#“i've given up a few of my favorite people / for time alone with someone i despise.”

[izel-scribbles]

need everyone to go listen to this guy's music and come back to me once you Understand how malevolent coded i- hey why are you taking the mic away

[willowsnook]

When Love is Left Unspoken pt. 2 (MV)

max verstappen x reader

pt. 1 here

I could be talked into a pt. 3 if people want it

It had been a week since the Austin GP and forgetting about what happened had been impossible mostly because Max would not leave you alone.

He didn't reach out directly, but every morning this week, you had woken up to a new gift outside your door. Flowers, chocolate, coffee, pastries, clothing, etc. You had no idea how he even knew your address.

You struggled with what to do. On one hand, you had missed your best friend for a long time. You missed the inside jokes, the comfort you found in him, and supporting one another. But on the other hand, you couldn't stop thinking about how he threw it all away because he was scared of loving you. You had never been scared of loving him, even if you never said. Well maybe that was hypocritical.

Saturday morning an envelope accompanied the box outside of your door. You opened the box first, revealing a vintage RedBull racing bomber jacket that cost who knows how much. It was cute, you'd give it that. Opening the envelope you froze as you read the letter that sat next to a paddock pass for the Brazil GP.

I know you hate me and you have a good reason to but I will do anything to have you back by my side even if you refuse to look at me. Please come to Brazil, I know it's your favorite track. You can stay on Checo's side of the garage if it makes you feel better.

Love, Your Max

Brazil was your favorite track and in the past you had always travelled down early to experience the culture for a bit before the racing started.

You facetimed Carmen, hoping to talk this through with someone else.

"Hey girl, what's up?" She asked, clearly in the middle of a workout.

"Oh, I can call later if you're busy," you said and she shook her head.

"No, it's okay!"

"Max invited me to the Brazilian GP," you told her slowly and her eyes widened.

"Wow."

"I know, I don't know what to do."

Carmen was silent for a little bit, clearly thinking. "Is there any part of you that wants to make up with him?"

"Yes," you admitted quietly. "But I hate myself for even thinking that. I don't want to just forget about everything that happened and take him back with open arms."

"I don't think you necessarily have to forget what happened but maybe focus on the people you both have grown to be in these last few years. Maybe treat it like you are starting over."

"So you think I should go?"

"Selfishly yes of course," she said grinning and you couldn't help but smile back. "You don't even have to spend time with him. Just see how it feels to be around him."

After hanging up with Carmen, you texted the number Max had given you for his assistant in order to get flights and a hotel figured out.

-----------------------------------

You landed in Brazil on media day and didn't plan on going to the track until Saturday. Max was pulling out all the stops even when he couldn't see you as evidenced by the ridiculously nice hotel he put you in. The view was amazing and laying on the bed was a variety of your favorite snacks and drinks with a card that read "I'm so glad you're here -your Max."

The 'Your Max' thing was working even though you hated to admit it. You spent the next two days traveling around the city by yourself and then with Carmen.

Saturday rolled around and you found yourself nervous to be at the paddock despite Carmen's constant reassurances. You hadn't seen Max yet and you weren't really sure what to say when you did.

Funny enough, the first person you ran into when you made it to the RedBull garage was Christian Horner.

"Y/n!" He said surprised to see you. "It's been a while, how are you? You know my wife is obsessed with your tik tok channel."

"Ahh tell her I said thank you," you replied kindly. "I've been doing well."

"We're glad to have you back," he said and your heart swelled. "It's been a rough year for him."

"I'm not sure I can change that," you said politely and he gave you a look.

"You just being here might," he commented before leaving you to go talk with the mechanics. You wandered around the garage, catching up with a lot of people you hadn't seen in a long time.

Max spotted you as he was coming out of his drivers' room and his heart stopped. Of course he knew you were in Brazil, but he still wasn't 100% sure you'd show up. He didn't think he should approach you so he just lingered by watching you. You felt him watching you and looked over at him, trying to control your breathing and gave him a small smile.

He smiled back before being called off to get ready for the sprint. Leaning against the back wall you pulled your headphones and settled in to watch. Max was doing pretty good, battling with Charles for most of the race. Your face appeared on the broadcast and you smiled to the camera, giving it a small wave.

After the race you checked your phone to see that you'd been tagged in countless tweets.

@.username12312: Was that y/n y/l/n in the RedBull garage? I thought her and Max had a falling out???

reply to @.usernam12312 @.user345: Yeah they haven't been friends for a long time. It had something to do with Kelly

reply to @.user345 @.username12312: oh yeah, you're right! I always liked y/n better anyways

You were amused reading the speculation and decided to stir the pot further. While Max was doing interviews you found Checo in the garage and asked him to take a picture with you. The confused man agreed and you quickly posted it to your Instagram story with the caption: My favorite RedBull driver, good luck tomorrow!

Carmen and Lily both slid up with laughing emojis and you walked back to Max's side, trying to avoid the rain. It was really coming down now and you weren't sure if they would even be able to go out on the track. You found Max a little while later sitting against the wall, legs sprawled out in front of him. You sunk down next to him, holding your knees into your chest.

"Think you'll be able to go out there today?" You asked casually and he looked over at you, clearly excited to hear you speaking to him.

"I would say probably not," he replied. "Maybe tomorrow morning."

"How much longer until we know?"

"Another half hour would be my guess," he said. "I can call for someone to take you back if you want to leave now?"

"No, I'll wait," you said looking down at your phone. You sat in silence for a while and the rain was starting to make you very sleepy. Losing the battle with yourself, you rested your head on Max's shoulder and he stiffened.

Max smiled to himself as you dozed off and the two of you caught the attention of the cameras, the photo soon to be splashed everywhere online. Quali was called off and Max nudged you awake, reaching out to help you up.

"Ride with me back?" He asked hopeful and you nodded. You ran into George and Carmen on the way out and she gave you a knowing look to which you rolled your eyes at.

"You guys should come out to dinner with us," George said. "We're meeting up with Alex and Lily too."

You hesitated, not wanting to miss out but at the same time your social battery was dead. You could only handle so much social interaction before you were craving your warm bed to snuggle into. You started to give in and agree but Max cut you off.

"I think y/n is done being around people for the day so I'm going to take her back."

You looked at him surprised and the realization that he still knew you so well just added more fire to the internal turmoil you were facing. Bidding them goodbye, you followed Max out of the paddock and into the car he had rented for the weekend. The car ride was silent as well as the elevator ride up to your floor.

Max followed close behind you as you made your way to your room and it was starting to irritate you.

"You don't need to walk me to my room Max," you said and he looked at your sheepishly.

"I'm in the one right next to you."

"Are you fucking serious?" You asked frustrated. "I need space Max!"

"I just want you to be safe," he defended and you rolled your eyes.

"From what?" You exclaimed. "Oh yeah, your girlfriend I mean ex-girlfriend is from here. Think she's sending people after me?"

"I don't think that's funny," he said, eyes darkening. "Sue me for wanting you close to me. I'm not going to apologize for that."

"You are the worst," you bit out before shoving into your room, slamming the door.

---------------------------------------

Stepping out of the steaming shower and back into the bedroom you glanced worriedly out the window. You wouldn't necessarily say that you had a fear of thunderstorms but they tended to make you uneasy.

Trying to distract yourself you put on South Park, your favorite show to watch in a hotel, but it didn't work. After a couple of booms you were still on edge. Sighing you got up and left your room, hoping a small walk around the hotel would ease your mind. By the time you made it back, Max was leaning against the wall by your door, waiting for you.

"Can't sleep?" He asked and you nodded.

"The storms."

"You always were scared of them," he teased and you scoffed.

"I'm not scared of them!" Right as you said that, a streak of lighting flashed by the hallway's window followed by a loud crash of thunder. You jumped a little and Max smirked.

"Come on," he said gesturing back to his room. You hesitated and he sighed. "We both know you won't fall asleep alone to this."

Giving in, you followed him into his room. It was a carbon copy of yours and you were amused to see South Park playing on his tv. He climbed into his bed but you stopped short; the scene in front of you reminded you of so many times before. When you traveled with him back in the day you'd often find yourself in his room at night hanging out. You always fell asleep and woke up in his arms, neither of you ever saying anything about it.

Max sat up in the bed looking at you, he knew what you were thinking.

"Y/n," he said softly as he watched you wipe a tear from your eye.

"This is so hard Max," you said, voice breaking. "How am I supposed to just forget?"

"I don't know," he confessed. "I'm sorry."

"It's not even like you broke my heart that day," you said meeting his eyes. "You had chipped away at it for so long that there wasn't even anything left to break."

Max's heart dropped and he moved over closer to where you were standing, so that you were now eye level.

"I was so scared back then y/n," he said and you put your head into your hands. "So scared of failing that I did things I shouldn't have done, like pushing you away to protect myself."

"Protect yourself from what?" You said, looking back at him.

"Your unconditional love," he said sadly and you tried to compose yourself, taking a deep breath.

"You acted like nothing happened, I watched you move on with your life," you accused, whispering to him.

"I did not move on, I was a mess. I couldn't eat or sleep for months and I latched on to you in whatever way I could through your videos or podcast. Every picture or video you saw of me was strictly PR."

"But you never reached out, not once in these past few years," you said, starting to grow angry with him.

"Neither did you!" He exclaimed.

"That's not fair Max," you retorted, moving away from him.

"Isn't it though? You accused me of moving on but I watched you do the same. I watched your popularity grow, watched you start to travel around the world, watched you post with other guys. You didn't need me to be happy."

"I needed my best friend!" You yelled and he flinched. "I needed you to be there to call when I got a new deal! I needed you to be there to lean on when I had self doubt! You ruined everything Max. I could never be truly happy celebrating something because in the back of my mind I was thinking about how you should have been there with me!"

Max squeezed his eyes shut, sitting down on the bed.

"I don't know how to fix this schatje," he whispered and you flinched at the term of endearment. "Everything has been so dark for so long. I am okay with you hating me forever. Because even if you just look at me, it'll be a better day than what I've had."

Sniffling, you stared into his red rimmed eyes. "I want to forget about you so badly Max but I can't."

He smiled softly at you before patting the bed.

"Please sleep here tonight, it will make me feel so much better knowing you were well rested. I'll sleep on the pull out couch," he said standing up.

"Just sleep in the bed with me," you said sighing, wiping the tears from your face before climbing into the bed. Max slid in next to you, leaving a healthy distance between the two of you and you drifted off to sleep.

The sound of his alarm woke you up at 4:30 and you groaned sleepily. Max's arms were wrapped tightly around you, his head buried in your hair as he refused to open his eyes.

"Max, you have to wake up," you said and he mumbled incoherently into you. You pried his hands off your body and stood up, stretching. He watched you lazily from the bed, wondering if this was a dream.

"I'm going to go get ready and then I'll meet you back in the hallway in 30 minutes okay?" You asked him and he nodded. Leaving his room you headed back into yours to get ready for the day. Your eyes were still a little swollen from last night but that was nothing a little makeup couldn't fix.

Pairing the new RedBull jacket with a black jeans you gathered all your stuff before texting Carmen about what had happened last night. All she responded was that we would discuss it in person and sent a winky face.

Max looked more awake standing out in the hallway and you both left for the track.

Qualifying was a mess to put it simply. Crash after crash after crash. It was spiking your anxiety to watch and you were just praying that Max would make it out unscathed. He did make it without crashing, but not without controversy.

You grew furious as you watched everyone in Q2 get to finish their laps following Lance's crash except for Max and Esteban. This made him miss out on Q3 for the first time in forever. You knew he was pissed when he got out of the car and his eyes met yours for a brief second. He talked to his engineers before grabbing your hand to drag you with him to over where he had to do interviews.

Standing behind the reporter you watched him try to contain his anger.

“If a guy goes straight into the wall, it is a straight red,” he said. “I don't understand why you need to take 30, 40 seconds for a red flag to come out...”

His voice was rising as he said it and both you and the reporter braced for the impact of whatever he was going to say next. He started to say something but then looked over at you and stopped himself, taking a deep breath before waving off the question.

“I don’t care in all honesty, it is so stupid to talk about. It’s ridiculous.”

He answered a couple more questions about the race happening later and you waited patiently. Christian came to join you and gave you a knowing look.

"I told you that being here would make things better," he said with a glint in his eyes. "I'm giving you credit for him avoiding more community service."

Things got even better after that with Max winning the Grand Prix in what you could only describe as a complete masterclass.

As the celebrations wrapped up, you and Max found yourselves alone in the quiet of the garage, both still processing the day's whirlwind. He glanced at you, a hesitant warmth in his gaze.

Max reached for your hand, gently holding it, as if afraid you'd slip away again. "I'm glad you came, I've needed you here for a long time."

"I'm still not sure where we stand Max," you said unsure of how to deal with what you were feeling.

"As long as your standing next to me, I'll be okay," he said cheekily and you smiled. You knew that your relationship had a long way to go but maybe, just maybe, it was finally starting again.

pt. 3

[serene-destruction]

Oh! Listen I love Husk and I need him to have more love! Maybe a Fem!Reader x Husk x Angel. Angel Dust and Reader would be a qpr quite obviously, just besties who want to give love to a grumpy cat. Other than that I give you creative freedom!

The first request! Just for future reference, my stories are gender neutral unless otherwise plot relevant. Anyways, enjoy!

I Could Get Used To You

(GN) Reader x Husker x (Queer Platonic)Angel Dust

TW: drunkenness, vague mentions of past trauma.

Work count: 5.6k

Summary: Life in hell isn't an easy one, but it's a lot easier to get through it when you find people to care about.

You and Angel had known of each other for quite some time, given that he had often attended the bar you worked at in his early years in hell. Despite how aggressively flirtatious he was you didn't mind him as much as some of the other regulars. He at least had the restraint to make those comments in between sets or after the show. You spent the first few months mostly ignoring him, as you did with all the other patrons. That became harder, though, when he had decided to see you after the show.

“Heya sweetheart!” he called out to you as you left the bar. You rolled your eyes and held your coat a little tighter, hoping that hiding your body might get him to leave you the hell alone. You had a rough night filled with drunken idiots disrupting your show with their shameless attempts to touch you and you certainly didn't need his comments to top it all off.

“Say what you want then leave me the hell alone” you nearly growled out your words. It was hard to stay composed after having spent hours keeping that fake smile for the crowd.

“Woah! Got it, bad night” he held his hands up in a show of surrender.

“Just wanna talk” he explained, his smile a little less cocky than when he made his usual comments at the bar. Truthfully it had caught you a little off guard, considering how you had ascribed total arrogant confidence to him. So you let out a sigh, motioning him to walk with you. You just simply didn't feel like arguing and you were pretty confident that he was mostly talk. Something you could easily placate until you made it back home.

“Just to be clear, if you lay a single one of those hands on me I'm cutting all of them off” you warn and he flashes a bright, teasing smile.

“Kinky~” his voice was sing-songy as he spoke. You crossed your arms, glared, and hoped he got the point.

“Right, right. I won't touch ya” he agreed and you were able to grow a little more comfortable. Still, you remained on guard.

“Names Angel by the way” he sounded so sure of himself as he spoke, a set of hands held on his hips in a show of confidence. He had only just started his career back then, his fame in its early stages. It wasn't a surprise when you didn't recognize it.

“Y/n. Though I'm sure you already knew that” your words held an edge, your tense posture clear. But he simply nodded along.

“Yeah. Still a nice name though” his smile widened a little and, despite the minor disdain you had started with, you could see him already growing on you.

“Right…any particular reason you decided to talk to me tonight of all nights? I've seen you around the bar for a while now” you questioned him, rather curious about why exactly now of all times he wanted to suddenly meet you.

“I just wanted to let ya know you did good tonight. I get how much of a bummer pricks messin’ with your show can be.” the genuine compliment surprised you so much that you're silent for a moment. A moment too long apparently as he speaks again.

“If it means anything it was one’a my favorites so far” At that you turned and searched for some sort of humor in his eyes, maybe something that said he was lying. But when there wasn't anything you finally returned his smile with a weary one.

“Glad you enjoyed it” you took the compliment, though you still didn’t fully believe that he was being truthful. It was rare someone ever complimented you to start with, but you had yet to have someone do so without an ulterior motive.

“And y’know, that happens again tomorrow and I'll personally knock ‘em around for you, yeah?” his smile turned into a grin and you couldn't help the short laugh that left at his expression.

“If you feel so inclined. Though if anyone asks, I told you to leave the poor sods alone” you tried to make it clear that you definitely weren't supposed to be harming the clientele with how dramatic the last part of the sentence was. Luckily he seemed to get the point.

“Course. They've been gettin’ on my nerves anyway” you couldn't help but agree.

The two of you continue on with your conversation, getting to know a bit about each other's lives on the short walk. Despite his behavior at the bar, he was actually surprisingly personable one-on-one. He had a kind of natural charisma with a bit of faint genuine kindness. It was, frankly, one of the better conversations you had since you fell into hell. But all good things always come to an end. This time it was because you stopped your feet outside your residence.

“It was nice getting to actually meet you Angel” he stopped with you and you could have sworn you caught the faintest glimpse of his smile falling.

“It was nice meetin’ you too. You workin’ tomorrow?” His question surprises you a bit, but you answer anyway.

“When am I not working” you rolled your eyes, your exhaustion now easy to see. His look turned sympathetic.

“If that ain't the truth. See you tomorrow then?” He begins to walk away but stays turned to you for a response with his hand held in a finger gun motion. You can't help the bit of genuine smile that peeks through.

“As always” you answer before finally tucking into your apartment building.

You and Angel only got closer over the coming years. He would walk you home from your shows from time to time and you would entertain him with whatever story you had of the nights when he was too busy to show up. You too bonded over work and he even offered to be a dancer a few times just to rake in some more attention and get you enough to finally move up from that shit hole. But you always kindly refused, not looking for the increasing fame he carried with him.

Eventually you two even started hanging out in other places. Granted they were always other run-down shit holes given he didn't particularly want the paparazzi and fans that came from his job, but you two always seemed to make the most of it, keeping your friendship on the down low.

Until, one night, he stopped showing up.

You had become increasingly concerned after a month of him just up and disappearing. You were worried something had happened or maybe that his psychotic boss was pulling away even more of his already limited freedom. But then he showed up after one of your shows, face guilt-ridden when you went near frantic.

You were already yelling out question after question at him. Where has he gone? Was he okay? Did something happen? He had to calm you down before explaining that he had moved. You were so incredibly proud knowing that he was finally removing even just a part of himself from the work that had begun to be his entire life, though you were still a bit upset that he hadn't told you sooner.

But then he made you an offer you weren't expecting.

“You know, the hotel has an open doors rule and uh…well I was hopin’ you might…”

“Join you?” You finish the sentence for him. He turned to you with a look more nervous than you've ever seen from him.

“Look I know the place ain't exactly the best- the whole redemption thing’s a joke- but y'know I think you could get a job down there! Get away from all…all of this. Plus, y’know, I'd get to see you more often and-”

“Sounds like a plan” you stop his rambling with your answer and he turns to you with an almost bewildered look.

“Really? You sure?” He couldn't believe you would agree so quickly. You laughed at that.

“A chance to leave this shitty life behind and live with my best friend? Why would I say no? Especially if you like the place enough to recommend it” You lightheartedly shoved him and he almost gleamed with joy, his prior nervousness nothing but a thought now.

“Well shit. I thought I was gonna have ta try a lot harder than that. Had a whole pitch and everything!” he spoke with a laugh and you couldn't help but join in the joy.

You had to say the first few months at the hotel had been rough. For one, your boss didn't like the idea of you quitting very much. You were half the reason he made any money to begin with and he wasn't about to let you go so easily. So for a while you had been harassed and once nearly even killed before Alastor went and ‘dealt with this little problem of yours’. Though you suspected it was only because your boss had sent people to attack the hotel itself and less that he cared about you in any capacity.

You had managed to get a job at the hotel like Angel had said, though you felt more like a resident since there weren't ever enough people to warrant a show. But it had been more than once you were able to lift spirits with a performance, so you did still get paid. It was nice not having to work as much.

Though you would have to say, out of all the other strange people and events here, the bartender was the one that caught your eye the most. A right asshole he was, but there was still a charm he had. You two mostly only had some idle chit-chat, but Angel seemed to be getting pretty close to him, especially after he had one of his rougher nights that you hadn't been around for. Which meant you talked to the cat demon more. Never really one on one, but still you grew to see why your friend seemed so comfortable around him. He was easy to talk to. You mostly saw him as a friend of a friend though. Maybe even a good acquaintance if you wanted to push it.

But then there was that night…

Two in the morning and you still couldn't get a single wink of sleep. Tossing and turning and general frustration simply wouldn't allow you.

You couldn't get it out of your head. It had been so long since the memories had been allowed to invade your mind like they did tonight. Your skin crawled as if it wanted to escape you and if you could you would let it. You felt utterly trapped as it clung to you. Like the only escape from it was to dissolve into nothing.

You knew why the memories had come back swinging, all too aware that it was such a stupid thing to have opened that old wound. All Charlie had done was pull you to the new activity she was so excited to share. But her hands dragged you and made it impossible to pull away and when you made it to that room all the eyes fell on you. It was horrifyingly familiar in a way that it shouldn't have been. You had wanted to disappear right then.

Yet you didn't speak up and instead let her do as she pleased, knowing that it was such a mundane thing that you shouldn't have let upset you like it did. You felt childish at having let the event ruin your night, at letting the entire situation dig itself into old scars. But still, you just couldn't stop the dread it built within you. You couldn't stop that clawing feeling of trying to escape your own body. Of escaping the phantom feeling of drag and pull and the expecting eyes that felt almost as if they'd burn you alive.

It didn't take long before the feeling began to sting your eyes with tears. It was at that point you knew there would be no sleeping tonight. So you finally gave up trying, sitting up in your bed as you wiped away the tears that hadn't been given the chance to fall. You quickly composed yourself, as you were just so great at doing by this point, and tossed on a warm robe before leaving your room. You glance at Angel's door when you do.

You contemplate for a brief moment if you should wake him, though you quickly decide against it. He was tired enough as it was with the shit he had to deal with on the daily, he didn't need you keeping him up on top of that. So you turned down the hall, making sure to remain quiet so as not to disturb anyone.

You needed a distraction, something to get your mind off everything. To numb that horrible feeling. You find that nothing calls your name quite like the sound of a drink and so you navigate the many halls until you find yourself at the hotel bar.

As you suspected, the place was barren and silent. You have no problem getting behind the bar and making your own drink as it most certainly wasn't your first time. You note that you should probably try to keep the place tidy while you're at it, but decide that you'll do so after you enjoy the sweet relief at the bottom of a glass.

And, for a few short moments, you do. The warm, burning feeling spreads through your chest and purges the shivers right on out of you. But it doesn't last after the drink is finished and the silence truly sets in. So you pour yourself another, trying to chase any semblance of peace.

“Can't sleep?” A voice asks from behind you, nearly scaring you off of the barstool as you whip around to see who it was. You're surprised to see Husk of all people, even more surprised to see something that might resemble concern show on him. But you soon calm, giving a nod to him before turning back around.

“Nope…you too?” You ask, catching him rounding his way to the other side of the bar as you do.

“I prefer nights. A lot more peaceful, especially in this place” you acknowledge his comment with a hum before turning back to nursing your drink.

There is a silence between the two of you for a good few minutes. He cleans around for a while and you try to let your emotions leave you with every sip. It isn't long before you poor a third and you try to ignore the fact that this isn't helping.

It's when you go to pour your fourth drink that he stops what he's doing. You try to ignore him and whatever he's deciding to do with his time, but it becomes harder when he leans on the bar in front of you.

“That’s not gonna help you” He states plainly, your eyes turning to glance at him. There's a brief moment where you attempt to pull your facade back up. Where you try to tug your lips into a smile and choke out any words that would deter his potential questions. But it is exhausting and you are already beyond tired. So instead you hang your head.

“I know…was just hoping I'd be wrong” your words are quiet and mumbled, a far cry from your usually quite loud and charismatic self. It makes your insides twist to have let yourself be seen like this.

“Do you wanna talk about why you're up so late?” His question makes you swallow thickly, hands gripping tighter on the glass in your hand. Another few moments of silence pass that seem almost like an eternity under his stare. It takes a while for you to find any words in this state.

“It’s not worth your time” you manage the sentence, eyes fixated on the honey color of your chosen liquor. You hear him sigh, taking a step back as he pours his own drink.

“I'm the one who's askin’. If I waste my time that's my own damn fault” you don't like how hard it is for you to find the meaning in his tone. You can't tell if he's being dismissive or trying to comfort you. So you settled on answering with silence once more. You hear him sigh before he rounds the bar again.

“Look, tell me or don't tell me, but I at least want to hear you say something” this time you do hear an attempt to be genuine. He takes a seat beside you and you finally turn to look at him again. His eyes expect nothing, a rare sight for you. It's…comforting. You aren't sure if it was you or the alcohol talking, but you could have even been able to delude yourself into thinking that he cared. You look away again when you feel that false comfort begins to wrap you. You find your tongue beginning to slip.

“I…” you start and suddenly it's like your insides churn. You put nearly everything into stopping the pull of tears.

“It's just a bad night for me, is all. I…I’m not really used to this” you finally let the words fall and you can't bring yourself to look at him. You don't want to know how he's reacting to your words. You don't want to see just how little he actually cares.

“Used to what, exactly?” he pries further, asking for more. The flood gates were already open and there was no use in trying to shut them now.

“The way everyone is just so comfortable with each other- the way that I almost feel comfortable. It was easy with Angel; both of us in the same shit situation with no one else to lean on but each other. But nobody needs something from me here, nobody's trying to take anything- they don't want anything! And it- I just-...” your hands shake, your breath becoming unsteady. It's been so long since you felt this pathetic.

“I don't think I'm supposed to be here” you admit as your voice wavers. You try to steady your breath and calm yourself. It wasn't safe to be this vulnerable, it was stupid.

“I get it” his words stop your thoughts immediately. You're left reeling from the whiplash and expecting that he must have grown a second head that speaks only lies. But it's just him as he stares down at his now half-empty drink, no second head in sight. There's a look of contemplation on his face that you can see even as he keeps his eyes on the glass. A moment later he speaks again.

“When you've spent so long getting used to people treating you like shit it can be hard to accept when someone doesn't. Makes it feel like they're lyin’, like they're just waitin’ for the moment to hurt you the worst” his words quickly hit a deep part of you, knocking at known insecurities you had long since buried as deep as you could.

“Makes you paranoid too, always checking your back for snakes. Gets harder to believe anyone; harder to care about anyone a lot of the time. And so you stop caring, and suddenly it stops hurting as much” his continued words only dug deeper, tugging away at your walls like they were wet paper. When his eyes finally meet yours again you are surprised to see them soften. There isn't pity in them, nor a look that makes you feel as childish as you felt before talking to him. Instead, you are met with a knowing stare, one that says he understands this feeling all too well.

“But the thing is that doesn't mean you feel any better. Makes the suffering pointless if you don't try to let the good in too. You gotta make it mean something” he doesn't look away from you as he says those words and you can't bring yourself to turn away either. You don't want to. Because he's saying everything you needed to hear and you can't find any reason not to trust that he doesn't know exactly how this feels. That he isn't speaking directly from the heart. Your dread turns to a sinking sort of comfort. The kind only broken people could give when they reach out and pull each other from the dark. It's the most seen you've ever felt.

You feel the tears finally well in your eyes but you can't help but smile at him, a sad laugh escaping you.

“Of all the people I expected to give me a pep talk I gotta say, you weren't even on the list” you finally speak again and there is no hiding that he's hit something deep within you.

“Of all the fucked up people here, I didn't expect you would need anyone to talk to” He offers the same smile as he hand you a napkin. You take it without complaint and quickly calm your tears with deep breaths, wiping away the strays that fell. There's a short moment of silence, but it doesn't feel as suffocating anymore. In fact you almost feel a strange comfort in it now that it doesn't feel so empty. Still, you knew you should probably say something.

“You know, uh…” you break the silence as you once again turn to your drink, this time far less focused on ignoring him as much as you were trying to compose yourself enough to speak. At the very least you're able to steady your voice.

“Angel and I were going to head out tomorrow. I don't think he'd mind if you came…if you're free, of course” you invited him but didn't catch the way his smile widened at the request.

“I can't guarantee anything, but I’m not declining” his maybe is better than a no, so you don't particularly mind his answer. In fact you can feel your own smile soften at it.

Since then the three of you have been near inseparable. At any given part of the day at least two of you are off doing something with each other. It's nice, you think, to have people this close to you, to have a reason to care again. The three of you look out for each other and It's the closest you've ever gotten to stability in your life. At this point, you don't think you'd trade it for anything.

Which is why when you start to develop feelings for Husk, you are utterly horrified.

You know him and Angel have…something going on. You know they're not together as you know you would have been the first to know, but you've also never seen Angel smile the way he does when he's around the winged demon. You would say the same for Husk, but you've caught him sending the same soft smile to you once or twice and you honestly can't tell if it's your lovestruck daze or if those smiles are what you think they are.

Your emotions are a spiraling mess within you. You care so much for both of them. You'd live through a thousand hells if it meant you'd have them around. The absolute last thing you want is to fuck this up.

So you choose to say nothing. You bottle your feelings and throw them in the garbage. As far as you were concerned being in their afterlives at all was good enough. You wouldn't risk it.

However, it became hard during nights like these. When you all were giddy off alcohol, conversation flowing through wide smiles and every touch as gentle as it could ever be. It was the definition of home, a place where you were the most comfortable you could possibly be. Your tongue loose and your actions anything but hidden. Your care poured from you openly and only so much could be blamed on the alcohol.

“I fucking love you guys” the words fell shamelessly from you. Granted you were pretty fucked up by this point as you tried to keep up with them, but it wasn't more than you could reasonably handle without blacking out. They both turned to you, inebriated smiles sending themselves your way.

“Love you too, sweetheart” Angel returned, one of his hands patting your head, a wider smile spreading on your face as he did. You leaned against the bar, your head propped up by one of your hands as you turned to Husk. You just barely notice the way he leaned ever so slightly closer. But he says nothing and you can't help but feel like you deserve at least an acknowledgement of your words from him.

“I'd be happy to show you if you don't believe me” the words slipped and once more you didn't notice what you were saying. You do, however, catch his eyes widen, pupils dilating a bit. When he continues to say nothing you roll your eyes and pull back just slightly. You don't catch the way he almost follows you before he pulls himself back, nor the stare Angel is giving from beside you.

“One of these days I'll get you to say it back” you speak before downing yet another shot. You miss the quick glance they give to each other.

“It’s getting late. We should probably head to bed” Angel suggests as he stands.

“Really?” You whine mostly to yourself.

“You two go ahead. I have to clean up anyway” Husk gives his excuse and you groan but ultimately agree to the end of your night. You take one of Angel's hands as the both of you begin your stumble down the halls. The two of you are a giggling mess against each other, nearly falling about twenty separate times, but you do eventually make it to your room. You quickly notice that he hesitates on his goodbyes though.

“Hey uh, can we…talk?” He asks and, though you are a bit surprised it doesn't show.

“Of course!” You agree, opening your door and allowing him inside your room. You make it to your bed where you both quickly sit, unable to stand unsupported for long.

“What's up?” You ask, bleary eyes turning to him. You have to admit you're a little worried, but you hope that whatever he wants to talk about isn't too serious.

“You and Husk are gettin’ pretty close” his words don't strike you at first, so you give him a smile.

“Yeah. Same for you” you comment and watch a wave of confusion hit him.

“What?” He seems to almost not Believe the words that have left you and it takes you a moment to realize why.

“Oh come on Angel, don't tell me you haven't noticed how he looks at you! With that little smile of his- and don't you think I've missed you staring either! You two are absolutely thirsty for each other” Your voice is louder than you notice. When he quickly tries to quiet you down you fall back onto your bed with a laugh, trying to escape his hands. He continues to reach out anyway and so you pull him down with you, eventually sending the both of you into another giggle fit.

“Could say the same for you” Angel speaks through his laugh, though there is a hesitance to it. You can't hide the way the implication catches you.

“You think so?” You ask cautiously, almost worried as you turn to look at him, his body beside yours.

“Yeah…Yeah I do” he replies just as slowly, the air in the room becoming tense in the sudden silence. It was a longer silence than you would have liked, both of you turning your eyes to the ceiling in contemplation of the words you both had spoken.

After a moment Angel sits up a bit, just enough to lean his head against his hand and look down at you.

“I love him. Like a whole fuckin’ lot and…I love you too. You’re the best friend I could’a eva asked for in this shithole” he admits and you can't tear your eyes from him. He, however, can't bear to look at you.

“And I was hopin', maybe, if you'd like ta…well if you'd wanna share him with me. If he even does feel that way about us” the words leave his lips ever so carefully and you can't help the wide smile that breaks across your face, all your previous worry disappearing. You reach a gentle hand out, his eyes finally turning back to yours when it lands on his face.

“I'd love that” you let the words leave and watch as he lights up, smile soft and worry dissipating by the second. Then suddenly an idea pops into your head, a mischievous smile crawling to your lips.

“Oh no, I know that look. What are you plannin’?” He asks, amusement overtaking any attempts to look worried. You quickly sat up, pulling him along with you.

“Well Mr. Grouchy Pants likes to walk by my door whenever he needs extra cleaning rags and personally I think he should be going to bed” you explain as you stand on still shaky legs. Angel doesn't seem to catch on for a moment before suddenly realizing what you mean.

“You ain't gonna do that” Angel says oh so confidently. He must have failed to account for how much bolder you are when drunk, because you most definitely plan to. In fact you hear stumbling feet making their way right about now. So you open the door, catching the attention of a certain winged cat almost immediately.

“Still working?” you ask. He has to blink a few times to catch up with the situation and you know then that drank a bit more after you guys left.

“Yeah” he answers simply. A moment later Angel is behind you, peaking out as well. He leans two arms against you for balance and Husk gives both of you a look.

“You ain't makin’ it down the hall like that. You look like you're about ta pass out” Angel points out and Husk turns back to him, almost offended.

“I'm not that drunk, sweetheart” the nickname catches you off guard and Husk seems just as surprised at what just came out of his own mouth.

“Oh? We’re doing pet names now kitty?” you tease a little and he looks utterly floored by the nickname. It sends a grin across Angel's face.

“Yeah kitten, since when did that happen?” Angel's voice is even more teasing than yours and Husk seems completely out of his depth. Every word he tries to speak dies before it leaves his lips. Eventually, he tips his hat down and tries to leave.

“I gotta go to bed-” before he gets too far you manage to snag one of his suspender straps, gently pulling him back a bit. He follows, knowing he would probably fall if he didn't.

“You should stay with us for the night” you offer and watch as his eyes shoot wider than you've ever seen them. He goes to speak but you cut him off before he can say a word.

“Mind out of the gutter. We’re just going to sleep’” you clarify and hear Angel whine a bit. You quickly nudge him and he stops, accepting that there would be nothing else tonight. But, while Husk's face seems a little less horrified, he still hesitates.

“Please?” You ask in as sweet a tone as you can manage. You watch as he uses the last of his resolve to attempt to answer no, but when Angel leans down near you and offers the same pleading look, he simply can't.

“Fine” he mumbles out with his arms crossed. Without a word you tug him inside, the door shutting as the three of you stumble your way back. Each one of you managed to bump or knock the others at least once as you all did your best to make it into bed.

At some point you and Angel are on the bed and Husk is still hesitating to follow. He's only allowed a moment before Angel reaches out and pulls him, his body landing heavily on the two of you with the strings of curses that follow. You all struggled to find your spots, moving and squirming to get comfortable. Your blankets are tossed and tugged to cover the three of you until, finally, you all seem to all be covered. It's then that idle talk arrives, slurred attempts at conversation that distract long enough for you all to get comfortable.

It wasn't a surprise Husk ended up in the middle, the two of you shamelessly cuddling up to him on either side. He's a bit tense for a while, but when he does allow himself to calm down and relax he is a purring mess; a sound that is only intensified when you absentmindedly pet the fluff on his head. Eventually all of you become quiet, eyes heavy with a need for sleep and the most comfortable you all have ever been. It's during this, moments away from drifting off, that husk manages two words.

“Love you” he slurs out, but to who neither you are Angel are sure. So instead you take it as a sentiment meant for both of you. You lay a soft kiss against his head before snuggling closer and Angel does the same.

You could definitely get used to this.

[pwyzzaori]

Where do people think they're going to get by harassing old Hellpark Ri mods?

NOBODY CAN STAND THIS ANYMORE, IT'S ALREADY REACHING AN ABSURD LEVEL, and the most we can do is write loooong texts asking these people to stop AND THAT'S NOT ENOUGH

It's okay if you don't like the project, no one is obliged to like it, BUT ANY NORMAL HUMAN BEING WOULD DO IS IGNORE IT AND MOVE ON, BUT NO, THERE ARE PRIMATES DOXING US AND SPREADING LIES

in fact, you don't even need two brain cells to realize that you won't get anywhere doing this SINCE THESE PEOPLE NO LONGER HAVE ANY CONNECTION WITH THE PROJECT

I don't know what goes through these people's heads to commit this type of act, because it is a VERY SERIOUS thing

We already have to go through so many things every day for countless reasons and now this?

The worst part is knowing that many of the mods that were there were minors who just wanted to have fun drawing their favorite characters, doing redesigns and giving ideas for the story

I really hope this doesn't affect them like it affected me some time ago and recently it's affecting more people

Please leave us alone, we no longer have any involvement with this project, stop doxxing old mods, it won't get you anywhere

thank you(my english sucks sorry)

-------------------------------------------------------------------

I also wanted to vent a little, it's not a very recent situation but it started happening again these days and it's bothering me A LOT

When I discovered Hellpark I fell in love with the artstyle and started to practice drawing with it, consequently I reached a level where if someone saw my drawing without analyzing it, they could come to the conclusion that it was an official drawing (people have actually told me this already)

At first I felt very special about it, but as soon as I joined the project, DMs from all my social midia (except Discord) started to arrive from people asking if I was Wire

I always answered: no, I'm not Wire

and I started to get afraid that people would start to bother Wire themself, or idk some of the og mods from Hellpark (I don't know if this kind of thing really happened, but I hope not)

These messages didn't stop until I completely disassociated myself from the project (after the old mods left I ended up staying on the project for a few more months to help peeks while new moderators didn't join), but a week ago not only ppl started asking if I was Wire again, but they also started literally insulting me or asking me to come back to the project via discord like whaaaat

I've never given my primary Discord account username to anyone other than acquaintances

and now I'm a little scared to be honest

like this morning I got one message from a person I've never even seen in my life

I just changed my username and left some servers related to Hellpark. I hope this solves it, I really don't want to have to change accounts

I just wanted to vent about this, on one hand it's kind of worrying because someone literally leaked my old username, but other than that nothing too "horrible" happened to me :p

[anulithots]

Hello, can I ask from this ask game :

https://www.tumblr.com/threecheersforinking/677824836625694720/anime-ask-game?source=share

For these series : JJK, TMNT, and Link Click ?

Thanks 🌻

(my post got wiped and I cry)

Thank you for the ask! I'll answer in order... although note that I have suuuchhh a hard time picking favorites for things/shows I like, but I shall try my best!

Jujutsu Kaisen

Favorite Character: Itadori yuji. One of the best written protagonists of all time. I love how he takes the 'wants to save everyone' trope and gives it the underlying reasoning of the avoidance of regret and grief, and the desire to not die alone because so far he has been alone (for whatever reason, I see it as because he was 'too nice' and would beat up the 'popular bullies'. Hence why he called himself a loner and hence why he became so attached to Nobara and Fushiguro despite the little time he's known them.) Also how this underlying narrative is tested and builds more nuance and flaws as the series goes on... overall Yuji's arc up until the Shibuya incident is very well done. (I have... mixed feelings post Shibuya and honestly would need to reread that whole arc)

Favorite Arc/Episode/Scene: Honestly.... the cursed womb arc. I know, I know, there's the hidden inventory and the shibuya incident and Maki's massacre of her family and the Gojo vs Sukuna fight... but hear me out. My favorite parts of storytelling are theme exploration, and I think this arc does it for Yuji's underlying motivations to save everyone. This arc builds nuance to this part of Yuji's character, contrasting his ideals with Fushiguro's logic: 'what if someone you save hurts other people in the future'. How Yuji then takes this upon himself, how the narrative says that perhaps the better option would've been to kill Yuji in the first chapter, how Fushiguro denies this and it gives Yuji hope for himself, has always given him hope, and always will. (So he has to save Megumi. I'm willing it into existence. Gege make it happen.)

Character I Think is Underrated: Yuji. Yuta. Maki. Mai. Mechamaru. Miwa. Shoko. Nobara. Fushiguro. ... most JJK characters honestly. There are a few characters that get the most attention from the fandom (they know who), and while they are AMAZING characters who DESERVE the attention they get... so does everyone else. Yuji is one of the most amazinggg protagonists I've ever seeeen and yet he gets little to no analysis and I got burnt out just before I could make a full analysis about him so yea I'm a hypocrite when I say this. But still. More attention to the rest of the cast please. Thank you <3

Character I Think is Overrated: I KNOW HE"S WELL WRITTEN AND A REALLY NUANCED AND INTERESTING CHARACTER WHO EMBODIES THE THEMES BUT.... Gojo Satoru, the fandom treats you as the best character in the animanga despite you're very character being about the desire to be treated as an individual like everyone else. And to be clear, I'm not saying that we should love Gojo less, far from it, I'm saying we should love the other characters more.

Favorite Ship/Pairing: (Note that I prefer dynamics to shipping although I do like shipping. I also tend to love shipping queer platonically and rave about dynamics and interactions) A tie between Satosugu and Itafushi (they parallel each other so how could I not love both of their dynamics?).. although I'm quite fond of Itadori x Junpei. They could've been the 'movie nerd duo' and they would've had the best moral parallels, especially when you consider Mahito and how they were treated (one was bullied and the other tries to fight against bullies) and how they see grief and kaljfalksdfklasdjf it would've been wonderous. I also think Yuta and Yuji are an underutilized dynamic (not shipping them). I would've loved to see more interactions and comparisons between them. IT WOULD"VE BEEN SOOO COOL I WOULD"VE BEEN OBSESSSED.

Something I Love About the Show/Movie: Each character has such nuance and embodies a section of the themes about Jujutsu society and how that effects the morals of an individual, and each character is nuanced and honestly the recent arcs do not fall short because of the characters, but because of the underutilization and pacing more so. Quite sad but when Jujutsu Kaisen shines it SHINES.

... I feel like these were supposed to be one sentence answers but it's fine... ONE DOWN TWO TO GO!

Tmnt (I've only seen Rottmnt so we're doing that one)

Favorite Character: DONATELLO (with a book in hand, saves the day and proves to everyone that he's the ma-). Okay but seriously he's portrayed as a character that cares in his own way in a POSITIVE LIGHT. Soooo many other shows would've taken his basic character and showcased it as selfish but Donnie is far from that. He likes his alone time and has a creative and analytical mind and interprets the world through his creations and interests and that is A GOOD THING THAT HE DOES NOT HAVE TO CHANGE. As a fellow creative an analytical mind that interprets the world through my interests and has been told I'm selfish and self-obsessed, Donnie means so much to me. (Yes, he's my #1 kin)

Favorite Arc/Episode/Scene: kjalfkljasdkfj OKAY OKAY.... I forget the name of it but the episode where Splinter takes Donnie's turtle tank to the demolition derby. I know I had another favorite episode(s) when I was in full hyperfixation, but to be honest it's been a while. My favorite episodes are the Donnie-centric ones (obviously), especially when he's with Mikey because that duo is ✨peak✨. But for the demolition derby episode, I think it provides a great view into Splinter's psyche as chasing the high of his prime, along with Donnie's desire for his dad to be proud of him. (I kin, I kin, I kin so much.) Also Mikey being the level-headed one in this situation. Absolute peak.

Character I Think is Underrated: Raph for sure. He's the sweetest older brother ever with just as much character nuance as the other three, and yet he gets the least amount of attention from the fandom as far as I've seen. (Again I'm a hypocrite for saying this but I do think Raph deserves more love.) Also April.. Casey... GAhhhhh I wish Rise got a season threeeee it would've been wonderous.

Character I Think is Overrated: I don't think any of the characters are necessarily overrated. I don't understand why everyone loves the disaster twins so much. (I feel like you could make them more 'disaster' if you have them bicker and cause issues rather than all of the 'they are each other's favorite person' that the fandom does. HOWEVER, I love the fandom interpretations of them, and overall, I love the rottmnt fandom a LOT, best fanfics and fanart and fancomics everrr)

Favorite Ship/Pairing: (not shipping/no tcest) Donnie and Mikey for sureee. It's the perfect combination of overdramatic mad scientist /aff with silly crazy-powerful artist /aff. What's not to love? Also the way that they contrast with each other, opposites yet similar, it's wonderous.

Something I Love About the Show/Movie: It's what got me into loving slice-of-life/episodic narratives, and what got me to release my 'every story needs to have only important scenes with conflict' mindset when it comes to storytelling. Rottmnt is mainly the brothers hanging out with each other and going on the odd adventure and it's wonderous. It's amazing storytelling because it differs from the predecessor's saving the world. It's silly and jovial and feels like siblings having fun with each other. AND YES I have three other siblings and we've been socially isolated for the longest time because of multiple mowings (pre-covid) and covid (made it no better) and our family in general being undiagnosed neurodivergent introverts and rottmnt means a loooot to me for what it is and what it offered to me. I was in one of the longest spirals of my life at the time and rottmnt brought back color to my monochromatic life and IT SHOULD GET A SEASON THREE BRING BACK RISE KAJFLSKDJFKLd

ANd yet again.. Noorie has rambled. Noorie will ramble again, here we go:

Link Click

(I started scrolling on the link click gifs and the musical is sooo cuttee i love all their interactions akfaskldfj)

Also note this is my most recent hyperfixation and it usually takes me about a month or two to have the most fleshed out thoughts but I shall try!

Favorite Character: You. can't. do. this. to. me. /pos KLJDKLFJSDKLJFKLDJF HOWWW DO I DECIDEEEEE NOO. KAS FAHHSHF. Okie okie er... Cheng Xiaoshi. I still have to dissect and analyze him but he's just SUCH a good character. The way his backstory is revealed bit by bit until the end of season one where we get his full flashback scene is sooo interestingg and effectiveee AAA- Plus the way he's overwhelmed with emotions easily, how easily he trusts others, even more than he trusts himself, how he seems to be 'just a little silly', and he is silly, but when given time to process his thoughts and emotions, he is quite strategic and effective at adapting his plans to the situation. (Which is especially interesting in how that contrasts Lu Guang's need to have control over everything, the general inflexibility of his plans). Also how Cheng Xiaoshi teases Lu Guang and how much he loves and clings to those he loves. How much he wishes for his parents to return and how much hope he has that he can save everyone/bring everyone together and keep them from leaving him again. THERE'S SO MANY LAYYERRRS I NEED TO DECIPHER THEM ALLL

Favorite Arc/Episode/Scene: howwww dooo I deciddeee it's alll dooonee sooo weelll. Nott a singgllllee baddd orrr borrinngg eppiisoddeee I sobbbbb I can't pick a favoritteeee. ... OKay this might be because I just finished watching episode five, but that whole arc (episodes 3-5) is done so well and starts off with a silly basketball game that gives more information on Lu Guang and CHeng Xiaoshi's relationship and slowly builds to the earthquake and the most devastating backstory to present day scenes I've ever seen for a character. From a storytelling perspective Link Click is just so well done all around and this arc exemplifies that. I also loveee any moments of Cheng Xiaoshi and Qiao LIng being siblings. Also, QIao Ling slapping Qian Jin and just season twooo is crazzzyyyyy. I can't pick on whether I love season two or season one more despite them having two different narrative structures... I just remember season one more because it's episodic and I have it downloaded on my computer. (It was on internet archive... and it would be NICE if season two was on there toooo)

Character I Think is Underrated: Honestly, all characters are given lots of love and attention for the amount of screentime they get. Qiao Ling could always use more love though. Qiao Ling supremacy.

Character I Think is Overrated: None really. The fandom is really nice and really good at art and writing and the ANALYSIS HOLY HERBS *sparkle eyes*. It's all wonderous and I love Link Click soooo muuuuchhhh

Favorite Ship/Pairing: Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang are literally queer platonic partners in cannon. /half joking but for real the act like queer platonic partners. With all the making noodles and dumplings for each other and the constant reassurances and canonical cuddling (they held hands in season two aklfjasdklf) plus how much they canonically care for each other. I rambled about that on another ask but they have constant shows of affection and how much they tease each other and they are probably my favorite pairing everrr. ALSO Cheng Xiaoshi and Qiao Ling as siblings (not shipped) are peak fiction. They have the most bickering yet reassuring dynamic ever. Part of the reason why I like that season two has less dives is that it gives QIao Ling more screen time and really makes her part of the trio. The backstory with them both means everything to me. It's so sweet and saddd I sobbb.

Something I Love About the Show/Movie: Literally what's not to love? APPARENTLY THERE'S A GAZILLION AND ONE MEDIUMS, NOT JUST THE SHOW and they're all amazing??? I want the adaptation of the donghua into the manhua sooo baddd. The pacing is done to perfection, never once was I bored. The 20-minute episodes felt like five minutes while still covering so much ground and giving each character the time they deserve to develop them (although Lu Guang... where's the backstory..../pos /j). It perfectly balances humor and silly interactions between the characters with ripping your heart out and making you ugly cry. THe cliffhangers are never annoying and the SOUNDTRACK. THE FRICKING SOUNDTRACK IS WONDEROUS I SANG VORTEX ON REPEAT TO CALM MYSELF FROM PANICING AT MY STATS AP EXAM. The animation is sooo cozy and well done and I want to live in their shop and use my non-existent money to buy as much Link Click things as possible.

Annnddd THat's it! Thank you for the ask! If you've read all the way up to here... I commend you. That's a feat in and of itself.

[tigreblvnc]

BLUE LOCK MATCHUP — @karusenka

Your match is...

— Shidou Ryusei

✦ You can't imagine the quirky joy I feel in bringing out this match right after the one I made for Rin...

✦ We all know how much those two adore each other... (not).

✦ I'm THRILLED to finally be able to match this pink clown with someone!

✦ I didn't hesitate for long.

✦ In fact, I think no other character could have matched your bio.

✦ There are too many peculiarities, too many specific details... that can only match with Shidou.

✦ "My humor is definitely not for everyone, it's mostly the humor of a 12 y/o kid which can be annoying to some people lmao (sometimes it's funny how people are annoyed by it)" My decision was made at that moment, and actually, there was another character who might have fit, but I'll explain at the end why I didn't choose them.

✦ Let's be honest, on the field, Shidou is an unpredictable character, too original to be understood by the other participants, and above all, he does things his way, with his own style. There are very few football styles more personal than his, and it shows when he's in the game—others struggle to anticipate his moves because he just goes with the flow.

✦ That's what makes him an extraordinary competitor.

✦ "Often I act like an asshole but this is just for jokes!" It's typically the same for Shidou, and I think for him, it's a way to test others to see who is worth fighting. Shidou's communication is heavily based on play, provocation, and offense. You'd better be someone who can handle his particular humor, or you'll quickly get thrown off and won't know how to deal with him.

✦ I'm not going to quote the phrase in case you don't want it to be public, but it's the paragraph where you explain that your interests are very specific and give you a certain reputation among your peers; I think that's very Shidou-coded, and not much else can match up to that. It's more or less canon, but in his football philosophy, there's something very intense and even visceral that makes his character very complex, and I find that it relates to you.

✦ I see him as someone who doesn't know how to respect boundaries and doesn't like to have any imposed on him, so I think he'd join you and even encourage your particular interests. I even want to say he shares more than half of them... I've never done NSFW headcanons publicly, but your combination would particularly lend itself to that, I think (honestly, Shidou likes dark stuff). I took a stroll through your blog, and I noticed some topics that interest you, which I think he would also really enjoy.

✦ "I also have anger issues and it's very easy to make me angry." I tend to think Shidou's temperament leans toward being hot-headed and that he can lose his temper in two seconds—that's what makes him the opposite of Rin. For Shidou, his anger would mostly be linked to the fact that others aren't good enough to push him to his limits, or that people don't understand the depth that football represents to him.

✦ "The second one is probably physical touch, but sometimes I might not be in the mood but otherwise I love hugs and kisses!" I think physical contact is one of Shidou's love languages, but probably more in a friendly and playful dimension. We see it with Charles, where they almost climb on each other to celebrate victory.

✦ On the other hand, I see Shidou as a super independent character who doesn't demand contact 24/7. So when you're not in the mood for it, he'll leave you alone.

✦ Several times in your bio, you mention your sensitivity. One might think that Shidou has none, given his general brutality, lack of tact, the fact that you have to restrain him to control him... And yet, there's something particularly refined in the way he approaches his favorite sport. We even know that art was his favorite subject in school, and to me, that says he's capable of finding beauty in things, in the way others perceive a subject. This particularity could be an interesting topic of conversation for you two, who enjoy uncommon things.

✦ "I LOVE LOVE horror and scary things, I can't imagine my life without it, it's just such an interesting genre that makes me happy and intrigued!" The first time I checked Shidou's profile on the Blue Lock Wiki, this sentence stood out to me: "His favorite movie is A Clockwork Orange." Kubrick's filmography isn't exactly horror, but it touches on very current, sometimes raw, hard, violent, and uncensored subjects. This is what made him a controversial director, even in the way he directed his teams.

✦ (and at the same time, you both like cute stuff, which kills me)

✦ The first thing you notice about Shidou when he appears is his appearance. He completely stands out in the middle of all the others with his blond and pink gradient, long lashes, and magenta pupils. He has an arrogant and atypical style; honestly, for me, there's no question that this guy has something super interesting that fits well with your peculiarities!

✦ "I dislike slow music." Shidou's favorite song is "Hide - Pink Spider," and besides showing some potentially disturbing images, it's far from slow! It's rock, it's pop, in Japanese style.

✦ So yes, I think you two probably met on a niche forum and quickly clicked. Shidou uses social media a lot—Instagram in particular—so I imagine you two must have regularly exchanged messages, sometimes until indecent hours of the night.

✦ Honestly, nothing makes him happier than meeting someone who embraces their most intimate aspects and publicly claims them while shining through them. We see a bit of this with Sae; even though they are opposites, Sae is powerful enough to work well with Shidou on the field. They have completely different philosophies, but the fact that Sae can manage Shidou because he "understands" him changes everything.

✦ I imagine Shidou bombarding you with music he finds on Spotify and regularly spamming you at all hours of the night.

✦ He also sometimes sends you photos of slightly weird and super specific things he likes, like the veins you can see in the wrist or someone’s tears after a skateboard fall. I really see him stopping in the street to take this kind of photo with his phone.

✦ Between you two, it's normal.

✦ And you can send him all the most complex and dark topics; I think he wouldn't bat an eye and would actually be super excited to dive into those discussions with you. In fact, you both feel free to discuss whatever you want, without taboos, and it feels good.

✦ I think what hooked him the most with you were the less conventional topics that interest you.

✦ I see you more as really good friends who can trauma dump at any time via messages, but I don't necessarily see you hanging out in public during the day. It's more likely to be a virtual relationship.

✦ Because I think his violence might scare you face-to-face. He's sensitive to art but not enough to spare your sensitivity, which I believe is very strong.

✦ So to me, it's mostly a relationship that's kept a bit hidden, confined to the phone, where you can say anything without fear of judgment. It's the contact you message even during family meals, under the table, because it's always fabulously stimulating to exchange with him and get his take on something spicy.

✦ I think you both have opinions that could be very controversial to the general public.

✦ I imagined him stopping by the local konbini to buy a cute but slightly creepy trinket that reminds him of his relationship with you, and then send you a picture: "Look, it's you."

✦ What makes him the happiest? When you tell him about your nightmares.

✦ I think he's the guy you might not talk to for days, then one morning you wake up, open your phone, and see "56 new messages and 13 missed calls."

✦ He comes and goes.

✦ And potentially, he stays if his interest remains piqued.

A word about your match: I also considered Charles, who is like a mini Shidou. We know how much they get along on the field and how their chemistry works, but since you preferred a character over 17, I decided to go with Shidou instead. Moreover, I think Charles wouldn't understand the depth of your personality as well as Shidou would.

© TIGREBLVNC 2024 | AUGUST '24 MATCHUPS EDITION.

[freakurodani]

top 5 haikyuu moments !! (can be particular scenes or episodes or arcs) :D

OKAY!!! so i had to gather visuals for this one bc i have many feelings about this!! I went for scenes that no matter how many times i watch, they never lose their magic for me, no matter that i know theyre coming, it still takes my breath away and makes me roll around with delight, these most of these i feel like are probably pretty obvious ones, they were meant to be impactful but ough, if they dont tear me up in the best way

SO IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER

1.

I mean, what can i say??? what IS there to say?? theyve been teammates for a few weeks at this point, but hinata has given all his trust to kageyama and in turn, kageyama promised to use it to its full potential. its also a promise for their rivalry!! like, okay okay okay think about it, with the context we have with Kazuyo, kageyama has *already* decided that hinata is going to be his someone better! he sees it innately and he wants to draw it out of him, and he's, hes trying to be *hinatas* someone better too!! do u understand *shakes you* do u see what i mean!!! i mean, im sure u do, im definitely not the first person to go insane about this and ppl have probably also said it in a way thats smarter than me but just, ough

2.

its,,,, its,,, the acceptance of it all,,, i just think about how *alone* kageyama must have felt after his grandfather passed, we see and know that hes not good at connecting with people. hes bad at communicating and hes sensitive and he's scared of getting complacent. like, the all youth camp arc and atsumu calling him a goody-two-shoes is kageyama struggling with how he is changing, how hes trying to incorporate the influences he's gotten from his betters, and he cherishes it, but he's also felt like the advice he'd been given didn't also mesh with certain parts of himself. or, thats how i read into it, anyway. he tries so *hard* to be what ppl need him to be, and he's *so scared* of being rejected again. and this is hinata (and the rest of karasuno) telling him "HEY! we like you! we think you're smart and you dont have to shoulder connection all on your own! let us help you connect with us in a way where you feel comfy too :)" and then they talk about how they want communication! and it works!! and i just *rips into a pillow with my teeth*

3.

HINATA'S PERFECT RECEIVE!!!!! so the inarizaki match is probably my favorite?? there are so many good moments but *this?* you wanna see me go insane? do you want smth thatll make me tear up? every time!! its just!!! a beautiful culmination of all of hinatas hard work that he's put into during the year! its his change of mindset! its his growth!! he's fallen a level deeper in love with volleyball and ive fallen a level deeper in love with his character

4.

halo around the moon <3 Tsukki's block, his hard work, his character arc and development and everything is just *chefs kiss*. i remember the first time i watched the show, i,, *hated* tsukishima, and i think we definitely arent supposed to like him at first, but GOD does that turn around!! and this moment just feels so *earned* and *epic* and in the end HE STILL ISNT SATISFIED!!!!! he STILL wanted more!!! this point was worth 100 god fucking damn!!

5.

im talking about the inarizaki match again!! but this time with a focus on Tanaka, who kind of struggled with this match! he was in a low place during it, felt stagnated and lame. Tanaka, as a character, i would say is best characterized by his mental fortitude and stability, funny enough. He's wild, but i think part of his visual design lends that as his base (since he's often compared to buddhas/monks). But in this match, we get more depth, we see him falter and struggle! it takes more than just a slap to his cheeks to get better (tho tsukishima does point out that he gets out of his depression pretty fast) but like, tanaka uses meaningful cognition to break his rut, and its also just like, advice that I've seen used for stuff like any kind of creative block as well. The visual during the animation, he's climbing up the stairs, he's slowing down, he's coming face to face with a canyon, a plateau. He sees two options, give in, or push forward and he picks "the cooler" one, and struggles forward, forces himself ahead! and kageyama backs him up too, by not letting him back down, assuring him that his usefulness hasnt reached its end and AUGH I LOVE A TEAM YALL

okay thank u so much for the excuse to ramble about haikyuu moments that mean everything to me <33333

[greentrickster]

So something good that started in my life last December was that I stumbled into a bit of luck and now have a deal with a nearby geek culture shop to sell plush mages I make. This was extremely fortuitous, because I created the design and concept back in 2017, had made about ten before forcing myself to stop, and, other than gifting one to a friend, still had them all, and was planning to find a holiday donation bin for a charity that accepted handmade stuff, because I was tired of them taking up space in my room. Like literally the only reason I still had them was because life was hectic and I kept forgetting to go check for where any local donation bins were.

This is very exciting, the owner's super nice and helped me set some stuff up so I'm selling on consignment, which means I only get paid when someone actually buys one, but I get a bigger cut of the money when they do.

My dudes, I have an income again.

It's teeny-weeny and irregular, but I have one, and, almost more importantly, a bunch of them sold during and right after the holiday rush, so I get to make more, and it's giving me something to actually do besides working on my mental issues and trying to fill my time while I gain the mental health and stability to get, you know. An actual job. I'm currently making a few more to put in the store, then I'm going to focus on making extra stock to have available for when the local anime convention (and it's stale, stale vendor's hall) arrives this spring.

Not only that, it means that I can make as many of these things as I want for now! And while it takes about a day to make one mage, I'm flexing hard on my status as a professional ADHD haver by having three or four on the go at once, but in different stages of completion. So if I feel like sewing I can one on this one, but if I want to do some pinning I can work on that one, and the third one's ready to finish stuffing and assembling whenever I feel like it, now I want to take a break to watch anime, oooo~ sewing mood again-!

Like, this is in no way I can turn this into an actual career, just because, like I said, it takes about a day to make one from scratch, going at a pace that's both productive and physically healthy for me and also, given that they're about twenty inches tall, made of primarily minky fabric, and being done by hand, that means that I am selling them for nowhere near what they're worth, because people wouldn't be willing to pay that much. Like, the minimum wage where I currently live is (a ridiculous) $7.50 an hour. If I made one of these guys in six hours, that would mean they'd need to cost $45 just to cover my time, never mind materials and the fact that this is skilled labour, and that is not the price on the tag, let alone my cut. They look deceptively simple for all the tricks and techniques that go into one (never mind the fact that minky is expensive fabric, the craft safety eyes I use are special-ordered and very good quality, and, oh yes, these little fellows are machine washable). I literally cannot make a livelihood doing this.

But, like I also said, it's giving me something creative to do that isn't just more reading, writing, and gaming. I love doing all those things, but this is a kind of physical activity that I've needed in my life, and making something physical is so different than writing, with the wonderful bonus that minky fabric is one of my favorite textures! As long as I'm strategic about my acquisition of materials, I'm not going to be losing money on this, and while it's something I think is going to end up paying dividends more in my mental health than in my wallet, I will be earning money for this. I'm getting paid to make plushies to my heart's content (or until I run out of materials for the moment) while watching anime/youtube and working on my mental health, and, for now, that's not only enough, it feels really good!

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #133

It is Tuesday. That means it's therapy day. So that's where I went this morning.

Last week I was there, I met a kindly old gentleman with poofy white hair who really liked my hat. I had a brief, but delightful conversation with him! It was a good time!

In case you are wondering why he liked my hat, this is my hat; it is on my head in this picture:

It's a pretty great hat!! Eevee is one of my favorite Pokémon, simply because it has the capacity to adapt to anything! It looks plain, but it's secretly prismatic! Eevee is a beautiful rainbow of possibilities!

Today, I saw the kindly old gentleman again (apparently we go to the same building for therapy at the same time, I guess), and he gave me a pair of buttons that he made himself, specifically for me! These buttons have my birth name on them, and it's not spelled quite right (mine isn't supposed to have an H at the end; it's so rare to find my birth name on anything at all, let alone without the H at the end!), but I don't care!! It was delightful, and it is the thought that counts, and the fact that he even remembered my birth name at all was heartwarming!

One of the buttons was pin-on; I promptly put it on my owl bag:

And the other one was magnetic; I put it on my fridge, where I'll see it every day!

Related: if it ever becomes safe to reveal my birth name to you, then you have my permission to use either my birth name or this public one that was given to me, which I use pretty consistently on the internet; both of them are appropriate descriptors of my general existence, I think!

…I was sad when he told me that his wife said to him that he might end up accidentally creeping me out. This is something I understand well; I do kind things for others just for the sake of doing it - I don't want anything. All the same, people tend to read more into my actions than I intend, assuming that I've got some kind of ulterior motive or something. I understand why most people worry about stuff like that; most of them have trauma, and most of them have experienced what they thought was "kindness", only to have someone lord it over them all entitled-like later. It's very lame, but it is what it is. It's a little lonely to be misunderstood so frequently, but at the same time, I can understand their caution; my way of being definitely isn't typical in my world.

I wondered if, like me, he is autistic. I hope I get to talk more to him sometime; I want to hear more of his story, and how he became who he is now, if he's comfortable with sharing it. 70 years is a long time to live, and I can imagine that he has a wealth of amazing memories that I might be able to learn and grow from hearing about! But I'm not really sure what is the socially appropriate way to ask, ahahaha… 😅

…After I got back from therapy, I made a tea! Today, it was a vanilla-rose white tea; I think you might like this one about as much as the vanilla-rose black tea, actually. It's got a subtler flavor; it doesn't punch a person in the face with flowery vanilla goodness nearly as hard as the black tea version, hahaha! But that's a good thing; I don't always want my tea to punch me in the face, hahaha! Br gave me this tin a while ago, and it's still one of my favorites:

It's another loose-leaf tea, so I had to break out the tea ball again - not that I'm complaining, of course!

Today, Momma (Or Oma, for short! Or Mia, as M likes to call her, because then she's "Momma Mia", haha!) is on the windowsill! She is Mogwai's mother. She was a rather murdery stray just a few years ago (quite literally; at first she was so aggressive that she had to be kept in a separate room and I had to go in by myself with cardboard armor on my legs to feed her), but with lots of love and time to adjust, she has become very cuddly and friendly, even if she still sometimes gets into brief spats with our other cats! 🥰🥰🥰

This is how the color is after it's done brewing:

...And here's how it looked with the honey added, and the cream swirling around:

...There's so much in my world that I wish I could share with you...

Also notable today was the fact that M, J, and I went out to get sushi with J's sister. And this is a beautiful thing; due to a long and complicated string of misunderstandings, J's sister and I started off on the wrong foot and stayed on the wrong foot for a long time; she didn't understand that I am not the sort of person who speaks in implication, and so a lot of weird assumptions were made about me with subtext that wasn't actually there. I also tend to be very blunt and straightforward (but not cruel!), and people tend to perceive me as rude; for example, if I'm thirsty at someone else's house, instead of saying, "gee, it sure is hot outside," or whatever other indirect thing that hints at the fact that I need something to drink, I will come right out and say, "may I get myself a glass of water?" You would not believe how MAD this makes some people, good grief!!

Fortunately, with J's help, over time my relationship with his sister has changed for the better, and though I wouldn't consider us close yet, she at least doesn't seem to be actively suspicious and mistrustful of me anymore. We went to the local all-you-can-eat sushi place, because she had never been there; I took a few pictures of my favorite things for you:

...Hey, Sephiroth? Do you like sushi? If you do, then what are some of your favorite kinds? If you tell me, then maybe I'll give them a try someday, just to see what they're like...

...I don't have a whole lot else to write to you about today. But all the same, I'm thinking of you. I hope you're okay. I hope things will get better for you soon.

Please be safe out there, okay? Because I love you enough to write to you again tomorrow.

Your friend, Lumine

[izel-scribbles]

ssave blake rouse :(

[rmd-writes]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love❤

Thanks Michelle! Choosing five fics was like trying to choose a favourite child which is to say, it's impossible. Okay, that's a lie, my favourite child is the one who is not sucking the life from my soul at any given moment. Yesterday both of my kids got a turn - first my youngest, because he very sweetly packed me a little fun size Crunchie bar from his personal stash of lollies and brought it to the movies for me and kept checking whether I'd eaten it yet and if I liked it. But then later he was being so loud I couldn't think, so his older sister became my favourite child because she told him to be quiet. Anyway, I'm turning into one of those recipe bloggers who can't give a recipe without sharing their whole life's story, so here is my list of fics I'm proud of in which I absolutely cheat by sharing some fic series:

don't estop me now (RWRB)

(read to the victor, the spoils first and then the prequel, what, like it's hard?)

I'm really so proud of this lawyer AU! I had an absolute blast writing these fics and I think it shows in my writing - it's definitely some of my best. What, like it's hard? is the first really substantial long fic I've ever written and that in itself was a challenge but the snarky rivarly between Alex and Henry is just so fun to write! Whenever I see comments roll in on these fics it just makes me smile so hard to see other people enjoying them

Soon (Tarlos)

PWP but make it bite-sized (aka 37, 100-word chapters). This started as a drabble but then I got the slightly unhinged idea to continue the fic in drabbles (ie precisely 100 words at a time). Was it a challenge to write only 100 words and make sure each chapter told enough of the story in so few words? Yes. Did I have so much fun edging Carlos and the fandom alongside him? Also yes.

Feeling kind of sketchy (Schitt's Creek)

artist!David unwittingly helps Patrick find himself and finds love along the way. This one is a little different in style to my usual writing, and I really leaned into the slightly more poetic style in the second part which I actually structured around a poem.

Precious Love (Tarlos)

A 5+1 exploring TK's relationship with love and self-worth. I don't usually write much angst but I dove into it for this one and I like how it turned out! Don't worry, it has a happy ending, I'm incapable of writing anything else!

Do you even lift, bro? (Tarlos)

aka my Tarlos gym AU - each of these fics (Let's Get Physical, Let Me Hear Your Body Talk, I gotta handle you just right) stands alone as a one-shot but they are part of a planned seven-part series which contains an actual plot, despite the way they read like pwp. The thing I'm most proud of in these fics though, is the coding - with a big assist from @celeritas2997, I learned to code well enough to embed actual instagram posts and DMs with photos in these fics, which for someone who is absolutely not a STEM girlie, is a very big deal.

The Grindr Toolbox: A Guide to Getting Nailed

A Helping Hand (Tarlos)

This Is Not A Drill (David x Patrick)

Are You Screwing with Me? (firstprince)

I set out to write three fics for three fandoms based on one prompt, and while it was a tricky balance to set up three very different fics using the same loose structure, I like how these turned out!

[boowritess]

okay but wouldn't it be funny if-

before Alejandro and Rudy got together, when Alejandro was in his Valeria phase; all the Los Varquaro's just didn't like Alejandro. everyone either had some idea or feeling that Alejandro and Rudy were a perfect duo, like the sun and moon, sky and earth, popcorn and movies, dance and song etc etc.

even if Alejandro and Rudy were both completely unaware, their soldiers knew. they knew and were absolutely livid when Alejandro and Valeria happened.

"dad-is-cheating-on-dad." like a hive mind this went rampant. and suddenly Los Vaquero's are half assing everything Alejandro is asking of them. being absolutely, unnecessary petty towards him, and when Valeria is on base, ohhh my days. the pair never get a moment alone because all of a sudden Alejandro is needed for the most smallest of things.

Los Varquaro's barging into Alejandro's office where he and Valeria are, every five seconds. "hey colonel! where's the toliet paper?" "do you want to come spar?" "can you come get the spider?" "alejandro! you need to look at this!" etc etc.

or, when Alejandro and Valeria find a small slither of peace, but they are interuppted again. all of a sudden the soldiers aren't listening to Rudy and Rudy has to go fetch Alejandro, but one of the soliders steps in to get him so their favorite dad didn't have to see their father cheat on him. this happens everytime Alejandro and Valeria are together on base.

oh and yes the Los Varquaro's are definetly sucking up to Rudy.

Los Vaquero's:

Dad we went out today and got your favourite chocolates oh and some of the snacks that you like!

We cleaned your weapons and your gear!

Dad we're cooking dinner! It's your favourite!

Oh you want us to do that? Of course we can! What do you mean other dad asked us to do that thing an hour ago? Oh strange don't remember!

Can we help with that?

Dad can we sleep in here tonight? What do you mean no!? Dad! We'll sleep on the ground!

There are always soldiers close by to Rudy. He's never alone. They are always hovering behind Rudy, this is especially worse when Alejandro is trying to spend time with Rudy and someone is always lingering by, or involving themselves. Also when Alejandro, Valeria and Rudy are together, one or a group of Los Varquaro's would swoop in. Whether to save Rudy or butt themselves into conversation.

Rudy figures out the reason for their change in behavior when he spots a few soldiers brushing off Alejandro's requests, others glaring at both Alejandro and Valeria. Los Vaquero's commanding officer, who was loved, respected and admired by the Los Varquaro's suddenly became the most detested. and it broke Alejandro because he didn't understand why.

One night, Rudy encourages Alejandro to go out with Valeria, there's a lot of things to do on base, but Rudy is adament. so Alejandro goes. While Rudy gathers all of the Los Vaquero's in one room.

They are terrified. they get the lecture of their fucking lives. are reminded why Los Vaquero's exists, reminded of everything Alejandro has sacrificed for them, has done everything for them, has given Los Vaquero's everything he can and so much more. he doesn't ask why tbey have been doing the things they do. he knows why. they expect a punishment and are shitting themselves because when rudy wants too, his punishments are fucking brutal. but at the end they get,

"thank you. thank you for being the most caring, loyal, respected, people i've ever had the pleasure of working with. for caring and trying to protect me. i'm proud of each of you. i will not tell you all what to do. you know what's right."

then he wishes them all a good night, turning away. somehow getting no punishment was worse for the Los Varquaro's.

a day later, everything changes. Alejandro is met with no resistance, soldiers doing as told again, even being more welcoming to Valeria.

idk i just think it would be cute if the Los Varquaro's went fucking guard dog for Rudy

[ijustscrollhere]

Crawling Cordyceps Pt. 1/?

I shared the link to my Ao3 to this, but thought it would be a good idea to share here as well. Still a work in progress, but I've decided to make my own little X-Men fic. I really love Kurt and many others, but it will be mainly focused on Kurt and my OC's interactions. Idk yet where it will go, so *shrugs*

!Edit! Reposting for the updated version. Added some more at the end to make it feel more like a part one.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There were few things in this world that made Kurt feel uncomfortable. Growing up and traveling as a circus performer makes one a little numb to things many would consider taboo. But the scene before him made his hair stand on end and his skin crawl. Perhaps there needs to be some exposition about how and why he was here in the first place.

               Kurt didn’t quite know where the information had been obtained, but he and a few others were sent to investigate a claim that a scientist, or at least someone claiming to be one, had been kidnapping people who may or may not be mutants. The details were a bit fuzzy, and Scott was of no help since he wasn’t given much information either, but it gave Kurt an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. His usual blas�� attitude was replaced with a grim expression as he left with the team; preoccupied.

               It wasn’t so much the news about people going missing that bothered him, not that it didn’t bother him, but it was more the fact that this was the fourth mission the X-Men in general had been sent on for similar claims and they all ended up being a ablenkungsmanöver. Much time and energy had been wasted scouring woodlands and mountains in search of something with almost nothing to show for it. The only thread of intel any one of them had found that could shed some light on the possible situation was a strange circle of mushrooms that Hank later discovered did not belong to the area. Kurt didn’t think much of it at the time. Little did he know just how important those fungi ended up being.

               It was nearing sundown when they all finally landed. A small clearing in the trees made it possible for them to hide their vehicle and potentially take whatever or whomever by surprise. The knot in Kurt’s stomach tightened and he frowned again, still not sure why he felt so uncomfortable and uneasy about this mission. If it was anything like the previous missions, he had nothing to worry about. So why did he feel like there was something wrong?

               They decided to split up. Not exactly Kurt’s favorite idea, but it did offer some comfort that he wasn’t alone in thinking this whole mission was a bust. That was, until Colossus comm’d in that he had found something. Nestled amongst the fir trees was a small facility that looked long abandoned. It looked like a single floor compound, the type the government would use. Discreet grey concrete with no identifiable marks. The outside was pitted from acid rain and weathering. There was a single door at the front with chipped and faded paint. You could see bare rusted steel showing through. The lock looked to be an old key card reader but was dangling by frayed wires and electronics.

               “Are vee sure zat zis is a good idea,” Kurt voiced his concern. The pit in his stomach grew larger and his tail flicked with slight agitation.

               “It’s unfortunately the only lead we have,” Iceman shifted his weight, “I don’t like it any more than you do, but we’re going to have to go inside.”

               Colossus nodded in agreement and began to walk forward. “Let’s hope that it’s only one floor.”

As they entered the building their eyes adjusted to the low lighting. It was an open floor about the size of a basketball court. Stainless steel shelves lined the walls, now mostly broken down from rust and neglect. A layer of dust and debris coated the floor and there were boxes and old equipment near the floor and shelves that appear to have been ransacked. The only other thing that stood out was a tarp haphazardly laid on the floor.

It wasn’t too long after Colossus’s statement that Kitty discovered that it wasn’t, in fact, just one floor. Kurt had made a quick round around the outside to confirm that there was only one building and room, ruling out any possibility of a secret passage via the walls. Bobby made a passing comment that they should check the floor for a door, and Kitty knelt, phased her head through the floor, and popped back up.

“Hey guys…. I hate to break it to you, but I found stairs.”

Once Kitty was back on her feet, the tarp was moved to reveal a trap door with the very stairs she had found leading down into the depths of the Earth.  Kurt shivered as cold air wafted up from the depths and his tail instinctively wrapped itself around his torso. The rest of the team exchanged looks before Peter spoke, breaking the silence.

“I had to make jinx it didn’t I,” he said in a feeble attempt to lighten the mood and positioning himself to go down the steps first. Kurt watched as he and the others descended, the knot in his stomach grew so tight it made him feel sick. Something about this wasn’t right. He whispered a quick prayer and followed his three teammates.

[generic-sonic-fan]

dearest CEO and authority on omega, i seek your guidance for a thing i'm maybe plotting: do you think, in a future far enough ahead where eggman is no longer a thing, omega would take pity on an abandoned metal sonic and find some way to repair him at least enough so he's functional again? or would he be completely apathetic, seeing as metal is/was just another of eggman's robots?

First of all THANK YOU for the acknowledgement. That alone has made my day.

Second of all, as you no doubt predicted, this post got LONG and I put way too many disclaimers in the beginning so here's the TL;DR: current Omega would nuke Metal from orbit, but this is not about being current, so I came up with a few fun ideas for your consideration.

Third of all, a general guideline for discussing Sonic characters in the far future is that literally everything is fair game as long as there's some acknowledgement in the writing of how the character has changed and at least an allusion to what might have caused it. See my strange future Metadow drabble I did a while back for reference- people were willing to accept that Shadow could get really helpless and depressed and that Metal (Neo, in this case) could get actually somewhat emotionally stable given enough time and distance from the Egghead himself. Shadow was really only a small divergence from his established character, while Neo was much larger leap. It was an interpretation inspired by the recent trans girl Metal Sonic movement here on tumblr, which would be difficult to parse without the context of that current fanon.

Now that I've spent all that time on that disclaimer, allow me to throw it all away. Omega doesn't really have any established character interpretations, canon or fanon. It's pretty much just me, the IDW canon, the Archie continuity, and a bare few snippets from the games that you're cherry-picking from. But this means that you get to have FUN. This is your sandbox now! You get to invent justifications for any kind of behavior you want Omega to have!! This is literally my favorite part of being a fandom creator- we get to come up with interesting ideas and convince other people to share our brainrot!!!

Okay okay okay okay okay, with THAT whole nonsense out of the way. . . to get to the part that you actually asked for:

I think it would really depend on just how far in the future we're talking for Omega, and any other people he currently has in his life. Fresh, current, canon Omega would never even think about restoring Metal Sonic in any capacity. If anything, current canon Omega would stomp him even flatter. But you knew this already. You're not asking about current canon Omega- you're here to suggest some hypothetical future character development for him. Allow me to throw out a few personal ideas:

If someone important to Omega took pity on Metal Sonic first (almost exclusively Shadow or Rouge, though there could be others depending on circumstance) then he might not immediately smash Metal for parts. He might even help with repairs a little. You probably knew this already too, though. Omega's look to Shadow while holding Metal at the end of Sonic Heroes probably suggested that idea enough.

But to get to the true vision of your ask, of Omega repairing Metal on his own. . . if said pitying person was somehow incapacitated and left their work to restore Metal unfinished, then I could see Omega completing the repairs. He'd be in denial about it the whole time. He'd probably hate himself for it. But he's got a thing about completing goals, you know, and I think he'd be compelled to do so for someone he was close to even if he's not onboard with the mission. This circumstance would be perfect to set up an enemies-to-friends situation. Omega only tolerating Metal out of love for the original person that cared about restoring him, but that could change over time.

(I'm imagining a scene where a newly-repaired Metal learns about his abandonment and, defying Omega's expectations, gets downright pissed at Eggman for it- and this being enough for Omega to reconsider his views just a little bit.)

The other idea I'm imagining for this concept is a distant future, something like Silver's future, where, for whatever reason, Omega is alone.

(My personal character interpretation of Omega is that he hates being alone, even if he's not so fond of people. He's desperate for the attention of others, even if it's only to run screaming from him. It has to do with being isolated and ignored during his formative period; his deepest drive is to be acknowledged in any capacity.)

Perhaps he's been alone for a long time. Perhaps he's still grieving Shadow. Omega's had a lot of time to mull over stuff and get nostalgic about the "good ol' days". He stumbles across the broken corpse of Metal Sonic and is hit with an idea that he knows would've made his younger self want to blow up an entire city block. He doesn't waste vital parts on restoring Metal, but he keeps the blue corpse around and adds bits and pieces whenever it's convenient. Eventually, perhaps unexpectedly, the repair is finished. Metal could be reactivated. Omega hesitates. He eventually decides that in the worst case scenario, he could always blast the inferior robot to bits again should he prove annoying.

(Scene: Omega flips the switch. Metal Sonic awakens, expecting to see Eggman standing above him. . . only to find Omega. And Metal is distraught about this in a way he can't really understand about himself. Omega, surprisingly, sympathizes, recalling a long-lost desire to be the greatest Eggman robot only to be abandoned all the same.)

I could see this being the start of an almost mentor/mentee relationship between the two, much the same way that Dadow is usually spun, actually; a much older Omega begrudgingly taking care of a Metal Sonic who was deactivated during Sonic's time. The idea interests me- if I wrote it, one of the reoccurring thematic notes would be an exploration of the Omega of now versus the Omega of the past, from Metal's point of view. If you want to throw Silver in there, it could be a more literal comparison, too, which could be fun.

In conclusion: those are just two of the thousands of plausible ideas you could write for Omega and Metal. Honestly, interactions between these two fascinate me so much and I would adore seeing what you might come up for them, no matter which way you spin it.

[yogfan14]

What are your thoughts on Ganondorf in TotK?

HOUGH okay

I'm gonna be honest, TotK stresses me tf out when it comes to the lore and Ganondorf himself as well. As someone who tends to read the lore a lot more and a lot deeper than normal fans of the series do, I have a lot to say lmao

TL;DR: phenomenal design, character writing is not as shitty but still shitty

I don't wanna take up y'all's entire dashboards so feel free to keep reading if you wanna hear me ramble

So first off, I do genuinely love Ganondorf's new design. Honestly, I just love the fact that he's back at all. We haven't seen Ganondorf in a mainline game since 2007, with the Wii release of Twilight Princess. Honestly, the only complaint I have about TP Ganondorf is the hairstyle, like what was bro thinking. Otherwise he was downright terrifying, loved his overall design, and how he linked back to OoT so well.

In 2013, we got the spinoff game Hyrule Warriors, which introduced to us the fan favorite long-haired Ganondorf (that, let's be real, we all just willed into canon for TotK), and honestly my favorite design of him thus far. I mean, look at him. He's slayin without even trying.

But the one thing that bugs me about them is that their designs don't feel "Gerudo". Definitely speaks evil, King of Demons, the whole shebang that is, y'know, his entire theme. But while there are a few obvious references to it, it doesn't really speak Gerudo. It doesn't actually feel Gerudo, it feels like he would have grown up outside the culture when he probably didn't see the grass of Hyrule field until he was at least mid to late teens. The only things making him Very Obviously Gerudo are the dark skin and red hair.

TotK Ganondorf broke that cycle.

In TotK, Ganondorf actually feels Gerudo. His overall design is V E R Y reminiscent of his culture and background and I actually like it. He doesn't feel like this Guy who just happens to share traits with the other Gerudo. All of the stylized jewelry, the sweatpants, the hairstyle, even his robe actually screams Gerudo. He actually feels like he belongs to the culture.

And that's just on his design. If you really pay attention in the Dragon Tears memories, he's actually given a bit more character than normal and possibly motives outside that of just pure power and greed. Which tbh I'm fucking bored of in regards to Ganondorf but that's for another rant on another day.

In the memory where Ganondorf and his people meet up with Rauru, Ganondorf mentions a key bit of information that I don't think many people noticed.

"Allow me to offer you my deepest apologies on behalf of the Gerudo for taking so long to accept your repeated invitations."

That last bit right there, repeated invitations. This line alone implies that the Gerudo as a whole probably weren't on board with the idea of coming under Hyrule's guard, but more importantly, that Rauru wouldn't take no for an answer. As the leader of the Gerudo at the time, Ganondorf probably dealt with letter after letter after letter of Rauru trying to get them to join Hyrule, when it's likely that the Gerudo made it very clear that they weren't interested and were satisfied just vibing on their own. So, right there, that gives Ganondorf reason to dislike Rauru greatly. I know I would in his position.

While it is shown that Ganondorf most certainly still has that hunger for power, his people were backing him up for the most part. They probably wanted Hyrule to leave them tf alone too and thought that the attack memory was their way of saying "hey, we're fine on our own, fuck off" (at least that's the vibe I've gotten from it). Ganondorf definitely still wanted power, that much was obvious, and it probably wasn't obvious to his people until he started conquering everything after Sonia's death and his takeover of the kingdom. He actively betrayed the trust of his people and everyone who looked up to him. Which he did in OoT too, but you had to do a little more digging on that one.

While I still have my complaints about his character, at least he feels a little more fleshed out in TotK. Granted that I haven't finished the game yet; I'm taking my sweet time just exploring and causing problems and riding the dragons for hours at a time. I may be missing some key details as a result and if anyone spoils me I'm going to hunt you down and eat your toes

I'll go on about the overall lore around TotK and why it hurts my brain so much another time bc this post is already absurdly long but uh yeah lol

[strqyr]

You're not the only one who doesn't hate characters. I can't think of any character that I actually hate, so even if it has happened it can't have been that strong of a reaction.

There are certainly characters I dislike, but even they are pretty few and far between, most of the time my worst reaction to a character is "meh". Occasionally the characters I don't care for end up being given enough prominence in the story that it affects my enjoyment of it, but that's really more of an issue with the writing/pacing/etc. than the character themself- I just want to get back to the characters I like!

(There are of course characters that fall into the "love to hate" category, where I find them to be despicable people that I can't wait to see more of, but since they actively increase my enjoyment of the story I'm not counting them as "characters I hate".)

yeah, i'm pretty much the same, except even with dislike it's like... a character would have to remind me of someone i've known personally whom i've had less than stellar interactions with to get to that point, and even then it's not about the character, it's about me. or if it's obvious that a character is the writer's favorite, but even that causes more annoyance than dislike or hate.

like yeah, we all have our faves that we want to get back to instead of spending time with characters we don't enjoy as much, but the way i've seen other people be like "i hate this character and for that alone they must die asap, the story be damned" is mind-boggling to me lol