#how long has it been since the last study-ish photo post

[chiara-klara-claire]

Books I got in May 2023 🇮🇸 🇿🇦 🇳🇱 🇩🇪

#polyglot #language blog #got the Dutch cities one from flea market on king’s day!! #language lover #foreign language #dutch #Netherlands #Afrikaans #Icelandic #mine #language books #langblr #bookblr #how long has it been since the last study-ish photo post #too many social media oh boy

[1dmonthlyficroundup]

1D Monthly Fic Roundup

Hi, and welcome to the 1D Monthly Fic Roundup for August 2021! Below you’ll find 23 One Direction fics that were all published this month in the order they were submitted to the blog. We hope you’ll check out these new fics! If you would like to submit your own fic, please check this post on how to submit or visit our blog @1dmonthlyficroundup​.

Happy reading!

He Carries The Key by @lululawrence

[Niall/Louis, OT5, 8k, Not Rated, tumblr post]

Niall was mostly home, ready for a shower and a chat with Louis, when suddenly Niall was flooded with emotions from the pack bond.Shock. Surprise. Confusion.But mostly fear.Something was wrong with Louis.

Plus One by mynameispiaivy / @missrefridgefreetorator

[Louis/Luke Malak, 3k, Mature, tumblr post]

Louis is invited to an event and he has to bring a "plus one".

Better Mistakes by lovelarry10 / @chloehl10

[Harry/Louis, 117k, Explicit, tumblr post]

“Look, this doesn’t have to be the end of the world-”

“Oh but it fucking is,” Louis said, shaking his head. “How the fuck am I going to tell Matt I’m pregnant with a baby when we’ve not had sex in months? He might be a bit thick sometimes, but he is gonna know there’s no chance this baby is his.”

“You don’t have to, uh, tell him it’s mine, right?”

Louis scoffed. “Why, are you scared he’s gonna come and kick the shit out of you?”

“He wishes,” Harry laughed, looking back down at the test. “Shit, I … I can’t believe this. Louis, I didn’t mean for this. Honestly. It was just sex for me. We have great sex, and I didn’t see why I should have to turn that down, not when you clearly wanted it as much as I did. I didn’t want this to end in a baby.”

Louis knows he shouldn’t be sleeping with his boyfriend’s enemy. He knows that. But there’s something that draws him back to Harry over and over again. Falling in love wasn’t part of the plan...

Thou, Sun, Art Half As Happy by @lululawrence

[Louis/Harry/Nick Grimshaw, 7k, Not Rated, tumblr post]

Hello, I’m sorry if this isn’t a post that is allowed on this channel, but I was hoping for the best since it is regarding a photography project I’m working on at the moment. I’m working on a set of sunrise kiss photos and therefore am needing a willing kissing partner. I’d hoped to be able to provide one for myself, but it hasn’t panned out, so here I am! I was hoping to find someone here, since I know most of you (at least peripherally) and can generally vouch for you not being creeps. Plus this way I know you will understand needing to continue to tweak the camera settings and reshoots etc that others might not.

Anyway, I’m looking for someone who identifies as male or male-ish (sorry, ladies) who is between the ages of 18 and 40. I’m a 29 year old male-ish myself, for those who would like to know before replying.

If you’re interested and are free the early morning of August 7th and would like to kiss in the sunrise with me for the sake of some (hopefully) interesting and fun photos, let me know via DM and I’ll give you the location.

OR the one where Louis needs a kissing partner, two show up, and it all might turn out for the best that way.

call my name and save me from the dark by @so-why-let-your-voice-be-tamed / we_are_the_same

[Louis/Harry, 4k, Teen & Up, tumblr post]

“I don’t know if it was a nightmare,” he confesses to the ceiling, the darkness making it easier to speak up even when he still has to close his eyes to stop himself from tearing up. “It feels more like a memory. But it can’t be.”

Harry shifts, and Louis can feel his chin perched on his chest, doesn’t need to look at him to know that Harry’s studying him. “Why?” He prompts, when Louis doesn’t immediately continue, and Louis swallows, tries to shrug off the apprehension, the fear that Harry will think that he’s gone mad.

“Because I heard them pronounce me dead.”

Feels like home by @neondiamond

[Louis/Harry, 2k, Explicit, tumblr post]

Louis comes home from work with an exciting surprise. Daydreaming and celebrations ensue.

this is my jam by @disgruntledkittenface

[Harry/Louis, 4k, Mature, tumblr post]

The guy’s eyes are so blue that Harry can’t tear his gaze away, even as he moves to the beat. The searing light shade is magnetic; he finds himself leaning in and yelling, “This is my jam!” only to earn a laugh from thin pink lips that Harry’s definitely going to be dreaming about tonight.

“Your jam?”

When the guy yells back over the music, his blue eyes sparkling and his lips twisted in a smirk, Harry’s chest literally puffs out with pride at earning his attention. His obvious approval. Tongue-tied, Harry nods and closes his eyes as he lets go, the music reverberating around them. All of the usual inhibitions that keep him in the corner at parties fall away and he bounces around the center of the dance floor, waving his arms above his head. Somehow his towel stays on, even as he starts to think he wouldn’t mind if it fell off. Fuck it. He finally made it here, he’s damn well going to enjoy it.

Harry goes to a gay bathhouse for the first time. 90s AU.

I Know My Arithmedick (2 + 2 = 4sum) by yeah_alright / @uhoh-but-yeah-alright

[Harry/Louis + Louis/multiple partners, 3k, Explicit, tumblr post]

Harry wants to watch Louis fuck someone else. Louis loves giving Harry what he wants. It’s simple math, really.

doG��and his friend by @uhoh-but-yeah-alright / yeah_alright

[Louis/Harry, 3k, Teen & Up, tumblr post]

When Joan has to move out of her small, nice home and in with a random roommate, she obviously brings her dog/boyfriend, Doug, with her.

Doug makes a friend. And maybe more.

I Heard You Talking by @lululawrence

[Louis/Harry, 10k, Not Rated, tumblr post]

It had been an hour of their noise that Louis had been dealing with, and for some reason the fact that these grown men were being this rowdy in the quiet carriage over a game of Uno was the breaking point for him. He stood up and turned around, making his way down to where the group of five were somehow gathered around a table.

Louis stopped at the table and cleared his throat, mouth open and ready to politely request they keep it down when the man who was sitting with his back to Louis turned.

He was stunningly gorgeous.

Blinking a ridiculous number of times in an attempt to pull himself together, Louis coughed and spit out, “This is the quiet carriage.”

God, he was nearly forty and that was the best he could do in front of a set of pretty, green eyes?

Or the one where Harry is famous and Louis doesn't have a clue. Good thing his son is able to help him out.

All That You Need by @haztobegood

[Louis/Harry, 2k, Explicit, tumblr post]

Pre-heat was always one of Harry’s favorite times to spend with Louis. It was a time to rest up and indulge in extra cuddles, like basking in a ray of sunshine before having to dive off the deep end. Louis lavishes him with tender touches and soft kisses. Harry wants to savor this time as long as possible. The unquenchable need will come later, but for now, his desires are simple. He just needed to be closer to his alpha. As close as possible.

sickly sweet fonding by amomentoflove / @daggerandrose

[Louis/Harry, 1k, General, tumblr post]

A few members of their crew start piling up the dirty dishes and taking them over to the sink. Harry walks around the cameras, and smiles brightly at Louis.

“What do you think, Lou? Do I have it in the bag?”

Louis eyes a bowl of bright pink lumpy batter being cleaned from Harry’s side. “Of course you do.” He wraps an arm around Harry’s waist and steers him away, all while ignoring the dramatic gagging Niall is doing. He doesn’t think it’s just the batter making Niall gag.

or the one where Louis fonds over Harry's horrible baking skills

Fractured Moonlight by amomentoflove / @daggerandrose

[Louis/Harry, 1k, Mature, tumblr post]

Louis huffs because he doesn’t want to deal with this. “Listen, I appreciate your concern.” He doesn’t. “But it’s not your duty to look after the sad man at the bar. Okay?”

'Ere comes the milk by stretchmybones / @onlyfor-thegays

[Harry/Louis, 1k, Explicit]

Louis is obsessed with Harry's mommy milkers.

everything comes back to you by stretchmybones / @onlyfor-thegays

[Louis/Harry, 8k, Explicit]

Harry and Louis are childhood best friends. What happens when Harry has to move towns just as they are starting their secondary gender presentations? What happens when fate brings them back together years later in the most unexpected of ways?

He Still Takes My Breath Away by @parmahamlarrie

[Harry/Louis, 32k, Teen & Up, tumblr post]

Camp Infinity is the perfect place for a lot of things; hiking, swimming, sports, eating, and falling in love. Harry Styles is a bit too familiar with the last one from his years of being a camper. This year things will be different. He’s 21, a grown man now, and ready to see Camp Infinity from a different point of view; working as a lifeguard. However, his whole summer turns upside down when a familiar British lad makes his return into Harry's life.Or the one where Harry is a lifeguard and Louis is the head of recreation. And, sometimes, you just need a little push to realize what was right in front of you the whole time.

Also known as – The Summer Camp Fic

tread lightly on my ground by fairytalelights / @lookslikefairytale

[Louis/Harry, 20k, Explicit, tumblr post]

No, that's the tragic part of this, the part that makes Harry feel like the universe is playing a cruel joke on him. The father of his baby is exactly right, exactly who he always imagined himself having kids with. He just imagined them married, bonded. Happy. He didn't imagine them barely talking, tip-toeing around each other because neither of them is brave enough to talk about what happened between them. He didn't imagine the father of his child not loving him back.

or, the one where Harry is having Louis' baby, but Louis doesn't know it's his.

Getting a Head for Heights by @ladyaj-13 / LadyAJ_13

[Louis/Greg James, 3k, Teen & Up, tumblr post]

The problem is, Louis thinks Greg would be quite good to date, so it would really help if everyone would stop reminding him of that fact so he could unthink it. He’d be a gentleman, at least until Louis talked him out of it, and he’s funny and nice and hot and they’re both into music and football and drama. He’s also a freakish giant of a human, and the problem with dating is that sooner or later you have to stand next to each other.

We Go Together (series) by @beelou / cherrylarry

[Louis/Harry, 3k, General, tumblr post]

A grease au

Hot Boy Summer (series) by @louisandtheaquarian / zita17

[Harry/Louis, 35k, Teen & Up, tumblr post]

Louis is an overworked bartender hoping to save up enough extra tips to buy a new air conditioner before he literally melts during a scorching NYC heat wave. Harry is the new neighbor that wakes him up by moving in his sole day off at 6am. An NYC enemies to neighbors to lovers AU featuring a rickety fire escape, the 2021 Euros, Lirry bickering like a divorced couple, and enough OT5 clichés to rot your teeth. (If Harry's pastries don't get them first.)

across the river is where my heart is by 4ureyesonly28 / @evilovesyou

[Louis/Harry, 8k, General, tumblr post]

The first time they see each other is when they are toddlers, playing out in the yard. Louis remembers sitting on the perfectly trimmed lawn and getting yelled at for picking at the soft blades of grass; she remembers looking over, across the narrow but deep and wild river, and watching another little girl, out in a different garden, picking flowers for her mother.

She remembers carefully raising her hand and waving—her little heart beating hard in her chest, as if she had done something dangerous, something forbidden, even though back then she could not understand the true divide the River made amongst them.

bright eyes, blue denim by 4ureyesonly28 / @evilovesyou

[Louis/Harry, 2k, General, tumblr post]

Louis' favourite jeans have suddenly disappeared from where he always got them. Harry is a store manager with an affinity for customer care, particularly when the customer has bright blue eyes and happens to be very flirty.

whatever you feel like doing in this moment by 4ureyesonly28 / @evilovesyou

[Harry/Louis, 2k, General, tumblr post]

Louis gets all that he's ever wanted during his favourite game at their group's weekly improv show.

#28th appreciation #tracksintheam #trackinghome #trackinghappily #1dsource #one direction fan fic

[shinbyeol]

in true me fashion, i had too much going on to make it to opening but ‘sup party animals, it’s ya girl moon! ( s / h, 21+ )!! i’m here to bring y’all shin byeol, a lost bean who’s just trying to make it through without throwing up on this roller coaster called life 🤮 she’s generally very nice but y’know, fuckery in life shapes you as a person so she’s a bit jaded but like, who isn’t!! catch her on a monday morning and she’ll probably murder you but run into her as she pollutes the world with her Nth cigarette of the night and she’s more mellow 🥰 now to get the show on the road, drumroll pls for shenanigans under the cut........

shin byeol, 24, seoul resident but recently moved into maehwa (think....a month ish????) and just isa-ri in general

now you may be wondering why she’s there 🥴 same here buddy

tl;dr is that she used to be an idol trainee, jumped around many companies since she was 15 and was on a promising road to debut at her last company but she fucked around (literally) (i’m jk about that last part) and screwed up her achilles tendon

she got surgery and all should have been well but i mean, she injured herself when she was 20 and by the time she recovered 90% she was no longer at a good enough age to debut according to the company :////

ended up going to school instead and graduated from ehwa with a degree in communications and media studies (don’t ask me what this means)

should have been happy and moving on with her life but she still had a lot of trainee contacts or people who had already debuted in her circle which only seemed to cause her pain and made her feel like she failed at life 

heard about this quaint little countryside with a spacious sharehouse with cheap rent so she said fuck it, imma pack my shit up and go

didn’t really think this plan out, if you ask me, but she’s just vibing and trying to figure out what’s next

catch her making your coffee (possibly incorrectly but give her a break, it’s her second week 🙄) at dalkom café or if you happen to be wandering the premises, it’s likely she’ll be around with a camera in hand too 

personality-wise, she’s very straightforward and won’t do any of that sugar-coating business, it’s no nonsense with her and she’ll expect the same. snarky when she needs to be, bitchy because she can be, but if you have her on your side, she’s there for life 

currently occupying room 029, come bother her 😌

idk what else to put, it’s been a long day i’m 😴

plot ideas maybe????

you’re either on her floor, or above/below her and since you like sleeping with your window open, her disgusting cigarette smoke blows into your room and you’ve had enough

she’s out taking pictures and you happen to get in her frame - you want the photo, she’s not willing 🤕

someone from seoul that knew her back in her prime trainee days before she dropped off the face of the planet but o??? look who’s also here?????

her instagram is really just her life’s diary but somehow that intrigued you and suddenly you start seeing that she’s posting snapshots of very familiar areas.....wait, you’re both in isa-ri???

she’s allergic to pets (rip) and it’s her mission to find who in the sharehouse is out to get her by letting their pet roam free

gimme somebody she can have dumb 3am conversations with, like do aliens exist or why does elon musk want his child to be bullied in school

insert something about a relationship plot here blah blah blah we all know how this goes, but she isn’t in it for anything serious (or is she?????)

pls someone give her a coworker at the café 😭 #teamcantdoshit or #teamlifeoftheparty

she doesn’t have a car but some nice townspeople decided to lend her one for an adventure so now she’s strapping you in for a lil joy ride that has no real destination but that’s the point!!

ok idk man i’m supposed to be awake in 4 hours as i write this more like i slept for 3, so who knows what kind of garbage the above really is 😳 hmu either in the ims (pls pls don’t make this our main form of communication i beg you) for my discord or just drop a ❤️ and i’ll come to you so we can plot and get this party started 🤪

#awhqsintro

[gallivantingheart]

Me, a Princess? Shut Up!

masterlist | previous | next

⏮️ chapter 5: anneliese ⏭️

who?: jihoon/woozi x (f)reader

word count: 2800

genre/s: fluff, humour, social media!au

warnings: mild coarse language

synopsis: Life’s pretty good for y/n. Easy, even. Until someone claiming to be her grandmother says she is the queen of a small island country - and y/n, a princess.

a/n: this one’s kinda super long-ish than usual. and a bit of a filler/character chapter, but I still hope you like it 😊

**please ignore the timestamps - they are not accurate**

TAGLIST: @strykiss, @karrotkarrotkarrot, @3sriracha​, @minkwans​, 

don’t hesitate to send an ask or dm to be added!

Soonyoung doesn’t dare kick his feet up onto the antique coffee table now that your grandmother is in the building, despite how much more comfortable it would be to. The way he reclines so deeply gives away his bad habits as he clears his throat and sits up a little better. You’re glad that Soonhee has tasked the ambassador with your princess lessons for a while. Maybe a more relaxed approach might jog your memory.

“So, where did Her Majesty get to last you did this?” He says, flipping open the photo album.

You lean forward, holding your sandwich up and away from the pages. “Uh, great grandparents. So...sixth generation.”

His brows raise. “Only sixth?”

You whine, slumping as he laughs kindly at you, empty of any maliciousness. Since the security breach, you’ve really warmed up to Soonyoung, glad to have someone closer to your age to relate to and learn from. And he’s a great teacher. Patient but firm, not to mention relentless. He told you about his travels across the country and secret stories about Amaide. They gave you a better idea of the kingdom you may end up leading.

You groan loudly - bordering a roar - after mixing up your great, great grandmother with your great grandaunt (once removed) and snap the album shut.

“Soon, spare me. My brain is seizing up.”

He laughs louder this time, eyes vanishing into his round cheeks. “Okay, okay. You’re probably right. Class dismissed.”

You get up and check your phone, noting the time. Maybe you would have enough time to catch the start of Jihoon’s radio show, if you left now. Jihoon did say he wouldn’t mind if you dropped by - inviting you even before you needed places to hide. Tonight might be a good time to? You slide your kitten heels back on, pulling out your earphones. Only now do you realise that there is a constant, soft pattering from the roof - rain. At least Junwoo was driving you everywhere now, so no risk of getting too wet. Your footsteps echo through the embassy, killing the quiet you’d become familiar with in the old building.

“So where are you headed now?” Soonyoung asks, tipping his head at the attendant who hands him his coat.

You shrug your own on, as well as a felted plaid scarf. “Uh, back to campus? I’ve got a friend I wanna visit.”

The blonde checks his watch, eyebrows shooting up into his feathery fringe. “At this time? There are still people at your college?”

“Hmmm. They have a community radio station. Jihoon has a show on Thursday nights.”

“Oh, do you want a lift?”

You slant your head at him as he detours past the front desk down a short and fairly dim hallway, elaborate alcoves set into either side of the wall.

“Sure? Only if you’re going out? Otherwise Junwoo is at my disposal, so to say.” You wave your hand in a dramatic version of your grandmother’s wave.

Soonyoung nods eagerly. “Yeah! I’m meeting up with some friends in Hongdae later on tonight, so leaving a little earlier won’t hurt. Like I told you, I’ve got nothing to do now Soonhee is catching up.”

You grin, jumping for the passenger seat of the dark car Soonyoung indicates to. Darkly tinted windows, an expectation of most cars you get in nowadays.

“So, who is Jihoon? Is he the one you posted about the other day?”

You nod, carefully not looking at him as you gesture to turn right out of the gates. “Y-yeah. Ah, he’s Mingyu’s cousin.”

You flinch at your voice, stuttered and shy. You didn’t need someone else giving you crap over Jihoon. Soon’s eyebrows raise as he purses his lips, humming in thought.

“Huh. Alright.” Okay, he so doesn’t believe you, but whatever. “That’s nice that you have such a close group of friends. They obviously know about the whole princess thing.”

“Yeah. Can’t really hide something this big from people who have known you most of your life, y’know? Grandmother doesn’t know they know though.” You insist, bouncing a little in your seat.

The rain has died down into a drizzle, almost spitting, so Soonyoung turns the heater and the wipers down. But you can already imagine the cold wet seeping into your shoes, tucking them closer to yourself.

“Of course not. Her Majesty would lose it if she knew you’d broken protocol so early on. Secret’s safe with me, I swear.”

His eyes are wide and he’s quite serious about it, a little bit more desperate than you expected him to be. You don’t dwell on it as you tell him to turn again into the east entrance, past a familiar cluster of restaurants.

When he gets to a set of bollards, you sling the door open, fashioning your scarf over your head. “This is me. Thanks Soonie!”

He grins, waving. “No worries! See you next week! Be safe!”

“You too! Night.”

Shutting the door, you dash for the first spot of dry you see, turning to wave him off.

You navigate the dark campus and get out of the lift five minutes before the start of the show. It’s only then that you question whether or not Jihoon would really want you there. You’re just his cousin’s best friend he’s really nice to, maybe a friend of his yourself. You hesitate at studio 2, shifting from foot to foot as you overthink.

“You’re more than welcome to come by and watch one of the shows if you want. Mingyu and Minghao have even been in an episode or two.” Jihoon looks up briefly to smile small.

Quickly, you open the door and claim a seat next to Bumzu, Jihoon’s director and producer for the radio show. He’s quite well known in most circles, being everyone’s music and tech go-to. You put your finger to your lips, unwrapping your scarf from your head. Somehow, Jihoon is too absorbed in prep to notice you come in.

“Ji said I could come by. I hope I’m not in the way.” You whisper, unsure of the standards in the studio.

Bumzu smiles, his rougher edges softening. He passes you another set of headphones, plugging them in. The on air sign isn’t on yet, luckily.

“Not at all. We’re just about to start. Make yourself comfortable.” he murmurs. “Jihoon, we’re good to go. Cameras are rolling.”

You look over to see Jihoon settling in in his classic sweats and slides, despite being filmed.  The host’s eyes slide to you, widening in shock. He motions to you with a wave, brows quirked. You wave shyly, smiling tentatively. The on air light above you buzzes to life and you settle, fond smile pressing at your lips. A subdued but chill jingle plays, male vocals playing to introduce the show.

“Hey everyone, it’s Woozi and welcome to tonight’s Woozi Tunes, your thursday night music fix. We’ve got new stuff from Justin Bieber and our on campus artist, Bumzu.” Jihoon says into the mic, giving a short wave to a camera.

As he chatters about this and that, his eyes slide your way, holding for prolonged amounts of time. Even Bumzu smiles, waving him off subtly. You’ve probably put him off, poor thing.

“So, first up we have Golden by Harry Styles. All thanks to his new mv, which I really recommend watching. Hope you like it.” He turns a few dials and nudges his headphones off an ear.

Jihoon looks straight at you, squinting a little as he smiles. You mirror his actions, shuffling closer while carefully staying out of the various camera shots.

“Bumzu, we’ve got four in the queue, right?”

The producer next to you nods. “Yeah, an ad segment then I’ll open the request lines. So, ten, maybe fifteen minutes till live. Studio audio has been muted.”

You don’t understand any of the small terms being thrown out around you. But you don’t care too much, bundling your scarf closer to your neck in the enclosed room for something to do.

“Y/n, I didn’t know you were coming.” Jihoon says, empty of malice.

You smile but shrug. “Yeah, I ended up finishing pr- uh, study group earlier than I expected and thought I’d drop by. I hope that’s not too much trouble.”

He shakes his head, shuffling his slides back and forth over the tightly woven grey carpet. Beats and patterns wave behind his head, turning the fluorescent halo around his hair neon.

“Not at all. I’m glad you decided to come. I hope you enjoy it.”

“I always enjoy your radio shows, Ji.” You blurt out.

Your jaw drops at your lack of filter, promptly shutting your mouth as your stomach drops and flutters. Wow, maybe Minghao is a bit right - too obvious. His brows quirk, resting his elbow on his knee.

“You listen to it?” He asks.

“Of course I do! I like you-your music taste.” You clench your teeth through your grin.

Wow, you really needed to learn how to filter your brain better. At least you don’t blush easily. You chatter back and forth about the playlist for tonight and his upcoming guests - he has Seokmin and Jeonghan, a mutual friend of Joshua’s, next week to talk musicals and teaching (how they relate, you’re not really sure). You forget Bumzu is even in the room until he gently clears his throat.

“Jihoon, you’re back on in 60.” He calls quietly.

“Oh! Oh right. Thanks, Bumzu.” Jihoon glances back to you, the tips of his ears a fairy floss pink. He’s grinning though. “Psst, do you want to talk more after the show?”

You nod, shooting a thumbs up, casting a glance back up to the time, hearing the end of a Pink Sweat$ song fade out.

He’s more charismatic over radio than you realise, leaning back in his chair and chatting briefly to one of the callers requesting. Still subdued but open, cracking a grin here and there. You check the radio show’s page to see if anyone is commenting on the show tonight - you’re a frequent snooper. Jihoon has quite a few fans, not just on campus. You bop your head along to his rhythmic playlist and listen intently to his callers. Before you know it, Jihoon is hunched near the controls and ending the show.

“Thanks for tuning into another Woozi Tunes on 97.6 fm. Remember, if you want to listen to this episode or any others, podcast recordings and playlists will be available on Spotify. To play us out, a song for, well a friend. An oldie but a good one - Bruno Mars, Finesse. Woozi, signing off.”

You bite your lip to stifle laughter. His favourite artist, your favourite song. You let him murder it the summer of 2018, long after it had come out, just to annoy Mingyu. 

“And… cut. Cameras and audio are off. Another week down.” Bumzu announces, pulling off his headset.

You pull off your own, delicately setting it aside. You give a lone round of applause. “Well done everyone.”

The radio host looks to you, quietly preening as he stands to tug his jacket off the back of his chair. You stay seated out the way as they clear everything away, slotting equipment into draws and wiping down surfaces. There isn’t even any idle chatter between them, but rather than being awkward it’s a moment of peace you didn’t know you wanted. Working, content peace away from everything as of late.

“Jihoon, don’t worry. I’ll finish up.”

Jihoon’s dark brows shoot up. “No no, hyung. We’re almost done.”

“Exactly. There’s not much left and I lock up anyway. You’ve got an early seminar tomorrow. And a guest. You can head off.” The older man insists, his soft edges turning to a stubborn frown.

The younger of the two rolls pretty quick, pushing the keyboard away and nodding. Jihoon’s dark eyes flick to you hopefully as he grabs his keys and wallet from an open draw.

“Alright. Talk tomorrow. Night, hyung.”

You give the older man a wave, bundling yourself up again now that you’re leaving the enclosed space. “Thank you, Bumzu! Good night.”

You head out into the hallway, meandering down to the lift and then the small set of stairs to the entry of the arts building. The rain is heavier as you drift awkwardly, checking your phone and contemplating your journey home.

“How - how are you getting home?” Jihoon asks, flipping his hood up over his dark hair.

You shrug. “Bus. Soonyoung dropped me off, not Junwoo.”

His lips press together as he shows a prolonged nod, kicking at the lino in his slides. You click through for the bus timetable, patting your pockets for your purse. You wonder what he’s waiting for, seeing as he drove here and the carpark for this side of the campus is underground and less than five minutes. He probably had staff parking too because of the radio show.

“Are you busy?” Jihoon asks suddenly, a little sharper than you’re used to.

You shoot him some side eye, tucking your phone away. “What...when?”

“Uh, now?”

You smile, shaking your head and stuffing your hands in your deep coat pockets. “Nope, I’m free.”

His shoulders perk up and he pulls his hood back down. Jihoon’s ears are going a little pink again as he turns back for the stairs further into the building. You feel the tentative excitement rolling off him, rubbing off on you so that you mirror his frame, your own shoulders tucking up around your ears. Every shuffle of your feet echo and the light sensor above you flashes red.

“Do you want to see my new song? I know you haven’t had the chance to see much of them.”

You’d mentioned - gently hounded, you hoped would be the best alternative term - before that you would be excited to hear some of his stuff. You’re already on your way back to the lifts.

“Absolutely! Lead the way.”

You lean over the soundboard, listening intently to the demo track. His voice is distinct, so unlike what you thought it might be. Still, it's versatile and powerful when combined with the lyrics. The beat is steady and you bounce your head along.

You glance to him, leant back in his seat watching you. "You wrote this? Like, all of this?"

He hums. "Yeah. It’s the track I got an HD for.”

Jihoon's arms are crossed and you feel bad that he has to feel defensive with you. You smile then gasp when the pretty singing becomes fluid rapping. His gaze turns with your reactions, concerned. Finally, you pull off the headphones as the minute and a half closes.

"I - singing, rapping! Composing? This is amazing, Ji! I'm so glad your major is music, otherwise your talent would be wasted for sure." You proclaim.

He ducks his head and fluffs at his hair with a smile. Jihoon seems unable to look at you and you let the bashfulness slide - not. You nudge at his chair so it spins.

"Wah, you act like no one has ever said that before!"

"I - it sounds a little different coming from you." he shrugs, still not looking. "Most of them are a little amazed or they're assessors with a job of picking it apart."

You nod and sigh. "Makes sense. Still. I hope you keep that track. I'd listen to it."

Jihoon beams before his sight slides to the digital clock sitting on a shelf - how very retro and efficient - eyes widening as he sits up straight.

“I - It’s almost midnight. We better head out.”

You can’t help but pout, standing up to push your chair in. “Yeah I’ve, of course, got princess things to attend to. Bumzu said you have class, don’t you?”

His slim fingers peek out of his navy sleeves, flying across the keyboard to turn everything off. “Uh-huh. I’m supposed to be doing the readings on it now, but It’s a pretty lax class so I should be able to get away with it.”

Your mouth is flapping silently like a fish, unable to form any coherent speech to reply with. Something not scolding, nor a joke, seeing as he’d just sacrificed his valuable study time to entertain you. Then he’s in the doorway, hand hovering over the light switch.

“Are you coming, Princess? Or am I leaving you in the dark?” Jihoon looks at you expectantly.

You gasp - mostly at the teasing name - and scuttle after him, breaking out into the dingy hall, yellowing walls and all. “I - yeah, sorry! Let’s go.”

(If Jihoon sings along to the radio on the way to yours, you don’t say anything. You’re grateful that he does the same for you when the Top 40 segment comes up in the thirty-five minute trip.)

#caratwritersclub #seventeen au #seventeen fic #seventeen social media au #seventeen scenario #seventeen imagine #jihoon fic #jihoon imagine #jihoon scenario #seventeen smau #woozi fic #woozi imagine #woozi scenario #woozi x reader #jihoon x reader #mapsu fic #written

[spicy-raddish]

So, in my last post I said that I literally hated Japan Sinks 2020, but that I was scared to voice my problems with it, from a writing standpoint, due to so many people genuinely liking the show. It seems I'm not alone at all. A lot of people encouraged me to make this post, so, here we go...

(This is going to be a long one)

Everything Wrong With: Japan Sinks 2020 (and it's a lot):

this post contains spoilers, obviously.

The music doesn't fit the mood of the show, like, at all. Don't get me wrong, the music is actually good, a lot of it is in my study playlist now, but it absolutely doesn't fit the scenes that accompany it. e.g. the dad gets literally blown up by a ww2 bomb leaving only his severed hand behind *happy music intensifies* this just cheapens the entire scene and removes any tiny fragment of emotional response to what you're being shown. And this happens all the time.

The animation... The backgrounds and general scenery look absolutely stunning, but the characters look genuinely awful. At times, I would be legitimately crying whilst watching a scene, not out of sadness, but out of laughter at just how bad the characters look. Extremely lazy drawing, and if the character isn't the one talking, they just freeze their animation for minutes at a time, not even making them blink or move slightly, just... frozen there.

Go and his constant use of cringy Engrish. I get it, he's half filipino and he looks up to an English-speaking YouTuber. But he goes into this broken English way too frequently, and again, it doesn't match the tone of what's happening.

How did Mari survive the first tsunami? Also, why didn't we get to see the first tsunami? Or the plane crash-landing in the bay and hitting the bridge? Why do we never actually get to see these large-scale events that are supposedly impacting our characters? Also, if Mari supposedly was in a plane crash, then ended up in the river where a tsunami hit, and she somehow managed to swim out of the river during a tsunami, how does she then have the energy and strength to walk all the way through the city to the shrine, and doesn't even seem out of breath? Also, if Ayumu was in that changing room which resulted in people being literally severed in half, how is her phone not even smashed? Cracked a lil? No?

THE POLAROIDS. I actually turned the show off the second time Mari pulled her camera out for a group photo, and I had to force myself to go back and finish it. Why on earth do the characters keep insisting on taking these chipper polaroids like the literal apocalypse isn't happening around them? Is Mari emotionally stunted? I don't understand. Is it supposed to be making some kind of point? I don't understand...

The characters seem to have zero reaction to awful events happening around them, or they comment on it and move on immediately.

Random magical cult city growing serious amounts of weed... Literally everything that happens there is just awful writing. So far, everything that has happened has been a natural disaster, and they explain them as being due to the tectonic plate movements. So we're supposed to be believing all of this as possible. Explainable natural events. You can't build a world around this and then suddenly introduce magic out of the blue. Not to mention, what even happened in the end? Did 'Mother' reincarnate herself? How? Why?

The weird nightclub scene and the pensioner sex scene are both two scenes I could do without.

The weird trickster guy who keeps pulling fake eyes/ears/noses out of nowhere. Again, he ruins the tone of the show. Not only that, continuity just doesn't exist with him. He says he's from England, but speaks English with an American accent. And then he says he grew up in Yugoslavia. Like, which one is it sweetie?

Why is this old man just randomly addicted to morphine?

You can't expect the audience to have a legitimate emotional response to character deaths if you introduce and kill off new characters so frequently, whilst simultaneously not really telling us anything about them that would cause us to care that they're gone.

Huh, what do you know, episode 8 was actually kind of good-ish, and the only reason it was good was because we were left with only two characters, the characters we've known right from the start, meaning we have at least some reason to care about them. And there's none of the random happy music. And Go keeps his Engrish to a minimum. And neither of them dies in a freak accident that gives the animators reason to show more body horror out of nowhere for shock value.

THE RAP BATTLE. At this point, I genuinely thought that this show had to be satirical. Like, there is just no way this is supposed to be a serious show. Again, the tone is non-existant now. For some reason this show likes to be really self-deprecating towards Japan at every available opportunity and they just went full speed with this rap battle. Like, I get that maybe the writers thought, oh, we've been showing a lot of bleak scenes, let's give some comedic relief. But that only works if you haven't had happy music blaring this entire time, combined with hilariously out-of-place English phrases and the weird Yugo-Brit-American guy with fake eyes, etc. That only works if this was a serious show to begin with.

I'm making a separate point just for the godawful animation during Kite's weather balloon scene. Jesus Christ.

The fact that they built a new mini-Japan/Tokyo for the surviving Japanese people, knowing full-well that Japan is going to re-emerge at some point, thus destroying this new island and killing its inhabitants in the process.

We're supposed to believe that nobody, not one nation, tried to claim the area that Japan was once in for themselves, supposedly as a good will to the Japanese people, even though it would be a prime location for fishing, etc. And there's definitely not enough Japanese people left to try and contest it.

I forgot to mention the fact that the intro doesn't match the show either.

There is a consistent issue with the show not understanding the tone it's supposed to be having. Combining the happy intro, happy music throughout, characters' lack of response to what's happening around them, laughable animation and random "comedy relief" aspects like the foreigner and the rap battle, you're left with a show that is unable to make you feel the way it wants you to feel. It seems like a joke, you want to see it as satirical, but the show continues to act like these events should be taken seriously. Now, I've seen anime that does this kind of thing before, having the tone of one genre whilst actually being another, but in a good way. An example would be Gakkou Gurashi (School Live). But Japan Sinks 2020 seems to do this unintentionally. It's just... Funny. I don't think I cared that a single character died. And that, in itself, is sadder than the entire show.

If you've made it through this post, congratulations. As someone who is both a writer and a fan of apocalyptic/natural disaster fiction, this show hit a nerve and I needed to speak out about it. Especially since I'm seeing it be praised so much online!

#japan sinks 2020 #japan sinks anime #netflix #anime #japan #natural disaster #apocalypse

[taylorinthetardis]

Only Human - Prologue and Chapter 1

Hey everyone! So this is the Pride and Prejudice AU I’ve been working on for a while now. It’s set in Modern Day London and told from Darcy’s POV. It is cross posted on AO3, the link to it will be below. I promise I will update it soon, I’ve just been a little bit blocked for a while. But I promise there will be more. So here we go, the prologue and first chapter are under the cut! Enjoy!! Feedback is much appreciated!! If you like it and want to be on a taglist, please feel free to say so!!

Thank you to @madbaddic7ed for all your encouraging words and for convincing me to cross post!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/22109365

Only Human

Summary:  The events of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice as seen through the eyes of Darcy. Story takes place in modern day London. Lizzy and Jane are American students studying abroad. Their sisters take turns visiting them throughout the story. Bingley and Darcy are recent business partners, but longtime friends. Caroline is as snake-ish as ever. George Wickham is an actual rapist - the rape will not be described in detail.

Pairing: William (Will) Darcy x Elizabeth (Lizzie) Bennet; Charles Bingley x Jane Bennet

Rating: Explicit due to eventual smut

Warnings: Swearing

Word Count: 2.8K

                                                       Prologue

It is a truth universally acknowledged that I, William Darcy, am an arsehole. The following tale, dear reader, will explain how that came to be and how, I hope, I have made the preceding statement a falsehood instead. The following tale does not often show me at my best. I hope, however, that you may look past my faults and forgive my disgraceful, ignorant, and often impure thoughts as I relay to you the circumstances by which I came to fall deeply in love with the most wonderful, challenging woman I’ve ever met, the method by which I nearly ruined an incredibly important friendship, and the events surrounding the creation of a familial fissure that will never heal. I hope you will not judge me too harshly.

                                       Chapter 1: Hanover Terrace

I was sat in my office. My office. Still getting used to that. When I took over control from my Aunt Catherine in April, a lot of work was done to make this office mine. Catherine’s taste in furniture was, how should I phrase this, medieval. I was honestly surprised we didn’t have to remove any torture devices when her furniture was cleared out to make room for my more practical mahogany desk and overstuffed leather chairs. My degree from Cambridge’s Judge Business School was propped in my bookcase with photos of my parents and Georgiana on either side. The office is still rather spartan in comparison to Charles’ but I don’t mind it. Our companies had recently merged, an event that proved profitable for both parties and served to deepen our friendship. Our offices are across the hallway from each other now, as opposed to being across the Thames. The economic windfall had been excellent for Charles. He had decided to purchase a new home, one big enough for himself and his sister and closer to her university. Charles is an orphan, like myself, and the sole caretaker of his younger sister Caroline, who recently began her studies at the fashion and design school at Regent’s University. I feel for Charles sometimes. His younger sister is an absolute terror, but I guess we can’t all be blessed with saints for sisters. Caroline is an uncommonly cruel young woman. She delights in shit-talking friends and strangers alike. She also is labouring under the delusion that she will one day be my wife. Her older sister, Louisa, has enjoyed several years of trophy-wifery and it seems Caroline has decided that is the life she wants to live as well. Although she just recently came of age, she has flirted with me non-stop since the first day Charles invited me home with him. We’ve known each other since we were 18 years old. We are now 25. Damn near seven years. SEVEN YEARS. Seven fucking years dealing with Caroline’s shite. She just turned 18 earlier this year. What the hell did she think I was going to do with her when she was eleven goddamn years old? Go to prison? I sure as shit think not.

Charles entered my office at around 1. He was bouncier than usual. He had either had more than one of his normal sickly-sweet coffees or he was in love again. Turned out it was both.

“Oh, Will I’m so happy you convinced me to snatch up Hanover Terrace. I met the most beautiful woman in world yesterday. I never would have known her if I hadn’t decided to take your advice. I invited her and her sister out with us tonight. You don’t mind, do you? Even if you do, once you meet her, you’ll forget you were ever bothered.” He spoke at such a speed that I only caught about every third word. My ears perked, however, at the ‘out with us tonight’ part. Out with us? I don’t remember agreeing to go anywhere with Charles. He always wants to go to nightclubs. He knows I don’t dance. He always does this. Drags me to some poppy nightclub with strobe lights and terrible music.

“And how did you meet this one Charles? Spill your coffee on her? No, wait, you were walking Caroline’s stupid pug and she thought it was cute and wanted to pet it.”

“Christ, am I becoming that predictable?” Yes Charles. Every girl you’ve ever fancied has fallen into your life in a cliché.

I nodded.  He sighed.

“Well, it’s different this time. She isn’t like any other girl I’ve been with. More beautiful than Sarah, kinder than Tilly, oh and her sister Will. Her sister has got to be one of the most intelligent women I’ve ever spoken to in my life. They’re both very beautiful Will. If I was a betting man, I’d wager that Lizzie might even be beautiful enough to tempt you out of your shell and entice you to have some goddamn fun for once. Maybe she’ll even get you to dance.” He nudged me with his elbow, winking. Yeah right Charles. Not even Charlize Theron could get me to dance at a nightclub.

“I seriously doubt that Charles. So, what’s this one called, hm?”

“Jane.” He said it with a sigh. Oh, he’s already long gone. “Her sister is called Elizabeth, but she prefers Lizzie. They’re American, Darce. From the Midwest. They’re both studying abroad at Regent’s for the year.”

“And to what godforsaken place will you be attempting to drag me to tonight?”

“I was thinking Drama? I wanna show off a little Will. I really like her; I want to impress her.”

“Drama might be a little much for a midwestern girl, don’t you think? What about that place we went in Camden a few months ago, by the lock?”

“Lock 17? Isn’t that a little down market for you Darce? There isn’t even a dress code!”

“Come off it, you know I couldn’t care less Charles. I don’t even like going out. I just think Lock 17 will be the better choice for her. You don’t want to scare her. Anyway, I think you’ll have a nice time. Without me.”

“Nuh uh, you aren’t getting out of this. You come or you’re dead to me.” I rolled my eyes. Jesus he’s such a goddamn drama queen.

“Ugh fine I’ll go. But I’m not dancing and you can’t make me. I’m a grown man Charles. So, meet at Hanover Terrace at, what, 8pm? Or should we meet earlier?”

“I was thinking 7:30, that way we’ll all have plenty of time to get ready and you can get to know them before we go. I’m going to order the cab for 8 so we’ll have plenty of time to get there if there’s any slow spots.”

“Please tell me you’ll be leaving Caroline at home.”

“Yeah, so she can kick my arse over it later? No chance. Besides, we’ll probably lose her to the dance floor as soon as we get in. She’ll find some nice dumb boy to buy her drinks and you won’t have to see her all night.” No Charles she’ll be on me like white on rice all damn night and you bloody well know it.

“Alright. But I’m not dancing.”

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

I arrived at Hanover Terrace about 7:30. As soon as Charles opened the door, I immediately regretted my decision to come. I should have told him I got food poisoning from lunch or something. Caroline was stomping through the front room, going from box to box screaming that she couldn’t find her favourite clubbing heels. Who the fuck has a favourite pair of heels for clubbing? Heels seem so impractical for dancing. Charles’ new love and her sister had yet to arrive and Charles appeared to be in a slight panic.

“What if she doesn’t come Will?” He said shakily. Christ he’s in a full meltdown.

“I’m sure she’ll be here in a few minutes Charles. It’s not even close to 8 o’ clock yet. You’ve got plenty of time, just relax.” I took a minute to look around his new home. He had barely unpacked. I helped him get everything in order for the move about two weeks ago and he moved in a few days later. Everything was basically where it was when I visited three days ago. “Have you genuinely not unpacked anything Charles? How are you even living in here?”

“I’ve got enough clothes unpacked upstairs to last another week probably. Caroline’s rarely home in the evening anymore so I just keep getting take-away. There’s a Chipotle just around the corner on Baker Street. You know I love a burrito bowl. Something I have in common with the lovely Jane.” Gag. Well, at least the movers got his furniture set up, although most of the downstairs furnishings were unusable because they were covered with cardboard boxes and plastic totes and suitcases. The sofa in the main living area was clear enough that I took a seat. Caroline continued her tear through the front room until a triumphant screech echoed through the relatively empty house. The heels in question were easily six inches high, sparkly platformed monstrosities. They completed a look which can only be described as what a disco ball would look like if it was a contestant on Love Island. Hopefully Jane and her sister would be a bit more sensibly dressed, like Charles and myself. I decided on a plain black tee and black jeans with my black and white trainers. Charles had gone with a less monochromatic palette, wearing a bright blue button down that was almost the colour of his eyes and a pair of dark blue jeans. We’re wearing the same shoes. Us and every other man in London. Suddenly there was knock on the door. I checked my watch, 7:35. I told Charles he was worrying for nothing. He bounced towards the door like Caroline’s pug when he needed a shit. He opened the door to reveal a young blonde woman and a younger looking woman with auburn hair.

“Jane, Lizzie, I’m so pleased you’re here. Sorry about the mess, haven’t had much time to unpack yet, with work and all.” Charles led them through to the room I had posted up in. The dark-haired girl peered at me through purple framed glasses. Her sister gave her a little nudge. Well fuck, Charles wasn’t kidding. God they’re both gorgeous! They were dressed considerably more sensibly than Caroline. Jane wore a low pair of black heels that complemented her red cocktail dress. Her sister was even more comfortably dressed, in black leggings, Doc Martins, and a plain white t-shirt. She wore a black leather jacket over the tee. Neither girl appeared to be wearing much make-up. Both were possessed of the natural beauty that Caroline tried to fabricate in her hour-long make-up routine that left her looking like she had Photoshopped her own face, but in real life. I stuck my hand out. “Will Darcy. It’s a pleasure to meet you both.” Wow, sound more like you’re a hundred years old, why don’t you Will?

“Will, this is Lizzie,” he gestured to the brunette, “and this is Jane.” He put his hand on the small of the blonde’s back and she blushed redder than Charles’ hair.

“Lizzie Bennet. It’s so nice to meet you Will.” She took my hand with her considerably smaller one and shook it. It was a firmer handshake than I’d had from some of my business associates. She dropped my hand and her sister took up the vacancy. Her handshake was much softer, grip much lighter, much more feminine. Looking at the two women before me, I wouldn’t have known they were sisters if Charles hadn’t told me. They couldn’t have been more different. One blonde, one brunette. Jane had soft blue eyes, Lizzie’s were bright and hazel. Jane was tall and slender, her sister shorter and softer around the middle. Taking all of her in I came to a sudden realization: she was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. Okay Will be cool. For once in your bloody life be cool. I opened my mouth, but before I could speak Lizzie launched into an animated conversation with Charles about her day. It was all I could do not to stare at her mouth while it moved faster than Charles’ ever had, no matter how in love he was or how many Frappuccinos he had consumed. I sat back down on the sofa, while Lizzie sat on the carpet, Charles on the coffee table, and Jane remained standing. Lizzie told us about one of her professors, an archaeologist who taught university classes when he wasn’t on digs.

“He’s like a real-life Indiana Jones except without the bullwhip and the hat. And he’s not Harrison Ford. But still. Oh, and don’t even let me get started on my Shakespeare professor. George. He’s my most favourite.”

“I’m glad to hear you’re enjoying your studies Lizzie. But don’t forget to explore the city while you’re here! London is full of endless things to see and do. I’ve lived here most of my life and I still haven’t seen everything!” Charles is so blessed. I wish I could just talk. Talking is better than staring. C’mon mouth, work! “Wouldn’t you agree Darce?”

Shit, I have to talk now? I nodded, again opening my mouth to speak, but no words came. Charles picked the conversation back up, turning to Jane to ask if she had a pleasant day as well.

“Yes. I took a lovely walk through Regent’s Park today. I only have the one class on Thursdays so I’ve been using the rest of the day to explore a bit. Lizzie’s schedule is so much fuller than mine so I’ve been finding places for us to go on the weekends. We’ve gone to Camden Market and Hyde Park. When you met us the other day, we were on our way back from the Tate Modern, I don’t remember if I said or not.”

“Yes, you said Lizzie was disappointed because she thought you were going to the Tate Britain.”

“Do you have something against modern art?” Oh, cool. Thanks, mouth. Why did that come out like I’m angry about that? Modern art is dumb. How is a pile of rubber or a cut-up McDonald’s bag art?

“I can appreciate that its art, like how I can appreciate that romance novels are literature or techno is music, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. I prefer the old masters and classical art to a splash of paint on a canvas. My little cousin can do that too, does that mean her art belongs in a prestigious museum? Naw fam it sure don’t.” Yes. I wholly agree. Why does she have her eyebrow raised at me? Does she think I don’t agree? What is my face doing? Am I scowling? I don’t want to scowl. Did she say ‘fam’? That doesn’t matter. Why does it feel like it matters?

“You’ll have to excuse my sister. She’s never been shy about her opinions. And she has a lot of them.” Jane shot her sister a disapproving look. Lizzie just shrugged. Caroline chose that moment to come swanning into the room. Seeing there was a perfectly good space next to her brother on the coffee table, she chose to throw herself down into my lap. Oh, for fucks sake. She’s gonna get fake tanner on my trousers.

“Will, my love," I threw up in my mouth a little, "we’re going to have such a wonderful time at Drama tonight.” I can’t wait to burst her bubble.

“Caroline, did Charles not tell you? We aren’t going to Drama. We’re going to Lock 17, in Camden.” I tried to move her from my lap, but she dug her heels into the carpet for grounding. Fat Christ, Charles will you get your sister under control?

She sputtered, on the verge of a full tantrum directed at her brother when, blessedly, Charles’ phone vibrated. “That’ll be the cab. Caroline are you still coming?”

She jumped up off my lap and straightened the piece of sequined cloth trying to pass itself off as a dress. “Of course I’m going Charles. I put all this on, I can’t just not go out now!” She stomped off to the dining area to get her bag from the table. Charles led Jane towards the front door. I extended my hand down to Lizzie, who took it. I pulled her up from the floor. You should let go of her hand now Will. You’re being weird. I dropped her hand like it had burned me. Smooth. She looked at me, smirked and cocked that eyebrow again. Saying nothing, she followed her sister and Charles out the front door. Caroline took advantage of my initial inaction by slipping her arm into mine, leading me towards the cab. And my doom.

#Taylor writes #Pride and Prejudice #fanfiction #Modern AU #Darcy's POV #Mr Darcy #Elizabeth Bennet #Charles Bingley #Jane Bennet

[everything-y-nothing]

someone please write this fic

being on lockdown during this pandemic resurrected some major bamon feels. my brain started to obsessively develop the plot for a bamon fanfic and since I do not consider myself a writer, I’m surrendering it to the void.

For your consideration, Bonnie and Damon’s lives after the TVD series finale starts something like this:

Bonnie needs a fresh start after the shitstorm of the last 8 years. Her friends are safe and moving forward with their lives, so she decides to go back and finish up college...far away from Mystic Falls. The idea of exploring anything supernatural is lost on her, so instead of following in Grams’ footsteps as an Occult Studies professor, she takes a different path. Bonnie discovers her passion for Human Rights and Global Health, earning a PhD in Social Epidemiology. Working for a nonprofit jumpstarts her solo trip around the world, traveling through various parts of Africa and southeast Asia.

Her love of travel and social justice advocacy inspires Bonnie to create a digital media publication to share her unique perspective. Self proclaimed anti-influencer, Bonnie creates Currently: Conquering the World with Dr. Bonnie which delivers education through travel – simultaneously offering honest first-hand travel insights, educating followers on important issues faced by the highlighted destinations and checking privilege. The platform uplifts the voices of WOC, POC and marginalized people. It has been featured in a couple of major publications, donates to local nonprofits, hosts a podcast and has a sizable social media following. Bonnie posts a booty shot for every 1,000 new followers to her instagram account to show that there’s no correlation between a badass bitch in a bikini and intelligence.

Magic takes a backseat to Bonnie’s career and she’s okay with it. She still practices and befriends a handful of witches and warlocks through her travels. However, she keeps the magnitude of her abilities mostly under wraps. There’s not a snowflake’s chance in hell that she will let the power of her lineage be taken advantage of again. Bonnie Bennett - joyful, unapologetic BAMF, brainiac and humanitarian - finally found her inner goddess and is making good on her promise to live her very best life.

Bonnie keeps in touch with the remaining members of the Mystic Falls Scooby gang, though marginally - FaceTime sessions with Caroline and Elena when they can fit into each other’s schedules and time zones, long conversations with Matt, and random texts from Damon complaining about anything and everything. In time, the calls become fewer and no news is good news in her mind. Plus, she has a business to run, places to be, people to educate and a patriarchy to dismantle.

At first, Damon struggles acclimating to his new human life. He’s not pleased to have to take up exercising to in order to maintain his physique and misses the strength and agility he once had as a vampire. The lack of bloodlust is a plus. Cooking and eating real food is way more rewarding and enjoyable, another plus. Although, he gets mildly depressed that his body needs to build up an alcohol tolerance and can actually now die from overdrinking. He finally has Elena all to himself which is all he ever wanted and he should be walking on cloud nine, but it’s all so overwhelming. Time is fleeting and he realizes how much he had taken it for granted. He misses Stefan so goddamn much and it doesn’t help that his best friend/favorite drinking buddy skipped town on him. He spends one whole year mourning his brother, wallowing in self-pity, and being the domesticated boyfriend to his Pre Med fiancé before he gets his shit together.

Inspired after binge watching Tidying Up on Netflix, Damon starts applying the Konmari method to the Boarding House. In the attic, he finds his bachelors of architecture along with a set of licenses he got for ‘shits and gigs’ back in the 80s and it sparks something in him. He was productive as a vampire, after all. Damon convinces Caroline to compel NCARB and the State Board of Contractors into reinstating his architect and contractor licenses – because that’s what family is for – and starts a design and contracting firm, working mostly on small tenant improvement projects in and around Mystic Falls. His first project is to renovate the Boarding House which he later hands over to Alaric to run the Salvatore School.

Damon and Elena get married in between the time she ends Pre Med and starts Med School. It’s a spontaneous ceremony at City Hall which Matt documents via Facebook Live. They make it through one year of marriage before things start to go south. With Elena now further away for Med School and Damon running his business in Mystic Falls, they barely make it work to see each other on weekends. Damon falls in love with a dilapidated old bar in the heart of town and purchases it, throwing himself into a major renovation. It serves as a nice distraction from the growing divide between him and the “love of his life.” Year two is the tipping point – Elena wants him to relocate closer her, Damon wants to continue growing his business in Mystic Falls and neither wants to compromise. They see each other even less and argue more until Elena admits she has been cheating on Damon with a colleague, and their decision to part ways is mutual. Not so epic love, after all.

The breakup isn’t as painful as he thought it would be since Elena and him were living separate lives already. He sells the property for which he planned to surprise his ex-wife with a family home and readjusts his plans for the bar to incorporate a second floor loft for himself. It takes Damon almost a full year to finish renovations on his pride and joy, Savior. Blood, sweat and tears went into preserving and restoring original, historic architectural features. He took great care in curating every single detail and it paid off because his bar was voted best in the county and has become the go-to place for intimate date nights and an impeccable drink selection.

Nine years after Bonnie hightailed it out of Mystic Falls for good, three years after founding Currently: Conquering and two-ish years after the grand opening of Savior, the former besties run into each other on the streets of Havana. The run and jump hug from when Bonnie resurrected herself from 90s Hell is relived and they play catch-up over medianoches. Bonnie is leading a group of travelers through Cuba for the next 10 days while Damon is on sabbatical to celebrate his thriving business ventures and divorce. He critiques the photo composition her latest ass shot posted to IG and she points out his new frown lines that would put Stefan’s to shame – and just like that, they’re besties all over again.

Bonnie invites him to join her tour group and having no set itinerary, Damon agrees. It’s truly refreshing to see Bonnie in her element. Bearing witness to the person she has grown into after the supernatural drama of yesteryear only reinforces Damon’s admiration of her. Having no real destination after Cuba, Damon piggybacks onto her next guided tour, leaning into the local culture that his best friend has grown to love so much. He even follows her to Costa Rica before he has to return home.

(Annnnnd that’s where it stopped)

Comments:

Does a similar fic already exist and I just don’t remember haven’t read it?

Would it be too much to ask for accurate characterization and spot-on snarky dialogue, and like, not written in first-person narrative?

Timing - I’ve estimated approx 9 years until Bamon meet up Cuba. Not sure if it makes logical sense with everything that happens in between.

Damon and Elena’s child(ren?) - didn’t consider them...the Gilbert’s shouldn’t procreate, IMO. I don’t plan on watching Legacies and not sure what is canon. The plot would need to be adjusted if included. Regarding the origins of Stefanie Salvatore - I’d say keep this character as DE’s spawn instead of rewriting as Bamon’s kid. Since Stefan killed Enzo, the name would be a sore spot for Bonnie.

Bonnie’s career - mimics that of Dr. Kiona who runs hownottotravellikeabasicbitch on IG - follow her! She’s awesome.

#bamon #bamon fanfic #super extra #headcanon #plot bunny #incomplete #to the void with love #please entertain me #I promise to love you forever #covid 19 delirium #things i obsessed over during lockdown #devil's in the detail #bonnie bennett #damon salvatore

[socksmagazine]

An interview with Alessia Stranieri

Alessia is an Italian photographer based in London.

On April 13th on Bandcamp you released, under the name Homeware, a new album, A tiny pot of salt. Would you like telling me about the project and the album? Are they born together?

I would lie if I didn’t admit the album is about a guy. Back-story: it’s 2020, I’m 25, got dumped and found myself single, back on dating apps, started dating this guy who could’ve easily been my dream-love when I was 14 and used to listen to black metal. But quarantine started and he turned out to be an asshole so I found myself locked down, becoming one with the couch, having to deal with my obsessive love disorder and anxiety all by myself. I looked into my laptop and found Garageband. At this point I had never written any music and never used any software, but I guess I really needed something to do so I just started to make one song a day, ish, until I felt completely emptied of what I was feeling for him. ‘Homeware’ is what I feel I am right now during isolation.

You play bass in a band called Blue Tongue Rabbit, can you tell me something more?

The band is definitely the best thing that happened to me in quite some time. I am so lucky to have met these three amazing human beings and to feel such a genuine connection with them. Cal, Caleb and I started playing one year ago as a trio, guitar, bass and electronics, then after a while Cam came along with his terrific drums. Just in the past few months we were starting to play regularly in venues and make our connections etcetera so we can’t wait to go back to it as soon as possible. We are probably going to release our first song soon, but I don’t know any detail yet, just keep an eye on our Instagram page!

You studied photography in Rome but now you have lived in London for a long time . What brought you there and how is your relationship whit the city?

I moved here when Rome was starting to feel tight. I love Rome and it will always be my favourite place in theworld, but after my BA I just felt I had to move. So I came here and got a master’s degree in photography. I deeply love and hate London at the same time. It’s a city that sucks everything out of you and you need to be very careful in getting something in return. There’s so much going on it’s terrifying, but at least for now I feel home here. I know where to go when I feel overwhelmed, I know where to buy good tuna steaks or how fast I need to walk if I wanna catch the last train after a gig. It’s very different from Rome, and I like it.

How did your interest in photography start? Every girl ever goes through a photography phase. My phase just didn’t stop after a few years in high school Iguess, and I don’t even know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing. But if I really have to pinpoint source it’probably because of my family photo albums. I spent my whole childhood with my mom taking photos of every single moment with her compact analogue camera, then going to the studio and getting the films developed and printed and then arranging them in these albums with such care and devotion, I guess it just stuck with me. I have very few memories of my past and I’ve always been scared of time passing, so taking photos and videos it’s probably just a way to keep everything with me until I can.

Can you tell me something about your photographic work? And what are your references?

I think I haven’t yet got to what I’d like my work to be. I got close some time, but not quite. So far my main thing has been fashion, and I love it, but I also hate it. It’s been a weird couple of years of my life where I felt I wasn’t connected anymore with my work. So now I’m giving myself time to understand what I want and what is going on with me. I have a ton of fashion photographers that I love and admire and I’m jealous of, that I could name as a reference, but at the end of the day if I close my eyes and think of what I would like my work to be like it’s always Doug DuBois and Rob Bremner. With time I am getting closer and closer and seeking more and more that feeling of wholesomeness and authenticity and warmth, and I would love for my work to express something like that.

Your photos have appeared in various magazines such as Contributor, KALTBLUT, As-I-am, The disco and Pink trolley. What do these collaborations mean to you?

I love collaborating with magazines! There’s something great about seeing your work amongst other amazing works that just makes me feel very good about myself. At a purely selfish level it’s this feeling of recognition that I am constantly seeking, but I am also genuinely happy to be part of a collection of art and beauty and expression.

What are you listening to at the moment?

Since last year I’ve been forcing myself to listen to one album a day that I’ve never listened to. I started because I hated myself for listening to the same stuff over and over and be stuck in thinking that this genre is better than that one etcetera. So I’ve been listening to all sorts of different things and it’s been great. On my website there’s a list of all the albums I’ve listened to in 2019, and next year I will post the ones I’ve been listening to in 2020. Experimental jazz so far is been a big part of this year, but also a lot of ambient electronic sounds, synths and drum machines.

Is there an album you would like to recommend to Socks readers?

I’ll give you three because I can never choose only one thing. Ricky Eat Acid - Three love songs Dylan Carlson - Conquistador KEYAH/BLU - Sorry, I forgot you were coming

#interview #photography #photoart #magazine #fanzine #art #artist

[carlotta-the-nerd-winters]

Rough Diamond - Chapter One: Supergirls Let Go

Watchtower Ruins, Galar…

Ten Years Later…

Her fingers smoothed along the stone, looking for a small gap. Discovering one high on her left, she gripped it tight and proceeded to continue to scale along the wall. Her muscles burned, sending a warm heat through her body as she continued to climb.

“Corv.”

She glanced up, seeing Rookie sitting comfortably along the edge, almost smirking at her. Rolling her eyes, she scaled the rest of the tower and joined him at the top.

“Flying doesn’t count. I’d like to see you climb,” she told him, placing her bag down. Romie flew around, snapping photos of the incredible view. “Getting some good shots?”

“Yeah! Did you want me to upload them to your Snapgram?” the Rotom asked as she dug out her sketchbook.

“Later,” she answered, studying the landscape for a few minutes. The breeze blew gently through the Wild Area, moving through the dozens of meadows below. Pokémon of all types and shapes were out and about. From the lakes, land and in the air…it was the untameable Wild Area. No matter how many years pass and how many times she explores it, Gloria knows she’s only discovering a tiny glimpse of it.

Her pencil began to move, putting her image onto the paper.

She had been so absorbed into her work that she failed to notice the passing of time. It wasn’t until Rommie alerted her to an incoming call did she break out of the zone.

“Nikki is calling,” the ghost Pokémon alerted her, appearing in front of the sketchpad. Pausing, she put the pencil down as the Rotom accepted the phone call.

“If you’re done sitting up there, come down and have some lunch,” Nikki told her as Gloria glanced over the edge. At the bottom of the ruined tower, stood her sister with her Lopunny holding a picnic basket. Gloria waved as Rommie ended the call. Packing up, the teen put her gloves on as Rookie stood on the grappling hook.

Having done it hundreds of times before, Gloria easily abseiled down the tower as Rookie continued to keep the hook in place. Once she had her feet on the ground, he flew down with the hook in his claw.

“How long were you up there today?” Nikki asked as Gloria packed away the rope.

“Not sure. I got here around seven-ish this morning,” she answered, glancing at the swollen belly her sister was sporting. “Are you sure you’re not carrying twins?”

Nikki laughed as Lopunny laid out the picnic blanket. “Positive. Rai would have a stroke if it were more than one bun,” she replied, accepting her sister’s help to sit down. She released two more of her Pokémon out of their balls, a Ninetails she got when she was in Alola and Luxray. The two sat close by, enjoying the sunlight.

They chatted about everything and anything, catching up on all of the latest news within their family. Nikki was the only sibling she had that still lived in Galar. Their eldest brother, Teddy was still posted in Almia from the last time Gloria spoke to him.

“Evie, Charlie and Victor mentioned they were coming back next month,” Nikki brought up, earning a frown from the youngest child. “They’ll be staying over the Gym Challenge season.”

Gloria groaned, laying back on the picnic blanket. “I’m not participating. I’ve told mum and da that and I’m tired of repeating it.”

“Ria, you’re graduating school soon. Do you know what you want to do?”

“No but—”

“Then participate in the challenge. It’ll be a good way for you to keep yourself occupied over the summer and figure out what you want to do. It’ll keep mum and pa off your back for a while,” Nikki suggested, sending her sister a wink when she sat up. “And it’ll be nice to have the others home for a while.”

“Teddy’s not coming?” Gloria asked, hugging her knees and resting her chin on top.

Nikki shook her head. “Unfortunately, he and Kate are still cleaning up the mess from that terrorist group. But he did promise to visit when this little guy is born,” she stroked her large belly, smiling down at it.

“You’re gonna be a great mum,” she told her sister after they packed up their lunch.

“Aye, I better be. I had you to practice on,” she pinched her sister’s cheek, laughing at Gloria’s attempt to swat her hand away. “You heading home?”

“I promised mum I’d help out,” the teen nodded, walking with her sister back to Motostoke City. They parted ways at the train station, with Nikki taking one back to Hammerlocke. Gloria stood on the platform, waiting for her train with Rookie resting on her shoulder.

The station was almost empty, it being a slow hour of the day. Something she wasn’t going to complain about. It was nice to have some room as she texted her mother that she was on her way back.

Participate in the challenge. It’ll be a good way to keep yourself occupied over the summer and figure out what you want to do.

Arceus, I still don’t know what I want to do, she thought, biting her bottom lip. That was the hardest part about being the youngest of a large family. The pressure to graduate with top marks and have her future mapped out. Gloria didn’t know what she wanted to do in life and the rush to decide wasn’t helping. Maybe the challenge can help.

“Corv,” Rookie tapped his beak against her cheek, bringing her out of her thoughts as the train pulled up. She scratched his side as she climbed aboard.

oOo

Three Weeks Later…

“—Graduation will be held at the end of summer. Pick up your gowns from the office this afternoon,” the teacher informed them from behind his desk. “A reminder to those who are hoping to participate in the Gym Challenge for the season. You’ll need a letter of endorsement and no, your parents do not count, Michael.”

A few snickered as the class was dismissed. Gloria was gathering her things when Hop leaned against her desk. From his smirk and bright yellow eyes, he was up to something.

“If it’s illegal, your mum will kill us,” she reminded him, rising to her feet.

“Nah, nothing like that. You said Charlie’s coming home today,” he said, and she nodded. He threw an arm around her shoulders as they headed out of the classroom. “Then let’s get our gowns and head off. I wanna see all the eeveelutions he’s got.”

“Hop, Gloria!” Samantha called out as they paused in the hallway. “I heard you two are entering this season.”

Hop straightened up, grinning. “Aye, you’re looking at your future champion. I’ll be knocking the crown off Lee’s head,” he boasted as Gloria elbowed his side.

“Is Leon going to sponsor you both?” she asked, glancing at the brunette. “I understand him sponsoring Hop, but—”

“—He’ll sponsor Ria. He’s known her since we were toddlers,” Hop interrupted firmly, and she held her hands up in defence. “See you at graduation, Sam.”

“You too,” she replied before skipping off down the hall.

Hop squeezed her into his side, smiling down at the teen. “Don’t worry about her, mate. Lee’s gonna sponsor both of us,” he reassured her as she rolled her eyes.

“Raihan could sponsor me too. You know he’d do it in a heartbeat.”

“Oh! Imagine if he did, we’d be the second gen rivals.”

She laughed, pulling away and walking backwards. “You are dead set on us being rivals,” she commented as he shrugged, putting his hands in his pockets. “How’s Wooloo doing after his grand adventure?”

“Fine. Apparently, he ended up in Tuffield,” he answered as they headed to front office. They grabbed their gowns and left, saying their goodbyes along the way. Hop was itching to get to Wedgehurst, practically dragging the brunette along with him. As soon as they stepped off of the train, the teen had sprinted ahead.

“Hop!” Gloria called out as he ran around the corner. Shaking her head, she followed after, jogging towards the research centre. When Charlie called her last week, he told her he’d be helping out at Professor Magnolia’s lab. Apparently is was part of an exchange between Magnolia and Professor Rowan to swap assistants.

When she stepped into the lab, she found an Eevee and its seven evolutions running around with Sonia’s Yamper and Wooloo. The pokeball in her pocket vibrated as Rookie released himself.

“Wow,” Gloria commented, spotting her brother coming down the stairs. “It’s like the day-care in here.”

“Just prettier,” Charlie agreed with a laugh, hugging his sister tightly. “Good to see you’re still the midget.”

“Oi, watch it you nerd,” she warned as he winked. “Has Hop been a maniac?”

Charlie put his hands in his coat pockets. “Aye. He’s even tried to convince me to part with Glaceon over there,” he nodded his head at the younger teen who sat cross-legged on the floor. Glaceon and Espeon were climbing into his lab while Flareon climbed onto his back. “Which is not happening.”

“Aw come on, mate! You’ve got plenty of Pokémon with you.”

“Don’t be daft and catch your own,” he shot back, glancing at his sister. “But I hear Leon’s back in town tomorrow. Da says he’s grabbing some Pokémon off him to give you two.”

“He told me this morning,” Hop confirmed, gazing at the brunet. “Do you know which ones? Cause your da has a lot.”

“It’ll be a surprise, I’d imagine,” Gloria crossed her arms over her chest and looked at her brother. “You coming ‘round for tea?”

“You bet your arse. I’ve missed mum’s beef stew. Sinnoh is great and all but I do miss a good serving of chips.”

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Songs: Supergirl by Stefania. Let Go from Bratz Forever Diamonds soundtrack. 

I’ve been posting this on my archiveofown under the username MysteriousMew if y’all wanna check it out there. But please enjoy and let me know what you think.

Also, I’ve created a Spotify playlist for this fic. Under the same name as the fic itself so check it out!

#Pokemon #sword #shield #hop #gloria #hop x gloria #postwickshipping

[lovemychoices]

The Lost Prince - TRR AU [Liam x MC] Mini Series - CH.2

After being married for three years and unable to produce an heir, Liam and Riley are about to give up when Liam gets an unexpected news that changes his life forever.

Genre : Romance, Drama

*THIS SERIES PRACTICALLY THROWS CANON OUT THE WINDOW* YEET!YEET!

Characters except my OCs belong to Pixelberry, I am just borrowing them

Word count : 2000 ish

Chapter Summary: Liam finally meets his son for the first time. How will things go?

A/N : So I’m posting from my mobile because I don’t have a laptop near me and will probably be posting on my phone from now on. So just heads up since I cant put the KEEP READING option via mobile app I’m tagging this under #long post. Sorry for any grammatical mistakes I didn’t have the time to check for edits.

Warning : None... I think..

Catch up with the series HERE

Liam stands outside a Victorian style home in a suburban area somewhere in Los Angeles. He has been standing out there for about ten minutes contemplating whether this was a good idea. His thoughts brought him back to the night before.

Flashback, Cordonia.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to come with you?” Riley asked leaning against the door frame of their bedroom with her arms folded as she watched her husband packed his clothes into a suitcase. “I don’t understand why cant you send Hakim like you always do?”

Liam puts the last of his clothing and zipped his luggage shut before turning to his wife. “ Because they wanted to meet with me personally and nobody else. Besides ...” He began saunter towards Riley placing his hands on her shoulder before he kissed her forehead. “I need you here to look after things while I’m gone, especially since we’re expecting visitors from Auvernal in a few days.”

“If I must, as long as you promise to come back before our interview with the potential surrogates.” Riley gave a forced smile, ever since she mentioned about the whole surrogacy option her husband has been acting a little differently, like there was something he was hiding from her. She was beginning to think he was doubting her ability as his wife.

“I promise to bring you a box of cronuts from your favourite shop in New York.”

“Make that two boxes.” She grinned and tiptoed to kiss him on the lips. Not having a clue about the secret her husband was keeping from her, that he wasn’t goingu to New York for a diplomatic meeting but was traveling to LA instead to meet with the son he never knew he had.

Present day, Somewhere in the suburbs of LA

He didn’t like lying to his wife, but he had to make sure before he said anything. What if this child wasn’t his? Then he would have caused panic for nothing. But what is the child is his? How will Riley feel about raising his child? A child that wasn’t hers but from some other woman that he had been with only once. He certainly wasn’t going to abandon his own son, his own flesh & blood.

“It’s now or never Liam, you can’t stand out here forever.” He murmurs under his breath and takes a step up the front porch then rings the doorbell. The door opens and he is greeted by a woman with black hair and tanned skin, she smiles when she sees him.

“Hello, I’m….”

“Liam, I mean your Majesty. It’s so nice to finally meet you. Come right in, we’ve been expecting you.” She said opening the door and motioning him in before closing the door behind her. As he steps inside a the woman gives him a curious look. “I’m sorry to ask but did you come alone your majesty? I thought you would be coming with your wife?”

“No it’s just me. And please no need for formalities, Liam is fine.” He said and proceeds to walk through the foyer into the living area, his eyes wander across family photos hanging on the wall. “This is a nice place you have.”

“Thank you but it’s not mine, it belonged to Maya. She inherited it during her junior year at college when her parents passed away.” Her emotion suddenly solemn. “I’m sorry to hear about that.” Liam murmurs in a sympathetic tone. “Did she.. Did she have anyone else?”

Leah shakes her head. “She was an only child, didn’t have many relatives that she was close with. After they passed it was just her.. You know until she had Theon.”

His name is Theon? Liam felt his heart skip a beat when she mentioned his name. “She never married, I mean between juggling work as an corporate lawyer and being a single mom she didn’t really have the time. Theon was always her main priority.” Leah said giving Liam a sad smile. “Could you come with me? There is something I need to show you.” Liam nods and follows her into a small study, once again his eyes wanders on the interior of the room, there were a few award plaques mounted on the walls and on the shelves a few thropies.

“Those were mostly hers.” Leah mentions when she notice Liam staring at them and walks over to him. “Her parents kept all of her achievements, they were very proud of her. After that she used this room not just to place her own achievements but Theon’s as well.” She gestures to a few of the medals and throphies on the right corner of the shelf and Liam’s eyes followed. He picks up one of the gold medals in his hand which had the word First Place and Little league scoccer team engraved onto it. A small smile crept onto his lips as he did.

“Anyway this is for you.” She hands him a small velvet box and he politely takes it from her then opens it only to find 2 flash drives inside it, each with a specific label. “Maya had it made a while ago before she...”

Liam sputters. “When did she find out? That she was sick?”

“Last winter. She was ice skating with Theon when she suddenly felt the this pain in her abdomen and couldn’t get up. After she was diagnosed she never gave up even if she knew her chances were slim, she had to fight for him.”

“She sounds like a remarkable woman.” Liam praises with a weak smile, his heart suddenly felt heavy. “I wish.. I wished I could have been there for the both of them.” There were so many questions in his mind, why now? Why didn’t she seek him earlier? How long did she know his true identity? Because to his memory he didn’t tell her who he really was the night they met.

Leah places a comforting hand on Liam’s shoulder. “You’re here now, that’s all that matters. You can use the laptop if you want to see what’s on the flash drive. I’ll be upstairs with Theon if you need me.”

Liam slowly makes his way to the desk and takes a seat. He opens it up on the laptop, sticking the flash drive that was labeled To Liam into the usb port then open it. He sees a bunch of folders with labels such as Theon’s birth, Theon’s first steps, Theon’s 1st birthday and so on. He continues to scroll through till he notices a video saved as Liam. He double clicks to play the video, when it opens it shows Maya sitting in the same study in the exact same chair. She was wearing a white blouse and pearl blue scarf on her head, she looked thinner than he remembered and slightly pale but it was probably from being sick.

“Hey Liam. It’s me, Maya. I don’t know if you remember me but we met six years ago.” She blushes and shakes her head, then adjusts the scarf on her head. “Gosh this is harder than I thought. Anyway if you’re seeing this video it means that I am already dead and you probably already know about my son… Our son.”

“I want to tell you everything that happened, but where do I begin?” She murmured with her eyes downcast while fidgeting with her nails. “First of all I’m sorry for keeping this secret from you for a long time but believe me when I say, I wanted to tell you when I found out. I even went asking around all the modeling agencies in LA if they knew a Liam Devaraux only to get a no for an answer every time. It finally hit me that you must have been using a fake name. I gave up eventually and had Theon months later. I wish you could have seen him when he was born, he was the most beautiful 7 pound baby I had ever laid my eyes on.” She pauses a moment trying to hold back her tears.

“Three years later I finally found out who you really were. I was in the living room watching the news about some American waitress from New York who was about to marry a young King from a Mediterranean country. You can imagine my surprise to find out that Liam Devaraux was actually Liam Rys, King of Cordonia. I knew I should have tried to reach out to you when I found out but I just didn’t want all of this to get in the way of your soon to be happy family.”

“I wish there was another way, that things could have gone differently. Part of me sometimes wondered if I didn’t just leave that day or if I stuck around that day, would we be this actual happy family or something. But as fate has it we were never meant to be.”

“I know that this is a lot but now that I am gone, Theon doesn’t have anyone. You are the only family he has left. There are no excuse that I could say that would make you forgive me for keeping your son from you all these years. But I’m begging you do not punish him for the mistakes that I have made. I did what I thought was best back then and I’m doing this now. Theon deserves to be with his father, he deserves to be with someone who can teach him how to be kind and compassionate. And from what I’ve read about you, I know that you’ll raise him well.”

“Please tell Theon that I’m sorry and that I will always be proud of and him and that I will alway love him with all my heart even when I’m gone... Goodbye.”

Tears fell from Liam’s eyes as he finished watching the video Maya had left him, he leans on the chair with his hands cup to his mouth. How could he not have known? He takes a few minutes left in his thoughts before he finally gathers himself, adjusting the blazer for his jacket then proceeds to head upstairs. This was the moment he has been waiting for since he got the call.

Liam opens the door and see Leah sitting on the floor with a little boy. They both turn to his direction as they hear the door squeak open, Leah give Liam an encouraging smile and he nod grate fully.

She held the little boys hand and gently pulls him up with her, he looks at Liam curiously but not saying a word. “Theon this is Liam.. Liam I’d like you to meet Theon.”

Liam smiled and crouch down so his eyes we’re leveled with Theon’s. Taking in his features, the resemblance to his face when he was a child was just uncanny, of course there were slight differences his hair was a slightly darker blonde and his eyes. His eyes were just like Maya’s the way he remembered, one was blue while the other was half blue and half brown. Nevertheless he knew then and there even without a DNA test that Theon was his, he could feel it in his heart. But he knew he still need to have one done if he wanted to prove Theon’s legitimacy to the council. “Hello Theon, it’s nice to meet you.” He extends his hand, Theon looks at Leah who nods then back to Liam and shakes his hand. “That’s a firm grip you have there son.” Son.. The words just splattered out of Liam’s mouth but it somehow felt so natural.

Theon give him a weak smile. “Are you my father?” Liam felt a little caught off guard by the question for a moment, the word father was a still foreign to him. After all he didn’t know he was one until a day ago. He looks up at Leah then back at the little boy. “I... I believe so.. would that be alright?” He sputters.

Theon gives an approving nod and places one of his hands on Liam’s cheeks. “Mom said I looks my father and you kinda look like me or at least I think you do.”

Liam chuckles. “Well she got that part right. What else did she tell you?”

“She told me that you’re an important man and that your superpower is protecting your country and it’s people.” He pauses for a moment then continues. “Is it true? Do you... Do you have superpowers?”

“I have some sort of power though if it’s super or not that’s up for you decide.”

“Cool.. I guess..”He said with his eyes downcast, fidgeting with the toy in his hands. Liam noticed this and remembered that look it was the same look he had when he lost his mom. It broke his heart to think about what Theon must have been going through, no matter how old the child it is never easy losing a parent. "Theon, if something is bothering you.. you can tell me you know?"

Theon is quite for a while, it was like he wanted to say something but was too afraid to say it. “Maybe I’ll leave you two alone to catch up.” Leah said, Liam nods and she leaves the room.

Liam notice the unfinished blocks of legos Theon was playing with before he came in. “I notice you were building something earlier on.. would you like to show it to me? Maybe the two of us can work on it?” He gives a kind smile, Theon nods and leads Liam to the pile of blocks where they both take a seat on the floor and start assembling.

“So Theon, can you tell me what it is we’re building?”

“It’s a castle and it’s going to be really awesome. Mom got it for me during my birthday we were supposed to work on it together but then she got really sick and we never managed to finish it.” He said in a sad tone, his eyes downcast while his fingers fidget with the piece of lego. Tears began to fall on his cheeks.

Liam’s heartbroke, he could feel and understand the pain his son was going through after all he too lost his mother at a young age. He shifted from from where he was and sits next to Theon wrapping his one arm around him pulling him in for a comforting hug. “Hey buddy, it’s alright to feel sad and cry. You miss your mom and that’s understandable. I lost my mom when I was a kid too.”

Theon tilts his head up looking at Liam, trying to stiffle his cry. “You... you lost your mom too?”

Liam give him a weak nod. “I was a little more older than you but that doesn’t mean it hurt any less. I remember who heartbroken I was when she first passed away, I used to sneak into her quarters and lay on her bed just so I could feel her scent and fall asleep.”

“I do that too.. Do you still miss her?”

“Everyday..” He gives a weak smile. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t go on with my life and be happy. My mother would want me to be happy and so yours would too. She loves you very much Theon and she would want you to live your life to the fullest. I know right now you feel like you’re alone in the world but you’re not, you have me and I promise I will never leave you.”

Theon wipes away the tears from his face and sputters. “You.. you promise?”

Liam smiled pulling him into a tight hug. “I promise.”

*************************************************

TRR/TRH - @charliejane-blog @dcbbw @hopefulmoonobject @cmestrella @pixieferry @lodberg @traeumerinwitzhelden @romanticatheart-posts @gnatbrain @the-soot-sprite @texaskitten30 @ao719 @desiree-0816 @emceesynonymroll @jessiembruno @kinkykingliam @jlpplays1 @annekebbphotography @thecordoniandiaries @cora-nova @rainbowsinthestorm @jessiembruno @leelee10898 @rafasgirl23415 @cordonianroyalty @lauradowning29 @dangerouseggseagleartisan @msjr0119 @janezillow @heauxplesslydevoted

#the royal romance #the royal heir #trr x trh au #liam x mc #king liam #trr liam #drake walker #liam rys #playchoices #trr #trh #long post

[cornerverse-fma]

Monster AU:

Since it’s Halloween, let’s post this son of a bitch that I’ve been holding onto for months!

So, basically, it’s ‘AU where most characters are some sort of Magic Creature’. Because fuck it, you know? The story itself is kinda canon-parallel, but I haven’t thought out everything.

Anyway, first I’m starting off with tidbits on various creatures and stuff instead of straight into the story!

Ed and Al, and Hohenheim – Dragon

Technically Ed and Al are half-Dragon/half-Human, but due to Human Adaptability, Monster/Human Hybrids come out full monster(Monster/Monster Hybrids are rare, but would have abilities from both).

Ed and Al are also bumped up in age, being 18-ish. (so are the rest of the teens but whatever)

First up is the Monster Lore:

Dragon Magic is remains dormant until Awakened(because would you trust the unbridled chaos of a toddler with the ability to set stuff on fire?). It’s designed to be Awakened by another Dragon(usually a parent/guardian) after hitting puberty-age. Ed manages to find a loophole in this.

Dragons have three forms. Full Dragon, Human Disguise, and ‘Midform’(Human with Draconic features like wings, horns, claws, tail, and some scale freckles). Most Dragons feel most comfortable in Midform. While the Midform is still Human-sized, the Full Dragon form gets bigger with age! Ed and Al are young so they’re about the size of a small horse, but Hohenheim is 450-ish and enormous.

While they have the standard Dragon abilities of flight and fire, they also have general spellcasting abilities. Speaking of, another Dragon Ability is to either resist/deflect Magic, or enhance it, depending on if they want it used on them or not. It can even work subconsciously. For example, Ed and Al trust Winry, so her using Magic on them will always work, but they will resist spells from random people. This is another thing that gets stronger with age, as Ed and Al only have high resistance, but it’s difficult to find a spell powerful enough to get through Hohenheim.

Dragon Hoards are also a thing, but not in the usual gold/jewels way. Think of the Unusual Dragon Hoards art. A Dragon picks an item and creates a collection. When the instinct first kicks in, the Dragon will gather up as many items as they can find and just pile it up somewhere and not let anyone in. It calms down after a day or two. Ed’s hoard is actually friends because he’s a dork like that, but it gets difficult when he suddenly has five people in a cuddle pile and gets Very Upset when they try to get up.

Dragon Magic is Unique in it’s Source. Most Magic has an external Source(Fey have Nature, Witches have Spells, Vampires use others’ blood, etc.) A Dragon’s source is their own Life Energy. Using Magic will use up their Life Energy, but it replenishes itself with time, rest, and food. Despite being tied to their Life Energy, it’s very difficult to die from overusing Magic, as the Dragon will likely pass out from exhaustion before it gets unstable.

Very long-lived, but not Immortal. They age at the same rate as Humans until their twenties, and then aging slows dramatically. For example, Hohenheim is 450-ish, but is equal to a 30-ish year old Human.

Also! Colors! The colors of a Dragon’s scales are not genetic. It’s determined by the emotions they feel when their powers are Awakened. Ed is red, a color of passion and love, Al is green for a sense of belonging, and Hohenheim is white for freedom. (Accent colors like on horns and claws and such are still their usual gold)

On to character-specific tidbits:

Ed and Al

A lot of their story mirrors Canon, in that Hohenheim left for reasons unknown, and Trisha ends up dying. They do kinda get on a ‘maybe we can cook up some necromancy?’ idea, but that’s shut down real quick.

Ed still loses his leg somehow, because that’s constant in all my Aus.

Instead of focusing on fixing their shit, the boys are instead trying to figure out what the hell they are. Because, like, no one really knew that Hohenheim was a Dragon. They knew he was more than just a Witch, but they didn’t know what he was. He did tell Trisha, but neither of them told the boys. And since Dragon Magic remains dormant until Awakened, they’ve experienced minimal side effects. None of which are common Monster traits.

So they’re studying different Monsters in a hope to figure out what they are. The plan if they run across Hohenheim is to ask what they are and also punch him(Ed says punch first then ask, Al says ask and maybe punch.)

This does lead them to working for Mustang.

Hohenheim

His story also probably mirrors Canon. I’m not entirely sure what all goes down or how Father functions in this AU(I think I’m doing the ‘evil twin’ thing again, in which case I’m making him a black dragon for contrast!).

Him leaving is definitely still connected to this, though when he’s not actively working on that he uses the whole ‘Dragons can negate most Magic and are rare enough that people don’t have special defenses for them’ thing to help people out. Especially Monsters that get kidnapped for various reasons.

Hohenheim is also less depressed in this AU! Like, obvs he still has some issues. But being 450 years old is a lot more common so he doesn’t have that Angst™ hanging over him. Nor does he have the Angst™ of said Immortality being gained through a bunch of murder, since it’s just his natural lifespan. So we get to see more of his not-depressed side.

Winry – Witch

Monster Lore is short this time. Witches in this Universe are highly debated about whether they are Monsters or not, as they are basically just ‘Humans with the ability to use Magic’. Different people have different opinions on it.

Winry(and her family) consider themselves more on the Monster side, doing doctor stuff for all sorts of creatures.

Of course Automail is still a thing, and of course the Rockbell family is well known for it. Specifically, they make Automail that also hooks into a Monster’s Magic, and will function as they do. For example, Ed’s still missing a leg in this AU. So when he switches between Human, Dragon, and Midform, he needs his leg to change too.

Ling, Greed, and Lust – Vampires.

So, a few character tidbits before the Monster Lore:

Ling:

Despite being a Vampire, he’s still the same age as Ed. He was only Turned a couple years ago. Reasons for that are… not fun. It involves an abusive ex, becoming friends with Greed and Lust to get out of that, and ends in a ‘only way to save his life is to make him a vampire’ situation.

Before that he was just a Witch. Kinda neutral on the ‘are Witches ‘Monster’ or ‘Human’?’ debate, but Monster-friendly.

Greed and Lust

Much like my Groupchat AU, the Sins Crew and Father are mostly not related except for these two, and the Sins did work for Father for a while but they’ve all kinda fucked off. (The Sins crew do mostly stay in contact though).

Used to be Human(maybe Witches?). They were from a noble family about 200 years ago. Greed was Turned thanks to political drama, and was kicked out of the family. Lust willingly went with him.

While they’re around 200, due to Vampires being a bit frozen in time, they’re only a little older than Ed and Ling.

They operate this Universe’s version of the Devil’s Nest, which is a Montser-friendly bar.

Some Vampire Lore applies, some doesn’t.

They don’t have to be ‘invited in’(But they typically stick to societal rules of ‘don’t break in like a jackass’)

Sunlight and Garlic sort of bother them, but not like in some lore. They’re designed to be nocturnal, so being out in the sun is like ‘wtf???’ to their senses. Same with Garlic, which can easily overload their sense of smell(but so can any strong smell)

They can be burned by silver

The no reflection/can’t be photographed thing is sort of true. Old mirrors and cameras used silver. Nowadays mirrors use cheap metals and photo/video is digital, so they show up.

Religious symbols are tricky. It depends on how much the Vampire and the person warding them off believe in said religion.

Vampires have an ‘Enthrall Enchantment’, but it’s not, like, straight up hypnotism. It just kinda makes the person they’re biting feel a bit good and fuzzy and not really in pain. It also helps heal the bite afterward. I’ll discuss this more later.

Vampires need blood, but it doesn’t have to be Human blood. It’s just safest because Monster Blood can have various side effects.

Werewolf blood causes an effect similar to alcohol.

Fae blood causes a different prank each time(minor stuff, like turning your hair purple for a week)

Blood from Monsters related to Religions(like Angels or Demons) are actually poisonous.

Dragon blood causes a large power boost.

This is the Loophole Ed found for Awakening Dragon Magic.

The blood they drink has to be relatively fresh. ‘Straight from the tap’ is best, a vial of blood is good for a few hours

There is the question of ‘do Vampires need blood to live?’.

Technically? They get very weak if they don’t, especially in the Magic Department. But they usually die from said weakness than outright ‘not getting blood’.  

Vampires are Immortal as long as they continue to drink blood. even to the point of self-healing if they have enough.

Technically, a Vampire doesn’t need to eat or sleep if they have a decent blood source. However, it is better for them if they do as they can last longer between ‘drinks’.

Much like the other side effects I listed before, different blood lasts longer. Dragon blood would last longer than Human blood, for example.

Mustang –  Faerie (Fire-based)

An odd choice for him, but I’m running with it!

Time for Monster Lore:

All Fae love legal loopholes and the bullshit technicalities.

Usually Faeries are somewhat allergic to metal(especially iron). Occasionally there are ones that have no issue it, but it’s super rare.

A Faerie’s Magic Source is some form of nature. Fire-based ones have the ability to sort of create their own source(they can magically light fire to become their source). Think how stuff works in ATLA. Water users need a body of liquid, earth users need earth, but fire users can kinda make it themselves in decent conditions.

They’re still effected by other Elements though. Mustang’s whole ‘useless in the rain’ thing is still a problem. Even more than Canon. Like, he won’t die if put in water(the man has to shower sometimes), but it does make him very low-energy and overall weaker. He does not like swimming.

Also! Faerie Wings!! Gotta have those! The colors resemble a Faerie’s respective Source Element, but aren’t made out of it, so no literal fire wings. They do glow a lot when using powerful Magic. They can also be ‘put away’ to pass as Human(or just for convenience of not knocking shit over in narrow hallways).

Character tidbits

One of the few Fae that don’t have an issue with metals.

Between that, and the fact that the wings are usually ‘put away’, most people assume he’s just a Witch. He doesn’t correct them as it does make him more liked.

He subconsciously feels a connection to Ed and Al due to his Fire Magic nature picking up on their Dragon Fire. It’s one of the reasons why he tolerates their shenanigans(the other reason being that after about ten minutes getting to know them he was like ‘okay you’re my kids now’)

mini things on other characters that I don’t have story for yet:

The rest of the Sins Crew:

Envy is a shapeshifter(of course).

Pride is some sort of shadow monster(again, of course.)

Sloth is one of those Dream Eater Spirit things? You know what I’m talking about. He spends most of his time asleep in the Dream Realm.

Idk about Gluttony or Wrath yet.

Mustang’s Team!

Idk what everyone is yet, but they’re all Monsters of some sort.

Hawkeye is absolutely something with wings tho because HAWKeye!

Not sure what Mei is. Maybe just a Witch, but maybe something more? (obvs on her mom’s side though).

I also want to put Lan Fan in, but I’m not sure where or what she’d be? I think what happens here is that she was friends with Ling, but then his whole ‘bad relationship and becoming a Vampire’ thing happens. She feels guilty for not protecting him from that, and they end up going separate ways for a while, but they’d end up reconnecting at some point.

Story Plot Points!

The whole thing kinda kicks off because Ed and Ling are dating. Yes. Really.

Like, they get to that point in the relationship where Ling invites Ed over and is like “Okay, so I’m not actually Human?”. Because that’s a talk people have to have at somepoint

Ed’s like “cool me neither?”. He further explains the whole thing of how he knows he’s a Monster of some sort but doesn’t know which kind.

He then proceeds to ask a fuckton of questions about Vampires because he hasn’t studied one in-person before, and he noticed Ling goes against the typical rules(can’t go in sunlight, must be invited in, etc.)

As they’re talking on this, Ling mentions that different Monster blood has different effects.

Ed’s thought process is that he could use this to narrow down the search for what kind of monster he is by seeing the effect his blood has on Ling.

Ling’s… hesitant for several reasons.

But Ed insists and makes it very clear that he’s okay with it.

This is where the loopholes kick in!

As Vampire Magic uses the blood they drink, it also counts as the Magic of that creature. So Ling using Ed’s blood qualifies as Dragon Magic, and since the Enthrallment is in effect, that kickstarts Ed’s Magic.

This causes a panic as Ling’s Magic is suddenly a hell of a lot stronger and the Enthrallment is a lot more intense.

There’s also panic because once they stop that part, Ed’s just like ‘Holy FUCK I feel GREAT!’, but Ling knows he shouldn’t feel that good right now and he’s overheating. He’s like ‘Okay, that good feeling is probably you hallucinating or something so let’s go into the bathroom in case you throw up?’

And then Ed just kinda bursts into flames? Luckily they were already in the bathroom so Ling just kinda douses him in the shower.

Next day they head back to Ed’s place (He and Al live with Winry in this AU?). And they explain what happened. They agree that they have a decent lead here, but they need someone more knowledgeable. And, well, Ling knows some people.

Ling takes them down to the Devils’ Nest. As mentioned, Greed and Lust run the place.

They talk to Greed mostly. After explaining everything, he tells Ed to try something. Said thing ends with the boy breathing fire.

Greed’s just like ‘congrats kid you’re a fucking Dragon!’.

Greed and Lust share various tidbits about what they know about Dragons, but admit that there’s probably a lot of stuff they’re forgetting or just straight up don’t know.

They explain the whole ‘dormant Magic only activated by Dragon Magic’, and the probable loophole.

They also explain that once Ed finishes the ‘Awakening’, he’ll be able to ‘Awaken’ Al’s Magic easily. (Though Greed does offer to recreate the loophole(Al is very flustered but currently declines))

Speaking of, they do warn Ed that there’s a bit more to go through. Mostly that he’ll have three forms, but the first time he transforms will be involuntary and painful. Best way to deal with it is ‘when you feel your back start to itch like crazy, take some strong pain meds and lay on your stomach’.

By the time they get back home, Ed’s starting to feel that. So he decides to just go to bed early, and everyone else just kinda tries to sleep too. (like, he says he’s fine and they don’t hear him screaming so he’s probably good?). Ling also stays, but since Ed wants his space for this he stays on the couch.

Next morning, Ed comes down and everyone is fuckin floored. They’re staring but he doesn’t notice at first because he’s very hungry and raiding the fridge for everything.

Basically, since his Magic was supposed to be awakened years ago, his body kinda stopped growing, resulting in him looking a bit ‘stuck at 15’. Now the Magic is making up for lost time, so it’s a somewhat literal ‘puberty hit him like a truck’ situation. (Ling and Winry are both like hearteyesmotherfucker!

Like, you know that picture comparing Ed in the early episodes of fma:b to the later episodes and being all ‘look how much he grew!’? That, but overnight. Ya boi got kinda tall. He’s still shorter than Ling but he’s taller than Winry. (With the potential to grow taller now!)

One of the reasons for the height is that he’s in his midform, aka: Human with Draconic features. This includes his legs being digitigrade, so it’s kinda like he’s constantly standing on his toes. (His Human form is technically shorter because of this).

They also focus on the Dragon-y features more. Like the wings, and the horns, and the tail!! His eyes are the slit-pupil thing, and while his teeth have always been kinda sharp he now has full on fangs. Then they also notice his arms transitioning from skin to scale, starting at the elbow until his hands are claws. (his regular leg also does this from the knee down). His ears are also pointed and scale covered, and he has a few scale freckles on his cheeks.

They have about five minutes of normal before something goes weird. Because suddenly Ed is being ridiculously clingy but is seemingly unaware of how weird that is and cannot seem to explain why.

They’re like ‘why are you hugging me?’ and he’s like ‘Why wouldn’t I be?’. And like, if they try to step away for a minute he gets very Upset™

Somehow they manage to make it back to the Devils’ Nest to ask Greed. The group finds a seat on a couch and at this point Ed’s in full cuddle mode, just hugging the three of them and laying across them and he’s kinda like a cat on catnip.

When Greed gets within five feet, Ed suddenly shoots up and stares at him. He freezes, waiting for Ed to make a move. When Ed nods, he takes a step closer. When he takes a second step, Ed pounces forward and drags him into the cuddle pile.

Greed is mildly confused, but explains to the others that this is just the ‘hoarding instinct’ kicking in, and he’ll be back to normal soon enough.

Since he’s not allowed to leave(Ed is stronger than he looks and also even if Greed could leave Ed’s fucking face is too much), he kinda tells Lust to take over running the bar for the day.

The whole ‘get within five feet and Ed shoots up’ thing happens with her, but Greed calms Ed down by saying ‘it’s okay she’s a friend’.

Of course, when she goes to leave, she finds that while she was out of range of Ed leaning over to grab her, she didn’t notice the tail around her leg.

She gets dragged in, and while Greed tells someone else to take over(from a distance), he also suggests they take this party upstairs.

Al says a thing about ‘can you stop flirting for five seconds?’. Greed responds with a ‘while I would love to invite you to my bed for other reasons, now is not the time’.

Al gets oddly flustered by this

They’re trying to figure out what the connection is between all of them that makes them part of Ed’s Hoard. Lust asks more directly ‘why the fuck did you drag me into this??’. And Ed just points to Greed and says ‘He said you are a friend.’. as if it makes complete sense.

Turns out that Ed’s hoard is friendship. And combined with the fact that(despite his grumpiness) he gets easily attached, it took little for Greed and Lust to be considered friends.

Everyone does have the freedom to leave, and sometimes they do because they need to get up and stretch or use the bathroom or grab a snack. But whenever they do Ed just sits up and stares at the door until they come back.

By the next morning, Ed’s kind of back to normal. Like, he still has the instinct in there and all, but everyone can do their own thing and Ed’s a lot more calm. He’s also very embarrassed about the whole thing.

Of course, Ed and Al remember they were supposed to drop by Mustang’s office a few days ago. Mostly because they get a call like ‘are y’all okay?’.

Ed shifts into the Human Disguise form to head down there, but everyone still notices something is up because he’s suddenly the same height as Hawkeye.

They’re all like ‘okay kid. Drop whatever tall spell you found this time’. Ed just grins maniacally and says ‘it’s no spell! I look like this now!’. Al confirms it, but is realizing how obnoxious Ed’s going to be about the height.

They explain that they figured out what the hell they are, and Ed shows off both the full Dragon form and the Midform.

Obvs the team asks how they figured it out, and Ed explains that Dragon Magic is dormant until another Dragon Awakens it, but they found a loophole.

‘Wait, a loophole? What loophole?’, “Uh… a Vampire using my blood?’, ‘Did you get attacked by a Vampire?!’, ‘No, it’s a friend and I asked him to because different monster blood has different effects’, ‘and you were okay with a guy just getting all up in your personal space and biting your neck like that?’, “Well, he’s the kind of friend where I’d be okay with him‘getting all up in my personal space and biting my neck’ anyway.’. ‘Oh.’

Yeah. They didn’t know Ed was dating anyone, much less a guy. So that’s a conversation.

When asked why it’s just Ed who went through the whole thing while Al’s still ‘normal’, they say that they’re mostly waiting to see what all happens to Ed and how to deal with it.

Although, Ed does point out that if they don’t do it soon it’ll probably happen accidentally since it’s basically a ‘next time he uses Magic on Al situation’.

Then Ed’s like ‘Or, you know, you could always ask Greed to ‘recreate the loophole!’. Al gets very flustered again and is just like ‘willyoushutthefuckuppleaseohmyfuckinggod’

Overall, they’d like some report on what else they find out.

Next plot goes on to ‘testing out powers’. Specifically. The boys want to test out the ‘resist and enhance’ aspect.

They bring in Ling and Greed for this, killing two birds with one stone and also studying the Vampire’s Enthrallment at the same time.

Of the various things they’re testing:

Resisting the spell

‘enhancing’ the spell

differences between the resist/enhance skill of an Awakened Dragon vs. not Awakened

if the Enthrallment Enchantment is different between Vampires(and between who it’s being used on)

Ed and Al also already came up with a ‘payment method’, since they’ll be asking Greed and Ling to use up a bunch of Magical Energy to do this. Said payment is, of course, blood. Ed will ‘pay’ for Ling, while Greed and Al get to ‘recreate the loophole’.

We’re going to jump right into my Al/Greed Rarepair because fuck it it’s my fanfic and I pick the ships!

So their banter has been going back and forth for a bit. Like, at first it was just Greed flirting and Al getting flustered, but once Al gets into the rhythm he can kinda flirt back but neither really realized it was more than banter until now

Al realizes it because of what they figure out about the Enthrallment. Because it effected them differently and the emotions it brought forth wasn't anything unfamiliar. Like, Al found Ling’s Enthrallment to be comfortable, because he’s a friend. But Greed’s made him fluttery and giddy and all that. Meanwhile, Ed felt the opposite.

So when they are alone and he has Greed biting his neck, Al ends up going in for a kiss.

And while the feeling is returned, it leaves Greed somewhat flustered and confused. He manages to distract Al with the ‘you’re probably gonna catch fire in a minute so maybe deal with that first’ thing.

Next time they really see each other is after Al’s turn with the ‘puberty hit him like a truck’ situation, but Greed’s kind of… he’s still a little hesitant and confused about things so he’s giving Al space, but Al doesn’t know that so it’s like ‘is he avoiding me?? Why??’.

Al even wonders if it has something to do with his Midform, and tends to stay in Human Disguise more often around Greed.

Next time they’re alone for a bit they end up talking that out though. And also making out I guess.

Okay! So! A Lot of other plot stuffhappens.

Like, probably things like meeting other characters and also the rest of the Sins Crew, finding out about various fuckery going on. I mean, I did say that while the Sins Crew all kinda left, Father himself is still an Asshole™ and doing some major villain stuff.

So they find out all that and a bunch of other things too. I haven’t thought all that out yet.

Out of the stuff that I have planned out though, the next thing to happen is Ed getting a little kidnapped. Idk exactly ‘why’, other than ‘some assholes are grabbing random monsters’, but who knows what they’re doing with them it’s not important.

Anyway, Ed’s already on his way to break out, when he happens to run into Hohenheim.

Oh boy is that a trip. I mean, first off we have them just being ‘why the fuck are you here? Why am I here? Why are you here?!’ and just generally being that pointing spiderman meme. After the initial shock, Ed’s kinda ready to punch, but then Hohenheim just says things that Ed didn’t expect.

Like, Ed expected Hohenheim to just be some asshole who never cared. But he’s immediately concerned about Ed and seems to, you know, care about him.

The thing that really hits him though is when he says something along the lines of ‘Let’s get you out of here and back home. Your mother’s probably worried about you!’.

He realizes ‘oh god he has no clue’. And then he realizes ‘oh god I’m going to have to tell him’.

And like, I’m not gonna get too into that Angst Fest™, but there is kind of a minor breakdown because how else do you react to that news?

But that whole thing is enough to make Ed stop and think things through and overall give Hohenheim chance.

They then end up going on their own adventures while Ed tries to get back home.

And of course various strange bonding experiences happen along the way

A lot of that bonding is learning about Dragon Tricks. Especially flying because while Ed kinda figured out a little bit he hasn’t had anyone with wings(or at least the same kind of wings) to really teach him.

During one flight Ed suddenly catches a familiar scent

obvs everyone is looking for Ed, and he manages to find Ling, Greed and Lust

Ed does a literal flying tackle at Ling and knocks him over. There’s a minor fight because Ling doesn’t realize he’s not being attacked but you know.

After hugging the fuck out of Ling, Ed tells Greed and Lust to get down there too. Greed’s like ‘hell no I’m not getting on the ground to hug you!’ but he forgets about the tail. Lust gives in.

They ask what the fuck happened and Ed’s like ‘where do I even begin??’

At some point Hohenheim had popped up and is like ‘maybe start with introductions?”

then you get the comedic thing of the Vampires looking up, and then continuing to look up, and then being terrified of the giant fucking dragon.

Ed’s just all causal like ‘so, uh, I found my dad?’.

Walking into the nearest town is fun

Ed’s kinda clinging to Ling because goddamn it he was lonely!

At some point Ling kinda starts to stumble a little and Ed’s concerned. Greed says ‘he’s fine he’s just and idiot’.

Basically Ling hasn’t had any blood since the last time he drank from Ed. Which was a while ago at this point, so he’s kinda getting a little weak. Not dangerously but imagine the feeling of pulling an all nighter without caffeine.

Ed offers, but Ling brushes it off by saying if he took a drink now, then Ed would be the one weak and stumbling so it doesn’t make a difference, it can wait until they get a place to stay for the night.

Not putting up with that shit, Ed transforms into Full Dragon and offers a ride. Ling’s a little bit like ‘really??’

Greed’s kinda jokingly like ‘why don’t I get offered a ride?’. Ed says ‘well, when we get back home you can ask Al.” Greed opens his mouth to make a joke, looks over to Hohenheim, and decides he really should shut up.

Lust is kinda like ‘hey. Why are we walking into town when we have a large Dragon that can carry all of us?’

Hohenheim’s answer is ‘First of all, I am not a taxi service. Furthermore, if people saw a large Dragon land in the middle of town, they would freak the fuck out.

Ling falls asleep on the way back.

They manage to get a hotel room in the next town they come across. Ed and Ling get their own room, of course.

They go to do the whole ‘blood drinking’ thing, but Ling’s still very hesitant.

Ed has noticed this a lot and at first he figured it was the typical ‘I’m new to being a Vampire and hesitant to do something so weird/taboo/etc.’ thing, but now he’s getting the feeling its something else and ends up asking about it.

So, big trigger warning for that whole ‘abusive relationship’ thing I mentioned way back in the beginning. But, like, that’s kind of what’s up. Like, his Ex used to use the effect of the Enchantment to be manipulative. And Ling’s kind of afraid of accidentally doing that to Ed.

Ed just points out that 1. he knows when Ling is using the enchantment and knows how to separate his feelings from it, 2. the enchantment itself doesn’t make him feel all love-y (he brings up the whole ‘testing it with Greed’ thing as proof, since it didn’t spark any romance with Greed.), and 3. Ed is a Dragon. His own Magic can cancel out the Enchantment if he chooses to do so.

The whole thing does get Ling to relax about it. It’ll still take a while for him to get comfortable using it on Ed, but now Ed knows to not try doing anything romantic while under the Enchantment.

Okay! On with that! The group eventually gets back to home base and they meet up with Al and Winry and whoever else is a friend at this point.

Ed fucking tackle hugs them, of course.

After that Al and Winry notice Hohenheim and they can’t even figure out how to process that they just gesture like ‘what the fuck?’

Ed explains what happened and they’re kind of like ‘you know what fine.

Time for more family bonding with Hohenheim talking to Al for a while.

Time for another Rarepair because this is my fic and I choose the ships!

So, like, Mustang meeting Hohenheim.

Mustang’s just like, staring for a bit. And it’s not helped by the fact that Hohenheim has no sense of personal space when he’s investigating other creatures(because he’s a nerd and that’s what he likes to do).

Mustang is flustered to the point that Ed and Al actually notice and are like ‘bruh what is up with you?”

Obviously he lies as tries to say it’s a reaction to a large source of fire magic. Ed and Al are like ‘really? Because you never do that around us.’

Someone (Probably Hughes) eventually calls him out says ‘magic reaction my ass you think the guy’s pretty!’

Ed and Al are confused by this revelation but are kinda chill with it? Mostly they don’t know how to feel so they’re just going to be chill out of confusion. 

That’s all I got on the plot so far because fuck it.

#Monster!AU #EdLing #Also some #AlGreed #And a little bit of #Roho #at the end there #happy halloween motherfuckers

[peckhampeculiar]

Painter man

TOM PHILLIPS IS A HIGHLY ACCLAIMED, PECKHAM-BASED ARTIST WHO HAS BEEN ACTIVE FOR MORE THAN 50 YEARS.

Here, he talks about his fascinating and varied career and calling up his friend Brian Eno on the phone

WORDS: SEAMUS HASSON;  PHOTO: LIMA CHARLIE

Tom Phillips is a local artist who has led a rather extraordinary life. A painter and sculptor of con­siderable renown, he is also a composer, set de­signer and writer. He has received commissions to produce artworks for the likes of Westminster Cathedral and Westminster Abbey and has held high-profile positions at some of the country’s most prestigious cultural institutions.

While Tom is an artist of international acclaim, he is also known locally as the bloke who de­signed the mosaics and iconic curved lamp posts on Bellenden Road.

I arrange to meet him at the Peckham Pelican on the August bank holiday, but on arrival we dis­cover it is closed for the day. After a brief discus­sion about how to proceed, we hop on the 345 to­wards Camberwell and settle for a greasy spoon a few stops down. Perhaps not the most distin­guished setting to interview one of the country’s most esteemed artists and a trustee of the British Museum, but Tom is without pretension.

“I’m a south London boy,” he says. “I’ve lived all of my life in south London and most of it in Peck­ham.”

Tom was born in Clapham in 1937, where he spent his early years and attended Henry Thorn­ton Grammar School. From there he achieved his ambition of going to Oxford. “I wanted to go there because I wanted to act in plays and things like that,” he explains. “So, I went and studied – as they call it – English, for about half an hour a day.

“[While there] I was drawing all the time and looking at art and reading about art and wanted to go to art school. Luckily enough the one I chose was about 100 yards from where my mother had bought a house.”

Tom went to the Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts, where he was taught by German-Brit­ish painter Frank Auerbach. Fortuitously for him, his mother had bought a house on Talfourd Road some years earlier.

“We were going bankrupt I think as a family and she bought the house in Peckham because they didn’t cost anything, about £500, and let it out to art students ironically enough. I was the last art student to occupy it and took it over bit by bit.”

The property is the studio where Tom contin­ues to work, producing pieces that have been shown across the world. “My art school life was here in Peckham,” he says. “When I left Oxford, I had to get a job like people do, so I did teaching. I taught in a school in Brixton and went to evening classes here at the Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts as they called it then.

“The only artist I knew about who was teaching was Frank Auerbach so I joined his class and that was the deal done as far as my life was concerned. I think you always need someone who passes the baton on, you know, it’s a race that we’re all run­ning one after the other.

“So, I followed lots of his advice and learnt a lot from him as well as other people who were there who were interesting.”

It wasn’t long before the art world was taking notice of Tom’s work. His first solo show was in 1965 at the Artists’ International Association Gal­lery in London, followed by an exhibition at the Angela Flowers Gallery in 1970.

“Right away I was doing my own work, I won a prize or two and got noticed a bit,” he says. “Even­tually it seemed possible to do it as a living, which I managed to do in the end. I’m still managing.”

In 1966 he began a project that is still occupy­ing him today. “A Humument” came about when he set himself the task of finding a book for three­pence and altering every page with painting, col­lage and cut-up techniques to create an entirely new version.

The book he chose (at random) was an 1892 novel called A Human Document by WH Mallock. “It was an old Victorian novel. I picked it up by chance actually on Peckham Rye, on the exact spot where Blake saw his first angels,” he says. “I got it in a big shop called Austin’s, which is gone now.”

Although the final edition of A Humument was published in 2016, Tom has found it difficult to leave it behind. “I thought I’d work on that for a bit and I ended up working on it for 50 years,” he says.

“And I’m still working on it actually; although I’ve published a final edition. I can’t stop, it’s too interesting. It leaves a black hole in your life when you’ve been doing something for 50 years and then suddenly you say stop.

“I certainly was lucky in the book that I chose. It’s got an undertext and a sort of darkness and is full of interesting things you can find. Even the other day I was thinking how there are things in modern life that don’t crop up, when I suddenly saw in the middle of a page I was going to work on the words, ‘me too’.

“I thought, ‘Well, me too didn’t mean anything in the 1890s but now it’s got a relevance to it’, so I moved around that idea.”

A Humument was shown in an exhibition at the Royal Academy, where Tom has been chairman of the exhibitions committee since 1995.

It was also exhibited in a museum in Massachu­setts and the book illustrating the work is avail­able on Amazon.

A renowned portrait artist, Tom’s subjects have included the likes of the cast of Monty Python as well as personal friends such as Iris Murdoch and Salman Rushdie.

In 1989, he became only the second artist to have a retrospective of his portraits shown at the National Portrait Gallery (his portrait of Iris Mur­doch is still on display there).

Another of his subjects was Irish playwright Samuel Beckett. “I spent a couple of weeks paint­ing his portrait when he was rehearsing a play here,” says Tom.

“He was interested in A TV Dante [a television series that Tom directed for Channel 4] and I was showing him what I was doing. I was doing a translation of Dante with pictures and he was rather kind about it. He was just a nice, lovely man.”

Locally, Tom is involved in a photographic pro­ject called 20 Sites n Years, where he takes pho­tographs in and around Peckham of the same site, on or around the same day, at the same time each year.

It has been going since 1973 and has been made into a film by Jake Auerbach, Frank Auer­bach’s son.

Another area of the arts that has played a big role in Tom’s life is music. As a young man he sang in the Philharmonia Chorus, which he describes as being “rather grand”.

“I did singing at school of course and played in­struments very badly, which I continue to do. But I could sing without having the skill of playing an instrument, so I then joined the leading choir in the country it seemed to me.”

In the late 1960s, he gained recognition for his experimental opera, Irma, and during his teach­ing career, he taught and befriended the avant-garde musician and producer, Brian Eno.

“He was a student. I can’t name many students who have done anything because I’m not a very good teacher,” he laughs. “But with someone like Brian it was difficult not to get things going.

“We worked together a little here and there. He made versions of things that I had done, and we were both associated with something called the Scratch Orchestra. He’s a person who always has the same phone number, which rather impresses me. I mean I don’t belong to a glamorous world like he does, but still the same old phone number gets Brian. Perhaps I’m the only person left who has that number.”

Talking to Tom, all sorts of brilliant anecdotes pop up. A keen ping pong player, he once played a tournament with the author Howard Jacobson and Salman Rushdie round at Charles Saatchi’s house. Then there was the time he got on the wrong side of the authorities in South Africa.

“I did the curation at the big African art exhibi­tion at the Royal Academy,” he says. “It all came through travelling in Africa and originally in South Africa. But then I sort of wondered how I could get involved as an artist. So, I joined a group called Artists Against Apartheid and we showed all over the world.

“I got into trouble slightly in South Africa itself because I overprinted banknotes with a slogan. In South Africa there were notices all over benches and things saying ‘slegs vir blankes’, which means reserved for whites.

“So, I made up this rubber stamp that said ‘slegs vir almal’, which means reserved for every­body and I put a rubber stamp upon every note that came through my hands. After that I was told that I wasn’t very welcome here in South Africa. It then became a little known as a slogan.”

With his days of political activism in the past and A Humument beginning to wind down, what does a typical day now look like for Tom Phillips, the artist?

“I’m doing everything I always did,” he says. “I was very lucky in the things that I did. They inter­ested me. I can’t think of anything that I want to do that I could do that I haven’t done. Not really. It filled the time – I’m 82.”

[stressa-bessa]

Satin Slippers Part 1 - Allegro

okay so this is my first ever fan fic that i have posted! please let me know if you like it, if you want more, or if you have suggestions as to how i can improve!

Stark!Reader x High School!Peter Parker

Fluff-ish (I promise to get better at it!)

word count: 3178

You had always been such a daddy’s girl. Tony raised you all on his own, with some help from his dear mother, Maria. It was as if you were Tony’s shadow, constantly following him into the lab to work on parts for suits. If you were lucky, he’d let you help weld together the metals, after he put you in safety goggles, of course. You grew up listening to Black Sabbath, ACDC, Metallica and wearing converse while all the other little girls at school wore sparkly flats. To be honest, you didn’t care. Your dad always made you feel like the most important girl in the world, regardless if you had grease smeared across your cheek or sweaty hands from working in the shop.

As much as you cherished this time with your dad, you always looked forward to seeing your grandmother. She had fostered a love for the arts that was rooted as deep as your love for mechanics. She would take you to see the Nutcracker every year at The Metropolitan and enrolled you in piano lessons. This created an outlet of expression that you could share with her. This special bond between you and Maria, felt like the deepest, most sincere secret in the whole world, even though everyone knew about it.

The day she passed away, you had locked yourself in your room and listened to Chopin polonaises and waltzes until you fell asleep. Tony knew it was your way of coping with this impactful loss. He too felt comforted hearing the soft lull of Chopin fill the halls in the tower. Part of him wished that he had been able to create a bond with her the way she had with you.

------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hey Y/N!” your freckled friend, Annabelle, called. She plopped her anagrammed gym bag beside yours on the bench in the changeroom.

“Your jumps are getting so good! I can’t believe how you’re able to leap up with such force!” she exclaims sitting down on the wooden bench to untie her point shoes.

“Well, I just wish I looked half as graceful as you, Annie.” You joke back, bending down to untie your satin slippers. Annabelle was a tall girl with a slender frame, who lived and breathed ballet, way more than you ever did.

“Oh, you will! Practice makes perfect, you know!” She beams as she puts her blush coloured point shoes into her quilted gym bag and zips up her fleece sweater. “Well, I will see you next class. Have a good night!” Annabelle chimes as tosses her bag over her shoulder and skips out of the room.  

A large sigh escapes your mouth. Finally, you we’re able to go home and eat. As much as you loved dance, you were always starving after since you always had to rush from school to dance. A granola bar and chocolate milk on the subway barely cut it after a taxing class. You we’re all preparing for the spring recital where you were going to perform Chopin’s Les Sylphides.  Quickly switching your baby pink point shoes for some dingy, beat up converse, you wiggled into some boyfriend jeans and marched out the door ready to powerwalk back to the tower.

---------------------------------------------------

As the elevator doors slowly opened, you could smell the sweet scent of dinner. You had no idea who could be cooking, but it didn’t matter, if there was food waiting for you, you were happy.

“Hey Y/N! You hungry?” Steve’s voice calls from the kitchen. ‘Oh, looks like Dad has company tonight’, you thought to yourself. You enjoyed having the Avengers over. The company made the tower less quiet at night, especially if dad was away for business or busy in the shop while you were cooped up doing homework.

“Hey Steve, I’m starvin’ Marvin!” You smile, resting your dance bag on the couch as you walk into the kitchen. You noticed Peter sitting at the high top doing some type of math homework that you were grateful not to have. You give him a small wave and a smile that causes the boy to blush and give an incredibly enthusiastic smile.

“He-hey Y/N!” the boy stutters. He was so incredibly cute when he was embarrassed.

Peter was in the majority of your classes, but you had decided to take functions rather than algebra and calculus, leaving you to your own devices when it came to studying. Besides Ned, you were the only other student at the school who knew he was Spider-Man. Peter while shy, was always so kind. He would always be the first to help you with your homework even though you knew your dad would be able to help. You didn’t mind though, you secretly enjoyed spending that alone time with Peter. It’s as if knowing he is Spider-Man has created an intimate bond between the two of you. Part of you felt that it was more than a bond…you liked Peter, a lot, but you knew that telling him could cause a lot of tension especially in the tower and it was a huge problem when it came to missions and your safety. At least that’s what you assume your dad would tell you, as that was the exact reason your mother left him.

“Fantastic! I’ve made homemade mac and cheese that will be out of the oven in 5 minutes.” Steve replies, closing the oven after checking the casserole. He placed the red and blue checkered mitts on the counter before leaning over and giving you a hug.

“How was your dance class?” He asks, you could see Peter perk up when Steve asked you the question. Peter had no idea that you danced, let alone what genre.

Taking out the bobby pins and unraveling your hair from the mandatory top knot, you smile. Steve always cared about you and your interests. He has come to ever show and seems to truly enjoy everything you have to say about your passions.

“Steve, it was fantastic! Not to brag, but we we’re practicing jumps to see who will have a small solo for our spring recital, and I have to say…I kicked major ass! I was able to get so much air with full leg extension! Our ballet mistress was incredibly impressed. The music was just so inspiring that I let my body feel it, and it worked!” You beamed telling Steve your incredible news. You could see the pride in Steve’s eyes and he grinned at you with the most admirable look in his eyes. Peter just stared at you, completely mesmerized by your story.

“Of course, you did! You’re a superstar, kiddo!” A voice chimes from the door frame. Unbeknownst to you, your dad had walked in behind you, mid-conversation, and overheard the entire thing.

Out of pure love, he gives you a tight bear hug and kisses your cheek.

“You know Tony, she looks more and more like your mother every day.” Steve points out, patting the hair on the top of your head.

“Well, there could be uglier people that I could resemble.” You joke, elbowing Steve as he puts the oven mitts back on.

Peter nearly choked on the water he was drinking when he heard what you said. He had no clue as to what Mr. Stark’s mother looked like, but if she looked anything like Y/N, she must have been simply beautiful.

“Parker! Help me set the table!” Tony asks, waving a handful of forks and knives at the boy, pulling him out of his trance.

“Oh-uh, yeah, sorry Mr. Stark!” He mumbles, scurrying off the bar stool to grab a stack of plates. He could feel his cheeks grow warm every time he looked at you. Your H/C hair cascading down the nape of your neck looked so effortlessly beautiful, paired with your vibrant smile.

“Okay, boys and girls! Bon appetit!” Tony chimes, placing the casserole dish filled with golden mac and cheese in the center of the table. The smell dragged the rest of the Avengers from their hiding spaces to the table.

Once dinner had settled, Bruce, Peter and your dad left to work in the shop, while Natasha and Steve read in the parlor. Thor was on clean up duty and was struggling to scrape the casserole dish clean. Hearing his constant grunting and cursing under his breath, you took over.

“You know Thor, sometimes it’s better to let it soak a little.” You giggle, watching the God get frustrated over some melted cheese.

You could see the look of confusion on his face as you took the scrub brush out of his hands. Clearly the God has never had to wash the dishes before.

“It’s when you leave it in the sink filled with warm and soapy water, it helps to get all the crunchy bits off.”

“Ah! Like a warm bath!” Thor chimes, sounding so proud of himself.

“Yes, Thor. Like a warm bath!” You chuckle to yourself, seeing Steve raise an eyebrow as a smirk grew across his face.

“Natasha, I’m going to go work on some homework. Could you help Thor with this in 20 minutes?” You beg, Nat sighs as she looks up from her book.

“Only if Rogers can be on back up if Thor starts breaking mugs again.” Her dark eyes glare at Thor as a small smile forms on her lips.

“Go study, Y/N, we’ve got this.” Steve laughs as he lowers his newspaper just enough to look over it at you.

---------------------------------------------------------

You walk down the hall to your bedroom, passing by walls of photos filled with memories. There was something so comforting about reaching your room after a long day and shutting the door. It was as if it signified the long day finally being over.

Collapsing onto your bed, you flip open your lap top and run a hand through your tangled hair. ‘Hmm, what would pair nicely with my reading on World War 2 and Propaganda Tactics?’ you think to yourself as you scroll through your iTunes library. You settle on Debussy’s Arabesque No.1. As the music starts to fill your room, you light a couple of candles and crack open your thick history textbook.

Meanwhile, in the lab….

Bruce and Tony were hard at work patching up Peter’s spider suit as it had been practically demolished after their last mission.

Sitting on a stool, Peter watched the two men hard at work. He was just there for input.

“So, uh, Mr. Stark? H-how long has Y/N been dancing?” Peter asks quietly, a blush raising to his cheeks at the mention of your name.

Tony’s head perks up from the workbench and looked right at Peter. To him, it felt as if Mr. Stark was peering into his soul.

“Since she was small…Why?” Tony asks hesitantly, giving the boy a strange look.

“No reason…” Peter’s voice drifts off as he stares at the ground, feeling stupid for bringing it up.

“You know kid, you could just ask her yourself if you have questions.” Tony mentions as he attempts to fix a circuit on Peter’s suit. “Bruce, could you bring that light a bit closer?”

“Peter, she won’t bite your head off. She’s a sweet girl, just go talk to her.” Bruce says calmly as he adjusts the angle that he is holding the light to help Tony.

“Uh—No, no it’s okay...” Peter peeps shyly. His head felt like it was running in circles. He had talked to you before, he talks to you all the time when it comes to school work or at lunch in the cafeteria. But for some reason this felt so different, like a pill that was impossible to swallow. Peter could feel his cheeks getting hot and his palms starting to sweat.

“Well, are you just going to sit there, Parker? Or are you going to finally go make a move on my daughter?” Tony says nonchalantly, sighing as he zaps the circuit panel in the chest piece of Peter’s suit.

“What!?” Peter blurts, shocked at Mr. Starks quick words. Had Peter been that obvious?

Tony puts his tools down on the workbench and crosses his arms, giving Peter what felt to be a deadly glare.

“Kid, you sit here almost every night like a dog with its tail between its legs. All you do is ask questions about her-“

“and your face turns bright red.” Bruce adds, a gentle smile on his face, “Just go talk to her.”

“I bet she’s in her room. It’s down the hall from the kitchen, just don’t touch any of the sculptures. Pepper will have a bird if she sees finger prints.” Tony smirks walking over to give Peter a pat on the back.

“Speaking of, where is Pepper?” Bruce asks as Peter walks slowly and nervously out of the lab.

“Dubai for work!” Tony’s voice rang as Peter walked to the elevator.

With a deep sigh and the feeling that his heart was about to explode, the elevator doors closed and Peter thought he might die.

----------------------------------------------------

 After an hour or so passes by, you ask yourself what the point of reading these chapters are when you have a living war relic in your living room. Giving up, you peel off your sweaty dance clothes and opt to have a relaxing shower.

Scrubbing the stress of the day away, music fills the speakers in your ensuite bathroom. You hum along happily as you wash your hair and rub your achy shoulders.

Just as you step out of the bathroom you hear a soft knock at the door.

“One second!” You call, as you hurry to throw on some comfortable clothing. You decide on a pair of grey joggers, a black sports bra and one of your dad’s zip up Black Sabbath hoodies.

“Come in!” You chime as you flip your head upside down to wrap your wet hair in a towel. As you come up, you see a bashful Peter Parker standing in the door.

“oh! I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were chang-showering, I-I can leave?” Peter panics as he lowers his gaze, his face slowly turning a bright shade of red.

“It’s okay, Pete. I’m all done anyway…what’s up?” You half smile, wrapping the sweater shut. You didn’t have the time to zip it up as you thought it might have been Natasha. She usually was the only person, other than Pepper, who would come into your room. You walk quickly to the edge of the bed and plop down. You pat the spot beside you to silently ask Peter to join you.

“Uhm, well your dad said you’d be in here and that I should ask you my questions instead of him…” Peter’s voice trails off, as his glace searches around the room, his heart pounding a mile a minute.

“Uhm…Yeah okay! What questions do you have? Just shoot!” You smile, trying to relieve the tension. There was something so charming about the way Peter got so uncomfortable. You knew it was because he was trying to be gentleman like and non-invasive, which was so incredibly endearing to you. You could feel a knot grow in your stomach being so close to the boy.

His warm brown eyes looked right at you and searched your face momentarily, you wondered what he could be looking at. You had never been able to look at him the closely before, his brown eyes had flecks of gold and orange in them.

Peter could see what Steve meant. He took a moment to look at the photo of Maria hung in the hallway on the way to your room. You shared the same eyes, nose and lips as her. The same charming and dazzling smile that could take your breath away. Steve had mentioned to him, one time, that you know you’re in love when someone can take your breath away from just one look and smile.

“Earth to Peter?” You laugh awkwardly as you wave a hand in front of his face, trying to get rid of the butterflies in your own stomach.

“Oh! I’m so sorry, Y/N!” He says, embarrassed for day dreaming. “I was wondering what type of dance you do? And how long you’ve been dancing? You didn’t specify earlier but maybe I shouldn’t have been listening-”

“Well, I have done jazz, tap, modern, lyrical and folk, but my one true love is ballet.” You smile, interrupting the rambling boy, scooting closer to him on the bed. “And I’ve been dancing since I was three.” You add, grabbing Peter’s hand. Peter gave you a surprised look.

“Wow! You must be like, really good.” He smiles. You had never noticed the freckles that ran across the bridge of his nose until now.

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far. I’m not nearly as serious as some people. But I enjoy it and it is something that I shared with my grandma. It will always be something that I cherish deeply…but it hasn’t been the same since she passed.” You sigh, looking down at your feet.

Peter could sense the sadness that slowly filled you. He presses up against you and you rest your head on his shoulder.

“I understand that.” He inhales sharply. “Uncle Ben and I loved everything Star Wars. We could binge watch them time after time, and every morning he would greet me with a line from one of the movies. I still love everything Star Wars…but it’s not the same. It feels kind of empty. May does try to say a line to me in the mornings, but she usually butchers it.” He chuckles softly, remembering the time she said for him to “take the high ground” to school.

You look up to Peter, his sad, brown eyes now looking at his calloused hands that are bunched up in yours.

“That exactly the feeling.” You say as you sit up and look at Peter with tears in your eyes, feeling as if someone finally understands how you feel.

“Uh, how about we change the subject?” He half-smiles as he tucks a strand of hair back into your towel wrap.  “When do you have your next show?” Peter asks, a full smile forming on his face.

“In a couple of weeks actually. We’re putting on Chopin’s Les Sylphides.” You bite your lip as you wipe the tears from your eyes.

“Uhm, can-would people be able to come see that?” Peter asks shyly, his big brown doe eyes looking right at you.

“Of course! Steve comes to every single one.” You smile at the thought of having Peter there. This idea makes your heart leap in your chest.

Peter’s face lights up at the thought of getting to see you perform. “Cool!” Peter says a little too enthusiastically, “So I could come see you?” he asks so innocently.

“I’d love it if you came, Peter.” You smile, grabbing his hand again.  The boy looks right at you, his free hand coming up and touching your cheek. His soft fingers tracing the growing blush that fills your cheeks.

#peter parker x reader #peter parker x stark!reader #iron man #Spider-Man #high school #Ballet #Chopin #Maria Stark #Steve Rogers #Natasha Romanoff #Bruce Banner #tessa's assets #tessa's first fan fic #fan fiction #marvel #avengers #classical music #Pepper Potts #Thor Odinson #family #Uncle Ben #Star Wars #not my photos #i did make the collage tho #les sylphides #Nutcracker #Tchaikovsky #Debussy

[lickstynine]

How about fever Kit but trying to cope on his own? Maybe he has stuff to actually do, maybe he tries to go to class for once? It all finally gets too much for him but then Siofra steps in to the rescue at the end

Dedicated to my pal @ocsickficsideblog. You didn’t write this with me, but I used your idiots as a plot device, so, thanks.

Kit was sitting in Fox’s study, in the big leather chair, blanket on his shoulders and phone in his hand. He had been scrolling through his contacts all morning looking for someone to talk to. It was finals week, so Alistair and Julius were off the table - that was the only reason Kit was even at the manor. He felt like enough of a burden just lying around his cousin’s flat, he couldn’t interrupt Alistair’s studies, too.

Siofra wasn’t an option either, she had a big show coming up, she’d be rehearsing with her brothers all day. The rest of his “Favourites” were even less feasible - Kit hadn’t spoken to Nina, Isabella, or Leander since his falling out with Violet. He couldn’t even place most of the other names on his contact list. Looking back through his texts, he realized the only person he even talked to besides Siofra, Alistair, and Julius was Taddy. Did that even count? Taddy probably wouldn’t want a thing to do with Kit if it weren’t his job.

Kit sighed. He was alone. At least he was free to roam the house. Reggie liked to travel in the summer, and as far as he cared, summer stretched from May to October. He also had a wife to shop for, now that his divorce was finalized. Kit had overheard his father talking the other night: “I might get an Oriental this time. Those girls know their place.” He’d felt an uncannily Alistair-ish urge to spit in Reggie’s face.

Kit shook his head at the memory, closing his contacts and opening Facebook out of sheer boredom. No one his age really posted on there anymore, but at least it was something to do. He was skimming disinterestedly when a picture nearly made him drop his phone. John Renfrew, looking bitchy as ever, with a baby in his arms. His wife had captioned the photo: Rhoda is nearly six months now!

It took several moments for Kit to scrape his jaw off the floor. He continued to stare at the picture, as if it was going to change to something that made more sense, like John kicking a baby. How the fuck did John have a baby? Kit remembered Alistair saying his older cousin got married, but he’d assumed that would be about as long and fruitful as any of Reggie’s many marriages. And even worse was the idea of that sadistic bastard raising a child. Kit couldn’t imagine any girl who’d settle for John to be that pleasant. He clicked his tongue. Poor Rhoda.

Eventually Kit was able to tear his eyes from the post, and he continued scrolling. If he fixated on every child their family ruined, he’d never have time to do anything else. To his surprise, one of the next photos he saw actually had him in it. It was a picture Julius had posted last week, of Kit and Alistair kneeling on the floor while Oliver the hamster ran around them. Kit clicked on Julius’s name, hoping to see something a little more uplifting than his wretched family. A number on the profile page caught his eye - 28 May, 1998.

28 May? That had to be soon, if it was time for finals. Kit closed Facebook to check the date on his phone. He had a little less than three weeks, but now he also had an idea for something to do today. Julius needed a proper birthday present - it wasn’t like Alistair could afford one. If Kit went out now, he’d have time to custom-order products in Julius’s ridiculously small size. Of course, going out also required getting up and getting dressed. Ah, well. For Julius, Kit would do it. Or at least, he intended to.

As he stood up, Kit realized just how tired he was. He felt heavy and sluggish, and he shivered when his blanket slipped off. Was it really that cold in the house? He thought he’d turned the heat up when Reggie left. He shrugged it off, pulling his notepad out of his pyjama pocket.

Turn up heat, he scribbled, flicking through used pages to see if he’d actually written down what he was looking for. It was mostly just memos and musings, but when he got a few weeks back, Kit grinned. Julie Measurements, said the header. The following lines were all numbers with identifying shorthand. Kit couldn’t help being a little proud of himself for thinking to write this down last time he’d taken Julius shopping.

Walking up the stairs was frustratingly laborious; Kit almost missed Alistair’s single-story flat for a moment. He slogged down the hallway to his bedroom, leafing through his closet. The weather was supposed to be nice today, some fresh air would probably do him good (and hopefully it would be a little warmer outside). He settled on a charcoal blazer over a thin blue jumper and white button-down, with dark jeans. His earrings were already all silver, so he just grabbed a coordinating watch and a silver pendant with a small sapphire. It took a few minutes to find his charcoal boots, but he eventually dug them out, deftly loosing and re-tying the laces.

As usual, Kit spent another thirty minutes just fussing over his hair, and another ten concealing dark circles and putting on mascara. It was a bit after lunchtime by now, but he wasn’t even remotely hungry. He thought he might stop for tea on his way to the shopping centre - hopefully that would warm and wake him a little.

Gathering his phone, wallet, and keys, Kit finally made his way downstairs. He opened the door, and to his dismay, it was actually cooler outside than in the manor. He got about five steps down the walk before caving and ducking back inside to grab a proper coat. Even with his pea coat on, he felt a bit shivery, but Kit told himself it was the breeze. He just hadn’t gone out much lately, he would get acclimated soon enough. Besides, he was going out for Julius’s sake. He’d be a bit of a shit friend if he gave up at the slightest breath of wind.

Though he’d walked from the manor to the shopping centre from plenty of times, Kit found himself exhausted by the time he approached downtown. He needed to sit down, get some caffeine in his system. He spotted a familiar little cafe on the corner, trudging inside and practically collapsing in a chair.

It was hard to read the menu - the words seemed to wobble on the page, and squinting to focus them made his head hurt. Kit eventually gave up, just setting it aside and defeatedly ordering his usual earl grey.

“Will that be all for you?” The waitress’s voice sounded distorted and distant, like she was at the far end of a wind tunnel. Kit took a moment to process her question, and even longer to construct an answer.

“Me? Oh, um… yes. That’s all. Thank you.”

As the waitress walked away, Kit felt his face burning red. When did he get so bad at talking to people? Sure, he hadn’t been as social recently, but he was usually still charming when he tried. Just now, though, he’d been as awkward as Alistair. He sighed, staring quietly at the tablecloth. What was wrong with him today?  He was shivering even in the cafe, with the heat of the kitchen warming the dining area. Hopefully some time to rest and a cup of tea would straighten him out.

By the time the waitress returned with his drink, Kit had completely spaced out. The poor girl stood there awkwardly for a moment before clearing her throat. That got his attention, and he looked up at her, albeit with unfocused, glassy eyes.

“Hm?”

“Your tea, sir?” The waitress smiled gently, setting it on the table when Kit gave her an affirming nod. “Careful, it’s hot.”

“Thank you.” He mumbled, not trusting himself to say more without looking like a stuttering idiot. She nodded back and hurried off to check on other tables.

Kit wrapped his fingers around the teacup, relishing the heat. His hands were always the worst affected when he was cold, often going clumsy and numb at seemingly moderate temperatures. He just held the cup for a minute, letting the warmth seep into his fingers. After staring into the abyss of his tea for a while, Kit eventually remembered that he’d purchased a drink, not a hand warmer, and he lifted the cup, taking a tiny sip.

The tea was still warm, fragrant with the familiar citrus note that all good earl grey had. Kit sipped again, sighing contently. He had always liked this cafe. Though the fog in his head refused to clear, he wasn’t shivering so much anymore. When his teacup was empty, Kit stared at it for a moment, wondering if he should have another cup.

No. He still had shopping to do. This was probably the only time he would be able to do it, too. When finals were over in a few days, Alistair would be attached to him at the hip again, and Kit didn’t trust his cousin to keep the gifts secret. He sighed deeply, pushing his chair out and climbing to his feet. He left a crisp twenty-pound note on the table and walked out onto the street.

The shopping centre was still a ways down the road, but there were some standalone shops along the way. Kit gazed in the windows as he walked past, waiting to see if anything caught his eye. Nothing had piqued his interest yet, but he was an object of interest to many of the girls walking by. A few of them stopped to stare, whispering between each other about asking for his number. They weren’t being very subtle, but Kit was too spacey to notice them, staring vacantly into the store he was walking past. He was about to leave it behind when he saw a pale beige jumper, patterned with tiny flecks of brown and grey. It wasn’t as flamboyant or avant-garde as something Kit would buy for himself, but it struck him as distinctly Julius.

He turned and went back to the entrance of the shop, pushing the pull door for a moment before realizing he was an idiot and letting himself inside. He wove through racks and mannequins, making his way back to the jumper he’d seen. Up close, it had even more subtle variations of colour, with greys and browns that were almost blue and pink respectively. Kit reached out a hand to touch the delicate fabric. It was stunningly soft, a beautiful blend of silk and cashmere. He thumbed through the racks, surprised and delighted to see that the smallest size would fit Julius superbly.

Carefully pulling the sweater away from its larger brethren, Kit made his way to the checkout. Nothing else in the store was catching his eye, and he still needed time to browse the shopping centre. He mumbled his way through the transaction, sticking his card in the chip reader without even checking the price. As soon as the bag was on his arm, he shuffled out of the store, continuing on his slog to the shopping centre.

It seemed like the road between Kit and the centre kept expanding, like some strange giant treadmill, but he knew it was just an illusion. Though he knew he couldn’t be far by now, it was hard to keep going. The tea had done almost nothing for his energy levels, and the sweater on his arm seemed to weigh a hundred pounds. Eventually, almost subconsciously, he just deposited himself on a bench, leaning back with a tired sigh. Everything was starting to feel cold again, and he pulled the shopping bag into his lap, hugging it close.

Kit wasn’t sure how long he’d been sitting on the bench, or whether he’d drifted off or just zoned out, but he snapped back to reality when his phone started ringing. He had to fish through a few pockets to find it, not even checking the caller ID before answering.

“Hm?”

“Oi! I’ve texted you three different times today. You really are rubbish at texting. Anyway, rehearsal let out early, Riagán’s dumb arse scheduled a date tonight even though we were supposed to be practicing. I was wonderin’ if ya wanted to grab dinner or somethin?” Siofra jabbered away, talking too quickly to even notice Kit’s lack of response. When her question was met with prolonged silence, however, she didn’t hesitate to prod. “Oi! You alive over there?”

“Hm?”

“Jaysus, did you hear a word I’ve been fuckin’ sayin?” Siofra groaned.

Kit chuckled sheepishly. “Not really. Sorry. It’s not you, I’m just… tired.”

Siofra clicked her tongue. “I can tell. You sound fuckin’ terrible. Did I wake ya up or somethin’?”

“No… sort of… I’m not really sure.” Kit mumbled.

“How are ya not sure? I think you’d know if you were sleepin’.”

“You’d think…” Kit sighed, “It’s… it’s been a day. I’m just… out of it.”

“Obviously. It’s fine if you’re not up to dinner or whatever. You need to talk?” Siofra asked. She was properly concerned now - normally Kit would at least invite her over for dinner, even if he didn’t want to go out.

“No, I… I’m alright. I just need a rest.” He insisted.

Siofra wasn’t particularly convinced, but she didn’t want to pester. “Rest, then.”

“I will, once I get home.” Kit said.

“You’re not home? Where are you?” Siofra was even more worried now.

“Shopping.” Kit answered, “Julie’s birthday is coming up, I was looking for gifts for him.”

“Didja buy a truckload’o Xanax for yourself? You sound fuckin’ out of it.” Siofra fussed.

“No, I just… I’m tired. It was a long walk from the manor.”

“You walked? Why the fuck didn’t you just call Taddy?” Siofra cried.

Kit sniffled quietly. “Taddy doesn’t like me. He just puts up with me because I pay him.”

Siofra groaned. “What are you on about? He clearly likes ya, he’d get up at half four if ya needed a lift somewhere.”

“Only for the sake of the paycheck. I’m just a job for him, and a burden for everyone else.” Kit said morosely. “I had to leave Al and Julie alone this week, they have real responsibilities. They don’t need to deal with my pathetic arse on top of that.”

“Chrissakes, are you drunk or somethin’? You’re talkin’ nonsense.” Siofra muttered. “Look, where are you? I’m just about to drop Cilli at home anyway, I can come pick you up.”

Kit looked around, but he wasn’t near any street signs. “Uh… I’m… I’m downtown. By the shops.”

Siofra sighed. “Just send me your location. Put me on speaker, open our texts. I’ll walk ya through it.”

It took several minutes of “no, not that,” and muttered Gaelic curses, but eventually Kit’s location popped up on Siofra’s phone. She sighed again, this time in relief.

“Oh, you’re not far at all. I’ll be there soon. Stay put, don’t do anything stupid. Try not to get mugged.”

“I’ll try.” Kit said, squinting at the buttons on his phone. They were wobbling out of focus again, and he couldn’t figure out how to turn off speaker. Siofra saved him the trouble, hanging up so she could drive. Kit locked his phone, tucking it back in his pocket and slumping down further on the bench. He must look like the most expensive bum, he thought.

As promised, Siofra pulled up barely fifteen minutes later. Still on the bench, Kit had spaced out, staring into the middle distance beyond the street. Siofra rolled her eyes, parking the car and climbing out. She walked over and patted his cheek, shocked to find it hot to the touch.

“Oi. Time to go, Princess. I need to get ya home.” Siofra said, feeling his forehead with the back of her hand. “Lord, I really need to get ya home. You’re burnin’ up.”

“I am?” Kit asked, standing obediently when Siofra tugged on his arm. She rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, you’re bloody boilin’, what are ya even doin’ out’o bed?”

“I… didn’t notice.” Kit mumbled.

Siofra sighed so hard, it made her curls bounce. “Jaysus. How do you not notice bein’ a walkin’ space heater? You’re normally a fuckin’ ice sculpture.”

Kit shrugged. “I mean… I’ve been a little cold today. I thought it was just the weather.”

“Christ…” Siofra shook her head, buckling Kit in the passenger seat. “Come on, we gotta get you in bed.”

“Can I have my special blanket?”

“Is it at yours?” Siofra asked.

Kit’s face fell. “No… I left it at Al’s.”

Siofra rolled her eyes. “I’ll call him.”

#whump #illness #fever #kit #raycraft #siofra #rafferty #caretaking #anonymous

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #193

“i’m stronger than i ever knew; i’m strong because of you.”

What’s one item the dollar store is good for? Candy. What’s the last thing you made out of construction paper? A "cover" for Sara's first V-Day present. What’s the last thing that inspired you? I'm not sure, really. Probably some video. Are you a daredevil? No. What’s one thing you are lazy about? Cleaning. Do you prefer tea to be cold or hot? Tea is a no from me. Do you ever get annoyed by the stupid decisions characters make in books? Not really annoyed, seeing as making mistakes is sometimes a necessity to the plot, but I'm more like, "no one would ever do that irl," especially in the horror genre. What’s one thing that’s annoying you about the book you’re reading now? N/A What’s the most boring thing about your life right now? You would almost assume I'm under house arrest because I can never leave my fucking house. What could make your life more interesting? Being in school, have a job, or have Sara live here. Name someone you know who is truly happy. My nephew. He's only two, but. I have never seen a happier human being. Do you have trouble letting friends go when you need to? It depends. Do you have trouble letting things go? Depends as well. How cluttered is your apartment/house/room? My room's decent, but the majority of the house is kinda messy or just unorganized. Do you have any antique furniture? No. What’s the most you’ve ever spent on a purse? Idk, certainly not much. Where would be the most fun place to do a 24 hour challenge in, do you think? Probably an amusement park. Would be creepy as fuck at night too, and I'd liiive for it. What’s something you’ve been wanting to do but haven’t got around to yet? A lot... like resume studying German. I haven't decided to yet because I question the real usefulness of it; I want to go to Germany, but that may never happen, and I could probably manage just enough with what I know. It may end up just being wasted time and effort. What was the best class trip you have ever been on? 5th grade visit to the zoo. Did you have your own room as a child? No, I shared it with Nicole. Maybe Ashley was with us for a while before being given her own room? Idr. Have you ever shared a room? See above, then with Jason in the old apartment. If so, was having a roommate hard for you? As a young kid, Nicole and I liked sharing a room, but as I especially got older, I really wanted my own. With Jason, no. Do you own a lot of clothes that don’t fit you anymore? Yes, some I hope to shrink back into or are just stored for nostalgia. Where do you donate old clothes? Goodwill and some other place idr. Do you enjoy antique stores? Oh. My. God. Yes. What are five things you inherited from your mom? Somewhat slower metabolism I think, depression, are seasonal allergies genetic?, height, and hair thickness. What are five things you inherited from your dad? PACING, this little short huff-ish laugh thing he does at the end of some sentences, no common sense whatsofuckingever, and enjoying games. Do you enjoy grocery shopping? Noooo. Do you enjoy clothes shopping? Only at stores I like, and if I don't have to try things on. Do you own footie pajamas? Omg nooooo, haven't since I was a kid. They had to be so uncomfortable. Which America’s Got Talent Golden Buzzer performance was your favorite? I haven't seen/remember enough. Do you watch America’s Got Talent? I did religiously until Sharon left. If you were to host a '90s party, which 3 shows would you like to run? That '70s Show, Full House, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. What was your favorite thing you collected as a child? Webkinz. I was that one kid who had dozens. Whose house was your first sleepover at? My first best friend, Brianna's. If you had a daughter, would you allow sleepovers? Of course with girls, but I probably wouldn't allow a boy to stay overnight until she was at least 16 due to the risk of her getting pregnant. Which do you like better, your first name or your middle name? My first. What are some ways that pop culture has helped you learn historic or scientific facts? Oh, video games and TV shows definitely have. There must be plenty of other things, but. Blanking. Have you ever had a job in which you felt that you had nothing to do? What was the protocol in that situation (e.g., surfing the web, taking on the job of co-workers, or pretending to work)? If you have not, do you think it would be lucky or unlucky to have such a job? N/A; I wouldn't enjoy an extreme lack of work, but definitely some time to like wander around the Internet and such. Having too little would be super boring, and I'd feel very unproductive. Have you ever intimidated or made another person feel legitimately threatened? If not, do you think that you could ever be seen as scary? I felt horrible when I found out Mom's been legitimately uneased before because of how loudly I can scream at Bentley and/or Teddy when I'm really pissed. I've been working on it since then. In what ways do you or would you need to be validated by a partner? (For example, liking your posts/talking about you on social media, or perhaps by doting on you with gifts.) Above all, I need to be reminded that you love me, that you're not leaving (unless of course there's good reason to), AND THAT MY ILLNESSES AREN'T BECOMING TOO OVERWHELMING. As well, with how I physically am now, I need to know that my weight doesn't bother you. That's all I can think of atm. When you are having a hard time emotionally, what are some of the telltale ways that you act out or that your personality reflects your struggles? I admit I speak before I think and can be very snappy and sarcastic. I become extremely pessimistic and cry easier than I already do. My stability in general is very fragile when I'm struggling. Do you tend to succeed by weaning yourself off of something or by quitting cold turkey? WEANING. I never would've survived dropping soda (for the time I did) if I hadn't weaned down. Well, quitting meat cold turkey during my vegetarian phase was easy, but most things, I'd still say weaning. Is there a specific type of pet breed/size/etc. that you don’t want? Why not? I wouldn't want huge dogs due to so much energy, nor would I want arachnids or insects. Or fish because they bore me so it just feels like a total chore to clean the tank. I wouldn't want most birds due to all the noise. Also not interested in blood pythons, as they're notorious for being aggressive. Have you ever lived in a notoriously dangerous area? If not, would it bother you to do so? Yup. Has a friend’s significant other ever interfered with or damaged your friendship? What about a significant other of yours damaging a friendship? I don't think so for either. What, if anything, is something that you put pressure on yourself about? What do you imagine would happen if you did not live up to this expectation? Achieve complete financial comfort. If I don't, after how I've grown up, I will be borderline (if not seriously) devastated and disappointed in myself. I also put immense pressure, an amount I know is unhealthy, on myself about losing weight, and if I don't achieve that, I don't know what I'd do. I've worked and still work so hard to. If you have been in a serious relationship, have you and your partner ever discussed lifetime plans that clashed? Did you reconcile them or did you break up? If you have not been in a relationship, what are some issues that would be deal-breakers? In the beginning of mine and Jason's relationship, it was casually mentioned I didn't want children while he did, but we didn't worry about that at the time as we had a long time to figure that out. I later decided I wanted kids together, anyway... Would you ever believe I wanted three back then???? If you have favorite names or names picked out for your children, where did you learn of the names or when did you fall in love with them? I can't remember where I heard Alessandra, but I immediately thought it was gorgeous. I fell in love with Damien because of fucking Mayor Damien from Who Killed Markiplier? Yes, I would absolutely name my son after a Markiplier character, fight me about it. What is one item that you have recently been coveting? Do you think that you will actually get it? Why/why not? A new laptop more than anything... and soon. Dad's working on it as a Christmas + birthday present. Do you still have both of your parents? They're alive, but divorced. Do you like being sensually bitten? UGGGHHHHHHHH YEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSS. If you wear eyeliner, what color do you use? Only ever black. How many colors are in your hair right now? One, but with natural highlights and undertones. Do you have your full license yet? No. Working on it. Are you into gory movies? If the gore is a realistic amount. Have you ever been locked in a room forcefully without anyone knowing? No. Do you have the same color eyes as your mother? No. Does your significant other boss you around a lot? No. Have you ever been drunk? If so, do you get drunk regularly? No. Do you consider yourself a loner or a social butterfly? A loner, but I'm sincerely trying to branch out at least some. Have you ever been put to sleep for surgery? Yes. What is your favorite online smiley face to you? I like ;v; but rarely use it because people can't seem to decide if it's an extremely happy and teary face (what I see) or a sad one???? What is something that freaks you out no matter what? OH GOD thought of this because I passed a video of a pregnant sphynx on FB today. I. Cannot. See a fetus moving from the outside of its mother's stomach. It absolutely, thoroughly horrifies me to the point I may scream. It's one of the million reasons, if not the main reason, I never want to be pregnant and why I say pregnancy would likely traumatize me, especially feeling it. Are the lights in your room more dim or bright? I'd say my ceiling lamp is a tad dimmer? Do you take a lot of photos? No. I'd take far more "photography" pictures if I actually had things to and a way to get around... When you were little, did you think band-aids healed everything? Maybe? Have you ever had a pregnancy scare? A completely unrealistic one. I just missed my period one month, I guess out of stress, a change in meds, something like that, and I was panicking that it was a pre-cum pregnancy, even with protection (aka, thin underwear, which sperm can't travel through). I was an anxious mess until my period did come around. Anxiety is fun. Do you have freckles? If so, do you enjoy them or hate them? I don't. Where do you download music from? YouTube. Do you have a laptop, desktop or both? A laptop. If you have a job, do you work with any of your friends? Do you like that job? N/A When did you last look in a mirror? Last time I was in the bathroom. What are you most known for? Probably that I'm very reserved and anxious. What was the last movie you bought for yourself to watch? I don't think I've ever bought a movie myself. If you have any animals, do any of them live in the house with you? They all do. Would you rather have curly or straight hair? Straight. What is one thing you think is gross about the human body? Sweating. Ever make a friendship bracelet for someone? As a kid. Would you say you have extreme morals? "Extreme" seems a bit far, but I have rather strict ones. What have you been made fun of for the most? I've been teased by so many people, family especially, about how I stay on the laptop or am on my phone, and I fucking hate it. Seriously, don't bring it up. I have reasons. Do you watch any television shows from other countries? I don't watch any TV shows currently. Who is your most favorite television/movie villain? Television... probably a character I can't say as their position of being a villain is a massive spoiler of the show. Or Fullmetal Alchemist's Envy, especially in Brotherhood. Movie, Dark Alessa from the first Silent Hill. Have you ever been stabbed by something? A pencil. Maybe other things. Well, do piercings, tattoos, or shots count? How many pillows do you normally sleep with? Two. When you have chocolate, do you eat it room temperature? Or are you like me and stick the bar into the fridge first? I like it room temperature. Chilled doesn't sound all that appealing. What’s the most shocking thing that’s happened in your part of town? Idk, maybe a murder or something? Are there any constellations you recognize just by looking at them? The Little or Big Dipper, idk which is which. Which insect do you find the most beautiful? Butterflies! Do you like gardening? If so, what do you grow? No. Do you enjoy puzzle games? If so, which one’s your favorite? Yeah, probs Sudoku. What is a job you would never in a million years want to do? Teaching, to name just one. What’s the weirdest building in your city? *shrugs* Do you recognize friends’/family’s vehicles by sound? No. Which Disney villain is your favorite? Probably Scar. Or Hades, I loved his character. Which possession would you not want to inherit from a relative? I dunno. Fancy china or some shit I'll never use or break. Is there an ex you think about every day? You know... maybe Jason. Tiny things will trigger quick memories/thoughts about him a lot of days, maybe actually most, I guess as a PTSD thing. He played such a huge part of my life and drastically changed it, so it's hard not to. I don't give him deep thought or anything and they're typically emotionless; just for example, if I heard Motionless In White, my head would immediately connect them to him as his favorite band, then the thought's over. AND I JUST WANNA SHARE BECAUSE I'M PROUD AS FUCK that today was our anniversary date, and this is the first year I feel zero pain or attachment to it. Would you ever go back to any of your past relationships? No. What's the worst thing you have ever said to anyone? Probably some evil shit I said in that letter to Dad. Who was the last person to text you before you went to bed last night? Sara. When was the last time you had a conversation with an ex? I talked briefly with Girt a few days back. Is there a guy who knows everything or almost everything about you? Jason did. Who was the last person to annoy you? My stepmother with the stupid political shit she shares on Facebook. I love her a whole lot, but oh my god. I regret even adding her. Do you have any text messages that you don’t want other people to read? I wouldn't be mortified or anything, but there's some I want private nevertheless. Which room in your house tends to be the coldest in the winter time? The laundry room, the first room of the house from the backdoor. There's no AC in there, and because there's a draft with the door, it gets cooooold. What is something that you fear will happen to you in the future? (Also Why) I won't be financially stable. That's all I've known so far, and the stress of it is unbelievable. What criminal (dead or alive) would you like to sit down and talk to and why? None. What is the most interesting documentary have you watched? Meerkat Manor. :') Where is your brother? In Tennessee. Last person you cussed at? At? Not in the presence of? Uh, I think I playfully called a friend/family member a bitch at some point? When did a parent last tell you, you couldn’t do something you wanted to? I was craving a Sonic shake a couple days ago, but Mom didn't wanna drive out that far with low gas. Last time you took a picture? A few days back. Our camellia bush is blooming now, and some of the flowers are falling, and I visualized a beautiful shot looking down at one, but no matter what I did, the damn camera wouldn't focus just enough. This is such a frequent problem that I think something may be wrong with the lens. I cannot wait for new ones. Next time you will see the last person that made you cry? Who was it? Myself, so, lol. Next person that will call you? Likely my dad about our laptop hunt. Last person that was at your house besides family? A delivery guy. How many friends do you have? I don't know who are really my old friends, friends, and true friends nowadays. Few. When were you born? 11:20 or 11:30 A.M., I forget. Who are you closest to in your family? Mom. What program on your computer do you use the most? Chrome. Would you ever consider getting plastic surgery? Not unless I was in some sort of freak accident. What is your favorite breed of dog? Akita inus or Saint Bernards. Are you a fan of anime? Yeah. What is your favorite kind of cookie? Soft chocolate chunks. Ahhh. Where is your favorite city? I don't have one. Do you get bored easily? Very. What grosses you out the most? The most? Oh man, idk. Probably seeing bones clearly broken and at gnarly angles, or strange bodily shit like botflies being pulled out (I physically refuse to watch things like that), and giant pimple/cyst popping is fucking disgusting. I do NOT understand how some find it satisfying. Or, as mentioned earlier, seeing fetuses move from the outside. Have you ever been to the circus? In elementary school. I don't remember it. What’s the longest word you know? Uhhh, "brobdingnagian?" Do you use teeth whitener? No, but God knows I want to. Do you think war is an acceptable way of solving problems? NO. NO. NO. NO. Were you a bad child when you were younger? No. What is your favorite type of exercise? Swimming. Do you live near any volcanoes? No. Name one word that you always have trouble pronouncing. Almost everyone points out how I put a "d" in "breakfast" after the "k." I have to consciously think in order to not. Tell me something about yourself that you don’t normally tell people. The fact I enjoy RP. Do you have any songs that seem to fit your life perfectly? Perfectly, idk. Have you ever tried “planking”? Oh wow, I forgot about that fad. The exercise form of planking, yes. Do you trust yourself with big responsibilities? Usually not. What’s your favorite flavor of ice cream? So there's this local dessert place I go to exclusively for their ice cream called "campfire delight" that surpasses any ice cream I've ever had. Out of basic flavors, vanilla. How many people have you truly fallen IN love with? Two. Where was your mom born? Somewhere in New York. Have you ever seen your siblings naked? Well duh as kids. As teens/adults, I think I've seen Ashley like once. Now Nicole, she has no shame and used to walk without a care into the living room to grab clean clothes lmao, and she never cared if I needed to come into the bathroom for whatever if she was in there after she got out of the shower. What can always make you feel better no matter what? Show me that video of Mark witnessing for the first time that "nasa peepo" shit lmao. I will at LEAST smile. What did you last order from a restaurant? A double cheeseburger and fries. And what restaurant was that from? McDonald's. Did you ever really believe in the tooth fairy? Yes. Would you ever get your legs waxed? Likely not. Are you listening to music right now? "Roots" by In This Moment. When was the last time somebody hit on you? lul Sara yesterday, I think. Was the last person you met a male or female? Uhhh who was the last person I met. I really don't know. Which one of your friends do you feel most comfortable around? Sara. Do you own a map of the world? No. Who did you last spoon with? Sara. Does your family eat dinner together? No. When eating string cheese, do you dive right in or just peel it? I don't like string cheese. How do you get rid of your hiccups? Nothing works for me. Do you know how to take screen shots on your computer? Yeah. Do you have a blister anywhere on your body? No. Do you remember what your last fortune cookie said? No, but I think I recall thinking it was stupid. Do you like Chinese food, Mexican food, or American food better? American. What do you think of off-brand soda? Doesn't bother me. Do you like hot, cold, or lukewarm showers? Usually hot. Do you grit your teeth a lot? No. Do you like to swing? Ye. How about jumping on a trampoline? Haven't done that in years, and it would probably wreck my knees. Do you have long arm hair? No. Is your hair healthy? Very. How often do you wash your hair? I have to every time I shower unless I want it greasy, so every other day or sometimes one more. Do you love Family Guy, or hate it? It doesn't bother me. Do you like kids? I don't hate them, but being around them long enough tests me. How often do you like to have sex? Sara and I aren't at that point yet, so I can't really say. If I'm still the same, Jason and I did so every few days, and if I didn't see him in like, almost a week, I'd definitely want it. Do you throw shit under your bed? No. Do you like Dairy Queen? Sure. Have you ever actually drank warm milk? Ew, no. Do you prefer to have milk when you eat cakes/cookies? Every once in a while for cookies. What is your preferred brand of chocolate? Ohhhhhh I can't remember its name. It's one of the "fancier" kinds. Do you like white chocolate? No, too sweet. Are there any movies/shows you’ve seen so many times you’re sick of them? I don't think so. What about songs you’ve heard so many times you hate them? Not hate. Have you ever eaten snow? Yeah, as a kid, and here in the South, there's also this tasty treat called snow cream that you make with fresh snow. Are there any metals that turn your skin green? Silver. Do you know anybody who gets feminism confused with misandry? BOY DO I Do you talk to your pets? Seriously curious, does anyone not? When you do, is your tone different from when you talk to humans? Usually. Do you like using terms of endearment? Yes. Describe yourself with 3 fictional characters. Okay so I'mma actually think here... HA FIRST I am the Actual Eric Derekson, Max Caulfield (tho I give myself just enough credit that I am not that cringey), and Katniss Everdeen, if I remember her well enough (and I only read the first book/saw the first movie). Are there any numbers you dislike for any reason? No. Do you own/wear any jumpsuits? No. Have you ever adopted a stray? (Cat or dog) Cats, plenty. What’s a movie you think more people should see? Idk. Do you read about any mythology? (Greek, Roman, Norse, Egyptian, etc) Haven't since high school, but I'm very interested in it. If you do, do you have any favorite gods/goddesses? Maybe Artemis. Do you think it’s prettier when the moon is full, or a crescent? Full. Have you ever been to a planetarium? Does the Kennedy Space Center qualify? Have you grown to dislike your first email address? Lol, I'll admit it's embarrassing when I have to give it out. Have you ever gotten angry at an employee and complained to the manager? No. What songs bring back happy memories for you? "Closer" by The Chainsmokers, "Leavin'" by Jesse McCartney, "Pretty Woman" by Van Halen, "All Time Low" by Jon Bellion, "Caroline" by Aminé, "I'm Not A Vampire" by Falling In Reverse, a few Billy Joel songs, a lot of old Train songs, "Let Me Hear You Scream" by Ozzy... a lot. Are there any smells that bring back happy memories? Probably? Oh, pancakes and sausage or bacon cooking, for one. I just remember the occasional times as a kid Mom would make breakfast.

#survey #quiz #questions #random

[meghernandez]

How I edit my Instagram photos

    I’ve been meaning to make this blog post for a while now, just because I felt the dire need to save up a lot of posts before leaving tumblr again to focus on my studies for another year. And yep, I might go on a semi-hiatus for a long while, just like what happened last year wherein I barely blogged about anything at all. Anyway, I’m getting off topic again. I made this post to simplify life a bit since we are now living in an era where everything should be insta-wothy. 

    Honestly, I don’t do much but I try my best to keep my feed to have the same filter, if not at least have some similarities in terms of the presets. I already made a preset on my VSCO account and thank God that I bought a lot of filters... but to be honest I really only use 4 filters and I only get to enjoy the filters that I bought on rare occasions. I’m not sure which ones are free but I just want to show you guys how I edit my instagram photos, and even the photos here on my blog. Check out my IG feed>> @meghernandezx

    I don’t use a lot of editing apps, just VSCO most of the times. But I also use Moly Cam if I want my photo to look like it was taken with a film camera. Other than those apps, I also use the built-in edit option in the camera roll, especially when playing with the brightness of the photo if it’s under a bad lighting. I’m not complicated and I don’t want to complicate things; I just choose filters that make the photo look good. 

    Here is my preset that I made and I think it’ll suit almost any picture especially if it is taken at a place that is well-lit, if not then use your camera roll edit option to play around with the brightness.

    My favorite filter to use is Hypebeast (HB2) since it goes well with the photos that I take. Most of the time, I decrease the intensity of the filter just because sometimes it overwhelms the photo a lot with it’s fade layer. But I’ve been loving a new filter which has more of a blue undertone, the Chromatic (C9). 

    The exposure is increased to the extent that it brightens the photo and I think it brings out a good light to the photo that doesn’t look fake. And the contrast is in negative value because I like the image to look subtle and avoid any harshness especially with the amount of sharpen layer that I use. I used to like high contrast in photos because I like the hue of black to be emphasized more but I ended up changing my aesthetics with something that is less harsh and something that is more relaxing to the eyes with blue and orange undertones.

     The reason why the sharpness is +7.8 is because I use the portrait mode, a heck lot on my phone and increasing the sharpness of a photo especially if the background is out-of-focus is just perfect layer you have to add to your photo to increase it’s quality, at least that’s just my opinion. However, if you’re using a photo that is taken through a portrait mode and you want to blur the background and focus on the object/person, use the app called Focos. This app is so helpful to blur out an ugly background or to make it bokeh. I highly recommend this to people with dual rear camera.

    I’ll show you other filters that I like to use and what it looks like with it’s full intensity on a photo + the preset above.

HB2 - a filter that I usually use increases the grey-ish tone of the picture with a heavy amount of fade layer.

G2 - is more of a filter that increases the saturation of the photo without being too harsh. Just adjust the filter to your liking. I think this is best used on photos taken outside or under the sun.

C8 - is obviously heavy with an orange layer and a bit of a blue tone to it. This is perfect for taking food photos since it does not take away the color of the food too much, and it almost seems like it enhances it.

C9 - a filter that is probably kicking HB2 off the curb. I like this filter a lot because of the bluish tint to it. It makes the photo pleasing to the eyes, at least in my opinion.

    So yep, here are the filters that I use. If you also want to use these, and see them in the front when you’re editing pictures you can add it to your favorites. As well as making your own presets by clicking the logo with the 360 degrees arrow around a circle, and then clicking the + sign! Hope you guys liked this tutorial and found it helpful!

#tutorial