in accordance to the total score achieved by its three members.”

“One more thing, if anyone in your team gets a zero, the whole team will be disqualified.”

Shin read and re-read the questions in her exams, not believing her eyes.

I can’t answer any of these questions. Am I really that dumb?

Shin couldn’t believe someone just out of the Academy like her could ever solve those questions. She might be nowhere near as brilliant as Sakura, but she wasn’t that unprepared either; she should be able to get at least a 5.0 from a written exam such as this. But not being able to answer any of the 10 questions was something else entirely.

Wait-

Once again Ibiki’s words came to the forefront of her brain.

“The censors here will also keep an eye on you if you try to cheat. And at every seen incident they will discount 2 points from your total score. If they catch you five times, you’ll be disqualified and your test will not be graded. That’s right. Anyone who gets caught cheating doesn’t deserve to be a Chūnin.”

Shin’s hand stopped moving around her hair as her eyes widened in realization.

Anyone who gets caught, he said… Of course. They want us to cheat.

Shin swallowed and looked around her. Many of the candidates were frozen like her, having noticed how impossible those questions were to answer. But others were writing furiously on their exams.

Some people here already realized it.

“Excuse me!”

Shin startled, looking to the direction the voice had come from. Kankuro was a few rows in front of her, hand raised in the air and an apologetical smile on his face.

“I need to use the toilet.”

Shin watched the older boy be escorted outside the classroom with his wrists in shackles. As he passed her by he glanced down at her test and, seeing it completely blank, scoffed at her.

She pouted at him, turning her face to the side to hide her blush.

As she did that, her eyes crossed with Hajii’s green ones. The boy was on the other side of the room, but on the same row as her. It seemed he had been staring for some time now and, when their eyes met, he gave her a winning smile.

Despite her sad situation, Shin smiled back at him.

Then she almost leaped out of her chair at the feeling of something creeping up her ankles.

Shin’s hands flew to her mouth, pushing back the girlish squeal that threatened to escape her as the… thing continued climbing up her legs, leaving a trail of goosebumps on its wake. Swallowing hard, Shin dared to look down at herself and almost fainted at what she found.

Your Chakra Creatures are creepy, Hajii-chan.

There was a spider-like thing standing on Shin’s lap, with the black colour of clotted blood. The thing was almost as big as her fist and had four thin legs that connected to a small round black body, and on top of its body there was a human face smiling up at her.

“H-Hi?” Shin whispered, daring to reach down to it with an outstretched finger.

The creature straightened its legs, reaching up to her finger and nuzzling against it. Shin relaxed slightly, allowing a small smile to pull on the corners of her lips. So needy… there was no doubt it was one of Hajii’s creations.

It’s kind of cute.

Then, satisfied with the attention it received, the creature opened its smiling mouth at her and vomited a tiny scroll covered with blood onto her lap.

Shin’s entire body tensed and she felt a bit of bile rise in her throat.

What the-

The creature gurgled happily at her and with one last nuzzle against her frozen finger disappeared in a puff. Unbelieving of what she had witnessed, Shin turned to face Hajii once again. His smile was as bright as before as he winked at her.

With a sigh, Shin swallowed the bile in her throat and opened the scroll beneath the table with one of her hands, trying to ignore the blood staining her fingertips.

Immediately she copied the answers from the scroll onto her test.

---

Soon enough it was time for Ibiki to give them the Tenth Question. And with it, came new rules.

“You can take the Tenth Question or not. But if you choose not to do it, all your other questions will be discarded and your team will be eliminated. If you choose to answer this question and get it wrong, not only you’ll be eliminated but you’ll also be prohibited from ever taking the Chūnin exams again!”

Predictably, there was an uproar in the classroom as some candidates protested the rules, while others stood up and left to try again next year. But Shin didn’t pay them any mind. Her sole focus was Naruto. The boy was sitting a few rows in front of her and she could easily spot his orange suit and head of blonde hair.

Naruto-chan… you’re shaking.

Shin clenched her fists in her lap in tension. She didn’t want Naruto to give up now, not after everything they went through. She knew that, just like her, he wasn’t good with written exams, but she also knew that from everyone in this room, he was the one who could overcome any obstacle put in his path.

When he raised his hand in the air, she jumped to her feet.

“Don’t!” Shin yelled, making everyone look to her. And when Naruto’s wide, baby blues found her brown ones she continued. “You didn’t come all the way here to give up now, Naruto! So please put that hand down!”

Naruto’s eyes widened even further at her outburst and Shin could feel her cheeks heating, but refused to sit back down.

To her surprise the boy smiled at her. “As if you needed to tell me that, Shin-chan.”

Turning back to face Ibiki, Naruto slammed his hand on the table.

“Don’t underestimate me! I don’t give up! If you want to be though, go ahead. You won’t make me chicken out. I don’t care if I’ll be a Genin for the rest of my life! I’ll still become Hokage one day! Believe it!”

Shin dropped back to her seat with a nervous laugh.

Of course.... You had to make a scene, Naruto-chan. Her eyes roamed the classroom again, and she couldn’t help but smile. You have no idea how infectious your words can be, huh? Everyone is looking up now. I bet no one is leaving after that.

There were a few more moments of tension as they all waited for the question. Then, to everyone’s surprise Ibiki’s next words were-

“You all pass!”

---

On the following morning all candidates met their new Censor, Mitarashi Anko, at the entrance of the place where Exam’s Second Phase would happen.

The Forest of Death.

—-

“Before we can begin the Second Phase I have something to hand out to you. It’s a consent letter.” Anko said. “You all need to read and sign this. Some of you might not return from this and I need your written consent that you’re willing to take the risk. Or else it would be my responsibility!”

Shin swallowed as Anko laughed out loud, as if she had just told some funny joke. This new Censor was kind of crazy, throwing kunais at Naruto and then laughing at the fact that some candidates might die in her exam.

“Here, Shin-chan.”

Shin thanked Naruto as she took the pile of forms from his hands, removing a single sheet of paper for herself before passing the rest along.

“Now, let me explain how this will work.” Anko continued. “This is a survival exercise-”

---

Shin listened to Anko’s explanation carefully, hands closed tightly around her consent form.

“Shin-chan…”

The girl blinked, turning her attention to Naruto. He was looking at her with a weird expression on his face, as if he didn’t quite recognize her.

“Is there something wrong, Naruto-chan?”

“It’s just… you look excited about this whole thing, believe it. It’s weird because you’re usually so, you know… the peacemaker.”

Shin pondered Naruto’s words. More often than not she kept herself neutral in conflicts involving her friends, always trying to de-escalate the arguments and fights that would every so often break out among them. She wasn’t someone who’d usually jump at the chance of an all-out fight with dozens of Genins just to win a survival exercise.

However, this wasn’t a fight amongst her friends; it was a competition, and everyone taking part in it knew exactly what they were getting into. And there was something to be said about winning things: it was satisfying.

“I guess the Ninja life is growing on me, Naruto-chan. I’m looking forward to see what everyone here is capable of.” Shin explained, smiling at her friend as her eyes focused on him. “You especially. I can’t wait to see what you’ll come up with, Naruto. Please don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m kinda hoping we’ll get to face one another soon. I know we’ve trained together countless times before, but it’s not the same as an actual battle, is it? You’ve grown so much, Naruto. I’m wondering how I compare.”

As Shin spoke she noticed Naruto wasn’t the only one staring at her with wide eyes. Sasuke and Sakura also had their gazes fixed on her, as did the rest of the Konoha Genins.

Her friend’s surprise was short lived. In a blink of an eye, Naruto had laid his hand on her shoulder as a cocky smile stretched on his lips.

“Heh, I’m glad you feel that way, Shin-chan. Ever since you told us you’d take part with another team, I’ve been thinking we’d have to fight each other. And every time I think about it, I get all excited. I’ve always thought you were one of the strongest in our class, and I can’t wait to see how I compare. Believe it.”

Shin nodded, clasping Naruto back on the shoulder.

The challenge was made and accepted.

---

After handing in their consent forms and receiving their scroll, Team Rashu awaited in front of gate 8. Shin was twirling her hair nervously as Hajii held onto her other hand and Aoni’s, moving their joined hands back and forth.

“You two are full of energy.” Aoni commented, smiling at them. “I’m glad you don’t seem scared about the whole thing, Hajii.”

“Why would I be?” Hajii asked.

“We will spend some nights in that forest. You hate the dark.”

The boy shrugged, but didn’t stop moving his hands. “I got you two with me. As long as I can hold on to you, I’m okay.”

As if to prove his point Hajii squeezed their hands one last time as the Jonin in front of them unlocked the lock of their gate. He let their hands go just as the lock fell to the ground and the Jonin pushed open the gates for them.

“Begin!”

Without hesitation, the trio charged inside the forest.

As soon as she stepped foot into the training grounds Shin joined her hands in front of her chest, her thumb and forefinger up in the air. Her eyes were closed as she focused on her chakra, but that didn’t slow her down.

She could feel exactly where she was going.

---

“This looks like a good place for our rendezvous.” Aoni stated.

Team Rashu stood together on top of a thick tree branch, the thick foliage around them providing for a flawless cover.

“Shin-chan-” Aoni continued. “-anything?”

Shin shook her head. “Not yet. There’ are a lot of powerful lives in this forest though, so it’s hard to differentiate the animals’ chakras from the other candidates’. I don’t think anyone is onto us yet, but I might’ve missed something. Also, if they’re following us from a distance, I don’t think I can feel their chakra until they get closer.”

“That’s all right. Finding them before they find us isn’t pivotal to our strategy.” Hajii commented, green eyes roaming their surroundings. “As long as we all keep on our toes we can react to any attack. The key to our strategy is how we’ll engage our enemies. You must take the first step, Shin-chan, and we’ll follow your lead.”

Shin nodded, full of determination. “I’ll be ready.”

“Good. For now, let’s keep moving together in a 2 kilometer radius from this point. If we get separated, we meet back here as soon as possible. If there’s anyone missing by sundown, we’ll go out in a search.”

Aoni and Shin nodded, and as one the trio leaped off their spot.

---

“It’s taking too long.” Aoni complained as the trio jumped from tree branch to tree branch. “It must’ve been a couple of hours already and nothing. The sun will set down soon.”

Hajii hummed but offered nothing else as a response. His sister had always been on the impatient side; never one to be kept waiting by anyone, so he had expected her frustration at this point. Thankfully, he and Shin were there to help her keep her temper in check.

“Maybe everyone’s busy with something else.” Shin offered. “There are many powerful creatures in this forest, as well as every other candidate.”

“Still… I was sure it all would happen much quicker. I want to finish this and get to the tower as soon as possible. No one deserves to spend more than a day without a hot shower.” Aoni said, nose upturned as the corners of her mouth pulled down in disgust.

Shin chuckled. “If you guys want, I can try to reach out with my chakra again. See if I can expand my sensory area and pinpoint something.”

“I think that’s a good idea. Hajii, let’s stop for a moment.”

The boy hummed again. He didn’t want to stop moving. Even being careful, it was likely they had left little marks of their presence as they roamed their searching area, so if they stopped now they could just become a sitting target for anyone following those little signals.

However, it could help ease some of his sister’s anxiety and Hajii knew first-hand she tented to make bad calls when her rage-o-meter was reaching its peak.

“Okay.”

The trio jumped to a higher tree branch and stopped. All of them were breathing hard, with a thin layer of sweat covering their skin as Shin performed her hand sign and closed her eyes, allowing her chakra to spread out into the surrounding forest.

Aoni and Hajii’s vibrant energies were the first she felt, warm and taut besides her, ready to react at a moment’s notice. She took a moment to appreciate it before letting her own energy seep deep into the tree’s chakra flowing steadily beneath her feet and branch out as wide as possible, trying to feel any creature that passed by, allowing her chakra to touch theirs for a moment before moving on.

Shin’s radius was barely half a kilometer wide, and it missed a lot - there was too much chakra around her for her to discern every living creature that crossed paths with her - but it still gave her a good perspective of what was surrounding them. Rabbits and squirrels, insects as large as her skull, a couple of gigantic snakes, poisonous flowers…

There were so many types of chakra around her… It was overwhelming, but also a bit intoxicating.

More… I want to feel more, have more. So much chakra, all around me…

Shin inhaled sharply as those thoughts came to the forefront of her mind. It wasn’t the first time she thought of something like that. Ever since she learned how to control her chakra better, Shin found herself hungry for more of it, especially when training with Naruto.

His chakra is just so… plenty.

It was a mysterious train of thought, this one. Shin didn’t quite understand where it came from - she couldn’t just take others’ chakra for herself - and because of that it scared and intrigued her at the same time. Every time she tapped into someone - or something - else’s chakra, she dared to go further than before without even meaning to. It was instinctual for her and she worried sometime she might go a bit too far.

What would even happen if I did? I don’t want to hurt anyone, but… I’d love to feel more of this energy. It feels right. But is it?

Shin was pulled from her musings by a sudden burst of chakra just at the edge of her radius. It was violent, explosive… and going straight towards them.

“Get down!”

Shin grabbed the back of her teammates clothes and pushed them down to their stomachs just as a fireball flew over their heads.

Hajii glanced at the singed leaves above them and turned to smile at his sister.

“Well, Ao-nee. It’s happening.”

#gaara #gaara x oc #fanfic #shin #osasu shin #naruto #chuunin exams #forest of death

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coepiteamare · 3 years

Text

2020 in fic

2020 was terrible year but an okay year of fic considering i didn’t really write till october.

STATS: fics: 1 fic; i wrote drabbles because i can’t write long fics. but i wrote 8 drabbles? female pov: 8 male pov: 1 (i thought i had more but nope, they’re all wips) both pov: 0 (i haven’t written anything long to justify both pov) total word count: (lol, i’ll update this later but i know it’s absolute shite) OVERALL: Looking back, did you write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you'd predicted? both! i started this blog in january, wrote two things, then forgot about it because life kind of took over. because i didn’t write for so long, i didn’t intend on coming back, but i realized that i had a couple wips for the dictionary of lovers that i never uploaded so i came back sometime in october? (i published one and then kind of tucked away the rest because i wasn’t sure what i quite wanted to do with tdol)

i started off this year intending to write and finish tdol (26 drabbles), but that didn’t end up happening, so less. but when i stopped, i also didn’t think i would ever come back to posting, yet here i am! and i’ve posted drabbles and have a bunch in the wip folders, so more! tl;dr: less than i thought but also more than i thought. What pairing/genre/fandom did you write that you would never have predicted in January? i don’t write cross fandoms anymore (though that was my start in ff, my peak poetry days), but i never thought i would write 2nd pov/memberxreader because i started off writing memberxmember fics for bangtan, so i suppose that! Did you take any writing risks this year? most definitely. i never thought i would write 2nd person pov, but here i am. and i didn’t think i’d write memberxreader, but here i am! (a bundle of surprises i am) 2nd person pov is actually a lot harder for me to write, but i’m getting better at it.

pens and paperwork actually has a lot of dialogue and less purple prose: i think it’s the one piece i wrote that was less emotion based and more plot, which is very out of character for me. it’s also a little (a lot) different than what i normally write, so that was also a risk, but i enjoyed writing that one so much: it’s definitely one of my favourite pieces and i want to flesh out that universe a little more. Do you have any fanfic or profic goals for the New Year? write! longer! fics! i want to rewrite “the dictionary of lovers” and put it together into a long fic. i have a multiverse fic that i’ve been planning out, and i want to finish 9,719km and make it at least 10K: i want to practice fleshing out characters and worlds. my goal in general is just to write a long fic (9,719km, i’m looking at you). and also return to writing memberxmember fics too (i have a namgi fic in the works and there are def taekook ideas). get better at writing openings and closing and titling fics. god, i suck at titles.

also, i would very much like to publish most of my wips. so, future violet, here’s to hoping you do that. What were last year's goals? this is my first year, but last year, my goal was to just start a writing tumblr and write! and i’ve managed to do that! so yay 🎉 BEST AND WORST: My best story of this year: nine thousand, seven hundred nineteen kilometers. i love it to bits and pieces and i had it in my drafts for a while? because i wanted to publish it as a full fic but who knows when that will be, so i published it anyways. also this part was so much better than the other parts, so no regrets, i suppose. i think it is my favourite piece i’ve written, along with pens and paperwork, because it’s so different from what i’m used to writing? (both are also yoongi fics, funny enough) i definitely think it’s less purple prose (though 9,719km def has elements of that still; can’t get it out of my system) so hs me would not have approved, but i love it to smithereens. i try to not read any of my fics after posting them though because i’m incapable of letting it be: i have to perform autopsies on it, pick at the bad parts, cut open the good ones for flaws, until it’s virtually unrecognizable and ruined, so i can’t bring myself to reread it, but as of now, from what i remember, i think it’s my best story. My most popular story of this year: love is a losing game (we played anyways): i’m so flattered and in awe that people actually liked this story because it was so hard for me to write. it’s only 1k and it took me a good week before i could publish it because i kept tripping over the language. and i felt (still feel) like pre-dialogue and post-dialogue are two different stories, which was extremely frustrating for me. i think i can write dialogue (this story is a different beast, just because of the nature of the beginning) but it’s really hard for me to combine poetry/prose with dialogue. i feel like it throws it off but the only other way to write it would be in a short bit compilation (i’ll write fics like that again someday) and i didn’t feel like it would work for lialg. (funny story: it was actually a royalty!namjoon fic where he wants to give her the world but it turns out she was a spy and she essentially burns his kingdom to the ground) i’m honestly not too happy about how it turned out but i’m still glad people enjoyed it! Story of mine most under-appreciated by the universe, in my opinion: none! i really didn’t expect to have an audience, so people stopping and reading my fics? wild. Most fun story to write: pens and paperwork. that drabble was so much fun to write and i loved the characters. also gave me the least amount of headaches, probably because it kind of wrote itself once i started. i really do want to expand on that universe, just because i want to revisit it and explore 007′s background (maybe write about 005 and 006 as a spin off though whether i want to make it taexreader or taexjimin is to be determined) and yoongi’s journey in the MI6/NIS as well!

Story that shifted my own perceptions of the characters: probably pens and paperwork? i’ve always known that yoongi was a dynamic and versatile person but that fic really did it for me. i can totally see him being this sarcastic, dry person, but also someone with a lot of love and care for others, like he does with 007 by bringing her alc when she’s in pain and generally trying to distract her as she’s getting stitches. someone who’s as loud as they are quiet. i definitely want to write more soft yoongi though.

Hardest story to write: i am your ocean (your little mermaid). hands down. i don’t know if tae is just really hard to write (for me) or if that fic was a monster of it’s own, but i spent two+ weeks working on it. it went through so many storyline revisions and changes and then even after i had a decent idea of the final plot, it took me another week to write fucking 1.4k. absolutely awful. do i like it? i don’t even know. but i don’t like hoarding fics, so it’s out there for the word to pick at, to dissect it’s anatomy, to taxidermy it. Biggest disappointment: the movietheaterworker!oc x marvelnerd!jk fic that i never published. i don’t know if it’s just bad or it’s just not what i wanted but i haven’t touched it since october (and idk if i want to look at it) so that says something.

in terms of something i published, probably “heart” from tdol. i re-read it recently and it just felt really bleh to me? i should have more attachment to it considering it’s my first drabble on this account but nope. some parts of it are cute but it’s so clunky. i don’t like it. Biggest surprise: pens and paperwork or monsters under the bed. pens and paperwork because of how much i loved it/how fast it wrote itself and how much i liked it afterwards, even though it’s written in a much different style than i normally write? monsters under the bed because it was written with no direction and honestly feels like a fever dream (though i did have a backstory to jk’s character and his relationship with oc), yet it still was well liked! i kind of posted it as the start to the “things you said” drabble collection and was like here goes nothing, but people seemed to really enjoy it!! which was very surprising. and my butterfly, noor, called me the bob ross of fanfiction (that still cracks me up) so! Most unintentionally telling story: hmmm...probably anything from tdol. i’ve been so fortunate to have such beautiful, healthy, intimate platonic relationships, but the one (two if we’re being generous, which we most def are if counting it) romantic relationship i’ve had was quite awful and extremely toxic. (ask me about it if you want to: i like to rant about it from time to time) so tdol is a creation of wishful thinking, of what i think a healthy relationship should look like, through the ups and downs, the highs and lows. because i don’t have experience with healthy romantic relationships, i def put a lot of my friendships and bits and pieces from those into tdol. and it’s not published yet, but there’s an unwritten piece from tdol where oc talks about how she doesn’t believe in love but jk very much is a hopeless romantic, and that’s me writing me into a fic so.

HIGHLIGHTS + WRAP-UP: Favorite opening lines:

(god, i suck at opening lines)

tdol “perfect” + coming back home to you would always be one of the highlights of my day. whenever the sun shined for a little too long, a storm would hit, but this--coming home to and closing the day with you--was one of the few things in life that was completely and utterly mine to have, out of the reaches of whatever was out there that made sure the road was never too smooth. [note: this isn’t THE opening line but we’ll ignore that]

9,719km + paris is much quieter than the places you’re used to, but it’s not a bad thing.

Favorite closing lines: (i struggle so much with these) i’ll be your ocean (your little mermaid) + the enfilade of rain continues and pelts against the windowpane, against your balcony floor.

monsters under the bed + but when he opens his eyes again, to the blaring 1:01AM of his clock, you’re no longer by his side.

9,719km + p.s. did you miss me? + maybe he’s just as potent as a habit, just as hard to kill.

Favorite lines in general: i’ll be your ocean (your little mermaid) + you let the words fall from your lips, dribble down your skin like water droplets, and dissipate in the ocean of your feelings. watch them dissolve into the seafoam of your being and sink down, down, down. + it feels a little like that now as you card your fingers through his sweaty locks, dyed red like ariel’s, bright red against the blue of both your feelings.

love is a losing game (we played anyways) + he looks at you like you hold the secrets of the universe, even as he tears through the valley of your breasts with the claws of his ambitions and devotion. + (the summary line: he builds cathedrals in your name, whispers prayers into your skin, and you shatter the stained glass windows of his dreams.)

9,719km + nothing has been able to keep him out: not the gallery treasury in newport beach with its earthquake proof alarm system, not the cartier vault in new york city with its impressive randomized laser grid, and certainly not the flimsy, fickle alarm system of your heartbeat.

LIST OF COMPLETED STORIES: [note: does tdol count? i’ll put it here anyways. also i suck at titles] the dictionary of lovers: heart the dictionary of lovers: confirmation the dictionary of lovers: perfect love is a losing game (we played anyways) monsters under the bed pens and paperwork i’ll be your ocean (your little mermaid) nine thousand, seven hundred nineteen kilometers you feel like a holiday

WIP TEASERS: welcome to wonderland (we’re all mad here) (aliceinwonderland!au) summary: queen of hearts!jk x alice!reader

excerpt: be careful in the woods, they whisper. so many girls have gotten lost and made it out with just their bodies intact, bones rattling hollow and mind astray. the girls mumble about tea parties with madness, about croquet games with the heads of the executed, before they are wheeled off to hospitals, still talking to the wall.

be careful in the woods, they warn. it preys on your fear and feeds on your sanity, if you linger too long.

i know you (i’ve walked with you once upon a dream) (dreamwalkers!au) summary: oc works for the department of dreams: bureau of night terrors as a dreamwalker. jungkook has chronic nightmares.

excerpt: They tell lucid dreamers to look down at their hands, notice the garbled image to recognize they’re in a dream. Your brain backtracks to what it last remembers. A click of the seatbelt, Jimin’s soft “sleep tight,” the cool air inside the tank. Darkness. You grip the wand a little tighter.

Dreamscapes are weird, you think as you conjure up an ironwood table and a cup of earl grey. The fabric of reality is so thin, so permeable and malleable with the right amount of knowledge. If you think really hard, slip a hand through that curtain, you can still feel the cold air lingering on your skin from the tank. You look down at your watch. 8:44. Eight hours and fourty four minutes left to wander through other people’s nightmares.

if the world was ending (you’d come over, right?) (au where the world slowly comes to a halt and you find yourself calling your ex. inspired by “if the world was ending” by jp saxe and julia michaels) summary: ex!tae x female!reader

excerpt: The world starts to freeze over when you’re on the bus ride home.

Pedestrians pause in the middle of the sidewalk; cars decelerate in the middle of accelerations. The chatter in the bus groans to a stop, like a radio after the plug has been pulled, as everyone slowly freezes. Your hair, which once fluttered in the breeze, gently falls back into place.

The traffic light is red.

You pull your earbuds out. It’s quiet. Too quiet.

“Hello?” you whisper, shaking the arm of your neighbor. No response. The silence is loud, almost deafening.

“Hello?” you walk down the aisle to where your driver sits. His face is still. Annoyance clouds his eyes, chest puffed like he was about to take a deep breath. One he’ll never take again.

You shuffle your feet back and trip on the stairs, back slamming against plexi glass and metal.

The light never turns green.

untitled (mermaid!au)

excerpt: Jungkook loves the sea, but he thinks he might like you a little bit more. You, with the sea breeze in your hair and summer storm in your eyes. There’s something about the way you sparkle like the ocean top, sun skimming across skin, that makes him think you might be more than human, a trick of light, an optical illusion.

untitled (desert princess x pirate!jk au) summary: i love you the way ocean clings to shore, the way the horizon wants the sea, but, darling, we were never meant to be

excerpt: you’re pretty sure the ocean is enchanted, bright blue waters glimmering with magic. nothing else could explain how jeon jungkook, notorious pirate and thief, owns eyes that twinkle like the night sky and a face that puts the sunset to shame, unless he managed to somehow steal those too. you wouldn’t put it past him. + they name hurricanes after girls, he tells you. a prayer for gentleness, a hope for small casualties. huh, you reply, whoever came up with that idea must never have been caught in the storm of a girl.

IN CONCLUSION:

wow, could i be any more conspicuous about which drabble i like the most? why do i use so many parenthesis? also, i suck at titles and opening and closing lines. but hey, i’m trying, and sometimes that’s all i can ask from myself. i wrote a lot less than i thought but also more than i thought, so cheers to that. maybe next year will be better, maybe it’ll be worse. who knows? hopefully it’ll read easier though. p.s. if you’ve read this and if you’ve read anything i’ve written, thank you for reading. thank you for sticking through the calamity of my thoughts, through the hurricane of my mind. you have no idea how much it means. i hope i’m able to make your day a little better, a little brighter, a little light in this time of darkness. p.p.s. i’ve made a few friends on tumblr. i won’t tag them because i don’t want to put them through this awful clusterfuck of words, but if any of you read this, hi. you’ve really shaped my tumblr experience and i’m so glad to have met you all. noor (papillionsgf): my butterfly, i adore you. you were my first tumblr friend and you’ve been nothing but sweet to me. thank you for talking to me and thank you for our lovely conversations, for letting me squeal about tfua, for i absolutely adore you. hana (cutechims): the two of us are awkward potatoes, and i still need to rewatch batman begins, but thank you for always being so sweet, so kind. i love talking with you and reading everything you write. you make me smile when i see you on my dash, with every response you send. jlin (bratkook): i slid into your tumblr dms because you’re so talented and so awfully pretty. i absolutely enjoy our conversations about rich folxs and karens, and i really hope the pandemic comes to an end because i would love to meet you in person and teach you aerial! (also i will bake you lots of cookies) erin (yeojaa): hi lovely. i adore you to the moon and back and to be honest, you still intimidate me because i love your writing so much, but i wanted to say how much i adore you and how i love talking to you. i hope you’re taking care of yourself and staying warm and i hope to get to know you better in 2021!

notes: adapted from lj, where i started writing! i used to see this a bit on lj (or maybe it was the circle of writers i followed) but i figured i’d bring it over here because it’s a good reflection piece and tumblr feels like a good place for that.

#violet thoughts on the horizon #violet sunsets: a year in review

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