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zirobitches · 6 months

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One Piece: Soulmate AU

Always in this twilight - Crocodile x GN!Reader

Summary: Soulmates are incapable of hurting each other. As a pirate, this leads to some tragic moments midst battles. You thought you were prepared for when it might happen to you, but damn you were wrong.

Gn! Reader, Angst no comfort, no beta we die like Roger, Reader is Croc's First Mate and a former Roger pirate (Shanks/Buggy's age) but it doesnt really matter, also former slave background, congrats you are now in the place of my self insert OC, no promises on not being cringe this is literally a /reader fic, also had to make a fake crew bc we dont know enough crocs backstory HAND IT OVER ODA

Word count: 4500+

Also first fic on tumblr, idk what im doing here, lmk ur opinions. It is now 2:03am and i have class at 10:30. Might have to skip lmao

EDITS: grammar check lol. also cross posted it on ao3 - same name as my blog

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Soulmates weren't as common as you'd might assume when you first hear about it. There's an easy way to prove someone is your soulmate, but when that method is to harm them, well, it doesn't make it easy to find that person. And society gets a bit weird when you know your soulmate is out there.

you've known that some people carry around little needles to poke into strangers hoping to find the one. But that was in decent society; among pirates you more often heard tales of bullets suddenly dropping to the ground after they hit their target, or swords stopping on someone's skin as though it just hit steel. A battlefield is a hell of a place to meet the person fate had decided for you, but for pirates it had become a norm.

Not that long ago, some genius named Vegapunk did a study on how many people meet their soulmate - 1 in a 100. And that's just how many people find them. It never accounts for how many actually happily end up together. You had chosen to live your life as a pirate, so a happy ending with your supposed soulmate wasn't something you foresaw in your future.

You were always grateful most of your current crew felt the same. There was a small group among pirates that were always on the lookout to find their soulmate and then immediately retire. Your crew however like to joke that if they found them in battle, they would move out of the way so someone else could finish them off. It was a grim reality, but it was your reality.

However, on nights like these where you drank the night away, some romantic always had to bring it up.

"C'mon, did old Roger really make you so cold hearted that you don't believe in true love?"

"Pfft, you're fucking joking right?" You scoffed back. You always argued with Tink about this, but you understood your young navigator still had hope. Too bad you were the pessimist of the crew.

"It's not that I don't believe in true love," you continued. "Soulmates are real, I don't really see another explanation for not being able to harm only one other person in the world. But why limit yourself to waiting for a person you might never meet? So many are denying themselves to fall in love with someone else and then end up dying alone because they never found their soulmate."

Tink pouted in front of you. This was a tired conversation, one that was repeated every few weeks much to the chagrin of your other crewmates. But a controversial topic was always a great topic for a group such as yourselves.

"I'm not denying myself the chance to fall in love! I'm denying ever feeling heartbroken over someone who doesn't matter!" Tink tried to argue back, but you just groaned in response.

"And if you never meet the one? You'll just live and die without ever letting yourself even get a taste of what it is you're chasing." Tink glared, knowing it was futile to keep going, but the pink of her cheeks told you that the grog in her system was trying to get her to keep fighting.

It was then that a familiar tall figure caught your eye. There was your beloved captain Crocodile, trying to sneak behind everyone's back to grab another bottle for himself.

Crocodile was never much one for festivities, at least not one 'undeserved' as he might put it. While there was no battle won to celebrate, the night sky was clear and the waters calm; in the Grand Line, shouldn't that be enough to be happy about?

However tonight you weren't going to let him sneak booze and hide from the crew.

"Cap'n!" Apparently the grog was getting to you as well. "Come over here and help me crush Tink's dream of a soulmate!" You laughed as Tink gasped at your audacity. The rest of your company seemed more or less happy with how the night was going, but your captain was still less than enthused to join.

"If this is the same soulmate debate you've been going on about for the past 3 years, I will pass again. You already know my feelings on the matter." Crocodile's deep voice reverberated across the deck of the ship. Even if he wasn't giving orders, he still commanded the attention of everyone within earshot.

He gave a long drag of the bottle in his hand, and then turned to walk away. However you felt it was your duty as first mate to pester your captain into spending casual time with his crew.

"I may know your opinion, but would you be so kind and gracious to remind the rest of the crew? Perhaps?" You called out to the dark coat trying to run from the party, and saw him pause, then turn to walk back.

You could see some of the newer additions to the crew cower. You didn't blame them, Crocodile was an imposing figure, and was developing a infamous reputation as a pirate on the Grand Line. But he was your captain, and he would never hurt his crew, this you knew.

"If I ever met my soulmate," Crocodile began, "I assume it would be when I attempt to kill them." He took another sip from his bottle. This was one of the rare moments he was not puffing a cigar you suddenly realize. It made his face look younger, as though he was actually a man in his 20s as he claimed he was.

As though he knew you were thinking of him, Crocodile made eye contact with you. "When I realize I can't kill them, I'll call out for you." You felt your heart skip a beat. "Then you can finish them for me."

It was purely the grog's fault for making your face warm. The lack of a sea breeze was also suddenly apparent. But you couldn't be flustered, not when you were the one who asked for this answer.

You smiled, doing your best to brush off the tension. You were still maintaining eye contact with him after all. "Well there you have it. Not exactly the opinion I remember, but I hope I can live up to your expectations, Cap'n."

Crocodile nodded, then told you all to start to sober up or get to bed. "I don't need a crew of drunks on the Grand Line, or else we will never make it to the New World."

Your crew began to disperse and you went below deck to your cabin. You really hadn't had much to drink that night, yet your chest felt tight.

You thought you had learned your lesson, but no. Even after promising yourself you wouldn't, you became attached to your crew. Even after your last one fell apart. Even after you watched your first captain, your savior, be executed, you fucked up and dove straight into a different crew expecting it to be different.

You laid down in your bed, staring at the ceiling, the world slightly spinning. Suddenly all you can think about is when you met Croc.

It was little more than 3 years ago now, wasn't it? A whole 3 years since Roger died. The weight is still heavy in your chest, but not nearly as devastating as it was in Logue Town that day. You were a wreck, physically and emotionally.

After watching the execution, you were too heartbroken to join the others in pursuit of the One Piece. Your world has just officially ended, the crew was technically already disbanded, but now there was no hope of getting it back.

You ended up in some local bar. No one recognized you, and in the haze of all the excitement following Roger's death, why would they? You had just been some nobody apprentice who happened to stick on his ship after Roger saved your life.

But your sorrow did catch someone's eye.

You sat at the counter of this dive bar in Logue Town, mindlessly stirring whatever number drink sat in front of you now. You had run out of tears, and sat stuck in some frozen state of grief.

However, this sad portrait of yourself did not seem to deter someone from sitting next to you.

You paid them no mind, just staring into empty space, not enough energy to even remember you were still alive.

"You were a member of the Pirate King's crew weren't you?"

A deep voice rattled from the stranger, but it was his words that really caught your attention.

"How'd you figure?" You had paused your stirring at first, but now focused on your drink to avoid eye contact. You were a mess, you could feel your puffy eyes, and were still sniffling every so often.

"There's no reason anyone in this town should be sad that someone like him died. So, you must have known him, right?" The deep voice continued, and you could feel their eyes staring, but didn't have the strength to meet them.

"Well, you caught me. Going to take me in and see if you can get a reward? I'm afraid you won't find any posters of me though. I tended to get lost in the crowd, you could say." After that statement you finally grasped the glass in front of you and decided to knock back what was left. If this was the end of your little pirating career, so be it. It can die with Roger.

"Will you join my crew?"

Your head snapped up at that, and you finally looked up at the stranger.

Long black hair was slicked back to show all the sharp features of the man's face. A strong square jaw, a prominent, perfect nose, and pale, piercing eyes, hooded by thin black eyebrows. Undoubtedly, even in your drunken haze, you were sure sober you would agree the man was handsome.

After a moment to take in this stranger all you could manage was a "Excuse me?"

He smiled - no, smirked - and pulled a cigar out from his coat. "I could use someone with your experience on my crew." He carried on, as if you were discussing the weather outside. He lit the cigar with a lighter you hadn't noticed him pull out. Perhaps it was the booze, but looking at this guy, he almost seemed… fuzzy, around the edges.

"Having someone who once worked for the Pirate King should help me become the next Pirate King."

The stranger took a long drag from his cigar, then exhaled over the counter. You didn't know where the barkeep was now, but at the moment, it felt like you and him were the only people in the building.

You should be mad. Enraged at the audacity of someone to come up to you on the worst day of your life, and to ask you to work for them. But you felt nothing.

No. That wasn't right. You did feel something.

You chuckled. Giggled even. A small laugh that built up till you were laughing, nearly hysterically. You hadn't felt like this sort of light headed elation in a long time, and it was nice.

After taking a moment to catch your breath you finally looked back at the stranger. He didn't look upset at your reaction. He just kept smoking his cigar, waiting for an answer.

"I'm afraid I didn't catch your name."

"I am Sir Crocodile, captain of the Neverland Pirates."

"Hmmm. Well, Sir Crocodile, I can tell you now that you have no chance of being Pirate King." You smirked back at him, propping your head up on your hand as you leaned against the counter.

This response still didn't bother the man. If anything, you swore he almost seemed… satisfied by your answer. Perhaps he knows what's coming next.

"I can help you out on the Grand Line and maybe help you get to the New World, but I promise," you leaned in towards this captain, staring him down. "You will never be the man Roger was. No one will."

Yet Crocodile was unperturbed.

"So you'll join my crew?"

You leaned back and reassessed your empty glass. You cast a quick glance at the bar and then back at the other pirate.

"Sure. I don't have anything better to do anyways."

You thought back in Logue Town you could never feel the same way about Crocodile's crew that you felt with Roger's, but you were always the fool. Now you are attached.

Now you need a reason to leave.

You couldn't waste your time or your heart with them. You had already died once with Roger, and if you stayed any longer you know you could never leave alive. You got up from bed - still plenty tipsy you swayed over - to your dresser.

Middle drawer, back left, underneath some no longer worn t-shirts was a small box. You opened it.

There were several small scraps of paper. Vivre cards.

As a child on Roger's boat, you were ecstatic to learn about vivre cards. A simple way to know the people you loved were alive and safe, and be able to find their exact location? It was too good to be true.

When you remember the feeling of Roger's paper burning in your hands at his execution, you knew the reality of vivre cards.

Your fingertips gently sorted through the papers you had made for some of Roger's crew. Each had a tiny name written in a corner. Shanks, Buggy, Ray, Gaban, Oden, and a few others of people who had been most important to you.

Maybe you could leave this crew and seek out the others. Rayleigh had always said he would retire at Sabaody, and your crew was bound to get there soon, hopefully in a couple months. The ache in your chest; you missed your old family. This could be the excuse you needed.

With a heavy sigh you closed the box and hid it away again. Sleeping on it would be good. Sleeping away the booze would also be nice.

Maybe then the tears would stop silently slipping down your face.

It turns out the excuse of seeing your old crew was unneeded. The news coo was kind enough to drop a reason to leave directly in your lap.

You stared at the newspaper for a long moment. The sinking feeling in your gut still did not go away.

You walked up to the bow where Crocodile was standing. He stared at the horizon as you approached the next island, Water 7.

"Captain."

Crocodile turned to look at you, face neutral, signature cigar in his mouth.

"Morning. The news any good?"

"They want to make you a Warlord."

Your own feelings were swept under the rug as your crewmates overheard. Instantly the deck was buzzing, the news spreading and making the once sleepy, slightly hungover crew come back to life.

"This is perfect!" The helmsman Diat yelled, a grin wide on his face. "Not only do we get the Marines off our back, it's recognition that we are some of the strongest pirates on the Grand Line!"

You would have laughed at him if not for the ice in your chest. Similar celebratory remarks were made all around you, but you didn't have the strength to pretend this was good news to you.

All you could feel was an icy feeling on your back, right where you had a large scar that tore up a long faded tattoo. But time could not get rid of the mark you could never forget about, no matter how much you wanted to.

Amid the spontaneous party you finally turned back to Crocodile. Amidst it all, he was still only looking at you.

Your words were quiet compared to the raucous around you, but your captain heard you just fine.

"If you become a Warlord I'm leaving the crew."

A couple of nearby crew gasped, heads whipped in your direction and murmurs quickly took place of all the yells.

Instantly protests, people yelling your name, yelling their arguments, but it all fell on deaf ears as you stared down your captain.

Tink of all people knew it was futile to argue with you, and turned to the man of the hour. "Captain! You can't just let your first mate leave!"

Before she could continue, Crocodile interjected. "You never planned on making me King of the Pirates, right? So you never planned on staying on this ship anyways."

This evoked even more protests from the crowd. Many of them weren't sure what you two were talking about, and some had begun to yell again.

The sounds were starting to be overwhelming, and this was not a conversation that required the whole crew anyways.

"That's enough from everyone!" You yelled over the cacophony. The crew went quiet. "This is a conversation for me and the captain, the rest of you need to beat it! Do something useful, we will make a port soon."

The crowd was not placated in the least, but it was true the ship would be docked soon, and there were things that needed to be prepared beforehand.

"You heard them. Get back to work." Crocodile finished your command, and the crowd dispersed. You knew they would still be listening, but it didn't stop you.

"I refuse to be part of a crew that works alongside the Marines. If you become a Warlord you automatically become their dog - then you may as well be a dog of the celestial dragons." Your tongue burned even at the mention of the world nobles.

Crocodile took a long drag of his cigar. He looked away from you and sighed an exhale of smoke, then dragged his line of sight back to you.

"I haven't decided yet."

You bristled at this. "Are you suggesting they already offered this to you? And I had to find out through a newspaper?"

Crocodile took yet another drag, and you lost your patience with his nicotine addiction. "Answer me Crocodile."

Your captain sighed through his nose this time, some of the smoke reaching you, a familiar smell after all these years. It once may have been a nice fragrance, knowing your captain was near, but now it blinded you and stoked your anger.

"We are almost to Water 7. Let's save it for there."

Tensions were high, especially between you and Crocodile, when your mood worsened when he disappeared while you oversaw the docking. But you docked. You got the crew into a hotel. During this time the crew began splitting into sides, which was not something you had anticipated. But you ignored it all until finally, Crocodile returned and you cornered him into in a room alone with you.

He had no cigar, and you had no drink in hand. It was a painfully sober room.

Crocodile sighed and slumped into an armchair. He dragged his eyes across the room till they met yours. You refused to look away this time, jaw set with determination to stand your ground.

"I don't want to be the Marine's dog," Croc began. "But they offered me a deal."

"The deal that our crimes are excused? Big whoop, as long as we don't get caught it's almost the same."

"No," he sighed, a large ring covered hand dragging down his face in exasperation. "A deal to help take down Whitebeard."

That got you silent. For a moment, as you recalled every time you saw Roger and Whitebeard exchange blows and fight for days on end.

"You? Take down Whitebeard?" You laughed, but it was a dry and bitter thing. "Your bounty is $81 million berries. Your devil fruit is great and all, but it is by no means fight and beat Whitebeard good. Even if Newgate was without his crew, our entire crew would be wiped off the map. You've lost it if you truly believe that this is achieveable."

Crocodile glared from across the room. Not his usual, perpetual glare, but a genuine, freeze you in your tracks ice cold glare.

He stood up, all 8 feet imposing over you as he stalked across the room. "I have let you say plenty of cruel things to me, but this may cross the line."

But you were his first mate and you couldn't fear him if you were supposed to talk sense into him. "Cross the line? I'm not the one who is making deals with the Navy so I can sail us to our deaths at the hands of Whitebeard!" You were yelling now, no, roaring at your foolish headstrong captain.

"If you take that ship and that crew as it is now to the New World to fight Whitebeard and his sons, no one will come back alive!" Your heart was on fire with rage and frozen in fear. Rage at your captain, who is very much overestimating his abilities. Fear for your crewmates who have no idea what sort of danger their captain was going to put them in.

Crocodile was now truly enraged on the same level as you. He sneered down at you as he suddenly grabbed you by the neck - much to your shock. "I wanted you there to see me become the next Pirate King. But if you can't support me for this, one of the biggest moments in my life since I've been a pirate, then I have no need for you anymore."

With his free hand he opened the door that was behind you. A group of Marines walked in with cuffs ready. "To sweeten the deal, what better than to give a former Roger pirate to the Navy?"

You felt all the blood drain from your face, as fear for your own well being finally pierced your heart. You looked up at Crocodile, and you could feel tears begin to creep at the corner of your eyes. "You never fail to surprise me, Captain."

"Well done Sir Crocodile." One of the Marines spoke, and you could tell from their uniform it was a Vice Admiral, though you didn't recognize them.

"A public execution of a Roger's pirate should be a grand way to ring in your instatement as Warlord."

You felt the world slow down around you and felt Crocodile's grip on your neck slip at the Marine's sentencing.

Crocodile began to speak, "That was not what we agreed on," But your ears had begun to ring.

Growing up on the Oro Jackson, you had picked up some neat tricks. You found out you were hopeless with the color of observation haki, but had a special knack for color of arms. Perfect against those darn logia fruit users.

In a blink of an eye you ripped Crocodile's arm away from your neck and you made a mad dash past him. And jumped straight through a window, glass and all.

You could vaguely hear a commotion behind you as Marines ran after you, but it was lost with the ringing in your ears.

You could hear and feel your heartbeat, pounding throughout your body as you ran through the endless alleys and canals of Water 7. You could feel tears pierce through the wind rushing past your face as you ran, desperately with no objective.

All you could think about was the way the heat of Crocodile's hand felt on your neck, the cold metal of the rings that had pressed against your pulse.

Have you ever really touched Crocodile before?

…

You missed him. You didn't understand why. He had just betrayed you - fucking hell, he was just handing you over to the Navy as part of his deal to become a warlord, but god. You wanted to be with him anyways. You're not sure how long you've been in love with him; his sharp eyes, the smell of his cigars, the rings on his hands, but gods above.

You had fallen in love with Crocodile.

In your realization you slowed down. Your legs and lungs burned, you were gasping for air and not just because you had been running.

Has it always been this dark? When did the day leave you behind?

You now stood in some nondescript alley, dimly lit a golden hue by windows that lined it. It was a long alley, each end blocked by canals. How you arrived there you weren't certain. But you weren't alone.

At one end sand had appeared. And from it stepped your dear, awful captain Crocodile. You both stared at each other, both of you panting for breath.

"I didn't want it to be like this." Crocodile's voice cuts through the air to you. You knew you should run. But for some reason you couldn't find the strength.

"I didn't know they would execute you. I imagined they would send you to Impel Down." Crocodile continued to speak. You just stood there and listened as he walked towards you.

As you watched him, there was a strange look on his face. You've seen it before but still didn't know what it meant.

He stopped walking ten feet in front of you. The light was still too dim to see him clearly, but it was fine. You knew his face well enough.

"I won't let the Navy kill you. Not after what the nobles did to you, it feels wrong." You had never told Crocodile what the scar on your back was. It didn't feel like it mattered anymore.

"I think I'll feel better about this if I'm the one who kills you."

You knew this was coming. The second you saw him at the end of the alley. But you agreed with him. If you had to die at someone's hands, you would pick Crocodile over anyone else. Even if it meant he didn't feel the same about you, it didn't matter anymore. You were so tired.

It would be nice to see Roger again.

But then Rayleigh's face flashed in your mind. You still had to pay him a visit. You still had to visit Wano to see Oden. You wanted to see Shanks and Buggy find the One Piece.

You couldn't see Roger just yet.

So, in a sudden scramble, you turned around and ran.

The ground where you had been standing suddenly crumbled. You felt a gasp finally escape your lungs as you realized you almost gave up. But not yet. You had to save your crew too.

Then you finally ran out of luck. The dim light hid a hole in the cobblestones and you fell to the alley ground. You quickly twisted your body just in time to see Crocodile's scythe of sand arc straight towards you.

It hits you right in the chest, and crumbles to dust.

Confused, you run your hands through the sand that has landed on your lap. You're not cut in half - instead you just have sand all over you.

Crocodile change his mind? He was letting you go? Thoughts and heart still racing, you looked up at him.

Oh.

Oh no.

The horror on his face was plain to see - that was supposed to be a killing blow.

But he didn't hurt you.

Your hand jumped to your neck from when he grabbed you earlier. But in retrospect, you had just been shocked by the action, he hadn't harmed you.

Crocodile didn't hurt you.

No.

Crocodile couldn't hurt you.

Because he was your soulmate.

It was the look on his face that hurt you the most. The disgust, anger, horror - this man did not want a soulmate. He did not want you. So why bother sticking around?

You scrambled back to your feet. Even if he couldn't hurt you, the Marines still could.

So, with blurry eyes and a heavy heart, you ran away.

Faintly, you heard a painfully familiar voice call your name, but then all that was left was the wind as you ran.

pt. 2 (if you want, but this might be better as a one shot)

#one piece #sir crocodile #crocodile one piece #crocodile x reader #one piece fanfiction #zirowrites #x reader

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aprillikesthings · 2 months

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It's Fridayyyyy

TIME FOR MORE SHE-RA

s1 ep11 Promise

oh shit I remember this one it's a heartbreaker

(good stuff for my fic though)

Hey remember when I swore up and down I wasn't going to liveblog my entire rewatch? Good times.

Part of me is like: I would get through these so much faster if I didn't insist on screenshotting them and commenting and making jokes

But the rest of me knows damn well I probably just wouldn't bother watching them?? This way feels a bit like watching it *with* someone, which I always prefer to watching things alone.

Also tbh if I did just marathon them while knitting or something I wouldn't remember anything!! Which would defeat the point!! So here I am.

If you're new to these posts: I am doing a rewatch of She-Ra with the specific purpose of taking notes for a fic I'm working on--but because this is me we're talking about, I also post a ton of screenshots with the purposes of commentary, squeeing at specific scenes, and making jokes. Because it's a rewatch, I don't comment on every plot point and I often mention things that happen later in the show--in other words, these might be confusing if you haven't seen the show yet.

EDIT: yeah this was another one where I hit the image limit, will have to reblog to finish it

I know people have figured out the "alphabet" of the first ones what does this sayyyyy

I mean wouldn't they all be portable in some sense? The one that recharges Glimmer could be taken down and moved somewhere, couldn't it? We know the one from Scorpia's kingdom was taken and moved to the Fright Zone, for instance.

"Query not recognized."

Adora's frustration here is exactly why I don't use Siri, like, ever.

Light Hope reminds me of a specific model? actress? from the 1980's but I can never remember who and it drives me CRAZY

*does some googling*

GRACE JONES I AM THINKING OF GRACE JONES

TELL ME I'M WRONG

Grace Jones also did disco music, TIL

back to cartoon lesbians

yeah that couldn't have been important for anything no worries it's fine

you didn't notice anyone else there until She-Ra destroyed something lolol

ehehehehehehh

Look I know it's the point of the whole show but I grin every time they're supposed to be on opposite sides and one saves the other's life (Does Adora do it more than Catra does? surely someone kept count)

don't mind me

little shit

🎵BUT YOU DID IT ANYWAYYYYYY🎶

"how many times are you going to make that joke" well how many times does Catra say it lolll

"where are your friends?" "you mean the ones you KIDNAPPED and CURSED???" "uh, yeah?"

lol

I just like the art style here

Okay so I can't screenshot audio, but that little moment of Catra saying "Adora? Adora???" where the tone goes from "hey look at this" to that almost-panic and then she turns around and it's kid!Catra is just so, SO well done.

ugh these scenes are such a punch in the gut

I'm not getting emotional at cartoon characters remembering the happier bits of their shitty traumatic childhood together, YOU ARE

;_;

man this shot is just good, ugh, you can see so much of their characters on display: Adora's self-righteousness vs Catra's sullen defensiveness

anyway they should've made out

lol

they're 1:1 so far this episode

(even though this cliff probably isn't even real)

"Did you really think I'd just let Shadow Weaver erase your memory like that?" oh so she DID know

Adora: "I don't know, probably" I mean I thought she would

I've been CALLED OUT lol

Adora: "Can you blame me? Catra: "*scoffs* Not really"

😏

John Cena.gif

BABIES (okay a little older like maybe 13)

(still babies)

I mean, true

I'VE HIT THE IMAGE LIMIT FOR THIS POST lol I knew I would

gonna post and reblog

#april rewatches spop #promise

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lee-lucius · 7 months

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Tickletober Day 8: Truth

Summary: Ikkaku and Yumichika's training session leads to the revelation of an unexpected truth.

Word Count: 1,788

I didn't post this yesterday, because I was rereading it for editing and realized I didn't really like it, so I just decided to redo the fic! But my first Bleach fic is finally here!!! I love Bleach (even if I'm barely into it so far lol), and these two especially! I hope you enjoy! 💙

"And what exactly is the point of this?" Yumichika asked skeptically, watching as Ikkaku removed his zanpakutō, gently setting the blade down and stretching.

"Training, obviously."

"It's not as if you ever go all out fighting with me anyway. And it's not like some hand-to-hand practice ever hurt," he said, cracking his neck. "You ready?"

He rolled his eyes. Yes, that much was obvious. "Why bother training without our zanpakutōs? If you lose it in a fight, you're as good as dead."

Sighing, Yumichika got into his stance. "I suppose. Just try not to damage my beautiful face."

Ikkaku chuckled, "No promises."

Then he rushed at Yumichika, and the battle began.

They were fairly evenly matched, expertly delivering and evading blows. While Yumichika was slightly more agile, Ikkaku made up for it with his marginally superior strength. But combined with Ikkaku's greater experience and Yumichika's half-hearted attitude, it didn't take long for one to get an upper hand.

Before Yumichika even knew what hit him, his legs were swept out from under him, and landed on his butt with a loud thunk.

"Pfft—is that all you got? If that's it, there really is no point training with you."

A vein bulged in Yumichika's forehead, but he took a deep breath, composing himself. Stress wasn't good for his complexion, and he was not going to let Ikkaku be the reason his beautiful skin was wrinkled.

"Then again, I don't know what I expected. You are only fifth in the company. There's just too large of a gap between us for you to be a challenge."

The vein was practically bursting now. He jumped to his feet, well aware that he was playing into Ikkaku's hands and letting his childish taunts get to him, but he had too much pride to stand there and take it.

"If that's how you're going to be, then I'll show you exactly what I'm capable of," Yumichika glowered, getting back into his stance. "I just hope you don't regret it, you ugly oaf."

He grinned, confident and satisfied, "As long as you don't regret it when I bust your pretty face in."

With that, Yumichika rushed at him, dodging a punch from Ikkaku. He attempted a kick at his sides, one Ikkkau easily blocked but it didn't matter, because Yumichika diverted, landing a punch square at his jaw.

"What were you saying?" He smirked.

However easy it was to rile up Yumichika, it was even easier with Ikkaku.

"Maybe you should shut up and focus instead," he growled, charging at Yumichika.

Both of them were too stubborn to give up; the fight wore on until they were both tired and breathless. Their movements were slowed, weighed down by a fatigue that made it almost too easy for Ikkaku to grab his leg when Yumichika kicked at him again, gripping it tightly and yanking hard enough that Yumichika landed on his back with a strange sound.

A… laugh?

"Oi. What's so funny? You like losing that much?"

Even stranger was the flush on Yumichika's face, darker than it should be from overexertion.

It took a few moments for him to formulate a response. "Or I find your ugly face that amusing."

Ikkaku stared at him skeptically, offering a hand to help him up. "Something wrong?"

"No."

He almost chuckled. Normally, Yumichika was a better liar than this. "You sure?"

A sigh. Then, "If I tell you, then you can't… tease me about it."

There really was something odd about this whole thing. Yumichika never made requests like that. The men in the Eleventh Company always fucked around with each other; "teasing," if you could call it that, was more than commonplace. And emotions were never much of a factor, not among their meat-headed, battle-frenzied men.

Something more serious than usual, then.

"Fine," he shrugged, trying for nonchalance.

"Sensitive?"

"I'm…" the blush deepened, "a bit… sensitive there."

Yumichika wouldn't look at him, focusing on the floor instead. "You know."

"I don't."

He couldn't even imagine what would elicit this kind of reaction from his friend. Bashfulness didn't suit him.

"I'm ticklish."

Ikkaku stared at him for a long moment, trying to tell if he was serious or not. Did something as simple as that warrant all this?

"Okay."

He waited. There was no response. Just when he was about to ask if they wanted to return to their match, he noticed the anxious air around Yumichika.

He kept staring at the floor, somehow looking almost expectant as he fidgeted with his sleeve.

Yumichika never fidgeted, or held his tongue.

An idea grew in Ikkaku's mind, but the question died in his throat. He had said that he wouldn't tease him, and Ikkaku wasn't one to break his word for no reason. Instead, with a devious plan in mind, he asked, "Ready for the next round?"

An affirmative. And, if Ikkaku wasn't mistaken, for a moment Yumichika appeared disappointed. He'd have to fix that.

Both settling into their stances, their fight began again. Only this time was different. Ikkaku had another goal in mind.

"Hehey!" He protested with a surprised giggle when Ikkaku reached out, poking his stomach instead of landing a hit.

"What?" He grinned, taking in Yumichika's own wobbly smile. "There's nothing wrong with exploiting your enemy's weakness."

"So you need to resort to dirty tricks to win."

His words were lightly scathing, but altogether forgotten when Ikkaku caught his fist, quickly jabbing at his underarm in a way that made Yumichika gasp and stumble.

"How have I never noticed this before?" He asked himself, marveling at his outlandish reactions.

"Shuhut uhuhup!" Yumichika yanked his arm away, taking a few steps back until he was securely out of Ikkaku's reach. "What happened to training?"

"This is just another kind. Say… endurance training."

"Ikkaku," he said sharply—a warning. Then took another step back.

"Yumichika," he parroted with a teasing grin, taking his own step forward.

Yumichika bolted. Ikkaku was hot on his heels.

He barely made it a foot before he was tackled to the ground, Ikkaku's fingers digging into his sides as he fell, grumbling out a curse in between his laughter.

Yumichika was his friend; Ikkaku had gotten to know him fairly well over the years, and he was fairly confident that despite Yumichika's protests, he didn't really mind the tickling. If anything, Ikkaku thought he liked it.

If he didn't, it would've been all too easy not to mention, and even easier for him to actually get away. Even now, he didn't bother putting up a fight.

Instead, he was practically curled up in a ball on the floor, squirming beneath Ikkaku. His hands were wrapped tightly around himself, as if he was trying to shield himself from the ticklish attack. His face was tucked into his neck, hair tousled, cheeks flushed, eyes crinkled, and lips stretched into a wide smile.

It wasn't a bad look.

"Can't you feel yourself becoming stronger?"

"Thihihis ihihisn't traihihing!"

"Sure it is," Ikkaku laughed, reaching down to squeeze at his knees.

He spasmed, unconsciously jerking his leg in a kick that hit Ikkaku in the stomach.

"Thahat's… mohore lihike it," he huffed, smirking.

"Now," Ikkaku growled, grabbing onto his leg like he had earlier, "it really isn't about training. I just want revenge."

"Ihihit wahahasn't my fahahulut!" He protested, shrieking when Ikkaku started pinching his thighs.

"What? You're saying it was my fault?"

"Yehehehes?" It came out more unsure than he intended, but it was hard to think, let alone talk, when Ikkaku was jumping between his tickle spots, targeting anywhere he could reach with such a speed that Yumichika could hardly even try to escape from his torment.

"You're really asking for it now."

Begging was beneath Yumichika, but even if it wasn't, he didn't have the chance to plead for mercy before Ikkaku was digging into his stomach, making him squeal and laugh harder than he ever had in his life.

It didn't take much longer before Yumichika was a breathless, teary-eyed mess, and Ikkaku finally let him go. After his release, all he could do was fully curl up into a ball, wheezing and giggling and thinking about how awfully unbeautiful he must've looked in that moment.

Once he had mostly regained his breath, he glared at Ikkaku, who looked all too satisfied, hissing, "Not a wohord… to anyone."

"Fine with me," he shrugged, rising to his feet and once again offering a hand to help him up. "It can just be our secret."

Reluctantly, Yumichika accepted his assistance, wobbling slightly when he stood but managing to right himself. Quickly, he tried to fix his hair, realizing how awful he must look after all of… that.

And, after an internal debate, he decided it wasn't worth asking Ikkaku if he could try using his shiny, bald head as a mirror, instead focusing on brushing the dust off of his uniform.

"Training wasn't so bad, was it?"

"No, it wasn't. But what happened afterwards was shameful."

"You can't tell someone something like that without expecting them to try it out."

Yumichika decided not to dignify that with a response. "Now can you tell what the actual point of that idiotic training session was for?"

"You know I love a good fight. Captain's never interested, and I wouldn't even bother trying with Yachiru."

"You act like there are no other capable fighters in our company."

"They're nowhere near our level," he said, walking back over to their swords to pick up his discarded zanpakutō. "Besides, you never use your real power against me."

"There isn't much of a point using it while sparring."

But that was a dangerous thought. One Yumichika quickly pushed aside, focusing on sheathing his sword instead.

Yumichika joined him, and Ikkaku handed him his sword. Their hands were so close, only a few inches apart, and Yumichika imagined reaching closer, touching their pinkies together, and slowly, painfully slowly, inching closer and closer until Ikkaku wrapped his hand—the hand that had just been touching Yumichika so intimately; the one he never wanted to leave his skin—around his, interlocking their fingers, feeling the body heat emanating from his skin and the callouses from years of fighting.

"Still, this seemed like it'd be an equal way to fight." Ikkaku continued, almost annoyingly oblivious.

"We can do this again sometime. As long as you focus on training instead of… that."

"Don't act like you didn't like it. And, I was nice, wasn't I? I barely even teased you about how ticklish you are," he smirked. "Yet."

"Be quiet," he demanded, turning away from the man who made his heart beat too fast in his chest. "And hope I don't decide to get my revenge."

#my writing #tickle fic #tickling #tickletober #tickletober 2023 #augtickletober2023 #bleach #bleach tickle #bleach tickling #ikkaku madarame #yumichika ayasegawa #bleach ikkaku #bleach yumichika #ikkaku x yumichika #lee!yumichika #ticklish!yumichika #ler!ikkaku

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musicboxmemories · 4 days

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20 questions for fic writers

tagged by @viola-ophelia <3 Thank you!

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 58 on my primary page, 38 on my trash page, and 5 on my catch-all.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? LOL if you think I'm going to add up the word count of 101 total fics, you're crazy! So instead, I'll just say my longest fic on my primary page is 96,771, my trash page is 34,787, and my catch-all is 11,722, for a total of 143,280. So with that being for just three fics, I shudder to think what my actual word count is for 101 fics lol.

3. What fandoms do you write for? Lately, TURN: Washington's Spies, though past fandoms have been H.annibal, E.mma 2020, and The M.agicians, to name a few.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos? I'm just going to stick to my main page for this:

Wake-up Call (From D.usk till D.awn: the Series) (438)

Changing Winds (S.tranger T.hings) (384)

Lost in the Dark (S.tranger Things) (284)

Anyone But You (That 70s Show) (265)

To Thaw and Burst into Bloom (S.tranger Things) (235)

^^The funny thing is, none of these were fandoms I was overly into/participated in much, but they're way more popular than my favored fandoms, which is why none of what I'm TRULY proud of is listed in my top kudos ranking. Ah well.

5. Do you respond to comments? I do! In the past, I've always made friends through reviews/reviewing, so I always respond to comments and leave comments on works I've enjoyed. :) I really wish engagement/fic friendships were more encouraged these days.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Uhh, probably Folie a Deux (H.annibal) or To K.iss, to Consume (Turn). OH, and Let the Weary Rest (Turn), where I killed off Ben lol.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? After 2020, pretty much all of my fics had happy endings. The World is Made Wrong made me happiest though, I'd say.

8. Do you get hate on fics? I'd rather not jinx myself, but I haven't since I was a kiddo! And that hate was deserved tbh, cuz they were just telling me I wrote xyz wrong since I was a child/didn't bother to research.

9. Do you write s.mut? *gestures vaguely at my trash page* Uh. Yeah. lol I don't really have a specific type I write, beyond M/F, if that's what you're asking -- the specific scenarios are typically a case-by-case basis.

10. Do you write crossovers? I used to write quite a few! Nowadays, I save that more for things like RP and edits, though I do still enjoy them. Sometimes, crossovers work better than canon, I said what I said.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? I have! But I was like 13 at the time, and the person posted it in the same ship/fandom, so Idk what their plan was lol. Fortunately, they deleted it the day I reviewed.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Yes! A few times, actually (all for the H.annibal fandom).

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Sure have! They're all RP-turned-fics though, cuz I've never actually asked someone to write something who wasn't an RPer themselves.

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship? Probably David/Maddie from Moonlighting. They're timeless! <3

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? I suppose my time travel romcom. It's basically me rewriting a book I've already created, but altering it for the Turn universe. Even though it's fun, it's kind of boring repurposing my old work, and most especially when there's so little engagement. I flourish on comments, alas. Other than that, I mostly tend to finish my works!

16. What are your writing strengths? An editor once told me my strengths are my dialogue and humor. She equated the first 20 pages of my book (a recent work) to a Shakespearean comedy, which really tickled me, ngl.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? World-building! I've improved with this by a lot, but I genuinely do think fic writers are conditioned to stop describing settings/appearance thanks to our audiences already KNOWING, and thus, our OG works suffer for it. Mine certainly do!

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I wouldn't do it personally, since I doubt it'd translate well, but I encourage others to do it! I'll still read!

19. First fandom you wrote for? C.owboy B.ebop.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? Probably The World is Made Wrong, since I've since reworked it and I'm still very proud of how that second run-through turned out (not the one available on AO3 -- that version is all its heinous first draft glory lol).

Tagging: @retrograderesemblance @pagetreader @ms-march @culper-spymaster and whoever else wants to!

#mine #idky this felt like HW lol i was being so lazy!#thanks for tagging! <3 #long post tw

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desolateice · 3 months

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(Scissors) what's your editing process?

(Hamburger/three lines) send a fic and an unrelated trope and I'll remix it - Cherry Cordial but Royalty AU 👀

Thank you for the asks from this game! 💖 ✄ what’s your editing process? Editing process...lol what editing process? Okay so I'm going to give you my like actual editing process for anything that I like send out beyond fandom funsies. Write Let it set for a bit, walk away from it. Come back, read it to myself. Read it to a small gathering of plushies (do this for my secret santa fics because those are gifts so I want them to be slightly more edited then my usual.) Go walk away for a bit or do something else. If lucky come back another day. Have a text to voice reader read the thing back to me. Make edits and changes. Have it re-read it to me again. Repeat as needed. Maybe pop it into a program that is supposed to fix your writing. However I don't fully trust those. They make just as dumb of mistakes as I make on my own and sometimes worse ones.😂 Send the thing wherever it needs to go. My teachers always told me to let things marinate and my mentor pretty much told me that I got to always read my stuff out loud to myself so that I can catch errors I wouldn't otherwise. I use the plushies because I was trained to read to people, to an audience even though I hate it because I get super nervous about it. But then later on in work situations where I had to edit I realized that wasn't working because I was inflecting which is fine in fiction but not so much in non-fiction and was told that sometimes it helps if something else reads it to you so now I have an app in monotone read to me because then I can catch when things don't sound right or when something is wrong because I'm not filling in those blanks myself because I know the content too well. Another reason why letting things marinate works. But truthfully for fics I write it in Scrivener, read it to myself not out loud, paste it into ao3, read it one more time adding bolds or italics because for some reason those don't copy over from Scrivener properly and then hit paste and try not to cringe at all the mistakes I find later when I re-read the thing. Because I make more mistakes now then I used to, silly mistakes I didn't use to make but again, it's for fun so I try not to let it bother me too much and when I've got the energy I try to occasionally pop back in and fix glaring errors. But I'm sure I miss them.

☰ send a fic and an unrelated trope and I’ll remix it Cherry Cordial as a Royalty AU 🤔 My first thought here is that it's magic right? Like at it's core Cherry Cordial is about magic which makes me think fairy tales and then I realize that's what Candied Apples is. 😂 A fairy tale royal au of sorts. So maybe we can mix a few fairy tales together for a royalty au. Daniel stumbles upon a magical artifact like the lamp only instead of a genie he gets Terry. Or Terry could be like jafar, (I should probably read the original and not just know the disney version) Or Daniel runs into a witch (Terry) and makes a trade to be a royal so that he can better compete with the royals or get a step ahead of them (Johnny and cobras) Because Johnny would be a prince...or maybe he's Cinderella. I guess my question is whose the royal in this AU? One of them? Both of them? Johnny's Cinderella with fairy godmother Susan and his cat that talks and dresses up in a pretty dress and all in magical disguise to dance for the night because Susan wants to dance with the princess and can't go alone, or they sneak in to dance together and Susan uses her magic to help him sneak in with him without getting into a fight because he and Daniel (the prince) don't get along, only Daniel doesn't recognize him but also kind of does but can't quite put his finger on it and wants to keep dancing but the magic will for sure where off so Johnny runs, slipper left behind. If we do a both of them au, maybe Daniel is set to meet up with Johnny to discuss things between their kingdoms but they've met before and it went awful and he doesn't want it all to get screwed up again so he makes a drink, a concoction he finds in an old book that should make them more amiable but he made the wrong one and he thinks he totally gave him a love potion, but he also misread it and really it's just a harmless aphrodisiac or something like eating an oyster but not, and so Daniel is less nervous and actually having a good time and Johnny was determined to try and have a good time and maybe his cat keeps like trying to trip him and Daniel catches him when Peri succeeds in tripping him and he realizes he's got a total crush because Daniel's good at all the princely stuff: sword fighting and horseback riding and talking and Johnny doesn't feel like he is (except at fighting) but really they're both in the same boat at being good at it just getting in their own heads and thinking the other is better. Maybe Terry uses Daniel to kidnap Johnny by tricking him so that he can impress Kreese, not realizing that was maybe a non-useful ploy and really only just makes Daniel have to go rescue him but also makes Johnny realize that he's not as worthless as he was lead to believe and that he actual does know all the princely things he's supposed to and is good at it. But Daniel would for sure bust in, possibly fight Terry, realize it's a waste of time and grab Johnny and run. Gotta let him have his badass hero moments.

#writing asks #ask game #long posts #edit: I got my wip's mixed up I originally wrote muffuletta I meant candied apples

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comphy-and-cozy · 1 month

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writer asks!!! 🕯️🛼🍄

send me writer asks!

🕯️⇢ on a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? why is that? generally between 6 and 8, depending on my mood and how the fic is going. I like reading through and finding better words, phrases, descriptions, etc. to convey the point and seeing the piece slowly start to come into its final form. but towards the end, like on the final few read-throughs it can get really tedious and at that point I'm usually kind of sick of reading the fic over and over again lol.

🛼 ⇢ describe your latest wip with five emojis 🧑🏻👩🏽👱🏼‍♂️💦🪽 why isn't there an eiffel tower emoji

🍄🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings okay this is not going to come as a surprise to anyone that i'm gonna write about a dream come true but this is something i've been wanting to incorporate and just haven't really found the place to do so yet so what better time than now

putting this below a cut!

as your relationship has developed from primarily physical into something more substantial (never just a booty call, though), your name has slowly trickled in to locker room talk

at first no one really knew enough to ask, save for dylan and andrew and shayne, who were there the night jt left with you—the only acknowledgement at practice afterward was a knowing smirk and a hearty pat on the back

but as time went on and he began to spend more time with you, little, sporadic mentions of you would filter into conversation

"comph, you going out later?" "nah, already have plans"

"who you texting?" "oh, just a friend"

until enough evidence had been gathered and it became all but spoken word: comphy had a girl.

he wasn't sure why, but he was hesitant to bring you around—not because he was ashamed of you, or unwilling to commit to you; in fact, it was quite the opposite, but he didn't want to scare you away by throwing you into something like that so quickly

so it started small: a double date with andrew and jenny, then a second with dylan and kenzy

and slowly, you met more and more of his circle—eventually attending your first wings event as his girl—and even began to form your own bonds and friendships with those around him

one of them, unexpectedly, is lucas raymond

several years your junior, it's an unlikely friendship, but you find a stride with him that feels so natural very early on

it started when jt asked you to meet him at the rink so he could take you to lunch after practice, and you ran into lucas trying to figure out where you were supposed to meet him

he introduced himself and explained jt was running late, deep in the throes of a conversation with newsy about the penalty kill

when jt finally made it down the corridor 30 minutes later, an apology waiting on his lips, he's quickly taken over by surprise at the sight of you and lucas laughing hysterically

soon, you're following each other on instagram and he's almost always the first person you greet at team events, offering girl advice and razzing him for being, well, a 21-year-old idiot

it progresses to the point where you find yourself paying more attention to him on the ice, too, #23 the second number you look for behind #37, elation filling your heart when he scores (even better when jt's involved)

and those times where he gets hit, knocked over, shoved into the boards, you're on your feet, heart frozen for the milliseconds before he stands up, brushes it off, and you breathe a sigh of relief

one time, the hit is particularly nasty, and before you have a chance to shriek, jt's there, his face contorted into rage, shoving the offender in defense of the young winger kneeling on the ice, getting into a nasty scrum that's inches away from a fight if not for the linesmen who interfered

needless to say, the emotions are high and later that night, and after some coaxing, jt manages to get it out of you—and realizes that you practically imprinted upon his teammate, maternally

his smile is slow, morphing into a grin, and you feel your cheeks go hot, ready to shove him for making fun of you

but instead, he says, "did we just adopt a kid together?"

#asks #ask game #a dream come true #y'all knew this was gonna happen eventually let's be so for real

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promisinininining · 9 months

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hello :3c all questions with the number 3 ( :3c ) in them, my good friend mis! :3c

Admittedlty, I started this. I shall accept my punishment with grace (💖).

Disclaimer here that there will be references to nsfw under the cut because I peddle smut. There's also a brief mention of vomit in a snippet I share.

3. Describe the creative process of writing a chapter/fic I write on my phone mainly, and I like to be curled up in a nest of some kind and comfy when I open up my Big Doc of Ideas and start typing. if it gets long enough (~1k words) I move it into its own doc. I reread constantly when I write, and often times I just sit and stare at a sentence until my brain clicks on. It also helps to bounce ideas off friends as I'm working, if I feel my steam running low. Otherwise I get into Da Zone and everything else disappear.

13. What’s a common writing tip that you almost always follow? Ah. Hm. I don't actually know many "common" tips. I find a lot of them not very useful, like "write every day" just leads to burnout. I suppose there's this: sometimes, when you write yourself into a corner and don't know how to continue, go back a little bit further and try a new direction. Still Stuck? When I don't want to write a scene I simply don't and move on. Sometimes you never have to go back. It's fine. It wasn't that important anyway.

23. Best writing advice for other writers? ARE THE TIPS NOT GOOD ENOUGH? Okay Fine. Write what you want. Write weird shit, write horny shit, write stuff that disgusts and uncomfortablises people. Write the stuff that interests you rather than what you think other people would like. I made a promise to myself when I stepped back into fandom, and that was that I wouldn't be ashamed of anything that I liked anymore, and it's been an absolute blast. (Coming back up here after a few questions) WAIT- When you don't know what to do, ask yourself, what would be sexiest? and go with that. Never fails.

30. Do you share rough drafts or do you wait until it’s all polished? I'm happy sharing rough drafts. I tend to edit as I go so the top of my docs always end up pretty polished as opposed to the endings... shhh. I don't tend to share much of rough drafts in public, though, some friends get basically the entire thing through screenshots, lol. I can't resist okay! I'm excited about what I'm writing! I can't keep it all inside!

31. Do you start with the characters or the plot when writing? Characters, definitely. Most of my stories are character-driven, and plot tends to happen around them, even aus are usually 'well what if they were brought up in THIS environment?' and whatever happens to them grows around what the consequences of their actions. I'm not very good at longfic and a lot of my fics are oneshot character studies so :Va Not that I'm saying I'm bad at what I do, plot is just not my priority! I Find characters, their relationships, and their personalities more fun to explore! (<- was raised on the Tales Of games)

32. Name three of your favorite fanfic writers. Fuck, okay. Well it probably doesn't surprise you that I make friends thru fanfic so I have a lot of writer friends and I don't LIKE to pick favs, simply because I don't think of them that way. That would be weird. Additionally, I only really read stuff my friends write nowadays ;w; I'll name the people who I've reached out to over completely losing my shit over their fics instead, in order of meeting them: Elcie/BurningLio, Bee/println0/slothencholy, Mango/MalevolentMango (and here, an honourary mention of Ailem for appearing alongside Mango though I hadn't read any of its fics until after we had become friends).

33. Five years from now, where do you see yourself as a writer? Sure. I don't see myself stopping any time soon.

34. Do you want to be published some day? (yes I swapped 33 and 34 by accident so sue me) Eeehhhh, as someone who writes mostly erotica I don't reaaaally see any of my stuff being published by any mainstream publishing houses. I certainly WANTED to when I was younger, and it would certainly be cool, but it's not something I am persuing or even have an interest in persuing.

35. What is one essential thing to remember when writing a villain? They gotta be as hot as possible.

36. How do you write kissing scenes? Okay so disclaimer, I've been writing fanfic for a VERY long time. I was on the internet before I should have been. My parents didn't speak english very well, and stuff like google translate didn't even exist (rather, it did, but it wasn't very good). I was ten, and I asked Google sensei how to write kisses, and the first result took me to a yahoo questions page where the answer was something like, describe how they feel instead of the kiss itself. I then deleted my history because I was not a stupid child. I remember that advice to this day.

37. How do you choose where to end a chapter? I uh. Write oneshots. I end it where the story ends. Hope this helps :)

38. Would you ever write commissions? Yes but nothing too long. I've been meaning to open up writing commissions for literal years but I KEEP getting too sick to be able to dedicate the time it deserves to run commissions.

39. Share a snippet from a WIP Huff okay. This should be shiny and new for even you, Mango.

"Akechi-" "I'm fine," Akechi grits, spitting more acid onto the ground before he finally straightens and wipes a sleeve over his face. Akira doesn't even try to hide his expression when Akechi deigns to face them again. He states the fact plainly. "You're not fine." "Don't try to tell me what I am or not," Akechi sneers in return. He's clutching at his stomach despite his nonchalance, and a grimace clings to the edges of his pissed off expression. Akira rolls his eyes. There's no point arguing with Akechi on a good day, never mind when he's defensive and scared of being benched. They don't exactly have a choice to keep Akechi in combat as there are only three of them, and Kasumi is completely new to this kind of palace exploration. He may not be Futaba, but he has the most experience in the Metaverse by far; he's observant, meticulous, and his ability to memorise the attributes of new shadows is impressive. Akechi really had been holding back on them in Sae's Casino, and Akira isn't stupid enough to let that kind of usefulness go to waste.

43. Do you take a sadistic joy in whumping your characters, or are you more the "If you hurt them I would kill everyone and then myself" kind of person? lmao. do i even need to answer this?

53. How do you spend your time when it comes to fanfiction? Are you primarily a fic reader, writer, or a perfect 50/50 split of both? I'm primarily a writer. I used to read a lot but I have a hard time reading anything nowadays. I need to be doing something or else I'll EXPLODE. KABOOM. No more mis. splat like watermelon.

63. Something you hate to see in smut. I hate it when the author takes their time to write 'btw this is pure good non fetishistic sex' through the characters. It's ridiculous. I'm here for a good time not to get lectured on what safe sex is. If the reader needs to be told what consent is, I'd argue that they aren't old enough to be reading it.

73. What do you think makes your writing stand out from other works? Brother I do not know. I kind of fly by the seat of my pants. Lich Rally Just Vibin.

#YAHOO DONE #malevolentmango #mis-types #also some #mis-takes #postmoogling #tumblr has a bug where the read more moves down a block of text upon clicking edit #cool

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lalaurelia · 4 months

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2023 Fic in Review

Another year gone, so let's see how it was for me writing-wise. I haven't written a lot in English this year because I was still hijacked by the game, and then by the Russian fandom-wide event that stretched on for months, and then the work was hectic - you know, the usual. On top of all the rest that's been going on.

Okay. So. I think it's the first time I'd be counting my Russian-language stories in this review, because without them it's gonna look very sad.

total number of completed stories: 19, but 7 of these are translations, and 4 were, I think, written earlier than 2023 but I don't know the exact date - but I brought them over to Ao3 in 2023, and so be it. +1 micro game for the fandom event.

total word count: 45046 words. And maybe around, like... 10K into the game and the fandom extras.

fandoms written in: It's still exclusively Gotham and Gobblepot.

looking back, did you expect to write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you’d expected? This was probably one of the years when I was being realistic and thinking I would write very little. But then somehow the event sparked some kind of competitiveness in me that urged me to finish some of my myriad of WIPs and edit the ones that have been lying around ready for years. Oh, and there was this time when I whipped up a story in like an hour or so and completed it five minutes before the fandom event deadline closing and published it mere seconds before the event closed. That was fun XD I wouldn't have done anything like that without that kind of fucked up motivation lol

what’s your own favorite story of the year? You know what, it's probably that quickie one I mentioned previously - К вопросу об устрицах. Yup, sorry, no English translation available yet. It was fun to write though.

did you take any writing risks this year? Well, getting involved in that fandom event was a risk XD But when it comes to writing per se, hm... I suppose The Coffee Place counts - as I've wanted to do an outsider perspective fic for a while, and somehow it mashed up with Coffeeshop AU in my mind, and I kinda liked the result.

do you have any fanfic or profit goals for the new year? This time I'm kind of intrigued by what is meant by 'profit goals' in this question. I guess I'm mildly curious if I'd be able to produce something people would want to pay for - but it is a pipe dream on so many levels right now. So, anyway. Fanfic goals for the new year? Finish at least some of the WIPs. We'll see how it goes from there.

best story of the year? I think it would be Выбор для живых - yeah, sorry, no translation for that one either yet. But it's an alternative take on that one ep where Jim ends up in Valeska's blown up maze. So he's lying buried underground and contemplates things, and Oswald as well, and then rescue comes unexpectedly.

most popular story of the year? Ao3 stats tell me it's Ice, and other things which is not surprising, since it was the first story I put out once the year began. It had some time to accumulate kudos xD

story of mine most under-appreciated by the universe, in my opinion: I can't name a single one, to be honest. The ones I've written in Russian aren't very popular, which I expected to happen. The ones in English are being read, so. There's that.

most fun story to write: Hmmm, I guess it would be И кое-что еще, because I needed to write a short and I wanted it to be sexy without being explicit, so I had some little fun with words there.

story with the single sexiest moment: Now that would be Skirting Around, no doubt.

sweetest story: I don't think I had anything particularly sweet written this year. It just wasn't a year for that.

“holy crap, thats wrong, even for you!” story: You know what, I'll just skip this one, because I always give the same answer here. Write whatever you want, just tag it appropriately.

story that shifted my own perceptions of the characters & most unintentionally telling story: Nothing for this one either, sorry.

hardest story to write: I'm afraid it's Skirting Around. I've been stuck at several spots in it for ages, and I'm still not completely satisfied by the ending. I'm not sure if I'm going to do anything about it. We'll see.

biggest disappointment: How little energy I seem to have for writing - doing anything, really. These past years haven't been kind and the emotional drain and constant fear are very exhausting. So every written word is a win. I can't be disappointed with what I manage to create.

biggest surprise: That there are still people I can make happy with my Gobblepot stories. It's really nice when I think about it. So thank you for that.

Not tagging anyone, but I'd be curious to see if you guys do year reviews of your stories.

#writing #gotham #gobblepot #jimwald #oswald cobblepot #jim gordon #otp #dc #fanfic #milestones #fic year in review #genmitsu writing #lalaurelia writing

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n7punk · 1 year

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⚡️ tis me, lightning bolt fiend, here to second that my love for she ra and catradora has only increased since I discovered your fics (may 2021). realistically yeah maybe we’re a dwindling fandom but idk a single hoe here who doesn’t recognize you as the authority on all things she ra fic. Not going anywhere 😎

hey its Still The Episode, so this might be a bit rambley and incomprehensible, but its what i've got so lets go. also i know im piggybacking off this. im aware this is about to become a tangent.

first off: thank you <3 also for your other sweet message awhile ago i didnt respond to because i was nonverbal second: fandom doesn't and shouldn't have authorities, thats a daaaaangerous rabbithole. wouldn't want it to be me and we're all just here to have fun. i happen to be a pretty prolific author who's dug into metacanon some, but thats it. not trying to come down on you, ⚡️, just don't want to leave no disclaimer here and make it seem like i'm agreeing i do/should have authority on anything, unless by authority you just mean prolific producer, which like, im sure is what you're going for even if that's not what the phrasing implies, hence the disclaimer

thiiiiird, because this was spawned from a comment i made because of the ao3 thing, ive done more research into that when my brain was a little more solid earlier in the day, before it became the soup it is now. particularly this article, this reblog, this reblog, this reblog, and then this random shitty "article" that confirmed the 2019 cutoff date from the prev reblog (which was uncited), led me to conclude that it's probably fine to unlock my fics. my understanding is sudowrites is built off of GPT-3, which was trained off public access works and a web crawl which cut off in 2019. GPT-3 was a product of OpenAI. also there's some kind of "dont scrape this" flag the web crawl is Supposed to respect, and a discord comment says they already use that on the archive, but take that with a grain of salt ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

the reddit investigation reaaaaaally makes it seem like it was trained off fanfic as one of its datasets, i dont know how the hell you get those results if not, but its probably from stuff caught up in that webcrawl, which wasn't necessarily even from AO3, and it well and truly seems too late on that. i locked temporarily in case they were still actively scouring and not yet done getting everything off the archive, meaning some of my work conceivably hadn't been caught yet and could be "saved", but it looks like they stopped scouring before i started posting for she-ra LOL

also some people seem to be encountering a bug where fics that hadn't updated in years were pushed to the tops of their bookmarks as recently updated and they think that's related to this?? as far i know only a new chapter would change the publication date. i go back and edit my typos all the time: they remaind locked by the date the most recent chapter was initially posted. idk where people got that from.

#ask #anon

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yume-x-hanabi · 10 months

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4, 6, 12, 19 please tell us about Minah, 27, 30, 37, 49, 61 and 65 for Concubinage, and 74

4. How do you choose which fics to write?

ig it depends on how obsessed my brain is with the random plot bunnies hopping around in my head? When I start thinking up narration sentences, that's when I know a particular idea wants to be written. Doesn't mean I always do it, though (in an ideal world with infinite free time, maybe...)

6. What’s the last line you wrote?

I haven't written in so long I don't even remember 😭

Looking at one of my latest wips, probably this one because it's incomplete lmao:

The room was as dingy as the rest of the inn and smelled vaguely of stale tobacco, but at least the bed was soft and the sheets were clean. He collapsed on the bed with a sigh of relief, head swimming from all the

(wtf was I trying to say? it's a mystery 🤷‍♀️)

12. Do you outline your fics? If yes, how detailed are your outlines? How far do you stray from them?

Usually not, and then it comes to bite me in the ass when it's ten months since I plotted the idea and I don't remember what I was planning to do 😅

There's one fic that's an exception cuz it's a fusion AU type of thing so I'm planning carefully how it follows (or not) the original's plot. Well, idk if I'll actually write the fic actually, maybe in this case the outline will be all there is, as a fun exercise for myself XD

19. Do you enjoy creating OCs or do you prefer to stick solely to canon characters?

I love creating OCs, but like, they need a purpose. An OC just for the sake of having an OC or self-insert isn't my kind of thing (no shade to those who do, I'm just not wired that way), but depending on the story I might need to flesh out a supporting cast. And I love it when they slowly take life and develop.

Minah was a really fun case because she was supposed to be a kind of "throwaway" role, only there for a scene or two. She wasn't even planned like she turned out to be (I originally imagined her younger, for example). But then she... just happened lol. Within a few lines of her dialogue I was in love with her and she was just so fun to write, in a way she wormed her way into a bigger role than intended and I'm really glad she did because it works out so well in so many ways. Funny how things go sometimes 😂

honestly my OCs often end up surprising me in one way or another haha. rare are those who stick to the plan

(rest under cut cuz it's getting long)

27. What area of writing do you feel strongest in?

Battle scenes, apparently 8)

30. How much do you edit your fics? Do you edit as you write or wait until you finish the first draft?

I actually... don't edit that much 😅

ig in a way I edit in my head before I write? I've always been like that tbh, even at school--what I write down (whether fic, essay, translation...) is often very close to the final version. Of course I go over it a couple times once I'm done and tweak a few things here and there, but it's usually minor stuff. Sometimes I end up redoing entire scenes/chapters because I feel something's not working, but it's rather rare when it happens.

37. What fic has been the hardest for you to write?

Probably Fractured Lives? There's a reason it's only gotten five updates in nine years so far. I have to be in a very specific mood to write it, which doesn't happen often. A pity, cuz I liked the concept...

49. What fic of yours would you say is the best introduction to you as a writer?

I'd say The Best Laid Plans. It's got my particular brand of humor, and also some kickass battle scenes :p

Another one would be Strong Currents, cuz worldbuilding (plus getting Gaius and Wingul to have emotional talks lolol)

61. In Concubinage, what’s your favorite scene that you wrote?

Probably Lin and Arst's first kiss. It's such a significant moment<3

65. If you wrote a sequel to Concubinage, what would happen in it?

I am actually vaguely planning a sequel if I can finish it. Basically it'd be the events/plot of the game, but with all the changes in settings brought about by the events of Concubinage. I'll have to think carefully about what will change, what will stay the same, and what will be a slightly different spin on things that'll still happen. I think the main difficulty will be to juggle Milla's journey with Gaius&Wingul being the main characters without them overtaking the plot. And also how close or different it should be to canon...

74. Do you have a fic you wish got a bit more love?

Among my least kudosed ones, I'd say Chaos in the Ballroom (my Tales Big Bang fic). I know it's a bit different from my usual stuff, and relies heavily on knowledge about Agria's side story, but I put a lot of thought in that one.

#that was a lot lmao #thanks for asking #ask yume #nngh this is making me want to write again #it's been too long #fanfic talk

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buckybeardreams · 2 years

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Dude I have been intrigued by winterironspider, been floating around. Them taking care of Peter or angsty, Bucky seeing both Tony and Tony's son Peter (they don't know) 🌝 if you want

Oh ho ho! Dude, I also am very intrigued by WinterIronSpider, and I've actually written a fic that I totally forgot about and never edited

It was gonna just be starker with like intern Peter but then I sat down to write and Bucky calling Tony Daddy was the first scene I wrote, which is hilarious cuz Bucky wasn't even supposed to be in it 🤣🤣

But I do have a WIP that's called My Dad's Boyfriend, cuz how could I not go there??

Initially, I was thinking Peter would meet Tony's new boyfriend and be jealous but then end up liking him, and be like secretly in love with his dad. But dude, then I sat down to write lol, and it turns out that Peter, that little slut, already slept with Bucky!!

Tony doesn't know that they know each other, and it's kinda Bucky with both of them in a way??

It's kinda a mess rn, but I might be able to turn it into something readable for you, otherwise I'll try and whip up something else 😉

But in the meantime, take this WinterIronSpider fic you didn't ask for

Also, I would like to say that I find it very interesting that the only two WinterIronSpider fics I've come up with include twink Bucky, cuz that's not a dynamic I've ever read/looked for from this ship?? Idk lol

Peter jumped away from Bucky like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar when he saw Tony. He was blushing bright red and Tony raised a brow at him.

"What are you two kids doing? Staying out of trouble I hope," Tony said as though he were talking to five years olds as opposed to twenty-five year olds.

"Nothing, Daddy," Bucky said sweetly, a smirk on his lips.

Peter just coughed and blushed harder, stepping further away from Bucky and dropping his gaze to his feet. He kinda hated that Bucky got to call Tony Daddy, and Peter had to call him Mr. Stark.

It's not like Tony even noticed him. He was just the new intern, fresh out of college and drowning in debt.

Tony hummed, tugging Bucky in for a kiss and eyeing Peter.

"Kid? Go grab the files from Pepper about Hammer Industries, won't ya? I need to know what I'm dealing with before I walk into this meeting. I'd hate to go into it blind."

Peter nodded, scrambling away with a "Yes, Mr. Stark," thrown over his shoulder.

Bucky shook his head, slipping his arms around Tony's neck and kissing him again.

"You should go easier on him," Bucky murmured. "Poor kid is terrified of disappointing you."

"Easier?" Tony scoffed. "I'm softer on that boy than I am on you, and I let you warm my lap during conference calls."

Bucky's lips stretched into a grin.

"And your cock, too, if I remember correctly."

Tony gripped his hips, pushing him back until his back hit the wall and he was trapped by Tony's weight.

"Don't be a brat. I don't have time to punish you."

"Mm, rain check?"

Tony huffed, shaking his head in disbelief, but he kissed Bucky one last time before pulling away.

"I don't know what god I pissed off to deserve a brat like you," Tony called over his shoulder, heading off down the hall.

"Fuck off! You know you love me!"

Tony chuckled as he opened his office door, refusing to turn around because he would probably end up railing Bucky up against the wall if he did. Letting his little boy work with him was possibly the worst decision he'd made since he became Bucky's Daddy a year previous.

Peter passed Bucky in the hall, practically running to try and get the file to Tony as fast as possible.

Bucky laughed when he came skidding to a halt outside of Tony's office, blushing bright red and hurriedly trying to straighten out his rumpled clothes.

"Shut up," Peter grumbled under his breath, and Bucky just chuckled. "Don't you have some work to do or something?"

Bucky raised a brow at him, leaning back against the wall, his arms and ankles crossed casually.

"My only job is pleasing the boss," Bucky said, a little smug and a little teasing. "You know, it's a pretty cushy position. I could set up an… interview, if you're ever interested."

Peter felt like his cheeks were on fire but he glared at Bucky.

"I'm not a sex worker, Bucky."

Bucky hummed.

"It's more of a kept boy situation really. Less street walking and more being showered with lavish gifts and kisses," Bucky teased.

Bucky's eyes sparkled mischievously, and Peter ripped his gaze away, opening his mouth to say—What? He wasn't sure, but it didn't matter because Tony's door swung open and he yanked the file out of Peter's hand.

"I thought I told you to get this to me ASAP," Tony snapped.

Peter's eyes widened and he stepped away.

"S–Sorry, sir! I—" Peter glanced at Bucky before dropping his gaze to his feet, his eyes brimming with tears. "I'm sorry. I'll do better next time."

Tony didn't say anything, retreating back into his office.

Peter missed the disapproving look he sent Bucky and the sheepish look Bucky gave him in return.

"Sorry, Daddy," Bucky mouthed, aware that he was definitely going to be in trouble when they got home.

Peter bit his lip, keeping his eyes on the ground and turned to walk away but Bucky grabbed his wrist.

"You could have just blamed it on me."

Peter glared at the ground.

"I'm not a tattletale," Peter bit out. "Besides, it is my fault for letting you distract me when I knew Mr. Stark needed the file quickly."

Bucky groaned.

"You're infuriating, you know that, kid? Why do you gotta apologize for everything? Always so quick to take the blame? You emotional masochist or something?"

Peter turned his glare on Bucky looking about as threatening as a puppy.

"Why do you call me kid?" Peter shot back. "It pisses me off! It's at least tolerable when Mr. Stark does it because compared to him I am a kid, but you're not even older than me!"

"I'll have you know I'm ten and a half months older than you."

"That's—" Peter furrowed his brow. "How do you know that? You don't know my birthday."

Bucky shrugged.

"I read your file."

Peter's eyes widened.

"What? Why?"

Bucky raised a brow like it was obvious.

"I read all the files. I'm the one who chooses the interns, and I chose you."

Peter stared at him for a moment.

"That's not—" Peter snapped his mouth shut, looking around a little lost. "Why would you choose me? Why are you always hitting on me? Do you just want to make Mr. Stark jealous or something?"

Bucky scoffed, shaking his head.

"Oh my god, kid, you're killing me! Of course, I want to make Tony jealous. I want him to see you with me and be jealous that I'm the one touching you."

Peter was so fucking confused.

"I don't understand. Aren't you two together?"

"Yeah, but I've always wanted a baby brother," Bucky said softly, tucking a curl behind Peter's ear.

Peter blushed and stuttered over his words before stumbling over his feet as he tried to back away. But Bucky wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him in close, and Peter gasped, his heart racing in his chest and his breath trapped in his lungs.

"B–Bucky?"

"Hmm?"

"What are you—? We can't—"

"Why not?"

Peter whimpered, his eyes flickering from Bucky's eyes to his lips.

Bucky smirked, leaning in to capture his lips.

Peter froze under Bucky's coaxing lips, and when Bucky licked at his lips, Peter broke the kiss, ducking his head into Bucky's neck instead.

"We can't!" Peter whined. "This is wrong!"

"Why's it wrong, baby?" Bucky asked softly, rubbing Peter's back soothingly.

"You have a boyfriend, for starters. Plus, I need this internship. I can't afford to lose it."

Bucky cooed at him, pressing a kiss to his hair.

"Aw, angel, you don't gotta worry about none of that. You ain't gonna get fired, and trust me, the only thing Tony's gonna be upset about is that I got to kiss you first."

"I don't—I don't even know what that means!"

Peter wasn't a fool. He knew exactly what Bucky was implying but it was so laughable to think that Tony Stark wanted anything to do with him that he had trouble making sense of it.

Bucky hummed, resting his chin on Peter's head.

"We could give you the world, baby, you know that, right? Tony has everything you could ever want at his fingertips, and I have Tony wrapped around my little finger. You could have that, too. You could be a spoiled baby boy and never have to worry about anything ever again."

"I don't know what that means," Peter repeated in a small voice, so lost.

It sounded so good, unbelievably good, like way too good to be true good. There was no way Tony Stark wanted to be his daddy.

Peter didn't think Bucky was cruel enough to play a joke like this on him, though Bucky could be a smug asshole at times. He didn't think he'd ever be this much of an asshole, but that didn't mean Peter could just accept that he was really being offered a… What? A sugar daddy? A kept boy position? He had no fucking clue what he was being offered, honestly, because none of it made any sense.

It was too much to hope that all this flirting and teasing from Bucky, who seemed to flirt with everyone so Peter had just brushed it off as his personality, was more than just Bucky being a friendly, flirtatious kind of person. Peter knew that flirty and charming was just part of who Bucky was, traits that he definitely shared with Tony—not that Tony had ever flirted with Peter. In fact, Tony was pretty distant with Peter.

It wasn't shocking given his status as a lowly broke intern and Tony's status as the billionaire boss. Tony did seem to flirt with just about everyone else, though, and Peter had been a little hurt by that at first. It was stupid, but he felt like he was so low on the ladder that he wasn't even worth a wink or a few teasing words.

"It means you'd never have to work again, Petey-pie," Bucky murmured coaxingly, running his fingers through Peter's curls. "Doesn't that sound nice, baby?"

Peter shook his head, whimpering.

"I can't—I already have a cushy job, Bucky. And what you're offering me… It's not real. It can't be."

Peter really did have a cushy job, but if he was being honest he hated it. He hated that Tony didn't seem to want him around. He told Peter to come in at ten and most days sent him home at lunch. Peter was barely ever there, barely ever worked, and when he did he was so desperate to have Tony's attention and approval, it was honestly pathetic.

No wonder Tony wanted nothing to do with him. He was clingy and desperate and stumbled over his words and his feet. Bucky was nothing like him, so if that was what Tony liked, someone who was bratty and demanding and cocky, just about as sarcastic and charming as Tony himself, then Peter would never stand a chance. He was a weird little nerd, and Bucky was all smooth talking and smug smirks.

"Peter—"

"I don't have anything to offer, okay?" Peter blurted out, cutting him off and pulling back just enough to look up at him with wide, anxious eyes. "I'm not cool. I'm not experienced. Tony would probably laugh if I tried to seduce him or blow him or something. I've literally only given head once, and it was while I was drunk at a party in college."

Bucky raised a brow at him.

"Okay, we're gonna circle back to that because I'd love to hear about what a pretty little thing like you considers to be a party. You're such a nerd, I feel like a group of five and a bottle of shitty wine constitutes a college party for you."

"It was jello shots," Peter mumbled, embarrassed.

"Ooh, tantalizing story," Bucky teased just to be a jerk. "But Peter, what I said about an interview, that was just me teasing you, you know that, right? You don't have to blow Tony to prove you're worthy of being his lover. I'm not asking you to sign a contract and become his little plaything. I'm offering you the opportunity to sit in his lap, cuddle up in our bed, be ours. Not just Tony's."

"But we are talking about a like sugar baby thing, aren't we? I mean, I thought that's what you meant…"

Bucky nodded.

"Yeah, sure. I prefer kept boy, because sugar baby implies it's just a business arrangement and kept boy to me feels more like I'm his lover, but he does showers me with lavish gifts and gives me a weekly allowance. So sure, it's a sugar daddy thing."

"Isn't getting gifts just part of dating a billionaire, though?" Peter pointed out, tilting his head.

"Our relationship goes a little beyond just dating a billionaire," Bucky teased, poking at Peter's side and making him giggle. "Tony doesn't just give me an allowance, he also provides for me. Emotionally, financially, physically, Tony takes care of me. I moved in with him months ago, but when we first got together I lived on my own and Tony took over my rent. He paid for my Ubers and my groceries and my clothes. He gave me my own credit card that I use to purchase all of my essentials and recreational shit and then on top of that I get an allowance."

"If he pays for everything then why do you get an allowance? What do you spend it on?" Peter asked curiously.

"Nothing. I don't spend it. It goes into a savings account and waits for me. It's a security blanket, so I don't feel trapped. So I could leave Tony and still live the over the top lifestyle I've become accustomed to. So I don't stay because I have to."

Peter's eyes widened.

"That's… I don't even know what to say to that."

"Say yes," Bucky encouraged, tucking a curl behind Peter's ear. "Say you want to be ours and know that it doesn't have to be forever unless you want it to be. You'll have all the control. You won't ever be trapped, and you'll be freed from all your financial worries."

"I'd be in control?" Peter asked skeptically, frowning because he wasn't sure that sounded fun.

Sure, he didn't want to be taken advantage of, but whenever he fantasized about Tony and Bucky, he always pictured Tony being in charge and Bucky being… Well, not in charge of Tony but definitely more dominant than himself. He didn't really have any interest in taking charge or dominating either of them, or anyone really.

"In the ways that matter most, yeah, but not—" Bucky cut himself off, clearing his throat. "I don't want to assume just because you're shy and nerdy and all teeny tiny that you like to bottom or be submissive, but if I'm being honest, that's the role I see you playing. I don't say that to try and pressure you, I just genuinely get those vibes from you."

Peter blinked at him like he wasn't sure what to say to that. Bucky sounded more uncertain in that moment than Peter had ever heard him sound before.

"But if I'm wrong, that's fine," Bucky rushed to say, getting nervous when Peter remained silent. "I mean, we've never talked about… Well, bringing in a dominant partner, so I don't know how that would work. But we do really like you and maybe it doesn't even have to be a sexual thing. And even if it was, we don't have to have any kind of power imbalance with you. We could totally just date and it could be normal."

Peter was pretty sure dating Tony Stark and his kept boy could never just be normal, but he appreciated the sentiment. It was kinda cute seeing Bucky flustered, too.

Peter giggled and Bucky relaxed a little bit, blushing.

"You brat, you're just trying to make this hard for me, aren't you?" Bucky muttered, clearly embarrassed.

Peter shook his head, his eyes shining with amusement and a smile on his lips.

"I'm not, but you're cute like this," Peter admitted. "Can I ask you something, though?"

"Anything."

"Why me? Out of everyone you could choose, why me?"

"Because I saw your picture and you were irresistible," Bucky said without any hesitation. "Maybe that's shallow but it's true. We'd already been talking about bringing a third into our relationship, another little, but none of the other people we played with were quite right. Then I saw your picture and I told Tony to hire you because I wanted the chance to get close to you."

Peter hummed.

"Isn't this a PR disaster? It's gotta go against company policy to hire someone just to flirt with them, right?" Peter teased, pressing closer, his arms wrapping around Bucky's neck so he'd know he wasn't mad about it.

Bucky smirked, kissing his nose.

"Oh definitely, but you're worth it and once I got to know you, I just knew you were the one."

Peter bit his lip, his cheeks pink from the flattery.

"And Tony… Does he feel the same way?"

Bucky hummed, considering his words carefully.

"Tony's… more cautious. He has a lot on the line, a lot to lose if things went wrong. I had to sign a shit ton of NDA's when I became his, shit like if we break up I'm not allowed to publicly talk about it and whatever. It kinda sucks but it's Tony's life. He has too many people wanting him for the wrong reasons."

Peter nodded because that made sense.

"I wouldn't ever—"

"No, I know that, and it's not that Tony necessarily thinks you'd do anything like that, or that I would, but he has to be the levelheaded one, the responsible one. He's the daddy after all. It's his job to worry and to protect us. I don't really have a reputation to be destroyed or anything, but Tony's worried that you'll break my heart if you reject us or if we start seeing you and then it doesn't work out. I think that worries him more than anything you could do to try and use him for his money or status."

Peter chewed on his lip for a moment before pressing closer, standing on his tiptoes to kiss him. It was a sweet kiss, chaste and over quickly, but it left Peter blushing because he'd initiated it, and Bucky smiled softly, an adoring look in his eyes like Peter was the most precious little thing.

"You're adorable, you know that?"

Peter whimpered, ducking his head to peer up at Bucky through his lashes.

"Maybe… If Tony's okay with it… We could go on a date or something? Start slow?" Peter said, wanting to just rush into things but knowing he had to protect his heart, too.

Bucky grinned like Peter had gifted him the best gift ever.

"Of course, doll, whatever you want. We can take it as slow as you want and we never have to take things further than you want."

Peter nodded, relieved.

He went home that night and he couldn't believe any of that actually happened. He was pretty sure this was all just a dream, or worse, that it wasn't but Bucky would back out or change his mind. Or maybe Tony would be upset that Bucky had offered because he didn't actually want Peter.

Peter was so anxious he could barely sleep, thinking of the worst case scenarios and fantasizing about what it could be like if this did happen. Could he really be Tony's baby and Bucky's… little brother? Baby brother? That's what Bucky had said he wanted, right? Peter had thought a lot about having a daddy but never about a brother.

It didn't sound bad, though. In fact, the idea of having a family sounded really good.

Peter was nervous when he went into work the next day. He half expected to receive an email telling him to not come in, that he'd been let go. He didn't, though, so he steeled himself and went in. He headed up to Tony's office first thing like he always did, being Tony's personal assistant and all.

Tony looked up when he walked in and cleared his throat, shutting his laptop. Peter couldn't read the look on his face and his heart froze when Tony gestured to the door.

"Close the door, please," Tony said, his expression remaining professional. "I think we need to talk."

Peter's heart was hammering in his chest and his palms were sweating like crazy. Tony stood up when Peter turned around, buttoning his jacket and stepping around the desk. He leaned up against it, his arms crossed over his chest.

"I talked with Bucky."

Peter swallowed hard.

"Look, kid, you're cute but I don't know if this is such a good idea."

Peter's heart shattered and he took a step away like he'd been slapped. His eyes stung with tears that he refused to shed, not here in front of his boss. Because that's what Tony was, and Peter was an idiot to think he'd ever be anything more.

"I'm sorry—I didn't—" Peter didn't even know what to say.

"I know Bucky made you some promises, but—"

Peter shook his head.

"No, it's fine! He didn't promise me anything!" Peter said, because if nothing else he didn't want to get Bucky in trouble. "He just asked me out but I agree it's a bad idea, sir. You don't have to say anything else about it. I, uh, I actually came in today to resign. I don't think it's a good idea for me to work here anymore and I hope you understand why. I really appreciated the opportunity, Mr. Stark, and I'm sorry that I've put you in an awkward situation."

Peter was honestly shocked that he got through that without breaking down, that he actually managed to sound believable. He definitely hadn't been considering resigning, but now he was mortified and he just knew he couldn't ever face Tony again.

Tony frowned, looking confused and shifting slightly.

"Oh, I—Yeah, of course, I understand."

Peter nodded.

"I'll go see HR to formally hand in my resignation."

With that Peter turned and left, feeling numb and a little unnerved that he was that good of a liar. He froze in the hall when he saw Bucky. Bucky was sipping a coffee, but he grinned when he saw Peter.

"Hey, Petey, did you, uh, talk to Tony?"

Bucky looked… happy, and Peter couldn't process that right now. Couldn't figure out what that meant. Was he happy that Tony was the one handling this, the one breaking things off so Bucky didn't have to deal with it?

Peter gave him a tight smile, nodding.

"Yeah, I did."

Peter tried to brush past him, but Bucky snagged his wrist.

"Hey, where are you going? Don't tell me Tony's got you running errands?" Bucky teased.

Peter was so fucking confused and he looked down at Bucky's hand wrapped around his wrist. He was feeling so many things right now and none of them were even remotely pleasant, but this whole thing was still too surreal for him to see it as anything but an abstract misery stemming from a foolish hope for a dream to be anything more than just wishful thinking.

"I, uh, I'm going down to HR."

"Why?" Bucky frowned.

"To hand in my resignation. But don't worry, I'm not gonna say anything about any of this."

Bucky tilted his head.

"Wait? What? What did you two talk about?"

Peter clenched his jaw.

"We came to an agreement," Peter said, trying not to sound bitter.

Bucky's eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh really? I didn't think—Wow, okay. That's—I mean, I'm not complaining, I just didn't think it would happen so quickly."

Peter didn't know what to say to that. Did Bucky want to be there for it? Maybe he expected Peter to get let go and was thrown off that he chose to resign? Peter really wasn't sure.

"It's better this way," Peter said, his voice only wavering slightly. "I thought a lot about it last night and think this is the best thing for all of us."

That was only partially a lie. Peter had thought a lot about it last night, but despite his fears and nerves, he'd been stupidly optimistic about it this morning. Now he was just embarrassed and heartbroken, and he knew once he got home and it all settled in he'd be devastated.

Bucky nodded and then smirked.

"So… does this arrangement mean I can kiss you? And then maybe drag you away for a quickie?"

Peter pulled away from him, his eyes wide.

"Sorry? Too fast?" Bucky apologized, rubbing the back of his neck. "It might help if you told me what you guys agreed on, that way I know what we're doing."

Peter frowned and then it finally clicked in his head. Bucky didn't know that Tony said no, that Tony didn't want him.

"You don't know?"

"Know what?"

Tony stepped outside of his room and cursed when he saw Peter standing there with Bucky.

"Bucky, baby, I can explain—"

Bucky looked between them, confused.

"Explain what? What's going on?"

"I should go," Peter said, feeling awkward and desperate to escape.

"That's probably for the best," Tony agreed, trying to guide Bucky into his office.

Bucky planted his feet, though, frowning at Tony.

"Wait—What's going on? I don't understand."

Tony groaned.

"I told Peter this isn't gonna work out."

"You did what? Why would you do that? You said—"

"I know what I said but I talked to Pepper—"

"You talked to Pepper? That bitch! Do I need to remind you what she recommended when I first started seeing you?"

Tony grimaced.

"That's not—This is different," Tony insisted.

"Oh fuck you, Tony!" Bucky snapped, irritated. "Peter, sweetheart, I don't know what this idiot said to you, but this isn't actually his decision. I'm the one who gets the final say in this."

"Wait a minute—"

Bucky glared at Tony and he snapped his mouth shut.

"We agreed that I could choose our third and you said you liked Peter, so I don't give a shit about what Pepper thinks. She doesn't get a say in our relationship, Tony. She's your friend, not your keeper."

Peter started to inch his way towards the elevator, because this was a lot and he really didn't want to get sucked into whatever this was. It was just so… complicated and confusing. Bucky saw him, though, and grabbed Peter's wrist, but instead of stopping Peter, he tugged him over to the elevator.

"We're going to stay in a hotel until you come to your senses!" Bucky snapped.

Peter's eyes widened when the elevator doors slid open and Bucky pulled him inside.

"We are?"

Bucky nodded.

"Yeah, Peter we are," Bucky said, his voice softening.

Bucky's grip loosened and he pulled Peter into his arms instead.

"I'm so sorry. I should have been there to make everything okay."

Peter shook his head.

"It's fine—"

"It's not," Bucky objected. "Big brothers are supposed to protect their little brothers, and I know you didn't agree to that role, but that doesn't change the fact that I want to protect you and make you happy. And if you let me, I'd be such a good big brother to you."

Peter blinked at the promise, feeling like this morning was a rollercoaster of emotions that he was definitely struggling to process. Bucky didn't give him time to think about it, though, to doubt anything. They took Bucky's bike to a hotel, and Peter couldn't deny how much he liked holding onto Bucky as the bike rumbled under them.

The day was spent with their phones off, ignoring Tony while they hit the spa and the pool and watched porn just so it would show up on Tony's bill. Bucky seemed to think that was hilarious, and he also seemed to love the way that Peter got all flustered and squirmy about it. He didn't watch a lot of porn and he had definitely never watched porn with someone else.

Bucky made it seem so casual, though. It didn't feel creepy even though it was kinda weird. Bucky didn't jerk off or ask Peter for anything. He just made funny commentary and basically made fun of the actors the whole time. It was oddly wholesome, considering the activity.

It wasn't until after midnight, Peter sleepy and sprawled out across Bucky's chest, that Tony arrived. Peter didn't even have it in him to tense up, tipsy from champagne and too tired to do more than blink his eyes open and then let them fall back shut. Bucky didn't stop brushing his fingers through Peter's curls, so Peter didn't feel any need to complain.

Tony cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry—"

"You better be," Bucky muttered. "Come on, climb in, but don't wake the baby."

Peter might have objected or blushed about being called a baby if he wasn't basically jello in Bucky's arms. The bed shifted and Tony leaned over him to press a kiss to Bucky's lips.

"I really am sorry, baby. I didn't mean to upset you. I just—I do have concerns and Pepper stirred them up."

Bucky snorted.

"Yeah, whatever, but I'm not giving him up, Tony. I love you and if you don't want to date him, I can't make you, but you can't tell me not to see him. I have no qualms dating you both, whether you date each other or not."

Tony frowned, groaning and running a hand through his hair.

He glanced down at Peter.

"He is cute," Tony said begrudgingly.

"He's fucking adorable and you'd be just as smitten as me if you'd stop being so stubborn. Stop making excuses and acting like being detached is helping. I know how you are, I remember when you were distant with me and it sucked. The first two months we were together, I was pretty sure you hated me and that you were gonna kick me out. I was walking on eggshells around you, because I didn't know what you wanted from me."

Tony dropped his head in shame.

"You know how badly I feel about that."

"I know, but that doesn't mean it hurt less. But once you started opening up to me, everything changed and I haven't regretted being yours a moment since. You're the best daddy ever and I've never felt loved the way you make me feel loved. I want that for Peter. I want him to have a family, to have that love and support."

"It's not that I don't want that for him, and I know you really want someone else to play with. I know I work a lot and it gets lonely waiting on me, and we both know you working with me… isn't great."

Bucky snorted.

"You hate it, admit it."

"I hate not being able to give you all of my attention, to have you so close and know that I have to maintain some semblance of professionalism. I also know that I fail at that on a daily basis because you're irresistible and I can't deny you anything."

Bucky looked awfully smug about that.

"I know and I agree it's not working out. That's why Peter's the perfect solution."

Tony sighed.

"Yeah, I know how you feel about it, but opening up to one person was already hard enough—"

"But you did it—"

"But what if adding someone else rocks the boat? Things are so good right now? Why risk it?"

"Because things aren't good right now, Tony. I mean, we love each other. There's no doubt about that, but I'm lonely and you're busy. I need something else, someone else who can keep me company while you're preoccupied."

Tony was hearing Bucky and he understood what he was saying—He did—But that didn't make it easier for him. It wasn't a lack of interest or attraction. Peter was fucking beautiful and adorable and Tony would love to be his daddy, but that didn't erase his fears.

"We're keeping him," Bucky said with finality.

"Is he our kept boy then?"

Bucky smirked at his daddy's teasing.

"He's whatever he wants to be."

Tony eyed Bucky, watched the adoring and protective look he gave the sleeping boy. Peter was definitely asleep now, snoring softly.

"You really wanna be a big brother, huh?"

"I really do, and even if he doesn't want that I still want him. I want him to have whatever he wants and I'm gonna be so good to him."

"I know you will, baby. He's lucky to have you."

Bucky met Tony's eyes.

"He'll be lucky to have you, too."

Tony bit his lip, reaching out hesitantly to trail his fingers down Peter's spine.

Peter shivered in his sleep, making a soft sound and rubbing his cheek against Bucky's chest, and Tony's heart melted. He grabbed the covers folded at the foot of the bed and tugged them up and over them.

"We'll talk about it in the morning."

"We're keeping him," Bucky reiterated firmly, and Tony nodded.

"I know."

#yes im aware this is not usually how asks work lol #but you bringing up winterironspider reminded me about these old projects 😂#winterironspider #asks

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