#no warnings

[blackkatmagic]

i would love to know more about your beef with natasha pulley because i'd never heard of her and trying to see her works on wikipedia revealed nothing about what her books actually contain. please go off if you feel like it

Augh. Okay. I will try to be coherent about it even though most of my feelings about her books are deep disdain and blinding fury. Also caveat that I have not read all of her books, But I've read The Half Life of Valery K, The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, and The Mars House, which I feel is a decent sampling and are the ones most often recommended.

My most surface-level gripe with her is that she basically writes the exact same characters over and over regardless of the plot around them. There is The Big Man who is very gentle actually (and sorry he's so masculine and big!) even though he is Big and also very Soft. There is the Small Man who is quirky and weird and Haunted. They are both Sad. Usually the Haunted man is haunted because he has committed war crimes of some sort or wants to commit them in the future. The female characters are always cold and impersonal and one-dimensional, usually hate other women, and are almost always the villains. Whatever poor female character escapes being the villain suffers horribly and dies, usually for the sake of getting the queer men who are the main ship together.

And then there's the fascism. And the racism. Jesus. Okay.

Spoilers under the cut for the books listed above, so that I can more clearly explain my main complaint:

Pulley's writing style is absolutely lovely. I will give her that. But it makes it even more jarring when she tosses in weird little things that all start to add up to something deeply unpleasant by the end of the book.

In Half Life, it's Nazi war crimes and an appearance(/cameo???) from Josef Mengele, who the main character ran (human!!!) experiments for before WWII (Mengele appears on page, is referred to, foremost and in the MC's POV, as "darkly handsome", and is called "Joe"). This is solely added as something for the MC to be very sad about later. There is also a mass rape scene that exists solely as tragic backstory for the (male) MC, who witnessed it. His love interest is a KGB officer who shoots a woman in the head for trying to contact a journalist and reveal that something fishy is going on in the atomic city they're in. This is literally never brought up again after the MC learns about her death. The woman and the MC were casual friends before this happened.

In The Watchmaker, it's piles and piles of racism and Orientalism, including incredibly surface-level depictions of 1870s Japan that pretty much just exist for aesthetic and to have the (white) POV characters wax poetic about how pretty and childlike the Japanese characters are. The racism is meant to be period-typical but there's so much of it done so casually (and with no exploration of how it would actually effect the characters experiencing it) that it ends up just feeling gratuitous. In the end the Japanese love interest is revealed to be the mastermind behind everything who's been manipulating all the events (including an Irish independence group's terrorism campaign, because of course) from the shadows so he can date the MC.

In Mars House the entire plot is based around an arranged marriage between a genocidal fascist politician and a man from the group said politician is campaigning to ethnically cleanse. You would expect that this plot would end with the politician realizing that they had been in the wrong the whole time and that prejudice is bad and they should be helping the repressed group instead of trying to ethnically cleanse them, but nope! Don't worry about it, love made them change to just supporting fascism, not advocating (as) openly for it. That would be crass. Look, they're queer! Isn't that cute? Ignore the fact that Pulley puts the agender (generally Chinese-coded) Martians in the role of oppressive ruling class trying to wipe out "gender extremist" (generally white European) refugees. It's fine.

potentially related: Mars House made me literally fucking google whether Pulley was some kind of right wing radical. it is also a book that made her first publisher drop her.

To be clear: I am all for books addressing complicated and difficult subjects. I adore morally grey protagonists and villains alike. But whatever Pulley is doing is...not that. At best it comes off as using things like genocide, racism, and fascism as plot devices/backdrops for soft little queer romances, which is deeply unsettling. She touches on themes that are very heavy and then either simply gives them lip service or leans into them on the wrong side. Her views on gender, on women, and on race come through very clearly and very unflatteringly, and reading her books is an exercise is bracing yourself for the next bit of racism or fascist apologia that's about to get dropped on you the whole time, with vague pastiches of characters puppetted through the plot and into a very surface-level and rushed romance so that she can slap on the LGBT+ tag.

Tl;dr: DON'T PUT JOSEF FUCKING MENGELE IN YOUR CUTE QUEER ROMANCE PULLEY FUCKING HELL.

[roxilliaana]

The Curse of Pretty Ones

You didn’t ask to be born of beauty. You didn’t ask for the curse that came with it—how your presence twisted people’s words into flattery, how their eyes burned with longing before they even knew your name.

It was a general Cabin 10 thing, to be honest, but while some of your siblings used that to their own will, some like you were stuck with nicknames.

You were more than lips and lashes. But no one saw that.

Not even him.

Not even Percy.

“You flirt with everyone,” he said, voice cold as saltwater.

You froze, your expression flickering from shock to disbelief. “Excuse me?”

Percy wouldn’t meet your eyes. His hands were clenched at his sides. “You know exactly what you do. The way you look at people. The way they look at you.”

You laughed—bitter, breathless. “So that’s what you think of me? Just another Aphrodite girl throwing herself around for attention?”

“I didn’t—" He hesitated. “I just—people talk. And sometimes it feels like... like none of this means anything to you.”

Your chest twisted. “You think I want people to look at me like that? To think I’m shallow and fake? I hate it, Percy.”

His silence was worse than shouting.

“I wish I looked plain. I wish they saw me the way I am. But they don’t. Not even you.”

You turned before he could see the tears gathering, hear the crack in your throat. “I’m done trying to prove I’m worth more than my face.”

It was hours before he found you.

By the lake, where the moonlight kissed the water, and you sat barefoot in the sand, hugging your knees. You didn’t move when you heard him approach.

He sat beside you. Quiet. The waves were gentler tonight, like they knew hearts were tender.

“I was wrong,” he finally said. “I was scared.”

You said nothing, but your fingers trembled slightly in the sand.

“I’ve never cared about someone the way I care about you. And that terrified me. I thought—if you can have anyone, why would you ever stay with me? So I pushed you away first.”

You turned to him, eyes glassy. “I never wanted ‘anyone.’ I wanted you. The one person who I thought saw me.”

Percy reached out, brushing a strand of hair from your cheek.

“I see you now,” he whispered. “I see the way you love fiercely, how you remember small things about people, how you always make space for others. I was blind, but I’m not anymore.”

You let yourself lean into him, resting your head on his shoulder.

“You’re more than beautiful,” he said. “You’re brave. You’re real. And I’m sorry it took me so long to say it.”

You closed your eyes as his arm wrapped around you, grounding you. For once, it felt like someone was choosing you—not your face, not your name, but the soul behind it.

And gods, did it feel like peace.

[onedaythreeautums]

For one of my manyyyg husbands, Soldier Boy/Ben >:)

Can you do him with an s/o that is the very definition of ‘girly’ and hyper feminine (constantly wears pink, frilly clothing, hair and makeup is always done, etc.) and just adores him? Like, even knowing everything about him and his past, she basically acts like he’s the sweetest thing ever

˖ ֹ੭୧ Soldier Boy with a girly S/O! ⊹ ࣪ ⑅

Note: hihi, thank you for all the requests haha, i absolutely love every single one! soldier boy is a softie here, i hope this is up to your expectations :)!

𓍯𓂃𓏧♡ At first, Soldier Boy couldn't quite grasp your essence, your style and personality stood out starkly from everyone else's. Your pink outfits, adorable makeup that made you look like a porcelain doll, and your perfectly styled hair captivated him daily. He found it impossible to think of anything else. You were distinct, and he appreciated that. Although your bubbly attitude and perpetual cheeriness could get on his nerves at times, he welcomed it because your smile was something he never wanted to fade.

𓍯𓂃𓏧♡ Soldier boy tried to hide his past from you, reluctant to reveal the circumstances that shaped him into who he became. With you, he yearned to be his best version— a stark departure from his usual attitude, because he was quite okay with the way he was. He didn't care if people thought he was a raging asshole, or a jerk, they could suck it up. But, eventually, he let you in. He was vulnerable. He was showing you a softer layer. You knew you would probably never get another moment like this, you were gentle with him, you listened intently to what he told you about his past. You were nothing but the sweetest with him and treating him with the upmost care, something he hadn't received in a long time. He would show you his appreciation through affectionate gestures, peppering kisses on your jawline, carefully fixing your hair if even one strand was tousled. He knew he didn't deserve such a kind soul like yours, he was so afraid of screwing up. However, any time he did, you forgave him-- a sweet smile spread across your rosy lips, your kind eyes gazing lovingly into his. He would've thought he was the best man on earth, no flaws, no fuck ups, he would've thought he was perfect from the way you treated him.

𓍯𓂃𓏧♡ He did horrible things, and you did think he could be a jerk, but he was charming in his own way. Whenever you wore a short, ruffled dress around him you were entering dangerous territory, his gaze lingering on your thighs as you wore thigh high socks that adorned bows, or his large hands squeezing your waist as he pulled you against him. He was not ashamed to tell you how stunning and beautiful you were, or show the world that you were his. He would encourage you to give him personalized fashion shows, instructing you to twirl for him after each dress you would try on or outfit you put together. He would shamelessly stare, taking in every inch of your body, appreciating how your style complimented you immaculately.

𓍯𓂃𓏧♡ He would gladly let you adorn his hair with bows or tie ribbons around his arms, caring only about your happiness. But it came with a price. In return, he would pull you in for passionate, fervent kisses, leaving traces of smeared lipstick on his lips, which he welcomed. One hand would weave through your hair, giving a playful tug, while the other rested on your lower back, drawing you nearer.

𓍯𓂃𓏧♡ Ben was a different man with you, he was much nicer with you. His demeanor would shift completely during your conversations, his tone softening and his choice of words became more refined. The Boys would stare at you two like you had grown extra heads, they were baffled by your relationship, but more shocked that Ben actually had a nicer side to him. Of course, they were concerned that something bad was happening behind the scenes, but when you confirmed multiple times that you were in a happy, healthy relationship with Ben, they supported you.

[ellabling]

Stormy nights ─ .✦

— Usopp x gn! Reader — Fluff — no warnings —

The ship was abnormally quiet today. Aside from the storm raging outside, the crew was insanely silent.

Most of them were resting, taking the rain as an excuse to take a day off from their usual duties, chores or projects.

And that’s exactly what you and Usopp were doing. Cuddled up together in your bed, not sleeping, just holding each other.

Surprisingly Nami and Robin were elsewhere, giving the two of you the girls room to yourselves. Not that you were doing anything but cuddling, but it was nice to just hold each other without Nami’s teasing.

The storm raged outside, but the rock of the Sunny that it caused was so calming, coupled with the sound of the rain hitting the deck harshly.

The ship was in good hands though, the straw hats amazing helmsman, Jinbe, more than likely sitting at the helm and steering the ship with great care.

Usopp shifted softly in your arms, causing you to look down at him. His face was tucked into your neck, arms wrapped securely around you and legs tangled with yours.

He shifting again, looking up to meet your gentle gaze. “Why’d you stop?” He whined, having taken note of the fact that your hand, which threaded itself in his thick hair, had stopped moving.

A soft smile came to your lips, “Sorry, my love, I got lost in thought”, Your voice was soft as you spoke. With that, you began to play with his hair again, twisting pieces of the thick locks in your fingers. It was soft, and by the gods there was a lot, but to have your hands tangled up in his hair was so nice.

You knew he loved the feeling of it, it calmed him greatly. But you loved it too, even if after a bit your arm began to burn. That didn’t matter though, to have Usopp in your arms, content and calm was enough to excuse the soft ache.

With the feeling of your hand twirling in his hair again, he snuggled back up into you. You could feel his breath on your neck, soft and even.

“I love you so much” he whispered after a moment, letting out a sigh, strong arms tightening around your waist slightly. One of his hands began to rub careful circles on back, finding it only fair due to your gentle touches.

The smile on your face only intensified as his words sunk in. Bringing your head down slightly, you placed a gentle kiss on the top of his head.

“I love you too, baby” your voice was as gentle as ever as you spoke into his hair, Placing another couple kisses there and continuing to card through his curly locks with your hand.

Your free arm draped over his side, fingers playing with the hem of his shirt. Carefully, you slipped your hand up the back of it, his skin was warm against you. You dragged your fingers up and down his strong back, slowly lulling him into slumber with your caring touch.

The two of you laid there for a while longer, before you felt his hand slowly stop rubbing your back, his breathing becoming slow and even against your neck.

He’d fallen asleep. He deserved it, a break, a rest. He works so hard, everyday. Constantly trying to get stronger and stronger, to live up to the title he oh so dreamed of — ‘Usopp, brave warrior of the seas’. However, he’d already done that a long time ago.

You couldn’t imagine what the world would be like if not for meeting the straw hats, meeting Usopp. Even more so, if Luffy hadn’t asked you to join his crew after seeing your potential — without those events, who knows where you’d be. You’d found your anchor, your lover boy, and you’d be damned if anyone thought you’d ever let go of him,,, again.

You were so insanely proud of the man in your arms. You’d gotten separated from him and the others for two whole years, they were the most painful years of your life — but oh did they make you so much stronger, and when you reunited he was a changed man. Well, he was still Usopp, your amazing, kind and gentle boyfriend, but now he was stronger, braver, more confident.

He’s also changed in other ways, adding a lot more muscle to his body and his curly hair only becoming longer. But all in all, he was still yours, that hadn’t changed not a bit.

It was nights like these, holding each other, that made everything all feel okay, made the past become nothing but memories, because you’re in the current, here and now,, with him. It didn’t matter what tomorrows adventure held, as long as you got to hold him before and after it all.

© 2023 Ellabling || please do not reupload, translate or feed any of my work into AI.

[hearts4werka]

Starry Kiss

Summary: you’ve always had a crush on your childhood best friend Chris but always thought your feelings were one-sided since he always had girls all over him and he could have anyone he wanted. One day you hosted a sleepover for your friends as well as Chris, night soon came and you two were the only ones awake and you go stargazing in the starry night where you confess your feelings to him and he responds with a genuine kiss you’ve always wanted to experience… Genre: FLUFF, childhood best friends, stargazing, sleepover, high school sweethearts, starry night, love confession, best friends to lovers, unexpected kiss & possibly more! Warnings: None! Just cutesy sweetheart best friends finally getting together!

Me and Chris have been childhood best friends and I've always had a small crush on him but never thought my feelings were one-sided since he always had girls all over him and once I even had to help him with his first crush who became his first girlfriend who later turned out to be using him.

The poor guy was devastated after that and I had to be his personal therapist for almost two weeks after he got over her and found a new girl to thirst over, it ended up not being me.

I never was good at expressing my emotions since no one never asked unless it was evident something was wrong, only ever Chris saw through the fake smile I would put on everyday to hide the real emotions I would feel, that's one of the many reasons why I have a fat crush on him since childhood.

After school we walk together to my house or his then I would vent to him and show him the real me no one else saw besides him. We could talk and laugh together for hours on end, I always tried to somehow give him blank hints but too scared to actually confess since Im afrain of ruining our friendship I love so much and will cherish all of our moments together fondly.

| - 🍂 - |

One day I decided to host a sleepover for my friend group, including Chris and some of his guy friends since I know he wouldn't survive being around all of my girlfriends so of course I made an acception for him.

And I’m sure my friends won’t mind.

Chris was the first person to get there since he came in early to help me with preparing all of the stuff that needs to be set up.

While setting up the designated place to sleep we got into a small pillow fight…

• Before Everyone Arrived…

When I was arranging the pillows with Chris’s help, I suddenly felt something soft hit my back and chuckling behind me. Slowly turning for dramatic effect I see Chris burst out laughing and I know he threw the pillow at me.

His laughter is soon muffled by a pillow hitting his face, I soon followed with the chuckles and choked out through the laughter filling the air.

“Thats what you get!”

He immediately went into action and started to throw more pillows at me and I followed behind, throwing pillows at him that were in my reach. We soon started a pillow fight.

I grabbed one of the longer and bigger pillows, he looked at me and put his hand out like eleven while laughing.

“Don’t you even dare!” He speaks between chuckles as I take the risk and hit him with the big pillow in my hand.

“Oh you’re gonna regret doing that”

Suddenly he tackles me to the floor, ending up on top of me with both of us laughing and pillows flying all around, he drops down onto the floor next to me as we continue to laugh at the whole playful situation.

I would be lying if the altercation didn’t fluster me even in the slightest.

| - 🍂 - |

7:45 PM

As the time of the deadline for everyone to finally arrive, me and Chris are waiting by sitting on the couch a bit too close, my head laying down on his shoulder and a simple hand wrapped around my waist and pulling me closer to him.

The whole time I'm trying to hide the slight pink hue growing on my cheeks, its not the first time we sit in such position that could be taken as an intimate one.

My friends often tease me and say to just confess to him like its thats easy. I dont want to ruin our friendship as it could be the last type of friendship we get like this.

While we wait for the others to arrive, the doorbell finally rings indicating they have just arrived, I shoot up onto my feet and to the front door.

Chris follows behind as I open the door, on the other side there’s two girls, my best friend Kayla and Natalie, one guy whos Chris's standing with bags in hand, all being my friends.

I greet them and quickly let them inside, leading them upstairs into the guests bedroom where we’ll be all sleeping since there’s more room there for all of us.

They all put their bags away and we start the fun part of the sleepover...

| - 🍂 - |

10:54 PM

After a little adventure around the night town only illuminated by old street lamps and a snack trip to the store for a small horror marathon we finally got back to my house.

I place the bag of snacks on the coffee table in the living room as all of us gathered inside of the room to start the horror marathon.

All of us take a seat on the couch, the guys sit on one side of the couch and the girls in the other. Me and Chris are in the middle separating the gender groups created.

Grabbing the remote I open the first streaming service I land on, which landed on classic Netflix.

I begin to scroll through the ‘horror’ section, everyone talking among themselves and suggesting what we should watch first before we finally decide on ‘Fear Street’ which is a horror series with 3 movies.

We get comfortable in our spots and I play the movie, some grab snacks and some grab drinks and then the movie starts…

| - 🍂 - |

• After a Horror Movie Marathon

1:31 AM

After watching a god knows how much hours worth of horror movies everyone was finally starting to feel sleepy except for me and Chris for some reason.

“I’m tired…” Kayla yawns, making sluggish moves to get up from her spot on the couch. Everyone else agrees they’re also feeling tired and suggest we should already go to bed.

“Yeah we should go to bed already” Natalie suggests, slowly starting to get up as well to head to our designated sleeping place.

We all follow suite but when I try to get up, Chris decides it would be a funny idea to randomly throw we over his shoulder and carry me to our sleeping place.

I let out a quiet yelp as he throws me over his shoulder, his little giggles echoing through the room as the group looks at us a bit surprised but used to us acting like this with each other.

Trying to protest for him to put me down, sending small hits to his back as he continues to carry me and walk up the stairs with the group until we make it to the room.

He finally puts me down and I shoot him a playful glare which only fuels the stupid grin on his face, we enter the room after everyone and close the door behind us.

We make sure to not step on anyone before both of us got to our sleeping spot for the night and lay down, pulling the duvet over my body as the warmth of it surrounds my body but even with the warm feeling, I find myself not quite being able to fall asleep.

I pretend to sleep, closing my eyes to trick my brain into making me fall asleep but I just lay there conscious with my eyes closed and little did I know that Chris was having the same problem…

| - 🍂 - |

• Two Hours Later

3:09 AM

After a few hours I’m still laying there and staring at the ceiling while everyone’s shallow breathing fills the rooms air and hits my ears in a smooth melody.

A sudden quiet whisper and slight nudge on the shoulder taps me out of my small trance and I look towards the source of the noise.

“Hey, you awake?” I feel Chris’s warm breath hit my cold skin and send a small shiver running down my spine as he speaks.

“No, what’s up?” Answering his question I sit up on my bed and make some room for him to sit down as well so he doesn’t have to keep kneeling down on the hard wooden floor.

“I can’t quite fall asleep for some reason.” He confesses, taking the seat infront of me on the bed. It making a small indent and elevating my own seating from his weight overpowering mine.

“Me neither.” I agree, looking around the room I glance over at the window where the source of the moonlight that’s illuminating the room is coming from.

Noticing the especially starry night sky tonight I remember I was reading an article about that there was supposed to be a starry night.

I suddenly get an idea, since we can’t sleep and I wanted to go star gazing tonight anyway and might as well drag Chris along with me.

“It’s a pretty starry night tonight” I state the obvious before looking back at him and adding, “Wanna go star gazing?”

He glanced between me and the night sky and chuckles quietly then nods his head in agreement. “Yeah, sure”

A soft smile spreads across my face as he agrees and the thought of sitting on a hill with a perfect view of the starry night sky just enters my mind as I imagine the scenery.

We quietly get up from my bed and I grab a blanket on the way out of the room, slowly closing the door behind us than make our way towards the front door to sneak out of the dark house.

On our way down the stairs, Chris suddenly almost trips over something in the dark. Silently cursing under his breath as he out of reflex grabs the my arm and the railing, holding on for dear life to not face plant down the stairs.

I’m trying my hardest to not burst out laughing at his terrified expression at almost falling to his death and making a lot of noise when we’re supposed to be quiet.

Quickly making our way to the front door and almost exiting in a hurry to not wake the others up, I start to lead him to the spot I was thinking of that will have the best view of the sky.

“You gotta place in mind already, princess?” He finally asks in a hushed voice, leaning his head down to make me hear him better. The little nickname he always calls me whenever he wants to gauge a reaction out of me.

“You don’t remember? We used to always go there as kids!” I remind him also in a hushed voice as we walk under the beautiful night sky up a medium hill.

Seeing how his eyes widen in realization as the childhood memories flood both of our minds at once, a small smile growing on my face at the cute moments we’ve had there together.

“Ohh, yeah now I remember” He realizes, scratching the back of his neck in slight embarrassment for not remembering to which I give him a reassuring pat on the back.

We start to go down memory lane of all of the special moments we’ve shared over the past years of our constantly blooming friendship, knowing we’ll never be dumb little kids together anymore just makes my heart ache as I would love to go back in time and relive all of those memories.

Some memories brought laughter, sadness or embarrassment. When we finally made it onto the top of the hill, we were immediately met with an a amazing view of the starry night sky.

My lips fall in an inaudible gasp at how beautiful the scenery is, I look over at Chris and he’s in the same state of awe as I am.

The way the moonlight illuminates his facial features and his long brown strands ghosting over his forehead and slightly above his eyes makes my head go into a slight spiral.

Shaking my head and looking away from him to not cause a too much of a blush on my face than the slight staring has already caused.

A sudden idea comes to my mind, it’s the perfect time and place to confess my longing love for him. It may sound like a typical love story but who knows, he could still say no.

With that thought in my overthinking mind, I start to doubt my idea and bash it. It’s the right place but might not be the right time.

He notices me being lost in thought, my eyes darting over all of the stars on the sky as if I was tracing every possible pattern with them.

His face suddenly is placed infront of my vision, snapping me from the small world my mind had put me in and back to reality.

“Hey, you good?” He asks with concern lacing his tone, a shade of worry shading his features in the moonlight as his brows furrow.

I shake my head, a small embarrassed chuckle escaping past my lips to try and laugh off the situation to make it seem I’m fine. “Yeah I’m fine, just zoned out for a minute”

Him not fully believing me but just brushes off the worry for now, he casually drapes a hand over my shoulder in an almost comforting matter.

Leaning my head on his shoulder we start to walk around the hill to find our spot, soon enough we succeed at our search and lay our backs down on the grass.

We watch the stars, pointing out the constellations we notice the starts aligning to create. It was truly a beautiful sight to witness.

As we observe the starts, I try to get the courage to ask him the question I’ve been dreading to ask him for far too long now that I can’t keep it bottled inside anymore.

I sit up so suddenly a feeling of dizziness washes over me, he follows behind me and the same look of worry comes back to cast a shadow over his features.

“Are you sure you’re fine? Why did you sit up so suddenly?” He questions with concern now thick in his tone, raising an eyebrow at my current actions.

Taking a deep breath before the word vomit begins without my permission and I can’t get it to stop no matter how hard my brain screams at me to stop.

“I can’t keep this hidden anymore, sorry in advance but…” I pause for a second, contemplating my decision before my mouth grows a mind of its own and decides for me.

“I’m in love with you. And I-I am for years now but I was always scared to admit it because of all of the girlfriends you’ve had that were way prettier than I could ever be, I’m so sorry for keeping this from you when we promised to not keep secrets from each other and tell each other everything that’s on our mind…”

After my small ramble I grow out of breath and my breathing grows slightly heavy, looking up at him I see his expression is unreadable so my apologetic instinct switches on.

“I’m really sorry, I know you probably don’t feel the same way and might hate me after this. I’m sorry if this could ruin our friendship in any way and I don’t want it to, I’m so fucking so-“

My words suddenly get cut off by Chris grabbing ahold of my jaw and smashing his lips on mine, instantly shutting my moving mouth up.

I’m at a loss of all words that I wanted to speak in that moment, my mind becomes blurry as I melt completely into the kiss and slowly start to kiss him back.

The kiss feels magical, like taken out of a fairytale. Finally finding my Prince Charming or sharing a kiss that’ll save me and erase all of the problems I’ve ever encountered in my life.

When we finally pull away from each other, I look at him in complete shock but a hint of relief in my features is only visible if you look for it hard enough.

“Why did you do that?” I question, feeling confused by his actions since I was sure I would get rejected by him but am so glad I didn’t.

“To stop you from rambling all night long” He confesses the reason behind the unexpected kiss, a smile growing on his face as a reaction to my confused expression.

“I thought you would get weirded out and reject me.” I as well confess to the reason I’m so confused right now, the relief slowly becoming more noticeable on my face.

“It doesn’t matter now what I could have done, so don’t worry about that now” He answers, the smile growing on his face. His hand reaches and lands on my cheek, caressing it with his thumb in an almost loving way that makes a smile of my own form on my lips.

“You’re way to calm about this right now, it’s concerning” I slip out with a hint of joking in my voice to lighten the tense air surrounding us, we share a laugh together before his lips land on mine again. Both of us smilling into the kiss as we fall back onto the ground and share another passionate kiss under the starry night, almost like a starry kiss…

@hearts4wertka

authors note: i’m so sorry that writing and posting fics has taken me a bit longer than expected but I don’t really have motivation or the drive to write so my head has been a bit empty lately, anyway thank you guys so much for the feedback on any of my fics I seriously really appreciate it and I love every single one of you! 💋

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[angelofamegakure]

Konan is taking things very seriously.

She is decluttering the base. Any shoes left in the middle of the floor are yeeted out the closest window.

[chaoticosse]

Creations pass, but Mairon’s encounter with the stranger shadows his working thoughts.

So he sends word to the dark-haired Maia’s workshop with a description and arranges to meet him at an inn. He takes up a stool, and when the other Maia arrives, swiftly orders them refreshments.

His companion too wastes no time, perhaps sensing his reluctance to begin their conversation. 

‘Have you called me here for a reason?’ The stranger’s voice is smooth and rich, and dark like a well-caught crust of bread. Back to the window, his eyes are in shadow, but Mairon knows they are a deep brown, resinous like the sap of a tree. The light from outside sets his hair alight from behind, his dark locks and waves carding the rays into shafts over his shoulder. Dust motes dance golden between them against the wine-red walls. 

Mairon holds his gaze for as long as it takes for him to think through his options, then dips to study his drink, thumbing the grain at the carved stem.

‘I cannot place your intentions.’

The dark-haired Maia hesitates, and Mairon’s head snaps up in time to see an unreadable expression disappear behind a wry smile. ‘Does it matter, when you know I speak true, and our minds align?’

Mairon exhales, twisting his features in return. Their exchange has not left his thoughts, and it is true he feels an affinity. ‘Regardless.’ He looks down, peering intently at his soot-stained fingers. ‘I would still know your designs. We are to inform Aulë of any associations with other workshops, so he can ensure our work together is aligned beneath Eru’s will.’ He steels himself to meet the Maia’s eyes. ‘I would not wish to keep our acquaintance from him. I enjoyed speaking with you in the forge. I would hope to do so again. To work together, even.’

The stranger studies him carefully, and his being seems to quicken underneath his attention.

‘Why do you think I am here?’ The Maia gestures to the stones of the inn. ‘I could have ignored your summons.’

Mairon swallows nervously. ‘I would hope it is because I can offer you something in return for your counsel. Although I do not know what.’

The Maia seems to weigh his words, now, as well as his features. He feels like he is being examined for flaws, as a stonemason would a piece of marble. Eventually, the stranger reaches into his clothes, pulls out a piece of darkened rock, and sets it on the countertop.

‘I saw how dutifully you attended to your creations.’ The Maia pushes the rock towards him, lightly scratching the varnish beneath. Mairon frowns, and reaches to rub the mark away, but the stranger catches his hand against the wood. Trapping him there against the surface. His breath catches.

‘I need to know what this is, and how to work with it.’ Mairon’s hand is freed, and he does not attempt to rub the mark again. ‘Learn all you can about this ore. I will come to your workshop in a week. Tell me then what you have learned, and no other. I cannot do it myself, but I know you will succeed.’

Mairon stares at the mysterious ore, which glints at him. His tongue sticks in his throat. But before he can clear it, the stranger is moving, long cloak swinging behind evenly paced steps. He calls out.

‘Stranger.’ He intends to reject the request, in obesience to his Vala. But instead finds himself saying, ‘What should I call you?’

The dark-haired Maia flashes a keen smile back through the doorway. In the enduring light of the Trees, Mairon marks again that his form is beautiful. 

‘In time, Impatient One.’

Angbang Week 2025 Day 1: Friend | Enemy AO3: @eva_waefre @angbangweek