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messedupfan · 2 months

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Chapter 14

Summary: It's the new year! There's a new development in Reader and Wanda's friendship. Jean and Anna have a very important question for reader. And Rachel witnesses something special.

A/n: Hellllloooooo!! I hope y'all are having a good day. Anyone watch Love is Blind? Every season upsets me more than the last. Anyway, comment, like, reblog, and enjoy!

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By the time you stopped staying with Wanda, the pillow wall ceased to exist. The pair of you were comfortable enough to share the space together on the bed and not overthink it. At least that's what you told each other to be able to hold one another at night. On the Sunday that Vision was meant to come for the boys, he called Wanda early in the morning. You were confused and exhausted when you accidentally picked up the phone. Your eyes went wide when you realized that you answered the wrong phone. You quickly put it on mute and woke Wanda up. She had to put on a fake voice to try and match yours. It was a hilarious attempt and she had to hit you to get you to laugh quietly. You just climbed out of bed to use the restroom.

When you came back, Wanda had her face in her hands. You rejoined her on the bed and she leaned against you once you were settled in. “Vision extended his trip. He said he'll pick them up next Sunday. Which, I'm okay with having them longer. Of course. I love them and I mean, they love you and Rachel so I'm sure that a part of them will be okay with it. But,” she shut her eyes and shook her head as you put your arm around her. “They're going to be so disappointed. I don't even know what I can say? What do you say to a kid when their dad would rather spend the holidays with his new family?”

You frowned as you rubbed her arm. Even though you knew the question was rhetorical, you felt inclined to answer because you've been that kid before. “My mom wouldn't tell me. She wouldn't even make an excuse on his behalf. She would just distract me with so much fun that I wouldn't even know how long it was until I finally did see my dad.”

“Do you think that will work?” She rubbed her finger under her nose. You laughed lightly as you shook your head.

“No, definitely not. Those kids are too smart for that. But, I think I do know something that might work,” you began to remind her of the night before when the boys were bummed by the idea that they had to go with their father because they wanted to stay and have fun with Rachel. “Just say that you asked Vision to let you have the boys a little bit longer and he agreed to let them stay until school starts again.”

And she took your advice, while you were in the shower, she went to the boys room and told them exactly what you suggested. They were so happy and they hugged her so tight she almost felt guilty lying to them. One of the hardest lessons she learned about being a parent was accepting that she did in fact have to lie to her children on occasion. She already had to tell them that she asked to have Christmas with them and they accepted that because Rachel was still in the hospital at the time and they knew their dad wouldn't take them to visit her. They were confused when they spent time with their dad's side of the family and he wasn't there but they had so much fun with their uncle Tony that it didn't matter. He chased them around and wrestled with them when Vision would have yelled at them for running and he would have punished them for playing around so much.

The twins loved their dad but they didn't miss him.

Wanda hosted a New Year’s Eve party that included her mom, the Starks, her brother and his family, plus her friends. You got to invite your friends, Steve and his partner Peggy, the new guy on the job site Thor, and Darcy. A girl you met on a dating app one time and the two of you decided to be friends after. It was rare for her to be in town because she is a political science major who is interning for doctor Jane Foster while she worked on getting her own doctorate. The internship had her traveling a lot. She brought Jane with her because she claimed that the woman was a shut-in. But with the way she almost instantly gravitated to Thor, you couldn't tell.

You also invited Bucky, another work friend, and he brought a girl he'd started seeing a couple of months prior. A woman named Natasha. When she entered the house she appeared to be on edge. So did Wanda at first, you figured you'd have to ask her about it when you got the chance. After a bit, they both relaxed.

Of course, Anna and Jean were in attendance as well. They kept wanting to tease you about co-hosting but with so many of your co-workers and your boss being there, they let it slide. You acted as a guest and the kids knew not to mention the living arrangement.

“So, who are you kissing at midnight?” Darcy asks as she joins you outside on the patio. You needed a break from the party and it was a nice night despite the low temperature. “Me or the hostess?” She smirks then takes a sip from her blue disposable cup.

You shake your head as you drink from your cup. “I’m not kissing anyone at midnight.” The kids were all in the boys room and you’d hate for them to run down the stairs and confuse them because you and Wanda kissed. They were already confused because one of the nights, Billy came running in from having a nightmare and caught you in the bed. Up until then, you and Wanda were telling them that you were sleeping on the couch. You got away with telling Billy that you also had a nightmare and he seemed to have bought the excuse as he climbed in and created space between you and Wanda so that he could snuggle with his mom.

“Oh come on, that’s no fun,” Darcy nudges you. “Tell you what, I’ll kiss Agatha so you’ll have to kiss Wanda.”

You narrow your eyes, “You just want to kiss Agatha.”

She made a face as she laughed, “No, I just want you to kiss Wanda.”

“How much money is involved,” you ask, knowing the people that are inside. Darcy tries to deny that there’s a bet circulating around the party and eventually gives up. You look inside of the house through the windows on the doors and watch Wanda laugh as something her sister-in-law says. Things weren’t complicated with her but you were constantly afraid that they would become complicated. “I’m not kissing her so that you and whoever else is involved can win a bet.”

“Pietro was the one who started it so,” she takes another drink, “do you really want your boss to lose.” The look she gives you confirms your unspoken question of which side of the bet Pietro was on. You couldn’t believe that he bet that you would kiss his sister at midnight. You shake your head again and finish what’s left in your cup.

“I need another drink,” you say as you get up from your seat and walk inside. Instead of refilling your cup, you toss it into the trash. Your eyes keep finding Wanda in the small crowd as you move about the gathering talking with the different people there. You liked getting to know Tony Stark but her laugh kept grabbing your attention. One of the times she catches your gaze and mouths a hello with a cute smile. You smile back and mouth, “Hey.”

As it got closer to the countdown to midnight, you walked upstairs to check on the kids. All of them had made themselves comfortable either on a bed or on the floor. Luna and Rachel have taken the beds, the twins and Agatha’s son are on the floor. The tv was left playing a movie and you carefully turn it off since all of them are asleep. You put blankets over the three boys and tuck the girls into the beds a bit more. You don’t realize that Wanda is watching you until you look up to leave the room. You smile as you stand in the room of sleeping children and strategically step around them to avoid waking them up.

You leave the door open a crack once you step out into the hallway, “I can move the girls out of the room in a little bit.” You whisper as you step closer to her. “I’m buzzed right now and would hate to drop any of them,” the truth is, you’d hate to wake any of them right now.

Wanda looks at you with admiration as she continues to smile, “It’s okay. I think they’ll be fine for the night. I um, I actually wanted to warn you about something.”

“There’s a bet on whether or not we’ll kiss tonight?” Wanda nods to confirm that’s what she was going to talk to you about. “What do you think about it?”

She shrugs, “I think if we do, it wouldn’t be a big deal. It’s not like we haven’t before.” You nod.

“But?” You anticipate.

“But, I don’t want my brother to win,” she says mischievously. “Have you heard what side he’s on?” She asks and this might be the only time in your life that you don’t regret lying when you shake your head. The two of you walk down the stairs as you hear everyone counting down.

“How are the kiddos?” Pietro asks as the countdown continues.

“They’re all knocked out,” you inform him. He nods and is pulled in closer by his wife as they get to ten. You look around to find Jane and Thor gazing at one another, nine. Tony and his fiance, Pepper are holding each other close, eight. Agatha and Darcy each have an arm around each other's necks as they both face the television, seven. Mrs. Maximoff is sitting on the sofa with a big grin as she counts down, six. Howard is next to her with his head tilted back as he snores loudly and his wife Maria is next to him counting with a martini glass in her hand, five. Carol is kissing Val each second that is announced, four. Natasha is sitting on Bucky’s lap while he sits on the recliner with her arm around his neck and his around her waist, three. Jean and Anna pull each other closer as they prepare to end the count down, two. That leaves you standing close to Wanda, one.

“Happy New Year!” Everyone cheers as the countdown on the television concludes and they each exchange a kiss with their partners. You keep your hands yourself as you give Wanda an innocent chaste kiss on the lips. It’s quick, you’re not sure if anyone caught it. She smiles as she moves closer to her mom and kisses her on the cheek as she wishes her a happy new year.

“Awe boo!” Darcy says as she digs for cash out of her pockets. The others that bet on you and Wanda sharing a kiss toss their money in the decorative bowl at the center of the coffee table. You wink at Wanda as Pietro shakes his head and puts money in the bowl. Wanda’s eyes widen ever so slightly before she continues to play dumb about the bet. The both of you fake being upset and make it clear that whatever is between the two of you is purely platonic.

From the top of the stairs, Rachel hobbles back to Tommy and Billy’s room to hide the fact that she saw the whole thing.

When Sunday comes back around, you get up early to get packed. School starts again on Monday so that meant you and Rachel didn’t need to stay with Wanda anymore. It sucks because you wish that you could have an excuse to be here longer but seeing as none of the kids will be in the house in the upcoming week, there isn’t a reason for you to stay.

You hug the boys and thank them for being so helpful with Rachel as you say goodbye. They each give you a tight hug before running off to get ready for their dad to pick them up. Wanda called him early to confirm that he will be here for them in the afternoon. He sounded annoyed and convinced her to drop them off at his house since he was recovering from his trip.

Wanda pulls you into a warm embrace to say goodbye for the time being. You’ve had to resist kissing her the entire week. You wished that you hadn’t done it on New Year’s Eve. She didn’t make it easy either. Too many times the two of you ended up too close to each other. Wanda was getting frustrated that you weren’t getting the signals that she wanted something more from you.

When the pair of you pull back from this hug, you and Wanda hold eye contact for a moment. Both of you are considering leaning towards each other. That is, until Tommy and Billy start shouting at each other. Wanda sighs and steps out of your arms. “I’ll text you later,” you say as you grab your bag to take to the car. Rachel and her bags are already in your truck.

You help your daughter out of the truck when you arrive at her mom's house and you only take one of her bags inside since you need to keep the rest at your apartment. Jean and Anna give you weird looks when you're inside and you're curious as to why but you don't question it. “I'll see you guys next Sunday,” you say as you're about to leave.

“Hold on,” Anna says as she grabs your arm to stop you. “Can you um…” her words seem to fail her.

“Do you mind staying for tea,” Jean finishes for her. You look between the two of them and notice that something is up with them. You fear that they're about to tell you that their marriage is over so you nod and allow Jean to drag you over to the living room. “So, we wanted to thank you for giving us some extra time to ourselves.”

“Okay,” you drag out as you eye her carefully. “What's going on?”

Jean gives you a nervous smile, “Just wait for the tea. Okay?” You nod and sit quietly. There's an awkward tension looming in the atmosphere. You were worried about what they're going to tell you and they are nervous to ask you something very important to them.

Anna comes in with a tray of three steaming mugs a few minutes later. “You haven't asked them yet, right?” Jean shakes her head as she waits for her wife to get settled. You accept your cup of tea with a close mouth smile and nod.

“Okay,” Jean starts as she sets her mug down. “Anna and I were wondering if you'd consider making another baby,” you’re about to laugh considering you just went through a break up, “with me?” She concludes. You spit your tea out at the absurd question. “I should have waited for you to swallow,” Jean says as she gets up to grab a dish towel to clean up the mess but Anna pulls her back down.

“Are you crazy?” You ask as you set the tea back onto the tray. “You tell me that you can barely afford Rachel and you want to add a newborn to your expenses?” You shout in a whisper. You don't want Rachel to get curious and walk in and get excited about having another sibling.

“Listen, we talked about that. With the budgets the three of us have come up with-”

“And the GoFundMe!” Anna chimes in.

“Yes, and the GoFundMe that we set-up for the medical bills, I think we'll be able to get that covered. And it takes nine months to make the baby. Anna and I can get to a better place financially in nine months,” Jean explains.

“Can you?” You nearly shout out loud. “Look, it's not just nine months of you growing a person. It's doctors appointments, it's prenatal vitamins, it's baby clothes and toys and furniture. We got rid of all that stuff a long time ago. It's not like you have hand-me-downs.” With your pointer finger, you tap the fingers on your other hand as you list the reasons. “Not to mention how expensive IVF can be.”

Jean and Anna share a look, “We weren't thinking about doing this through IVF. It's safer and more cost efficient to go the more natural route.” Anna is the one to suggest this.

You stick your neck out and slowly blink as you widen your eyes. You cannot believe what you're hearing. “You really just suggested that I fuck your wife?”

“You don't have to be so crude about it,” Anna chides. “I plan on being present and it wouldn't be wrong for you to fornicate with my wife. It's purely for reproductive purposes.” You cringe at the medical terms she uses to describe the act she is asking of you. It makes you want to throw up. “I don't understand what is so difficult about it, you've done it with her before.”

You slowly close your hands into fists, not because you intend to use them but because air was the only thing you could grasp without hurting yourself. “I was in love, we were in love. Rachel was created from love.”

“And this baby would be too,” Jean argues. “We care deeply about each other, Y/n.” She tries to take one of your hands in hers but you recoil, disgusted by the touch you once found comforting.

You shake your head, “That's not the same and you know it.” You take a few breaths to calm down before you get too worked up and as your mind clears from the shock, you are able to come up with a reasonable argument. “You two might be ready to have another kid, but I'm not ready. I can't take that on financially or even emotionally right now. Besides, there is so much that happens during their first few developing years that I wouldn't want to miss when passing them back and forth.” They share another look and you already know they've thought about a crazy solution to that. You're starting to think you should just leave.

“Well, we were thinking that you don't have any parental rights to this one. So that we can have a kid that's ours full time. We really want a baby that we can raise together that's just ours and we chose you to help us with that.” You scowl at this, they're actually asking you to not be present in the life of a child that you're supposed to help bring into this world. You couldn't believe it. “If you think about it, we can't have kids on our own and I really want Rachel to have a sibling that comes from both of us. You've said it yourself, half siblings aren't the sa-”

“Don’t even. I was a kid when I said that! I would never say that now. I love Kate,” you interrupt. “She is my sister.”

“Okay, fine, whatever. You still felt that way at one point,” Jean snaps, annoyed by your lack of support. “You can go off and have as many kids as you want with whoever you want. We only have so much time to do this and we used to talk about having another kid.” Jean tries hard to convince you that this is a good idea but it only sounds more and more bizarre.

“When we were together,” you remind her as if she was an idiot. At this point, you're starting to wonder. “Those plans disappeared the second we signed the divorce papers.” You look between the women that you have tried again and again to support and defend. When Jean introduced Anna to her parents, they weren't accepting of the relationship at all. It took you the better part of a year to get her parents to tolerate the relationship. They still held out hope that you and their daughter would reunite at some point. They knew a few couples that split up only to marry each other again a few years later. Then came the wedding last February, Jean's family didn't want to attend because they didn't want to believe it was happening. You made sure they came.

Now here they are, asking more out of you. With what return? What do you get out of this other than a few traumatic nights and a child you won't be allowed to raise but know is part of you? Then you think about Rachel and how when she would play with her baby dolls, they weren't ever her children. They were her siblings. You've had many talks with her in the past about why she doesn't have any siblings and she has expressed how she doesn't want to be an only child. You put your face in your hands as you realize that she's already ten and she'll be eleven soon enough. You had thought your eight year age gap between you and Kate was pretty big, and when you thought about having kids you always saw yourself having kids with small age gaps. That was until you had Rachel at seventeen.

“We're not expecting an answer now,” Jean finally says. “Just please, consider it before you say no.”

You sigh as you can't believe that you're actually going to think this over. “Okay,” you rise and walk out of the house. You drive to the nearest liquor store, the one you met Wanda at and buy a couple of bottles of the vodka she had suggested. As soon as you got home, you drank until you passed out to forget about the asinine request.

You overworked yourself all week, being the first one on site and the last one to leave. Someone needs to be focused on paying off those medical bills and not trying to rack up more of them. The work keeps you from thinking about what Jean and Anna asked. You couldn't believe that is a real idea they discussed and thought was okay to run by you. When you got home, you had a bottle of vodka with a side of instant noodles.

On Friday, your coworkers, Bucky and Thor, ask that you join them on a night out and you accept. You invite Steve as well because Bucky took a liking to him but wasn't sure if he could invite the guy himself. You thought it was funny that he was being weird about it but you didn't catch how flustered he was when you informed him that Steve accepted the invite. Then Thor requested that you invite Darcy and her friend. He tried to play coy but you know that he really liked Jane. He was just the idiot that forgot to call her the next day. He claimed that he waited too long and now he needed your help. You didn't mind extending it, he was a decent guy from what you've gathered.

A couple of hours later and you're drunk enough to start spilling your guts. Starting with how much you miss Daisy before getting into the real problem. Jean and Anna's request. Shocking everyone at the booth. The guys all agree that you shouldn't do it but Darcy plays devil's advocate and says that she knows someone that could help at no cost at all because they owed her a favor. “It's not just the sex that's the problem, Darcy,” you try to explain. “I can't just pretend it's not my kid. If I were someone that didn't mind that kind of thing, sure, I'd do it. But I'm not that person, I would want involvement.”

She puts her hand on your back and rubs soothing circles. It would be comforting if it wasn't her touch. You begin to yearn for Wanda’s touch again. You didn't realize how much you missed it. There is a loud group of people that are being disruptive and it puts you in a bad mood as you start to miss the Hub being your go to. You doubt Phil would let you step into that building ever again.

“Anyone want more? I'll get the next round,” you stand up even though you barely can and Darcy takes notice as she quickly joins you. Buck and Steve have engrossed themselves in a separate conversation. Jane and Thor were practically eating each other's faces. She gave him the cold shoulder when she arrived but he was able to crash through her walls pretty quickly.

While you wait at the bar for the drinks, someone falls against Darcy and she complains about her arm hurting. That triggers something protective in you and you grab the person to try and get them to apologize. They spit in your face and you shove them. Your friends are quick to escort you out of the bar before you get into something you'll regret.

“Give me your phone,” Darcy says as she digs through your pockets.

“Hey, that's my phone,” you try to grab it but you're really out of it. Bucky and Steve are both holding you up, they didn't realize that you had drank so much. They exchanged worried glances as they held onto you. Thor and Jane were busy trying to calm the person you pushed.

Wanda’s week was quite uneventful. She worked quietly on the project she was assigned. With the spare time she has in her day, she worked on her passion project. The dream house she one day hoped to build on a land she's trying to buy now. She doesn't want to continue to be limited by this house. The house that's so full of nightmares. There were good memories here, like the boys learning how to crawl and eventually walk, but it wasn't enough to erase the negative energy that has embedded itself within the walls like black mold.

She was planning on inviting her girls over on Friday but she really only wanted to be hanging out with you. Because of that feeling, she invited someone to sleep with instead. She needed to get you out of her head. You were starting to consume her every thought. Even when she worked on the plans for her dream house. Would Y/n like this much natural light if I add this wall of windows? Wouldn't they like a woodworking space, like my father had? Maybe Rachel needs a room… she dropped her pencil and scrapped the paper. She didn't need to be thinking about that.

Wanda was kicking the girl, Jessica, that she had over when her phone started ringing. Her heart jumped at the goofy picture of you with the caller ID that you had set, covering her screen. “Hey you,” she greets as she shuts the door. “What's up?”

“Wanda, keep it in your pants.” Wanda moves the phone from her face as she doesn't recognize the voice. It was still your contact information. “This is Darcy. We met last week,” she says with an urgency. This gets Wanda’s heart to race with worry.

“What's wrong with Y/n? Why are you calling me from their phone?” She asks as she searches for her keys. Ready to be driving to the hospital.

“They're fine for the most part. I think.” She goes quiet for a second. “Look, they're really wasted and I was wondering if you could pick them up?” Darcy asks nervously. “No stop! Hey! Y/n, don't do that! Steve, Bucky, get them!” Darcy shouts away from the phone but Wanda can hear everything she says. Wanda shakes her head. So far she hadn't known you to be the drunk type. She'd seen you have a few drinks and get a buzz but she hasn't seen you in such a state that your friends have had to parent you.

Wanda sighs, “Text me the location. I'll be there as soon as I can.”

“Okay, thank you,” Darcy sounds distracted. “Damnit, Y/n, why do you have a flask! Stop drinking!” Is the last thing Wanda hears before the call drops. She sits in her car for a few minutes before she receives the text of the location. It was a bar close to her house and she was there in no time at all. She doesn't even have to get out of the car to help you inside because Steve and Bucky shove you into the front seat.

“Wanda!” You say happily as you realize whose car you've been dumped into. Your eyes are closed but you recognize the scent you had been wrapped up in for two weeks. “Where's Wanda? I want to say hi,” you mutter as you start to get sleepy.

“Here's their phone,” Darcy says as she stands at Wanda's side of the car. “Don't let them call or text anyone. They're going through something with the ex and you have to make sure that they don't say something they'll regret.”

Wanda is confused, “What happened between Y/n and Daisy?”

“Oh no, honey,” Darcy smiles, “Not that ex. This is baby momma drama. You'll have to ask Y/n about that one in the morning. It's not my place to go into the details.”

Wanda nods in acknowledgement. “Thank you for calling me. Does anyone else need a ride, I'd be happy to -”

“Nope, we're good. Just focus on Y/n. Maybe try to get some water in them.” Darcy taps the car. “Good luck,” she waves as she rejoins the group on the sidewalk. Wanda drives you back to her house and helps get you inside. She didn't realize how heavy you could be when you're not holding your weight yourself. But she manages.

“I’m sorry I drank too much, Wanda,” you mutter as you lean against her on the sofa. She was trying to get you to drink some water before she attempted to move you up the stairs.

“That's okay, just drink this now,” she says as she puts the plastic cup against your lips. You take a sip and nearly spit it out as you show your disgust.

“Poison,” you exclaim. “Gah, what is that? It's awful,” you say as you lean away from it.

“It's water,” she leans closer to you. “Drink it!” She demands.

You make a face and take the cup and chug the whole thing. “I think my body is rejecting it. I need to chase it down with something. Do you have any vodka?” You complain and Wanda shakes her head.

“What did Jean do to you?” Wanda asks herself and you laugh maniacally when you catch her name.

“She wants my baby,” you answer. And Wanda is concerned that there is going to be some sort of custody battle. She can't think of why there would be. Unless Jean has a better job opportunity somewhere else.

“She can't take Rachel from you,” Wanda says as she gets up to refill the cup.

“Not that baby!” You shout. “My other baby. Er. A new one. She wants a new one and she doesn't want me to have it.” Wanda relaxes a bit, still confused but at least it's not something that will necessarily disrupt Rachel’s life. She walks over and claims the cup of water is vodka. You drink it as if it was the first drink you’d ever had in your life. “That’s the good stuff right there, what’s that brand?”

She is standing in front of you as she waits for you to finish the beverage. “I’ll tell you in the morning so that you don’t forget.” When you’re don’t she reaches for the cup and instead of handing it over, you grab her by the wrist and pull her to land on top of you. She tries to push herself up but you catch her lips in a sloppy kiss. “What are you doing?” She whispers as she pulls away.

“Something I should have done a long time ago,” you reply.

She shakes her head, “You’re drunk.”

“So?” You ask as you try to kiss her again. This time she is able to slip out of your grasp.

“So, this isn’t happening,” Wanda doesn’t go into how she’d be taking advantage of you since you’re so wasted and she hasn’t had a drop of alcohol all week. She doesn’t remind you of why you rejected her before or mention that she refuses to be a rebound for you. “Let's get you to bed,” she says as she lifts you up by your arm. You shake your head, disappointed by the rejection but comply.

You're a little wobbly as you walk up the stairs. Wanda is closely behind you to ensure your safe ascent. You stop in front of her open bedroom door. Uncertain if she wants you to stay with her. But you decide that it's not her decision to make. So you move to the guest room. Wanda doesn't argue as she collects a bottle of painkillers and fills the cup again. She leaves the items on the nightstand beside you. You fell asleep the second your head hit the pillow. You snored softly and Wanda was surprised because you never snored during the time you stayed with her.

“I'll see you in the morning,” she says while she flips the light switch off and shuts the bedroom door. Wanda grabs the pillow that smells like you out of her closet and sets it on her bed before she gets in her pajamas. She crawls into bed and clutches the pillow to her chest as she inhales your scent in order to fall asleep.

Chapter 15

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agent-barnes40 · 4 months

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Teddy bears

13th Doctor x GN!Reader (romantic)

The Doctor doesn’t realize the bear she bought you would have lasting consequences.

Fluff, pure fuckin fluff

The Doctor really really should’ve thought better when you came running up to her, practically death gripping her hands and dragging her back to the shop you had launched yourself into. Her brain was running a thousand miles a minute, trying to figure out what you had found, or if you had gotten into trouble. Instead, she saw the shop keep setting a brown stuffed bear on a shelf behind the counter, with two TARDIS blue hearts stitched over the chest.

"Please, Doctor. I would've given them earth currency but we don't have a universal currency and I don't know what currency this planet takes. I won't ask you to pay for anything ever again." You had practically begged, your voice coming out with words that even her brain had a hard time keeping track of.

The Doctor had to laugh, you looked adorable looking between her and the bear. Your feet were still tapping in excitement at finding the bear at all. "Yeah, we can get you the bear, if that is what your asking for."

"I forgot to even mention what I wanted! Oh thank you so much!" You didn't even think and pulled the woman in for a kiss.

The Doctor eagerly kissed back, her brain lighting up with ideas of what else she could do to have more kisses like this. Obviously more stuffed animals had made their way onto her list. She gently pulled away and rested her hands on your hips, laughing softly.

She really should've thought better when you started carrying the bear around everywhere, if she even mentioned there could've been a chance at sleeping outside The TARDIS. You had it stuffed in a bag you took everywhere. You and The Fam were curled up in a tiny tent, miles away from the TARDIS and you had pulled the bear out, setting it in your lap as she paced back and forth.

Yaz just smiled at the bear while Ryan snorted. "You still carry it around everywhere."

You smiled and nodded. "Gotta have a piece of my Time Lord with me everywhere I go. Plus, she's gonna be so busy tonight trying to figure out how to fix all this, she won't be open to cuddling. So next best thing."

The Doctor stilled at that, and then started pacing again. Graham was the one who picked up on The Doctor's stutter in her walk and the smile that had crossed the Time Lord's face.

Of course, you had been right and spent the night curled around the bear, and The Doctor had just stared at you. Your face had been burrowed into the bear's chest, barely enough room for you breath but it was how you slept with her.

The Doctor really should've checked the bear after that night, because when she heard you talking to someone in her room, her heart dropped and when she peeked her head in, and saw you curled up in her lilac and rainbow bedding, that damned bear sitting on your chest with her voice coming out of it.

She immediately pulled her sonic out and tried to discretely sonic it but your ears had caught the whirring and you sat up. "Hi Doc!"

Her eyes watched as the bear fell onto her side of the bed and she couldn't help but feel the spike of jealousy in her hearts as you readjusted the bear into a sitting position. She slowly moved the rest of the way into the room and sat next to the bear. "So when did you get it to speak to you?"

You tilted your head before looking at the bear. "I thought you did that. I had left her on the bed when we went out on Lavernus and when I came back she had started talking back to me."

"She?" The Doctor asked and you looked away from her, trying to not show how flustered you were.

"I mean, its kinda obvious who I'm projecting onto that bear, Doc."

"I just heard my own voice come out of that bear. I know the bear is representing me."

"Oh-Oh good, because its kinda embarrassing to project your girlfriend onto a stuffed bear."

The Doctor suddenly pulled you into a kiss, her hand wrapped the back of your head, gently keeping you in place. When she finally pulled away, she pressed her forehead to yours and a smile was on her face. "Do you know how jealous of that bear I have been since I bought it for you?"

#13th doctor x reader #Doctor Who x reader #Cade's Writing for Doctor Who

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ronwestbreeze · 1 year

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TO YOU , WORLDS AWAY : PART TWO : CHAPTER TWENTY - TWO

pairing: jake sully x fem!reader

summary: in which the sully family grows

word count: 3.1k

AO3 | prev | next

Never in your entire life did you imagine you would have such happiness. This type of happiness that could only be told through fairy tales. And you never thought your life was a fairytale.

But when Jake stood in the center of the circle the entire clan created, holding your newborn baby girl in the air, you could’ve sworn that this was the dream. That this was the fairytale you had imagined long ago. That you had forgotten.

And when Jake said your daughter’s name, it all became so real.

“Tsa’te!”

Despite having her for a few weeks now, you still remember the pregnancy months as if it was yesterday. You remember being pretty stubborn in the beginning. You thought that just because you were pregnant did not mean you were going to be rendered useless. Much to Jake’s dismay, you continued to grab your spear for hunts as if it were any other regular day. Even when you were beginning to show.

“Can’t you take just one day of rest?” Jake asked you one day as you grabbed your spear for yet another hunt. He frowned at your weapon, glancing from it and your small swollen stomach. “You won’t be missing anything, Doc, Just please, rest for one day? Maybe more?”

You rolled your eyes as Neytiri, who was playing with Lo’ak and Kiri, chuckled, “I promised since I joined the clan I’d be useful, Jake. I’m not gonna stop now just because I’m a little pregnant.”

“And you are useful,” Jake told you, grabbing your arms and pulling you close to him. “And that’s not gonna change if you take a day to rest.”

That’s when Neytiri chimed in, “Ma’Jake, she can still hunt. She’s not far along and my mother says she’s fine to do so.” She picked up Lo’ak as she stood, giving Jake arm a squeeze, “Enough worrying, skxawng.”

Jake rolled his eyes as you grinned, “My own two mates are turning against me. Nothing new, still doesn’t hurt any less.”

“Eywa help me, please don’t let my child be as dramatic as my oh so loving husband.” You teased, leaving a kiss on the corner of his mouth. “I’ll be fine, Puppet. And if something does happen, God forbid, I’ll have Ezì with me. Plus, it wouldn’t be the first time he dragged me back to camp after a reckless day.”

Jake cringed at the memory but didn’t protest any further. Kiri appeared next to your leg, looking up at the two of you curiously. Jake smiled down at her, placing his larger hand on her smaller head before saying to you, “Just make sure the both of you are careful, okay?”

“No promises!”

“Y/N.”

Then there were the days you began to get bigger and it became harder to go hunting. Your feet always ache and there was a point where your daughter kept kicking inside of you every few minutes. So much so to the point where it was too distracting to go on hunts anymore.

Obviously, you were pretty sour about this but your bad mood didn’t last too long when Kiri started staying close to you at all times once you decided to stay back at the camp. Lo’ak and Neteyam were with Neytiri most of the time, but whenever she went on a hunt as well, they’d be right by your side just as much as Kiri. Spider was the same whenever he was allowed to visit.

One day, you were lying in your hammock with Kiri sleeping on top of you. Jake returned to your tent, surprised to find the both of you there.

“You look comfortable.” He grinned at you as he placed his weapons down.

You glared at him, “Stay away from me you demon. My feet are achy because of you.”

Jake still walked over toward the hammock and lied down next to you. Kiri woke from her little nap and stared at Jake tiredly, “Hi, Daddy.”

“Hey, baby girl.” She crawled over to lie on top of him, laying her little head on his chest.

You sat up slightly, “She hasn’t left my side since you and Tiri left.” You watched Jake practically melt while holding Kiri and chuckled, “Who would’ve thought that big strong Toruk Makto would be undone by his own little girl.”

Jake smiled amusingly as he placed his hand on your stomach, “How’s Sully number four?”

“Pretty calm today. Not as many kicks compared to yesterday. I think she’s resting today, just like mommy.” You tucked a lock of hair behind your ear. As a couple of years had passed, you began to grow into your new body. Your hair had grown, you got used to the Na’vi clothing, hell, you don’t even speak English as much as you used to anymore. Some days, you forget you technically weren’t fully Na’vi.

“How do you know it’s a she?” Jake raised a brow curiously.

You shrugged, “Just a gut feeling ya know? Plus, Mo’at told me, so there’s that.”

A smile tugged at your lips at the stunned reaction from your husband. Jake sat up a little, staring at you in disbelief, “We’re having a baby girl?”

“Yeah.” You grinned, heart elated at his reaction. “I didn’t know if you wanted it to be a surprise or not so I’ve kind of kept it to myself until now.”

Jake brought his hand to your cheek, gently pulling you toward him as he pressed his lips against yours. He smiled at you, eyes sparkling with blissful happiness. “No, no, this is amazing! I didn’t even know you were that far along to tell yet.” He continued pressing kisses on your face, a giggle leaving your lips as he did. He pulled away slightly, to get a better look at you, his hand never leaving the side of your face, “How’re you feeling?”

You gave a small shrug, “I was a little nervous at first…” Glancing down at the sleeping Kiri, you gently tucked a short lock of hair behind her ear. “I didn’t have the best example of a mother growing up…Not until Grace really. Even then I don’t know the first thing about being a mother. Still to this day, I don’t understand how Grace did it.”

When you lied back down, Jake rested his head on your shoulder, humming into your skin, “You’re already such a great mother to the kids, Doc. I don’t doubt that you would be a fantastic mother to our baby girl.”

“I know, I know.” You’ve voiced this fear before when you first told him you were pregnant. And he said something similar to you before. Still, it didn’t make the fear go away entirely. But it was nice, having someone there with you, to let you know that you would be okay. Oftentimes you were the one that had to convince yourself of this. Jake closed his eyes, his face gentle and peaceful as he listened to your heartbeat. You let out a gentle sigh, “Who would’ve thought. Me as a mother.”

You felt Jake chuckle against you, “I’ve dreamed of this day the moment I set eyes on you.” He lifted his head up to press another long kiss against the corner of your mouth “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Oh Sully.” A grin tugged at your lips as you ran your hand through his thick locs, “Who knew you were such a romantic.”

“I like to think I’m full of surprises.”

As the two of you grinned, soon the rest of the Sullys entered the room. Lo’ak and Neteyam saw the both of you lying in the hammock together and ran toward the both of you. Lo’ak was the first to crawl into the hammock, “Dad! I caught a fish today!”

“Really? How big?” Jake asked, sitting up slightly as Lo’ak crawled onto him.

“Really big!” The boy grinned excitedly.

Neytiri climbed in the hammock next to Jake while Neteyam climbed in next to you. He looked at you curiously, “Did you tell Dad that we’re having a sister yet?”

Jake gawked while Neytiri smiled in excitement for you, “You’re having a girl?!”

“You told Neteyam first?!”

You rolled your eyes at your husband’s dramatics, “Technically, Neteyam was with me when Mo’at told me what I was having. I told him to keep it to himself until I told you.” You hugged the boy close to your side, “He’s my good little secret keeper.”

“He gets it from his mother.” Neytiri nodded proudly.

“We’re getting a sister!” Lo’ak cheered excitedly. “Will she be nicer than Kiri?”

“Hey.” Jake scolded gently, fighting back a smile.

Neytiri caressed her son’s cheek lovingly, “If she’s anything like her mother…”

Lo’ak frowned, “Mom’s not mean.”

Jake snorted, “To you all.”

Lo’ak rolled his eyes, “Just because she’s mean to you, Dad, doesn’t mean she’s mean.”

Neteyam grinned while you held back a laugh at the offended look on your husband’s face. Neytiri chuckled, “He’s been spending a lot of time with Y/N.”

“Clearly.” Jake grumbled.

When Tsa’te was born, when you saw your little girl’s eyes for the first time, you swore to yourself, just like with the other kids, that you would protect her from the world. You would do anything to keep that little toothless smile on her face. And soon, similar to Jake, you began worrying about the day the Sky People would return. Before, you didn’t think much about it and decided to stay focused on this new life, on your happiness, on living your life as Na’vi now.

Even though you kept these fears to yourself, you knew Jake could tell it was bothering you too now. You knew that Neytiri noticed it, but like you, tried to be optimistic, tried to continue living life. And so, you followed her example. All you focused on was your little star.

You stood under the Tree of Souls as you connected Tsa’te’s queue to one of the stems for the first time. Establishing a connection with Eywa. It was a tradition if you remembered correctly. Both Jake and Neytiri told you about it before the day had come, explaining that they had done it with Lo’ak, Neteyam, and Kiri.

Jake appeared next to you, his hand squeezing your waist as the both of you stared fondly at your daughter, “How is she?” He asked.

“Curious.” You chuckled as your daughter kept moving her head around to look at her surroundings. “Not even a few months old and she’s already becoming my little handful.”

Jake grinned, “Sounds just like her mother.”

“Nah, sounds more like her Jarheaded father.”

“Easy.” He playfully warned as he pressed a kiss against your head and then one on Tsa’te’s forehead.

Eventually, you gave Tsa’te over to Mo’at so that the Tsahik could pray for the All Mother to watch over her and accept her as the newest member of the Omatikaya.

Soon, the ceremony ended. You separated from Jake and Neytiri, taking Tsa’te with you in your baby carrier as you did. With the promise of returning soon and after telling Lo’ak that he could come another time with her, you set out on a short trip to the lab, with a babbling Tsa’te attached to your chest.

Fortunately, the lab wasn’t too far from where you lived. So you were there in no time. Tsa’te, thankfully didn’t get too agitated, far too busy taking in her new surroundings as you entered the labs to greet Norm and Max.

“Wow, Doc, it’s like a mini you.” Norm chuckled when he saw Tsa’te. “Who would’ve thought?”

You grinned, “Yeah, but give it a couple of years. She may have my looks but I have this feeling that she will end up a lot like Jake.”

Max smiled while Norm snorted, “Good luck.”

After covering your daughter’s eyes and flipping Norm off, you moved toward the avatar tubes to find Grace’s avatar where it always was.

You had visited the labs a few times in the past just to see Grace’s avatar. And every time you did, both Norm and Max left you alone. They probably knew you’d talk to her quietly, if they did they didn’t let anything on because they knew this was a private moment for you, whenever you came to see her. And you would keep doing so, even if it seemed trivial.

“Hey, Grace.” You smiled, gently placing your hand on the glass of the tube. Of course the avatar didn’t register your presence. “I want you to meet someone.”

Carefully, you took Tsa’te out of the carrier and held her, allowing her head to rest on your chest as you did. A grin made its way to your lips, “This is Tsa’te. Tsa’te, this is Grace. You weren’t born when she was around but Grace was the best scientist and human I knew. When the Omatikaya tell you tales of the horrible Sky People, just remember that Grace was one of the good ones. Same as your father. Same as I.”

Tsa’te looked down at the avatar with her large eyes. Her thumb halfway in her mouth. You chuckled. “I think she’ll understand the meeting a lot better when she’s older, Grace. But yeah, this is my daughter. Like Norm said, who would’ve thought, huh?” Tsa’te giggled when you chuckled, clearly having no clue what it was that was funny but laughing anyway because you were. “Kiri’s doing well. She and the boys are getting older by the day. It’s like I blink and they’re the next age. I don’t want them to grow up just yet.”

You watched the avatar twitch before letting out a quiet sigh, “I miss you every day, Grace…and you know what’s crazy? Some of the kids aren’t calling me tsmuke anymore. They’ve started calling me what you used to be called. Sa’nok…imagine that….”

Tsa’te began squirming in your arms, which told you it was time for you to head back now. “Bye, Grace. May Eywa be with you.”

When you returned back to your tent where the others were, Tsa’te was already wanting to join whatever chaos the Sully family were getting up to. Jake wasn’t there—if you had to guess he was possibly caught up with some Olo’eyktan duties—but Neytiri and the kids were there. Lo’ak, Neteyam, Kiri and Spider were outside playing—what game, you didn’t know this time. And after feeding her, you gently placed Tsa’te down and watched with a grin as she crawled toward Lo’ak who happened to be closest to the outside of the tent.

“Tsa’te!” Lo’ak ran over to pick her up, earning a giggle from the toddler. He rushed back over toward the others, holding Tsa’te up victoriously, “We got another player for the game!”

“Be gentle with her, Lo’ak!” You called.

“I will Mom!” Lo’ak responded, despite the mischievous glint in his eyes.

You frowned and turned to the eldest, “Neteyam—”

“I’ll make sure he’s gentle.” He called with a nod before turning to the others.

You chuckled and turned to Neytiri who was already watching the children with a certain look on her face. Already knowing the look, you sighed and grabbed one of the raw fish to cut, “Let it go, Tiri.”

“Why do you insist on bringing that demon boy around them?” She hissed quietly toward you, a frown on her face. “Especially, knowing who his father is—”

“He’s not his father.” You told her simply. The two of you had this conversation in the past before. Neytiri’s dislike for Spider wasn’t lost on you and it was one of the things you two had a disagreement on the most. It never really led to much of a fight, Neytiri just often complained and then begrudgingly let it go until the next time she was fed up enough about it to bring it up again. “Plus, Kiri and the boys love having him around. Just think about them—”

“I do think about them.” Neytiri frowned but turned her eyes toward the food she had been cutting. “But I also think about him whenever I see that boy…” Her face softened a bit when she looked at you, “how do you do it? Even after everything he’s done?”

You really didn’t have a good answer for that. Still to this day you still had nightmares and saw his face. But whenever you looked at Spider, you didn’t see Quaritch. You just saw a boy wanting to belong. You saw yourself in him and for that you couldn’t turn your back on him. You couldn’t blame the poor boy for the sins of his father. That wouldn’t be fair. That wouldn’t be right.

“Well for one thing, he looks more like his mother than his father.” You joked a little. Neytiri rolled her eyes but you continued, “He still haunts me…somedays are harder than most…but I learn to just live rather than stay stuck in the past…it’s easier said than done…but I do understand a lot of things can’t be forgiven or forgotten.” You placed a hand on Neytiri’s shoulder, “I understand, believe me I do….Just don’t take it out on him, okay? He’s innocent. All he’s ever done is lived. He didn’t ask to be born to a monster.”

Neytiri didn’t say anything for a moment. Her face was still hardened but her shoulders were less tense than before at your words. Still, she huffed before saying, “That boy is your responsibility. He’s your itan.”

You sighed. A part of you wished Neytiri could be a little bit more open minded but you understood her hesitance, her closed minded thoughts on the Sky People and Spider. You couldn’t push.

All you could do was be content with her tolerance.

“I want to hold her now, Lo’ak!” You heard Kiri complain.

“You already got to! You held her the longest!”

“Did not! Neteyam took her before my turn was finished!”

“Well, too bad! I have her now!”

“You’re such a penis face!”

“Hey!” You turned to them, eyes widened at Kiri’s language. “Language, girly! What did I tell you about that?”

Kiri pouted, “Sorry, Mama.”

Neytiri tsked and you sighed, “God, who even taught her that?” You probably did with how much cursing you’ve done before. But at least you didn’t say around the kids….at least you think you haven’t.

“Argh!” You turned your head to find Jake entering the tent seconds later, “Damned fuckface—”

“Jake!” You and Neytiri gawked at him.

Jake closed his mouth, glancing from the kids to the two of you before rolling his eyes, “Oh please, Doc cusses more and you’re condemning me?”

“Fuck off!” You hissed.

“What did you say, Mom?” Neteyam called.

“Nothing!”

taglist: @luvvfromme @sully-stick-together @jakesullylvr @s-u-t @ssc7514 @cheari @tojigirl @nyotamalfoy @perfectprofessorloverapricot @naityelen @dumb-fawkin-bitch @raggedyoldwitch @nhemmingsf @biooiuygjjgfsrb @thatsenoughformelol @thotd-f1 @beaniebeensbaby201 @theoriginalwife000 @3leni @23victoria @lovesickollie @atxara @im-in-a-pansexual-panik @ladylovegood-69 @lovekeeh @lilithmoon14512 @n7cje @fyfy-world @cleverzonkwombatsludge @goddesslilithmoriarty @itszzmoon @eternallyvenus @bajadotcom @ducks118 @alexandra-001 @sweetllamaparadise @padfootsvixen @avatarmasterlistblog

#to you worlds away #jake sully x reader #avatar jake sully x reader #avatar jake sully #avatar jake #jake sully #avengers x ofc #atwow #neytiri #lo’ak #neteyam #kiri avatar #spider socorro

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absolutebl · 8 months

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This week in BL - Gay Boy Turf Wars Galore!

Also, ALL the guest couples: TutorYim & MacNat showed up in Korea. Korea also reused the Love Class pair. And Wayne Song & Huang Chun Chih (H3:MODC) popped up AGAIN. (To be fair, when does Wayne not show up in a Taiwanese BL?)

Entirely subjective yadda yadda. Organized by favs in each category. No numbered lists anymore, tumblr be buggn'.

Aug 2023 Wk 4

Ongoing Series - Thai

Laws of Attraction (Sat iQIYI) 7 of 8 - Plot reveals galore + all the penultimate tension we could want. (How many different kinds of smiles does Film have in his arsenal?) OMG I LOVE the unhinged idiot bloody tattooed ex bf - intro music and all. He is my precious psycho-bunny-snookums. Also Tinn, baby-boy, communicating about your honest feelings in a BL? What madness is this? I sense doom incoming. Smart Chan, always tell him he’s better in bed than your ex. The sides getting caught! Noooooo. I mean we knew it would happen but still noooooooo!

I Feel You Linger in the Air (Sat YT) ep 2 of 12 - I like the surreal slip-stream dream-sequence openings. Is it a cerebral examination of temporal paradox or just designed to creep us out? The pace has picked up a bit and I'm delighted that external threat, stressors, and conflict are driving this plot. Refreshing. I love historicals - every touch and action can have such lingering significance, it’s very elegant. Thai BLs can often feel clumsy but not this one. I’m really enjoying it.

Dangerous Romance (Fri YT) ep 2 of 12 - Sailom is great. I love a smartass who’s actually really smart, reminds me of Bai Luo Yin in Addicted. (The real Addicted.) Never a bad thing. Kang is nasty bit of business, I look forward to his redemption arc. I love his grandma. (BL is giving good grandma right now.) Nicely executed narrative twist into sympathy too: rich kid sees how rough life really is. The complexity of character depth needed for this script makes me so happy it's Perth & Chimon, they both have such expressive nuanced faces.

I do keep wanting to rewatch LBC tho.

Only Friends (Sat YT) ep 3 of 10 - It remains a blast. Boston is king of red flags, cutting down Ray because he is the easiest punching bag? Going after his friend's bf just to prove he can? No thank you. I know Ray is lovely when he’s soft but danger zone, Sand. Be careful upon entering a minefield, every little step forward may cause an explosion. I don’t think being master of snark is gonna help you avoid getting blown up.

Sand is the one I feel the worst for - bi guy strays into cesspit of gay toxicity. He ain’t gonna make it out alive.

Hidden Agenda (Sun GMMTV YouTube) ep 7 of 10 - The boyfriends date ep! Zo’s past explains a lot about his behavior. Flirty Zo is v dangerous to all our hearts. Nice kiss. Poor Joke. Meanwhile, the side couple gave good kiss too! However, why is Title playing the bad guy again? Did GMMTV bring him in just to be resident jerk face in all their BL? Makes me sad.

Be Mine Super Star (Mon Viki) ep 8 of 12 - This should be a 8 or 10 ep show, 12 is too many. I think I just don’t like the lead couple's character dynamic and personalities. (No shade on JaFirst.) Side couple went startlingly high heat allasudden. And while their sex scene was good, I wish Daddy and the Hot Doc were being given a lot more script, screen time, and character dev. Sigh. I guess I just wish they were the mains and the others were the sides.

Can't have everything, I suppose.

Wedding Plan (Wed YT & iQIYI) ep 6 of 7 - Nuea is a saint and next week everything comes to a head (that didn’t already get head this episode). Trash watch here!

Love in Translation (Sat iQIYI) ep 2 of 10 - The side couple is everything. They are so cute and my favorite trope. Plus hugs with neck kisses! I love big brother using his adorable boyfriend to try and help his annoying little brother’s business. It’s just perfect. Unfortunately, that annoying little brother, is too fucking annoying. I remain largely unable to watch the main story arc.

My Universe (Sun iQIYI) 1 of 24 eps - Sampler pack BL, 12 pairs, each pair gets 2 eps, so this show will run all the way into 2024.

First installment is Casanova Begins. Dead boy wakes up in his enemy’s body, 2 years after his own death. Has to make things right with the boyfriend who thinks he was abandoned. Everyone has secrets. No one can be trusted. And the dead kid can never tell anyone who he really is. It’s … different? Unique take on the My Ghost Boyfriend trope.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Jun & Jun (Korea Thur Viki) ep 6 of 8 - Random moment of TutorYim. Hi cuties. Simon is my favorite, I love him and his flirty irreverent ways.

Who does he actually like?

Or is he just flirting with everyone?

Can he have a crush on anyone but himself?

He’s a house cat among the pigeons. Clearly wouldn't know what to do with the bird if he managed to catch it. Or would he?

The 4 boys dodging around each other and re-shuffling is so funny. I can’t tell you how delighted this show makes me. I do feel sorry for Lee Jun, he’s just the toy everyone wants to play with. I understand his frustration, do any of them really want him or is it all because the others are interested? Kiss! Yay! Good kiss! Even more yay!

Stay By My Side (Taiwan Fri Gaga) ep 9 of 10 - Poor baby doesn’t think he’s good enough and is holding JC back. They are THE CUTEST BOYFRIENDS. It hurts. The sappy.

Kisseki: Dear to Me (Taiwan Tues Viki & iQIYI) eps 1-2 of 13(?) - From screenwriter Lin Pei Yu (We Best Love, H3: Trapped) formerly known as Miracle, features a student doctor forced to take care of a gangster. I love the premise and like the writer. This one could be sad. Never forget Taiwan will go there.

Shall we get tucked in?

Gay boy turf wars! Main couple is cute. Sunshine gangster (turns out to be a sweetie who cooks) meets broken brilliant tsundere student who wants to be a doctor. Side couple is the leader of the gang and his rabid Pet. Also, all praise the guest couple de jour (baddies). Nice to see you 2... again. All actors are clearly having a blast with this script.

Triggers for knife play, child abuse, lingering trauma.

Love Class Season 2 (Korea Fri Viki) eps 5-6 of 10 - Aw guest couple from Love Class original, that is very sweet. The tutor and returning student, aka couple 3, are the best. So funny. But the whole thing remains engaging in a messy way.

Why R U? (Korea Wed iQIYI) eps 1-2 of 8 - Oh, it’s very odd. Certainly a lot more comprehensible if you've already watched the Thai version. As with that version, I still dislike the SaifahZon couple and love the FighterTutor couple. And once again I hate the weird IRL shipping sister. HATE HER. I’m not mad at the "Man who Fell into the World of BL" overtones but I wish they went at it more intentionally. (They’re not using NPC the way I would, are they? Cause that’s hella cruel.) MaxNat are fun. I love that Fighter went to his girlfriend's birthday party, didn’t even say hi to her, picked up her drunk bestie, and took him home.

This show is WILD. It’s very Korea tries to do a Thai BL. And, I gotta say, I kind of like the absurdity of the whole scheme. Do I think it will ultimately "work" as a stand alone piece? No. But as a very odd kind of parody? Sure.

Minato's Laundromat Season 2 AKA Minato Shouji Coin Laundry Season 2 (Japan Thu Gaga) ep 7 of 12 - Truth always comes out in hot springs. It's a rule of life. Coming clean is coming clean, I suppose. Still, moving very slowly for me and I need sake to get through this season. It's certainly suffering from sophomore slump.

Stay Still (Hong Kong Tues YouTube) ep 4 of 5 - Sad episode is sad.

In case you missed it

My Personal Weatherman AKA Taikan Yoho (Japan Sat Gaga) ep 3 of 8 - didn't air this week

Dinosaur Love (Sun iQIYI) ep 9 of 10 eps - Didn’t drop this week? MDL thinks it should have. Everyone is confused. But also… who cares?

Low Frequency (Thai iQIYI) Finished it's run - NO SINGING as flirty boyfriends they very cute actually, but this final ep was V E R Y slow.

All in all this was not a great show. Classic pulp with an interesting twist on “ghost boyfriend investigates his own not-murder” but ultimately not very good in any arena. 6/10 Only if you have nothing better to do.

Sing My Crush (Korea iQIYI) Finished it's rerun

This a cute coming of age drama around music and 2 kinds of self acceptance and actualization journeys. This was basically Korea’s version of About Youth, and was perhaps a bit too soft and ungrounded by comparison, like a marshmallow sculpture. Sweet but somewhat lacking in discernible flavor. Inoffensively unmemorable. 8/10 RECOMMENDED especially if you enjoy KBL's style

8/24 Man Suang (Thailand movie, domestic cinema release) - historical drama about Thai burlesque with KP’s MileApo. Do I know where to get it? Nope. Do I care? Nope.

Next Week Looks Like This:

Coming September

I have 4 on my radar:

9/2 Naughty Babe (Thailand Sat ????) - MaxNat back on our screens. We think iQIYI but aren't confident.

9/15 You Are Mine (Taiwan ????) - it's taking over from Stay By My Side so likely Gaga. Secretary has to deal with grumpy boss.

9/26 I Cannot Reach You AKA I Can't Reach You AKA Kimi ni wa Todokanai (Japan ????) - Adapted from the manga, childhood best friends: The cool, smart one who’s good at everything, and his average, dorky friend who struggles. Always by the other’s side, but not together in the way they truly want to be. No matter how hard they try, their hearts cannot reach each other.

9/27 Absolute Zero (Thai iQIYI) - from 2021, Studio Wabi Sabi and New Siwaj finally bring us this “time loop to prevent tragedy” romance. We don’t always get HEAs from them, so I'm on my guard.

9/?? Venus in the Sky (Thai iQIYI) 10 eps - ????

2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED).

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

No you aren't, Lom. You don't even know what that means. (Wedding Plan)

Minato comes out to the best person.

Trope spotlight! (Low Frequency)

I Fell You Linger in the Air

So true. (Only Friends)

I love them so much, as @heretherebedork would put it, Tiny Idiots!

(Last week)

Gotta say I am hating this new UI so much I'm not bothering to tag with shows. We shall see what that does for ROI.

#this week in BL #bl news #BL reviews #korean bl #japanese bl #taiwanese bl #thai bl #Rakutan Viki #gagaoolala #GMMTV

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jungle-angel · 1 month

Text

I'll Kiss Your Hurt Away: Part 2 (Rhett Abbott x Reader)

Summary: Rhett calls it quits in the bull riding ring after a nasty ride, but you're more than willing to help him get back on his feet in any way you can.

Tagging: @floydsmuse @callmemana @attapullman @cowboybarbie @withahappyrefrain @kmc1989 @bradleybeachbabe @sebsxphia

Warnings: Parenthood, injuries, doctor's visits, mentions of jerking off in a cup in said doctor's office etc.

"Fuck me," Rhett groaned.

"Wish I could but what if Pete walks in?" you asked cheekily.

Rhett winced again. Sitting up straight was still hard on his sore body, but thankfully his leg didn't need the brace anymore.

The door creaked open and in entered Pete, one of only a handful of doctors still left in Wabang. "Got the test results," he announced.

"What's the word, Doc?" Rhett asked him.

"Well for one thing, I can't believe what I saw," Pete said trying not to laugh. "Your sperm must be invincible."

Rhett laughed a little as you rolled your eyes.

"In all my years as a doctor, I have never seen such a spectacular display of virility," Pete remarked. "Lets get a good look at the rest of you though and make sure you're still in one piece."

"I don't feel anything stickin out so that's a plus," Rhett chuckled, rolling his shirt up past his nips.

"Yeah but just to be sure," Pete mumbled.

He listened to Rhett's heart and felt up his ribs, Rhett wincing at the tenderness of the bruises as Pete felt up the rest of him.

"Everything's still in place which is good," Pete concluded. "Surprising given how hard that fucker must've kicked."

"I'll be ok though right?" Rhett asked.

"You'll be perfectly fine," Pete answered. "But next time you might not be so lucky. If I were you I'd call it quits."

"Already did Pete," Rhett told him. "I ain't goin back if I can help it."

"Damn proud of you for that one," Pete chuckled. "Alright, you're good to go."

"No scripts?"

"None whatsoever," Pete told him. "Just get plenty of sleep, fluids, eat well and if anything changes, you know my number."

"And don't call beggin for Viagra," Rhett joked.

"Out! Out of my office!" Pete ordered, unable to contain his laughter any longer.

You and Rhett left the office but on the ride home, you remained on the quieter side with only the quiet playing of the radio going in the truck.

"Did you really mean it?" you asked him, a lazy smile breaking out on your face.

"Did I mean what?" Rhett asked you.

"When you said you were gonna quit the bull riding circuit?"

Rhett chuckled a little. "Darlin I mean it, I ain't goin back in that ring," he said. "Not for all the money in the world."

"Not even if it'll help build our dream home?"

"Nope," Rhett said, shaking his head. "Layin in that ER, I kept thinkin of what would happen to you and Amy if something happened to me. You and that baby need me as much as I need ya'll. I ain't leavin this world without either of you."

You squeezed his hand as you drove along that lonely stretch of road that led from town back to the Abbott ranch where Cecelia, Amy and Royal were all waiting for you.

"Feelin alright there Grumpy?" Cecelia asked.

"Never better Ma," Rhett answered. "Still sore as hell though."

"Ya'll want some lunch?" she asked again.

"Think I'm gonna go lay down," Rhett told her.

You led him upstairs and helped him lay down, covering Rhett with the wooly green throw blanket. "Oh," you said suddenly. "I went to grab the mail while you were asleep and it appears there's something here for you."

You handed Rhett the envelope which he tore right open, reading the contents and going wide eyed at the response.

"What's it say?" you asked.

"Says, Dear Mr. Abbott," he began. "We're pleased to inform you that you've been accepted to our learning center at the Amelia County Steiner School and will soon fill the position of full-time woodworking teacher for our students."

You caught the shriek in your throat before it had a chance to travel down the hall and catch Cecelia's attention. You leaned in and kissed your husband. I'm proud of you cowboy."

Rhett laughed as you kissed him again. You couldn't wait for this new beginning and all the new beginnings afterwards.

#rhett abbott #rhett abbott x reader #outer range

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rollinouttahere-writes · 5 months

Note

Idea you know that Crocodile is a trans man theory? Well if hes Lizard's maternal father and her parental father is Doflamingo?

( drunken one night stand)

I mean it would explain why we never hear anything about her mother

So, funny thing about that. I have a whole doc with lore about Lizard and Doll's mothers, I just never shared it because I assumed no one would be interested.

I personally think that Crocodile made the switch shortly after Luffy's birth if that theory is true, so he is Lizard's biological father.

I'll post the information down below. They're just vague notes, nothing super in-depth.

Warnings for descriptions of childbirth, death, and alcoholism

Lizard’s mother - Akila

Starts out as a housekeeper

Very chatty when Crocodile is around; he picks up on how witty and intelligent she is and thinks it’s a waste to just have her working as a maid

He doesn’t involve her in Baroque Works or any other illegal activity, she is purely managing the casino so that Crocodile can handle his other “business ventures”

To this day, the casino has never operated better than when under her care

She was the whole package: charming, charismatic, intelligent, funny the works

Eventually, they started sleeping together in a no-strings-attached agreement

She gets pregnant

Crocodile isn’t necessarily happy about it, but he entertains the idea and keeps his negative feelings to himself; he decides to let this ride out to see how he’ll feel once the baby is here

Fully intends to quietly dispose of them both if he isn’t attached by the time the baby is born

He gets Akila everything she could need and lets her take time off work whenever she needs to without question, but he never goes to the doctor’s appointments or spends any real quality time with her

Akila does have feelings for him, but she can tell that it’s one sided; she stays anyways because she believes it’s in her baby’s best interest

She goes into labor two weeks early, and it is a very hard labor

Crocodile is there for the birth and stays by her side for all 18 hours of it; assuming the crocomom theory is true even he isn’t enough of a monster to let her suffer this alone like he did with Luffy

Plus, since he doesn’t feel anything for her, he figures he might as well play nice before he kills her

The baby is born, but since Akila is in rough shape and desperately needing medical attention, she is shoved into Crocodile’s arms

For the first time, he looks down at his daughter and everything changes; she stares up into his eyes and Crocodile knows that he won’t be able to kill her

While they’re having this bonding moment, Akila suffers a fatal postpartum hemorrhage

The doctors are terrified that they’re about to be murdered for letting the mother of Crocodile’s child die, but to their surprise he is very understanding

Akila dying of natural causes here makes everything much easier for him after all

To keep up appearances, he acts like he’s upset about the loss and has an elegant gravesite built in her memory

Doll’s mother - Kailani

A distiller who specializes in making rum, owns the business herself

A major introvert who focuses on making the booze and leaving her employees to handle customer interactions

Shanks stops at the island to restock their supplies, and naturally that means acquiring an absurd amount of alcohol

The locals point him to Kailani’s distillery, and he places a massive order

The person taking the order decides to go and get Kailani’s approval first, and she comes out to see who the hell would need that much rum

Shanks thinks she is adorable and is smitten, so he lays it on thick with the flirting; Kailani isn’t used to this treatment since she’s a bit of a hermit and is flustered but charmed

One thing leads to another, and they sleep together before he leaves

11 months later, they’re passing by the island again and decide to stop by, both for the booze and because Shanks wouldn’t mind seeing Kailani again

He strolls right into the back of the store without a care in the world only to stop dead in his tracks when he spots Kailani nursing a suspiciously red-haired baby

Doll is two months old and Shanks is obsessed the second he lays eyes on her, he immediately starts talking about her and Kailani joining him on the Red Force

Kailani shoots this down; both because she doesn’t want to leave her home behind and because she doesn’t feel comfortable raising a baby on board a pirate ship

Shanks tries to convince her but she stands her ground; he seems sad but accepting, he asks to spend the night so he can get some quality time with the baby before he leaves again

Kailani agrees because the promise of a full night’s rest is very enticing

As soon as she’s out cold, Shanks packs up some essentials, takes the baby, and leaves in the middle of the night

There is some pushback from his crew who rightfully point out how fucked up this is, but Shanks is the captain so there isn’t much they can do about it

Kailani never fully bounces back from this and develops a severe drinking problem to cope

#strays au #crocodad series #yanderefangirl #playing with doll

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imrowanartist · 2 months

Text

Written with the prompt “We need to talk.”

Set in the Rosie AU

Tags: Established PriceGaz, trans pregnancy, just some fluff

After John leaves for his training shift at Credenhill, Kyle tries to lay in bed a while longer.

Tries being the operative word there, since he can already feel the urge to pee again; his little Bee making it known that she’s awake too. He places a hand on his bump and despite his morning grumpiness, he can’t resist a smile as he feels her usual movements.

Just ten more weeks before he’ll get to meet her for real, a thought that both excites and terrifies him.

With a slightly exaggerated groan, Kyle drags himself out of bed to get ready for the day. He promised Laswell he’d go over some intel and he has an appointment with his ob-gyn later in the afternoon too.

Researching intel for Kate is not his favorite job, but it makes him feel useful and he likes being able to contribute to the team, even if he can’t be in the field anymore.

The morning passes by uneventfully, besides a handful of extra pee breaks and one snack craving he can’t resist. The afternoon brings its own challenges.

The weather is slowly getting warmer and the closer it gets to the summer, the less Kyle can hide his growing bump behind coats and sweaters when he goes outside.

It’s not that he’s ashamed - he hasn’t been since he was a teenager and he refuses to be now. He just discovered that he has very little patience for having to explain his situation to random curious strangers.

Today, however, is a typical gloomy spring day, which means he’ll be able to go about the rest of his appointments with relative anonymity.

When Kyle gets home by the end of the afternoon, his limited amount of energy has been spent. He’d planned on unpacking some of the baby stuff they received from Dotty in the nursery, but as he sinks down on the couch, he decides that a nap is in order first.

It’s one of the plus sides of being pregnant, he thinks to himself as he fluffs up a pillow. No one bats an eye when you take a nap at random times a day.

He must sleep longer than he thinks because it’s the sound of a key turning in the lock that wakes him up. Squinting at the clock he notices that it’s indeed about time for John to come home from the base.

He’s still rubbing the sleep out of his eyes when his partner enters the living room and throws his jacket over the armrest of the couch. Kyle blinks at him as he notices John’s stiff movements.

“Hey, “ he greets, sitting up. The what’s on your mind? goes unspoken between them.

John’s body language is tense as he puts down his bag and crosses his arms. “So what did you want to talk about?”

Kyle frowns at him, confused as to what he's referring to. “Eh?” he says, wondering what on earth has John so on edge.

“Your message,” John replies, clearly getting frustrated as he rubs his forehead, “You said we need to talk?”

Kyle grabs his phone and opens his messages. “I don’t remember sending you - oh… aw, bloody hell-“

At the top of his messenger app, he indeed sees that he sent John exactly that. And now that he reads it again, he suddenly remembers why and when.

“Kyle?” John asks, almost nervously.

Kyle sighs, cursing the hormone-induced forgetfulness that most definitely caused this. “I’m so sorry, I was gonna say ‘We need to talk about that registry list mum sent’ but I guess I got distracted.”

It’s been happening a lot lately. He thought Dotty was joking when she said pregnancy brain was a thing, but by now he has discovered that she was dead serious. He looks up at John. “You okay?”

John lets out a relieved chuckle as he sits down next to Kyle on the couch. “Fucking- yeah I’m good. Thought you’d gotten some bad news at the doc or something.”

“Like I would have sent a text like this-“ Kyle snorts, leaning into John. He feels kinda bad for causing his partner distress, but it’s also a little funny.

John turns to him abruptly with a raised eyebrow. “I distinctly remember you texting me the same thing before you told me you were gonna keep her.”

Kyle has to wreck his brain for a moment, but then he remembers what John is referring to with a wince. “…Yeah okay fair,” he says, before leaning towards his partner and kissing him on the cheek. “But no, everything’s good. Me and Bee are right on track.”

John sighs again, but this time Kyle recognizes it as one of relief. It’s sweet how much he worries, making Kyle feel a wave of affection for him.

“Good. That’s good.” John grunts, then asks, “You hungry?”

Realizing it is about dinner time, and that Kyle definitely has no energy to cook anything whatsoever, he nods. “I could go for some food, yeah.”

John already reaches for his phone, giving him a questioning look. “Anything you’re craving?”

Ah, how well his partner has gotten to know Kyle and his particular pregnancy moods by now. He gives John a grin as he leans back onto the couch and puts his feet up on the coffee table.

“Thai, I think,” he hums thoughtfully, putting a hand on his stomach and feeling Bee nudge it as if she agrees. “Yep, definitely Thai.”

#kyle gaz garrick #gazprice #pricegaz #rosie garrick price #call of duty #modern warfare #trans pregnancy #ro writes

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onhallowseve-98 · 7 months

Text

Your Scars Are Beautiful

Summary: In a world where you have a predestined partner, Y/n must navigate her harsh reality as her body holds the scars of her Soulmate

Barry Allen x Plus Size Reader

She was used to the stares by now. But the harsh words from random strangers were still very hard to adjust to. Thankfully working at a shifty bar with even more questionable patrons, Y/n's looks alone were enough to have them leave her be. Y/n's two toned eyes, one grey, one e/c, flitted towards the mirror across from where she stood as she frowned at the image that looked back at her. Her s/c was ashen and sick as the angry dark marks that branched from her neck and spread the left side of her face, her left eye clouded and grey. Her eyes trailed down her arm and chest where she knew it spread down to her navel. With a huff she mumbled to herself, "As if it wasn't bad enough that I had stretch marks."

It hadn't always been like this. 23 months ago, before the Particle Accelerator blew up, she was on her way to do big things as an up and coming journalist for the CCNP. But that night, whoever her soulmate was, got hurt bad, bad enough that she felt it through their connection that sent her into a coma for nine months. When she woke up, she and the doctors were surprised that none of her faculties were failing her. Despite her left eye, she was perfectly normal.... well that and the scar that she now had. The doctors said that it looked like a Lichtenburg figure... but it would have been impossible for her or her soulmate to survive being struck by lightning. So her scar remained a medical mystery.

And she was left with her life in shambles. Because of her disfigurement, she lost her job as she scared most of her colleagues now. And well, the world in general for that matter.

She was pulled out of her thoughts when her favorite patron sat down at the bar in front of her and gave her one of his cool smirks. His blue eyes danced across her face as he drawled, "Evening snowflake."

Y/n's dark painted lips pulled up into a grin as she greeted, "Len, what a pleasant surprise. Last I heard you were in Iron Heights."

He let out a soft chuckle as he shrugged, "I got out on good behavior."

"Mmhmm," she pursed her lips as she smiled at him disbelievingly. She quipped, "Heard Mardon and the Trickster got out too. They out on good behavior as well?" Len's icy blue eyes sharpened as did his smirk as he complimented, "Smart, and beautiful. You really are too good for this place Snowflake." Y/n laughed good-naturedly as she turned around and asked, "Your usual then Snart?"

"That would be lovely, thank you N/n." came his easy reply. Mixing the cold beverage up, she completed his order and handed it to him with a easy going smile as she said, "It's on the house. Take this as a 'congrats for getting out of prison'"

"Oh, how thoughtful," Len joked. Y/n couldn't help the giggle that slipped out at the older man's words. With that, her evening truly begun. For hours she stood behind the bar and made drinks, all the while Len sat there making easy conversation with her, and threatening some of the customers when they got too rowdy.

Nearing the end of the night Len started slowly, "I have to ask, you don't have to answer.. but your scar?" Y/n's lips turned to a sad smile as she wiped one of the glasses clean, "My soulmate's." She confirmed causing him to wince, "That looks painful. Do you know what caused it?"

Y/n sighed and shrugged, "The doc's said it looks like a Lichtenburg Figure; a lightning strike scar. The night the Particle Accelarator exploded, was the same night I got this scar and went into a coma."

Snart stiffened at that causing her to quirk a brow but continue on, "The damage it's done to me, means it probably killed my soulmate."

Leonard stayed uncharacteristically quiet for a long moment before dropping some bills on the counter and saying, "I gotta go do something real quick kid, I'll be back." Frowning, Y/n's eyes followed him, "Okay..... later Snart."

Barry was not happy. Not one bit. His glare on his face was murderous as he stared down the man who made himself comfortable once again in his home. It was Christmas, and yet, here Leonard sat, the same reindeer mug in his hands as he leisurely stared down Joe's and Eddie's guns. His blue eyes slowly scanned the group in front of him before they landed on Barry as he said in his usual drawl, "I hope you don't mind, but I helped myself to some eggnog."

Barry's brows were furrowed as he snapped, "What do you want Snart? Don't criminals take the day off for Christmas too?"

Snart's signature smirk tweeked his lips as he hummed, "I'm not here for business. Consider this a Christmas gift to you Scarlet." Barry's confusion was written clearly on his face, "What?"

With a dramatic sigh, Snart hauled himself to his feet before staring down his nemesis that was more of a friend to him, "I found your soulmate Scarlet."

Barry's sharp intake of breath broke the silence that followed Leonard's words. Cisco was the first to speak up, seeing as he had the least problem with Snart as Lisa was his soulmate, "Wait, what do you mean you found his soulmate? You know who they are?"

Snart gave a curt nod, "She's been working at Saints and Sinner's for the past 13 months." Barry's frown deepened, "Why didn't I see her the times I went there?"

Snart tilted his head, "Let's be honest Allen, you didn't go there for pleasure." Barry huffed with slight agitation but conceded as he always went there to check on Leonard. Joe finally found his voice as he asked with an accusing glare at the criminal, "What? You're just going to trust him? What if he's lying?"

Jay, whom Barry forgot was even there, spoke next, "Yeah, I'm not sure you should listen to him. If half of what you guys say is true about him...." he trailed off but the insinuation hung in the air. Snart was apparently done being accused as he glared at the two of them, "I may a thief and a liar, but I care about her like she's my own sister." Gliding his ice cold eyes back to the Speedster he said, "She's hurting. She thinks your dead."

Barry bit his lip unsure of whether to believe him or not when Harry asked, "Do you mind telling us how you know she's Barry's soulmate? And if you knew, why come to us now? Instead of all those months ago."

Leonard let out a sigh as he admitted, "Her scar..... I never asked about it until today. She got it the night the Particle Accelerator exploded," he paused for dramatic effect. His eyes finding Barry's again as he admitted, "Her scar is from a lightening strike." Barry's heart thumped wildly in his chest as he registered his words. Barry looked over to Caitlin with hope and trepidation in his greenish blue eyes, "But how? I never had a scar."

Caitlin frowned as she mulled over the possible situations before nodding, "It may be because you're body may have already healed itself so a scar never showed on you, but your soulmate....." Barry's jaw dropped as he thought of all the possible ways he could have gotten scars, his mind going straight to when he was shot for the first time, and the two arrows that Ollie shot at him. Covering his mouth, his happiness quickly turned to horror as he thought, "Oh my god, what have I done.... all this time.... she could be getting more scars." Leonard winced as well as he thought about the time he iced Barry. Holding out his hand, Leonard offered, "Tell you what, you do right by her, and I won't be icing you every time we meet as the Flash and Cold."

Barry looked overly grateful for the deal, and without thinking, shook his hand. Before he could pull away though, Leonard gave his hand a hard squeeze as he shot him another glare, "But I swear to God Barry, if you hurt her in any way, no one will ever find your body." Barry laughed nervously as he asked, "You're joking right?"

"No, I got the same threat," Cisco muttered helpfully to Barry, who audibly gulped, "Right, of course. I won't do anything to hurt her." Leonard squinted at the young man before letting go when he was satisfied that he understood the very real threat he was delivering him, "Good." The Scarlet Speedster mouthed ow as he rubbed his now very sore hand , but he bounced back with a visible spark in his eyes, "Can I meet her?" Leonard gave a curt nod causing Barry to grin, and zip out the door without further prompting. Leonard just sighed before turning to the rest of Barry's family as he spoke to Joe, "Might as well change and blend in, I'm sure you all will want to meet her too." With little else to say, the rest of them scrambled to get ready as well as Leonard waited and thought, "God, I'm turning soft in my old age."

Y/n hummed along to the Christmas songs that played mutely in the background while the patrons cheered at the footage of the Flash being beaten down by Mardon and the Trickster. Her own e/c eyes drew into the scene as she winced with every punch, but her lips quickly twitched upward when the Flash put a hand to his ear before he zipped around and quickly disarmed the two of them. Y/n wasn't sure what had changed the Flash's demeanor, but she was grateful no matter what had happened. She rolled her eyes when she heard the collective groans and boos. One going so far, as to throw their beer at the screen causing the bottle to shatter, and the screen to crack. More groans and yelling sounded around at that just as Y/n's eyes caught sight of Len walking in with a big group around him.

Not paying them any mind, she quickly turned and yelled at the rowdy customers, "Oi! You better pay for that!"

"Eh, whatever, I can steal ya a better one!" the man yelled back.

Glaring she spat back, "I don't care what you do, but it sure as hell ain't coming from my paycheck!"

The man waved a dismissive hand at her, "Whatever, grab me another drink would you doll?!" Y/n felt her face heat up with anger as she muttered angrily to herself before she heard Len say, "Tough crowd today huh?"

Y/n's two toned eyes turned towards Leonard, and his group of..... well normal looking friends.... her demeanor relaxing as she easily grinned, "Len! You're back, I thought you'd be done for tonight." Len tilted his head to the side as he said, "I had someone I wanted you to meet." Y/n's eyes turned to the group that were staring at her with varying degrees of awe and disbelief. Her eyes landing on a pair of green blue ones that looked at her with unfiltered adoration that it nearly knocked her on her ass. Her eyes scanned his thin frame that was lean, but clearly built. His brown hair looked like it was in a constant state of windswept, and his smile was soft.

She was shocked out of her daze when the same man from earlier came clobbering towards her bar and parked in the stool right in front of her, effectively shoving Len to the side. Her face immediately fell as the sleezy man eyed her up and down, "Dollface, what's taking so long? I asked for a drink ten minutes ago."

Y/n bit back the insult that was just about ready to burst from her throat, and instead gave him a sadistic sweet smile, with a tilt of her head she spoke sarcastically, "Of course sir! How silly of me, just one moment." Her smile dropped as soon as she turned away and towards her alcohol. She was about to grab the ingredients to mix a drink when she stopped dead in her tracks as the man spoke, "Well aren't you just a lovely sight walking away like that. That's right, just bend over, let me see that view." Y/n felt her body go rigid before she muttered, "Fuck it." Turning with a speed that would surely make the Flash proud, she bent down to pick up her bat, as she made strides towards the counter. Climbing over it, she swung her thick leg out and hit the man in the chest, effectively knocking him off the stool.

He fell with a loud clattering thump, causing the other patrons and the group that Len brought to turn and stare at them. The man stood up with a fury as Y/n planted her feet on the ground, "What the hell?!?!" He didn't have time to even retaliate as she brought her arm back, and swung hard into the man's abdomen. He fell on his knees as he wheezed and clutched his stomach. Grabbing him by the ear she pulled him to his feet and all but dragged the towering man out, which she would admit probably looked a sight as she was significantly shorter than him. He kept hissing and complaining but followed her to the door where she promptly shoved him and swung her bat again, hitting his ass on the way out. The man face planted and turned to look at her in outrage, but she flipped him the bird and spat, "Don't come back here you dickhead!" Slamming the door shut, she let her bat rest on her shoulder, while the crowd began to bellow and shout in excitement.

She huffed out a laugh as the many customers began to pat her back and compliment her for being so badass. Rolling her eyes she went back behind the counter where the group was staring at her wide eyed now. Well, except for Len, who looked smug and proud at the same time.

"You took my lessons to heart," Len spoke, breaking the silence. Y/n smiled as she began to wipe the glasses down, "Of course, I may have this scar, but it will only do so much. I work here for God's sake Lenny. I'm lucky no one has really tried anything yet."

"Well the scar makes you look badass," a Latino man with long hair spoke up, causing her eyes to snap at him. He immediately began to curl into himself nervously as he stuttered, "Sorry, I hope that wasn't rude."

Y/n smiled easily as she shook her head, "Not at all, although I can't take the credit. My idiot of a soulmate did this." That caused most of the group to chuckle while the really handsome one from earlier just blushed and rubbed his neck nervously. Y/n's frown slowly came back as her eyes glazed down at the bar, "Wherever they are..... I hope they didn't suffer too much."

She noticed that the group got quiet, causing her two toned eyes to flit upward before giving them a sad smile she apologized, "Sorry, that was depressing.... What can I get ya'll?" They gave her their orders, and she made quick work of mixing it up for them. All along, she hummed to the Christmas tunes, unbothered that she had an audience now watching her closely.

As she handed them each her drink, one of the women, who had auburn hair and warm brown eyes, asked, "I hope this isn't too forward, but your left eye... it looks pretty damaged..." the woman ended with a question as Y/n's hand immediately went to cover her grey eye before she chuckled and shook her head, "It's alright, it's just part of the scar. I can see perfectly fine with it."

"How interesting, can I get a blood sample?" She asked as she pulled a kit from her purse.

Y/n was surprised to say the least, as were the two men beside her. The handsome one looked at the woman almost scandalized that she even asked that as he said, "Caitlin! Not now." The woman, Caitlin, sighed as she shook her head, putting her kit back in her purse, "Right, sorry, I'm just really curious about the effects soulmates have on one another."

Y/n's face twisted into pained amusement as she scoffed, "Why would that matter? My soulmate's dead."

The group turned look at her again, this time with pity as the Latino man asked, "Why do you think that?"

Y/n's frustration leaked out as she gestured to her body, more pointedly her face, "Look at me, look at all this damage my soulmate went through. Do you honestly expect them to have survived? I know, more often than not people do survive lighting strikes.... but whatever this is... it was much worse."

The attractive one turned to the group and Len before turning to Y/n as he asked, "Hey, can I show you something?"

"Barry..." an older African American man started with warning but Barry shook his head at him as he answered cryptically, "Joe, she needs to know."

Y/n's eyes squinted with distrust, "What the hell are you talk about? What do I need to know?"

Barry's eyes turned back to her, "Please, you can trust me-"

"Trust you? I don't even know you," Y/n interrupted but Len spoke out, "N/n." Her eyes searched his calm ones as he gave a curt nod and said, "You can trust him." She let her fears reflect in her eyes before turning to Barry who just gave her a calm smile and a reassuring look. Letting out a breath she said, "My shift ends in ten minutes." Barry's smile was blindingly bright making Y/n's heart skip a beat.

Y/n looked around at the Forensic Lab that Barry worked at. She wasn't sure why she was here, or why she had trusted Barry so easily as soon as he held her hand and guided her to her car. She was confused when she asked where his car was, only to be met with the response, "Oh, I ran here."

Y/n's two toned eyes, flitted back to the lean attractive male as he walked towards the wide window where Central City was lighting the horizon. He pulled some chains causing a clanking noise to sound above her. Her head looked upwards at the skylight that was being exposed, she could see snow falling leisurely from the clouds above them.

Her brows furrowed as she turned to Barry to find him already looking at her, "What are we doing here?"

Barry gave her a sad smile as he confessed, "23 months ago, I was struck by lightning and fell into a nine month coma." Y/n's breath hitched as her eyes widened, never leaving Barry's figure when he stood next to her and looked up at the sky, "I was standing right here when it hit me."

Y/n let out a disbelieving huff as her eyes began to sting with tears, "How..... how is that possible? You..... you don't have a scar.... You... You-"

Barry turned to her and gave her a scared smile as he let out a shuttering breath, "When I woke up from my coma..... The lightning, combined with the Dark Matter in the Particle Accelarator, changed something inside me. I found out that I could heal really fast.... and run faster than the speed of sound."

Y/n's eyes got impossibly bigger as the little clues he hinted clicked in her mind. He didn't drive to the bar, he healed fast, and ran faster. With a hysterical chuckle she asked, "You're the Flash aren't you?" Barry gave her a nod which caused her to touch her head with disbelief as she leaned against the table behind her. She could feel the air in her lungs being squeezed as she tried to not freak out. Barry, for his part, looked like he wanted to comfort her but didn't know how so he hesitated as he took a step closer. Y/n's eyes searched his as she asked, "Why? Why tell me?"

Barry's eyes started to glisten as well as he let out breathlessly, "Because.... because you're my soulmate. I don't want to hide any part of myself from you." Y/n stayed silent as she observed Barry, who seemed more and more distressed as time passed between them. Barry ran a nervous hand through his hair as he shook his head, "Look, I understand if you don't want me as your soulmate, we can just be friends.. But I promise that I will do everything I can to protect you."

When she still made no response to him, his hope began to dwindle until her voice broke through the stillness, "I always felt a strange protection every time I saw the Flash fighting on the news.. Now I know why," Y/n ended with a smile as tears freely fell down her cheeks. Taking in a shaky breath, she closed the gap between the two of them as she reached up and held his face in her hands. Her two toned eyes gazed at him with unconditional love causing Barry's eyes to mist up even more and his heart to ache with longing. His heart slowly fell as he asked with fear, "What if you don't want anything to do with the other part of my life? I will always be putting myself in danger, I can't even guarantee your safety."

Quietly, as to not disturb the peace around them, Y/n said through her tears of joy, "I finally found you. Whatever hardships come our way, we'll be ready for them... Together." Barry shared her smile before closing the gap between them and kissing her softly in the stillness of his lab.

#plus size reader #cw the flash #soulmate au #barry allen #barry allen x plus size reader #barry allen x reader #female reader #fluff #scars #Spotify

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detailtilted · 3 months

Text

Index of Enhanced Edition Con Videos

I'll maintain this index in a pinned post for easy reference. Click the links to go to the YouTube videos, or click here for a more readable Google Docs table which includes these links plus a tab noting which events I skipped, temporarily or permanently, and why.

2007-11-11, Chicago - J2 Breakfast (00:23:42)

2007-11-11, Chicago - Jensen Solo (00:21:55)

2007-11-11, Chicago - Jared Solo (00:29:44)

2007-11-11, Chicago - J2 Main (00:38:24)

2008-07-27, San Diego Comic Con - SPN Panel (00:50:52)

2008-11-16, Chicago - J2 Breakfast (00:26:16)

2008-11-16, Chicago - Jared Solo (00:26:20)

The main panels from CHICON 2008 are up next. They'll have better video quality (for the most part) than the Breakfast panel from that event.

Thank you to everyone who has shown an interest in these videos. The reblogs and likes all made me very happy, and I especially appreciated the kind comments some of you left in your reblog text and tags. I'm unsure of the proper Tumblr way to respond directly to that in a way that won't annoy people, but I've definitely noticed and appreciated it!

An explanation of this project and my tentative plans for it are listed below the break. A lot of it will be familiar if you've read my earlier posts, but it's more detailed -- and excessively long! There's also some info on how you can help, especially if you have any old videos or audio files that you'd be willing to contribute.

Why Do You Call These "Enhanced Editions"?

The videos I'm using are not my own, but I've spent many hours adding enhancements to them. Credit and links to the original videos are in the video descriptions. These are the typical enhancements you'll see:

I'm upscaling the videos as best I can. It isn't remotely perfect, but it's a little more watchable than the originals. I'm not experienced with this and the videos I'm working with are very low quality by today's standards. They were also recorded under difficult circumstances. Video taking wasn't permitted at most of the earlier cons, so the people who took them did so at the risk of getting kicked out. They couldn't exactly come waltzing in with a tripod, so the videos are shaky, they don't always have a clear view of the stage, and sometimes they cut off at unfortunate moments. They can be frustrating to watch, but we owe these people a debt of gratitude for capturing this footage because otherwise it would have been lost altogether.

The original videos are usually in multiple parts, but I'm editing them together into a single video as cohesively as possible. I may use videos from multiple sources to provide the most complete video possible, and I'll select the ones with the highest video quality available. Sometimes there just aren't a lot out there, though.

I'm adding extra content to help clarify references people make during the panels. The videos I've worked with so far don't take up the full width of a modern video frame, so I've taken advantage of that extra space to display the extra content to the side where it's less obtrusive. There are explanations for obscure references that are way funnier when you understand what they mean, plus episode references to help jog the memory for those of us who haven't rewatched the show a million times. In rare cases where I think it will enhance understanding, I'll insert brief episode clips that highlight what they're talking about.

I'm putting a LOT of time into adding good, color-coded English subtitles that can be turned on and off with YouTube's CC button. These videos can be frustrating to understand because the audience often drowns them out and Jared and Jensen tend to talk at the same time when they're together. I can't always figure everything out, but it's far better than the crazy, auto-generated nonsense that many videos have. The color-coding helps with telling who's saying what: red for Jared, blue for Jensen, green for the general audience, yellow for the current fan at the microphone, and white for other people such as staff.

If there's missing footage that I can't find anywhere, then if I can find a source that seems to have reliable details about what was discussed, I'll add still images with a brief summary and a link to my source in the video description.

What Conventions Do You Plan to Enhance?

I don't want to make grand promises that I'll enhance videos for every old convention, although I definitely love the idea of doing so. How far I go with this will depend on how much sustained interest there is from other people and how much spare time I have myself. My output speed will probably be erratic depending on what's going on in my life at the time.

My general plan was to start with the oldest conventions and work my way forward. For now, I only plan to enhance the panels with Jared and/or Jensen since they're my main interest. I may temporarily skip over conventions that they didn't both attend, but with the intent to go back and fill those in later.

One big constraint will be whether I can find enough videos to work with for a convention, and just how bad the quality is. I've found that some videos are too poor of a quality to upscale, at least with my limited skill. Since these videos are painful to watch in their raw form, I suspect people will be less interested in watching "enhanced" videos that don't include at least some noticeable improvement in visual quality, but please do let me know if I'm wrong. For that reason, I'll probably skip past cons if I can't upscale the videos, at least for now.

As I work through the old conventions, I'll make a good attempt to upscale the available videos. If I don't have much success, then I'll skip over that convention with the hope that someday either the technology or my skills will improve, or maybe a more skilled fan will be able to accomplish more with it. If I make it through all the low-hanging fruit, I might come back to those problematic conventions and just create a cohesive edit with special content and subtitles even if I can't substantially improve the video quality.

These are just my general thoughts right now but the project is young, so my strategy may change.

Can I Help?

If you have any old convention videos or audio files that you're willing to contribute, please message me! For now, let's limit it to content from 2010 or older. Maybe I can use them, maybe I can't, but the more I have to work with, the better chance I have of creating something more complete. If I do use your material, I'll credit you in whatever manner you prefer.

My main source of videos has been the Supernatural Wiki convention pages and the playlists that sil9800 has put together on YouTube. If your videos can be found there, and if the links to them still work, then I've probably found them already. There are a lot of dead or private video links on the Wiki though, and also dead links on various LiveJournal pages linked to from the Wiki, so there were more videos out there at one point. (If you have any videos you don't want me to use for this project, let me know and I'll respect your wishes.) I also run keyword searches on YouTube, but I rarely find anything that I hadn't already found from those other sources.

Even if your video looks terrible, you might just have a missing piece of footage that I couldn't find anywhere else, or your video might upscale more easily than another. If nothing else, I might be able to hear something in the audio that will help me fill in a subtitle I couldn't figure out.

Likewise, audio files can be helpful even without video. If nothing else, they may help me fill in some subtitles. If the audio file is consistently easier to understand than the audio on the videos I'm using, I can also substitute the audio from your file in place of the video's audio. If you have audio of sections of the panels for which no known videos exist, that could also help me fill in those gaps.

If you're watching my enhanced videos with the subtitles turned on, please do let me know if you catch any errors or if you can clearly understand something I marked as [inaudible]. I can't change the videos themselves on YouTube, not without breaking the links and causing confusion, but it's pretty easy to update the subtitles because they're a separate file. It's important to me to try not to put words in their mouths that they might not have said, so I'm trying not to guess based on context. However, there were times when I felt like I should have been able to understand what they said but I just couldn't manage it, and I'm sure someone with different ears may be able to figure out some of the parts I couldn't.

#enhanced edition con video #j2 #jared padalecki #jensen ackles #sam winchester #dean winchester #supernatural #index

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angelsanarchy · 7 months

Text

Glass Houses: Jack Thurlow x Y/N Series CH 16 -> CH 17

Tagging: @roryculkinluvr @thatsthewrongwallcraig @icarus-star @cc-luvr @madamemaximoff06 @shady-the-simp @quicksilversg1rl @s-0lar @kristennero-wallacewellsver @ophelialaufey @mayathepsychic1999 @x-prettyboy-x @rorylover71

Jack knew he had to come clean to Dr. Carty about what he did the other night. He was surprisingly not as pissed as he would have expected.

"Jack, if your side effects were this bad then you should have told me. I will send a few new prescriptions to the pharmacy but I want you to start making notes of the side effects every day. We have to figure out a better way for you to get the things you need without wrecking your system." Dr. Carty pinched the bridge of his nose.

"You're lucky she checked on you when she did. You could have died." He scolded softly and Jack nodded his head.

"I know. I guess if I'm going to have a guardian angel, it's probably a good thing she's a nurse that lives next door." Jack could see that Dr. Carty wasn't impressed with the humor.

"You should consider adding her as an emergency contact in the event you decide you want to get a little fast and loose with your medications again." He peered over his glasses and Jack scrunched his face.

"I don't think we're there just yet." Jack didn't want to burden Y/n with so much of his shit so soon. He wanted to build up a connection before she had to be a part of all his demons.

They talked for almost an extra hour, discussing new medications, what they're supposed to do and some of the side effects. Jack made sure to make a list to ask Y/n about the next time he saw her which turned out to be at around 9:30 that night. He saw her taking her evening walk as he sat on the porch reading through googles best medication side effects. He sat the computer down and jogged towards her.

"Hey!" She jumped making him laugh.

"Sorry, you scared me." She pulled her headphones out and pocketed them as he started walking next to her.

"You're looking a lot better. How are you feeling?" Y/n she asked as he shoved his hands in his pockets.

"I'm feeling a lot better thanks to you. I just wanted to apologize again-"

"Jack please. I'm just glad I was able to get to you in time. I highly suggest switching to weed if you need something to knock you out but that's just my medical opinion." She smiled at him.

"I finally talked to my Doc about the medicine change. I made a list of all the ones he's changing up just in case you want to give an opinion on that too." Jack pulled the list out and she laughed.

"Are you comfortable sharing that with me? I mean you can just tell me about the side effects when they hit. You don't have to-"

"I trust you." Jack pressed and she took the slip of paper. She nodded at the names and handed it back to him.

"These are some good alternatives. I would keep an eye out for dry mouth with this one. They make tabs to put under your tongue if it gets too annoying." Jack smiled at the recommendation.

"Who takes care of you if you're taking care of everyone else?" Jack asked curiously.

"Oh I've taken care of myself since I was young. I don't require a lot of care anyway. You'll be shocked to hear I am insanely boring." She lowered her voice.

"I don't believe that for one second. I'm sure you've got a wild night life that no one knows about. Maybe a secret second job at a club where you can dance in scantly clad clothes to get your kicks." Jack teased.

"So you think I'm a nurse by day and a stripper by night?" She laughed.

"I barely have enough energy to wash my hair let alone change out of scrubs to find some upper body to swing around a pole. Plus I have terrible knees." Jack laughed as she tried to show off a squat and winced.

"Okay so no secret double life. How about hobbies? What do you like to do when you aren't working or taking care of your mom and crazy neighbor?" Jack watched her take a moment to actually think about it.

"I like to read. I like to build things with my hands. I love to paint." Jack let out a belly laugh.

"Well shit why didn't you say that? I have tons of house that needs painting!" Jack gestured over his shoulder towards the house and she shook her head at him.

"I like landscape painting, not free manual labor." She pointed out.

"Maybe you could do a painting for me? My dad was an artist. He has this drawing of the house that kind of got wrecked during the clean out. I would love to get it redone. I'll even pay you for it." Jack offered.

"You don't have to pay me. I'm not an artist. I just like to paint." She blushed. This was kind of the first time Jack had seen a more vulnerable side of Y/n. She always seemed confident in how she presented herself. As a nurse, as a daughter, as a care taker.

"What about you? I think you mentioned you like to write?" Y/n remembered.

"Yeah I'm working on a book about my life...kind of. Changing the names to protect the guilty I suppose." Jack rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"I'm sure it'll be great. The horror stories of our lives always make for believable fiction. Most people don't think there are people who actually struggle as writers portray." She paused in front of the front gate and Jack stopped walking.

"Maybe...you could read some of what I have? Let me know how believable it is?" Jack asked nervously earning a sweet smile.

"I would love that, Jack." Jack now felt more anxious than before knowing she might hate his writing or his life story.

"I'm glad you're feeling better. Please call me if you start to feel your breathing getting weird. I'm still worried you're going to have after effects." Y/n touched his arm and he nodded.

"I'm feeling better, I promise but I will call you if anything feels off." Jack promised.

"You can call me too if you need anything...or you know, you just want to talk." Jack took a step further and Y/n laughed.

"You want to talk about all the neighborhood gossip? Did you see Sharon's new gardening outfit? Absolutely scandalous." She teased.

"If Sharon's the one with the red hair and huge tits then yes, absolutely scandalous." Jack's smirk made Y/n hit his chest with the back of her hand.

"Ew Jack! Stop jerking off to the neighbors!" She pushed her way through the gate and Jack threw his hands up.

"What!? You can't just expect me to not take advantage of free tits!? I'm a man!" He defended.

"Now you're hurting my feelings. I thought I was special." She put her hands over her heart.

"You are. You still hold the top spot of best tits in town." Jack admitted. Y/n smiled so brightly her cheeks were blushed as she shook her head.

"Goodnight Jack." She waved over her shoulder and Jack turned back to the road to walk himself home. He took a breath he didn't know he had been holding, worried things would have changed between them. He was ready to make a different kind of connection with Y/n. He just hoped she felt the same way.

#Jack Thurlow #Jack Goes Home #One Shot Series #Glass Houses #Glass Houses Series #Rory Culkin #Culkin Cult #Jack Thurlow x Y/n #16/38

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frankenstein-ate-my-left-shoe · 1 year

Text

A Recipe for Disaster (Chap. 8)

Pt. 1 | Pt. 2 | Pt. 3 | Pt. 4 | Pt. 5 | Pt. 6 | Pt. 7 | AO3

Here's Chap. 8! Clocking in at 19.5 pages on google docs this time, we have Steve and Robin's meeting with Parliament about the children's shelter, the throne room scene that I somehow missed before, and a good ol' Robin and Eddie interaction (plus much more!!!)

The next morning, Steve and Robin are sitting down for a meeting with a select few members of Parliament. Wayne is there with them, and Steve thinks it’s giving him a chance to look mean, if nothing else.

“And so, gentlemen, the winter palace in the mountains of Libbet will be converted into a children’s shelter until money can be raised for one of their own.”

“The use of the castle as a resort is a sort of…perk. For parliament members and dignitaries.” the member sitting on his left (on Robin’s other side) interjects, the other two agreeing with short nods and hushed “Agreed.”s.

“Well, I’m going to de-perk it.” Steve levels him with a look that has him shifting uncomfortably in his seat. “I feel guilty having two homes while they have none.”

He hears one of the other members whispering from his right and snaps his attention toward the other two. “Lord Crawley, how is your brother doing?”

Crawley has the decency to look embarrassed for being caught, “I–I don’t speak to my brother, Your Highness.”

“Oh. Well, I’ve hired him to be the lead architect on the project!” Steve smiles. Wayne raises his hand and the doorman lets Mr. Crawley into the chambers.

Mr. Crawley greets Wayne when he pulls out the seat kitty-corner to Steve’s. Steve stands and shakes his hand “Your highness, gentlemen.”

They both sit, and Mr. Crawley gives his (twin) brother a curt “Jerry.” that his brother echoes with “Dean.”

“I am very excited to get started, your highness, and to get your notes on the project!...and no one else’s.”

That last bit of backhanded commentary gets Lord Crawley riled up and the two start bickering between themselves, and over the unfortunate third parliament member stuck between them.

Steve leans toward Robin while keeping his eyes on the two, whispering “Nevermind, I’m glad we aren’t twins?”

She snorts out a quick laugh and busies herself with her notes, though he’s sure they’re as immaculate as always.

He raps his knuckles on the table in front of him as the twins’ fight reaches its peak, and the two back off instantly, looking sheepish.

“The queen approves of the plan, and I intend to see it through. Now, gentlemen, I’m sure it won’t take too long to raise the money, do you?”

–

“So, you kissed Eddie, huh?” Robin asked once they were heading back to get Steve ready for his and Joyce’s scheduled open meeting with the public.

Steve sighs, “Yeah, I did. We did? We kinda kissed each other at the same time.”

“So…? How’d you even get close enough to kiss?”

“I uh…” He scratches the back of his head absently “I told him how I felt. About him.”

“That you have capital “F” feelings for him right? That’s what you said yesterday.”

He lets out a long breath and stops walking. He looks down at the tile at his feet, hands on his hips. “That’s…not exactly..all of it.”

“What do you mean ‘not all of it’?? You have big Feelings for him, that seems like a whole lot.”

“It is all big, real, Feelings, but…I saw our whole lives together, Rob.” it’s just barely more than a whisper.

Robin is quiet for a few seconds “Steve, that’s–”

She’s cut off by the incoming sound of footsteps. They both look over, and let out a synchronized breath of relief. It’s only Murray.

“Oh! Murray!” Robin jogs up to meet the man, saying something to him that Steve couldn’t pick up. Murray nods the whole time, assuringly, then pats Robin on the shoulder and continues on his way.

“Good morning, sir!” is all he says to Steve as he passes, then Robin is back.

“What was all that about?”

“I just needed to ask him about some other Royal Advisor shit I’ve been working on, but keep going! You haven’t told me about these prophetic visions of the future you’ve been seeing! Does Eddie become a silver fox? Do you eventually go bald?”

Steve’s hands fly to his hair, “Oh my god, Robin, don’t say shit like that! You’ll curse me!” he starts walking toward his suite again.

“Oh please, you’ll be fine, your grandpa had a full head of hair on his deathbed. Now tell meee!”

“Okay, okay, so back when Nancy first got here, I told her the truth, that I got a big ol’ crush on tall, dark, and handsome after one dance but then found out that he and his dad are trying to run me out so that had crushed me.”

“Duh.”

“So she asked me if I could see myself with him, and I told her no. Y’know, like a liar.”

“Sounds about right.”

“But I saw it so clearly as soon as she asked me, and it was like my chest caught fire.”

“Thinking about yours and Eddie’s possible future together gave you heartburn?”

“No, no, like, okay, at my peeping tom moment, as you like to call it, it felt like something sparked in my chest; and I, of course, took that as hatred.”

“Yeah, ‘how dare he be a real person with a real hobby’.” She nods.

Steve snaps his finger at her. “Exactly. So when she asked me that, that spark that ended up not being hatred started burning so hot…and I could see it all, Robin. I could see him off to the side at my coronation, smiling all proud at me. I could see him at my side when we’d meet with the public. We, Robin, side by side. And I could picture the portrait they’d have painted of us, a little older, some gray in our hair, sure, hanging right beside Joyce and Bob.

“I told Nancy I couldn’t see it, and the day of the garden party I told Eddie that I’d lied to her, that I really could see it all, but that I’d be wiping my hands of him.” He does the same fake during his hands off movement he did that day.

“So…in essence, you told him you could very clearly picture a life with him, AKA you have big sappy feelings for him, then that you hated him.” They’d arrived back at his suite, so Robin lets herself in and holds the door open for him.

“No, I–” Steve runs his hand through his hair. “Okay, yeah, basically. But when I went to leave, he grabbed my arm, whirled me around, and we kissed.

“We were pressed together, and it was like my brain switched off completely, not a thought in my head. We both started leaning toward each other..then it happened.”

“Ew gross, this is so sappy.” Robin flopped herself onto his bed and pillowed her chin in her hands, looking up at him to continue.

Steve rolls his eyes, but does. “Here's something else cliche and sappy: I know what they mean now when they say there are fireworks sometimes, when you kiss someone.” He laughs at Robin’s mimed puking. “I’m serious! His lips were soft, his hands were calloused and warm, and…and he held my face like I was something precious. Something worth holding onto.

“But then I came to my senses, pushed him off me, causing him to fall backwards into that damn fountain, causing me to fall when I tried to catch him, giving me a bruise, a soaking wet, nearly see-through suit, and a litany of “Prince Steve” fanpages posting zoomed-in pictures of my crotch.”

“All that, and you still almost kissed him again yesterday.” She shakes her head at him in exasperation.

“Oh! And he told me that he wished he could know what I’m working with, so I guess you were right, he does have feelings for me too.”

“That’s great!”

“Only sexual though, seems like. Which is fine, I get it. Just. Sucks, you know?”

Robin starts grumbling under her breath at that, so he leaves her be and starts getting ready to meet with the public. This time he pulls out the powder blue version of what is becoming his signature pear-tree printed suit.

“You should get ready too, you’re going with me to the throne room, right?”

She jumps up from the bed “Oh yeah! Meet you there, Dingus!” Then she was gone.

–

“We will have someone come to your farm tomorrow morning and perhaps we can repair your well, and save your feed.” Joyce addresses the man stooped down in front of her.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” He bows his head, then reaches for the basket at his knees “This is for your table.”

“Thank you!” Joyce says, bowing slightly in return and sweeping her hand out for the footman at their side to take the basket.

While the basket is taken away, Steve grabs a goblet of water from behind them, and passes it to his Aunt. “You do this so well, they all just adore you.”

She takes the goblet thankfully, looking up at him from the throne when she does. “Oh, well it’s part of a long-standing Genovian tradition to meet with the citizens this way. You must be fair and very honest. Even if you can’t help, you have to show the people you care.”

Steve smiles at her “We haven’t had time to talk much lately, can we after this?”

Joyce’s face softens, and she reaches up to pat his cheek. “Of course my dear.”

Murray introduces the next citizen then, and Steve takes the water back from Joyce.

Steve looks out over the throne room, over the waiting line of citizens, and all the way over to the wall on his right where a few chairs have been set up. All of them are occupied: Robin is sitting in the first chair, texting furiously with one hand at her side and writing down something in the pad of paper on her knee with the other. Wayne is in the next, struggling to stay awake already and starting to lean onto Eddie who’s in the next chair over. Eddie’s already been looking at Steve every time he risks a glance to the other man, and every time Steve has to think about literally anything else to keep the blush off his face. Eddie’s father is here too for some godforsaken reason, but makes a good foil for his reaction to Eddie. Get flustered about Eddie? Just look over to the last chair in the row and remember what Eddie’s really doing here.

The constant high to low mood shift is giving him a headache.

More citizens come through the line, each offering something for the royal family. It’s very touching, having each of these people put together the best of their best, likely from their families own crop, own shop, own hands for Joyce. Steve feels even more so like he has a lot to live up to, coming into the throne after someone as beloved as her.

“Citizen Tiny Duvall.” Murray announces once again.

Okay, that’s just not fair. Only movies name obviously very large people ‘Tiny’.

“Your Majesty.” Tiny beams at Joyce, not from below, but at her level. Seated a couple steps up from the floor, her height in the throne leaves her and Tiny, who is kneeling, at the same eye level.

“Bonjour, Tiny.” She smiles “May I present my nephew, Prince Steve.” She’s done this with a couple of the citizens who’ve visited, calling out his presence at her side for a reason unknown to Steve.

“Prince Steve,” Tiny turns his bright eyes to him and gives a small head bow.

“Monsieur.” Steve greets in return.

“Thank you for seeing me today. Something for your table.” He pushes the covered basket in his hands to Steve, who gestures the same way he had for all the other offerings, and the footman takes the basket from Tiny.

“She’s my favorite!” Tiny declares, and Steve immediately needs to know more. “I hope you like omelets.”

Steve glances at Joyce and huffs out a short chuckle, “Uh, may I?” He asks Tiny, gesturing to the basket.

“Of course!” He nods excitedly so Steve pulls back the cover and..it’s a chicken? “Be careful.”

“Oh, it’s a chicken!” whatever it is that possesses Steve to try and pick the chicken (an animal he’s had exactly zero interactions with in the past) up out of the basket, he doesn’t know, but he does. And the chicken flaps out of his arms and to the floor.

‘Oh what the hell?’ He steps forward and tries to grab it back up, and misses, and misses again, and again. It’s stupid fat, feathery body is staying just out of his reach, and causing chaos in her wake.

She’s climbing up the steps in front of Joyce and Steve thinks ‘I’ve got you now’ as she slows down to hop up the marble steps.

Just his luck, he misses her (again) and she starts off on her circular path through the corridor behind the throne (once again). But he can’t follow the feathery warlord, being caught by Joyce as he lopes past her.

“Uh, Steve?” She says to him through a grin, and he turns to her “a prince should never chase a chicken.”

Steve stands there next to Joyce, jaw dropped open, and wholly embarrassed, and looks over to where Eddie is seated.

Viscount Muñoz is chuckling heartily and elbowing Eddie, who is laughing uncomfortably at his father, but looks to Steve and they lock eyes

‘You okay?’ Eddie mouths to him, a lighthearted, still teasing, smile on his face.

The tension in Steve’s chest snaps and falls away at that and he lets out a breath, giving Eddie a small nod.

–

“Stupid, stupid, stupid, what the fuck, Steve?” Steve mutters to himself all the way back to his suite after the throne room debacle.

He showers to get out all the gel he’d slicked into his hair previously, and fixes it up the way he would normally. After he changes into a plain white tee and some jeans, he texts Robin and asks her to meet him for a late lunch.

It’s already past three in the afternoon and he hadn’t had anything to eat since a quick cup and coffee and some toast before his first meeting this morning.

Robin texts him back with: ‘Sorry Dingus, I have Super Important Things™ to catch up on, I will see you for dinner?’

He’s disappointed, but not surprised. She does, afterall, have her own responsibilities within the palace.

He sends back a ‘sure, see ya then bobs’, and continues down to the kitchens.

This time it’s Max, El, and Dustin he encounters, all of them munching on whatever snacks they could find while Max is chopping what looks like salad ingredients.

“Yeah, but Max, Lucas plays and–” Dustin starts

“What does that have to do with me playing? I don’t care what he does or doesn’t play.”

“I would like to play some time.” Ellie says, and Dustin starts in on an explanation of character creation? If Steve had to guess?

“Hey, munchkins, what’s cookin’?”

Max rolls her eyes so hard that her whole head almost goes with them. “Well, dad, nothing at the moment. Seeing as how I am chopping up lettuce, that historically does not get cooked.”

Steve pauses, then turns to face El and Dustin more. “Hey, munchkins, what’s cookin’?”

El and Dustin both laugh while Max rolls her eyes again. “Careful, those might roll out of your head one of these days.” Steve tells her.

“See?” She points her knife at him, looking at the other two “Dad.”

“I was just telling El about creating a character for the campaign Eddie’s crafting right now.” Dustin puts his hand out onto El’s forearm and Steve notices her face go red

“Oh that’s cool what are–El, you oka–” Max clears her throat and locks eyes with Steve before using them to gesture to the other two, shaking her head.

Ah. “So what kind of character are you going to make?”

“I thought I could be a wizard, like Will.”

“Oh, that’d be cool! I wonder if Eddie would let us get away with boosting yours and Will’s stats whenever you are casting together? Like, real wonder twin wizards!”

Dustin starts on a rant about all the possibilities and starts scribbling into the notebook in front of him.

Steve shuffles off to the side and pulls out a pack of tuna and some mayo, planning on just a sandwich for now, to hold him over until dinner with Robin.

He fixes it up and heads back up the stairs, eating as he goes, to meet Joyce at her suite.

–

So the scream he’d heard, and came to investigate, ended up being El Hopper.

He’d come around the corner below the two staircases in the ballroom like he does nearly every day after waking up, only to be confronted with shadow and a new wall?

He comes out from under what he now can see is a ramp, and sees each of the teens taking turns sliding down a massive slide on mattresses, each sliding to a stop just before a short stage set up on the opposite end of the ballroom.

He looks to the top of the ramp, and Dustin is the next to go, El getting up off her mattress and moving out of his way. “You having fun?” he yells up.

“Eddie! Hang on, I'll be right down!” Dustin calls back then starts down the ramp.

“You.” his head snaps to his left and Steve’s right hand woman is in his face. “I need to talk to you.”

“Sure, Buckley, go ahead.”

She opens her mouth to respond, but then Dustin’s there “Hey! Are you going to stay for the party?”

“No he’s not, he’s here cause I needed to talk to him then he’s going right back to his room.” Robin grabs his arm and tugs him out the glass side door of the ballroom (“Aw, what?”).

“Ow, ow okay, I’m right here, lay off the arm.”

She lets his arm go. “Enough chit chat, listen to me Edwin, (“Edmund.” “Literally doesn’t matter.”), I am only telling you this out of necessity and to get you to understand my point BUT.” She takes a deep breath, “Steve is really into you, okay? His words exactly were that he has capital “F” Feelings for you.”

Eddie knew the former, but the actual feelings part is news to him.

“I–”

“He was under the impression previously that you were only trying to get close to him in order to get him to not marry Nancy, and in turn not become King. And from what he told me, it seems like you really are only thirsting after him.”

“He said th–”

Robin cuts him off. “He would do anything to see this through, including ignoring his own feelings for quote, unquote ‘tall, dark, and handsome’ for the sake of the homophobes above him.”

“The homophobes? What are you talking about?”

“Parliament, obviously. He’s marrying Nancy because they don’t think having two kings is good for the country.” She says as if it’s obvious. “They told him that he has to marry a noblewoman in order to take the throne, otherwise they’ll give it to you. You, sans partner.”

“Wh-what? Why?”

“I don’t know, Doofus, he thinks you’re 170 pounds of pure sex appeal.”

“No, no not that,” Eddie shakes his head and waves her off, “I mean, I’m flattered, and obviously he’s sexy as fuck (“Okay, ew.”), but no, I mean why would Parliament let me take the throne without a partner but not Steve.”

“Probably the previously mentioned ‘homophobe’ part, Edward. Do they not know you’re fruity too?”

Eddie shakes his head, “Don’t see why they would…”

“Well they do know about Steve. There was a whole media fiasco with his old best friend back in the states.”

Eddie’s stunned at this revelation, but Robin barrels on. “So as much as I would support you two in any other circumstances, I–”

“Robin, I have capital “F” Feelings for him too.” Eddie cuts her off.

She just stares at him, dumbfounded, so he continues. “Look, the day before yesterday, Steve told me he could so easily picture our lives together when Nancy once asked him.” Eddie starts pacing in front of the ballroom door. “He told me that he lied to her, said he couldn’t, but that he actually pictured it so clearly. He didn’t tell me what he saw, but I could see it, Rob. I could see it so clearly.”

“What are you talking about, Edith?”

“I was in the gardens that day when Nancy asked him that. I was sitting out there like I normally do and could hear them as they walked by. She asked him “You could see yourself with him, couldn’t you?” and it was like she was asking me. I could see it as soon as she asked.

“I could see myself at his coronation, smiling all proud at him. I could see myself at his side in the throne room when he’d meet with the citizens, at his side at any number of random events that flashed through my head all at once…just..being with him.

“He told me he saw us together so clearly, and I never told him that I saw it too. It felt like my chest was on fire, Robin.”

He is breathing heavily now, having winded himself with all that.

“Eddie…” Robin steps forward and places a hand on his shoulder.

Eddie huffs out a laugh, “Finally Eddie now, huh?”

“Don’t push your luck, Theodore.”

“Theodore?? How the hell did you get to that from ‘Eddie’?”

“You know, Theodore can be Ted, to Teddy, to Eddie.” She shrugs.

“Okay, you got me there Robert.”

Robert smiles at him. “You both are the dingiest dinguses I’ve ever met.” She coos at him, like he’s a child and it works, he barks out a real laugh this time and tosses her hand off his shoulder.

“Are you guys done, yet? Can we steal Eddie back?” Dustin poked his head out the door, scowling at them.

“Almost, I promise. I’ll meet you back inside Dusty-buns.” Eddie replies

“Dude, gross. Only my mom calls me that.” but he goes back inside.

“What am I supposed to do now Robin?”

“I don’t know…I wanted to get you to back the fuck off, but now I’m kinda rooting for you guys. As undeniably a bad idea it’d be.”

“You are?”

“I don’t know, I think you’d be good together, sue me.”

“Then why root against us in the first place?”

“Because I want my best friend to become King! No offense.”

“None taken. I don’t even want it anymore.” Eddie thinks for a moment. “What about Nancy?”

“What about her?”

“How does she feel about all this?”

Robert thinks for a moment then opens the door and yells “Hey, Nance!”

Eddie panics, “Robin, what the hell??”

“Hi Robin, what’s…up…” Nancy stalls when she sees Eddie outside too. He gives her a small wave.

“Eddie’s fully, actually in love with Steve.”

“Robin! What the fuck?!”

Nancy looks between Robin and Eddie (who is absolutely mortified, by the way), then dissolves into giggles.

“Okay, what the hell is happening, this is like some Twilight Zone shit.”

“Steve is pretty great, isn’t he?” Nancy says, looking at Eddie.

He drops his head in embarrassment, “I’m sorry, Your Highness, I promise I didn’t mean for it to happen.”

“Who ever does?”

Eddie looks back up at her and she’s smiling softly at him. “Okay, seriously, what the hell is happening right now? You should be wanting to fight me right now.”

“Do you want me to?” Nancy says and starts pushing the sleeves of her sweater up her arms.

Robin keels over in laughter when Eddie starts backing away, hands raised.

“So? Robin?” Nancy asks

Robin catches her breath, “So, they both have real feelings for each other and after telling me, Eddie here asked how you feel about the whole thing.”

Nancy nods with a sigh. “Eddie, I care for Steve very much. He’s become a great friend and supporter to me, even in the short amount of time I’ve known him.”

“But…?”

“I am not in love with him. I have feelings for someone else.” Eddie nods, and she continues. “I am still going to marry him, if he needs me.”

“That’s kinda fucked.”

“It is; I agree, Robin agrees, Steve agrees. But I wouldn’t be if I didn’t think Steve would be an amazing ruler. Do you even know how great he’d be?”

“I do.” Robin says.

“We know you do, Robs.” Nancy pats her on the arm. “Steve is the grandson of the most beloved ruler in recent Genovian history, and the son of a royal pain in the ass.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” Eddie mumbles.

“Steve is more like Stephan the First, and would be a welcome and needed change in the landscape of European monarchs. A vibrant young man of the people, someone who’s made mistakes like any person would, had them blasted across international media, and grown from them since. Overall, a great representation of the next generation of rulers. Plus, I think he’s a good influence on, and role model for, Mike, and will make him a better ruler in the future.”

Nancy smiles an easy smile, as if she didn’t just make him fall in love with Steve more.

“All that, and you’re telling me you’re not in love with him?”

“No, I’m not.”

“Okay, great. Now what am I supposed to do with that?”

“As much as I want Steve to be happy, with you or not, there is so much that could go wrong with you two being together, even the smallest thing could make his life a living hell.

“If he and I marry, then divorce in a few years, we can both have what we want. I can be with Jon–the person I want to be with–and so can he.”

“So when you say a few years, how many are we talking? Two? Three?”

“Unless the peanut gallery gets real cool about a lot of things real quick, sounds like as many as it takes.” Robin says.

“I fully believe you and Steve would have the support of the people, or at least the majority, but they can’t do anything to sway Parliament if they don’t want to be swayed.”

Eddie nods as he processes all this, even pulling a lock of his hair over his face to worry the strands between his fingers as he thinks.

He stops, fixes his hair, turns to the two women and says: “I will wait for him if I need to. Steve’s worth it.” The two women beam at him, “But let's get back inside before Dustin has a conniption. What are we–you guys–celebrating anyway?”

“We are throwing a surprise bachelor party for Steve!” Robin pushes open the door and holds it for the other two.

“And joint bachelorette party for me too I suppose, but it was just because I’m not heading back home anymore.” Nancy shrugs “I’d rather be with you guys here anyway. Oh! We should’ve invited Chrissy!”

Robin starts spluttering and Nancy catches Eddie’s eye and winks.

He grins back at her “You’re absolutely right, Nancy, I should give her a call!” He pulls out his cell and Robin goes completely red. “Eddie! How are you?” Chrissy answers his call after a few short rings.

–

Steve and Joyce have spent the last couple hours together; talking about everything and nothing while Joyce took care of some things first, then they went out for a stroll through the yards of the palace.

He told her about Dustin knowing that Mike played D&D (“I don’t know any specifics, so don’t ask.”) immediately after meeting the young prince, and that he seems to be less high-strung and less entitled now, having been around Dustin and Will.

She told him that the coronation is scheduled for August 1st, two months to the day after he and Nancy are supposed to be married.

He told her that he thinks Ellie has a crush on Dustin, and Joyce laughs giddily at that (“Oh, they would be so cute together!”)

She asks him if he is happy.

Steve processes that for a bit, while they walk back to the palace. “I think I am content. I am happy with what I have, I know that I really lucked out with Nancy, and having Robin here, meeting Dustin and gaining a little brother. But I don’t think I would say I am happy, you know?”

She nods in understanding at that, then asks “Would you be able to say you are happy if it was Edmund you were marrying, and not Nancy?”

He blinks at her, but it seems like she’s actually asking (not that Joyce would be capable of showing a hint of malice to her nephew). “I don’t know…” Is what he finally says.

She levels him with a look like she doesn’t believe him.

“I don’t though!” he defends, “Really! I don’t know him so I really don’t know. But in my head, best case scenario, yeah. I think I would be.” the last part comes out almost a whisper.

She nods, taking that in, and they walk in comfortable silence the rest of the way.

“Wait, what is that? Steve can hear muffled music coming from the palace as they approach.

He looks through the glass doors and sees…everyone? The whole Party (as Dustin would call them) running amok in the ballroom. Erica is chasing Max around the room on rollerskates, Max on top of a well-loved looking skateboard, Will and Ellie are trying to take razor scooters off short plastic ramps, and the ramp had been set up from the upper level, Mike, Lucas, Dustin, and Eddie(??) are all taking turns sliding down on mattresses. Nancy, Robin, and Chrissy are lying about on two of the mattresses in front of a short stage, and there are tables piled high with snacks and drinks and sandwiches on one side of the stage, and a huge pile of blankets and pillows on the opposite side.

Steve is flabbergasted, “Are they having a slumber party?” he laughs. Joyce steps back from the doors then, pulling one open and stepping in, Steve close behind

Eddie’s gaze catches on Joyce and Steve as they enter, he and Dustin are standing on their mattress (halfway down already), trying to surf their way to the bottom. It seems like he straightens on instinct and the movement causes Dustin to faceplant onto the mattress, and Eddie to flop backward off the mattress and onto the metal ramp. His head connects with the slide with a resounding gong and he slides down the rest of the way on his back.

Steve rushes forward to help him up, which Eddie refuses. “That was embarrassing. You can just leave me here to die, your highness.”

Steve rolls his eyes and offers his hand again, which Eddie takes and allows Steve to haul him up off the floor. “No dying on my ballroom floor, Muñoz.” Steve says, keeping Eddie pulled into his chest for a moment before releasing him and moving over to Dustin to make sure he was alright.

“Eddie, what the hell we almost had th–” Dustin looks up to see Joyce smiling at him, “Your majesty, my apologies for my language.”

Steve stifles a laugh behind his hand.

“It’s quite alright Mr. Henderson, may I take a turn next?”

Everyone falls silent at that. “Y-yeah, of course ma’am, let me bring it up for you!” Dustin picks up the mattress excitedly and rushes up the stairs with it, Joyce following behind.

Everyone else stops to watch whatever it is that’s about to happen.

Joyce gets to the top, Dustin having set the mattress up right at the edge of the slide. Then she stands on it. Like she is going to surf the mattress down.

“Is she really going to do this?” Robin says, having come up to Steve’s side.

“Uh…” is all he gets out before, yep, there she goes. Joyce jumps forward a bit onto the front of the mattress to get it going, arms out, and slides. Standing, all the way to the bottom.

“Ta da!”

The ballroom erupts into cheers and the teens crowd close around Joyce, fully in awe at what she was able to do, and Dustin (and Eddie) weren't.

“I tried that like 15 times! How do you know how to do that?!”

“That was incredible! You’re the coolest!”

All of them talking over one another until, “I grew up here, you know; my father, my brother and I all loved to surf down and see who could make it the furthest.”

They again all started talking over each other, until “Alright, you goblins, let Queen Joyce take her leave. We have the rest of the party to get to, now that Steve’s here.” Robin herded them away from Joyce, who climbed back up the stairs to her quarters with a wave to the rest.

“Okay, so what’s happening now?”

“Surprise! It’s your bachelor party!” Robin throws her arms out to gesture at the room around them. “We set it up while you were gone with Joyce!”

“I said we should’ve gotten you some strippers but Robin said no.” Mike interjects

“Ew, gross dude, it’s Nancy’s party too.”

“Then she should’ve gone home like she planned to, Max.”

“ANYWAY.” Robin cut off their bickering. “It’s Steve’s bachelor party and it is what it is because I know Steve and this is what he’d want. We’ve got the ramp set up, music, sandwiches and snacks that yes, you can have now that he’s here, and 80s/90s karaoke. A Steve Party.” she shrugs at the end.

They all look toward Steve when she’s done, and he’s beaming. His face hurts already, but he couldn’t stop if he tried. “What are you all looking at me for, go wild!” He shoos them all away and they do just that, most of them going for the food now that they can. “Just don’t hurt yourselves! Max, I’m looking at you, no skateboarding down the ramp I swear to god.” Steve follows them to the food.

–

“So who’s gonna get karaoke started?” Eddie asks the gathered masses, all sprawled out on the mattresses piled in front of the stage with their snacks and sandwiches.

“You said it, now it’s gotta be you.” Max snarks back, not looking up from her phone.

“It’s all old stuff anyway, we aren’t going to know much.” Erica says from Max's side. ‘Hoo boy that is a dangerous combo’ Eddie thinks to himself

“It’s not that old!” Steve says, half mock, half actually offended. “You’ll probably know some of them.”

It was definitely a surprise when Steve’d decided to plop himself down next to Eddie, but a welcome one (though he could do without the looks Chrissy had been throwing at the two of them).

Speaking of, Eddie looks over to Chrissy, who’s a couple bodies down, sitting on the floor in front of Robin.

“Chrissy!” She looks over at him and he raises her eyebrow “Shall we?”

Grinning brightly, she pops up from the floor “Abso-fuckin-lutely.”

“Okay, hold on. What was that, should we be worried? I’m worried.” Steve is looking between the two as they hop up on stage, effectively pulling the attention of the others, who look up at him and Chrissy expectantly.

“You all will know this one, it’s mine and Chrissy’s go-to song.”

The first two notes is all it takes before everyone around them is screaming.

“Hiya, Barbie.”

“Hi Ken!”

They all start yelling along to Eddie and Chrissy’s absolutely amazing rendition of Barbie girl, and once they’re done, all the teens are fighting over who gets to go next.

“Really? Barbie Girl?” Steve asks when he sits back down.

Eddie shrugs, “Yeah, it’s a real ice breaker, but it’s also the only karaoke you’ll get out of me, so I hope you enjoyed that.”

“Yeah, it was pretty great.” Steve smiles a megawatt smile at him and Eddie almost forgets how to breathe.

After a double hit of ABBA (“Dancing Queen” from Max and El, and “Super Trouper” from Nancy, the rest of them unable to resist providing the backup vocals), “Should I Stay or Should I Go” from Will (and Jonathan who’d wandered in at some point and decided to stay), “Don’t Stop Believin’” from Lucas and Dustin, “All Star” from Mike, and a super impassioned “Man, I Feel Like a Woman” from Erica that had everyone singing along, Steve took a turn.

The plain white tee and jeans combo really added to his performance of “Dancing in the Dark”, looking every bit the part of Springsteen. Eddie wanted to eat him.

“Okay that’s not fair, Springsteen’s so in your register. Not gonna do anything daring, Stevie?”

Steve’d been about to put the mic down, but raised a brow at Eddie’s taunt and raised it back to his mouth. “Okay, you little shit.” he punches something into the machine and…

“Can anybody find me somebody to love?” Just in that one line he’d proven his point, his voice shifting through the whole opening line’s highest and lowest notes with no effort at all.

He sings the rest of the song effortlessly, much to the delight of his crowd who were all singing along.

Eddie knows his heart eyes are obvious, but it doesn’t matter.

“Now what about you, Muñoz, gonna do another song or are you just here to heckle the rest of us?” Steve asks after he’s done.

Ignoring the taunting 'oooohhs' from the rest of the peanut gallery, Eddie says “Not a chance, big boy, but I may have something better. Give me ten minutes.” He hops up and jogs back to his room and after a quick change, heads back to the ballroom, his sweetheart in hand.

“No fuckin’ way, is that a warlock??” Mike jumps up as soon as he sees Eddie again, running up to see up close.

Everyone else turns to look and a few start throwing whoops and wolf whistles at the sight of him.

“Whoa now, step away from the guitar. You’ll get your gross Mike germs all over her.”

“Rude. Also, the hell are you wearing?”

They’re back at the semi-circle with everyone else, and he sets his mini amp and his baby onto the stage. “Oh, this?” He spreads out his arms and gives a slow spin, letting everyone take in his carefully crafted battle vest, vintage band tee, and favorite ripped jean combo. “This is me, Mikey; Eddie Muñoz, nice to meet you.” He sticks out his hand for Mike to shake and the teen rolls his eyes and bats his hand away.

“This is insane, you look like Hammett,” Jonathan points at Eddie, “and you look like Springsteen.” pointing at Steve. “This is turning into a real 80s fest.”

Steve preens at that, and all Eddie can think to say is “You know Metallica?”

“Everyone knows Metallica.” Mike cuts back in

“Oh, don’t even start, Mike, as if you know any of their names. You just know ‘Metallica’.”

Mike grumbles and moves to tackle Dustin back onto the mattress, nearly elbowing Lucas in the scuffle.

“Okay, okay, enough!” Steve calls, getting the boys to stop. “So, Eddie, you gonna put on a concert for us?”

“Eh, something like that.” Eddie rubs the back of his neck “I’m no singer but I wanted to pull her out and play while I had some sort of chance.”

“Have at it, man, the floor is yours.” Steve smiles and gestures to the stage.

Eddie gets his shit plugged in and set up, listening to the conversations around him as he does.

“Eddie had a band back in secondary school, they were horrible and scream-y but I thought they were all so cool.” Chrissy is telling Robin, Nancy, and Jonathan (who’d made himself comfy next to Nancy).

“Am I seriously considering getting a denim vest right now?” He hears Dustin wonder aloud.

“It’s not just a vest, bonehead, it’s a battle jacket. It’s different.” Erica (surprisingly) says.

“How in the hell do you know that?” Lucas asks as Eddie plugs the mic into his amp too.

“If you actually like music, you’d know that every community has their thing, Sinclair.” Max cuts in “Battle vests are metalheads’ thing.”

“Can you make one even if you aren’t a metalhead?” Eddie can hear Dustin ask quietly.

“That you can, Dusty, just make sure you know the history before you do.” Eddie shucks off the vest in question and tosses it to Dustin “Be careful with it, will you?” Dustin nods, him and the other four already distracted by his pins and patches.

Eddie slings his sweetheart around his neck, ready to go, and sees Steve, El and Will sitting cross-legged on the mattress directly in front of him, all three looking at him expectantly.

“Okay, you all. I’m not a singer, but I hope at least one of you knows this one.” Eddie says into the mic, then strums.

–

The teens around him erupt into cheers and Erica yells “Master of Puppets!”

Eddie points at her with a grin and keeps going, fingers going a mile a minute and Steve is enthralled.

Steve’s come to accept that Eddie will literally always look damn good, but he looks Damn. Good. up on that stage; guitar in hand, hair taken out of the bun it was in before and flying with every movement, the fucking eyeliner he’d added with his “real Eddie” clothes that’d made Steve’s mouth go dry.

They all cheer and scream when Eddie’s done with his song, and he starts in on another, playing a few chords before Erica again is yelling out the name of the song. The song changes and this time Jonathan guesses correctly; on and on with different songs, changing each once someone guesses correctly.

Steve finally recognizes one, “I Was Made For Lovin’ You!” he yells before Jonathan or Erica can.

“Finally!” Eddie grins and points at Steve “Of course it’d be KISS that you’d recognize, Stevie. Okay, this one’s for you.”

This one Steve recognizes with the first note, and is frozen where he sits. ‘How’d he know this is my favorite?’ Steve looks at Robin with wide eyes, and she’s already looking at him, her mouth open in shock. ‘Did you tell him?’ he mouths at her. She shakes her head furiously and looks back at Eddie.

He looks back at Eddie, who’s looking down at his hands on the strings, head bobbing to the unheard beat, hair curtained around his face. A couple of the others had already guessed the song correctly, but Eddie keeps playing, the song is a little empty without the usual keyboard and drum, but it works. Damn does it work.

Steve’s on his feet and stepping onto the stage without even thinking about it. As soon as he is, Eddie’s head snaps up, confused, but his hands don’t falter. Just watches him as he picks up the mic right on time to sing “Welcome to your life, there’s no turning back..”

He sings, and looks at Eddie, who’s looking at him with the fondest smile he’s ever seen. Steve’s heart is hammering, burning hotter and hotter for Eddie with every beat.

He tears his eyes from the man next to him and looks out at his mish-mash group of friends singing along with him; Nancy and Jonathan singing along and swaying side to side with Chrissy and Robin (the latter of whom’s arms are tucked around the former), Mike had taken Steve’s spot next to Will when he’d gotten up (both of their faces red), leaving El next to Dustin (who’s now wearing Eddie’s vest), Erica on his other side, phone held up and a mischievous grin on her face, and Max and Lucas next to each other at the end, each leaning in to the other, but not quite touching.

Steve grins around the lyrics he sings, and thinks that he needs to find Joyce to tell her “Nevermind, I am definitely happy.”

Chap 9 here!

@henderdads gave me most of party's karaoke songs, and @yournowheregirl suggested Barbie Girl for Steve and Robin, but I swapped it to Eddie and Chrissy instead! Thank you guys!!!

@sadcanadianwinter @hopefulslothcollecter @steveshairychest @sidebarre @resident-gay-bitch @kaspurrcat @melkene @livewondrousss @steddieasitgoes @mightbeasleep @princessstevemunson @totallybitchin @potentialheartofdarkness @spectrum-spectre

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travelingneuritis · 2 months

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i binge read your fic and am enamoured with how well crafted the world building is! The dialogue is so engaging.. the way you adapted xianxia to a modern setting felt believable and solid. also i LOVE LOVE pedantic intellectual SY, and i also love that you put effort into making LBH smart as well. some people dumb him down and i hate that. cries into hands and then you did honest to god traditional illustrations for each hcapter. the amount of effort, love and care that went into your fics... just. spectacular. I admire your hard work so much

if its not a bother, could i perhaps ask you for writing advice htat has helped you in the past?

TTATT thank you, help, you're lovely, i'm cryin!!! (and I agree, LBH should be so so smart, it's the main thing about him that SY loves [that he can admit to loving][out loud, in words])

As for writing advice... I mean what everyone says is true, you gotta read a ton. Read lots of original work in whatever genre you enjoy. And get obsessed with the stories in your own head (or, if writing nonfiction, get very Shen Yuan with the opinions in your head). Get so obsessed with your own sexy beautiful mind stories that you gotta put 'em down or you'll go apeshit, and then put em down, and then move on to your brain's next big sexy fucking idea. That's not actually advice though, or if it is, it's too vague to be practical. Plus like you already know that, cause Everyone Says It.

So uhhhhhh.... Ok I got one, keep a side doc where you put all your notes and outlines and timelines and family trees and charts of honorifics (if you're me), and also-- here's the advice part-- where you copy/paste any large chunks you cut from your main document. You know how you're supposed to "kill your darlings"? That is a lot easier to do if you know you can resurrect your darlings if you decide they were load-bearing darlings after all. I almost never reintegrate writing once I've cut it, but if I'm worrying that it's a mistake to throw out writing that felt sparkling and witty while I was writing it, I'll never actually cut it, even if the story would be better without it. Having a side doc really clarifies that process and helps reduce Vibe-Killing Story Bloat.

Or don't do that, I dunno! It's your life! What's YOUR advice??? Tell me tell me. And thank you for being so fucking nice <3__<3

#sorry to use so many swears. i'll do better u_u #writing #ask #HaOF

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zeawesomebirdie · 2 months

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hi !!!! did NOT consider you might like to have the ask again to answer it. if you do:

seeing you post about your old west au is motivating me to at least draft my stuff out for my fic, too!!! so, firstly: good god thank you. secondly, what kind of drafting process do you normally go through? you don't have to answer this but everyone i know is pretty particular about how they write so i'm always curious!!!

Gosh okay I'm still so embarrassed about accidentally posting this before it was ready!! Lesson learned: only work on long posts on desktop (very affectionate). I'm going to copy paste what I had originally said, but there will be added stuff because it wasn't anywhere near ready to go (if you thought it was long before, honey you ain't seen nothing yet!)

Also I still am so proud of you for working on your fic, we are writing buddies now hand in lovable hand I love you thank you for enabling my rambling <33

Buckle in, here we go!

SO! My drafting process is always a moving target. I do what works best for the work in question, and things change depending on my energy and fatigue levels plus my motivation and interest levels

So that said, right now my process usually looks like:

ramble at someone in DMs, copy and paste rambles into a google doc for safekeeping and marinating

zero draft, aka word vomit until a plot forms, block out actions and the occasional dialog, determine chapter and story arcs

first draft, aka Where The Real Writing Happens

optional second draft, but only if the fic is under 10k

line edits

post :)

find a bunch of typos that I somehow missed during line editing, fix those before anyone notices

I will be showing examples because this is a bit hard to explain and Extremely Intense to a lot of people, and yeah that's because it is! I approach writing fanfic the same way I approach writing original fiction, and I find it works best for me as a plotter

If you are metaphorically inclined and familiar with oil painting: I write the way an oil painter paints. First I block in the big shapes, the gestures, and the colours. Then I come back in subsequent drafts and increase the detail until I'm done!

Further information and actual examples of my drafts will be below the cut, because this is gonna be super long and I love talking shop ^.^

And general content warning for non-graphic violence and graphic smut (and shitty early drafts); the examples are from Bruce Wayne/Dick Grayson fics

So before we get into the zero draft, I want to point out two things: first, I do full rewrites. This is why writing takes me one million years. I retype each and every word in each and every draft. Second, I'm actually trying something new with the Old West!AU, for reasons I will explain in a moment!

I started doing full rewrites in 2019 after a college writing course, in which we read Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott; she encourages the reader to embrace the shitty first draft. I ended up really benefiting from a zero draft too, something I first learned about in 2020 from someone on authortube who I no longer remember the name of. The zero draft is essentially a pre-draft, in which one gets the gist of the story out of their system before the prose clogs up the spigot

For me, zero drafts are something that need to be finished as fast as possible in order to get done at all, so due to the sheer length of the Old West!AU, I'm trying out writing little bullet points instead of my full zero drafting. Right now this fic is at 27 chapters, and this is part 1 of 3 total. I will be going back and filling in the actual blocking once I have all the scenes roughly accounted for

Context for the Old West!AU: Bruce is the Bat, a vigilante gunman who only kills when he needs to but still has the fastest draw on this side of the Mississippi. Now that he's taken care of the man who killed his parents, he's returned home to his Uncle Alfred and gone straight, meaning that he's hung up his guns and gone back to homesteading the family land. He adopts Dick and then a year later Jason as well, when small burglaries start happening in town, so he takes the Bat out of retirement and goes to investigate.

My bullet points started out like this:

Open on comparison between Bruce's first gun and the Bat's guns. Introduce Joe Chill, general drunkard. The Bat calls out Chill, shootout, Chill is killed. Chill drew first. Moment of reflection between Bruce's first gunfight at 15 to this one, at 21. Bruce goes home.

And that's the whole entire first chapter!

However, now they look more like:

The Sheriff runs up and shoots at him. The Bat has him disarmed with his own gun barrel to his throat in an instant. It doesn't take the Bat much time to get info out of him either. The burglar is only going after small change, not enough to be noticeable. That rules out the gambler, easily. The Sheriff can't do shit about it, because no one is willing to start an investigation for such small change. The Bat shoves the Sheriff to his knees and is gone before he notices. Alfred is waiting for him when he gets home, and asks. Bruce tries to deny it, but the clothes are in his hands and he can't. So he sighs and says he may have made a promise, but… there might be more to this than there seems, okay? He just… has a bad feeling about it. Alfred can't accept this, what about his sons? Bruce can't take this, and tells him he doesn't have to. Their yelling wakes up Dick and Jason, who stand in the doorway to their bedroom and look on with the door mostly closed.

Eventually both Alfred and Bruce yell each other out, and they sit down for coffee as dawn breaks. Bruce breaks the silence first, saying Alfred is right. Alfred tells him he understands. Bruce decides to let the Bat go for real now.

This is about half of the chapter, and closer to the blocking I normally do in zero drafts

So far this pre-zero draft seems to be working, given I've already finished part 1, but I also can't wait to come back and do the blocking in because that's when the fic really starts to take shape!

Usually though, I just start with a zero draft. I'm going to show you two different fics for the zero draft examples, because they were done differently, and like I said at the beginning, I try to adjust my process based on what is called for by what I'm writing

This first is from the fic I'm writing for @ful-crum. It's a 5+1, in which it is five times Dick fucks Bruce to distract him from discussing his emotions plus one time they actually discuss their emotions and then fuck about it.

Tim and Jason turn up an hour later, and they're incredibly concerned. Dick waves them off. Tim takes him at his word and heads to bed (he has a meeting with Wayne Tech at 8am tomorrow, ugh), but Jason sits down next to the bed and asks Dick what he thinks Bruce is going to say. Dick tells him he's not sure, I mean, it's B, y'know? Jason just nods, and they lapse into silence. Then Steph and Cass come in, and Bruce is most noticeably not present. Cass signs something about bed, and Steph tells Dick that she's worried about Bruce, to which Jason snorts and says they all are, but she insists that Dick talk to him. Dick doesn't even need to take more than a moment to decide that won't be happening. But Steph goes to bed, and it's nearly 04:00 when Jason heads up too, saying he'd love to help Dick lecture Bruce about staying out late but he's got stuff to do tomorrow. Dick asks if he wants to know what stuff, and Jason gives him a smirk and says ask him no questions and he'll tell him no lies. Dick can live with that.

As you can see, this is just general staging directions and vibes

This second example was supposed to be for BruDick Week 2024, but I accidentally got carried away and ended up deciding to write a longfic for it instead. The prompt was "brudick meet their AU!selves," so I did 66!brudick meets the Gotham Rogues Polycule, an AU in which Bruce, Dick, and Clark are in a very elaborate polycule with half of Gotham's villains.

Batman and Robin were on a normal mission in the middle of the day, on the trail of Catwoman, who's been stealing from the Gotham Museum of Art again. One moment they were walking into the museum, the next they were in a weird swirl of energy. Robin clings to Batman and asks what's going on, and Batman tells him steady Robin, we just have to stay calm and see what happens. The energy clears as someone calls out “incoming! Clear the floor!” and they find themselves in what is clearly the Cave, except it's even more high tech than anything they've ever seen. There's three people in suits like theirs standing in front of a massive screen, and Robin identifies the Riddler immediately, even if he doesn't recognise the other two. Before Batman can stop him, he charges the Riddler, who jumps behind the man in black and blue with a laugh. Batman does call out for him to stop, but he ignores him. The man in black and blue meets his every move, almost like he's fighting himself, and he calls out to the man in red and blue “a little help here, Supes?”

The biggest difference here is how drastically these fics changed from their zero draft to the first draft rendition, and that is entirely because of how fleshed out they ended up being (or not being, lol)

When I zero drafted the 5+1, it was with the intention of that specific part simply being a chapter, whereas my original zero draft of the 66! meeting the polycule! fic was actually intended to be a two shot at most. I unfortunately lost control of the plot during the first draft of that one, and it spiraled into a longfic, which will become more clear in a bit!

Basically though, the goal of the zero draft is to know who's where and why at all times! With longfics, there is often a restructuring that happens after the zero draft is written, where I move scenes and sometimes whole chapters to their best locations. This is where I make the most use out of a beta! Pacing is a big struggle for me and it is easier to fix at this stage, before I have all the prose and have become attached to what I've written

Next up is the first draft, and this is a whole new document. This is where I write The Actual Words. This is more or less the final version of the fic, for longfics, give or take a few paragraphs and a shit ton of line edits. Having said that though, I write in fits and bursts, because y'know disabled and stuff. So I write a paragraph or two at a time, and I am constantly adding and subtracting words and lines and sometimes whole paragraphs while I am actively working on a chapter

I'm going to show the first draft versions of both of the above fics, and due to the length these will be extremely excerpted but they should serve as examples regardless. Generally speaking, my zero drafts are about 1/3 of the length of my finished fics, however the 5+1 is currently proving to be an exception so that number may not be super accurate

First, the 5+1:

“You did take care of them, right?” Dick asked, groaning when Jason’s mouth thinned as he looked away. “Is Steph at least still with him?” “Last I heard, they were—” Jason started, cutting himself off when the Cave’s alarm signaled the arrival of newcomers. A moment later, two muddy bikes roared into the garage, leaving dark tracks behind them as they parked haphazardly together on the far side of the garage. With the return of Black Bat and Spoiler, the only empty place on the garage floor now belonged to Batman himself. Dick tried to catch Jason’s eyes as they waited in the med bay for Cass and Steph to strip off their suits and join them, but Jason turned away from him, though he didn’t rise from the bed. Something must have gone down after he’d fallen unconscious, Dick was sure of it. Why else would Bruce have sent everyone else home early on a patrol night? He could already see it in his mind’s eye, Batman doing God-knew-what out in Gotham alone, Bruce coming home with a busted lip that Dick would have to personally clean up before they went to bed, how that lip would scab over and feel under his tongue when he kissed Bruce the next morning after waking up in their bed—Bruce’s bed—on accident. How that scab would stretch when the ghost of a smile caught Bruce by surprise after one of Dick’s terrible puns. “You okay?” Steph called across the Cave as she and Cass walked toward the med bay. “Never been better,” Dick replied, trying not to be put out at Jason’s eye roll. He put up a hand for Cass to inspect when she came up to his bedside, and after she had nodded her satisfaction of his health he smiled. “I’ll be right as rain in no time.”

And the 66! meets polycule! fic:

“You!” Robin shouted, not waiting for Batman to back him up as he charged toward the Riddler. Riddler didn't move—in fact, none of the three moved—then Robin was on him, punching his face hard enough to hear a distinct crack. That startled all three into action, Riddler swearing up a storm before throwing himself behind the blue masked man, who blocked Robin's next hits without hesitation. “Robin!” Batman called from somewhere behind him, but Robin ignored him, focusing his energy on striking past the masked man's defenses to get at Riddler. “I know you're behind this, you– you scum!” Robin snarled in Riddler's direction, placing a perfectly timed jab toward the masked man's left cheek and then feinting to the right. But the man met him easily, as though they were merely sparring. “I'm not who you think I am!” Riddler exclaimed, his hands cupping his face but doing little to staunch the blood streaming from his nose. “Let's slow down for a minute, okay?” the masked man said, his voice maddeningly level as if Robin wasn't trying every trick he knew to get past him. “We can explain.” “Yeah kid, there's a good explanation here, we promise,” Riddler added. Robin growled and spun around the masked man's reach only to find him once again directly blocking him from Riddler. How in the dickens did he know exactly where Robin was going to strike before Robin himself knew? And why on earth was he protecting the Riddler? “Supes, we could use a hand here,” the masked man said, still obnoxiously calm, once again blocking Robin's fist and this time circling his hand around Robin's wrist to twist his arm behind his back. In a blink, Robin was lifted into the air by his collar, the blue and red suited man holding him at arm's length. Robin continued to struggle for a moment, but finally Batman came into view, frowning up at him. Seeing Batman's disapproval took every bit of wind from Robin's sails, and he deflated instantly. If Batman didn't think he needed to fight, then he probably didn't need to.

So as you can see, I just kinda fill in the details with each draft!

Which is where we come to the optional second draft. I try, I really do try, to do a full second draft of everything I write. I always am glad to have done one, once it's done. The problem is, I really do have very limited energy, and anything longer than a chapter or two just doesn't get finished if I try to give it a full second draft. I've instead been doing really vigorous line edits, which I don't have an examples of because those are done in the same document as the first draft!

Now, you're probably wondering why on earth I gave a smut content warning at the beginning of this post. WELL.

I am calling myself out as a newbie when it comes to the art of smut writing. My 5+1 fic, the one where literally every single part has extremely explicit smut, has the following in the zero draft:

Yes, that is not one, not two, but three "cue smuts." Clearly I was new at this (affectionate)

Shout out to past!me for this in the last part though, because at least it actually has some semblance of blocking even if it is still extremely lacking:

The kissing escalates (as it often does) to smut over the desk (though Dick does try to move the documents out of the way, even if Bruce is growling at him to leave it alone; he doesn't want to be the reason Tim has another caffeine-induced breakdown).

I didn't figure this out until I was actually writing this fic, but it turns out I not only need to block in regular action scenes, I also need to block in the smut, because otherwise I will be sitting there having no fucking clue what to write (very affectionate)

So I now present what a zero draft of smut looks like! This is from a 5+1 in which there are five times Bruce and Dick fuck because of Poison Ivy's sex pollen and it "doesn't mean anything," plus one time they fuck because they actually want to:

Dick asks if they can take off their suits, it's too hot he's too hot, and Bruce says okay, that's a good idea, and internally he's panicking because oh no. Oh no. But the moment the words are out he sees the relief in Dick's face, and realises Dick needs to be told what to do right now, so he tells him clearly to strip, it'll help. Once Dick is fully naked in the other seat, he turns to Bruce and asks if he needs help with his armor. His hand is tentatively, almost shyly stroking his cock, and Bruce is really struggling to not watch. He tells him no, he doesn't, and takes off the chest plate and arm armor, but leaves what's left of his leg armor on. He decides he can safely put his hand under his boxers, but Dick makes a little noise, and when he looks over he can clearly see Dick watching him stroke himself. Oh fuck. He's cumming before he even realises it, his boxers getting wet and sticky and his cock still so maddeningly hard and he strokes himself through it, unable to stop himself from moaning even as he tries to keep himself in a clinical mindset. Dick asks to see him, and Bruce, despite knowing what a bad, horrible idea this is, pulls down his boxers to reveal his cock. Dick shifts his hand on his own cock to mimic what Bruce is doing, and Bruce has the horrible realisation that he doesn't even really know how to jerk himself off. Dear God, hopefully Alfred stays the fuck out of the Cave tonight.

So it's really just more of the same general blocking directions and vibes!

Another thing of note for zero drafts, I try to use as few words as possible to get what I need across. These are only ever intended to be seen by myself and a beta, assuming anyone else besides me even sees them at all, so I use slang and shorthand and leave notes for myself in the text itself

This can be a bit weird for when I show it to betas (or anyone else, for that matter!) because there are some fics where the tone or the vocabulary in the zero is incredibly modern despite the fic being in a historical or pre-modern setting!

And I have yet to actually write the first draft of that one, so I'm going to give you the first draft of the "Cue more smut (but this time against the batmobile 😌)" scene so that you can see the difference between the blocking and an Actual Scene:

Bruce had turned his back to him, bracing himself against the batmobile, and Dick took hold of Bruce's hip to hold him steady when he slid a finger into his hole. A soft moan was all he got in verbal response, but Bruce pushed against Dick's finger despite Dick's best efforts to do this slowly. Chuckling under his breath, Dick slid in a second finger, relishing in the clench of Bruce's muscle as he began working him open. “Easy, B,” he said softly, leaning over him enough to move his hand from Bruce's hip to his cock. Bruce growled and arched into his touch, taking in Dick's fingers completely. “Someone's in a rush tonight, huh?” He didn't get a verbal response, not that he ever did. Bruce rarely spoke while full, relying instead on nonverbal communication to indicate his needs. It hadn't taken long for Dick to become acquainted with his movements back when they started this; after all, fucking was no different from fighting, not for them, not when they had flown side by side across Gotham for more than half of Dick's life. And Dick knew Bruce would always try to get him to rush just a little, knew he'd give in like he always did, wanting to have his cock inside Bruce as soon as physically possible just as much as Bruce did. He wasted no more time, sliding his fingers out and releasing Bruce's cock just long enough to slick up his own. The small whine from Bruce at the loss of contact ought to be ignored, ought not be acknowledged, and Dick knew that, but he couldn't resist leaning over to kiss the small of Bruce's back. Bruce huffed at him, glaring over his shoulder. Dick met his eyes with a grin. Then Dick gripped Bruce's hip again, holding him steady while Bruce leaned back to meet him, and slipped into his tight heat. There was a soft moan from Bruce the moment he bottomed out; Dick leaned forward again to kiss up his spine, keeping his cock buried deep even while Bruce began to rock back into him.

I do think the fic for @ful-crum would be easier if I had proper blocking for the smut, but also I do love a good challenge and you live and you learn, so I'm not super invested in going back and blocking in the smut at this point in time!

And honestly, once the line edits are done that's pretty much it!

I keep a little "posting info" doc for each and every fic I write, to which I add tags as I come to them in writing, so that I don't have to think about what needs to be tagged at the end after I've already forgotten what I've written. That has saved my butt so many times ngl, especially for longfics!

But really what keeps me from posting more often, despite how much I write, is that I fully finish fics before I post them, even if I'm posting them on a weekly or whatever basis. This is mostly because I can't guarantee when I'll need to randomly take several months off of writing, and I don't want to leave anything unfinished, but also because I don't want to actually end up leaving something unfinished for a few years until I cycle back into the fandom

And that's it!! Thanks for tuning in to this little master class :) If I can clarify anything please let me know; I tried to explain everything that I thought needed it but I can never tell what others will need more clarification on!!

And also, thanks again for asking this!! I don't know many people who do full drafts, or even many people who don't completely pants everything they write, and so I'm always excited to discuss my process!! I also am a firm believer in "take what helps and leave the rest," so if you find something in my process that sounds like something you'd like to do, give it a whirl!! I think it's super important to share the different kinds of processes there can be for writing, because everyone really writes so differently, you know?

Anyway, thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed my shitty early drafts (very affectionate)!!

#asks #idk what to tag this so that ill be able to find it again lmao #also shout out to whomever told you to resend it bc i was fully prepared to just have a screenshot of the ask and tag you in a post #this was very fun!!!#oh and this is for you and anyone else who sees this:#feel free to pop in my ask box and ask about what i'm working on at any time!!#i could ramble for hours about my wips #and to be able to talk about them is always a pleasure!!!

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