#A game this big probably has some who haven't hit act 3 yet

[thessalian]

Faerun!Alisaie vs the Astral Prism

But first, a few home truths

Aylin: So, I can't give you all your memories back, Shadowheart, but I can help you unlock a few.

Shadowheart: *very quiet nudge to Alisaie via tadpole*

Alisaie: *very quiet return nudge of 'if you want me here, I'll be here'*

Unlocking: *happens*

Shadowheart: They did what to my parents?!?

Alisaie: They kept them alive, at least. So we'll go kick some doors down and come riding to the rescue as we ask them why the hell they sent you to retrieve that protection-from-elder-brain doohickey. I can't think of a better way of meeting the parents than "Hi, I'm Alisaie; I'm here to rescue you - and hey, hope you're cool with me dating your daughter".

Shadowheart: *snrk*

Alisaie: There we go. This kind of bullshit is way easier to face with a smile and a positive mental attitude. And, y'know, good clean face-smashing fun is a lot easier when not sunk into despair.

Shadowheart: Thank you. For always being there to keep me from disappearing into my own head. ...I have plans.

Alisaie: Oh, really.

Shadowheart: Leave it to me, and let me surprise you, just this once.

Alisaie: Fine. But only because you're too cute to refuse without good cause.

Shadowheart: *blush*

Aylin: You've got a good thing. I hope your pleasures of the flesh are as pleasurable as mine are with--

Isobel: Aylin!

Aylin: What? Bards should sing of all the joys you bring to the daughter of Selune!

Alisaie: I'll just leave you to it. I know it's been awhile for you two and I figure you're going to want to make up for lost time before we pack up and head for Baldur's Gate. Have fun. Oh, and here. *hands over scroll*

Aylin: What's this?

Alisaie: Silence scroll. Gith are still trying to ambush us and some of us do actually want to get some sleep tonight, so...

Aylin: You are so very thoughtful. I like you.

Shadowheart: And you're not saving that because...?

Alisaie: I can cast it myself, as and when it becomes necessary.

Shadowheart: *grin* Good to know.

After a good night's sleep

Gale: Thorm is dead. Thaniel's whole again. Why is it still shadowy and horrible?

Alisaie: The prosaic part of me says that sometimes these things take time to kick in. But I am a bard, so I'm going to go with "it's waiting for the best dramatic moment for the sunlight to come streaming in". Epic narrative wants what it wants--

Gith Ambush: *happens*

Alisaie: *who's pretty much beyond being surprised at this point* ...Aaaaaaaand epic narrative clearly wants this particular fight happening on a backdrop of shadows and gloom. Wish we hadn't left Lae'zel at the rear, but... oh well.

Stabnation: *ensues*

Once the gith ambush is cleaned up and they're heading for the road to Baldur's Gate proper...

Gale: You're really enjoying the possibilities inherent in Heat Metal when we're not fighting shadow-things, aren't you?

Alisaie: Hey, you're the one who learned Telekinesis just so you could match the number of ways I have to yeet people--

Shadow Curse: *lifts*

Sunlight: *spreads across the land like warm butter*

Beautiful Tree: *sprouts and grows to entirely envelop the statue of Ketherick Thorm*

Shadowheart; Gale; Wyll; Alisaie: ..................

Wyll: I thought heroes were supposed to walk off into the sunset after a job well done.

Alisaie: They're also supposed to walk away from explosions without looking back. Same principle here; just an explosion of life and growth instead of fire and shrapnel. So let's do that!

Wyll: Sounds good to me. Onwards to Baldur's Gate.

Except, when they're just a day's journey from the place...

Githyanki: *attack from astral portal*

Dream Guardian: Help! Can't face this alone this time! Come to the portal!

Shadowheart: Why the fuck did our warning device not go off?!?

Gale: Where are the others? You'd think Lae'zel at least would be making some noise right about now, and Karlach needed to vent some spleen after hearing about Gortash--

Alisaie: It doesn't. Fucking. MATTER right now. *Thunderwaves gith monks halfway across the old fort* Unless you want to be a mind flayer, in the portal! We can yell at the others for whatever's keeping them out of this fight later, but only if we survive!

And then, in the portal...

Emperor: Um...hi. Didn't have time to put my Dream Guardian face on. Sorry. But I'm the one you hugged when we were talking about Elfsong Tavern?

Alisaie; Shadowheart; Gale; Wyll: Whaaaaaaat the fuuuuuck...?

Emperor: Let me explain.

Gith Monks: *advancing*

Emperor: That'll take too long. Let me sum up: that-- *points to locked up gith* --is Prince Orpheus. Yes, he's alive. He's why you're immune to the Absolute and the elder brain. He's why I'm immune too. But if he wakes up and gets out, we're all basically boned. So please help.

Wyll: We're trusting a mind flayer now?!?

Alisaie: Does the name 'Omeluum' ring any bells? At this point I'm backing the one who doesn't hit first and ask questions never. We can decide what to do about him -- them later.

Stabnation: *ensues again some more*

Finally, with all the githyanki monks dead and Prince Orpheus a lot more chill

Emperor: So ... yeah, I was an adventurer like you and made the mistake of going to Moonrise Towers and got ... well, look, I just know the Absolute and the Chosen of the Dead Three are bad news and this elder brain stuff is bullshit but so long as you're not enslaved to an elder brain, this illithid thing kind of rocks and you should totally try it.

Alisaie: I don't need psionics and mind control; I can already yeet people in about three different ways and everyone tells me I could sell firelighting kits in hell. But thanks; I'll keep it in mind of any of my companions wants that particular option.

Shadowheart: Not it.

Wyll: Got enough physical transformation and dodgy sources of power already, thanks.

Gale: I'm not very useful in that regard, as I'm probably going to have to explode at some point.

Emperor: Very well. I suppose you've managed well enough so far. Have fun looting the corpses and then go get some sleep; you'll need your strength and you look like hammered shit.

Alisaie: Well, someone dropped a gith-spitting astral portal into the middle of our camp. Tends to wreck up the circadian rhythms, y'know?

And, the following morning

Alisaie: OKAY! I have gathered you all together to ask the following: *ahem* *pitched to carry as far as Waterdeep* WHERE THE EVERLOVING FUCK WERE YOU PEOPLE LAST NIGHT?!?

Lae'zel: Patrolling.

Astarion: Finding a snack you wouldn't yell at me over.

Halsin: I was not on watch so ... some days I sleep better as a badger.

Jaheira: Likewise.

Karlach: I wasn't on watch either, so I had a drink. Or, like, twenty.

Aylin: We ran out of Silence scroll so we were gaining some distance so as not to disturb--

Isobel: *bluuuuuuuuuush*

Withers: I do not involve myself in these things, and even if I did, there is a small child and a dog here and they required protection.

Alisaie: *deeeeeeeeep breath* All right. Everyone who's stuck with a tadpole is getting the full version of this, but to sum up: Prince Orpheus of the Gith is alive, Kith'rak Voss was right the whole time, everything's about to blow up in Vlaakith's face, the guardian we've got is an illithid free from the elder brain's influence - and is happy for any of us to evolve to part-illithid without losing our free will, just by the way - and basically is on our side. Still going to help us wreck up the Absolute so that nobody has to be a slave to them or the elder brain anymore. Once we deal with that, we can decide what to do about Orpheus, but right now he's what's keeping us from being thralls to the Absolute and would kill us soon as look at us anyway. I don't like it either but frankly? We started as 'Team Dangerous Company' and that's how we ride - unlikely allies and the best intentions in the world.

Astarion: If I can't rule everyone via tadpole, I want to hijack Cazador's ritual and become UberVamp.

Alisaie: ...Okay, mostly the best intentions in the world. Any questions?

The Entire Party: *raises hands*

Alisaie: *sheepish* Well, tough shit, because I have zero answers beyond that. Now someone help me sort through this chest; we need to go shopping so why not turn ourselves into rummage sales with feet, hmm?

Astarion: So whose problems are you going to solve first, hmm?

Alisaie: Shopping and assessing the lay of the land first, then we start dealing with people's problems. I'll let you all play boulder-parchment-shears for it, all right?

Astarion: I'd bet money you're going for Shadowheart's parents first. But I suppose I understand; love excuses much, yadda. Love her new look, by the way.

Shadowheart: *now has very white hair*

Alisaie: Hopefully that's a good thing?

Shadowheart: I like it. The contrast was nice, but ... I like matching you a bit closer.

Alisaie: ...I cannot wait to ask your parents what all your favourite things are.

[bamber344]

watched the first 3 eps of the yakuza prime series last night with my sibling who has no knowledge of the series, my opinion so far is pleasantly surprised. The first 1995 section of the first ep had me a bit worried for the acting and directing, but it got better pretty much immediately after that bit (aside from one or two tiny things). I like the sort of dual-narrative, non-linear storytelling thing they're doing, where it will introduce plotlines and characters in 1995 only to have them pay off in 2005, it's interesting and so far has kept my attention pretty good. Also, despite what many people feared, Haruka is indeed in the show! They dropped her name lowkey like a marvel stinger but hey it got me so what can i even say?

in terms of how they treated the existing characters, there are definitely some changes, and I can't say i love all of them, but I am keeping an open mind. (spoiler territory here)

probably the biggest change is that they made Yumi and Aiko actually be sisters, instead of Aiko being Yumi's cover identity. Yumi never went missing or had Haruka, she's Aiko's child instead. I'm overall fine with this, i think both characters are interesting so far and I'm keen to see where they take it

Nishiki's sister Miho actually gets a pretty big role in the 1995 sections, which I'm fine with, though she tends to feel more like Yumi's sister with the way the characters spend their time. We've only seen her once in 2005 for a very short scene so far so the way her story unfolds is still a mystery. I am curious.

(also this is a random nitpick but i find it odd that they call Kiryu by his first name but not Nishiki? I get that Nishiki is already a nickname but the other characters in the quad are all called by their first names aside from him. there's probably a cultural reason for this I'm too white to get tbh)

Majima!!!!! Yeah he's still clearly a goofy guy, but his violent streak has definitely been accentuated a bit (or maybe not, considering his first canonical appearance in the games was almost beating his guy to death with an umbrella). We've only seen him in 1995 so far, before he loses his eye in this canon (though that happens at the end of episode three). He shoots at a lot of people but noticeably doesn't actually hit any of them, they're just warning shots. interested to see how his story unfolds. Saejima also shows up for a little bit, says nothing, does nothing, and then gets shot. I haven't really gotten to any of the games that explore him yet so i don't have much to say on that.

I don't think Date has changed that much other than lowkey becoming a bit of a middle-aged twink, but he also hasn't had much time to shine other than pulling Kiryu into the 2005 plot after he got out of prison

There is a noticeable lack of my Stardust boys so far which is very sad but also yeah I get it.

Oh yeah and they brought in Shibusawa from yakuza 0 and made him lowkey a bit of a bum lmao.

I can't say much about the overall plot tbh as I was lowkey a little bit high when i was watching it but what i can say is that overall i enjoyed the first three episodes. so far I think i would recommend to anyone, fan or not, though if you're one of those fans who can't handle stuff being changed i would stay far away.

[i-love-hobbies]

Eda's reckless behaviour and overall mental health

Summary

Eda is a genius, but is very emotional when making decisions (not anger, but fear, stress ect.)

Her reckless behaviour and apple blood problem in my opinion are her ways of running from reality.

In season 1 she made a bit of progress on this issue. Then the finale happened. Then she made again progress and s2ep7 did a complete reset. And she is making progress now again.

Eda's intelligence

She's been a criminal for thirty years. She has been in the shady business for an extremely long time. Yes magic definitely helps but you also have to find a way to be on top of the game, so you can survive.

Remember Tibbles' shrinking potion. She can't really use a lot of magic if she is shrinked or poisoned and dead, can she? Not to talk about her enemies which you'd think would attack her now that she is magicless.

They haven't on screen, yet. The only ones that tried are Adegast and Tibbles and they both died without her using any magic (or close to nothing).

Now we know that she doesn't make plans a lot on screen. In s2ep3 especially she just let's Luz make the plan but that's because she is her mentor.

In s2ep6 Luz used sleeping needles which is wild magic so no, it's not knowledge coming from Hexside. Also the pickpocketing Luz mentioned.

Teachers don't do the tests instead of students.

She teaches her everything that isn't glyphs. I wouldn't be surprised if she has told stories to Luz about her best "outsmarting everyone in the room" moments.

Now we have seen some of her problem solving on screen. One of which was in ep.18 fight only using her channelled magic trough the staff (im not taking credit for noticing this, have no idea who did though) and used the bridge.

Also if she can telepathically talk to her staff. Owlbert saving Luz was probably her idea.

She had her impact on Raine's rebellion as well, without having magic or turning into a harpy.

"You are not our mom!"

"Wow, we actually helped people this time!"

"Bye, mommy Eda!"

In the back of her head she knows exactly what to do, everytime something happens.

Eda's mental health

Eda's curse and the nightmares it causes. The father incident. The fact that she probably thought Lilith was scared of her.

Lilith's hidden guilt and her taking her father's eye out don't mix well together. I wouldn't be surprised if they barely spoke even if they lived in a house together.

Her losing Raine.

Her faith in the emporer being broken.

She has seen a lot of death, that does impact people.

Season 1

At the beginning of the series she was making a lot of bad choices which don't aline with her experience.

The series starts with her getting caught by Warden Wrath. Instead of just sneaking, they were just walking comfortably in the corridors.

They are kids, one from another dimension, but her... She doesn't know better? And for a paper crown that she can replace by stealing from someone else.

Next episode we are introduced to her morning drink later on confirmed to be for adults only. And that drink didn't get a mention for the rest of the season. In that episode she is also not the most clear-headed. She didn't try to sneak, she didn't use potions. Didn't try to plan.

A list about her being impatient can go on and on.

So when does she think. When she realises it's dangerous (aka when it's right in her face). Literally in the first episode the moment she started doing stuff is when she got caught and spat on the warden's face.

In episode 2 she didn't do that because she didn't know if Luz was alive and had a hard time bottling her feelings. Like if Luz proved to him to be hard to keep tight up he could have killed her, the girl that came back for her and her son yesterday. And she proved to Eda that she is a little dangerous the previous episode with her fireworks.

Eda was rational again, after she was with both King and Luz.

As the series went on though she started to calm down a bit.

Firstly, the fact that she was so focused on fixing her card problem, after Tibbles scammed her, that she trew them away in another dimension.

I was wondering how she overcame it so quickly.

It also shows her knowledge of how to handle this type of problems which brings up a question. How did she learn it?

Secondly let's compare the first half of the season to the second.

1. Everything I already pointed out and was hiding the curse. The stuff that happened in ep.5. Her refusal to be parental in ep.7. Body swapped.

2. She gets scammed again (this time though, how do you expect that someone was digging their own grave). Didn't use a sleeping spell on the slitherbeast immediately instead was just standing there. Got caught by the fun police. Worsened King's stage fright.

In ep.15 because of her ignorance Luz and Amity almost die. Except that is not the full story. She had at this point a lot of faith in Luz and this was her friend's mind.

For Amity it's not that she hated her. Amity actually saved her in ep.12. It's because she wasn't that important for her to realise. "Omg Willow is at the very least extremely mad at her."

It's again a refusal to think, but for a stranger and not really on purpose. It was just a habit of hers.

Episode 18 and 19

At the beginning of the episode. Eda hid the curse, again.

When she learned that Lilith had kidnapped Luz. She didn't try to make a plan. She just revealed herself in all her glory while her magic was disappearing.

Shot the staff in a wall while she was having no idea, what that was supposed to accomplish.

Luz showed up and she finally started thinking.

Afterwards Lilith said we all know what and for the first time Eda's anger was the leader of her choices and Luz almost fell on to the spikes.

So then, for the very least a night, she was stuck in her mind with something, that was chasing her. She woke up to Emporer Baby the B*tch, who was telling her, he was about to go after Luz.

And no she didn't believe in Lilith, but was so overwhelmed. It was insane. So she begged. After some more running, she woke up to Luz in the Comformatoriam.

Next, she was about to get petrified and for awhile this was the calmest things have been since she got caught. Then Lilith shows up (ah yes she existed).

King jumped "She was trying to help!". Wait King was there.

Petrification beam go.

PURE PAIN!

Then she got the idea for all of them to fly away. Lilith shared the curse making the confusion even bigger. Then her magic is gone (that was a thing). She learned that the portal is destroyed. Now she was living with Lilith and might have starved to death with everyone else in the house.

After all of this she not only tried but HAD TO pretend that she was mentally stable, so they could survive this mess.

Season 2A

In episode 1 she told Luz not to go after big bounties and then tried to steal from a coven's ship.

At this point her emotions are the only thing that made decisions while they were also getting hidden. Don't get me wrong she did help and should, especially Luz but it's ALL feelings. She didn't think about consequences, which sometimes are good.

She didn't attack Lilith cause it's just not the time, she's scared from her own anger. Plus she can't really stand being with the roller coaster of emotions, that came with being in one room with her.

This didn't mean she didn't work with her and hadn't listened to the backstory, though.

The episode ends with her and everyone else not being close to dieing. Finally!

So now what? She tried to think about Lilith? Yeah, she probably preferred not to.

Then her glyph almost kills King, but Lilith showed up and helped. This is probably a familiarity she missed. So again she decided not to process it, but it definitely sticks.

She also didn't notice Luz being hurt.

Next episode, we saw Eda taking a shower which means she has healthy coping mechanisms, at least one, self-care and is not yet a workaholic.

Luz's apple blood joke is concerning.

After the events of episode 3. Luz probably told her that Lilith stayed with her and King, instead of just leaving them, get killed by Jean-Luc.

Then Eda still isn't certain where she stands about everything and Lilith just left, with her final act being, giving King mental issues.

Throughout this whole thing her mom was there with her cures/annual accidental attempt to kill her favourite daughter.

In this episode, Eda fell for apple blood signs. Rationality is out of the window.

In ep.6 she decided to help, with students getting palisman. Again not thinking about all the trauma, but finally doing something against her first instinct.

In ep.7 she heard King's "Le-" and refused to fully process, where the heck is he gonna go.

She also punched someone, cause this is gonna work?

Now she has reconnected with Raine having no idea should she even think of a romantic relationship again? And decided to be useful at least for something since she "can't raise kids".

She was helping and being very good at it, but it came from fear of loneliness.

Then she heard that Belos has a plan and just is overwhelmed. What if the kids get hurt, is she powerless?

Oh, look! Raine might be dead!

Next episode she overworked herself.

In between ep.8 and 9 she was trying to scare the beast into transforming. (She is losing her sanity. Literally the previous episode told her not to do that.)

In episode 9 again it's all emotional. She wants to feel better and be stronger, so she told King to blast her (almost blasting Amity), hit fool's blood even though Amity said the lake is further ahead.

Luckily she showed progress too.

She ate voles, which was against how she was feeling.

In ep.10 she was scared of letting Luz in the portal. I'm not saying she wouldn't have before, but I don't think it was easy.

Right now, after s2ep10, I think she isn't the most mentally stable. But she is definitely working on it.

[imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl]

The Perfect Bad Boy (Pt. 13 of 18)

Pairing: Billy Hargrove X Reader

Word count: 3 K

Summary: Working as a lifeguard in the Hawkins Community Pool, you try to fit in after moving from New York. Things were going pretty well when you notice you've been under someone's stare. Billy Hargrove, Hawkins' bad boy, has been staring at you since day one. You never intended to have anything to do with him, judging by the reputation he has. But Billy won't leave you alone, determined to show you his feelings are different this time...

As if your heart flooding you with confusing feelings wasn't enough, there are weird, strange animals lurking in the woods... But those have to be just part of the wild live of the woods surrounding Hawkins... Right?

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{Stranger Things Masterlist}

×

Demodogs

The funfair is everything you thought it would be, and even more. The colorful lights, the music, the games, the kids running around. It's inebriating, beautiful, mesmerizing... You only wish you could forget what you saw on the road... What you saw a while ago and what James told you he saw. Four beasts so far, if you assume those were all different animals. It probably means there are more, right? Nobody was attacked yet, or else you'd know. News travel fast through Hawkins. But even so, the cops need to know, and whatever it is, it has to be controlled. But what you really need is to know what that is. You think you'll feel better once you know the species, so you can do some research and have some peace of mind.

“(Y/N)? Are you there?” Monica shakes your shoulder lightly, dragging you out of your thoughts. “You look a little pale. Are you feeling alright?”

“Yup. I was just thinking.” You all give a few steps forward when the line for the ferris wheel move.

“I know who you were thinking about,” Christopher says, his arm around Monica's shoulders. “He's coming, by the way.” He tilts his head towards something behind you, and you immediately turn on your heels, and the familiar burning on your stomach hits.

You can't help but smile to see him, walking among the sea of people, eyes fixed on you. It's ok to look now, right? You're dating, you're living together. And Billy looks so... Gorgeous. Hot. Awesome. He's wearing his black leather jacket and a dark blue shirt underneath, which is unbuttoned.

“Hey, princess.” His smile makes your legs weak as he pulls you into a kiss.

“Hey, handsome,” you mutter when you pull away, a hand on the exposed part of his chest. “Haven't you ever heard of buttons, Hargrove?”

“Yeah, but I don't think they're necessary.” He winks and you bite your lip.

“I think I agree,” you whisper before finally turning back to your friends. And, of course, they're all staring with wide eyes. Monica is the only one who knows you're dating. “So, guys... Billy and I.” You mutter, blushing lightly and moving again. You're next in line.

“I knew it!” Jason exclaims, high-fiving Monica. “I knew it, from the beginning.”

“I didn't. I mean... Billy is... Or was...” Christopher struggles with the words, gesturing at Billy and you. “Well it doesn't matter, does it? Congratulations.”

“Careful, Chris. Remember what happened to David last time.” Monica warns him, a smirk on her face.

“Next.” The old man calls and you move.

“Couples first,” Monica says, pulling you and Billy ahead of the others. The car only fits two, so you and Billy go alone.

As you move up, you look down, taking in the amazing view the ferris wheel provides. Billy has an arm around your shoulders, and you lay your head on his shoulder.

“You're quiet. What happened? You sounded very excited about the fair.” Billy asks, placing a kiss on your hair.

You don't want to tell him why you're restless, not today. “I was. I am.” You stutter a little, clearing your throat.

“Are you afraid of heights?”

“No.” You breathe out, cursing yourself for worrying him. “I'm happy, I truly am and this is... This is beautiful and being here with you just makes everything better.” Looking up, you pull him into a kiss, taking in his amazing scent, from the cologne you love so much. “I'm alright, trust me,” you reassure him when we break the kiss.

“(Y/N), you were very, very loud earlier. You literally threw water on me. You can't possibly think I wouldn't notice you acting weird.” Billy keeps his index finger on your chin, forcing you to look into his eyes.

You really wish he could let it go because you don't want to ruin the night, but don't want to lie either. “I just saw something in the woods, but I'm sure it's nothing.” You try hard to keep the fear away from your voice, to keep it casual.

“Was it the same thing you saw the other time?” He asks, the expression on his face changing. It seems that you don't need to ask Billy to believe on what you saw. He does. You have no idea why or how, but it looks like he does. “The same thing James said he saw?”

“Yeah... Two of them. Running, keeping up with the car.” Your voice cracks by the end, as the image comes back to your mind. It's almost surreal that you're so scared of what's probably just some kind of animal. “It's stupid. I'm a big city girl, I'm not used to living this close to the woods.”

“It's not stupid.” He assures you, pecking your lips. “We'll check it out tomorrow, ok?”

“We should tell the police. What if it starts attacking people in the daylight?”

“It won't,” Billy states, not a single hint of doubt in his voice.

“What do you mean it won't? Do you know what it is? Is it nocturnal?” The words come out fast. If he knows what it is, why didn't he tell you on the first time? Billy looks away, taking a deep breath. “Billy?”

“I'll need you to trust me in this, (Y/N).” His voice is different, urgent, deep. Of course you trust him, how could you not?

“I do,” you say in a low voice. “You know I do. Is something going on that I don't know about?” As you speak, your time is over and you're back on the ground. Billy takes your hand and start walking away from the ferris wheel.

“I promise I'll tell you everything. But not here, and not today.” You both stop, and Billy cups your face. “For now, let's us just... Enjoy the moment. How does that sound?”

Taking a deep breath, you nod. It was the plan from the beginning, so you might as well stick to it. “Alright.”

“Come, I'll introduce you to my friends.”

Billy guides you through the fair, holding your hand. His friends are on the Northside, where parking is exclusive for the employees. But you don't think they care. You only know Tommy and Carol, the other two guys and the girl you only know from afar. When they recognize Billy, Tommy raises his hand and waves.

“You'll hate them.” Billy warns.

“Let me be the judge of that,” you whisper as you approach the guys.

“What's up, Billy,” Tommy says, smiling. “...And who's that?”

Of cours they're staring at you. Why would you even hope otherwise? You're not only the new girl, but now you're also the one who actually got Billy Hargrove. People won't just look. They'll stare. “This is (Y/N), my girlfriend,” Billy says and you wave at them. “(Y/N), these are Tommy, Carol, Ryan, Buck, and Emily.”

“Hi. It's nice to meet you, guys.” You simply say, involuntary moving closer to Billy when you notice Ryan's eyes lingering on you.

“Girlfriend? Are you kidding me?” Carol asks, giggling. “I knew you two were hanging out but dating? I must admit I didn't see that coming.”

“Why didn't you introduce her to us earlier, Billy?” Ryan mutters, taking a sip from his can. “Is she too... Pure to hang out with us?”

“Actually, yes,”

“And have you started corrupting her already?" Ryan flashes a smile, and it makes you feel uncomfortable. You can see when his eyes move through your body, up and down, his smile only widening. “Why don't you give me your number, sweetie? I can call when Billy boy here is done with you.”

“Don't you–”

“Do you happen to have Billy's number?” You ask, raising your voice and placing a hand on Billy's chest to stop him from moving. Ryan raises an eyebrow and nods, a big interrogation on his face. “Good. Then you already have my number.”

He bursts into a laugh, furrowing his eyebrows. “Nice one. You could just say no, though.”

“It's not a joke.” Smiling, you feel Billy's arms encircling your waist.

“Wait. Are you two living together or something?” Emily gestures at you and then at Billy, and you feel when he nods. “Shit, it's true then. You're pregnant.” She stands up straight, wide eyes.

“I knew it.” Tommy states.

“That again.” Rolling your eyes, you shake your head lightly. “I'm not pregnant. We're just–”

“Living together,” Billy states, his voice making it clear there will be no further explanation.

Everyone, basically at the same time, gasps, giggles, and Ryan spits out his drink. “Holy shit, Billy. Can't believe you're keeping this one. But this whole innocent act she has going on is very alluring, I must admit.”

“Want me to beat him up a little?” Billy whispers in your ear, and you can hear the anger building up. And you didn't like what Ryan said anyway.

“I did say I wouldn't stop you on the next time so be my guest,” you whisper back, shrugging your shoulders. Who are you to intervene if Billy wants to use his friend as a punching bag?

You give a step back when Billy moves, straight towards Ryan who has the decency of raising both his hands in defeat. “C'mon, Billy. You wouldn't hurt me because of one of your cows, would you? She's just–” Ryan is cut short by a hard punch on his stomach, which makes him bend over and forces the air out of his lungs.

“I would just–” Billy pulls him up again by the collar of his shirt, his fist then connecting to his jaw. “–warn you but–” A kick this time, on the ribs. “–you just can't keep your damn mouth shut, can you?” Billy pushes him violently, and Ryan stumbles down, blood all over his nose and mouth. “I believe my point is made.” He turns to look at the others and you do the same, just now noticing your eyes were fixed on the fight. If you can even call this a fight.

“No screwing with your girl,” Tommy states, exchanging a wide-eyed glance with Carol. “Got it.”

“Let's go, (Y/N).” Billy fixes his jacket and takes your hand. “Want some cotton candy?”

He is acting as if he didn't just leave a bleeding Ryan lying on the ground. “Yeah,” you mumble, raising an eyebrow at his smirk. Billy starts walking, not bothering to wave goodbye at his friends. “Just because I didn't like them it doesn't mean you can't hang out with them. I want to make this very clear.” You have to say it. In a relationship, a person shouldn't try to control who the other hangs out with.

“You're an angel, you know that? The other girls had me for one night and already wanted to control what I–” He stops talking suddenly, shaking his head slightly.

“What? You can say it, I made peace with whatever you did before.” As you speak, you start pulling him on a different direction. This parking lot is outside of the fair, so you're near the back of the attractions. A place gets your attention. It's a bit dark, but there's this blue and purple light, enough to illuminate it just a little bit.

“I know, but I shouldn't compare you to–. Where are you going?”

Not bothering to answer, you just start pulling him harder. “There.”

“I might like where this is going.”

“Jerk,” you mumble, smiling to find that whatever attraction this is, the back is shaped like an L, which gives you a perfect corner to hide. So you move to the very back of it. “Thank you again,” you say, turning around and walking backwards until your back hits the metal wall.

“For what?”

“For defending my honor. It's the second time and now I can thank you better than I did on the first time.” Of course, he already has that smirk on his face. The one you used to hate, that you used to be scared of because it made you feel... Weird. “I–”

The words get caught in your throat when Billy picks you up suddenly, both his hands grabbing your legs and placing them around his waist. You immediately wrap your arms around his neck to steady yourself, giggling. “For the height issue.”

“The height is not an issue,” you tell him, the blue and purple lights illuminating his face enough for you to take in his features. They're already memorized, burned in your brain, but you still like to look. “It's good to be on the same level though.”

“Mhm.” He mumbles and you close your eyes when you feel his lips brushing on yours.

You're used to the burning sensation, the sweet butterflies on your stomach as the anticipation kicks in.

On the moment his lips connect with yours, the amazing, breathtaking sensation is clouded by a groan. A... Growl. Billy pulls away immediately, letting you down. “What was that?” you ask, suddenly aware of the woods across the parking lot.

“Stay here, I–” Another snarl, low and guttural, and then you see it.

The thing comes from behind a large truck, some feet away. You're frozen at the sight. Now you can see it, clearly. And it's not an animal.

It has no fur, just blue, wet skin... And no face. You were right. James was right...

“(Y/N),” Billy calls, but you don't move. “(Y/N), c'mon.”

The thing moves slowly, and you have no idea how, but it knows you're here. It's looking straight at you and Billy, despite having no eyes. You're trying to make your body move, to send any signals to your legs, but it's useless.

Its face starts moving, all of it. You feel Billy grabbing your hand, a distant, numb feeling. Then, the animal's head opens up, and an unnatural growl emerges from its throat at the same moment you're pulled. You don't know how but your legs start working, and you're suddenly running, as fast as you can, back inside the fair. But you feel hunted, pursued. You're among the people again, but Billy keeps running, you don't know where. You can't think. Maybe you're going crazy, but you're pretty sure Billy saw it too. He wouldn't be running if he didn't, right?

“(Y/N),” Billy cups your face, and only then you notice you stopped. The sea of people move around you, but you can't really see it. “Listen. I need you to help me find Maxine. Or any of her friends. Ok?”

You simply nod, taking a deep breath and trying to get yourself back together. “Maxine,” you repeat, clenching your fists. “Or the boys. Alright. But n-no separating to look.” You burst out the last part, holding the collar of his jacket.

“No, we'll stay together. I just need you to–”

“Billy!” A low yell almost lost among the noises reaches you. You both turn your heads at the same time to find Max running, pushing people out of her way. She's with the boys, and someone older. “We gotta go. Now.” She says once she's close.

“We–”

“The Demodogs are back.” Dustin cuts Billy off, his voice getting all funny again. But you don't laugh this time. You're too scared to laugh.

“(Y/N)? Are you ok?” Max asks, and you don't know what to say.

You're feeling sick. There are too many people here, and that thing is out there... What if it starts attacking? There are kids here, toddlers... You feel your body failing, and a strong arm encircles your waist.

“My place. Everyone. Now.” Billy commands as you struggle to stand up, hiding your face on his chest.

Is there any possibility you're having a nightmare?

Because these... These things don't just happen. It doesn't exist, not in real life. It belongs only to sci-fi or horror movies.

Billy has a hand on your knee as you ride shotgun in his car, not listening to whatever Max, Lucas, and Dustin are talking about on the backseat. You're waiting to wake up, you think. Trying to shake the image of that thing's head opening up like it's been sliced apart. You feel how your hands are shaking when you touch your face, trying hard no cry out of desperation.

“Hey,” Billy says in a low voice. “Remember when I told you to trust me?”

Nodding, you dry off the stubborn tears before looking at him. “We'll fix this. I promise you.”

“How? How do we–”

“We'll tell you everything,” Lucas says, cutting in. “I mean, she saw it. She has to know, right?”

“Right. But your brain may explode, so be prepared.” Max touches your shoulder, but you can't understand why they seem so... Calm about this. They're worried, but not deadly, ultimately scared. How in the hell is that possible that you're the only one here on the verge of losing your damn mind?

“Let's get inside,” Billy says when we stop by his place. “And wait for the others.”

You can barely feel your body as you walk to the house. Billy remains by your side on the couch as the boys stay in the kitchen. The low chattering is unlistenable.

“How are you feeling, princess?”

“I don't know how to answer that. I just say a very weird dog cracking its head open.” Running a hand through your hair, you close your eyes shut. “It's about that lab, isn't it? This whole thing smells like some screwed up experiment that went wrong.”

“The truth is actually a lot worse than that.” As he speaks, the door opens and you jump back to your feet, breathing out relieved when you see it's just the rest of the guys. And three more people, about your age.

Everyone gathers around in the living room and you go back to your place beside Billy. It's creepy the way they all keep staring at you, exchanging glances.

“(Y/N), these are Steve, Nancy, and Jonathan. They're part of our party when it comes to... This.” Max starts, and the three of them nod and give you a little wave. “There are also Robin, Hopper, the chief of police and Joy, Will's mom, but they won't get here in time so... Let's just do this.”

Maxine takes the deepest breath, but when you think she'll start speaking, she doesn't.

“I swear to God I'll lose my freaking mind if one of you don't start explaining to me what the hell is going on here because I just saw some–some sick, zombie, dead dog with no face and the head just opened up like one of those carnivorous plants and I'm sure something is very, very wrong and–”

“Alright, I'll do it.” Eleven speaks up, stepping forward and gesturing for Billy to stand up. She takes his place, looking down at her hands before looking at you. “Ready for the strangest story you'll ever hear?”

×

@chloe-skywalker @dpaccione @dreamin-of-dacre @funeral-7 @uncookspaget @youhavemyfantasticbeasts @halloweenbitch2764 @redlovett @multific @shinydixon @nikkixostan @clockworkballerina

[shyrose57]

Brothers anon, I feel really bad about making this so long so there is a split at 7 where its onto another ask. Every answer past 7 is kinda long (especially 8), so im very very sorry. I'll try to not make anything this long again I promise.

1: He does fall back into that mindset at times. At first the others didn't get it but just let him be him. Not realizing it was a bad thing. Its only after they finally got Ranbob to tell then what lead to him getting so connected to the Dream Presence they realizie its a bad thing. But unlike the Presence which promises to make him perfect, they just constantly re-assure him that he doesn't need to be perfect and even encouraging him to make mistakes. Like if Ranbob makes a mistake and drops a plate, he'll freak out, but Benjamin conforts him. Reassuring him that he's ok and that no one is mad. 

2: I still sadly don't have a backstory for them or have planned who met who first. I have some ideas but so far I haven't choosen to go with any certain one yet. The ages don't really play a huge role in their relationship, but it is agreed that Benjamins a father figure or role model to the rest of the group. Especially Ranbob. Isaac actually takes the lead more often than not! Benjamin just sometimes takes the lead in certain situations and is a follower who has a stronger voice/say in what happens than the rest. 

3: If you ask Ran, he'll say he went along because he saw how happy the idea of the roadtrip made his family, and saw how much it meant to them. But there's also a small part of Ran that he pretends he doesnt know exists, that wants to consider Ranbob his brother again and wants to be as close as they used to be, a part of Ran does severly miss his brother and wants him back. But he's far to scared to get close to him again and let him close to his family after what happened. 

4: Nah Jackie knows those things. He's just messing around with Watson and wanted to see him be uncomfortable.

5: Not as many people forfeit as you would think surprisingly! When people get far enough to face off against the gladiators their usually either to stubborn to forfeit or they falsely believe they can beat them. I like to think that Grievous had a problem with people putting stuff in his food, like maybe his family used to put strength potions (basically drugs in this world) in his soup before any training sessions, making him cheat without knowing, and even putting poison in his food a few times when he confronted them about it or was disobedient. And since it was said Jackie was found off the streets I like to think that his family had abandoned him, and over time he got close to people who said would protect him, only for them to either die or leave him.

6: Ran wins most of the time in the games like Dart Throwing or Spoons. Like Jackie tends to win Gold Fish and Tic Tac Toe. Uh, let's just say Jackie and Ran got very heated during a round of Dart Throwing and a dart was thrown that ended up hitting Ran in the stomach, and a punch followed that to Jackie. Watson had to come and break it up and since then enforced that he had to be present during any game of Dart Throwing. He wasnt present once and while nothing bad happened Watson chastised them about not having him there. Everyone has good poker faces expect Jackie, he just can't keep a straight face which usually ends up in someone else laughing at him and losing their poker face for the rest of the game. Grievous has the best luck in games of chance! He doesn't know how but most of the time he manages to win and is between confused and disbelief. 

7: I am not very good with height. I have no concept of measurement of any kind what so ever. I have it so Ran is 8'6 and Jackie is 5'5 but I have no idea how big that exactly is and if its to big or to small for them. Jackie has two main options for dealing with mean people, 1)Be mean back and hit them where it hurts (physically and mentally if possible) or 2)Act like its all ok then go cry later. He typically picks 2 and goes to anyone from the group for comfort. And im not sure if your talking about the fishermens fighting skills or how they react to the gladiators fighting skills (same for the last question)? The fishermen defiantly aren't the best fighters, but because they live in a area where they do get attacked by mobs or thefts everynow and again they do know how to fight. Their actually surprised how far they got in the Pit. The difference in skill level is enough to be noticed definitely, its big enough that Grievous, Jackie, and Watson offer training and mentorship to them. 

1: Ranbob needs a lot of help and comfort-it’s very lucky the fishermen are willing to give it to him. However, it does sound like it was a bit before such happened. How far along did it get before one of the others noticed, or he told them about Dream?

2: So Isaac takes the lead? Interesting. Why is that exactly? What does he have/do that makes him a good leader?

3: Ran’s going through some stuff, huh? But hey, a start’s a start. Hopefully it goes somewhere better than it was. I look forward to seeing the healing journey.

4: I’m not surprised in the slightest, but I am vaguely amused. 

5: Well, I’m sure some quickly come to regret their decisions. Also, ouch. Everyone’s really going through the ringer here. Did those potions have any lasting affects? Do the others’ know of their friends’ tragic backstories? If so, how do they feel about that, and how did they find out?

6: Y’know, I never would have imagined dart throwing could escalate like that, but then again, considering the group, I’m not as surprised as I should be. Was that dart an accident or? And how far does Grievous’ luck extend? Could he win the lottery, or is it more just for small games?

7: I believe there are height charts, if you want help with that, where you can type in the height. But I may be wrong, I’ve only seen them in passing. Ran sounds like an absolute tree, and Jackie’s taller than me, so at the very least, he can probably reach the top cabinets, if that’s any help. I’m not much good with height either though, so possibly wrong. How mean can Jackie get by the way? And how do the others react to both scenerios?

[juicemitio]

Alright I went to Louisville Galaxycon and saw Travis and Clint twice, for their worldbuilding workshop and their Q&A. Here's some interesting stuff I learned (I didn't include stuff they talked about that's pretty common knowledge or they talked about on the last ttazz)

Graduation 

Fitzroy was originally going to be a jock that was weak bc he no longer had a team, Travis told Griffin that that didn't really work for the world so they reframed it as him training to be a hero, was great academically and behaviorally, but had a problem no one had seen before and no one felt like dealing with. It specifically wasn't "barbarian fails bc he can't keep his rage in check," it was that no one was willing to deal with his magic so they shipped him off

Someone asked Travis to explain fitzroy's magic, so from the DM's mouth- he's a barbarian subtype with elemental magic which has a random effect while raging, which we haven't seen yet (path of the wild soul if you want to look it up and see what he can do) and he took a feat which gives him the ability to cast 3 cantrips of his choosing. What I thought was interesting was that Travis described Fitz's magic using the word "elemental" twice, even though that isn't specifically stated in the path of the wild soul entry

Travis knows Argo's secret and is very excited about it 

Clint has a pirate fiction book he reads every night before they record to get into the headspace to play Argo, he told us the name but I forgot it 

There is one small little concept that made the whole of graduation make sense to Travis and is what the arc will be about, and he only figured it out a few days before recording. Obviously he didn't tell us what it was

Originally it was going to start with everyone starting at age 11 and slowly killing the other kids off, but Justin didn't feel comfortable playing a game surrounded by kids dying 

The accounting scene is already one of Travis' all time favorite taz scenes

The pegasus scene informed Travis on exactly how he was going to treat the firbolg

Also Travis referred to Justin's character exclusively as "the firbolg," which means "master firbolg" is solely a thing going on with the npcs in the game which I find hilarious. They just all decided to give him a dope title bc he deserves it, meanwhile no one will call Fitzroy "sir"

To Fitzroy, social threats are an extremely real and serious thing, like the Biggest thing to him (we were talking about what characters found threatening in the workshop, for context)  

There's some big concept/idea that comes up in the next episode that travis almost let spill and had to quickly stop himself from saying it

Someone mentioned eating breakfast in their question in the workshop and Travis goofed on it for a second, then said "cereal world" suddenly, and Clint had to pick up the question bc Travis had to take a second to make a note of it in his phone 

Travis started brainstorming graduation in March and they recorded the first episode in October, and his main job in that time was working on graduation 

Before Buckminster was adapted for graduation he could not fight at all, if he got into a fight he would die, he poured everything into charisma and could talk his way out of any fight (even the big bad of the game he crit 20d his check and the big bad walked away from the fight) 

Travis is really into psychology and how if you assign a label to someone they're going to act more like it (ie you tell a kid they're amazing and smart and talented and they become more like that, you tell a kid they're annoying and dumb and a problem they become more like that), and how that was a major contributor to play into hero/villain/sidekick/henchperson dynamics, you get assigned this arbitrary title of good/evil/subservient and you become like that to fit the role, and then the inevitable pushing against that mold

Travis is fully aware of his story being compared to harry potter and he doesn't care bc it's apt (people in a school arbitrarily divided into four groups and one of them is the Bad One), also he knows people describe it as "sky high meets Harry Potter meets my hero academia" and he actually finds that really flattering bc he thinks that sounds cool and like something he'd want to watch 

On that note, Travis is a self-identified Slytherin and he's always upheld that the reason Slytherin is depicted in a bad light is bc Rowling decided she didn't like them, and he's always sympathized with the idea of a first year Slytherin working their ass off following the rules and doing their work and getting points, and Dumbledore rewards three idiots for breaking like every rule and pulls the trophy away from you. This was a big inspiration for graduation, of one group getting a bad rep and being portrayed as evil for literally no reason 

Amnesty

Clint & Travis's favorite scene they've ever done together was Ned & Aubrey's final scene together 

Aubrey and Dani do move in with each other at the end of amnesty

Balance

Travis' main emotion around taz is pride and he's most proud of the scene in stolen century with the spirits in the robots, bc they had to record it a second time bc it got way too dark and ended in a really grim way and about 20 min after they finished they all decided that they weren't happy with it, that it didn't fit the tone, he's really proud they didn't just leave it be and they took the second pass at it to make it right

I'm pretty sure he's talked about wanting to kill Magnus off at the beginning before but he mentioned that it was only at the end of petals to the metal he actually realized he wanted Magnus to live, bc Hurley had to sacrifice herself to save Magnus bc Magnus had been so reckless, that hit Travis really hard. Travis realized that Magnus' recklessness was getting people hurt and so Magnus did too, so Magnus become a bit more cautious and took up rogue training to try not to get anyone killed again 

Dust

Dust wasn't designed to be anything more than a one off and the workload was completely unsustainable, the document of notes for dust was about 100 pages and only about 10% of it got used

The reason Travis loved it so much was bc it was a mystery and he found it really fun

Commitment

Clint would love to revisit commitment, but probably not in podcast form bc he didn't find himself really being in the moment as much bc of all the different things he had to keep track of, he'd like to see a comic adaptation/continuation if possible

It was based of a comic he wrote that never got published bc the company producing it failed (he still cashed his paycheck) so he reused it bc he still liked it a lot, it was about how America was founded as a monarchy instead of a democracy and what that changed in the usa's (united sovereignty of america's) history, and how people now were fighting to establish a democracy. Also there were cowboys and spaceships and other cool stuff he put in there bc he liked it

General adventure zone

The reason why they're are able to do romantic relationships w/o being weirded out by it (they joke about it but they don't actually care) is bc it's never done in an explicit or sexual way and since it's the decision the characters would make to pursue the relationship then that's the decision they make. He reframed it as it wouldn't be weird if a family were writing a script together and there was a romance and one person wrote lines for one character and the other wrote lines for the other. He did mention that two siblings playing characters in a relationship as actors on screen wouldn't be cool though

They sometimes get comments that some of the stuff they do is "fanservice," but they feel that they owe their success to their fans and they owe some to them 

They are both aware of and proud that Justin is the best at character creation, Clint specifically really was talking about how Justin's strong suit is definitely character creation and characterization

General mcelroy stuff

They walked pretty close to me when they entered the stage room for the q&a and like… they're short, like shorter than you think

Travis referred to his unborn child as "baby dod" (I'm not 100% certain but I'm pretty sure) which I looked up and is a nickname for George, and given with their older kid being named Barbera and nicknamed BeBe and Travis talking before about how he and his wife like classic names with cool nicknames it makes sense

Travis had an earing in his right ear, I didn't get to see his left ear and I couldn't tell if it was an actual piercing or a fake, it looked really good though. Also his tinted glasses look a lot cooler irl than they do in pictures

Clint told the teenage mutant Ninja turtle story with the signatures that griffin told on mbmbam, but Clint remembered it as happening at King's Island, not Disney. This story was prompted by the question of the biggest lie he ever told his kids, and he only came clean about this a few months ago

Travis told a story about how he finished a videogame when he was younger and was so excited that he picked up a plastic knife, yelled "throwing knife!" threw it directly at Griffin who dodged it and it hit and shattered a window