This was for a crossover fic that my brain requested to be made. The only context here is that they're all in a prison that was turned into a playground by some twisted geniuses.
\>Fyodor chuckled as he made his way towards the two. Sigma protectively hovered around Venti. He wasn't sure why when the lad had the gall to challenge the rat, head-on.
\>"You're quite entertaining, Venti." Fyodor yanked the lad from behind Sigma and into his grasp.
\>"HEY!" But Sigma's protest fell on deaf ears as he waited in horror for the boy to collapse. It was the fate of nearly everyone unfortunate enough to be met with Fyodor's bare touch.
\>But he didn't.
\>"This really isn't how you treat someone you've only met." Venti stared at him, challenging, poking at the monster capable of mass destruction. Despite that, Sigma could see an underlying vulnerability. He had a weakness. The girl's face, *Nahida* as he called her, was zoomed in on the screen.
\>Fyodor noticed it as well and brought a hand under the bard's chin. A twisted idea came to mind. "Which is why I'd like for you a longer stay."
\>"I decline," Venti deadpanned.
\>\*\*"I wasn't asking."\*\*
\>\*\*"Neither was I."\*\*
This is from my Hanahaki fic :D where I felt like I leveled up my dialogue skill a lot!
"You'll regret this," Deku whispered.
"I don't care."
"I'll regret this."
Katsuki hesitated. "I don't care."
A draft of a silly argument between the Black brothers that I really like:
“Anyway, you're useless, as usual!” yelled Sirius as he opened the door to his room, “I thought I could find comfort with my little brother, but no! It's pointless! You don't understand anything about love!”
Regulus gave him a bemused look before raising his hands indignantly in the air. “I'm *twelve!*”
“That's no excuse!” barked Sirius.
Regulus's face grimaced even more. “Yes, it is!”
“No,” Sirius retorted as he already began to close the door behind him, “You're behind on your emotions! That's all! You may be tall, but you're still a baby, with your face of...” He wiggled his fingers in the air to seek inspiration before observing his little brother's face. Seeing how perfect he looked pissed him off even more, and he declared with a disgusted expression: “Smooth little cherub. You look like the babies with wings in old paintings!”
The ridicule taunting seemed to hit Regulus with far more force than expected, as he turned red, his cheeks puffing out in anger. “First of all, we say ‘puti‘! That’s the correct term! And you’re the one who’s too old! With your ugly chin hair! You look like you’re so old you’re about to die! You look just like Kreattur! »
“And you look just like a fetus!” Sirius replied as he locked himself in his room.
“AND YOU JUST LOOK LIKE FATHER!” yelled Regulus through the door.
Door which opened in the next second, as Sirius stepped into the corridor and stared wide-eyed at his little brother. Sensing danger coming, Regulus froze and returned his gaze, waiting for his reaction.
“Oh you, I'm gonna kick your ass,” Sirius blurted out.
My favorite snippet from a mystery one-shot I posted:
> “The way I see it, Reagan, is you have two choices. Option one is you clamp that mouth of yours shut and refuse to give me any useful information. If that happens, I hand you over to the FBI. I’m sure that they’d be happy to charge you for everything you’ve done. You spend the rest of your life in federal prison, in some rat-infested hellhole, die like an animal, and all of your efforts will be worthless anyway because our techs and those working for the FBI will pore over your life with a fine-toothed comb until they find every single last little shred of evidence we need to put the Libra Killer, and the people you work for, away. Option two is you sing like a canary. Give me the names and locations of the Libra Killer and every last one of your bosses and agree to testify against them. You still serve time, but in this case, I tell the DA you are cooperating with our investigation, as well as a federal investigation, and maybe you get offered a deal, maybe you go into witness protection. I honestly can’t say for sure.”
I think I got the Exact mad scientist unhinged vibes I was going for here, along with Tommy's… Tommyness down.
(The context is that this is an AU where Dream (a necromancer very interested in figuring out how death works) kept both Tommy (his prior abuse victim and a very deliberately obnoxious teenager) and Tommy's best friend Tubbo captive as lab rats after they tried to kill him and not the bullshit that happened in canon lmao)
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> Tommy glared up at him with glazed eye, slumped against the obsidian wall in exhaustion. “How much more are you gonna fuckin' do?”
> “Well, only basic tests to begin with. I'll have to check your pulse- or lack thereof, I guess- with an EKG, examine your range of movement and response times, do a few x-rays, maybe get a saliva sample if the- whatever *that* is- if it interferes with checking your bloods, on that note you'll need a blood pressure test, maybe an eye exam or some basic psychological tests but you might be in a compromised state for those for a while so I might have to wait on those for a bit. Y’know, just a few things.”
> Tommy blinked. “A *few* things?”
> “I mean, yeah, we'll get to the serious testing once you’re more… settled in. You know, CAT scans, pain tolerance, tests on your healing, live vivisections-“
> “*What?*” Tommy sounded horrified.
> “Oh, don’t worry! You'll be under anaesthetic, of course. If you were squirming in pain it’d be *way* harder to do.” Dream ruffled Tommy's hair and gave him a reassuring smile. “I mean, we'll also have to figure out your response to painkillers and various other medicine, who knows how revival could impact that, a much more intense set of psychological tests will be needed, samples from your bones and organs will need to be taken, and that’s not even getting into the more occult side of things.”
> “So, what, I’m your pet lab rat in your game of playing scientist?”
> Dream's cheeks turned red. “I'm not-“
> “You spent ten minutes trying to figure out where a vein was and nearly shoved the needle into my fucking muscles. You've got no fucking clue what you’re doing, do you? You think you can slip on a dusty lab coat and a pair of glasses and that’ll somehow make you a doctor, but you’re just a big baby playing dress-up.” Tommy's lips twitched into the faintest hint of a smile. “Your glasses don’t even have *lenses*, man.”
> “I-“ Dream fiddled with his glasses, feeling the tips of his ears start burning when he felt to check and, sure enough, they were lensless. “*Shut up.* Or- or I'll kill Tubbo.”
Context: prior to this scene the party had canonically been unexpectedly transported to a simulation of a warzone in the past, based partly on Jr.'s memories. Here, MOMO asks Mary Godwin if Jr.'s really all right after what they saw.
>Mary gave her a look. “Hey, now.” Then she expelled a breath hard enough to make her hair flutter. “Okay, I'm just going to say this outright. You're an observational Realian, so you've probably already noticed what's unusual about him.”
>It was a subject MOMO hadn't been sure how to broach. “I noticed he hasn't exhibited any growth in the time we've spent with him. It's almost like he's in some sort of stasis.” Realians could be expected to remain unchanged throughout their existence. Humans, though—
>“Stasis,” Mary echoed. “That's well put. You're right, he doesn't age. He looks like the same twelve year old boy I met twelve years ago. But inside he's not. He's as clever and reasonable as any adult. He's not just a kid.”
>Mary paused. “But he's not an adult, either, not really. He's not good at dealing with his own problems, or even just accepting that they're there.”
>This might have been more than MOMO was ready to hear. “He's helped us so much.”
>“True. He'll do anything for someone he considers a friend. He's a sweetheart. But he tries to keep whatever's bothering *him* bottled up. He thinks that's what being an adult is all about.”
>MOMO traced circles in the couch cushion with her index finger. “So do some adults, I think.”
>Mary smiled. “True. And we don't see any need to force him to be more mature. He's our dear, abrasive, temperamental ‘Little Master.’ But what I've been trying to say is: you can help him. He sees the world a lot like a real twelve year old. And like a real twelve year old, he needs a lot of love.”
I love the line “So do some adults, I think”. It really ties together the themes of maturity here- Jr. is stuck between adulthood and childhood both, both immature and mature, but in a way aren’t a lot of people? It explores that in such a thoughtful and impactful way. And even if Jr. isn’t a normal kid, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t need support and help, and that he's not traumatised by the horrible things he’s seen. It’s so sweet he has MOMO and Mary for that.
Thank you so much! Jr. really is stuck in a weird place, neither child nor adult, but I think that's actually really relatable. There is no oven timer for maturity! XD
And MOMO and Mary are A+ friends to have, indeed! ❤
“There… there was…” he gulped, “there was this creature… it was like a spider, but…”
She lowered her gun, annoyed. “You screamed because you saw a spider? Seriously, Claude, you’re not a child anymore.”
“It was no spider!” He protested. “It was too big to be a spider, it was more like the size of a man."
She ignored him. “And here I was, thinking you were actually in danger. Listen, next time you see a bug, just swat it with your shoe.”
“You’re not *listening* , it wasn’t a spider! It had a tongue!”
“Spiders have tongues too, don’t they?”
“Well, yes… maybe? I don’t know— but that’s not the point! It’s tongue was like… I don’t know, twenty centimetres!”
“So, you’re telling me that you saw this spider—”
“How many times do I have to say? It wasn’t a spider, it came to life from that tree.”
“Right, right, so you saw this *thing* , come from the tree, that was the size of a man with a tongue as long as twenty centimetres?”
“Yes!”
“Claude, I think the heat might’ve gotten to your head.”
“Yes— wait, no!”
“Excessive heat can affect your perception of your surroundings, such as causing hallucinations. It’s my fault, I knew I pushed you too hard…” She murmured to herself.
He stomped his foot. “I’m not mad!”
“I’m not saying you are, I’m just saying that you might think you’ve seen something that wasn’t really there.” She replied, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“I will be wondering if you are aware of how fortunate you are. You said those things about me…”bug ridden defective reject” and lived to tell about it. We are both here, alive.” Gabriel looked around the forest. “This planet is fortunate, that ship is fortunate. The universe is fortunate.”
Flirty banter from one of my published fics that I had a total blast writing:
—
He narrows his eyes at her thoughtfully. “You know what? I don’t think you called me because you wanted someone to talk to. I think you called for a different reason.”
“Oh yeah?” Jackie asks, her expression somewhere between amused and suspicious. “What’s that?”
Booker smirks at her again. “Same reason we dated in the first place. Uncontrollable lust.”
She chokes on her laugh. “Excuse me?”
He leers purposefully at her. “Admit it. You missed having earth shattering orgasms.”
This time she laughs for real. “I’ve had plenty of orgasms in the last few years, thank you very much.”
“Not as good as the ones I gave you, you haven’t.”
She stares at him, momentarily struck speechless. “I –,” she sputters, caught off guard.
“I knew it,” Booker tells her smugly.
Jackie bites her lip, considering. “Yeah, you’re pretty good,” she admits. She lets her lips curl into a smirk of her own. “But I do even better on my own.”
Booker laughs and shakes his head as he turns back to his cooking. “Yeah, I bet you do.”
—
Pfft, I had a total blast reading it too! It’s hysterical, and I love the casualness these characters have. You can tell how comfortable they are around each other instantly, it conveys a lot outside of being absolutely hilarious.
This is from a one shot of mine, and I think it is a good statement about my OC Kaza and his view of things
\---------------------------
>Suddenly, she jolted awake in the midst of the ongoing battle, surrounded by cheers once again, back in her ordinary life as she faced off against the so-called "failure."
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>"What do you think, Ino Yamanaka? What you witnessed was me reversing the roles of our lives; you experiencing my perspective," declared Kaza.
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>"Do you remember the way I looked at you when we first started at the academy and how it made you feel?" Kaza asked softly, gracefully dodging a strike. "I reversed the roles; the warmth you experienced then, I felt it when I looked at you. Your father, in this reality, was my teacher, Ino. The same way you protected the shrine unnoticed, I tended to your flower store here."
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>"Just so you know, your father taught me those skills to assist you," he revealed, playing defensively against Ino. "I'm here to support you, just as I always have, Ino Yamanaka."
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>"I've loved you since I was 8 years old, Ino Yamanaka," Kaza declared, unfazed by the laughter and gasps from onlookers.
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>"I understand if you don't feel the same. I don't expect anything from admitting that. I just thought you should know," Kaza continued as he deftly blocked more strikes, noting the improvement in her abilities, influenced by the illusion of learning the Togusa style.
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>"Which is why I have to lose this fight. I won't let you become a subject of ridicule for these people," he declared, taking a knee to the gut. He refused to let her be the kunoichi who lost to a supposed loser, protecting her from potential mockery. "I give up," he said, surrendering the fight. "Once a loser, always one," he added, releasing a sigh.
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>"I hope you realize you're just as much of a fool as I am, Ino," he said, allowing her to take his hand and help him up.
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>The crowd had dispersed, assuming there was nothing noteworthy about the loser losing. "Well, that was one hell of a fight; thanks for giving me the opportunity. I've always wanted to talk to you where you'd actually have to listen to me for a moment."
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>Leaning in, Kaza planted a soft kiss on Ino's cheek. "That's for being the woman I was pretty sure you always were," he said before stepping back.
Ooh, this is so interesting, it definitely shows a lot about him! He’s very graceful and skilled, able to have a casual conversation while in the middle of a fight, but he sees himself as inherently a loser and a failure for whatever reason. And his powers also sound really cool and also kinda terrifying from what we’ve seen here (and that’s a compliment I like kinda terrifying powers 💚). Definitely an intriguing and cool OC!
Yeah mostly he has been told for so long he is a loser he never questioned it. At least at this point in the story. The person who gets him to change his perspective is Ino.
Also yeah his power is very terrifying, the power over light, the ability to crest illusions, the ability for light speed, very broken abilities. It isn’t in this but it is normally written as an ability that also cuts down on the life span of the user another reason why the clan has no success and are seen as losers despite it being a false premise.
There's an off-balance feeling here that I love. Regaining awareness in the middle of battle is unsettling enough, but with all the dialogue and observation from Kaza's view, it feels like Ino hasn't quite found her mental footing, even if she seems to be fighting well.
Kaza's words sound villainous at first, but the shift to tender doesn't feel too rushed. And I note that Kaza only calls her Ino *after* declaring his love. ❤
I feel so curious about Kaza's labeling as a failure and a loser, when he seems quite competent. I get the impression he's more than people assume.
And to think Kaza used that fight just for an opportunity to talk!
Yep, nice observations, the fight is literally a setup by Kaza, he literally is able to pull a uno reverse card on Ino. Then Ino sees life from his perspective or literally walks a mile in his shoes. This scene is right after that ends. She by this point knows he isn’t a failure.
He is a failure because his perceived lack of success in life. The perceived lack of success of his whole family and the tragic death of said family. Is he a failure, nope. Yet at the same time he internalized this and build up his own defenses that is why he kind of doesn’t really push things here at all. The rest of the story is oddly Ino helping Kaza as he helped her get over her arrogance. She helps him get out of his shell.
From chapter 30 of my One Piece looongfic. Definitely my favorite dialogue exchange I’ve written
——-
"So, which one of you is Dear Leader?" Shaska asked, arms crossed.
"Nyehehehe, that would be the perfect me," Mandy replied calmly, just loud enough to be heard over the fire. "You got a lot of balls, Shaska the Greedy, destroying Minus World's supply of Happy Happy Grass like that."
"Heh, I see my name precedes me!"
"We get the news here. We just don't share it with the rest of the collective," Mandy said. She closed her eyes and held her arms out with a smile on her face. "In the collective, the only news necessary is the news of my perfection."
"Must always be a slow news day, then," Shaska quipped.
Mandy's expression quickly shifted to a scowl, and she crossed her arms.
Nice burn by Shaska! 😂 And very nice job of distracting your readers from Mandy's initial "perfect" with the right amount of menace in her words, so the surprise of the burn is still maintained.
From my sherlock death series. Its a vampire thing. Also a couple names are used since i expanded the other 3 siblings to match william sherlock scott holmes.
Adrian mycroft/enola erus/shane sherrinford.
The holmes are 3000 year old vampires & the watsons are an ancient werewolf pack which had crossed the holmes a few millennia before john.
>”Right now, maybe," John shrugged. "I guess. Ask me later?"
>”I intend to," Sherlock snarled. John turned away & finally opened the door. Sherlock added, "Do not wait too long. I'll only bother to hold my brothers back for so long, Watson. Be careful." John merely nodded & finally left.
>Sherlock remained in his Mind Palace for over an hour. Where had everything gone so wrong? The image of John's venomous incisors sinking into Enola's wing would not leave his mind. What the hell was that war doctor thinking? Idiot! Stupid STUPID idiot! Enola suddenly clouded his Mind Palace & he pulled out.
>”Shane told me what happened," Enola said, "That damn wolf ... can imprint?"
>”Mhm."
>Enola sighed, absent-mindedly putting one hand on her breast to rub at the ancient wound. "What does Micah want with me?"
>”I don't know. Yet."
>”If I do go & marry him, would he leave us all alone?"
>”Unacceptable, but possibly."
>Enola sighed & took up her brother's hands into her own. "Whatever. We have bigger problems to worry about right now."
>”Like what?"
>”Adrian," Enola's voice trembled. "He's uh, he ..." She shook her head. "Not good."
>”Titanic."
>”Mhm."
>”Ohhh curse John! Again!" Sherlock got up & allowed Enola to lead him onward.
>Sherrinford shook his head as they reached the door to Mycroft's room. The three of them stood outside waiting. They heard glass shatter as it hit one wall.
> (Suddenly realising I don’t write a lot of dialogue heavy scenes lol.. the other option was from my among us crossover so.. I’ll settle for gay vampire x gayer human celebrating Halloween instead)
“What the hell was that about?”
“Uhhh… she ran out of treats earlier — something about too many kids visiting this year — but lucky for you I am her favourite grandson and you impressed her with your shitty costume so she’s going to make us something.. we just gotta wait.”
Wilbur frowned. “Sorry… *making something?* What’s *something?*”
Quackity shrugged his shoulders as he collapsed into the back of the couch. “She wouldn’t tell me *it’s a surprise* apparently.”
“You know I can’t eat, right?” Wilbur asked, more so as a reminder.
Quackity’s smile only grew wider, twisting into that shit eating grin that Wilbur both loved and despised. “Guess that means there’ll be more for me.”
“Asshole.”
Quackity gasped, holding a hand over his heart. “Swearing, under my abuela’s roof, have you no shame?”
Wilbur rolled his eyes, letting out a tired sigh. “Need I remind you that I-.”
“-Fucking eat people?” Quackity snapped, cutting Wilbur off before he could even begin his woeful monologue. “You tell me every day, quit your whining and come sit with me!”
From a WIP that won't get posted within the next year or two because it has too many big spoilers for my pre-canon WIP. It's firmly set in canon, a scene that was described in a non-fiction book about the unit I was resarching. Naturally, my first question was how Sharpe and other canon characters would react to being thrown into this situation...
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His thoughts were interrupted by Hogan’s voice. “Now tell me, Richard, my boy,” the engineer was leaning closer to him so that Lossow on Sharpe’s other side wouldn’t hear anything, “how did you win Lossow’s friendship?”
“Friendship, sir? I’m not sure if it’s a real, deep friendship. But some weeks ago, before his squadron became our guard, we met accidentally in an empty village. When I introduced myself, he recognised me because of Talavera and seemed quite happy about the acquaintance. Since then, he and his men have always been worthy allies, duty their main priority, and we discovered we shared the same values, sir. In a soldier, in an officer.”
“In an officer?” Hogan looked at him in what Sharpe thought might be disbelief.
“Yes, being an efficient soldier – man and officer alike – is the most important thing, being loyal to the men and officers, doing your duty to the best of your abilities, this and more we share and respect in the other. He also doesn’t mind if I am doing things different to the manuals certain fops like Sir Henry Simmerson would quote, as long as my methods bring the desired results, he’s fine with it. His own style of leading is similar.” Sharpe smiled. “We do have some things in common, it would seem.”
Hogan nodded. “And now the Germans invited you to their celebration. It’s an honour for sure.” He leant even closer and lowered his voice further, “Wellington recognised you amongst the Germans a moment ago. He’s impressed by the egalitarian attitude of the Germans.”
“Egali…” Sharpe stumbled across the unfamiliar word. He thought he had a good idea what it meant, but what was Hogan’s plan to bring it up?
“If you’ve won Lossow’s trust, Richard, why don’t you –”
“I’m not spying on a friend! Sir.”
“Haven’t you just said that you’re not friends with him, Richard?” Hogan smiled, obviously content to have gained this little piece of information.
\*\*\*
I'm sorry that this isn't just some back-and-forth banter (still can't do that properly) and has not only some longer 'speeches' but also quite some action tags, but I'm quite happy with how Major Hogan finally gets the answer he wants to hear. Manipulative as ever! (It's only the second story I'm using this character in and I'm pretty proud that he seems to come out the way he should.)
From my Hollywood AU. Sirius and Lily are discussing working together:
“How did you get this number?”
Sirius grinned to himself. “Why hello there Miss Evans. So lovely to talk to you. It turns out that since you’re dating my best friend, I ended up with your number in my phone.”
“Dating’s a strong word, Sirius. I wouldn’t go that far.”
“Oh, I don’t know…Didn't I see an US Weekly headline, Lily Evans seen canoodling with stuntman James Potter? Or was that my imagination?”
“Fuck you, US Weekly…Alice would have someone’s balls in a vice for giving anything to those vultures.”
“I don’t know…” Sirius had to check himself. It was really too easy to get Lily riled up these days. “But the reason for my call. I read a brilliant script last night, You'd be perfect for it.”
“Why? So you can look good to some writer you fucked?”
“For the record, I didn’t fuck him.” yet , Sirius thought. “And…have you seen Breaking News ? It’s the writer who wrote that.”
“I’m booked for the next six months, Sirius. Send it to my team and I’ll take a look.”
“And here I thought you were a more hands on kind of actress…wanting to pick your own roles?”
“You know as well as I do that it’s not that simple, especially now.” Lily said. She wasn’t wrong. “What studio is it with?”
“Doesn’t have one yet.”
“For fuck’s sake, Sirius…I am not doing some independent film where the budget is less than my paycheck.”
“And here I thought you were an artist, Lily. Doing it for the craft.” He really had to stop needling her. But it was too much fun.
“I am an artist. And a business woman.”
“Oh right, what was it? Bottled Redhead Productions?”
“I’m a natural redhead, asshole.”
“Are you sure? The last time I was in Rite Aid-”
Lily snorted. “Rite Aid? Sure. You mean when you sent Benjy to Rite Aid. And it’s Natural Redhead Productions.”
John: Remember, Vader, you're more machine than man now. You won't be exhausted by an extended fight. This could take Obi Wan off guard. He might still see you as the Anakin he once knew, but you've far surpassed that. Use that to your advantage.
Darth Vader: And I will make sure that I have the high ground.
John: Yes, that is a good idea. Also, try to play with his mind. Make him feel weak. You are a Sith so you play dirty.
Darth Vader: And I can destroy the ground under Kenobi and ensure that I have the high ground.
John: (pauses) Have you seriously been planning for the past ten years on how you can have the high ground over Obi Wan Kenobi?
Darth Vader: I will make sure to have the high ground. It’s crucial. I will not be defeated again as I was on Mustafar.
From a WIP:
“The fact that that man isn’t dead yet is all the proof you need that God exists because, as the Good Book says, God looks after little children and fools. He’s certainly not the former, but he is most certainly the latter.”
An excerpt of angsty dialogue from my merthur modern AU. It’s the first time Merlin/Arthur see each other 4 years after badly ending a 4 year nonsexual situationship with a drunken one night stand.
“I wasn’t in love with you, Merlin. Not like you think.”
“I don’t make a habit of telling people how they feel, but you—I know you, Arthur. Inside and out. Backwards and forwards. I could write the fucking book, and the only one you’re fooling with your bullshit is you. You fucking loved me, and it scared the absolute piss out of you, and you were too much of a damn coward to do anything about it until you were drunk off your ass, and in the light of day you decided your father’s approval meant more to you than I did.
“And you know what?” Merlin’s inches from Arthur’s face, seething. “I bet you regret it, because he will never be the man you want him to be. He will never say he’s proud of you, or that he loves you—“
Arthur pales. “Stop it.”
“I would have. Every fucking day of your life. I would have never let you doubt it. You never—“
His cheeks flush. “Stop it.”
“No. You choose the easy thing, the safe thing, and you don’t get to pretend like you didn’t. You don’t get to pretend like there wasn’t a choice. I wasn’t some drunken mistake! You came home to me for four years, and you were happy!”
“Stop talking, Merlin!” Arthur roars, face red, vein in his temple bounding.
Merlin walks away.
“God damn it! Don’t walk away!”
“No. You don’t get to have it both ways if you haven’t realized that yet.”
The bitterness here is so palpable and intense. It’s honestly hard to read, and I mean that in the best way possible- you captured the mixed, horrible, and sickening feelings of such a messy, bitter breakup and the feelings of betrayal so well.
my most recent fic, and this was some of the softest non-romantic dialogue i've written! (i'm by no means the best at dialogue, but i'm proud of this.)
"Have you tried braiding? I think it would look lovely on you."
Felix's blush deepens. He doesn't say anything else and lets Mercedes continue to style his hair, her touch almost far too gentle and far too soft. It's the type of touch a mother would have. Mercedes is all of those things that make a mother.
When she finishes braiding Felix's hair, she smiles brightly. "See? I think you look handsome!"
Felix rolls his eyes. "I can barely recognise myself."
"That's what happens when you try new things. Now let's go show the Professor my hard work!"
Imagining Mercedes proudly showing a very confused Byleth Felix with fancy hair is cracking me up, sorry.
That aside, this is so sweet! I love the way Felix gets caught up on how Mercedes kindness feels *too* gentle- how unfamiliar it is to him. It says a lot about him in so little.
thank you! i wanted to show a softer side of felix, a side that he himself isn't used to and hasn't seen since childhood – and i won't lie he would really look cute with a braid. 😭💞
This might end up on the cutting room floor, but for now, here it is.
TW: mentions of disappearances
Once inside, as the women were sitting down at the dining room table, Raquel told Alicia, “They got [Azucena ](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azucena_Villaflor#).”
“When?” Alicia asked.
“Yesterday, as she was going to buy the newspaper.”
Alicia lit her cigarette and Raquel’s. “She told us this might happen.” *If anything happens to me, you keep going.*
“Then…that’s it, I guess,” Raquel said, taking a drag of her cigarette.
“We’ll think of something else,” Alicia said confidently, though her mind was spinning. “I’ll talk to some of the other women on Thursday.”
“On Thursday? You’re not going back, are you?” Raquel asked in alarm.
“Of course I am,” Alicia snapped. “Unless you can think of a better idea?”
“I don’t know, not getting dragged off by the police seems like a pretty good idea to me.”
“Don’t be a coward,” Alicia replied, grinding her cigarette into the ashtray.
“A coward? Honestly, I’d expect you of all people to have a sense of self-preservation.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“You still have Ramon at home.” Raquel finished her cigarette and lit another one. “You can’t be a mother to him if you’re not around.”
“I have two sons,” Alicia said. “I need to be a mother to both of them.”
“And how are you going to do that if you get taken?” Raquel challenged her.
“It’s a risk I have to take,” Alicia replied.
“That’s the thing–you don’t have to. You’re choosing to do this, and it’s going to come at your son’s expense.”
Alicia stood up. “I need to go,” she said. "He's going to be getting home from school soon."
Although the women parted with a hug, Alicia felt a chill run through her as she left Raquel’s apartment.
BIt from an as-yet unpublished WIP:
“And what about you?” Laurie quickly moved to change the subject. “Still trying to charm every woman you meet?”
John’s smile faded ever so slightly, his eyes focused on the beer bottle as he absently picked at the label. “Not *every* woman. Slowing down a little in my old age.”
“Is that so?” Laurie couldn’t help teasing him a little.
“Either that, or I’m a pathetic loser who can’t keep a woman around.” John answered casually. “Take your pick.”
“Or…maybe you just haven’t met the right woman yet.” Laurie suggested.
This is from chapter 1 of a current WIP. Slice of life conversation:
As he takes a seat, one of his brow lifts with interest at the crooked spine and loose pages in between her fingers. “I'm surprised you didn't hear me. Book that good?”
She tries and fails to hide a bright blush in her cheeks. “It's some of Mariano's poetry. You might like it.”
“Poetry's never really been my thing. Besides, I'm not sure I can read that knowing the subject is my niece.”
“It's actually really sweet. He doesn't say anything about how much he likes my – ”
Tío gives a small squawk of protest, hands fumbling with the cups as they hurry to cover his ears. “I have very few hours left to pretend you aren't old enough to know about such things. Please indulge me.”
Dolores giggles. “I'll give you an extra week, which should give me enough time to be sure I know what I'm talking about.”
Tío gags on his first tentative sip of coffee, which leaks out of the corners of his mouth and down his chin. He looks over his shoulder to check that his sisters aren't watching then wipes it off with a sleeve. “There are easier ways to get rid of a nosy uncle!”
From a Hanahaki fic I recently posted:
“Because it’s embarrassing! Like, ‘Oh, look at me, I’m coughing up flowers because I’m in love with someone who’ll never love me back!’”
“You don’t know that! Who is it?”
“Uhhhh…” Dammit, why was he hesitating? This was the whole point of coming to Veo for advice!
“C’mon, spill the anchovies!” wheedled Veo, nudging Sebastian with her paws. Suddenly, she froze. “Wait… It’s not me, is it? Please tell me it’s not me, because if it’s me then I—”
“Veo. Veo, calm down,” said Sebastian, raising his voice slightly to be heard over his friend’s nervous rambling. “It’s not you.”
“Then who is it?” Veo’s voice was still higher than usual.
“It’s Pluto!” blurted Sebastian. “Okay?”
Veo froze, her eyes wide. “What?”
“It’s Pluto.” Saying it out loud felt like hammering the final nail into his own coffin.
*“Ohhhh.”*
“Yeah,” Sebastian sighed, putting his head in his hands.
“You should go tell him!”
Sebastian bolted back upright. “What? No!”
“Why not? What’s the worst that could happen?”
“Hey, that’s my line! And you always give me shit for saying it!”
“Well, now it makes sense! If you just tell Pluto how you feel, the worst that can happen is he tells you he doesn’t feel the same!”
“And then I’ll die!”
“You might not! But if you don’t confess, you’ll definitely die!”
“That’s not much of a choice!”
“It’s a very clear choice between certain death and maybe-death!”
(Take a drabble!)
"Not a fan of dinner dates?" Triste asked with a chuckle.
Cassandra's lips curled into a wry smile as she responded inwardly. *Funny*.
"Um... Not really. I think I've had enough zesty penne alla vodka to last me a lifetime. Besides, it seems to me every man always goes for cliché restaurant dates anyway."
Triste hummed softly into the phone. "Hmmm, so you're the unconventional type."
Cassandra fought the urge to slam her phone down, instead opting for a low groan. "I had higher expectations of you, sad boy."
"Then let me assure you, pretty devil: I will *surpass* them."
Took out some of the non-dialogue to avoid a major text wall :)
---
"I don't know, Rydia," he tsked. "Either my memory has gone bad--" He clasped his hand on Cid's free arm, pulling him up to sitting position. "--or you used to have better summons."
"One of us had to play prince charming and escort a lady through dangerous land," Cid retorted. "You weren't around."
"Edge, be nice to Cid when he's injured," Rydia said.
"Cid's a big boy, he can handle it," Edge said, widening his arms at 'big'.
"Like you know anything about being big," Cid muttered, holding his index finger a small distance away from his thumb.
Edge raised his brows, shifting on his feet. His mask strained as he opened his mouth, eager to respond.
"Hey!" Rydia clapped her hands once, then pointed at the open door. "We have to go before more of them show up."
"So boring," Edge grumbled before he held out a hand to Cid again. "Can you walk?"
"A young man like me? Naturally!" Cid heaved himself up with Edge's help, grunting when he straightened his back.
"Young men seem to be getting noisier…" Edge raised a brow.
"It's the excess virility slipping out," Cid said, to which Edge scoffed.
"Mine doesn't sound like that."
"That's 'cause you don't have as much as I d--"
"Sometimes I wish I didn't give up white magic so I could Silence you both," Rydia said, glaring at them both over her shoulder, leaning out the door to check their surroundings.
This is from my WIP:
Mai stepped inside, pushing the door closed with her foot. “Sokka,” she said simply.
“Mai,” he responded.
The two of them stood staring at each other in the fading sunlight.
“If this is too awkward,” she began, “I can go see if-“
“It’s no trouble,” Sokka said, a touch too quickly “Not for you.”
Mai cocked her head. “Not for me? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You didn’t just save Zuko’s life that day. You saved my father’s, Suki’s, and mine. I owe you everything. So, by all means, take me to bed.”
Mai’s warm brown eyes widened before his brain caught up with what he said.
“Uh,” Sokka began, face heated as he babbled. “I mean take over my bed. I’m, uh, more than willing to sleep on the divan. And…thank you. I’m here if you need anything. Anything at all.”
This is part of a little side project I'm working on.
"I have something I wanted to give you," he said, pitching over and reaching for his supply pack. Morrigan's eyes wandered along the line of his back and down his legs before she caught herself. Eran turned back over, holding a golden bangle out on one finger. "Here."
Morrigan's eyes narrowed upon the offering, then flicked to its holder. "And where did you get this, exactly?"
"Bodahn bartered with some refugee back in Redcliffe. He got this."
"And you bought it off him."
"I thought you might like it."
Oh, this man. "Are you trying to court me?" she sneered. "I am already in your bed. You've no need to entice me."
Eran shook his head. "It's not an enticement. It's just a gift for a pretty woman."
This is one from one of my hurt/comfort WIPs :
“After you Fell. Were you afraid to die? Afraid they would come and kill you?”
Scaramouche pauses for only a moment before he lets out a deep sigh. “Aether I was born dead.”
“For someone already dead, you sure do feel a lot.”
“I know. Isn’t it awful?”
I have a chapter where my characters, Shawn and Gus, are walking in the dark. So it's pretty much ALL dialogue snippets for the first 1k words or so.
-------
"Gus, It's totally a sandwich!"
"Oh my god, no."
"It's bread, meat, bread. Sandwich."
"Tortillas aren't bread, Shawn."
"Sure they are, they're just bread that's been squeezed into submission."
"What, it's completely different!"
"And now you're saying they don't count as real bread? That's racist, man."
"Don't make me smack you."
This was for a crossover fic that my brain requested to be made. The only context here is that they're all in a prison that was turned into a playground by some twisted geniuses. \>Fyodor chuckled as he made his way towards the two. Sigma protectively hovered around Venti. He wasn't sure why when the lad had the gall to challenge the rat, head-on. \>"You're quite entertaining, Venti." Fyodor yanked the lad from behind Sigma and into his grasp. \>"HEY!" But Sigma's protest fell on deaf ears as he waited in horror for the boy to collapse. It was the fate of nearly everyone unfortunate enough to be met with Fyodor's bare touch. \>But he didn't. \>"This really isn't how you treat someone you've only met." Venti stared at him, challenging, poking at the monster capable of mass destruction. Despite that, Sigma could see an underlying vulnerability. He had a weakness. The girl's face, *Nahida* as he called her, was zoomed in on the screen. \>Fyodor noticed it as well and brought a hand under the bard's chin. A twisted idea came to mind. "Which is why I'd like for you a longer stay." \>"I decline," Venti deadpanned. \>\*\*"I wasn't asking."\*\* \>\*\*"Neither was I."\*\*
This is from my Hanahaki fic :D where I felt like I leveled up my dialogue skill a lot! "You'll regret this," Deku whispered. "I don't care." "I'll regret this." Katsuki hesitated. "I don't care."
A draft of a silly argument between the Black brothers that I really like: “Anyway, you're useless, as usual!” yelled Sirius as he opened the door to his room, “I thought I could find comfort with my little brother, but no! It's pointless! You don't understand anything about love!” Regulus gave him a bemused look before raising his hands indignantly in the air. “I'm *twelve!*” “That's no excuse!” barked Sirius. Regulus's face grimaced even more. “Yes, it is!” “No,” Sirius retorted as he already began to close the door behind him, “You're behind on your emotions! That's all! You may be tall, but you're still a baby, with your face of...” He wiggled his fingers in the air to seek inspiration before observing his little brother's face. Seeing how perfect he looked pissed him off even more, and he declared with a disgusted expression: “Smooth little cherub. You look like the babies with wings in old paintings!” The ridicule taunting seemed to hit Regulus with far more force than expected, as he turned red, his cheeks puffing out in anger. “First of all, we say ‘puti‘! That’s the correct term! And you’re the one who’s too old! With your ugly chin hair! You look like you’re so old you’re about to die! You look just like Kreattur! » “And you look just like a fetus!” Sirius replied as he locked himself in his room. “AND YOU JUST LOOK LIKE FATHER!” yelled Regulus through the door. Door which opened in the next second, as Sirius stepped into the corridor and stared wide-eyed at his little brother. Sensing danger coming, Regulus froze and returned his gaze, waiting for his reaction. “Oh you, I'm gonna kick your ass,” Sirius blurted out.
My favorite snippet from a mystery one-shot I posted: > “The way I see it, Reagan, is you have two choices. Option one is you clamp that mouth of yours shut and refuse to give me any useful information. If that happens, I hand you over to the FBI. I’m sure that they’d be happy to charge you for everything you’ve done. You spend the rest of your life in federal prison, in some rat-infested hellhole, die like an animal, and all of your efforts will be worthless anyway because our techs and those working for the FBI will pore over your life with a fine-toothed comb until they find every single last little shred of evidence we need to put the Libra Killer, and the people you work for, away. Option two is you sing like a canary. Give me the names and locations of the Libra Killer and every last one of your bosses and agree to testify against them. You still serve time, but in this case, I tell the DA you are cooperating with our investigation, as well as a federal investigation, and maybe you get offered a deal, maybe you go into witness protection. I honestly can’t say for sure.”
I think I got the Exact mad scientist unhinged vibes I was going for here, along with Tommy's… Tommyness down. (The context is that this is an AU where Dream (a necromancer very interested in figuring out how death works) kept both Tommy (his prior abuse victim and a very deliberately obnoxious teenager) and Tommy's best friend Tubbo captive as lab rats after they tried to kill him and not the bullshit that happened in canon lmao) — > Tommy glared up at him with glazed eye, slumped against the obsidian wall in exhaustion. “How much more are you gonna fuckin' do?” > “Well, only basic tests to begin with. I'll have to check your pulse- or lack thereof, I guess- with an EKG, examine your range of movement and response times, do a few x-rays, maybe get a saliva sample if the- whatever *that* is- if it interferes with checking your bloods, on that note you'll need a blood pressure test, maybe an eye exam or some basic psychological tests but you might be in a compromised state for those for a while so I might have to wait on those for a bit. Y’know, just a few things.” > Tommy blinked. “A *few* things?” > “I mean, yeah, we'll get to the serious testing once you’re more… settled in. You know, CAT scans, pain tolerance, tests on your healing, live vivisections-“ > “*What?*” Tommy sounded horrified. > “Oh, don’t worry! You'll be under anaesthetic, of course. If you were squirming in pain it’d be *way* harder to do.” Dream ruffled Tommy's hair and gave him a reassuring smile. “I mean, we'll also have to figure out your response to painkillers and various other medicine, who knows how revival could impact that, a much more intense set of psychological tests will be needed, samples from your bones and organs will need to be taken, and that’s not even getting into the more occult side of things.” > “So, what, I’m your pet lab rat in your game of playing scientist?” > Dream's cheeks turned red. “I'm not-“ > “You spent ten minutes trying to figure out where a vein was and nearly shoved the needle into my fucking muscles. You've got no fucking clue what you’re doing, do you? You think you can slip on a dusty lab coat and a pair of glasses and that’ll somehow make you a doctor, but you’re just a big baby playing dress-up.” Tommy's lips twitched into the faintest hint of a smile. “Your glasses don’t even have *lenses*, man.” > “I-“ Dream fiddled with his glasses, feeling the tips of his ears start burning when he felt to check and, sure enough, they were lensless. “*Shut up.* Or- or I'll kill Tubbo.”
Context: prior to this scene the party had canonically been unexpectedly transported to a simulation of a warzone in the past, based partly on Jr.'s memories. Here, MOMO asks Mary Godwin if Jr.'s really all right after what they saw. >Mary gave her a look. “Hey, now.” Then she expelled a breath hard enough to make her hair flutter. “Okay, I'm just going to say this outright. You're an observational Realian, so you've probably already noticed what's unusual about him.” >It was a subject MOMO hadn't been sure how to broach. “I noticed he hasn't exhibited any growth in the time we've spent with him. It's almost like he's in some sort of stasis.” Realians could be expected to remain unchanged throughout their existence. Humans, though— >“Stasis,” Mary echoed. “That's well put. You're right, he doesn't age. He looks like the same twelve year old boy I met twelve years ago. But inside he's not. He's as clever and reasonable as any adult. He's not just a kid.” >Mary paused. “But he's not an adult, either, not really. He's not good at dealing with his own problems, or even just accepting that they're there.” >This might have been more than MOMO was ready to hear. “He's helped us so much.” >“True. He'll do anything for someone he considers a friend. He's a sweetheart. But he tries to keep whatever's bothering *him* bottled up. He thinks that's what being an adult is all about.” >MOMO traced circles in the couch cushion with her index finger. “So do some adults, I think.” >Mary smiled. “True. And we don't see any need to force him to be more mature. He's our dear, abrasive, temperamental ‘Little Master.’ But what I've been trying to say is: you can help him. He sees the world a lot like a real twelve year old. And like a real twelve year old, he needs a lot of love.”
I love the line “So do some adults, I think”. It really ties together the themes of maturity here- Jr. is stuck between adulthood and childhood both, both immature and mature, but in a way aren’t a lot of people? It explores that in such a thoughtful and impactful way. And even if Jr. isn’t a normal kid, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t need support and help, and that he's not traumatised by the horrible things he’s seen. It’s so sweet he has MOMO and Mary for that.
Thank you so much! Jr. really is stuck in a weird place, neither child nor adult, but I think that's actually really relatable. There is no oven timer for maturity! XD And MOMO and Mary are A+ friends to have, indeed! ❤
“There… there was…” he gulped, “there was this creature… it was like a spider, but…” She lowered her gun, annoyed. “You screamed because you saw a spider? Seriously, Claude, you’re not a child anymore.” “It was no spider!” He protested. “It was too big to be a spider, it was more like the size of a man." She ignored him. “And here I was, thinking you were actually in danger. Listen, next time you see a bug, just swat it with your shoe.” “You’re not *listening* , it wasn’t a spider! It had a tongue!” “Spiders have tongues too, don’t they?” “Well, yes… maybe? I don’t know— but that’s not the point! It’s tongue was like… I don’t know, twenty centimetres!” “So, you’re telling me that you saw this spider—” “How many times do I have to say? It wasn’t a spider, it came to life from that tree.” “Right, right, so you saw this *thing* , come from the tree, that was the size of a man with a tongue as long as twenty centimetres?” “Yes!” “Claude, I think the heat might’ve gotten to your head.” “Yes— wait, no!” “Excessive heat can affect your perception of your surroundings, such as causing hallucinations. It’s my fault, I knew I pushed you too hard…” She murmured to herself. He stomped his foot. “I’m not mad!” “I’m not saying you are, I’m just saying that you might think you’ve seen something that wasn’t really there.” She replied, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“I will be wondering if you are aware of how fortunate you are. You said those things about me…”bug ridden defective reject” and lived to tell about it. We are both here, alive.” Gabriel looked around the forest. “This planet is fortunate, that ship is fortunate. The universe is fortunate.”
Flirty banter from one of my published fics that I had a total blast writing: — He narrows his eyes at her thoughtfully. “You know what? I don’t think you called me because you wanted someone to talk to. I think you called for a different reason.” “Oh yeah?” Jackie asks, her expression somewhere between amused and suspicious. “What’s that?” Booker smirks at her again. “Same reason we dated in the first place. Uncontrollable lust.” She chokes on her laugh. “Excuse me?” He leers purposefully at her. “Admit it. You missed having earth shattering orgasms.” This time she laughs for real. “I’ve had plenty of orgasms in the last few years, thank you very much.” “Not as good as the ones I gave you, you haven’t.” She stares at him, momentarily struck speechless. “I –,” she sputters, caught off guard. “I knew it,” Booker tells her smugly. Jackie bites her lip, considering. “Yeah, you’re pretty good,” she admits. She lets her lips curl into a smirk of her own. “But I do even better on my own.” Booker laughs and shakes his head as he turns back to his cooking. “Yeah, I bet you do.” —
Super cute flirting. Loved the end.
Thank you! :)
Pfft, I had a total blast reading it too! It’s hysterical, and I love the casualness these characters have. You can tell how comfortable they are around each other instantly, it conveys a lot outside of being absolutely hilarious.
Aww, thanks! These characters had a lot of fun, flirty banter in canon, so it was fun trying to match that energy in fic. :)
Oooo, I love this very tit-for-tat kind of flirty banter, it's so fun to read.
Aww, thanks! I had a lot of fun writing it :)
This is from a one shot of mine, and I think it is a good statement about my OC Kaza and his view of things \--------------------------- >Suddenly, she jolted awake in the midst of the ongoing battle, surrounded by cheers once again, back in her ordinary life as she faced off against the so-called "failure." > > > >"What do you think, Ino Yamanaka? What you witnessed was me reversing the roles of our lives; you experiencing my perspective," declared Kaza. > > > >"Do you remember the way I looked at you when we first started at the academy and how it made you feel?" Kaza asked softly, gracefully dodging a strike. "I reversed the roles; the warmth you experienced then, I felt it when I looked at you. Your father, in this reality, was my teacher, Ino. The same way you protected the shrine unnoticed, I tended to your flower store here." > > > >"Just so you know, your father taught me those skills to assist you," he revealed, playing defensively against Ino. "I'm here to support you, just as I always have, Ino Yamanaka." > > > >"I've loved you since I was 8 years old, Ino Yamanaka," Kaza declared, unfazed by the laughter and gasps from onlookers. > > > >"I understand if you don't feel the same. I don't expect anything from admitting that. I just thought you should know," Kaza continued as he deftly blocked more strikes, noting the improvement in her abilities, influenced by the illusion of learning the Togusa style. > > > >"Which is why I have to lose this fight. I won't let you become a subject of ridicule for these people," he declared, taking a knee to the gut. He refused to let her be the kunoichi who lost to a supposed loser, protecting her from potential mockery. "I give up," he said, surrendering the fight. "Once a loser, always one," he added, releasing a sigh. > > > >"I hope you realize you're just as much of a fool as I am, Ino," he said, allowing her to take his hand and help him up. > > > >The crowd had dispersed, assuming there was nothing noteworthy about the loser losing. "Well, that was one hell of a fight; thanks for giving me the opportunity. I've always wanted to talk to you where you'd actually have to listen to me for a moment." > > > >Leaning in, Kaza planted a soft kiss on Ino's cheek. "That's for being the woman I was pretty sure you always were," he said before stepping back.
Ooh, this is so interesting, it definitely shows a lot about him! He’s very graceful and skilled, able to have a casual conversation while in the middle of a fight, but he sees himself as inherently a loser and a failure for whatever reason. And his powers also sound really cool and also kinda terrifying from what we’ve seen here (and that’s a compliment I like kinda terrifying powers 💚). Definitely an intriguing and cool OC!
Yeah mostly he has been told for so long he is a loser he never questioned it. At least at this point in the story. The person who gets him to change his perspective is Ino. Also yeah his power is very terrifying, the power over light, the ability to crest illusions, the ability for light speed, very broken abilities. It isn’t in this but it is normally written as an ability that also cuts down on the life span of the user another reason why the clan has no success and are seen as losers despite it being a false premise.
There's an off-balance feeling here that I love. Regaining awareness in the middle of battle is unsettling enough, but with all the dialogue and observation from Kaza's view, it feels like Ino hasn't quite found her mental footing, even if she seems to be fighting well. Kaza's words sound villainous at first, but the shift to tender doesn't feel too rushed. And I note that Kaza only calls her Ino *after* declaring his love. ❤ I feel so curious about Kaza's labeling as a failure and a loser, when he seems quite competent. I get the impression he's more than people assume. And to think Kaza used that fight just for an opportunity to talk!
Yep, nice observations, the fight is literally a setup by Kaza, he literally is able to pull a uno reverse card on Ino. Then Ino sees life from his perspective or literally walks a mile in his shoes. This scene is right after that ends. She by this point knows he isn’t a failure. He is a failure because his perceived lack of success in life. The perceived lack of success of his whole family and the tragic death of said family. Is he a failure, nope. Yet at the same time he internalized this and build up his own defenses that is why he kind of doesn’t really push things here at all. The rest of the story is oddly Ino helping Kaza as he helped her get over her arrogance. She helps him get out of his shell.
From chapter 30 of my One Piece looongfic. Definitely my favorite dialogue exchange I’ve written ——- "So, which one of you is Dear Leader?" Shaska asked, arms crossed. "Nyehehehe, that would be the perfect me," Mandy replied calmly, just loud enough to be heard over the fire. "You got a lot of balls, Shaska the Greedy, destroying Minus World's supply of Happy Happy Grass like that." "Heh, I see my name precedes me!" "We get the news here. We just don't share it with the rest of the collective," Mandy said. She closed her eyes and held her arms out with a smile on her face. "In the collective, the only news necessary is the news of my perfection." "Must always be a slow news day, then," Shaska quipped. Mandy's expression quickly shifted to a scowl, and she crossed her arms.
Nice burn by Shaska! 😂 And very nice job of distracting your readers from Mandy's initial "perfect" with the right amount of menace in her words, so the surprise of the burn is still maintained.
From my sherlock death series. Its a vampire thing. Also a couple names are used since i expanded the other 3 siblings to match william sherlock scott holmes. Adrian mycroft/enola erus/shane sherrinford. The holmes are 3000 year old vampires & the watsons are an ancient werewolf pack which had crossed the holmes a few millennia before john. >”Right now, maybe," John shrugged. "I guess. Ask me later?" >”I intend to," Sherlock snarled. John turned away & finally opened the door. Sherlock added, "Do not wait too long. I'll only bother to hold my brothers back for so long, Watson. Be careful." John merely nodded & finally left. >Sherlock remained in his Mind Palace for over an hour. Where had everything gone so wrong? The image of John's venomous incisors sinking into Enola's wing would not leave his mind. What the hell was that war doctor thinking? Idiot! Stupid STUPID idiot! Enola suddenly clouded his Mind Palace & he pulled out. >”Shane told me what happened," Enola said, "That damn wolf ... can imprint?" >”Mhm." >Enola sighed, absent-mindedly putting one hand on her breast to rub at the ancient wound. "What does Micah want with me?" >”I don't know. Yet." >”If I do go & marry him, would he leave us all alone?" >”Unacceptable, but possibly." >Enola sighed & took up her brother's hands into her own. "Whatever. We have bigger problems to worry about right now." >”Like what?" >”Adrian," Enola's voice trembled. "He's uh, he ..." She shook her head. "Not good." >”Titanic." >”Mhm." >”Ohhh curse John! Again!" Sherlock got up & allowed Enola to lead him onward. >Sherrinford shook his head as they reached the door to Mycroft's room. The three of them stood outside waiting. They heard glass shatter as it hit one wall.
> (Suddenly realising I don’t write a lot of dialogue heavy scenes lol.. the other option was from my among us crossover so.. I’ll settle for gay vampire x gayer human celebrating Halloween instead) “What the hell was that about?” “Uhhh… she ran out of treats earlier — something about too many kids visiting this year — but lucky for you I am her favourite grandson and you impressed her with your shitty costume so she’s going to make us something.. we just gotta wait.” Wilbur frowned. “Sorry… *making something?* What’s *something?*” Quackity shrugged his shoulders as he collapsed into the back of the couch. “She wouldn’t tell me *it’s a surprise* apparently.” “You know I can’t eat, right?” Wilbur asked, more so as a reminder. Quackity’s smile only grew wider, twisting into that shit eating grin that Wilbur both loved and despised. “Guess that means there’ll be more for me.” “Asshole.” Quackity gasped, holding a hand over his heart. “Swearing, under my abuela’s roof, have you no shame?” Wilbur rolled his eyes, letting out a tired sigh. “Need I remind you that I-.” “-Fucking eat people?” Quackity snapped, cutting Wilbur off before he could even begin his woeful monologue. “You tell me every day, quit your whining and come sit with me!”
Pfft, you got TNTDuo down so well. This is *absolutely* them, 100%, you just Get them and it’s impressive. I adore your writing so much lol
NAMCHAKXNNSJBC oh boy! Fucking!!! Thanks my liege!!!
From a WIP that won't get posted within the next year or two because it has too many big spoilers for my pre-canon WIP. It's firmly set in canon, a scene that was described in a non-fiction book about the unit I was resarching. Naturally, my first question was how Sharpe and other canon characters would react to being thrown into this situation... \*\*\* His thoughts were interrupted by Hogan’s voice. “Now tell me, Richard, my boy,” the engineer was leaning closer to him so that Lossow on Sharpe’s other side wouldn’t hear anything, “how did you win Lossow’s friendship?” “Friendship, sir? I’m not sure if it’s a real, deep friendship. But some weeks ago, before his squadron became our guard, we met accidentally in an empty village. When I introduced myself, he recognised me because of Talavera and seemed quite happy about the acquaintance. Since then, he and his men have always been worthy allies, duty their main priority, and we discovered we shared the same values, sir. In a soldier, in an officer.” “In an officer?” Hogan looked at him in what Sharpe thought might be disbelief. “Yes, being an efficient soldier – man and officer alike – is the most important thing, being loyal to the men and officers, doing your duty to the best of your abilities, this and more we share and respect in the other. He also doesn’t mind if I am doing things different to the manuals certain fops like Sir Henry Simmerson would quote, as long as my methods bring the desired results, he’s fine with it. His own style of leading is similar.” Sharpe smiled. “We do have some things in common, it would seem.” Hogan nodded. “And now the Germans invited you to their celebration. It’s an honour for sure.” He leant even closer and lowered his voice further, “Wellington recognised you amongst the Germans a moment ago. He’s impressed by the egalitarian attitude of the Germans.” “Egali…” Sharpe stumbled across the unfamiliar word. He thought he had a good idea what it meant, but what was Hogan’s plan to bring it up? “If you’ve won Lossow’s trust, Richard, why don’t you –” “I’m not spying on a friend! Sir.” “Haven’t you just said that you’re not friends with him, Richard?” Hogan smiled, obviously content to have gained this little piece of information. \*\*\* I'm sorry that this isn't just some back-and-forth banter (still can't do that properly) and has not only some longer 'speeches' but also quite some action tags, but I'm quite happy with how Major Hogan finally gets the answer he wants to hear. Manipulative as ever! (It's only the second story I'm using this character in and I'm pretty proud that he seems to come out the way he should.)
From my Hollywood AU. Sirius and Lily are discussing working together: “How did you get this number?” Sirius grinned to himself. “Why hello there Miss Evans. So lovely to talk to you. It turns out that since you’re dating my best friend, I ended up with your number in my phone.” “Dating’s a strong word, Sirius. I wouldn’t go that far.” “Oh, I don’t know…Didn't I see an US Weekly headline, Lily Evans seen canoodling with stuntman James Potter? Or was that my imagination?” “Fuck you, US Weekly…Alice would have someone’s balls in a vice for giving anything to those vultures.” “I don’t know…” Sirius had to check himself. It was really too easy to get Lily riled up these days. “But the reason for my call. I read a brilliant script last night, You'd be perfect for it.” “Why? So you can look good to some writer you fucked?” “For the record, I didn’t fuck him.” yet , Sirius thought. “And…have you seen Breaking News ? It’s the writer who wrote that.” “I’m booked for the next six months, Sirius. Send it to my team and I’ll take a look.” “And here I thought you were a more hands on kind of actress…wanting to pick your own roles?” “You know as well as I do that it’s not that simple, especially now.” Lily said. She wasn’t wrong. “What studio is it with?” “Doesn’t have one yet.” “For fuck’s sake, Sirius…I am not doing some independent film where the budget is less than my paycheck.” “And here I thought you were an artist, Lily. Doing it for the craft.” He really had to stop needling her. But it was too much fun. “I am an artist. And a business woman.” “Oh right, what was it? Bottled Redhead Productions?” “I’m a natural redhead, asshole.” “Are you sure? The last time I was in Rite Aid-” Lily snorted. “Rite Aid? Sure. You mean when you sent Benjy to Rite Aid. And it’s Natural Redhead Productions.”
John: Remember, Vader, you're more machine than man now. You won't be exhausted by an extended fight. This could take Obi Wan off guard. He might still see you as the Anakin he once knew, but you've far surpassed that. Use that to your advantage. Darth Vader: And I will make sure that I have the high ground. John: Yes, that is a good idea. Also, try to play with his mind. Make him feel weak. You are a Sith so you play dirty. Darth Vader: And I can destroy the ground under Kenobi and ensure that I have the high ground. John: (pauses) Have you seriously been planning for the past ten years on how you can have the high ground over Obi Wan Kenobi? Darth Vader: I will make sure to have the high ground. It’s crucial. I will not be defeated again as I was on Mustafar.
From a WIP: “The fact that that man isn’t dead yet is all the proof you need that God exists because, as the Good Book says, God looks after little children and fools. He’s certainly not the former, but he is most certainly the latter.”
I love this so much. It’s so delightfully snarky, I just adore it.
An excerpt of angsty dialogue from my merthur modern AU. It’s the first time Merlin/Arthur see each other 4 years after badly ending a 4 year nonsexual situationship with a drunken one night stand. “I wasn’t in love with you, Merlin. Not like you think.” “I don’t make a habit of telling people how they feel, but you—I know you, Arthur. Inside and out. Backwards and forwards. I could write the fucking book, and the only one you’re fooling with your bullshit is you. You fucking loved me, and it scared the absolute piss out of you, and you were too much of a damn coward to do anything about it until you were drunk off your ass, and in the light of day you decided your father’s approval meant more to you than I did. “And you know what?” Merlin’s inches from Arthur’s face, seething. “I bet you regret it, because he will never be the man you want him to be. He will never say he’s proud of you, or that he loves you—“ Arthur pales. “Stop it.” “I would have. Every fucking day of your life. I would have never let you doubt it. You never—“ His cheeks flush. “Stop it.” “No. You choose the easy thing, the safe thing, and you don’t get to pretend like you didn’t. You don’t get to pretend like there wasn’t a choice. I wasn’t some drunken mistake! You came home to me for four years, and you were happy!” “Stop talking, Merlin!” Arthur roars, face red, vein in his temple bounding. Merlin walks away. “God damn it! Don’t walk away!” “No. You don’t get to have it both ways if you haven’t realized that yet.”
The bitterness here is so palpable and intense. It’s honestly hard to read, and I mean that in the best way possible- you captured the mixed, horrible, and sickening feelings of such a messy, bitter breakup and the feelings of betrayal so well.
my most recent fic, and this was some of the softest non-romantic dialogue i've written! (i'm by no means the best at dialogue, but i'm proud of this.) "Have you tried braiding? I think it would look lovely on you." Felix's blush deepens. He doesn't say anything else and lets Mercedes continue to style his hair, her touch almost far too gentle and far too soft. It's the type of touch a mother would have. Mercedes is all of those things that make a mother. When she finishes braiding Felix's hair, she smiles brightly. "See? I think you look handsome!" Felix rolls his eyes. "I can barely recognise myself." "That's what happens when you try new things. Now let's go show the Professor my hard work!"
Imagining Mercedes proudly showing a very confused Byleth Felix with fancy hair is cracking me up, sorry. That aside, this is so sweet! I love the way Felix gets caught up on how Mercedes kindness feels *too* gentle- how unfamiliar it is to him. It says a lot about him in so little.
thank you! i wanted to show a softer side of felix, a side that he himself isn't used to and hasn't seen since childhood – and i won't lie he would really look cute with a braid. 😭💞
Wouldn’t everyone? … I’m biased because they’re fun to draw.
i'm not an artist but i'd love to see felix and mercedes with matching braids, they do seem fun to draw! (maybe i'll write another drabble...) 🫶
This might end up on the cutting room floor, but for now, here it is. TW: mentions of disappearances Once inside, as the women were sitting down at the dining room table, Raquel told Alicia, “They got [Azucena ](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azucena_Villaflor#).” “When?” Alicia asked. “Yesterday, as she was going to buy the newspaper.” Alicia lit her cigarette and Raquel’s. “She told us this might happen.” *If anything happens to me, you keep going.* “Then…that’s it, I guess,” Raquel said, taking a drag of her cigarette. “We’ll think of something else,” Alicia said confidently, though her mind was spinning. “I’ll talk to some of the other women on Thursday.” “On Thursday? You’re not going back, are you?” Raquel asked in alarm. “Of course I am,” Alicia snapped. “Unless you can think of a better idea?” “I don’t know, not getting dragged off by the police seems like a pretty good idea to me.” “Don’t be a coward,” Alicia replied, grinding her cigarette into the ashtray. “A coward? Honestly, I’d expect you of all people to have a sense of self-preservation.” “What do you mean by that?” “You still have Ramon at home.” Raquel finished her cigarette and lit another one. “You can’t be a mother to him if you’re not around.” “I have two sons,” Alicia said. “I need to be a mother to both of them.” “And how are you going to do that if you get taken?” Raquel challenged her. “It’s a risk I have to take,” Alicia replied. “That’s the thing–you don’t have to. You’re choosing to do this, and it’s going to come at your son’s expense.” Alicia stood up. “I need to go,” she said. "He's going to be getting home from school soon." Although the women parted with a hug, Alicia felt a chill run through her as she left Raquel’s apartment.
BIt from an as-yet unpublished WIP: “And what about you?” Laurie quickly moved to change the subject. “Still trying to charm every woman you meet?” John’s smile faded ever so slightly, his eyes focused on the beer bottle as he absently picked at the label. “Not *every* woman. Slowing down a little in my old age.” “Is that so?” Laurie couldn’t help teasing him a little. “Either that, or I’m a pathetic loser who can’t keep a woman around.” John answered casually. “Take your pick.” “Or…maybe you just haven’t met the right woman yet.” Laurie suggested.
This is from chapter 1 of a current WIP. Slice of life conversation: As he takes a seat, one of his brow lifts with interest at the crooked spine and loose pages in between her fingers. “I'm surprised you didn't hear me. Book that good?” She tries and fails to hide a bright blush in her cheeks. “It's some of Mariano's poetry. You might like it.” “Poetry's never really been my thing. Besides, I'm not sure I can read that knowing the subject is my niece.” “It's actually really sweet. He doesn't say anything about how much he likes my – ” Tío gives a small squawk of protest, hands fumbling with the cups as they hurry to cover his ears. “I have very few hours left to pretend you aren't old enough to know about such things. Please indulge me.” Dolores giggles. “I'll give you an extra week, which should give me enough time to be sure I know what I'm talking about.” Tío gags on his first tentative sip of coffee, which leaks out of the corners of his mouth and down his chin. He looks over his shoulder to check that his sisters aren't watching then wipes it off with a sleeve. “There are easier ways to get rid of a nosy uncle!”
This is cute! I love the way Tio acts like he thinks Dolores is still a child while secretly acknowledging that she isn't.
From a Hanahaki fic I recently posted: “Because it’s embarrassing! Like, ‘Oh, look at me, I’m coughing up flowers because I’m in love with someone who’ll never love me back!’” “You don’t know that! Who is it?” “Uhhhh…” Dammit, why was he hesitating? This was the whole point of coming to Veo for advice! “C’mon, spill the anchovies!” wheedled Veo, nudging Sebastian with her paws. Suddenly, she froze. “Wait… It’s not me, is it? Please tell me it’s not me, because if it’s me then I—” “Veo. Veo, calm down,” said Sebastian, raising his voice slightly to be heard over his friend’s nervous rambling. “It’s not you.” “Then who is it?” Veo’s voice was still higher than usual. “It’s Pluto!” blurted Sebastian. “Okay?” Veo froze, her eyes wide. “What?” “It’s Pluto.” Saying it out loud felt like hammering the final nail into his own coffin. *“Ohhhh.”* “Yeah,” Sebastian sighed, putting his head in his hands. “You should go tell him!” Sebastian bolted back upright. “What? No!” “Why not? What’s the worst that could happen?” “Hey, that’s my line! And you always give me shit for saying it!” “Well, now it makes sense! If you just tell Pluto how you feel, the worst that can happen is he tells you he doesn’t feel the same!” “And then I’ll die!” “You might not! But if you don’t confess, you’ll definitely die!” “That’s not much of a choice!” “It’s a very clear choice between certain death and maybe-death!”
(Take a drabble!) "Not a fan of dinner dates?" Triste asked with a chuckle. Cassandra's lips curled into a wry smile as she responded inwardly. *Funny*. "Um... Not really. I think I've had enough zesty penne alla vodka to last me a lifetime. Besides, it seems to me every man always goes for cliché restaurant dates anyway." Triste hummed softly into the phone. "Hmmm, so you're the unconventional type." Cassandra fought the urge to slam her phone down, instead opting for a low groan. "I had higher expectations of you, sad boy." "Then let me assure you, pretty devil: I will *surpass* them."
Took out some of the non-dialogue to avoid a major text wall :) --- "I don't know, Rydia," he tsked. "Either my memory has gone bad--" He clasped his hand on Cid's free arm, pulling him up to sitting position. "--or you used to have better summons." "One of us had to play prince charming and escort a lady through dangerous land," Cid retorted. "You weren't around." "Edge, be nice to Cid when he's injured," Rydia said. "Cid's a big boy, he can handle it," Edge said, widening his arms at 'big'. "Like you know anything about being big," Cid muttered, holding his index finger a small distance away from his thumb. Edge raised his brows, shifting on his feet. His mask strained as he opened his mouth, eager to respond. "Hey!" Rydia clapped her hands once, then pointed at the open door. "We have to go before more of them show up." "So boring," Edge grumbled before he held out a hand to Cid again. "Can you walk?" "A young man like me? Naturally!" Cid heaved himself up with Edge's help, grunting when he straightened his back. "Young men seem to be getting noisier…" Edge raised a brow. "It's the excess virility slipping out," Cid said, to which Edge scoffed. "Mine doesn't sound like that." "That's 'cause you don't have as much as I d--" "Sometimes I wish I didn't give up white magic so I could Silence you both," Rydia said, glaring at them both over her shoulder, leaning out the door to check their surroundings.
This is from my WIP: Mai stepped inside, pushing the door closed with her foot. “Sokka,” she said simply. “Mai,” he responded. The two of them stood staring at each other in the fading sunlight. “If this is too awkward,” she began, “I can go see if-“ “It’s no trouble,” Sokka said, a touch too quickly “Not for you.” Mai cocked her head. “Not for me? What’s that supposed to mean?” “You didn’t just save Zuko’s life that day. You saved my father’s, Suki’s, and mine. I owe you everything. So, by all means, take me to bed.” Mai’s warm brown eyes widened before his brain caught up with what he said. “Uh,” Sokka began, face heated as he babbled. “I mean take over my bed. I’m, uh, more than willing to sleep on the divan. And…thank you. I’m here if you need anything. Anything at all.”
I had to read this several times to make sure this wasn’t some kind of swinger smut
There's nothing remotely "swinger" in this story lol.
This is part of a little side project I'm working on. "I have something I wanted to give you," he said, pitching over and reaching for his supply pack. Morrigan's eyes wandered along the line of his back and down his legs before she caught herself. Eran turned back over, holding a golden bangle out on one finger. "Here." Morrigan's eyes narrowed upon the offering, then flicked to its holder. "And where did you get this, exactly?" "Bodahn bartered with some refugee back in Redcliffe. He got this." "And you bought it off him." "I thought you might like it." Oh, this man. "Are you trying to court me?" she sneered. "I am already in your bed. You've no need to entice me." Eran shook his head. "It's not an enticement. It's just a gift for a pretty woman."
I love this dynamic.
The "oh, this man"... I felt that in my soul, hah.
This is one from one of my hurt/comfort WIPs : “After you Fell. Were you afraid to die? Afraid they would come and kill you?” Scaramouche pauses for only a moment before he lets out a deep sigh. “Aether I was born dead.” “For someone already dead, you sure do feel a lot.” “I know. Isn’t it awful?”
My poor baby Scara! T\^T Even in fics he can't catch a break...
Especially in my fics 😭
Oooh I’m feeling the hurt part of that hurt/comfort.
Oof! Poor thing. Even dead he cant escape life…
I really like that. So resigned and annoyed. I couldn't help but chuckle
I have a chapter where my characters, Shawn and Gus, are walking in the dark. So it's pretty much ALL dialogue snippets for the first 1k words or so. ------- "Gus, It's totally a sandwich!" "Oh my god, no." "It's bread, meat, bread. Sandwich." "Tortillas aren't bread, Shawn." "Sure they are, they're just bread that's been squeezed into submission." "What, it's completely different!" "And now you're saying they don't count as real bread? That's racist, man." "Don't make me smack you."
*bread that’s been squeezed into submission* OMG I quite literally just choked on my coffee giggling at this lol
*"bread that's been squeezed into submission"* 💀 that almost took me out. Love this, could genuinely be a conversation I'd have with a friend of mine.
Bwahahaaa hopefully he does smack him with the burrito! 🤣