#so I know I'm probably shouting into the void but I can't help it
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Rukawa & Ayako Appreciation Post
I really, really love their interactions. Their dynamic is easy to overlook because they aren't each other's most prominent bond, but I like how suble yet well-built it is.
We know that Rukawa & Ayako went to the same Junior High, so unless I'm missing something (and I may be), Ayako is the one who has known Rukawa the longest (and vice-versa) at the start of the series. This is shown in various ways, notably in the chapter where Ayako teases Haruko by poking fun at Rukawa.
While Haruko idealizes Rukawa, leading her to project a bunch of stuff that he doesn't actually feel onto him, Ayako is the opposite. She doesn't see him through rose-tinted glasses and even pokes fun at him in order to tease Haruko.
However, when Haruko feels sorry for Rukawa because of Akagi going all out, Ayako is the one to spell it out for her: it's the opposite! Rukawa is the kind of guy who gets fired up by a challenge.
The wording she uses is also very telling, because it shows that Ayako sees through Rukawa's aloof disposition and into the kind of player (of person) he truly is. She knows that while he may look uncaring, in truth he actually does care and he cares a lot.
I liked this exchange a lot. In just a couple of pages, Inoue establishes that Ayako has a well-rounded read of Rukawa. She sees both, the idiot (affectionate) kid and the incredible player. And she knows what makes him tick, too.
This happens once again near the end of the manga. During the tutoring session, Haruko is once again shown trying to understand Rukawa, but she does so by projecting her worries onto him. Just like last time, Ayako is the one shown having actual insight into him.
This isn't the only that caught my eye about their dynamic, though. My favorite thing would be the familiarity between them.
From the get-go, we're shown that Ayako is prone to teasing Rukawa; a welcome sight considering how serious he usually is. And we're also shown that Rukawa seems pretty used to it, always taking it stride even when Ayako airs his dirty laundry in front of the entire gym lol
He also seems used to how touchy-feely she is, particularly at the start of the manga. He makes no effort to put any distance between them, which to me shows that not only is he used to it, he knows Ayako means no harm by it and is fine letting her be.
In other words, he trusts her.
This trust he has in Ayako is also shown in the way he respects her. While he may complain when she wants him to play mediator when the others are being idiots, he listens to her most of the time. The biggest example of this for me is during the fight with Mitsui. When Ryota yells at Rukawa to stop, Rukawa doesn't listen. He only stops when Ayako steps in, grabbing his arm and telling him that he'd only make the situation worse.
This is big, because the manga shows that when it comes to Rukawa, respect is earned. Case in point, it takes him a while to start attaching "senpai" to Mitsui's name. So by the start of the manga, Ayako has already done enough to earn Rukawa's respect.
Their interactions are also super easy-going, once again showing the familiarity and trust there is between them.
So while their dynamic may not get that much attention in the manga, I feel like we see enough of it to get a clear idea of how well they get along.
I think it's really sweet that Rukawa has a reliable senpai in Ayako, even more so because literally every other girl around him is too busy projecting their fantasies onto him lol
#slam dunk#ayako#rukawa kaede#kaede rukawa#so I know I'm probably shouting into the void but I can't help it#I'm so fond of them!!#shame we don't see anything about their junior high days because I'd love to see how ayako earned his respect and trust#(also before someone mentions piercing#I don't count it because - the way I see it - that ayako is based on SD ayako but they aren't the same character)
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For OFMD Tumblr friends who want a S3 and are scared of Twitter
First, no judgment from me. I very much get it. I resisted Twitter for a long time, and even though I'm now a bit more comfortable on it, it's still not my Fandom Home. There are a TON of valid reasons not to be on Twitter, but if you REALLY want to keep OFMD visible right now and help its chances of returning for a third season, Twitter is the best place to do it. Like it or not, Twitter is still the best social media platform for raising awareness and for instant news updates.
Tumblr posts don't make headlines. Topics that have been trending on Twitter do. And if we want this show to come back, we need to make OFMD impossible to ignore.
By now you've probably seen just how close we came to a S3, and if you're like me, you are RAGING and donning your battle jacket. But I get it can be intimidating to get on Twitter for the first time, so I thought I'd address some common anxieties I see. I'll put below a cut because this got a bit long, but I promise it's a quick read.
I don't know what to say! Where do I even start?
That's okay! You don't have to create your own tweets (although it's great if you do). Amplifying other people's posts is also important. Go ahead and like/retweet/reply to other people's posts. This may also help you get an idea of what you may like to say in your own tweets.
Hashtags...yes?
Yes! Although don't use too many or you may get flagged as a bot. The biggest one that seems to be emerging is #SaveOFMD. Other popular ones are #RenewAsACrew, #RenewOurFlagMeansDeath, and of course, #OFMD and #OurFlagMeansDeath.
Should I just be tagging all the streaming services?
Per @renewasacrew, no. It's counterproductive. You'll want to tag one streamer at a time and be specific. Below is an example of a tweet I made the other day -- use specific reasons why that that particular streamer may benefit from picking up OFMD.
I'm scared. People are mean.
Yeah, people are mean. But I will say the vibes over at OFMD Twitter are currently the best I've ever seen them. People seem to have united for the greater good and are being overwhelmingly positive and just trying to do whatever we can to save the show. (That said, again, I already had a pretty curated feed, and was very liberal with blocking users/terms I didn't want to see, but I've been able to spend so much more time in the For You tab than I ever have without being jump scared by something.)
But I don't know anyone there! Wouldn't I just be shouting into the void?
Not if you use the hashtags! Fans are being really good about following those and engaging with the tweets. Plus, [Stede voice], I'm your friend. I'm xoxoemynn over there as well, I'll follow you back and engage with any of your posts that I see. Plus, what's been REALLY lovely to see is that SO many lurkers have come out of lurkerdom to support the efforts, and they are being welcomed with open arms, so you will not be alone. Again, I am telling you, vibes? Best I've ever seen them.
I can't get sucked into another social media platform, I don't have the time.
The beauty here is you don't need to spend a lot of time. I've been on Twitter more in the past week than I have in the entire year I've had an account, and I'm still only on for maybe an hour total the entire day? I open the app, I check a couple accounts, I engage with a handful of posts, and I close the app. It takes all of five minutes. It's an extremely small lift that can have a very big impact.
My bet is on Zaslav expecting us to be upset, and that there may be a day or two of outrage, but then we'd move on. I'm sure right now he's trying to convince everyone that this is a fluke, and that it'll blow over soon. Don't let him win. Keep OFMD in the news. Be loud (but polite) and make Max and other streamers take note of what a passionate, loyal fan base this show has. Make their stocks continue to drop. Make it clear this is NOT just a fluke, it is NOT business as usual. It's a BIG fuck up with lasting consequences.
Twitter, for all its sins, is the best place to do this.
Now let's get our damned show back.
#ofmd#our flag means death#renew as a crew#truly BELIEVE ME I get wanting to stay away!!#and if after we get picked up again you want to delete your account please go ahead and do that!#but this is a really easy and tangible way to show Max/other streamers#just how beloved the show is and how it would benefit them to save it#I love tumblr but it's not going to give us the kind of impact we want#it's for fans - not for external folks/key decision makers#ANYWAY I am by NO MEANS a twitter expert but I'm getting better#and I've seen some people be nervous about getting on the platform so I thought I'd try to help <3
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the girl across your street || pt4
Pairing: Jenna Ortega x Fem!Reader
Summary: You imagine telling Jenna it was her that made you pursue your dreams in becoming a director. Yet, you imagine telling her you carried your love for her as if it were a burden. You made her your temple, your mural, your sky, now you weren't so sure who she was to you anymore. It was the day she came back, your soul could never be more disoriented.
Words: 3.3k
Warnings: slight angst, swearing, and probably (?) the longest chapter.
a/n: sneaked a taylor swift lyric in there
part 5 || masterlist
You feel nothing.
You feel like crying.
You feel like shouting at her.
You feel you like want to tell her how much you went through because of her.
Yet, you feel nothing more than to kiss her.
You imagine telling Jenna it was her that made you pursue your dreams in becoming a director. Yet, you imagine telling her you carried your love for her as if it were a burden. You made her your temple, your mural, your sky, now you weren't so sure who she was to you anymore. It was the day she came back, your soul could never be more disoriented.
You turned your heel, heading the way to who knows where. You just wanted to fill the consuming void of your heart with something, anything.
"Y/n! Y/n, wait, please!" Jenna's voice reached you, seeping into your heart. Yet, you blocked it out as if it were the last thing you desired, even if a part of you yearned to hear that symphony one last time.
You wanted to talk to her, you really do, but the years of pent-up anger made you hesitant. You fear you'll eventually mutter something you'll eventually regret.
"Y/n, can we talk please!? "Jenna's calls persisted, her voice trembling, and her footsteps growing louder with each plea. The ringing in your ears seemed relentless ever since she said your name.
For a moment, you stop, and for a moment, your world flickered.
"I'm surprised you even remembered my name." You turned to her, almost seeing her eyes flinch at your words.
Jenna straightened, and you couldn't help but notice the changes in her over the years. Yet, that familiar glint in her eyes remained unchanged. You don't know much about yours. "I never forgot you, Y/n."
"But you made me feel like I was."
"I didn't mean to. I—"
"What do you mean you didn't mean to, Jenna? You never told me you were moving away. You never shared anything. No texts, no calls, not even a note under my door saying you were leaving. Nothing," you began, your voice tapering off into a shaky breath, cracks surfacing.
"You called me special, one of the few you let inside your heart. Then you just went and left without a word." Tears streamed down your face as Jenna remained silent. Her lack of response told you everything. Maybe she did intend to leave, you thought, maybe she never cared about you in the first place.
"Don't you understand how much that killed me?"
Jenna's mouth opened and closed, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't find the right words. You wanted her to say something, really anything, anything if it meant being given an explanation.
"I'm— I'm sorry, Y/n. I thought you wouldn't really care, I— I'm really sorry."
"Wouldn't care? Jenna, I fucking loved you."
Her eyes widened, and yours did the same. Complete silence hung heavy in the air as you try to get a word in, play it off as if you didn't mean it.
"You loved me?"
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.
A voice in your head told you were too deep to crawl out, submerged in your own emotions and turmoil to even see the sunlight.
"I hate how it's impossible to hate you, Jenna. Even after all those years, I still love you so much," you confessed, tears welling in your eyes, regret consuming the moment. "I can't even pretend that I hate you."
"Y/n, I also—"
"I have to go, Jenna. Forget this ever happened."
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It had been months working with Jenna, and it's been months since the both of you last talked. In that time, you swore on yourself to keep everything beneath you, and the relationship you have with Jenna is only for professional matters. It hurt you deep inside, as much it pains you to admit it, but you wished you never told her you loved her.
Emma decided to take on guiding Jenna whenever she encountered a problem, which, she never really did. She was a skilled actress, you always knew that from the bottom of your heart, and seeing her act was like something out of a fantasy. You also sometimes helped her, but you always kept it brief for God knows what. You'd always think that you'll someday break out into tears yet again.
You stared at Jenna from afar at your own seat, seated at the corner where one could assume that you're busy with your own things. You had your headphones own, funny how you had them instead of Jenna, listening to the songs that Jenna once recommended for you. To maybe just feel a little something beyond sadness.
'…I've been broken-hearted
Blue since the day we parted
Why, why did I ever let you go?
Mamma mia, now I really know
My-my I could never let you go…'
It's ironic how this is the song she recommended a while back. Maybe this was her way of telling you she was going away, who knows?
Somebody tapped on your headphones, and before you looked up, you already knew who it was.
"You alright, y/n?" Emma asked, sitting down in front of you with a bottle of wine. Emma was always the one who was there for you at your lowest, she can almost sense whenever you are.
She poured it into your glass, and you drank without a single breath wasted. You continue to pour more until Emma stopped your arm.
"Okaaaay, I think that was the signal that you aren't fine."
"I’m…" Your gaze shifted to Jenna, a smile covering her entire face as she tries to drink a whole bottle of scotch dared by her co-stars. You could almost laugh at it if you weren’t drinking until your vision turns black. "I'm fine, Emma, don't worry."
Emma eyed you, concern etched on her face. "You've been drinking your sorrows away, y/n. And I'm not talking about the good kind of drinking your sorrows away. It's the type where you're attempting to kill yourself." She attempted to lighten the mood with a smile, but your attention remained fixed on Jenna.
Emma followed your gaze and then turned back to you. "You guys should talk."
Your eyes shot to her, "What do you mean?"
"You and Jenna. You think I haven’t seen you guys looking at each other from afar?" Her mouth curved into a smirk, taking her own glass and a sip of it.
You glanced back at your playlist, the cover being Jenna herself. "I don’t want to talk to her, Emma. I mean, what would I even say?"
"I don't know, y/n. Give her a chance to talk to you. You never really did since the last time you guys talked."
"How'd you know?" Regret flooded in as you realized you let your anger get the best of you that time. You were always the one to calm down before exploding, what happened to you?
"Jenna miiight've told me." Emma noticed your furrowed eyebrows and the slight of regret in your eyes. "Don't be mad at her, y/n. She doesn't really have anyone to talk to about you."
"I… I'm not mad. Just wished she talked to me." Fiddling with your phone, your voice faltered to a whisper.
Emma sighed, it's like she was talking to a toddler at this point. "She couldn't when you built walls over her, y/n. Every time she talks to you, you dismiss her."
"I'm—"
"You're too afraid to let her into your heart one last time, y/n, I know, but continuing to do that won't let anything progress between the two of you. If anything, it just makes you more scared. Take the risk, y/n, you always loved doing that before."
Your eyes met hers, and you were surprised by the seriousness in Emma's gaze. You never really expected Emma to give a heartfelt talk, everytime she comforts you, it always had a little fun in it, but this time it was different. "You're literally the last person I should be getting a tedtalk from." You finally smiled.
Emma returned the smile, grateful she had brought some lightness back into your expression after weeks of it gone. "What can I say? I'm versatile!" Both of you turned your attention back to Jenna, who looked your way before averting her gaze.
"Looks like she's also hoping you'd come to her." Emma stood up, ready to join the rest of the group. "You'll talk to her, right?"
"I'll try."
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It was already nearing midnight, and the store was about to close. You and Emma were settling the tab for the night's expenses while the rest of the group tidied up and exchanged goodbyes but Jenna stayed on the pool table poorly wasted and most likely unconscious to the bone.
After expressing gratitude to the bar owner, you and Emma exchanged glances, both sharing concern in your eyes while looking at Jenna.
"You take her home," Emma said, running to grab her jacket, keys, and already waving goodbye.
"Wait, what!?"
"Take care, love you always!" Emma dashed to the door and swiftly made her way to her car, leaving you alone with Jenna.
"Wait! Emma!—" you shouted before turning your attention back to Jenna. You sighed, picked up her bag, and draped her coat over her. Taking a deep breath, you lifted Jenna in your arms, her limbs wrapping around your neck as her head hung low.
After several minutes of struggling to open the door with one hand, managing different heavy bags, fiddling with your car keys, and taking care of Jenna, you finally got the car door open. Carefully, you seated Jenna inside, securing her seatbelt.
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You took her in your house just across from her old one. Oh how you've missed the feeling of being with her in this neighborhood.
You kicked off your shoes then walked to your bedroom where you carefully placed Jenna onto your bed.
Sitting down beside her, you immediately realized exhaustion took a toll on you. Your eyes were already falling heavy from the amount of work you exerted, though you knew you needed a shower.
You glanced at Jenna, wondering how she even knew you were filming a set. You were an upcoming director, sure, but you never really worked on big movies with a big budget or even working with big creators. But your name was definitely known somewhat.
Sighing, you stood up to fetch clean clothes and a towel, turning on the faucet for a much-needed shower.
In your time of organizing your things and fetching some clothes, you wonder why Jenna even did all of this. You knew Jenna wasn't the one for being pressured, especially in the entertainment network. She knew a lot of people who succumbed to the pressure of being in the spotlight, a walking billboard who has less control over their life as she would say. But you also knew acting is her passion, and she embraces it like a shooting star. You could only hope she wouldn't be burnt out by the increasing amount of workload she has.
With your eyes and brain already falling asleep, you turn the lights on at your bedroom with fresh clothes hanging by your arm. You close your eyes for a brief second, trying to not get the lights shined bright at you like you just walked by heavens gate.
"Wooahoh, holy shit— fuck!"
To your surprise, Jenna was awake, and staring you dead in the eyes with her iconic Kubrik stare. Damn, after all those years, she still has that flair for scaring the living shit out of somebody.
She was sitting on the ledge of the balcony, the cold wind of air in your street brought her a sense of nostalgia. She held the broken DSLR you owned, and you noticed the faint sound of your voices, distorted by glitches.
"You kept your DSLR?"
You went over to the bathroom then turned off the faucet, placing your clothes on a hanger placed on a wall. "Well, it's my first camera. Of course, I did." You called out.
You approached Jenna, sitting down with her on the ledge. You looked up at her, and you were suddenly reminded how you fell for her in the first place.
She fiddled with the camera, scrolling through the videos until she reached the last one.
"Aliyah! Aliyah, wait!"
"Y/n! Hey…"
"Where's—Where's Jenna? Is she going back to your house for her birthday?"
"Didn't she tell you? She's going across the country; she just got cast for a character in a film!"
You could only hear the faint sound of your camera crashing onto the ground and your glitchy 'what?' being muttered in the background before the battery on your camera dies. You look up to see Jenna's face, looking like she regrets everything she has done.
"I'm—I'm sorry for saying those things when we talked." You started, getting close to her until you were facing her and in arms reach. "I should've given you the time to say your side of the story."
She put the camera down on a table that was close to your window. "It's fine, I understand, I mean, I was a total shithead." Her voice was raspy, likely from recently waking up.
You laughed a bit, funny how she was the only one that made you laugh after the years she made you cry. "You never changed."
She looked up at you, a spark coming alive in her eyes as she tries to get comfortable in your space. "I could also say the same to you, dork."
"Hey, people say I've grown out of that phase."
"You're still that same dork to me. Always so eager to film a scene, going out of your way to do some idiotic shit on film, and that sparkle in your eyes stayed the same."
It was always something from Jenna that made you absolutely mad at her. Whether it was the sound of her voice, her laugh, the warmth of her touch, her aura, the beauty of her entire being, the words she'd say, it always made you so in love with her. But what you surrendered to is the beauty of her soul. And now, it feels as if you were now so deeply in love with her like never before.
At that moment, you could only hear the beat of your heart banging against your ears. You wanted to capture this moment in time and remember it forever.
Your eyes went over to Jenna's lips then looked back at her, her eyes speaking to you as if you both knew what you wanted from each other.
You leaned in ever so slightly, your breath ghosting on Jenna's lips before laying your lips onto Jenna's.
She pressed against your body, her arms wrapping around your waist while your hands cupped her cheeks.
You, in your life, could never describe the feeling to its utmost perfection. You just couldn't. If you ever did, you'd be lying. It was perfect, more than perfect. You couldn't describe it with only one, or even a million words. No sentence, no word, no phrase, no living or dying poet could ever write the moment you're feeling without having to find new words to describe it.
Her lips onto yours was like finally finding that one puzzle piece, her body leaning onto yours was like the tides crashing with the sea, your hand holding her face was like holding the whole world in your hands. You've completely lost yourself, you knew it in your soul, and your heart was now devoured by this girl, and you had no means in returning it.
Before the touch of her lips on yours, you were nothing. You never knew how starved you were, you never knew how much you longed for the touch of her lips onto yours, you never knew how insane you were up until this point, you never knew how love could burn this bright. Especially loving Jenna. Oh, especially loving her.
And then it was all gone, and realization settled in.
You kissed her.
Holy shit you kissed her.
You kissed her and it felt like heaven.
You looked at her in disbelief, how she even accepted your kiss was even more shocking than this. "I'm.. I'm so sorry, was that okay—"
And now, it was her turn to cup your cheeks and kiss you ever so passionately. You melted in her lips, the scent of her perfume consuming your heart entirely, making you go crazy. You sighed against her kiss, you feel her body going closer to you as she finally settled on your lap.
She pulled away, your eyes still closed as she laughs.
"I'd do anything and everything for you, y/n. Just, please, love me again." You opened your eyes to see the only girl you've loved in your entire life say something out of a romantic film.
You chuckle at her words, "I never fell out of it, Jenna. I always loved you."
"Does... does this mean we're, like, girlfriends?" You asked, a serious question by the way, as if kissing two times never really did the trick on you.
Jenna laughed, she laughed. The symphony to your ears came back, though you can finally listen to it forever.
"Oh my God, you really are such a dork."
"Seriously! I'm asking nicely!"
"Yes! Yes we are. You're my girlfriend now."
"And you're my girlfriend. Oh my god, I'm dating Jenna fucking Ortega everyone!" You shouted to the rooftops, couldn't really give a damn if you just woke the whole neighborhood up while Jenna just laughed with you.
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"You never told me why you had to move out." You questioned. The both of you were on your bed, Jenna being beside you and you were beside Jenna. You turned to your side, while Jenna turned to hers.
She looked at you up and down before saying her explanation. "Because I loved you. Too."—She added.
You immediately sat up, "What? What do you mean?"
Jenna stayed in bed, turning on her back. "It's stupid, so stupid. My mom's friends with different directors, right?"
"So she told me I needed to go across the country because she recommended me to one of the directors there and you know me, I wasn't that skilled at acting so I needed training."
"I reluctantly accepted the offer because... because I knew you liked the Scream Franchise. I thought maybe if I had accepted this job offer, you'd watch the full thing and you'd like me back in some way.
"But I didn't think it'd tear us apart. I was jammed-packed with schedules, I'm sorry, y/n. I tried calling and texting you after the film but I heard you changed your number and refused to give my parents your new one."
"When I heard you were an upcoming director, I knew I had to get on one of your movies, but my manager refrained from me taking several movies at once, you know, for my mental health. But when I finally got the chance to get on set with you, I was estatic." She explained her whole story, and you on the hand, felt guilty of ever ignoring her the past few months of filming .
"I didn't know. I'm so sorry I didn't let you speak when we met. I should've waited for your response, I never knew you... liked me back." You reached out for her hand, your thumb grazing over her palm
"I'm a great actor, y/n. I thought you knew that by now." She laughed, and then you laughed with her while going back down to bed.
"Will you go move in soon?" You asked, "well, not move in, but move back in this neighborhood."
"Maybe, someday."
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a/n: we're probablyyy nearing the end of this story. i just wanna thank you guys in advance for all the lovely comments! they make my day so much better and i always look forward to writing more chapters because of it. thank you all so much, i appreciate all of you!
taglist/s: @belatrixdragon , @mirage018 , @starstrzck
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Culmination
Somi's story continues as her husband returns; what will she do? No, but we will see this conclude the story.
Length 2.2K
Somi X Mreader
Previous Part
"I don't want to go home! I want to stay here with you! I want to keep fucking!" Somi cries as she holds onto your leg. Her phone buzzes again, another message.
"I can't wait, honey. I'll have a different position when I get back. I won't need to travel so much, and I can finally spend time at home." You both see the message from her husband.
"He'll be back and spending more time at home. Even if I wanted to, there would be no chance."
"I-I… no." Somi shakes her head violently. She runs her hand through her hair, ruffling it. Her breathing quickens, "I-"
"No more of this, Somi. Go home. He'll be waiting for you." You get up and toss Somi a jacket. "I'll take you there." Somi sits on the floor, unmoving. Through many struggles, you put Somi in her clothes and get her to her home. She doesn't move or make a sound. Walking over to her side of the car, you open the door and carry her inside. You leave her on a couch and bring in her things, clothes, toys, and everything that she had brought to your place. She sits on the sofa, head buried in her hands as you leave. The drive back home is quiet and peaceful.
The following day you wake up to a load of videos and pictures from Somi. Each one involves her doing some lewd act and begging you to continue the relationship. In one, she's bouncing on a dildo with her legs spread wide open, letting you see her dripping sex as she wishes it was your cock. In another, she's forcing a toy down her throat, her throat bulging when she pushes it in deep. Somi looks into the camera with lustful eyes in each video. As for the pictures, the final one she sends is of her with self-degrading words written on her naked body, "master's pussy" with an arrow pointing to her cunt and the like is written everywhere. A constant throughout everything is the collar she wears. The collar symbolized her submission to you; it was bought for that specific purpose. "Master, your fucktoy needs you. These toys aren't enough for me; I need your big hard cock." She sends in her final message. You ignore her, putting your phone back down.
When Somi's husband arrived, she made it seem as if everything was normal. However, Somi would send you videos where she'd have a vibrator inside her, explaining that she was hiding everything from her husband. She would still wear the collar, though. You don't know what he thought when he saw Somi wearing such a collar. One day you received a message from him asking you to join them for dinner. You tried to refuse but were forced into it in the end. When the day came for this meal, you tried to keep things professional. "It’s nice to have you back."
"It’s nice to be back. I'm glad I managed to finish early; I was missing Somi." He responds.
"Where is she, by the way? I haven't seen her."
"Oh, she's cooking." Somi pokes her head out and smiles at you, still wearing that collar. As you turn your head back, you see him rubbing the back of his neck. "Um, you may have noticed that collar. I'm not sure what's come over her. She refuses to take it off."
"Yeah, it's something alright." You reply, trying to figure out how to continue.
He leans in and whispers, "Between you and me, she's also been craving sex at every moment. I can't do it anymore, so I thought inviting you might give me a break."
"Well, you know, you've been gone for so long. She's… probably pent up." You say that, knowing fully why she is the way she is.
"Dinner's ready!" Somi shouts from the kitchen. She brings out plate after plate of food. You both go to help her and while her husband goes to place a plate on the table, Somi kisses your cheek. "Master, I've tried filling the void, but he's not enough. He doesn't- can't fuck me like you can." She whines quietly into your ear. "Master, your fucktoy needs her owner to use her," Somi adds before returning to the dining room. You follow quickly and place the final plate on the table. Taking your seat, you're annoyed Somi is sitting opposite of you while her husband sits to your right. As you all begin eating and talking, Somi can't help but rub your crotch with her foot. You don't react and push her foot away. Somi frowns for a second before trying to hide her expression.
"So, how was the trip?" You ask.
"Oh, you know, business is business. I was missing Somi the entire time, though. Did you miss me, Somi?" She fakes a smile and nods without saying a word. She stuffs her face so that she wouldn't have to speak. "I'm just glad to have a different position now; I can stay here and not leave her alone so often." You glance at Somi and see her roll her eyes as her husband continues talking. The meal went like this for a long time; her husband drank a lot of alcohol and got drunk. "Did I tell you about how we've been having sex nonstop?" He boasts. "You should hear her." He says before leaning in for a kiss from her. Somi looked as if she was going to boil over in anger. You watched on awkwardly.
Somi stands up and slaps her husband. "You can't make me feel anything!" She yells. "Anytime we've had sex, I've faked it! I faked everything! Every moan, every orgasm, everything!" Somi's husband looks at her with a shocked expression. "Your little shrimp dick can't make me feel anything! I need a real cock…. I…I want a divorce. I can't do this anymore." Somi glances at you before storming off.
You and her husband sit there in silence before you eventually stand. "I think I should go. You two seem to, uh, need space." You nod your head at him before leaving him to sit there. Soon after you arrive home, there's a knock at the door. Checking through the peephole, you see Somi, much like the first time she came to you.
"Master, your fucktoy is ready for you." She says as she opens her jacket. Words like bitch and whore are scribbled on her body, "Do you like what you see, Master? I brought my toys too." She says as she steps to the side to reveal a suitcase. Somi knocks again, "Master? I know you're in there. I saw your car." You open the door.
"What are you doing here, Somi?"
"I can't stay at that place anymore. I'm divorcing him after all. So now we can be together. We can go back to how things were before. We can have all the sex we want." Somi says matter of factly. She steps toward you, pressing her breasts against you. " She stands on her tippy toes and whispers, "You can do anything you want to me, Master. You can even get me pregnant. Can you imagine that? Me with a big swollen belly, you can still fuck me then if you want. We don't have to worry about anyone being involved anymore."
You step aside and allow Somi inside. "Would you mind explaining why you did what you did?"
"I couldn't stay there anymore. I tried having sex with him, but he couldn't make me cum. He'd be done, and I got nothing out of it." Somi throws her jacket off and kneels down. She gazes up toward you and opens her mouth. Waiting for you to use her, she sticks her tongue out and kneads her breasts. The sight before you makes you hard, and as much as you want to ignore her actions, you decide not to. You pull down your pants and ram your cock down her throat.
Somi happily accepts it, placing her hands on your thighs as you thrust. "You're just a stupid little whore aren't you?" Somi smiles and nods as best as she can. The cock going up and down her throat doesn't give her the ability to speak. The look on Somi's face is one of pure bliss as her tongue runs along the underside of your cock. Holding her to the base of your cock you feel Somi's tongue slither to your balls, lapping at them before you thrust again. Somi moaned; she rubbed her cunt while you used her warm mouth. Her lips were tightly wrapped around your cock, but that didn't stop drool from dripping down her chin onto her tits. She giggles as you reach down and starts playing with them.
You slowly drag your cock out of her mouth, leaving it at her lips for a second. Somi knows what you want and kisses the head of your cock. "If you want my tits so badly, then why don't you use them?" Somi kneads her breasts, pinching her nipples while waiting. Placing your cock between Somi's tits, you feel the soft flesh surrounding your shaft as she begins stroking your cock with them. "I love your cock." Somi whispers as the warm member slides between her tits, coating them in saliva and precum. "Master's cock is the best." Somi stares at your cock before glancing at you. "Do you like watching your dumb whore use her tits?" She asks, almost innocently.
"Of course," you reply as you push her head down and make her take licks at the head of your cock when it pokes up from her mounds. You start thrusting between Somi's big tits when you feel your orgasm coming. Somi can tell you're close, too; the throbbing cock between her breasts tells her as much.
"Are you going to cum?" She asks. When you nod your head, she continues, "Cum on my tits, Master!" You explode on her chest, releasing a large wave of semen onto her chest and neck. You pull on her collar, ensuring she gets a pearl necklace.
Pulling on Somi's collar, you get her to her feet. You drag her along to the kitchen, where you bend her over the counter. A hard strike to her ass makes her yelp. You hit her again; Somi's ass slowly becomes red with a large handprint in the middle. "That's it, Master, show your whore who's boss." Somi moans as you spank her again. You press your cock against her cunt, waiting for a second before you impale Somi with it. "Oh fuck!" She cries, and she feels you tear through her pussy. "I feel so full, fuck me, Master. Fuck me!" You hold Somi in place as you start thrusting; her tight cunt holds you as your bodies slam against each other. Long breathy moans fill the space as Somi enjoys the feeling of your cock slamming into her womb. Letting go of her waist, you move your hands to her breasts, pinching and pulling her nipples.
"I'm going to cum inside you." You say to Somi.
"Cum inside me, cum inside me!" She moans. "I want you to fill me with your hot cum!" Somi places her hands over yours and squeezes her tits. Being brought so close to her climax, Somi's toes curl as you impale her on your cock and begin filling her with your cum. She screams; the few days of having no orgasms are over. Somi's nectar blasts out onto the cabinets under her as she climaxes. Your cum paints her walls white as they travel to her womb. "Oh god. I feel so full. So full of nice warm cum." Somi lays her head against the cold marble countertop and smiles. "You definitely knocked me up." You lean back and spank Somi. "Oh, Daddy, not so rough on Mommy," Somi coos. You pull your cock out of Somi and watch cum leak onto the floor. Somi's feet reach the ground, and she kneels before you again. "Are we done, Daddy? Or is this just round one?" Somi takes your shaft in her hand and strokes your cock, her hand is dirtied by the cum and nectar on it, but that doesn't bother her. She drags the tip of her tongue along your shaft before popping the tip in her mouth and sucking on it. You push your cock in deeper, causing Somi to laugh. "I knew that was just round one." She says, mumbling her words. You continued to fill Somi's holes with your cum the rest of the day.
Somi had gone back to wearing nothing as she lived with you. You tried to get her to live elsewhere, but it didn't work out. She’d just be your live-in fucktoy for now. She'd occasionally get messages from her husband, hoping that they would be able to repair the relationship. That didn't work out, either. After he had figured out Somi was living with you, he came to try to talk. Having happened to just gotten home, you were both fully dressed; answering the door, Somi stood there surprised. He was in shock, too, Shocked to see his ex's belly swollen with a child. He fell to his knees, and Somi stared at him before shutting the door in his face without a word being said.
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Zhongli x fem reader where zhongli is working all week and can barely spend time w yn so when he got free time yn tried to lead him to 'it' but zhongli won so he got to eat her out instead ☹️☹️☹️💖💖💖 I can't see any zhongli smuts 💔💔💔
Overtime
(NSFW): angst & smut, oral sex/f receiving (no proofread as usual :sadface:)
a/notes: I can't believe y'all... it's almost week for uhhh and yall r asking for these 💀💀 ANYWAYS I've been so busy, my apologies for not updating for like weeks idfk TT, I'll try to be more active now, I'll be doing the requests !!
notes: if there r mistakes, MY BADD!!! I'm writinf this amd irs like 5am rn 🔫 ILL B FIXINF IT TMRRRWWW 🙌🏻😭😭😭 IM SO DLEEPY RN
Zhongli puts his career first, which is tough, considering his job entails a lot of work and a very short rest. He barely even spends his time with you, he just has to commute to work every day. Every morning you wake up without Zhongli by your side, heck it's indeed a miracle you can fall asleep without his presence, but that's all there is to it. It's not like Zhongli doesn't want to be here at home with you, it's more like he has to get to work early every morning and is only able to come home late at night because his boss won't let him go home yet, which means he'll never get to sleep properly.
every time Zhongli comes home he sees that you fell asleep on the couch, reading a book you've borrowed from his bookshelf. You always read whenever you're tired, it seems like your dearest thing to do. So it isn't odd seeing you curled up on the couch while reading the same book over and over. Zhongli realized that you tried to keep yourself awake to wait for him to get home from work so you could cuddle in bed before going back to sleep. he feels so bad about it, you're always tired after the long day you had and he couldn't even spend some quality time with you. but one thing is for sure, Zhongli loves how peaceful you look when you sleep.
One night, Zhongli informed you that he would be able to go home early tonight and you immediately brightened up. You were so delighted to hear him telling you that he was coming home later than expected. So you made a bunch of dinners as quickly as you could to make him feel better about leaving early. You were so happy with the news to the point that you imagined what tonight would be like with him finally by your side.
-
But all of those images shattered when Zhongli went straight to your shared room, Not even bothering to close the main door behind himself or even share you a glance. He looked as if his whole world had crumbled down around his feet and you felt so helpless, but it was too late now, he already went inside and closed the door softly behind him. Although it bothered you, You soothed yourself that it must probably be because he was just drowsy from working hard all week, but deep down you knew that it wasn't just that. The fact was that both of you barely talk considering his occupied schedule, you know you shouldn't pressure him or expect anything in return for such a short amount of time together. But still, you can't help but miss him, so you waited anxiously until his eyes landed on you.
Looks like, for you, The fascination he had been feeling towards you all this time had dissipated completely in an instant. Like he didn't feel anything anymore, it was as if everything he had felt about you before disappeared overnight. Now, it felt empty, void, almost as if you were a spirit, and nothing could bring you back into existence again. Even worse, you felt lonely without your boyfriend.
Was he seeing someone else? Did he find somebody else better than you? Many questions lingered inside of your mind and you wanted to resist the urge to just shout out all these questions, but all that came out was your heartbroken cry. You were so hopeless, so frustrated that you felt like crying tears of blood. But somehow, you managed to hold them back. Your feelings mustn’t affect him any further, he needs to take care of himself right now and you’d rather give him space than force him. If he wanted to spend the rest of the night with you, He would have done it by now...
When you finally got the courage to go and see what had happened, Zhongli was standing in front of the closet, staring blankly. His back facing you and his left arm hanging limp at his side as if he couldn't muster up any strength to move. Your breath hitched as a tear fell from your eye and your body moved forward automatically, without thinking. You weren't aware of what you were doing but what you know is how it felt so good to finally have your arms wrapped around him. You buried your face in his back and held him tight as if trying to keep him from vanishing into thin air.
He stayed silent, unmoving in your embrace, and you were about to break down completely when he suddenly turned around. His head rested against your shoulder as he wrapped his arms tightly around you, holding you tight too. Your eyes teared up even more and you sobbed openly, clutching onto him as if you'd never seen him for decades. You were so terrified, but you also felt like laughing hysterically. The relief, joy, and satisfaction you felt were overwhelming, it took a second for you to calm down enough to breathe properly. But you didn't let go of him either. As if you needed to reassure yourself that he was there. That he was there. “I miss you... so much... Zhongli..." you cried into his shirt, still clinging to him as tightly as possible.
"I miss you a lot too, I'm sorry..." he said softly, rubbing circles in your back to calm you. You knew Zhongli wants to say something, but all of his words failed him and you could tell he was struggling just as much as you are. After several minutes, when you calmed down a bit and your breathing returned to normal, "Y/n... I—"
You cut him off by pressing your lips against his, silencing him instantly. You didn't care, all you cared about was making up for the lost time. You kissed him like you meant to kiss him forever and you weren't willing to let him go even for a single minute, And Zhongli noticed how fast and frantic your kisses were getting, but he didn't complain at all. He just held you tighter and deepened your kiss, letting himself forget how hard he had worked today, how tired he felt, and most importantly, he forgot that you were waiting for him. All he know was he wants you, and you want him, so what was stopping the both of you from doing this?
His kisses were soft and gentle, but it wasn't long before his hands wandered under your shirt, running across your skin teasingly, making goosebumps appear on your exposed skin. Then they traveled southwards, caressing the curves of your stomach, then moving downwards. And all of a sudden you found yourself gasping for air, feeling so overwhelmed and breathless by his touch, but at the same time, he continued kissing you as if he hadn't done that in months, which he did.
Then, he unbuttoned your shirt and began kissing all along your collarbones and down to your chest, sucking on the spot where his thumb had just touched moments before. You whimpered softly, wanting nothing more than to feel his mouth on yours again and again, to melt into him, as if your bodies were made to fit perfectly together, like pieces of the same puzzle. You grabbed onto his hair, pulling him closer and deepening your kiss. Zhongli groaned and pulled away slightly, his lips brushing against yours once more.
You felt Zhongli's large palm against your breasts, you kept quiet, you didn't want to ruin this moment. Instead, you just leaned into his touch and allowed yourself to relax and enjoy his warm mouth on your skin. But Zhongli was relentless, he loved playing the seductress whenever he felt like it, so he proceeded to push you back onto the mattress and straddle you in one swift movement, pinning you down to the mattress with his strong arms as he kissed you again. You wrapped your legs around his waist, holding him tighter, craving his kisses and touches.
Suddenly, Zhongli's hands started roaming all over your body, and you could barely even breathe, he was touching you everywhere and you wanted nothing more but to let him touch you even more. You looked away as you felt yourself growing wetter when he pressed his body against yours, and soon you could feel how hard he was becoming against your abdomen. It made you feel so divine as if he was your heater and you just wanted to snuggle up closer to him, so you did. You let yourself fall deeper into his kisses as your hands ran through his hair, gripping the strands, he started grinding up against your crotch, making you moan and gasp out loud.
You took off his tie and loosened his suit jacket, pushing his shirt down to reveal his toned torso underneath. You started tracing circles on the skin below his chest with your hand, trying not to think about his bulge pressing against your stomach. Just then Zhongli's hands reached up towards your bra, undid it, and pushed it aside. Your breast tingled painfully as he sucked the sensitive flesh, and before you knew it you were squirming beneath him and reaching down with your free hand to unbuckle his belt. You tugged at his trousers impatiently, you needed him to get rid of them so you could feel him inside you again.
Zhongli seemed to have understood what you were hinting, However, he wanted to tease you a little first before he gave you what you wanted, his fingers fiddling with the zip of his pants, you were waiting for him to open it, but he suddenly stopped, looking at you with lust clouding his gaze. He was aroused to see you beneath him, after the exhausting day, you could see it clearly, but instead of saying it aloud, he just stared at you for some seconds longer, He slowly leaned forward again, kissing you deeply, and he started sucking and nibbling at your lower lip, while his other hand stroked gently down your thigh, grazing against your inner thighs. he took off your panties slowly, making sure to take his time to tease you, teasing your clit with his fingers before sliding his finger inside. Your back arched as you moaned softly, he placed another soft kiss against your neck and trailed down to your collarbone, leaving hickeys in his wake. You gasped loudly as his tongue entered your mouth, taking his time to taste every part of you.
After a while, he pulled away and removed his finger from your cunt. You panted heavily and looked at him, "W-Why'd you stop...?" you asked, your voice laced with disappointment. Zhongli didn't answer and continued on his way down to your stomach, trailing kisses along the length of your belly button. When he was close to you, he stopped and raised his face again, giving you an enigmatic smile as he gazed at you with burning eyes. Your hands instinctively reached his hair and tangled your fingers in it as you felt his tongue on your clit. The heat from his saliva seeping between your folds was almost unbearable and you gripped his hair harder, needing more of him.
Zhongli licked up your clit and you clenched your teeth when his warm tongue swirled around your clit, circling it delicately as he suckled your clit harder. Then he slid his tongue slowly between your folds, swirling it around delicately as he teased you relentlessly. You could hardly stand it anymore, you clutched the sheets and tried your best to remain quiet, hoping Zhongli wouldn't hear you. Fortunately for him, he did, because he smirked evilly and slowly moved his tongue inside of you, slowly pumping your clit, driving you crazy.
Your whole body shook uncontrollably with each thrust his tongue gave, your body twitching and tensing with pleasure now and then. He was relentless and merciless with his tongue, sucking on your clit faster and harder, driving you insane until you couldn't stand it any longer. you broke out into a string of incoherent sounds and moans as he continued to pump his tongue furiously inside of you, sucking harder and harder and making you lose control of your body.
"I-Im close..." you whimpered in pure ecstasy, grabbing tightly onto his hair, digging your nails into his scalp painfully, and Zhongli smiled wickedly, knowing he was going to drive you to insanity until you couldn't handle it anymore. His tongue went faster and faster, thrusting in and out of you with fervor, and before you know it, you were coming. He watched with satisfaction as your whole body shuddered violently and you came undone around him, cumming all over his tongue.
When you finally came down from your high, you were panting harshly and covered in sweat, your head resting against the pillow as you waited for your breathing to settle down. you released Zhongli's hair from your grip and sat up, wrapping your arms around your midsection. He watched as you adjusted yourself, and then turned to look at him, still a little out of breath.
"sweet as ever... do you want to keep going?"
#genshin impact#genshin impact headcanons#genshin imagines#zhongli smut#zhongli x reader#zhongli x you#zhongli x reader smut#zhongli#zhongli lemon#genshin zhongli#genshin impact zhongli#Genshin impact smut#genshin smut#genshin hcs#genshin
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Dude I asbsplutely loved ur velvette and Odette fic??? And I was wondering you take requests? I was hoping i could request some emilute!! (Emily x Lute) us emilute shippers are starving
Hazbin Hotel - Emily x Lute - Drag Me to Hell
"No!" Emily almost shouted at her sister, while tears gathered in her eyes and blurred her vision. Again and again she wiped her eyes with her sleeve. "You can't just kick her out of Heaven. She has nowhere to go, they'd rip her apart in Hell!"
Sera crossed her arms sternly in front of her chest "I'm so sick of Lute's permanent misbehavior!" she scolded. "She's always causing problems. She doesn't go to her appointments with her doctors and her sessions with her therapists. She refuses to take her medication. She bothers the other residents of Heaven, she scares them. She can't control her emotions and she's not seriously trying to get better." Sera sighed sorrowfully. "Emily, I have to think about the greater good for all the residents of Heaven, I'm responsible for all of you and I can't allow Lute's misbehavior any longer..."
"Sera, please... Don't give up on Lute so soon..." Emily pleaded, her voice full of despair. She looked intently at her sister, her vision blurred with tears. "Please, Sera, don't kick Lute out of Heaven... I promise you, I'll make sure Lute does everything you want... I promise, I'll take all responsibility for her!"
Sera's cold gaze started to warm slightly. Somehow she was proud of Emily, her little sister really wouldn't give up on any soul so easily. "All right," she agreed to Emily's suggestion. "But you're completely responsible for Lute and if she misbehaves again, I'll kick her out of Heaven for good..."
"Thank you!" Emily squealed and threw her arms around her sister's neck, hugging her tightly while beaming with joy.
"Good evening, Lute!"
Emily found Lute on the edge of Heaven, sitting silently on the ledge and staring down into Hell. Her shoulders sagged and her legs dangled in the void. Once again, Lute hadn't shown up for one of her appointments.
Too lost in her thoughts, Lute winced, startled. She looked up, confusion reflected in her glassy eyes as she looked Emily up and down. "Hey, Emily..." she greeted the youngest Seraphim hoarsely. Her voice rasped with dust, so rarely had Lute used it recently. "Can I help you?" she asked politely. She contorted her face into a grimace and made an effort to smile for Emily.
"No," Emily replied bluntly, joining Lute on the edge instead.
"Why are you here?" Lute wanted to know quietly, her voice wavering and the hand in her lap trembling. She was looking bad. Black circles under her eyes formed a stark contrast to her sallow skin, she was terribly pale and her body trembled. Golden blood stained the bandage around the stump of her left arm; it had probably not been changed for days.
Emily sighed sadly. "I'm here to help you..." She put her hand on Lute's remaining one to stop her trembling. "We all want to help you, the doctors and the therapists... So tell me, why are you skipping your appointments?"
"I don't know?" Lute shrugged her shoulders, slowly lowering her heavy head to rest on Emily's shoulder. She enjoyed her warmth, while the sun disappeared behind the horizon, the black of the night bleeding into the golden glow. Bright stars shone above them. "Every time they sit in front of me and look at me so disapprovingly with their stern gazes, analyzing my symptoms superficially and claiming so confidently that they know what will help me. As soon as my hour is over, they shoo me out the door with empty words of encouragement and a plastic bag of medication to numb me..." Lute tilted her head back, looking longingly up at the stars. "You know, Emily, if I take these pills, my whole world will go numb. If I don't take the pills, then I feel the faux pain in my missing arm, and if I still can feel the pain in my arm, then my arm is still attached to my body, right?" Lute laughed bitterly, glistening tears streaming down her cheeks and dripping onto Emily's hand. "Then it never really happened, I am still an exorcist and he's still with me. If I don't take the pills, I'll still hear his voice and I'll still see him standing in front of me. I don't want to take these pills, please, because if I do, I'll really lose him..." Lute looked to the ground. "With these pills it's too true to be good..."
"Oh, Lute..." Gently, Emily squeezed her hand. Emily never saw Lute cry before and she couldn’t do much against her tears, so she intertwined their fingers while her other hand gently turned Lute's chin towards her, coaxing her to look at her. "I'm sorry, but you can't just suppress reality for ever..." Emily leaned her forehead against Lute's as fine fingertips ran tenderly over her cheekbones, wiping away the stray tears again and again.
"I can try..." Lute whispered, while she lost herself in her eyes.
"You can’t just give in to your inner demons so easily." Emily shook her head. She saw the pain in her eyes. She heard the pain in her voice. "I won't let you to, Lute, I promise..."
I have never written Emily and Lute, but I hope, you like it! It was fun, maybe I will continue this idea?
#hazbin hotel#my writing#ao3#fanfic#request#emily#hazbin emily#hazbin hotel emily#emily x lute#emilute#lute#hazbin lute#hazbin hotel lute#sera#seraphim#hazbin sera#hazbin hotel sera
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I'm all for villain (or at least corrupted) Arin and the cycle of fsm's family first student curse + the additional generational trauma
But imagine if Lloyd and Arin become the breaker of that cycle?
And only because of one reason
Open vulnerability.
What happens if in the tournament there was a moment where Arin and lloyd fight. Arin who is overwhelmed by failure after failure finally just snaps at lloyd, and lloyd is trying to diffuse his anger but that just makes Arin angry even more
And then he punched him just like in the vision and he is dwelled into a panic attack because oh god his vision is coming true, but thats not the ONLY thing he is having a panic attack over
Its the fact its happening again. Someone he cares about is hating him again hurting him betraying him and he is reminded of pythor harumi garmado-
He can still hear Arin shouting (probably about how much of a failure he is) but he can't hear it anymore, everything is buzzing out and he can only hear his racing heartbeat and be reminded of all these people who've hurt him and he can't possibly put Arin into those people. He can't. I t must be hi s fault. Hes n ot a go od teac h er. H fail ed. FAILED. FAILED
And then we look back to Arin.
And hes done shouting (especially after he got no response) and hes looking at lloyd. And stops.
He sees him having another panic attack.. but this one seems worse, this one... reminds him of.. him
When he was missing his parents.
The first week after the merge..
and then hes reminded of younger him (well younger-er) how when he was crying and struggling to breath no one seemed to care to help him, how lonely he was, how painful it was..
And before he knows it, his anger dissipated.
And felt shame and guilt pooled in
Suddenly he was at his younger– LLOYD's side.. and he doesn't know what to do, he'd seen Nya hold lloyd's hand to ground him, but...
Throwing away doubt he grabs lloyd's arm that is kinda gripping his hair a bit too tightly
And lloyd flinches. He flinches.. from HIM
He looks at lloyd and REALLY looks at him, without any lenses, without any hero worship, without anything.
He felt guilt twist in his stomach painfully
He sees the eyebags, the terror and far away gaze in his eyes. He doesn't even wanna KNOW what lloyd is thinking, he sees the tears pooling–
He doesn't wanna see anymore
He pulls lloyd's arm gently and puts his hand over his face, so lloyd will feel his breath. Hopefully following his breathing and feels the apology in his tears
Because hes reminded of how much stressful it has been; for HIM. He has been so focused on himself he never thought how stressful this whole situation is to the ninja
And hes digusted with himself because he still feels disappointed; in himself, in lloyd, in.. in everything
The hand on his face started moving, touching his tears.. and gently wiping it
He sees the broken look on lloyd's face, but there was a hint of relief
Hes relieved i didn't leave him
A door was opened for them and the embrace after they found an understanding was the greatest feeling
He didn't know what it was.. but he felt something shifted, a fate that has been changed. He was hopeful for whats to come
Unbeknownst to the both of them, a cycle has been broken and the watchful eyes of a grandfather has never been prouder
HDHHDHSNRHSNNAHADHDJSJW YEAHHH I DON'T THINK I'M OKAY ANYMORE THANKS 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
DHFHJDJFJSJRJAJJA DUDE THIS ACTUALLY SO GOOD I NEVER CONSIDERED THE CYCLE BEING BROKEN WAAHAHGHHFHDDHDHHD AND BY OPEN VULNERABILITY?????
ARIN PUNCHING HIM JUST LIKE IN THE VISION????? GODDAMNITNSHFHSJWJWJJEQHFHFHSHSH THE BROKEN TEXT AFTER LLOYD GOT HIT AGGHGH DUDEEE...
AND ARIN FEELING GUILT AND SHAME WHEN HE SEES LLOYD LIKE THAT AGHFDJEEJJEDJDJD THEIR HUG AT THE END.......
AND THE FSM WATCHING OVER THEM BYE I'M JUST GONNA JUMP INTO THE VOID SHSJDAKSKSAI
#SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO ANSWER THIS ASK#I WANNA RANT MORE BUT STUDYING HAS BEEN PUTTING A STOP TO MY THOUGHTS 😭#ninjago#ninjago dragons rising#ninjago spoilers#dragons rising spoilers#ninjago arin#ninjago lloyd#levi's asks#ty for the ask!#mai tag
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Swap Across the CrystalVerse Chapter 7: PW Timeline
Read Swapboys | Crystal’s AUs | Read the PW Timeline
Read SITCV | SATCV Masterpost | AO3 Link
Alt lands, by himself, in a bedroom. It's not a familiar bedroom. Small, and made even smaller by how crowded it is with knickknacks. The walls are pale green. There's a desk, a wardrobe, a bed, and a small table shoved in the corner by a big window. On that table are candles, some figurines, bowls, a wooden wand, a plate with a five-pointed star drawn on it--an altar of some kind, apparently. And there's a cat. A small black one. Standing on the desk and staring directly at Alt with big yellow eyes.
Alt looks around the room and almost immediately groans out loud. He whacks the TRVLR in his hands with a scowl. "What is wrong with you?? Why are you acting up now??"
The TRVLR briefly shows the menu screen--and the code UF-0707019PW in the corner--before the low battery icon takes over.
Then, he notices the cat and he freezes. "Oh.. hi kitty?" He can't help but soften as he pockets the TRVLR and tries to get near it, holding out his hands for it to smell.
The cat immediately bolts, knocking down a water bottle and plastic cup of pencils as it jumps down from the desk and runs out the open bedroom door. No offense to Alt. Seems it just has the zoomies.
Alt glitches back in surprise and watches the cat jump away and can't help but laugh as he watches. Oh... tiny kitty zoomies. He remembers when Glitches had those-
Down a hallway, someone shouts. "Luna Void, I swear to fuck if you knocked over something important--no pets for the rest of the day!" It's followed by an exasperated groan and approaching footsteps.
Alt freezes at the voice. Shit! His mind blanks on something to do as he backs up- tries to think of something to say. He's broken into someone's house! ...completely on accident but! Still!
A man walks into the room, stopping in the doorway. He has long wavy hair pulled back in a ponytail, and is wearing a black sweatshirt with a design of a cresent moon made out of various-sized circles. He looks at Alt. His eyes widen and he backs away. "Wh-whoa, hey! Hey! I-I don't know how you got in here, b-but I'm calling the police!" He's reaching into the pocket of his jeans, probably going for his phone.
Alt jumps and glitches a bit to get closer, "Wait don't please I-I can explain!" He tries to say quickly. He searches the man's face, trying to see if he recognizes it. "I'm sorry I didn't mean to scare you I just- d-don't know where I am-"
The man freezes the moment Alt glitches close to him. His eyes, somehow, go even wider. "What the--what the fuck?" He suddenly scrambles backwards. "How did--what--I--What the fuck?!" And then he turns and runs down the hallway.
"...shit-" Alt mutters and then tries to glitch after him. "Wait!"
The man reaches the living room, where there is another man standing. This one is wearing a blue button-up shirt and has a mustache. He clutches a phone in one hand like he's ready to dial.
"JJ!" the first man shouts. "I-I don't know what's going on, but--"
Then Alt appears in the hallway entrance. The first man spins around, gasping, and the second one jumps in surprise.
Alt finds himself freezing once again and he very slowly puts up his hands. "H-Hang on... please- I... I can explain- I'm not gonna rob you- or hurt you... I just... g-gotta figure out where I am." He swallows thickly. "Please, just, hear me out?"
He eyes the second man, taking in the signature look of JJ and feels himself start to relax. Okay- parallel again... so the first one must be... Marvin? Cuz cat?
The two men stare at him in shock. Slowly, Marvin backs up towards the coffee table. Then he quickly grabs a small piece of candy from a bowl and gently throws it at Alt.
Alt blinks and goes to catch it, holding it in his hands. He blinks comically back at the two men. "...uh... thank you?"
"What the fuck?!" Marvin shouts again. "You're real?!"
"Y-Yes I'm real!" Alt shouts back. He shoves the candy in his pocket and then shakes his hands, "Okay let's just.. back up. You already think I'm insane so let's just run with it!" He stands up taller and with confidence as he says, "My name is Alt Brody. I'm from another universe- a parallel one. Where the same people exist in different places. So... I know people just like you two, Jameson and Marvin."
The two of them just gape at him. Marvin glances at JJ and asks in sign language, Do you think this is a trick? Is A-N-T-I back?
He wouldn't do something that weird, JJ says. And if it was, he knows sign, you're not hiding anything.
"Fuck," Marvin curses.
"...I also know sign." Alt says sheepishly. His stomach drops at they seem scared once again of someone called Anti. Of course... at least the last one was kinda nice. "...I'm... technically a parallel of... your Anti. But, I'm not like.... evil or anything. I'm a magician."
Silence. "Okay. Yeah. Sure." Marvin laughs. "If this is a prank, it's not funny. Come on, where are the cameras? How did you do those weird effects?"
JJ just frowns at him. You're my age. You're not Anti.
Alt knits his eyebrows at JJ and slowly nods, "Yeah... you're younger than my JJ... huh." He then turns to Marvin and sighs, "It's not an effect." He holds out his arm and lets its glitch, showing it splitting into different colors and pixels before snapping back into place. "I'm magic. And also a glitch. Technically." He stuffs his hands into his pockets and looks at them. "...someone in your group... has to be magic... right? ...someone always is... somehow."
JJ and Marvin stare at the glitching. They both look weirdly pale. Marvin folds his arms, hiding how unnerved he is. "Yeah, okay, ha ha. I'm not that kind of witch. I-I-I don't know--how you're doing that--but this is a really fucking cruel joke."
I don't think he's joking, Marvin... JJ signs slowly.
"He--he has to be," Marvin says a bit desperately. "I-I mean--that sort of 'magic'--like in the movies--it's not fucking real!"
Now it's Alt's turn to look pale as his eyes widen. "...magic doesn't exist here...?" He breathes. Then, he pushes back his hair and slowly starts to laugh. "...oh boy... Mag is not gonna be happy..."
He looks back at them and opens up his palm, creating a ball of dancing electricity. He tosses it up into the air and as it hovers for a second, he glitches and then changes into a mostly black calico cat that stares at them up from the floor, his strange heterochromaic eyes practically glowing. Then, as the ball falls he glitches back and manages to catch it before it zaps away into the air. "...for me, magic is real." He says quietly. "I wouldn't lie about that."
Marvin and JJ watch all this silently, their faces an identical mix of awe and shock. Then Marvin slowly walks over to the sofa and collapses on it.
Are you okay, Marvin? JJ asks.
P-R-O-C-E-S-S-I-N-G. Marvin signs out the word letter by letter.
JJ nods. He leans back against the wall by the door. It's like... the many worlds theory.
You sound like H-doctor. Clearly, Marvin means 'Henrik' by that.
My point is, if it's true, then there are infinite possibilities. Including that magic is real somewhere.
"Fucking bejesus hell," Marvin mutters.
Alt shuffles sheepishly. "...sorry- we... haven't traveled to a world without magic before. I'm... so used to just being able to do it." His form buzzes with static for a bit, pixels vibrating off him before he forces himself to snap back together. "I guess it makes sense... we've been to enough places- about time we ended up in a place with no magic." He sighs and leans up against the doorway, "But that creates a lot of problems on my end..." He starts to take out his phone, hoping he can contact Jackie or Chase.
"This is... gonna be a lot," Marvin says. "Mr. uh... What was your name? Anti?"
He said 'Brody' too, JJ recalls.
"So, what? He's from a magical alternate universe where Anti is Chase's brother instead of y--"
JJ makes a shushing sound.
"Oh. Sorry."
Alt’s head snaps up at this, staring at Jj with wide eyes. “…you’re brothers with Anti…?” He asks quietly. He’s very quiet for a second, trying to imagine Dr. J being his sibling but… no. Too weird.
JJ tenses a little bit. By blood, he says carefully. Our relationship is... bad.
Marvin rolls his eyes. "Light way of putting it."
Alt nods in understanding.
“…it’s uh Alt, by the way.” He corrects Marvin, “don’t really go by Anti anymore… only Chase calls me that.”
For once, cell service and WiFi work. The cell service is abysmally low, but it's there.
Suddenly two cats run into the room. The small black one from before, chasing a fluffy ragdoll cat. The black one corners the ragdoll in and jumps on top of it, causing a "mrow!"
"Stop, you two," Marvin says automatically. "Not near the terrarium."
Alt glitches at bit back as the cats rush in but then his eyes sparkle. He kneels down, just to look at them as he grins. “Oh… such pretty kitties…!” He softly coos.
The ragdoll cat pushes away the black one, who zooms away while the ragdoll licks his paw.
Marvin grins. "That's Luna Void and Ragamuffin. They're my babies. Them and Salazar... though I wonder if I should change his name recently."
Marvin points at a large terrarium nearby. Inside, curled up on the floor, is not a pile of purple rope, but a snake. "I'm biased for the kitties, to be honest, though." Seems the cat talk has helped him recover from his rattled state of mind.
Alt giggles at their names. “Great names… I have a little void at home. Her name is Glitches. …you can probably guess why.”
Alt’s eyes wander to the terrarium and makes a slight Pog face as he almost glitches over- but he doesn’t want to scare the kitties or the snake.
“Woahhh! A snake! What a cool color!” Alt winces a bit at the name and laughs, “Yeah… not a great time for anything named from Harry Potter, huh?”
“He’s a lavender corn snake,” Marvin says, grinning. “And yeah… I’m thinking of calling him Crowley now, after a character in this book called Good Omens.”
Did you hear they’re making a series of that? JJ comments.
“I did! Think it’s coming out in May.”
Alt grins happily bouncing, “So cool- snakes are cool…”
Marvin takes a deep breath. “Okay. I think I’ve processed this whole… thing. Or at least I’m functional now. JJ? What about you?”
The same, JJ says.
“Alright. So.” Marvin looks at Alt. “If you’re… from an alternate universe… what are you doing here? How’d you get here?”
Once it seems like the others are settled he sighs and nods, “that’s the thing… we should be home. The first time we used this device, the TRVLR.” He pulls out the device to show them, “we didn’t know our code to get home but now we do and for some reason we keep ending somewhere different! Which might not be a problem if it was just me, my brother and Jackie… but we have a hitchhiker… a villain named Magnificent. He’s also magic… and very very dangerous. And everytime we jump- we end up separated… but pulled towards parallels we know in this universe.”
“Evil magicians,” Marvin mutters. “Ooookay. Great.”
JJ frowns. Don’t you use ‘Magnificent’ as your username on a lot of games?
“Wha—No!” Marvin says defensively. “It’s um… that… but in leetspeak. Whatever, are you saying I’m evil?”
I’m saying if they appear towards parallels of people they know, that’s a big coincidence.
Alt tries to hide his laugh about Marvin’s username.
“Okay whatever, moving on,” Marvin says hurriedly. “So we have to help you find this guy and the two others you came with? Jackie and… your brother? Chase, right?”
We know two people with those names, JJ says. If your friends appeared near them, we can contact them.
Alt sinks into his jacket and hides his hands in its pockets. “…you don’t have to help if you don’t want to- but… yeah they’ve most likely appeared by one of them.”
“Is Anti an option for people you appear by?” Marvin asks. “Since you’re like him? Because if that’s the case, they could be fucking anywhere, Anti skipped town a while ago.”
Let’s hope they don’t appear near Anti, JJ says. He would take advantage of that.
Alt stiffens as he hears about Anti and looks up in slight fear, “h-He skipped town? Oh… fuck. Yeah they… they might end up next to him- we’ve ended up in separate countries before… fuck!”
Please don’t panic, JJ says. If your friends have powers like you they can handle him easily.
“Can you call them or something?” Marvin asks. “Do phones work in other universes? If they don’t, we can at least check with Chase and Jackie.”
"Y-Yeah lemme see who I can call... I think I saw I had some bars..." Alt mumbles, taking out his phone. He dials Chase's number-
—————
Bro lands in a small, dark space that smells like cleaning supplies. What is this? A closet? Nearby, Jackie lands in an empty waiting room, with rows of chairs and a couple different hallways branching off. There’s a directory on the wall listing things that sound very hospital-like. He hears a clatter inside a doorway labeled ‘Janitor.’
Bro oofs and then feels around the room, laughing nervously. "H-Hey! Who turned off the lights?? Hello??"
Jackie rubs his head and shakes off the disorientation and then perks up when he hears Bro's voice. He laughs and goes to see if he can open the door- "H-Hang on Bro-!"
As Jackie goes over to open the doorway—which isn’t locked so he’s easily able to—another doorway opens. The front glass doors leading into this waiting room get pulled open and in walks a man in a snapback cap and gray jacket. He sees Jackie right away and grins. “I don’t think you’re allowed to go in there, bro.”
Jackie jumps slightly and whips around, looking at the man that entered. "Uhh-"
Bro peeks his head out of the closet, his own gray cap on backwards. "Yooo! Haven't ran straight into another me right away in hot minute! Sup?" He grins wide, going to shut the door to the closet behind him.
"You and Alt are wayyy too casual about all this jumping business, dude." Jackie mumbles.
"Eh its starts to feel less and less crazy with each jump."
The other Chase stops walking, taking in the sight of another him popping out of the closet. “Uh—What the—huh?” He stammers.
"See dude, you freaked him out!" Jackie says, nudging Bro.
Bro shrugs, "It gets all the weirdness out of the way!"
And then someone else appears, walking down one of those hallways. A man with shoulder length hair and round glasses, pulling on a red jacket. “Man, fuck that paperwork,” he mutters. “Hey Chase. Hey… wait a minute.” He glances between Jackie and Bro and Chase. “Uhhhhh…”
Jackieboy and Bro both blink at the new man that enters and Bro grins, pointing, "Eyyy two for one! Lets goooo!"
Jackie hits him again.
The other Jackie and Chase just stare at them. Then Jackie quickly walks over to Chase, giving the two a wide berth.
“Chase, what the fuck is going on?” he whisper-shouts.
“I dunno, I just got here! Isn’t there supposed to be a receptionist or nurse or something?”
“I think the desk guy is on break and I ditched the nurse.”
"Hi! Totally can still hear you by the way," Bro says cheerily. "Sorry to freak you out- we're you guys! From a parallel universe!" He beams. "Don't know where the hell we are though- hospital? I guess?"
"Probably- I've been in enough to recognize the smell." Jackie nods. "Uh sorry- to be honest I'm just as fucking lost as you two must be. But, I'm Jackie Mann- This is Chase Brody, also known as Bro Fantastic."
Bro waves.
The two of them just stare. Chase stiffens slightly as his name is mentioned, but they’re otherwise quiet for a while.
“Riiiight,” Jackie says slowly, clearly not believing them. “Well… good luck then. We’ve uh, actually got a thing to go to so we’ll be leaving now.”
“We do?” Chase says, confused.
Jackie nudges him. “Yeah. We do. So let’s go.” He looks more than a little freaked out.
“Yeah that’s a fair reaction-“ Jackieboy sighs.
“Oh- okay. No worries,” Bro says, letting his happy demeanor drop, “Guess you all don’t see this kinda stuff often here. Before you go though, can you tell us what city this is? Or I guess what hospital this is?” He shrugs, “We need to find some other people so it’d be nice to know. I think my cell should work here-“
Jackie pulls out his and nods, “Yeah I think we got bars.”
"Um... y-yeah, sure," Chase says uncertainly. "This is Southpoint General Hospital in Corrigale."
Jackie looks at him like he's crazy but he ignores him. "Um... m-meeting up with friends?"
"...kinda yes kinda no-" Bro laughs, "I gotta find my little bro, Alt. Then- well... we gotta find a really bad guy before he... does something... bad."
"wayyy to sugarcoat it, bro," Jackie mutters.
"They're already freaked out I don't wanna freak em out more!!" Bro whisper-shouts.
Chase and Jackie glance at each other. "Um... one second, please," Chase says, pulling Jackie to the side.
They're out of earshot for Jackieboy and his normal range of hearing, but Bro can still hear them whispering.
"Okay so they're not crazy fans of mine. They'd know I don't have a brother."
"Why do they look like us? What sort of bit is this? Are we on a fucking prank show? Who does that in a hospital?"
"I-I don't know! But, I... I don't think they're with Anti."
"Only Anti would be able to make makeup that real-looking, though."
"Maybe they really just look like us? Look, can you really see Anti pairing up with someone to fuck with us?"
"...No. I don't think he'd risk coming back into the city to do something so weird."
"...Chase I know you can probably hear them but can we just try to approach this like we're nor- okay yeah no you're not listening to me." Jackie tries to whisper to Bro but can already see his friend's eyes locked onto the other two.
In a quick zip, Bro comes a bit closer to them- not too close but definitely closer than he was. He blinks at them and tilts his head, "You guys mentioned a guy named Anti? That's technically who we're looking for! Well- my Anti- not yours, I'm guessing. Looks like this guy has you all kinda spooked. Is he a bad guy here?"
Jackie's head whips over to Bro. His face blanches and he suddenly bolts for the front door.
"Jackie!" Chase shouts. He glances at Bro. "I-I'm so sorry, he's--he's gone through some stuff. Jackie!" And he hurries after him.
Bro's face falls and he looks apologetic. He's frozen for a second before he rushes out after them.
“Wait- Chase!" Jackie yells out. He then sighs loudly before rushing after him.
Outside is a cloudy afternoon sky. Jackie presses his back against a lamp post, hands over his mouth and breathing heavily. Chase is trying to comfort him. "They said it's not the same guy, they're not with him, it's okay, nothing's gonna happen. It's okay, it's okay."
Bro slows down and tries to approach, "I-I'm so so sorry...! It's just... my brother- he's called Anti too. R-Really only by me but... I... I didn't know it would make you react like that... I promise my brother isn't anyone who would hurt you. He's... a really good guy- and magic! So... um... im... im really sorry..."
“F-funny name, hah…” Jackie leans his head back against the lamp post, moving his hands from his mouth to his chest. “I-it’s not your fault. It’s okay. This is just… really weird.”
“Do you need a moment?” Chase asks him.
“I’m good now. Promise.” Jackie rubs his eyes under his glasses. “S-so… your brother. His name is Anti? A-and he does magic tricks? Th-that’s cool.”
Bro looks sheepish as he nods, "Yeah... he goes by Alt now though. I call him Anti- but only sometimes. Cuz that's the name he wanted when he grew up."
"He can do more than just magic tricks- he's a magician. He can glitch and shit-" Jackie adds.
Chase blinks. “…glitch? More than tricks? What do you…” He trails off, realizing this isn’t the time for questions.
Bro looks really concerned, "... You don't have to say anything you don't want to but... I'm guessing your Anti... he hurt you? I just... we might run into him... knowing our track records. I wanna know what we might be getting into. ...my brother could be with him."
“Yeah, he… hurt me,” Jackie mutters. “Our friends, too. Y-you, uh, your brother probably won’t run into him. We think he left town to avoid the police.”
Bro nods solemnly, "...I'd be more inclined to believe that normally but... one time we ended up in other countries and... and he got really hurt there so I..." He looks terrified for a second and grips his hands into fists, "..police- so he's a criminal. Okay... I... I just hope Alt didn't end up with him." He looks back at Chase and Jackie and smiles slightly. "...I'm sorry for all the trouble. We can... get out of your hair- thank you for answering our questions."
"It's okay, really." Jackie nods slowly.
"Yeah, uh... nice to meet you. If a little weird." Chase laughs a little.
Jackieboy laughs, “Yeah it’s a bit strange. Thanks for humoring us.”
And then Bro's phone starts ringing.
Jackieboy and Bro seem like they’re ready to head out when Bro blinks and digs out his phone. “Oh! It’s Alt!” He quickly answers.
"Oh good!" Chase smiles a little. "Glad to hear he's alright--" And then his phone gives off a text tone. He blinks, answering it. "Uh... huh." He shows Jackie what he just received.
A messages from a contact labeled Double J. Weird question but have you run into anyone claiming to be from an alternate universe?
Jackie blinks. "What the hell...?"
“Chase! Are you okay?” Alt’s voice asks frantically on the other end. “Where are you?”
Bro looks relived, “We’re okay, are you?”
“Yeah I’m fine- I ended up with Marvin and jj- did you know there’s no magic here??”
Bro’s eyes widen, “Really? None at all?”
“No- they were really freaked when I got here - then they told me about the Anti here and I got scared that you were-”
“We’re not with him. I’m with Jackie actually- and we found both of our doppelgängers. But we’re okay- we’re actually right outside a hospital. Southpoint general.”
“Okay… it’s probably best for us to keep a low profile so- maybe we can see if someone can… drive us…?” Alt’s voice sounds disgusted at the thought.
Bro laughs. “Yeah maybe- I can ask.”
“And we’ll need to keep out for signs of Mag… I dunno how he’s gonna react to a world like this.”
“…Right. Okay bro bro we’ll keep you updated…”
Meanwhile, Chase is having a text conversation with JJ. Yeah how did you know?
Some guy showed up in Marvin's house. And I know it sounds crazy, but we believe he's telling the truth about the different world thing.
Jackie glances at Bro and Jackieboy. "What the fuck?" he whispers.
Chase keeps texting. How do you know for sure?
He could do impossible things. Like teleport and transform. I'm not fucking with you when I say this.
No yeah youre not the type Sounds like the guy is talking with his friends on the phone now. Something about meeting up. Chase and Jackie glance at Bro again.
I think were on the other end of that conversation Ask the guys for proof about being from another world. they might do something strange.
Kk
"You guys... weren't being serious about the parallel world thing... were you?" Jackie asks slowly.
Bro and Alt end their conversation for now and the hero blinks back at Jackie. “Oh no I’m completely serious.” He says, not missing a beat. He then grins mischievously. “Want me to prove it?”
“Bro didn’t Alt just say-“ Jackie tries to warn.
“I’m! From a world! Where Chase Brody is a superhero~” Bro laughs and then steps back into the air, hovering a little bit off the ground. He beams.
Chase's mouth drops open. The phone falls from his hand.
Jackie just stares blankly. "I'm not... I'm not hallucinating, right, Chase?" he mutters.
Chase shakes his head slowly. Then he suddenly bursts into laughter. "Man. Why couldn't I be born in the universe where I'm a superhero?"
"I mean... technically... you were, I guess. And this is... you?" Jackie gestures at Bro.
"Yeah. Yeah." He bends down and picks his phone up again. "Well. Uh. You probably don't want to fly like that for too long. Or else you're gonna end up all over the internet."
“Yeah Chase get down you’re not even wearing your mask!” Jackieboy scolds as he grabs Bro by the jacket and pulls him down.
Bro laughs and touches down quickly, messing with his hair. “Yeahhh that’d be bad for you… don’t want that. Not being able to fly around is gonna suck ass though-“
“Oh boo hoo- you’ll have to be normal like the rest of us for a bit-“ Jackieboy grumbles.
Bro shrugs, “So Alt is actually with your friends Marvin and Jj! So he’s safe- for now at least…. But that only leaves the issue of Magnificent…”
“Magni…what?” Chase asks.
“Isn’t that Marvin’s name on Minecraft?” Jackie asks.
“Oh my god- that’s amazing.” Jackieboy laughs.
“I don’t know, I don’t play Minecraft.” Chase says.
“You should ask JJ to add you to his server, it’s really cool, there’s a mushroom biome at spawn—” Jackie starts to ramble.
“God- we should get back into minecraft-“ Jackie blog says to Bro.
“Maybe if I didn’t have to keep catching this damned cat.” Bro grumbles.
“We’re getting off topic.” Chase shakes his head. “Okay. Remembering what you guys said, Magnificent is probably the guy you’re looking for. The bad guy you have to stop. Am I right? Do you have any idea where he could be?”
Bro shakes his head, “I have no idea. We have ways to track each other- but no way to track Mag. Usually… he ends up finding his way back to us. And if this place has no magic… he’s probably gonna try to find Alt. He has the device we use to travel between worlds.”
Jackie sighs. "This is... so much."
"W-well, uh... I can at least give you guys a ride?" Chase suggests. "Jackie can't drive, and I don't know if you guys know the bus system here."
“Yeah if you don’t mind that’d be great,” Jackieboy replies with a smile. “I know it’s a lot- a have a hard time following along when it’s stuff just in our universe-“
“Oh but- you guys were going into the hospital for something right? We don’t want to get in the way of that.” Bro adds.
"Oh, Chase was picking me up," Jackie explains. "I was, uh, in there for a while. But I'm good to go now."
"I kinda wanted to stop by and check on Jack," Chase mutters. "But this feels more important. I'm sure he'd understand."
"The question is, would he believe us?"
Chase opens up the camera on his phone. "That's what photographic evidence is for. Hey, other me? You wanna take a picture together?"
"Oh my god." Jackie rolls his eyes, but still smiles.
Bro’s eyes light up and he bounces slightly. “Yeah! Let’s do it!” He rushes over to stand next to Chase.
“Dork!” Jackie calls with a grin.
"God, the dork-ness transcends universes, doesn't it?" Jackie agrees.
“Yeah- but unfortunately he’s my dork.” Jackieboy laughs.
"Alright, say cheese." Chase holds the camera up high and does a peace sign as he takes the picture. Bro copies the gesture with a big ol’grin.
"And we're good." Chase puts his phone away. "We can do more later. I think we should head out now. I want to meet your brother. Oh! Wait a minute. He must be an alternate version of Anti, then? A... nice one?"
"Now that is hard to believe," Jackie says. "Oh, uh, I'm sure your brother is great, though."
Bro beams and nods. Then he messes with his hair. “Yeah- Alt’s a good guy. He’s not like a lot of Antis we meet. You’ll see. I uh- I think Alt said they’re at Marvin’s house?”
Jackie pauses. "I'm looking forward to meething him, then." "Great, that's not too far," Chase says. "Come on. I'm parked over here."
-----------
Magnificent lands on a carpeted floor. This is a long hallway of some kind, lined with doors that have numbers printed on them. Probably in a hotel. ...No, not a hotel. It's too... clinical for that. The magic ice holding his arms to his sides is gone. Not melted, just disappeared like it was never there, leaving only a lingering chill.
Magnificent pushes himself up, suppressing the chill that the ice left behind. He looks around the hallway curiously. He, of course, tries to look around for any sign of magic nearby. Surely there must be something?
... Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Usually he's able to sense at least some distant magic, but not this time. In fact, he almost feels his own magic more drained than normal. What the fuck?
Magnificent's stomach drops dramatically. There's no magic here? ...oh no.
There are voices coming from around a corner. They're coming closer.
He hears voices coming and he curses, quickly using his power to change him into his Jack the Magnificent disguise. But- less showman-y and more... business like. He tries to casually look like he belongs.
A group of three people round the corner. There's a short woman with black hair, wearing a white coat, a taller man in some sort of beige uniform that kind of looks like nurse's scrubs, and a man with brown hair wearing an off-white sweater, holding a notebook and pencil bag.
"--really glad it's been working out," the woman is saying. "I'd love to see what you're working on some time, but you don't have to share if you don't want to."
"No, I know, thank you," the brown-haired man says. "I feel like I should show you, yes? I mean, there is the therapy in art therapy--" He's the first to notice Magnificent. And he stops short, staring at him, confused. "...Marvin?"
The woman and other man also notice.
Magnificent stiffens. ...he knows that accent. He waves timidly, trying to seem friendly. "H-Hey! Whats up?"
...he's so fucked-
"Um... how did you get in here?" the woman asks. She looks at the tall man. "Oliver?"
"What? I didn't let anyone in."
The woman sighs. She gives Magnificent--under the impression that it's Marvin--a stern look. "You know we have security cameras, right? You can't just break in whenever you want. Aren't you still paying that fine?" She's close enough that Magnificent can see she has a name tag: Dr. Rya Laurens.
Magnificent tries his best to process this all quickly and sticks his hands in his pockets, shrugging. "What? I can't visit my good friend Schneep? Seems your security is a little lax so- you can thank me for showing you its flaws." He tries to laugh.
Schneep blinks. "When did you cut your hair...?"
Mag blinks at Schneep and pats his hair, "Oh uh- recently. It was getting in the way... you know?"
"Oh. I thought you liked it long." Schneep looks confused, but he accepts this.
Dr. Laurens still looks a bit annoyed. "Well... you still can't just do that. We're all on edge after what happened with Anti. You'll have to go."
"Ah right... the Anti thing." Mag says, nodding like he understands. "Dunno why that just... slipped my mind.”
"Um... w-well, he came all this way, we can... talk for a little bit," Schneep stammers. "I-I can show him my room."
"I don't know if we can allow that..." Laurens says slowly. "But... we can go down to the visitor's room, if you want."
“It's alright, Henrik- I can just come back and visit another time. Properly, of course." Mag tries to smile charmingly. "Though- i turned myself around so- maybe you can least help me find the way back out?"
Schneep chuckles. "Your sense of direction is still terrible, then?"
Laurens also smiles a bit. "Okay. Sure. Schneep, you want to come with?"
"Yes, yes, of course."
"Alright, then. Oliver, do you mind?"
Oliver shrugs. "Nah."
"Very professional sounding of you," Schneep mutters.
"It's this way, we'll take the stairs," Laurens says, hurriedly turning around back the way they came.
"Ah thanks- 'ppericate it." Mag smiles and follows after them.
As they walk Magnificent lingers behind, trying to see if he can probe into any of their minds... just to see what universe they're dealing with. He tries to look through Schneep's mind first.
There is absolutely no resistance to Magnificent's probing, but what he sees doesn't really make much sense. Schneep's thoughts and memories are in scattered fragments, interspersed with things that look incredible--bleeding shadows moving on the walls, eyes dangling from the ceiling, the feeling of things crawling beneath the skin--but aren't... consistent in the way real things are. The figure of a man with two-colored eyes loom large in his memories, half his face terribly scarred. Fear is linked to this figure and his cruel grins. Magnificent sees a man in a red hood screaming, arm bent at an awkward angle, and flashes of dead people's faces. There's a man with a mustache and gentle smile whose face sometimes flickers into the scarred man's, there's one with a snapback cap who's smiling at him, one with green-dyed hair who has the memory of sickness and guilt attached to him, one with a long wavy ponytail--ah, that's his other-world counterpart. The more recent memories are the most stable, many of them involving hour-long conversations with this Laurens woman, all of them taking place in this building. A hospital. But not the normal kind of hospital.
Hmm... so Schneeplestein is in a mental institution. Fascinating. But, not helpful. It seems there's no mysterious power or anything to harness here. The two-colored eyed man seems interesting but not in a way that captures his attention. Sure, he could conquer these guys minds and maybe suck their life forces if he's desperate. But... what is there to gain? Boring... hm... what to do...
They reach the first floor, winding through some hallways towards the front of the building.
"You know they say I will be able to leave soon," Schneep says. "Not on my own, a-and not... permanently, I mean. I'm not ready for that. But for small trips into the city. Maybe we could... do something when that happens." He trails off.
"That'd be nice, Henrik." Mag replies shortly, still caught up in his head.
Something has been bothering Schneep about Marvin during this short trip. He's trying to ignore the paranoia, but it's hard. Is this... really Marvin?
...He doesn't think it is. There's something in the way that he walks that's off. He's too... confident. In a way that almost reminds him of... him.
"Schneep, are you okay?" Laurens asks. "Remember to breathe. You're not breathing."
"I-I-I am f-fine," Schneep says. "Um... Marvin has been in this area before, h-he should know where to go from here."
Magnificent pauses as he realizes Schneep seems to be more wary all of sudden. His right eye burns bright green as he tilts his head at Schneep. "Is something the matter, Hen? You don't want to lead me to the door?"
Schneep gasps as his eye starts to glow. He staggers backwards, dropping his notebook and pencil bag.
"Hey, be careful," Oliver says, crouching down to get those for him.
"Schneep?" Laurens follows Schneep's line of sight--and sees Magnificent's eye glowing green. Her jaw drops. "...what?"
Magnificent starts to laugh, "Oh- did I give something away?" He chuckles a bit more and shakes his head and as he raises his head again, you can see the scars around his left eye. "Oh well... cat's out of the bag, now, isn't it~?"
A bloom of spiraled magic appears behind him as he laughs, "Don't know what I'll do in such a pathetic world but... a puppet is a puppet~!"
"Wh-what is--th-this is not possible--" Schneep stammers, backing up.
Laurens reaches for the pager on her belt, about to call for security.
Oliver pops up and pushes his way to the front, protecting the other two.
Mag starts to approach them slowly, grinning sinisterly as he puts a finger to his lips.
"Hush now, kittens. Don't want to alert the other normies to my magnificence just yet~"
The effects are instant. They don't know how to pull away. They don't know what Magnificent is even trying to do. The moment their eyes land on the magic, all of them are instantly under his spell. Schneep lets out a final squeak of protest before the magic completely takes over his mind.
"Mmmm excellent job, kittens.... don't fight it now." He giggles and prowls closer. He goes straight to Schneep and lifts up his chin. He hums, "Oh... I missed seeing this face under my power~! You know, Schneeplestein... I think you can aid me quite well..." He looks at Laurens and Oliver and tilts his head. He then snaps and shoos them off. "You two. I have no need of you. Lock yourself in one of these rooms and forget me and Henrik were ever here, won't you?"
Laurens and Oliver nod. They walk over to the nearest room, with Laurens dropping her keycard on the ground before closing the door on them.
"What will we do now?" Henrik asks quietly.
"Hm... what will we do indeed?" Mag giggles. He looks around and then hums. "We should get away from the cameras... we have a naughty cub to find." He grabs Henrik and in a snap, him and Schneep disappear in a flicker of static out of the hospital.
#SATCV#SATCV PW#alt anti#bro fantastic#swap magnificent#jackie mann#as someone who's only read like a 3rd of the PW timeline this was wild for me ajhkja#but also very fun#its not often the boys meet people without some kind of magic fuckery!#also mag is such a brat in this section it was kinda fun to play XD
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The Right time
So. It's been a hot minute, huh?
I'll spare you the long list of reasons why I haven't written for a while, and I can't even promise a full comeback because of my studies and stuff. I've written this very randomly, it's short, and I'm rusty, but I'm still happy I've been able to write something. I hope you'll like it :)
Shout out to @phoenix-fell for proofreading this very last minute, thanks bud!
AO3
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Saying that they were shocked was an euphemism. Finding out that one of your friends is now decades older than you and turned into one of the main characters of your favorite childhood book isn’t a commonplace event. It makes you wonder how it must have felt for Jaune to realize that the guy he read about as a kid was actually his future self.
He surely knew how hard it was to process, which is why he left Team RWBY alone for some time, giving their minds the time to ease into that new reality before going straight back to business. In the meantime he’d use that spared hour to help the people of the Ever After that got hurt by the earlier attack, which is hardly a bad idea.
Ruby is visibly shaken, another hit on her sense of duty, feeling once again the failure to save a friend. Weiss is right beside her as the two take comfort in each other’s presence, and Yang feels particularly grateful that Weiss is still fighting to keep her promise to be the best partner she can be. It means that, at least for a little moment, Yang can take time for herself, and address the inner struggles regarding her own partner..
“Are you okay?” Blake, always the observant one, doesn’t miss the betraying flick of worry in Yang’s eyes.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” Yang’s quick to answer “It’s just- I think I need to talk to you.” She says, before she can change her mind. She’s aware that it’s not the right time, probably the worst actually, but when was there ever a right one?
“Oh! I- I mean- sure.” Blake’s nervousness is obvious, which is why Yang doesn’t hesitate to take her hand in hers and give it a reassuring squeeze. It works, and Blake lets herself be led outside. “So, what do you need to talk about? Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yes- no- I mean-“ looking down, Yang can see the Rusted Knight, Jaune, moving around with Juniper to help people. She takes a deep breath; she can do this. She has to. “Listen. I know that this, whatever this is going on between us, is still new. And I wanted to wait for the right moment before bringing it up but… then I saw him.” she nodded towards Jaune “Did he even try to get home? How long has he been waiting for us to find him? Or for him to find us?” Yang knows she’s pretty much rambling right now, but Blake’s focused gaze and pointed ears tell her that she still has her undivided attention. “And now I keep wondering: what if that was me? Or you?”
“Yang, we don’t know how things work here, and this is all just a conjecture. But I know that if that was me, I would have waited for you. No matter if I had the chance to escape, I’d never leave you behind.”
“This is not what I meant. I…” now it’s Blakes turn to give her a comforting squeeze.
“What do you mean then? It’s okay, go on.”
“It just… it made me realize: there’s no right time. There’s just here and now. And I don’t wanna force anything on you, you don’t have to answer me in any way. But I can’t risk spending my whole life waiting; I just need to tell you. Blake, I lo-“
Yang doesn’t get the chance to finish, interrupted by a pair of lips pressing on her own. Her first instinct is to freeze, - this is her first kiss, their first kiss! – but she gets one second to reciprocate before Blake pulls back.
“Are you really telling me about waiting and what ifs?” Blake starts, her voice breaking “Yang, I watched you die.” She grips on Yang’s jacket, not holding her but keeping her close “I saw you fall and disappear into a void that I was sure was certain death, and everything just stopped. Atlas, the relics, the evacuation, all gone; all I could think about was that I needed to reach you. I would have jumped if Weiss hadn’t stopped me.”
“Blake…”
“Finding you here has been the greatest relief I have ever felt in my whole life. But, most importantly, it gave me, us, a second chance. I am not risking it, and I am not waiting anymore.” She says solemnly, before looking up and right into her eyes, the amber shining like gold “Yang Xiao Long, I am in love with-“
Yang tries, she really does, but she just can’t resist. She just has to lean down to kiss her again. This time it lasts a little longer, Blake has the time to adjust and kiss her back while both of their arms find their way around each other.
“I’m sorry.” Yang says after pulling back, with a wide grin that says she’s not sorry at all. Somehow Blake can’t bring herself to be mad.
Then, the next time they speak is together, like they’re one person, one mind, one soul.
“I love you.”
They grin at each other. Grins that turn into smiles, that turn into giggles, until they let out a full blown laughter. It’s not even that funny, but they laugh so hard that they start crying.
All of their stress and fears finally find a way out through that pure unrestricted laughter. All of the feelings, good and bad, but most importantly all the love that has been held close to their hearts, are now free and out into the air of that unique and magical world. And they laugh like crazy, like in love.
When it finally calms down, the two women look at each other, catch their breaths, then kiss again.
There’s never a right time for this sort of thing, especially when you’re a huntress and the world has fallen onto your shoulders. They could be gone tomorrow, or live long enough to witness the end of the world.
Now is the right time. So they kiss, and laugh, and enjoy it to its fullest. Because that’s what makes it all more perfect: it’s the present.
#rwby#bumbleby#yang xiao long#blake belladonna#rwby fic#bumbleby fic#my fic#rwby9#rwby spoiler#rwby spoilers#ruby rose#weiss schnee#jaune arc#whiterose if you squint#i haven't written fanfiction in a while be nice pls lol
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Okay, so I know I'm shouting to the void here and you guys probably want mdzs updates instead of my rambling about the more obscure novel that I started reading before mdzs was a blip on my radar, but I'm going mental over here and this is what you're getting.
I'm just so Normal about Jiang Ting saying "Don't test me. I'm on your side." And when I say normal, I mean completely normal levels of Absolute Unhinged.
Because he will fail the test every time.
"Don't test me." When Yan Xie questions him on why he hid the packet of drugs, of course it's suspicious. Of course he lies. (Though is it a lie, that he wanted it for himself, to hide the evidence that will lead Yan Xie further to the truth) The truth will damn him, the lies will damn him, what else can he do?
"Don't test me." When Yan Xie asks why he wasn't tortured by the drug lord when he was captured, he asks back, "Who says I wasn't?" Yan Xie's anger at the lie, at the omission he knows is there was real. But the truth will damn him more, that sensory deprivation was the gentlest form of torture, because why would a drug cartel need to be gentle with a cop?
"Don't test me." When Yan Xie drops a recorder in his pocket to listen in as Jiang Ting interrogates Li Yuxin, and lies to her about being the betrayer, and they're texting right next to each other. He can't help the small panic that Yan Xie had been listening in. Because that was a lie, but it held too much truth, that to be betrayed there had to be relationship before. He failed the test, only to see Yan Xie's final message while waiting outside the operation room, because Yan Xie was dying in the next room, and his message was "What are you afraid about? Why don't you trust I'll help you?"
"Don't test me." When Yan Xie loses his temper and does test him, when he's a little too violent because he's being blocked from investigating and tries to force Jiang Ting to the martyr's cemetery. He apologies to Jiang Ting softly, wiping the water away with a gentleness Jiang Ting doesn't believe he deserves. When his feet are burned because Yan Xie needs answers - answers that he cannot and will not give, despite everything, Yan Xie again apologizes and tends the burns. Yan Xie wasn't in the wrong suspecting him, and he's failed every test, but Yan Xie is the one who apologizes and realizes he's gone too far. Except he hadn't gone far enough to get to the truth that would have Jiang Ting fail once again.
"Don't test me." When Bu Wei jumps off the bridge and tries to take Jiang Ting with her. He sees too much of himself in her - Yan Xie sees too much of Jiang Ting in her - but he'd let her go to save himself. Except then she jumped and that wasn't how it was supposed to end, because there had to be something after the realization that the worst betrayal wasn't being left behind. When he looks at Yan Xie and tells him it's up to you. To turn Jiang Ting in or not, to believe him or not please, don't believe him he'll accept whatever Yan Xie decides he is, a traitor or friend. He cannot trust, cannot give his faith, and it's up to Yan Xie to decide if he can still accept that.
(And that's a whole different rant about how Jiang Ting cannot define himself, how he can only mold himself into what other people want him to be, say what they want him to say, because the only time he tried to choose who he wanted to be, his whole team died and he was left in a coma for three years. I'll be Unhinged about that in a perfectly normal way another day)
"I'm on your side." When Yan Xie has seen the orphanage's records, followed the evidence to it's natural conclusion, that all the times Jiang Ting had lied and omitted to save himself were finally exposed. Yan Xie has deleted the only picture of Jiang Ting on his phone and has already broken his own heart when Jiang Ting asks, "Do you still believe in me? - It's better you don't."
"I'm on your side." When he kisses Yan Xie after all the cards are on the table, as tears run down Yan Xie's face while the King of Spades watches for any flaw. He points a gun at Yan Xie's head, ready to pull the trigger that will keep Yan Xie from coming after him and tells the truth for the first time. "I love you, Yan Xie." In front of his adoptive family of drug lords, in front of the man who betrayed him and that took him in as a brother, in front of the bodies of the people he had just mercilessly shot down, as the Queen of Hearts, whose own heart is enchained by hatred and thorns caused by the drugs he can't escape, he tells the truth, which can only be accepted as a lie.
"I'm on your side." When Yan Xie finds the evidence that Chief Lu is lying, that Jiang Ting went undercover to get rid of the drug cartel once and for all and he realizes that his wavering faith in Jiang Ting was expected. That he was the one who failed that time, even though it was necessary for the King of Spades to take Jiang Ting back. That despite that, Jiang Ting had still left him a way out and saved his life. And Yan Xie is going to drag Jiang Ting home, no matter how dangerous.
"I'm on your side." When Jiang Ting asks him, "why are you here?" when Yan Xie holds him and kisses him softly after nearly dying because he was exposed, and Yan Xie replies that no matter how harsh the betrayal - the truth - he couldn't love Jiang Ting less. That just because Jiang Ting pointed a gun at his head, didn't make Yan Xie miss him less. (You want to talk about scenes that make Mem absolutely feral, this is one.) He has to go back under cover, he has to leave again, but Yan Xie will drag him back.
"Don't test me." One last test. Yan Xie tells him to jump, that they are either going to get out of this together or die together. Yan Xie refuses to let him fail this time. No matter what, he won't leave without Jiang Ting. I'll be by your side, because living is harder than dying.
And Jiang Ting jumps.
#Breaking through the Clouds#This is Mem's life#Huai Shang#meta and things#I'm aware this is 100% not what anyone is following me for#But when I say Poyun is consuming my every thought#I mean it#it's only been years and several translations that kept getting dropped or disappearing#Am I having a good time in my life right now? absolutely not#but at least I have Poyun and Tunhai#to be completely unhinged about#if anyone wants to join me please do#I've just reread the first book like immediately after reading both of them#I'm that unhinged.#And now back into tun hai#anyway I'm just going to be over here being feral and making terrible life choices while reading them again#kick me if I don't eat again though. because that's a real struggle that is only getting worse
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Hey there and excuse me for just disappearing on everybody. I was having... quite the time over the last month or how long I haven't been here. Let's just say, I wasn't in a very good health, mentally speaking.
As I already said, the health of my parents has been greatly declining this last year, to the point that I feared I might lose them. Luckily they both are on a good path and I'm looking optimistically into the future.
The thing is, now my partner was diagnosed with a very bad high blood pressure. I know, this usually isn't a thing to be too worried about, it's well treatable. Yet it was the last straw and I just snapped. He's was on very heavy medication, since the blood pressure was really critical and the medication took it's toll on all aspects of our live. As I sometimes mentioned, my partner usually works the night shift, not always but sometimes he works them for like six weeks in row. Now he isn't working since December 6th. And he probably won't return to the night shifts ever again. Aside from them financial cut this means, those are a factor, but we'll manage. I'm really afraid what this turn of events will do to our relationship.
I'm a person that needs a lot of me time, almost all my hobbies require me to be on my own and for me to have my piece. The last month has been... challenging to say at least. I really love my partner, but our secret has always been, that we value the time we have together, as we don't have that much free time together. Now he's always there, when I'm at home too and I somehow can't go on about my hobbies as I used to.
I know, it will get better once he goes back to work (Jan 15.) but from now on we'll probably be out of the house for the same time and at home at the same time and honestly I don't know how to deal with that. Tonight I'm alone at home as he decided to go to the gym with a friend (doctor said he needs to lose weight).
I really hope he'll get a smaller dose of medication soon as those high dosed drugs really don't do him any good. He's not the same since taking them... It's interfering with out want to found a family this year.
I just went through such a shitty time this year and I was hoping things are going to be better but apparently somebody up there (or down there) really hates me... My doctor diagnosed a high-functioning depression due to the stress and all the burdens that were on my shoulders those past months. I'm slowly getting better but I'm still not feeling they way I did before. I feel guilty for not being able to care for my parents the way they deserve so strangers have to look after them. It costs their money, not mine, just because I'm to weak to handle the situation.
And I want a baby? Really, someone as weak as me? I really want a family, I'm just so afraid I will feel as overwhelmed as I do now for the rest of my life. What if my partner never gets better and has to take this medication for the rest of his life? The doctor says not to worry, everything's looking good, the high blood pressure can be a late symptom of an influenza or corona infection and will probably go away. Loosing weight will help enormously. But I'm still afraid.
I'm afraid of my parents untimely decline in health. I'm afraid for my own health. I'm just paralyzed by all those thoughts in my head. I don't know why I'm writing all this down here. Nobody will read a text as long as this. But sometimes it helps to shout my thoughts into the void.
I actually just wanted to say Hi! I'm still alive. I'll continue posting Sims stuff. Actually I'm currently throwing stuff into my queue. I've lost some pictures due to me being stupid and a noob, and I know there are ways to get them back but I'm too exhausted to try. It might be important screenshots, but I'll just summarize to you what happened. New Somerset posts are just around the corner.
Hope you'll enjoy them and I hope you had a great start into this new year. Lots of love and take care!
#tam talks#personal stuff#like really personal#might delete later#non sims#yet somehow sims - a little#mental health#sorry
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Readers, Readers Everywhere, And Barely A Comment Between Them.
Okay, so my title may be a little misleading in my case at this particular moment in time. My current long fic is doing incredibly well for comments by my standards. My standards being based on when I was writing for The Hobbit and I was lucky to get six comments a chapter. I'm getting somewhat more than that now I've jumped fandoms to Star Wars, but the number of comments per chapter has still dramatically dropped now that I'm on eighty-nine chapters compared to what I was getting when I was on only twelve chapters. That's alright, I expect that because people have limited abilities to keep up with reading fic, especially ridiculously long ones like mine has turned into. This particular rant is more for the benefit of others than myself. I'm being thoroughly spoilt right now, but it hasn't always been like that.
My current feast does, however, show me just how important comments are to writers, whether that's here, on AO3, or Wattpad, or even FFN (which I abandoned a few years ago because, frankly, it's dying a slow death and I can't face watching it, a topic for another time). There are many types of writer, from the ones who get an idea and just meander their way through it until they have a story, to the ones who get an idea and meticulously plan every detail, and everyone who falls on some spectrum of in between. There are the ones who focus on one story at a time, and the ones who pump out two or three or a dozen different ones a week. There are the people who write drabbles and one shots, the people who write short stories, the people who write long stories, and the people who are attempting to outdo the longest published stories written. Some post as they go, some have a buffer, some write the whole thing before they post. Some write because they have an idea and simply want to explore it, some want to fix canon, and some people are going through some stuff (or have been through it) and are using writing to help them deal.
All that to say, writers come in all shapes and sizes and motivations. They are all very different, but they are all the same in one area; if they are writing fanfiction they are not getting paid. And if they are getting paid then they're breaking several copyright laws and putting fanfiction at risk of a repeat of the Anne Rice incidents 20+ years ago. So don't pay for it, the rest of us don't want corporate lawyers up our arses.
For those of us who have been around for longer than tik tok and tumblr and even Facebook, we remember the early days of online fanfiction. We remember the purges on livejournal and FFN. We remember when fanfic was scattered about the Internet, never all in one place and sometimes only accessible if you jumped through loads of hoops to get passwords. The people just discovering it today have no idea how lucky you are. But even in those days we got comments. In fact, in those days they were more abundant. I know that sounds like rose tinted glasses, but a quick look through stories posted ten years ago on AO3 versus stories posted now shows a similar trend. The art of the comment is dying.
Now, before anyone shouts "you write for yourself" or "but you're not entitled to comments", I am aware of both. But guess what. If I'm writing for myself and myself alone, why should I bother sharing it?
Writing is hard. Going through it and editing and spellchecking and making sure the grammar is at least passable is hard work. A lot of us do this when we probably (definitely in my case) should be doing other things. I write for myself, yes, because I want to explore how the story will come out. I post because I enjoy sharing, but I enjoy sharing far less when the response I get is crickets. Shouting into the void is not enjoyable, it does not make the work of editing and all the rest seem worth it. Shouting into the void tears apart any enjoyment I might have derived from crafting a line of dialogue or putting together a scene.
I'm not entitled to comments. This I know. I know it all too well. But guess what? Readers aren't entitled to my hard work either. Comments are what keep us going. They are what feeds the muse when we're otherwise in a pit of writers block. They're what helps us work around an awkward plot point when a reader says "but I wonder what will happen when X discovers Y". Comments are what get us to think "I haven't posted this week, I need to get that chapter out", or if it was an absolute beast to write seeing that people enjoyed it makes it worthwhile. I will and have dropped stories that get no engagement, because shouting to the void damages my mental health. It makes my work and effort feel absolutely worthless and I refuse to do that to myself. I know I can see the hit counters increasing, but that could be someone who clicked accidentally, or didn't like the opening chapter and moved on. Comments are essential to keeping up my motivation and while I will never have the absolute audacity to demand a certain number of comments before I update, I will stop. Because my time is valuable to me and I won't spend it doing something that leaves me feeling terrible and worthless.
And I know, people have been known to link some of my stories in rec blogs (I've seen it done), I have a commenter who tells me they read it with their friends. I know other writers who have stumbled on their fic being discussed in fandom discords or on blogs or tik tok, or have been told that it's a subject in a group chat. But guess what? Unless we obsessively search everywhere on the Internet for even a hint that our work is being talked about, we never see that. We never hear about it. The one person who wants to hear you thoughts, who can provide the answers to your questions and the resolution to the plot point, is the person you've cut out of the discussion. It's the person who is looking at their inbox and email and becoming more and more demoralised because there's kudos, and the hit counter is going up, but no one is saying anything.
I know some people have been burned by picky writers in the past. I'm actually not one of the ones who cares. I will take a heart, I will take someone writing "kudos", I will take a sentence or a paragraph or a 4000 word essay (which would be longer than 90% of my chapters but the point stands). What I can't take, and the same goes for many writers, is silence. So please, I beg of you, for the sake of writers everywhere, resurrect the art of the comment.
Feed us, we're starving.
#fanfiction#ao3 fanfic#ao3 writer#writing is hard#Leaving comments is an art#Feed your writer#fanfic writing#archive of our own
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Some people are probably tired of me shouting into the void about this, but my mind is buzzing angrily about it.
Quick context: I am going back to school, so I can have a nice shiny piece of paper that says I'm a "Super Legit Know What I'm Talking About, I Paid Thousands For This Stupid Piece of Paper" Graphic Designer. (To be fair I've actually learned a lot so far.)
I'm in this one "distance learning" (ie online) class, "Typography II". We were given a big project that was very obviously our Final at the beginning of the year, in January. It was to write/research and design an entire book, 40-page minimum (including covers and table of contents). It came due last week. (I was very much done and submitted before then, because I was very In The Zone with this project. Unsure about sharing it here because it has my name on it, but I might share the link in a DM if you ask. I think I wrote a pretty compelling typography book.)
We're then assigned people to do critiques on (to ensure everyone gets critiqued by two people). I check so that I can do my critiques.
Let me tell you what. I just about hit the ceiling. Five-ish people, including myself, turned the assignment in. (Or at least turned it in on time.) Hell, of what was turned in, I think, aside from myself, only two other people put any amount of research into their book topic (WHICH WE CHOSE, they weren't even assigned! We got to pick whatever we wanted as long as we could relate it to typography!). And honestly, only one other student, from reading their book, felt like they put any actual effort into it at all. (Her book was simple, but very nice.) The other... read like he got bored half-way through his own research, because he had like a handful of sources and a whole bunch of paragraphs that were just him repeating himself, just paraphrased, in a very obvious "I need to hit the 40-page minimum" attempt.
Another person had a nice looking book, but it was filled with Lorem Ipsum filler text. Another was maybe two pages of research, and then the entire rest of the book was just a picture book.
I just... what.
We had three months -- THREE MONTHS -- to do this. Three. Tres. Ninety whole ass days. We had FOUR check-ins during the course of those three months, to show our progress and how we're doing, and a FIFTH optional check-in that wasn't graded. It was there so that we could ask for help if we needed it. The professor even asked the class if the due dates were too tight (we also had other exercises and projects to do in the meantime while we did this in the background), if the class was going too fast, and they needed more time... Short of doing it in interpretive dance in front of a neon flashing sign, I don't know how more obviously she could've asked, "Hey, this is your sign to speak up if you're having issues."
This is technically an upper level course. This is also a class you can't take without taking Typography I, which was set up THE EXACT SAME WAY. This is also an elective class specifically for Graphic Design Degrees at my uni. You're not here unless you intend to be a designer.
It's just insulting to see, en masse, everyone just go "nah". They're wasting my time because I have to struggle to critique whatever is going on with those that DID submit. They're wasting the professor's time by sitting in her class and not doing the work. They're wasting another student's time by taking up a seat that could've been filled by someone else. They're wasting their own time being there and going through the motions (some of them had some really interesting progress shots to show of their book during the check-ins), but not following through.
They're also wasting money, because the class is like... $400-ish, so, you know.
It's also insulting considering the sheer amount of work I put into my own submission. It feels like researching and making a gourmet three-course meal to the best of my ability to impress a cooking show judge with, but then looking over and seeing half the competition hasn't even bothered to make anything, and the other half has a stale, cold burger off the McDonald's dollar menu.
I know I shouldn't care, because it doesn't entirely affect me at the end of the day (though I do have to suffer through trying to critique it or get marked off). But still, it's just... mind blowing to me.
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I must thank this community for sharing a brain cell with me and bringing Doomguy to Salty's attention for the Player au. We can now segway into how badass it would be for the Player and Doomguy to just murder with DOOM's ost in Nevada. It'd also be interesting if Player just becomes more unhinged in missions from the intensity and excitement of having Doomguy there, reverting to previous patterns of gameplay with him. And the main 4's reactions? Haha. Just some thoughts.
Sincere regards from the void! Thank you for all the exciting reads, Salty! -- Spectre Anon
Hello Spectre Anon, it's good to see you again! :) And you're more than welcome for the works, thank you for reading them. <3
I'm not sure if the Grunts can hear the soundtracks, but I can see the Player being able to do that to some capacity, so that would definitely make murdering enemies with Doomguy really fun (and badass). The soundtrack really makes DOOM what it is, so it elevates the experience up to 2o. However, naturally this and Doomguy's unique fighting style would make the Player more, how to put it, feral when going after their enemies with the Doomslayer.
There's just something about seeing what he can do and orchestrating his violent force in the midst of a chaotic battle that is very hype-inducing, and the music only heightens this feeling. The boys are honestly shocked by this change. You've given them encouragement, sure, but you've never excitedly shouted orders of violence before like you do with the Slayer. Seriously, "Rip and Tear"? What is happening?
I think 2BDamned would find this sudden change very interesting tbh. Besides adoring you for your helpfulness, kind demeanor, and how much you care for him in turn (amongst many other things), Doc has always been in awe of your strategic capabilities. And from how skilled this "Doomslayer" is at combat, and how you both excel with each other in terms of efficiency, he can only guess that the source of your excitement is at having someone so powerful as your vessel. He's not delusional; Hank is his best agent, but he knows that even he can't compare to Doomguy in terms of ability. So perhaps the "breath of fresh air" that is the Slayer is what makes you so exhilarated? He'd have to ask you what the man does better than them. For research purposes, of course. (He'd loathe it if your new best friend knew for certain that he was better than they were. It might be true, but he still has pride, of course.)
Sanford is honestly a little concerned. You said you used Doomguy as a vessel before them so was this normal for you? I mean, the Slayer acted nonchalantly, but Sanford didn't know if he could ever be perturbed by anything so he doesn't know what to think. He probably checks on you a lot to ensure you don't overdo yourself with all the excitement. He has no idea how tired you get from controlling your vessels, or if you do at all, but hopefully the gesture counts for something. (It also gives him an excuse to spend some time with you instead of letting Doomguy hog you incidentally.)
I think Deimos and Hank would both be kind of jealous at how excited you get to use Doomguy. You never showed them this kind of reaction, so what were they doing wrong?
Other than this, Deimos would honestly be cheering you on as well. He couldn't care less about the Slayer, don't get him wrong, but it's you who's "wielding him" so his anger is tempered by that a bit. He has a vested interest in his weapons as well; according to you, it's one of this guy's most unique features, so replicating them would be a definite win for the grunts. Whether or not he can study them up close is up in the air, but seeing their effects from a distance helps.
Out of all of them, Hank definitely takes this change in you the hardest. He's incredibly vexed, indignant, and envious of what you have going on. What's worse for him is that he knows Doomguy is better than him at some things (not that he'll admit it) so seeing you happily maneuver him just stings at this point. At the same time, I can actually see him acting more like Doomguy in terms of ferocity as well.
Previous to this, Hank was secure in his belief, no - knowledge, that he was the absolute best at fighting in Nevada, insofar as grunts go, anyway. Now that The Doomslayer is here, he isn't and that is unacceptable to him. So he'll practice and work more to perfect himself, to make himself a more efficient and an overall better killing machine than this "Slayer", all so that he can regain your favor and attention. And more importantly, become your true favorite yet again.
(Also, here's an update on the Doc stuff for you guys, since it has been "a few days" and it's not really finished yet. I apologize for that, I really dislike going back on my word like this. 😕 As it turns out, I have [vastly] underestimated how long I was going to make these, so now they're officially scenarios/one-shots instead of hc sets. The first of their kind here, so that's special I guess. They're also like 65-70% finished to give you guys some idea. However, given the lateness, I was wondering if you guys would like a little snippet? It won't be huge, but it's something for y'all to speculate on for the next day or so before they're ready for official posting, if you guys want. ;) Lmk what you think!)
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A story of two Titans - Destiny 2 OC story
When Maja was first risen, there was fear. Incomprehension. Her first reflex when she heard a voice was to try and protect herself.
A hand had grabbed her swinging fist, forbidding her from possibly harming her Ghost, Little Sunshine. When she calmed down just a little, she took them in. The floating shell and the towering man before her. So many question swirled in her mind. Who were they? Where were they? ... who was she? Maja had no recollection of anything. Not even her name.
The second thing she took in was their location. It seemed like it was a rundown hospital, the emergencies to be exact. Looking down, her clothes were torn in places, like slices done with a sharp object. Oh. A plastic bracelet. It seemed like a bit of it had resisted the passage of time, but all she could make out was "Maja L.... 16/12/2..." She frowned, mouthing her name. That was a start.
The man and her ghost observed her, until the ghost had lost its patience. "Listen, we can't stay here for long. Fallens are nearby and I'd rather be in a safe place for the night." Fallen? Maja tilted her head. So they in danger it seemed, at least judging from the urgency of that little floating thing.
The man extended a hand out to her, she was still laying on that hospital bed after all. That's when she started to really observe him. He seemed to be wearing a heavy armor, aside from a helmet at the moment. Said helmet was being held by his other arm. He had a dark complexion, tired eyes and messy hair. But he had a nice aura, Maja couldn't place it but she felt like she could trust him. Not that she had a choice either. When he spoke, his deep rumbling voice matched his soothing attitude to her. "It will make a bit more sense when I explain things to you. But for now, we need to move."
Nodding without thinking, Maja put her hand in his and helped herself up. Weirdly enough, she didn't feel lightheaded or tired. She felt full of energy but she couldn't place it. Once he was sure she could stand on her own, he put his helmet back on without as much as another word.
The little shell next to her spun before disappearing in a small cloud of light, speaking to her in her mind. "Don't worry, I'm still with you. I'll be able to tell you a bit more while you and big guy make it to his safe place."
And so, while they hurriedly navigated mazes of broken buildings and avoided all contacts with the Fallen, Little Sunshine explained to Maja that she was resurrected, that Sunshine was her Ghost and connection to the Light, that the world had changed and the times were dark now and that the man that was helping her was like her, a Titan and he choose to protect Little Sunshine in her quest to find her guardian. All the while, Maja was frowning deeply. So she died... she didn't know who she was either and had no way of knowing about her past either. Sunshine kept talking in her mind, rambling about what Hunters and Warlocks were, how as a Titan herself she was a force of nature. It made her stop in her tracks.
"This all feels surreal... and you're probably mistaken. You're saying I have... powers from the light?" Grumbled the small woman. Excitedly, her Ghost urged her to channel that energy she felt within her. Maja scoffed but humoured her, extending her palm and tried to gather said energy. What was shocking to her is that it worked. In her hand, a warm and radiant hammer formed. It seemed to weight a lot and it shimmered like a small sun.
The man that was ahead of her observed in silence, smiling under his helm.
___
Atawhai had found Little Sunshine for the first time when she had been cornered near a Fallen camp. He could hear loud shouting at the little Ghost tried to hide.
It took him no time to clear the zone out of the few dregs, his void energy consuming all it touched. The Ghost soon emerged, scared it could be one of the warlords or rogue guardians that used their power wrong. But none of it. The man swore to protect Little Sunshine and to help her risen guardian for as long as they would need it.
A noble cause, it gave him a goal in life. He himself had been risen for a couple of years already, narrowly escaping a final death one too many times from the hands of other guardians and fallens. But he came out stronger, wiser, still vowing to find a path.
Shaking his head slightly, he let his hand out, signaling to the Ghost to move out of her hiding spot. And slowly she floated into his open palm, his own Ghost greeting the new addition to his team. "My name's Dewdrop. And my Titan's one is-" "Kerehoma." His Ghost turned to him, before turning back to the other Ghost. The other little Light's shell spun. "I... I'm looking for my guardian. I can feel that I'm so close."
"Then we will help." Spoke Dewdrop with a very happy tone. The tall Titan remained with his palm open, nodding. He had seen so many atrocities, had almost lost Dew a few times which now prompted him to never let the little Ghost out anymore.
---
That might be my first time ever publishing a story online. If anyone reads it, thank you. English is not my first language and I didn't proofread this hhh I'm publishing it on impulse lmfao
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hi erin i was wondering if you had any advice for how to deal with not getting any comments on a fic. i'm in a pretty small fandom and i get the same (small) amount of kudos as many other writers there. but i recently posted a pretty personal fic that i worked extremely hard on for months, so hopeful that it might resonate with people, and now i just feel crushed. i'm working on new fics but I keep thinking that I’m probably only setting myself up for more disappointment ;(( any thoughts? ty <3
Hi, anon! I'm sorry to hear you feel like your hard work has gone unnoticed. That's such an awful feeling. I can't say I'm an expert, because I haven't been in a fandom small enough that it was normal to get no comments, but I do know what it's like to work hard on something and be disappointed by the response. I have a few things that might help.
If you can, I really recommend trying to make friends in your fandom. Especially in small fandoms, it can be such a lifesaver in terms of getting feedback and keeping your motivation. A good keysmash in the comments of a Google Doc can be just as satisfying as a dozen comments on AO3. Finding someone you trust to beta read your fic, or to bounce ideas off of, is a good idea in ANY fandom, but it can be especially helpful in small fandoms to keep from feeling like you're shouting into the void. And make sure you're giving back to others as well! Leave some comments on other people's fic! Follow them on tumblr and hype up their projects! Do whatever you can to tap into the community that is there.
I hate to say it, but part of it really is adjusting your expectations. If everyone in the fandom gets a handful of kudos at most, then you need to go into writing for that fandom with your eyes wide open, knowing that even if you pour your blood, sweat, and tears into something, all you can expect is that same handful of kudos. That says nothing about you as a writer. You could write an absolute masterpiece, and if there are only 10 people interested in that subject, you're only going to get 10 people to read it. And that's okay! That doesn't mean you've failed in any way, and you should still be proud of your accomplishments. But you can't get blood from a stone, you know? If the audience isn't there, it isn't there. In a way, that can be freeing though. The problem with large audiences can be the expectation of a huge response every time and feeling like you failed if you don't get it. In very small fandoms, at least you know the lack of response is due to the lack of people, not something you did wrong!
Related to the previous point, if you're going to be writing for a fandom where getting lots of (or any) comments isn't the norm, then you should try to find a way to measure success for yourself that doesn't have to do with comments. That often just means writing something you are proud of and you enjoy reading. Especially in the case where you're writing about subjects that are personal to you, make sure you take the time to appreciate the catharsis it brings you. Pat yourself on the back for how you're improving your writing skills by getting in touch with your own emotions and experiences and turning them into stories. Those things aren't useless if they don't reach a huge audience. You are improving yourself by doing it!
All that being said, if it really is a super duper tiny fandom and there's no community to get involved with and you don't think you'll ever be happy writing for mostly yourself, I do honestly think there's a time when you have to ask yourself if you need to move on. I personally suck at writing for myself. If no one's going to read it, I don't want to write it, haha. In the past when fandoms have died or my friends have left, I've jumped ship too, because I need the community aspect. Fandom isn't fun for me without it. Everyone's different though! I've known people who are happier writing for fandoms so rare no one else is writing for them. It just comes down to both your tolerance for the lack of feedback and how much you feel compelled by this particular fandom.
Anyway, sorry I got so long-winded and I'm sorry if none of that is helpful! I hope you can glean something from it at least, and I hope you are able to feel proud of yourself for finishing a personal fic, which is SO hard to do, even if it didn't get the response you were hoping for. <33
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