#AND WHY DO WE HAVE LIKE ALMOST 1000 FOLLOWERS ON HERE????

[malwarechips]

why do we have 102 followers on art fight

[adventuringblind]

Ma Belle

Lestappen x Reader

Genre: Mafia AU, fluff

Summary: an arranged leads to a few struggles. The main one being that Max and Charles can only seem to summon their wife with her favorite movie.

Dialouge prompt: "It's okay baby, you're safe with us." "Yes we can watch the same movie for the millionth time, love."

Warnings: arranged marriage, daddy issues

Notes: part of my 1000 followers event. Requests are open again for regular asks btw (poly, lando, oscar, charles, Max, daniel, and logan for sure, and Liam and Carlos, depending on the request)👀

Masterlist

Being a bargaining chip had been her purpose. The only reason she was born. In the possibility some kind of treaty needed to be made, she would be there.

So she learned how to be perfect. How to look the part her father needed her to. Played the game that everyone in this line of work plays.

Regardless of if everything in her mind is screaming to back out and run away as they sign the papers. She's being married off to not just one man, but two men who she doesn't know. They know each other. They'd supposedly been in her situation and have been married for a while already. They look at her with Kindess. A Dutch named Max and a Monegasque names Charles. A sympathy maybe only They can share with her.

She closes herself off the second they are alone. She is nothing more then a possession. A piece on the board for if things go wrong. These two don't actually want her and they already have each other. Why is she even here? Because of some treaty?

She ignores them. Keeps her distance. Pretends they don't exist. All the while watching the same move over and over again when they aren't around to hear.

Beauty and the Beast is her comfort movie. The one consistent in her life apart violence and backwards politics. She's not sure where it came from, the love for this movie. Maybe it's the comfort she finds in knowing she's not the only one locked away for some underlying purpose.

Max and Charles, to their credit, attempt to make am effort while not scaring her further away. They offer food at her door when she doesn't want to come out. They make attempts to show her affection. They give her space when she needs and don't push for more them she is willing to give.

Max and Charles weren't supposed to be home until later. Out on 'buisness' which code for something probably illegal. Which means, she wraps herself up in a blanket and makes her way to the television. She puts on her comfort movie and promptly passes out after a having a sleepless night in her own bed.

When the two males return, they find her asleep with the movie long forgotten. They don't move her, but instead restart the film. They stay with her until she wakes.

The shock hits first and then something like bewilderment follows. She eats with them after that and even keeps up some light conversation.

They tell her that the situation isn't ideal, but they made the most of it and intend on doing the same with her. They comfort and hold. They keep her safe when she needs it. They spoil her when she lets them.

But most importantly, they watch the same movie with her over and over again.

On this particular occasion, she was coming home from a visit with her father. The man who basically abandoned her with unfamiliar men for the entirety of her life. It left her feeling drained and insecure. She had been prepared for this her entire life and somehow she wasn't treating Max and Charles like she knows a good wife should.

She collapses on the couch. She pays no attention to anything else and just sobs. You'd think she was injured. Maybe even dying. Though this certainly felt like death. The idea that Max and Charles will leave her one day, send her back to her father who will find some other way to use her. It makes her stomach churn.

The two males take in the scene before them. Charles hastily fumbles for the the remote and sets up the movie they've watched almost everyday for a month now. He it man enough to admit its grown on him and he has the lyrics of every song memorized and working on turning it into piano music. Max sets about getting the female upright. She goes unwilling and ends up with her head in Max's lap.

"liefde, what's got you in tears?" Max makes an attempt at drying her tears only for more to show up.

She hiccups a few times. "I'm not a good enough wife, but I'll do better I promise. Just, please, don't send me back."

Charles joins the on the couch and runs nimble fingers along her skin. "Did something happen with your father to make you think that?"

"He used to make me pretend to be a wife to some of the men who work for him." Her eyes get cloudy thinking back to the memories. Her childhood was not one she looks back at fondly. "I just want to be enough."

"Dry your tears." Max starts before she can spiral again. "It's okay, baby, you're safe here with us. You're trying your best, and we know this kind of situation isn't easy. Just let us show you we care, yes?"

She looks up to see the movie ready to be played. The soft music in the background instantly calms her. "You don't mind?"

"We can watch the same movie for the millionth time, amour." Charles laughs softly when he sees her smile. "It really is a good movie."

"Charles is jealous." Max smirks playfully. 

A genuinepang of curiosity hits her. "Of who?"

"Belle, because I'm the beast and he's obviously Gaston."

"Why am I Gaston?!"

"Because you wear red all the time, duh."

[barcaatthemoon]

"It's not my birthday." from drabble list #10

blurb with sydney lohmann please? thank you in advance and congratulations on 1000 followers, it's so well deserved :)

it's no problem, and thank you.

special day || sydney lohmann x reader ||

sydney stared at the calendar on your fridge in confusion. today's date had hearts all over it and a little cake drawn in the space. it wasn't near her birthday, so sydney assumed that it must be yours. you had mentioned once that you weren't big on celebrating your birthday, but sydney didn't think that you'd go as far as to not tell her. suddenly, sydney a wave of fear over almost missing your birthday.

"ah, there you are. i was scared you had run off," you said as you wrapped your arms around sydney's waist. she leaned back into your embrace like always. you pressed a kiss to each of her cheeks as you looked over her shoulder as she made her coffee. "how did you sleep?"

"i slept fine, just like i always do. so, i was thinking that maybe we should do something special today. a day like this doesn't come along too often," sydney said. you furrowed your brows in confusion, but didn't argue. if sydney wanted to do something special today, you wouldn't stop her.

"what did you have in mind?" you asked.

"a nice breakfast in. maybe a shopping day with a light lunch, and then i take you out for dinner. we can go somewhere fancy enough that they won't sing to you," sydney offered.

"why would they sing to me?" this time, you spun sydney around to look at you. "what do you think today is?"

"it's your birthday," she told you.

"it's not my birthday. that is not for another few months. where would you get the idea that it's my birthday?" you asked. sydney pointed at the calendar, causing you to laugh. "sydney, that's for your birthday. i never got a chance to change the month."

"oh," sydney said once she got a closer look. "well, we can still go shopping if you'd like. maybe even get something to wear to a fancy dinner if that's your thing."

"maybe another weekend. today i just want to keep you in here all to myself. it won't be much, but i can make us dinner if you'll nap with me."

"deal. you don't have to tempt me with a good time." sydney grabbed her cup of coffee and pulled you into the living room with her. the two of you settled on the couch for a rigorous binge session on netflix before you pulled sydney away for a nap. you knew that you'd have to go shopping for groceries to make dinner, so you decided to take your nap early.

[foldingfittedsheets]

so I've been following along with the mattress questions because my mattress is just about exactly 10 years old and sags SO BAD. It's deeply, deeply uncomfortable and all the things you've been saying to look for to replace, it has. I've already decided that when I start getting my paychecks this fall, the first thing I'm buying is a new mattress.

Are there any brands that sell $800-$1000 queen beds that you'd recommend? I get so overwhelmed with choice, so names to at least check out at the store would be useful.

Also, is it better to get a mattress topper earlier rather than later? Or should you wait until you notice problems with it to shell out for one?

(thank you so much, I had just resigned myself to sleeping bad forever, but this series of answers reminded me that I'm an Adult with Adult Money and can (eventually) buy myself a new one. and as I buy the new one, I WILL be buying a couple protectors)

Hmmnnngh. Okay. So here’s the thing. There’s a lot of really good queens in that price range. But taking a recommendation usually supersedes personal comfort, which is why almost all of these asks I deal in generalities rather than specifics. Also because bed names vary by retailer to be confusing because why not.

Just because I think a bed feels good doesn’t mean someone else won’t like something better, and I’ve seen a ton of folks who buy the bed a friend recommends even though their comfort is different. They return it later. So I am going to name names, but it’s very important that you take into consideration how the bed feels not just that I said it’s a good brand. We straight up don’t tell people what we sleep on for this reason because people will just buy that one assuming it’s the best.

Sealy, Serta, and Simmons all make great beds around that price point that I’ve had personal experience with. But as scary as it is the best thing to do is go into a store. The person is there to guide you around. You don’t need encyclopedic knowledge of beds, because it’s all about first how it feels to you. Their job is to help you navigate the showroom from there.

My personal process and what’s still taught in my company is to determine the comfort that fits you, then look at different styles in that comfort. Most folks are a medium-plush if you’re a side sleeper never go firm, ever, for real. Once you know how soft you like it you can compare A-B style between innerspring, hybrid, and foam.

Most people will have a strong preference for one of the three, and you won’t know before trying. Then you can narrow down from there. There’s probably only like six maybe seven beds you need to lay on to find the one!

Regarding the topper: no. Get a bed you like out the gate. When it sags, get a new bed. The ONLY time you will need a topper is if your bed is too hard on shoulders and hips and ideally you’re not buying that because you’ve just bought a super comfy amazing new mattress that’s perfect as is.

You need a thin waterproof protector and sheets and that’s it. Anytime you’re adding stuff like a topper or an extra pillow something is failing you and should get kicked to the curb.

[darkmxgician]

Scales Untilted- Part 1

pairing: noah x reader. sweet boyfriend Noah. tags: drinking, swearing, fluff

word count: 2.1k

story song: sugar honey ice and tea by bring me the horizon

taglist: @sorrowsofsilence @angelsdevils @collisionofyourkissmakesitsohard @montgomery-929496 (I don’t know if you guys just wanted to be tagged on the other stuff so lmk)

I lean back from the mirror after finishing putting on mascara, assessing if I have any smudges I need to fix before I’m done. After a layer of setting spray I go to my walk in closet and start assessing what to wear. I’m going to a BBQ so something summery would be the ideal choice. After agonising over my clothes for a while I choose a white cropped cami and green floral midi skirt, it has a long slit up the side showing off my tanned legs. The heat in LA was unbearable at times, but at least I was always tan. I took my rollers out and let my long hair fall down my back, tying up the top section in a loose bun. After adorning some jewellery I was ready to go.

My friend Davis didn’t live far from me so the taxi took no time, I felt nervous, I’d never met his roommates before, we usually hung out at my brothers house. I did some artwork for his roommates band, and he knows food is the way to my heart, so when they offered to cook for me as a thank you, I couldn’t refuse. I peeled away at the label on the bottle of wine in my lap. When the car pulled up at the address I thanked the driver and took a deep breath and started up the short path. The front door opened to Davis, who grinned and pulled me into a bear hug “wow y/n, you actually look like a girl”, “don’t get used to it” I laugh, following him inside. The house was actually decorated nicely, and clean, considering a group of guys live here. Davis leads me into the kitchen and I’m so busy being nosy that I almost walk into him when he stops. Three men stood by the sink, all tall, tattooed, with dark hair. “y/n this is Jesse, Matt and Noah, guys this is y/n”, they all turn towards me and smile. I wave and return their smiles, although a little more awkward. Jesse and Matt said hi and then return to their conversation. Noah remains facing me, his brown eyes don't leave mine, I feel my cheeks starting to heat and look down at my feet. I was raised on a tour bus so I’m used to feeling the eyes of men on me. I’m not used to being affected by it, what is wrong with me? “Do you want a drink y/n?” Davis startled me with his question, “yeah, sorry” I mutter and give him the bottle I brought with me. I dared a glance at Noah whilst Davis poured my drink and found him looking back to his friends conversation, as if feeling my eyes on him he turned his head to look at me again, I quickly turned away again. 

After my initial awkwardness, which was very uncharacteristic for me, I ended up chatting to Matt about lord of the rings for over an hour, we compared tattoos since we both have sleeves based on the series and it just went from there. I felt more at ease and my usual comfortable self. I was used to being around groups of men, I was raised on my brothers tour bus with his band mates, who are my family. I kept finding myself stealing glances at Noah, I don’t know what was wrong with me, he wasn’t the first attractive guy I’d met, hell I’ve turned down guys who look like him 1000 times. Still, I couldn’t help myself, he was covered in tattoos, right up to his neck, his hair was tied into a bun, and the t-shirt and jogger shorts were really working for him. I didn’t realise I’d been staring and he turned and met my gaze, he walked over and I suddenly didn’t know what to do with my hands, I quickly picked up my drink and took a sip to calm my nerves. Why was I reacting like this? When he reached us, he kept his eyes on me whilst addressing Matt “Hey, Davis needs your help with the burgers”. After a quizzical look, Matt was gone. I was alone with Noah, he towered over me, more so than the other guys. “Looks like you need a refill”, he gestured for my glass, “oh, yeah, thanks” I mutter, passing it to him. He smirks at me and heads inside to the kitchen, I trail behind him, suddenly feeling very small in his presence. 

He pulls my wine out of the fridge and pours a large glass before turning back to me, I was leaning against the worktop for support as I watched him. He cleared the space between us in 2 steps and suddenly I was surrounded by his cologne, he was intoxicating. He smiled down at me, leaning one hand on the worktop behind me, “here you go, y/n”. Hearing my name on his lips was enough to make me blush, my mouth was suddenly very dry. I licked my lips and realised my mistake when he tracked that movement, his eyes dipped to my mouth. “Thanks Noah” I attempted a smile, his eyes coming back to look straight into mine, “no problem y/n” he smirks and pushes off the counter, aiming to go back outside. He looks back at me as if to say ‘are you coming?’, “hey where is your bathroom?”, I blurt out, blushing once again. He points me me towards a white door and I follow his directions. I step inside and lean on the sink, needing to regain a bit of control over myself.

I step back into the blistering LA sun, shielding my eyes to assess who and where to go to in the open garden. The guys are all sat around a table, it seems they’d finished cooking whilst I was regaining some composure in the bathroom “hey, y/n, your veggie burger is here” Davis shouts, pointing at the burger in the empty spot next to Noah. Brilliant. I smile and head over, Noah pulls my chair out with one hand, not even looking at me as he’s mid conversation with Jesse. I mutter a thanks to him and turn to Davis “thanks mate, this looks good”, he grinned at me with a mouth full of food, making me giggle. That got Noah’s attention, he draped his arm over the back of my chair and looked at Davis, who was oblivious. I reached for the ketchup and a napkin in the centre of the table, then leant back into the chair, into Noah’s arm, god he was huge. I kicked off my sandals and pulled my legs up, I can never sit on chairs properly, I like sitting with my legs crossed. After getting comfy I cover my burger in ketchup and set the plate in my lap. I forgot about Noah’s lingering gaze after the first bite, hunger took over and I devoured my food, adding more salad to my plate between bites. The guys all continued talking about various topics, music, anime, video games. I mostly concentrated on my food until they mention attack on titan, “NO don’t” I almost shout, “I’m only on season 1, no spoilers please” I add, realising they were all staring at me now. “ok guys, no spoilers, but how good was that last episode” Matt says to Noah, who completely ignores him. “You’re watching attack on titan y/n?”, I turn to look at him, not realising how close he was sitting, I nod eagerly, not able to answer with a mouth full of food. He smiles at me and I was suddenly very glad to be sitting down. Matt taps Noah’s shoulder to get his attention, continuing their discussion. His eyes linger on me for a moment, I can feel my cheeks heating again and quickly look away, taking a big drink from my glass.

The rest of the night went by in a blur, partially because I drank the whole bottle. I’m a lightweight and don’t drink much, so the buzz from the wine had me feeling giddy, I couldn’t stop giggling at everything Noah had to say, his answering smiles knocking me on my arse. Before I knew it, it was 1am, had I really been here for 10 hours? The boys start clearing up, plates and glasses litter the table and I stand up to help, stumbling and tripping over my discarded sandals. Unsurprisingly, Noah is there. He steadies me with an arm around my waist, pulling me into his side. “Sorry, I’m too clumsy for my own good”, I smile at him, my world tilting a little, making me squint. He chuckles to himself, “how far away do you live? I can’t drive you so if you need to stay we can figure something out”. I was suddenly very aware of the rest of the guys, who were uncharacteristically quiet. The last thing I want is to be drunk and babbling to them all, especially Noah. “I don’t live far, I’ll just get a taxi, it’s how I got here earlier”, I slur my words a little but manage to get my point across. Fuck me, he’s really attractive.

I can’t help but notice how disappointed he looks when I pull out my phone to check for an uber. I loop my arm through his and start walking inside, partly needing his balance, but mostly wanting to be close to him. “Do you mind waiting outside with me?”, I flutter my eyelashes at him, unable to help myself. I’m not usually good at flirting, I’m awkward with any romantic interactions, but for some reason I found myself trying. He seemed to perk up at that, pulling me along with him, he announces that I’m leaving and I get pulled into a few hugs, Davis kisses me on the top of the head as he slings an arm around me. That’s when I realise Noah is holding my hand, he squeezes it as he shoots daggers at his friend. I wave bye to the boys and we head outside. I try to check my uber app and can barely see the screen, closing one eye to try and focus my vision. Noah chuckles next to me and takes my phone, clicking my home address and connecting me to a driver. I lean into him, “thanks Noah”, he wraps an arm around my shoulder and walks me towards a low wall in his front garden. “It says it’ll be 7 minutes, so I’m glad I get more time with you before you leave”. I turn to face him, his eyes are bright, a brown so deep I could get lost, like an endless forest. His face is dusted with freckles and tan from the heat in LA. His eyes remain fixated on mine as I assess him. His mouth pulled up into an easy smile, he was so close I would just have lean over and I could kiss him. I stop that thought in its tracks, but not before my eyes dip to his mouth. He watches me, his arm tightens on my waist, pulling me closer. I let him, getting lost in the moment, he reaches his other hand over and tilts my chin up so he has better access. My eyes flicker shut and I inhale a shaky breath, his lips hover over mine, with the ghost of a kiss, and then he pulls away. I groan in frustration and he laughs, the sound a melody that calls to my very soul. “You’re drunk y/n, I’d like you to be sober and lucid the first time I kiss you”. I look up at him with the best puppy eyes I could muster and sigh. He starts typing something on my phone and I scan the street, praying my taxi was still far away. “I put my number in, so please can let me know when you get home”, I nod enthusiastically, “I promise”, I stick out my pinky finger for him to shake. He pinky promises me, chuckling at my childish tendencies. “Can I call you tomorrow?”, he looks nervous as he asks, “of course”, I can’t help the grin that spreads across my face. I lean my head against his shoulder and let out a contented sigh, hoping once again that the car takes its time so I can bask in his company for as long as possible. And thats when I release I’m in way too deep already.

[admiral-mason]

Ultra-Impact Part 4

Idea based on @valeriele3's Live Stream post

0-3 0-4 << YOU ARE HERE 0-5

PRELUDE /// FOURTH CLAIR DE ÉTOILES

TWO SUPREME MACHINES INFORM YOU OF THE CURRENT SITUATION.

You turned your body to face the red V-model machine, looking as if they had never fought V1 in the first place. Holding out its Knuckleblaster, V2 gestured to you for a handshake and you accepted it, feeling its three slightly sharp fingers in the process.

"You're here too?" You asked the robot as you finished up your handshake. "Indeed so. And it appears that I have the glory of the first of being able to talk with the godfather of this world."

V2's voice possessed a deep tone stronger than Capitano's voice you heard in the 5.1 Update's cutscenes on YouTube. They- or rather he- sounded cold and calculating, almost akin to a mafia boss or skilled hitman.

(A/N: V2's voice, in this case, sounds like the security units from The Callisto Protocol; the voice in question is Type 1 in the video.)

V1 then walked over to you two and the blue war robot pointed a middle finger at the red peacekeeping robot with its right arm while having its left arm on its hips.

"Hey, it's not my problem that the terminal procured my voice box faster than yours." V2 then looked towards the terminal before walking up to it. You followed closely out of curiosity. "Speaking of that, are you done procuring V1's voice box?"

The terminal's screen displayed a singular word: "YES." Meanwhile, you could see your Twitch chat fill up with messages on V2.

quantoom: Bro V1 and now V2??

johnifer donated $20.00 "OH MY GOD IT'S V2 AWOOGAH ARF ARFARFARF BARKBARKBARKBARKRBARKABRKABRAKR"

Mike: wtf

feetusdeletussthenyeetus donated $33.00 "Calm down bitch."

johnifer donated $69.00 "nuh uh"

feetusdeletussthenyeetus donated $69.00 "yuh huh"

NaviaLover291: Holy shot!

benjaminfan: do we just let them fight or

3929: Just lettem fight lmfao

As the two donators kept fighting with their wallets, V2's right arm suddenly had an object materialize in his left hand as his arm moved back into its original position. The object in question had a box-like shape with a speaker and some widgets and tidbits on its sides- it's likely V1's voice box, considering the "01" on the top of it.

You were kinda spooked out by this but didn't bother questioning it.

(A/N: this refers to how when you buy a weapon in Ultrakill, it kinda just materializes in your hand with no explanation; obviously this is simply for gameplay but my story does utilize some gameplay tidbits lmfao)

V2 then walked over to V1, whose animated movements made it feel giddy. The red machine then proceeded to place (it looked like a slap though with how the way the V-models place items) the voice box on V1's torso. The box disappeared with no trace of it but as usual, you didn't question it.

"Ah. Aaaah."

Now this had you raising an eyebrow because V1 picked a female's voice instead of the Microsoft SAM voice you've heard in all the videos.

(A/N: I imagine V1's voice sounds like this.)

(A/N: Do not question why the fuck I chose that in particular or I will eat all of your cookies)

"Oh, uh, hello, godfather! I can verbally communicate with you now!" V1 said, striding it- herself over to you. "And before you ask 'I thought your voice would be Microsoft SAM,' I'm a robot with no voice by default and as such there is nothing wrong with me being a girly girl~!"

You just stared at her with a blank expression. "O...kaaay, V1. It's just different, that's all."

"Any problems with that?"

"Nope."

"Alright cool!"

V2 then looked at the both of you. "Alright. Since our dear godfather just recently arrived, let me catch you up." He then looked at the terminal and pointed to it. "See that terminal over there? It tried warning you on that neck section of that 1000-THR Earthmover in Hell's Violence layer. To not touch the lands ruled by the seven gods... or what you know as Teyvat."

V2 then looked down. "As much as I would blame your curiosity, you would only have delayed the inevitable. I won't sugarcoat it: Hell is controlling Teyvat and its people in an attempt to kill you."

Your expression grew mortified, bewildered, and lost simultaneously. "Whoa whoa wait what?? Hell itself took over fucking Genshin??"

He looked back up at you, radiating serious yet somber energy despite his camera head only granting so much expression. "Unfortunately so. When you made your way to Teyvat, you inadvertently opened a backdoor for Hell to enter. It took over under the guise of those 'SAGAU Impostor AUs' on that Tumblr section or something."

"...Is that why all those Knights of Favonius have red eyes?" V2 nodded. "They're being utilized as puppets; just like the Mannequins. With little to no control, they're forced to simply attack anything they see."

Hearing all this left you with a question: "But why me? I mean, not to be self-degrading, but I'm just a dumbass who plays games on a camera for a buncha people!"

The machine's next words somehow ended up just as, if not more mortifying than his last ones. "True. But that's not Hell's plan. See, once you die, you'll be dead in the real world. And the organism of suffering will utilize your computer to attempt to manifest itself into the real world."

"But that's not gonna happen!" V1 interjected, her voice still chippy as her previous sentence. "You got not one, but two supreme machines perfectly capable of taking on the entirety of Hell here to help you out of this shitfest. I still have my arsenal, and I helped V2 gain equivalent weapons thanks to that terminal that tried to warn you. And that brings us to your arsenal!"

She then dragged you to the terminal before selecting a gun icon in the top left corner, which pulled up a tab titled "WEAPONS." It was like Ultrakill's weapon screen, currently only with the revolvers. Except, you noticed that the revolvers were different from the base game.

Your default revolver- or better said revolvers- were the Dual Wield revolvers. Their icon was two blue revolvers, one placed upon the other. They costed zero points to buy, so you decided to click on them.

(A/N: Look here and set the video to 0:43 seconds and then peek at the bottom left corner)

Suddenly, your arms briefly clipped downwards before two revolvers appeared in your hands and you cautiously looked at them. They both resembled the Piercer Revolver, but this time, they had what looked to be a "12" in the display section where the battery should be.

A tutorial box then popped up in your vision.

DUAL REVOLVERS: CHOOSE TO ATTACK A SINGULAR TARGET OR TWO TARGETS SIMULTANEOUSLY. LIMITED AMMO; SHOOT WISELY.

This meant that the display was likely for ammo.

"Ooh! You got double the firepower!" V1 excitedly said, already peeking at your revolvers. "Now can I have my Sharpshooter revolver back now?" You remembered that you still had it in your pocket and you nodded. V1 took her revolver from your pocket before saying a quick "thank you~!"

V2 looked at your new weapons and nodded. "You do indeed, godfather. Perhaps we should teach you some-" Suddenly, the sky flashed a bloody red and he stopped speaking.

"Shit... it seems that Hell finally caught up to us." He then walked up to the terminal and pushed a hidden button on its left side; this output a device akin to a phone and shut the terminal down. V2 grabbed it and hastily put it in your pocket.

"I'll explain later, godfather! Follow us!" You followed the two machines out of the forest, but once you did so...

...the three of you were met with a large force of fleshy figures in the distance. "It's sending husks after us..." V1 remarked. "Well, godfather, I hope you're ready for a true trial by fire, because I SURE AM CRAVING SOME BLOOD RIGHT NOW!"

You simply stared at the army of sinners as you held up your revolvers, still a little panicked. However, upon seeing V1 and V2 prepare for combat, you decided that at that moment, if Hell wanted to kill you, it would not do so without a fight.

Taglist: @valeriele3, @bunniotomia, @feetusdeletussthenyeetus, @quantoom

[wolfjackle-creates]

Bad Reveal AU Chapter 2 Part 2

As promised! Here's the compilation of every snippet I've written for the 1000 follower ask game. I added an additional 300 words to the end to round out the scene.

Story Summary: Danny loves the Waynes, loves living with them. After the GIW, after his parents, he never thought he'd be able to have this again. A family, a home.

Then he overhears a conversation.

The Waynes aren't just the Waynes. They're the Bats, part of the Justice League. And the Justice League works with the US Government. The same government that runs the Ghost Investigation Ward.

It was all a lie.

AO3 link

Tumblr Links: Chapter 1, Previous

Word Count: 2.6k

-----

Three days later and they were all ready to tear their hair out. Barbara had found nothing new on the Fenton parents, even after Tim and Bruce joined her in the search. Apparently everything about the Fentons had been hidden behind the best digital security they had ever seen. Everything except the basics. And the firewalls were so good that they were almost invisible which is why no one had noticed them before.

Danny’s room lacked any sort of clue. They opened every drawer and went through everything they could find, only for nothing even slightly unusual to turn up. Definitely nothing like the bizarre energy weapon he’d used.

Jason had asked around as Red Hood to see if he could find any leads on the weapon. But every rumor lead to a dead end.

They could find nothing that might lead them to the people who wanted to hurt Danny. And Danny never came home.

Dick was currently in Danny’s room, again, trying to find anything. He was under the bed searching for hidden compartments in the frame or box spring when sharp footsteps sounded in the hall. A moment later, Alfred cleared his throat from the doorway.

“Master Dick! I believe you were instructed to leave the cave so you could rest.”

Dick pushed himself out from under the bed and sat so he was leaning against the bed frame. He flashed a dazzling smile. “Sorry, Alfred. I just had the idea to check the bed frame for any hidden messages or compartments. Wouldn’t have been able to sleep without doing it.”

Alfred sniffed. “We have already been over every inch of this room. You will not find anything new and you know this.”

Dick sighed, letting the smile drop away, and rubbed his face. He looked down at the carpet as he picked at it. “I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep. I just keep seeing his face. He was certain we were going to hurt him, Alfred. My own brother. How could I have failed him so badly?”

Alfred’s shoes came into view as he walked further into the room and sat next to Dick. “You haven’t failed him, Master Dick. And you know that. His fears were his own; based on experiences from before he ever joined this family. And we did not know there were problems to address. But we do now and I have full faith that you will solve this and bring Master Danny back home.”

“I wish I had your optimism, Alfred.”

“Then I shall just have to have enough for the both of us. Now, if you insist on being useful, Titus could use his afternoon walk. Normally Master Bruce or I take care of it…”

“But with B injured and the house full, you’ve got enough to handle. I’ll take care of it, Alfred.”

“Thank you, my boy. Now, help an old man up.”

Dick laughed; it wasn’t sincere, not truly, but he knew it’d make Alfred feel better. “Don’t even pretend you can’t get up on your own.” But he still did as requested and helped Alfred to his feet.

“When you’re my age, you will know what troubles I face.”

“Sure, Alfred. Now, where is Titus right now?”

Ten minutes later, Dick was outside in the late spring sun throwing a tennis ball for Titus. The dog was delighted with the game.

He rather felt like it should be raining or overcast or something. Not a balmy spring day with birds singing and bees buzzing in the clover. Danny was still missing; it shouldn’t be a nice day.

His next throw went much farther than he planned, and Titus bounded away.

Dick groaned and collapsed to the ground. He threw an arm over his eyes as he bit back his tears. Everyone was relying on him to hold it together. Damian was on a hair trigger and he was the only one who could keep him in line consistently; Tim was sunk deep into his research and barely surfacing for another energy drink every few hours; Jason and Bruce couldn’t be around each other for more than ten minutes without someone starting to yell. Duke was spending more and more time on patrol trying to find any information on the meta angle.

And all of them came to him to complain about the others. His family needed him. He couldn’t fall apart.

When a shadow fell over his face, he cracked open an eye expecting to see a cloud covering the sun. Instead he screamed and jumped to his feet as he came face-to-face with Clark.

“Warn a guy next time!”

Clark, the bastard, just laughed at him. “Hey, Dick. Didn’t expect to find you here.”

Before he could reply, Titus returned, ball clenched proudly in his mouth. “Good boy,” said Dick as he petted him. “Ready to go back inside?” To Clark, he said, “Most of us are staying at the manor right now. What brings you here?”

“We’re worried. Bruce called in saying he had an injury that would prevent field work for a few weeks. At the same time, Tim told Kon he’d be unavailable for Young Justice missions until further notice. And Damian canceled a sleepover with Jon with no explanation. So I made two of Ma’s pies and decided to come over for a visit. What’s going on?”

Dick sighed. “Danny’s gone. He discovered who we were.” He let out a hysterical laugh. “And apparently thinks that because we work with the US government it means we were just pretending to like him to gather information so we could turn him over to someone who would hold him against his will and torture him.”

Clark landed and pulled him into a hug. Dick clung on tightly. “Why does he think that?”

Dick shrugged and, reluctantly, pulled away. “Apparently his parents betrayed him once already. I think…” Dick closed his eyes and whistled sharply. “Come, Titus.” He held onto Titus’s collar and began walking away from Clark towards the manor. “We think he already has experience being held and tortured. And that it was his parents fault.”

Clark’s sharp inhale proved his horror at such a thought.

“Yeah. So now Danny’s gone and we have no idea how to search for him. Did B tell you he’s a meta? We knew he had some powers, but clearly we missed some because now we suspect invisibility, density shifting, and flight. So we’re trying to find the people who want to hurt him. But we keep hitting walls!” Titus whined when his grip tightened too much. Dick winced and let go immediately to pet the dog. “Sorry, Titus. You’re such a good boy.”

Clark draped an arm around his shoulders. “Well, why don’t you take me to the cave and you can go over everything you know. Maybe a fresh pair of eyes will help.”

Dick shrugged. “Couldn’t hurt. And maybe seeing you will remind Bruce he knows how to do more than grunt when people ask him a question.”

Clark winced. “That bad, huh?”

“Worse, if I’m honest. Danny shot him with an energy weapon before density shifting out of the cave. So now his newest kid is missing and he’s too injured to go out and search for him.”

Clark let out a low whistle. “Yep. That’ll do it.”

Dick pulled out his phone and opened the group chat. A quick text ensured everyone who was around would make their way to the cave. “I’ve told everyone to meet us in the cave. We’ll swing by the kitchen to get some plates and cutlery for the pie. Thanks for that, by the way.”

Clark ruffled his hair. “You know me, I’m too midwestern to show up anywhere unannounced without food.”

Dick gave a half smile, unable to muster up anything warmer.

Clark tried to keep up a stream of small talk as they swung by the kitchens to gather the plates. But Dick just couldn’t keep up with it. His mind was just too far away, on a young boy with blue eyes who loved hugs and had fit into the family so smoothly.

When they got to the cave, Tim didn’t even look up at the sound of the elevator doors opening. Dick followed his lead and ignored him, instead going straight to Bruce.

“You’ve got a visitor, B!”

Bruce only grunted and didn’t look up from his laptop.

Clark hid a smile. “I’m sure Alfred raised you better than that, Bruce.”

“Indeed I did,” declared Alfred with a sniff from where he was making notes in Bruce’s medical chart.

Bruce’s head whipped up at the sound of Clark’s voice and Dick bit his lip to keep from laughing. “Clark? What are you doing here?”

“Been worried about you and the kids, so I made some pie and decided to come on over. Kon and Jon are both waiting for updates as well.”

Apparently the appearance of Clark and Kon’s name was enough to finally drag Tim from the batcomputer for the first time in days. “Is Kon okay?”

Clark gave him a fond smile. “He’s fine, lad. It’s you—all of you—we’re worried about.”

Bruce looked away. “It’s Danny.”

Clark nodded and sat on the foot of the bed. “Dick’s told me a little. Let’s wait for the others to join us and you can all tell me everything.”

Dick checked his phone. “Babs said my text woke her up and don’t start discussions without her.”

Clark looked at him sharply. “Barbara is here, too? You really meant it when you said everyone’s been staying here, didn’t you?”

Dick shrugged. “Yeah, well, it’s Danny.”

Tim laughed mirthlessly. “Yeah, he’s the only one who all of us like pretty much all the time.”

Clark frowned as he looked around at the people gathered, but didn’t say anything.

Alfred bustled in with a chair. “If some of you would help me set up chairs for everyone? We might as well be comfortable as we talk and eat.”

“Of course, Alfred,” said Clark, seeming relieved. “Be happy to help.”

Honestly, with how many people were there, it only took a minute. Jason and Stephanie arrived just as they were finishing up.

“Duke messaged me,” said Jason. “He’s on his way back from patrol.”

“Damian?” asked Dick.

“I am here, Richard,” said the boy as he walked into the medbay. “I apologize for my tardiness. I was with Alfred the cat and didn’t notice your message immediately.”

Dick went to his side and ruffled his hair. He ignored Damian’s glare with years of practice. “Glad you could make it. Come on, let’s get you a slice of pie.”

“I’ll start slicing,” said Clark.

By the time the pie was sliced and everyone had a piece, Barbara had arrived.

“Where is Duke?” asked Bruce.

Tim pulled up the tracking information on his laptop. “Looks like he’s only twenty minutes out.”

“He’d’ve said something if he’d learned anything new,” said Jason. “I say we just start sharing now. He’ll be back before we get through it all.”

“Agreed,” said Bruce.

Clark nodded and looked around the room. Dick just knew he was cataloging how exhausted they all looked. “What can you tell me about what happened?”

“Daniel lost his mind and attacked Father,” said Damian.

“Listen here, Demon Brat,” argued Jason, “you know damn well that’s not what happened.”

And when Tim backed up Jason, it became a shouting match. Dick buried his face in his hands. A headache was forming and he knew if he tried to intervene, he’d just make it worse right now.

“Enough!” said Alfred when it became clear the others wouldn’t calm down on their own. “We will go over it one at a time. Master Richard, you may start.”

So Dick gave all the information he knew. When one of the others indicated they wanted to add more, he let them. Alfred made sure no one overstepped. Duke arrived partway through and described what he saw when Danny disappeared and used his powers.

When everyone was finally satisfied they’d shared everything they knew, Barbara pulled out a tablet to show Clark the footage of the confrontation in the cave.

“And you don’t know where he got that weapon?” asked Clark after he watched it twice.

“No clue,” said Tim. “We’ve searched his room a dozen times since then, but there’s nothing even remotely like it.”

Jason nodded. “And I’ve been asking around. No one I can find has ever heard of one like it.”

Alfred added, “Even I was unaware he was in possession of such an object.”

Clark hummed as he replayed the last few seconds of the video where Danny density shifted through the stone. “He brought it with him when he left.”

“You’ve thought of something,” said Bruce.

“Could he have hidden the weapon inside something? Like a wall or the floor?”

Bruce hummed as he thought. “Is that even possible?”

Dick shrugged. “We know very little about what he can and can’t do.”

“Want me to take a look at his room with my X-ray vision?” asked Clark.

Bruce nodded. “Please.” No one commented on the begging tone in his voice.

And for the first time in days, Dick felt hope rising in his chest.

“And do we have any idea what he meant by Jason being in trouble, too?”

Jason shrugged. “Probably has something to do with how I died. I’m apparently the only one who can sense Danny’s empathy, too. And I mean supernatural empathy, not the normal person kind.”

Bruce agreed. “I found the most information on Amity Park when I found my way to supernatural message boards. Zatana is looking into some things for me as well. But it always leads back to ghosts. Though why Jason alone is of interest when others in the family have also died is uncertain.”

“I see. Well, I suppose we’ll find out when you get him home. Who wants to show me Danny’s room? We might as well start there.”

Of course, no one was willing to sit this one out. The biggest argument arose when Bruce insisted on pushing himself to his feet. He refused the wheelchair Alfred tried to insist he use, but a raised eyebrow and pursed lips did get him to take the crutches.

Dick and Jason exchanged a smirk at the scene. Alfred always got his way.

So, the entire group made their way out of the cave and through the halls of Wayne Manor until Clark stopped in the doorway to Danny’s room.

He let out a low whistle. “Whatever his powers are, he can definitely hide things in other objects. He’s left a lot behind.”

“Can you tell what they are?” asked Bruce.

Clark shrugged. “Some of them. There’s another item that looks like that blaster he had. Some…rope? I think? A tool box in the floor. A case that’s probably lead-lined. And a lot of stuff that I just can’t identify. I mean, a random cylindrical object. Some rectangles, maybe external hard-drives?”

Damian stepped forward, gripping the handle of his katana. “Then we will smash the walls to see what he is hiding.”

Dick rushed forward to put an arm around Damian’s shoulders and stop him from doing anything.

“Indeed not, Master Damian.” Alfred gave the boy a level look. “We want Master Danny to have a home to return to. And what sort of welcome would he feel if he came back to a destroyed room? Master Bruce, Mr. Kent, I am aware you have other collegues who can density shift. Could one of them be prevailed upon to come and remove the items?”

Damian scowled and kicked at the floor. Dick bit back his smile. The kid really did care about their missing brother, whatever he said.

Clark nodded. “I’ll call J’onn, Alfred.”

-----

Part 3

Several of you guessed this is where I was going to take it the minute I introduced Clark. Didn't see anyone mention J'onn, though. (But that might be because I was sharing such small segments, so fewer people were speculating.) Let me know what you think!

I've finally gotten around to making a Subscription Post for this fic, so follow that if you want notifications!

@hailsatanacab also started a fill for this prompt that I absolutely adore, so check that out here! (It hurts, it hurts so good.)

[chaos0pikachu]

Cinematography?? In MY BL??? Not as likely as you think.

TLDR: it's a joke!!! but also legit sometimes I see "cinematography in bl" and it's just some basic pictures with mid-tone lighting and blue t-shirts. Let's talk film terms like: aperture, panning, tilting, and movement in film so we can see what goes into cinematography (with sources!). Also if I name a show you like as "boring cinematography" don't send me hate mail I'll laugh

(examples used: Our Skyy2 vs kinnporsche, 2gether vs semantic error, 1000 Stars vs The Sign)

If I name a show you like in this post as "bad cinematography" be chill about it, like, I ain't saying you can't like it, I'm just talking about techniques here not personal likability or overall show quality. I like badly filmed shit too say hello to my collection of Friday the 13th Blue Rays we're just here to talk techniques and like, educational stuff okay?

So the straight (heh) textbook definition of "cinematography" is: the art of making motion pictures. Which, frankly, tells you nothing. Like it's not wrong~~ but it's not informative either. Cinematography covers a lot of what we, the audience, visually see on screen:

"Cinematography is the art of photography and visual storytelling in a motion picture or television show. Cinematography comprises all on-screen visual elements, including lighting, framing, composition, camera motion, camera angles, film selection, lens choices, depth of field, zoom, focus, color, exposure, and filtration." (source)

So let's talk movement in film.

So when I talk about movement, what do I mean? I mean the way the camera, the characters, and the environment moves within a frame.

This video on Akira Kurosawa's usage of movement in a scene is brilliant:

Something as simple as having rain or fire in the background of a shot can enhance the emotions of a scene vastly. it gives the scene depth - literal depth, not narrative depth - that would otherwise be missing.

The way the camera moves and transitions leading the viewers eye back and forth makes what you're watching more engaging. You aren't consuming these scenes, you are engaging with them. They are apart of the story itself, giving the environment life and texture so the characters within them matter more.

And, look, I get busting out Thee Akira Kurosawa might be unfair, but if we're gonna talk cinematography we can't not talk the importance of movement on film.

To understand good cinematography you have to understand what makes it good and as such what makes bad or mediocre cinematography.

In connection with movement we gotta talk about camera techniques like panning and tilting:

"Camera movements are a fundamental part of video production. They can be a powerful storytelling device, heightening tension, evoking emotions, and bringing the viewer into the action. Without saying a word, camera movements can transform a scene’s entire narrative, and direct audiences’ attention where you want it." (source)

So we have movement of environment, of characters, and we also have movement of the camera itself.

Ok so like, where does the BL come in Pikachu??

I'm getting to that, I'm going to start with a more general example: Our Skyy 2 (Bad Buddy meets 1000 Stars edition) vs Kinnporsche.

Starting at 5:17 we have Pran stranded or whatever, and this shot is like, it's fine. It's boring as hell, but fine. Why is it boring as hell? Well it's flat, it lacks movement, it lacks depth.

When the driver drove off the camera could have panned to follow his movement and then panned back to Pran at a different angle to showcase his isolation. Honestly since the scene starts with a mid close up of Pran, I would have had the camera behind Pran as the driver drove away, and had the camera pan around Pran 360 so we get shots of his environment, and him, while also emphasizing holy shit he's like, fucking stuck in the wilderness. 

In general, there's a big lack of movement in the scene. The camera remains almost entirely static, there's no attempt at zooming in or out, following Pran's movement, or showcasing his environment in any meaningful way. Even when Pran begins walking towards the camera the angle of the framing is still centered, rather than tilted downward or upwards to give us more dimension (non-BL comparison, the Book of Eli starring Denzel Washington does the "walking towards the camera" shots really well).

We get a cut of a medium close up of Pran, with a deeper focus so his environment is blurred out.

I understand the thought process of this shot, we want the audience to focus on Pran, but if the point of the scene is to emphasize he's alone, confused, maybe even a bit anxious at his new circumstances it could've been done better. Take a wider shot from this angle, open up the lens to allow for that background environment to come through and show him isolated. Maybe do a pan above him or tilt the camera up going from his feet up as he nervously ruffles his hair. There's options here.

This just adds more walking to the scene, which we already had. It doesn't enhance or emphasize anything about Pran's emotions as a character.

Anyway the camera continues to follow him and then we get another cut. And it's from the same angle as before, only this time we see a truck coming. The camera remains static, it completely stops moving, and we just wait for the truck to drive into the frame.

This whole sequence of events ends at 5:57 and while not a long sequence I find it frustrating because it's boring. The only way the audience knows that Pran is anxious is via Nanon’s acting, there’s nothing in the filmmaking that enhances or contributes to that feeling.

He’s alone, until he’s not, and that’s all the scene tells us. It leaves the scene lacking any tension as well, because we’re not getting a sense of isolation - how large is this space? How alone is Pran right now? What is the entirety of the environment? 

Contrast this with a similar scene in kinnporsche ep06 where Kinn and Porsche are alone in the mountains. I don't have a video of this specific scene so I have to link the trailer, starting at 1:48 to 1:52, but see how we start mid-close up of Kinn and Porsche, then pan out from above them? This is a better showcasing of just how vast the environment around Kinn and Porsche are.

They're still center frame throughout all of this, the depth of the scene is in mid-focus so nothing is blurred out and you can see the sharpness of the environment.

It also places the audience in the same space as Kinn, who is looking up at the sky while the audience looks down at him. It makes the audience a more active participant in the shot, emphasizes the state of the characters, gives the audience a sense of space & environment, and relies a sense of emotion.

The additional fast zoom out also adds to the scene by adding movement and making it more dynamic.

(my man pran looking like this 🧍)

Both these scenes are pretty short, but they're relaying similar information and one is way more dynamic and effective than the other. Both Pran and Kinn/Porsche are alone in the wildness, but in the latter there's a lack of space, a lack of movement, and a lack dimension. This is mainly a framing issue, so let's talk more about camera movement (panning, & tilting).

Here's a scene from 2gether vs a scene from Semantic Error.

(saw someone say 2gether had a high production value and chepie where??)

This entire scene with Sarawat and Tine is flatly shot. There is nothing in their background so no outward movement is happening, the lighting is even as are the colors, everything is at the same depth, and there's little to no motion in the camera.

The scene with Sarawat pushing Tine into frame. Why doesn't the camera follow Tine's motion of movement so the scene has more momentum? It just stops and the char falls out of frame before walking back into it. Then we get a series of cuts back and forth of close ups on Sarawat and Tine's faces. Back and forth, back and forth.

The editing leaves a ton to be deserved because if the back and forth did a quick pan back and forth with each beat we could build up tension, give the scene some texture, heighten the intensity of the argument. If we're going for something softer we could place them in on better set, or make the characters move themselves - have Sarawat walk away from the argument up those stairs, have the camera follow his movement as Tine chases him continuing the argument - or play with the lighting a bit, pan the camera down or tilt it something!

When Tine kisses Sarawat why doesn't the camera move with him in a more notable way? Why did we have a cut to a close up? And then we're back in a mid close up and more cuts and this editor is killing me!

This scene is 4mins long and the only engaging bit of filmmaking here is when the camera follows Tine when he steps closer to Sarawat putting the latter in the frame at 3:15, the entire scene is 4 minutes long.

I want to compare this scene to this scene in Semantic Error which is also all dialogue and also obviously filmed on a shoestring budget.

So right away the camera work here is smart, it starts off in an establishing shot, evenly lit, of Sang Woo and Jae Young both in the frame. Then we get a mid close up of JY looking down, then a tight close up of JY looking up.

The change in camera angle emphasizes his surprise at seeing SW here as he looks up at SW. The lighting has also changed, it's much brighter now. The camera also begins to move, where it was static before it begins to tilt and shift.

We get a cut to SW, the first one of this scene. JY is seeing SW in a new light for the first time, and as such so is the audience. By starting the scene off in an outward shot with both chars in the frame, they are placed on the same level and the audience doesn't see their expressions up close. So when we're hit with JY's close up of surprise and then SW's close up of his wet hair it holds way more impact. It enhances the feelings of JY's character for the audience.

The lighting behind SW has also changed, it's much brighter, and warmer compared to the cooler tones of light behind JY. The camera also slows, and continues to to tilt and shift. JY's world has literally been shifted on his axis.

We get another cut, this time medium on SW and notice, the camera stops moving for that moment and the light around him dims. It's not as saturated. We're moved out of JY's pov here and back into "regular" framing.

SW tries to make JY leave, we get a close up cut of the cut on JY's arm - hey editing used to display important and new information! - then the camera cuts to SW getting medicine and here's a small but important thing, when he tosses at JY the camera follows his movement. And instead of cutting away, when JY gets up thinking SW is hurt, the camera follows JY's movement back towards SW.

It would have been easy to make a cut there back and forth - like in the 2gether scene did over and over - but following the movement of the characters makes the scene way more interesting visually to watch.

Changing the angles of the camera from a lower angle (where JY is looking up) to a downward angle (where SW is looking down) makes the scene more interesting visually as well and enhances the storybeat of JY looking up at SW in a new light memorized. This contributes to the story as well, as it's JY who catches feelings for SW first so their are literally, on uneven ground until they're not later in the story. The camera is panning, tilting, moving with the characters even given the limited space. The lighting adds to the effectiveness, as do the minimal cuts.

On a technical level, the scene in Semantic Error is just better filmed. In my own opinion, the scene is far more engaging b/c the filmmaking is better, where in 2gether the reliance is almost completely on the actors to sell the scene with little help. And I'm not saying nothing about Bright and Win cause their stans wildin'.

Next, I wanna talk about aperture.

I saw a post that used this word and I didn't understand the context in which they were using it because aperture isn't a style of filmmaking its a camera setting or lens adjustment - it's the rate at which the camera opens and closes letting in light and focus.

"Aperture is the opening of the lens through which light passes. When you hit the shutter release button to take the picture, the camera aperture opens to the predetermined width, letting a specific amount of light through. A large aperture lets more light in, and vice versa. Aperture is calibrated in f/stops, written in numbers like 1.4, 2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11 and 16. The larger the number, the narrower the aperture." (source) <- really recommend this article if you want to learn about aperture in film.

A great non-BL example of aperture used for style is One Piece Live Action where cinematographers Nicole Hirsch Whitaker, and Michael Wood love using deep focus aperture in a lot of scenes.

But let's compare The Sign vs 1000 Stars.

So when the scene starts, we're in mid-focus/aperture, everything is of similar sharpness and depth. Nothing is especially blurred out we're getting the full spectrum of Phaya and Tharn's environment.

When the camera switches to close ups of Phaya and Tharn however, we get a deep focus aperture. That's why everything behind them is so blurred out. In a close up of Phaya, even Tharn's face is blurred. The director wants the audience to focus specifically on these characters individually, so we can understand the weight of their dialogue. But when the camera wants us to see the characters as a unit, it cuts, pulls back out of that deep focus and everything is back in mid-focus again.

Here's another thing, it's subtle but it's important.

This scene also combines what we already discussed about movement. At :08 of the scene, in that first mid-shot the camera is actually zooming in closer on Phaya and Tharn. Not dramatically, subtly, but it is there. This is important, because at 3:23 we get another mid-shot of them, pulled out of that deep focus, and the camera begins to zoom out.

The camera also follows the movement of Phaya grabbing Tharn's hands, then pans back up to Phaya's face once again before panning higher into the frame and panning back to their faces and zooming in.

When we move back out of that deep focus, into a mid-shot the camera continues to zoom out on the two characters as they kiss.

I saw someone say that this scene wasn't "filmed like BL kisses" and, eh? Like it isn't filmed in that static style of filmmaking which has dominated BL filmmaking probably due to budgetary reasons. But

The Sign follows a similar filmmaking style as Kinnporsche and Domundi shows do. But also just like, basic filmmaking techniques you'd see in shows of the non-CW/soap variety.

The thing fans are seeing here is film technique (probably partially due to a larger budget). Movement, lens adjustment, panning and titling, lighting and color are all playing a role in this specific scene.

Cinematography baby.

(sidenote the VFX of The Sign is dope as fuck too)

Okay so let's talk Our Skyy 1000 Stars

So this opening scene follows a similar structure to the scene in The Sign: mid focus shot of the two chars, into separate deep focus close ups. It's also a dialogue heavy scene like the one with Phaya and Tharn.

So why does their scene work better on a technical level than this one in Our Skyy 2?

The scene in The Sign combines techniques of aperture, movement, lighting, color and framing to give everything more impact.

In this scene with Phupha and Tian we get a similar editing style as the scene in 2gether: lots of back and forth cuts, very tight close ups, static camera movement. Where as the camera zooms in and out during mid-shots, the camera doesn't move in Our Skyy 2. It remains motionless even though a zoom in as the two characters lay in bed would add a lot to the scene itself.

In the close ups the camera continues to remain static, only changing angles when there's a cut. At 1:22 Phupha moves his arm to wrap around Tian, the camera could have taken a closer shot at his arm, and then followed his movement as he wraps it around Tian. Like how the camera followed Phaya's movement when he holds Tharn's hand.

Instead it's just a flat shot, we see his arm wrap around in a mid-focus above shot. The camera does move to follow Tian a couple times - at 1:50 for example. But overall, the scene is stiff - who sleeps like this frfr - in framing, in movement, in depth.

I want to say that I don't think this scene is bad - like I do the 2gether scene or the earlier scene with Pran - I think it's just, okay~~

And no, for none of these examples did I pick "the worst" shots or whatever. I'm not out to get any specific show, but tried to find comparable scenes and compare and contrast the filmmaking techniques used in both and how effectively they were used.

I want to leave off with this.

There's a lot that goes into cinematography, yes this singular shot of Furiosa is amazing, but what makes the scene amazing?

Pay attention to how the camera moves (panning and tilting), when the camera moves (zooms in and out), the movement of the scene (the hair and sand moving), the lighting (Furiosa from behind is in darkness, her side profile more lit), the depth of the scene itself changing (as she walks away from the group the focus/aperture gets deeper on her, then when she walks out of the frame it grows larger to focus on the characters left behind).

All these little things make up what is "cinematography". The more you learn about the techniques used the more you can notice about film and what makes a scene powerful.

As BL gets more budget we're seeing shows expand their filmmaking catalogue more and more. Which is exciting! If fandom is gonna talk cinematography I think it's helpful to have the vocab to do so, and it's cool to watch a scene and be like "oh I see what they're doing here and why and how".

I mentioned other things that go into cinematography like framing, lighting, color, and there's also editing (which is separate). Idk if I'll make a post about those things cause I'm lazy and this shit takes forever to research and write but who knows~~

Check out other posts in the series:

Film Making? In My BL? - The Sign ep01 Edition | Aspect Ratio in Love for Love's Sake | Cinematography in My BL - Our Skyy2 vs kinnporsche, 2gether vs semantic error, 1000 Stars vs The Sign | How The Sign Uses CGI | Is BL Being Overly Influenced by Modern Western Romance Tropes?

[like these posts? drop me a couple pennies on ko-fi]

[babacontainsmultitudes]

Hmmm... So the whole thing about Zhouzel's mother having to eat 1000 souls might explain at least part of why the initial (failed) ritual was set up as a boxing match (immediate souls to be fed after she's eaten the warrior offering, albeit probably not nearly enough but a start), and Zhouzel supposedly being a god-slayer that fights the other entities explains why the man in the trophy store described Zhouzel as "brave", though he also described it as "rising in the light of Adothi" and I wonder now if Adothi is simply the name of its mother or something else entirely.

-> Okay below is a lot of random, loosely connected thoughts that have been circling around in my brain regarding the happenings of the world and its entities, but please note before venturing further that 1. A lot of it is quite out there, incredibly speculative (if not full-on conspiracy), and likely to be flat-out wrong and 2. I haven't like relistened to the episodes properly so there could be plenty of important details I'm forgetting/missing. So please, feel free both to refute any of the theories being proposed here if you think that evidence exists to the contrary, and feel free to share your own thoughts and theories (no matter how "out-there") on the mysteries of Peachyville and everything beyond it, I'd love to hear them.

OKAY. Speaking of the trophy guy, flame has been playing an interesting role in the narrative thus far. The trophy gu- oh Hal that was his name- Hal wields it in an attempt to spare both himself and the party from whatever fate Peachyville is apparently destined towards should the powers that lie beyond the veil (Zhouzel included) be unleashed, then we learn from the book Trudy finds [did it have a name? I can't remember] that the being unleashed from the failed ritual (presumably this was also Zhouzel's mother) is weak to fire, then related to and following that we have that pretty horrifying scene where the flamethrowers come out through a portal (more on that in a moment) and kill everyone who was trying to escape, then in this episode the ritual room has fire extinguishing foam prepped and ready to go. So what's up with that? Are all the entities weak to fire (unlikely, since The Doodler does not appear to be)? Is it just some of them, or really just Zhouzel's mother? Could there be some other entity associated with flame in some way or another? One that inspires its own kind of madness, as in the case of Hal?

The flamethrower scene is quite interesting and raises a number of questions. The goal was almost certainly to do away with the entity in the ring, but whether that was with the goal of reattempting the ritual down below or fighting the ritual entirely is unclear. The latter case is rather interesting, because it implies that there are people other than Moth Jesus (and Relish Wet?) and the PCs actively trying to prevent The Bisons from summoning Zhouzel, and that these people may be quite powerful and dangerous in their own right. Moreover, in his phonecall with Trudy (who he believed to be Tucker), Dr. Man actually suggests exactly this: that there are people working against those still involved in Project Heartland (or whatever's become of it now) and that betrayal within the organization has already occured. So who then? Actually *one* of these enemy factions we've already known for a while now: the soviets. Everything that "Penny Picket" had to say to Tony in episode 4 and that which E.B. White had to say about her in episode 5 (describing her as the "former KGB occult operations officer") suggests that 1. the soviets are aware of and against the plan to summon Zhouzel, and 2. the british are most likely in favor of and associated with it and Project Heartland alongside the americans. So maybe the portal and flamethrowers belonged to the soviets, but are there more possibilities than that? Well, Mama Anderson (I can't remember her first name if it's been said), as you may recall, wanted Kelsey to win against The Bison's chosen warrior, which as we saw of course fucked with the ritual, so it seems likely albeit not certain that she and the Anderson gang are enemies of The Bisons and against Zhouzel's summoning as well, possibly responsible for the flame thrower incident, though the extent of their intentions remains unclear (they could just be a gang mainly concerned with money, of course, or things could go much deeper than that).

Leaving that there and instead returning to the topic of flame, I ask again, could there be some entity associated with flame and fire? It's a farfetched theory at the moment, but not entirely out of the question. Of those mentioned, Zhouzel and Adothi (if Adothi is the name of an entity at all and not just something else entirely) are most likely out of the question, as is The Doodler of course, and I highly doubt either The Maggot Whore or "The Cloud Thing" would be. Daegon perhaps? [Okay, now we're getting into real conspiracy theory territory for a moment or several] The only "Daegon" I could find (with that spelling at least) is the mortal combat character hehe, but in all fairness to the theory that guy is a demi-god and does have fire-related abilities. Not connected to Daegon specifically but still to the possibility of a fire-oriented entity, when Trudy reads from her book she reads the following passages:

In 1503 I saw through the veil And cried 666 words in a wail Ask me a question and draw out 3 cards And with them I'll show you the fate in your stars

For our purposes right now, it's the 666 portion that's of particular interest, since it alludes to more classical/biblical notions of something demonic/devilish and hence associated with fire. Guillermo Campos' accounts and existence may nod to the existence of a more devilish entity as well (referring mainly to his ties to catholicism, sins, and the inquisition). As a small and mostly unimportant sidenote, though I don't have any real evidence to support this, I somehow feel as though these passages may be related to the "Testimony of the Unknown Pagan", referenced in episode 9. Also, both Trudy's and Guillermo's books suggest that contact with all that lies beyond the veil far precedes Project Heartland.

As a small, final note tangentially-related to that last point, books also seem to be a reoccurring and important matter, as evidenced by the individual books mentioned as well as the existence of the archives themselves. The Maggot Whore, moreover, is said to read from The Book Of Many Eyes (and this book is mentioned again by someone talking to Dr. Man in the hospital in episode 7), which kind of makes me wonder if we'll finally encounter her(?) at the archives, though to be honest the zoo feels just as likely to me (something something rotting flesh). This reoccurring motif of books above all else has me wondering what's in store for Peachyville's happiest and snappiest schoolmarm, and that's not even getting into the implications and consequences of the decision she made today.

...

Okay okay one more thing that absolutely doesn't matter and never will but the implication from the episode 3 intro that the film "four father's in fantasy land" was used as part of a failed experiment orchestrated as part of Project Heartland (that failed experiment of course being what happened to Hildy/what we saw footage of in Oakvale) makes me wonder if there's an original version of the film, and hence of the S1/S2 universe, before its tape was altered by the Heartland experiment, where the doodler isn't released and S2 of course goes very very differently. OKAY THAT'S ALL GOODNIGHT PEACHYVILLE, GOODNIGHT.

[ec1ips3]

-;༉‧₊˚✧  𝐢 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐝𝐨 𝐢?

⚡︎ pairing: megumi fushiguro x reader

⚡︎ summary: megumi doesn’t have crushes, he didn’t think he could have one. but he doesn’t think this feeling is normal.

⚡︎ warning: this is so fucking fluffy it’s sickening, “pretty”, “beautiful”, “gorgeous”, “stunning”, i told ya this was fluffy. 

⚡︎ word count: 4370

⚡︎ a/n: heyyyyyy guyssssss….. okay i know it’s been foreverary. i’m sorry. i got sick, had major tests, lost motivation, got sick again, still had a writer’s block, went on vacation, got sick AGAIN, and still had zero motivation. but alas, we are here. we have motivation. and we aren’t sick. I know i should’ve spent my summer writing, but i did not and school starts back up this month, so this is 1000% bad timing, but hey who cares. but yeah sorry i was away for four months. hopefully, i’m back this time. enjoy and happy reading <;33

masterlist | megumi’s masterlist | taglist

Despite the fact that he has a lot to say, Megumi Fushiguro is quiet. Very very quiet. It isn’t that he didn’t know what to say, he does. He just doesn’t feel like talking unless he absolutely has to. And even when he does speak he’s always so calm, his voice always sounding like he was bored, even if he isn’t.

But not with you.

Of course not with you.

He always engaged in the conversation when you were there. He actually sounded like he wanted to be there too. It was obvious that he only preferred the conversations you were in. He hadn’t even noticed this until it was pointed out to him. 

“Why do you only talk when Y/n’s around?” Nobara asked him once you had finally walked away. She was one of the first people to notice it. Two weeks ago when it almost seemed like the two of you were having your own conversation, even when the both of you were with other people.

Megumi looked at her confused. “What are you talking about?”, he turns away but Nobara follows him.

“You only ever talk when they’re around”

“That’s not true”

Nobara huffs, “That is true.”

Megumi rolls his eyes, “I’m talking to you now.” He says plainly.

“Yeah, but only because you have to. You actually want to talk to Y/n”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re being weird.”

This comment offends Nobara, “I’m not being weird! You’re being weird, Fushiguro!” She crosses her arms.

“Okay Nobara,” he says unphased by her comment.

After that day he really thought about it. Was he really like that? He knew he was quiet. He just assumed he was quiet with everyone. He would’ve noticed it by now, wouldn’t he? He would’ve caught on that he talks to you more, right? Why did he talk to you more?

Once he got to that question he rolled his eyes to himself. That’s the most simple answer. It’s because you and he had more in common. Why else would he talk to you more? That is the only answer, right?

Plus it makes more sense. He spoke to you more because the both of you have more in common. Which is why he didn’t notice before. Duh, obviously. No other reason.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *. ☽ .* :☆ﾟ｡･ ───

He hadn’t thought about it for a while. Not after he came to his conclusion. Not his conclusion, the conclusion. It was the last thing on his mind while he was walking to his room, fidgeting with the pen in his hand. 

No, of course not he’s not thinking about how comfortable he is when talking to you. How easy it feels to talk to someone he thinks is thinking the same thing as him. Cause that’s stupid. Why would he think that? 

He drops his pen thinking about it. He curses himself before crouching down to get it. When he puts his hand out another hand brushes his. Wait, what was that? He immediately pulls away and stands up. Once he’s up he realizes the person’s hand it belonged to was you. 

You looked up at him, still crouched down, and laughed a little before picking it up. “Sorry, Megumi. I didn’t mean to scare you” you say, offering the pen back.

What was that?

That thing that happened, what was that? He couldn’t explain it.

“I didn’t get scared. Thanks.” He takes the pen from your head. But his mind is so clouded.

What was that? That feeling when your hands touched. Something weird happened.

He was used to feeling something he couldn’t quite put his finger on whenever you accidentally touched each other. Or whenever either of you were close to one another, he got used to that feeling.

But this.

This was different. What was that? It was like, his stomach did something. Something it’s never done before.

You laugh lightly at him, “You alright? You seem like you have a lot on your mind.”

That was a nice laugh he thought before he snapped out of his trance. Wait, you’re still here? “Uh, yeah. I’m alright. Just something weird happened.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Weird?”

“Yeah, weird. It’s probably nothing.”

“Are you sure? Seems like it’s bothering you.”

Megumi shakes his head, “it’s nothing. Thanks for picking up my pen”

You smile and nod as a quiet you’re welcome. You start the opposite way he was walking. “I’ll see you around, Fushiguro.”

Megumi looks back and smiles a bit, “see you around.”

You look back and give him the usual kind smile you always give him, before looking in the direction you were going. Megumi still looking at the direction you were leaving in.

“Whatcha smilin’ at?”

Megumi jumps and looks in the direction of the voice. He rolls his eyes once he sees it’s Gojo. “I’m not smiling.”

Satoru smiles, “So you weren’t just smiling at Y/n”. He points in your direction.

Megumi shakes his head no and shrugs. “Why would I be smiling?”

“You tell me,” Satoru says, walking away shortly after.

Why’s he acting weird? Scratch that, he’s always weird. Megumi shakes his thoughts and walks back to his room. Why has everything been weird lately? It’s starting to annoy him.

Once he relaxes on his bed he picks up one of the books he has lying around. While reading though, he can’t get that feeling out of his head. It wasn’t like he felt butterflies but it felt like something. He couldn’t explain. There has to be something for it. Some sort of word or phrase for it. It was like that one feeling he always felt around you was enhanced.

He hadn’t even asked himself why it happened. Why did it? There has to be a solution to this problem. Maybe it’s because he wasn’t expecting you. Yeah… that sounds right. He was too much in his thoughts, didn’t see you, and didn’t think you would be there to grab his pen. Duh.

Then why was he thinking about your laugh? To be fair, it was a cute laugh. But you always laugh cute so. How couldn’t he think of it? 

See? There are simple answers to these stupid questions he keeps asking himself. 

He’s too much in his mind, he needs to stop thinking about them. 

It’s not like he hasn’t time to think about anything anymore when the pink-haired boy bursts into his room. He groans but doesn’t object. He needs to get a few things off his mind anyway.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *. ☽ .* :☆ﾟ｡･ ───

Megumi, Yuji, and Nobara were just talking to one another. Well, more like Nobara and Yuuji were talking to one another while Megumi just stood there and watched.

When Megumi glanced around, he noticed you talking to Panda and Maki. You looked pretty-- happy. Yes, pretty happy. It didn’t seem like you even noticed the rest of the students.

He hadn’t even noticed that Nobara had walked away until he saw her walking in your direction. When she had arrive you had that big smile and laughed at something she had said. Cute. 

“You’re staring again”

Megumi turned his head to face Yuji. “Staring? At who?”

“Y/n.” he smiles.

“I’m not staring at Y/n.”

“You are.”

“I’m not.”

“You are.”

“I’m not doing this with you” Megumi rolls his eyes.

“But you have to” Yuji pouts at him.

“I don’t. I wasn’t looking at Y/n.”

“Then why were you looking over there?”

“Something caught my eye.”

“You mean, Y/n.” Yuji smiles, he knew he wasn’t wrong. But he knew Megumi would just deny it.

Megumi huffs “No, I mean something.”

“Well whether it was something or a special someone. Y/n’s looking at you.”

“They are?” Megumi looks up immediately. Yuji was right, you were looking at him.

Once both of you shared eye contact, you smiled a bit more but didn’t steer away. There goes that feeling again. You seem to giggle a bit before pointing down. He raises an eyebrow and looks down next to him. Yuji just looked at him with a big smile. Megumi rolls his eyes and turns back to you, but you weren’t looking anymore.

“Did you see that? They only looked away when you did. Bet that made butterflies in your stomach. Oh! Even better, it feel like your stomach was doing flips.”

That was it. His stomach felt like it was doing flips. That-- that’s perfect to call it. That’s what it’s been feeling like recently.

Meumi rolls his eyes, “shut up.”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *. ☽ .* :☆ﾟ｡･ ───

You and Megumi were sitting on some steps alone. It’s been a long time since the two of you have been together, just the two of you. So, he’s feeling a bit nervous, even when he’s not showing it.

Megumi had brought up a topic that he knew you really liked. A topic you knew a lot about.

And that’s when you went off. Like a complete switch from being so calm and comfortable. To be so excited to be talking about this topic and quick because there’s so much to talk about. 

He kinda found it cute. 

It was cute.

You were just rambling about something you really really liked. He didn’t dream of interrupting you, he didn’t want to. He just wanted to watch talk passionately about something you cared deeply out.

“Right?” You say, sounding out of breath.

Oh.

“Yeah, yeah. Right. I agree.” Megumi had no idea what he was agreeing to.

You laugh lightly at him. “You didn’t hear a word I said.”

“No, I did.” He lied, he was too busy admiring you to hear.

“You’re such a liar” You laugh. “I could’ve said anything and you would’ve just agreed to it.”

Megumi smiles at you, “Okay maybe I wasn’t listening to everything. You were just talking too fast, I couldn’t keep up. I’m sorry.”

You smile back at him, “It’s okay, I was speaking really fast”. He can’t believe you bought that. You look at your wrist and huff. “Great, I don’t have a hair tie.”

“Oh, I have one.” 

Megumi takes one off of his wrist and hands it to you. You just stare at him like he’s insane.

“What?”

“Why do you have a hair tie?”

Megumi shrugs, he knows why he has a hair tie. “I don’t know. Just had one on my wrist”

You take the hair tie from him and start putting your hair up. “Is this the one I told you to hold for me like two weeks ago?”

“No.”

Yes.

You smile softly at him, “You sure?”

“Yeah, why would I hold a hair tie for you from two weeks ago? That’s like, I really long time to have one. Especially since I don’t use one.”

You giggle at him, “Oh really? That’s a shame. I was just about to talk about how cute you would’ve been if you did keep it on you.”

Megumi’s face feels hot. Why does it feel hot? It only ever feels hot when it’s hot outside. It isn’t hot outside. Why does it feel hot? 

“Okay, maybe I did keep it on me just in case you or anyone else needed it. It’s a decent thing to do. It doesn’t-- it doesn’t mean anything” He says, his face feeling even hotter.

You giggle at him and smile as you look at him. “Are you blushing?”

Yes.

“No.”

He hears you giggle again, oh now those are butterflies in his stomach. “I’m not blushing.” He insists.

“You’re totally blushing”

“Am not. Why would I be blushing?”

“Because I indirectly called you cute”

Oh, now his face is even hotter. What is going on? Why is it doing that? Stop that.

“So? That doesn’t mean I’m blushing.”

“But it means it’s making you blush.”

Megumi rolls his eyes, and you laugh at him. 

“I’ve never seen you blush before.” You tell him, a light laugh still in your voice.

“That’s because I never blush” he grumbles.

You smile softly at him, “Sure. Well, the ‘not-blush’ on your face looks really handsome on you.”

What.

“What?”

“Y/n!” A new voice is heard. When the both of you look over you see Maki waving you over. You look back to Megumi and smile again, rising from the stairs. “I’ll see you later Megumi,” you say before walking away.

What did you just say? You just say that and then walk away? That’s not fair. You can’t do that. Now he’s blushing more. This-- this isn’t fair.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *. ☽ .* :☆ﾟ｡･ ───

Megumi’s in his room, reading now. But you literally called him cute and handsome. In a span of 5 minutes. On the same day.

And you didn’t even seem phased by it. Like you said it was so causally and like it was normal. 

How was he not gonna blush? It was cute.

He puts his book down. Now that he thinks about it. From everything he’s read, heard, or seen. Is he, crushing on you?

No.

No.

Cause if he was he would like… know, right?

Like he would know he has a crush on you. That’s like the whole point. He’s supposed to know he has a crush on you. 

Then why doesn’t he?

Well, there’s a simple explanation, he doesn’t really crush on people. He doesn’t pay people mind that much to actually have a crush on them. It isn’t his thing.

Maybe, it’s his thing now. Could it be? With everything happening. Talking more around you, his stomach flipping when you’ve touched, liking the sound of your laugh, smiling at you, staring at you, admiring the way you ramble about something you’re interested in, having a hair tie for you, and now blushing around you.

Could he have a crush on you…?

Megumi shakes his head and the thoughts away. There’s no way. No. He’s just, going through a phase, it’ll go away.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *. ☽ .* :☆ﾟ｡･ ───

It didn’t.

If anything it got worse. Megumi’s now paying attention to the little things. The little things he’s starting to enjoy more and more. Like the way, you run your fingers through your hair. Or the way you scrunch your nose when you smile sometimes. Or the way you fidget with your necklace when he compliments you. Or the way you look away before you try not to laugh at something.

But this doesn’t mean he likes you. Nah.

This just means he finds you… interesting?

Yes! That’s it.

He finds you interesting, that’s all. 

“Oh look! I think this fits here” You say, putting a puzzle piece in. Looking at him and smiling.

“You’ve always been better at this than me” 

You laugh a little at his comment. The two of you are used to doing puzzles together. Granted, you only do it when you’re bored out of your mind. But either way, both you and Megumi actually kinda like this activity. The quiet music in the back just adds to the comfortable atmosphere.

But when you both started doing puzzles, you insisted on making it a challenge to see who can put the most pieces on the board. The both of you did the edges together, that was the safety round. But once the edge was done everything was fair game.

You actually started to get quite good at doing puzzles too. You were winning more of the challenges than Megumi was. He would always get you some sort of snack after as well because you won. Even when you rejected it, he always got you a prize. Even when you did win, he obviously didn’t mind. Seeing you happy and smiling at the expense of his failure sat well with him. 

There were times when Megumi would put the most pieces down and win. But he would still always get you the small snack prize. Using the excuse of “you tried your best” to give it to you.

“That’s not true. You’re good at this” You reply to him with your usual soft smile. God, that smile.

Megumi just shrugged. “Maybe I’m good but that doesn’t mean you’re still not better at solving puzzles than I am.”

You don’t want to admit it to him but you are a little better than him. Just a little. You’ve convinced yourself at this point that he just lets you win. It just seems like he’s always wasting time not trying to put the pieces together but getting distracted by looking at something. And Megumi rarely gets distracted. So that just means he lets you win. 

“That’s cause you don’t try hard enough,” You say, turning back to the puzzles.

“I try plenty enough”

“If you did, maybe you’d win more” You laugh a little at his expense. 

Megumi rolled his eyes with a small smile on his lips. You weren’t wrong. He never tried too much when doing puzzles with you. He doesn’t mean to. It just so happens he gets preoccupied with looking at you.

He can’t help it. I mean, look at you. Seeing you concentrate on something like a puzzle is a cute sight. Watching the gears in your head turn to try to solve something is nice. 

He’s starting to get what Yuji meant about him staring at you. He does like to look or stare at you. But like he’s convinced himself, he can’t help it. There isn’t a real possible answer.

Unless…

Now that you’re next to him. He’s really thinking about the idea of liking you.

It can’t be. He would have to know. Everyone knows when they like someone. That’s what people like the most about crushing on someone.

That would explain why he’s currently feeling all tingly or his stomach doing that weird thing. 

He doesn’t like you, does he? He would know.

It isn’t an impossible idea. I mean you’re- unbelievable. Looks and personality-wise. You’re beautiful, gorgeous even. You’re stunning. Plus you’re so easy to talk to. Like, he feels the most comfortable talking to you. It’d be easy for anyone to crush on you. He’s certain there are other people out there that are crushing on you. Other people out there that are would be more than lucky to be around you. Other people that want to be close to you.

He’s happy that he gets to the one close to you. Thankful that you choose him to be around. And although he’s a little shy about the idea, he’s excited to have a crush on-

Hold on a second.

What.

He couldn’t. That-- no. No way. Is he serious?

“I don’t like you, do I?”

“Excuse me?”

His eyes widen. Did he just say that out loud? That wasn’t meant to be said out loud. Wait you look angry. Oh my god did you think--

“Oh no no no no. Not like-- No I do like you. I just--”

“Are you sure? It seemed like you had to think about it.” You crossed your arms. Oh no. You didn’t believe him.

“No, I swear! I love being around you. I promise you. I do like you.”

“Then how come you had to question it?”

“No, I wasn’t--” he sighs. “I wasn’t questioning it like that. I was questioning it, in a different… Way”

You pause, now your thoughts are racing. A good different or a bad different? “What… kind of way?”

He rubs the back of his neck nervously. He couldn’t lie to you. He’s lied to you enough about little things. He can’t do that now. “Romantically?” he says, sounding more like a question.

There’s a pause in the room. A long pause. He thinks he blew it. He knows he blew it. You’re never gonna talk to him again.

“Romantically?” You ask quietly.

This is the end. This is the end of everything. Of the puzzle days. The hanging out together. The having a hair tie on his wrist. The blushing, stomach flipping, butterflies. All of those days. Gone. 

“Hey, look this piece goes here” Megumi trails off the topic, putting a piece on the puzzle. It fits perfectly.

You shake your head and gently take his hand and from the possible. “No, we’re talking about this. Now.” 

Megumi sighs and turns to you. He doesn’t want to ruin this. He would prefer if you brushed past it and acted like it never happened.

“What do you mean romantically, Megumi?”

He really didn’t want to do this. He’s never had to do this. “I’m trying to figure out if I like you or if I like like you.”

There goes that pause again. This silence is so loud. It’s deafening. Megumi’s body feels cold from how worried he is. “You’re trying to figure out if you have a crush on”

Megumi just nods in response. He doesn’t trust his voice to try not to sound too desperate. He looks down at the floor from the seat he’s in. he’s contemplating if he should just leave. Never leave his room again and just rot in his own embarrassment.

Then he hears your small quiet laughter. His head picks up. Great, now you’re laughing at him! Maybe you’re just laughing at how funny this situation is. You wouldn’t laugh at him… would you?

“Are you laughing at me?” He asks.

You continue to laugh and nod. 

Oh… that’s awesome. Wow, that’s so cool. Yeah, he’s gonna rot in his embarrassment now.

“I am laughing at you, but not for the way you think.”

Not for the way he thinks? He raises an eyebrow, confused.

“Megumi, I’ve been showing you I like you for months now. And you’re just here, in your head. Trying to figure out if you have a crush on me.” You laugh again. “It’s a bit funny.”

Wait… did he hear that properly? 

Megumi… showing… like you…. Months… head… figure out… crush--

He did hear it correctly!

“What do you mean you’ve been showing me you like me for months?”

You laugh. “You’re kidding. You haven’t noticed?” Megumi shook his head no in response. “Everyone has noticed. It was painfully obvious.”

“It was not.”

“It was.”

Megumi huffs. “No way it was obvious. That doesn’t make any sense. I would’ve noticed.”

“You were too busy in your thoughts. Maybe because you were trying to figure out if you like me or not” You laugh.

Megumi was silent. He didn’t know what to say. Was he too distracted with figuring out his own feelings to even realize how out and open you were with yours?  

“But let’s not talk about that, yet. Let’s talk about if you’ve figured out if you like me or not.”

“I haven��t. Not yet anyway. I’ve never really had crushes. This is all new to me.”

You smile softly at him, “That’s fine. We can figure it out together.”

“What if I don’t like you?” He didn’t even want to think of that outcome.

You sigh and run your fingers through your hair. “I’ll get over it and we’ll act like this never happened.”

Megumi smiled and nodded, “Alright. How do we find out?”

“Well, firstly. You have to be 100% honest.”

“Honest, got it.”

You smile, “Alright so. With you, I get butterflies in my stomach whenever you look me in the eye.”

“Like this?” He smiled.

You giggled and nodded, “Yeah exactly like that. Or I get super nervous when our arms touch.”

“You don’t seem to get nervous.”

“I’m a good actress.” You smile. “I also sometimes go out of my way to see you. Like I actually want to be around you.” 

Megumi blushes lightly but nods, “So what does all of that mean?”

“Those are a few signs that prove I have a crush on you or like you. So now you tell me how you feel, and we’ll figure it all out from there.”

Megumi nods and takes a deep breath. “Well… my stomach does this uh-- thing where it feels really weird. Like it flipped” he says sheepishly.

You giggle but nod, “That’s good. Anything else?”

He nods again. “Yeah, you know when you said you want to be around me? I feel the same way. I really want to be around you. Like a lot. And also, I think you’re really pretty. And cute. I like the way you laugh and smile as well. It’s really-- uhm. It’s really nice”

You and he match blushes. But Megumi doesn’t stop. “Yeah and like, sometimes I plan my conversations with you. Only sometimes though. Just because I don’t want to say the wrong things around you. I really like spending time and talking to you because I think I feel the most comfortable with you. Like it’s so easy to talk to you, it’s crazy. And you always make spending time with you a good time so. It’s no surprise why anyone wouldn’t want to hang out with you.”

“Yeah, you’re easy to talk to too.” You giggle.

Megumi sighs shortly, “Like that. That laugh you just did. I really like it. Or when you’re talking to anyone, you always sound like you know what you’re talking about. It’s nice to hear. Or when someone’s talking to you and you’re listening to them. You have this look that’s just. Captivating.”

There’s a long pause. You don’t need to say anything. You just smile at him, letting him process. He knew.

“So, I think I do like you.”

You laugh at him and nod. “Yeah, I think so too.”

Megumi blushes brightly, “Now what do we do?”

“Now we plan something. A date. How about Saturday, we go to the arcade. Together, obviously.” You give him a kind smile.

Is this really happening?

“Saturday. Yeah, that sounds-- cool.”

Is he actually going on a date with you on Saturday? And doing it so casually.

You smile, “Perfect.” You turn back to the puzzle. “Now, let me show you how much better I am than you are at completing puzzles.”

You pick a piece and place it to the piece he placed down not too long ago. The pieces fit perfectly together.

aaaaaaa! how cute was this?

[montecarloedexistence]

Driving myself Crazy for three hours trying to make an incomplete Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics Simulation in Python

The following post is a rant. I try my best to explain and dumb things down, but I'm writing it with too much frustration at my code so I apologize in advance.

For those who wanna go oooh colors changing pretty here's a short clip of the animation I generated. There's a longer simulation linked at the bottom of the post.

Read on about how I made the simulation under the cut.

Okay, so, Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics. It's one method of Simulating Fluids (gases and liquids and plasmas basically) with computers. It's mainly got applications in two places, from what I know. One is in Science Research, and another is in Game Development.

There are two major methods of representing a fluid for a computer, one is with Particles, and another is with grids. I tried to make a grid-based simulation but that has a lot more math, and I can't do math without some meth so here I am.

Okay, so Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics. How does it work? Well, like it says, it's basically simulating the constituent and then smoothing them out to sorta get the hydrodynamic behavior. [3]

The Ancient Indian natural scientist Maharshi Kanada [1] postulated that everything in the world was made of tiny little things indivisible things called Paramanu. Democritus proposed a similar theory, that all matter was composed of small indivisible particles which they called "atoms" [2]. The idea of smooth particle hydrodynamics builds on top of that. If everything is made up of these constituent particles, then so must fluids as well.

These constituent particles (particles henceforth) are nice. They don't break further, and they undergo elastic collisions. (ACTUALLY, the actual molecules that make up a fluid are not like this, we're just assuming that they are cuz this whole mess is complicated enough without having to simulate intra-intermolecular interactions). Elastic Collisions, basically mean that the particles, when they hit each other, they don't lose the energy of motion (kinetic energy). [4]

An actual Liquid is going to have MILLIONS OF BILLIONS of particles. Actually, we have a name for something that big, it's called a Mole. [5] One mole is like 10^23 particles. (10 times 10 times 10... twenty three times). But my computer is a useless piece of potato that can't even be used to make a goddam french fry, unless you wanna heat up the oil with how hot this thing gets doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.

Okay sorry for the tangent. It's like almost 2 in the night and I'm hungry. My point is that my computer can't keep track of one mole of particles. It's too many particles. So, what I say is, okay, out of the one mole of particles, I'm going to keep track of only like say, 1000 particles. And then whatever results I get, I multiply it with a big number and scale it up to approximate the results of one mole of particles.

So, I just put a bunch of particles, and then I have to keep track of their positions, velocities, accelerations, and all that jazz. So if you remember 8th grade there were these equations of motion, where you'd change the values of position, velocity, and acceleration using some formulae. [6] Those formulae are continuous, which means for fancy sphancy reasons (Remind me to write another post about this when I'm in a better mood about this one it's super cool) I can't use. I need to do something called Discritize the equations. [7].

For that, I used something called the Explicit Euler Method first. [8] That's basically a method that Euler came up with I guess so it's got his name. Why does the Wikipedia article on this thing not have a history section but a section on "In Popular Culture" wth. Someone pls edit it if you know the history of this thing anyways.

The problem with Discretization is that, the way you're implementing it in computers, it's not going to be accurate. There's going to be some errors and they build up. So normally when you drop a ball from a certain height, and ignore the fact that heat and air and friction exists, then the ball hits the ground, and bounces back, it should go back to the height it started at. But because of the errors from Discretization adding up, the ball kept losing height. That's not good. So I moved over and implemented this thing called the Runge Kutta Method. [9] These methods were developed around 1900 by the German mathematicians Carl Runge and Wilhelm Kutta. If you're looking at the wikipedia page for this and wondering what the heck is this, same gurl same. I just asked chatgpt to implement this method into my code and it gave out something that I think is correct I'm not sure. But the point is that this is better and doesn't throw that much errors in calculation.

Okay now that that's done, I threw like a 1000 balls onto the screen, gave them random velocities, put them under an arbitrary downward gravity, and hooray. That covers the particle part of the Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics.

(YES I know particles don't go through each other like they do in this simulation. I'm supposed to include some collision logic, and I could not be bothered to implement it yet, because it is 2 AM and I AM GOING CRAZY with just this much.)

Now, for the Smooth part of Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics. If only I could use this as an excuse to pull out my smooth pickup lines but I'll stick to the physics for now. Basically, one way of calculating density is, suppose I have a box, I can toss in say 100 balls, and then the density of the box is 100 balls / box. The box has some volume, so I divide this unit I've got with the volume of the box. And each ball has some mass, so I multiply the unit with the mass of each ball. And that's basically what I do here.

Suppose, I take a point and then around it, I draw a circle. I first count the number of particles in this circle, and then divide it with the volume of the circle. (There's a few more steps here but i'm not bothering. I'm giving more importance to the particles closer to the point and less to the particles more far away but that's a mess to explain and I can't think of a way to explain it.). And then I multiply and divide by the mass of particle and volume of the circle respectively, I end up with the density at the given point.

But that's just for one point. If you sit and plot it for as many points as possible, then you get something resembling the density function of the system. What I've done here is basically divide my domain into a 25 by 25 grid, and I calculated the density at the center of each of the grid boxes. The more particles and the More Grid boxes you have, the more smoother your function will be. Here, not so much. It's a pixelated mess, but the same logic applies. I calculated the density grid for each instant of time, and then let the simulation run for like 1000 frames.

FINALLY the plotting. I just plotted the points where they are with a scatterplot, and then the background I put the heatmap of the density. And of course I didn't bother naming my axes, because that's the standard practice for plotting graphs. (When you're lazy like I am right now. Always label your axes in a serious graph)

So here's the GIF I finally generated after the trials and tribulations going for like 1000 frames. Let's hope Tumblr can render it pls.

I cited my references in the order of the paragraphs I wrote so deal with the non-linear citations. This ain't a research paper and it's way too late in the night for me to be bothered about this sorry. Why did I even bother with the citations if I was going to half-arse this thing anyways this is why you don't write stuff when half asleep.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ka%E1%B9%87%C4%81da

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomism

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoothed-particle_hydrodynamics

[4] https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elastic_collision

[5] https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mole_(unit)

[6] https://byjus.com/physics/equations-of-motion/

[7] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discretization

[8] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euler_method

[9] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runge%E2%80%93Kutta_methods

Okay yeah that's about it time to sleep for me. I just wanted to finish writing this post before I could sleep, cuz I know for a fact I ain't goina be in a mood to write it once I wake up. 100% gurantee I'll lose the motivation to write it once i wake up lol.

[vodika-vibes]

Congrats on 800 followers!! You deserve all of that and more!!

Could I humbly ask for Corn Maze + Tech? Perhaps NSFW if you feel up to it 👀

-cc--2224 💚

Fearless

Summary: You invite Tech to come with you to a corn maze, it’s something you’ve always loved to do and you want to introduce it to him too. Plus, you really want some alone time with him.

Pairing: TBB TEch x F!Reader

Word Count: 924

Warnings: Smut, oral m recieving

Prompt: Corn Maze

A/N: It is not easy to write proper smut in until 1000 words, so this is not proper smut, sorry. I hope you like it anyway.

Click HERE to be added to my taglist

“A corn maze?” Tech looks from you to the maze, and then back to you and you can’t help but shift nervously, “Do people really find this amusing?”

You glance at the maze, and then at Tech, “I’ve always enjoyed it,” You admit, honestly, “But if you’re not interested we can leave—” Sure, maybe it’s a bit simple, but for you, it’s always been more about the company than the maze itself.

But, if he’s really not interested you don’t mind putting it aside for something more his speed, though there’s nothing here that will catch his attention. 

You jump when light fingers tap your cheek, and you look up at Tech surprised that he’s suddenly so close. “Do we need tickets?” He asks.

“Um…yeah, right over there. It shouldn’t be too expensive.” He turns to head to the desk, but you quickly grab his arm, “Tech, if you don’t want to do this, I don’t mind leaving.”

He looks at you, and a small smile crosses his face, “I want to spend time with you. You want to do this maze. This way we both get what we want.” Tech moves your hand from his wrist and threads his fingers with yours.

Fifteen minutes later, you and Tech are in the maze, and you’re eagerly tugging him away from the mass of people who entered at the same time as you.

Tech allows you to tug him in the wrong direction for a few minutes before he stops and tugs you into his arms, “If we want to complete the maze quickly,” he says as he bumps his forehead against yours, “We need to head in the other direction.”

You smile up at him coyly, “I know.”

“So, you are intentionally leading us the wrong way?” He asks.

Your grin widens, “Yup.”

“Why?”

You tug his hand to make him follow you around a corner, “Well, because we don’t get to spend a lot of time alone lately.” Tech pauses, and you turn to look at him over your shoulder.

His lips are slightly parted, and you watch as he stares at you. 

You’re clever boyfriend isn’t dumb. He might not completely understand what you’re implying right away, but he’ll get there. Your smile widens as your free hand comes up to play with the topmost button of your shirt.

His gaze snaps to your fingers, and he has to cough to clear his throat, “We are going to get caught,” Tech warns, but even as he says so his gaze remains locked on your fingers and he moves closer to grip your hips tightly.

“Hm, not if we’re careful,” You tease. You move to stand on your toes, and brush your lips against his, “Of course, if it’s too risky for you, we can head to the exit—”

You don’t get much further than that, as Tech leans in and crashes his lips against yours. In truth, he’s been just as frustrated as you at the lack of privacy the pair of you have been subjected to these last few weeks. He just hides it better than you do.

Tech walks you toward a pile of hay bales, and he sits you on one without breaking the kiss. His hands slide down your sides and move to the waist of your leggings, but you stop his hands with a gentle touch.

You pull his hands to your mouth and press feather-light kisses to the pads of his fingers, “Cyare,” Tech’s voice is a low murmur, “Do you not want—?”

“Oh, I want,” You reassure with a small smile, “More than I can put into words.”

“Then why—”

“I want to suck your cock more,”

Tech stops and blinks at you, slack-jawed, for almost a whole thirty seconds. “I…okay.”

“Is that okay?”

“How could I possibly say no?” Tech asks once he’s managed to reboot his brain.

You grin at him and slide off the hay bale to rest on your knees in front of him. Patiently, you wait for him to unfasten his jeans and tug his boxers out of the way, and you release a pleases sigh when his half-hard cock bounces free.

You lean in and press a light kiss to the head of his cock, before you grip the base and you take him in your mouth. He grows harder under your touch, and you release a happy hum as you hollow your cheeks and suck hard.

Tech releases a groan and his hips jerk a little bit, pushing his length farther into your mouth. At this point, Tech knows what you can handle and what you like, and if the pair of you weren’t stealing a moment alone in a corn maze, he’d be properly fucking your face.

But that always leads to several hours of fun, which isn’t possible right now. Tragically.

Tech’s hands settle on top of your head and, “When we finish here,” He murmurs, “I am taking you somewhere private and I’m going to spend the night ruining you.” He says it like it’s a promise, and you can’t help but shiver.

You pull back to trail your tongue down the side and around the base of his cock, and then you peer up at him. “Well, then. I’d better hurry.”

Tech laughs softly, “Well, you don’t have to hurry that much,”

You toss him a small grin and then lean in to take him back in your mouth. This is exactly what you wanted from today, and it’s only going to get better.

@n0vqni

@bad4amficideas

@justiceandwar98

@tiredbi-peach

@dukeoftheblackstar

@trixie2023

@kimiheartblade

@padawancat97

@falconfeather23435

@etod

@bb8-99

@continous-mistakes

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@cdblake1565

[spaghettificationandpretzels]

Hello!! I was wondering if I could sum it a request for the 1000 followers celebration post?!

It would be Mr. Opie Winston. And the prompt “you’re covered in motor oil, it’s kinda hot” with some good ol’ smut please and thank you?

Masterlist

Good Honest Work

Contains: Fluff, smut.

1.1K words

The average shower lasts about eight minutes and the average shower head has a water flow of 2.1 gallons per minute.

The sound of the Jazz playing in the kitchen as you cleaned somehow matched perfectly with the way the noise of Opie's power tools floated in from the garage.

He had been in there working on that old bike for weeks, his hands growing more calloused as time passed and you could see the pride written on his face as it came together.

The sound of the door opening pulled you away from the crumbs in the fridge, "Can you grab me a beer?"

You reached to the top shelf and spun around as you passed the beer to Opie, "How did you do today?"

He nodded, "Great, it's coming together really well."

You sighed as you took in his appearance, "I'm working hard to keep the house clean and you're dragging garage junk inside."

He looked over himself and frowned, "I can go change if you want?"

You nodded, "I mean, you're covered in motor oil, it's kinda hot but yes please." You held up a finger as an idea occurred to you, "I'm almost done here anyway. Let me finish wiping out the fridge and then we can shower together?"

He flopped down and the chair and sipped his beer, "Sure, can I help?"

You shook your head, "No, you're messy."

He chuckled, "You love it."

"Yes I do, but don't you dare spread your mess anymore. In fact, the prospect better be down here to make that garage spotless when you're done with that bike. I don't want to get motor oil all over me when I go in there for light blubs of some shit like that." If you knew Opie at all, it would be clean anyway.

Opie smiled slightly and gave you a nod, "Yes ma'am."

It only took a few more moments for Opie to finish his beer and you to finish the fridge. He placed his hand on your lower back as you made your way to the bathroom. You stopped in the middle of the room to strip him of his dirty clothes and Opie did the same for you, his hand drifting over your skin as he went.

You took his hand, walked him into the shower and made sure the water was perfect. Opie climbed in after you and you picked up the fancy olive oil soap and started by washing the motor oil off his hands and arms. You moved to his chest next and Opie's eyes closed as you gently scratched his skin.

He stopped you, taking your hands in his before spinning you around, grabbing your loofa and taking to soap off you, "It's no fun if you get don't get soapy too."

You sighed, "Yes, you're right." His fingers dug into your flesh as he rubbed out the knots in your muscles, "Oh boy that feels nice."

Opie chuckled, "I bet it does." He picked up the shower head and washed the lather off your back, "Turn around."

You did as he asked and a smile grew on his face as he suds up your breasts, "Did you just offer so you could touch my tits?"

He shook his head, "That wasn't the only reason."

He was half hard when you looked down and you met his eyes with a smirk, "Why don't we finish up here and pick it up where we won't end up with a head injury?"

Opie nodded, "Sure." The rest of the shower went by in a flash and then you stepped out as Opie wrapped a towel around your body.

Once you were both dry, Opie took your towels to the hamper and dropped them in before talking back towards you, "Have I told your you're pretty today?"

You nodded, "Yes, when we got up this morning, my hair was a mess and I had goop in my eye."

He stroked your cheek as he leaned in to kiss you, "Well I'm going to tell you again, you're very pretty." You craned your head and his lips met yours as he walked you towards the bed and Opie pulled back and licked his lips, "Let me show you."

You fell back on the bed and shifted your way up onto the pillows as Opie's lips met your neck, his bread scratched your skin as he kissed his way down your body, stopping to lick your nipples on his journey.

Opie lifted your legs over his substantial shoulders and pressed his lips to your inner thigh as he kissed his way towards your core. His lips were gentle as he kissed your slit and he groaned as as your hips twitched when he licked a stripe from your entrance to your clit and back again.

You woved your hands into his hair and held him to your body as he moved one of his huge hands from your beasts to your entrance. His lips sealed around your clit as he slid two fingers inside you. He went slow as first, his fingertips searching until your breath caught in your throat, "Found it."

"It's in the same place it's always been Ope." He didn't give you the chance to quip further as he stroked your G-spot and used his free hand to pull you so close you wondered how he could breathe.

You started to flutter around him and Opie doubled down, pressing your G-spot firmly as his plump lips worked in your clit. His free hand moved from your thigh to over your hips to hold you down as you reached the edge and with one last brush of his fingers, you were clenching around them while you moaned out his name in an almost pained whimper.

You let out a shuddering breath as Opie pulled his fingers away then he was kissing back up your body to your mouth. His hand was gentle on your cheek as he kissed you and you could taste yourself on his lips as he deepened the kiss.

When you went to reach down Opie's body to grab his hard cock he stopped you with a head shake, "Hey, I didn't to do it because I wanted anything back. You've been working on the house all day, I did it to say thank you for how wonderful you've been."

You nodded softly, "Ok, thank you."

Opie smiled and brushed your nose with his as he pulled you into his arms, "How about we have a nap then I'll take us out from dinner?"

"That sounds really nice." His arms were so warm.

Opie sighed and pressed his lips to your temple, "I love you y/n."

You returned the gesture, then nestled into his strong arms, "I love you too Ope."

Fin

[awkwardauthorwrites]

I'm Yours

Word Count: 530

Themes: fluff

Warnings: hints towards smut but no actual smut 

Everyone stay calm, this is not a drill I’ve written something under 1000 words for the first time in existence. @shadowwheartt and I decided to do a quick little drabble challenge where we flipped coins and rolled a dice to see who we'd be writing for and what genre and I got Minthara fluff. I tried something different where I made Tav gender neutral, let me know what you think!

Minthara wasn't sure exactly when Tav had snuck their way into her life, but she suddenly felt like she couldn't remember how they used to function without them.

Tav had been gone for a whole day to scout the Shadowlands and see if they could find the pesky group of adventures that had been causing havoc for the followers of the Absolute ever since the nautiloid had crashed and Minthara had put no less than four fires out - one of them quite literally. No one seemed to know where the spare key to Balthazaar's quarters were, the kitchen was unstocked and even worse, it looked like no one had been on a supply run recently and so their stock of healing potions was dangerously low. Not to mention the gnolls in the kitchen that kept snapping at each other and when Minthara had glared at the cook the halfling had just shrugged her shoulders and muttered something about how Tav usually kept them appeased and in line.

Minthara sank into her armchair with a frustrated sigh and rubbed at her temples. Tav hadn't been working for them for very long, so how was the whole place falling to shambles without them? There was a small tug in her mind as her tadpole wriggled around in her skull almost mockingly, as if reminding her why she felt so at odds without having Tav around. She brushed the thought away with a quiet huff and made her way to her bedchamber for the night, deciding there wasn't much she could do due to the entire fortress wanting to burn down around them. Shedding her armour, Minthara almost didn't notice the figure lying across her bed, a small smirk on their face when they noticed her undressed state.

“It isn't wise to sneak up on your superiors,” she snapped, glaring as Tav rolled their eyes at her. 

“Maybe we should have superiors who are more aware of their surroundings then. I could have been anyone here to kill you.”

“Such sentimentality in your tone,” Minthara stood at the edge of the bed, her hands on her hips. “Anyone would think you cared.” Tav clicked their tongue and lunged forward, gripping Minthara by the waist and tugging her onto the bed. She didn't have a chance to blink before Tav was leaning over her, their hands pinning her down by the waist. 

“I beg your forgiveness, True Soul,” Tav murmured, brushing their lips across hers. “How ever will I make it up to you?” The tadpole is Minthara's head writhed as Tav connected to it, showing her image after image of all the ways they intended to please her. Minthara felt her heart thud in her chest as Tav pressed their lips to hers and she wasted no time in shedding what was left of her clothes to get what was promised to her.

In the dim afterglow of their activities Minthara let Tav pull her body close, their arm snaking around her waist as they both caught their breath. Tomorrow, Minthara told herself, tomorrow the place could go back to functioning normally now that Tav had returned, but tonight they were hers.

[ride-thedragon]

Why Rhaena does not have Nettles' Narrative.

First things first, the tweet to launch 1000 posts.

Everyone was freaking out because

A. It's so close to the premiere

B. It's been around for a while.

This whole Nettles being replaced by Rhaena theory started during the airing of the first show. People really got into supporting Daemon and Rhaenyra as a couple, and rather than viewing Nettles as a full character realised, she was viewed as a hindering plot point towards our favourite incest ship. So the first person I remember saying it said something along the lines of "What if Rhaena replaced Nettles?".

That spiralled within that space and became almost a counterpart to Nettles being Daemon's bastard daughter. Both of these arguments are often used to deter the romantic narrative Daemon and Nettles have, not to benefit Nettles in any way.

Now I can't vouch for the original poster's validity, but I can point out flaws with what they say.

"Rhaena will claim a sheep eating dragon (Sheepstealer) in the Vale after tracking it for some time."

Counterpoints:

1. Rhaena has her dragon eggs.

In the books, Rhaneyra gives Rhaena dragon eggs to take to the Vale, hoping that it will hatch to her. We see them in the trailer. Similar to Dany's eggs, which, if you're interested, I have a post on Nettles, Rhaena, and Daenerys.

2. Claiming Dragons.

This one almost works as well, but it has a few issues. The time frame, what seems to be occurring in the Vale, and the dragonseed plot.

A. 8 episodes for one season is not a lot of time, but we do have a timeline for what occurs, and the start of the sowing is in episode 7. There isn't enough time for Rhaena to both track Sheepstealer and follow him, seeing as her and Baela seem to be in the Vale before Rook's Rest.

B. What's going on in the Vale?

Rhaena and Baela seem to be both at the Vale before Rook's Rest, and then Baela flies into combat alongside Rhaenys. Then Baela stays on Dragonstone and Driftmark during the sowing as she's at the table. RHAENA IS NOT THERE. This is after the sowing because we see Ulf, Addam, and Hugh but not Rhaena or Nettles. All riders so far are accounted for.

C. This ties into the Dragonseed plot.

If Rhaena isn't there to fight, she doesn't have a dragon. But she is a ward of Jeyne Arryn with her Dragon eggs, like in the book.

3. Tracking it for some time.

This doesn't make sense for two reasons.

A. Why would she try to claim a hungry dragon?

If Sheepstealer is hunting in the Vale, why would Rhaena try to claim a hungry dragon? Rhaena, unlike Nettles throughout the season, would have no precident to assume Sheepstealer wouldn't bend to her as a Targaryen. No one would've been killed in order to facilitate that thought for her at that point if Silver Denys is being killed in Episode 7. She also lives on Dragonstone. Why would she not try to claim him where he lives like a person with common sense?

B. Why is she tracking a wild Dragon?

She lives on Dragonstone, unironically.

The home of all the unclaimed dragons like Vermithor, Silverwing, and Seasmoke. Why would she seek out the wild dragons. Why would she, as he stepdaughter to the Queen, not get to claim all the tamed dragons?

Then, if she decides that she wants to try a wild dragon after all the tamed ones fail to bond with her, who around her would allow her to take that risk? Her stepmother, who just lost two children? Her grandmother who grants her dragonriding sister permission to stand at the council? Or the grandfather who just lost his heir?

I don’t think this is likely. What I think is happening is that she might try and fail at best to give her a narrative, which inspires Jace to send out the Dragonseed call. Are we not tired?

[readingasoiafachapteraday]

THE WORLD OF ICE & FIRE

Reading Order & Thoughts Apparently

//Investigative read with the aim of finishing a fanfic <SPOILERSGALORE>

~this is not intended to be useful in any way shape or form do not construe as such but laughing at it is ok~

The Dawn Age

-dragonglass arrowheads found in giant ribs could be from children-giant war but also cud just as easily be wight giant

-brandon the builder was taken to a secret place by the children when he sought help to build the wall hmmmmmm okk

-“the manner in which Brandon learned to comprehend the speech is a tale in itself and not worth repeating here”?????? WTAF fuck u condal i mean yondel tommen loves stories

-greenseers can see distant events AND COMMUNICATE?hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmplotdevice

-wolfcontrolling skinchangers maxxx common, separately called wargs? stark blood fuckfest much????

-Seastone chair on old wyk wo any ppl SUSSAUCE

The Coming of the First Men

-alleged timing 8000-12000 yrs ago hmmmmm if ww are 6000 yrs ago it’s almost halfway hmmmmmmm

-what they running from? first men possible valyrian ancestors upset w the animalxhuman experiments? conveniently vague time periods

-first settled on DORNE that goddamned desert summins up w ur magic stone i will find u

-greenmen antlermen same same????

-arm of dorne, marshes, all considered natural disasters but w doubt so why not children cause doom of valyria possible??

The Age of Heroes

-ringforts this ringforts that fist of first men this infrastructure that

-find thenn constr. & every single built structure NotW

The Long Night

-do monkeys and elephants have anything in common

-Barth’s “fragmentary treatise” everything shat out by Barth & Munkun makes me want to kms

-Fomas ur understated & prolly right u religious fuck

The Rise of Valyria

-new power in east right after LN recovery, what festive timing gee i wonder if these events r related

-first empire ofc ofc just after old ghis & Qarth & YiTi & Asshai but those r “claims” yea we don’t talk bout that look dragons! blood sacrifice!

-five great wars w ghis “when the world was young” hmmmmmmmm

-Shadow texts say dragons tamed by “people who had no names” hmmmmmmmm

Valyria’s Children

-Qohor&Norvos founded following religious schisms? Only Qohor smiths still know to rework VS

-way way way too many mentions of wealth & human flesh needed in the mines

-fire vs water

-sus that andals & rhoynar both fled from Valyrians but in the second coming “the gods” spoke to the HS while the waterbenders fought both times

-is the long night just fire vs water 2.0?

Arrival of the Andals

-wtf is a fucking swan maiden

-writing the lines of the hugor hill story backwards is not as great a puzzle as u seem to think

-Urron Redhand ruled IIs by “axe&sword” for 1000 yrs, throwaway name? I think the fuck not.

Ten Thousand Ships

-Nymeria of Ny Sar SUS naming

-“few wish to dwell beyond the sound of her eternal song” faith close to old gods

-wtf r the orphans of the greenblood upto

-davos dayne my new OC, forgive me as i project onto u for the forseeable future

-seriously tho the best part so far, need a movie for THIS not whatever fart pudding they baking

The Doom of Valyria

—wtf is the difference between the 14 fires & R’hollor summins weird

-accidental poisoning of one of the flames? like pollution but magical bywaste pollution

-red clouds rained down dragonglass???? and black blood of demons which cud just be dragon blood as they pop in the air from toxicity

-dothraki & sellsword companies both popularised only in the power vacuum

-the conquerer’s attention lay west even as a child hmmmmmm