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dawnfelagund · 1 year

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This Week in Fandom, from a Small Site Owner's Perspective

This past week has offered an interesting example of synchronicity in fandom history. On 5 May, a comment on the Silmarillion Writers' Guild Discord about "AI fanart" prompted the mods to collectively make a uncomfortable noise like, "ummmm ..." and swiftly open discussion on whether AI-generated "fanworks" were actually fanworks. (We decided no.) The next day, 6 May, the OTW Signal highlighted the interview with legal chair Betsy Rosenblatt, where she expressed excitement for inclusion of fanworks in AI training and pissed off a bunch of fans. By this point, I'd mostly written the SWG's AI policy but was giving my comods the weekend for further research and discussion on the issue before turning the document over to them for comments and edits.

As a small archive owner, it is interesting to undergo this process, first with my comods and now with SWG members, at the same time as the OTW/AO3 is wrestling through theirs. Yesterday, my afternoon was spent researching and implementing, with the help of my co-admin Russandol, strategies to block as much AI scraping of the SWG as we can. In the aftermath of that work, I wrote this post about a small archive owner's perspective on the issue and how it has unfolded on the SWG vs. AO3.

Then, in a second instance of synchronicity, while I was writing this post, AO3 was clarifying their stance on AI. First, as a PSA to anyone reading this, AO3 does block AI scrapers and has since December 2022 (though I'll be petty and note that it doesn't seem that they've gone as far as the SWG in the tools they're using, at least based on this post). But AI-generated "fanworks" are allowed: "If fans are using AI to generate fanworks, then our current position is that this is also a type of work that is within our mandate to preserve." This is what I predicted in my [synchronous] post, and I was right.

Two big points emerge from my consideration so far of this issue and how it has been handled on a small site (mine) and AO3:

People want/need AO3 to be something it's not because there aren't any other options for the vast majority of fans. (Tolkien fans, you do have options. Not a lot, but trust that there are people in other fandoms wishing they had even the few small independent archives that we do.) OTW/AO3 need to take a principled stand that all fanworks deserve to be preserved. And fans often want spaces where all of the fanworks that ideal encompasses (like AI-generated ...) aren't included. Both are legitimate! But when AO3 is the only option for most fans, they turn their energy to trying to change a foundational value of the one option they do have, and that's fruitless and frustrating and contribute to the comments along the lines of "no one will listen or care."

Big organizations are big, and changing or responding to anything is like trying to port-round the Titanic: It's going to be slow and cumbersome and possibly involve catastrophic collisions with icebergs despite best intentions. In eight days, the SWG went from never having discussed AI formally to having a draft policy in front of members for comment and implementation of AI bot blocking. In the same span of time, OTW managed to rouse themselves to an apology that has been widely perceived as half-assed, and AO3 managed to inform people, after a week of worry, that they've been blocking most AI scrapers for months. This isn't a criticism of those organizations (really!) but an acknowledgement of the difference between big organizations and small ones and an argument for diverse options for archiving fanworks because both options have advantages to offer.

As I said above, I wrote much more about this here.

Of course, what should be done? The options are what they are, right? Right now, yes, mostly. That's the sad place where we've ended up, but we can reverse course. There was a time when many fandoms had dozens or even hundreds of options for archiving fanworks. Those small sites, archives, and communities died due to a variety of factors: closure of the platforms on which they were built (e.g., Geocities and Yahoo! Groups), low to no traffic (due to everyone reading and posting exclusively on AO3), and deteriorating software (e.g., eFiction ... and again at least partly due to low demand, again because everyone thought AO3 would be everything they ever needed).

However, there is hope that more options will become available (or already have).

Neocities is a resurrection of Geocities for personal homepages.

Bobaboard "lets you create moderated, privacy-oriented communities for all your fandom interests."

Dreamwidth is still around, fandom-positive, and underused.

eFiction is being rebuilt, ideally with the ability to host a site through their servers, much as you can build a Wordpress site without downloading Wordpress onto your own webspace.

Fandom Coders is a resource for educating fans who want to learn the skills to build and run website.

I'm working on a tutorial for how to build a fanworks archive in Drupal, the software we use on the SWG. I have the whole thing outlined and will be recording it this summer. Watch this space.

So what can you do?

If fanworks are hosted somewhere other than AO3: post there, read there, comment there, interact there, link there. I cannot overstate how vital this is for small sites.

Make sure your fanworks are archived someplace other than AO3 (like Dreamwidth), even if you're not getting clicks, comments, and interaction there ... yet.

Nearly all of the options for independent sites that I linked above accept donations toward their projects. eFiction is one where I know progress has stagnated due to a lack of funding.

So this turned into another tirade/plea for small sites, but it really is unfair to OTW/AO3 to ask them to be something they were never intended to be, and it's also unfair to fans that they don't have a place to put there work that they feel reflects their needs, wishes, and values.

#fandom archives #fandom and ai

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undisputed-queer-a · 9 months

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The Better Than You Bay Bay story is something special.

I'm worried that my specific sentiment may be cliched but despite these worries, I'm going to talk about masculinity in wrestling.

You see I have often heard the sentiment that wrestling portrays a exaggerated version of masculinity designed to capture the minds of a predominantly male fanbase. And this is for the most part true. The Hulkamania Era was about a statuesque American hero using his giant physique to expel foreigners and Randy Savage. The Attitude Era was about a beer swigging, ass kicking, badass beating the shit out of his asshole boss and those who associated him (I know it's a bit of a simplification). And throughout the years Wrestling has been a masculine thing where masculine men put their masculinity on the line to prove who was best. This isn't me admonishing wrestling, by the way, I love it and have loved it for years and it's ties to masculine ideals aren't a detriment. But it does make it cool when Wrestling stories or character challenge traditional expectations of masculinity and expressions of a male gender identity.

Now sometimes I don't know if these moments are great or that they are so rare that all appear to better than they are. For example during the early days of Cody Rhodes' 2023 feud with Brock Lesner he stated that he was scared of Brock Lesner, that anyone would be and that he was scared but he had to persevere and fight. This was cool, Brock Lesner is f*cking scary and in admitting this Cody presents (in my eyes) as a more real and relatable human person rather than what many other wrestlers present as, some almighty warriors with no fear. Which, to be clear, is fine but it's nice to see other things.

Better Than You Bay Bay is definitely great. And I appreciate Cole and MJF have done concerning masculinity. In one of their first segments as a team they went to the gym acting like toxic gym bros, max made fun of a man for being overweight and while Cole told him it was wrong he transitioned it into a dig at Tony Schiavone. In a following one Max saw some women at a bar and tried to convince Adam to stop being all lame and loyal to his girlfriend and 'bang some chicks' with him to which Cole refused. Next they had a heart-to-heart over a video game with Max opening up and Cole offering support.

Then at the World Tag Title match on Collision MJF puts himself in harm's way to save his friend ultimately costing them the tag titles because he wanted to keep Cole safe. After the match MJF breaks down and is emotionally distraught. Cole does all he can to console Max but Max feels like a failure and like he has let down the one person who, not only he cares about. But the one person who cares about him. And he nearly betrays Adam right here retreating into the scumbag persona that people expect, attacking Cole killing their friendship like it never mattered. But it does matter. It matters to the fans, to Adam Cole and it matters to MJF. So he can't bring himself to betray his friend because he cares too much about Adam Cole, because he loves Adam Cole.

The following Dynamite Max talks candidly about his disability, his mental health and his relationship with Adam Cole. The two share the ring again and Adam takes the time to compliment Max's recent growth marvelling at "the man [he] has become". The two hug to end the segment.

I don't feel I need to spend that much longer explaining this. It's nice that Cole called out Max for being a little sh*t, it's lovely that MJF was open and vulnerable, it's beautiful that the two hugged imploding because MJF caused them to lose, it's beautiful that Adam talked about the man Max is becoming and this story as a whole is special.

In conclusion, this was...um...idk a blog post I guess. But in all fairness don't give to much weight to my thoughts on masculinity, I am a trans woman and not someone who should be an authority on matters of masculinity. But I wanted to talk about it because I think this is a special story and why do I write these posts if not to talk about wresting in a poignant way.

This has been Undisputed Queer-a.

Slay The System, Shock The Cis-tem, and see you next Monday.

#aew #aew dynamite #blog #aew collision #adam cole #mjf #mjf aew #maxwell jacob friedman #better than you bay bay #undisputed queer a

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lesbian-deadpool · 2 years

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At Worlds End

Avengers

Part Six: Rescuing Romanoff

Words: 3,042

Warnings: Smoke inhalation, kicking an unconscious person, heights, destruction, violence, injuries, fights, panic, descending airship, "death", grieving.

Summary: The aftermath of the argument in the lab could have never been a good thing. Teaming up with Thor against Hulk, was not on your superhero bingo, but you're were rolling with it at this point. Also not on your bingo card? A panicked Natasha Romanoff.

Ko-Fi

Commissions

(Not my pics)

---

Smoke filled your lungs with every short gasp you took, coughing painfully, reeling from the harsh collision against your back and the sudden loss of air.

With one large heave, you finally began intaking the much-needed oxygen.

Pushing yourself up with your elbows, you staggered to your feet, spotting Steve and Tony looking at one another worriedly.

"Put on the suit," the blonde said as you panted over your knees.

The men stumbled from the room with Tony's "Yeah." All the while, your eyes flittered around, trying to get your bearings and figure out what to do next.

"Romanoff?" You called, "Thor?"

As soon as you called the blonde's name, you spotted him, still breathing, unconscious figure upon the medal ground, as red flashing lights raged overhead.

"Oh, boy."

"All hands to stations," suddenly blared across the PA station.

Across the comms, you heard the Director yell, "Hill?!"

"External detonation," the woman replied, "Number three engine is down. Can they get it running?" she moved to ask one of the other Agents on the bridge, "Talk to me."

Over her earpiece, you heard the voice of a nearby Agent explaining the situation, "Turbine looks mostly intact, but it's impossible to get out there to make repairs while we're in the air."

"If we lose one more engine, we won't be. Somebody's got to get outside and patch that engine," she relayed to all the connected comms.

"Stark, you copy that?" Fury asked.

"I'm not it."

"Coulson, initiate defensive lockdown in the detention section, then get to the armoury. Romanoff?"

"We're okay," she panted, sending a wave of relief through you at the sound of her voice.

It seemed with that, the worry sated within you. You finally snapped into action, ignoring all of the aches and pains as adrenaline began to course through you, just as Fury spoke over the comms once again.

"Y/L/N?"

"I'm up. I'm good."

"Good. Find Banner, try to keep the destruction to a minimum."

"You want me to fight the Hulk?" you remarked sceptically, "I'm gonna get squished."

"Then jump out of the way."

"Great, I'm fucked," you spoke to yourself, looking around the destroyed lab.

The man had been inspecting the information on Tony's case when the explosion happened, Natasha not too far from him. With that memory, you began treading to the opposite side of the room, being wary of anything upon the ground you could step on or weak spots you could fall down.

Passing to Thor as you did, calling to his unconscious body, with a swift kick to his calf, "Thor, wake your ass up."

What you had found was not ideal.

Glass shattered, leaving an open space to the platforms down below.

Leaning through the once window, you found a worrying sight.

Natasha, lying face down on the ground, leg trapped under some large pipes. With a wiggling, grumbling, panting Bruce beside her.

This was so not good.

You watched, as with a frustrated face, Natasha waved some works away, not wanting them to be in the possible warpath of the Hulk. Turning back to the man, trying her best to calm him in this situation.

"We're gonna be okay. Alright?" you let her handle this for now. Not wanting your presence to unleash the beast if Natasha could stop that from occurring. "I swear, on my life, I will get you out of this. You will walk away and never ever have-"

"Your life?!" Bruce raged, snapping to her, voice turning monstrous as he lost more and more control with every second.

That was all you needed to kick you into gear.

Air billowed passed you, and you dropped down between the two. Glass embedded itself into the skin of your palms as you braced your landing.

"C'mon, let's get you the fuck outa here." You rushed over to Natasha, lifting the pipes from her leg with great ease, before helping her to her feet. All the while, the sounds of tearing clothing filled the space behind you, animalistic grunts and pants along with it. As Bruce turned green and transformed into something large and bestial.

Once she was on her feet, imping slightly, Natasha peered over your shoulder with her mouth slightly agape.

"Bruce?" she questioned breathlessly, fear deep in her eyes.

Spinning to take a look yourself, you found a half-transformed Hulk with remarkably human eyes. The form quickly hunched over once more as more muscles sprouted across its back, tearing the purple shirt further.

"That's not Bruce anymore," you told the woman with a shake of your head, pulling her into your side when the beast flung its head back and roared.

Stumbling down off of the metal platform with the red-head, you both took pause to see the Hulk peering over its shoulder at you menacingly.

"Yeah, run," you stated, nudging the girl to the stairs behind you.

Back peddling over to the pipes you had just lifted from Natasha, you grabbed it and swung it around, just as Hulk charged after her. Hitting him and making him lumber off to the side, slowing him down momentarily, and giving you enough time to chase after the red-head.

Grasping at her jutted-out arm just in time, she helped you manoeuvre onto the platform just as the Hulk ripped the stairs out from under your feet. Roaring in his failure of harming you.

"Coming on, this way."

Leading you over pipes and into a ventilation system that was quickly destroyed by the beast, a roar sounded behind you as you ducked under more pipes, and away from the green giants roided out brother.

---

"Where are we going?"

"Shh."

"Don't 'shh' me."

"Will you keep quiet?" Natasha scolded you in a whisper, glancing at your crouched figure over her shoulder as you followed her through the maintenance room of the Helicarrier.

"Do you really think he knows where we are, let alone can hear us?"

"Do you really wanna take that chance?"

Watching her silently walk away from you, footfalls not making a single sound, even in boots, as she pulled a pistol from her holster, keeping it by her face, ready for use.

With a sigh, you shook your head, not that she was watching, pulling your own gun and holding it by your hips, mumbling, "No, I don't."

In the time it took you to grab your weapon and ready it the woman had disappeared from your view. Turning your head every which way as you meandered along, only to find the dark mechanics of the maintenance room.

"Romanoff?" you voice hesitantly, remembering how she had reacted to you speaking before.

Your reply was that of a far-off angered roar, followed by a gunshot and the sound of rushed footsteps.

Remembering Banner's words back in the lab, you holstered your gun, knowing that bullets wouldn't work against the beast, before peeling off towards where the red-head was heard running away.

Cutting through many of the maintenance pipes and drums, you spotted Natasha running down as best she could with her limp. Glass cut across the side of your face as you jumped through the pane, right in between her and the Hulk.

"Keep runnin', Nat!" you called, eyes wide with fear as you turned to follow her.

However, you weren't lucky enough, nor fast enough. Before you could even take one step in her direction, a big, green, meaty arm collided with the side of your body. Sending you flying back down the way you just came from.

At least he didn't squish you.

Your suit became scuffed up as your body skid across the hard ground. Gasping out in pain once you had stopped moving against your will.

Speedily moving to sit up, far too worried about Natasha to let the adrenaline fade from you now, allowing the pain to ache across your body. You spotted Thor and his hammer shooting past, a loud crash sounding, alerting you to him and -presumably- Hulk crashing through a wall.

No matter how much you wanted to go check on Natasha, you knew how pissed she would be if you didn't jump in to help Thor and keep more people safe.

So, that's what you did.

Pushing yourself to your feet, you barreled down the dark passage, straight for a cement wall.

You had done this with a much softer drywall four years ago. It was about time you graduated to something harder.

Tucking your knees into your chest and turning to the side, you smashed through the wall, landing haphazardly.

"Get the fuck outta here!" you shouted for all aircraft workers. They didn't need to be told twice, as they all spun on their heel and began running away not a second later.

Following the sound of grunts and the Asgardian man talking, you used that as a makeshift form of 'Marco Polp' to find the two beings. Moving around the large gas tanks with great haste.

If only they would stop moving, you would have an easier time of it.

Vaulting over a large stack of crates, you finally found Thor pelting the Hulk with his hammer, making the beast crash into one of the fighter jets, cruising it at the tail.

Only for your eyes to widen moments later, quickly moving into a duck and roll, away from the S.H.I.E.L.D. painted Hummer, as a wing from the jet cut the top off, thanks to Hulk's retaliation.

You've fought giant metal contraptions, demigod without his powers, and countless soldiers. But how, in the hell, were you supposed to go up against the Hulk?

That's not to say you weren't going to try with your whole might.

Sprinting passed Thor just as the green giant was dragged to the ground, unworthy of the hammer.

"He packs a mean punch, my friend," he called to your running form.

"So do I."

The Hulk growled when he couldn't lift Mjolnir, too focused upon that to notice you jumping a few feet into the air behind him, turning his face perfectly as his bare feet collapsed into the tarmac underfoot. Your fist connected with his green cheekbone, sending him face-first into the floor, your knuckles breaking through the ground with the force of your punch.

Hopping over the hammer before the beast could lash out at you in return, Thor followed in your lead, kneeing the Hulk in his chain, quickly scooping his hammer up to use it as a chokehold against the beast.

Rushing forward, once again, you jumped up, kicking the Hulk square in his chest with both of your heavily booted feet, sending him stumbling back slightly, with Thor still on his back.

With another roar, Hulk shot up into the ceiling above, leaving you down below, panting, as they carried on with the fight.

Quite frankly. That was fine by you.

---

"Nat?" you called, rushing back through where you last saw the red-head, "Natasha, you okay?!"

Reaching the bottom, you quickly ford the spy, folded against a large metal crate, with sweat coated across her face, shaking like a leaf. Just as the PA system sounded through the ship.

"We've got a perimeter breach! Hostiles are in S.H.I.E.L.D. gear. Call-outs at every junction."

Ignoring the agent's words, you yelled, "Natasha!" Darting forward, you slid across the floor on your knees once you were a few feet from her, stopping just before you could collide into the red-head, "Hey, you okay?" you breathed.

'Well, obviously she isn't fucking okay,' you chastised yourself, watching as she continued to have that far-off look, trembles still passing through her body.

Natasha had one leg -the injured one- bent, hands hooked around her knee, the other outstretched in front of her. Green eyes focused upon something nonexistent behind you, stray auburn hairs plastered around her hairline, fearful rants falling from her parted lips, in sync with every tremor that wracked her.

It shocked you to your core to see someone as strong and steadfast as her like this. So beyond shaken.

"We have Hulk and Thor on research level 4. Levels 2 and 3 are dark."

"Shit," you breathed in a whisper to yourself, glancing up at the ceiling at the news relaying through the carrier, shaking your head lightly. Quickly morphing your voice into one as comforting as you could possibly make it in a moment such as this one, you turned back to Natasha, "Hey. Hey, Natasha. Can you hear me? Come back, okay?" you tried to coax her out of the deep fearful crevices of her minds.

Deciding that this wasn't working as well as you hoped, you manoeuvred in your position, slotting your kneeling legs between hers, moving closer to the woman. Gingerly, and with great care, you placed your palms softly against each of her cheeks, coaxing her to face your direction, even if her eyes remained focused on the same place.

"Natasha, you gotta listen to me. You're safe. I'm gonna get you out of here. Nothing's gonna hurt you. You've just gotta snap out of this, okay?"

"Engine one is now in shut-down."

Your voice was worried the next time you spoke, this time to the agent over the PA, who could not hear you, "Oh, God."

With a sharp breath, Natasha's eyes finally snapped to yours when the Helicarrier began to tilt on its side, sending you sliding back.

One arm braced you at your rear, the other holding the crate from sliding forward. Natasha's palms shot up to push against your chest, stopping her body from pressing into yours.

Voces came through your comms then.

"We are in an uncontrolled descent."

"Sir, we've lost all power in engine one."

As they were talking, Natasha moved into her prior position, shakes returning to her body, even after the mild snap-out of her trance.

"It's Barton," Fury replied to the second agent, "He took out our systems. He's headed for the detention level. Does anybody copy?"

That, it seemed, worked better than anything you could have ever said to the woman.

Natasha's eyes swam back into focus, trembles being locked away somewhere deep inside of her, breathing beginning to calm as she lifted a finger to her ear.

Pushing away the fear still in her voice, she spoke into her comms, "This is Agent Romanoff. I copy."

"Are you sure?" you asked, watching the odd shake pass through her still.

"More than," she told you curtly, bracing a hand upon your shoulder, signalling for you to give her a hand up.

"I'm coming with you."

"No." Natasha shook her head once she was on her feet. "Go help Fury and the others at the bridge."

"What can I possibly do at the bridge?" you questioned sceptically, following behind the red-head now taking long confident strides to her destination, "I'm not gonna leave you with Barton when he's like this. There's no saying what he would do-"

Natasha cut your words off by spinning on her heel to face you, stopping you in your tracks as she peered up at you.

"I'll be fine."

"Are you-"

"I'm sure." A light push to your chest, prompting you to head in the opposite direction. "Now go help somewhere else. If not the bridge, then go take injured people to somewhere safe. I got this."

Silently, you watched her walk away to find your shared possessed friend.

And against your better judgement, you turned and left yourself, ready to pitch in wherever you might be needed.

---

You kicked yourself for not going to where Loki was being held as backup.

Maybe if you did, Phil would still be alive.

Your fist was pressed against your mouth, elbow on the arm of the chair, glaring into the glass of the oddly shaped table in the bridge. Sitting between Steve and Tony at the head of the table, with Fury across from you.

"There were in Phil Coulson's jacket." The Director gestured the collector's cards in his hands. "I guess he never did get you to sign them."

Up close, you could see how they were rimmed with blood that now splattered across the glass from where Fury had flung them across the table.

"We're dead in the air up here," he carried on speaking, as Steve reached for one of the cards you could no longer tear your eyes from, "Our communications, the location of The Cube, Banner, Thor... I got nothing for you. I lost my one good eye. Maybe I had that coming." Beginning to round the table, Fury explained, "Yes, we were going to build an arsenal with the Tesseract. I never put all my chips on that number, though, because I was playing something even riskier... there was an idea, Stark and Y/L/N know this, called the Avengers Initiative. The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people, to see if they could become something more. To see if they could work together when we needed them to. To fight the battles that we never could. Phil Coulson died still believing in that idea. In heroes," Tony jumped up from his seat at the Director's whispered words behind you, striding out of the room. "Well... it's an old-fashioned notion."

Minutes later, you were left at the table alone, Steve having walked from the room not long after Tony.

Your eyes were still upon the blood-soaked cards when your body kicked itself into gear before your mind could even react. Suddenly standing on your feet, you turned to find the Director not too far from where you were once sitting, already watching you with an intent eye.

"Don't blame yourself too much, Y/L/N," the man told you, reading you as easy as a children's book, "You did a lot of help lifting that beam off of those five workers. Without you, they probably would have died."

"Thank you, sir." You sniffed, rubbing under your nose. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna stop Rogers from challenging my best friend to a fight again."

The Director nodded once, and then you were off, striding out of the room. A newfound determination coursing through your veins.

You were gonna get Loki.

You were gonna get Loki if it were the last thing you did.

---

At Worlds End Taglist:

@nicomcu, @underoostarks, @soft-emo-witch, @infrunamix, @tashakink, @thewidowsghost, @whataloadof, @neverylee, @diaryoflife, @readings-stuff, @arti-sts, @transbi-spidey, @romanoff-regiment, @iliketozoneout, @pawiie, @natsxxsimp

Permanent Taglist:

@imnotasuperhero, @veteranwerewolf95, @marvelfansince08love, @higherfurther-romanova, @lesbian-x-blackwidow, @sestra-inestro, @thelastavenger-3000, @mixed-fandom-mess, @wannabe-fic-reader, @vancityfire13, @wouldirunofftheworldsomeday, @007giu, @fayhar, @xxromanoffxx, @poptartpoppyy, @wlwfanfictionss, @diaryoflife, @pointconji, @readings-stuff, @tokyo-liv, @imadethisblogbecauseiamasimp, @natashaownsmyheart, @marrymemcgrath, @scorpiosloveletter, @idkevenfuckenknow, @wandanatfan, @izalesbean, @iblameitonclint, @bizarrealex, @lorsstar1st, @bak3rio, @heybitches-amirightbitches, @lokisjuicyass, @marie-yt-blog, @mrswandaromanoff, @red1culous

SFW Taglist:

@peggycarter-steverogers, @natalia-quinzel, @stupendoussportspaperempath,

#natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff imagine #natasha romanoff #bruce banner x reader #bruce banner imagine #bruce banner #thor x reader #thor imagine #thor #marvel #MCU #original work #original fanfiction #original series #at worlds end #at worlds end series #at worlds end avengers

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innerspaceplace · 1 year

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I have NO LOVE for the way you coordinate the timing within your synchronicity. Finding my own resonance or place in the universe is impossible with you. Probably throwing horns or crossing everything to failure. What makes you think I want to cross paths with any of these people or types of people?

Is there ever a time when you don't have breeder on the fucking brain? Trying to make people cross paths on a collision course to fuck or fight, it's never anything else with you.

Do you need this critique so you can wax co-dependency powertrip and play control freak and call yourself helpful, when you fuck everything up in the first place, any time you don't know what is going on or what the endgame or final destination is?

Any time you don't know what is going on, your dickhead control freak ass throws monkey wrenches until somebody yells at you until the information is given and your control freak state of the unknown is satiated. faggot.

What the fuck are you waiting for from me? To give you the fucking clap?

You know damn well you already teabagged everything to shit on that one in the name of christianity or your "left-hand-path" paganism bullshit. Wait until you saturate in your own shit some more. I'm not going to play your stupid game.

Did you think that aligning yourself as my enemy would make me turn to you for wisdom or allegiance, asshole?

The problem with your system is that you let too many other masters with conflicting interests to your own ideal in.

Have the lyft driver drop me off at my girlfriend's house.

fishing for goddamn information with me, when you already know the fucking answer.

Boy-in-bubble Bullshitter.

You'd rather turn somebody into a cold-blooded killer for sobriety's sake than leave them in peace to live their life, as if you forgot the person I once was before your control freak ass tried to change me.

Fuck your tadpoles and your loveless sperm donor bullshit.

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rein-ette · 3 years

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Hi! Could you give us some modern day German bros hcs?

Yes. Absolutely. Thank you for asking, this is one of my favourite topics ever.

I know canon says that Gilbert lives in Lud’s basement and mooches off of him, but may I assert that Gilbert actually lives in the basement of his own house, which he bequeathed to Ludwig, while he spent time rotting in Soviet prison. The house, along with a significant (but diminishing) majority of Lud’s savings were all originally Gilbert’s fortune, only gathered after saving every penny of his officers commissions for centuries. Now, this isn’t to say that Ludwig mooches off Gilbert either, because Lud does work his sweet muscular ass off and earns a respectable wage from the federal government. And it’s true that legally, Lud did inherit Gilbert’s property in the West. But Gil still has every right to live in a house he bought, and he only chose to take the basement floor because 1) it seemed kinda mean spirited to make Ludwig move out of the master bedroom after living there for 3 decades, and 2) the “basement” floor is a complete flat in and of itself, so he and Ludwig can both have some measure of privacy.

Warning: way more rambling ahead

As for living fees, I hc that Prussia fulfills a role in government as the state of Brandenburg. Others may disagree that Brandenburg should have its own “national” representative, an idea I’ve toyed with myself, but I’ve settled on the interpretation of history where Prussia is Brandenburg for several reasons. The main one is that while Prussia is a geographical expression referring to the area around Königsberg that is now Russian/Polish, Prussia is also a historical, political, and cultural entity. Berlin has been the seat of Prussian power and the symbol of its culture, ideals, and traditions from the very beginning — what we think of when we say Prussia (the historical state) really began as Brandenburg, who’s ruling family (the Hohenzollerns) subsequently acquired Prussia (the Polish territory) and saw an opportunity to crown themselves King, using the Prussian title as a convenient “excuse” (for various political reasons). In short: the name “Prussia” is misleading — the state of Brandenburg-Prussia has always been more Brandenburg than it’s been Prussian.

I DIGRESS. The point is Prussia also earns part of his wages for himself from the Brandenburg state government. He doesn’t work nearly as much with the gov as the others (Arthur, Francis) do though: mostly 'cause the government can function by itself and doesn't need much advice from Prussia, who's wealth of experience is not readily applicable to like, park-building and such anyways. When Lud becomes overwhelmed Gil also helps out with his paperwork, but -- and this is, I believe, rather idiosyncratic to the German gov -- Gil does not often attend functions in an official capacity. Since the war, the new German government has wanted for obvious reasons to distance itself as much from its past as possible, so having too many people know about Gilbert's real identity, or even having him work to closely with the PM just feels...wrong. Officially Prussia may now simply be the state of Brandenburg, but its clear that's not all he is. He has the Old World air, the kind of presence that reminds humans he is the collision of a thousand lifetimes all at once, a breathing monument to history. And so for the modern German state, which has struggled so desperately to throw off the shadows of its past, to associate closely with the embodiment of Prussia is just not great for everyone involved.

This brings me to another dynamic that I've wanted to explore in a fic for a long time: how terribly young Ludwig is compared to the nations he works with. I mean, Germany only became a thing in 1871, less than 200 years ago. While I hc him to have existed for a couple decades before that, slowly growing under Prussia's care, this man is still younger than either Alfred or Matt. And yet he has to work closely and on equal terms with nations that are more than ten times as old as he is. Of course, former colonies like Al and even younger ones like New Zealand also work on equal terms with older countries like England now, but Ludwig has the added disadvantage of needing to protect a legacy. He may be young, but the cultures he now represents are not. He does not get to start afresh. He does not get to revolt against imperialism and forge his own destiny. And unlike former colonies, the day Ludwig truly stepped out of his brother's shadow and became a nation in his own right was not a day of victory but of defeat. All this weighs heavily on him; essentially, Ludwig carries the same two-thousand burden of history his fellow Europeans do, but without the corresponding two thousand years of experience. And do his colleagues go easy on him? Of course they fucking don't. His colleagues are people like England, France, Denmark, Netherlands...they're fucking menaces is what they are, and they don't baby nobody. You can either make it or you can't, and despite being the age of these nation's children, by the simple virtue of being European Lud is expected to be able to play by "their rules" -- to know the ins and outs of ancient relationships, traditions, and beef from the Middle Ages -- the whole shebang. If America fucks up in a world meeting the Europeans will whisper "Well he's still just a child", if Ludwig fucks up in an EU meeting he has simply fucked up, period. No excuses. This is the world they grew up in, and they expect Ludwig to be able to navigate it too.

Of course, this has it perks as well. It means that unlike former colonies, Ludwig doesn't have to deal with as much constant condescension and patronization. Lud is not their child or their friend's child -- at most he is a younger brother, and by taking on the mantle of Prussia and the other German states Ludwig is automatically an equal. But there were still moments where Ludwig felt out of place. In the first few decades after the war, these mostly occurred in more relaxed, social situations -- parties, informal negotiations, the type of diplomacy that takes place over drinks and behind closed doors. This was the gentleman's club, a place where the lingering sense among old European powers that they are members of the most exclusive and desirable social group in the world was strongest. While various forces such as the EU, globalization, decolonization, and Americanization have eroded this kind of gate-keeping, there remains instances where Ludwig is sharply reminded of his age. Its often the small things -- a glance across the meeting room, an old joke, a shared memory. Maybe Ludwig hears through Gilbert that Francis is more stressed than he seems. Maybe Ned succeeds in persuading Arthur of something in private when Ludwig couldn't. Maybe he visits Austria and is surprised to see Spain is also there. Among any group of old friends there is always a sense of "us" and "them", and while Ludwig may have taken his brother's political place in Europe, socially Prussia is a kind of "us" that Ludwig will never quite achieve.

I hate to end this on such an abrupt note, but I'm afraid if I don't I will never stop talking. Thanks cake for enabling me, and if anyone wants a part two hit me up. I haven't even fucking gotten to PruAusHun yet, or all the other German siblings.

#hws germany #hws prussia #many many others mentioned #my hcs #ask #needcake #ugh i'll just tag a couple #hws netherlands #hws england #hws france #hws austria #hws spain #there thats good enough #also 1900s onwards is modern right #imma assume you meant The Modern Age which is 1800s onwards ok great

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drarrymybeloved · 3 years

Text

for the romance

i’ve been toying with the idea of sharing a few fics i've read for easy access to my faves + author appreciation, and i finally decided to just get off my ass and do it!

this is, in no way, a comprehensive list (it is also very subjective-not a rec list although you're welcome to use it as one!) & i’m sure i’ll be making a part 2 to this at some point in the future. also, these are my interpretations of the fics, so maybe for u it's not the romance that pops out in these & that's okay!

as the title suggests, these are fics i read for the romance <3

1. Turn by Saras_Girl

you knew this would make it onto the list. of course it would. i think we’ve all wondered at some point or the other what would happen if we had done that one thing differently & Saras_Girl explores this concept of actions and their consequences so intricately, i could lose myself in it (and i have. multiple times) the characterisations too are original yet spot on- blaise was such an ebullient surprise! i thought about putting it on my 'for the plot' list too for sheer length + fleshed out plot, but at the end of the day, i come back to this when i want to read a soft familiar romance

2. The Courting by the Pureblood Who Only Has Five Milligrams of Romantic Intelligence and Thinks He’s Real Smooth by @cibeewastaken

read this fairly recently and what a treat!! two idiots pining after each other, a relationship-but-not-really, super earnest draco & a harry that is so completely gone on draco- what more could you want?

3. Little Deaths and How to Avoid Them (or Draco Malfoy’s Guide to Stop Dying and Start Living Instead) by dustmouth, nerakrose

a soft & sweet fic i’ve revisited so many times. featuring harry working in an archive & draco researching death (ways people have died not the actual concept, it’ll make sense i swear) in said archive. i loved the exploration of draco’s anxiety & the way he deals with it & harry understanding his asexuality. also really appreciated the underlying emphasis on communication & consent between partners.

4. The Kisses Don’t Count, If No One Else Knows by oldenuf2b

friends with benefits to fake lovers to actual lovers?? delicious smut streaked through with aching tenderness?? sign me tf up. featuring quidditch player draco, minister for magic harry, under secretary hermione & (scarily competent) head auror ron. this fic gave me everything i could ask for & then some more. 42k has never felt shorter.

5. Right Hand Red by @lqtraintracks

a classic drarry fic, this was one of the first i read and i was immediately enamoured. the slow build up of tension between draco & harry eventually reaching a fever pitch- not quite a slow burn but the effect is the same- keeps you on the edge of your seat, just waiting for the collision you know is coming. the balance of fluff & angst is ideal, with the angst leaving you yearning for the sweet ending more than aching through the angsty bits, if that makes sense.

6. A Song, Incomplete by RurouniHime

this is a fic with layers to it- it features middle aged draco & harry and is essentially placed in present time. it’s left to the reader to pick up on the information given by the author & piece together the backstory of the characters post-war, something i thoroughly enjoyed. the relationship between draco & harry before the events of this fic is hinted at so you know the basic outline of what happened but it’s not so thoroughly fleshed out that there’s no room for subjectivity (again, something i love). the characterisations are so rich, albus especially was so interesting to me, both as a character & the nature of the relationship he shared with his father. the balance between plot and romance is fairly even, but the slow build is just so intense & rife with emotions, it really feels as if the plot is background for draco & harry’s relationship. this is an achingly sweet fic as opposed to a feel-good fic, but definitely one i've revisited many times.

7. Good to Me (And I’d Be So Good To You) by AWickedMemory (TeddyLaCroix)

such a sweet 8th year fic with harry determined to make friends with a subdued draco & then falling for him along the way. i love how well both boys know each others tells & draco’s reluctant acceptance of harry’s attempts at friendship is so endearing. special mention to an apparently oblivious hermione who was (in true hermione fashion) not oblivious for a second & was in fact the reason harry confessed his feelings for draco. definitely a fic that’ll make you smile!

8. if you've changed your mind by warmfoothills

mamma mia au!! need i say more? though i suppose it's not so much an au as it is draco just going full donna-from-mamma-mia post-war. complete with an island, a son, and an embarrassing diary found by said son.

9. Way Down We Go by @xiaq

(this is going to go on my 'for the plot' fic list too because Reasons) this has all of my favourite tropes oh my god. i love xiaq's take on werewolf!harry; it's so refreshing to see were!harry that isn't like, a big dramatic thing. less beast of the night, more cuddly silly large dog. on that note, draco figuring out that harry is a werewolf in like, 1 second, is so spot on lmaoo. the slow burn is so good (so much domesticity!! so! much! also hurt/comfort). it has a dash of angst which is balanced out so well by the fluff. i've read it recently so i'm waiting for it to settle into my memory a bit (do y'all do that? is it just me??) but this is definitely a fic to revisit.

#drarry #fic lists #is that a thing?#now it is ¯\_(ツ)_/¯#for the romance #part 1/?#no one asked for this but it's here anyway #<3

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seat-safety-switch · 3 years

Text

Do me a favour the next time you’re at an amusement park. Check your ticket to see if there’s any fine print about not powering the bumper cars using a Princess Auto jumper pack and then driving them outside of the designated Bumper Car Area. My attorney is also interested, but for other reasons than I am.

It’s true: with this one little “life hack” (when I was young, that’s what we used to call doctors who chopped up their patients with axes) I’ve joined the leagues of the electric-car-driving elite. Although you might think a common fairground bumper car is not an appropriate or safe automobile for public road-going, you’d be wrong. For one thing, it has big ol’ mica flakes in the paint that give it a real bass boat look. And, uh, that’s about it. In fact, I’m about ninety percent sure this thing is actually an old forklift that they chopped the useful parts off of.

All this doesn’t change the fact that I’m saving the planet, so you can kiss my entire ass – ideally in a way that conserves energy and protects our ecosystems. Naysayers of the electric vehicle dwell on the loss of the manual transmission, which isn’t a problem here because I only have a max speed of about thirty kilometers an hour if I get a good tailwind. Also, having to rapidly turn the battery pack on and off sixty times a second in order to simulate the alternating-current this thing expects is very tiring on the wrists, way more fatiguing the heaviest unsprung race clutch in a daily-driven Eagle Talon could ever be.

Further doubts may be issued as to the long-term reliability of the vehicle, but these worries are also misplaced. There’s only four parts to one of these, and this thing was exclusively serviced by non-union carnies, which makes it vastly better maintained than any of my cars. Collision safety? It was literally fucking designed to be crashed into.

In fact, the only major downside I’ve encountered during my short ownership to date, besides the aforementioned interest from law enforcement (not really new for me either) is that no turn signals have been mounted to the damn thing. It’s like I’m driving in Germany or something.

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regenlen · 3 years

Text

For @dmc-oc-week!

It’s here! Normally this is where some sweet art would go, but I can do stick figures at best so you’re going to have to use your imagination.

Instead, have a fic: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25111381

It's a longfic about Nero and Vergil's search for answers about Nero's mother, Mel, and what became of her. It’s 115+k words of alternating between the present day, where the two of them (with some help) investigate what happened to Mel and why she seemingly disappeared and abandoned Nero, and the past through Vergil’s flashbacks to his time with her.

One part mystery, one part Sparda family drama, one part a study of traumatized men and their emotional constipation, and one part regret simulator: the Vergil edition. If you’ve got time to kill, please do check it out! Below is the prologue to help give a little taste.

One warm day in June, at the apex of the Qliphoth, a fight to the death unfolds between two brothers of blood whose ideals have repeatedly sent them on a collision course with each other. But this fight isn’t destined to end like the others have. It starts out rather similarly, but things take a turn when Dante drops a very, very unexpected bombshell on Vergil. “You cut off your own son’s arm for this?”

Vergil hears the words, but he doesn’t really process them. He just reacts at the opening Dante’s left. He quick-steps and slashes Dante, slicing open a wound in his shoulder before Dante can get his sword up to block. What he does process is Dante’s judgmental, angry tone, and he instinctively balks against it. “My son means nothing to me!” He says the words without actually thinking through the ramifications. (Noticing a pattern here yet?)

He’s met with absolute fury. Dante yells and summons Cerberus. Vergil barely realizes it’s out before it’s hooked his right ankle. He’s yanked forward and has to awkwardly hop to try and steady himself. It leaves him wide open to a slam from Dante’s sword, and he’s sent careening across the arena. It smarts, and Vergil struggles to get going again. But he’s ready when Dante comes charging. Just in the nick of time he dodges his attack and counters with a swipe of Yamato. Dante barely manages to block the blow with his sword, but the force of the attack has him sailing away and colliding against one of the pillars at the edge of the arena.

Vergil falls to a crouch, breathing deeply to try and regain his strength. As his adrenaline subsides and allows him to think clearly again, Dante’s earlier words finally sink in. Did he just say…? He shakes his head in disbelief and looks up at Dante. He can’t believe – but when – what?! “Nero… is my son?”

“Yeah, dumbass,” Dante says. “You can’t remember through that thick skull of yours?”

His son. He has a son. That boy whom he had maimed, who had helped him when he had been at his lowest and had been decent to him, is his flesh and blood. And yes, he can remember through his thick skull, because there’s only one person it could be. Even after the long passage of time and the havoc Mundus’s torture wrought on his mind, he remembers her. The realization releases an onslaught of heartbreak and regret. “Well, well… That was a long time ago.”

Dante laughs a little. “I guess you were young once, too.”

He had been once, yes. Young and ambitious and very, very foolish. It hurts to think about it. He doesn’t want to think about it. He wants to focus on this fight and not on the torrent of emotions swirling in his head. Vergil assumes a battle stance, and Dante begins to do the same.

“As much as I’d love to hear that story,” Dante says, “I think it’s about time we…”

“Ended this,” Vergil finishes, fully assuming his pose. They can’t ignore this fight. They need to settle this, for once and for all. It beats dwelling on things he can’t change.

They bring out their super powered devil forms and hurl themselves at each other in a last bid to conclude their feud. But of course, nothing ever goes the way the brothers expect, because there’s one thing they didn’t count on: Nero.

There’s a flash of light and the deafening sound of something hitting the ground at an alarming speed. The brothers find themselves halted dead in their tracks, held back by the only other person who has a say in this feud of theirs.

When Dante and Vergil just manage to process what’s happening, they’re shoved back and sent skidding across the ground.

“What form of power is this?” Vergil wonders at the spectral arms resting on Nero’s back. But more than that, he’s gobsmacked by how Nero had managed to not only reobtain the power he’d been robbed of, but how he also had become stronger in such a short amount of time.

“What the hell?” Dante groans from across the way.

“This ends, right here.” Nero looks at neither his uncle nor father, but he’s clearly addressing both of them.

Vergil grimaces as he stands up. This is an unexpected development, to say the least. Nero initially had come to this city to kill him. Vergil didn’t think that would change, even after learning the truth. But it seems the boy has another goal in mind. He wants to make sense of it, but his mind still reels at the implication that this young man is his son. Yes, he looks like him and has the same powers, but he still can’t quite believe…

“Listen to me,” Dante seethes as he walks towards Nero. “I told you already, this is not your-”

Nero doesn’t even blink as of those arms lashes out with frightening speed and hits Dante square in the jaw. He goes down like a sack of bricks.

“You listen, dead weight. I won’t let you kill each other. There are other ways of settling your differences.” Nero turns, fist gripped tightly as he slowly approaches Vergil. “I’m putting a stop to this sibling rivalry.”

And for a moment, Vergil isn’t on the Qliphoth, but in a small apartment in Fortuna. And it’s not Nero staring him down, but a young woman with short, curly blonde hair and green eyes. She and Nero hardly look alike, but they share the same determined stare and set of their jaw.

Vergil shoves the memory aside, trying to forget that face and the conflicting emotions it brings with it. He instead forces out a laugh. “Ahh, you came all this way just for that.”

“Vergil… V… whatever you call yourself, Dante’s not going to die here and neither are you. Do you have a problem with that?”

Yes, he did come all this way just to stop them. Vergil thinks it’s a bit foolish; how does he think he’ll go about doing this, exactly?

“‘Not gonna die,’ my ass,” Dante complains as he sits up, rubbing his jaw. “That bitch slap nearly killed me.”

Dante’s words bring Vergil out of his reverie. They also set off that part of his brain that short circuits his sense of logic. Because instead of trying to level with his son like a normal person should, he hyperfixates again on his grudge match with Dante. He nods and swings Yamato into his other hand. “If I beat Nero… then by default, I beat you.” He points Yamato at Nero. “Agreed, Dante?”

“Whatever. I don’t really care. I’m just gonna sit this one out.” Dante falls back onto the ground.

There’s a heavy moment of silence as Nero’s expression hardens, unflinching in the face of Yamato’s blade pointing at him. “When this is over, I’ll make you submit…” Those spectral arms lift up, and the hands crack their knuckles. “Father.”

Father. It pulls at a heartstring Vergil never knew he had, and with it, he realizes just a moment too late that maybe, just maybe this isn’t a good idea. Now faced with actually having to fight his own son, doubt creeps in. Vergil slowly circles back a bit. When Nero swings out his sword, Vergil’s back goes ramrod straight. No, I can’t do this. I shouldn’t have- “Stand down,” he says. “This doesn’t concern you.”

“Nothing to do with me?!” Nero shouts. “It has everything to do with me!”

“Nero…”

FUCK YOU!” Nero flips him off and transforms into his devil state.

Vergil now has no choice but to fight. But as Nero charges at him, sword swung out, an amused thought crosses his mind: …you are, without a doubt, your mother’s son.

#dmcocweek #fic #devil may cry #devil may cry 5 #vergil #dante #nero

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tngrace · 3 years

Note

“I really need you” please!

Thank you nonnie. this is gonna be another coda/extension of 2.03 with members of the 118 making an appearance in the story. I tweaked some of the dialog, and who said and did some things to make it fit where I was going with this. Plus it gave me an excuse to watch parts of the episode again, especially stealing the fire truck scene. 😍🤣

And @moviegeek03 thank you for being so wonderful and becoming a trusted friend. Have some of that TK whump we discussed. 😉 i’m pretty sure this is the most whump I've ever written in one setting. This also ended up being more Judd & TK focused than Tarlos.... not sure how that happened. 🤔

Prompt was from this list. I'm officially closing that list but please feel free to send me a request if you have one and I'll see if I can do anything with it.

4 word prompts masterlist- find all completed fics & requests waiting to be written here. I've got 2 left to write after this one.

TK was exhausted. They'd been working the wildfire for a week, getting little sleep. Out of state crews were to be arriving any minute, and he was hoping that would mean they could catch a break. He just wanted a little rest, and to talk to Carlos. The few texts they'd exchanged wasn't enough anymore.

Before he was able to find a quiet spot for a call, his dad called a meeting with all the out of state crews that had arrived. He let's out a deep breath and throws on his jacket, before joining his crew. Out of town crews made him uncomfortable just because he wasn't sure he could trust them. With his team, they knew each other's moves and thoughts as they worked together. He knew they needed the help, but he was leary. His leariness remained especially when he saw some guy constantly staring at Marjan. It set his already frayed nerves on edge.

TK is gathering shovels and picks with Mateo when he learns Judd, Paul and Marjan are abandoning them with one of the 118 crew members. To say he is not happy about it would be an understatement. He tries to put on his best face though, and he can’t turn off his friendly personality even though he tries when he realizes it's the guy who stared Marj down. Plus Mateo is doing his damnedest to engage him so TK throws in his own comments to try and help because he knows how personally Mateo takes things and he just wants to protect him.

The work is hard and tiring on his already tired body. Plus Buck just doesn’t seem to want to engage with him. TK understands though; Buck is probably feeling just as abandoned as he is by his team which he tries to convey to Mateo. At least TK still has Mateo; Buck was left by both of his other team members. As they’re comparing their wildest calls, TK sees a burning car rolling down the hill at top speed at them. He doesn’t even think; he just reacts diving towards Buck with a yell at Mateo to look out.

He collides full force with Buck, knocking him out of the way. He can feel the air knocked out of himself as well as they collide with the ground. They’re up and moving before his body can even process possible injuries, the adrenaline spurring them on. Once the fire is out, and the dog is reunited with his owner, TK doubles over to catch his breath. He can feel the struggle, knowing he must have sustained some bruising to his ribs when knocking Buck out of the way. He feels a twinge in his ankle too, but ignores it. He can’t afford to be hurt though with it being all hands on deck, so he takes as deep a breath as he can and stands back up before anyone can notice.

“So that was weird,” Buck says to him as they watch the guy retrieving his dog from Mateo.

“Right?” TK says with a confused look on his face.

“Nice moves by the way. Good reflexes,” Buck says with a smile on his face before he walks off to get back to work.

“Yea you too,” TK says watching the scene and still mentally trying to asses himself. He has enough medic training to know what he should be feeling for, and when all he can come up with is the soreness in his ribs, he decides to push on.

After that, Buck opens up more to them also explaining his fixation with Marjan earlier, and it makes the day pass faster. TK does his best to ignore the aching in his ribs and ankle. Buck notices how off TK would get at times, especially when he wouldn’t take a break from digging, but he brushed off every attempt Buck made at making sure he was ok. Mateo has noticed the same thing, but he also knows when to push and when not to push TK.

By night fall, they’re heading back down the mountain, still discussing their wildest calls, and TK is limping and having to pause his talking every now and then to catch a breath. His ribs and ankle are throbbing now, and he just wants some Tylenol and bed. Mateo effectively ends their pissing contest on who has the wildest calls, but before he can even contemplate the fact that Probie was the voice of reason, they encounter the rest of their teams minus his dad and Hen.

They tease them about already having their feet up, but one look at Judd and Marjan and TK knows somethings wrong. “What? What’s wrong?” he asks feeling the panic building under his skin. It’s not ideal for his ribs, but he can’t stop it, not with the way they’re looking at him.

“You didn’t hear did you?” Marjan finally asks finding her voice first. TK is looking between all of them as he hears Buck ask, “hear what?”

Paul speaks up then, explaining how his dad and Hen went up to provide air support to find the missing kid. TK’s eyes never leave them as he listens, his breathing becoming more erratic the longer Paul talks. When he hears the fateful words that the chopper went down, he’s almost positive he stops breathing. He feels his world tilting; he feels his knees giving out, but before he hits the ground again, Judd is off the back of the ATV so fast TK is not sure how it happens.

“Woah there brother,” he says his arms coming underneath TK to catch him. TK can’t stop the whine when Judd’s hands connect with his sore ribs. “What the hell?” Judd asks him as he holds him up.

“Uh... I might can help with that,” Buck says when TK refuses to answer Judd. He explains how TK saved him from the runaway car, and how he’d been limping and breathing weird ever since. He explains that he tried to get TK to take it easy, but TK insisted he was fine and kept working.

“Of course he did,” Judd says before muttering under his breath about idiot little brothers.

“Uh... Judd,” Paul and Marjan say at the same time as TK’s erratic breathing becomes extremely apparent and his eyes glass over.

“Fuck,” Judd grunts as he takes more of TK’s weight. “Let me get him calmed down and then you can check him over,” he tells Eddie before more or less dragging TK off to the first quiet spot he can find. They’ve been down this road with TK’s panic attacks before, and Judd seemed the best to handle them.

He gets TK seated before coming around in front of him and placing his hands on TK’s shoulders. “Hey kid. Eyes on me,” he says as one of his hands come up to cradles TK’s neck to keep his head from lolling too much. He can tell TK has really worked himself up this time, by the glassy look in his eyes and how TK doesn't appear to hear him. “TK! Look at me,” he says sternly as he finally gets TK’s eyes on him. He takes TK’s hand and places it along his own chest so TK can feel his breaths.

“I’m gonna call Carlos and you’re going to focus on breathing,” Judd tells him digging in his pocket for his phone while making sure TK stays with him. “Slow and steady,” Judd reminds him as he focuses on keeping his own breaths even for TK to match.

“Gracie!” Judd says when she picks up. “I need you to get me Carlos. TK is having a panic attack, and he needs to talk to him,” Judd relays. He knows she’s working tonight, and he’s not sure about Carlos so he did the only thing he knew would guarantee Carlos would answer. It doesn’t take Grace five minutes before she has Carlos on the line. Judd quickly explains what has happened and that he needs Carlos to talk to TK.

He puts the phone on speaker so he can go back to holding TK’s head up. “Alright Reyes you’re on speaker. He can hear you,” Judd relays and he steadies his breathing once more for TK.

“Ty, you’re ok. I’m here. Judd’s there. You’re whole team is there. I know you’re tired. I know you’re exhausted, but I need you to focus on breathing for me ok?” Carlos murmurs softly. Judd can tell TK is focusing more listening to Carlos and he tells him to keep talking.

Slowly but surely TK comes back around and his breathing is more even. “Carlos,” he finally says in a choked whisper when he realizes his boyfriend is talking to him.

“Yea love, I’m here,” Carlos says as TK finally reaches for the phone from Judd.

“You good? You’re not gonna kill over on me are you?” Judd asks him as he sees TK sitting up more on his own.

“I’m good,” TK promises as Judd finally passes him the phone.

“Five minutes little brother, and then I’m letting the Army medic check you over,” he warns before giving TK time to talk to Carlos.

TK takes the phone off speaker, but he knows Carlos has already heard. “Ty? Why is the medic looking you over?” he asks TK with worry clearly seeping through his tone.

“Judd’s being overprotective as usual,” TK says but he knows Carlos doesn’t buy it. He lets out a sigh and then winces when his ribs twinge. “I’m tired, exhausted really. I saved one of the other guys from a different team today from a runaway car. The collision with the ground may or may not have bruised my ribs, and I may or may not have tweaked my ankle, but I’m fine,” he tries to stress not wanting his boyfriend to worry anymore.

“Tyler,” Carlos stresses knowing TK is not fine. If he was fine, Judd would not have had to call him tonight.

“Ok, I’m not fine,” TK admits trying to hold his tears off. “I’m hurt. I’m tired, so tired. Dad is possibly hurt or dying or we don’t know. He.. He crashed in a helicopter and no one’s heard from him, and I just... I just got him back from the cancer, and I just almost lost him last week. I just.. I can’t... I can’t... I can’t do this again. I can’t lose him. I can’t... ” he gets out in a rush with his breathing hitching and his ribs protesting.

“Easy Tiger. Breathe,” Carlos calms. “Breathe TK. It’s going to be ok.” TK tries his level best to control his breathing and stop the tears once more.

“I just really need you,” he gets out as a few stray tears fall. “I don’t think I can do this.”

TK can hear background noise and Carlos talking to someone in Spanish, before Carlos is telling him he will come. “Wait? Who was that? Where are you?” TK asks knowing Carlos rarely uses his Spanish unless he’s on the phone with his family or on a call where he needs to use it. TK doesn’t think Carlos is working, which means he must be with or around his family.

“I was at my parents,” Carlos tells him. “But I’m coming to you, ok?”

“What? No! You can’t!” TK says feeling the panic rise once more. Carlos won’t even broach the topic of his parents with him, and TK doesn’t know why. He hasn’t had the time to question Carlos on it either between Tim’s death and being called out to assist with the wildfire, but TK knows it’s something. But the last thing TK wants is to pull Carlos away from his family knowing how little time Carlos gets with them. Besides he doesn’t want Carlos near this fire either.

“TK it’s fine. I can be there within three hours. Just breathe baby,” he says when he hears TK’s hitching breath once more.

“Carlos no. Don’t. Stay with them, please,” TK begs the tears falling faster now despite how much he tries to stop them. It’s amazing how broken down and non-cooperative the body can get when it reaches the stage of exhaustion TK is in. He doesn’t want Carlos’s parents to have a bad impression of him if they know about him, or for them to be mad he’s pulling Carlos away when they rarely get to see him. It's causing his panic to rise once again.

Judd has returned to force TK into being checked over and notices the tears and erratic breathing once more. “Damn it kid,” he says as he kneels in front of him again. He once again places TK’s hand along side his chest, before putting the phone back on speaker. Carlos is doing his best to get TK to listen and calm down, but Judd finally has to speak up.

“It’s not working. Look I’m gonna see if I can get him calm,” he tells Carlos who then explains what happened. Judd sighs knowing TK’s mind is just too worn down at this point. “Drive safe,” he tells Carlos before hanging up knowing it’s useless to try and tell Carlos to stay in Austin.

“Alright kid, breathe with me,” Judd instructs as he forces TK to focus on him and breathe. Once TK is breathing normally again, Judd motions for Eddie to come over and check him out. The others have gone to the command tent to see if they can reason with the Commander. Judd would love to be in there helping them, but he knows his anger would get the best of him because he knows what the Commander is going to say. Besides TK needs him and that is his top priority right now.

Eddie checks TK over, noticing the dark bruising along his ribs. He feels of them making TK wince as he apologizes but they both know it has to be done, and while they don’t feel broken, with the bruising he thinks one might be cracked. “I’m good,” TK tries to say, but Judd ain’t buying it.

“Just let him wrap your damn ribs kid,” Judd says tossing Eddie an ace bandage. “I know you’re not gonna stay in the tent and rest, even though that’s where you should be, so at least let us make sure you’re not going to do more damage.”

TK finally relents and Eddie does his best to stabilize TK’s ribs. He then moves on to check TK’s ankle, and once his boot is removed, the swelling is obvious. Eddie feels along it and determines it is just twisted. TK had come to the same conclusion, so he lets Eddie put a brace on it to keep from making it worse. Eddie leaves them with it once he’s finished his medical assessment, knowing Judd probably needs a minute with his kid brother.

“Look I know I’m not going to be able to keep you sidelined on this,” Judd started getting a definitive agreement from TK making Judd rolls his eyes hard. “But I want you to be smart about it, and try not to make your injuries worse.”

TK does agree to that, even though they both know once he's caught up in the moment, he'll forget his promise. He doesn’t want to be laid up anymore than Judd wants him injured. “Now wanna tell me why talking to your boy sent you into another spiral?” Judd asks as he helps TK up and towards a picnic table.

“Not really,” TK murmurs as he drops down to rest.

“Fine. I won’t make you talk if you don’t want to. I know what that’s like. But you know I’m here for you bub.” At TK’s nod, Judd announces he’s going to find them food and water and for TK not to move. TK decides he needs to inform his mom what is happening, so while Judd is gone he calls her. He’s just wrapping up the call when he feels someone walking up behind him. He assumes it’s Judd returning with the promised food and water, he had no plans of touching, but is surprised to see it’s Buck with pizza.

Even though Judd had told him not to move, TK is up and moving as Buck starts to talk. He doesn’t think he can handle any small talk, and he doesn’t want to talk about how he is. He just wants to find his dad, even though he knows deep down he is in no position to go out looking for him. Even though he knows it, he doesn’t think it’s going to stop him, especially when Buck holds up keys to the fire truck.

They grab their go bags and sneak through the command center. TK is a little slower than he’d like because of his ribs and ankle, but Buck is patient with him. TK tries to talk Buck out of going so he doesn’t get fired as well, but Buck doesn’t back down. TK is thankful because he knows he’s not fully up to going this alone. He gets frustrated easily when Buck doesn’t explain his total plan and tries to divert him from the 118′s truck. He just wants to get in it and go before Judd finds him.

It doesn’t take long for Judd to gather everyone up when he gets back to the table he’d left TK at and finds it empty. Eddie is the first to piece it together when he realizes Buck is also missing. They grab backpacks and race off to the fire trucks, splitting up to surround them when they see two bodies trying to sneak around. They flip on their flashlights and Judd speaks up before the guys make it to the 126′s truck.

“Hey! Dumbass! Dumbasser!” Judd calls out making them both freeze. TK knows he’s screwed by Judd’s tone of voice. He slowly turns to face Judd and realizes Paul and Mateo are with him. He sees Buck looking the other direction, so he can only assume Marjan and Eddie are there. “Did you stop and consider the consequences of what you’re about to do at all?” Judd asks shining his light on TK making him wince hard at the bright light as Paul shines his on Buck.

TK’s theory of Marjan and Eddie coming in from the other side is confirmed when they both speak up. “You obviously don’t know Buck.”

“You two didn’t seriously think that you could sneak off and drive into wildfires did you?” Marjan asks in an accusatory tone, making TK scrunch his face with a wince feeling like a scolded kid.

“Yes?” he says, more like asks, timidly. He’s hurting, he’s exhausted. He just wants to find his dad and sleep for a month. He wants this stupid wildfire over with so he can go back home.

“Well that ain’t gonna happen,” Paul finally pipes up. TK feels the defeat creeping in until Buck stands up to them. “You think you’re gonna stop us?” he asks.

“Stop you? We’re going with you,” Mateo supplies like an excited puppy going on his first adventure. “Come on let’s go,” Eddie say as everyone starts loading up.

TK and Buck share a look as everyone jumps into the truck. TK gives Judd a skeptical look making Judd roll his eyes. “Just get in the damn truck before I change my mind,” he huffs helping TK climb up. Once everyone is in, they take off up the mountain to find their captain and Hen.

Judd does his best to keep TK from over-exerting, but it’s useless. As soon as the truck stopped, TK was out and racing for the helicopter despite his limp. Judd watched from the sidelines as TK crawled all over it, screaming for his dad. He knew they weren’t there though; he knew Owen would’ve tried to get them somewhere safer. He can see the defeat creeping in to TK’s face. He decides to take the lead and tells everyone to fan out. He grabs TK and makes him come with him so he can keep an eye on him. He takes the backpack off TK’s back so it’s less he’s carrying and exerting himself.

Once Hen and Owen are found, Judd can’t stop TK from climbing into the mine to get to his dad. He knows TK is probably doing more damage to his ankle and ribs, but he can’t stop him. They’re able to get both Hen and Owen out safely and loaded in the trucks. TK sits next to his dad the whole way back, telling him over and over he’s going to be ok even though Owen is unconscious.

Since they were able to complete the rescue safely, their reprimands are minimal. Once they’re dismissed from the Commander, Judd steers TK to the medical tent. “No argument,” he says gruffly when he sees TK start to protest. “You are hurt. You are exhausted, and brother, I’ve lived through the kinda panic attack you hard earlier. You are resting. You are getting fluids and a proper medical assessment even if I have to tie your ass to the bed.”

“That won’t be necessary Judd,” they hear turning towards the voice. Carlos is standing there in uniform watching them. He’d used his badge and uniform shamelessly to get through to San Angelo as quickly as he could after hanging up with TK. He hadn’t explained it to his parents, just told them he had to go, and here he was.

TK’s eyes filled with tears before he could stop them. Carlos had really come. He was here. TK all but collapses in his arms, and Carlos catches him as always. “I’ll leave ya to it,” Judd says clasping Carlos’s shoulder before he goes to check on the captain.

Carlos gets TK over to a bed, and TK clings to him when Carlos tries to lay him down. “I’m not going anywhere Tiger,” he whispers as he finally gets TK stretched out. A medic comes and checks TK over, Judd having sent her over after detailing what he knew of TK’s condition. She starts an iv to run fluids before listening to his lungs. She doesn’t think anything is broken, but she does advise he take it easy in case one is cracked. She elevates his ankle wrapping it in ice and suggesting he rest for the time being. Carlos sits by his bed the whole time carding his finger through TK’s hair.

“I’m sorry you left your parents,” TK says quietly.

“Don’t,” Carlos tells him as he softly kisses him. “You needed me, and here I am. I always said I would come if you needed, and that doesn’t change just because I’m visiting my parents.”

TK gives him a sleepy nod, Carlos’s fingers working like magic as always to relax him. “Rest TK, and then we’ll go home and you can rest some more.” TK turns into Carlos’s touch giving a sleepy nod, before he lets his body succumb to the exhaustion and he falls fast asleep.

The out of town crews are dismissed while TK is sleeping. Eddie and Buck both check in on TK and see Carlos sitting beside him watching him sleep. They leave their numbers and well wishes with Carlos before following Hen to check on the captain. They let her have a moment with him, while they say goodbye to the rest of the team. The 126 decide to all catch some sleep now that the wildfire is contained. They know they’ll be dismissed to return to Austin soon, but they all need some much needed sleep. They check in on their Strand boys before they all crash for some much needed rest.

It’s the next day before they load the truck to head home. TK decides to ride back with Carlos letting his dad have room to stretch out in the back of the truck to rest as Judd drives them home. He’s still feeling the exhaustion, and he’s glad they have mandated time off. His head lolls against the window as Carlos drives them home. He knows over the next few days they’ll have to talk about his panic attack and how he freaked out again over Carlos’s parents, but for now he’s just glad to be back with Carlos and almost home.

#tarlos #tarlos fic #911 lone star #911 lone star fic #4 word prompt fic #writers life #big brother judd #judd & tk #126 & 118 #i love a fire fam #this is more fire fam than tarlos #but i got my tarlos moments in there

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alittlewhump · 3 years

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Unbidden - Act 3, chapter 8

Masterlist | Previous | Next

Content warnings: minor body horror

As directed, Morgan took his time. It gave him the opportunity to start getting used to controlling the golem. Blaise watched quietly as he ran through some exercises with both arms, working out the mental shortcuts he would need to get used to. Large motions involving the shoulder were the hardest to manage, having to coordinate the golem with the organic. He also had to concentrate harder than he'd expected on the elbow. There was a greater range of motion at his disposal now, but taking advantage of it made him feel nauseated. Bodies weren't meant to bend in certain ways, and it brought his mind back to a place he very much did not want it to be in. Eventually he settled on a basic system of mentally narrating his movements in a way that could easily be accompanied by the necessary push of will to command the golem. It could always be refined later.

The finer motions seemed to be working well, though the lack of tactile feedback made it harder to tell if they would work equally well if he wasn't watching so closely. He fished a length of leather cord out of the bottom of his potions bag to test. His injury had made it painful to grasp anything small and to raise his arm above shoulder height for any length of time, both of which were required to tie his hair back. He didn't often wear it that way, but it was useful to have it out of the way every now and again. It took several attempts, a great deal of caution after the first accidental pull, and some intense concentration, but at the end of it his efforts bore fruit in the form of a lopsided bow. He gave a small hum of satisfaction, pleased with the progress, and let the arm fall back into his lap to rest.

"That looked hard." Blaise was still watching him, idly picking a leaf into tiny pieces. There was a growing pile of shredded greenery in front of her.

"I can't really feel it," Morgan said. "I tried earlier, but it was... I got something wrong with the command. It didn't focus correctly."

"Can I help?"

"I don't know how you would."

"I don't know," Blaise echoed. "Maybe I can do something to help you focus." She reached forward, then paused. "If it's all right." At his bemused nod, she gently took his left hand and turned it palm up. "Close your eyes," she suggested. He did. "All right, now I'll do some shapes. And you can focus on guessing what they are, maybe."

It was an interesting approach. Morgan started slowly, more prepared for the sensations this time. The power draw was less uncomfortable now that he knew to expect it. It was something almost like a pinch, but still a marked improvement over the type of pain it had been before. This, he could acclimatize to. He catalogued the gently persistent throbbing around the connections, reconciled it with the beating of his heart, categorized it as ignorable and tried to let it fade away into the background. It worked reasonably well, which was a pleasant surprise.

Next he eased his focus over to the intermittent touch moving down the inner forearm to the palm, then going back up. There was so much information in each small interaction that he'd always taken for granted - pressure, temperature, texture. The golem helpfully provided all of that information with force, an insistence that almost felt like alarm. Morgan asked it to quiet down, please, and it slowly ebbed into something that didn't set him on edge quite so badly. It would be ideal if he could figure out how to make it trigger only when touched, instead of having to give it commands to turn on or off. He toyed with that for a little while, getting used to the way it lit up his awareness.

"Anything yet?"

Morgan's eyes opened in surprise, which quickly gave way to embarrassment. He'd all but forgotten Blaise was even there, lost in the intensity of his focus. "Ah. Yes. It's helping a great deal. Thank you."

Blaise looked pleased. "Good. You're so quiet, I wasn't sure. I know you don't like touching, I was - what? Don't look so surprised, I'm not completely oblivious, you know."

"No. You're very observant. I appreciate it," he said quietly. It was something he'd never really realized until just now. She paid attention to him. Enough to notice the way he avoided physical contact. And she respected that unspoken boundary without questioning it, even though that meant she had to make a conscious effort to treat him differently. It was... nice, to be accommodated. Of course, it was probably nothing out of the ordinary for Blaise, just a natural extension of the kindness Morgan had identified in her long ago. Still, he let himself enjoy the revelation briefly before turning his attention back to the golem.

It was so tempting to do everything at once. There was a lot to modify, to adjust, to improve, to learn. But now that he'd been pulled out of his reverie of exploration once, it was easier to remember that he was not at his leisure. And Blaise had been so patient, always so patient with him. Because she knew he needed it, because she cared about him. Morgan reluctantly subdued the happiness bubbling in his chest and tried to focus on the task at hand, on what still needed immediate work. For now, the foundations of motion and feedback were in place. He allowed himself a little more fine tuning and decided that he could stand to leave it inert when he needed to use his magic elsewhere. He'd already gotten used to not using the limb, so it wouldn't be too much different.

"All right," he said eventually. "I'm done. For now. Thank you for your help. We can pick up where we left off yesterday, by the fountains." Blaise released his arm and stood in a fluid motion, stretching before she reached out a hand to help him up. Morgan took it, closing his eyes briefly against the wave of dizziness that washed over him as he stood. He blinked to clear the lingering reds and blues from his vision. When they faded, Blaise was making a displeased face.

"Doesn't look like you're ready."

"No, I'm fine," he assured her. The dizzy spell had passed, as they always did. She did not look reassured.

"Don't tell me you did all this on an empty stomach, Morgan. I've barely seen you eat since-"

"I ate before I started." A few hours before, in case the potions disagreed with him. And not very much, because eating was still unpleasant and he'd wanted to be able to focus. But he didn't want to talk about that, so he dug a piece of flatbread out of his bag and took a small bite. It seemed to pacify her.

Morgan chewed slowly, making sure his feet were firmly planted before he raised a golem from the earth outside the building. It was no different than it had ever been. Two skeletons followed. No noticeable problems with capacity, then, and with the arm inactive it felt like he was maybe even recovering his energy very slightly faster than usual. He allowed himself another small, satisfied smile as he stepped out to join the constructs.

"Hey!" Telash jogged towards Blaise and Morgan as they returned from the jungle. "There you are. I need you to show me what you taught Phaedra." Morgan glanced at Blaise, who shrugged. Telash seemed to be talking to him, anyway. "She won't tell me how she does it."

"I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't taught her anything. Our magic isn't the same."

"She's been showing off all day. Look." He brandished a bottle towards them. It was luminous, blue-white and flickering.

"Oh," Morgan said, reaching out. Telash jerked the bottle away.

"Show me. I want to do this with fire. There's got to be a trick to it, I'm just breaking the bottles when I try on my own."

"I... can tell you what I told her the last time we spoke, but I don't think-"

"Give us half an hour to unwind first, you insufferable prick. Some of us have actually been doing work all day." Blaise brushed past him, making him stumble half a step back to avoid a collision. He rallied quickly, springing into step beside her.

"I can help you unwind," he suggested with a leer and a wiggle of his eyebrows.

"I guess that would still leave me with twenty-eight minutes to relax properly," she replied. Telash made a choked sound of indignation.

"I'll have you know my skill as a lover is legendary!"

"That's funny. You don't hear a lot of legends about disappointment."

"You'd be singing a very different tune if you just-"

"Maybe that's your problem. If you're doing it right, your partner shouldn't have the breath to spare for singing."

"Oh, I could leave you breathless."

"With laughter, maybe."

Morgan split off in search of Phaedra. Blaise and Telash could enjoy their banter, or whatever it was they were doing. The words they were exchanging sounded rude, but they seemed to enjoy butting heads. It was just another thing he'd resigned himself to never understanding.

The search didn't take long. Phaedra was leaving Alkor's hut, struggling with a large basket laden with empty bottles of various shapes and sizes. She gave her head a little toss when she noticed Morgan, lifting her chin. "Little help here?"

He raised a golem without a second thought, its arms extended to accept the weight of the basket. Phaedra gave a grunt of effort as she shifted it over, then dusted off her hands. "Thanks. That's heavier than it looks. Has Telash found you yet?"

"Yes."

"He's persistent, you have to give him that. I'll show you what I figured out, but only if you promise not to tell him how to do it."

Morgan hesitated. He was so curious it almost felt like a physical itch, but at the same time he didn't want to antagonize the volatile fire mage. "I already agreed to repeat our earlier conversation," he said cautiously.

"Why did you do that?"

"He... asked." It had been more of a demand, really, but a request was a request.

"Hm. He's an ass, but he isn't stupid. Hell, he might be able to figure it out faster than me. Don't want that." She eyed Morgan appraisingly. The weight of her gaze was uncomfortable.

"Why do you want to keep this to yourself?"

Phaedra flashed a quick smile before turning to walk down toward the fire pit. "I don't, not really. That's why I've got all these bottles. I was planning to see if I can teach the others tonight."

Morgan followed with a confused frown. "Then why are you keeping it from Telash specifically?"

"For fun," came the breezy answer. "It's so easy to rile him up. Set those down on that bench?" The golem lowered the basket obediently. Phaedra watched it, her head slightly tilted. "Movement still eludes me. I tried with some old gauntlets from Hratli but I didn't get so much as a twitch in the fingers."

"Were you able to keep it contained?"

"Yes, eventually. It turned out to be better inside an insulating material. Leather gauntlets, glass bottles. It really wanted to spill out of the gauntlets, that's why I tried the bottles in the first place."

"Telash showed me a bottle. How long does it last, once it's contained?"

"That depends. Little ones, maybe five minutes. Big ones, about half an hour."

"Can you feed it to make it last longer? Do you need to unseal the container first? Could I-" he bit off the last question, remembering that she'd already laid out a condition he couldn't meet. And he was being too eager, rushing through his questions like a child instead of waiting for answers.

"Haven't tried, and don't know. What an interesting idea." Phaedra slipped a hand into the pockets of her robes and produced a glass vial about the size of her fist. It flickered softly. She popped the cork and slid the palm of her hand over the mouth of the bottle in one smooth motion. Half closing her eyes, her eyebrows twitched down in a brief frown of concentration. The light in the bottle grew brighter. Phaedra replaced the cork, holding the bottle up in front of her face with a smile.

"Well, there's one question answered. I think I'll wait on the other one. I want to give it some thought before I try it. I've already broken a lot of bottles. Here, catch."

She lobbed the bottle towards Morgan in a soft underhand throw. He fumbled it badly, nearly dropping it first in surprise and then again because that surprise delayed the response of his golem arm. Phaedra snickered behind her hand as he recovered. He ignored that, holding the bottle up with both hands to peer at its contents.

It was beautiful. Blue-white lightning crackled around the inside of the bottle, branching and converging in an enthralling display. It was almost like a living thing curling over and around itself. His skin tingled where it was touching the glass, and the golem arm thrummed a warning at the unfamiliar magic. Morgan could have examined it for a very long time, but he forced his gaze back over to Phaedra.

"This is amazing," he said earnestly.

"Useful, too," she replied. "It should stay bright even in the rain, and if I can get more power to fit in the same space it could have some real potential as a weapon. I just have to figure out how. Don't suppose you have any insights on that?"

"In some cases I'm limited by what the carrier will bear," Morgan offered, his eyes drawn back to the bottle as he turned it over in his hands. "Some materials take magic better than others."

"Oh, I was focused so hard on getting it to stay somewhere, I didn't even think... hmm, yeah, that's worth trying. I'll be right back." Phaedra picked up a few small bottles from the basket and set off purposefully toward the docks.

Morgan sat down on the bench, bringing his golem over to sit beside him. He touched the bottle to it experimentally. It did not react with a warning like the arm had done. There were plenty of potential reasons for that, though. Possibilities drifted across his mind as he watched the lightning circle around itself inside its glass prison. He slipped into something like a light meditation, the rest of the world falling away as he admired its beauty.

The sound of breaking glass brought Morgan back to full awareness with a start. His golem informed him a second later that it was under attack and had sustained some damage. A bottle had shattered across its broad back, sending sparks crawling over its surface. They lingered at the point of impact where the earth had been dampened.

"Well, that's promising," Phaedra said. Morgan turned to see her hefting another bottle. "Water's heavy, but it definitely holds more. I like where this is going. You can keep that, and don't worry about Telash. He'll figure out how to get what he wants one way or another."

Morgan wasn't sure what to make of that comment at all, so he thanked Phaedra and took his golem to the hut he'd been staying in. He watched the bottled lightning a little more. When it started to fade, he held it up to the golem and suggested it take. It accepted the bottle gently into its mass. There was a muffled crunch, followed by another warning that the golem had been damaged. That was slightly disappointing, but not wholly unexpected. It had just been an idea. It would have opened up enormous opportunities, but asking a construct to incorporate two different types of magic without the stabilizing element of an enchantment was obviously too much. Morgan set the golem down into the earth and relaxed into meditation, turning his attention back to his left arm instead.

#my writing #story: unbidden #body horror tw #food tw #eating tw #not particularly long or graphic but just in case

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perish-after-dark · 3 years

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Best Friend

Pairing: Top!Anguirus x Bottom!Godzilla/Goji

Summary: Goji goes into heat unexpectedly. Thankfully, his best friend knows exactly what to do.

The king let out a long yowl as he clawed at the ground. His body burned from within as he tried to find any form of release. He humped his hips against the hill he had laid himself upon, but he knew it did very little to quench his sexual thirst. From his body came a sweet scent that traveled through the air. Not sweet in the ways we humans would detect, but sweet for titans. A musky, sea salt, and pure hormones type of smell that drove many titans mad.

Going into heat was something Goji always worried about. Not because he didn’t want to, but rather he didn’t want to deal with the ensuing chaos if he did not get it under control quickly. Goji was not blind to the fact that many titans wanted him sexually, and he could only imagine the type of trouble they’d cause if they knew they could have sex with him.

Mothra’s location was unknown to him at the moment. He considers waiting for her like the good mate he is. However, his body does not like to wait. He yearns to be bred here and now. The king of the monsters shudders as he humps against the hill again. He was just so close too.

Suddenly, he noted how his tail was being lifted and the sound of sniffing caressed his ears. For some odd reason, he didn’t instantly snap out at whoever dared to approach and make sure a bold move. Good thing he didn’t either because when he looked back he saw the joyful eyes of his closest companion Anguirus.

“Angy-”

“You must be deep in heat if you’re already calling me that,” Anguirus chuckled as he moved his head down. “You smell really good Goji. I’ll make you feel just as good as well.”

The spiked titan lowered his head and pressed his nose against the slick slit. He inhaled the musk as much as possible. It was as though he was getting drunk with every inhale he took.

Opening his mouth, Anguirus plopped his tongue against the now dripping slit and began to lap it. The king moaned and squatted a bit. Anguirus, knowing how much Goji liked to squirm, lifted his hands to grasp Goji’s hips. It’ll keep him in place for sure as Anguirus had a pretty impressive grip.

The spiked titan dragged his tongue up and down the length of the opening, swallowing down any slick that came on his tongue. He gladly continued as he heard the sweet moans that left the lips of the king.

“Oh Angy,” Goji moaned as he pushed his hips back. “Angy your tongue~ Mmm.”

Anguirus smirked briefly before continuing. He’s shocked that Goji’s cock hasn't popped out yet. Perhaps Goji wants to be bred this time around. It’s a nice thought, to say the least. He wonders just how far the king will allow him to go.

Anguirus removes his tongue with a wet pop. Goji’s hips went lax in his grip. Between his legs, Anguirus’s cock emerged and throbbed in the open air. Pre-cum already dripping onto the ground and staining it with his smell.

“Your ass,” Anguirus chuckles, “Want me to lube that up too?”

“Only if you plan to fuck me there~” Goji moaned with a cocky grin. He swayed his hips side to side in a seductive manner. Anguirus was taken back by that statement. Goji was no dominating alpha who demanded ass all the time, yet somehow it was still a shocker that he’d ever hear those words from the king at all.

“I’ll consider,” Anguirus said as he licked his lips. He tugged aside Goji’s butt-cheek to reveal the twitching pucker before him. “Are you tight?”

“No one’s been back there~” Goji giggles. “I’m sealed as tight as they come~”

“I don’t know if you wanna brag about that,” The spiked quadruped spoke just as he started to soak his digits in his mouth. He sucked on them just enough to make sure that they were as lubed as can be. He didn’t want to hurt the king if he was telling the truth about being a virgin back there. “If you’re as tight as you say, I’d have to go easy on you.”

“Well, you don’t have to,” Goji replies. “I’m not...that much of a virgin you know. I...play with myself-”

“Just say you’ve had sex before Goji,” Anguirus laughed as he ran his digit over the pucker. The king let out a sign as bowed his head. Anguirus used one palm to tug on the king’s cheek as he used to other to gently caress the hole he would eventually have fun with. He made sure not to push any in. The joy came from teasing the tender hole and making the king of the monsters beg for it. “I won’t be jealous. A sexy guy like you must have had a few partners before.”

Anguirus removes his fingers and sucks on them again after the moisture starts to lessen. His thick cock throbs as he sees the glistening hole as it twitches for something to fill it. He couldn’t want to stuff his meaty shaft into the moist warmth of one of the most powerful and revered kaiju as of the present day.

“U-use your tongue please….” Goji panted as he spread his legs some more. “I like your tongue.”

“As you wish your majesty,” Anguirus teased. He pulled back both cheeks as he licked his lips. He felt the coils of climax already pooling in his stomach. Who knew one could achieve such pleasure from pleasuring another? His tongue laps across the tight pucker and he enjoys how it twitched beneath his tongue.

“Hah...mmm Angy,” Goji moaned as he reached back to hold his butt-cheek for Anguirus. “Fuck that feel so good~”

Anguirus began to push his meaty tongue past the threshold and fuck the warmth of the moist tunnel. Slickness against slickness as he filled the rectum of his king. He adored the flavor that dripped onto his tongue as he thrust it back and forth. Heavenly moans rang in his ears as the king seemed satisfied with the service given. When he removes his tongue, he runs over the slick hole several times. He even kisses it and sucks on it.

Between his legs, the mighty king leaks with arousal. His heat only increased by the second as his best friend pleased him with his mouth.

Slobber coated Anguirus lips as well as Goji’s hole and taint. Thick trails of salvia connected from Anguirus tongue as he feasts on the snug pucker. He increases his speed, enjoying the loud yowls being given.

“Angy please,” Goji quivered. “Fuck me already~”

Anguirus was going to cum then and there. The desperation in his voice let the spiked quadruped that the king really needed this.

He removed his mouth with a loud pop. Again, the king’s legs go slack for a moment due to the overwhelming pleasure. Pre-cum trickles down his inner thighs as he cries hopelessly. The smaller kaiju smirks as he slaps Goji’s ass. The king mutters “Again” and Anguirus is more than happy to do as told. One slap. Two slaps. Three slaps. More. The rhythmic sound of flesh being struck. Goji cries with intense pleasure as his ass is assaulted over and over again.

“Can I put it in?” Anguirus asks as he stands on his hind legs to mount the king. Goji groans as he feels the cockhead kiss his tight ring. He wanted it so bad that it was the only thing on his mind.

“Mmm please put it in~” Goji cooed.

“As you wish,” Anguirus smiled as he pushed himself inside. A loud gasp left Goji’s throat. Fuck it was big. He had no idea how much Anguirus had to offer, and if that was just the tip then Goji was kinda excited.

“Oh my fuck,” Goji moans. “It’s so big baby.”

“R...really?” Anguirus looks down to realize that he’s only a quarter of the way inside. Goji’s ass was milking just the tip. It was so tight that Anguirus almost felt like he failed in loosening the king up. However, the deep rumble of pleasure coming from the bigger one’s throat approved of this.

“Fuck Angy move~ More~” Goji cried as he pushed his hips back. It was a powerful hump that sunk Anguirus’ cock deeper than before. Both kaiju let out a long groan of intense pleasure. The spiked of the two feels his cock throbbing hard within the slick warmth of the other. Tight rings hugging against his thick meat.

Anguirus hips were flush against the king’s. His body was tight against those soft cheeks as Goji whimpered. Anguirus slowly withdrew only to crash back in, pounding the sweet spot that created such heavenly sounds. The aroma of heat still burned his nostrils as he went on to breed the king.

“Angy~ Fuck Angy...Mmmmm so fucking good,” Goji throws his hips back when Anguirus thrust forward to make a deliciously wet collision. “Oh my god...fuck yes yes yes.”

“God,” Anguirus quivered as his body went on instinct. Desperate and hungry desires willed his hips back and forth. The ideals of breeding flooded his mind. He didn’t know if it were possible, but he got drunk on the idea of pumping Goji full till he gave him pups.

“Nnngghh fuck Angy,” Goji looked back and lightly pushed on Anguirus’s chest. The spiked kaiji gave a confused look. Was Goji trying to push him off? Did he snap out of the highs of heat and realize this wasn’t what he wanted? “Angy sit back~”

Anguirus does as his king orders, though gives a groan as he leaves the warmth of that amazing ass. He keeps himself propped up on his elbows, curious as to what the king had in store.

Anguirus throws his head back as Goji sinks himself on his cock, both moaning as it fills him in one go. The king of the monsters rotated his hips as he looked down to drink in the sight of his friend’s pleasure.

Anguirus’ toes curled as his dick was giving unbelievable sensations. The added weight made it better as well. A part of him hoped he didn’t wake up as this all seemed like a dream. This was driven home more when Goji grabbed his face and made their lips connect.

Large tongues lapped and massaged each other as the sound of smacking lips mixed with the sound of smacking skin. Any moans were swallowed down. Snaking his hands down, Anguirus wasted no time in slapping Goji’s ass several times as he rode him, making the king submit under his touch.

“S...shit Goji,” Anguirus panted out when they removed their mouths from each other. Before he could speak his lips were taken up again. With the next breath, Anguirus expressed urgency. “I’m..I’m going to cum soon...I...I need to pull out-”

“No no,” Goji giggled. In a swift motion, he pushes Anguirus all the way down on the ground and holds him there. Dazed, Anguirus didn't really process what was going onto until he noticed the position change.

The larger kaiju places his knees on either side to gain better support. He smirks before starting to go extra hard on Anguirus’ cock. The spiked quadruped let out a loud shout.

“HOLY SHIT FUCK MMMM” Goji held him down and chuckled at the outburst. There was no way he was letting any of that cum to go to waste. If Anguirus was going to cum, he was going to do it inside him. Goji briefly considers if he gets knocked up, but then again isn’t the point of heat to dry and lure someone in TO give you pups?

“Goji….ngh...fuck Goji I’m-”

“Do it please~” Anguirus tilted his head down and noticed just how wet Goji’s slit had become. It was leaking clear arousal that started to pool on his stomach. “Oh Angy nut in me baby~”

Anguirus let out a loud burst as he finally released all his love deep within the depths of Goji. His cock painfully throbbing as load after load was squirted into the warm tunnel he had spent the past few minutes in. So much so that it began to push back and leak along his buried dick and dripping against his tail.

Goji followed suit as he came and coated Anguirus midsection with his love. Shallow and frankly shy moans exited his throat as he gave weak squirts in comparison to Anguirus explosion.

There is only a moment for Anguirus to catch his breath as Goji rolls off of him. Both panted yet Anguirus notices that the smell hasn’t gone away. In fact, it had gotten stronger. The smaller of the two snaps his head to the side to see Goji trying (and failing) to muffle his groans as he reaches down to pleasure his slit.

“Hey,” Anguirus said as he rolled on top with a large grin. “Don’t worry, you’re best friend is here to take care of you for as long as you need~”

Sorry this took a while to complete. For about a month I had a hard time writing smut. Anyway, onto the next pairing!

#nsft #smut #anguirus #godzilla

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myfalsedevotion · 2 years

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supposed to be editing huh vicky 🤨🤨🤨 im kidding let's do this 😌 how about 2, 7, 15, 17 & 22! ok that's a lot but i have restrained myself from sending all of them so be proud of me 💙

I'm always proud of you, Maya 💙💙 And yup, I've started the editing process 🤭🤭 (I still am fighting with a couple paragraphs from the end scene, so I decided to start editing and let my brain work it out in the background hahahah)

Let's do this (under the cut so I don't take over people's dashes):

2. talk about a notable time a narrative or character has looked you dead in the eyes and said “fuck your plan, here’s what we’re actually doing.”

Okay, this is fun. There's been a couple times. Can't talk about the most recent one before tomorrow, but. In Hourglass. Cashton were never supposed to be a thing. It was a one-sided crush side plot. And then Ashton looked me dead in the eyes and was like "did you really think you could put Calum next to me for an extended period of time being his cute and talented self and I wouldn't develop fEeLiNgS???" so... 😅

Oh, and let's never forget Ashton growing a sudden tragic past when I was writing what I thought would be a fun lil christmass-y one-shot fic that would later be known as All The Hues Of Blue 🤭 He was just "well, you see, I'm a bit broken. So this is not going to be just a fun one-shot. It's going to end up being a huge ass series. You're welcome 💙"

7. tell us about one of your characters who’s an absolute joy to write

LUCIFURR. Gosh he's so fun. Although I've never written him, him. Always about other character's perceptions of him hahahah. And, of course, Otto, my beloved 💙 Otto's always a joy to write. Can't wait to write more of him. Eventually. Some day. He's such a sweet character, I can't 🥺

15. in an ideal world where you’re already super successful and published, would you want to see a tv or movie adaptation of your work? why or why not?

Mayaa, you know the answer to this one 🤭🤭 YES! I'd love to, but. I'd also love to be involved. I have a degree in film, if in this hypothetical world they offered me the chance to work on the script, or helping the casting, or being a part of the creative team? Sign me the fuck up. Athob for example is huge on colour symbolism, I'd absolutely love to explore that in an actual film 😍😍 One can dream hahahahah

17. at what point in the process do you come up with titles, and how easy or hard is that for you?

It is the hardest thing sometimes. I spent two months with Hourglass as "Batman fic" on my drafts, trying to look for a title then deciding on using the name I had given the animation studio on it for the title.

For my one-shots, unless I've had a clear direction from the beginning (Kokology), it's been hard. Then they end up being named Crayon Record Store because there was a record store on the fic and since it was Cake I wrote for my best friend's birthday, who I have saved as "Crayon" on my phone –she misspelled crying and wrote crayon once and I will never let her live it down–, well, I just put two and two together.

Then there's All The Hues Of Blue, which working title was "Christmas is all around" up until the moment I was about to post the first chapter, then the title just came to me. Funny thing, because it ended up being the thread that bound together that entire story, part of what gave it meaning. And it just... came to me. And Rare as Gold came to me when I was reading about neutron star collisions and how they're believed to be the origin of all the gold found in our galaxy (at this point I already knew what the last words of ATHOB were, and chose the title for the sequel knowing that). And... it will play a big part on the final scene 🤭

22. talk about a writing experience that has pleasantly surprised you. or talk about several. seriously, writing is cool. you’re making up whole stories out of your brain, revel in that shit.

Pleasantly surprised me? 🤔🤔 There's been a lot. Of course all the friends I've met through writing, that's the first thing that comes to mind.💙 Even though I don't think that question refers to that, but. It's the most important thing.

Another thing is how writing is such a powerful tool for self-reflection. I literally, subconsciously wrote things into fics over three years ago that I'm only just now picking up on and understanding that say a lot about what I was going through at the time, or about who I am. It's so cool to be rereading something I wrote and then go "...huh." 🤭

#thank you for the asks Maya! this was a nice break from editing 💙#ask games #writing #athob

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hqprotectionsquad · 4 years

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Hello! can I request a hc of Oikawa, Bokuto, Kuroo and Ushijima’s reaction to their s/o who’s titled as the goddess of volleyball who also won the nationals but unfortunately fainted or fell sick right after the competition. Sorry for my grammar and if the idea is quite weird 😅 Thank you in advance thoo! I hope you have a nice dayy! 💜

Oikawa, Bokuto, and Kuroo reacting to his S/O getting hurt during Nationals

A/N: hi! thanks for your request! i basically took in the request as the s/o’s team is going to nationals or is also going, and then took it from there! so not exactly the same, but slightly more realistic! also i expended all of my energy on the three of them and i don’t have any more brain power to think of ushijima 😭i’m sorry!!!

Oikawa

He’s definitely supportive of you no matter what.

Oikawa shows up to the end of your practices with your favorite snack. (He also eats like half of it before he even gets to you because he just came from his practice.)

“Hey Y/N-chan, I got you your favorite snack!” He says as he holds out the plastic bag to you.“You definitely ate part of it.”“WhaaaaaAAAt no! Why would I ever do that?”

You’re really appreciative of everything he does for you because he is oh so whipped.

Since his team didn’t make it to the spring nationals, he takes his loss in stride. Yes, he’s upset, but it’s nothing he’s not used to. ;-;

He loves the fact that you’re so excited to experience this new thing since it’s your first time going to nationals!

You two have been to Tokyo once as a special date, but to experience it together as a participant and their supporter is really awesome!

Oikawa takes the opportunity to know what it’s like to be an audience member and not on the court. Sure, he has watched games but usually to analyze them. He isn’t saying he won’t but he definitely wants to try to take a step back.

(He also uses this time to eat. I mean, they have so many food stands! He slips away to find a street market and dig in while you’re in practice.)

Your matches go splendidly and you’re more than thrilled when your team earns a place in the finals.

“Y/N! I’m so proud of you!”

But the match isn’t going as well as you had hoped to.

As your team’s libero, you’ve grown accustomed to smacks to the face and hits that hurt your ribs for days.

However, one of the last spikes in the game takes you out of commission as it totally knocks the wind out of you and you can’t get the air into your lungs without the medical team bringing you to their wing.

At that moment, Oikawa wanted to rush the court and help you even though he isn’t experienced like the nurses are. He just felt so helpless, who wouldn’t?

For whatever reason, significant others aren’t allowed in until after the athlete should be okay to go on their own, but it’s Oikawa. C’mon. The man knows how to get through anything and everything that’s in his way.

"Y/N-chan, what did I tell you about taking it easy, now look what you did to yourself.” He scolds you teasingly as you are resting on the nurse’s bed. He whispers a bunch of cute little things to you while your eyes are shut. He knows you can’t hear him, but he says these things anyway.

When you wake up, he leaves so that you have some time with your parents.

And when he comes back, the first thing you do is wrap your arms around him so tight that he forgets to breathe.

“You’re breathtaking.” His eyes flicker at the pun and you smack him a good one. “Ow, Y/N-chan! They should’ve put you back in the game, you’re fine now!”

Bokuto

The two of you are dating long-distance, so although he couldn’t be there for all of your games, Bokuto made sure he sent texts with lots of love before and after each one.

However, he made a trip to your part of Japan and he was there when your last play was the one where it decided you were heading to nationals!

Bokuto was extremely surprised at how amazing you blocked the ball and it went straight to the floor. Your teammates crowded around you and all jumped for victory.

But was he surprised that your team was heading to spring nationals? Of course not! Your team is one of the most hardworking teams out there.

He takes you out to eat after your match, as a good gentleman should.

“I can’t wait to see you in Tokyo next month! You’ll finally see where I live!”

When your team arrives for the spring nationals, Akaashi holds him back from meeting you before you settle in.

“What?! Why can’t I see her once she comes in?”“You’re going to bother her team.” (cue emo Bokuto)“But—” “You’ll see her later.” (cue happy Bokuto)

He finally takes you out on that date he’s planned since months ago. Minus all the ice cream you were going to eat together, so now he’ll have to eat it by himself. (He’s not really complaining.)

When your matches begin, he’s in the crowd as often as he can. He arrives as early as you do, making sure he gets a seat super close so he can take photos. (Yes, Bokuto is aware he’s also competing at nationals. He still does it.)

Bokuto on snapchat: “THAT’S MY GIRL 🥵😭SO GOOD BABY!” (He is definitely that cringy, but I feel like he doesn’t know he’s being cringy.)

The worst thing is that some of your matches coincide with one another, but you make sure to catch up afterwards. It doesn’t bother you as much as it does Bokuto, but you know in an ideal situation, you both would be able to support the other full-time.

What’s even worse is when your team arrives to the semifinals, you’re over for the game because of a rough shot right to your fingers. The nurse talks to you as she tapes your fingers.

“Luckily, nothing is dislocated—”“So I should be good to go back in then?”“You didn’t let me finish. I don’t recommend you going back into the game if you think you’ll continue onto the finals. You have a better chance then because your hands might be semi-healed.”

You return to the court, but on the bench. Head hung, but you’re hopeful for the rest of the game, as you cheer on your teammates.

The game came out close and your team had the upper hand this time around.

“(Y/N)! We heard what happened!” Bokuto rushes up to you after both of your games are finished. Akaashi trails in the background and silently provides his condolences for your fingers. “Are you okay?” Your boyfriend hugs you gently, which could leave one with their mouth open, but he has always made sure that his hugs never hurt you despite his stature.

“I’m okay! I should still be able to play in the finals in two days. How did your match end up?”“Ah, we ended up losing. I’m still recovering from it. Right, Akaashi? Tell (Y/N).”“Yeah, he’s still working on it. Clearly.”

Bokuto and Akaashi are in the crowd for the finals. They originally sat but every time you blocked the ball, Bokuto would raise to his feet and start cheering for you. The people in his section kicked him and Akaashi out for disrupting. Now they’re standing by the railing and Bokuto doesn’t even have to get up because he’s already—you guessed it—standing.

Your team was not the better six this time around, but lucky for you, you have Bokuto and Akaashi to comfort you with hugs (Bokuto), handshakes (Akaashi), and ice cream.

Kuroo

Kuroo's been excited for you and your team since the start.

"I know you guys are going to make it to nationals. Have you seen your team? You all are much more talented than some of the people here.""That's not very nice to say, Tetsurou.""I'm just saying the truth. I'll be at the match."

Kuroo's usually busy, but hearing that he'd be at the match makes your heart squeeze.

You're the outside hitter/wing spiker of your team and you love know that any time you get a shot in, Kuroo's cheering for you in the crowd.

After the match, he’s waiting for you outside of the court with a small bouquet of flowers. (From where he bought those, you have no idea and he has no intention of letting you know.)

“You did amazing, I’m so proud of you,” he says while squishing you in a tight hug. You can’t breathe anymore, but who really cares for necessary human functions?

“Thanks for the love, Tetsurou. Let’s go out to eat!” He has to choose the restaurant because you can’t choose; everything looks good to a hungry athlete!

You two have never been at a tournament together, competing together, so please forgive him when he spends his break with Kenma because he forgot that you had a match.

It's really exciting because Kuroo is the captain of the host representative team and even though it doesn't mean he's the king of the world, he's the king of your world.

To experience Tokyo at this bustling time alongside your lover is beyond words. To have him by your side instead of through a screen is so much better.

Your last match is unfortunately pretty rough. You dug for the ball, just as another girl had. You heard a crunch and you couldn't tell who it came from.

This is the only match Kuroo could attend and he winces in pain seeing the collision on court. He soon realizes that it's you and exits the top floor to come down to the court floor.

You're able to get up after the medic stretches your limbs and it doesn't seem like there's anything wrong from a first glance. They take you in for a full exam.

Kuroo isn't ready to freak out, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't suppressing any feelings. He needs to be strong for you. He plays games on his phone to distract himself, sends a few texts to the team to let them know he'll be late to dinner.

You come out with a smile that grows wider seeing him. "You were here the whole time?"

"Of course." Don't mind him, he's crying on the inside because he feels like he's so lucky to have someone who is actually sunshine. "You were amazing out there, and I don't want to hear anything about your cute ass complaining you didn't do good enough."

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