#plus my fanfic is one of the best writing I've done so far

[orionali]

If you've been interested in my Desperados art lately, might I also interest you in joining a Desperados Discord server?

And if you're wholly unfamiliar with the games, no worries, I can get you up to speed no problem. Tust me; these are small games, but they deserve love also.

#aliya's musings #aliya makes smooching noises and goes about sowing a bunch of seeds #plus my fanfic is one of the best writing I've done so far

[bio1]

Hey everyone, finally finished part two of my transformers Earthspark horror themed fanfic.

If you haven't read act 1, please check out this link.

One last thing, thank you so much for @billie-jay for helping writing and editing of this story. Couldn't have done it without them.

Now let's begin.

Warning: this story contains body horror, blood, and descriptions of graphic violence.

Act 2: rotten to the core

The Terran siblings' optics were the only source of light in the now otherwise pitch black dugout. After the dreadful clicking of the lights switching off, the room was now eerily quiet once again.

“We didn't kill it.” Nightshade finally broke the silence, stating the obvious.

"No, you didn't."

A voice replied, taunting the young bot. Well, perhaps calling it a voice would be too generous. Whatever responded spoke in a manner similar to rusted nails scratching at granite. Its pitch and tone managed to fluctuate in a manner that just barely could be recognizable as words. It was a sound that shouldn't be possible, as if scrap metal could somehow speak. It went beyond uncanny. Hearing something that otherworldly felt downright violating.

What clever children you are, deducing my traits so quickly.

Most don't last long enough to find out that.

Whatever monitors still remained attached flickered on, although they broadcasted nothing but static. When their adversary spoke again, the static shifted in time with its voice.

"My, such a colorful collection. So bright and shiny, sturdy with youthful vigor. Small you might be, but your remains will a part of something far bigger than you could ever dream."

Twitch, with all her remaining energy, was not having any of this cryptic nonsense. She stormed up to the monitors and put her face meter inches from the screen in a confrontational manner.

“Get away from my family, NOW!” She boomed, slamming her foot onto the concrete floor.

The dying power on the monitor only showed one thing, the white enormous eye of their torturer.

"Oh my child, it's far too late for that."

Twitch stepped back, trying her absolute best now to show how terrified she truly was. Too late for what?! What was this thing implying?

“You're bluffing! You haven't gotten to them yet!” Nightshade answered back for her. “Now how about you save us all time and tell us what you want!”

Twitch wasn't sure what her sibling was getting at. Did they want to give into this thing's demands? And how could they know that their family hadn't been harmed yet?

"If you're already awake, I thought we might as well have a little fun."

It was pretty obvious the creature was trying to be creepy, but neither of them knew whether or not it fully understood the context of what it just implied.

The dugout was completely silent and nearly pitch black, the abyss around them only just illuminated from both of the bots glowing optics.

“Nightshade! What do we do?! Our family is out there with that… that thing! I don't even know which way the exit is anymore, it's too dark…”

“There’s no reason for alarm, the dugout has a backup generator in the barn.” Nightshade tried their absolute best to remain calm for her, despite the gravity of the situation weighing on their mind as well.

“I'll go check on everyone in the house. In the meanwhile, you can start up the generator.”

“Wait, shouldn't that be the other way around? I can actually fit in the house, and you would know how the generator works.”

“Because I can grab everyone in one trip. It would take too long for you to back and forth. Plus, turning it on is rather simple.”

“Nightshade, I've seen the things you make, and none of it is simple.”

“It's literally just a red button labeled ‘generator’.”

“Nevermind, I should be able to handle that.”

Both of the bots carefully exited the dugout. With neither spotting the monster, Nightshade and Twitch split up, their goals both in sight.

Twitch approached the generator, optics darting around herself in paranoia.

“It's okay, Twitch. Just a few more steps.” The red mech assured herself, voice still shaky.

She stood in front of the machine, just barely out of arms’ reach. A chill ran down her metallic spine. Thoughts of what occurred earlier in the night ran through her mind. She kept imagining that if she pushed the button, something would come to remove her head from her shoulders.

“Twitch! HURRY!”

The loud voice booming from the doorway startled the poor bot. It was Nightshade, already back with their human family in tow. They were peacefully sleeping, blissfully unaware of the danger around them. Nightshade dashed into the bunker, leaving Twitch to finish their task.

With a deep sigh, she pushed the red button, the lights around her flickering on. Twitch turned back to join their sibling before stopping dead in her tracks. Something was pushing itself through a gap in the barn wall. A black, pulsating mass with gray armor grew larger as more of its amorphous form forced its way into the room. Five huge tendrils sprouted from a centered metal lump. It almost looked like…

“A hand.” She breathed, the terrifying realization overcoming her.

A monster hand, almost bigger than her entire body.

She drew out her swords as the hand flexed its grotesque fingers.

The monster, noticing her presence, immediately lunged at her. She barely had enough time to dodge or before the gnarled fingers could ensnare her. The hand instead grabbed hold of a solid wooden support beam directly behind her. Smaller tendrils unwind themselves from the fingers joints, constricting the beam completely until the pressure caused it to cave in. An entire, solid cylinder of wood, crushed by a single movement into dust. The hand, realizing it has missed it's intended target, reared around with gelatinous eyes protruding from its finger joints, searching for Twitch.

"Hold still !"

“How about no!” She yelled before jabbing her blade into its wrist. The palm of the hand writhed in pain, fingers bending backwards as it struggled to pull the foreign object out. The wrist was almost jammed like a metal rod between two gears.

Twitch grabbed the handle of the embedded sword and twisted it clockwise, separating the hand from its wrist. A spray of oily fluid landed on her optics, muddling her vision. The hand writhed in pain for a moment, finally curling up on itself.

A distant sound of pain could be heard, but Twitch felt like she had no time to celebrate as she went to join her family. The young bot slammed the vault door shut as soon as she made it to the bunker, not wanting to take any more chances. Nightshade has laid the siblings’ organic family into individual sleeping quarters.

“Twitch, are you alright?” Nightshade asked, concerned. Their sibling’s face was drenched in the black, oily blood of their adversary.

“Yeah, I just had my hands full.” she responded confidently. Though her words had the cadence of a joke, Nightshade didn't seem to pick up on it.

“Seriously, what happened?” They prodded further.

“That monster tried to crush me. Sort of like this.” Twitch crushed one of the emptied energy drink cans as a demonstration.

“But it doesn't know who they're messing with, and I manage to cut their hand off.” She smiled proudly, but residual unease from the near death encounter still hung to her tone. This bravado was an attempt to force her mood to improve, and it wasn't entirely working.

“Here, to wipe the oil off.” Nightshade handed her a large cloth.

“Oh, thanks.” She cleaned her face up, before looking down at the now dirtied rag. “Wait, isn't this Robbie's shirt?”

“Yes. I borrowed some spare clothing from all of the family and store it here, in case of emergencies.”

“Borrowed? He told me he couldn't find this shirt for months….” She held out the soaked t-shirt in front of her, rancid oily blood dripping off it onto the floor.

“Emergency preparedness is more important than a diverse wardrobe.” Nightshade took the soiled garment and threw it into a basket. “That'll come off in the laundry. Probably.”

In the corner of Nightshade’s sensitive optics, they picked up some movement on the now activated surviving monitor. The pair raced over to see what it was. Out of the darkness of the forest above, something jumped into fame! The figure startled Nightshade badly enough that they fell to the floor. After recovering from the near spark attack herself, Twitch realized what it was.

“Oh, it's just a deer.” She gave a sigh of relief.

Nightshade got a good giggle from the pair of them getting so startled by a cute little buck. Twitch had mentioned she cut off the monster's hand, right? Surely, it wasn't coming back…

Gazing back at the screen, something reached out and snatched the poor animal. Their monitor’s audio played a sickening crack the moment after. It was the unmistakable noise of snapping bone.

The culprit emerged from the woods, towering above even the tallest of trees. In one gnarled hand, it carried the limp body of the deer, whose neck.was now bent at an unnatural angle, clearly dead.

The other hand was missing, leaving a stub of black tentrals.

It was clear this wasn't some kind of wooden monster they had thought of earlier. This was far worse.

This monster appeared to be wearing the outer armor of a Cybertronian, held together by mangled tendrils and rusted metal sheets. Its abdomen, neck, and joints were made of thick, wiry tentacles twisted together like ropes of licorice. Long, clawed fingers clutched onto the rag doll deer. Its face, seemingly normal at first glance, appeared to have enormous spotlights for optics, surrounded by deep black rings. It was as if it had carved holes in whatever unfortunate mech’s face it was using to fit its massive eyes.

The abomination was mostly gray, with any remaining colors on its shell muted and drained. It reminded Nightshade when they learned from Bumblebee that when a Cybertronian dies as a result of having their spark extinguished, theus body will lose its color. All that's left behind is a gray, empty shell.

The monster lifted the deer so that it was held directly in front of its ghastly face. Instead of simply opening its mouth, it split its own jaw completely in half. Row upon row of sharp yellowed greeted their prey, before sinking into the buck’s head. It antlers sloughed off and fell to the forest floor. The poor deer's head barely gave any resistance to the creature’s bite, getting chomped away easily as a stalk of celery.

Twitch immediately felt sick, the urge to vomit filling her despite not even having a stomach.

Nightshade starred, wide-eyed with morbid curiosity, unawall to tear away their gaze.

With one of its clawed fingers, it easily gutted and flayed the remainder of the deer with the precision of a surgeon. It swallowed each limb whole, not even stopping to back a breather between each bite. The deer's torso was impaled on the tallest tree around, seemingly leaving it for later.

Full enough for now, the metallic corpse leaned over, resting its damaged arm on the forest floor. Slowly but surely, the severed tendrils twisted and grew, sprouting forward from the site of the injury. Soon enough, it had a brand new hand, identical to the original.

All of the damage the siblings had inflicted on the creature was undone in a moment.

“This isn't happening…” Twitch’s voice was barely a whisper, her entire body fighting back the urge to retch.

"A Valiant attempt, little one, But not good enough."

The creature's unnatural voice made the static on the monitor worse as it spoke. How it had heard her from so far away was a complete mystery.

The thing bent forward to show its back, smaller tendrils poking out of the monster's armor. They wriggled and writhed, pulling themselves from the beast's back. Falling out from the cracks in the metal, two smaller creatures collided on the ground before standing up. They superficially resembled Cybertronian protoforms, but were differentiated by the claws and soulless eyes of the original monster.

"Go get me the green one. The red one is yours… consider it a treat."

It pointed towards the camera at the base of the tree. The pawn-like monsters listened, immediately making their way towards the barn.

"I'll be seeing you shortly, Maltos."

It bowed at the camera, before walking backwards out of site, into the woods.

“We are sooooo screwed.” Twitch mumbled, once the whole ordeal had concluded. “How did it find that tiny little camera? And when did it learn our family's name?”

“Don't worry, we, um…” Nightshade’s usually calm demeanor was shaking, the panic getting to them as well. … ‘“We should be safe here.” They placed a hand on her shoulder reassuringly, metal clicking as they touched. Twitch immediately swatted their hand away, turning in place to face them.

“Safe?” Her optics went wide, sparking with a furocity Nightshade had only seen a few times before. “Safe?! You just saw that thing make more of itself, Nightshade! We are anything BUT safe right now!”

They knew she was right, and that their reassurance was an empty gesture she had easily seen through.

“I’m sick of this.”

She drew out both of her swords.

Nightshade looked visibly shaken from Twitch's outburst, justified as it might be. If they could cry, they would be tearing up.

“Twitch, I-”

Twitch cut them off again.

“I'm going out there to defend what I love!”

Even though Twitch was running off fumes, she would fight an army if it meant keeping their family safe.

Nightshade rubs their optics before putting a hand on her shoulder once again.

“Not by yourself. I'm coming with you.” Nightshade informed her with an uncharacteristically stirred tone.

“You need to stay here, with them.” She pleaded. “I've got more training than you. I can handle this.”

“With all due respect, there isn't a chance you'd survive going head to head alone with our advisory here. I doubt even Optimus could take that monster down by himself. I get why you want to stay back, but we won't be of any use without each other.” They leaned in, giving Twitch a big bear hug.

“We're doing this together,” said Nightshade.

After a moment of hesitation, Twitch nodded firmly.

“Together.” she replied, hugging them back.

They made sure everything was secured before drinking what was left of the energy drinks in hopes of staving off the creature's parasitic exhaustion. Venturing out of the dugout, they double checked to guarantee the door was locked behind them.

The bots stuck close by to one another, Twitch leading slightly ahead. Just as Nightshade got an arm's length away from their sister, something jumped on their shoulders and wrapped its arms around their neck.

It was one of the odd gray things that the creature had produced. The thing was about Twitch’s size, only barely taller than the average human. Nightshade was able to pull their assailant off them, slamming it against the dirt.

Cracks formed on the monster's armor, its left leg was bent in the opposite direction.

This seemingly didn't slow it down, however, as with a high pitch grunt it snapped its leg back in place before charging at the green mech.

“NIGHTSHADE! Go high, I'm going low!” Twitch changed her hand into a blaster before taking aim and firing. The laser shot hit the monster's bad leg, blasting it off from the knee down.

As it stumbled, Nightshade talons struck against its face. This almost completely destroyed one of its eyes, leaving a deep gash. They knock it back with a powerful upcut to its jaw, sending half of its pointy teeth into the air.

As it fell backwards, Twitch raised one of her blades. She sent an aggressive slash on its shoulder. The sword moves in a round arc, cutting its torso in two like a knife through warm butter.

Both halves of the body fell down. Horrifically, even though all the monstrosity had left was a single arm, it continued to drag itself towards them. The thing seems either unaware or unbothered by the fact that its insides were being scrapped across the ground as it moved.

Nightshade backed up a good distance from their pursuer before running back at it, full sprint. With one solid kick, they sent its head flying over the house.

“Goal!” Nightshade cheered, twisting around to check on Twitch. Their little joke seemed to have worked at lightening some of the tension, and she smiled back at him widely. “That was awesome, Nightshade!”

As the small monster's corpse finally fell still, the siblings celebrated by high-fiving each other.

Their victory was short-lived, however, as an enormous hand rapidly grabbed Twitch from around the house. Nightshade ran after it, coming to stand in front of the Goliath.

“Let me go!” Twitch remanded, taking a shot at the thing’s chest, leaving nothing but a small burn mark. It retaliated by squeezing her tighter. With its other hand, it picked up her swords before tossing them away into the woods.

“You! After all this… chaos! What more do you want?” Nightshade yelled as loud as their vocal processor would allow.

The creature flexed its long neck towards the ground, gargantuan eyes boring holes into Nightshade's very being.

"It appears your human masters didn't raise you with any manners, child. But for future reference, it's not considered polite to ask such questions before being given a proper introduction."

It gave a devilish, cocky smirk. A sickeningly smug expression from a creature who had known it had already won. It was just toying with its prey now, watching them squirm and suffer for its own amusement.

"You may call me exquisite corpse. I've seen how smart you are, I assume you can guess how I earned such a title."

Nightshade wasn't even sure how to respond. This thing's manner of speech was infuriatingly civilized, clearly in an attempt to further provoke them.

"As for your question, I am after you in particular, little owl."

“Me?!” They blurted in response. “And what makes you think I'm going to go along with this?” Nightshade challenged, trying not to let their confusion and fear show.

The haughty grin on Exquisite Corpse’s face never faltered.

"Oh, I suspected resistance from you, child. There's a good reason I made my powers known to you from the start."

It leaned in even closer, its massive face just inches from Nightshade. Bits of blood and refuge from the deer it had previously consumed clung to its metal fangs.

"You know what I'm capable of. You know what I could do to not only her..."

It shook Twitch around in its hand, causing the red bot to yelp in shock and discomfort.

"...But to your entire clan if I wanted. So now that you're aware what's at stake, I don't think you'll put up any more struggle when I tell you to come with me."

“Don't even think about it, Nightshade!” Twitch barked.

"I didn't say you could talk, fly!"

It screeched, pressing its claws against her even further. Twitch's body creaked as she tried not to scream from the pain. It was clear that if Exquisite Corpse's grip got any tighter, those claws would rip right through her.

“Stop!” Nightshade begged. “Please, just put her down…”

"Oh, I'll do a lot more than that. Do as I say, and your entire family will get left out of this unfortunate little affair. "

It leaned its empty hand in front of the bot.

"How does that sound, owl?"

The lights in Nightshade's optics streaked, making their vision go blurry. Tensing up, they reluctantly grabbed a finger of the giant hand back, shaking it.

“I accept your terms.” they solemnly said, biting their lip in anguish.

"I knew you were smart. Very good."

It tossed Twitch to the ground, the minion pawns standing behind her with baited breath, held back only by their obedience to their master like a dog on a leash.

Exquisite Corpse gently picked up the owl, exhaling a deep purplish smoke in their face. Nightshade immediately felt more tired than they ever had in their life. As their body went limp for exhaustion, they heard one final exchange from the monster to its servants.

"She's all yours."

As they walked off towards the woods, the last thing Nightshade could process was Twitch's, violently screaming out for their sibling to help her.

To the continued…

#transformers #transformers earthspark #earthspark #tf earthspark #maccadam #tfe #nightshade #earthspark nightshade #transformers nightshade #twitch #transformers fanfiction #tfe twitch #earthspark twitch #twitch malto #transformers twitch #horror

[usedpidemo]

Update - 2nd year anniversary! (plus a reflection, and future plans).

Hi everyone! π here.

Today, May 13th, is the day I officially opened up this blog and began writing degenerate and immoral stories! 2 fucking years have passed, how time flies. So much can change in a year, and so do some of the stats!

First work: Sandwich - Red Velvet Wendy (published 05/13/21, 4:03 a.m.)

Highest note count: Awards after-party affair - Itzy Yuna (published 10/23/22, 1167 notes)

Number of works published: 80 fics (1 fic every 9.1 days)

500 followers: June 18, 2021 (36 days or 1 month, 5 days)

1,000 followers: October 12, 2021 (152 days or 4 months, 30 days)

2,000 followers: June 18, 2022 (401 days or 1 year, 1 month, and 5 days)

3,000 followers: November 12, 2022 (548 days or 1 year, 5 months, and 30 days)

Follower count: 3,953 followers (5.4 followers a day)

I wish I had something awesome lined up to celebrate this milestone, but I don't have anything prepared XD I've been busy and lazy at the same time. (Is that even possible?)

Actually, yeah, I do have a whole week's worth of cool things lined up this week! If I can even follow through with this one...

Monday: AMA

Tuesday: Reader Poll

Wednesday: ???

Thursday: ???

Friday: ???

I don't want to make the fun section of the update elaborately long, so I just want to say thank you so much to everyone for the support! Even though I'm not as active or as productive as I used to be, your eagerness never wavered, and you guys enjoy me talking about random shit on the side, whether it be song lyrics, Pokémon, or literally posts without any context to them. I love you guys. Here's to another year 🧡

Everything else from this point is a brief reflection and introspection of what I've been feeling since then. You can ignore this if you wish to do so.

So today marks the second anniversary since I opened up this Tumblr and became a degenerate writer. The work I've been putting up is getting worse—in a sexual and filthy way, not objectively—and my mental health has been getter much, much better! When I made the same anniversary post around this time a year ago, I was at an all-time low, mentally speaking. I really felt like I had not much left to give at that point, my skill has stagnated, and I thought there wasn't much for me to improve on. If you asked me if I had any future plans for this blog, I'd say I'd be done by the end of 2022, if not sooner.

It's now 2023, and I believe I'm as good as I can be right now. Slumps happen for a reason, and you can't always win, but it's how you bounce back from the lowest of lows that you reach highest of highs. And I believe I can still get better.

Genuinely, not to sound arrogant, because Lord knows I'm not the best fanfic writer—fuck no—I'm not anywhere close, even in a theoretical top 1000 list, but I do think some of my finest work have come up in my most recent fics. I don't know, it feels more polished and there was more effort and deliberation put into it. The numbers don't lie, either; every single work I published since May 2022 has over 400+ notes, and I've even passed the 1000+ note barrier twice! It goes to show that you guys are enjoying what I'm putting out as much as I love making them, slow and difficult it may be. I can fondly smile at last year's additions to my masterlist and say, "I can't believe I did that."

I do want to apologize if my output rate has drastically slowed down, and if I'm not as active as I was before. It's unfortunately part of the sacrifice needed for better quality control, and also because I have more personal commitments to attend to. 2023 has been fantastic for me so far in almost every department, except maybe physically—I could use more exercise—but that can be worked upon.

I do believe I'm on borrowed time. Again, look at the gap between fics over the past six months ago, and it's only going to widen once I enter my third year of college. I also have to begin considering what hobbies and other things I should do to occupy my free time, so I can be more productive as a person. This isn't to say I'm definitely quitting, but I expect more responsibilities to be shouldered onto me in the future, and having time for myself is going to be pretty much a birthday gift with how rare it might be given, and I'd prefer spending my time off recharging and relaxing instead of stressing over inconsequential or 'fun' things.

There's a lot of people I want to thank specifically, because while I was struggling with my own personal battles, they've been encouraging me to continue fighting and have been absolute lads—and lasses—throughout the past year. When I needed someone to talk to that wasn't my therapist, they were there, and I took solace in their comfort and companionship. I can't tag you guys, but if you're reading this—Chunk, Raf, Peach, Aaron, Sol, V1n, Iz, Ddeun, C.o, Kaede, Frisky, Smite, Shaun, Sins, Jett, Eros, Prael, Ken, Cray, CJ, Sooya, Gray, Svn—I sincerely thank you. God bless each and every single one of you. And to Tim, I really hope you can see this, but I'm truly, truly sorry. I hope we can find a way to bury that fracture in our relationship in the past, and we can reconcile. If not, then I just want closure and peace for the both of us.

So in closing, I want to thank you so much for sticking with me through the bad times and prospering with me through the good, and I'm always humbled that you've taken a chance on me when I started, when I was a hopeful newbie, two years ago. Now here we are. I appreciate every single one of you, be it a fellow writer, a reader, or a lurker.

With grace,

Peter / π

#update #anniversary

[batfamhyperfixation]

so I was just scrolling throught your blog and I saw the fanfic of Jason in the room with the gas AND I NEED MORE. Like I know how Bruce reacted cause of the tags but I would like to know how Roy and Lian reacted to it if possible.

Sorry it took so long to reply, I was like oh I'll write a little thing for you from Roy's pov and then it ended up being like 4,500 words, so like, it may not be quick, but it is plentiful and should sustain your need lol

(Original post OP is talking about)

Tick. Tock.

Drip.

Tick. Tock.

Drip.

Even when the room is silent, there is so much noise. My brain feels clouded by the ticking of that stupid clock on the wall, the dripping of the IV. I can't lose Jay. I can't even stand to look at Jay in this condition.

I grab Jay's hand, intertwining our fingers, rubbing my thumb along his.

Please wake up. I need you. Please.

I bring our hands towards my lips and kiss his hand. I lower our hands and close my eyes.

Tick. Tock.

Drip.

I hear hurried footsteps pattering across tile. Then the door barges open. I open my eyes to find Bruce Wayne standing there, mouth ajar, staring at Jason on the bed.

Dick comes up behind him a few moments after. We make eye contact and he weak heartedly smiles. It's a little awkward, we kinda drifted apart a while ago, and we haven't really addressed the elephant in the room, which is me getting- um- close to his younger brother since after we drifted apart.

Bruce walks to the other side of Jason and sits in a chair, Dick walking to a chair right next to Bruce. Dick and I are right across from one another now, so I stare at Jay's hand again, entangled with my own.

Bruce is talking, worked up about something, but I don't listen to his words. I need to pick up Lian soon. She'll be surprised it's me picking her up. Usually Jay does that. Should I bring her here? No, I don't want to traumatize her. She shouldn't have to see Jay like this. Seeing him like this is the kinda thing that would stick with a child. She can just see him when he comes home- when he wakes up-

"Roy, are you listening?" Bruce says.

"I'm sorry, what?" My eyes dart up to the two of them, Bruce staring at me.

"I asked about arrangements after." Bruce says.

"After?" My brows come together and my nose scrunches. I look to Dick for help.

"After he wakes up," Dick clarifies for me.

"Oh." I say. I make eye contact with Bruce again. He takes it as a sign to keep talking.

"I just think it would be... best to have him stay at the manor during his recovery, a close watch might be best, besides, we can't have his medicine going... Missing."

"Bruce!" Dick turns to him. He meant he doesn't want me to steal any of his medicine. It's been years and yet, when all he knows is Green Arrow who last saw me when I was at my rock bottom, I suppose he thinks I will be too tempted, that it won't matter what kind of drugs, as long as it's drugs. That it won't matter that I've been clean for years. That it won't matter that I get scared just taking cough medicine or aspirin.

"Look, I don't mean any disrespect. I just want Jason to get better-"

"Me too." I cut in.

"So are we agreed then, the manor is the best thing for him."

"I- uh- I-" I let out a deep sigh, "Sure." I squeeze Jay's hand even harder. I dont feel like fighting with Bruce.

I look over at the clock. 45 minutes til she's done with school. How far away is it from Wayne Manor- I'm not usually here. I should probably leave early anyway to make sure I get there with time to spare, plus then I can get out of this unbearable talk with Bruce, no offense Jay.

"I need to pick up Lian," I say, standing up. Dick perks up.

"Oh, can I go with. I haven't seen Lian in forever, and," he looks over at Jay, "It's not like I'm doing much here."

"Oh- uh- sure." I say. Dick stands up.

I can't look at Jason, so I give his hand a squeeze, hoping it's enough; hoping even in his state, he understands.

I walk the halls with Dick at my side. The silence between us is deafening. I don't know how we are going to make it a whole car ride like this.

I get into the car, and then I unlock the doors, pulling out my phone for a gps. Dick opens the door, hopping in.

The address- what is the address of Lian's school. Can I just type in the name? That would make sense, it is a phone-

"I'm sorry about what Bruce said. He didn't mean it." I close my eyes and take a deep breath for a moment, then I go back to my phone, typing in Lian's school.

20 minutes away. I will have to spend- I look at the time. 19 minutes to in the car with Dick once we get there. Should I suggest we do something else in the mean time? No I really just want to see my daughter.

I start the car, getting out of Bruce's driveway, which should take up like 15 of the 20 minute drive, like who needs this big of a driveway.

At the end of his driveway, I offhandedly say, "You can put on any music you want." At least then it will fill the silence and we won't have to talk. But Dick makes no movement to put on music.

"So, what have the others been up to lately? Garth, Wally, and Diana," I say.

"Well, Garth is now the Tempest I think. He- um- I think he tried to go back to his tribe- Ideali- Idolic-"

"Idyllist, right?"

"yeah, that sounds right, but they um…"

"yeah, but also that's just the stupidest thing ever, purple eyes doesn't signify shit."

"right! Like I feel so bad for him. Imagine casting out your kid cause you don't like their eye color."

The conversation picks up from there, and it's actually an enjoyable car ride to the school.

"We still have like 15 minutes before I should go up there." I will give myself 4 minutes so I can make sure I'm out before she is.

"Oh?" Dick's words have more weight, a 'You left really early, something I have never known you to do, ya wanna talk about it'-ness to them.

"I- I can't stay there for long. It's so hard to look at him like this, I-"

"Yeah, like he's my brother, so I can imagine how hard it is for you, you guys are close friends." Wait- does... Does Dick not know me and Jay are married? Oh god, I don't think we told him or Bruce cause then we would have to tell them we didn't invite them to the wedding. I mean, we didn't invite Ollie either, but still- Dick has been my friend since the teen titans, and he's Jay's brother, but I don't wanna be the one to tell him. He's a detective, I'm sure he'll figure it out. Oh shit, he's still talking.

"- and I feel like you are probably one of the people who know Jason best, so this is probably hitting you harder than a lot of us." Dick finishes his sentence.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

"Tell me?"

"When Jay knocked on my door that day, I knew you and Bruce were falling apart, but he asked me not to tell you guys, and I didn't want him to run, so I took him in and I got clean and we worked on his anger, and we grew closer, and I don't know, I probably should have told you but I wanted him to tell you when he was ready, I didn't want to take that from him."

"I was not mad at you, if anything, I'm just glad he was safe and with someone I trust the whole time. And I get it, part of me knows it would not have gone so well if he came to Bruce right away."

"It was so hard to keep it from you though, every time we hung out, it was on the tip of my tongue, it was, like, about to burst out of me, I wanted to tell you so much."

"And that's why we stopped hanging out as much after."

"Yeah." My eyes dart down. I'm still kinda ashamed of myself, that I wasn't stronger. But then again, it felt like I was constantly lying to him, so maybe it was better I cut him off.

"I-" he glances over at the clock, "Oh, we should probably head up there." 5 minutes until she's done. 5 minutes until she asks about Jay. 5 minutes until I have to tell her everything.

"Yeah, let's go up." We get out of my car and walk up by the other parents who are waiting for their kids. I say hi to a few of the other parents, we have short conversations, a few ask about Jay, saying they thought he would be here. I tell them he got hurt so I came today.

When the bell rings, kids start filing out. A little girl with black hair comes out, and upon seeing me, says "Daddy? Daddy!" Before running up to me. I pick Lian up, hugging her. Then she leans back, swiveling her head around, searching.

"Where's Papa?" That's what she calls Jay.

"Papa?" Dick asks from behind me. Lian looks at him, confused who he is.

"Oh, Lian, this is Papa's brother, Dick." I say.

"You told me I'm not allowed to say that."

"No, Lian, it's not a bad word, it's his name." She looks Dick in the eyes.

"Your parents must not like you." I barely keep myself from laughing. I'm gonna have to tell Jay about this later.

"How about we go to the car." I wave at a few parents before turning around and walking towards the car, hoping Dick is following behind.

"Are we going to see Papa?"

"No, Papa is sick, so he's gonna be gone a few days."

"I thought when you are sick, you stay at home, not go out."

"Sometimes, but if it is really bad, you gotta go." I get to the car and unlock the doors. As Dick is getting in the passenger seat, I open the backseat door and set Lian in her carseat.

I get in the driver's seat and turn on the car, pulling out of the school and start on our short drive home.

"But guess who's coming over tonight?"

"Who?"

"Aunt Kori!" Dick's head turns so fast I'm afraid he'll break his neck. I don't know if he's seen her since the two of them broke up but I don't think he knew Jay and I were really close to her.

"Yay! When is she coming over, is she staying for dinner? Can I show her my toys?"

"I'm sure she would love to see your toys, and I don't know when she is getting here."

When I texted her that Jay got hurt, she said she will be over here by tonight. I told her he is not at our apartment, that he's in Wayne Manor's medical unit. She said she can wait for him here, and that 'besides, someone should entertain Lian so I can worry about Jay and I can go to work.'

Jay usually is at home when I am at work, so Kori figured someone should be here even when he's not. This is no where near the first time she's slept on the couch, she does it so often, she doesn't even have to ask anymore. We talked about getting a three room apartment so she can have her own room, but we are still looking for one that wouldn't move school districts so Lian wouldn't have to switch schools.

We get home, going to our floor, and Dick is following at our heels. When I get to the apartment, I don't need to unlock it, which means Kori is already here.

I walk in, and I can see she already set up on the couch, right next to our marriage license. We had to forge the marriage certificate, but now he is Jason Harper. A pro of being married is that he can take my last name when 'Jason Todd' is dead, then we don't have to worry about finding a whole new identity for him. We are simply known as the Harpers to people around here, a normal family. Lian looks like Jay too, so much so that most people assume she was his kid, not mine.

As soon as Lian sees Kori, she runs at her, nearly leaping at her and talking a mile a minute. Dick follows, merely taking a step inside the apartment so I can shut the door, not moving past that, just staring at Kori.

Kori looks up at us, a moment of confusion crossing her face when she sees Dick, but it goes away just as fast as she looks back at Lian, still talking.

Call me a coward if you will, but I went to the kitchen so I didn't have to be there for their awkward reunion. I started dinner- usually Jay does this- so I grab something simple, pasta, it's hard to mess up noodles. I fill the pot with water and put it on the stove. Kori comes in a few minutes later and takes a seat at the table near me.

"So..." She starts. I know she wants me to talk, she is waiting. Whenever she wants to talk about something, she says 'so...' then refuses to talk until I talk about what she wants to talk about. If I try to avoid it, she just stays quiet and raises an eyebrow, daring me to keep trying to change the subject.

"Look, I'm fine, it's Jay we need to be worrying about."

"Roy, you are cooking dinner at 3:30pm so you can do something that makes you feel productive. A dinner that takes less than 20 minutes to make."

"Well you came in here to avoid talking to your ex."

"And we will be talking about that later, but you cannot change the subject."

"What do you want to hear? That I couldn't even look at him today? That I am spiraling thinking about what could happen if he died?"

"Is that what you want to talk about?"

"I don't know."

There is a moment of silence.

"Jason isn't coming home when he wakes up."

"What?"

"Bruce said he wants Jay to be at the manor when he's recovering."

"Like hell, Jason won't let that happen."

"He- he brought up-" I cut myself off and her eyes narrow. I shouldn't have said that.

"He brought up what?" She looks on the verge of rage.

"It's not that big of a deal, he just used you know what as a low blow to justify keeping Jay at the manor."

"It better not be what I think it is."

"Forget I said anything."

"How am I supposed to forget something like this?"

"If it makes you feel any better, Dick stood up for me." Stood up for is a bit of a stretch, but still.

"Oh. He did?" The water starts trying to boil over, so I turn off the stove. Dinner before 4pm probably isn't the best idea anyway.

"Do you want to talk about being around your ex now?" She's quiet, "Look, Jay isn't here right now and I won't judge you if you say you still have feelings for him." She sits there for a moment longer, then she just smirks and stands up.

"Let's go play a game with Lian." We walk out of the kitchen and by the couch where Dick and Lian are sitting. She is currently showing him her toys, probably Kori's doing, but he is sitting there listening intensely like this is the most fascinating thing on the planet, occasionally asking her questions.

"Hey Lian, why don't you go get your board game, we can play it." They look up at us, then Lian nods before jumping up and running to her room.

"Uh, hey Roy, where is the bathroom?" Dick asks, standing up as well from the criss-cross-applesauce position he was in.

"Oh, it's down the hall, second door on the right." There are 4 doors, the first door on the right is a closet, the second is obviously the bathroom, the first door on the left is Lian's room, then the second door on the left is Jay's and my room.

Lian came back and we started setting up. Then Dick came back, looking like he had something he wanted to ask, but he didnt. He had that look throughout the entire game and through dinner.

"Ok Lian, I gotta go take Dick back, I expect you to have taken your bath by the time I get back. Kori can get your water ready and help you if you need it." She gives a little soldier salute before shoving a few more noodles into her face.

Dick follows me out to the car. Getting in the passenger seat.

"I assume the manor?"

"Yeah, my car is there." He pauses. "You know, I think this is the first time I've been to your apartment since before Jay moved in." Oh. I think it has.

"Oh, well, you're welcome any time." I say, starting the car. We sit in silence for a bit as I drive through neighborhoods and out onto the main roads.

"Are you and Jason together- like romantically?" He blurts out. My body tenses and my hands grip the steering wheel tighter.

"I was meaning to tell you- it just never came up." I say.

"How long?"

"Uh, a bit after Lian came to live with us."

"It's been years? You two are married. He took your last name. You live together and sleep in the same bed. You are friends with parents at school. Lian calls Jason 'Papa'. None of this was worth mentioning? He's my brother. You are one of my best friends. I wasn't even invited to the wedding."

"We got married before you knew he was alive, so we couldn't very well invite you. We would have though. You don't think I miss hanging out with you too. You don't think I didn't want to text you all the time telling you 'hey, I'm married to the love of my life and you and I are brother-in-laws now. Lian is now your niece. Ollie and Bruce are in-laws now and don't even know it." As upset as he is, he chuckles at that last part.

"They are going to be so mad when they find out."

"Oh please, they'll just use it as an excuse to invite one another to parties and such just to upstage one another." I say. Ollie and Bruce have been rivaling each other since before Dick and I were on the Teen Titans together.

"That would be pandemonium."

We sit in silence as I pull up to the gates of the manor. I drive up to the doors, and before Dick gets out, I stop him.

"Please don't tell Bruce." His eyes search mine. "Jay and I haven't talked about it yet and I don't want to tell Bruce without Jay's permission." He nods.

"I'll text you with updates on how he is doing."

"Thanks. And Dick-" he turns to face me.

"Yeah?" he asks.

"Sorry I broke the code."

"Code?"

"The friend code, don't date your friends' siblings." I say. He laughs.

"I'll forgive you this time, just feel lucky that you don't have any siblings I could date to make us even. After all, Connor is asexual and you don't have any other siblings."

"I see Kori like a sister." I blurt out. Dick went red, avoiding eye contact.

"Goodnight Roy."

"Goodnight Dick."

The next few days went by with little news. Dick would text me but not much happened. He told me Bruce would not leave Jason's side, even after we were told he'd be ok, that he just has to wake up and he will be okay.

I would go to work, Kori would stay at the apartment and pick up Lian from school. At nights, we would eat dinner, Lian would take a bath, and I would tuck her in. I can tell she misses Jay, she keeps asking how much longer until he comes home.

I also miss him. After I tuck her in, I go to the kitchen. I avoid going to my room for as long as possible, I don't want to sleep in our bed knowing he isn't there, that he's in that hospital bed in the medbay. Kori comes in and talks to me, knowing why I don't want to go to bed.

On the third day like this, after I tuck Lian in, I go to my phone and I see a text from Dick. He woke up. HE WOKE UP. I tell Kori, she takes the phone, asking more questions- how is he? What other injuries is he facing? Is his head foggy or is he doing well? Questions I can't bother to ask because all I can think about is that he's awake!

Kori takes a phone call, probably with Dick. I just sit down, still grinning ear to ear. I can't wait to see him. I'll take the day off work, I can take Lian over to him tomorrow. Hell, I can keep her home from school and if he's feeling up for it, we can go do something.

I go to our room and tidy a few things up. I don't want him coming home to a messy apartment in a few days. I finish making sure things are nicely put and I walk out to find Kori sitting on the couch.

"Dick said he's in good condition, they want to keep him a few more days, but we can visit tomorrow. He also sent a picture." She shoves the phone towards me.

The picture is of Jason sitting in his bed, a tray of food in front of him as he gives a thumbs up to the camera.

I smile at the photo.

"Wanna send him one back?" She says. I sit down and we make silly faces at the camera before sending it.

"Ok, now that you know he is awake and safe, you should go to bed so you are wide awake tomorrow when you see him."

"I know you just want me out of your hair... But I will comply so I can be banging on their door, Lian in tow, at 7am to get to him." I walk back to my room. I am so antsy that I sit in bed for a while longer, looking out the window that leads to the fire escape. It's the same fire escape that Jason uses when he goes out as Red Hood, and I use when I go out as Red Arrow. It's the same one he used that day last week, before-

I hear the door open.

"They're gonna be mad." Kori's muffled voice.

"I don't care." Another familiar voice I recognize all too well. I stand up, walking to the door.

"Where Roy?"

"He's sleeping." I'm walking down the hall.

"Should I go wake him up?" I turn the corner and I see him, standing in front of Kori, eating food he probably picked off of her plate.

We see each other, and I let out a shaky breath. He just smiles his little crooked grin at me.

"Jason," I say before we collide, grabbing onto one another like if we let go, the other will disappear. He hasn't showered in days and he needs to shave, but I don't care, I bury my face into his shoulder and he clings to me.

"I missed you so much." I mumble into his jacket.

"Not as much as I missed you." He lets out a breath, one that sounds like it's been stuck in him for a while, like this is the first moment he's had to just pause and appreciate that he's here.

I let out an amazed laugh, "What are you doing here, I thought you were gonna stay at the manor a few more days."

"I wanted to see you." He says, looking at me like he still can't believe I'm really here, probably how I'm looking at him now. "Both of you." He's eyes go from lingering on me over to Kori, going back and forth as we both stare at him like he was just raised from the dead. Again.

"You know, I don't care how mad Bruce will be. I'm just glad to see you again."

"Papa?" A little voice squeaks up behind Jason. Lian comes out of her room, rubbing her eyes. Jason turns around and when she sees it's him, comes running over. He squats down to pick her up and then spins her around. Settling her on his hip as she has both arms hanging around his neck.

He turns back to Kori and me, his eyes resting on me. He mouths the words 'I love you' and I mouth the words back. Kori interjects.

"Ok, as much as I hate to break up this family reunion, it is like 2am. I'll go put down Lian again so you two can talk." She gets up and walks over to Jay and Lian. Lian shakes her head and clings harder to Jay.

"Nuh-uh. I wanna stay with Papa."

"Don't worry, I'll be here tomorrow. We can hang out all day, but you gotta go to bed so you aren't falling asleep while we hang out." She bites her lip, thinking it over. She looks at me, and I give her that parental look of 'You know what you are supposed to do'.

"Fine, but you have to hang out with me all day tomorrow." He kisses the top of her head and then passes her off to Kori.

"I promise." Kori leads her over to me to give her a kiss before bringing her to her room to put her back down.

Kori will probably want to go to sleep when she gets out. I tilt my head to gesture that we should go to the kitchen. He nods.

I sit down at the table and he fiddles with the radio on the counter, playing some song softly in the background. Jay loves to play music if he's in here, so I let him.

He sits down next to me, and I take his hand in mine, entangling our fingers. I bring it up to my lips and kiss his hand, looking him in the eyes. We sit there enjoying the moment for a while. A few songs later, he stands up.

"I love this song." He pulls me up to my feet before pulling me close to him. He grabs my waist and leans his head on my shoulder, swaying. We stay like that after the song is over, softly talking, long after Kori turned out the lights, the only lights left being the lights of the city out the window.

Eventually, at like 4am or so, we went to our room, and we rolled into bed, clinging onto one another as we talked to each other about everything and nothing until we drifted to sleep.

#ask and you shall receive #jayroy #jason todd #roy harper #lian harper #koriand'r #kori anders #dick grayson #bruce wayne #did I mention anyone else in this? #batfic #fanfiction

[chameliyun]

20 Q's for Fic Writers

thanks for the tag @spacejammie-eimmajecaps!

How many works do you have on ao3? Officially 8, but I have one on anon and one currently unrevealed in a fic exchange

What's your total ao3 word count? 61,996

What fandoms do you write for? So far I've written for Death Note, Tangled the Series, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Haikyuu, plus a couple of crossovers. Haikyuu is definitely my main rn though

What are your top five fics by kudos? #1: Frosting and Freckles: 69 (nice) #2: Draw Me Near: 39 #3: [embarrassing anon fic]: 35 #4: Varian Is Not a Wizard: 25 #5: Midnight Coda: 21

Do you respond to comments? Yeah, I love to! I don't get a lot so they always make me happy :)

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? probably the anon fic sdfsk but other than that, Midnight Coda is kinda bittersweet because of what happens later

What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? hmm idk but the sappiest is definitely Frosting and Freckles

Do you get hate on fics? Not so far, thankfully! I don't think I have a big enough readership for that haha

Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I have not; not sure what kind it would be if I did

Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written? I love writing crossovers! A PJO/HP crossover was actually what got me into fanfic. Unfortunately most of them are merely concepts or abandoned (for now), but as for crazy, I think my Lunar Chronicles/PJO one is the craziest in terms of how the plot grew out of control from a simple "what if these two characters interacted" to "I could rewrite most of this series," which is why I got stuck and put it on hiatus lol but I do want to get back to it someday. Maybe once I finish my other active crossover

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not to my knowledge

What's the longest you've spent working on one fic? And the shortest? Uhhh well if we count "working on" as "having it in the back of mind to get to but haven't worked on in months," probably Sent from the Heavens lol. If not, then Varian Is Not a Wizard (just over two years since I published the first chapter). Shortest is definitely Midnight Coda, since I wrote that pretty much in a day iirc

Have you ever co-written a fic before? No, but it sounds like it could be fun!

What's your all-time favorite ship? From all fandoms? Dude I have no idea how to narrow that down. Best I can give you is my current fave is Tsukkiyama from Haikyuu

What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Probably my "Leo Valdez ends up in the ATLA world" one :sob: It never made it past the word doc and about three pages of story and I haven't looked at it in like two years

What are your writing strengths? I like to think I'm pretty good at dialogue and grammar/spelling

What are your writing weaknesses? Everything else (jk). I am awful at describing scenes/settings; I get bored writing them so I don't put as much effort in as I should haha. I also tend to ramble and use passive voice too much

Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? I haven't done it, but I think it's fine as long as it fits the context

First fandom you wrote for? Published: Avatar: The Last Airbender. Unpublished: Percy Jackson

Favorite fic you've written? I think it's still Bent Out of Shape. It's so niche, but I had an idea and I executed it, and I'm proud of what I accomplished. Although once I finish Varian Is Not a Wizard, that might take the top slot.

No-pressure tagging: @supermarine-silvally @starrynightarchive @litterateur97 @palant1r @soreiya @lilac-writes @oloreandil @kandybarkreepshow @ellegamgee and anyone else who wants to!

#writing #fanfiction #ao3 #tag game

[ridetherain]

Courage At the Front Part 1/2

Hi. I have Zelda fanfic for reading. It's been mostly finished for like, a year? I had a lot of fun with it and I learned a lot about WWII warfare. Thanks to the hubby for pretending his expertise in pre-industrial arms and armor also includes early 20th century tanks.

Summary: Zelda is a mechanic and Link is a tank operator in Hyrule's WWII equivalent. And our two heros get trapped together behind enemy lines.

Warnings: This is a WWII fic. It has crude language, descriptions of frontline warfare and it's aftermath, slight gore and major character injury. And gallows humor, cause they're soldiers in war and they gotta live through it somehow.

Part 1 | Part 2 | AO3

Part 1

Zelda

"I want to do something real!"

Zelda was screaming at her father over the phone. She was breaking every one of her rules. No using royal privilege; how else was she going to get access to a phone? No subverting the chain of command; well, she had gone directly to the King. That might have skipped a few rungs on the ladder. Act like any other enlisted man; and screaming at the King is unlikely to be the standard operating procedure. Zero for three.

"I've been trained to fix anything! I was best in my class! Jeeps for the brass are not a priority. I should be with the troops and I should be serving my country in the best way that I can. Isn't that why I'm here?"

All the wind had blown out of Zelda's sails by the end of her argument. She was getting nowhere with the King. He wasn't going to lift his order to keep her safe and he certainly wasn't going to send her to the frontlines himself. She'd trained to fix the heavy infantry tanks that were stationed all over the eastern front. She was the best. No one was faster or understood more intuitively what needed to be done. But, instead, she was fixing jeeps that the Generals treated like pleasure vehicles. They'd come in with no gas and tell her it was broken or they'd need their goddamn wipers replaced. It was insulting.

"Nevermind, father. I'm going to get back to work."

She hung up and went back to her command. Which was a small motor pool with a squad of mechanics. Technically she was due a larger command, but no mechanic this far from the fighting should have her rank. The boys didn't really need her there at all, truth be told. General Impa was a micromanager and their shop ran like a civilian auto repair anyway.

Link

Link huddled into his small corner of home in the trench. He'd cleaned it up nice so there was a small divot dug into the wall so rain wouldn't ruin his small collection of keepsakes. Right now he had a little journal to write in, some playing cards, and a letter from some school kid who informed him "Mr. Owlen says I have to tell you that you're brave" which was charming enough to keep. He'd smoothed the ground beneath his feet so that he had comfortable dirt to sleep on and his trusty rifle settled over his shoulder digging into yet another dug-in divot in the wall. All-in-all he'd dressed it up to be the nicest spot in the line.

His squad had been stationed here for two weeks so far with very little else to do. At some point they would probably jump up and storm the enemy, but he tried not to think about that. He was too young to die. He tried to keep some dirt on his face at any moment. He wasn't technically old enough to enlist and anything that kept people from really looking at his face was a plus. It was easier before. He was the loader on a medium tank with only four other men for company. But then the gunner got his points and was sent home leaving the rest of them a man down. He'd gotten orders an hour ago to report to the depot to be assigned to a new crew in the morning. Until then, he'd be hunkered down here in this cesspit trying to get some shuteye and stock up on "supplies" that weren't part of the standard kit. Dirty pictures, booze, and hopefully some real food.

Zelda

"Lieutenant! Call for you, ma'am!"

"Thank you, Private."

Zelda took up the office phone and snapped out a greeting. She was losing another man. Pretty soon she was going to be running this place alone. Apparently heavy fire was anticipated and they needed another mechanic on hand familiar with the newest combat vehicles. She took up her roster to see who had the best qualifications for the job. If they were calling up someone from here it would be a rough job. She ran her finger down the list and stopped at a name. Could she do that? There was an obvious implicit order, but it wasn't actually said. She had free reign to send whoever she chose. Who could stop her decision? They were leaving soon.

She scribbled out the order, updated the roster list, filled out the daily report, and marked the next in command. She would leave immediately. Her duffle was already supplied for departure and she grabbed a go-kit with essential tools. The truck was already nearly loaded up with supplies and her driver was climbing in.

"Ready?" She called to the back when she was settled.

"Ready!" the loaders confirmed.

"Move out!"

The driver pulled out of the compound and they were on their way to the front. He glanced at her, but clearly eyed her epaulettes before deciding to keep his mouth shut.

Link

Link settled into his position in the turret. They were buttoned up and already getting ready for a fight.

"Load up, gimme seven five!" The new commander Burlon called from his spot above him in the radio seat. Link slithered down to the floor and started pulling up the armored cover and pulled out the smooth munitions. Burlon was calling out directions to Dalt to position the gun. The ammo was loaded and the gun was ready in seconds.

"Up!"

Burlon called out the fire and Link pulled up the next load. He was fast and being small made it easier for him to get into all the little hideaways where any spare air was filled with ammo. The place stank up quickly with the sweat of five men in tight quarters. It was hot as ever and beads of sweat ran freely down his back. Only his hands were kept dry with any spec of spare cloth to be found. He couldn't afford to drop something. One store empty, Link closed it up and moved to the next in an awkward spot beneath his gunner's butt.

"Move your ass, Dalt. I can't get in."

Not quite a well oiled machine just yet, this new crew.

"Fuck you. I gotta aim."

"Quiet. All of you," The commander was looking through his scope, "HEAT! Take us back!"

Burlon's frantic calls on the radio blurred into the background. Anti-tank guns. Link scrambled to lock away all the mortars. Easiest way to kill a crew was to blow them up with their own gun. The tank rocked roughly in the retreat and Link banged his jaw against the bottom of his seat. He let out a slew of curses and braced against the top cage.

"Back in your seat, soldier!" Burlon ordered.

Still cursing, Link threw himself into his seat and threw a hand up to check his face. It came away bloody.

"Incoming!" As one, the team bent and braced for impact.

Zelda

"Okay team, the enemy is retreating. We need to get out and salvage what we can. Level one and two damaged vehicles will be handled by the first division. Level three damage is us. We'll work from near to far."

Zelda nodded to her partner and began running to her assigned vehicle. A Farore Mk IV about a mile away that's likely still in good enough condition to at least drive. The field was a mess of tracks and mud and empty casings. Burn marks scorched across huge stretches of land where shells exploded. Zelda tried not to see the remains left behind. The wounded and dead were attended already, but sometimes things were left behind. A half burned boot was stuck in the mud and Zelda pretended it's because the soldier decided to take off his shoe. She knew these soldiers were fighting for their homes and their families, but it felt like they were fighting for her as the Princess. She would face the cost when she wasn't working. When she had time to process.

She stopped with her partner, a big Private who could do some of the heavy lifting, when they reached a potential salvage.

"What do you think, ma'am?" He circled and shook his head.

"I don't think so, let's keep going. We can't drive with the track looking like this." It was mangled. "Avoid that next one, it's still smoking."

"It should be alright, let's look real quick. See? The smoke is coming from the front. Probably just overheated." Zelda wavered and the Private took his chance.

"It'll take less than a minute to check and then we can move on."

Zelda sighed and gave a nod. He was older and more experienced for all the rank difference. They crept to the tank and began an exterior inspection. Smoke was lightly billowing from the front so Zelda moved around to the back to ensure that whatever was smoking wasn't coming out another side.

Everything looked fine in the back except another pair of boots under the chasis. This time, the boots still had feet in them.

"Hey! Wounded!"

Zelda pulled on the boots and a soldier slid free with a squelch. She yanked his shirt out of the way and thrust her hand to his throat for a pulse. It was strong and steady. The Private was working the portable radio frantically.

"Lieutenant! Incoming troops! We have to find shelter!"

"What?!"

"I'm going in!"

"What?! NO! It might not be-"

An explosion cut her off. The opened hatch let in a rush of oxygen and ignited the dying fire within the tank body. Zelda threw herself over the unconscious man. She held on for dear life and clamped her eyes shut. Her ears rang and her head blurred, the heavy armored vehicle rocked ominously in her direction. The enemy was coming. She never learned her partner’s name. The man below her would die if she didn't recover quickly enough. What next? She could hear them coming. A dull rumble turning to a roar. Men shouting.

She shoved the wounded man back under the chassis where she had found him and squirmed into the mud beside him. She prayed to all the goddesses that they would take the smoking remains of this tank as reason to pass it by. Prayed that it wouldn't continue to explode above her. Prayed the man next to her didn't die while she laid in a grave next to him. Just in case, she kept her hand on his throat to feel his pulse throb in a steady, comforting rhythm.

Link

His head ached. A terrible ringing grayed out his vision. His body was hot and cold and hot and cold. His throat was full of smoke and death and weight. And damp. A wet, hot, muddy hand was pressed against his throat. He breathed in quickly then was cut off from shouting when the dirty hand shot up to his mouth.

"Shh!" He couldn't see the shusher, "They'll hear you."

It was a woman's voice. Link tried to take stock of the situation, but there wasn't much to go on. He was lying in a drying puddle of mud under what was likely his tank with a woman. If it weren't for the mud it might have been on purpose. And if his head didn't feel like it had been split open by a hatchet.

"What happened?" His words were slurred.

She didn't answer immediately.  "We were overtaken."

Enemy territory. Okay. There was a process for this. Hide. Get somewhere safe. Take stock. Gather supplies. Make your way back. Don't get caught.

"Did you work on this hunk of garbage, Sargent?"

"Yes, ma'am. Loader in the hole."

"Okay. Then here's what we're going to do. The M4A2 at two o'clock looks in alright condition from here. We'll take shelter inside until we can come up with a better plan or until we can get it running and make a break for it."

"That's a Zora tank. I've never-"

"Me, either. Can you walk? You hit your head, I think."

"I think so. It's not far."

He really wasn't sure. The woman, a Lieutenant, seemed to have a plan which is a sight better than he had so he would just have to make it. The mud squelched and slurped noisily with every extracted limb. A cool breeze nearly froze him to the bone after so long in the damp. The Lieutenant steadied him with one hand and kept a grip on a metal box with the other. He thanked the Goddesses when he realized it was a mechanic's toolbox. She carefully picked her way through the supplies they had strapped to the back of the vehicle and grabbed the med kit and a small bag of foodstuffs. Link grabbed his personal pack and slung it over his shoulder with his rifle.

They set out across the field with furtive glances in the direction their camp used to be back when it wasn't completely deserted. The ground was rough and packed hard from the heavy machinery driving over the ground. A faint smell of dead hung suffocating in the air and kept Link light-headed the entire journey. He hung his head to the ground and followed the woman blindly into danger. They stuck together from one safe cover to the next. She stepped carefully around any unknown piece of metal on the ground and avoided bloodstained dirt like it was contagious. She was basically unarmed and unfamiliar with a battlefield and squeamish on top of it all.

"You green?" he asked.

"No" was the clipped reply. He reached out to her anyway and pulled her up short.

"Listen, Lieutenant Bospho-" He squinted at her name patch. "Bosphor--... Lt. Bosso. Listen Bosso, I've been active for a while and I'm the one with a rifle. I'll take point."

She looked very upset. Either she wanted to lead the way because of her greater rank or she disagreed with his butchering of her name. It's not his fault her name didn't fit with standard sized lettering. He let his grip on her sleeve tighten and pulled her behind him before striding forward carefully and tugging gently at her sleeve in a silent command to follow. She didn't think of an objection before they were moving, but Link heard her mouth click shut. It hardly mattered, superior officer or not she was a mechanic and likely didn't carry anything more than a pistol if she had any weapon at all. He was trained and was at least used to the leftovers in a field. His hands were already bloodied.

Their pace picked up with him in the lead. He marched confidently through the mud, avoiding bloodstains for his delicate companion, and arrived at the Lanayru tank shortly. He circled the machine once to look for smoke. The turret hatch was open so there was unlikely to be anything smoldering inside. Lt. Bosso hauled herself up to the top and flashed a torch into the hole. As it happened, she did carry a pistol, and was comfortable enough with it to wield it alongside the torch.

"No one's home. Let's get in and rest for a bit. I wonder if they've got a decent map in here."

Link pulled himself up and slid in after her. She shuffled her way into the driver seat and he slid neatly into the gunner's . This thing had elbow room. Maybe he should have lied about his age and his home province. This would have been nice. It gave him the room to eye the Lieutenant's shapely behind from several excellent angles while she found her seat. He was still considering his luck when she finally put her butt down in a chair.

"So, Sargent Forrester. Let's figure out what's next."

Zelda 

Sargent Forrester was rude and brash but kindly enough. His stumbling over her name was fairly rude and Zelda wasn't sure how he didn't recognize it. His behavior bordered on insubordination, but she was grateful that one of them knew what to do at least. She could plan all she wanted, but none of this was like boot camp and certainly unlike anything she had seen in her year of service. She ignored him as best she could when they got in the Lanayru M4A2 and immersed herself in the parts she could see from the driver's seat. The most obvious problem was a misaligned periscope, but there was likely something more wrong with it or it wouldn't have been abandoned like this.

She opened her baggage to see what they had to work with. Extra rations would have been nice, but instead there were perishable goods that had the faint smell of smoke wafting out of the first bag. Probably three or four meals worth for each of them. A field medical kit with little more than trauma bandages and some morphine. If things got that bad they were dead for sure. Her kit was undamaged but was designed to repair Hylian machines. The small kit from under the co-driver's seat would be more useful. Her own pack had some rations and a similar first aid kit supplemented with alcohol.

"What's in your bag, Forrester?" she asked. Maybe he had something of use.

He settled further into the gunner seat and closed his eyes.

"Standard pack. Rifle. Canteen. First Aid. Shovel. Ammo. Pistol. Rations. Blanket. Cigarettes. Ma'am."

Technically not insubordinate. The lists soothed her frazzled nerves. When in doubt, make a list. When the air smells of death and sweat and burning rubber, make a list. When you've seen bloody spots on the ground where your subjects lay dying, make a list. When you're locked in a tank with a stranger with a gun, make a list.

To be fair to Sgt. Forrester, he seemed trustworthy. He was rude and gruff, but followed her where she wanted to go and was clever enough to inspect the machine before he just climbed in like her dead partner. She just left his body there. She didn't even look to see if there was anything she could salvage for his family. Self-recrimination ate her from mind to heart.

"Are you alright?" Sgt. Forrester had come up to her from behind without her noticing. His eyes were soft and concerned and scanned her head to toe. He seemed to be assessing her physical and mental condition with one efficient glance. He didn't seem satisfied with the results when he was done. His hand hovered over her shoulder for a moment before retracting back to his knee. "Is this your first time out? There's no shame in snapping your cap looking at all this. I wouldn't judge you for crying even, the Goddess knows I've wanted to more than once."

Zelda didn't want to feel better. She wanted to curl up and wallow in self-pity. But he was kind and she couldn't help but be comforted by his words. She gave him a wan smile and gave herself a little shake.

"I'm fine. Thank you," she said a little more prim than she had planned, "This is my first day out, but I've been in the service for almost a year. I didn't expect... Well I thought it would be different. I've never been to the front before."

"Little more than the front, I reckon. We seem to have wandered past the front and into the back again. This hunk of metal gonna get us back? I've never been in a tube so roomy. We could..." he glanced at her and changed what he was going to say, "We could throw a party in here."

"Yes, well. There's definitely a few things that need fixing. We'll be here overnight at least. Might need to look for some replacement parts. I'll know more when I open her up." Zelda replied. She thought for a moment then thrust her hand in his direction. "I'm Zelda. What's your name?" She wasn't going to miss another name.

"Link, ma'am."

They shook. Link's hand was warm.

Link 

Zelda was a surprisingly good mechanic. She pulled apart the busted periscope and spilled metal innards across the ground like the first slice into a pot pie. It didn't seem like a complicated piece of equipment until he saw all the pieces dumped unceremoniously on the floor of the otherwise pristine cabin. She poked at one of the mirrors with a wrench she pulled from her bag until she was satisfied. Link thought it looked exactly the same as when she started poking at it, but she's the expert.

She bent over nicely to see the track the periscope swivelled on to view side to side. Since her back was turned, Link let his eyes wander over the view she provided. So it was a surprise when a loud clang echoed through the still cabin. It rang like a bell for a moment before Zelda reeled back and whacked the track again with a hammer that had appeared in her hand while he was distracted.

"What are you doing?!" Link asked incredulously, "You're gonna break it!"

She ignored him and reeled back where he caught her hand before she could thrust forward and hit the track again.

"Hey!" She screeched, "Let go! It's almost fixed!"

She yanked against his hold and he tightened his grip.

"You can't do that! What if it breaks? We need that periscope so I can see while I drive this thing back."

She stopped flailing against him for a moment and he suddenly noticed their position. He was holding her arm over her head and had pulled her by the waist to press her back flush against him. There was very little space between them and it was completely inappropriate, but if he loosened his grip she might hit the hull with her hammer again. Or him. Either way, he kept his grip tight and imagined she didn't feel soft and plump and warm. She didn't seem to be having the same problem.

"You drive?! I'll be driving."

"You? I know how to drive these things. You're just a mechanic. You'll be on the radio."

"No, I'll be driving. No one is going to be on the radio. You will be sitting in the back and manning the gun. I can't shoot that thing and there's no way we're getting back without alerting the enemy. When we've crossed the lines then I'll man the radio."

Right. That made sense. He released her body and immediately used his hand to push the hair out of his face. He needed to find out how to fire this thing quickly. She used his lapse to throw her whole body forward and hit the periscope track one more time with all her body weight. She inspected her hack-job and seemed satisfied with the level of damage inflicted. The periscope was reassembled in minutes and she gave him a smug look when it swivelled from side to side smoothly. Minx.

"How do you boys sleep in this heat? I know sometimes you're in here for days. It's suffocating." She asked while sitting down delicately in the drivers seat. It was strangely feminine compared to the way she trudged around while working. She clasped her hands and draped her legs elegantly to the side as if they were sitting in a nice restaurant instead of huddled in a tank beyond the front.

He shook himself. "We don't. I usually sleep on the ground outside. But, we'll have to keep buttoned and tough it out in here. "

Link tried to seem nonchalant as he unbuttoned the first few buttons on his uniform and removed his boots. Every movement felt unrefined compared to her effortless presence. It was going to be a long, hot, uncomfortable night. The width of the cabin wasn't wide enough to lay completely flat, but it was close. He couldn't remember a time that he wished he was shorter. Zelda wasn't faring much better. She was a little taller than him and seemed reluctant to sleep sitting against the wall as he was preparing to do. He mostly didn't watch as she pulled off her shirt to reveal a white undershirt and remarkably toned arms. Link suppressed a smile when she bundled it into a cushion for her distracting bottom. Zelda's shoulder brushed his before he realised that the only place for her to sit was squished next to him, jammed into the console and with her feet pressed against the small step on the other side into the turret. She was soft and warm against his side. He pulled his bandana off his head and offered it to her. Anything to keep her soft hair from brushing him all night long and shifting his dreams to images of her.

Part 2

#rainworks #loz #legend of zelda #zelink #zelda

[hgracieeees]

Get To Know Me

Thank you for the tag, @demdifferentstories-29 <3 No pressure tags - @withlovemuffin @inahallucination @sleepypengwin @lovelylixie

What is your name? gracie

For how long have you had this account? 2 years this month!

Favourite food? pho 🍜

Favourite drink? mocha

Do you have any siblings? two - a younger sister and a younger brother

Do you have pets? no :( i've had fish and stick insects in my past, but not right now

How old are you? 19!

How many languages do you know? only fluent in english, but I've done both french and indonesian language classes

What's your all-time favourite movie/tv show? movies (i can't choose!) - dead poets society, anne of green gables (1985), little women (2019), 10 things i hate about you tv show - good omens <3

What are you enjoying to do in your free time? read/write (incl. a lot of fanfic), play guitar, watch/listen to musicals

Are you an introvert or an extrovert? definitely introverted, but i'm also quite loud and talkative when i have energy

Your favourite music genres? indie and bedroom pop (think dodie & the wasia project)

Your dream place to visit? i really want to visit london and paris (but unfortunately i live literally as far as you can away from europe)

Something you wish you were better at? maths and being socially observant/aware

How long do you take to respond to texts? usually as soon as i see the notif, unless i'm a bit socially drained and then just when i have the energy

Do you have any tattoos? If not, would like to? nope, but i really want one - i want to get 'to the world we dream about, and the one we live in now' (from hadestown) or a bible verse

What's your sexuality? straight

Do you like reading? If yes what's your favourite book? YES. but i'm very bad at doing it - my favourite books are life in outer space by melissa keil, rose for the anzac boys by jackie french, anne's house of dreams by l.m. montgomery and good omens by terry pratchett & neil gaiman

Have you ever been in love? yes? i think i was, but i was 12, so i was as in love as a 12-year-old can be

What's your relationship status? single and not ecstatic about it, but we're working on contentment.

Have you ever been heartbroken? not properly. i'm dreading it.

Best memory you could think of? when the lights came up on opening night of my first leading role - the applause felt so loud.

Worst memory you can think of? the flip side of the above - i forgot half a song on closing night of the musical i was in

Do you have any fears? spiders, heights and the dark give me the shivers.

Are you a morning or a night person? definitely night, but my family are mostly morning people so i don't stay up much longer than they do.

How many pictures you have on your phone? 2,767

Who was your favourite childhood crush? jonathon crombie as gilbert blythe in anne of green gables (loml)

Are you a romantic? i mean i don't really have the data to back it up, but i'd say probably - i consistently have/talk about romantic fantasies and desires. plus the stuff i write can be so mushy and intimate.

What’s your dream date? a picnic! friend date, romantic date, i don't care, if you take me on a picnic i love you. also the drive in (the one closest to me has an honest-to-god 50s diner and i love it v much)!

What are your hobbies? listening to/writing music, writing, reading, dancing

#get to know me #get to know the person behind the blog #get to know the blogger

[shychick-52]

Weird writers asks- 1, 7, 10, 13 and 19!!!

OOOH, THANKS. :D

1. What font do you write in? Do you actually care or is that just the default setting?

Times New Roman, size 12. So, standard. I'm used to it, having written in that all my life, plus it's by far the easiest on my eyes. I know there's a trick with some other font that's supposed to increase writing speed or the amount you write, or something, but I always forget to try it!!! DX

7. What is your deepest joy about writing?

Breathing life into the characters and scenarios in my head. It's such a fun, almost surreal feeling. Writers are demi-gods, at the very least. We create life. :D It's like that one lyric in the 'Barbie Girl' song- "Imagination, life is your creation!"

I also love sharing my ideas about my favorite characters, including my headcanons, with others. Even though not many people read my stuff, I still love putting them out there. XD

10. Has a piece of writing ever “haunted” you? Has your own writing haunted you? What does that mean to you?

I've been haunted by so many wonderful writers' stories, including yours! In other words, a really incredibly-written, powerful story (often heavy on the drama, angst, and hurt/comfort) that stays with me for a long, long time that I can't stop thinking out. One that destroys me in the best way.

As for my own writing, it doesn't necessarily have to be angsty or dramatic, although those are my favorite kind to write about. It's often an idea that I can't stop thinking about, that I HAVE to write or I'll go crazy. Like 'Who Am I?' and 'Circumstances and Control'. And I can't stop thinking about where to take the story next, what to do with the characters (usually it's the multi-chapter stories that haunt me the most), and I lie awake at night planning out details, scenes, and dialogue. And even once each new chapter is posted, or the story is finished, I often re-read them to see if they're as good as I originally envisioned or if I still feel the same pride about them I felt in the first place (and I'm pleased to say they usually do hold up).

13. What is a subject matter that is incredibly difficult for you write about? What is easy?

Anything sexual (especially pure smut). I'm ace/sex-repulsed as hell. I don't have much experience writing or reading about sexual content, let alone... ah, personal experience (because I'm not comfortable with any of it), so I also wouldn't even feel confident trying to write it. (However, I did write a one-shot fenro story called 'A Definitely Real Man', which was SCARY AS HECK because I've never done anything like that before. But to my surprise, it turned out really well.)

Subject matter easy for me to write is anything angsty. Especially where loved ones' lives are at stake or are dead (with lots of grieving, suffering, and even self-blame). I also love writing about abusive (or dead) parents.

19. Tell me a story about your writing journey. When did you start? Why did you start? Were there bumps along the way? Where are you now and where are you going?

I wrote my first fanfic in high-school for the anime series 'Cardcaptor Sakura', which was a really short one-shot. (A friend of mine had introduced me to fanfiction, and after reading a bunch of it, I decided to give it a try too.) As the years went one, I wrote more and more fanfiction for different interests of mine and soon it turned into a life-long hobby to this day.

As far as original writing goes, during my university days I wrote the first two books in a planned-out children's book series I've always wanted to write and publish. Unfortunately, it went through a lot of hiatus and writer's block because I couldn't get the story and characters to work properly. So, I abandoned it until years later when I picked it up again with a whole new idea to make it work; I ended up scrapping most of the original storyline and characters, leaving only the bare bones intact. Since then, it's worked out much better! I'm currently writing the third book in the series and editing the first two, but I don't really know how many books I want the series to be. Maybe two or three more? (I'll probably never get it published, but who knows? At the very least, it's another fun hobby.)

#thanks for the ask!! #weird writers ask

[wiseabsol]

As an update for everyone, I've slowly been making my way through the repost project in an unrevealed collection on AO3. It's been a little on the tricky side, since some stories actually have multiple versions (namely the one-shots) and some stuff is unfinished and I'm debating how best to handle those. I don't know when I'll be able to hit the reveal buttom and let you all dig in, in part because I definitely do want to eliminate some of the, uh, distasteful bits. I'm hoping I can maybe reveal the collection as a Christmas gift to you all, though? "TPRS" is going to be the biggest hurdle, because that sucker is so long and is the Mewtwo fanfic equivalent of Elfen Lied.

On the plus side, though, looking at my fanfic roots has been kind of fun, and I am looking forward to releasing some never before seen stories. Also, looking at "TPRS" is definitely going to make it easier to get through an "AS" reread, because boy howdy is "AS" much better. I also have some more bonus content for "AS" started, which I'm hoping to work on more this year, as well as the fic itself.

Of course, I also have a fantasy/scifi/horror original fiction novel in the works, so that should take priority. I have it on good authority, though (i.e. people who have been reading my work for a while now), that it's promising so far. I also have been revisiting my thesis project from grad school with some new ideas, too, which has been exciting.

In short, I know it takes me forever to get anything done these days, writing-wise. But the juices are flowing, so it's just a matter of time.

#My writing #Adult life has been a kick in the teeth for getting creative work done #But I'm trying

[fragmentsofsorrow]

2, 4, and 9 for the fanfic asks?

2. What fanfic do you wish you got more response on?

I'm gonna have to go with (Nothing Is) Whole; not that it's been ignored or anything—it's honestly been pretty well received—but I have to pick something. I've put a lot of work into both this fic and the much larger AU it belongs to over the last four years and it's definitely the favorite child, so I'm always going to want to share it with more people

and yeah, when all there is so far is a single introductory chapter posted just shy of a year and a half ago, it's understandably not gaining much new attention, but also consider: I love that AU so much

4. Do you prefer writing multi-chapter or oneshot fanfictions?

in general, I prefer writing multichapters. I like to write scenes and even lines out of order for my multichapters, and I really enjoy the whole planning process for my larger AUs

but it also depends on what works best for any particular story. if I have a fic idea and it works best as a oneshot, trying to write it as a multichapter regardless is not going to go well for me

9. What’s your favorite line(s) or scene(s) that you have written?

okay, look. I'll be honest, the entire 2000 word Memory's Skyscraper scene in the first chapter of Not Your Sacrifice is my favorite thing I've written. there's a lot of different things I love about it and I'm not about to quote the whole scene to talk about all of them

but that's a short and boring answer, so I'll talk about one of them!

there are two parts of that scene that involve Xion summoning a keyblade; one with Oblivion, and then another one later on with Oathkeeper. taken individually each one is some of the best writing I've ever done, and I'm really proud of having written them

but they're also intentionally very structurally similar to each other and are meant to mirror each other in a few ways. I'm really happy with how well it turned out

I'll throw the two excerpts under the cut because they about double the length of this answer and it's long enough already (plus, y'know, the fic link is right there anyway)

the Oblivion part:

There was a flash as Xion summoned their keyblade, and moments later one of the heartless exploded into darkness as the black blade cut an arc through them. Oh. That was new. Xion looked down at their keyblade, taking in its unfamiliar new form. Instead of the silver coloring they were used to, this one was mostly black, though some silver remained in the handle and at the tip of the keyblade. Two bat wings served as the guard, with a purple gem inlaid where they met at the base of the blade. A chain ran the full length of the blade, which ended with ornate teeth more detailed than the ones on their Kingdom Key. Somehow, they knew this keyblade was called Oblivion. A fitting name for a keyblade wielded by someone who wasn’t supposed to still exist.

the Oathkeeper part:

A flash of light accompanied Xion's last few words as they readied Oblivion, and when it faded, Xion held another keyblade in their hand. In their left hand. It wasn’t Xion’s keyblade. That was still in their right hand and once again pointed at Riku. In several ways it was the complement of Xion’s keyblade. While Oblivion had a pair of bat wings, the wings that made up this keyblade’s handguard were feathered. While Oblivion was primarily black, this one was mostly colored a silvery white. And while Oblivion had a single blade, the blade of this new keyblade was split into two. The name Oathkeeper came to their mind, but Xion barely registered it over the realization that this was Roxas’s keyblade. It was all they had left of him; a reflection of who he was, one last echo of his— They let out a pained scream, both keyblades falling to the ground and dematerializing, as the realization from earlier that day finally caught up with them. Roxas had a heart.

#q&a #stresslitzia

[noemitenshi]

Some emoji asks for you: 🌞🎨🎃

Oh yay, fun!

🌞 Do you have a preferred time of day to write?

I don't think I do (anymore). I mean what I like to do is start my day with writing or like, write as early in the day as possible. Since it gives me a motivational burst also for other things and I'm not as down when it's late and I'm too tired to finally get to what I wanted to do the whole day. And then most days I either type up what I've written (yes, I like to write on paper first) and/or (also depending on how tired I am haha and other committments) write some more. But basically what I do prefer when writing is to have some dedicated time alone. That's the most important thing (plus the none-tiredness. yes that's a thing with me ^^0)

🎨 How do you feel about fan art of your stories?

I fucking love fanart about my stories. I can't imagine anyone not loving it!! I mean, someone was so inspired by my words they wanted to create, too (also goes for fanfics etc)?! That's so so amazing, i'm just 😍🥰😳😵‍💫💖💖💘 hihihi (also shoutout to @lindamarieanson for being that person, you're the absolute best 💖💖💖)

🎃 Do you write fics for certain holidays? Which is your favorite holiday inspired fic?

I actually don't really like doing that 😅 and i think i've never done it. I think because especially with holiday fics I feel like it's easy to get too cliche (which, honestly, doesn't bother me as a reader haha but as a writer it does. I have a real aversion against going chliche routes and my impulse is always 'ok, what's now the thing that's more unexpected. how can i make this different'; incidentally this is also the case whenever I try to write for a given theme, haha, it's certainly a very me-thing) - so if I did attempt one it would need to break out of the the mold, so to speak. And so far I didn't have an exciting enough idea I guess 😅

Thank you so much for the ask 🧡 (and many happy writings to you)

#ask game

[recurring-polynya]

Writing/Art Update 10/15/2022

Bleep blorp, my brain is so bad these days!!!

That is mostly a lie! My brain works just fine for daily stuff, I'm just kind of a mess at writing lately. We have a New Content now, and it's a lot easier to get distracted on social media, etc. I remain concerned that I'm not sure I be a person who exists and participates in a non-dead fandom, but, like, what else am I gonna do?

Anyway, I never did go back and write my Day 4 Bleach Returns story, and at this point, I think I've just moved on. (I still may do a bonus day, we'll see). I finished my next chapter of Tattoo AU, it is currently in beta, so you should see it soon. It's long, the longest chapter so far. I had a mild crisis while I was walking the dog today, because I was thinking about my overall outline and what I have left, and I feel like it might actually be too long and people are gonna start getting mad about these idiots not getting together. There's very definitely a part I could just chop, which would tighten it up a bit plus then I would be done faster but I donnnnnnnnn't waaaaaaaaant toooooooooo. Part of the charm of being a fanfic writer is that no one can tell you not to make your story worse if you're really committed to it (well, my beta reader can, maybe I should just ask her 😂)

There's some kinda Ichihime week coming up and I might try to do a drawing for that. I have not been drawing enough lately (I NEED to finish my LAST project but it's sooooo much wooooooooork). I am a mild Ichihime shipper at best (they are my fave pairing for one another, I just don't usually have a whole lot to say about it) but I consider myself a friend of the Ichihimes and I like to contribute something to their celebrations when I can. I really liked the style I did my Arrancar piece in, so I might try that again. I should probably also look at the prompt list again.

Anyway, you can definitely expect a chapter of fanfic from me this week, but after that, who knows! Certainly not me!

#writing update #art update

[demon-that-slayed]

alright hello I'm already gonna warn you, this'll be long. btw, thank you sm for doing it, I'm really hyped! you're gonna do amazing, I know that, so do ti as you wish, full creative freedom. (btw, I'm gonna copypaste this because I've already written it once, hopefully that's alright with you)

okay! so. starting with me ig. i dont even know how to begin.

im listening to music atm. i always do - people that dont always listen to some music are kinda psychopaths if you ask me. like, if im not listening to music, i'll be listening to an audiobook or a podcast or be watching some video or netflix. i cant not do anything. i say i love reading, but the last time i read a book has been weeks ago. i just have reading slumps sometimes. not saying that i dont read regularly - god, no. i'll find enough fanfics and oneshots and shit to count for a book. but most of the time i can spare, i try to write. and at the moment, im really doing good! i write drabbles almost daily, and i try to finish a chapter for my actual wip bi-weekly. which... i gotta admit doesnt work all the time but im trying! im just a shit ton of a procrastinator. like, sometimes it physically hurts telling myself i need to do something but not being able to get up and actually do it. i kinda zone out a lot too when im forced to sit through something boring or just when i cant listen to music/watch something at the same time. i fidget a lot, too. so basically as you can see im always doing something, always have something going on inside my head, am quite loud. like, literally, im the loudest person i know, except for maybe my dad, and im really expressive. could be italian with how much i gesture.

for my hobbies, well, ive told you about some of them so far. im not really... sporty. in the slightest. and i dont like sports either. but the one thing i do indeed like is badminton, which i do somewhat regularly. i think i'd suck at quidditch, but, unlike football, i do believe i'd be interested in watching. also i just really want to fly a broom - like, if i could pick any animal to be, i'd be a bird. always would have said so in the past too. maybe a cat, just because i really love them, and am planning to get one as soon as i get my own apartment. i'll take one from the shelter, i think, and if i could pick it'd be a black one so i can call it toothless. i do have a dog right now tho, or rather my family does. i love her, but she's not as cuddly as i'd like her to be, which, i mean, is fine im trying my best not to step over her boundaries, but then again my love language most certainly is physical touch, so my favourite moments with her are when she just allows me to cuddle her in front of the fireplace. its kind of a tradition at this point when theres fire in there. what else is there to say?

ive said quite much already but i feel like im still missing some.

i guess im really insecure of some things. dont get me wrong, i know my strengths, and i fucking love correcting people, my ego is over the moon sometimes. im stubborn and i hate being wrong and i know that im obnoxious when i discuss, just because i cannot stop discussing if theres still something to discuss. but im trying to better, really. some of it at least. still, i am in fact really insecure it seems. i worry so much what people might think of me - i cant present anything to anyone other than my closest family or friends because my voice will start to shake and i will start to sound like im gonna cry. on the topic of that, i cry so so easily. its horrible, really. plus, i have huge anxiety and i get panic attacks regularly, which kinda fucks with my sleeping schedule because they always happen when i go to bed.

okay, but enough with the depressive shit, im not done talking about myself yet. if you let me talk about myself i can and i will write paragraphs. really, dont worry putting all of this into your response. just think of it as me being super happy youre doing this because, honestly, genuinely, i am.

but getting on with it. when im excited, im kinda... like a child, in a way. like i let out unnecessarily high pitched screams and i cant stop laughing when ive started, and i clap my hand in front of my mouth or shake my arms out. im just really, really emotional tbh.

my favourite feeling is melancholy though. its... beautiful, in a very terrifying way. its the kind of feeling you get when you think about your childhood, or old friends, or family members you dont see anymore. its a feeling but its so much more and - i dont know. i dont know how it couldnt be my favourite.

i love sunrises and sunsets and i love the sun in general. im a summer person, partly because im always really cold (my circulation in my hands and my feet is fucked lmao, plus my blood ran low on iron for a while) but like, its summer, i dont get how it cant be people's favourite. plus, my birthday is in june, and my birthday is my favourite holiday. with christmas following.

okay i match you with…

REMUSSS

okay so be warned this is a very bad description but i think you guys would be great with eachother like these are very random things sos I’ll make a list :

(these are like headcanons if that’s fine)

okay so at night when you can’t sleep, he’ll just like cuddle you and make sure you’re fine, and you would make him happy just being there I guess, yk

anyways you two would like bond on liking music and what books you like and you always would have like mini arguments which end in him sarcastically admitting youre right which makes you feel good even if it’s not bc atleast you are right about this song being better or this character being more beil. than the other.

in summer and winter you always dragged him out for the sunrise/sunset and like he would jokingly complain sometimes because he would melt in the heat because it was always cold in the dorms and he had his sweater on

in the winter though you would steal lots of his sweaters and wear them piled on top of eachother because you froze in the cold

also when the full moon was near you’d always like be there and make sure he’s okay and you’d be like there for eachother all the time and like

he would sarcastically/jokingly be annoyed at you but actually really enjoy being around you, especially before you guys date.

oh yeah and you have picture albums filled with pictures that you, remus, or someone else takes that fill the albums

anyways, i hope this was good, ive never done this before lmao

[dracothedeatheatingcupcake-ao3]

Top 5 headcanons, either that you’ve personally thought of or saw someone else mention (hope you feel better soon 💛)! Doesn’t specifically need to be DR, whatever is easiest to come up with haha.

Ooh, this is a good one! I think I will do DR head canons, since it'll just be easier for me to keep straight, ha.

Also, thanks! I'm feeling much better now than I did yesterday. Yesterday sucked, oof. I'm pretty sure it's either a mild version of the flu, or a strong cold. The flu is usually mild with me, since I have a good immune system and I get vaccinated every year, so either is possible. At least I've not had any nausea so far. I hate throwing up, oof. But thanks for the concern! :-D

Ask me my “TOP 5/TOP 10” anything!

Okay. So, most of my top head canons are ones that are used in TPWP/TPWM, or any of my other DR fanfics, so they will likely seem familiar to those familiar with my work, ha. Most are ones I came up with myself, but some are inspired by things I've seen around. ^-^ Some of these are two-parted, with one head canon connecting to a second/third, but they need to exist together... if that makes sense. Also, these aren't in order for which I like best, and are instead in order of being least to most my own idea. So... 5 is most based off other head canons, while 1 is completely my own thing, make sense? I was originally gonna order from least to most favorite, but that doesn't really fit here, ha.

5. Taka has severe anxiety. Like... this is kind of not a head canon at this point, considering the things Taka would say in canon, but it was never said outright in canon, plus other things could have caused Taka to say the things he did. But considering that I have fairly bad anxiety, I like to head canon Taka as having anxiety too. In conjunction with this one, there is also the head canon that Mondo has self-esteem issues and actively hates himself. Again, it is supported in canon, but since it's never outright said, it's still a head canon. I also take both to more of an extreme, ha. I just think it's an interesting dynamic to have Taka with anxiety and Mondo with self-esteem issues. I've definitely seen this done in other fics, so it's not really my own idea at all.

4. Taka's mother is dead/Taka was (or is) very close to his mother. I saw the "Taka's mother is dead" one in a fanfic somewhere, and it stuck with me. I think I came up with the whole Taka is close to his mother thing, though I doubt I'm the only one to think that. I wrote it in TPWP to have Taka be more of a parallel to Mondo (both of them lost someone close to them that they loved dearly and irrationally blamed themselves for), but I do like the idea of it. Concurrently, I also head canon that Takaaki loves Taka dearly, but is just really bad at showing it. This is similar to something I read in a fic once (I think it was in One Personal Favour by ChasML, which actually inspired a lot of TPWP early on), in that Takaaki is a bit dismissive of Taka and distant, but I wasn't a big fan of how they made Takaaki not actually love Taka in the end. So, I came up with the head canon that Takaaki was indeed distant and sometimes dismissive of Taka, but it wasn't malicious or anything. He was just grieving his late wife and didn't know how to connect with his living son anymore. However! I did write one fic where Taka's mom is alive (I don't think it'll ever get published since it's in WIP hell, sadly), though, and I had a wonderful time writing their relationship.

3. Daiya met Taka when he was younger, maybe even saved his life, and neither knew about it. This one was a head canon that I was very hesitant on at first, since it seems too serendipitous and coincidental for my liking, but the more I thought of it, the more I liked it. I even wrote about it in The Problem with Families. I just really like the idea that Taka did meet Daiya at some point, since Daiya is so important to Mondo. I think I did see this one somewhere in a fic? With Daiya rescuing Taka from a bully or something when he was young, but I don't know if that came before or after I came up with this head canon. I don't remember which fic that was, though, sorry.

2. Taka says "it's a Kiyotaka Ishimaru guarantee!" (Or, I suppose "Ishimaru Kiyotaka guarantee," considering he's Japanese). I honestly have no idea where I got this idea, but it started in one of the middle chapters of TPWP and I was super enamored to it and I added it to earlier chapters. It just seems like a Taka thing to say, you know? Super dorky, but also kind of endearing. I think I started it as a sort of parallel to Mondo's "promise between men" thing, but honestly, who knows. Either way, it definitely has been cemented in my brain and is just something Taka says, ha

1. Daiya has a mentor that helped him when he was younger. This one is also concurrent with the head canon that Daiya and Mondo's father was abusive and their mother was a negligent alcoholic, as well as the head canon that Daiya is several years older than Mondo. I came up with this idea when writing TPWM, and y'all will have seen it in the latest chapter with Daisuke. I really like the idea, though. Mondo canonically stated that he only had Daiya as family growing up (and I saw someone say that Mondo's reference to his mom in a FTE was something added in the English dub, which makes sense since I never understood how that fit with him stating he only had Daiya), so it makes sense that their parents were terrible and not really in the picture. Mondo's anger and his anxiety talking to people (women in canon, but it can be thought that it wasn't just exclusive to women) are signs of abuse and negligence, too, so that whole idea isn't completely far fetched. Having Daiya raise Mondo pretty much on his own from the time Mondo was a baby is also not completely far fetched, since I have sadly heard real stories of older siblings almost exclusively raising their younger sibling. However, I like the idea that Daiya wasn't completely alone, and that he had some semblance of a mentor/positive father figure in his life that helped teach him the rules he taught to Mondo. I've not really seen this as a head canon before (the abusive father one, yes, but not the alcoholic mother one either), which is why I'm putting it at number 1. It has nothing really to do with canon, either, just is something I think makes sense and would be nice.

Alright, done! Phew, that was a lot. However, I do have one bonus thing for y'all that I thought of when I was writing the one about Taka's mother. This one isn't really a head canon, but like I said, I was reminded of it and wanted to share. Anyway, in the same fic where I had Taka's mother live, I also had Daiya live, since I like Taka and Mondo being parallels to each other. However, I don't think that Mondo would have become the person he is in DR if he didn't have some tragedy befall Daiya, so in this AU, Daiya was hit by the truck like in canon, but here he survived. However, he fell into a coma for a few months, which made Mondo super guilty and worried, leading to him having a similar reaction to the whole thing.

Daiya did eventually wake up, but he was paralyzed from the waist down and has some trouble using his hands, meaning he cannot ride a motorcycle anymore, plus he needs someone around to help him do certain tasks. Obviously, both Daiya and Mondo prefer that Daiya is alive, but it does lead to some tension between the two, especially with Mondo's insistence that the whole thing was his fault. Daiya does not see it like that at all, he knows that it was completely his decision (and one he'd do again, gladly giving every and anything to save his little brother), and he gets frustrated with Mondo sometimes because of his guilt. But ultimately, they are still very close and love one another dearly. Also, Daiya teases the hell out of Mondo for being head over heels in love with Taka while not realizing it, but that's just a given. ;-) And he's so, so proud of Mondo for having gotten into Hope's Peak, and had to pretty much force him to leave Daiya to the care of some members of the gang and head off alone to school. ^-^

Thanks for the ask!! :-D

#Ask Answers

[trickster-shi]

Project Updates 3/13/24

So, I just realized that I haven't done Music Rec Monday in a couple weeks and my last Project Update post was...middle of February?

In my defense, IRL work has been horribly stressful. My workload tripled and I am still trying to get out from under it. Managing that has been a not so walk in the park. More like I got bulled over and never did make it back up on my feet.

But this week is a good week because I have the entire week off work. It kinda snuck up on me, what with the never ending stress and all, so I was incredibly happy to leave work on Friday and not look back.

Project Zander

Word Count: 6,797 for Chapter 4

I just completed chapter four last night and sent it off to my beta readers. This chapter felt like pulling teeth but, per one beta reader, it's the best chapter so far. I guess because the first three chapters were more introductory to each of the trio and this one actually gave them some downtime between the Horrors so they could actually mesh together.

Plus, I threw one of the characters off a cliff. That was pretty fun. And Zander finally had enough quiet time for the Horrors to sneak up on him and give him a panic attack, which he handled in true Zander fashion. That is, he turned it all into anger and vowed that if he couldn't keep Darius and Elivia safe, then he'd burn the entire world down in their wake.

He's such a dramatic little shit, I love writing him.

However, despite the fun parts, the overall writing was hard, but with all the above stress I guess that's probably why. To me, writing this chapter felt not only disjointed but also like pulling teeth. I had the middle scene already written before chapter three was done, so it was scene 1 and 2 that I had to focus on. I wrote them both so piecemeal that it was hard to feel like any of it was cohesive.

But apparently it turned out that way, so that's a win.

I had hoped to really hit the chap hard over the weekend but I actually didn't get around to writing it until today. The weekend was for grocery shopping, resting, and planning out the week. Monday, I sat down with every intention of finishing the chapter. Instead, I ended up playing in Wonderdraft all day and made a pretty kickass map for Project Zander, so I'm still counting that as a work day. At least now I have a nice visual for where everything is instead of *random direction* that way.

No new words written on the fanfic front, though I've done a lot of daydreaming about the current projects between stress attacks. Now that chapter four of Zander is done, I want to take some time and write on the fanfics the rest of the week so I can make progress there. I'm not promising any of them will get finished enough to post by the end of my break, but I endeavor to get a good chunk written for several of them.

#project update #project zander

[mcalhenwrites]

I think your writing is great, and I wish I could write as well as you! I especially love your worldbuilding.

If anyone is giving you concrit that makes you feel demoralized, then they don’t know how to give concrit. Constructive criticism should always in the end leave you encouraged to keep writing and improve. They probably just aren’t your audience and don’t realize that their tastes aren’t objective truth.

I can only really talk about ao3, but it’s really difficult to get readers for original works that aren’t straight up porn. Even with fanfic, stats will always be better for a poorly written fic in a popular ship with popular tropes than a masterfully written fic in a dead fandom or unpopular ship. I really wish there was a place with the openness of ao3 for original works! But as it is, please don’t let stats affect your confidence in your writing.

-Your fan :)

Thank you ;A; I don't think the intention is to leave CONcrit so much as just tear me down. I know with the fandom situation (will not go into it too deep, but that affected tons of authors of the same ship) was more about a territorial pissing contest that made it hard to want to publicly share anything I wrote for the ship. Other writers were viewed as a threat and competition to be smothered out... and I just don't have the spoons on any given day to do more than crawl backwards into my cave and let them have their damn spotlight. Wasn't in it for the spotlight when I used to have panic attacks (and still do) if I get TOO much attention. xD; (I want my writing to be popular, but also I do not want to be perceived, and I want my writing to be just enough to make a living.) Funny enough, that experience was such an outlier for fandom experiences. I spent a lot of time in the Tales of Xillia fandom, where most of the artists and writers were cheering on others and inspiring them. It was such great energy. I was so clueless for someone in his 30s that fandom could be that hostile, which is saying a lot since I've been into FF7 and Kingdom Hearts since the early '00s... (iykyk...) My AO3 stats are mostly fine. Seasons didn't even have any smut and is my most popular work ever, even over anything I wrote in fandom. I noticed a dip in readership as it continued, but that became more about my worries that it had gotten too big, plus... I have been told frequently that my endings are always messy and often rushed. I've worked hard on fixing that, but maybe now they're too slow. Or I just haven't done as good at improving my endings as I thought I had? I don't know. And yes, there's a huge lack of comments on AO3 too. That's a general thing, not just my experience. One reason why I'm determined to always leave comments as best I can, even if I have low spoon days and can only just leave a short one. (I also... postpone reading a lot if I'm low on spoons, bc if I am too out of it to comment, I won't read until I CAN do that...) But like... the kudos and bookmarks are not bad. Generally. Especially for my original works. They're better than expected in some cases, disappointing in others... I don't think reception is ever consistent to be fair. :') The main thing is that I post to the void of social media, and social media never interacts. My average interaction to my writing-related posts is 0 notes/likes/etc. That should say something about how much it's worth to other people. (To myself, it's the world. I think the only thing that bothers to keep me alive, is that I can write.) I really wanted to publish some of my original stories and at least contribute a little to my financial situation, but if no one is showing interest in my writing, why would they buy it? Not really difficult to think they wouldn't. (And as far as the whole "why not just write as a hobby and get a job" argument: I'm disabled and have no skills, and I do not handle being under pressure with serving the public whatsoever, I just cry or get flustered and break down, and if I see anyone get mad at a child in a store, I just SPIRAL. As for the skills, I'm not kidding: I do not have any. I never went to college or trade school, I've never had a single extracurricular... I'm honestly surprised I went to public school, considering my dad didn't want to buy school supplies and said education was stupid. So almost everything I've learned is by sheer willpower, because I struggled in school with almost nothing but Fs from 6th grade until my last three years of alternative high school... and I went an extra year.) I'm just desperate to survive at this point, and writing is the one thing I can do... (Or thought I could...)

I want to add that I'm still writing. I've been working on my stories and even editing some of the older ones to polish them. A part of me doesn't want to give up the dream of at least self-publishing and selling even 50 copies of each book I release (better than nothing), but... another part of me is also like... Hahaha keep it to yourself, Cal. I've been told that I should plenty of times. That it should be enough that I even wrote in the first place. But... weird, that comes from people who constantly post their own writing. As if they also want readers. Huh.